What fountains did you mean?

So I took my kids to the park with fountains.  Some of them had a great time.  One member of the family thought I meant a different location, and got even with me by refusing to have a good time.

 I love to see any sibling affection and care.

Jack is getting to the age where he cries if he thinks we are going to go somewhere, and then don't.

Lillian just laughed like crazy when the fountains started at noon.  She never got that wet (it wasn't particularly warm) but she loved it so!

Molly was a great sport, and got dripping wet several times.

Roland chilled with Jack for a long time.

So for a lunch time, I was a good mom to 3 out of 4.  Pretty good for me.

Does it fit?

Lillian tried on this old dress of Molly's.  Still too big.  It is really one of my favorite projects though.

What does a handmade gift cost?

One chocolatey mess made while I was sewing!

Do you like puppet shows?

The lovely library produces wednesday shows for us beleaguered parents.  Today the offering was a puppet show "Rapunzel Redeems Rumplestiltskin".  The kids enjoyed it, I narrowly avoided a parking ticket that I had nearly brought upon myself by feeding the wrong meter initially.  Lillian really liked it, laughing when the crowd laughed, and Jack crawled around looking cute.  We took a couple extra kids (all that the van allows).

I tried to get a picture of the kids in a row from my perspective, but had to give up due to baby wrangling.

Last night I went to lovely Katelyn's bridal shower.  I bought some spices for her kitchens, and decided to make a couple placemats to add to the gift.

I loved that fabric when I bought it for my first quilt.  It was fun to make something handmade for a shower, because I usually don't.

Where are the kids?

My big kids went to their Great-grandpa's hobby farm in Gateway, Oregon for the Fourth of July Weekend.  It was awesome for them and for me!

The kids are always in the Gateway parade, it's a tradition.  Molly is in the back of the truck.  Seeing her adoring public.  She's looking pretty beat up, her eyes were really bothering her, she desperately needs her bangs cut, and her shirt is filthy.  But I'm proud she's mine.

On Molly:
She is a great help to me around the house and with the kids.
She is really kind and friendly
Her report card was like a love letter
She is a confident performer
She is nowhere near as mouthy as I was
She is very loving
She is physically brave
She is long suffering
She is a requirement for me!

Want to come to a girls' night?

Since my workload was a little lightened yesterday, I wanted to do something fun. 

Lillian and I made Strawberry napoleons and stuffed mushrooms. 

Several girlfriends came over and we talked and laughed like crazy.  Topics included

• Vomit
• Dishes
• Poop
• Boyfriends you had treated badly
• Having a new four year old in your family
• What happens if you always want to pee standing up
• My Name is Earl

I have truly been sorry to be having a very good friend move away, but it is comforting to know I do have many amazing friends, who even seem to like me back.

Are my kids still over there?

I hear this question often from Paige and Orion's dad.  These four are pretty fun to have around this summer.  They can spend hours doing apparently (to me) nothing, and they are in that Summer groove where you play outside all day, no matter the weather.  They cheer when I bring out lunch or snacks, and devour foods ravenously.  They make their own fun.  I overheard Molly telling Roland "Yeah, Paige kidnapped me and turned me evil, so I chased Orion to kidnap him".

We are starting to have the kind of summer I'd really hoped for.