Sleepy Girl

Claire decided she was going make a real "comfy" bed on the piano bench one day and take a nap because she was very sleepy.
I'm not sure she was really sleeping.

Rachel on the other hand - not so sleepy.

Hot Days, Cool Friends

July was hot! One day Claire's friends, Katey and Lucy, came over to play, so we set up the sprinkler house and they had a great time. Of course, Rachel joined in the fun also.
Rachel just kept trying to drink the water coming out of the house. (Either that or she was just going poop)


Water is so much fun, especially when it is hot!!

Who me, hurt? What's another Scrape?

Rachel is a bit of a wild one - she has lots of bruises and scrapes all the time, but this was a good one. She took off running out of our yard and tripped on the edge and fell face first onto the rough pavement. She had some little gravel pieces stuck to her forehead and although these pictures don't show it well, she had quite a scrape. (The marks around her mouth are just food)
She is not a shy one, but she was tired of me looking at it.
"So what are you starin' at?"

Fourth of July

I love going to parades and so we set out for the Fourth of July parade in the morning and Paul quickly found a good spot for he and Rachel.
Claire and I took position on the curb in order to snatch candy that was thrown much easier. They drive every emergency vehicle in the city in the parade and set off the sirens. It is more than a little annoying. You had better hope you don't have an emergency while the parade id going on because if you do, you are out of luck.

Klamath Fallsians - look for the similarities in the parade entries.
..Shriners..
..tractors..
..horses..
We even had some Native Americans dressed up. Made me feel right at home.

The following are Claire's favorites for the day.
..the train..
..pizza.. (not everyone gets to see pizza walking down the street)

..and the Statue of Liberty.
Clarie and I had prime spot for candy. She hit the jackpot - it was as good as Halloween. In fact, she became very picky about what she would get up to go get. It had to be something good. Not just those silly hard candy pieces.
Rachel joined us for a bit.

That evening, we set off more fireworks at home. We waited until Rachel was in bed and then let the show begin.
It was a real nailbiter!
Front row seats are the best.
Paul was the Master of Ceremonies.

He also allowed audience participation.


We had a great day!
Happy Birthday America!!

Fourth of July on July Third

Paul's sister, Janalyn, and her family were going to be leaving before July 4th and miss the festivities, so we decided to do some of our own fireworks on the 3rd before they left.

Claire loved the different colored sparklers. I thought she would be scared of them and that Rachel would like them. Boy, was I wrong. Claire definitely did not take after me in her love of sparklers - while I like them now, as a little girl, they were scary and my favorites were the "worms" that left black stains all over the driveway.
Landon cruised on the trike while Kaylen and Claire checked out the sparklers.
Of course the "pink" sparklers were her favorite!
Rachel wasn't quite sure what to think at first......
but quickly realized she did not like fireworks!! She screamed and held on for dear life. I had to take her inside away from all the noise and festivities.
The crowd waits anxiously for the "big ones" Paul was setting off.
Sometimes, the noise is just a bit much. Landon wasn't much of a fan of the fireworks.

Swimming and Lovin' it

It was hot here when Paul's sister and family visited, so one day when I was watching them all, I decided to make it a pool day! It was a big hit! Everyone loved it, even Chloe and Rachel. The slide into the pool was the favorite.

Rachel loved the water to cool off.Chloe helped rake the water more than play in it.
Claire showed them all how to tackle the slide.
Chloe
Just like a bath for Rachel.
Look at all these whities!!

"What fun we are having!!!"


What a way to spend a hot day!