Summer Fun

What a weekend!!!  Monday was my 25th birthday and I have to say, 25 feels pretty great.  What better way to spend your birthday weekend than with your family on a lake, right?  Packing up clothes and supplies for kids is never easy, but it is SO much easier when you're only going camping.  We took the bare essentials and the playpen and hit the road.  My parents reserved cabins at Holliday Landing on Lake Wappapello and it was pretty nice accommodations for "camping".  I am not brave enough to camp in a tent with children, this family NEEDS their air conditioning.  I was very thankful that they allowed "friendly pets" as guests.  Remy has never been on a trip overnight, and I am so glad we chose this place.  He LOVED it!  The owners had two dogs, a boxer and a pug and he made friends with them pretty quick.

Our cabin had a very clear view of the swimming pool and we were there maybe an hour before we had to go check it out!

Porch view

 Family pool time with our girls!

I am amazed at how many changes a year can bring for a little girl.  Olivia as a 2 year old was scared of her own shadow, LITERALLY!  She had many phases of fears; bouncy balls, baths, BUBBLES, puppies, sleeping alone...  You name it, we experienced it.  Since turning 3, she has developed into such a strong-willed, independent little girl.  We have watched those fears disappear.  She had a great time swimming at the pool this weekend and showed no fear, even where I would have liked for there to have been some.   

Olivia getting warmed up!

Caroline was HILARIOUS to watch in the pool.  She had never been in a body of water (aside from the bathtub) so her reaction was just priceless to watch.  She had her serious, "I look like my Daddy" face on, and wasn't sure what to think.

Caroline's serious face

I was a little shocked that my Caroline wasn't thrilled because I had predicted she would love the water!  Once we took her hat off, she warmed up a little!  She loved splashing and floating.  It was so sweet to see her having such a good time.  She is changing so much.  At her age, even a week brings so many new discoveries.  I am truly blessed to be her mommy!

Precious baby feet all wrinkly from the pool!

Caroline and Mommy

On day two of our camping adventure, Granddad rented a pontoon boat and we all went for a ride!  It was SUPER hot and Caroline was NOT liking her life jacket but we had such a great time.  Granddad let Olivia take over driving the boat, which led to an awkward moment of still, silent terror in the middle of the lake when she pulled the kill-switch.  Thankfully, that only lasted a few minutes and we were back in business.  

Our little family ready to head out in the boat!

Driving the boat with Granddad

Driving the boat alone (this one is definitely more fun!)

After a couple of hours out on the water, we headed back to the cabins to cool down and rest up for the afternoon.  **This is code for: Daddy, Caroline, and Remy need naps!  

Olivia and Mommy

Caroline and Remy hanging on the porch

It was a fabulous birthday weekend.  I am blessed beyond belief to have a family that loves me so much.  There was a giant cake, some of the sweetest gifts, and more importantly, my husband who is NOT a fan of the outdoors spent the entire weekend in a cabin (which was less than luxurious) all at my request.  It was very much the break this mommy has been needing.  No cooking, no cleaning, and no laundry.  I am already looking forward to a trip back there again!  It does seem a little surreal that the next time we visit we will be a family of 5.  That just sounds crazy!  Thanks for reading our blog!  :)  

~Maegan

Beginning Our Blog

Today is day one of our new blog and I am beyond excited!  I have so many things to share.  For starters, I want to catch everyone up on what is new with us, which really seems like a lot!

Caroline is 10 months and into EVERYTHING!  She will be walking any day!  She has been cruising around the furniture for several weeks and has just started letting go and taking a step, before falling on her bottom, of course.  She is so different from Olivia, it is truly amazing how strong their personalities are, even as infants.  Caroline is such a happy girl and is always smiling and giggling.  She is content no matter where we are, as long as someone familiar is in sight.  She says "Mama", "Dada", and shakes her head no when she is doing something she shouldn't!  Following around after her big sister is her favorite thing to do, and when we call Olivia's name, she has started to mimic the syllables.  She will make a great big sister one day.  For now, we are content with keeping her a baby!  :)

Caroline swinging at Euan's 2nd Birthday Party

As for the 3 year old in our life...  Where can I begin?  Olivia is gaining so much independence.  She has always played well alone, but lately she has an imagination bigger than life itself.  She is frequently another character by hour.  It is so entertaining but EXHAUSTING!  I am not complaining, though.  She is very intelligent and her ability to express that in different ways is impressive.  Speaking of impressive, that is one of her new quotes.  She likes to say, "I'm so impressed!".  I have no idea where she picked that one up! :)

Olivia, jumping in puddles at the park

 This past Saturday, she went to work with her dad for the morning.  I think that mostly consisted of eating cookies and conversing with his coworkers.  She came home and we got ready for the afternoon, which was a line-up of not one, but TWO birthday parties.  Everyone had plenty of cake, some of us had more than plenty.  We made the cutest gift bags for the party gifts!  They were strawberry shortcake gift bags, filled with everything a girl needs for a movie night; A new DVD, comfy nightgowns, popcorn, popcorn holders, Mike and Ike candies, and Raisinets!  So adorable.  I wish I had a better picture, but you get the idea.

