Fun In The Sun

During the summers,

family time comes at a premium.

Jake stays pretty busy during the hot months

on youth trips

with the church.

So everyone's especially happy

when we get some down time with him.

On this particular day,

it was off to the pool.

The heat index here

hovers around 110

so if you want to play outdoors,

its absolutely necessary

to be

in the pool!

 

 

Crista is our little fish.

Always has been.

Has no fear of the water

and loves jumping and flipping

and splashing

as much as possible.

 

 

 

Addie Grace is a little more timid

in the water.

She doesn't like water in her face.

At all.

That makes teaching her to swim pretty difficult!

But she loves her swim vest

and can keep up with the rest of us pretty well.



 

But on this particular day,

Addie Grace realized something...

she can FINALLY touch the bottom in the shallow end!

That gave her the confidence to try swimming

without her swim vest!

And look here...

 



 

She still won't put her head under,

but

this is major progress!

She was so happy

and kept saying,

"This is my lucky day!

I can touch the bottom AND I can swim!"

 

 

And, see,

I was there too :-)

Its a rare picture of the Mama!

Family time is the best!

Little Engineers

Earlier this year

I saw a really neat

Lego candy dispenser that

one of my students made.

I kept this idea

tucked away

for just the right time.

And since Jake had been gone

a lot lately

on youth trips,

I felt this was the perfect time

for a little girl bonding!

 

We hunkered down in Crista's room

since that's where the Legos

are stored.

 

I found the tutorial online

and we were off!

 

The project was pretty easy.

Finding that one specific piece

you need

in a sea of 10,000 Lego pieces

was difficult

{for me}.

Crista could locate that one tiny white hinge

within seconds.

She amazed me!

 

We made quite the mess,

Legos were everywhere by the end of the morning!

But, oh, what a fun mess it was!

 

 

Addie Grace and I worked together,

building and designing 

our candy dispenser.

This is our finished project.

Addie did a lot of the work herself

while I guided her efforts

and she's super proud of her accomplishment!

 

Filling up the candy dispenser

for a test run.

This was by far

the most exciting part

for our little candy addict.

Crista did 100% of hers

on her own.

No help from Mama needed!

 

 

 

They couldn't wait to see if it worked.

And with one minor adjustment,

it delivered 3-4 skittles

every time they slide the bar.

Pretty awesome

for a couple of kids!

 

 

And that's how we spent our morning!
This was by far one of our
most favorite activities
we've done recently!

 

 

Here's Addie Grace explaining

how it works.

 

 

 

And if you'd like to make your own

Lego candy dispenser,

click here for the link!



High Tea & High Heels

Last week

the girls and I were invited

to a wonderful tea party

hosted by our Pastor's wife.

Now, don't get me wrong,

this isn't our first tea party.

We've had hundreds over the years.

With our cute little plastic tea pot and cups,

cool-aid and cookies

for refreshments.

Usually in the backyard

or in the girls' bedroom.

But this tea party was

different.

It was the real deal High Tea Party.

The girls got dressed in their favorite

princess dresses,

did their hair

and even put on lip gloss and high heels.

It was that kind of party!

You can just imagine

how the anticipation grew!

 

 We walked in

and the girls were amazed

at the tablecloth...

 and the lit candles...

and the real cloth napkins...

and especially,

the beautiful fine china.

They felt so special!

 

 

Mrs. Sharon had baked some goodies

to go with our tea.

Crista learned that day

how addicting

Snickerdoodle cookies are!

 

We had several options

when it came to the tea.

Apple cinnamon,

peppermint

or berry zinger.

Addie chose secret option #4.

Regular.

Plain ole Earl Gray.

Crista likes to live on the wild side

and chose the berry zinger

(for her first cup!)

 

Addie Grace thought it was {super great}

that she held the sugar spoon

in her own little hand.

 Pinkies up!

Its the only way to sip tea!

 

 

The girls and I had such a sweet afternoon

sipping tea

and feeling special.

 

And I'm happy to report

that not a single dish was broken

while we were there!

