Swimming

Since we have been back from Utah we have pretty much spent everyday, all day at one of the Lexington city pools. It's been pretty great. I've been able to hang out with friends while our kids totally entertained each other. I'm kicking myself that I didn't get any pictures of the 20+ kids and us hot mommas- haha!

Mac and Gray took lessons for the first 2 weeks...
Mac's becoming a strong swimmer. He can swim the length of the pool only rolling on his back once to take a break.

Gray's lesson consisted of him sometimes putting his head underwater. Most of the summer Gray was content dipping his toes in the water but got a lot more comfortable towards the end of the season.Annie was such a trooper at the pool- rolling around with Elisabeth.

Mac loved going down all the slides and Gray was always there cheering him on!

Last Saturday after Drew got off of work we went to the Pirate pool. When we got there the diving board was closed. Instead of patiently waiting for the diving pool to open again, Drew told Mac to run up there really fast and jump before the lifeguards saw him. What are we teaching our kids?

Goodbye Summer- it's been great but bring on the cooler weather!

Summer of the coon

If you like raccoons do not read this post....

2 weeks ago we found raccoons living in our crawl space beneath our house. How did we find this out? We saw them in our vents! (WARNING - DREW IS NOW TELLING THE STORY - SLIGHT EMBELLISHMENTS WILL OCCUR) It was Saturday morning, I (Drew) was in the bathroom, perfectly positioned on the commode. I heard a noise, I saw a nose, then two eyes looking up at me through the vent cover. I screamed, not because I saw a raccoon but because I felt violated. I quickly pulled up my pants and called the critter what it was - a pervert. To make a very long story short... I checked out the crawl space and found traces of raccoon poop and shredded insulation all over. I found the peeping tom hiding in a corner, approached quickly, performed a Samoan war chant, and broke his neck Jackie Chan style. Okay, okay, I ran inside, went and bought a cage, and caught the sucker three days later.

Now this is where it gets interesting. Our friend Ramsey (prefers "Ramses" said in a spanish accent) came over to take care of the raccoon. Spoiler alert - he takes the raccoon away and shoots it - so hard! Well, Ramses and his dental school cohorts disposed of #1 but when they came back they found another one in the trash can. So for the next 1.5 hours the guys tried to figure out a way to get the raccoon out of the trash so they could kill it. It was hilarious- raccoons are feisty and extremely loud when they feel threatened. (Things to notice in the picture - (1) Shawn's face, the trash smelled real bad; (2) Ramses wielding a tee-ball bat; (3) the heads of my curious sons; (4) Shawn's use of a make-shift snare made of a broom handle and yarn; and (5) my absence, I was outside but I was 20 feet away with a gun (a nerf gun) making statements like "fellas, can you hurry up?! the mosquitos are really bothering me.")Don't worry though, we caught #2 and humanely took care of him. (Mac and Gray were removed from the window for that part). On Saturday night, #3 found her way into the cage and met a similar fate. The trap is back in the crawl space waiting for #4.

The best news about the whole thing is that after several days of having some issues, I can now peacefully enjoy my morning routine again.

All I want for Christmas is my 2 front teeth- in 5 years!

It all started last year when Mac found a plastic sword and decided to hit Gray with it. I don't think Mac meant to hit Gray as hard as he did and right in the mouth but he did. Shortly after, we noticed G's front 2 teeth slowly turning gray and a small sore started growing on his gums. After a couple of weeks of antibiotics nothing changed and we got the bad news that Gray needed both front teeth pulled so the infection wouldn't affect his permanent teeth.

We prepared Gray for the procedure by talking about it constantly and I took as many pictures as I could:) I think the whole experience was more traumatic for me. G did great. He was so relaxed he kept crossing his legs. No, tears- he was a champ.

We are getting use to Gray's toothless smile and new lisp! G on the other hand loves showing off his new smile and could not be more proud of it! He walks around saying"I'm a vampire!" Teeth or no teeth, he is one cute boy!

The ole Jump-a-roo!

Sometimes she likes it and sometimes she finds herself spinning in circles and she really doesn't like that! But the thing I like most about the jump-a-roo is this face Annie makes. Isn't it the funniest/cutest face you've seen?

summer time picking

The thing I love most about summer is the food! I love picking vegetables out of my garden. I love visiting local farms and getting some of the best fruit around. and I love making delicious meals and desserts with all these fresh ingredients! Last week we went on our annual black berry picking trip but this time Drew came! The boys were excited to show Drew around....









We came home and made Blackberry Cornmeal Crumble bars. My favorite dessert I've made this summer!

Solids?

Annie had her first taste of solids and she LOVED it!

Annie at 6 months is currently not sleeping through the night. Teething and traveling are a bad combo for a baby. She has 2 teeth and is working on 2 more on the top. She rolls over and scoots on her back to get places. The other day she scooted her way under the table and the boys thought it was the funniest thing. She still loves her momma and has a hard time with most people but is warming up to her dad.
We love our Annie Girl!

6 month stats...

length:28 3/4 (95%)

weight: 17lbs 15 oz (85%)

head: 43 1/3 (95%)
The Dr. said she's basically the size of an 11 month old:)

I love this picture

I love this picture of Annie with my Grandpa! Annie does not like many people but she loved her Great Grandpa Heaps!