Summer Lovin' (part deux)

Where was I? Tipton, Indiana. My aunt and uncle's storybook-perfect property. 

This creek runs in front of their property. We saw an enormous tortoise swimming downstream. Not very toddler-friendly, but oh so picturesque. 

LOVE this bridge!

My kids had serious driveway-envy. My Aunt Jessica met us there too. We hope to make our visit a summer tradition. 

After what seemed like days and days of driving, we finally made it back to Atlanta. After five short days at home, we went to the lake for a week.

Swimming, boating, water-skiing, biking, eating Grandma's country cookin'.

What would summer be without a slip n' slide?

Bowling with Jonathan....

The highlight of the summer for Lilly and Jonathan was horseback riding in the mountains. That very same week, Lil got to go tubing down the Chattahoochee River through Helen, Georgia. A fawn jumped into the water to say hello. 

Back in the ATL, we spent some time with good friends.

Lil discovered Bindi The Jungle Girl this summer, and quickly became her #1 fan. The show is all about animals and Lil now wants to become a vet. She used to want to be a waitress at Cracker Barrel. Must be the biscuits. 

Lil lost her 2nd top tooth and officially looks like a 1st grader. 

We went to the zoo.

After our day at the zoo, the kids created their own zoo with Legos.

It was WAY too hot to cook, so we ate strange meals like this. We also spent a lot of time at the local Farmer's Market. Lil is becoming quite the locavore. Local peaches, local milk, local eggs. She's a bit of a snob. 

Stay tuned.....

Summer lovin' had me a blast

School started Monday and now I'm reminiscing about our summer. Don't get me wrong, I was ready for school to start, but our summer break was lovely. The perfect mix of go-go-go and lounge around the house all day. A couple of trips, quality lake time, plenty of down time, and a few milestones. Here are the highlights:

Lilly took a class at our community garden called 'The Stream Runneth Over.' 

Salamanders and crawfish are cool, but not mosquitos. She didn't even last the entire hour.

While Lilly was getting devoured by mosquitos, I took this sweet photo of Jonathan on a swing. 

Please don't grow up too fast, Jonny boy.

The kids and I drove to Louisville and spent some time with Grandma Peg and Pop. Grandma won't let me take a picture of her, but this is her kitchen. Uncle Aaron was Lil's playmate for the week. 

He's just as much fun as any 6-year-old.  

See? Aaron's friend, Meg, was great with the kids too. I wish they lived about 7 hours closer.

I could really use more babysitters.

Aaron crawled all the way upstairs with 47 pounds of Lil on his back. 

He also taught me how to do the vortex trick with my hoop!

From Louisville, we drove to Tipton, Indiana, home of my Aunt Helen and Uncle Jim. We had a great time visiting and the kids had a ball exploring their lovely property. A garden, a creek, woods, fields of corn, and a long, flat driveway. What more could a kid want? 

They even have a well-trained dog. I want one of those. 

Maybe Daisy could train CJ? 

My cousin's family brought scooters over for the kids to play with. 

Jonathan had to get in on the action. Cousin Austin was so kind and patient with my kids.

We played badminton (I always have to spell check that word)

and practiced our hooping. A great time was had by all.

And that was just June. Time to get ready for church. To be continued.....