Summer Fun Time

After several rainy and cool weeks in May and early June, we have...finally...been able to get in and enjoy the pool! We moved into this house in October, and the pool cover has been staring us in the face all winter, so needless to say, we have been very excited to begin using it. The kids, and Greg, have made use of it every day for the last two weeks. We have two little fish on our hands, and I couldn't be happier about their level of comfort in the water. Let's just say that is a characteristic inherited from me, not their dad.

Here is James, after we asked him for the first time if he wanted to go swimming outside.

This is Kate's first toe dip in her new pool! She spent the next hour or so hanging out with dad, splashing and having fun.

Kate and James are excited to play with all their new pool toys.

Kate cheesin' in her new Minnie Mouse swim goggles.

On the way to the farm!

Kate and dad, working on her jumping and going under the water. 

Swimming sure wears a girl out! 

Kate said, "Dad, we need one of these!" I think he agrees.

We took the kids to see Mater, and they loved it! 

Kate and James had such a great time at the farm with their cousins.

James and Kate helped me bake a cake this summer, and they ate more batter than ended up in the cake!

This and That

We have been pretty busy around here now that school is out for summer. This is the best time of year - we play outside every day, swim when it is warm enough, and play with our friends regularly. These pictures are from all of the fun things we have been doing lately.

We went to a baby shower recently, and Kate thought she needed to eat two of the delicious cupcakes. This is her sweet face asking me for a second, while she is still eating the first.

James really likes taking pictures of himself and these are a few we snapped the other day. He can't keep his hands of our iPhones!

This is a quick picture I was able to get while James was sleeping the other night. He looks so sweet when he is totally asleep! 

This is a funny face that Kate insisted I send to dad at work. She was "just being silly, Mom."

Kate is so excited to start going to Itty Bitty Playground, through the Effingham Park District. She gets to go and play with several other 3 year olds in a local playground. Needless to say, this has been her favorite thing to do so far this summer.

We have made some time to go and visit Great Grandma Gobczynski this summer. She absolutely loves James and Kate, and they are usually well-behaved while we are at her house.

We have finally been able to open the pool this summer, after several cold days and too much rain. So far, Greg is the only one brave enough to actually jump in. 

This is James, enjoying a cold beer to celebrate the last day of school. Kidding! He was trying to wrestle it out of my hands, and one of my fellow teachers snapped this shot. He won't get to drink beer for awhile yet.

This is James after his last big boy haircut. He looks so grown up!

 

The kids like to "help" dad with the pool work. They think they are holding the hose for him.

Here are the kids playing in the garage. With all of the toys we have for them, this is still one of the best parts of their days.

James is proving himself truly Greg's son through his love for spaghetti. He gets it everywhere!

The kids have really started to play well together this summer. They basically run around together, getting into trouble and subsequently getting yelled at by me.

This is one of James's bad choices. 

But then he makes up for it by being so cute...just like this!

- Steph