When you were little, didn't you just love...

...throwing pennies in fountains?

Office assistant...

There's been a lot going on in my home office lately....

VBS prep, freelance work and more.

I'd really like someone around to help me out....

but this is NOT what I had in mind!

Wiggly, flippy spinklers...

Fun, fun, fun in the summertime!

Summer's bounty...

Our garden has been yielding this each day - or more. We may not love the heat, but our tomatoes sure do! Yum!

Someone loves...

...her new Hello Kitty swim suit!

And she's been putting it to good use

practicing her mad swimming skills!

"Mommy and E school" - week three: travel and transportation, continued!

We made a "suitcase" out of a file folder...

E covered it in stickers of places she's been

or would like to go...

Then we "packed" the suitcase with things

she decided she would need on a trip.

(The two drawings at the top are two of her

beloved stuffed animals, of course!)

Happy Birthday to...

...my amazing mom.

An outstanding role model.

A loving Gramma.

She is so strong, determined and focused,

and so gracious in any circumstance.

We love you!

"Mommy and E school" - week three: travel and transportation, continued!

E has fun driving her cars on her

"custom designed roadway/city". Fun stuff!

School with Thomas...

I guess E decided she needed to teach someone, too. We've been having fun with "summer school" here at home. I recently caught E reading Thomas a book about butterflies, and showing him the 3D cutouts in the book. Silly girl! (Do you think Thomas was paying attention?)

"Arting" with E...

A friend gave E a fun "paint your own clock" kit for her birthday. Let me tell you, it stretched the limits of my artistic ability (and I don't have much, let me tell you). E has been begging to work on this for weeks, so I finally broke down, and we tackled this together. I painted the monkey face and she did the rest. Colorful and cute, if I do say so myself!

"Mommy and E School": week three

Travel and transportation - fun, fun!

Happy Birthday to...

...my sweet husband.

The best daddy ever.

The perfect mate for me.

A blessing to all that he meets.

We love you!

We love Vacation Bible School!

Bible stories.

Friends.

Snacks.

Crafts.

Playtime.

How can you go wrong?

This little girl loves purple...

...can you tell?

Where we've been...

We've been doing an awful lot of this:

Which means that a certain little fish thinks that

this is a little less exciting than it used to be (but still fun!):

Between swim lessons, swim "practice" and playtime,

we've been in the pool almost every day!

Such a refreshing way to beat the heat!

"Mommy and E School": week two

Bugs, gardens and butterflies, oh my!

Swingin' and singin'

E loves her new swing set. But it never fails, anytime she's swinging, in addition to the familiar creak-CREAK-creak of the swing, I also hear her singing. Church songs, Sunday School songs, school songs, silly songs, TV theme songs, you name it. Sometimes I guess you just have to swing and sing!

Summer school

E and I have been having fun together with "Mommy and E school" this summer. Each week, we have a theme, and we read books, do crafts incorporating that theme. (Week one's theme: fish, swimming and the beach/ocean - to fit in with our current round of swim lessons. Fun!) We also work on a variety of skills worksheets featuring spelling, math, handwriting and more. E loves to learn and loves "arting" and "worksheets" and school. This has been a great way for her to spend some of her summer time - doing something she loves!

(I am nowhere near as cool at Brit over at Living with Three Boys - her learning and lesson plans ideas each week put me to shame ... but I am proud of myself for coming up with a curriculum for E for the summer. Learning and fun, all in one!)

Welcome to "Butterfly Cabin" ...

E recently received a cute hand-me-down log cabin playhouse from some family friends. We finally have it settled in our backyard in "just the right spot". She's been having so much fun "playing house" in her self-christened "Butterfly Cabin" - so cute!

How does your garden grow?

Swim lessons...

E started swim lessons this week with a sweet lady

in town that teaches at her home.

So much fun, and so much to learn!

What are you doing this summer?