Summer Fun

Wow, another jam-packed summer full of fun activities.  As it comes to a close, Kim and I recalled all the places we went a people we saw.  They included: blueberry picking, trips to beaches and cottages, camping in Michigan, visits from friends, and sits by the local pool.  Lila is growing up to be a vivacious young girl, and Lucy continues to grow into becoming a loving and serving sister and daughter.  Kim and I are so blessed to have such wonderful girls and to be by so many good friends and family. 

Happy Birthday Lucy!

In July we celebrated Lucy's 4th birthday.  As part of this we had a celebration with Kim's family in Wisconsin which included another trip to Beach Bay amusement park, trips to the beach, and of course another one of Kim's beautiful cake creations.  This year Lucy said she wanted a "Hello Kitty" cake and that she wanted to "smash it".  In contrast to earlier birthdays, "smashing" really meant just taking a little bit directly out of the cake without using a fork.  So apparently at four you grow out of the whole mess-making phase and now become concerned with being clean. 

Last week we had a joint celebration in Chicago with our friends where we celebrated Lucy and Lila's birthday with their friends.  We did this a Cosley Zoo in Wheaton and had a great turnout from our friends and family.  We all had a great time and the girls had so much fun with their friends and the animals. 

Catching Up....

Well, my apologies for neglecting the blog since Easter.  It certainly isn't for lack of photographic moments.  Most of our days are full of fun, family, and friends.  Here's a quick rundown and a smattering of pictures to go along with it:
1. Mother's Day - a great church service and a picnic in the park by the tulips. 
2. Lila bird growing into her own as a goofball and fearless explorer.  I think at least once a day we refer to her as a "nut".
3. Family excursions to botanical gardens among many, many other places
4. Two trips to the cottage in Kewaunee with Milo and company.  Included trips to Beach Bay kiddie amusement park in Green Bay.  As a Bears fan I don't like much about Green Bay, but rides for 25-cents is amazing.
5. Kewaunee also included a trip to a dairy farm, making S'Mores on the grill, trips to the beach, and Grammy's fun painting art projects. 
6. Kim and I celebrating our 10-year wedding anniversary at a spa in Kohler, WI. 
7. BBQs with friends and concerts at Millennium Park in downtown Chicago. 
8. A wonderful father's day with paintings from my girls and a princess dance party at a Oak Park concert.
9. Lucy continues to grow up too fast and is a kind and loving sister and daughter.  Her zest and zeal for life is contagious, and I love her curiosity of the world around her.

Next up - Lucy's birthday celebrations (yes, there were more than one...).   

He Is Risen!

Happy Easter to all of you. Our Easter weekend was filled with fun, candy, and worship. In all, we had 4 different Easter egg hunts put on by various neighbors, family, and park districts. Lila's favorite phrase all weekend (which she muttered over 100 times) was "open it", referring to any plastic egg she just found which would contain candy or toys. Lucy and Lila loved running around in their dresses and we had a wonderful family meal hosted by Kim's parents. Thanks to Kristin and Eric for some great pictures as well.

Happy Birthday Mama and Titi

So yesterday was Kim's birthday and so I was working on teaching Lila how to sing happy birthday.  There wasn't much success, but Kim captured this today:



A few notes of translation: Lila is currently obsessed with her aunt Titi and uncle Kunkle.  For some reason she thinks it's both Mama and Titi's birthday - hence "mama-titi".  Also, she always wants to watch the video while we're filming ("I see, I see").  I hope you all enjoy this as much as Kim and I did. 

They Grow Up So Fast!

Our Little Lila Bird is not so little anymore.  My prediction is that she'll be a mountain goat biologist since all she cares about is animals and climbing.

Her vocabulary expands faster than we can even document.  Compared to Lucy she is a bit slower to use words and sentences but is very good at communication in her own way.  Also, the words she can use are pronounced with excellent diction.  These include: "Mil-KKK", "Sippee", "Applesauce", "Peeez (please)", and my favorite "Now".  That last one usually gets added in to most sentences, as in "Sippee now peeez". 

She loves animals of all kinds - she shows little interest in cartoons but put on a nature show and she is captivated.  She also loves jewelry - she almost always has something around her neck or wrist as decor.

Climbing is another (and annoying) pastime.  She loves to go vertical.  Chairs, tables, stools, ect.  Most furniture is at some point tested as a ladder.  This love of climbing also involves her getting stuck, falling, and much more attention from us.     

It is also fun to see how Lucy and her have become friends.  Lucy is most times quite kind and sharing with Lila, and it pleases us greatly as parents to watch Lucy be a great example to her younger sister. 

Valentines and St. Patrick's Day

Our Valentines' and St. Paddy's days came and went with some fun activities.  On Valentines' day, Kim had some friends over for treats, Lucy exchanged valentines at school on which she had, for the first time, signed her name on every one.  At night, Lucy put on her bathing suit (a usual occurrence in our household) and made whoopee pies with Kim. 

I think the swimsuit signifies that Lucy is officially done with Winter.  She says she can't wait to go swimming when the snow melts.  Here she is with a pie she made.

Lila, of course, loved the pies.  One of our many endearing nicknames for her is "our goat" since she eats just about anything.

For St. Patrick's day Kim and the girls went to see Irish dancers at a local pub.  The girls loved it and Lucy was able to get up on stage and join them.