Summer Day in Round Rock

I'm immensely enjoying this summer day.

First, we went to a Pioneer Day celebration pancake breakfast at the church and Libby and I wore the bonnets I made. It was hot. It was humid. I'm pregnant. I wasn't comfortable in my long black skirt, socks and shoes, long sleeve shirt, and bonnet.
But then... we came home to our air-conditioned, comfortable home and had naps. And it only got better. Although it was nothing out of the ordinary, I have to write it to remember it.

At lunch Libby says, "Mom, is Alex still in CA?" I said, "Yes, he'll be there for a while." She said, "I. Love. Him."

I ask Avery if she wants chocolate milk or strawberry milk in her bottle. She says "be-be-be" for "strawberry" and I think it's the cutest thing ever.

Daddy worked this afternoon, Alex is in California, but my girls and I spent the rest of the day outside.

Our yard makes me so very happy. Our porch is long and wide with ceiling fans and a porch swing. The big trees shade almost all of the grass and the trampoline and playscape so it's cool enough for even me to at least just sit outside and watch the kids. It's pretty too. I have an expansive view of the park across the street and all the trees there.

With nowhere for us to go for the rest of the day, I don't care that my hair is getting frizzy from the humidity or my makeup is slightly melting. The water from the hose that the girls are playing with is splashing all over my feet and legs, and if they spray it on me I wouldn't care. I'm able to drink in every moment of their play.

Libby is wearing her swimming suit; Avery is in her diaper. They're eating popsicles and it's melting all down their bellies and dripping down their arms to their elbows. They offer me a taste now and again.

A butterfly lands very near the girls. The girls get down on their haunches, and it allows the girls to study it until a drip of their popsicle lands too close for comfort and it flies away. Avery does the sign for butterfly and she watches her little hands.

Avery loves my toenail polish. She points to my toes and very distinctly says, "toenails," then proceeds to bite them. She thinks it's funny.

Libby washes her stickiness off and then washes Avery with the care of a mother so as not to make Avery cry.

After Libby hoses off the patio to clean the mess from the popsicles, she spies a little black bug and starts to mother him, then starts to squish him. I tell her not to hurt a bug in its home outside, that I only kill bugs that are in our house. He's saved.

Libby now has to save him from Avery. She's trying to teach Avery to be nice to the bug, so Avery lays down on her belly to spy him up close.

Libby has a million and one questions about this bug, from what she can do for him, and what he would like, and if it's okay to do this or that. All the while Avery is also jibber-jabbering and mimicking Libby.

Libby makes the bug a home with an ice cream container. She finds a heart-shaped leaf in her hunting but for some reason decides it looks good to eat. She eats it despite me telling her it will taste gross and it's not a leaf she's supposed to eat.

Avery is thirsty and says "gu, gu," because that's what she says for water. It came from reading together and seeing a drink on the page and I would pretend I'm chugging it. So "gu, gu" has always meant water to her.

Today is not unusual. It's like this 4 or 5 days out of a week. But as I'm sitting on the swing, my unborn baby girl is kicking around a lot and I'm reminded that when she comes I will be enraptured, enamored, entranced, engrossed with this new life and I won't notice these little things about my Liberty and Avery as much. It makes me teary.

I have no doubt these are the best days of my life.

More Sewing Fun

In the girls' closet was a boring jean dress that even Libby never wore when she was little enough. So today I sewed a butterfly on it and turned her underpants into some bloomers.

Here she's concentrating on showing me her karate kick. (Hey, when you're trying to get a 1-yr-old to hold still for a picture, you do things like that.)

This is a dress I made for Libby. It's all wrinkled because she wore it to church but I forgot to take a picture. The last thing they need is more dresses but I just can't stop myself.

Avery in July 2009

It's Hot. I Have Proof.

After church one day, we found our super-hyper, ADHD squirrels like this. I thought this little guy was dead because our squirrels don't sit still for a second. But then I saw his significant other on the branch behind his, so there were actually two lifeless squirrels on this day.

You Know You're a Home Body When...

1. The idea of family vacation isn't terribly exciting in the first place.
2. Our idea of "family vacation" is visiting Houston for a couple of days to hang out with family.
3. We have a great time and accomplish all we set out to accomplish while away, and yet we still wonder why we take trips at all.
4. We want to kiss our floor and fridge and air conditioner and bed when we get home.
5. Alex (9 yrs. old) says, "Man, I just cannot stop saying how happy I am to be home!"
6. Avery (20 mos.), who hasn't seemed happy since we left, is immediately relieved when we walk in the door.
7. At 8:45 a.m. the morning after we get home half the house is still sleeping.
8. Why is my family only sick when we leave the house?
9. Steve and I have vowed not to take another trip until our youngest is 4...and our last baby isn't even born yet.
10. We came home to our first beautiful red ripe tomato from our garden.
11. Our idea of home is a place we never feel the desire to escape, even for just a couple of days.
12. We don't like to drive.
13. We don't sleep when we travel.

