Samantha's new teeth

Samantha has finally become interested in Cheerios! Everyone knows how occupying this is and so how wonderful it is!
I was trying to capture Samantha's top teeth, which have been making their way in for at least a week. Although I didn't ever really get the teeth, I got some fun pictures. Her top teeth have broken through and working their way all the way down. So, now, she has almost all four center teeth (two on top, two on bottom), and our other girls didn't even start teething until 9 months!

Samantha and the boys

Decker and William are both such good "big" cousins, especially considering everyone else is a girl! My girls adore both of them. Decker is 6 ft 3 in or taller - I can't keep up he grows so fast - but isn't this the sweetest? Samantha enjoys his attention so much, and she looks so itty-bitty with him.

Reading with Aunt Heather

The girls have a new favorite book: The Three Little Pigs. Aunt Heather is their favorite reader and has even taught them the song. "Who's afraid of the big, bad wolf, the big, bad wolf, the big bad wolf? Who's afraid of the big bad wolf? Tra, la, la, la, la!"

A Visit with Aunt Emilie and Uncle Chris

We were so delighted to have a visit with Aunt Emilie and Uncle Chris. Since Uncle Chris works in El Paso, they came down on Sunday afternoon, spent the night with us, and Aunt Emilie played with us all day! Isn't this funny? Samantha decided that Uncle Chris' feet were a perfect spot for relaxing. She was so happy there.

Swimming at Gramma's

Decker has been a great help in the pool with the girls. Both girls are swimming really well, with just their vests on. Anna Kate is even jumping in without any help.

Decker worked and worked with the girls - helping them jump in. And now, Anna Kate jumps in all by herself.

Camping at Watkins Glen

Anna Kate and Dave have been making a plan for us to go camping since April. I was delighted when friends offered to let us borrow their pop-up tent. I might never go back to a tent. We haven't been camping since Lucy was about 4 months old, but it was great. We were so glad to have our good friends, J.W. and Stephanie and their three boys join us. Their boys are each the same age as our girls.
Jack, Anna Kate and Lucy in front of the pop-up.

Samantha and Titus were born just days apart.

We camped at Watkins Glen; yes, home to the Watkins Glen race track. We hiked the Gorge Trail on Wednesday. It is about 1.5 miles up, and Anna Kate and Jack walked the whole way! Steph and I were ready to head back down; it was getting close to lunch time, and we didn't pack sandwiches. Dave and J.W. pushed us on, and we were rewarded with a shuttle ride back down. Back to camp in time for lunch! There were about 14 waterfalls on the hike!>

Lucy on the trail.

We stopped and played in a stream.

Back at the camp, Anna Kate and Jack shared a chair. They were pretty much inseparable the whole time!
Our last day there, we hit the fantastic playground!

Look at Samantha tackle that. She was not very excited about using it "properly." Nope, she wanted to stand up.
There's Josiah, who is just a bit younger than Lucy.

strawberry ice cream, of course

Even Samantha has enjoyed the pool (even during a re-fill). Isn't this funny?
What did we do with all those strawberries? I made some strawberry ice cream. Mmmmm.

Daddy decided even Samantha should have some.