Boston with Grandma

 We are having fun having Grandma Kissell here with us and exploring he areas around us!  We took her to Burlington on Friday and then Boston on Saturday.  Phew, what a weekend!


mac and cheese sculpture by Faneuil Hall




waiting for my cannolis at Mike's









fun splash pad in Boston





on the duck tour





Clara's pretty lashes on the duck tour





USS Constitution





the driver was a really funny guy telling funny jokes the whole time.  Once he got in the water he sat on the side and asked if there were any kids that wanted to drive.  A few kids near the front went and when we asked the kids if they wanted to they said yes.  Kate totally surprised me when he asked her if she wanted to and she said yes and walked all the way from the back to the front by herself.  She is getting so big and brave!  Then he had Sawyer come drive with her.  He even took this picture for me with my camera...I guess he can't get Sawyer to look at him and smile either...






We found this park on our way to eat dinner






Ryan's lobster roll


  


Boston is such a fun place to explore!   

First day of school 2012

 


 

The morning was a whirlwind and I surprisingly did not shed a tear! They were both so excited!

getting so big!

This little girl of mine is getting so big. In the past week she has learned to do some really fun, big girl tricks and we can't get enough of them! One day I was laying on the floor with her and she was holding a baby doll, her new favorite toy. I was picking up the baby doll and giving it tons of kisses and then handing it back and she started picking up the baby and holding it up to get kisses from me and then would giggle like crazy when I was kissing it She also likes to take her binky out of her mouth and try and put it in my mouth. I'll bite on the wrong end and pretend like I won't give it back and she loves to chase it. Finally I'll put it back her mouth by giving her a big kiss and she'll get a big smile on her face She has given me a few kisses before, but she has just started to give them to her brother and sister. They think its so funny and try and get kisses all the time. They are, of course, big slobbery mouth open wide kisses! She loves baby dolls! She'll pick them up and give them hugs and pat them on their backs just like I pat hers when I'm holding her. She also gives them kisses...but it looks more like she is trying to eat their faces. Her little inchworm crawl is the cutest thing ever. Its kind of a face plant, then stick your bum in the air and inch forward. Cutest. Thing. Ever. I did see her crawl on her hands and knees a few paces today. And Kate saw her go from laying on her stomach up to sitting for the first time today too. What a big girl! She has learned to wave hello and bye bye and she gets so excited and proud of herself when she does it She seriously is getting so big and we are loving this age! Even though she is getting harder to care for (we have baby choking hazards everywhere around here!) we are loving the new interactions we are getting wither her. And, since you have to have pictures with a post, here are some phone pics I have taken of my big girl recently.  And check out all her hair!

 

ward campout - camp Joseph

Friday was our ward camp out and, since both of our husbands were working relatively late, my good friend and I headed down with our kids all by ourselves. Let me tell you what...that was an adventure! We were the first ones there from our group so we got to choose a site. We started setting up our tents as people started to arrive. We go the last pole in the last tent right as the rain started coming down and then we ran into a nearby cabin amidst the sheets of rain. A great start to our adventure! Luckily the rain passed over us fairly quickly and we were able to enjoy the rest of the evening. I didn't take many pictures, just the sky after the storm and one of Clara's first tin foil dinner. Isn't it adorable? I only survived the day alone because of the awesome Young Women who took my kids and played with them. They were also eager to hold my baby for me when I needed my hands! How do people raise such amazing teenage girls? I want to know the secret. Ryan finally did get there and it was a fun night of sitting around the camp fire and roasting marshmallows. The kids were excited to sleep in their tent and were good sleepers. Clara woke up a few times but we're guessing she was a little chilly because it was a cold night. The next morning dawned cool but sunny and we had a yummy breakfast and then packed it all up and headed home! The best part was we were only a half our away from home so we still had the whole rest of our day to play. Can't wait for the next ward camp out next year!

Happy Birthday President Monson

Today we celebrated President Monson's birthday. Thomas S Monson is the Prophet and President of our church and he turns 85 on Tuesday.  He is the most amazing, selfless, cheerful man.  A perfect example of giving up everything to serve.  We love him!

We celebrated tonight with a cake that we had read in the Friend magazine was one his mom was famous for making.

picture from wikipedia

  What a yummy way to celebrate!

Polo

The Quechee library had a polo game fundraiser on Saturday and we decided it would be fun to go. We always pass the polo field in Quechee and think it would be fun to actually see a match and we thought this would be our best chance! They had crafts for the kids and a little bake sale. You drive your cars right up to the side of the field and can watch from next to your car which is awesome. It was a great way to spend a sunny afternoon!

After it was over the players let us have a ride on their horses

Clara even got in on the action!

After the Polo game (match?) we took our dinner to a park and had a picnic. It was a park the kids discovered with Daddy earlier in the week and they were so excited to show me the zip line. It was so hilarious! Sawyer is growing out of all his shirts so his big belly was sticking out. And, inspired by the olympics, he was making some pretty funny faces while doing it! I couldn't stop laughing!

Look at this dismount!

And he totally stuck the landing!

We love summer nights and are so sad that they are numbered!

Ricker Pond

All last week we were excitedly looking forward to a camping trip that weekend and just as we got everything packed...it started to rain. And it was not just a sprinkle, it was a pretty good rain. So Ryan quickly did some research and we found a place a little farther than we were planning on going but had an available lean to. This was our first lean to camping experience and I think it turned out really well.  We stayed nice and dry and had an amazing time.

Clara is excited to be camping!

When we got to camp it wasn't raining too hard and after we got our lean to all set up and the shelter over our picnic table we were set. It rained on and off but nothing too hard, and the kids had fun playing in it

That night we grilled some meat for fajitas and then had s'mores, of course! I saw on facebook that day that it was national S'mores day! What a delicious coincidence. I hope you all celebrated too!

That night we all slept pretty comfortably in our lean to

and woke up and made a nice warm fire

and watched the fog over the pond

the kids made a new friend...but he might have just loved them for their pancakes!

the kids spent most of the morning wandering around in their pjs. Their favorite thing to do was climb on this "ginormous" rock!
 

I didn't get a picture of the awesome set up we had in our lean to, fitting 2 families in, each with an air mattress and a pack and play, so I took an after picture.

After we packed everything up, we headed to the beach to play.

sisters!

look at that belly! Who thinks she looks underweight?! Not me!

I could not get her to stop eating the sand...

We rented a little row boat and checked out the pond

It turned out to be an awesome weekend and we were so glad we didn't let the rain stop us from going! We love spending time together as a family and it makes it even better when there are friends there too!