Movie Night Gift Bags

After the Saturday chaos, it was nice to spend a relaxing Sunday at home, and what better way to celebrate Father's Day?!  We got up early and fixed breakfast while Nathan got to sleep in a little later, which doesn't happen often enough in our household.  Olivia had made him a keepsake booklet a few days before and she was very excited to give it to him.  We used a printable format (found here), super easy and very meaningful.  It is always the things like that you cherish.  She even wrote her own name in his card!  That preschool curriculum has been paying off!

Father's Day Book

After breakfast, we got ready and went to church.  They had a very nice Father's Day sermon.  I was glad we were there to hear that message!  When we got back home for lunch, Olivia got her gifts ready for her dad.  She was so proud to show him what she picked out!  I always try to let Olivia choose a gift that comes from her.  Nathan ended up with a digital meat thermometer for grilling (okay, I helped with that one), a set of corn cob holders that are shaped like cows (definitely Olivia's pick), and a chocolate cake.  I think he was happy!  We are very thankful for him.  I seriously have the best husband.  He is pretty great! 

Daddy with his girls before church on Father's Day

The Father's Day haul

I know the exciting part is the news about the kids, but I wanted to share a few things that have been going on in my world aside from diapers and laundry.  I recently joined a bible study group at Cape Bible Chapel and I am SO loving the fellowship.  It is nice to have that time each week to unwind and get closer to God.  I am so grateful that I stumbled upon this group of ladies!  It has been a great outlet.  I have also been meeting more and more local moms interested in homeschooling, which is something I am very interested in learning more about.  I feel such a strong pull towards homeschooling for many reasons (which I won't get into right now) and it brings me peace of mind to know that there are so many women in the area who are on a similar journey in life.  Over the last couple of months, I have been working with Olivia on a preschool curriculum that I have formed from several different resources.  She has improved in many areas and I think we will begin in the fall working on getting her prepared to read.  I have been working on turning our basement into a child-friendly learning area and I am FINALLY happy with how it is set up!  We had to purchase two bookshelves to store all of the things we have accumulated.  I received TONS of free materials from a retired teacher (FREE materials, I said!) that will be useful now and for years to come.  Little things like that reassure me that we are on the right path with the girls.  That was definitely a blessing.  My dad picked up the table and chairs for us, so Olivia has a place to do her work and art without little sister "helping".  All of Caroline's toys are now within her reach and they both are enjoying their kitchen set from Santa!  It is such a joy to see them playing together and forming that close sister relationship.  We are so blessed, I cannot say that enough.

Progress of our Learning Area downstairs

A few weeks ago, my dad started working on a water table project for the girls.  This is something I have been wanting for a while, but I just couldn't justify spending $40 on a plastic Little Tykes version.  The wooden ones I found online were VERY pricey, and that wasn't an option for us.  He  "sort of" volunteered to make one for us, and it turned out GREAT!  The tubs are completely removable so it is easy to fill with different things like sand, water, shaving cream, and other fun sensory items!  Each side has a lid that matches.  I was so impressed that he color coordinated for us!  Caroline can reach it with some help.  Usually I sit beside the table and she stands in my lap to splash in the water.  This was just what we needed for summer fun!  I think during the winter we will bring it downstairs (water removed, of course) and use it for an indoor sensory table.  

Olivia giving her dinosaurs a bath in the water table

Last on the list of things to update everyone on is our FINAL pregnancy!  I am so happy to announce that I am 27 weeks and on the downhill slide!  I can see the end in sight.  This pregnancy has been very smooth thus far.  We saw a healthy baby on the ultrasound at 20 weeks, but we opted not to find out the gender of this little one.  We have two precious daughters already, and a third child is a blessing from God, no matter if it is a boy or girl.  I think that element of surprise will add to the excitement of the third child joining our family.  Even though this pregnancy has been healthy so far, I am tiring more easily.  I think we are planning to slow down our outings and spend more time at home over the next several weeks, especially since we have such a great area downstairs to play in!  Back to the baby, we have the nursery all ready and only a few key items left on our to-do list before he or she arrives.  It will be an exciting time!  

These moments let us know we are doing something right

I think I have rambled on long enough for the first post.  Hopefully, next time I will have ballet pictures to share!  Thanks for stopping by to check out our new blog!  

-Maegan