father's day hike

the butte.  one of our favorite hikes.  it's relatively close, it doesn't take us that long, and it's exciting to see the kiddos climb faster and more swiftly with each visit.  dylan was the shining star of this trip.  she needed zero help and complained zero minutes!  we actually had to yell to her to slow down and wait for us.  that girl is going to be climbing the wrangells with benji, scoping out sheep on the mountain tops.  

ugh.  are you sick of the blue skies yet?  i know, me neither.

and, they're off!

 she's always been dada's girl

 no help needed!

 what the kiddos navigated themselves

benji's pointing to them, waaay ahead of us

 made it, dada - high five!

 opening cards & gifts

 one of the best fathers i know

the kids have discovered the best part of hiking: running down the mountain!

colony days

another amazingly gorgeous day.  a tad too hot for baby tess, but luckily, when you're an infant, clothes can be optional!  she lasted long enough for the kiddos to run through the bounce house obstacle, sail through the air attached to bungee cords and ride the ponies, twice.  thank you, baby sweat ball!  we love your squishy, steamy bod!  

"no, you're playing outside today!"

that was said by yours truly after jackie came to me one morning.  eyes filled with tears.  wanting to pop in a movie and stay in his jammies.  BUT.  the sun was shining.  the sky was the brightest of blues with not a cloud in sight.  we may have been on day 15 or so of this sort of odd alaskan summer weather.  

AND I WASN'T GOING TO WASTE ANY OF IT!

we had played in the sprinkler and wore swimsuits more than t-shirts and undies.  our faces were sun-kissed, and we were talking 2 a-day baths because of our large usage of sunscreen and bug dope.  our diets were consisting of watermelon, otter pops, corn on the cob and lemonade.  summertime in the a-k has been serious this year - hence my lack of blog posts and messy home!  but, i will take dust build up and overflowing laundry to play outside in the midnight sun!  we are truly being spoiled this year, and i'm not at all feeling bad about enjoying every last second!

the girl loves picking flowers for gramma and me.  there isn't a time i've returned home from errands that she hasn't greeted me with a sweaty fistful of dandelions.  i know they're just a weed, but she could bring me fistfuls of trash, and i'd still think she was sweet as sugar.  and, she always insists i tuck them behind my ear.  

our island of trees is the perfect grounds for finding treasures.  new flower buds bursting with color, an array of poky and slimy insects, heaping piles of moose poo.  every little human's delight.  while our sidewalk isn't ideal for chalk, our deck is.  (much to dada's dismay.)

the kids have gone through (are going through) times where they don't want their picture taken.  lately, jack has wanted to be the one behind the camera - fun!  you'll notice my budding photog's skills below...

 my girls.

 three year old + crooked helmet + bag-o-cotton candy + scooter = the perfect storm

gosh, i adore her.

 we'll be hearing about this in a few years... 

how come there's only 4 handprints?

 oh, yes.  it's happening.  

as if jb on two legs wasn't crazy enough.

 who needs a swimsuit?

i hope we have many, many more weeks of sunshine to come!

summer guests

ugh.  summer is flying by, faster than usual.  likely because it's been so wonderful, and we've been graced with so many out of town guests.  how lucky are we to have so many kind and generous humans visit this little family?  super lucky and super blessed!

the first of our visitors was my cousin sammi.  she came for a long weekend at the end of may, and wouldn't you know it - i didn't pick up my camera once.  gah!  i had to copy these cute ones from Facebook!  thank you, sammi, for traveling all the way from cali (on some extra-long flights and layovers!), holding baby tess and playing with the big kids!  come back soon - and next time, bring the whole fam!

hatcher pass

(yep, this is may - a winter wonderland!}

about a week later, the jenkins' came to town.  for them (and us) it's like a homecoming.  i know they miss alaska, likely about as much as i miss them.  their visits are never long enough; there's always tears at some point, but always lots and lots of hugs.  we are so thankful for any time spent with you two.  i cherish every ounce!  we love and miss you dearly.

auntie connie

uncle jeff & the fuss bucket

 duey & "uncle" connie

and, about two weeks after the jenkins' left, my gf from minnesota came to visit!  whatta treat!  we've known each other since elementary school, were close through high school and have managed to keep in touch despite the distance between us.  i've found, there's nothing that compares to friends that have known you since you had baby teeth.  true friends.
  

flattop!

