Sky popcorn...

(This post added a week late due to one hectic work week and one tired momma! Better late than never. :-)

Hope everyone celebrated a safe and fun 4th of July! We had a red, white & blue weekend.  I love holidays... I mean LOVE. The fesitivties began Friday night as I told the Littles about how we were going to Grandma's to celebrate, visit with family/friends, eat delicious foods... and Friday night our neighbors tested out a few rounds of fireworks (nothing like having neighbors shoot off fireworks in your alleyway (illegal) and keep you awake late into the night).

Saturday, we were busy getting prepared for Grandma's (E.E.'s) house in the country on Sunday. Busy packing bags (and going over a list 50 times to make sure nothing was forgotten), laying out our patriotic threads - because we do have to dress the part, decorating Littlest Little's stroller in case we should happen to run across a 4th of July stroller parade (one must always be prepared), and me baking what I thought were the best cupcakes ever for a 4th of July BBQ! Loved these... "barbecue grill cupcakes" (Family Fun magazine). Fun to make and cute as can be, even when they did get hot in the car and the "steaks" (caramels), started melting and sliding off the grill. ;-)~

Sunday morning rolled around and I was up at the crack of dawn (okay, not the crack of dawn, but close enough) getting ready to hit the road. Double check the packed bag status... diaper bag, extra clothes, toiletries, decked out stroller, wallet, keys, phone/charger and most importantly the camera. I mean really who cares if we are sitting around neeekid with tangled hair and dead cell phones... by gosh, don't forget that camera!

Once we got to Grandma's house and unloaded... it was time to sit down and relax (well, as much as you can with two little ones).

Abbie had to head straight to E.E.'s flower garden. This woman has a SERIOUS (yes in all caps, that's how serious it is) green thumb. I think thats where our daddy gets it from...his mother. Abbie had to select several flowers to make a bouquet and carry around.

Abbie carried these flowers everywhere, even after they had wilted and gone on to the big flower bed in the sky. She loves flowers... I will buy her some every now and then, or daddy will pick her some from his garden, and she is so thankful and dances around saying "I lub flowers."

Littlest Little with Gavin and cousin Stephanie who rocked the patriotic gear. We have several rockstars in this family.

One of the many greats of Summer, watching the kids have fun outside (including the big kids who are disguised as adults).

Storytime with "E.E."

Momma caught Middle Little running through the house.

Haha! And you think your mirrors stay clean Grandma?! To the neeekid eye maybe, but look at all those finger prints and hand smears from the little people!

The "Three Stooges".

Daddy, Middle Little & the wilted flowers.

Love, love, love this man... (he lets me be me, stupid stuff and all, makes me feel beautiful & he loves me 100%).

Middle Little had to stop and take a brief cat nap...

Josh lounging in the shade and enjoying the sounds of the country and the tickle of the grass.

Always into something... love watching little people discover and explore new things. Brings me back down a level and makes me remember to stop and enjoy life more.

Once the food was ready, we ate so much... SO much. Good summer barbecue foods & ice cold beverages. Lots of side dishes, vegetable trays and desserts. We even roasted wild pigs that daddy hunt and gathered himself! (The peaches & cream cake was freakin awesome!) Something great happens when you sit around with family/friends and share a good meal...the feeling of togetherness.

We waited patiently for the darkness to arrive so we could light up the night sky.

Look at the sky popcorn (fireworks)! Nothing like the annual event of setting fire to sticks of mini dynamite and watching them explode into a gazillion glittery colors, the big bangs, and the sulfer smell! The Littles did okay until some of the louder bangs, and it was time to head inside.

This is a public service announcement: Fireworks can be dangerous. They are not toys, and it is imperative that you follow the instructions on the packaging. You do not want to set your mother's lawn on fire and make everyone run for the hills screaming. 

After a long day and night of family, friends, food and sky popcorn, it was time for snuggling with little ones and drifting off to the land of nod. (Okay so we did not get the best nights sleep with the four of us in one rock hard bed, but it was all good. Memories made.)

