I worked in the flower bed while the girls played in the pools this afternoon.

When it was clear the baby was tired, we poured the water from the pools into the flower bed then we had ice pops (leftover from Grandpa Evans' stash.)

We made a simple bird bath with the base of a big pot. We'll see if the birds like it.

Then we played in the shade with chalk and bubbles and Norah's gotten pretty good at climbing the tree.

We tried to preserve a spider web we found on the girls' plastic slide according to the directions in The Young Naturalist, but we messed it up. The only thing we really managed to do is spray paint the slide. But, we'll try again with the next web.

"Don't take my picture."

The ice cream truck came by so we got the girls some more treats.

We turned this basket into a bird feeder. The birds seem to love grabbing a seed and then perching on the handle to eat. And the chipmunks already love it, too.

I arrived home from another long road trip yesterday evening. (I was taking my dad to Virginia to meet up with my mom so she could take him all the way home to South Carolina.) I had been home a few minutes when Dwayne said, "You should check downstairs..." I knew right away what he must have done, but I was still really thankful that he had made it a surprise. He bought a television while I was gone! The old television we were given a few years ago broke a few days ago and Dwayne said he had found this huge flat screen on Craigslist for only $400. (The guy who was selling it wanted to make room for his new 3D tv.) Dwayne explained that it is an older model but that also means that it works with the sound system we already have, saving us even more money. I am thrilled. It's never felt so good to buy a luxury. We celebrated by popping popcorn, putting the baby to bed and watching Star Wars, Episode Four: A New Hope with Norah. She'd never seen any of the Star Wars movies. We were holding out till we had a new television and we often joked that we hoped it would be before she turned 12... Well, the timing was perfect. She understood all the action and she loved it. We're so thankful. The little things can be really big sometimes.

I took Norah and Avril to our neighborhood park this afternoon to play in the sprinkler. We usually take along a few buckets, some boats, a baby pool and an umbrella.

Norah and Avril play in the puddles as much as they play in the fountain.

Avril had fun making sure all the cement was wet.

We attended Waterbury's fireworks display at Muncipal Stadium again this year. We enjoyed playing with the remote control helicopter my brother bought Norah several months ago. Can you see the little, red helicopter in the top, right side of the photo?


Mayor Jarjura (second from the right) helps the band sing God Bless America. Later, we got a kick when he shook a large maraca as the band sang Gloria Estefan's "Conga." He seems like a nice guy. We pray for him and all our city's leaders.


I packed a cooler full of drinks and snacks. Avril takes a break from chasing the helicopter to sit in her wagon and drink a juice box.

Norah asked for water. That might be a first.

Norah gave her sister wagon rides, Norah made some new friends and they took turns giving each other rides and then Dwayne gave the girls a ride. Wagons are awesome.

Norah got a photo with Ziggy. This might be the third year in a row. I will have to find the other photos and put them together so you can compare them.


I keep a bag of July 4th items in storage and I only take it out on July 4th. (This saves me tons of money on the little pom poms and flags and glow-in-the-dark trinkets, etc.) But, I didn't realize that we only had one sparkler left in the box from previous years. Oops. But, Norah enjoyed that one... as you can see in the photo below. I'll have to go to the store now that the holiday is over and stock up for the next year or two on all the July 4th items now that they are on sale.

Baby snuggles. Notice that Avril's hand is patting her dad's head while he is rubbing her back. So sweet.

Waterbury always has a pretty good show.

We the people were freed
from an even greater tyranny.
The battle was fought once,
but won for all eternity.
So now, no matter where
you happen to be,
if the Son sets you free,
you are free indeed.

-Veronica Boulden

My Resolutions for 2011.
I thought I would see how I am doing on my goals for this year...

Let Norah play outside.
I think Norah's been outside this year more than all of last year combined, but I could let her play in the yard more often on days when we don't go anywhere. I think I may be keeping her inside when Avril's awake because Avril can't go outside with her without me and I am busy inside so I don't want to go out, etc. etc. But, I think Norah should probably go out by herself, even if Avril has to cry at the window for a minute until she forgets to be sad about having to stay inside.

Read through the entire Bible.
I'm still using this plan. I stopped blogging and caught up (after falling a few months behind) and I have been keeping up with this reading plan everyday for at least a few weeks now. I think this has become a habit, officially, and it's a great way to start my day. I am learning so much I didn't know (even after getting a bachelor's degree in religion.) Proof, I think, that nothing can replace reading original sources for yourself.

Pray.
I am doing well with this. I try to remain in prayer all day (or at least remain in a state where I can pray at any time through out the day). Listening to worship music and Scripture on CD helps me with this. But, because I have been praying more and more I now desire more and more time to pray and I can't ever seem to get enough!!

Read.
"To Kill a Mockingbird" in January.
"The Adventures and Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes" and "Needless Casualties of War" in February.
"Dumbing Us Down" and most of "Oliver Twist" in March.

That's almost a total of five books in six months. I have a few pages of Oliver Twist to finish and I have started reading Kon Tiki by Thor Hyerdhal and King's Cross by Tim Keller, so if I finish those books within July, I will be on track to read one book each month this year. I am thrilled! I thought I'd be so much farther behind due to all the unexpected traveling and the entertaining I've been doing.

Eat fruit and vegetables.
With all the traveling and entertaining, I have not been eating healthily or exercising. While traveling, I've been eating what's available at the hotel or on the road or at people's houses without any thought to nutrition content. And, I can't exercise if it means asking family to watch my kids so I can do it. But, it's easier to focus on this now that I am home. This morning, for example, after running/walking for thirty minutes around my neighborhood while Dwayne stayed with the kids, I made a green machine for breakfast.

No late night eating.
I'm still doing this and I am quite sure this is part of the reason I am gaining more and more weight. If I go to bed earlier (another resolution I made this year), I think it will not be so difficult to stay out of the fridge late at night.

Be consistent in the garden.
With company here all of June, I didn't feel free to work in the garden. I probably was free to work in the garden, but it felt rude to leave my niece, even if all we were doing was sitting together, to work around the house or outside in the garden.

Stop talking in bed.
With company here all of of June, it became really important to have this time alone to talk with Dwayne in private. But, now that we can talk freely during the evenings, that's what I will try to do so my husband can get more much needed sleep.

Go to be early.
"No caffeine after 6pm." is too hard a rule to keep. So, I think I will shoot for "No caffeine after 8pm." That will help me get to sleep at a decent enough hour.

How often has someone had a terrible day because you said something unkind about them a thousand miles away? And, how often have they been blessed because you held your tongue and instead of cursing, thought the best?

-Veronica Boulden