Best $5 I’ve Ever Spent

As much as I LOVE Arizona, I am the first to admit that it gets bloody hot in the summer.
(but I will take 4 months of miserable heat to enjoy the fall/winter/spring months!)
And because it gets so hot, we are desperate for ways to cool down.
This week, I bought a cheap, used water table for the kids and they are in heaven.

Olivia thinks Riker is the bomb-diggity, so being able to play alongside him is practically the greatest thing to ever happen to her.

Riker’s goal is to see just how wet he can actually get.
When his cousins came over to play the other day, all three boys were dripping wet from head to toe…
there was practically no water left in the table since they had used it all during their water fight.
But as long as they are happy (and outside, not dying from heat stroke!) I am one happy momma!

I’m A Big Girl Now!

This is Olivia.
Olivia thinks she’s a big girl.

I think it’s the jeggings.
Jeggings have the power to make anyone feel like a big girl.

It started out innocently enough.
She carefully pulled herself up onto Riker’s step stool.

Once she mastered the stool, she set her sights on the couch.

And tonight, she used her bitty baby muscles to scale her crib.

Gah! Those little stretchy pants kill me.
I bought multiple pairs and I’m so glad I did.

“Look mom! Only one hand!”

She continually amazes me every day by what she is capable of doing.
Almost all of her big milestones (sitting, crawling, climbing) have been a month sooner than Riker did…so it always surprises me to see what new trick she’s mastering.

Family Pictures

The last time we took family pictures, Riker was 6 months old.
We figured it was time for some updated pictures and I was lucky enough to win a giveaway from Christie Knight Photography.

The timing might not have been perfect…
mid-June in Arizona is pretty hot.
But we survived with lots of water and mini fans, and somehow Christie made us look less hot and sweaty than we actually were!

I love how they turned out and I cannot wait to get some printed to hang in our house.
And maybe the next time I decide we need family pictures, it won’t be in the middle of summer!

Fabulous Fourth

This was a great fourth of July.
It started out with a lake trip…in the rain.
We didn’t plan for it to be in the rain, but it was.
Luckily the water was warm and the rain eased up on us for a while so we could enjoy a couple of hours in the water.

(see those dark, stormy clouds…!)

(note Riker’s pink life jacket…that’s what happens when the oldest cousin is a girl. We buy pink first and the boys get all her hand me downs!)

After the lake, we headed back to my parent’s house where the adults rested, the kiddos swam in the pool, and eventually we barbequed and set off some fireworks.

(TJ’s marinated hot dogs are my favorite…and this time, we spiral cut them so they were extra cool!)

(so grateful that fireworks are legal in Gilbert now…we don’t have to fight the crowds to see them!)

Easy, low-key, relaxing, fun.
The perfect fourth of July!

7 Months

My baby is 7 months old today!
And what a cute 7 month old she is!

Facts and tidbits about Olivia at 7 months:

*sleep habits have returned to normal and she will sleep in until at least 8am (though its usually 9-9:30) every morning
*still only two teeth, but with the chewing (and some fussing) she’s been doing lately I won’t be surprised if another one pops out soon
*loves chewing on her toes, especially when I’m trying to feed her some pureed goodness
*mastered the army crawl and has even started crawling on her hands and knees (though army crawling is still the fastest method!)
*thinks her brother is the greatest thing ever…she literally follows him around the house and cannot focus on anything except him when they are in the same room
*her hair is still just super fluffy and sticks straight up (but at least she has hair!)

Cutest bug ever!

35 Things To Do: Update

Try one new recipe a week:
*baked sweet & sour chicken…I completely regret waiting so long to try this recipe. It was amazing and will be added to our regular dinner rotation!
*cream cheese enchiladas…seriously so good. Quite possibly my new favorite enchilada recipe.
*honey glazed carrots…good, but not amazing. I wanted them sweeter. And since they were done in the crock pot, they lacked any carmalization which I missed.
*crack potatoes…not as good as funeral potatoes, but there was bacon in it and bacon is good.

Read 30 books:
*Two Truths and a Lie…book #3 in the Lying Game series (I started the series so I might as well finish it!)
*Beautiful Days…book #2 in Bright Young Things series. Not as good as the first, as sequels tend to be.

Have family pictures taken:
We did it! It was hot and we were sweaty, but we did it! My cousin Christie, as in Christie Knight Photography, took our pictures just a few days ago. Once she gets done doing her magic (and hopefully making me look skinny and fabulous through the miracles of photoshop!) I will be sure to share them with you!

Make homemade baby food:
I am so proud of myself for this one…there was something so rewarding about making baby food for Olivia. I am by no means an “organic-whole foods-green living” kind of person, but I love the money I’m saving by doing this! I've made butternut squash, carrots, peas, zucchini, peaches, bananas, and pears. So much easier than I ever thought it would be.

I didn’t accomplish everything I wanted to this month, but I am proud of the progress I have made so far! The year is exactly half over and I think I’ve made a pretty good dent in my list!