Say Cheese!

After a few years of turning away from the camera, Natalie has finally started smiling for her portrait. Even though it is a bit manufactured, it's Natalie and we love it dearly. Say Cheese!

Natalie has a great smile, but I'm cute too!

Hey. don't forget about me! ;-)

Outdoor Fun...Indoor Fun

After much rain during the week, the sun came out again over the weekend for everyone to enjoy. And although it was a little chilly, it did not stop our crew from enjoying one of the neighborhood parks. Here they are having little snack on the park bench. Please pass the Goldfish...

How perfect! A swing made for three!

I don't think Amanda's smile could get any bigger!

She also enjoyed swinging....

....and so did the rest of the crew.

On Saturday, we stopped by an indoor playground at one of the local shopping malls. Here, Natalie is floating on the butterfly's wings.

Amanda scales a bear.

Will was very excited to see meet this little boy.

Will is also our little dare devil...Here he climbed on top of the frog, to get a better view of his sisters across the play area.

Amanda gave Bambi a big hug!

And Natalie, crosses the bridge to never never land...

Anyone want to come play with us?

First Haircut

Will had his first haircut last weekend. Not that he had a lot of hair to cut, but he did have a little mullet growing in the back and we decided it was time to get the boy trimmed up. He was a trooper. He watched Natalie and Amanda get their hair cut first and then climbed up into the chair when it was his turn and sat as still as can be for his entire haircut and not one tear was shed.

Here is before....

During.....

....and after. All done!

More Sun and More Fun

Although the rain has now returned, we had some amazingly warm weather here in California over the past few weeks. Our family took much advantage of the great outdoors. Last weekend, we spent a beautiful day having a picnic and enjoying all the activities at the neighborhood Fairytale Town; a children's play park and outdoor children’s museum that brings fairy tales and nursery rhymes to life! Here, all the kids take a ride on green turtle in Mr. McGregor's Garden.

Then, off to Alice's rabbit hole slide!

I think Will saw the Cheshire Cat on his way down...Will loves to slide!

He also loves cheese, both the kind you eat and climbing holes on the "Cheese Stands Alone."

Next, we were off to the Farmer Brown's red barn with goats, chickens, cows, donkey and a riding tractor. Natalie takes a turn plowing the field to plant some spuds.

Amanda was up next.

Here is a great photo of Amanda getting a drink of water from the Hippo!

After a a very busy and active morning, we all sat down for a quick break, to grab a bite to eat and to watch the very pesky squirrels running about. More about them later...

Say cheese!

The kids are enjoying some string cheese and some yogurt covered star cookies. If you listen closely to the picture, you can hear Amanda Say, "Mommy, that squirrel went into our backpack and took a cookie!"

Here is the little guy showing off his stolen goods. Good thing that only the camera lens allows us to get this close so we had proof. Thief!

Will checks out the squirrel now sitting in his stroller seat.

Hey Natalie, Amanda, Dad and Mom, check out this flower thing!

Natalie gives a demonstration to the crew as how a water fountain works.

And they all lived happily ever after!

A Day In The Sun

It seems like forever since we've seen the sun here so we thoroughly enjoyed the nice day we had today. It was sunny and very warm! We spent the morning at the farmer's market where the girls played....

....and then they made some pretty cool looking jellyfish.

Later in the afternoon, we headed back out to the local school yard for more outside fun.

At the school yard, we were lucky enough to meet up with a few of our neighborhood friends who brought basketballs with them. All of the kids had so much fun with them, especially Will.

Natalie and Amanda shot some baskets too, but Natalie also enjoyed sitting on her ball....

and balancing on it.

The kids also had fun running all over the place. Mom and dad like that a lot as it helps to get all of their energy out! Here is Amanda running and smiling!

They also tried out the "balance beam".

Before we left, they all turned into monkeys. Here are Natalie and Amanda demonstrating their hanging prowess.

And, of course, anything the girls do Will has to do too. So, he was quick to follow suit. We were impressed at how long he was able to hang before letting go.

Here is Will on his ride home. He insisted on carrying both balls in his stroller, despite the fact that it left very little room for him!