National Watermelon Day, Observed

National Watermelon Day was almost a month ago, but we observed it on Elin's two-month birthday because of this:

Poor Elin. She didn't suspect a thing. One minute she was laying around minding her own business and the next thing she knew I had her bundled in this get-up!

Longwood Gardens Photorama

Yes, we went to Longwood Gardens again.

We've actually been there three times in the past two weeks.

I would live there if I could. In a tent. By the flowers. That's really all it would take to make me happy.

I love these waterlilies. The gardeners tint the water in the pond with a product called Dark Water to inhibit the growth of algae. Hence the dark water.

And this is where I take my afternoon stroll . . .

There's my guy!

This water lily was huge and looked like it was glowing.

Not quite sure why this was happening . . .

Viggo and Svea with new friends Joel and Faith. Svea had to hold Joel's hand!

Bzzz.

Whoa, it's a dragon! In the children's garden.

Painting with water!

Svea, having a Sound of Music moment.

Jude loved playing with the fountains :)

I don't know what these flowers are, but I want them.

I just love it here.

This weathervane is clearly pointing in the direction I need to go.

The end!

P.S. Elin isn't pictured because I was wearing her in a sling. But she was there!

Cultivating Thankfulness

We don't live in a palace or drive fancy cars. Disposable diapers are a luxury, we rarely eat out and I refuse to pay more than 11 cents for an ounce of cereal. You wouldn't really believe all the frugal adventures that happen here behind the scenes.

But we still have so much to be thankful for, and our humble home is above and beyond the wildest dreams of the millions of people who live in under-developed countries or those torn apart by war or left dry from drought.

Recently we started a new tradition. For Sunday night dinner, we have rice and smoothies. The rice is to remind us of those who might only eat a cup of rice a day (or less), and the smoothies are so the kids don't go to bed hungry! Not every meal we eat needs to be fabulously amazing. Sunday nights are simple and a time to remember that we are blessed with plenty of good healthy food and a roof over our heads.

Yesterday at church was Missions Sunday, and we heard some great stories from trips taken all over the world this summer. The most memorable was hearing about the youth group's trip to Nicaragua. They ministered to children who lived in the city dump. We told Viggo about it and he was pretty shocked. He asked lots of questions and you could almost hear the wheels turning in his head! I hope that someday he can go somewhere and experience true poverty so that he really knows there is much more to life than acquiring stuff, and to meet and help those in need, and to really thankful for all the blessings God has given us - and to share those blessings with others. Nate and I hope that for all our kids.

So if you are here for Sunday night dinner, come hungry and prepare to be thankful!

Chimpanzee Riding on a Segway

Viggo and Svea love this totally dumb internet movie . . . (You can watch it here.)

And you can watch them watching it right here!

Wild Thing

Svea loves these sunglasses. She wore them all over the place yesterday. She wore them in the post office the entire time we were there, and she wore them outside at home, and inside at home too. It is so funny to see her strolling around wearing these :)

Superheros

Miss Marvelous!

Captain Clean! Yes, that's a shower head attachment-thingy that looks like a dolphin. Nate just picked it up last week at Lowe's. Our kids take showers now! It's kind of amazing and really speeds up bedtime prep. And my back is loving it!

And then there's Svea . . . I couldn't come up with a name for her. Any suggestions?

Blue Rocks Game!

Today Nate and Viggo headed out to Wilmington to see the Blue Rocks. Viggo belongs to the kids' club and got to meet the players! What a great thrill for a five-year-old :) They returned home with treasures: a foul ball and a hat covered in autographs.

Waiting in line to meet the players . . .

That's Bluewinkle. A mascot.

And here's the ballpark.

Mr. Celery. Another mascot. Who knew celery could be so fun/random?!

Apparently Mr. Celery was feeling a little fiesty?

Viggo had to hug Bluewinkle! The other mascot not pictured: Rubble, a giant pebble. (I am not making this up.)

So much fun!

Whee!

Run, Viggo, run!

Viggo holds up his certificate: proof he ran the bases!

In the kitchen with Svea: Blended coffee drink

I had a helper in the kitchen this afternoon!

This is what I made: a yummy cold coffee drink.

Here's the recipe:

1 C. cold milk

1/2 T. instant coffee

1 tsp. sugar (or whatever you want to use to sweeten it with)

A couple of ice cubes.

And a liberal squeeze of chocolate syrup.

Blend it all up for a minute or two! Yum!! If you use skim milk and blend it for 2 minutes it gets really frothy.

When I was getting ready to make this, Svea saw me pull out the blender and ran from the kitchen because she doesn't like the noise. So technically she didn't help make this. But she came running back in as soon as I was done with blending and then we had a funny little conversation:

"Whatcha makin', Mommy? Coffee? I please have some?"

"You can maybe have a tiny sip. But just one."

Then she changed her mind and said, "Actually no."

"You don't want any?"

"Actually yes."

Svea has been saying "Actually no/actually yes" a lot lately. I'm not quite sure where she picked up this little phrase but it is so cute to hear her say it!

And then she was wearing this winner of an outfit while we were in the kitchen together. She is so much fun!

Little ones at home

We are so blessed that Viggo and Svea continue to adore their baby sister. It is like Elin has always been with us. I can't imagine life any other way!

Viggo lays with baby Elin and rubs her back to help her fall asleep. What a nice big brother!

I just can't get enough of this little face!

Wide awake after errands today.

I was so happy I captured a smile!

Svea just woke up from her nap. She was a sweaty mess (the hair!). She immediately wanted to hold Elin.

I picked up this puzzle at Goodwill a couple weeks ago. It was $3. 1500 pieces later and Viggo and Nate had it all done! The fact that there weren't any pieces MIA was remarkable in and of itself with Svea wandering around the puzzle, and I confess I stepped on it a few times and messed it up and sent pieces flying around (sorry!).

Viggo poses with Elin. He loves hanging out by her bouncy seat with her. Usually he and Svea fight over who gets to sit the closest.

Our littlest Swedish flicka :)