The Fighter's

Grampy turned 57 and we threw him a party.  Ava and I went to the store and picked out party decorations while the other two slept...what else did she pick out but Thomas the Train.  She spent all afternoon setting up the dining room just right, blowing up balloons and helping me make the cake.  She wanted to make sure everything was perfect for her Grandpa!  I think Grandpa had a great time...he wore his hat the whole time, ate lots of cake and even chased the girls around the yard (party hat on...our neighbors got a kick out of it!).  Happy birthday Grandpa...you sure do have a lot of fans in this house and we wish you many, many more! Kate...always making us laugh! Grandpa pushing Lou on the swings...with his party hat on:-) 6' 3'' Uncle Rob swinging with Olivia & Jet! I love my neice Mattingly!

...on a day where work was piled up way too high on top of six hours of conference calls, little time with my girls and chores left undone...this quote taken from a friend today was a timely and perfect reminder...  "Didn't accomplish half of what I'd hoped to today, but God is always good and that's enough." p.s. i did sneak in some really fantastic hugs and smiles from my girls before they went to bed tonight - also good for the soul:-)

A few buckets of water + paint brushes = easy early afternoon entertainment.  :-)

Slipping and a sliding....  Olivia and Kate drinking the water... Olivia still trying to drink the water... Popsicles... My favorite view... Flower and strawberry planting... 577 Foundation... Learning a little bit about solar electricity... And more popsicles...and Kate's crazy face...

We headed down south to Kings Island to spend Friday afternoon/evening there.  The girls had never been to a BIG amusement park...and were SO excited by the roller coasters and other sites.  They had an absolute blast - riding rides, watching shows and eating fun food.  But Doug and I may have enjoyed it even more!  Nothing brings me more joy than watching my kids have so much fun!    The girls are little dare devels...willing to take on BIG rides.  The faster the better...they are my girls!!!  Ava even rode the Beastie with me and loved it!  I am such a roller coaster fan...I am so excited that they love them too!! After Kings Island we stayed at a hotel...the girls just kept saying "WOW" as we walked in.  Doesn't take much:-)  They loved the fish pond that ran through the hotel and were so excited to have a family "sleep over".  We swam in the pool the next day and then went over to Grandpa Fighter's...