Part of Your World

Sometimes I feel like June gets the short end of the stick. Probably because Hazel is the baby and gets held most and doesn't get in trouble really since she doesn't understand (or sass us.) So I wanted to give June a day to pick something special to do.

 So one morning last week I asked June, "What do you want to do today?" And she responded, "Have an Ariel party!" 

And so an Ariel party is what we had!

 First we made some treats for it. We made, from scratch, poppy seed muffins with blueberry cream cheese frosting. June made sure to add some sprinkles.

Then we went to the fabric store and June picked out what fabric she wanted for shells and a tail. I think she did a good job picking! And then I did something I never do- I sewed. Nothing fancy, just a hand stitch I made up as I went to save time but it ended up making the "shells" have a scalloped look to them so we're going to go ahead and pretend I did that on purpose.

Then we invited a few friends over. Thankfully I just happen to have three Little Mermaid cups on hand, and a blue one for the boy friend.

We also had gold fish from "under the sea."

And they watched The Little Mermaid while they snacked.

It was a simple success.

Whiskey

I guess it's time that I explain myself. A few weeks ago I was having a conversation with a friend about how we were both animal lovers when we were kids, and how we were always wanting new pets. I guess that's what triggered it. I started thinking, "What kind of pet would I get now if I got another one? Hey, I still love animals! And hey! I'm an adult now and I can get whatever dumb little pet that I want!!" And for some reason I kept thinking about lizards because I've never had one before. 

So I got it in my mind. And a couple weeks of thinking about it found me researching reptiles online. And the next day fate would have it that I had nothing to do so... I took the girls to the pet store, you know, just for fun.

But there was this bearded dragon there. We left but I kept thinking about him. I explained this all to Buck when he got home from work and so he said, "Well, we better go and get him now while I'm in the mood." And the rest is history.

Names can be hard. But once "Whiskey" came to mind I knew it was the right name. I don't know, he's a little dragon with some wild west flair. It seemed fitting. And he's so awesome! Despite having to feed him crickets (blech! I hate them!) he is the best. He is chill and easy to take care of. He lets June hold him and everything. The only problem is that our cat and dog finally realized there was a new creature in the house and now they both stare longingly into the tank and meow or whimper ALL DAY. Let's hope the novetly wears off soon. And besides, in a short time Whiskey will grow about two feet long! How cool, right? We're excited.

Earth Day

For Earth Day I decided to take the girls to the mountains to be with ... the earth.  So we invited our friends and went on an easy nature hike/walk.

The kids loved exploring. At one point I had to get June off of a rocky slope. Turns out June and her friend Elora were trying with all their might to climb to the top of the actual mountain. June pointed to the top of the distant peak and explained to me that she was the best climber and was going to go to the top. I could instantly see the adventure through her eyes- through my own eyes as a child. I love that she is fully immersed in her childhood, a time when she thinks anything is possible.

No time spent outside would be complete without finding some rollie pollie friends.

Adrian and her new baby boy! She's the real adventurer here...

The walk back was a bit more emotional for June. Who even knows why. But she protested a little bit for good measure.

But all in all it was a good day. Every day should be earth day and spent outside. I mean, as long as it's 60 degrees or warmer.

Saturday is a Speical Day

But let's start on Friday first. We had a great weekend last week. It was Jade's birthday and her fiance was in town, so Friday evening we did their engagement photos. You can view those HERE or you can just view these lovely "behind the scenes" photos.

That night I went to a karaoke night with some friends, but more on that later. It was nuts for this old grandma though because then I had another photo shoot early the next morning.  (More photos to come soon.)

And then it was onto Jade's birthday festivities! We did some simple decorating:

Curtis, her fiance, got her a pig pinata and filled it with her favorite candies, Popsicles, and slips of paper with reasons he loves her written on them.

Buck made her the traditional coffee cake.

And then we went to the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point because apparently I go there every other day. But that's what Jade wanted so we braved the crowds. 

And then we went bowling, because Jade is obsessed, even if she gets a score of 64 every time.

After that we went out to eat at Market Street Grill. But Hazel had no interest in that. So while we waited for our food I took her outside to sit on some nearby grass.

And once the food came? Buck and I took turns eating while the other one chased Hazel around.

Even after we got home and put the girls to bed, Jade and Curtis came and we played a funny board game. Felt like we were 21 years old again! Except that ... we were really tired. ;)

I don't know. I just felt like this weekend deserved its own post since we did as much in two days as we normally do in one month. It was fun! Yay for family and birthdays!