Summer Snapshots

Ella facetimed with Elmo. It was a pretty amazing moment in her life.

We love afternoons spent in the backyard in our bathing suits. This afternoon, Ella invited Joseph to have a picnic with her. She made sure to cut up all of his food since he is the baby!

Not sure when this happened, but the little dog has clearly become the little prince. 

He is also the sweetest snuggler ever. If I'm working on the computer, Oliver has to be curled up on me like this.

Walked past Abby's room while she was away at camp one morning, I found this sad pup missing his girl.

Papa turned 61 this month and we celebrated with a family dinner. We had a ton of fun at Texas Roadhouse and laughed really hard...especially when Papa thought they were going to come over and make him sit on a saddle while they sang Happy Birthday. Let's just say he was extremely thankful they didn't!

 

Ella still naps around 12:30/1:00 and Abby tends to just spend that time quietly playing while I read or get some things done around the house. One day last week, I was completely exhausted after lunch and decided to take a quick nap. Abby was going to sit on the couch with me and read with Ollie curled in her lap. The whole house was quiet, so Joe came up from work to find out where everyone was.  He posted this sweet picture on Facebook. Can you even stand all the cuteness happening right here?

 The picture Facebook didn't see was the other half of the couch...

Best nap I've had in a long time! This picture is the best.

my travel companion

Then, there was the afternoon when I couldn't find Oliver anywhere....until I started folding laundry.

No need to move, buddy. What's that? You weren't planning on it. Oh right...I'll just work around you.

Sorry to disturb you, Prince Ollie, but it seems your comfy spot has suddenly disappeared.

just a girl and her dog chatting on her pretend cell phone

The girls have two new favorite games to play outside: hair salon and car wash. Abby answers the phone, makes appointments on her calender and then calls Ella over to her salon chair to give her the full beauty treatment.

"I think I can squeeze you in on Monday!"

A couple of weeks ago, we drove to New Jersey to surprise Aunt Alex for her 30th birthday. She had no idea, but Uncle Brad had planned a big party for her and we all snuck into town to celebrate. We had a great time with family. Abby loved entertaining and chatting with everyone at the party. Her energy seemed endless. Ella was super friendly, but at about 7:30 she begged me to put her to bed. She made it clear that "in a few minutes" wasn't going to cut it. She wanted to go to bed "now"! She grabbed my face and said, "Pweeeeease mommy. I tired!" Sweet girl went right to sleep. She knew her limits. Happy 30th Aunt Alex. We love you!

Dressed up like a bride with a colorful headdress and coloring for hours before bed

When we got home after a weekend away, we looked out on our back door to find this sweet surprise waiting for Ella on our deck. Our dear friends know how much Ella loves this car and that we were looking for a used one. They found one while we were away, picked it up and delivered it with a bow on top for our little girl. She was thrilled! We are just so thankful for friends who are like family to us! 

She couldn't wait to get outside in it the next morning. She was ready to ride. Cool shades and all!



Ella like to drive her car to Abby's Car Wash.

Oliver is not only like their little baby, he also stands in when Abby wants to play veterinarian. Could he be any more of a perfect fit for our family?

Lily and Ollie napping in the sunshine