Memorial Day Weekend and it's finally Summer!

I look forward to Memorial Day weekend every year because it is the start of summer with all the fun cookouts and the opening of our pool.  It really felt like summer this year because it was humid and in the 90's all weekend.  The pool wasn't even cold and felt amazing!  Over the holiday weekend, we went to several cookouts with friends and made 2 trips to our pool.  It was a lot of fun and our kids are exhausted from all the activities!  On Saturday night, we cooked out with some neighbors and Madelyn got to stay up late and watch the movie "Tangled" on a huge screen outside.  She thought that watching a movie outside while eating popcorn was the coolest thing ever and almost made it to the end before falling asleep in Bill's arms.  Madelyn also loved going to the pool and has been doing well getting acclimated to the water.  I am going to sign her up for swimming lessons this week so hopefully she will continue to improve.  Ellie, on the other hand, was terrified of the water.  She cried as soon as we put her near the water.  She did a little better tonight and actually sat on Bill's lap in the baby pool but she has a long way to go. We were surprised Ellie was so afraid of the water because she LOVES the bath and is constantly putting her head under the water.  Hopefully she will get over her fear of the pool very soon!  Here are some pictures from our weekend:

Madelyn very happy that our pool has opened!

Ellie watching all the fun from the side.  She was happy playing with the water in her bucket!

Dressed in their PJ's and all ready for Tangled to start!

It really felt like you were at the movies!

This was the highlight of Madelyn's weekend!

Almost made it to the end with about 20 minutes to spare! 

Memorial Day dinner at the pool with the Moore boys!

The first of many dinners at the pool!

Ellie was content walking around and had no interest in the water.  At least we didn't have to worry about her walking right into the pool!

First Year of Preschool!

Today was Madelyn's last day of preschool so the school held a Family Fun Day.  It was a lot of fun despite the heat (it is in the 90's today) and they had bounce houses, a petting zoo, and ice cream truck.  Everyone packed a picnic lunch and found a shady spot to eat. Madelyn really enjoyed her first year of preschool.  She loved her teachers and made some really good friends.  It was a wonderful first year and she is looking forward to going back in the Fall three days a week!

Peyton, Madelyn and Judah

Madelyn and Judah at the petting zoo

Madelyn has just recently been interested in feeding animals.  In the past, she has always been a little leary!

Ellie, on the other hand, was not so sure of the a animals.  She did like the baby goat and called him "Ba Ba" which is what she calls Fenway "Budddy"

Madelyn and her teacher, Ms. Sarah

Madelyn and her friend Aiden

Ellie loved her ice cream and gobbled it right up!

I could get used to this!

Nana even joined in on the fun today!

Madelyn and Jane

Madelyn and Ashley

Happy Birthday Daddy!

On Friday night, we had an early birthday celebration for Bill and a late birthday celebration for Uncle Sam.  We cooked steaks on the grill and the weather was beautiful to eat outside.  It was a very fun evening!

3rd Annual Strawberry Picking Trip

On Wednesday, we went to the Chesterfield Berry Farm with our playgroup.  This is an annual tradition with our playgroup and it is always a really good time.  This year, Aunt Amy and Cora joined in on the fun.  We were a little nervous that the patch would be a mud pit because of all the rain, but it wasn't muddy at all and the weather was perfect.  The kids enjoyed the hayride to the patch, eating the delicous strawberries, a picnic lunch and playing in the corn shell pit.  Ellie skipped her morning nap so she was cranky on the hayride and in the patch.  She wanted me to hold her the entire time while she snacked on very juicy strawberries which made things a little tricky and very messy but we managed.  Madelyn had a blast with her friends and is already talking about going back next year!

Best Buddies!

Ellie wasn't too happy on the hayride!

Madelyn was all smiles and couldn't wait to get to the strawberry patch!

So excited to be with all of her friends!

Our sweet little Madelyn is 3 1/2 years old this week!

