Day Camp for Danielle

So excited to be starting a week of Day Camp!

 Samantha not sure how to be an only child!  I think she'll figure it out pretty quick.  Mom ALL to herself for hours at a time.  Cool!

Started off with a visit to a friends who got a new kitten.  Samantha loved it!

 Samantha with a special friend of ours.

I must admit that taking Danielle to day camp was much easier than THINKING about it all week last week.  Danielle was so excited and was perfectly fine with me leaving her.  Although I will say that when I arrived to pick her up she had THE biggest smile I think I've ever seen on her face.  That made me so happy!

I have to share a few special/cute things:

On the way to day camp I asked Danielle what she was going to do when she started to miss me oh so much (I was just teasing with her).  She said something like "I think I'll be fine, Mom".  So, I said..."then what should Mommy do when she misses you SO much?".  Danielle very seriously said, "Mom, just remember that our hearts are always stuck together."  How does a 5-year-old know how to say just the right thing?! 

When I asked her what they ate for lunch she said "these different shaped french fries and a caprisun (a very rare treat in her world)!".  Sounded like an interesting lunch until she said "oh and a hot dog, watermelon and water, too". 

The other thing she told everyone who asked her how she liked camp:  "We get to go to the pond EVERY DAY!"
I'm so thankful for this amazing camp that is only 10 minutes from home. 

Big Meadows Adventure

Jeff has been wanting to take me (and the girls, too) to this beautiful place in our mountains called Big Meadows.  So, yesterday he said we were going on an adventure and bring a picnic lunch.  The girls were SO excited!  It was quite an adventure...

thinking we may be going the wrong way on the drive up made Danielle nervous, thinking we might get our car stuck in a muddy spot made ME nervous,

 the zillions of beautiful flowers and the peaceful meadows took our breath away,

our trooper-girls did great following Daddy and sometimes leading the way themselves,

we walked on rocks over tiny creeks, did some rock climbing for the cool pictures and views and the girls learned what a "landmark" is. 

Whew!  Lots to enjoy!  So thankful for this beautiful place we live.

Knott's Berry Farm

 Posing with Snoopy!

 Samantha & Grandma

 Auntie Kay & Danielle

 Mommy & Samantha on a ride together!

 Getting ready for Samantha's first ever roller coaster.

 Jeff & Kayleen were such troopers on the kiddie rides!

 A sweet moment.

We had a wonderful day at Knott's Berry Farm! 

The girls had tons of fun on all the kid rides.  Samantha acted nervous in the first few lines but always decided to go on at the last minute.  "I changed my mind" she would say.  She was always really glad she did!  Except the log ride...she got splashed and may never forgive daddy for taking her on a ride that went through a very dark tunnel that splashed her at the end!  Oh well, it made for a good story.

I'm very thankful for a fun day spent with special family members.  Also, thankful for Kayleen and Jeff taking photos of ME having fun with the girls.

Fun At The Race Track

While visiting Jeff's Dad and step-mom last week the guys decided to ride some big-boy go-carts.  What a fun time they had racing around the track!  My favorite part (besides their big smiles) was the great pictures I got.  Jeff doesn't get together with his dad and brother very often so it was fun to do something special together.

Grandpa and his granddaughters after the race.

 Ready, Set, Go!!

 Holding up their sheet showing how fast they went on each lap.

The cute spectators!

The go-carts looked really fun to drive! 

I told Jeff I totally would have tried it out if it wasn't so expensive. 

A Little Surprise

I have lots more pictures to post of our trip to So. Cal. but I know there are some people who have heard of the new playhouse and would like to see pictures...so here they are. 



First some background story: 



My dad and brother have been working on a secret project in their shop for the last few months.  Jeff and I knew the dimensions and that it was a playhouse for the girls but the details were to be a surprise.  While we were on our trip visiting family for 10 days my dad told the girls that there was a "little" surprise waiting for them when they got home.  They smiled but had no idea what Grandpa was talking about.  When we arrived home last night the "little" surprise was waiting for them and they could not believe this was a play house of their very own. 

All I can say is that I'm glad there isn't a bathroom in there because otherwise I would not have seen my girls come inside the house all day today!  Not really...I made them eat breakfast and lunch with me but otherwise all they did was play in their playhouse all day long.  Boy did I get a lot of unpacking, cooking, and catching-up done today!