BEACH!

Yesterday was Evan's final day before school.  We barely made it to the beach!  We had planned on a different day, but it was rainy.

We went to Lewes, Delaware which is just two hours from our home.  We choose Lewes because of its lack of big waves.  Most beach and ocean loving people (not me) would not be impressed, but we choose Lewes so the children are safe to play in the water, especially with their unswimming mama nearby.

They played a lot in the sand.  We were amazed when Esther finally ventured off our blanket.

 Really, Meghan spent the day mostly in the water.  She is such a fish!

 Evan was constantly covered in sand...

 I think he looks a bit like his dad here with "scruff."

 Esther spent a large part of the day eating.

 The new sand toys that Meghan won from the local library's summer reading program.

Enjoying the water...

 More eating...

 But eventually, Esther touched the water with her toes (and fingers)!

 Then, she didn't want to part with Daddy, so she went into the water.

 Evan was buried in sand.

We left by 8:15 and arrived two hours later.  Since Esther was up by six (her new thing), she took a little nap on the way down.  This allowed us to stay for FOUR hours!  Afterwards we had some good ice cream and headed home to some frozen pizza.

The kids got along amazingly well.  It was a wonderful day!  Derek and I may even venture to staying for a couple of days with the children at some point.  I don't think the grown-ups would enjoy a full week at the beach with young children, but some day we may be up for a beach adventure (even if I don't like sand).

Esther {In Pictures}

Esther is now 22 months old.  She definitely has a big personality.  This summer has provided a lot of opportunity for us to see it!

Despite what this photo may seem, she now loves the water!  At Pinebrook she couldn't get enough of the pool, but prior to that she was not interested in the kiddie pool at home.

CUTENESS overload!  

She wore this bathing suit coverup, with the hood up, for about an hour, I think!

 Evan enjoyed using the camera.  Flash and all.

 This image may be a bit overexposed.  

 Esther is almost definitely left handed.  Below she is drawing in a magazine.

She loves to draw!

 This is the rocking horse that Grandpa made for Meghan.  All of the children have enjoyed it, and Esther is certainly no exception.

Esther's vocabulary is always increasing.  She is a silly girl who knows how to tease already!  She adores her daddy and asks for him each morning when she awakens.

The big news is that this past week Esther stopped using her crib.  She now sleeps in her own twin bed!

This past week, we switched Meghan and Esther's bedrooms.  (Meghan has a queen bed that was for company before Esther's arrival.  Since we didn't know if Esther would be a boy or girl, we opted to keep Meghan in her purple room and move the giant bed in there...but her room wasn't really big enough to have a queen bed, so they have switched!)  

We skip the toddler bed and just put the twin mattress and boxspring on the floor.  Esther has Meghan's old bed.  You can see a young Meghan with the bed here.  Evan's post about his bed is here.

Pinebrook 2013

Since the summer of 2009, we've attended Pinebrook Bible Conference each year.  Many other families from our church attend the same week.  This year was unique in that we went on my birthday.  It was strange to spend the day with no celebration...just no time, I guess.

I didn't take a lot of photos this year, but here are a few highlights.

An evening rainbow.

 Derek tried the Ripstick.  

(It uses body momentum instead of your feet on the pavement to move.)

 Family Fun Fair (or something like that) had Derek and me jousting.

 Esther took a bunch of pictures one afternoon.  I like this one!

 It's not Pinebrook without a good rain!

 Esther saw Derek on the grass...and promptly went to join him, copying him.

 The final night there I was able to escape the room and enjoyed ice cream with the Big Kids and Derek before going to bed.  (This was the night that Derek called me Grumpy Pants.  And I fully agreed with him.)

 At least someone was willing to cooperate...

We had a good time and look forward to returning in the future!

Independence Day with Family

 Independence Day brought visitors to our home.  My sister, Amy, nephew I., and our friend Christy all came to visit.

Meghan used the Duplos to get into the right mindset.

 That night we were playing with sparklers (for the very first time!) when our neighbors across the road began to set off their fireworks.

 I didn't get a good picture of a blast above their home, but this is the house directly across from our us.

 The kids just sat right down and watched.  Esther was asleep...No need to get off schedule for something she may dislike!

As we left for swim lessons on Friday, Amy, Christy, and Indigo also left.  Christy took a little picture of us before we all said goodbye.

It was a great visit!

Rain Play

One day after swim lessons, we drove home in the rain.  The children asked if they could play in the rain, and I couldn't think of better timing!

Swim lessons were the final week of June and first week of July...I may be a bit behind in my posting!  :)