Getting the Gang Back Together

The last time we hosted a get-together at the Lake with our college friends was Memorial Day of 2006 (see photo above). So we were pleasantly surprised that everyone was available the weekend of July 1 for an impromptu reunion.  

Since 2006, the gang has grown by leaps and bounds. Not only are the four little ones above all in 2nd-5th grade. But 9 more kids have been added to the crew that showed up on Sunday afternoon (for the record: 2 Sauciers, 2 Asadoorians and 2 Goodmans plus a second Coletti, second Garvin, and third Gerlach). So we were very excited to meet everyone's new additions, and catch up with old friends. So much so, in fact, that we totally forgot to snap an "after" photo to compare to the "before" photo above. Oh well. (Maybe next year?)

Charlie Garvin (7, above) hit the water as soon as he arrived, while little brother Teddy (not quite 3) was, umm, not so interested (as you can see below). 

The weather cooperated for most of the day (aside from a quick thunderstorm late in the afternoon) so everyone -- even our water-adverse little Gwendolyn -- got plenty of time to splash around.

Gwen and Aaron (Goodman, 2) got to know each other while floating around. It turns out, they both enjoy yellow inflatable rafts, short-sleeve UV-protective swimwear, and Red Sox hats. (This was a lot of Gwen to take in, so she decided to take a nap on the porch immediately afterward.)

  

While Gwen napped, everyone else ate. As the storm clouds rolled in, Morgan and Charlie took cover on a picnic blanket underneath the covered section of the porch. Luckily, the storm passed over quickly. Soon, the sun broke back through the clouds and everyone was able to enjoy the water again.

It was a happy coincidence that everyone was available on the same weekend. As the kids get older, who knows if soccer, baseball, and gymnastics schedules will align quite as well as they did this year? But we really hoping we don't have to go another six years to get everyone together again.

Come What May (and June)

Somehow, two months have passed since the last time we posted photos on the blog ("somehow", in this case, is defined as "2 jobs, 2 kids, too much stuff going on). 

So, here's a quick of mid-May through June...

Visit from Nanna & Grandpa

Sheila arrived from Utah on May 17 for a weeklong visit with the girls. Immediately upon their arrival, the girls showed Nanna and Grandpa how much they've grown since the last time they visited at Christmas. Morgan showed Nanna how to make guitars out of tupperwear and rubber bands. And Gwen demonstrated, well, a lot of stuff -- especially her ever-growing vocabulary. 

On Saturday, 6/19, Lindsay and Jenny came over for a one-stop-shopping Birthday Party. But first, we took the girls to the new farmer's market in town. Gwen liked the chickens. Morgan wasn't so sure about the llama, though. But with a little help from Lindsay, she got a closer look (which earned her a high-5 while devouring fresh strawberries later).

Back out the house, the party was on. In one afternoon, we celebrated all the April-August birthdays -- Andy, Morgan, Jenny, Jon, Sheila, Joe, Gwen, Ariella and Lindsay. Morgan and Jon splashed in the pool. Then we all headed inside for dinner and 9 birthday's worth of presents.

Memorial Day Weekend

The unofficial start of Summer gave us our first official swim of the summer -- courtesy of the pool at Cooper's grandmother's house. Morgan is a natural in the water. She is still using her "swimmy" but she can maneuver around like a pro, and getting used to her face going under water. (We're still working on Gwen. She's not as big a fan of the water... yet.)

Our 3-day weekend ended with a trip to Haddonfield for their Memorial Day Parade. Both girls enjoyed the festivities. Morgan was absolutely awestruck by the marching band. (Her apple apparently didn't fall far from Mom and Dad's tree.)

Arts and Crafts

It seems like the girls are always in our dining room painting, coloring or glueing something or other. 

Morgan's class at school had "aquarium day" where they colored ocean animals and hung them under the tables in their classroom. Then, they used drinking straws as snorkels and pretended to go scuba diving. Needless to say, this project combined everything Morgan loves to do. So when she got home, she wanted to make a mini-aquarium under her table. 

Morgan's drawing skills seem more and more advanced every time she picks up a crayon. Her latest artistic style is to start with a color block in the middle of the page, then add rings and blocks of color around it until the entire page is covered. (See below.) At her end-of-the-school year party, Morgan got the award for "Most Creative". (Again, her apple didn't fall far from Mom and Dad's tree.) Not to be outdone, Gwen has become a big fan of Elmer's Glue. 

Beach Party!

In June, we went to our friend Katie's 9th birthday party (yes, that little flower girl who raced down the aisle at our wedding is now 9 years old). As always, Morgan raced for the water slide. Gwen (also as always) was a little more skeptical of the water. But eventually, she discovered how much fun the kiddie slide and pool were. (Although, she had much more fun trying on all of Katie's princess gowns.)

