Catching up

A few more from Mt. Rainier...




A couple of the kids on the playground. There were beautiful, fun and creative playgrounds everywhere around Bellevue. I bet we went to almost a dozen different ones during our visit. Charlotte was in heaven.



New shoes. Derek found these little Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars for Grace (although they are low-tops). Very '80s, I think.

More Seattle pictures

A few more from the beach.



These are from our trip to Mt. Rainer. We told Charlotte we would be going hiking in the morning and she looked confused. When Derek said "We're going to go on a nature walk" her face lit up. "Like Oobi?!" Anything that Oobi does is cool with her.


Dan would be able to tell me what flower this is.



Grace riding in the backpack and wearing Heidi's hat.

Our trip

Sorry to have been so long in updating this. I have been busy catching up since we've been home and then blogger gave me fits trying to get these uploaded.

We had a great time visiting Heidi and Dan in Seattle. The girls travelled very well and we did lots of fun stuff and it was wonderful to hang out with Heidi and Dan. Here are a few of the many, many pictures I have from our trip. These are from a swimming beach on a lake very near where Heidi and Dan lived.

The sand was hot!


That blinding white spot in the center of the frame is actually Derek waiting to catch Charlotte when she jumps. Try not to stare at it for too long at once. Well, Heidi will get that joke anyway. Sorry girls, I saw him first :)


Both my girls.


Grace on the beach.


Footprints.


Lots more pictures to follow in the next few days.

Louisa at the fair

I got to spend the morning with Alex and Bill and my adorable little niece at the Erie County Fair. There are a bunch of pictures to follow.

There was lots to look at...



...and this really nosey photographer everywhere.

The petting zoo

Isn't she cute?

A few more

Louisa and her Daddy.



She liked her new toy.

And she can walk!

my favorite ...

a whole world to explore - upright!

The answer to the question

why is that kid's face always dirty?

What can I say? She loves to eat stuff.

I love the setting sun hitting the back of her head. I like the way she is sitting with her little knee up, too.


Check out those legs!


Derek's favorite.

Crowded Tub

There's too many kids in this tub.
There's too many elbows to scrub.
I just washed a behind
that I'm sure wasn't mine.
There's too many kids in this tub.
- Shel Silverstein



Our bathroom is temporarily out of commision. The girls loved the makeshift bathing facilities.

My first baby

Charlotte has become very interested in stories about when she was a baby. I will tell her, "we used to sing that song to you when you were a little baby." And she says, "ooh. My a baby?" She looks at old pictures of herself and if you ask her who is in the picture she says "Mommy and Daddy and baby Charlotte".

So she was tickled to take a bath in the sink, just like when she was a little baby.

My little goofball

Need I say more? This kid cracks me up every day.

Grace's chair

Grace loves to sit in and climb on this little chair. Our bad parent confession of the day - usually it sits in front of the tv for her. I moved it today into the dining room to take a few pictures of her sitting in it. I got a (very) few frames of her actually sitting

Then, she came over near the window where the light was very nice but the room was really messy and cluttered. So here are some new close-ups that I love.


(same shot, cropped differently)

I love this series

...milk drool and all.