Daisy Chain

When we were little, we would spend all day outside. No worries from my parents about where we were, what we were doing, or what we could get into. We stayed in our neighborhood and played with the neighborhood gang. I could easily go into my rant about how things have changed, but I'll spare you my opinions... for now. What I am getting at is this: we could spend hours making daisy chains. Anyone? Let me explain. We'd pick flowers (weeds) and tie them together into necklaces and bracelets. It was really great.

Today Ella and I went for a walk and when we stopped by a pond she started picking the same flowers (weeds) we did when we were little. I tied a couple together and thought I'd be brave and offer it to Ella fully expecting a no. She loved them! So I decked her out in my finest pieces to date. She fell asleep by the time we got home so I couldn't get a picture of the full ensamble, but what a great time we had. When I told Polly about it she commented on what a strange place it is when you are doing things with your daughter that you remember doing when you were little. Wow- I'm still recovering from the thought of that.

Lexy

...aka Shecky and my puppy. This picture is taken from our kitchen. Yes, that is a rock in our backyard, and yes, Lexy does that often and no, I have no idea why. The only time she doesn't get up there is if Schroedinger (aka Schro-Jo and my kittie) is already there.

My Neighborhood

When we come home from walks, Ella starts singing, "My neighborhood, my neighborhood..." as soon as the houses come in to view. She has that sing-song melody and it's picture-perfect. It helps that we live in a beautiful area, with the Blue Ridge Mountains in perfect view. It also helps that there are so many kids to play with and always a parent around to hang with. I know when the kids are home from school just by hearing their bikes and skateboards hit the pavement as they head out to find their friends. We are very lucky to have found this neighborhood.

This weekend there was an impromptu picnic on "The Green" as we call the grassy space at the front of our neighborhood. We all brought whatever was going on our table that night, some blankets, some games, and hung out. For me, this may trump the great mountains right now. I'm just very happy to live in a place where Ella can run around with little friends and I know there are a bunch of mothers (and fathers, brothers, uncles,....) there watching her too. And yes- those are light sabers. I somehow missed getting a picture of Wes with his.

Garden?

I can pretty much guarantee my family (okay, mostly Polly) will be surprised to know I worked in the yard this weekend. Uh-huh Polly, you heard me right. Me, the one who had NOTHING to do with your garden in high school. The one who didn't know what a spice was, let alone how to grow one. The one who mowed the lawn ONLY because I could wear my bikini and get a tan while doing so. I could go on here, but we all know I'm not exactly the earthiest girl around.

Anyway- my neighbor had some extra tomato plants and asked if I'd like them. I almost didn't take them because the "garden" portion of our yard is still in the process of becoming suitable for planting. But the thought of fresh tomatoes was overwhelming so here I am, container gardening my heart out. Wes endured an afternoon at the nursery with Ella and me looking for additional spices and a couple hours later, voila! Who knows if I'll use all the spices, but I had such a great time with Ella making them that I don't really care. Every time I look outside and see our containers I smile. This is summer!

Twenty-four

Who knew you could do so much in twenty-four hours! Steve, Ella and I left for a quick trip to DC to visit Scott, Jodi, Selma, and Kemper on Saturday at 1pm. Scott was finishing up a trip with Bush and Jodi was working Sunday night so we were lucky enough to have Selma and Kemper all to ourselves! We played in the tree house (access through the below picture)...

Hard to believe the kids could leave the tree house , but the sandbox was waiting. There were "cupcakes" to be made and cities to be built:

Selma let Ella try out for Safety Patrol. Ella was very good at saying, "Stop!"

And all that happened within two hours of our arrival! We then headed out for a great Italian dinner. We were home by seven for bath, books, and then bed. Let me just add here that bedtime in this house is waaaaaaaaaay easier than in mine. In fact, Steve and I had very little to do with bedtime. Except, of course, when it came time to get Ella to go to sleep.

Up the next morning for... Pancakes!

Scott came home sometime in the middle of the night and Jodi ended her shift at 7:00 am. Whew! They passed the baton over breakfast! Lunches were made, backpacks packed, and out the door by 8:45 for the bus. Ella LOVED going to the bus stop. She still thinks every bus we pass is carrying Selma and Kemper. Here are some pictures from the bus stop:

Scott, Steve, Ella and I then headed to downtown Kensington to play and have lunch. Clearly, you can see who the biggest kids are in this group...

