Monkey See...Monkey Do!

Dinner tonight...

Girls weekend in Okoboji!

What a FUN weekend!  A great friend of mine got married in Okoboji so Kennedy and I ventured together while Marissa had a slumber party with Jenny and the kids.  Kennedy and don't get much time together without interruption so this was a fantastic opportunity for a girls weekend together.  She was fantastic in the car for our three hour drive, enjoyed having her own bed in the hotel room, LOVED the pool and danced her booty off.  At 9:30pm she walked up to me and said "mom, I'm really tired and want to go to bed.  I don't care if I miss out on all the fun."  We grabbed her shoes and off we went back to our room.  The bottom of her feet were black from dancing with bare feet so after a quick shower we snuggled in bed (separate ones...by her choice).  Happy marriage to Melissa and Taylor!  It was a beautiful day and beautiful wedding!

 Jumping on the bed!

 LOVED these flower balls (I'm sure they are called something much more eloquent than that)...they hung above the head table as well.

 The happy couple!

 Kids were served chicken fingers and fries!  

 Homemade cake balls!

 A kid table...genius!

 She looks tired...

 Her dancing buddy that was only two but of course the same size.

 Kennedy made Melissa that picture and gave it to her on the dance floor :)

Love you MB!

Birthday party and family in town!

It dawned on me that I never posted pictures of Marissa's little birthday party.  Jenny and the kids came from Lincoln, Fosmers, Russ, Lori, Briana, Jen and the girls next door and Grandma Jessie all came over to celebrate.

Kennedy helped by putting Tinkerbell on each cupcake

Picture from the deck of a rainbow

At the zoo with Grandma Ann Marie, Lynne and girls from MN

SHE'S WALKING....

Marissa's one year pics and sisterly love...

I had our niece, Nicole take one year pictures.  I'm fortunate to have some extremely talented nieces in the family with graphic design and photography skills as well as a friend who does photography.  Supporting those talents is the least we can do and they are far more special.  It's great to have a disc of pictures to choose from and develop what I want and in what size.  If you ever need a referral for a photographer let me know!  We're just not talking family or kid pictures either.  My niece is putting together a portfolio of pin-up pictures and my girlfriend has done some pretty cool 'trash the dress' sessions.  I wish I had a little bit of their creativity. 

Busy Girls

Summer continues to be busy and that's just how I like it.  The weekend calendar is booked through October 1st so now it's time to start planning that month.

We went to the Nebraska Balloon and Wine festival last week and were able to see hot air balloons launch right in front of us.  It was very neat.

Kennedy is getting anxious for preschool to begin after Labor Day and we have a girls trip next weekend to Okoboji for my girlfriends wedding.  Jenny is watching Marissa so Kennedy and I will have some long overdue one on one time together.  Who doesn't love a girls only road trip!

A fellow Army wife and friend suggested a book and it's GREAT!  Kennedy has been known to say some pretty funny and outrageous things.  This is perfect for us and I'll use it for both girls. 
http://www.amazon.com/My-Quotable-Kid-Parents-Unforgettable/dp/0811868842

Here are some recent and random pictures!

 We saw an SUV wrapped in an American flag print (it was an insurance company vehicle) and Kennedy said "mom, do you see that America car?"  "That reminds me of my daddy."

Marissa didn't want to sit through all my attempts at this picture so I gave her a cell phone to play with.

Kennedy's bath art.  It's a crocodile shark (in case you didn't know).  I could see the crocodile but asked where the shark fit in and she said "see, look at his fin."  That would be the little tiny fin (hump) on it's back.

God made all of us

One of the other preschool moms shared a story with me about Kennedy.  She had been volunteering one day at school when a little boy walked up to Kennedy and said "you're short".  Kennedy stood there, put her hands on her hips and said "well, God made all of us."

That's my girl.