R.I.P. Buzz

We are sad to report that last Sunday we lost a beloved member of our family, our little yellow dog, Buzz. He appears to have died from complications from the extreme summer heat and was laid to rest in our backyard. The kids took the news much, much better than Jack and I did, but the member of our family who was the most torn up about the news was undoubtedly our other furry friend, Jessie. Buzz and Jessie have been inseparable since we found them, and she is slowly but surely finding out how to live without him. On the up side, we have been spoiling her silly for the past week, and she has become much friendlier and much more interactive with the kids. We are sad to lose Buzz, but we are still so happy to have Jessie to play with and love. R.I.P. Buzz. You are missed, and we love you!

Fun with Cousins!

About a week ago, we enjoyed a visit from all of Joel and Nora's cousins (four from Denver, CO and one from Springfield, MO). The kids had the time of their lives with all the kids around, enjoying everything from swimming in grandma's backyard to playing dress up. Needless to say, Joel and Nora were very very sad to see them go, and they are already looking forward to their next visit!

 Nora and her little cousin, Baby Seth.

All the cousins (Olivia, Megan, Owen, Nora, Joel, Aiden and Seth)

Iowa Bound

At the end of July, the four of us traveled up to my grandma and grandpa's house in northwest Iowa for a family reunion with my mom's side of the family. Of course, seeing extended family was wonderful, but I think the highlight of the weekend was Joel's many biking expeditions. He really became comfortable with riding his bike on sidewalks; he and Jack even rode all the way to the pool! I know he made some really good memories!

America The Beautiful

This year, our little family had a fun-filled and relaxing Fourth of July weekend. We kicked it off with church services and ice cream social, a private fireworks show compliments of Daddy and finished it off with swimming, the Liz & Bill Hogan annual parade and a barbecue with our friends the Deerings. 

Motormouth McCall

As the title of this posts suggests, I have two children who are very conversational. Lately, though, Nora has really blossomed verbally. She has been putting seven and eight words together in sentences for about a month now, and she is extremely fun to talk to and joke with (she has a very funny sense of humor!).

She is also very independent. She likes to do most things all by herself, but on occasion, she will ask someone to "help you." "Mama, help you?" She will ask. She also has a slight obsession with Strawberry Shortcake (Baberry Cake), and she loves to give "smacky kisses."

And true to little sister form, every time Joel wants something or says something, Nora's standard response is "Me, too!" She wants to be just like her big brother, which if you ask me, isn't a bad thing! Joel is a great kid too! I just love watching them interact and play together, and I know it will only get more fun and entertaining the older they get. We are so blessed!

Man on the Moon

Joel's newest ambition in life is to be "a scary astronaut." The boy is infatuated with all things outer space! In fact, just this afternoon, I had a conversation with him that went like this:

Me: "Joel, what should we do today?"
Joel: "I just want to visit."
Me: "Oh really? What do you want to visit about?"
Joel: "Satellites."
Me: "Satellites?"
Joel: "Yeah, Mom. You know? The things that float out in space and make things on earth work."

My Little Fish

So part of the reason that I haven't had a moment to update this blog this summer is that the kids and I have pretty much lived at the pool! It has been so much fun to watch the two of them develop into little swimmers this summer. Joel is even to the point that he can go off the diving board wearing water wings and he can jump in the water and swim back to the wall with no water wings! I'm such a proud mama! It's going to be so sad when summer is over...I guess we will have to keep up the swimming in the bathtub during the off-season! Plus, I will have to figure out a way to entertain them for 2+ hours every afternoon. Any suggestions?