All Dressed Up

I admit, I love seeing Hylie in cute little dresses...and now that she has more hair, I can't help but try some girly accessories.  She's such a cutie and is growing up way too fast!

Wearing Mom's shoes and shades

Trust me, those bows and piggy-tails don't last long with this active girl!

I finally made the dress I got the fabric for over a year ago--and there's still room to grow!

Girl's Camp and Grandma's Help

I got to experience our church's week-long Girl's Camp for the Young Women organization.  I am still in awe at all the work that went into the camp--I just showed up and tried to keep all the girls on task and out of trouble (and I was EXHAUSTED from just doing that!)

I was able to go because my Mom was willing to come to Chicago and stay with Hylie while Geoff was at work.  Hylie (and Geoff) were certainly spoiled with gourmet breakfasts, yummy brownies, amazing dinners, and a clean house!  Mom even did some home-improvements and got us a much-needed light for over our kitchen sink.

Hylie was busy all day going to the park, blowing bubbles, and doing crafts.  Grandma went the extra mile and even pushed Hylie on her bike (TWICE) to the park which is a good ten-minute walk.  Being hunched over, pushing, and steering Hylie is NO easy task...especially when Hylie applies the brakes!  Grandma definitely gets MAJOR bonus points for that feat!

Can you guess which ones Hylie did all by herself?

Grandma claims Hylie behaved and didn't cause any trouble--I sure hope that was the case.

After a long week at camp, I was so excited to see Geoff and Hylie.  Hylie melted my heart by saying, "Mommy come home from camp" when I walked in the door and then snuggled with me on the couch.

Grandma flew home Saturday morning before I got back from camp.  She knew Grant was going to be in the Chicago area that night and was stopping by for a visit, so she made dinner (which included a yummy dessert) for all of us before she left!  Talk about being spoiled beyond belief!  Thanks, Mom, we sure love you and are forever grateful for all you do and even more for who you are.

Trip to PA

We were able to make it to Grandma and Grandpa Nelson's for a few days at the beginning of July.  We even caught the tail end of "Grandma Camp" so Hylie could get a taste of how Grandma and Grandpa Nelson love to spoil their grandkids.

It was wonderful to be there with Jared and his family, Janna, Dean and his clan, and of course, Grandma and Grandpa and Great-Grandma and Pap Pap.

I really thought Hylie would love swimming in the pool, but she wasn't too crazy about it, unfortunately.

And this is as close as she came to experiencing the slide into the pool...one look over the top told her it wasn't for her!  Maybe next year...

Hylie got to experience her first fireworks show.  When we arrived, it was way past Hylie's bed-time, so we were wondering if she was going to wake up to see anything.  Well, she did wake up and was pretty excited to be in on the action.  When she was watching the fireworks she kept saying, "Fireworks fly in the sky!"

While we were waiting for it to get dark, Hylie was glad Grandpa was willing to walk her around so she could people watch and scope out the scene.

The glow sticks Dean and Andrea brought were a hit with all the kids--especially when it came to using them as swords!

Hylie STILL talks about the pinata she got to hit at Grandma and Grandpa's.  And yes, the candy was quite the highlight!

We also had an evening of sparklers and a few fireworks.

"Fireworks fly in the sky!"

And we found out that Grandpa has been hiding his talent of balloon shaping!

Thanks for such a great time, Grandma and Grandpa!

Summer 2014

So far we've been thoroughly enjoying our summer--lots of sunshine, warm days to play outside, and no snow to clear off the driveway!  Hylie absolutely loves being outside, whether it's to play or to help Mom and Dad 'work'.

I love the faces Hylie makes when she's so involved in what she's doing.

And no, her sticker obsession has not slowed down one bit!

We planted a few pots with some vegetables to see if we could have any luck with a garden.  Our cucumbers and zucchini didn't make it...but we got some green peppers and the tomatoes are looking promising as well!

Hylie LOVES being on her bike, but don't let her fool you one bit: she's not doing a lick of work.  If she goes anywhere on that thing, it's not because she's pedaling...it's because she's being pushed around!