It's Getting Hot in Here...

What do you do when it gets so hot that it makes you take off your shorts?

What do you do when it's so hot that cheese melts on your head?

What's with the Christmas bib?!

And even wearing Elise's shoes doesn't cool down those rosy cheek....

What do you do when it's so hot that you don't know which way is up?!

It's time for big sister Elise to introduce the sprinkler!

This makes Elise #1!

...And can cool down a hot girl.

"A summer's sun is worth the having."

- French Proverb

(especially after our winter!!)

Playhouse Makeover

I'm embarrassed to say that I've been working on Elise's playhouse for over 2 years. Granted, some of that time I've been pregnant with twins, raising babies and just trying to survive. Ha! Regardless of my excuse, I thought it was time to get the playhouse done so Elise could spend the summer playing in it. It still remains a work in progress (I have a few minor things I'd still like to do... find a comfortable seat for inside, remove the old tape adhesive on the windows, etc). But it's still ready for the 2014 summer debut!

Now I just have to teach Elise to read the clock!

Making floral arrangements on the porch

It is a hit! Elise spends a ton of time down in her playhouse... usually with Gladys or Demi by her side. I hope that the playhouse is something that will continually change and be customized as the girls get older... a place of refuge from us old people. A place to unwind, eat Popsicles and just be a kid.

A Visit From Jessica

The day after Elise's last day of preschool, we had a special lunch visit from Jessica. She was visiting Ohio for the weekend and made sure she stopped in to visit us. Boy, do we miss her!

It took only a minute for Elise and Jessica to pick up right where they left off and the twins were happy to see Jessica as well. It's almost as if they remembered her. Hadley was sure to give her a spontaneous hug and Ceci insisted she sit on her lap outside. Jessica was such an integral part of the twins first 8 months of life that somewhere deep inside, they knew she was a special person.

Elise, Ceci, Jessica and Hadley

Getting Crabs

So we had 2 crabs-- but just temporarily. Elise babysat Leafie and Sleeping Beauty while the Hebeka's were on vacation. Let's just say that these hermit crabs have never lived this well before! Elise gave them 24/7 care... included were long walks in the yard, baths and tons of fresh water and food. Oh, they were also treated to a train ride with her fairies in the living room. Lucky ducks. I mean, lucky crabs! I sense that she'll be waiting her own crabs in the future.

Tennis Anyone?

Elise is trying a new sport.. tennis. I have recently taken the game back up since my years in high school and Jeff has recently learned the game as well. If Elise enjoys the sport and sticks with it, she will beating us in no time! She truly has a fabulous swing.... I'm not saying that because I think my girl is fabulous (although she is!).

Coach Chris and Elise

Elise has been playing for a few months-- taking lessons with other 4-7 year olds. They are learning with red balls which are more foamy and bounce slower. The net is also lower. At some lessons, they hit balloons and they always play games and do fun drills.

Hadley and Cecilia come to root big sister along. 

Sometimes Daddy meets some friends during Elise's lessons for a few games. We stop outside too and root him on as well. Good job Dad! Plus it's nice to make a snack mess outside where you don't have to clean up as well.

Goodbye Union Preschool!

Our big 5 year-old girl is no longer a preschooler! She has come a long way in 2.5 years!

Elise officially had her last day of Preschool!

While Elise rode bus 23 from the church to the school, the babies and I walked over cupcakes for the day's snack. It was nice to give hugs to her fabulous teachers... Gail and Elaine. They had been there the whole way with us. They were there when Elise was little and needed intervention and they were there at the end when she wrote her letters and learned her address. Elise's growth has been tremendous and we owe some much to Elise's valuable team!

After school, we surprised Elise... Jeff got out of work early and we took her to Swig (one of her favorite restaurants) for some time alone. It was a fabulous day.... and perfect weather to start our summer.

One of the last days of school

Random Daily Life

There is rarely a dull moment at our house. Someone is always up to something... whether they are being goofy, adventurous or dramatic. Let's say that it's rarely quiet except for after 8pm when Elise usually goes to bed. If we've done anything right, it's that we have held everyone to an early bedtime! 

