Old State Penitentiary

We planned to go to the zoo Thursday morning, but the place was packed, and neither Jen nor I felt like braving the crowds, so we went for plan "B" and headed out to the Old State Penitentiary. I should have done a little research first...I'm afraid the girls got a little more education than their little minds were ready for. I had to keep reassuring Lola the whole time that the "bad guys" were all gone now, and had to stop myself from reading out loud the reasons for some prisoners' incarceration...rape, murder, etc... By the time we headed upstairs to see the old gallows, I knew the "mother of the year" award had escaped me yet again! That said, it was a really cool place!
Outside of the prison, at the old bishop's house, was a beautiful garden where we took this photo. Can you tell the girls just wanted to get up and run around?!
As for little Trenton, he slept most of the time, then awoke at the end and gave us big smiles. What a champ!

MK Nature Center

We took Jen & co. to one of our favorite places in the city while they were here--the MK Nature Center. It's a little park near the river that has a trail with stopping points along the way that have windows to see the fish under the water. Very cool....and the girls love it! And, did I mention that it's free??! We had a great time walking around and looking at the fish. Mia and Lola held hands most of the time and decided that they are "best friends, and cousins too!"

I asked the girls to stop so I could take a picture of them. I said, "Put your arms around eachother," and immediately, they all folded their arms in the picture above. Okay, maybe the J genes have some dominance too! :-)

Sandy Point Beach

My sister, Jen, came to visit us this week with her two kiddos. We had a great time. Our first "outing" was to Sandy Pointe Beach. The girls had a great time together in the sand and the water. Of course, Jen and I couldn't let them have all the fun. We got a little sun ourselves...
Trenton napped in the shade, because that's just the kind of boy he is...and we love him for it! Notice the crossed feet--his Dad, and every other Osgie does the same thing. Those genes are so dominant, I tell ya!
Tyler (Jen's son) played in the sand and even ate some, but was no worse for the wear.....
Olivia built three islands and added trees, rivers, and ponds...it was quite an extravagant undertaking. Before we left, she said, "Mom, take a picture of me by the islands for our blog!"

Horseback Riding

Olivia was all set to have her first horseback riding lesson last week, when her teacher ended up having her baby a few weeks early. Needless to say, Liv was sorely disappointed. It turns out that the family that teaches swim lessons also has a horse, and they offered to let the girls come out to ride her Saturday morning. Olivia loved it, and I was surprised that Lola even got on..she is no fan of animals right now. But she got on the horse and had a huge smile on her face the whole time.

Bumbo

Swim Lessons

One of the best things about living here is that the girls get to have swim lessons at the Dunkley's. A friend recommended them the first summer we lived here, and it is one of the best things we do all summer long! Olivia has become such a great little swimmer--and is very comfortable in the water. This is her last year of lessons and next year she'll be in the lap swim class perfecting her "freestyle" and "butterfly arms", along with those "dolphin kicks". Hopefully, this summer at the Jones pool, she'll perfect her dive...ouch! :-)

Last year, for Lola, was all about getting comfortable in the water, which she did. Just yesterday she started swimming on her own and was SO excited. She made sure I was looking at her, and then proceeded to yell to her sister on the other side of the pool, "Olivia! Watch me!" in a most demanding voice...and Lola can be quite demanding! We are proud of our super swimmers!

Father's Day Weekend

The Daddy-Daughter campout was last Saturday...on Father's Day weekend. At our house, for any special holiday, we not only celebrate the actual day, we make a weekend of it. For Rich's Father's Day weekend, he got to take the girls camping Friday night! If you know Rich, you'd know that this is certainly not something he'd dream up for himself....camping is not his favorite thing. But camping with his girls is another story--they all had a great time! They had a great time hiking up a steep, steep, hill, playing in the river and near the hot springs, and eating s'mores. We sat down to lunch together before they all left for the weekend, and I said, "Happy Father's Day Weekend, everybody!" Lola responded, "No, Mom, Happy Father's Day Weekend to you!" Indeed! Trenton and I had a lovely, quiet evening and Saturday morning.
Livi and Lola fell asleep on the way home from the camp out. Rich had to stop and take a picture to document...we thought their napping days were long gone!
Okay, so Lola was just posing for that picture, but Livi was definitely out! What a weekend!

Capitol Classic

Olivia ran in the Capitol Classic today. The city shuts down the main street for about half an hour while kiddos ages 6-12 run the one mile stretch. It is really cute seeing all these kids run their little hearts out. Rich ran alongside Olivia while Lola, Trenton and I camped out near the finish line to see our little runner. Of course, I somehow missed her as she ran by...UGH! I did catch sight of her, but only after she was about 20 feet past me...next year I'll have her in neon! She did a great job!

Trampoline

After many discussions and WAY too much thought on the matter, the girls got a trampoline this week. Rich and I have been wanting to get the girls something to play on in the backyard. We considered a swing set, but the cheap ones looked too cheap and the nice ones were too big for our yard and way to expensive for our taste. I liked the idea of a trampoline because I had one growing up, and we used it all the time. I didn't like the idea of a tramp plus the huge net that now accompanies any concerned parents' purchase of a trampoline! So, we opted for the smaller, less obtrusive route--the 8 foot tramp that is 2 feet off the ground. The girls love it...and so do I. I can still look out the back windows and not have to look at the thing, AND they can jump to their hearts' content without my constant supervision. I highly recommend it!

Last Day of School

Thursday was the last day of school! Here is a picture of the girls before their marathon of a last day....

Olivia has begun a tradition of choosing fabric for a special quilt we make together for her teacher. Can you tell that Mrs. Dunne likes purple? We also found some "Olivia" fabric and added a patch on the corner so that Mrs. Dunne will always remember Olivia....
Lola chose to make yummy s'mores cookies for her teachers. She helped make them and did a great job eating the cookie dough, too! :-)
Mrs. Dunne loved her quilt...and Olivia was very sad to say goodbye to her WONDERFUL first grade teacher!
After celebrating a year of great learning with milkshakes after school, we got ready for the 3rd Annual Osguthorpe Bike Race. Olivia thought of this idea the summer before her kindergarten year, and we happened to hold it, unknowingly, on the last day of school. The date stuck, even though the race route has changed as these kiddos get bigger (and so do their bikes!). Olivia added a run to this year's race as well...quite the competition. We had fun visiting with the neighbors, and even had some neighbors who've moved away return for the race. It was a perfect way to kick off the fun summer ahead!

Crazy Sleeper!

I walked into Trenton's room today to check on him during his nap and found this:
He was "out cold"with his hand over his eyes and his feet propped up. This boy knows how to sleep!

Papa and Grandma O. Visit

Papa and Grandma O. stopped by this weekend for a quick visit. I was telling Rich earlier this week that it's a testament to his parents that we are ALL excited for their visits! We had so much fun visiting with them, and even managed to sneak in a hike to Hull's Gulch. On the bumpy, dirt road drive up to the trail head, Lola realized that she could spell her name, her Grandma O.'s name, and her Great-Grandma Sedgwick's name (all spelled L-O-L-A)! These visits from family leave us feeling very blessed...we were born into two great families!