Caught Chocolate-Handed

So Happy 4th of July! I think this photo must capture some of the disdain that my British ancestors had for the uncultured American colonists. Sure, we can win the revolutionary war, but we drink canned energy drinks instead of having afternoon tea, we work too damn much and we forgot how to use utensils when eating ice cream.

We also honored our patriotism by setting off fireworks (Ali was in bed by then, but Ri enjoyed them), and letting the kids skinny dip. A truly sophisticated American family affair.

Celebrating a 65th!

 Riley had been looking forward to a boat ride. We'd been telling her for days that we were all going on a boat ride and that she would see Grandma and Grandpa and Hannah and that she'd also get to see Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa, who invited all of us to join them for the day to celebrate a huge milestone in the family - their 65th wedding anniversary!

We drove down to Anaheim the evening before and moved into our hotel room (it is a serious move when you've got two playpens, luggage, bags of snacks and drinks and a nebulizer, packs of diapers). Sunday morning we got up bright and early (amazing for our slow-little family) and we drove up to Lake Arrowhead to meet the rest of the family.

Riley was a little unnerved when we arrived and out of her comfort zone, but as soon as she saw her grandma and Hannah, she was in a wonderful mood. She remembered her great-grandparents and was so delighted to get a very charming and adorable gift from Great-Grandma; a hand made pink stuffed elephant!

We ate lunch with family and got to talk to all my cousins (who are all doing really neat stuff) and then we hung out by the lake front for awhile. Riley played "ring around the rosies" with her sister and cousin and a kind stranger took a liking to Ri and gave her a bag of bird feed to give to the ducks. Riley (the ever-thoughtful-animal-nurturer) fed the ducks very carefully and taught Hannah how to give the food to the birds. A great teacher and a selfless share-er. Hannah looks up to her cousin "RiRi" so much and their relationship is just adorable. They have all the wonderful perks of having a sibling without any of the fighting or sibling bickering - it's truly precious.

The only downside to the fun was that with all my dad's family (nearly-almost) in one place, we were only able to start haphazard conversations with all our relatives and before we knew it, it was 4 p.m. and the girls were TOAST. We had to get them into the car and get moving so they could nap. I can't wait to have the girls see their extended families again, maybe soon they'll be contained a little more and we can actually catch up with my cousins, grandparents, aunts & uncles.

Cake and Tea for Breakfast, Of Course!

Ri, Ali and Grandma celebrate by eating the bottom
tier of the tiny birthday cake for breakfast!

Riley was so excited to have her grandma come over for a tiny, surprise birthday celebration. She wasn't the best at the "surprise" part. Telling Grandma what was in her birthday package,  and opening the card and telling her "and we have cake!". Ri also sang her rendition of "Happy Birthday" to Grandma at least three times and blew out the candle.

We had so much fun eating cake for breakfast and it's so adorable that Riley now loves the tradition of signing to family on birthdays. I can't wait to celebrate more special occasions with the girls!

Sunday Bounce Fun

Ali enjoys trying out a new bouncy toy.

We had so much fun going to a bounce house place last Sunday. Rather than devoting our day to the usual errands and house work, we got out at Dad's urging and we went and had a blast at an indoor bounce house place. Riley was brave enough to go down the tallest slides and she even learned to climb up the "climbing wall" so she could get to the top of these slides. It was a great work out for all of us and a really good deal as Riley was the only person we had to pay for.

Riley enjoyed free falling
down the tallest slides

After we were bounced-out, we devoured a lot of food at Chipotle and headed home to rest for the evening. Riley took a pretty solid nap after burning ALL her energy.

She looks pretty pleased now
that she's reached the bottom!

Ali prepares for hurricane-force winds,
she's not pleased

Matt is totally enjoying playing with Riley too!