Favortie New Spot

Gizmo has found a new place to sit during every meal. If he waits long enough something will fall. Marlee didn't know he was there for the longest time. He was always so quiet and patiently waited for his little treat. She has discovered he's there now and has decided he needs more to eat; half to him and half for her.

Gizmo doesn't really like Marlee but now he's found the perfect solution. As long as she's strapped into her chair he has the best of both worlds.

First Day of School

Rhaegan had her first day of school last Wednesday and from the look on her face you can see her excitement about the whole thing. She was so thrilled about meeting her new teacher and seeing her new classroom but most of all she couldn't wait to use her new Hello Kitty backpack! It was a fun day. I can't believe my little girl is in school.

New shirt, new shoes, cute hair-do...

And of course her backpack!

I was so proud of her. She loved her first day and couldn't wait to go back. It was also nice because Grandma and Grandpa Taylor were in town and got to go with us to drop her off and see her classroom.

Reds!

No I'm not a baseball fan now or anything but when you're gifted fantastic seats by your awesome brother well, I decided to quickly adopt an interest. I love any live sporting event, though especially when you are sitting close enough to hear the ump yell "Strike." I use to go to the Reds games growing up so I was excited to reminisce a little. We grabbed a couple hot dogs and drinks and watched a very exciting game.

Joey Votto up to bat. I wasn't lying when I said we had great seats.

It was 100 degrees when we arrived at 7pm and even though the sun set shortly there after, it remained quite hot as you can see from the sweat on my face.

The games are usually sold out now because they are doing so well. The stadium was packed!

What Happened?

If I leave Marlee unattended for more than 5 minutes this is what I will find. Long silences only mean one thing when dealing with this little lady: TROUBLE!!!

I don't even know how she was able to get all of these clothes from her room to the stairs. There's no wonder why I'm so tired all the time.

NC #2

Here are some more pictures from our wonderful trip to the Outer Banks...Marlee and Norah became really great friends right from the start. Their portable booster/highchair seats were a big hit especially when they were sitting on the floor.

This year we really took advantage of the pool which is in walking distance from our house. The beach was windy almost everyday so with little kids having sand blowing in their faces wasn't ideal. The pool was great. There is a baby pool which is where Norah and Rheagan liked to play.

We had "Family Night" on Thursday. The Nobles went out to dinner as a family and the Cupps did the same thing. We went to the Dolphin Den and had some wonderful food.

Marlee was entertained during dinner with treats from Grandma's purse and Papa's utensils. Whatever it takes to keep that little one quiet I am completely on board with.

We spent one of our days over at the sound. The water was seriously the same temperature as bath water. It actually wasn't even refreshing to get into. We had a good time though.

We rented two kayaks which were a huge hit.

The girls with their Auntie Krista.

There was one thing on this trip which caused a little discomfort: Mosquitoes! Rhaegan was their favorite treat.

NC Highlights

This year North Carolina was again a complete blast. I don't know how you could really go wrong with the Outer Banks. I of course took a lot of pictures so I am still trying to choose the ones I really like and want to share with my faithful blog followers. Here are a few to get you started.

Popcorn was a big hit with my girls. Marlee calls it pop so whenever she's asking for it we just assume she wants a Coke or something.

It was so much fun getting to know Kester a little bit better. Him and Suzi are adorable and he is the nicest guy you could ever meet. I'm sure all of my questions to Suzi about Kester and his culture were a lot to take but I sure loved learning about him.

Who goes to the beach to just lay out? Well as you can see my little munchkins do.

Our traditional trip to "Top Dog" was of course delicious. I was dreading it a little because of the "no air conditioning" issue. But it wasn't too bad. There was a slight breeze.

Uncle Josh and Rhaegan. Aren't they cute?

More photos to come....

The 4th

Our 4th of July was a very hot and humid one this year. That didn't stop our girls from thoroughly enjoying though. To start off the day my parent's neighborhood had a bicycle/scooter/wagon parade which Rhaegan was beyond excited about. We found some leftover balloons and some blue and red ribbon and spent Saturday morning decorating her bike. She was very particular about which color of balloon went where. We then decorated the wagon for Marlee and headed out the door. Marlee unfortunately got sunscreen in her eyes so every picture of her she looks to be in pain. We were patiently waiting for the rest of the kids to arrive so the parade could start.
Keep in mind it was 10:30 am and already 90 degrees!!

We of course had to get a patriotic photo of our family since we were all dress for the occasion.

Shae thought it would be fun to put cans trailing behind Rhaegan's bike as seen on "Dennis the Menace." That idea was quickly removed.

We hope you all had a great 4th!!