We're Hooo-ooome.

I can't stop looking at all of these pictures.



I'm trying to organize all of mine and all of the grandparents' but I might miss a few.



Or overlap.



I'm in the post-vacation fog.

Nay Pulls

We've been in Naples, Florida for a few days.



The kids are loving it...



...even if one of them still won't touch the sand and just wants to eat carrots on the beach...



...and the other just wants to surf.
Dude.

Fish in the Water

More Than Just the Beach

This trip, we decided to stay in a house that was far from town, but actually on the beach. That made all the potty trips and snack trips much easier. You could even spend your entire day on the porch and still feel like you were at the beach.

We were a little afraid the kids would get bored, but they did great.
Especially when Henry built his rocket ship:



And Lydia and Svea loved painting time:

The Gulf

Last week, we got the chance to go to Gulf Shores with Cousin Lydia.
No internet, cell phone usage by choice, a screened-in porch, sand and surf.

Lydia and Henry were in heaven.



Svea...took some time to warm up to things like the sand actually touching her, the wind blowing her hair, the sound of the waves and the water being wet.
The first day she finally calmed down once we got her on a towel with very little sand, cleaned her sandy fingers and got her a magazine.



She never left the tent that day.

101 Uses

IMG_6753
Originally uploaded by iMollie

for a baby doll, a belt and roller skates.

Svea Sliding

Svea Sliding
Originally uploaded by iMollie

Sleepy eyes, but totally dedicated to the slide.

Henry Swinging

Henry Swinging
Originally uploaded by iMollie

Got some new photos from Aunt Merpha from our time with her a few weeks ago. Here's Henry swinging at the park before our picnic.

Seton Harvest Saturday

These are Sweet Williams that I cut at Seton Harvest on Saturday. We bought a share of Seton Harvest this year in effort to eat from a local farm, to learn new ways to prepare and cook vegetables, and to invest in our community more.



The first time I went out there, I felt both proud and ashamed of my naivetee about all things Food. There are still foods that I don't know anything about...like if they grow in the dirt or on a vine or what they taste like raw, blanched, boiled or baked. Some I don't even know how to pronounce them. I am so excited to actually work on closing the gap between what I eat and what I know about what I eat.

So this week I learned that broccoli is actually the flower of the broccoli plant and I even saw one growing in the middle of gorgeous leaves. It looked like something Dr. Suess would draw.

I cut some flowers in their flower garden and learned that if the stem has a square shape (cross-section) then it belongs in the mint family. And oregano has a square stem, is in the mint family, and is delicious in salads and on turkey sandwiches.

My favorite flowers were these small purple balls on long stems...that ended up being the flower of an onion. Hello. Who knew?

All of you who log on to see more of Henry and Svea may be subjected to a little food tidbit here and there until the growing season ends...sometime in November.

While Henry Read...

Svea wanted to be my little helper.








Little green thumb and all...

What Henry Wanted To Do After His Nap Yesterday

Just to recap:

He is in I, Husband's Scout. There are no keys in sight.

He is in long sleeves and long pants even though it is finally warm weather here.

He is studying a baseball book he got at the library and trying to memorize uniforms and positions.

He did not even want a snack before.

And he did not want socks with his cleats.

Just As Pops Says

I'm sorry I was so distant with you.

I spent most of the day
avoiding that crazy farmer's wife.
You know the one with the carving knife
and the obsession with my tail?

so when I got home,
I couldn't tell friend from foe. 
I'm sorry. I miss you.