Happy Birthday E!

Last weekend was our neighbor, Baby E.'s, 1st Birthday.  1st birthdays are kind of a big deal, and E.'s mom enlisted me to bake the cake and help with the decorations.  I was more than happy to help out!

Cake, decorations, and one happy birthday girl!

Summertime Fun!

The end of July was incredibly busy.  We were going places or hosting visitors or I was making birthday cakes (more on that later).  But it looks like we might be in for a lazy August!  Until then:

fun in the backyard turtle pool

swimming at the Peerless Pool

baby-bathingsuit model?

we had it all to ourselves!

best photo of the summer

watching the horses warm up at the track

West-side Rec sprinkler park

throwing rocks in the stream at Congress Park

on the horse on the carousel

and in the sleigh

A Weekend With Meamaw and Grandpa

Last weekend Meamaw and Grandpa came to visit all the way from North Carolina!  It's been a while since we've seen them, I think since before MiniM.E. could walk, so we were pretty excited they were going to get to see her again!

Of course, while they were here, we had to do the typically Saratoga-y things that MiniM.E. loves like ride the carousel:

seriously, she looks miserable here, but the "sleigh" is her new favorite thing

 feed the ducks

Sit on the steps at the History Museum (?)

with Meamaw

 And throw gravel in the fountain

Bob and his parents also made it to the track, but I was home nap-sitting, so no photos :(

Meamaw and Grandpa also brought MiniM.E. a piggy bank which she lovingly carried everywhere, cuddled in blankets, fed milk to, dropped lots of change in, and called "a cow" or something "kind of like a goat".

playing with Grandpa

Friday morning while Meamaw and Grandpa caught up with their friends, we played in the yard and went to a playground.

Then Friday night we all went to the Saratoga Winery, which, if you live around here and haven't been to, is awesome.  Definitely child-friendly with a great deck and patio and live music and food on Fridays.

playing while waiting for dinner

dancing

 Saturday we spent the morning at Lake Moreau, our favorite swimming spot for the sand and warm water.

And Sunday we made it to brunch at the Iron Roost for brunch.  Despite a 45 minute wait for a table, MiniM.E. was well behaved and we all got to have some great food.

The rest of the day was rainy, so we took a quick trip over to Meamaw and Grandpa's hotel to swim in the pool.  MiniM.E. had a blast and we kept busy until dinner.  They must have worn her out because she went to bed early and we said goodbye until Thanksgiving.  

Thanks for coming Meamaw and Grandpa!

C & H in Saratoga in July

Last weekend C & H drove over from NH to spend a long weekend with us.  Unfortunately, C. is working this summer (summer school...) and didn't have a whole week to spare, but at least we squeezed in a weekend so they could do some of the things they just missed when they came in the spring.

Seems like every time we get together I take fewer and fewer pictures... I suppose it's because every time we are together are kids are running faster and faster... and are hardly ever in the same location-- even when they are, they are rarely still enough for photos...

We spent a lot of naked time in the yard:

And enjoyed time wearing clothes too:

We treated ourselves to a special treat at Stewart's:

We drove to Moreau Lake (no photos from the lake though... two kids + water was too much for a camera!)

The kids were happy just sitting around:

Or going grocery shopping:

We went to the playground at the Spa Park (and the pool, but again, my hands were busy keeping our kids from drowning):

We had to make a visit to Congress Park:

And you can't come to Saratoga in Racing Season without going to the track, so we did our first Race Track Breakfast of the year!