Foremelon

Last night we were all outside while Jeremy put the puppies kennel together. It started getting really cold so Gracie and I headed in. About 10 minutes later Whitney came in the back door crying. When I asked her what was wrong she said she got hurt with a rock. When I started getting the girls ready for bed I noticed this huge knot on Whitney's forehead and so I asked her again what happened. She started crying again and said "I got hurt with a rock on my foremelon". I tried VERY hard not to laugh and said "Where is your foremelon? And she pointed to her forehead (Jeremy always calls the girls heads their melons.) Then I said, "Did you trip and fall and hit your head on a rock?" And she said, "No, I hit myself with a rock in my foremelon." I was on the verge of laughing. She was still quite upset and so I told her I would take her picture and she continued to pout while I took the first one.

She took one look at the first picture and asked me to please take another.

Gracie, of course wanted her picture taken also.

When Jeremy came in later he said that Whitney was throwing rocks over the top of the dog kennel and he told her to be careful or one would bounce back and hit her and sure enough, the next one she tossed up there bounced off the top of the chain-link and hit her right in the foremelon. My kids crack me up.

Zoo Pals

We went to the Idaho Falls Zoo yesterday with our friends. Many of you might say, I didn't think Idaho Falls had a zoo - well, they do..........barely. It was fun. It was field trip day so it was packed. I was glad that the girls didn't have on red or orange shirts - it seemed like all of the preschoolers and kindergarten kids were wearing that color - my friend Mandie had a hard time keeping track of her kids because they were dressed just like kids in two big classes.

The girls loved seeing the tigers and lions. Gracie happily growled and roared while we watched the tiger pace back and forth and the lions sun themselves. They are on the tiger with their friends Maiya and Carsen and looking at the monkeys with Parker and Tanner.

Garden update - the peppers and herbs are going outside tomorrow. Mandie gave me tomato plants (grape and beef steak) which are also being planted tomorrow. Actually, everything is getting planted tomorrow - big day. We have to put a fence around the whole garden because of our little puppies.

Sandbar

Today was play group and we went to the sandbar in St. Anthony for the first time this season. The city started renovating it last year and so there is a bunch of new sand, sidewalks and it also has a little pavillion and playground. The twins were very excited to wear their swimsuits - they found it quite wonderful that they didn't have to wear underwear with them. Gracie kept getting a melvin and when I would tell her to pull her swimsuit out she would yank it up - ouch. I think if we had a contest every night to see which kid in town had the dirtiest face it would be Whit - just look at her face after lunch. We spent 3 hours at the sandbar and had so much fun. All the kids were playing in the water even though it is still freezing - let's be honest - the water is still cold in August, so you can imagine how cold it is now. But it was really warm and the sand was hot, so it felt good. The twins brought their new "sandbar toys" to share with all of the kids and they were a big hit. I don't know what I would do without all of our friends up here. We really love it up here and can't wait for visitors this summer.

Adding to our Family

As of Monday we officially added two new members to our family - twins girls names Molly and Riley. They are so good with the girls and a lot of fun - and work - so far.

Crack Kills

We went to the nature park with our play group yesterday - boys are so different than girls. My girls try to get as close to the ducks as possible without making a lot of noise, etc. My friend Mandie's little boys hopped out of her car and immediately started yelling and chasing as many ducks as possible. It was pretty funny. These pictures aren't from yesterday - they are of the girls last week when I took them down to the park.

Dirt in the Skirt

I took the girls outside last night while I mowed the lawn. They were jumping on the tramp and picking flowers, etc. and then they moved over into the dirt by the garden which isn't a big deal - they love to play in it. Anyway, I just happened to look up in time to see Gracie flat on her back in the dirt moving her arms up and down like a snow angel. They were so filthy. You can't tell from the pictures I took, but they were absolutely covered in dirt from the top of their heads to their toes. They were also quite sad that mommy "killed the dandelions" when I mowed the lawn.

Snakes & Babies

I have taken the girls down to the green belt by the river the past couple of mornings for a walk. It is the perfect time to go right now because the mosquitos haven't shown up yet. Anyhow, both mornings there has been this huge bald eagle that flies - actually soars, because that's what eagles do - up and down the river, it has been so awesome to see it and to see how big it is compared to the other birds that fly by. We also came across four snakes on the path yesterday - lucky for us it was only four - a few weeks ago they were mating (ewwww!!!) and they were all over the place. It is so beautiful up here and it really makes me wish some of our family was up here to enjoy it (hint, hint).

The girls are also very into babies right now - a couple of our friends are almost due - and so we've been talking about how one day mommy will have another baby too. Whitney has taken that statement and run with it. Both she and Gracie told me that they would like a baby sister. Then Whitney wanted to know what we would name her and I said probably Olivia. So now, everything that we do she'll say, is this one for Olibbia mommy? Oh dear. Just so we are on the same page - I am NOT pregnant. I wouldn't mind having another baby right now, but it is not happening at the moment. I'm just afraid she will start telling her primary teachers and friends that she is going to have a baby sister. I swear, you can't say anything around kids. It's like they copy everything you do and you are some kind of role model for them =).

Garden update - the red onions are starting to grow, the spinach is coming up great (much to Jeremy's dismay), and some green peas are breaking out of the soil. My cilantro has grown so well that I had to take it out of the greenhouse and put them in some pots along with our red and yellow peppers.