Summer "Projects"

I really want to make these warm days count and enjoy Summertime with a almost 3 year old and almost one year old (wow!)  So, Natalie and I are tackling some Summer "projects". We've had so much fun.  Other than these activities, we've also been playing in lots of water.  Both girls love splashing.  I fill up a few buckets and the little pool and let them splash away.

Project #1 was our  giant ice block.  We did this while Amirah was with us.  Both girls loved it and stuck with it longer than I expected. Even Brielle got in on the action (mainly to use the ice block as a tool with which to stand up).  

Project #2 was making homemade slime.  This has been on my list for awhile, but I never got around to buying the ingredients.  It turned out great and was simple to make.  In fact, we still have it and Natalie will get it out from time to time to play with it.  I guess the borax is toxic, so this is best as a supervised project.

Project #3 was bathtub paint.  Natalie and I did this to fill some time one evening while Hans was away and Brielle was already in bed.  She loved it.  It was so easy to make, contain, and clean up!  Next time I will add a little less water.  I doubled the recipe, but I wouldn't have needed to.  A little goes a long way.  Also, I'm funny about bathtub pictures of my kids on the internet, so all you get to see is the paint on this one.  

Project #4 was fizzy sidewalk paint.  Natalie especially loved spraying the paintings with vinegar.  This girl loves her spray bottle.  That was one of the best investments ($0.98 at Walmart) that I've made this summer.  Mostly we use water, not vinegar.  But the fizz was so fun! 

My project is planning the girls birthday parties.  Natalie is having a purple party and Brielle is having a cupcake party.  I will show these projects after the fact, but I am staying busy during nap time getting things ready!

Happy Daddy's Day!

Happy Father's Day! I know I'm a little behind, but two days isn't that bad, right? My blogging time seems to have been eaten up by a baby who doesn't like to take very long afternoon naps very often.  In fact, she is awake right now, in her crib, waiting for me.  So, here's my quick Father's Day Tribute to the wonderful Daddy of my beautiful babies and my own amazing Dad.  I have been so blessed!


Natalie LOVES as much time as she can possibly get with her Daddy.  Yesterday, she was content to sit out in the work van (well, sit may not quite be the right word) while her Daddy worked on it.  She was probably out there for a couple hours all together.  She also likes to sit up in his office and "tinker" with his things.  Yes, she is her father's daughter. I see so much of him in her which is really a beautiful thing.  

Brielle delights in the sight of her Daddy.  I love that line.  There is so much I can learn from watching my girls and their Dad.  Her face lights up at the sight of him and her legs begin to squirm.  "Please, get me Daddy!" You can see it all over her.  Pure joy.  

Hans, thank you so much for being the kind of Daddy that plays, and laughs, and teaches.  I love you and love how you love!

To my own Dad, thank you for preparing me to be a wife and a mother.  Thank you for teaching me how to love and how to learn.  Thanks for instilling in me vision and the ability to see beyond the here and now.  I love you so much.  So much of who I am and where I'm at is because of who you were and continue to be and for that I think we are all pretty blessed!

Ok, better get the girl.  Oh, and don't you love the picture of my man and those beautiful babies? Props to Karmon Franklin for being able to capture anything close to smiles!

Memorial Day Fun!

We had a fun Memorial Day weekend!  The weekend started off a little rough, with Hans working all day on Saturday and me at home with the girls, one who is teething up a storm!  Until Hans got home Saturday evening I was a little on the grumpy side and in desperate need of getting out of the house and having some family fun.

So, Sunday afternoon we concocted a plan to head to a local State Park to grill some hot dogs and let Natalie play in the stream.  We invited Hans' oldest brother and his family and at the last minute my sister and her family joined us.  It was just what the doctor ordered!  Hans and I had to laugh as our quick plan took awhile to execute.  Sometimes I miss the days when we just had to grab the charcoal and the hot dogs.  This time we had changes of clothes, towels, diapers, toys, blankets, booster seat etc.  But, I wouldn't trade these days for anything.

Monday we spent the day at my parents.  We had a cook out, all four kids took naps, and the girls played out in the little pool and the sprinkler.  So fun! I just love time with family.

Bring on Summertime!

There's a Lesson Here Somewhere

Do you ever get that feeling that you are right in the middle of a lesson?  Like it's all around you and you're starting to grasp for it, but it's just evading you?  I don't know, I get that feeling sometimes. There's this big word floating around right now... it's not actually huge as far as words go, but I think its meaning may be vast.  PERSISTENCE.  Maybe it didn't wow you with it's letter count or pronunciation, but think about it for awhile and I think you'll be impressed. I know I am.

See I'm surrounded with persistence... I have a two and a half year old.  "Why, Mommy... but why?  I know but why?..." " Please, Mommy.... I need it...Mommy, now! PERSISTENCE.  Then there is this baby who cannot yet persist in words, but definitely can in actions.  She's learning to crawl and she will grunt and groan and grasp until she gets where she wants to be. PERSISTENCE.  And as I watch these sweet, persistent girls the word reverberates in my mind and I think, "God, you're up to something aren't you?"

I want to persist in my asking like a toddler.  There are things I know God has in store for me, and for you for that matte,r that will only be given as I ask.... and ask... and ask... like some tenacious little girl I know.  I want to persist in my actions like a crawling baby.  There are things I'm sure God has in store if only step out and step into them like some baby girl I know that won't give up until she gets there.  PERSISTENCE.

I'm tired of saying I can't have it even before I've asked.  I'm tired of thinking it's out of reach only because it may take a little work to get there.  PERSISTENCE.

My Kitchen Floor

I could maybe write a book about my kitchen floor, with all the time I've put into despising it, cleaning it, standing on it, cleaning it again, despising it some more. The thing is, I'm pretty sure it doesn't deserve so much thought. Now the things I've learned while dealing with the kitchen floor maybe deserve more attention. I cleaned it today, like swept all the dirt up and then got down on my hands and knees and scrubbed that thing clean. I always feel so accomplished after I do that. Then the great tomato juice debacle happened (another story for another day). Oh well. The moral of the story is that it's just a floor, an old, white floor. And while I agree that it's probably sanitary to continue washing it every so often, it probably doesn't deserve so much of my attention ("don't walk on my clean floor with those shoes", "do not spill that milk", "ugh, there's milk on my clean floor", etc.) Lesson trying to be learned....

Here's a picture of my used to be spotless floor. There's a lot of life lived in this house - I would have to say that's more important.

Easter

We had a wonderful weekend celebrating Easter with our families. What a wonderful thing to celebrate... a Lord that is alive and at work within us!

Here are some pictures.... one of these times I'm actually going to write a thought provoking post.

Natalie came down to color Easter eggs in her swim suit and hat. We just threw a shirt over top and went with it! She makes me laugh.

Here is some of the Lehman crew after that big hunt. Such a picturesque setting :)

Natalie found her Easter basket!

Our sweet Brielle!

Pappy and his girls. As you can imagine, this nap didn't last long.

Homemade Baby Food

I'm feeling so proud of all the homemade baby food Brielle has been eating. And let me tell you, she's been eating a lot! This girl loves to eat! She growls until you get that spoon in her little mouth. So far, she's readily eaten everything we've given her. The only problem is, as you can tell by the prunes in the picture, she tends to get a little constipated :( I wanted to add a picture of my little eater, but I don't have a recent one. I guess I'll put that on the agenda for tomorrow.