Summer fun! ~part one

I am just about as good at blogging as I am at writing in my personal journal, which as you can tell is not very good.  These last few months have been a little crazy to say the least, and then on top of that my one and only computer has been on the fritz so blogging hasn't been very easy.  But now our summer is slowing down and I have made some personal goals that have actually made it so that I have a bit more time on my hands to update our blog and do more things like that.  

This summer has been long at times, and then passed in a flash other times.  Casey was sent on what they call a TDY this May-July, so he took off the two weeks prior to him having to leave.  We tried to get some good time in with him before he had to leave.  His leave date kept on jumping around (typical military stuff), but of coarse when they finally finalized it it was the day before my birthday...Which was a major bummer, but we tried to make the best of it.  We went out for my birthday a few days before he left and went and saw the new Captain America movie.   

I wasn't the only lucky one who got to go on a date with Casey before he left though.  He took both girls on their own daddy daughter date.  He took them out to get donuts, and then later took them to build-a-bear to get their own stuffed animal special from daddy.  Riley got a Twilight sparkle pony and Tins got a Hello kitty. They both were in heaven!

Riley got to go first so Tins was obviously devastated.  She did not want to let daddy go.  I couldn't help but snap a few photos, which I am glad I did because it helps show just how good of a bond they have with this awesome guy!

Riley was just on cloud nine, so she waited patiently to be able to leave with dad.  

It was finally time to leave on their date so we snapped a few photos. 

 Here is Tins trying to smile, but shes just so sad she had to stay home.

When Casey left with Riley I told Tins that they would be back in just a bit and then it would be her turn.  We went and did her hair, and she helped me around the house trying to stay busy.  She couldn't help looking out the window waiting for Dad and Riley to get back.  Once they pulled in she was bouncing up and down.  

So finally she got to go with Daddy too!

She practically strut to the car.

The night before Casey left we went on a special family date to The Cheese Cake Factory.  It was our first time going so we enjoyed ourselves!

You can tell a lot about our girls in these pictures with just their dessert choices.  Tins got strawberries with whipped cream, while Ry got chocolate ice cream with whipped cream.  Its a typical thing at our house.  Riley will usually opt for a hamburger or grilled cheese if we go out as a family, and Tins will almost always opt for a salad.  I love seeing their differences and seeing them be themselves.   I will also say that going to The Cheese Cake Factory ruined other kids meal options at other places for us though, theirs was awesome!

Casey of coarse had to get the banana cream cheese cake for dessert, and I got the rocky road ice cream sundae.  We were all stuffed afterwards!  

The next day which was May 23, Daddy left.  We were all a lot a bit sad.  I don't even fully remember what we did that day.  Then that day finally passed and it was my birthday.  A lady I know made some awesome gluten free cupcakes for me, so we began our day eating our feelings with cupcakes!  I took the girls to the fabric store a little later to waste some time and to see if I could find anything I wanted to get.  Tins wouldn't leave the house without her Hello Kitty, when I asked if she was okay she said, "I just miss daddy".  So Hello Kitty came with us to the store and didn't leave her side.

I didn't find anything at the store for myself, but we got some fun little animal hats and tails for the girls.  On the way home we went and grabbed dinner from Chipoltle, then came home and turned on a movie while we eat.  They sat like this the whole time. :)  

While they watched a movie I bought a book on my kindle (Thanks to my Mom!) and I just read the rest the night through. All in all it was an okay day.

When we have lots of time on our hands we like to play around with hair sometimes.  Riley was the lucky participant this time, and she was a good sport.  She wore it to church like this and then we took out the buns later that night and her hair has awesome spiral curls in it.  Her hair isn't always the easiest to do so this was fun.  She wanted me to take pictures to show daddy so that's really why I took these pictures. ;)

 A few days after Casey left I helped the girls to make a paper chain that would help us to count down to when daddy would be back home.  Both of them were really excited to make it, and it ended up being a great way for them to count down to him getting back.  They woke up  every morning really excited to rip of one of the links.

I woke up to these cute girls and they asked me to send daddy another picture so they cheesed and we sent daddy a good morning picture.

I took the girls out on a little date one day to a nearby burger place.  Before we left to go on our little date our next door neighbor who is in her 80's stopped me and asked if she could give my girls a gift.  She collects anything with angels on it and she said that she was slowly giving somethings away.  She thought my girls might like these little angel bears, so she gave them each one.  They were so excited and they played with these bears for days on end.  They still carry them around our house playing with them.  

This is our mysterious and very shy kitty named Marley.  She doesn't like people much except myself and Casey.  We've had her 3 years almost and she has made huge strides of improvement since we got her.  She now comes out of our room, but it's still not often you see her out of my closet in the daytime.  So this is a huge deal :)  and also proof of her existence.

One night Tins snuck in my bed and was laying quietly, Marley jumped on the bed without noticing she was there and ended up letting Tins lay there and pet her.  Tins was so excited! 

We would send pictures to Casey every few days or more, and occasionally we'd get some back.  I sure love this guy!  He knew how to make us all smile even though he was so far away.

Each day we would just try to find new things to do to pass time.  I read a lot of books (12 or more, I lost count), and the girls just played and colored.  One of these days Riley pulled out some puzzles and just worked on them for quite a while.  I couldn't help but love seeing her concentration while working on these puzzles.  I love puzzles so its fun watching her enjoy it as well.

This was another picture they asked to send to Dad. :)

We made paper crowns one morning complete with button jewels.  This were worn all day around the house.  They just couldn't stop smiling.

Having Casey gone leaves a huge empty space, and also a half empty bed at night.  Tinsley doesn't get to sleep in our bed much, so when Casey left it was hard to say no.  It helped her and I both.

