Go O's!

Casey got to experience her first Oriole's game yesterday. It was a day game against the KC Royals; hot and humid, typical weather for this time of year. We used the tickets I won in the Relay raffle so she was really treated to club level seats with close parking. We were lucky to be in the shade but, when it got hot (or she got bored), we just strolled into the air-conditioned club-level concourse and enjoyed some refreshments and watched the game on their beautiful plasma TVs. She even got a "Most Valuable Fan" certificate commemorating her first game. And, my favorite part, we ate great baseball food- pizza, Boog's pit turkey, Italian sausage (for Chris), popcorn, french fries, and ice cream- YUM! She got to see her first Oriole home run as well. And, because it was foam-finger give-away day for the kids, she was yelling and waving her big orange finger for all the great plays!

Somewhere over the....

The girls saw their very first rainbow yesterday after a light rain. They were so excited and wanted to look for the end to find the pot of gold!

Who Needs a Playset Anyway?

We've been excitedly watching our landscaper work very hard on these hot and humid days to level an area toward the back of our yard to place a playset for the kids. He's been working by himself constructing the front retaining wall (the back is still to come) and moving dirt, etc. Each night, after he leaves, we venture up the hill to check out his work. Chris and I decided that we really don't need to put a playset up there at all. The kids are super happy just playing in the mounds of dirt and rocks. Who knew??

Happy Birthday...

...to the two best moms we could ever ask for!

Jake the Snake

At Jacob's 15-month-old check-up, when checking his milestones, they asked if he knew 3 words besides "Mama" and "Dada". I just laughed because he didn't even say Mama and Dada. (Mind you, he could climb on to the kitchen table and over the back of the couch, but could not utter those few short words.) Well, yesterday, he finally spoke his first purposeful words! Technically, they weren't words, just purposeful sounds, I suppose. He discovered one of the rubber snakes I keep in the front garden to keep critters from eating my flower bulbs and thought it was the best toy. As with all animals he plays with, I asked him what a snake says. Of course, he didn't know, as we'd never played with a snake before. But, as soon as I told him, he couldn't stop making the sound. Now, when I ask him what a snake says, he gets a big smile on his face, sticks his tongue out a bit, and says "tsss, tsss". (Mama and Dada will come later, I'm sure!)

Author's note: Ok, Casey just asked him what a horse says and he responded "tsss, tsss" so I guess I won't send for that Mensa application just yet!

Happy Birthday, Robin!

Happy 17th Birthday to my beautiful niece, Robin! Hope your day was special!

More Swimming Fun

The girls returned to swim lessons this week at the pool. Emma, who didn't want to get her face wet at the start of lessons this summer, is a regular guppy. There are 3 other 3-year olds in her class and she is the most adventurous, by far! Today, her teacher wanted her to push off of the pool wall and swim to her. Emma's reply: "Move farther." So, her teacher stepped back with a smile. Then, when it was time to practice jumping in, she continued to tell her to move farther back, until, eventually, she jumped all the way in (and under). (To put it in perspective, the teacher has to stand right at the wall and gently "lift" two of the other girls into the water without really getting their faces wet.)

Casey had developed some anxiety about the pool this summer after a scary experience she had at a different pool over the winter. But, despite her nervousness, she's been so brave at doing all the things her teacher asks. She was especially nervous about practicing kneeling and standing dives in the 9-foot end. For the first few days, each dive was a belly flop (ouch). But, today, she was very graceful and even practiced some extra dives with her teacher after class. (The mini-video I shot isn't her best one, but I was running between ends of the pool to try and get a video of each girl as the classes all do jumps/dives at the end.) I told Casey that doing something she needs to do, even though she's nervous or scared, makes her very brave. She liked that.

More Wise Words from Emma

I took the girls shopping to buy birthday cards for Papa (aka Bill). Casey jumped right on a cute one that talked about what a big heart her grandfather has. In the same section, Emma pointed to a Mickey Mouse card that she wanted to choose for Bill. I politely explained to her that that particular card was for a "Great-Grandpa" and that Papa wasn't a Great-Grandpa, he was just a Grandpa- and that maybe she'd like to look for a different one. Without a moment's delay, she told me that "Papa is, too, great!". She got the card.

Happy Birthday, Bill!

With love, from us!

Wild Rides

How could I forget these two fun pictures when I did the Knoebels post yesterday? The first is the four of us on the log flume ride going down the BIG hill. Both girls love this ride, but Emma's got the cutest and happiest smile on her face in this picture! The second is Chris, Casey, and me (behind Chris's giant hand- honest, it's me) on the Twister. Casey's face is priceless! A super fast-turning, wild wooden roller coaster. Emma's not tall enough for the coasters yet. Soon enough!

Knoebels

Yesterday, we packed up the van, loaded in the kids, and took off to spend the day at Knoebels. The weather was perfect- not too hot and not too chilly. We met Pop, Dad, Chris, Uncle Dave, and Aunt Judy at the park and had a great time. This year, Emma decided that she loved the giant water flume and we rode it over and over- getting extra wet by tricky relatives putting quarters in the splasher-thingy. Casey, being 7, was very bored with the kiddie rides this year but enjoyed riding them with her brother. She also enjoyed zooming around the roller coasters and water flume. Jacob, who couldn't fall asleep in the stroller for fear of missing some excitement, experienced his first rides at the park. We ate some of my favorite foods- pierogies and ice cream- and played some fun games. We stayed at the park until it was almost closing and, sadly, said good-bye to Uncle Dave and Aunt Judy for another year. With luck, we'll be able to visit Pop and Knoebels with Dad again later this summer for some more fun!

Jacob's very first ride!

Not so girly girls!

Good-bye Kozmo!

Casey's 7th Birthday (Family) Party

As has been our tradition, when not at the beach on July 4th, we gather our available family and friends and celebrate Casey's birthday (oh, and the birth of our nation) at the house with good food (I hope), great company, and a fireworks display in the back yard.

This year, we had our usual (and wonderful) cast of characters, but had the extra-special treat of a visit from my Aunt Judy and Uncle Dave, who were visiting from Texas. I also had the special treat of meeting baby Joshua for the first time! What a little cutie!

Chris put together another great fireworks show (complete with music) this year. We had a back drop of some other (illegal-type) fireworks and, finally, got to see, from a distance, the Carroll County farm museum fireworks. Unfortunately, my camera battery died and I am missing lots of great pictures of family, friends, and fireworks. But here are some I did enjoy...

Casey's 7th Birthday (Slumber) Party

This year, Casey wanted to have a slumber party to celebrate her birthday with her friends. When she made a list of her friends that she wanted to invite, I noticed Matthew, Tad, Connor, Riley, and Cayden along with the predictable list of girls. We had a short talk and she didn't understand why the boys couldn't spend the night. Afterall, she'd been to parties at some of their houses. So, we came up with a compromise- boys and younger siblings were invited from 6-9pm and girls were invited to stay overnight.

The kids seemed to have a blast. We tried out our new inflatable water slide (huge hit!), played some games in the yard, ate some pizza and cupcakes, made some t-shirts with glittery fireworks, opened presents, and....said good-bye to the boys and younger sibs. Next, Chris put on a little fireworks display in the back yard for the girls. We made ice cream sundaes, painted finger and toe nails in patriotic colors, and watched The Parent Trap (with Lindsey Lohan- not the original). I finally took Emma up to bed around 1 am. Casey and her friends Beth and Olivia stayed up until 2!

Many thanks to my beautiful niece, Megan, who was a huge help with Jacob and the girls at the party!