Olivia's Birthday Slumber Party

Olivia recently hosted 9 girls for her 9th birthday/slumber party.  Although she does not officially turn 9 until August 1, it is still unbelievable to Joe and I that this is her last single digit birthday!  And this was the first birthday that she did not select a character theme - she simply wanted a neon theme (her cake was an awesome neon pink leopard print!).

 

Pizza time with friends.

The girls played "American Idol" for well over an hour.  They were very serious about it, and made each round more complicated than the last.  This is the last round of AI - the contestants had to create a costume and stage name in addition to their singing performance!

Next the girls broke off into 2 teams and each had to create the most elaborate outfit they could with toilet paper and foil.  Olivia is the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland.

Melanie is a bride, complete with silver shoes and a wedding ring.  Her costume won (judged by Joe).

A flower bouquet was made and the girls scrambled to catch it.  However, after I mentioned that the winner was to marry Justin Bieber, they instantly threw it to the ground.  I guess he has lost his appeal!  They were more wanting the guys from One Direction.

Singing Happy Birthday to Olivia.

Although the girls talked about One Direction crushes quite a bit, I was so happy to see that they are still young enough to be silly with getting icing on their noses!

After cake, the girls spent a very long time outside playing flashlight tag and neon glow in the dark dancing.  Here is a picture of the girls with the camera flash on.

And here is the SAME pose with the flash off!  I will admit that all of these glow sticks made a great effect on the girls - especially when they played on the swing set.

 

Again, so happy to see that my baby girl is not too grown up to not be silly.  I hope that I am making the same observation at her 10th birthday, too.

 



The girls watching Teen Beach Party on the Disney channel.  Sleep didn't come until about 3 a.m., and they woke up around 7 a.m. ready for donuts.  It made for a very tired Saturday for us, but we wouldn't have it any other way.  The girls did great, there was no drama, and all had fun!

Run the Bases

We attended the Cardinals baseball game this past Sunday, and the kids were able to run the bases after the game.  The first time that they ran the bases, Ethan was so little that Joe had to carry him around the field (although I don't think he minded getting to run the bases too!).  Here they are enjoying the view from the field. 

 

And off they go!  Although the sky looks ominous, the rain held off until we had made it back to the parking garage.  Perfect timing!

Safe at home.

Kid picture on the field.

Last Summer on Earth Concert

Joe and I traveled to Nashville TN one weekend (with no kids - thanks grammy!) to attend the "Last Summer on Earth" concert tour with Guster, Ben Folds Five, and Barenaked Ladies.  We have pretty much been following all of these bands for well over a decade now.  On our way there, we made a quick detour through Metropolis to see the "famous" Superman statue.  All I will say is, if you happen to drive by Metropolis, make the 2 mile detour to see the statue.  But do NOT make a special trip to see the statue as it is not worth the hassle and time! 

 

 

Outside the Superman museum.

 

 

Let's start this concert off right....backstage passes to meet Barenaked Ladies (again)!  We have met them a few times already - backstage passes at a St. Louis show and two vacations on a BNL cruise.  So, I'm sure that they remember us ;)

 

 

Front row center - yes, that is how much Joe and I love these bands!  The opener was Boothby Graffoe - and he was hilarious!  He is joined by BNL on this song.

 

Next up was Guster, joined by ex-band member Joe for this song.

 

Ben Folds Five (yes, there are only 3 members in the band) performed next.  They received a huge ovation since Ben Folds lives in Nashville.

 



And the main event - Barenaked Ladies!  Excellent show!  Plus the venue was the nicest concert venue we have ever been to - if you ever have a chance to see a concert at Fontanel in Nashville TN it is worth the trip!  It is an outdoor setting on Barbara Mandrel's estate, and it is literally in the middle of an old growth forest.  Absolutely beautiful and nicely sized for only 4500 people.  Unfortunately, we had no time to explore Nashville at all so we will need to make another trip there in the future. 

Fun "extra" photos from the backstage passes.  Joe brought the kids' BNL Snacktime book for the band to sign.  Kevin (first photo, he does everything - piano, guitar, odd assortment of instruments) illustrated the book and he personalized it for Ethan and Olivia.  What a great gesture!  The remaining photos (in order) are Jim (bass player), Tyler (drummer), and Ed (lead singer and lead guitar).

The autographed page.

And finally, perks of front row seats, Joe received Ed's set list plus two of Ed's guitar picks.

Summer Fun

Summer is flying by in the blink of an eye!  It is just over one month before the first day of school - both happy (grocery shopping with no kids!) and sad (we have so many fun things left to do).  Here is a look at some activities we have been doing...

 

Sparkler play date with friend Ayla.

 

We hosted an ice cream taste test play date - each family brought 2 cartons of ice cream and the adults put a little of each flavor into a small glass for the kids to sample and guess the flavor.  At first the kids thought it was so easy, but quickly realized that it was harder than they thought.  It seems that Drumstick ice cream and Sea Salt Caramel Chocolate Pretzel ice cream taste the same!

Ethan and Olivia tasting the 10 ice cream flavors and making their best guess.

The rest of the ice cream became the biggest ice cream sundae buffet that our kids have ever seen!  Ten ice creams and 15 toppings for the kids to go crazy making the best sundae ever!  All I can say is thank goodness we were able to have this outside!

 

Enjoying the ice cream.  The friends who participated have known each other their entire lives - the moms met in a baby support group that we attended when our kids were born.

 

 

Sugar buzz has set in!  They used the sprinkler to create a waterslide, which in turn created a mud pit at the bottom, which then became a favorite spot to splash through.  Before leaving, we lined the kids up and hosed them off!

 



Our family also had a fun night at the Springfield zoo with our church youth group.  I have had the kids pose with this hippo every year of their lives to check the growth.

 

Ethan inspired by the turtle races that night.

 

 

Feeding the greedy goats.

 

 

These geese were not intimidated by anything!

 

 

Ethan finished his first tball season with a trophy and a team ice cream party at Baskin Robbins.

 

 

Ethan also participated in a baseball camp by retired Cardinals player Pat Perry.  If nothing else, Coach Perry taught the kids how to properly carry their bats and to not swing them at people!

 



 

Both kids participate in two art camps each summer.  Here are both of them with their art created in ceramics camp.  Olivia's theme was music (drums, windchimes, shaker, etc) and Ethan's created flower stakes, a lantern, and a self portrait.

 

We have many more activities planned before summer ends!  More pictures to come!

Fourth of July

The Fourth of July was a lot of fun for Ethan and I, but poor Olivia was sick so she and Joe had to stay home and miss all of the fun.  Ethan and I traveled to my parent's home for a day of swimming, paddleboating, BBQing, playing ping pong, catching fireflies, and setting off fireworks.  Whew!

 

Although he wanted to, we did not allow Ethan to light this firecracker!

This is more Ethan's size!

 

My dad is always the firecracker lighter.  Basically, light and run!

 

On July 5, Olivia was feeling much better and we traveled to the Cardinals baseball game.  We were lucky enough to watch the Fair St. Louis fireworks while watching the game.  Very cool experience.