Me and my girls!

Ellie finally sat by herself towards the end which allowed me to snap some photos!  Ellie and I were COVERED in strawberry juice!  As usual, Madelyn only had a couple of strawberry spots on the back of her shirt.

Yummy!

Madelyn loved running around the patch!

My attempt at getting a photo of Madelyn and Ellie together!

The mess Ellie created on my clothes.  This picture doesn't even do it justice!

Cora ate all the strawberries that Amy picked.  This is what was left in their bucket on the hayride back!

Our Playgroup

Fun at the Strawberry Patch!

Madelyn and her friend Isabella with their pigtails!

Corn Shell Pit

The was their favorite part of the outing!

Ellie was exhausted and fell asleep before we even left the parking lot!

Madelyn is 3 1/2 Years Old!

It is amazing how much our Madelyn has grown up in the past 6 months.  She has definitely gone from a toddler to a preschooler and sometimes Bill and I wish we could freeze time because she is growing up way too fast!   Madelyn has become a very independent, caring, sweet, imaginative and silly little girl.  At 3 1/2, Madelyn:

• Weights around 29 pounds and is 37 inches tall (approximately)
• Has completely dropped her afternoon nap.  After lunch, she goes into her room for "quiet time" for about an hour or so and has "parties" with her stuffed animals and plays with her dollhouse
• Goes to preschool two days a week from 8 - 12 and absolutely loves it.  She has made two really good friends who she talks about all the time named Jane and Ashley. 
• Has become quite the little helper around the house.  She cleans up toys, helps put away groceries, and helps fold laundry.
• Has started dressing herself (as long as we are not in a hurry) and is very proud that she can do that all by herself.
• Is an amazing big sister.  She loves Ellie and they love to play with the kitchen in our playroom  I can count on one hand the amount of times she has hit or been mean to her sister.  She loves having Ellie around and gets very disappointed when Ellie has to go to bed or take a nap.  It is really sweet, but I'm sure this will not last long!
• Is an extremely picky and slow eater.  We use a lot of bribery during mealtime and her favorite foods are Kraft macaroni and cheese and any kind of sweets, especially cookies.  The only negative feedback I've received from her preschool teacher is that she is "dawdles", especially when eating her snack.  She definitely takes after her Great Grandmother Haslam!
• Has a temper and can throw a tantrum like there is no tomorrow. She takes after me in that department!
• Has a very big imagination and loves to pretend play.  Her favorite thing to do is to play dress-up, especially with her cousin Jack.
• Loves Disney Princesses and Dora the Explorer.  She also loves to color, do arts and crafts, and read books.
• Loves to play outside on our swing set with our neighbors and ride her tricycle and scooter.  She could play outside all day if you let her.
• Favorite color is pink and is very girly.  She wants to be a fashion designer when she grows up and loves to look at clothes, bags and shoes when you go to the store.  She's loves to pick out her clothes and bow and does a really good job matching everything together.  She also loves jewelry and has recently been asking when she's getting her ears pierced.  That is NOT happening any time soon!  I've started painting her nails and that is as much as I can handle right now. She is definitely our little princess!

March of Dimes

This past weekend, Madelyn and I participated in the March of Dimes 5 mile walk with some friends.  We had a ton of fun walking for such a great cause and Madelyn loved all of the kids activities afterwards. They had face painting, dancing, arts and crafts and a moon bounce with a huge slide.  When we were driving home, Madelyn told me that she can't wait to go again next year and maybe Ellie can come too!

Kirsten and I took a cute video of Isabella and Madelyn dancing the freeze dance.  Check out their moves:

All ready for the big walk!

Madelyn's butterfly was interesting and she asked me to take it off after about 10 minutes!

Arts and Crafts with her good friend Isabella

This butterfly is starting to itch!!!

Madelyn and Isabella with the SPCA dog!

Madelyn's favorite part was the moon bounce.  She was all smiles!