a week of fun

well, lauren has had quite a week. she and i were back at my parent's house spending as much time as possible with my sister and her kids who leave for new jersey on wednesday. we are so thrilled for them as they begin this new chapter in their lives, but we will miss them very much! lauren has had a great time with her cousins and can even say remi and elle now. (micah and toby are still a little too tricky). but she really loves them all. so here are some highlights of our time together........

swimming!

you can't beat swimming on a hot summer day. here are some beauties cooling off in the pool.

weeeeeee!!!!

lauren is getting her first swimming lesson. (i think she is a very willing student).

strawberry picking!

one evening last week my dad and i took cody, micah, toby, elle and lauren strawberry picking. it was a beautiful night with a cool breeze which kept the mosquitoes away. we managed to pick 6 pounds which was pretty impressive considering how many berries didn't quite make it into the buckets. but that's the best part of strawberry picking!

someone's eating on the job!

here is sweet little toby and lauren who is too busy to look at the camera.

miss elle, always ready to strike a pose.

lauren and gramps "battling" over a nice patch.

lauren did not contribute much to our 6 pound haul, but she sure had fun!

4th of july parade!

on july 5th my mom and i took micah, toby, elle and lauren to a parade in town. it was a hot day and the parade was very long (we left after almost 2 hours), but the kids had a great time waving at all the floats and getting lots of candy.

nonnie and toby waiting for the parade to begin.

elle and toby with candy bags in hand.

a cute shot of lauren taking in all the action.

micah and toby ready (and probably hoping) for a float to pass with candy. those are the best!

the princess floats were elle's favorite, but she gave everyone an enthusiastic wave.

nonnie and lauren taking a break in the chair.

lauren was great at finding any candy that the big kids may have overlooked, even though there wasn't much that got by them!

and i will conclude this very long post with a shot of my mom and sister looking as lovely as ever!