{photo courtesy of jackie b.}

 erica got her baby fix with snoozing baby tess.

swing set, improved

this has turned into a month-long project.  lately, it's easy for ben to get lost in work.  the week days fold right into the weekends, and before i know it, it's tuesday and we're back at gymnastics.

it's almost solstice and that makes me panic - summer's nearly over for us up here.  we start losing daylight.  although - this year, i do have zero complaints.  we've had 2 weeks plus of sunshine.  and, i'm not talking "normal" alaska summer sunshine, i'm talking: break out the pool, swimsuits and sunscreen.  mass consumption of otter pops.  get in your skimpiest of clothing because you're getting your tan on!  really, i have a better tan than i've had on any vacation.  truly.  and i should add, my freckled, irish skin doesn't usually keep color.  uh-huh, what do you know: 2013, the year of alaskans having suntans.  did i mention south central is sold out of kiddie pools?

ah.  slight tangent.



back to the project.  so because of the fence installation last fall, we needed to move our swing set.  the fence was put in right on our property line, and little did i know, our swing set was maybe a foot off of that.  so, memorial weekend, we - ok, ben - tore down the old structure.

ok, so it didn't fall as expected, but that was because that top pole was rotted out.  nevertheless, my super-handy-fix-it-felix was able to bend and pull and fix our fence, good as new!  we all had a good laugh, that is, except for the very concerned 5.5 year old.

gymnastics paying off...

ben & kaleb hard at work

it's still not quite finished, but i've been told it will be this weekend.  there's some railing to finish up and a rock-wall-like climbing-thingy to get up to the slide.  the tire swing is HUGE and could easily fit 9 kids.  the good news is we no longer have to jump in my rig to play at a park - just have to open the sliding glass door...

progress

so this has happened this many times.  oh, and one more time today, but i failed to capture it.  tess, falling asleep on her own, without a certain something smashed up against her face.  this is progress, right?

and, we lucked out - she stopped the nightly colic crying whenever i stated in one of my last posts.  i guess i was right; she started early and ended early.  i couldn't imagine her doing that into her 4th month.  feeling entirely blessed she has figured that one thing out.  now, if we could only move her into her beautiful bedroom...

i've decided (haha) that once she's able to self-sooth (i.e.: suck her thumb/fingers or replace a fallen-out pacifier) that she'll be handed an eviction notice.  this co-sleeping is insane.  now, i have learned my lesson on judging others, and if this is something you enjoy and have done it, i praise you for your willingness and ability to weather through.  but, this is sooo not for me.  i like my sleep.  i like my space.  i like sleeping on my belly.  therefore.  i miss my {sound} sleep.  i miss my personal bubble space.  i miss sleeping on my belly.  many things to look forward to in the months ahead.  until then, i am savoring the smell of baby hair with every inhalation.  the sound of her rooting.  her sweaty palm gripped on my v-neck tee.  her pacifier sucking is rather maggie simpson-esque.  and of course, the cooing and smiling i wake to each morning.  one day, before i know it, i'm sure i'll be pleading with her to snuggle me.  one day...

one of my mother's friends (but i'm sure we'd be friends, too) bought this adorable outfit for tess.  cupcakes, tutus, pink, bunnies - what isn't to LOVE!  so if you're reading this, jen, this collage is for you!  thank you!

  
more along the lines of progress - i finally got my act together and mailed tess' announcements - yay, me!  my girlfriend kayt of http://www.KAYTJOYCEDESIGN.com designed these fun announcements.  i'm so thankful for her patience, ability, artful eye, desire and understanding - thank you, sweets!  i mailed them last week, but if you're not on my holiday card mailing list, leave me a comment with your addy!  the back of the announcement is full of cute pictures as well.

lastly, dylan got the boot - she's now out of my hair the house on fridays with her brother.  big girl!  with jb starting school in the fall, i wanted them to attend together, if only for a few months.  she was incredibly excited.  the kids wore their matching muppet t-shirts and brown bottoms (skirt for her, shorts for him) and happily carried their skip-hop lunch totes (jb has the monkey, she picked her owl).  dyl only fussed briefly, but i think it had more to do with not being able to eat her lunch as soon as we walked in the door.