9 Months Old

Hap will be 9 months old in 3 days and he is just so sweet! He is crawling and pulling up and muttering mama and dada like he is about to start talking. He loves the dogs now and crawls after them, much to their dismay. He loves food and eats pretty much whatever we are having. We are all enjoying cute littel inch of him!

Progress Report

Here is the most recent pictures of the building process. I took this today when I went to check on things. Right now they are digging huge trenches to pour the foundation (one place we will not be skimping after the recent earthquake). SO where the trenches are is the new outline of where the new house will be, someday:-)

Happy Campers!

This past week Piper and Polly had a wonderful week at Jack Kramer "SCAT" Camp. It was swimming, crafts, arts and swimming. It was such a wonderful experience. The counselors were so amazing with the girls and they woke up every morning asking to go to camp. The favorite couselors were Shannon and Stephanie. These girlls were just incredible and Piper and Polly were two happy little campers.

Paradise Cove

Over the weekend we headed to Malibu (one of our favorite places). We went first for brunch and then had fun in the sun at Paradise Cove. It is our dream to someday have a little weekend getaway here. It has a great break for you surf enthusiast and is just a perfect little each. We got to meet Stephanie, Dalanie's best friend from Arkansas, so good to finally meet her. Piper enjoyed jumping waves with Tia and Jonny and picking up 100's of little crabs from the sand while Polly enjoyed snuggling with her daddy.

Little Mermaids

Here are Piper, Polly, Brooke and Jenna. They had a fun night of swimming, while we had a yummy bbq (thanks Chris and Jen). I just love long summer nights!

Stripe One

Piper received her first stripe on her belt in Jiu Jitsu, watch out Tito Ortiz, there is a new fighter coming up the ranks:-) Of course I was so proud of our little martial arts master for getting her very first stripe. Jocelyn, her instructor, is giving her the stripe in the bottom picture.

Tiny Dancer

Polly had her first ballet class yesterday. After falling asleep in the car on the way there, she woke up in quite a state. We went inside, all 4 of us, as Polly was screaming her little lungs out. She was tired and out of sorts. I tried every trick I knew to calm her, they all failed. As she was screaming, she looked up, saw pictures of little girls in their recital costumes and said "I want to wear that". I explained that those girls all took ballet class to learn the moves. She ran into class like horse trying to finish the derby. She followed every move, danced every step and just loved every second. When we had to go, she said she was staying. So far, today, she has asked 4 times when her next class is. You may also notice there were some tutu issues, I tried to take it off, but she insisted it was fine. Oh, sweet Polly!

I'm Still Standing

Well, just barely. The house is down to one wall and the the concrete is the next big step. They have started digging in the back of the house, lots of deep holes. Once the foundation is in, the frame goes up. It all seems to be going very well.

Happy 4th of July

We had a wonderful 4th of July! It was great to visit good old Pennsylvania. We are so thankful to live in such a amazing country and had a great day celebrating (I always get a little nostalgic about America on the 4th)!

Priceless Art

The girls loves decorating the driveway. Piper made lots of suns and also loved drawing playgrounds. Polly kept making boats, she got very upset if anyone stood on her masterpieces. She also took frequent breaks to dance and twirl, as I am sure most artist do. Another great activity that Gigi and Grampy came up with for the girls.

Tea Party

Mimi had a fantastic tea party for the girls while we were home. She maade tons of yummy cookies and the girls each had 3 cups of her delicious tea. It was a great treat and she went to alot of effort to make a very fancy and fantastic tea party for us.

Family Fun

Catching up with Gigi and Grampy was tons of fun. Polly was like a shadow for Gigi the entire week. Grampy took care of all our yummy meals and loved spending time in the pool with everyone. Of course, we got to see lots of Mimi too. She made a great put-pie meal which we all enjoyed immensely! Hap loved his first try and continued to eat himself silly.

Worth the Trip!

While we were home we had a chance to catch up with two of our oldest friends. Katch who babysat my sis and I and is like a third sister. Katch now has a daughter, Kara, the same age as Piper> They got along great. Brooke and I met on the swim team when we were just 5. She has Braxton who is 20 months old. It was such a treat to see them both and catch up.

Gigi's Birthday Bash

While we were home we had the chance to celebrate Gigi's belated birthday with her. The girls love any reason to celebrate and love blowing out candles and making wishes. Mimi also made some delicious cupcakes to celebrate, Piper really liked them.

Catching Fireflies

Next to swimming and watching for deer, Piper and Polly loved catching lighting bugs on our visit to PA. Piper had one that she swore came to her every night, his name was Toby. They were armed with nets and had a blast catching those little fire crackers.

Dara Torres watch out!

While visiting Gigi and Grampy in PA Piper made amazing strides with her swimming. She can now dive and swim almost the entire length of the pool with out our help. The reference to Dara Torres is because she made the Olympic team at 41 years old during our visit. We were so lucky to have our very own pool to practice from dawn till dusk. Polly was had the philosophy that swimsuits were a waste of time, as she explained Ariel does not wear swim suits, she has fins. The picture of her is with our friend Rachel's little girl Brooklyn. Hap enjoyed splashing in the water.

Just Plane Cute!

Here is little Hap at 8 months old taking his first trip to PA to visit Gigi and Grampy/ He was a real sport considering he had an ear infection.