Happy August!

August was extra fun because Neil's family came to visit! Lily waited to have her birthday party until they were here to celebrate. She wanted a "Camp Kids" themed birthday, so we had camp/outdoor themed games,  a cute firefly craft, and s'mores flavored cupcakes.

Working on the puzzle Grandma sent for Lily's birthday

We love our Lily! She is imaginative, passionate and a good big sister. She loves to read (graphic novels are a new favorite), do crafts, and play with friends. She is doing great with piano and dance and is a pro at riding her bike! Can't believe she's already seven!

Of course we had to go to Hershey Park

Neil had a Nursing conference in DC so we headed down together to spend more time with family! First we went to see The Lion King in a movie theater in Maryland, then had dinner at a nice restaurant (the neighboring diners complimented the kids on their good behavior), then went to our hotel. Neil's family were staying in DC at the convention hotel, but we stayed at a more affordable place near the University of Maryland. The kids loved getting to sleep on the sofa bed with a tv right there in the same room! I loved that our room was separated from the living area so we could all sleep better. Once we got up and had a delicious hotel breakfast (smoothies! vanilla waffles! cheesy eggs!) we headed into DC to see the sights with Rebecca, Kaden and Lexi. We used the free bus system to get around to the monuments and national mall and that was really nice. We did a fair bit of walking too and it was pretty hot and humid. The kids complained a little but were mostly good sports. 

I really loved the WWII memorial. We were allowed to put our feet in, like the soldiers who celebrated the end of the war by dancing in the fountains of Europe. 

We're so happy they got to come out East and that we could spend time with them!

Later in August we went to a baseball game since we'd gotten some tickets from a blood drive, and there would be post game fireworks. We had a great time!

We also traded in our trusty Sonata (it was starting to have some issues) for a new Prius!

The girls were very excited to start school!