Summer Fun

These three blonde boys belong to my cousin and have been a very real part of our summer.  Hudson has LOVED having these boys around to play with this summer.  

We went to the Grant County Fair with cousin Vesta. 

 The kids enjoyed seeing all the animals but it was too stinkin' hot!

Fresh super-sweet corn from the field - there's nothing like it!

This is my son - organizing his gummy bears by color before eating them.  :)

I don't know why blogger is being retarded and not rotating this one...but I thought it was too cute to leave off.  When we moved here a year ago she was deathly afraid of our dogs...not anymore!

Hazel - Six Months

 Time sure flies with the third child.  This sweet girl is already 6 months old!  She is seriously the easiest baby ever.  She has a smile for anyone who asks and is super content.  What's not to love!

Push up position - but this is so last week....she's now on to hands and knees and rocking.  I am so not ready for her to crawl yet!  But, alas, she is not asking my permission at this point.

Look, two teeth!

I love it when they think their toes are so much fun.

Cute!

Don't you just want to kiss those cheeks!

Cute times two!

Livia's Birthday

Livia turned 3 on August 4th.  If you ask her how old she is she'll tell you that she's 5 now.  Apparently she skipped right over 3 and 4 so she can be the same age as her brother.  We had a fun afternoon celebrating with the both sides of our family....I tell you what, when our families get together it is quite a crowd!  

Livia is a sweet girl with a strong opinion about everything.  We're working on obeying right away...and not saying "No" to Mom & Dad.  In spite of her strong will and desire to be independent, it's hard to resist her grin and those big brown eyes!

Pink trike!

The princess cake.  

When asked what she wanted for her birthday her only response was "princess cake"....even when I specified what kind of present she wanted.

What a smile!

 Look at the personality.

Trip to Portland Area

Sunday me and the kids headed to Lake Oswego to stay with the Jensons and attend a Classical Conversations (homeschool) Practicum.  Unfortunately the practicum turned out to be a bust - due to a sub par speaker and kids who did not want to stay in the kids camps.  But, in spite of that...we had a great visit with the Jensons and also had the chance to see some other dear people who live in the area. 

We had dinner with my sister Christie & her hubby Dustin on Tuesday night.  Christie took these photos of the kids outside the restaurant.

The kids had a great time playing together - especially Hudson & Leyton.

The Jenson family jam session - plus Livia & Hudson.  So fun!

We did some serious blueberry picking and managed to come home with over 20 lbs of berries!

Livia mostly did serious blueberry eating

Hudson was also  more interested in eating.

We spent part of one afternoon at this great park near the Jensons' house.  The park had all these trucks in the sandbox - exactly Hudson's kinda place!

Mmm...frozen yogurt face!

I hit a deer a few miles from Goldendale on the way down.  It was a scary experience but I'm so glad it wasn't any worse!  The kids didn't even notice.  They were watching a movie when it happened and when I pulled over Hudson asked "why are we stopping?"  Apparently the squealing tires and the big thump didn't phase him at all!

We have to get a new radiator and the bumper and hood fixed - so thankful for our good insurance coverage!

Hazel Jane

This girl is growing too fast!  We are quickly closing in on the 6 month mark.  Hazel is such a wonderful addition to our family - she has a quick smile for all and is happy to lay around and watch life go on around her.

That lopsided little smile

Hudson thought she should try on his conductor hat.

5 months old and as cute as can be!

Just about able to sit up on her own...she still has a tendency to fold in half and then tip over.

First solid foods today!  

Kiddos

Livia loves her baby sister - I hope they'll be great friends when they're older. 

Hudson the helper - wanted to feed Hazel all by himself.

Playing at a park in Quincy

I'm totally annoyed that I couldn't get this picture to rotate...it's right on the computer...but it was too cute to leave off.  Hudson had stacked all his dump trucks into his wagon.  My little organizer  :)

This is how my kids watched the 4th of July parade - with their hands over their ears because it was "too noisy!"