Ava’s Fifth Birthday and the Girls’ Birthday Party

Our big girl is getting older – she turned 5 on July 13th. Birthday morning started off with some presents. Here are the girls showing off their Anna and Elsa dresses.

Ava went through a few wardrobe changes as she tried on all of her new clothes….

Doing a new puzzle while wearing her new Hello Kitty tennis outfit.

Later the girls (Ava, Mom, and NeeNee) got their nails done. Ava is now hooked on manicures.

Ava of course had to try out her new Ezy Roller up the street.

The next day we had the girls’ birthday party. Of course we went with the Frozen theme ….albeit a bit more focused on the “summer” portion since we have the pool.
It just isn’t a party without a giant balloon.

Pre-party, the girls are chilling in their jammies.

After a bunch of swimming, the crew was ready for cake. Mom is doing a good job of lighting the candles.

While Ali is mostly focused on getting to the icing.

Afterwards we were able to get one photo of the girls somewhat calm.

Later in the week, Ava had her lunch and haircut outing with NeeNee.

And Ava had her first swim meet…
She was a little nervous at the start.

After finishing the freestyle.

Ready to start backstroke.

And she’s off…















Ava's first swimming ribbons!

We had more fun during the week. We had a monsoon storm one afternoon. Ali (and Pepper) had fun with the rain.

And since the girls were wet, it was a perfect time for the pool. Ali loves the slide.

While Ava was working on her new hairdo (or is it hair don’t?)

Happy Birthdays to our Princesses!

June Highlights (and Ali’s Second Birthday)

With summer in full swing, we seem to alternate between indoor air conditioned activities and the pool.

On the indoor front, we’ve been utilizing the Home Depot and Lowe’s events. Ali loves to bang the hammer.

Ava is concerned about the details on the painting.

Meanwhile Ali is trying to get as much paint on herself as possible.

A not very photogenic crew here…

The library is another favorite spot. Ali is especially into the puppets now.

On the outdoor front, the girls love to play at the various pools. Here are the girls looking cool on their way to the pool.

Ava is into her goggles.

which means that Ali has to emulate her big sister.

Even when it is over 100 degrees out, Ali loves to snuggle in her towel post swim.

The girls like the backyard sprinkler

Back inside, Ali is on a serious princess / dress up mode. She even acts out Cinderella by cleaning the floor.

And walking the dog with her dress on.

This month we had to say goodbye to our friends McKenzie and Grayson as they moved to Atlanta. Here are the kids at one last afternoon together.

June is also Ali’s birthday month. Unfortunately Ali woke up on her birthday (the 28th) with the stomach flu. Fortunately she was mostly better the next day, and the girl’s Frozen birthday party isn’t for a few weekends.

Ali used the weekend to wear her princess nightgown.

And by the end of the weekend, she was bouncing on the trampoline at the gym in her new Elsa dress.

Happy second birthday Ali!

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May Highlights–Outdoor Fun and More

With school winding down and summer activities starting up, May has been filled with a variety of activities. Some highlights:

Ali has discovered that the baby doll crib is just the right size for her to sit in.

One of the toy stores had a grand opening complete with Elsa. Ali was in awe of the singing.

Ava had a move night over a friends house. The girls had fun sprawling on the cushions and mattresses.

View from above.

They also (occassionally) sat still enough to watch the movie.

We took in an outdoor concert one night. Ali likes chilling in the tiger chair.

And dancing with Mom.

Ava took a few breaks from dancing to hang out with us as well.

We did various dressup and playtime activities….Policegirl Ava.

Ali teaching her class.

And as a doctor.

Ava as the horse.

The girls have fun at a restaurant near us with outdoor activities. Here they are riding the deer.

And doing the beanbag toss.

We had some friends over for dinner outside.

Which inevitably involved swings for the little ones.

We had plenty of pool time.

even with our hat.

Til next time – stay cool!