Tending to our Beautiful Garden

Last year we really worked hard to make the gardens around the front of the house look nice and flourish. They did and we really enjoyed them. The local deer community enjoyed them as well and in 2 nights chomped up everything. This year we decided to try again and I asked the greenhouse staff for suggestions on plants that were less appealing to my four footed friends. Brooke was really excited to have a garden and was so thrilled when I finally got it planted. Every time you drive in the driveway she says "Look at our beautiful garden" just hearing that makes all the digging, weeding, watering and backaches worth it. She loves to be outside and she has a lot of outdoor toys but truth be told I think if she was left with only a dirt pile and some water she could occupy herself for hours. We fill up her wagon bucket with water and then she uses that to refill her watering can.


Then she carries it to the garden and waters the flowers. "Mommy, I'm watering the margins" translation = "Mommy, I'm watering the marigolds"



Notice that she really only waters one flower in particular - the marigold in the front corner of the garden gets more water than it ever needs (notice the puddle)


The beautiful garden! There was some truth in what the greenhouse staff suggested the deer are not touching (knocking on wood) the garden. Well they have nibbled at the impatiens but I should know better in my yard the impatiens seem to serve as bait!

Dugas - D'atri - Romanski Picnic

On July 11th we had a wonderful day with the Dugas and D'atri Families. We spent the afternoon and well on into the evening at Rob, Erika and Sammi's house in Colchester. The weather was great and the food was plentiful and delicious. Notice that Brooke has a plate full of watermelon and a few red peppers and cucumbers. I don't think she ever had a burger or a hot dog that day but I am pretty sure she ate HALF a watermelon.



Brooke had her first slip and slide experience (thanks to Sammi for letting her borrow a bathing suit) and she didn't quite understand the concept. She enjoyed the pool at the end of the slip and slide so much that we filled up Sammi's little pool and the girls splashed in there for a good part of the afternoon. Ryan got in on the slip and slide action too!







Kristen ate and then snoozed in her little portable tent - we LOVE that thing.



Thanks again to Rob, Erika & Sammi for hosting such a fun day. We all had such a GREAT time. Brooke played so hard that we were not even on Route 2 before she had crashed.

Sisters

When Kristen was born one of the things I was happiest about was that our girls were sisters. If you don't have a sister its hard to explain and if you do you know exactly what I mean. I am lucky enough to have a sister and brother but the relationships are different. Your sister is there to tell you that your butt looks big in those pants, or that you need to wear eyeliner or you should think about getting your eyebrows waxed. You call her to "practice" telling your parents that you're getting divorced and you want to move home. She calls you when her heart is broken and she needs a shoulder. Its not that your brother isn't empathetic, its just different. Your brother - he's the one who replaces your wiper blades without you even asking him to or empties the mouse trap from the trunk of your car - he doesn't even know what waxing your eyebrows entails. Sisters tend to be more nurturing - preparation for motherhood maybe?

I already see this relationship growing with Kristen and Brooke. From the day Kristen arrived Brooke has been interested in her and I can count on one hand the times she has been annoyed by her presence. She constantly remarks on how beautiful, cute, tiny, etc she is. When Kristen cries and I don't get to her fast enough Brooke points out the obvious "She wants you Mommy, she wants you, pick her up" More recently she has started trying to calm her on her own. She'll go to the swing, or whatever Kristen is in at the time and kneel to look into her face and tell her "its OK Kristen, we're here....don't cry, its OK"

Don't get me wrong, there are times when Brooke does get impatient with her or thinks that she is too loud, but the majority of the time she wants to share things with her sister.

I'm a realist and I have a sister so I know that there will be ups and downs, times when they agree and times when they don't, times when they are so busy with their own lives that it seems like they don't need each other and there will be times when it seems that they don't necessarily like each other very much. I do know that even during those times when they seem to be going in different directions that their love for each other never wanes and the distance or the differences are all temporary.

I can tell you from experience, there is nothing like having a sister.

Nap time

Kristen and her best buddy catching some Zzzz's

I Scream, You Scream, we all scream for Ice Cream

Tonight we met Auntie Heidi & Garrett for dinner, ice cream and a magic show at Buddy's Dugout. Let's just say that Brooke like the ice cream the best!

Going.....


Going .....


GONE!

Forth of July Weekend

We ventured to Cape Cod on July 3rd, Daddy was able to get the day off and we left about noon. We made great time until we got to Route 25 but the 30 - 40 minute delay in traffic was worth the wait. We had gorgeous weather and Paul and I actually were able to take a bike ride together one afternoon while Gigi & Poppa watched the girls. We had such a good time that we stayed an extra night and left to come back to CT about 1 on Sunday. We hit NO traffic on the way home and both girls slept most of the trip there and home.

Believe it or not this was on the way TO Cape Cod .... she was resting up


Reading in the Play yard

Two Month Checkup

On Monday, July 6 Kristen went for her 2 month checkup. The Dr. said that she is thriving and he'll see us back in 2 months.

Here's the latest vital statistics:
9 lbs even
22.5 inches tall

She was a real trooper for her 3 shots!