Random Pictures Worth Posting

I was just cleaning off my camera and thought I'd share....

Andrew and Lila

Emma and Maddy

Minichurch Pool Party Craziness

Emma, Hailey, Chelsey, Jenna

I Thought This Was Our Bed?!

NJ Aquarium

On Monday, my friend Melynie and her girls took Emma, Lila and me to the aquarium. They have a season pass that is expiring, and they're getting ready to move - again. So we had a great girls' day together! I've never been to this aquarium even though it's close to home. It was really nice and I highly recommend it. I forgot my camera, so Melynie took all of the pictures (thank you!) - if you read her blog too, don't be surprised by the duplicates. :)

I think all the girls agreed that the best part was touching the animals. They had places to touch sharks, stingrays, jellyfish, starfish, and all sorts of other little creatures. They had lots of interactive exhibits that Emma loved reading and doing. She liked being the only one who could read, and therefore to explain what each thing was to the other girls. The hippos were also really cool. Lila kept calling them "hippies" - not because she doesn't know the word hippo, just because she liked saying "hippies" better. The shark tunnel was very fun. We saw sharks swimming all around us, but the girls were more interested in the divers in with them. Lila decided on her future career - she'd like to be a diver in the shark tank. "But when I get big and tall, and I'm wearing the special suit, how will I get in the water?" She was really thinking it through. We saw a seal show - very cute, and Emma and Baileigh got to ask questions. There was a 4D Spongebob movie (3D with special effects in your chair) that they all agreed was a bit too scary. We also got popsicles to enjoy while viewing the Philadelphia skyline. Well, four girls had some type of ice cream/chocolate yummy delight and Lila wanted a pack of Skittles - just to be different, I think. I'm so glad we got to go!

The Zoo

We went to the Zoo last Thursday with our friend, Jessica. It was a beautiful day, and we enjoyed seeing all of the animals and comparing our favorites. Emma and Lila really like this giant snapping turtle, and he liked them, too.

Here's my trio admiring the elephants. The elephants took care of some business while we were watching, and my crew found that fascinating!
Here they are watching a show at the Children's Zoo Pavilion. Just our luck - we were there on time for the "Chicken Challenge" show. Did anyone know that chickens are talented enough to have their own show?! They can actually maneuver their way through an obstacle course quite well. I was impressed. The trainer asked for an audience volunteer and before I knew what was happening, Lila's hand was in the air, and she was being picked!
Here she is in her audience volunteer debut. She had to rearrange those pins to see if the chicken could pick out the red one (she could). Lila walked right up there with no hesitation. I'm not sure she understood what she was supposed to do, but she listened and did it with a little help. I was a little nervous sitting about 10 rows back. I truly never know what Lila will do or say, and I was picturing her releasing the chickens or crawling under the table or telling the nice lady "no". We were all pleasantly surprised. I think Emma and Jessica were just as proud as I was.

Toad Naming

The girls just caught a really fat toad in the yard. While Emma worked fervently on a "habitat" for him, Lila was naming him. First we had Froggy. Then Toady. Then I suggested that he needed a better name, and she quickly named him Mr. Hopscotch - without another thought.

Today's Harvest

Beach and Boardwalk

We had a great time last Saturday with our good friends, and I'm finally getting around to posting the pictures.
First we joined them at the beach. The weather was little iffy, but that didn't stop the kids from having a blast in the sand. Lisa and I covered with towels to keep the occasional raindrops off. Bryan and Ryan - of course - played like only grown men can do at the beach. The sun peeked out for a short while. We were glad to have a house to go back to. Showers, warm clothes, and a nap for Lila were a must for the boardwalk that night.

They all worked together on a sand city for quite some time.

Apparently, Mr. Bryan has had much practice at mermaid sculpting.

We went to the boardwalk after everyone was clean and had had some down time. Emma and Hailey wanted to go on every ride there, and we saved ourselves some tickets because they could ride together and Ryan or I didn't need to go. Ben was very frustrated that he still wasn't tall enough for some rides, but he had fun with his buddy, Lila. Lila could care less about rides - she's all about the food! She did want to go on the Dragon ride (you spin inside the dragon). Ryan and I took her on. Ryan was trying to make conversation and told her we were in the dragon's stomach. She looked at him all serious and said, "You're kidding me, right?" She's very unsure and nervous about rides, unlike Emma, who's not afraid of anything.
We were thrilled that it wasn't too crowded considering it was a holiday weekend. After some rides, we ate our way down the boards. Bryan commented that it's good to have friends that like to eat as much as they do - Amen! Thanks for a great day, guys.

Inside the dragon's stomach (don't tell Lila!)

Happiest girl on the boardwalk - by far!

We had to wait a minute to take this picture - until Lila's face had returned to a normal color. She wasn't all about this kiddy roller coaster. Click on the picture to see her expression.

Ben and Lila, Hailey and Emma

Found In Our Garage

Are there wild lizards on NJ or is this someone's pet that got loose? This guy was about 6 inches long and hiding in our garage. It took all 4 of us to catch him - what excitement! We finally netted him, then let him go on a tree in the yard.

13 Years

I'm not sure how this is possible, but Ryan and I have been married for 13 years today! Last night, our friend Kevin said, "Wow, you turned 13 in 8th grade. You've been married the same amount of time as it took you to live your whole life through 8th grade!" That's long!
We are blessed to be happier together and even more in love than we were 13 years ago. Happy Anniversary, Ry!

1995

2008

(I did pretty well, didn't I?!)

Brave Little Sister

I asked Emma to go get a jar of applesauce from the basement. She came up freaking out (of course) because she could hear crickets. Ryan and I were slightly disgusted/aggravated with her, but Lila had a solution. She closed the basement door, stood in front of it, and with her little hand up she calmed her sister down with these words:

"Emma, Emma, this is the deal.
You don't have to be scared, you just have to hold my hand."

4th of July Weekend

We had a great holiday weekend! We started it off with a before and after fireworks party at my sister's house. We BBQ, then walk to the fireworks, and back to their house for dessert. The mile long walk in between courses allows you to eat much more! It was a great fireworks display with all of our standard firework traditions - glowsticks, friends, blanket (no chairs), family, wagon, and Twizzlers - apparently that's what my kids have come to expect for July 4th.
(Notice Ryan's shirt - he's very proud that he's not spent $5 on an Old Navy flag shirt since 2002. He just crosses out the digit with fabric paint each year and adds a new one. That's another family tradition.)

The fireworks were on the 3rd, so we celebrated the 4th with friends. We went for a swim with the five little girls at my Dad's house. Then we came back to our house for dinner. The girls played with every Barbie we own in the living room. It was a serious mess - like Barbie exploded, but it sure kept the girls, ages 2 - 8, happy for a while. Brad made some delicious ribs and pulled pork to go with our grilled veggies. We ended the night with an outside fire, s'mores, watching neighbors' fireworks, and firefly catching - perfect!
I couldn't make this picture of Trudy go the right direction - Blogger must have been confused by it. But, I wanted to show what happens when five little girls roast marshmallows around a little chocolate lab girl - just add a graham cracker and you're done!

Beach Day With A Crowd

We went to OC today with a bunch of friends, and had a blast! The boogie-boarding and getting buried in sand were the highlights. What a fun day!

Here we are all clean and just slightly pink: