Emily's Playdate

Emily's good friend, Ava, came home with us yesterday after Drop-and-Shop at the church. This program is such a blessing. Most of the kids that attend are those in MDO so the kids have many old friends to play with. And it gives the mommy's some ME time to get a few things done. Ava's mom had surgery last week, so we are paying them back for being so helpful with us during our move. I wish we could have had Ava's sister come over too, but 5 kids and 1 mom is tough stuff!! Next time, Madeleine! The girls played well together and had lots of fun. They played in the playroom, colored, played dress-up, made cookies, went swimming, and just enjoyed each other's company. It's been a long summer!! Here are some pictures I snapped of them. Enjoy!

Emily and Ava

silly faces!

art time!

Princesses Tiana and Aurora

Sleeping Beauty

Then there was swimming. We had both pools to ourselves, probably because "big" school has already started back. We swam for awhile in the big pool but this mommy got tired from chasing 3 kids (Allison was at Nana's) in deep water, so to baby pool we went! The girls had so much fun until it started pouring rain......

....but then came snack time under the covered porch!

I gave the girls a bath and they read a few books while I got Ethan ready for bed and Ava packed up.
Thanks Ava for coming over and playing with us. The girls were both so well-mannered and had a blast together. I can't wait for Ava's sister to come play next time!!

Bella!

Poor Bella!!! She just gets put last on the list everytime. We've all had our haircuts since we've moved and she's the one that probably needed it the most. I feel so bad since it's been like 100 degrees everyday for the past 3 weeks. BUT, to my defense, she is an inside dog and doesn't like being too far away from the comfy couch (or Ethan's high chair)! She finally got her new "do" yesterday and she is much happier.

sheep dog or lhasa apso??

OMG! Look how long her bangs are. Oops!

"Oh! You're who did this to me!"

Sweet Bella!

This Weekend in Pictures

We haven't done anything too exciting this week/weekend so I thought I'd share some random pictures. We enjoyed a great 'family of five' weekend. We went swimming, went swimming again, played some golf, took lots of baths, visited our new Sunday School classes, ate lots of food, and Mommy and Daddy even had a date night! What a wonderful weekend. Hope everyone is getting back into the swing of things with school starting back. I personally can't wait for us to start back in September, BUT not before a beach trip. We head down to Destin in less than a week!! Enjoy the pics!!

Excuse this pic of me. I think I was getting on to him for throwing something at me....imagine that?! and of course he is laughing at me!

Bedtime stories! LITTLE MISS TROUBLE! Maybe Em is telling me the "real" story! ;-)

The Kiel girls.

Emily and Allison (especially Emily) have really gotten into golf these days. Maybe because there was a golf tournament on 24/7 this weekend? Anyway, I got the girls a play set at Toys'r'us over the weekend and they couldn't wait to show Daddy. Here they are in the backyard.

Em lining the ball up just right and Allison twirling her hair (like mommy, like daughter - sorry daddy!)
Mark got some great video coverage of the girls (Emily) hitting the ball, but I can't figure out how to post them. I'll figure it out and put them on here soon (ha)!

Happy Birthday, Nana!

Today is Nana's birthday. I think the girls have sung 'Happy Birthday' so many times that they are blue in the face. We celebrated last night with mexican!! We even got to bring the rest of the cake home (thanks Papa)! Papa claims it's sugar-free...... Here are some pics from last night. Enjoy!!

Emily and Nana

EM!

Sweet Allie B. (I think she resembles Emily in this pic). Sisters for sure!

This little guy is always up to something. This night it was FOOD!

Speaking of little man......he has started saying "Mommy" when I get him up in the mornings and from nap time. Normally, I am just "Ma, ma, ma, ma," but when he is in his crib I get "MOMMY!" It just melts my heart. Also, today I was holding a baby doll and Ethan crawled in my lap. He leaned down and gave the baby a big kiss. It was the sweetest thing ever! I love that he can practice what he receives. He is definitely my sharer and peace-maker in the house. I can only hope it continues. I love my girls, but there is just something so special between a MOMMY and her son.