handsful

Summer has officially begun in our backyard. Randy has been working on getting the pool ready for weeks, and today was the day! The kids were super excited…well, everyone except for Lainey who was napping. We’ll wait for a warmer day to introduce her to the pool. Here are a few pictures of the big kids enjoying the cool water…

Bonus points for excellent form!

Marley thinks it over…

Abbey, are your teeth chattering??

EJ can add sports to anything

Payton had a blast

For all of you still “enjoying” snow in your backyard…HA!!! ;)

Oh dear, Daddy did it! He finally installed those pesky drawer and cabinet latches! How am I going to get my hands on all that neat (tiny, chokable, sharp…) stuff now? Sigh…

Oh well, I love him anyway! I especially love rubbing my hands on his fuzzy head…

Daddy went to finish cleaning the pool, so it’s time to check my feet. Yep, they’re still there.

I know you’re now thinking…ducks?? The kids ran in one morning last week, excited that there was a mommy duck and ducklings in the pond. So, being the nice Mom I am, I ran and got the zoom lens. Aren’t they sweet?? I promised I’d post it just for them.

As of today, I’m developing a rather nasty cold and, unfortunately, Lainey is showing signs of it, too. If I’m right, this will be the first time she’s been sick since we’ve had her. I guess we’ll see how she’s doing tomorrow.

After several seasons of not-so-stellar baseball teams, the boys finally hit it big. They’ve played 6 games so far and they’re all in the win column.

EJ on 3rd and…

…he’s walked in for a run

Payton at the plate…he pops it up and they unfortunately catch it :(

One of their biggest fans!

Lainey continues to settle in well to her routine…up around 7:30-8am, nap 1:30-3pm, bedtime around 8pm. Randy blessed me with a whole new school / chore / discipline schedule yesterday, which is helping us tremendously. Figuring out how to handle having a toddler while teaching fractions and spelling has been challenging, but we’re getting there.

Now, if we can just get all those cabinet latches put on…this is her favorite activity. She has two cabinets that she’s allowed in, but of course she wants the other ones.

Good thing I have lots of “Lainey wranglers” around…

Here is Lainey with my cousin, Peg, who lives in NJ. Her husband Tracy and their girls, Christy and Ashley, were vacationing close by, so they stopped in for a visit on Monday. Lainey is demonstrating her new trick…waving. She waves at everyone and everything. I love it when she waves goodbye to her crib when I get her up.

Lainey is 21 months tomorrow!! She’s adding to her signs so quickly. Let’s see, she knows water, milk, more, all done, night-night, mama, light and shoes. She almost has the sign for daddy and food. Lainey and daddy were going over some signs and when he said “shoes” she signed it AND ran to her room and brought him her shoes! A matching pair, even! The girl loves shoes.

More later!