The end of July was filled with more pool time and friend time.
These two girls always loved our trips to the pool. They played so well together all summer long.
We went to one last library program- Mr. Stinky Feet. The kids loved that Emma, Grant, and Luke joined us.
Elisabeth even got chosen as Mr. Stinky Feet's assistant. She did a great job- even though she was hesitant to say underwear at first, ha!
After the concert we all went out to lunch. McDonalds is my kids' favorite restaurant. They had a great time eating and playing with their friends.
Anytime we had cool enough weather we tried to play at a park or playground. Katherine loves to swing.
We tried out a new snow cone place. The kids were big fans! They never turn down snow cones.
We spent an awesome morning at the Discovery Lab with friends. Everyone had so much fun! That fun day was a highlight of summer for me. All the kids played great and had a blast. I had fun playing with them and also getting some mom time in with Michelle while the kids played. I love this sweet friendship between Emma and Elisabeth. Elisabeth always wishes she had a big sister and Emma always wishes for a baby sister, and their friendship really fills that gap.
I just loved the construction/home exhibit at the Discovery Lab this summer. So much fun and learning happening among all my kids.
We had a picnic at the Discovery Lab and then I brought Grant home with me, and Michelle took Emma home with her for some boy time and girl time for the afternoon. The boys spent most of the afternoon playing Mario Kart and a Cars racing game on the Switch.
Meanwhile, the girls baked and played Barbies.
We met up again at a park that evening to return each others' children. Man, that was just a great day for everyone- one of my favorite days of the whole summer.
We had some unusually cool weather for a few days at the end of July, and Brooke and I took advantage of it and met at the zoo for some fun. That was another fun morning with friends.
We met up at the pool with Kamryn and Addisyn for a few hours. These two have been friends since Kindergarten, and now their little sisters are special friends too. Neighborhood friends are awesome friends!
The kids participated in a karate camp at the end of July. I laughed because this was Elisabeth's outfit choice for one of the nights of karate. There's not much tom boy in that girl :)
They all loved karate camp. I love that ministry and the discipline, and spiritual maturity it teaches the kids along with giving them wonderful role models. They all loved playing "bumper cars"
And on the last day of camp, they all got to break a board. They were SO very proud of themselves!
The last week of July was filled with more camps. Nathan participated in a first and second grade day camp at our church, and he loved spending time with all his friends. They went to the zoo, the Discovery Lab and to a special screening of the Lion King.
While he was at church camp, Samuel and Elisabeth had fun at soccer camp. Samuel seems to really enjoy soccer, and he had a great time. Elisabeth had fun too, but at the end she said she didn't care for the sport- too much running for her, I think.
Nathan's camp started earlier than soccer camp, so one morning we went out for donuts before I dropped them off at Soccer City.
Usually by the end of July, I'm pretty worn out and ready for back to school, but this year we were all soaking up all the fun and never got the end of July blues. The kids are easier and more fun as they get older. We always had down time in the afternoons during Kate's nap, but we filled most of our mornings with summer fun!
Katherine Grace, you are 22 months old and turning into the sweetest toddler we know.
At 22 months old, your favorite things are horsey rides, swimming pools, your sissy, popsicles, princess board books, pacifiers (always!), Elsa and Anna, crushed ice, whipped cream, your friend Luke, baby dolls, swinging, and huggies and kissies with everyone in your family.
Your obssession with princesses continue. This month you've been loving Ariel, and Elsa and Anna. You sing along to the Frozen songs, and even sat and wathced some of the movie. It was definitely the movie that has held your attention the longest. You love to read your princess books and usually are carrying around a princess doll throughout the day.
You adore your sister. You two are still playing so well together. Your brothers are a little jealous because you'll always choose playing with Elisabeth over playing with the boys. Your sister bond is adorable. You follow her around and she can get you to do just about anything including helping her with her chores. You two love to play baby dolls, kitchen, dance parties, and night night.
You are the easiest kid around to put to bed. We brush teeth, read books, and I lay you in your bed. Usually you'll try and stall and ask for huggies from everyone in the family, but then once I put you in your bed- with a zillion pacifiers, a cup of water, and a few books. Even when we've needed you to sleep in a different bed or room, you still go to bed just fine. You take a good 2 hour nap everyday and sleep from about 8:00-7:00 each night.
You're talking all the time and I love your little voice. You say "ma" for milk, "wa wa" for water, "pop-ti-ti" for popsicle and "tassy" for pacifier. You comment that all your dirty diapers are "tinky." Some common phrases I always here are "where are you mommy?" "I did it" "Daddy home" "Mommy stay" and "no, mine" because you are almost two of course :)
You've been loving going to the pool this summer. You like to play with our sea turtles, jump of the side, and try to imitate anything your siblings are doing. It's been such a fun family time together.
You want to be so independent all the time. You refuse to ride in strollers and shopping carts, and recently you've started taking your shoes off in stores too- so your preference is to walk around uncontained and barefoot while I try to shop. Whew, neither of us are too happy during those shopping trips. I feel like I have such a different perspective raising you than your siblings. You're my last baby, and I know that these stages will pass all too quickly- even the hard things, and so I can take a deep breath and be grateful for all the joys and trials that come with the toddler stage, because I know that all too soon, this stage will just be a precious memory- and I'll probably forget about the stressful shopping trips.
You're wearing a size 5 diaper, 24 months or 2T clothes, and a size 6 shoe. You love to take off your shoes and put them back on. You always take them off in the car, and usually throw them down so we can't find them.
You're usually always happy, and skip, run and giggle while you are playing. Occasionally you can wake up from a nap a little grumpy, but you're able to snap out of your bad moods pretty easily. You're growing up so fast and add so much fun to our family. We all can't get enough of you. Everyone always wants to play with you, check on you, and take care of you. You are soaking up the role of baby of the family.
