Happy Independence Day!

This 4th of July is our first in our "new neighborhood" even though we will have been here for a year at the end of this month.  I have said it before, and I will say it again, but we LOVE our community!  Having worked for one of the biggest patriots around, I have learned a thing or two about patriotism and living in what I consider to be the greatest country in the world.  For those out there that would disagree, I invite them to move to any country they deem to be better.  But moving on...

This 4th of July began with the Canyon Creek 4th of July neighborhood parade and we loved every minute of it!  Anyone who wants to participate in the parade can as long as they fill out a form.  Which meant that everyone from kids with decorated bikes, to classic cars, to festive walkers participated.

Right before the parade.  I title this one:"Path of destruction: One army crawl at a time."

Waiting in anticipation for the parade to begin. Not a bad seat in the house.

Favorite past times: Ansley pulling my hair from my head and Liam attempting to climb rickety old fences.

Daddy's girl!

Rare picture of Liam looking at the camera.  He was immediately peeved off after finding that the mamarazzi took his picture.

Bring on the festivities!

The Sons of the American Revolution kicked things off.

Cub Scouts playing kazoos

Patriotic pooch

Random (but great) band.

"Throw candy!"

Candy and bead throwers

Eating some mid-morning Skittles.  He looks a little like Flava Flav here. Or maybe Vanilla Ice

One of my favorite floats.

The Fort Lee brigade...minutes before their water cannons shot my camera.

After the parade ended we walked over to the country club for bounce houses and refreshments.  Our neighbors band played the event (have I mentioned that his wife went to Pius?).

Rare family picture.  And no, I did not pee my pants.  Darn Fort Lee float.

Liam loved the rocket bouncer.  However, the rising temps made it hard to stay on very long.

Another one of my favorite "parade floats."  The riding beer cooler.

Love our patriotic neighborhood and the fact that nobody will steal your bike while you lean it against a tree! Ha!

Confetti cannon

After the parade we spent the day swimming in the backyard, grilling (out for my Kansas peeps), and enjoying favorites like s'mores.  A fun filled day to remember our freedom!

On the road again

Liam, Ansley and I spent this past week with the Kansas Pates in Wichita.  We traveled down with our friend, Sasha, and her son, Peyton, on a Tuesday and stayed until Sunday.  Eric and Sasha's husband, Bobby, joined us during the weekend and we had a blast.  It was a fun week filled with lots of catching up, good food, and hot temperatures.  Surprisingly it was hotter than Dallas, which is a rarity.  In fact, one of the cities in Kansas set the record for the hottest city in the United States for several days at 115 degrees - hotter than Death Valley! Unfortunately Liam got a case of swimmers ear during our time there which limited his interaction with water until we got some good earplugs.

We spent our days taking walks, letting the kids play, and trying our hardest to beat the heat.  After the kids went to bed, Jolyn, Sasha and I would have a nice glass of wine, a yummy dessert and watch a chick flick or paint our nails.  We even got to have a meal out at Il Vicino (one of my favorite restaurants from ABQ which has a location in KS) after a morning of shopping.  Funny side note: One night we watched "The Vow" with Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams.  While we were talking about the premise for the film, Jolyn mentioned that a gal she knew growing up had been in a similar accident.  I had also read at one point that the real life couple currently live in New Mexico.  After googling the true story it turns out that Jolyn's acquaintance and her husband actually wrote the book the film was based on and currently reside in northern New Mexico! 

On Friday evening Ryan and Jolyn hosted a dinner for all the orthopedic residents.  Sasha, the hostess with most-est, rallied the troops (i.e. the rest of us), and planned a great event which was filled with great food and drink. Other than that, we really enjoyed each others company and just hung out.  I look forward to future travels together!

Liam had a blast cooling down outside.

Holly and Liam devised this "fun" game of Liam jumping into her arms from this high rock....while both of them were soaking wet.  In an effort to avoid utilizing Uncle Ryan's skills as an orthopedic surgeon, the game was put to a quick end.

Liam adores his big cousin, Holly.  And she is so great with him, almost like a little mommy.

