Growing Big and Strong

Aaron's lunch prayer the other day went like this:

"Dear Heavenly Father. I'm grateful for mama and daddy and Adelynn and Audrey. Please bless this food to help us grow big and strong. *pause* Except, I don't want to grow big, I want to stay little... So, not grow big, just strong please. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen."

I am all for that wish! They are getting big so fast!

Here's a bit of what we've been up to:

Lots of park play dates!

 

 Aaron always wears a superhero shirt so he's easy for me to spot.

 My friend, Jamie, from high school is in Oregon for the summer for her husband's internship!

She and her son Benjamin came for lunch one day. Benjamin and Adelynn started out next to each other, but soon they had somehow scooted closer and intertwined their arms. So cute! 

 

 Adelynn is getting great at lifting her head!

 She also loves baths and takes forever to eat because she keeps coming off the bottle to smile!

Aaron has a habit of finding the tomatoes that ripen in our garden before I do... Helmet hair and all!

Aaron came to me one day and said, "I'm going to give you a booty on your face!" He then proceeded to squish my cheeks together... Man, the lingo sure has changed when I was a kid.

The blackberries came out early this year because it's been so hot!

The kids learned quick to not eat them until they are black... :) We've made lots of great cobbler!

 

Aaron and I love doing crafts together. Here's one we worked on!

 

 Sometimes I wonder why I bother shaving when I get a free wax - courtesy of Audrey and Princess Sofia...

  

The kids LOVE reading scripture stories with Daddy at night - so much so that they read them on their own during the day too! We've been reading in Alma and the other day, we were driving and Aaron hollered, "MAMA! I just saw King Benjamin!" Now I'm curious what kind of oddly dressed person he saw - because I'm pretty sure it wasn't a Nephite King...

We love riding our bikes outside (and Audrey on the Lightning McQueen before she had her bike).

We go out every morning for hours! Aaron adores when his neighbor friends, Anthony and Alonso come out to play. He knocks on their door and asks daily if they can come out.

But even though he likes his friends, he loves his sister. They were all getting ready to race, and (not that his friends wouldn't be careful - they always are) Aaron yelled, "Ok, we can race, but if Audrey is in your way, GO AROUND HER! Do NOT hurt Audrey!" He's so protective!

 

When it's raining, I pull the car into the driveway and the kids ride in the garage.

 Aaron created a "tow line" to "rescue the princess." He also decided he was going to mow the lawn for me - and then Audrey wanted to help as well :)

 Today, Aaron's friend, Daniel, came to play and he brought his bike (he hasn't been wanting to ride it and we were hoping if he rode with Aaron he'd enjoy it more). It wasn't long before Daniel decided it was too hard and he was done. Aaron then declared, "You have to ask Jesus in a prayer to help you, and then he will!"

 We might be extremely obsessed with brushing our teeth... 

 

 We've loved that I'm feeling well enough for playdates again! 

 Aaron received a "thank you" card in the mail for the gift he gave Daniel for his birthday. He was at first so excited and opened it. Then he became sad when he asked me where Audrey's card was. When I told him she didn't get one, he was even more sad. I asked him what we could do about it and he raced to the library to draw her a card so she wouldn't feel left out. So sweet!

 In the hammock at Gramma's

 Audrey is getting great at using her words, so much so that when she uses one, I feel obligated to give her what she wants ... she learned this very quickly and is now asking for cake all the time! 

Audrey: Mama, cake please?
Me: Sure. Aaron, do you want some cake?

Aaron: No thank you, I'd like to keep playing with Adelynn.

Look at that smile he got from her!

 Sometimes, I just don't have the energy to say no, and I have to let her be creative... 

It's easier to clean up later than to deal with the tears when I say no. Plus, she was having so much fun...

 Aaron got more tracks from my parents for his birthday - he loves it!

I remember the days when I could safely commit genocide on the ants invading my laundry room without being concerned that my children would open the powdered, chocolate, breakfast drink and eat it straight. At least they started with a plate and spoons...

 Eric is teaching Aaron to read (sight words) and he's getting good! More on that later though, since I don't have it filmed. They are also working on (in "class") his hand dexterity - making sure he can control his hands in order to learn to write his letters better. They are doing this through coloring, and Aaron is getting really good! It's great to see the patience he's developing as he does this!

 

Adelynn is talking, all the time. And I love it!

We seriously love the summer time!