May 26

Since Chris got all of the flooring installed yesterday, he was able to spend Memorial Day relaxing and playing with the kids. 

 First, he took Daisy on a long-awaited date. Back in January, Chris took Caleb on a special Daddy/Caleb date to the Magic House, and he promised Daisy that he would take her on a Daddy/Daisy date soon. Daisy chose bowling. But then life got in the way, and Daisy's date didn't happen. Last Thursday, I dropped Daisy off in childcare at a meeting I was attending. The babysitter said, "Come in, Daisy! You can bowl with us!" Daisy looked up at her, pouted, and said, "Daddy took Caleb to the Magic House. I chose bowling."

Of course, when I relayed this to Chris he felt terrible. Happily, the next day a coupon for bowling popped up in my email inbox (I knew I subscribed to those emails for a reason!), so Chris took Daisy today. They bowled, stopped to watch a waterfall, went to one restaurant for some fruit and another for lunch and a milkshake, and had a generally splendid time.

Chris texted me a few pictures:

I know it's dark, but can you see the grin on her face? And the ball about to hit the pins? The combination of ramp and bumpers meant that Daisy was a very successful bowler.

Oh. My. Goodness. I just love this photo. I can tell how she is relishing her special time with Daddy. 

One of the reasons we put off this date was that Chris and I both thought Daisy didn't know what she was talking about. We thought she would hate bowling, and it would be terrible and a waste of money.

This picture shows me just how wrong we were, and I am going to try my best to have more faith in her in the future. This girl knows what she wants, and I  love it.

(Side note: the outfit Daisy is wearing was a birthday gift from my Aunt Deb. Every time she wears it, Daisy says, "The skirt has shorts built in! That's in-saint!"

I love it.)

After naps (or not - I'm not really sure what happened) for the big kids and a trip to the fabric store (and a surprise downpour that drenched us!) for Lily and me, we all went to the neighborhood pool. We didn't join the pool last year, but we are so excited to use the heck out of it this year. After the rain, it was pretty cool out, but the kids didn't mind at all. At one point, Caleb was blue and covered in goosebumps, but he didn't complain once.

Lily and I hung out in the shallow splashing area. She was so happy! Can you see the ripples around her little hand as she splashed in the water?

Also, I apologize for the man in the background. I'm pretty sure he wasn't doing anything inappropriate.)

Happy girl! She had water to play in and big kids to watch. Who could ask for more?

Then we headed home to grill our dinner. While Chris manned the grill and gave Lily an occasional push in the swing, the big kids ran and played.

When I checked on Caleb and Daisy and saw this, my heart melted. 

They were riding around on the tricycle together, both wearing crowns I had picked up in the dollar section at the fabric store today. They weren't just sitting there, either. Working together, they scooted that thing all over the yard!

I love that King Caleb has his sword and Queen Daisy is still in her swimsuit.

It appears that Caleb is the brains of the operation, directing Daisy where to go, and Daisy is the brawn.

Kind of like this photo from Easter:

The dynamic of their relationship makes my heart happy. I love these kids.

Meanwhile, Chris held Lily so I could photograph Caleb and Daisy's adorableness. They looked so cute I tried to take their picture, but Lily was distracted by a noise in the sky.

Chris pointed out that it was an airplane.

And Lily waved hi to the airplane! I love that Lily is reaching an age where she has thoughts and plans, and can express and achieve them, to a certain extent. It's like a window into her personality has suddenly opened up, and we can know and understand her more each day. 

I love this girl!

At dinner, we realized that Caleb was feeling sad that Chris took Daisy on a date, but not him. Since we had nothing else planned for the night, and since Caleb ate his dinner quickly and cheerfully, Chris decided to take Caleb out on a date, too.

Guess where they went?

Bowling.

Funny children.