We had such a magical afternoon

and the girls are already asking

to have Mrs. Sharon over

for another tea party,

Brown-family style.

We probably won't serve from fine china,

but I know we'll make lots of memories!

Fourth Time's A Charm!

It actually started on her 3rd birthday.

Addie Grace asked for her ears to be pierced.

So, we took her into town,

she picked out a sucker

and a cute pair of earrings

and she bravely sat

on the stool.

The attendant took out her little marker

to draw the dots on her ears

and Addie Grace FLIPPED out.

Crying, running away...the works.

So we walked out and told her

when she was ready,

we would try again.

 

Fast forward 2 years.

Addie woke up one morning

and informed me

she wanted her ears pierced.

Today.

She asked if they still gave out suckers

and when the answer was yes,

she was absolutely sure

she would get them done that day.

So off we went,

back to the same store

{for a second time}.

She picked out her sucker

and a cute pair of earrings

and she bravely sat on the stool.



 



 

And this time,

she didn't freak out

when the marker was brought out.

She was ready!

 

And she did it!

Two sparkling earring

sat just perfectly on her tiny earlobes.

 

And she was so proud of herself

because she didn't even cry :-)

 

This is usually where the story ends,

but in true Brown fashion,

we needed something to spice up our story a bit.

 

Addie Grace spent the night with her Grandma and Da

and in the morning

she realized that one of her earrings

was missing!

I tried to put it back in

but Addie's super power is growing skin

and the hole had already

grown in.

 

So, off we went,

back to the store

{for a THIRD time}.

They just needed to repierce that one ear

and we'd be on our way.

 

Unfortunately,

they were out of the matching earring

so Addie had to choose a different pair.

The attendant took out her good earring

to replace it with the new one

before repiercing the closed-up one.

But remember,

Addie has that super power

and that new earring

absolutely

would not

under any circumstances

go back in.

So the attendant told Addie Grace

she would just repierce both ears.

 

And Addie absolutely refused.

Wouldn't budge

or succumb to any bribery attempts.

She was not going to repierce both ears.

 

So we left.

Again.

 

Fast forward a week

and our friend Ginny

asked us

to go with her to get her ears pierced,

for moral support.

The girls were excited to go

because Addie said she would do it

if Ginny did it.

 

So off we went,

back to the same store

{for a FOURTH time}.

 

 

She watched Ginny get her ears done.

She picked out her sucker

and a cute pair of earrings

and she bravely sat on the stool.

And she didn't even flinch.

Its old hat now.

 

And we're praying

these stay in

until we decide to take them out!

 

I guess its like the old saying goes...

 

All's well that ends well!

Addie's First Sleepover

Addie Grace has been asking

for almost 2 years now to have a friend sleep over.

I've been successful

at thwarting her attempts

thus far,

but this summer

I finally felt

like she was old enough to handle

the late nights

and early mornings

that always come from friends staying over.

Crista was invited to stay over at a friend's house so I felt

it was the

perfect opportunity

for Addie to have her very first friend spend the night!

 

First up,

building a tent!

The girls wanted to sleep under the tent

so we got it all ready and secure.

 

 

They watched a movie before turning out the lights.

I was so surprised

how quickly they fell asleep.

They were perfect!

 

The next morning

Daddy went and got donuts and chocolate milk

for breakfast.

What a sweet treat that was!

 

The girls played all morning

while I cleaned the house.

They played so well

that,

at times,

I forgot they were even there!

Seriously, they were SO quiet.

 

After lunch

we decided to head to the pool.

The day was hot and water was cool.

It was the perfect way to end the day!

 

 

 

I am so glad that Addie Grace has found

such a sweet friend!

God has certainly blessed both girls

with wonderful friendships!

Bye-Bye Baby

Addie Grace has been working very hard

for a while now,

intentionally

trying to learn one super important skill.

Its a rite of passage

into Big Girl-hood.

 

Do you see the concentration on her face?

She's one determined little girl.

 

 

 

 

 

Mission accomplished!

She's shedding any and all things

"baby"

and setting her sights on bigger things.

Watch out world!