This might involve needing to sneak around through the side gate. I did tell them to "go find something to do" in the back yard!

Joseph and Rosalie have really been enjoying the Story Train program at the library this summer! Here they are getting ready to go to the final celebration today, wearing the shirts they decorated themselves. They are both very proud of those shirts! Tim will be meeting us there for a hot-dog picnic lunch, so it's bound to be a fun time for all. Hooray for the library!

In other news, Rosalie has been attempting to ride Joseph's hop ball since he got it last Christmas, and she has finally succeeded! Joseph doesn't seem to mind taking turns riding the pony for now, but I definitely foresee another hop ball in our future!

Apparently Joseph really didn't mind Rosalie's pestering yesterday, because here is a picture he just showed me of the two of them reading their books together. I love it!

Here are a few other recent creations, including more sprinklers, but with numbers this time...

a puzzle designed, manufactured, and assembled all by himself...

an interesting drawing full of numbers, letters, and circles of various sizes...

and this page with names and phrases from a book we checked out from the library called Mary Middling and Other Silly Folk. He certainly is a creative boy!

Joseph is being so patient with Rosalie as she grills him for information about what is in her book!



Realizing he wasn't going to get much reading of his own done on the couch, Joseph is now showing us what he learned in Hear Your Heart and getting ready for a game of his version of hide-and-seek, which consists of hiding objects in drawers, cupboards, cabinets, etc and taping small numbered papers nearby as clues for us to find. Rosalie is a persistent one, though, and is continuing to play her "What's That?" game with anyone she can. It's hard to resist a petitioner so cute!

Rosalie is pretty impressed with this little car shooter and after just a couple demonstrations she can now work it all by herself! That's Joseph in time-out in the background. Believe it or not, we do have some rough moments around here, but we're all learning how to get along together a little better each day. I guess that's part of being a family!

Lately, the kids have been drawing lots and lots of pictures! Here are a couple they are particularly proud of, with Joseph jumble of sprinklers above and Rosalie's abstract artwork below.

In other shows of creativity, Joseph has been busy making up song titles to go along with his original piano compositions, several of which I'll list below, and Rosalie has been continuing to notice and highlight the subtle details of the world around her. I love this long line of blocks she arranged, all picture-side up!

Joseph's Recent Song Titles
"It's Saturday"
"Kepler Chewing"
"Rosalie and Daddy and Me and Mommy"
"We Just Made a Picture"
"The Garbage Can's Open"
"My New Workbooks are Here"
"It's 8:34"
"Mom's Mopping"
"We Love Each Other"
"Books and Books and Books"
"Long, Long Snake"
"Big, Big Bed"
"Hiding Easter Eggs"
"Hiking is Fun"
"Lots of Friends"

It's supposed to rain almost all this Independence Day weekend, but we're determined to have a good time together anyway! Here's Rosalie finishing up her hot dog and fries tonight at Five Guys Burgers and Fries. We all enjoyed our food, but we were too busy eating to catch any shots of the rest of us! Here's to American food on this most American of weekends!

Since we were in Scotland over Father's Day, Tim is just now getting a chance to try out his gift from me and the kids, a "wee" gas grill, as they would say in Scotland! Although grilling is a pretty stereotypical fatherly activity, I think he really is enjoying himself! Happy belated Father's Day to the world's best dad!