On any given night, I am sure there are thousands of mommas all over this world pacing the floor in the wee hours of the morning rocking and soothing wee ones... it's what good mommas do.

Next morning, it was time to clean up our messes inside and out, throw on fresh clothes, eat another nibble and get ready to hit the road home...

She is awesome... everything about her, from the tip of her golden curled head, to the tips of her tiny painted toes (looking like little red hot candies... I just want to nibble).

Yes, another holiday down... and many more to come. Love it.

Aliens among us...

 The news reminded me this morning that today is the 63rd anniversary of the whole Roswell UFO incident. 

Then, on the way to work this morning I ended up behind this vehicle (had to snap a pic with my phone's camera - crappy pic I know).  I do not know what kind of vehicle this was with its photo of a green balloon headed, sunglasses wearing, extraterrestrial little fella' and "Mars" marking on the back... but it sure grabbed my attention for some reason. What's this thing transporting... some kind of top secret space age alien stuff, abductees, aliens of the border hopping kind? I dunno, but like I said, the picture grabbed my attention and it made me giggle.

Speaking of extraterrestrial little beings.... the word extraterrestrial is defined as "outside, or originating outside, the limits of the earth."  Everytime I see a picture of an alien, it makes me think of my Littles as newborns, with their big ol' heads, tiny bodies, and wide open eyes that peer around a room taking in everything that is foreign to them while giving that slow drawn out blink. They have this confused little look about them, yet at the same time this "all knowing" look.  I love watching them when they are little and learning about the world around them. In the midst of their learning, they teach us so very much if we just stop and watch. Yes, all sorts of wondrous things, like how to love unconditionally, how to see another person for who they are, they can teach us to see beautiful little things that one might miss if you don't pay attention to detail - like that tiny little lizard on Grandma's porch with the bright blue tail, they can teach us to be uninhibited and how great it can be to just be silly... or really to just "be". Children are indeed "other world-ly". Sometimes I wish I could keep them small, keep them in these moments of discovery & pureness. It's like trying to hold water in your hands... you can squeeze your fingers together really really tight, but the water still manages to slowly trickle out.  Time is trickling. Loving my little aliens...

Sky popcorn...

To be continued... (loading pictures)

Mommarazzi

"Baby there's no other superstar you know that I'll be

Your papa paparazzi momma mommarazzi"

Apparently, I have had the shutter-bug disease for quite some time.

Yeah, that platinum haired little girl with camera attached to her face grew up to be a big girl with a camera attached to her face. It's just really important for me to document "life" and freeze things forever in time. These are memories... things we carry within ourselves that no one can take away from us. How cool is it to have these moments in picture form to look at any time we want and give those memories vivid detail, or many years from now have a visual record of family history for others. It is mucho importante' to me. It is my life.... mine to remember and share.

Yes my friends, it is also important to document all those fabulous outfits and great looking hair dos over the years.. you know the ones, the ones that you felt you looked so hot in... but in reality are the "What the hell was I thinking" ones. Ahhh yes, these are important times in life. I am the one behind the camera, the one snapping up moments. Documenting. Preserving. I want to capture  excitement, sadness, happiness, bewilderment, the old, the new, the beautiful, the strange, silliness, love... life... all of it. Good stuff.

And it's official!

Summer is officially here as of June 21st. (Although to me it has been hotter than hades for weeks now!)

Yes, Summer-time... with all of its unhurried mornings lying in clean, crisp white, fresh smelling linens, restful afternoons lounging by the seaside sipping a frozen fruity drink with a tiny umbrella in it, and leisurely evenings enjoying a swing in the lush gardens beneath the twinkling colored cabana lights. Ahhhhh, lovely.

Yeah, okay so I just made all that up. Sounded good.

Its actually more like this... "with all of its hurried mornings, dashing out of bed trying not to disturb a sleeping diaper clad, milk faced Little, busy afternoons at work trying to juggle 20 phone calls, 50 emails, faxes, mail outs, visitors, etc., crazy evenings chasing around Middle Little, with Little-est Little perched on one hip, feeding dinner, giving bubbly giggly floor soaked baths, cleaning up 10,000 building blocks and various toys that have exploded into the living room, and getting screaming little ones ready for bed, so that I can start the process all over again the next day."

