Babies on Potties!

Charlie has been randomly using the potty. 

He LOVES to sign potty and sit on it and act like he's going. 

and occasionally, he does...

Tripp using the potty at 8 months old.

What? 

Of course, babies can use the potty!

Tripp used the potty from just a few weeks after birth and I can count on 1 hand how many poop diapers of his I ever changed in his first 2 years of life.

With Charlie, we didn't really use ec. It just wasn't his style, but all of the sudden he loves the potty.

And I love that he loves to use the potty...because babies on potties are SO cute :)

Without Further Ado....FOUR!

I know, I know. 

I'm still slacking on the blog this summer.

But, once again, everyone can thank my Oma for giving me a little nudge to post Tripp's 4th birthday pics.

What?! 

My *baby* is already 4?!

Wasn't he just born?

And how did 4 years just fly by before I can even catch my breath?!

Well, it did and this 4 year old wanted to celebrate his birthday with a camping and fishing party! 

It was so much fun!

 Tent Pinata Prep Work

 MeMe gave him his 4 wheeler on the morning of his actual birthday.

 Birthday cupcake

Ready for his party!

 The spread...camping fare. Hot dogs, trail mix, "roasted" marshmallows w/ pretzel sticks, mixed goldfish crackers, chips and dip, fruit and veggie trays and the watermelon that MeMe carved with little fishes that sat in the fridge until the next day :/

 Not only did he need this cake (my most detailed to date), but also he informed us he wanted "dirt and worms" cupcakes. 

My go-to for natural food coloring

 The pinata was a hit! 

A tent filled with granola bars, boxes of raisins, packs of peanut butter crackers and more camping themed goodies! They didn't miss the candy at all.

Henry really racked up!

 Where's Tripp?

 His balance bike from Nana and Poppie...which he LOVES by the way!!!

And really, who needs all those birthday presents when, really the box is the most fun.

Seriously. We've yet to be able to recycle the darn thing!

Happy Birthday Tripp! I can't wait to see what year 4 has in store!!

Good Thing We Like Each Other!

This weekend was particularly fun and funny.

My sis, her husband and niece all came up for the weekend and stayed at my parents.

My grandparents and cousin also decided to come and visit since they were in town.

Again, staying at my parents.

Then, at the end of the day Friday, we returned home from an overnight trip to the water park to find our air conditioner dead, so guess what?!

We headed to my parents for the weekend.

Have I mentioned that my parents house is a construction zone?

They had to redo their foundation AND replace the main water line into the house.

This resulted in ripped up floors, destroyed walls and basically utter upheaval.

So, in all this fun state, we all camped out at my parents  for the weekend and had a blast!

The most fun was watching these 3 cousins playing and squealing with laughter!

We celebrated Tripp's birthday while Cadence was in town so she wouldn't miss any fun!

Tripp requested a peanut butter and jelly house sandwich, mac n cheese, cheese dip and chips and spanish rice. We had quite the interesting dinner (actually, all the fill-ins from the grill were delish!)

We finished up with cupcakes and these sillies all crashed for the night! 

We had fun, Griswolds!!

Charlie's First Haircut

Splish Splash

 Charlie discovered the joy of splashing in a puddle all on his own.

 Tripp joined him and they had a blast stompin' away!

Ah, the simple pleasures in life...

A Quick Beach Trip

Let me preface this by saying our trip down to visit my sis and her family was the easiest travel we've yet experienced as parents.

Charlie slept the entire way and we didn't have to stop until the first rest stop in FL just a mere 30 minutes from our final destination.

Oh, yeah!

 Cadence was SO happy to see her cousin and best friend, Tripp.

She wouldn't let go of his hand...

Seriously.

She would not let go.

By this point, Tripp is literally pulling her hand away.

 She was enamored with Charlie and quite thrilled that "baby Charwie" was walking.

love.

 Charlie- the keeper of all doors

Planting flowers in Cadence's window box.

We had a mini celebration for Will's birthday...complete with trick candles.

So, after a lovely day hanging around Megan's house Saturday, we hit the beach on Sunday.

It. Was. Gorgeous.

 Charlie LOVED the water

and dared anyone to try and take him away from it.

The only toy Tripp brought along for our combo beach/camping vacay...this dumptruck has gotten more consistent play than anything I think we own.

and I'm fairly certain we should go ahead and invest in a 2nd one...

Sharing does NOT happen well with the dumptruck!

 Hey Nana!

I mean, Devi.

 The boy was in a digger's heaven.

 Taking in the view from the pier

 Charlie slept through the entire pier walk

 intensely checking out one of the fishermen

all my boys <3