another week of summer GONE!

It was Anna's birthday week.  And my catch up on life and work week.  The two didn't combine so well.  But we did get around to making a cake on thursday and we headed out to bear lake on friday.  Her cousins came over in friday (her bday) and we had cake, presents, park time, swing time and slurpees (it's 7/11 afterall).  We stopped at the library on the way home.  Then we drove to bear lake and spent time with BOTH grandparents.  Could there be a better weekend for a 4 year old.  it was rough coming back to reality again today.  We are tired.  Hopefully we can recover.

 Dorothy and Brad and TJ and Christina from Sherwood sent her an awesome package.  She loves the color wonder coloring book the best.

 here she tied her foot with a rope.

 Julia was potty training herself that day.  she pooped in the front room and I didn't find it till the next day.  our house it too big for potty training.

 anna got this apron int he package.  she loves to wear it while helping out in the kitchen.

 birthday morning.  panties, socks and a helmet.  yup, we are great parents like that.  Richard bought her a bike a while ago - it was expensive so we figured it covered her birthday too.

 Plus her aunt Virginia bought her the most amazing present ever.

 This cash register has already been well loved.  Julia likes it the best though.

 They also brought ring pops, which were messy and fun.

 We had a piggy cake.

 We went to the park(pictured way below these cabin pictures).  Then we drove the cabin.  Grandma heiner decorated for her.

 And gave her this rainbow dash pony that she loves.

 Made breakfast with her in the morning and took her for a walk.

 I dont' know when this was.  But the girls love playing in the bath together.

 random pictures of julia at lunchtime.

 on another day.

 and then on anna's pack opening day - when she was potty training herself.  I kept dressing her and she kept undressing her.

 another day at lunch.  look at thsoe bangs on julia!

 my girls love to eat beets and corn.

 We got together with my friend Jenn from junior high.  She had a baby on the same day as me!  In the pic below is Julia and Hailey.  Our march 30 girls.

 they are both very 2.  and very wild.

 Jenn and I.  The older you grow, the nicer it is to have old friends.  They know your past and remind of you where you came from and how much you have grown!  We are at our old elementary school in this pic.  We walked around and reminisced about the oak (the woods around the school) and the tire pit, tire swing and other old playground equipment that has since been replaced.

 back to anna's bday now: anna chose BEAR PARK over the museum.  I might have persuaded a little since we were short on time.

 She said she wanted to swing on her bday.

 So we did.

 Here are the slurpee pictures.

 remi and anna had slurpee sword fights.

 then we went to the library.

 we stopped at the walmart in evanston.  we found some fashion hats.

 i didn't any pics of anna on the beach because she was always swimming with her daddy!

 playing in the sand.

video of anna at age 4

day after

its rough coming back to real life.  so we decided to take a small break from cleaning and headed over to see our long lost friends from portland - Trina JJ and LL (and new baby!)!  They moved back to Utah hooray!  After that the girls had quiet time while I got some business done and then I made them some mango lassi's for snack.  They had a great time reuniting with our backyard.  and with mango lassi.

road trip to DC

Paul wanted to take some furniture to Joy.  He asked me MONTHS ago if I wanted to come along and bring the girls.  We didn't plan much, we just kind of went.  (maybe Paul planned but I didn't - I was just along for the ride).  We drove to Vernal and spent the night.  Then we left at 6 am on Thursday June 29.  We drove and drove and drove and made it to my roommate Jonelle's house (Lincoln Nebraska) after dark.  She was so cute, she had set out some gifts for the girls and some cute pictures for me.  She really is one of the kindest people I know.  I stayed up late talking with Jonelle and Paul and the girls slept in the same room.  Julia woke up at the crack of dawn (literally) and started banging on the walls saying MOMMY!  It was hilarious and horrible.  Then I gave her the ipad in hopes she would go back to sleep.  I guess it kept repeating the same thing over and over again and just about drove Paul nuts.  But somehow she went back to sleep and we eventually woke up, played around, repacked the truck and headed out. Anna really took a liking to Jonelle's oldest Logan.  She and Julia also had fun with Gracie and Olivia.  It was awesome to meet the kiddos that I always see on Jonelle's blog! THANKS JONELLE! for hosting!

The next day we did a lot more driving.  Through Illinois.  We stayed in a hotel in Dansville Illinois (I think).  I think this is where we got lost.  We thought we were on I80, but we actually were on a different road headed towards an unknown town called PEORIA.  It was a LOOOONG day - not even by choice!

 After 3 long days of driving we made it there on Saturday night.  Joy fed us Pizza and we all went to bed.  It was nice of joy to give me and girls her bed and bedroom for our entire stay.