Oh, but wait a minute, Middle Little, Abbie does enjoy evening swings in the "garden"! So there is no "lush gardens beneath the twinkling colored cabana lights" or anything posh and ritzy like that, nope...just a a bunch of greenery from daddy with a green thumb and one smiling Little and her high flying swing. Which is good enough for us. (Actually, I have my eye on a nice porch swing and some cabana lighting! Some of the swings I am eyeballing are so expensive though that they better swing up and meet my ass as I sit down.)

Can you hear Abbie? "Higher Daddy, higher! I lub my wing!"

Nothing like swinging in your diaper and and trying to stay cool in the warm Summer breeze.

Or as Littlest Little rocks it... a fresh diaper and a nice cool t-shirt. Cause who needs pants in the Summer... heck, who needs pants when you're a rock star!?

Yes, Summer is upon us. It's that time of year that you lounge outside in the sweltering heat with light colored cool clothes, hair pulled out of your face, nothing but a thick coat of waterproof mascara and some shimmery gloss on your kisser and a pair of nice big stylish sunglasses, and of course a nice coating of bright summery nail polish on your tootsies! And, don't forget the popsicles! Or rather the cheap ol' "Otter Pops" that have been around since the beginning of time.Yes, those tasty little flavored water concoctions that are frozen into cool frosty little sticks. The ones that you can drink the "juice" out of the bottom as they get all melty in your hand. These things scream Summer. Abbie likes the "kink" (pink) ones, Josh likes whichever one he gets lucky enough to lick the end of, but momma likes the red ones... everyone knows the red ones are the best . ;-)

Good ol' Summer time fun.... who says you can't be big-time stylish in the heat and have fun at the same time?! And oh so fashionable she is...

Summer is not complete without colorful sidewalk chalk drawings.

And of course our little Summer gardening sprite has been hard at work making sure the plants have a nice bed of fresh pete moss. She "talks" to the plants too... our little flower whisperer... she is magical.

Thong sandals/flip flops or "flippers" as we call them, are of course, a Summer must. Abbie's sweet grown up cousin, sent her these flippers just because they have her "name" on them. Of course, Abbie loves them! (She is a shoe lover... wonder where she gets that from?) Poor Abbie though, she doesn't do well in flippers, as she not so gracefully, trips all over herself while wearing them.

I've mentioned before, we have the best daddy ever in our house. He had gone out to pick up his Father's day gift from the Littles back on Father's day and came back with this table of big Summer fun...

We have a water table for splashing around in and mixing with dirt to make mud pies. So daddy thought it best to use this table for nothing but sand. Because sand you see, is the important ingredient in building a most impressive sand castle fit for a princess.  

        

After a day of digging in the dirt, sand, creating master works of art with the sidewalk chalk and eating all those "kink" popsicles... the water table begins to look more like a pot of coffee full of coffee grounds.

Heaven forbid Abbie's hands stay dirty... she will have none of that! So she washes her hands in the water table constantly like a little racoon washing up. Daddy to the rescue... he makes sure the water table looks more like a sparkling blue pool. (Forgot to mention, Abbie also gets busted drinking out of the water table with her tea cups... ewwww.)

And of course the Littlest Little enjoys getting to check out the water table. This baby loves water (well, he was born underwater like Abbie was, maybe that has something to do with it... they both LOVE water). The look on his little face was priceless when daddy let him sit on the side of the table and dangle his tiny feet in the water.

And speaking of his tiny feet... take a look at these chuba' lubba little legs. Looking like some glorious honey baked hams straight out of the deli. Delicious!

Oh how I love that little apple dome head of his too...

and the super fine golden baby hairs.. like spun sugar they are.

After a day of soaking up the Summer time, a nice cool bath to wash the day off and a pair of fresh jammies is in order. Nothing in this world like a fresh out of the tub Little slathered with lotion (and don't forget Abbie's foot massage). Sighhhhh, I could just sit and breathe them in for forever.