Feeding a family of ducks.  The last time we were there in April, the ducks were little babies. Liam was prone to throwing his whole piece of bread in the water, but with a little help from Holly he learned the art of tearing small pieces.

On one of our many walks to Bradley Fair. Ansley has taken to lifting up one leg while riding in her stroller.

Enjoying a little floor time when Daddy came to town.

Sasha made a delicious chocolate cake the night of the resident's party.  Also the night of Holly's 7th birthday!

Ansley making a little snack with her current toys of choice - bowls and spoons.

Ansley freaked me out by showing off a new skill while sitting in her travel chair on the counter.  Quickly pushing her way to the edge and almost falling off.  That meant meals had to be taken on the floor. "Nobody puts baby in the corner" was not meant to be applied to a baby who quickly scooted across the floor in her chair.

Sporting Holly's birthday crown...and loving every minute of it!

Bobby shows the kids how to properly use the slip n slide.

Taking a hillbilly bath.

The water fight begins....

Getting the hang of it.

Pates vs. McDonalds.  I think the grown ups had just as much fun as the kids!

Summertime fun

I haven't updated much lately, because frankly our days look pretty similar, give or take a playdate or occasional appointment.  So instead of catching you up on what is going on in our lives, which isn't very much (thankfully), I am going to post a few pictures.

Liam hosting breakfast for a few of his closest friends.

Swan dive into the pool.  There is a reason we have to fill the pool so much!

Liam still loves being thrown up in the air.

Taking a break.  I can't believe how grown up he looks.

Ansley has gotten to love being in the pool, but has a very short expiration date.  So most of the time she sits in her little activity center and enjoys the excitement.

Eric's cousin, Phil and his family moved to Oklahoma last week from Fort Hood.  So they stayed with us on their way through.  Their baby, Parker, is a few months older than A.  It was so cute to see them blabber to each other and interact!

Some days I dress Ansley in impractical outfits so she can wear them before she outgrows them!  The life of baby girls.

Here is a cute little smock that my mom got in Puerto Rico.  I have fond memories of the dresses that my mom dressed me in as a little girl.  She even saved some of them in the hopes that I would have a little girl one day. 

So right now our summer is looking pretty calm. We have some traveling coming up, but until then we are just going to enjoy the lazy days.

This and that

With my downtime greatly reduced now that Liam is out of school for the summer, I have not had much of an opportunity to write.  So this post will be a mish mash of things going on around in our lives. Really, more pictures than anything!

Liam taking five with Chloe under the dining room table.  He even covered her with his blanket.

Mischievous smile

Posing in the new outfit her cousin Holly picked out for her.  Holly even has the matching duds.

Liam in what has become a common occurrence: Trying to cuddle his baby sister...whether she wants to or not.

Giving Ansley pointers on how to crawl.

This past weekend the Kansas Pates were in town.  We all stayed at the McDonalds house for a staycation.We swam, drank good wine and all played like children.  Especially the children. 

Liam, mid-jump

Daddy and Ansley escaping the heat.

The men all got upper body workouts from throwing the kids in the air.

Ansley took her first dip in the pool and loved it!

I love that all of the kids are gathered around this tiny portable DVD player when there is a massive television in the background.

Liam and Sam playing a heated game of air hockey.

Ansley being entertained by cousin Holly.

We can't wait to see the cousins again in just a few weeks for some additional summer fun!

 

Ansley is also 6 months old now!  At her well child visit, she was in the 50th percentile for everything. She wakes up once a night for a feeding, but we are often up many more times to replace her lost pacifier.  She now is eating 3 meals a day consisting of rice cereal, fruit, veggies and meat (not a big fan and who can blame her).  She rolls with a purpose.  She has been known to roll the entire length of the room in the time it takes me to run to the restroom.  She can sit unassisted for short periods of time and she has continued to army crawl.  She is such a sweet baby and it is so much fun to be her mommy (maybe slightly less so at 2 a.m.).

6 months old

 So that is the cliff notes version of what is happening around here these days!