Summer weather has arrived.
Today was the hottest day so far, it got up to 91! *gasp*
Don’t roll your eyes at me!
I was wearing a sweater last week because it was so cold.
No that doesn’t help my cause but it’s a drastic change.
ANYWAY, we took advantage of the “heat” and used a gift certificate for ice cream and got ice cream sandwiches from Coldstone.
Great way to beat the heat! Thanks
Fourth of July isn’t a big holiday for us, but it is still fun with kids. I love the wonder and awe in their faces while watching fireworks or even just sparklers.
Here is a taste of our day.
Here are the details if you have the time to watch.
The door to twin’s room sticks a little and they haven’t figured out how to turn the door handle well yet, so Solvei and Nels are kind of stuck in their room until I get them in the morning. Most of the time they entertain themselves pretty well. When they don’t and start to get into stuff they wake me, but sometimes when we have the fan going I don’t hear them as clearly. It’s been warm enough to need the fan this week.
Every morning the last few days I have woken up to this.
(They are crying because I said they had to stay in their room while I got the camera.) Everything out of the dresser drawers that they can reach, everything out of the changing table and box of diapers, and today Solvei has even decided to undress herself.
Stinkers!
Time to rearrange the furniture. There is a reason the dresser always ends up in the closet.
Today was filled with more visiting/catching up for me but the kids only had to go along with part of it. I went to breakfast with Anna (very nice time) while the kids stayed with Grandma. When I got back they were just setting up her kiddie pools outside. Even after spending most of the afternoon yesterday in the pools at Grandma Kathy’s, they still wanted to swim at Grandma Lori’s today. I went out and watched them play and it was amazing, Nels AND Solvei wanted to get INTO the water. =P So all four kids had fun IN the pool today.
Solvei and Nels were pretty fearless today. They loved getting into and out of all the different pools (they had 4 to choose from).
Gavin and Nels got their mo-hawks fixed up.
Solvei loved sitting down in one pool and flipping water all over herself.
I had planned on them only playing in the water for about an hour, but the were out for closer to two-and-a-half hours.
Today started with breakfast at Jessie Jean’s with Laura. This trip has been pretty hectic but it’s nice to visit friends and catch up, even when it feels sort of rushed. Then we went and bought presents for the party today.
Today we celebrate Solvei and Nels’ birthday! Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Donnie are letting us have our celebration at their house so after we picked up the cake, we headed over there. Grandma had set up two kiddie pools and one big pool for all the kids to play in. Solvei and Nels were so excited to splash around in them but they REFUSED to get into them. (Solvei got in but wanted to get right back out again, and Nels wouldn’t even get in.) They loved splashing anyway from the side of the pool. Saedi and Gavin were little fish as long as their faces didn’t get wet (or would that make them ducks?).
Clay brought down some balls for the kids to play with in the water. Nels and Solvei liked to throw the ball into the pools at each other so it would splash each other. They did that for at least half an hour until the ball got so full of water it wouldn’t float anymore. Every time Solvei got splashed she made the same face, it was so cute. When Grandma Lori and Grandpa Larry came, Grandma stuck her feet into the pool while sitting in a lawn chair. Solvei thought that was so neat that she wanted to try it and only then would Nels put his feet into the water (while sitting between Grandma’s legs on the edge of the pool). They all had so much fun.
When everyone was done in the water we had dinner, the kids played some more…
We had cake and ice cream…
Today we started our activities by having lunch with Vicki. I loved working with Vicki because it’s almost impossible to have a bad day around her; she’s always laughing. It was very nice to see her again. Thanks Vicki!
After lunch we went up to the mountains with Grandma Lori. Her church was having girls camp and she was supposed to be there, but since I was visiting she wasn’t. We went for her to make an appearance and to let the kids play “in the mountains”.
The kids spent a lot of time on the playground that is there. Solvei loved the swings, but Nels not so much.
Saedi and Gavin played with the merry-go-round for a long while (until Saedi’s “tummy was kinda yucky”). I love how Gavin thought it was neat when his cape was flying behind him because he was running so fast.
Solvei and Nels found the girls’ bucket stools and had to sit on every one.
Then we had dinner cooked on a campfire – hot dogs and s’mores.
Of course the kids loved it.
The kids played for a little while after we ate before we went home. Nels found a path that went from our fire pit to the playground by way of a tiny bridge over a little trickle of water so he had to go over it at least 50 times, making me nervous every time. Solvei loves to have her picture taken so I ended up with a bunch of her. (The first one shows her “where-did-it-go” expression.)
And of course there is an appearance with the hat.
While the big kids were back at the playground Grandma and I took the little kids to see the river. It was fascinating and rocks were thrown, as always happens when my children see water.
Today was Solvei and Nels’ official second birthday. We are celebrating on Friday but I just wanted to take a photo on the actual day. Well…..not just one. Here are the best ones.
We got invited to go to the Living Planet Aquarium the first day in Utah with Chad’s family. The kids were so happy to go!
Grandma Lori came with us and I was glad I had an extra person to keep track of my little runners. I brought the “leashes” for Solvei and Nels so they could actually see something and not be stuck in the stroller (which a woman in the gift shop gave me lip about). They do pretty well at holding hands normally but are getting to the age where if you let go for one second, like to take a picture, they may just take off – in opposite directions. There was a time or two when Nels was dragging Grandma along because he’d take off – “Ooh! Something shiny!” – and she could barely keep up!
For Saedi and Gavin, I think they were just as excited to see Zach as they were to go to the Aquarium, but they had a lot of fun with the Ray tank. Nels loved the turtles. Solvei liked the big fruit eating piranhas.
I’m so glad we got to go, thanks for inviting us Chad and Leslie!
After the aquarium we had a picnic lunch at a park near there. I have been to that park a few times before but this is the first time I noticed the tree out front. The kids thought the “magical tree” was very cool. They all knocked on or tried to open the door.
We got to Grandmas after a looonnnggg day in the car. Somehow Solvei kept herself awake for the entire car trip. When the videos were playing she was watching and when there weren’t videos (and the big kids were sleeping) Solvei and Nels took turns yelling at each other.
Everyone was happy to have arrived and not just because there’s all new stuff to play with, although that made things extra fun. Solvei and Saedi found Grandma Lori’s hats and wore them whenever they could (since this post is written in retrospect I can say the hats are in many pictures throughout the trip). Nels found Grandmas toys and couldn’t even be bothered to get pictures taken with everyone else because he was too busy playing. So here are a few pictures of the morning after we arrived sans Nels.
Solvei has discovered she loves to be contradictory. At any time, but most often in the car, she will engage this attitude. Most car rides are now filled with “yes…no…yes…no…” and “uh-huh…uhn-uh…uh-huh…uhn-uh…” arguments between her and anyone who will play the counter-part.
Nate has been gone for a couple weeks and isn’t supposed to be back for a few more. Solvei really misses him. These are a few reasons why I know for sure:
She has realized that I talk to Nate on the phone everyday, so now whenever I am on the phone she asks if she can talk too (“Daddy hello?”) even when it isn’t him I’m talking to.
Every morning when I get the little ones up and dressed, Solvei asks “Daddy?” with a where-did-it-go expression. I tell her where he is and she says in her saddest and most disappointed tone, “oh.”
Solvei has become a hair twirler – mostly when her hair is in pigtails but sometimes when it’s not. Recently in the car she fell asleep while twirling her hair.
wadmanclan
Wadman Clan 