Picnic at the beach

Warm summer evenings are perfect for a picnic and a wrestling match. I love watching my girls personalities instantly change when daddy walks in the door. We go from playing princess, house, art, puzzles to running laps around dad, screaming and climbing on everything. I'm pretty sure they get more wild by the day.

Vacations!!!

Not only have we been busy with 3 kiddos in the house, we have been busy vacationing!






First was a quick weekend trip with good friends, camping on the beach. Weather report said 80 degrees and sunny so we all jumped in the car and headed out. Well it was more like 65 and foggy, but we all had a great time together.






Even Mae had a good time!

Then we were off to Bend Oregon for a week and a half. The 2 day drive was worth it. So many hikes, river walks and family time. I think we were all ready to pack up and move......well except for Emma, she's not a fan of chilly weather. You'll notice in most pictures she's wearing two fleece hooded jackets!



There is over 50 miles of river trail to explore. We did quite a few miles over that week.






Really cool hike. Very thankful for a stroller that can takes a few bumps along the trail and a husband that enjoys pushing it.



Our first fishing trip with the girls was a little bit of a bust. It was 40 minutes from the house and there was still snow on the ground. We were a little cold until the sun came out. Emma was not happy, Avila on the other hand was thrilled and determined to catch a fish.



No fish today, but she tried!



More hikes!



And a chipmunk with a death wish. It wanted in the stroller!!






Success at the local fishing pond!







Yes, this is when the kids thought the snow was fun......the fun feelings didn't last once they got cold. :)



Went out in style....we hiked that! It was not easy!

Got home on a Sunday night and left for Disneyland 4 days later! Avila drew a crowd dancing on the streets of downtown Disney. She even got a tip for the show!


Here's the highlights........


Emma met her best friend. She didnt want to leave. She just snuggled and snuggled!



Avila danced with Cinderella!


Chip sat and colored with us for a while.....I think he had a crush on Emma.



Dancing with Papa.



Meeting Winnie the Pooh.


Spending time with my family!

It was a great trip, but we had to hurry back for Avila's first ballet recital!






The off to Napa the next weekend to see Uncle Stephen and Auntie Megan

And 1 week later it was Emma's birthday!






What better place to eat for the pancake loving birthday girl than IHOP.



The highlight of her party was the popcorn table.....seriously.



....and the sandbox.











Love these crazy girls!

Sisters

So I think Emma has finally realized that Mae is here to stay. This crying, drooling, blob is growing into a playmate that generally has no other option than to be played with. At least Brewer (our dog) can run away when Avila and Emma get a little wild. Mae is learning to roll with the punches (sometimes literally), smile and enjoy the chaos that soon she will be even more a part of.

Emma is sort of a loving brute, so playng with Mae for her usually involves Mae getting lovingly bonked on the head with a stuffed animal, bear hugs, and trying to share her zippy cup.


Avila on the other hand, just loves an attentive audience. Now that Mae can sit in the bumbo chair she is a captive audience for Avila the ballerina. Avila's performances usually end with hugs, kisses, and songs about how wonderful she (Avila) is.


Yesterday all the girls helped give Brewer a bath. Emma and Avila thought it was such a fun thing to watch. Emma gave me pointers on how to wash the entire time. She could have been telling Brewer to it still......not sure. Sounded a lot like....deeder, deeder, doo, doo dee! I translated "great job mom!"

Avila sat and tried to comfort Brewer telling him how great he was going to smell in the end.

Mae was just happy to be a part of the dog washing party. She hates to be left out of anything these days.


Oh, and this was a celebration day....... Emma's hair was long enough to put in piggy tails! Hooray! I think i was the most excited!


Well, excited for a few minutes until i realized this just adds another head of hair that needs to be brushed and styled each day. Usually it's a toss up between my hair, makeup, or Avila's hair. Only 1 or 2 of these tasks actually get accomplished each day. Sometimes none of the three. Example A, last Sunday at church.....my hair was straightened and my makeup was done, however Avila's hair had what looked like a rats nest in the back. With Emma's hair growing we could see a lot more rats nests or a lot more of me without makeup. :)

Fun in the sun

We're so thankful for great friends!



Mae's first trip to the beach @ 3 months old. She didn't love it, but the 2nd trip was much more "fun".

The first of many to come

What happened? Good question. Freak scooter accident.



For those who know Avila she is our little ballerina. She doesn't take too many risks and is super cautious when she rides bikes, scooters, or anything else with wheels. Well, sometimes being cautious means going super slow on the scooter......not a good idea. One minute she was moving forward and the other she was tipped over, laying on the ground crying. Apparently the scooter and her body landed on her finger.

After and hour of crying I decided to head to the ER to get an xray.

Avila was thrilled about being at the hospital. The crying and drama stopped the minute we walked through the door. I thought about going home at that point, but I was already there and they didn't look busy. She entertained the nurses with her ballet and stories of her "exciting" life. With every smile I regretted coming to the ER for what looked at this point to be a bruise.

Dr looked at the xray and decided the finger was fine. A bruise. And expensive adventure for Avila.


Well, the doc called back the next morning and said he had missed the break. Could he have been a little distracted with all the performing going on? He asked that I come back to the ER as soon as possible to get it splinted. Avila was beyond thrilled to go back for a second performance!

Apparently it's a bad break. They insisted we see a perdiatric orthopedic before the end of the week. So, we find out tomorrow if Avila gets to have a pretty pink cast.




Nothing a little rest and relaxation can't fix. She is milking the injury as best she can!

Everyone else is doing fine. Emma met her first love.



And Mae is getting bigger by the day



Always an exciting day at the Edwards house!

Our family

I love this picture because I think just by looking at it you get a glimpse of what everyday life is for us.

Avila is a true princess and at all times is either wearing a princess gown or a ballerina leotard. Avila's days are full of dancing, singing, and imagining a life where her best friends are princesses. If she gets to pick the dinner topic, our time is usually spent talking about weddings, ballet, or meeting Cinderella one day. She is all girl.

Emma's face says it all. The minute she saw the camera she wanted to run and hide. She is not the performer, like her sister, yet equally busy. She would be happy if we gave her a mud hole filled with creepy crawlers and shovel to play with filled with. She is never spiffy clean.....if you look close you will find marker, juice, food or dirt somewhere on her at all times. She is a girl of little words, but lots of laughs. Her best friends are Brewer (the dog), Lunchbox, and Spaz (the cats).

Mae is the perfect third child. She understands at the young age of 3 months that no one really has a whole lot of time to spend with her. She spends most of her day sitting in her chair, watching wide eyed the chaos of our day. She knows her time is when the older kids go to bed. She wakes up full of smiles, noises and love to give. She loves her mommy and daddy time. She's quite the talker and seems to crack herself up.

Blair and I have real smiles in this photo. We're happy. Enjoying this adventure the Lord has blessed us with.