Camping at Whitewater, just the girls.

Last weekend I took the girls camping... just me and them.  It wasn't supposed to be that way.  First, friends were going to join us.  Then plans changed and it would be just our family (including Daddy and Ely).  Then Ely hurt his paw so Daddy stayed home with him.  I didn't want to cancel it since we had been looking forward to going back to Whitewater (no bugs!), so off we went.  The girls played in the river while I built a fire.  We went to the beach, hiked and played at the campsite.  The girls kept commenting how they didn't want to go back to Kathio because of the bugs.  (I don't want to either.)  We decided that Whitewater should be at least once a year, maybe even twice.  It was also nice to see Grammy with her friend in Rochester to break up the drive.  The girls have been concerned about her (as we all have) and have been cherishing every moment they get with her.

I made fires!

Samantha was awesome at helping set up the tent.  She handled it well when Sofia joined us too.

We didn't use the rain cover so this is the view we had from our "beds" in the tent the next morning.

We hiked up the bluff just like last year.  I made them promise next time we would do another hike.

A found flower is okay.  She didn't pick it herself.

I'm so glad we did this!  It's nice to know we can do it on our own.  We want more people next time though... it is more fun with more people, even though we made friends at the beach and with the campers next door!

State Fair 2013

The heat was punishing, but we managed our annual tradition of eating our way through the State Fair.  We drank a lot of water and took many breaks in the shade.  This year we didn't make it to the barns, but we did watch a log-rolling competition and Samantha participated in the Giant Sing Along (One Direction song).  The girls got to skate on a new type of skating rink that doesn't have ice.  Of course, we had to do the Giant Slide... that's a must for us every year!

Our annual list of foods we ate this year:
Pizza
Cheese curds
Potato skins
Nutella and marshmallow Crepe
Roasted corn
Lemonade
Mild beef stick
Double bacon corn dog
Bacon ice cream, bomb pop and chocolate ice cream cone
French fries
Cajun Jerky
Chocolate candy
Sno-cones

Wizard of Oz Summer Performance

Last night the grandparents joined us to watch Samantha and Sofia perform "The Wizard of Oz" with their dance studio.  It was outdoors at a local park with an amphitheater and even though it was a little hot, it was a great night to watch them.

Sofia and her group began the performance.  She smiled and performed her routine beautifully.  Sofia said that she was nervous to dance in front of people, but practice was fun.  We helped her work through it and by the day of the show, Sofia wasn't nervous at all.

Samantha had 4 dances to perform and she was wonderful.

Daddy and I are so proud of our girls... here they are pre-show.

 

 

We went out for ice cream afterwards.  The excitement of performing and the sugar rush kept the girls up late!

Summer Activities Wind Down

Throughout the summer, camp has been a big deal.

Many thanks to Nana and Papa for taking the girls for a day each week! 

Here are some highlights from the summer camps and programs...

 

Samantha was supposed to go to zoo camp with a friend of hers, but it didn't work out.  Since Sofia was sad that she didn't go to camp, Daddy took her to the zoo the last morning. 

 

Scary T-Rex!

You've got to love this one!

Dirty Girl (Mom's fun run)

This is a group of us after completing the Dirty Girl 5K!  Samantha, Sofia and Daddy came to watch and giggle.  Sofia ran by me and was cheering me on... it was incredibly cute.

 

 The picture says it all.

 

 

 

A note from Sofia to Sophia

"I like you Sophia, I want you to have a slumber party with me and my family."

Sofia created this and asked me how she could give it this to Sophia.  Daddy texted it to her dad.

So cute and sweet!

Family Reunion in St. Louis

As I write this, we are returning from a family reunion in St. Louis.  Last Wednesday, Daddy drove the girls down by himself since I had to stay for a work meeting.  I caught a ride with Nana and Papa on Thursday.  Once I got there, it was 13 people sleeping at Uncie and Antie's house.  Surprisingly, it wasn't too bad with all the folks and it was great to spend some time with Jenna and Archer too!

While I was on the road, the girls and Daddy went to the City Museum with JoAnn.  Unfortunately the heat was nearly unbearable, yet they still climbed the 10-story slide.  On Friday I went to work at my company's St. Louis office and Daddy took the girls to the Magic House since the weather was so hot again.  Uncle Todd, Aunt Shelly , Jordan and Dylan, Nana and Papa all went too... everyone said it was crowded, but it was fun.  We ended the night with dinner at Uncle Bob's house.

Saturday began with family pictures near Faust Park. There was some coordination, but we will see what the results look like.  Everyone made it so that made the event special.  We let the kids play for a while, then met some of our friends for lunch before letting our kids play with water at Uncle Bob's again.  Then everyone came over to Uncie's for the rest of the night.  

Now we are trekking home.  All of us loved seeing cousins and the relatives we don't talk to often.  I'm happy I got to talk to mostly everyone, including the kids.  Samantha's favorite thing was City Museum and playing with Molly.  Sofia liked getting pushed in the toy car by Archer at Uncie and Antie's house and going to City Museum.  Daddy and I enjoyed Saturday and catching up with relatives.

Thanks to Grammy for watching Ely... maybe next time we'll bring both of them too!