  

Double-Trouble Sunday

Typically, Sunday is a day of rest in the Saucier household. But not Sunday, June 24. While our friends Jeff and Nicole went house-hunting, we watched Cooper and Cate. 4 kids vs. 2 adults... no problem, right? Except Gwen was also scheduled to go to a friend's birthday party. So Gwen (and Andy) went to the birthday party while Ariella stayed home with all three kids. 

The birthday party was Gwen's first "solo" social event ("solo" meaning just Gwen -- no Morgan). So before we left, Dr. Morgan and Dr. Cooper gave Gwen a checkup to make sure she was up for it. As soon as they gave her a clean bill of health, we were off to the party. 

Gwen seemed to love getting the chance to do something on her own. The birthday party was held in a pavilion at a local farm. Gwen acted like she was the guest of honor (even though it was her friend Anabelle's party). She made her way around and said hi to all the parents and kids she knows from school. She sat right next to Anabelle while we sang happy birthday. And she was one of the first kids in line for hayride out into the farm to pick blueberries.

After picking (and eating) her share of blueberries, Gwen had a blast feeding the goats and climbing around on the farm equipment. Andy let her decide what she wanted to do and when. Gwen smiled all afternoon and enjoyed her time as an "only child", even if it was only for a few hours.

Meanwhile, back at the house, Ariella conquered her 3-on-1 situation like a champ. Morgan, Cooper and Cate spent most of the morning outside splashing in the pool and running around the backyard. Ariella mixed up some "goop" (corn starch + water + food coloring) that was messy fun for both Morgan and Cate. 

While Cate napped, Morgan and Cooper played with Legos. For 2 hours. Seriously... How many 4-year olds do you know who can play anything for 2 hours straight? I guess now we know why these two get along so well. 

Andy and Gwen got home just as Cate was waking up from her nap. For the rest of the afternoon, the kids played outside in the water. Cooper and Morgan took their bikes (and lawn mower) through the "car wash". Gwen and Cate stayed inside the playhouse, far away from the water. The afternoon ended with all four kids watching Toy Story on the couch... completely, totally wiped out. Mission accomplished.

Happy Mother's Day

Mother Nature treated us to a great of weekend of weather for Mother's Day. So, after three straight busy weekends (birthdays, birthdays, birthdays), we decided to treat ourselves to a relaxing weekend at home. (Well, as relaxing as possible with two very busy little girls.)

Early Saturday morning, the girls headed outside to play. Before long, the temperature had climbed into the 70's and the girls wanted to play in the water. The water table came first. But that wasn't enough, so out came the little pool. Once the little pool was out, well, that wasn't enough either. So out came the big pool, along with the swim suits and sunblock. At that point, it seemed more like Memorial Day than Mother's Day.  

Right on cue, Gwen has entered the dinosaur phase (or "di-no-no's" as she calls them).

Gwen is still getting the hang of blowing bubbles. She's a pro at eating bubbles, though.

Other than nap time, we spent the entire day outside on Saturday. We ate a picnic lunch. We played in the pools and sandbox in the afternoon (thankfully, not at the same time). The girls managed to wear every bathing suit they own. We ended the day with a cookout for dinner -- and after dinner, the girls triumphantly paraded around the backyard with their ice cream cones.

On Sunday morning, we got up early so we could beat the Mother's Day breakfast crowds at the Pop Shop in Collingswood. Ariella got her favorite (Eggs Benedict) and everyone else gobbled-up pancakes and eggs. But the real show-stopper at breakfast were the "Pancake Fries" pictured below --deep fried pancake strips with syrup and cinnamon cream cheese dips... Wow. Wow. Wow.

The girls spent the entire day outside again on Mother's Day -- and reminded us how much they're like their Mom. They showed off their kitchen skills (backyard-style) by meticulously cooking up batch of Grass Soup. Start with freshly picked weeds. Add water from the kiddie pool. Stir until thoroughly mushy. Add dirt to taste. Cook on pretend grill, stirring occasionally.

Just like her Mom (who was a competitive swimmer in high school, remember?), Morgan absolutely loves the water. Gwen still hasn't discovered the joy of swimming. She loves the water table, but just doesn't like getting her face wet (something we're reminded of every night in the bathtub). She'll come around eventually. It's in her DNA somewhere.

After another dinner cookout Sunday night (ribs... yum!), we capped off our Mother's Day with a trip to Rita's for water ice. Ariella treated herself to Red Velvet-flavored water ice. Morgan had tangerine. Andy had peanut butter & jelly. Gwen had vanilla custard. And everybody came home with technicolor red lips.