:: For when my memory fails me.

H. Happenings

Welcome wheels.

We've developed a new way to greet the dad of the family as he arrives home from work.  It usually goes down like this:  I'm slaving away in a hot kitchen making something uber difficult and gourmet -- like spaghetti -- when my cell rings and it's the daddy on the line.  The daddy then reports that his GPS indicates he's in the driveway.  I drop my duties of watching noodles boil and spaghetti sauce bubble and inform the troop that she's wanted out front stat.  The troop then squeals a high-pitched "Daddy!" and hightails it to the nearest exit.  From there, she runs like Forrest Gump -- leg braces, if she had them, flying to the left and right and a cloud of dust swirling behind her.

Once the welcome-home kisses have been handed out and Kennedy's secured her spot in the driver's seat, the honking begins and the excitement bubbles over like the pot of boiling noodles I had left unattended on the stove.

We don't condone Britney Spears for letting her kids drive on her lap, nor do we condemn driving a few feet into the garage with a Kennedy on our lap. 

Wagoning for bagels.

Bagel outings via the wagon are pretty much out of season now that it's an average of 111 degrees outside.  We had our last one a few weeks ago and Kennedy only tried escaping once.  Apparently, riding in a wagon for three miles can get mundane.

 

We saved our leftovers for the local birds that frequent the same bagel shop we do.  Kennedy aimed and fired her blueberry bagel scraps towards any tree, rock or, if luck would have it, bird she found in her radar. 

 Fairy Tale Fishing. 

Did you know you can catch a Princess Barbie using nothing but a pool noodle?

'Tis true. 

:: This was a one pound Snow White Trout that put up a struggle, but Kennedy kept the line steady and reeled that baby in, in under five minutes. 

Backyard Bowling.

The introduction of smelly shoes, wrist masters, strikes, gutter balls and the side leg action the pros use

-- and the one thing I always fail to emulate -- were introduced to an eager virgin bowler.

Girl already has her own style too...

However, we're working on the lack of enthusiasm.  Apparently, I forgot to tell her about the victory dance -- that only gets more elaborate and drawn out when the beer is flowing, I might add -- you're supposed to do when you've avoided the gutter and the pins are no longer vertical. 

Baby bowling steps.

Memorial memories.

I think most of us have friends that we wish lived closer.  Like, next door closer.  For us, those friends are the Benhams.  Unfortunately, it takes a two hour plane ride to see them.  Which means Holly and I are forced to exchange craft ideas, life updates and birthday wishes (again, happy birthday, Holly) via text messages.  Sure, we occasionally go old school and email each other, but the fact remains that our relationship is solely dependent on electronics.  But when the message is sent saying that plane tickets have been bought and bunking under the same roof is near, you can bet that the excitement level is at its highest and the days leading up to departure/arrival go by like molasses slithering down a mason jar.

We were excited to see our friends; however, they weren't the same friends we had last seen in December.  They had multiplied. 

Even Kennedy was smitten. 

Frankly, Vivian had us all at "coo."

And then there was Wynnie.  There's a level of comfort I have with Wynnie that allows me to run wildly through someone else's kitchen while cheering on bites of noodles and pears that I usually reserve for the comfort of my own home.  But with her, I dive into all the same mothering antics I shovel out with Kennedy.  She's good like that -- welcoming us into her home, sharing all her toys with Kennedy and being so un-shy that more than once I found her naked, on the toilet and asking me to wipe her.  Love that girl and love that she lets me mother her as if she were my own.

And I love the Kennedy and Wynnie combo.  There were a lot of "mine"s thrown out during the duration of our stay, but, oh, did my heart do flips when I caught them huddled together and giggling during a game of hide-and-seek.  Or when I peeked around the corner of the play room and there they sat on bean bags, toes touching, engrossed in what Mickey was telling Minnie on the TV. 

Or when I told them there was a coyote chasing an elephant outside to try and get them to look my way for a picture -- and they believed me.

We devoted most of our time to entertaining the girls, but in between T-ball lessons and visits to places with jumpy houses and trampolines, the girls -- and by girls, I mean the bigger, more mature girls -- found their way to an Adele concert (the last one in her North American tour -- she had to cancel all the rest due to laryngitis...can you say lucky us) and the boys had a nice little date night that included sushi and a movie.

(This was one of those "mine" instances.  Hence, the death grip on all of the balls and bat.)

The weekend promised to be a good one -- what, with the ingredients being comparable to chocolate and peanut butter how can you possibly go wrong?  Much like chocolate and peanut butter, the Benhams and the Hokenstads are good just by themselves, but put them together and you get a whole other level of bliss.

Yes, the weekend delivered all that was promised, and we left wishing for another day spent watching our girls brush their teeth together.  So, we'll continue our tradition of making Memorial memories, and in the meantime, we'll patiently wait for the message confirming a Benham reservation at the Hokenstad Hotel.

Want to see how these two have changed in a year?  Click here to see.

Instagram Academy Awards

Curious to know what lurks on my iPhone camera roll?  Yeah, me too.  So, during nap time today, I rummaged through old and new pics and came up with a collection of some of my favorites and tossed ones with half-opened eyes and blurry images to the trash bin.  From there, and to make this post a little more interesting, I awarded an Academy Award of sorts to some of the fave finalists. Please hold your applause 'til the end.

And the InstaOscar goes to:

Best Actress in a Leading Role.

Best Costume Design.

Best Visual Effect.

Best Actress in a Supporting Role.

Best Kiss. (wait, that might be the MTV Movie Awards..whatev)

Best Actor in a Leading Role.

Best Art Direction.

And the Best Picture goes to...