Lemonade Stand

Grace has been bugging me TO DEATH about having a lemonade stand.  I keep explaining to her that Blackiston Mill Road is not a safe place to hold a lemonade stand.  I also explained that she needed to wait for someone to have a yard sale, and then it would be a perfect time to do a lemonade stand.  Finally, she called Grandma and asked Grandma about having a lemonade stand at Grandma and Papaw's house.  Let's just say that Grandma was an easy sell on this idea.

Grace got busy making a sign.

Gabriel made a sign too. 

They wanted to sell their lemonade for $1 a cup, but I talked them down to $0.25 a cup.

Gabriel drew lemons on his sign next to the price.

Grandma came to get them, took them to the store to buy lemonade mix, and they set up their stand.

They sold about 18 cups of lemonade, and each of them had nearly $4 to show for their work.  I'm glad they were finally able to have the lemonade stand they've been pining for so long.

Darbi is 4!

 We celebrated Darbi's 4th birthday at the Lewis' house.  The Lewis' served Grace's favorite food . . . pizza!

 The kids LOVED the inflatable water slide!

 Grace got chilly playing in the water, so she decided to swing instead.

 Gabriel is so smitten with Nora.  He just loves her to death.  I think Nora kind of enjoys him too.

 Before long, it was time to sing Happy Birthday to the beautiful birthday princess.

 Grace and Jake are a hoot!  They were performing as a marching band in the backyard.

 More water slide fun . . . yes, Gabe lost his drawers a little on the way down the slide.

 Daniel was entertaining the girls --- Darbi, Grace, and Nora.

 Time to open presents!!  Grace wanted to be sure to see everything Darbi opened.

 As the party started to wind down, the kids abandoned the water.  Jackson and Gabriel decided swing for a bit.

The girls --- and Jake --- went inside to play dress up.  Darbi got this beautiful Belle dress for her birthday.  As soon as she opened it, Grace said, "Mommy, I want one of those for MY birthday!  Only I want to be The Little Mermaid."

Thank you, Lewis Family, for allowing us to help you celebrate your precious girl.  We hope you had a wonderful birthday, Darbi!

Pampering His Girls

 We had a laid-back Saturday last weekend, and Daddy decided to pamper his girls with a pedicure.

 Grace was first.  She soaked in the foot bath.  Then Daddy washed and lotioned her feet.

 No pedicure is complete without a change of polish, so Daddy made sure to get the old polish off of Grace's toenails.

 Gabriel wasn't going to be left out of the relaxation.  He enjoyed soaking in the foot bath.

 Daddy painted Grace's nails a bright shade of pink.

 Next, it was MY turn to get a pedicure from Daddy.

My pedicure came complete with a mimosa and some Fifty Shades of Grey.  Boy, Daddy sure does know how to spoil his girls!  **Photography courtesy of Grace on these last two.

Saturday Morning Farmer's Market

The last couple of weeks we have been getting up on Saturday morning and going to the farmer's markets in New Albany.  The farmer's market on Charlestown Road nearest to us is really small, but they have a farmer who brings beef, pork, and eggs.  We bought t-bone steaks once that were so good!  Last week we bought a pound of sausage, and it was really tasty too.  The produce stands always have some yummy things too.  The people are so nice, and I love that we are supporting local farmers.  The kids enjoy being able to choose their own fruits and vegetables when we go.  Gabriel is on a cantaloupe kick right now.

 Grace chose green beans today.  Mmmm . . . can't wait to have those!

 At this stand we also bought peaches and cherry tomatoes.  The tomatoes are some of the most flavorful I've ever had. 

 The larger farmer's market is in downtown New Albany.  They have artisan crafts, local bakers, and hot foods along with the produce.  I bought the kids a special treat this morning.  It was a s'more on a stick . . . a giant marshmallow dipped in chocolate and coated in graham cracker crumbs.  A breakfast of champions at 9 o'clock in the morning!

 Here is our haul from the farmer markets this morning:  2 lbs of sausage, vegan soap and lotion, 2 cantaloupes, cherry tomatoes, peaches, pears, sun-dried tomato bread, green beans, and dozen eggs.

 Gabriel and Grace helped Daddy and me snap the beans and get them ready to be cooked.

Grace picked the grapes (from last week) off of the stems and got them ready to eat.

I'm already looking forward to next weeks' farmer's markets.  I'd like to try the hot food at the downtown farmer's market sometime soon.

First Day of 1st Grade

Yesterday was Gabriel's first day of 1st grade.  He said that his teacher is nice, but a little bit mean.  They did some activities involving the Olympics, including sorting their Olympic cereal and creating a graph of the colors of the cereal.  His teacher also made Jitter Juice to help them get rid of the first day jitters.  He has requested that I make it at home too.  It is lemon-lime soda and rainbow sherbet.  I'm sure he will have a wonderful 1st grade year!

Camping at Spring Mill

We decided to take one last camping trip before school starts. So this past weekend, we headed to Spring Mill.  It is such a nice park with so much to do.  Despite the crazy humidity, we had a great time.

Right after setting up camp Friday evening, the kids and I took a hay ride.

The tractor pulled us all over the campgrounds.  It was a 45 minute hayride!

Back at camp, the kids toasted some marshmallows over the campfire before heading to bed.

The first kid awake in the morning, gets to play the iPad or Kindle so the rest of us can get a few more minutes of shut-eye.  Grace was up bright and early on Saturday morning!  She stayed busy with my Kindle for a while, but there was NO WAY she was letting Mommy go back to sleep.

At 10 a.m. we took a guided tour of the pioneer village.  Our guide told the history of the village; it was a really interesting tour.

As you can tell, Grace was enthralled by the tour as well.  Ha!

Dan explained how the water wheel worked and how it would grind the corn to make cornmeal.

Gabriel found a pioneer Beyblade to play with inside the gristmill.

We also played a game of checkers.

Grace tried her hand at grinding corn the really old fashioned way. . . by hand.

Daddy bought some rock candy at the mercantile shop.

We walked up the creek to the cave where the Hammer's used to pipe in fresh drinking water.  It was amazing how cool the water from the cave felt.  It cooled the air and felt so nice.

Gabriel and Grace found a rocky ledge to sit under while they finished their candy.

Back at the campground, the kids enjoyed some time at the playground.

Grace makes friends everywhere so goes.  This little girl, Cheyanne, quickly became a friend at the playground.

The kids loved that there was a little path from our campsite to the playground, and they could go back and forth on their own.

Dan cooked us some yummy camp meals, including grilled chicken and veggies.

Dan and Gabriel played cards and made up their own version of Uno to play with a regular deck of cards.  They said it's their new favorite game.

I enjoyed a brief moment of quiet outside with my Kindle.  We love camping and can't wait to go again soon!