And then it was noon and we packed up and headed back to Charlottesville. Ella said on the way home, "That was fun". Well said my dear.

Ella and Stevie (aka GPS)

Need I say more?

Cooking Out

Today was one of those great weekend days- we ran errands, napped, and had friends over for dinner. That is what is so nice about the summer- long days and cooking out. You can easily keep adding to the party. Sami was creative and dressed Lexy in some blankets. Lexy obliged and even kept the blankets on for a while. Here are some pictures of the girls...

Princess

Let me just warn everyone out there,... we are in full-blown dress-up mode these days. If someone else was around, I'd add a picture of myself with fairy wings and skirt, but since it was just us (thank goodness really), here's Ella...

Priorities

I really wouldn't use a formal dining room very often so when I had the chandelier removed I didn't really think twice about it- except to be happy I wouldn't be hitting my head on it so often. But tonight when I looked over at the "dining room" I was reminded of how being a mom changes you. I have to admit, pre-Ella, in my quest for order I would have a dining room here regardless of the use factor. But now, not so much a priority. Our bathrooms are full of Elmo towels and potty seats. Our room is wired especially for Ella to be able to watch Sesame Street in bed with us. Our front porch is parking for tricycles. Priorities.

Congratulations Uncle Mitch!

This weekend we went to Uncle Mitch's Graduation Party. I remember being at Shannon's party last year and we all commented on just one more year for Mitch. In the blink of an eye, here we are! So now Uncle Mitch is planning on working in the ICUs and finally having a similar schedule with Shannon.

Wes gave a speech/roast and here are pictures from everyone laughing. Wes ended the speech with a heartfelt congratulations and recognition of all the hard work that went into finishing his degree. Congratulations Mitch!

And then the cake was cut and Ella thought she couldn't have a better day. I tried to get a picture of Shannon and Mitch with their two nieces, but Ella was hard pressed to give up her cake:

"Aminals"

Ohhhhhhhhhhhh Ella... I just couldn't resist taking your picture tonight. Every night before going to bed I check in on you. You are far from needing it. Remember when I'd turn you from your belly to your back and whisper, "Back to sleep love". Those days are long gone but I can't break the habit of rubbing your back and telling you how much we love you. Tonight you went to sleep with your usual menagerie: Cat, Pink, Puppy, and Feet with a few binks thrown in and of course, blanket. They were lined up on the sides of the crib (as usual). In fact, when I said, "Get all snuggly and I'll be back to say goodnight" you were lengthwise in the crib with your blanket and cat under your arm when I returned. You said, "I got my aminals mommy". So here you are, just a couple hours later, having rearranged everyone in your crib.

Michigan State University

This was a very quick trip, but it was packed with fun road trips and great family time. On Monday we went to MSU and Ella had her first exposure to Michigan State. It was beautiful- the trees were in full bloom and campus was gorgeous. Steve, Polly, Gracie and I had lunch at El Az- an old hangout that we would always go to with Mom and Steve when they visited. And the perfect place to enjoy Cinco de Mayo.

We rushed home to pick Isabella up at school and meet the guys for a cook-out. Here are a bunch of pictures from the evening. Ella and Isabella loved (understatement) Steve's underdogs on the swingset.

I especially love this picture of Mark and Wes watching the littles. Cheers guys!

Isabella's Confirmation

Isabella had her First Communion on Sunday and we enjoyed being a part of her special day. It is hard to believe the last time I came was for her Baptism. Congratulations Isabella! After church, everyone came back to Isabella's for a family gathering. It was great to see all of Isabella's family and for them to meet Wes and Ella. As you see in the below picture, Wes played the guitar while Isabella sang and the littles danced.

Later in the day Ella found Grace's Barbie Jeep and quickly figured out how to drive- in a straight line. As you can see Grace was kind enough to ride shotgun. I love this picture because it sort of shows their personalities right now. Ella is sitting, belted in (by herself) and Gracie is the wild one. They swap these roles back and forth, but for the most part, Gracie is our wild child!

Poppy and Nonna

Poppy and Nonna came for a visit and Ella was waiting in anticipation for their arrival. Ella has these great letter squares that we play with a lot. It never occured to me to take them up off the ground until Nancy made Ella a house. Ella loved it!