Busy as bees!

We've been so busy over here that I can't believe it's been nearly a month since my last post. I have lots to say and definitely plenty of pictures so grab a cool glass of lemonade (preferably strawberry) and let's dive in!

Father's Day weekend was particularly busy for us, as it is every year since my Dad's birthday generally shares the weekend and quite often, the actual day. This year his birthday was on the Friday so K and Nana made him a cake and a pan of her famous lasagna. It was very tasty. K has become quite proficient at helping Nana make cakes. We'll have to start introducing her to some other foods in the kitchen or she'll turn into me and only enjoy baking ;)

On the Saturday of Father's Day weekend my brother, sis-in-law and the Princess came out to celebrate Dad's bday and Father's Day and then we all headed over to our aunt and uncle's house to celebrate our cousins 5th birthday. It was a pool party and all of the girls did REALLY well in the pool.

E had so much fun!

Already learning to splash Daddy

On Father's Day we went to church and enjoyed a waffle breakfast sponsored by the youth to make money for their summer trip. After all the craziness of the weekend, we ended up just going home afterwards and relaxing. The girls and I gave Daddy his gift: a gallery wrapped 16x20 canvas print of them I took in the backyard. It turned out cute but of course I couldn't get both girls to smile. This is the picture:

No smiles from the world's smiliest baby. Figures!

I finally got around to taking a picture of the girls in their Big Sis / Lil Sis matching shirts which is a good thing because that onesie on E was really stretching to fit.

There are those famous smiles =D

This past weekend (starting Friday the 22nd) was another busy but fun weekend for the JAKES + N&P. On Friday we (my parents, the girls and I) drove into the city to go to the aquarium because it was free admission for the whole week and we wanted to catch it before it was over. When we got there we had a picnic in the park area right near the aquarium. The weather was amazing!

The girls enjoying our picnic lunch under the shade of a tree.

K wanted to hug the tree and even gave it a kiss. That's my girl!
I even have a onesie for E that says "Future Tree Hugger".

When we walked over to the aquarium we noticed a REALLY long line near a side entrance. We asked a nice woman if this was the line to get in. She informed us it was the stroller line. I was feeling pretty good about myself right then because I had decided to carry E in a front carrier instead of bringing our stroller so YAY, we wouldn't have to wait in that line. We moved around to the front of the building and saw another line that was three times as long. Yeah, there was no way we were going to the aquarium. After the hour or more wait just to get in, I'd be a nervous wreck with the girls in that size crowd. Plan B! Thankfully the Natural History Museum is right next store so we were able to go there and see the dinosaurs. It wasn't free, which was a bummer, but it was still a lot of fun.

Papa, Nana & K in front of the Tyrannosaurus Rex

Comparing femur sizes.

On Sunday we headed up north to the Strawberry Festival. Being a strawberry lover I'd always wanted to go to this fest but always ended up missing by a day or a week or something. Not this year! We grabbed some doughnuts on our way and got there shortly after they opened. It was a cool 78 degrees and it wasn't too crowded - perfect!

The beautiful butterfly bench in the Artistic Garden.

However, as the day wore on, the heat and the crowds increased. By the time we left it was 90 degrees and we were all ready for a cold drink. However, K had a blast and enjoyed her third pony ride.

We didn't know this pony's name so she named it after herself, much like all of her toys at home.

This was an inflatable "money grab" machine but with balloons instead.
It could have used more balloons in my opinion but K still seemed to like it.

We had to improvise and use Daddy's baseball hat to keep the sun off of E. You can see the heat in my face.

With these busy weekends in addition to our normal busy weekday schedule (Mon: ballet, Tues: summer craft program at the local toy store, Wed: ballet, Thrs: library story time, Fri: bowling) we are definitely taking advantage of all the free activities and fests around our area. Tomorrow is K's little recital for ballet so I'll be posting a video of that. I can't wait! Then we'll rearrange our schedule so that bowling will be on Mondays, her next class, ArtRageous Fun will be on Wednesdays and we'll do Park Day on Fridays. We've been trying to hit a different one of the 22 parks around our area each week. So far we've done three and they've all been very nice. I really miss the splash pads we had out in OH though, especially when the forecast calls for 102 degrees on Thursday. Ugh!

As a last note, today is the day, two years ago we lost our little A. It's unbelievable to think it's been 2 years already. We still miss her and think of her regularly however the loss is lessened by the joy of our little E. We are so blessed and thank God daily for our families and our health.

I hope you all are having a great summer. If you want, leave me a comment and let me know what you're up to and if you think I'm crazy with all of these activities.