Summer

Summer so far has been so much fun!  Here are a few pics from lately....

Ty has been joining in on playing dress up. Kinley has told me multiple times that I need to buy some costumes for Ty like Maverick has...but, we make do as prince charming and a cowboy sometimes...

 

This day he was the cow and I could not stop laughing.

Ty has been joining Kinley when she puts on shows too. He does not want to be left out of getting the attention.  Here she is showing us her ballet....and I had such deja vu this day of an old home video of Amy and Scott that we watch constantly where Amy shows off her ballet skills and Scott spins around and dances in a diaper.  If this wasn't so impromptu, I would have made Ty strip down to a diaper also for a true reenactment....next time.

Here he is trying to get into Kinley's play baby bed...

Ty has also been really showing off his personality a lot lately and he is really SO funny!  I find myself laughing all the time. He plays games and tricks and I feel like he may have his Uncle Alex's funny personality which is both amazing and terrifying all at the same time. (j/k Al) 

 

A couple of examples....In the car I try really hard not to let him fall asleep so, of course, he always pretends to go to sleep just to tease me.  He closes his eyes real tight and smiles so big with his paci in his mouth. He thinks he is so funny.

 

He also tries to put on a show during dinner all the time. He laughes and makes funny faces where his food falls out of his mouth and says "cheese" so big to where Kinley just laughs.

 Here is a classic cheese face: (don't judge me because he is sitting on the counter...I was right by him so there was only minimal danger)

In other news, I got a new summer haircut!  I had not gotten a haircut in literally almost a year...gross. And I am not big on selfies but, when I told Ben I was going to chop it he could not wait until he got home from work to see and requested a before and after..so, here it is.... 8 inches shorter and a little blonder.

 

We have been also doing swimming with Ms. Donna for the first 2 weeks of summer. It is so official. We drop the kids off at the backyard of a neutral location and stay out of the way while Donna works with the "big kids."

 

I LOVE that Parker has his arm around Mav in this pic. So sweet!

We usually finish off with a picnic lunch under the shade tree and its so fun!

On a more serious note...summer, and the lack of school and being tired from so much playing I think, has led to a few tantrums from Kinley that have taken me by surprise.  I really feel like she is getting too old for tantrums but, they have been massive and often...like 3 times this last week. Usually it is over something really silly...like this day it was about clothes. It is approximately 90 degrees outside and she wants to wear this....

Now, I am not big on picking out her clothes...that is not really a battle worth fighting for me.  I am totally open to her having her own style and not placing emphasis on what she wears being any measure of her worth....but, I mean, I feel like for the sake of her health and not having a heat stroke, I should at least attempt to change her outfit when she wants long sleeves and ugg boots outside during the summer. And when I ask her to change, she should be ok with it and understand and just change...But no, it was like world war 3 broke out. It's rough.  Eventually, I work as hard as I can to out stubborn her and she apologizes and takes her punishment...but, Ben and I sometimes feel she has lost her mind. I can sometimes see my future teenager and it terrifies me.

I am praying through this daily. I want to learn how to effectively parent and discipline an extremely strong-willed girl with a quick temper.  I pray for her to develop patience and a heart for obedience and pray that for myself as well so that I can be an example.

But, there are other moments where she is the sweetest angel daughter and big sister in the world.  She was begging for a family movie night the other night where we pop popcorn and cuddle on the couch.  We ended up starting the movie a little late and it was just ben, kinley and I because Ty went to sleep but, it was so.much.fun.  She just laughed and smiled and it was so much fun again.  I am praying for more one on one time and fun moments like that this summer to get us through this rough patch.  She is always sweet to Ty and to pretty much any other kid or adult...its just her attitude toward Ben and I that is tough sometimes. But, we are working through it. 

Other than that we are just soaking up summer as much as we can.  We had another trip to the lake the same weekend as Taylor Swift with the Harrisons and the Reads and it was a blast. 

This is uncle Alex giving a double piggy-back to Aunt Minnie and Kinley through the water.  He's so strong!

And Ty just opted to jump right in the baby pool with just clothes on...I mean, why not!?

Loving the long summer days and nights and looking forward to so many fun times to come this summer.