4th of July Fun

It has been a busy week, so I'm a bit late in getting these photos up on the blog.  I was the rounder this week (meaning I round at the newborn nurseries at 2 of our hospitals each day and do night and weekend clinics all week). I did have Monday off for the holiday and we had a great time hanging around with family.  We headed over on Sunday afternoon after I got home from the hospital and had lots of fun enjoying the weather and some relaxation in the front yard. 

Sarah and Grandpa playing with a new bubble gun.

 Austin and Brian hanging out.

Nanny and Grandpa got the kiddie pool blown up and filled - and it was nice and warm because they have a hot water spigot in the garage they can hook up to the hose!  So smart to put that in when they built!  Austin had a blast, especially with the new super water guns.  Sarah was OK with it for a few minutes...

She even thought getting squirted by the water gun was funny...

Until she got squirted in the face and decided that she was done in the pool and only wanted Mommy.  I managed to get her to sit on the edge of the pool without screaming for a little bit and then sit in the pool and pour water with plastic cups...but only if I was holding on to her at all times.

Austin had a blast in the water!

After the pool, there were lots of other things to have fun with.  Austin thought Grandpa's electric leaf blower was great!

 Nanny got out the unicycle and showed us that she's still got major skills.

I didn't last too long on it.  When I was younger, it would ride the unicycle in the basement by holding onto the walls in the hallway to get up and moving and then letting go of the walls and riding across the basement, bailing before I got to the TV at the other end (which we put a bean bag chair in front of to protect it).  It's much harder to ride when I don't have the hallway to get me started.

Brian gave it a try too.

 Sarah was definitely the cutest rider.

 I just love this cute little dress on her.

The boys hanging out in the yard.

Checking out the tree...this pic just reminds me how tall she is getting!

After a yummy supper, we stayed overnight at Nanny and Grandpa's so we could play some rowdy family games on the porch and not have to head home early to get the kids to bed.  Monday morning, Austin, Sarah, Grandpa, and I took a walk to Jerry's to pick out some donuts.  We then continued to enjoy the day together, playing, napping, etc.

 My "Red, White, and Cute" 4th of July babes.

Play time...Sarah was cooking up a storm in the play kitchen.  Check out the oven mitt on one hand and the plate of food in the other (that she is blowing on to cool it down).  Cutie!

She had fun serving us all food, making noises when pouring tea, pretending to take a bite out of plastic food, or answering the phone.

Reading stories with Grandpa.

Austin climbing in "Kanga" - the old blue station wagon.

Sarah tried out drinking a juicebox.  She did squeeze it and get juice all over her, but then figured it out pretty quickly.  I don't think she's really had much juice before.  She definitely liked it.

(and I know her hat doesn't match...but she adores it, so who cares?)

 My cuties!

Sarah playing peek a boo.

 The Summer Berry Trifle I made for dessert! Yummy!

 Then it was time for sparklers!

Then Sarah got excited about the neighbor's sprinklers turning on and decided to go explore with Uncle Kevin.

Since the fireworks were going to start pretty late (~10pm) but the kids really wanted to go, we decided we'd get the kids all ready for bed, but put them in their jammies with long pants and add their coats on top (to ward off the bugs), and head to the fireworks.  It was lots of fun.  Despite them being mostly covered, they did still get some bug bites, but they definitely enjoyed the show.  Poor Austin has big welts all over his face, but he doesn't seem to care.

Ready for the fireworks to begin.

Sarah watching the fireworks with Grandpa.  She thought they were pretty great, but did get briefly spooked by the noise (even though we were fairly far away).

Austin watching fireworks with the big kids.

Sarah hanging out with Uncle Kevin.

Watching the finale with Uncle Brian.

After fireworks, we got the kids home to bed (very late for them!) and then continued with a crazy busy week.  As the weekend ended, some great news arrived - my best friend Ann had her baby girl!  Emma Rose was born on Friday and I got to visit on Saturday afternoon while my kiddos were napping.  Emma is gorgeous and mom and baby are doing great.  Yay!

Saturday was our 7 year anniversary and Nanny and Grandpa came over to have supper with the kids and get them to bed while Steve and I enjoyed a nice dinner out, just the 2 of us.
I've been scanning in our wedding photos recently to save them in digital format before I make our wedding albums (yes, 7 years later...long story, don't ask).   This is one we have up on our mantle at home.  Look how young and thin we look!

2 kids, 2 moves, med school and residency, and 7 years later....and we're still deliriously happy!
We love each other, we adore our children, we have a beautiful home to make memories in, we enjoy our jobs, and enjoy time with our family even more.  We're healthy and happy. What more could we possibly ask for in life?