Party Time

Our friend and neighbor, Broedy, turned nine on Sunday. The boys and I got to spend the whole day next door celebrating (and playing with all the cool toys that Peggy and Bruce got for the special day).

Ethan starting the long climb up the wall.

This is the trampoline/bouncy/climbing wall (it was called a lot of different things). It kept all the kids entertained all day long. Peggy said it was the best $65 she ever spent in her life!

Seth pretending to be shot. Nice, huh? I forgot who "shot" him. It was either Ethan or Broedy.

Ethan finally made it all the way to the top (with a little encouragement from Broedy).

Ethan was not thrilled when he had to stop playing and watch Broedy open his birthday presents. He didn't have a problem taking a break to eat the cake and ice cream though.

Sis, Seth, and Ethan on the slip'n'slide.

The boys trying to hit the target to make the water come out, but what they didn't realize was that the water was turned off. Poor guys.

Seth always has a bat, glove, or baseball (and sometimes all three) in his hand when he's at the Belgarde house.

A Trip to the Dentist

Ethan and Seth both had dentist appointments last week. It was Ethan's second cleaning (but his first time sitting alone in the "big chair") and Seth's first. Ethan looks a little nervous in this picture, but they both did awesome!

Ethan opened really wide and didn't cry or squirm once. Yeah! Dr. White gave him a great report and said his teeth are looking much better now.

And this is what Seth was doing while Ethan had his turn first. Seth quickly discovered the dental tools and decided to try them all out to see if they worked. They did! First, he blew air in his face with one and thought that was hilarious. Then, he found the water squirter and gave everyone a little shower. He thought that was pretty funny too. Luckily, so did everybody else.

Ethan was all smiles after his cleaning. He thought he was in the clear, but he still had to get his flouride treatment.

His favorite part was getting the water squirted in his mouth. He kept telling the hygenist that he was so thirsty and needed another drink.

This is the look on Seth's face when I told him he was going to be next. Since it was his first dentist appointment, they just had him sit on my lap, which is what they did at Ethan's first appointment. So, I didn't get any pictures of them looking at Seth's teeth since I was holding him. Dr. White said Seth's teeth look perfect, which I was super happy about since we have had so many problems with poor little Ethan's teeth already.

Summer Fun

The boys are little monkeys for sure. They will jump on or off anything. This is one of their new favorite activities.

Riding their "motorcycles" (they get mad when I call them trikes) with the helmets Tim got them. They love helmets.

I made chocolate cupcakes for Peggy's birthday the other day. I saved the best part for the boys. They get so excited anytime I get the mixer out now because they know they will get to lick the beaters. To this day, Emily and I still get excited about licking the beaters after my mom has made something yummy.

Seth playing with Play-Doh. The boys have Play-Doh time at least once everyday.

Ethan can now write several letters of the alphabet. He likes to make letters using his Play-Doh too.

Seth giving the "thumbs up" sign (well, his version doesn't actually include the thumbs, but that's okay).

Ethan cruising on the deck.

Roasting Marshmallows

A few nights ago, the boys and I went next door to the Belgarde's to roast some marshmallows and make S'mores. This was the first time the boys had ever roasted marshmallows, so they had a lot of fun.

Peggy and Bruce assisted the boys, so they didn't set themselves on fire!

Ethan devoured three S'mores in about five minutes. Then, came over to me and said, "Mama, I feel sick. I don't want any more."

Seth was very methodical about roasting his marshmallow. Bruce had told him to turn it, so it would brown evenly all around. So, while Seth was roasting his, he kept saying, "Turn, turn, turn..."