zoo

we went to the zoo the other day. the last time i was there i was like 9 months pregnant with ellie... walking around miserable in the hot sun... always about 6 feet behind with jimmy and addison.... trying to keep up with them. hehe. but last week, me and that bundle of joy that i was carrying around then went while big sis was in school. we met up with some friends. it was good. ellie just sat in her stroller the whole time so who knows if she really saw any animals. but it was nice to do something different!

no pictures of animals this time. you know what they look like. :) just some before and after shots of ellie...


yay! we're at the zoo!!!






and after. the minute we started driving, she was out for the count! good times!

party at the park

we recently went to a friend's birthday party at the park. it was a lot of fun. it's nice having a party there... the open air, the grass, the playground, the kids can run free (well, sorta), no worries about making too much of a mess. the weather was perfect. and it was nice to take some photos of ellie in a setting other than our house. it was a great family day. :)


the kids were fascinated by the kite! i mean, really fascinated.



their thing was to chase it after it fell to the ground. they were going crazy over it! hey, man, whatever floats your boat, kids.



ellie enjoying playing in the grass












weeeee!



daddy and his girls



ellie: "ahhhh, good day for a party, eh??"



ellie: "amanda, are you paying attention to me, girlfriend??"



"we're cool now... we're hanging out with the big kids.... now can someone get us down from here???"



"Let them eat cake"



addie and her friend, rachel



this is the most broke-down park ride. the handle is missing. and c'mon do you really ride a beaver???



i just cannot stop myself from singing Devo's "Whip it" when i look at this picture. :)



awww, ellie, you're so cute even with a bucket and shovel on your head....



oh geez, this makes me nervous. it's the calm before the storm.



the piranhas attack!



her treasures!



"what about me?"



i love ellie's "deer-in-headlights" look. haha


"it if wasn't for this purse on my shirt, i'd look like boy. mom, put a bow in my hair or something?"



it was a good day! :)

more summer time fun

so the summer is winding down. actually, today was a really nice day. the temperature wasn't scalding hot and there was a nice, slight breeze. it's a nice reminder that fall (my favorite time of the year) is just around the corner. today, ellie and i ate lunch outside. and after dinner, the girls and i played out in the driveway for a little bit. can't wait for autumn... cider mills, light-weight jackets, cool nights, gorgeous autumn colors everywhere.... :) but until then, we'll enjoy summer and the warmth. because as lovely as autumn is, it is short!...and then we're sitting in snow and below freezing temps!



these are toy sunglasses, but they work for me! fits like a glove!



addie: "buckle up, ellie, it's going to be a bumpy ride!"



addie: "peace, daddy!! this is going to be me in about 11 years! haha!"



(my sister was here visiting) "ti-ti, we look good, don't we???!"



ellie: "awww man, someone forgot to put my pants on. well, this is embarrassing."



ellie: "umm, i'm not too sure about this. what kind of health coverage do i have??"

these are from today....

me and my shadow part 2



this is fun!!



i think this is the first time i've let her walk around on the driveway. i know! crazy, right? what kind of mother am i to deprive her of such fun?? look how thrilled she is!



ellie: "wait a minute. wait a minute, sissy... i think there is something wrong with your bike."



addie: "what??"
ellie: "i don't know??? guess you're just going to have to give it to me then."



"well, that plan didn't work. i guess i'm stuck with this thing. it fits me, but i don't know what to do with my legs..??"


here is a sequence of photos that i really like...














superhero seems to be what addison likes to dress up as these days. and the sunglasses are what she calls her super spy goggles. nice.

summer dance class

addison summer dance class is coming to an end. thank goodness. i have to be honest... i'm beat from running around to all these activities especially in this HEAT... and lugging a very antsy 1 year old around with me. why is it that all these activities fall right at ellie's fussiest times of the day?? anyway, addie's dance class had the parents sit in during this last class and they showed us what they had been working on this session.


wow, what excellent posture!

so i had a great time on my trip and all. but i always miss the girls and jimmy so much when i'm gone. and i get super excited to come home that usually i cut my trip really short and try and take like the first flight out on the last day. i'm a sap like that, i guess. oh, side note.... i forgot to mention that jimmy did an amazing job with taking care of addie and ellie while i was away. he had help one day, but he took the kids to a birthday party on saturday and to church on sunday by himself.... bathed them, fed them, dressed them, fixed addie's hair, etc. so major props to him for being a great daddy! Thanks, Jimmy, you da man! anyway, i come home on sunday and hugged the girls for about an hour long.. hehe jk. and then we all lounged around together for the rest of the day.. it was nice.

so here is what they like to do these days. addison is trying to get ellie to play with her lately. ellie usually has no clue what's going on (so i think)... but i think after observing addison dress up so much, she's kind of getting into it too!



addison calls ellie "the assistant fairy". looks like they're going a trip somewhere. santa fe, maybe?? haha



playing superhero. the backwards apron on ellie is supposed to be a cape. hey, whatever works!



just chillin'. bought this hideous tinkerbell chair from babies r us. why, oh why, did addison talk me into buying this??? yuck. just when i thought i was done buying toys and kid stuff, i go out and buy this obnoxious purple, hard, uncomfortable arm chair which will be useless after the age of 5. sweet.



random picture... but just wanted to share. the best 1 cent purchase i've ever made. 1 penny gets you a ride on "sandy" the horse at meijer's.... made a little girl's day. :)