Reflecting

We headed on over to Seattle Center with the kids today to enjoy the water fountain and a few rides. They got drenched and left dripping with smiles, using the last drops of their energy. In honor of Naomi turning 2 in a couple of weeks, we decided to replicate a picture we'd taken at Seattle Center when I was 8 months pregnant with her. The picture isn't perfect, but it's fun because it is a self-portrait by way of capturing our reflection on the side of a building.

Daddy love

I couldn't let Father's Day go by without mentioning how lucky I am to be married to such a great one. Thank you James for being my partner in learning how to best guide these beautiful children with amazingly strong spirits. I love you.

Play caught on Video

I know this is a lot of video for the typical blog follower to watch, but I'm posting these specifically for our loved ones who are far away. Here's a little footage of the sweeties playing together in the past week. I apologize for the poor image and sound, but these are off of my phone camera.

They really are buddies and are keeping very busy! Love you!

*Here are the kids playing outside of Haydn's preschool one morning.

*Soccer fun - Naomi: 'I'm a goalie, I'm a goalie!'

*Brother and sister having fun with forts.

Chop Chop!

Haydn and I both recently went to get dramatic haircuts. We're staying cooler now on the hot summer days, which came early this year! Haydn was scared to go to the barber because it had been a while, but after the 1st snip he was sold on the experience - I guess he enjoys a good pampering.

Summer fun in the Sand

So here is why I've dropped off on the blogging lately - too many sunny days! Here is a collage of sweet sand photos of the kiddos:

Here's a quick video I caught of Naomi at Grandma Bobbi's today, before the camera battery died (which frequently happens):

Baby Girl Ragsdale!

I just found out that my sweet cousin Renee had her baby this morning! She was surprised by her little girl's arrival 5 weeks early, but everyone is ok. She weighed in at 5 lb. 12 oz. I am so excited for Renee and Randall and cannot wait to meet their little one!

On a side note, we had a great baby shower for Renee a couple of weeks ago, and I made a fun little cake for the occasion. For those who have been asking for pictures, you can follow this link to some pictures Renee caught of the cake: http://flickr.com/gp/9115534@N05/du844J

A Cupboard Cuddle

James has been working on a gradual remodel of our kitchen (go ahead and say it, we're crazy). Well, the other night Naomi decided that one of the unfinished cupboards would make a nice little bed. She fluffed up her blanket to make it cozy and decided that daddy needed his pillow for comfort, so she promptly went upstairs and returned dragging his pillow with her. They had a nice cupboard cuddle.

Necklaces and Face Painting

Haydn pulled out the bead bin this morning asking to do some projects. Necklaces were decided to be the goal, so Haydn set to work with stringing beads of every shape and size. Naomi loved trying on the finished products and was very serious about sorting all of the items in the bin.

As I was tidying up the mess, Naomi got a hold of a blue highlighter, and Haydn a yellow. Before I knew it, they were decorating their faces and limbs. Highlighters do give a lovely glow, don't you think?

Happy Little Feet

We had the chance to visit the new penguin exhibit at Woodland Park Zoo on Friday. The kids are big penguin fans (remember the penguin birthday cake for Haydn?), so this was very exciting. Naomi is fascinated with the animals at the zoo and Haydn loves learning new things about the creatures each time we visit. It was a beautiful spring day and the penguins put on a great show in their new home. We had a chance to visit the friendly orangutans while they had a celery snack, watch the tiger pace and pant in the sun, and the lion take a stroll. When the lion stood up to walk around, Naomi said from the comfort of her blanket-laden stroller "Don't eat Omi!".

Here are a few pics I managed to squeeze out of our ailing camera:

Fighting the flu

I was able to catch these sweet moments of my kids with my parents the other night when we met them for dinner at our neighborhood cafe. The kids ended up with a nasty flu the next day, which explains the tired red eyes (and explains why Haydn was laying down on the bench saying he was too tired to eat his mnm pancakes!). They have such wonderful relationships with their grandparents, who keep right up their in depth imaginations, and I am so thankful that they have such special people in their lives.