We went to church with Joy on sunday since julia was horrible enough to wake up at 6 or so (with the sun of course).  The girls loved to play in the courtyard in front of her house.  Julia wouldn't let me leave her in nursery, so we ditched and went out to walk along the potomac.  It was beautiful.  I guess anna did wonderfully in primary with aunt joy.  She was not shy one bit.

 ON monday we did laundry.  The girls thought the laundry mat was the coolest thing ever.  They've only ever seen one on sesame street.  We often at meals on joy's front porch (seen above).  We rode the metro, which was a trip highlight (it should have been at 4 bucks each way!).

 We set out on foot to tackle the Washington monument.  Anna was highly anticipating seeing it.  It was actually so hot by the time we walked there that we didn't enjoy it much, which is a pity.  But then we called aunt joy and she came and rescued us (she works near the monument).  We walked to the white house and then went to potbelly's for lunch.  After that we headed home and just relaxed.  We are not accustomed to the heat and humidity!

The next day was better.  We bought a stroller!  It was much needed!  We went to the museum of natural history.  We saw everything in it but the hope diamond (which anna pointed out to us later when she was reading a book about the the smithsonian museum.....yes....a book about a museum!).  Anna enjoyed the elephants.  Julia enjoyed sitting in the stroller.  I enjoyed the butterfly house (a room inside the museum filled with butterflys - a few landed on me and paul - but not the girls becuase they are too wiggly).  Julia wanted to lick all sorts of things, especially this big purple geode that said "touch me!"  Can you think of anything worse to lick?  We found a baby beluga picture and julia went crazy over that becuase she loves the song "baby beluga" by Raffi.  I was so much fun to walk around the museum with anna as she read all the signs and was so interested in everything the museum had to offer.

We got hungry and paul suggested we go to the american indian museum for lunch.  I remembered going there last time I was in DC with Joy - and I agreed!  I had a wild rice salad with black eye peas.  The girls had a scone (navajo taco).  Paul had CHILI CHEESE FRIES.  (yes I am incriminating you paul!).  After that we went to the air and space museum and then walked to the metro to make it home.  It was a alot of walking on that day.  Oh yeah and I got anna to taste hearts of palm.  They taste like artichoke hearts.

After getting off the metro joy met us at cheesetique on mt. Vernon road (not tourist sight).  I had a banana cheese sandwich, which was amazing.  Joy and girls had mac and cheese.  Paul had...I don't remember.  Something with meat and cheese (:  The girls were very well behaved, which is good because it was a fancy place.  We walked home.  On the way joy pointed out fireflys to anna.  She really thought they were magical - which - they are!  It was next to impossible to get them to bed - but somehow we did it!

 The next day we sort of relaxed because we were going to drive back the day after that.  So Joy got a stack of books for anna from the library.  She appreciated it very much (as you can see!).  Julia ate some of joy's shoes and purses.  We went to a park and made friends with Sebastian - a kid who's nanny was spanish speaking.  We danced.  We stayed in our jammies until 1 or 2.  It was a relaxing day.

 After relaxing for a while paul and joy went to a baseball game.  I opted out since they go to late for little girls.  Instead I took anna and julia to the lincoln memorial.  It's a long walk from Foggy Bottom metro station to the memorial (esp in the heat!)...but i made it.  We read a book about Martin Luther King Junior on the steps.  Anna loved it.  i think that was her favorite part of the trip.

 We also walked around the war memorials and I explained to anna about why freedom is not free.  She seemed to be very receptive. It was a special time walking around the memorials with them

 The next morning we goofed around and then left for the long long long drive home.  We stopped in a city in WV that had some awesome churches.  Julia liked to call them princess castles aka PRITTI CACA.  She still doesn't talk so good.  But she was really excited to check them out.  It was a good breather.

 Then we drove.

 and drove.

 and drove (we stopped at a motel in kansas and watched fireworks)

 and drove (and stopped in denver to see bryan and breea and new baby!! amelia).  The girls love to play with their cousin elizabeth.  cousin oliver was there but we did not see him - he was asleep and we left him that way!

 and drove (and stopped to eat at a BBQ place in idaho springs.  Julia filled her water cup with jalapenos and then drank it...awesome).

 and drove.

 and made it home!  (to vernal).  Driving the rest of the way on sunday was miserable.  We stopped 3 times in the 3 hour drive.  Im not sure if I can make it to bear lake this weekend.

 thanks for the trip paul and joy.  it was fun.  lets do it again.  well, maybe not.  But lets do something similar again (:  these last pics are from my last trip to DC in probably spring 2007 with my pal Joanna.