The odd things your kids come up with at random moments.  "Hey mom, come look!" I come in to find Riley on her head.  Then Tins had to give it a whirl.  So there was lots of standing on our heads this day.

Washington weather has been surprisingly good this spring/summer.  It's been sunny and warm a lot more than any other year we've been here.  I had to do some weed pulling in our weed infested and overgrown garden, so I set up the sprinklers for the girls. They weren't sure they should actually go much into the water though.

We had planned on gardening quite a bit this year, but because of the state that the garden was in when we moved in that didn't happen.  I was able to clear out a little spot and stick 5 different tomato plants in there.  I'm happy to say they survived our trip to Utah (next post) and they all have lots of tomatoes growing on them.  This is my first time growing any food!

Our sad little garden area.

We've been playing a lot at the parks around here.  I LOVE being off base!  It makes a huge difference.  We really enjoy having our own home, and we love our new ward.  We have been able to enjoy more of the parks around us that I didn't know were there.  This is one of the ones close to us that we've been to a lot.  I know when the time comes to leave Washington we will miss it here.  I love all of the beautiful green trees!

Little moments in time...

Sometimes modern contraptions, like computers and cell phones, can be more of a hassle than a help.  I haven't been able to upload my pictures from my phone (current camera source), to the computer for a couple months now.  I decided to give it another go today as I am sitting on my duff waiting for time to pass and tomorrow to come.  As fate would have it it actually worked this time!  Seriously I can't begin to tell you how many times I have tried to get my pictures onto this darned machine, but I am oh so grateful it decided to work today!

Since I haven't been able to post anything in a while I have a bunch of things to update and upload.  So this post is just a mash up of time that has passed us by.

In April of this year I got to go and spend a few days in South Carolina with my friend Erin!  I called it a mommy vacation.  Casey took the week off so I could go, and I flew out to SC to get some R&R with my bestie.  We got to catch up and hang out! It was perfect.  I also got hooked on another book series she suggested. (The Selection; If you haven't read it you need to!)  We also got to watch some time period movies and get some sewing in.  Truly what this girl needed, girl time!

About two weeks before I went I ordered a special surprise for our girls, and when I came home it was finally there.  We splurged and got them each their own lappad2.  They were hooked for days!

The second picture is actually right after we gave it to them, they played all day, and then woke up first thing in the morning and got back on.  I couldn't really say no.  They were tracing letters and counting... what's a mom to do?

 Next, we had a momentous occasion... Riley lost her first tooth!! It seemed like all of her friends were loosing their teeth, and she kept asking me when it would be her turn to loose a tooth.  Then lo and behold, one day while eating an apple she cried out in pain that her tooth hurt.  Once we explained what was going on she was thrilled!  With her permission I yanked out the tooth the next day.

Seriously though, I'm not sure I'm ready for her to grow up.

Our girls love getting to ride their bikes out front.  They only get to when Casey and I are out there working, so as soon as that happens they run to the back and grab their bikes.  

So this picture is totally random, but this is of Tins in time out.  The girls were out playing in the back one morning and Tins did something, I don't recall now what it was, but it got her sent to time out.  I just couldn't help but giggle because she just looked so cute.

My poor husband has to deal with a random, and sometimes a little crazy, wife.  I find new recipes I want to try out with my dietary needs, and try them out on our family.  Sometimes it turns out great, and other times its just not good...at all.  Luckily this was one of my okay attempts at something new.  Its GF cashew bread.  I liked it, but as my tummy goes I could only eat so much of it before I just didn't like it.  My family loved it though!  It was a different baking process, and it looked a little odd in the pans, but it came out like bread!

The girls and I got a little bored waiting for the bread, so we just chilled in front of the oven.  I guess sometimes even the most random of moments can be filled with some fun memories. 

After we bought our house we realized we were going to need to buy a new furnace.  That is unless we wanted to pay 3 to 4 thousand dollars on heating oil every year.  The furnace in our home was an oil furnace. It ran on whats called heating oil that you keep in a huge tank somewhere on your property.  In 2 weeks we went through close to 100 gallons.  Anywho we decided to spend all that money on a new furnace, because it is a ton cheaper going to natural gas.  Its a long process converting over to natural gas, you have to put a gas line and meter in, and usually takes around 6 weeks due to paperwork.  We had space heaters heating our home for about 2 months, but all worked out.  The gas company came and put the line it and we got our new heater installed.  I took pictures of them putting the line in to show Casey because he was at work.  It was really loud, but the girls thought it was great to watch.

 I honestly don't remember the story behind this picture, but I just thought they were cute. :)

So we've been earning stickers at our house for good behavior, chores and whatnot. Every time the girls hit a goal mark they get a reward.  Well they really wanted slippers...Really bad!  So they hit their mark, and we went to the mall and let them pick out their new slippers. Riley got Brave slippers and Tins got Minnie Mouse.  We saw them a few weeks prior to that so we knew where to go.  To our happy surprise they were on clearance when we went back to get them.  On the way home the girls decided it would be funny to wear their slippers on their heads.  I sure love them!

Last but certainly not least, me with my girlies.  As a mom you end up being the one behind the camera 90% of the time, so lately I've been taking more "selfies" with my girls so that one day they can look at the time mom spent with them.  While not always glamorous, they are true moments in time that we played and spent time together.

 I wish at times that I had more pictures of my mom while I was growing up, so that I could see her changing too.  One of my favorite pictures of her is the one I posted below.  It's blurry, but you get to see who my mom is.  She is playing with us on our playground, just enjoying time with her kids.  Sure you cant see her face, but its mom and it always brings a smile to my face when I see it!