Someday

I am keeping my fingers crossed that someday when Hannah and Lily are a little older we will have a real in-ground pool.  Until then the sprinkler will have to do...

Our Garden

We spend a good deal of time these days watering and watching our little garden...

We have had what seems to be great success with our raised garden and things are growing at an amazing rate each day.  This is my first ever vegetable garden and I have to say that it is such fun to share this with my girls but also I have found that this garden is a little getaway for Mama.  Hannah and I will water the garden in the evenings when there is time before bed and other times I do it alone after the girls are asleep.  On those nights I have found such a peace in this quiet time alone tending to these plants and watching them grow.  I have always heard people talk about the "zen" of gardening and I think I have some understanding of what they mean now.

These sugar snap pea and carrot sprouts have grown tremendously since these pictures were taken a few weeks ago...

I love this picture of a green pepper in our garden because if you look closely in the background there is another tiny pepper just starting to grow...

We have several tomatoes on our vine that are ripening with each day...

We planted these pretties to add a pop of color to our otherwise green garden...

And our most exciting garden news is that these tiny cucumbers...

turn in to giant ole cukes, several of which have already been harvested by these little hands...

We have MANY cucumbers on the vine and I am looking forward to making our first ever batch of homemade pickles in the coming weeks.  Have a great weekend!

Most Days

Most days my children are running around the house in nothing but a diaper or Hello Kitty underwear...

I should probably go ahead and apologize to anyone who might drop in unexpectedly.  I don't know what it is but I really think that they think clothing is optional.

Of course other times they insist on wearing clothes...both their's and their sister's..simultaneously...

But clothed or not we always have a fun activity planned for the day.

Most days we spend a little time coloring...

(yes that is my wall)

or using wooden spoons to whip up a yummy treat...

(yep you might have guessed it... that is Hannah in control of the spoon...no one was injured in the process :))

All I have to say is...It is a good thing these kids are cute...

Fourth of July Festivities

I hope that you had a great fourth of July weekend.  We certainly did!

Our long weekend included fireworks...

enjoying some relatively comfortable evening temperatures by grilling and eating alfresco...

and a little hiking trip to enjoy the great outdoors...

I had forgotten how much I love walking around completely surrounded by nature.  Hannah is becoming so independent and adventurous making this mama a little nervous.  I know it is part of life but it is taking some getting used to for me.  Hannah was totally at ease walking on rocks, thin trails and somewhat steep hills all the while refusing my offers to hold her hand.  When she fell she hopped right back up, brushed herself off and continued on like nothing happened.  Thankfully Lily can still be confined to her carrier though if she had her way she would be right next to her sister trying it all out on her own too.

We hope to find time for another escape to the woods soon and Hannah is really hoping our next trip includes a tent. :)

A visit from Granny & Blueberry Crumb Bars

We had a special visitor stop in our little Brown house recently...my Granny.  My mom's parents, better known as Granny and Grampa, live in Atlanta, Ga and even though that is not so very far away we rarely are able to make the trip these days with two little ones.  Mom went to Atlanta for a visit and then brought Granny back with her to could spend the week in my hometown of Florence, AL.  They stopped by on their way to Florence.

Here I am with Mom and Granny...

I am pretty sure that the baby blues on Granny are at least partly responsible for these pretty blue eyes...

Hannah and Lily had a great time showing off for Granny and I enjoyed visiting with her and talking babies, recipes, gardening and such.

While Granny was here we had a quick lunch and I made these for dessert...

They are blueberry crumb bars from Smitten Kitchen.  Granny gave them two thumbs up.  Yummy!

We had a fun time and hope to return the visit soon.