Hadley and Cecilia- 15 months

I didn't know what to do with all the silly, random pictures I had from spring, so here they are:

This is the reason why we rarely eat tortellini or spaghetti! Even though Hadley is showing promise with using a fork, she prefers to still eat her favorite foods with her hands in order to maximize food to mouth speed.

Cecilia showing off her new hat

I guess it's better to want to play with diapers rather than pulling out all the wipes (again!). This Puritan bonnet wearing stage really only lasted a few days. Somehow they even knew this was funny!

We normally play in our front yard- mostly because I don't enjoy toting up two 20+ lb babies up our enormous hill at the same time. Obviously the novelty of a new space can be worth the extra work. I love that Hadley loved the hose handle... a toy that she insisted we bring back into the house for a few days.

I think Cecilia is wondering how she can get the
hose handle away from Hadley.

It was sweet that Elise picked me this beautiful bouquet of flowers. She couldn't believe that some people wouldn't want these growing in their yard. Don't be jealous but I kept them in a vase next to my kitchen sink for a week! Fortunately (or unfortunately), we always have new dandelions growing all the time.

For Mother's Day, Elise made some beautiful artwork for me at school.  The teacher's also asked her some questions about me. Actually, I'm wondering if she was even thinking of me when she answered them-- or maybe this is about her 'other' mom whom we've never met! Regardless, this gift is a keeper because this is the mom I want to be! Ha! She sounds well rested and cool!

The irony is that she's never seen me sleep (not even nap!) and we rarely have candy!

Scary that this little groundhog was caught looking in our house in the middle of the day. Rabies anyone?!

So maybe we don't have much candy- but I did take Elise after school with the twins for ice cream. It was a surprise on a warm day and the girls first ice cream outing. Note to self, don't order Elise chocolate ice cream in a cone because it was a mess! Crazy to think that they called that a kiddie cone.

Hadley 16 months

Cecilia 16 months

Sporting a Fu Manchu

Ahh... warm weather and a walk to Swig for dinner during the farmer's market. Life is good. How grateful are we that we can walk downtown?!

Daddy and Cecilia 16 months

However, 16 month twins don't allow for a long, leisurely meal. They prefer to eat and run..

Hadley 16 months

This needs no explanation except that the water from the hose was too 'cold' but the mud puddles it made was nice and warm! How fabulous and fun!

The next generation of dancing Kaiser girls has finally come to fruition. My dream has come true as I now have more dancers for our random dance parties. You never know when the spirit will move you to boogie.

A snapshot in time of what Gladys and Demi think of each other and the chaos we call our life on Linden Lane!

Working Around The Yard

Spring has sprung (and now summer!) and we've had the bug to fix up our yard and tackle some projects.... I'm a bit upset that I didn't take some before shots... Oh well. Just know that we've made our house a bit more beautiful on the outside!

First, our front yard was covered with stones. Apparently the previous owner had a thing for little white rocks and ground cover. Both of which we hate! So, we spent a lot of time, removing the ivy and rocks around the trees. Instead we planted grass and flowers with mulch. There is still a bunch more rocks we need to tackle but we need to save something fun for next year!

Pulling out ground cover

Elise toting away extra soil. She's earning
her keep!

Flagging the grass seed.. I'm sure the dogs will know
what this means! Ha!

Ahh.... new grass and flowers. Notice those ugly
white stones that remain in the background!!

We also lost some boxwoods from the harsh summer, so planted lavender instead.

Jeff worked especially hard on the arbor which needed some serious painting. And Cecilia supervised.

Luckily Jeff had a painting assistant

More supervising from the twins! They would spend tons of time watching Jeff and Elise paint... occasionally throwing out "Dad!" followed by knocking on the window to get his attention.

Job well done! The arbor even now has been mulched with
some new hostas.

Elise and I planted our annual vegetable garden. This year we planted tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, red papers, yellow peppers, banana peppers, jalapenos, carrots, cantelope, watermelon, dill, basil, brocceli, thyme, chives and zuchhini. Bring on the bounty.

The best gift of all? Mother's Day flowers in our planters curtesy of Jeff and Elise!

There is one large, outstanding project still underway... the front gates have been temporarily removed. They were rotten and needed some TLC with new wood and lots of painting. They are going to be gorgeous in the end.