Claire Bear!!!!

Robin, we need to do Claire's pro pics again! :) I just love her expressions in these snapshots. ;) I just couldn't help but post them. She always gives me such good eye contact, even if it is the stink eye sometimes. A couple of bonus ones of Sam and Claire eating rice crispie treats together and Caleb being Caleb too.

A mommy rigged water slide

Yes, this is what is looks like when mommy (that would be me) puts a hose on top of the kids slide and puts the slide in their blow up pool. Then decides it would be fun if they went down the slide together. I promise, they were having a blast. :)

The Paleo Diet

So Miguel and I have come to a plateau/standstill with our weight loss. One of the theories of healthy eating is something called the Paleo Diet. Essentially, the idea is to eat like paleolithic man. Meaning, eating protein, veggies, fruit, and select nuts and oils (for fat). So, no eating grains, cereals, legumes, or dairy. I won't go into the whole theory behind it, but I'm sure if you google it, you'll find plenty of information. I *think* we are going to attempt it for a few weeks and see how well it helps get rid of these last 20 lbs. Thankfully, I am going to be doing a transitional period for at least the first week, because I am a dairy addict. Also it requires some planning of meals and getting certain things premade for the week. Really we kind of eat this way already, but we eat a lot of dairy products. So that's the only part of this way of eating that will be difficult at first. The great thing is that you get 3 cheat meals a week for the first couple of weeks and for when you are maintaining. So those things you love you can still eat a few times a week. Anyway, hopefully after a little while, we'll lean out and be able to post some great results. I *might* even post a before picture. Maybe. Maybe not. Depends how confident I am feeling.

Trips to the Spraygound and other random Summer pics

I think the title says it all. All taken last week.

It's all about wearing them out, ya know?

So last Thursday we went to a great place called Play with Christy and her sons. They have trampolines and a foam pit that Katie just adored. And she's been asking to go back ever since. So off we will go, probably today. :) It was a blast and after we left Katie declared that she "had an AWESOME time!".












After that we made our way over to Stone Mountain, where we had plans to hike the mountain and watch the laser show. Well, when we got there we discovered that the Village there has a twilight special and the tickets to get in are more than half off. Excellent! So we went in and Katie did the toddler version of the sky hikeand we played in the barn (where basically you get to shoot foam balls out of air guns on 3 different levels. Oh, and climb on these rope like stairs everywhere.). At that point it began to pour and all hopes of going up on top of the mountain by cable car or hiking were lost. So we wandered around the stores and bought candy and other cheap (read:not really THAT cheap, it's a relative term there) items. Once the rain stopped and it dried out a little, we headed over to the lawn where we sat and had a picnic and waited for the laser show. We saw MOST of the laser show, but it was cruelly cut short due "technical difficulties". I have no idea what they really meant by that, but what it means for us, is that Katie will not be happy until we go back to hike the mountain and watch the whole laser show.

Tubing in Helen

Since Miguel missed the first tubing trip to Helen, I figured we'd go again last Wednesday. This time we invited Miguel's mom, sister and her boyfriend. Kim and Brad from CFNF joined us too and the tubing was a blast. No better way to spend an afternoon than in a inflatable tube, floating down the Chattahoochee, getting stuck on rocks and having friends and strangers alike give you push on down the river. ;)
Oh btw, do you really think I'd take my baby (camera) down the river with me? No. Pictures courtesy of a one time disposable water camera.

343lb deadlift

So while I am gathering up all of my other pics from last week, I thought I would brag about my super strong hubby. Most of you know we do Crossfit. Well the goal is always to try and get new PRs(personal records) in your workouts. Whether it be that you finished the same workout 2 minutes faster, or you lifted 64 lbs more than you did last time. That's what Miguel did this week. He was able to deadlift 343lbs vs 279lbs last time he attempted it. Isn't that a great improvement? And not only that, but we really think he could have lifted more. So, good job Miguel and keep on truckin'. I am sure that next time you will blow this PR away.

"That beautiful season the Summer! ...

...Filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light;
and the landscape
Lay as if new created in all the freshness of childhood."
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

So my goal for this week is spend everyday outside as much as possibly. Simply because the weather has been absolutely perfect, except maybe a little chilly in the mornings.
They, finally, after over a year of building it, opened the sprayground at the our local park. Very exciting stuff. ;) It was a little cool when I took the kids yesterday morning, but I know with August coming and as hot and sticky as it normally is, the kids and I will be regulars at the sprayground. And as an added bonus, the sprayground is literally like 10 feet away from Kate's favorite playground. Then after that we went Aunt Shell's and Katie enjoyed the pool, well mostly. She got a splinter in her hand that Aunt Shell had to console her about.











Then today we went to meet Ben, Robin, Caleb, and Claire to Poole's Mill and played in the river and at the park. Caleb was so sweet with Katie today, pushing her on the swing and holding her hand because she was scared as they slid down the rocks.