Cousins came to visit

Cheryl, Aubree & Lauren came to visit!


The girls did not want to sleep in the bunk beds because they all wanted to be next to each other. So we squeezed the mattresses on the floor. Hard to get a picture of all 3 heads but they had giggly, bouncy fun!
Lauren was in a pack& play in a different room. But I am picturing in a few years when it is my 3 girls plus these two cousins. It will be one big sleeping heap of blond heads :)

 

We went to the zoo and they had the most fun with the play areas.
Climbing the ropes and trying out the new zipline.
And then the carousel :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They came in town to be here for Willa's baptism.
Which I am sad to say I do not have a single picture of :(

Swim lessons

We started off summer break with swim lessons.
Addie will be in this class level at least two more times I predict. It is a big learning curve from the class before (which Etta is in & will repeat another time). The big goal for Addies class is 10 ft of unassisted swimming, and she is not there yet.


That is Etta working on her backfloat. Both girls have a hard time relaxing their heads back/chins up. Partly because the sun is bright in their eyes. Partly because they want to see where they are/where others are. Which I completely understand.

 

Etta getting ready to jump off the board, then splash!

 

Ready, set, splash! from Addie

 

 

Willa is 9 months

 

 

 

 

What is she up to these days?
crawling. trying to pull to standing.
as of this morning, attempting stairs!
being way to squirmy and active most of the day for good still shots.
2 teeth. trying new foods.
smiling at her sisters. laughing at tickles or silly faces.
trying out new toys. pulling books off shelves.
finding dirty corners to crawl into or objects to crawl behind.
taste-testing barkchips, rocks, sand, etc when outdoors.
sleeping all through the night and taking 3 naps most days.
being cheerful and smiley and curious.

Willa is 8 months

And in these pictures she is wearing an 18 month white onesie to accomodate her cloth diaper.
So she still has a looog body!


She also still has a full head of hair which continues to lighten in color
it is also losing a bit of its curl :(
Fountain ponytails spout from her head most days :)

She is still our super happy smiley sweetheart.
And she is sleeping through the night (7:30 or 8 until 6 or 7). woohoo!

 

 

She army-crawls amazingly fast when she sees something (small, shiny and potentially hazardous)
or someone she wants.
She is able to get herself into hands-and-knees but is at the stalling in that position or
 rocking forward and falling stage.

 

Wedding Menu

A couple months back we got on the subject of weddings during our dinner-time conversation. I was reminding the girls how they were flower girls during Becky's wedding over the summer. We also had just watched some fabulous engagement and wedding videos done by our friends JJ & Heather (which prompted the question "mommy, can two people who have different colored skin get married?" It was a good question, and showed that the girls dont really notice the numerous asian people we know as looking much different from us. But also it was sad that they really dont see that much color diversity in our part of Seattle.)

Anyways, this conversation of weddings morphed into a conversation of what food the girls think is good for at weddings. Here is Addie's list of the foods she wants at her wedding some day: "Olives, grown up cheese, triscuits and Ritz and what we had last night (burgers fries and milkshakes). Hot dogs that are grilled, salami and lunch meat too. Berry pie and ice cream and apple pie. Strawberries, blueberries and raspberry but not in a pie. And pear. Mom do you have a recipe for apple pie? I will have you bake two of them so there is plenty for the party. Carrots and pears and strawberries. Read that to me when I am a grown up so I remember."

And Etta had to chime in some of her wedding-day food requests as well: "strawberry pie, blueberries pie, pretzels, dried mango, pear, peanut butter, and mark mine down mommy: meat and crackers and cheese".

So there you have it! Many many years from now some of those items might be present on their wedding buffet. :)

Family Fun in April

 

A good blustery day for flying our kite on Kite Hill at Magnuson Park

 

 

At Lynnwood Pool with May, Myron & Lori too.
Tons of fun stuff to do,
but not worth the lines to get in and
the crazy busy changing rooms we decided.

 

 

Addie went down the tube-style waterslide all by herself!!
She emerged walking from it
but I assume she sat most of the time :)

 

 

the girls in April

Starting kindergarten in the fall at
Shoreline Christian School
 

These girls are total "frenemies"
They build cereal blockades so they cant see each other.
But 5 minutes later will be happily playing mommy/baby with each other

They have been spending like two hours in the yard most days,
basically digging and playing in the dirt plus hanging from the rope swing.
It's pretty great!

 

Etta sure loves giving her baby sister attention and making her smile!

 

Etta is in an akward nap stage.
Some days she basically begs to take a nap, others she says she doesnt want to.
On her "no nap" days, she has been known to fall asleep in the car after literally two minutes of driving, at the table during snack, on the ottoman while looking out the window, amongst a pile of pillows while in a time-away-from-her-sister, etc.
So not planned out naps in good locations necessarily.
It is great when she asks for a nap. Except on nap days it takes her until literally 9:45 to fall asleep at night.