Now you know that if we make or have made the effort to come and visit you, you must be very special!

Pictures of our 4th of July in Houston:

On the way home, Steve stopped to help a car on the side of the road. We had a lot of reasons not to stop (at least I thought so), but he did it anyway. We had reasons not to let them into our car and give them a ride (at least I thought so), but we did it anyway.

One was a gay black man, he smelled like smoke and alcohol, and when we stopped for the bathrooms he was smoking and drinking. The other woman had a child 18 mos. old and did not have a car seat. I had to double buckle Alex and Libby so our guests would have seat belts and a car seat.

It was an incovenience and there was a risk we could get ticketed, but the bottom line is...I'm glad we did it. They needed someone's help; they were so grateful. Thanks, Steve, for being a good example of compassion and charity, even when it's not completely convenient to do so.

Libby's 4th Birthday

Libby's birthday is today (Sunday). We celebrated yesterday since it was a better party day for us.

We've been talking for months and months about how she can have gum when she turns 4, which turned into how she's going to have a "gum party" for her birthday.

Libby helped make her rainbow cake (only a couple of egg shells got in) and she decorated it with gum balls. We went to Chuck E. Cheese as a family, came home for cake and presents, and hung out with some family friends into the evening.

Alex gave her gum "tape" with a dollar inside the container, and he bought her a microphone and a huge gemstone ring that opens up from Chuck E. Cheese. I made her a pink silky pillowcase to match her pink silky blankie, and her friends' gifts were coming to Chuck E. Cheese with us, as well as make-up, a purse, and hair clips. Grandma Judy and Grandpa Chad & Grandma Jackie sent money in the mail, so now she says she's rich.

This birthday has really been a big deal for her; it marks her becoming "bigger-bigger." At Chuck E. Cheese, Steve was on a ride with her that simulates a roller coaster. They accidentally chose the "haunted" setting, and Steve was worried that it would scare her, not knowing what it entailed.

He told her, "If it gets scary, I'll cover your eyes, okay?" To which she responded, "No, I'm four now. I'm bigger-bigger."

I was worried she might be disappointed with the pillowcase gift, but she LOVES all her gifts. She carries her pillow around now; she loves it that much. She wore her new skirt I made for her, her birthday purse, and her birthday make-up to church today (that Alex helped her to apply).

Sewing Creation

This is my latest creation. I made this from two pictures I saw of similar-type skirts. It's Libby size. I made a lot of mistakes during the process -- I miscalculated measurements, I took out many, many stitches, I did a lot of figuring and refiguring. It was worth it.Why I can't stop sewing, I do not know. I can't sleep because I'm thinking about my projects, eating is an inconvenience and bother, my back aches and it's okay.

I'm indulging myself with this hobby because I know that it will soon end...oh, and because Steve is extremely supportive of this creative process that I'm enjoying. Please just be patient with me while I blog about it.

Summer Swimming

Swimming these days has been fun for the whole family. Yes, I bought a big ol' swimming suit that fits my prego body and I swim too (but there won't be any pictures of that).

The kids love it! Alex can dive and jumps crazy off the diving board. Libby refuses to get out of the pool, she loves it so much.

Avery loves it too and will stay just as long as the rest of us want to. If she hears the word swim, she won't stop saying "swimsuit" in her little baby way. Then I'll put her in the car and she'll cry until I assure her that yes, we are going to the pool but we have to drive there first.

At a birthday swim party recently, Libby walked straight over to the edge where her friends were already in the pool and just jumped right in. It was the craziest thing. Fortunately, she was wearing her floaty swimsuit so she came to the surface right away, but boy was she shocked that she went under like that! (And please don't worry about my kids, I'm extremely vigilant around water).

Scout Camp

Scout Camp is cool, that's all there is to it. Four full days of fun and Alex did not want it to end. He made me promise that he can go next year.

He's feeling very outdoorsy now, and informed us that he wants to live where houses are a mile apart so that he can ride a horse everywhere he wants to go.

Homemade Dress #2

Awww, they're matchy poo-poo now.

This pattern taught me ruffles and elastic. I'm movin' on up.

Did you know that pattern sizes are a lot bigger than sizes you buy in the store? So I've also learned how to take in the sides and modify it in other ways so that it fits them better.