Summer party

We had some friends over last night for a summer barbeque. It was really nice to see them, and Mira had a great time playing with the other kids. We borrowed the bouncy castle (again!) from our neighbor. It was great to talk on the deck, and the weather was beautiful!

Here is Mira, Hailey, and Taylor bouncing the night away.

Here is Chad, Hope, and their son Jack. Jack is just a month younger than Amelia.

Sarah and Brandon:

Chris and Derek:

And Amelia on the porch earlier:

It's been awhile!

Mira's birthday was on Memorial Day, and we went to Chris's dad's house on the lake. Mira got an ice cream cake. Yum! Oh, and they found a few turtles on the road and put them in a bucket of water. Reminds me of when we did that when we went to Nisswa. I found a snapping turtle who I named Jerry. We brought him home from Nisswa and the let him go in Lake Willard. I loved going up north!

Care Bear Heaven!

Some of Mira's favorite toys are her Care Bears. It started with just one, then two, then Christmas came and she had three. Chris took a trip and made the count four. THEN HER BIRTHDAY came along. Four new Care Bears later, and we are officially up to eight! I think we're done buying Care Bears. To be fair, two of them are technically Amelia's that somehow wormed their way into Mira's bed, and Mira did buy one herself recently with money from her piggy bank. Here's a photo of Mira with her Care Bear Crew:



And now that Mira has turned 4, she's a bit sweeter suddenly. We'd been priming her during her particularly sassy three-year-old days that when she turns 4, she can't be so sassy anymore . . . and it worked! Mira's attitude has changed a bit in the past week. She's gotten fewer time-outs and suddenly seems to enjoy Amelia a little more rather than thinking of her as "the kid who always gets in her way." This morning I caught a sweet photo of Mira reading to Amelia:


Best friends forever, I hope!

Happy 4th Birthday, Mira!

Mira's 4th birthday is today! She was really excited to get up this morning and open her presents and have cake for breakfast. She got a yellow Care Bear, two dresses, a Little Mermaid Slip 'n' Slide, and a Backyardigans CD. I think she was pretty happy with her "haul."

Here are a few photos of the day. This afternoon we'll head out to Chris's dad's house for a Memorial Day party.

Here's Mira's Barbie cake (and, no, I didn't bake it myself):



Wearing her birthday dress and holding her coveted Sunshine Bear:


This past weekend we had a couple of neighbor couples and their kids over for a BBQ. Our neighbors brought their bouncing castle, which all the kids enjoyed.



And Mira tried her hand at her batting practice toy.


We hope you all have a fun and safe Memorial Day!

Farmer's Market/Library/Camping Out

We've had a busy past couple of days. Yesterday, the girls and I went downtown to have lunch with some former coworkers of mine, then we headed to the Farmer's Market. We came away with some delicious cherries and a bouquet of flowers. It was a nice afternoon out.


Today I took the girls to the library. Mira got her own library card a year ago and loves to check out her own books. Here she is running the scanner today.


Tonight, Mira wanted me to put up her tent in her bedroom. She wanted to camp out in it and made sure all her best friends (i.e. Care Bears) were in her tent with her. She had a flashlight, books, and a glass of water, so she's all set for the night! I have a strong feeling we'll find her in her bed by morning. (Amended: I'm still loading the photos to the blog and Mira already came down to tell me that she would rather sleep in her bed tonight!)



Here's great photo of Chris and Mira with some new birthday sunglasses!


And of course Amelia wearing my sunglasses!


Mira's 4th birthday is on Monday. Here she is playing with her Barbie swimming pool that she picked out with the birthday money Great-Grandma Adeline gave her.


I can't believe she'll be ready for kindergarten in a year. She does seem ready for it. I told her that when she turns 4, she can't be sassy anymore and needs to be sweet and help around the house. Maybe it will work . . .

Oh, what a party!

This past weekend we had a double birthday party for Mira and Amelia. Amelia turned one year old two weeks ago, and Mira's 4th birthday is on Memorial Day this year. We had our families over and it was a wonderful day! Thanks to everyone who came! It was so great to see you all. And the presents were too much. The girls enjoyed playing with them for a long time after everyone had left. Here are a few pics from the party. There are a lot!

Here's photos of the birthday girls!


Mira received an ESPN batting practice toy, and really loved playing with it!


Here's Amelia on one of her new toys. She'll have so much playing with them all this summer!

Here's Mira in her fairy dress, mailed all the way from Australia. Thanks, Kelly, Duey, Chesney, and Logan!


Grandma Martha and Grandpa Bob give all their grandchildren an Amish-made rocking chair for their first birthdays. Here's Amelia on hers:



The girls each had their own cake. Mira picked a Little Mermaid cake, her favorite character:


Uncle Jeff with Amelia and Nicholas:

We borrowed a bouncing castle from a neighbor to keep the kids entertained. They really loved it and were nice and tired by the end of the party. Thanks to the Branham family for the afternoon of fun you lent us! Amelia even tried it out and loved it!


Here's everyone enjoying the porch!


Amelia and Grandpa Randy:

Spending our days . . .

I just wanted to share a few more photos since I've been so bad about posting lately.

This is what happens when Mira has "quiet time" in her room, and I'm working downstairs. She took Amelia's duck tub and filled it with all it could hold, then topped it with an Easter bonnet!


Amelia enjoys a little time on the porch, discovering the flowers:


Mira enjoys a little time on the sidewalk with her chalk:


And our newest addition to the porch, Flowers the Duck:


Mira is excited, over what I don't know:


Big birthday party is on Sunday! All of our families will be there so we are looking forward to seeing everyone. Wish you could make it, Kelly and family!

And if anyone can tell me why our camera is suddenly giving most of our photos a magenta tint, I'd be delighted to know!

Nothing much.

It's been a quiet week on the homefront. Not much really going on. No new photos, no big news regarding the girls. We are having a double birthday party for the girls on Sunday, so that should be fun and provide some photos!

Here's a photo from today. Not real exciting, but shows the girls' personalities pretty well. Now I'm off to sit on my porch!
Michelle

More birthday photos

Here's a little more of how Amelia spent her first birthday:

Showing off her lullaby seahorse she got from Mira:


Enjoying a first taste of her birthday cupcake:


Sitting on the porch with Mira:


Having a "chat" with Grandpa Randy:

And just a cute photo of Mira:

Happy 1st Birthday, Amelia!

We want to wish a happy first birthday to our baby girl. Amelia, we can't believe the year has gone by so fast! What a wonderful baby you have grown into. It's a true joy to spend each day with you.

Here are a couple of photos from our celebration today. The official party is on May 18, but we couldn't let the day go without a few presents, a birthday crown, and a balloon!

Kisses from Amelia

This weekend Amelia started giving kisses. It's so cute! I'll say, "Kisses. Kisses." And she'll lean in with her mouth wide open, all slobbery and sweet.


Here's a photo of the girls from this week. Mira has been so helpful with Amelia lately, playing with her and wanting to hold her (only allowed to on the floor!). I don't think Mira remembers anymore what it was like before Amelia was born.


Look at those eyes! I'm hoping they stay blue. But Mira's were blue until she was 2 years old, then they turned hazel, so we'll have to see. Looks like Amelia will have blonde hair, though!


What a smile! Can you believe Amelia will be one year old on Tuesday? The year went by so fast, I don't know where the time went. Mira turns 4 years old in just a month. It's a busy May at the Cook household!


Chris and I celebrate our 7-year anniversary on Monday. We're going to sneak away for a romantic lunch since finding a babysitter is more trouble and expense than it's worth. We'll find a nice restaurant downtown and celebrate our love in 60 minutes or less!