Thanks, Luke

I know I'm biased, but my nephew is pretty stinking cute. I decided that he deserves a post of his own since he's so sweet to tag along on all the girls' adventures.



With that logic, this post should actually probably be dedicated to Tim and Krissi as they're the ones bringing him along. He just kind of lays there and smiles.

"Brootie, Letsi and Lutey"

I just can't get enough of seeing the cousins together. And since you're reading this, you're either humoring me through it or you also think they're pretty cute. Brooke and Lexi genuinely seem to enjoy each other and I know it won't be long before Luke is tagging along, being put in a tutu and having his toenails painted.


"Swimming." Lexi's at the stage where she makes up a song about anything and Brooke is happy to sing and dance along.



Slumber Party!...Until 9 pm, when I took Brooke down to our room. Maybe in a couple more years.



Record drops fall of 2027. They'll have a chubby-cheeked drummer by then. (To thank you for humoring me, I'll spare you the videos that I took.)

Gigi's

We went to Gigi's for lunch yesterday. Brooke enjoyed the chicken salad, but she LOVED the jello.



Both hers and Lexi's.


My momma with her grandbabies.


Gigi with the "Timmerman" grandkids.


Lexi took this one. Not bad!

The Zoo(s)

We spent some time in St. Louis last week visiting my family. We went to the zoo on Wednesday. The weather was great - sunny and breezy - very unlike a June day in St. Louis.


The girls were in their matching shirts and pigtails. We have to enjoy dressing them like this while we can.


Brooke got to pet sting rays and see penguins up close, but I think her favorite animal was the brown bear. She kept saying, "Roar!"



We had quite a group. My mom, Krissi and Luke are missing from this photo.



Tired girls!


The day before, the weather was pretty gloomy, so we took the kids to Chuck E. Cheese's for lunch. My memories of the place are of a dark room with bright lights and lots of loud bells and whistles constantly going off, so I wasn't sure how Brooke would handle it.


She loved it. Especially the carousel.



Because it was a weekday, it wasn't too crowded (and not nearly as loud/chaotic/crazy as I remember) so the kids could do pretty much anything they wanted. Lexi bounced from game to ride and Brooke was her little shadow.



And of course this little guy was there, just chilling and looking adorable.

Pigtails!

We officially have pigtails. They make her look so big - which makes me happy and sad all at the same time.


Aunt Krissi decided to make it her mission to get pigtails on Brooke and that mission was successful. Brooke actually sat really well while she put them in and didn't even try to take them out.


Of course, when I tried to do it again the next day, she was wiggling all over and pulled them out 2 minutes later. Because I'm determined to at least semi-regularly style her hair, this is a battle of wills that she's not going to win (famous last words, right?).

Happy Father's Day

Brooke, you're such a lucky girl to have a Daddy who loves you as much as yours does. He works very hard to provide for us and to make sure that we're happy - physically, emotionally, and spiritually.


He also loves to have fun with you.


And be the one to introduce you to new things.


And sometimes he may like to cuddle more than you or I do, but that's how he shows us he loves us, so let's just go with it.


And on top of that, both your Grandpa and Papa T love you very much and would do anything for you.

I couldn't ask for a better husband, father, or father-in-law and consider Brooke and myself two very lucky girls today.

Summertime is Here Again

Summer began for us about a week and a half ago and we certainly hit the ground running. I've used the time off to catch up on much needed time with friends cleverly disguised as "playdates." We've been everywhere from the Moron Arboretum to the North Avenue Beach (Sidenote: A fun experience, but NOT worth the travel time to regularly make the trek. And I realized that I'm much closer to being middle-aged than I am a teenager.)

We've been on the go almost every day, but you're going to have to take my word. Because save for a couple of bad camera-phone pics, I have nothing to show for it. Instead, I'll leave you with some photos of Brooke's last couple of weeks hanging out at Grammie Deb's and promise to work harder at documenting the rest of our summer.

Here she is with Grandma Audie. Doesn't she look guilty?


Hanging out with Uncle Dave.


Telltale signs of Sleepy Brooke - stroking a "blankie" (or sock) and making a sucking motion. I hope she does this for a long time. It's so cute!


Hanging out with someone her own size.


Brooke and Ozzie waiting for Aunt Jamie to come home. Matt's parents were kind enough to watch Oz a couple of times when we had house showings while I was at work.


So sweet.


And fun!


We also celebrated Uncle Mike's birthday a couple of weeks ago and Brooke was happy to help him with the candles.



And cake.


We're headed to St. Louis this week. I'm trying to brace myself for the humidity. I'll come back with lots of pictures!