Once in a while, I have a bad idea.

Friday night, we were bored. Bored. Bored. Bored. So I said to the kids: "Hey, why don't we camp out in the backyard tonight?" (The look that Eric gave me was a cross between please-tell-me-you-didn't-just-say-that and CRAP.) After all, the temperature was sitting around 96 degrees with an expected low around 78. We're wimps. We like our low humidity and AC.

But, in an attempt to make cherished childhood memories, Eric reluctantly set up the tents and we hauled out every blanket, pillow and cushion we could find to make things cozy.

A little after 10pm, we got settled into our sleeping arrangements - kids in one tent, mom & dad in the other - and tried to go to bed.

Gus & Bea giggled and played flashlight games for the first 45 minutes before dozing off, while Eric & I laid there like steamed rice, sticking to ourselves and trying to catch a breeze coming through the tent vents. Not NEARLY enough air to cool things off.

Between the heat, humidity, bugs, street noise, occasional fireworks, and the bright full-moon light, I don't know that I ever really fell asleep. And when Bea woke up at 2am with a tummy ache and a fever, she and I called it "quits" and went inside. The boys remained outside until 6am when the birds and sunshine woke them much earlier than we all would have liked on a Saturday morning.

So we tried camping. Cross that off the list of: Things Parents Should do with Their Kids at Least Once.

PS.
Here's comedian Jim Gaffigan's take on camping (and waking up, and bacon!) Thanks Madeline for sharing this with me. It couldn't be more true or more funny.

I think that was Michael Bublé we saw.

I really couldn't tell from where I was sitting.

My sister, Sharon, and I went to see Michael Bublé in concert last Wednesday at the Intrust Bank Arena. Our brother, Ken, had originally bought the tickets last February, but he and his wife couldn't make it, so they sold them to us.

Needless to say, the seats were not ideal - three rows from the top, on the very farthest left-side of the stage. (My camera's 10x zoom lens got a real workout that night.) The view in our section was so bad, that ten minutes after the concert began, an usher came up and started moving people to better seats that were still open below. The entire two rows behind us got to move, but not us. What a bummer!

Despite the nosebleed seats, the concert was very good. (Check out the photo of the two girls dancing in front of us....they thoroughly enjoyed the music, and the wine being sold at the concessions.)

Michael Bublé is a fabulous crooner with a very funny Canadian wit. And if I wasn't already in love with Harry Connick, Jr., I would definitely be a big fan of Bublé. But nobody can take the place of my Harry. Speaking of which, when is he going on tour again?

Yep, that's the very top row of Intrust Bank Arena folks!

"See grandma, you just touch the monkey."

Our 3-year-old Bea enjoyed showing her 73-year-old Grandma Nette how to use the iPad this weekend. Her favorite preschool app is called "Lunchbox".

I never imagined that Eric's new toy would become our go-to-gadget for bedtime with Bea. We're able to read books, play puzzles and do all kinds of preschool games with it. In fact, it's the only incentive (bribe) that gets her to take a bath and get ready for bed. Which is increasingly difficult on these long summer days when the sun doesn't go down until 9:30!

iFudge

For Father's Day this year, I combined two of Eric's loves - fudge & anything made by Apple.

I know it's corny, but he thought it was funny. And he ate it. Well, not ALL of it. He's slowly nibbling away at the 4-pound slab. The man loves his fudge, but this could take a while. (His real Dad's Day present will be the new Apple iPhone 4 - due out this week.)

We ended Father's Day with a "family date" to see Toy Story 3. Gus and I both cried, and Bea clapped & danced at the end - it really was that good.

Love and hugs to our fudge-eating, Apple-loving, one-heck-of-a-dad, Eric.

Peace, love & sunshine

Summer's here. Eat it up!

umBEArella

We've had a lot of rain lately.

And yesterday evening, we had more.

So I gave Bea her umbrella and told her to go play,

then I grabbed the camera and followed her.

Up and down the street gutters in her bare feet,

until Eric and Gus joined her to look for worms.

The Giving Tree.

As long as I can remember, this Hackberry tree in Eric's parents' backyard has provided both shade & swing. In fact, Eric remembers building a tree house in it with his brothers when he was barely big enough to hold a hammer. So, that means it has to be 50+ years old.

I just love that Gus & Bea still get to make fun memories on a lazy summer afternoon under that tree, swinging with their Grandpa D.

Now Showing

Eric's retro-inspired, walnut cabinet TV stand is now done and looks beautiful in the downstairs playroom. (Glad to finally get that TV off the floor - I could just see one of the kids doing a summersault into the screen...)

It's the first piece of furniture in our house made of walnut. Hummm...I think I like it. Eric seems to go through "wood" phases. When we first dated & married, he made everything out of oak. Then, about 10 years ago he started working in mostly cherry. And now it's walnut. We are nothing, if not eclectic in this house.

The cabinet drawers are nice and deep (and dovetailed, of course.) They're perfect for holding lots of DVDs, Wii games or stuffed animals that Miss Bea likes to hide. And the two shelves hold our cable box, DVD player and Wii, with room to spare for the next, must-have electric device.

Stop by for a movie sometime!

This party is brought to you by the letter "A" and the number "2."

Ava Lofgreen is only 2, but she likes to party.

OK. So maybe it's her mom that likes to party. But whatever the case, I've had the pleasure of doing Ava's birthday party invitations the last two summers - both of them pool parties.

This year's birthday theme was ELMOPOOLOOZA, so I made red, furry Elmo-face postcards. And last year's party invite was a mini BEACH BABY magazine featuring the bathing beauty, Ava. (The beach baby photos were taken by Lisa Hardin of L. Hardin Portrait Design - one, a-FREAKIN'-mazing photographer, folks. No joke.)

Oh so fun. And how cute is this little gal? I just love incorporating a current photo of the birthday girl with her party invites - lets everyone see how much she's grown. Happy Birthday, Ava!