What was that? You wanted a really long post about our whole entire summer??
Coming right up!
A few days after we got back from our trip Chase's parents came to visit for the 4th of July. We hit up the beach...
and then headed to Shoreline Park to watch the fireworks.
Jane was hilarious. She was so excited for the fireworks, and when they finally began she dove to the ground as fast as she could, barely summoning up the courage to peek every now and then. At one point she did climb into my lap and that made her feel brave enough to watch for 10-15 seconds. After the finale we all began to clap, and Jane leaped into the air, crying "I did it!" then immediately hit the deck as a few rogue fireworks went off. The next day she couldn't stop talking about the "pretty fireworks in the sky" and how much she liked them. Ü
The next day I was so, so lucky to get to attend a wedding with my sister!
The venue was up near Napa, which made me wonder if I could cross off 21. Visit Napa, but I'm going to hold off and see if I can't get up there again to see more of it.
It was so beautiful...
...and so was the bride. Sydney was one of our greatest friends in high school, and we couldn't be more thrilled for her!
This summer we went berry picking at Gizdich Ranch, as tradition dictates.
It was Jane's first time getting to pick berries. You can see that she ate almost everything that she picked, and you can also see why she's earned the nickname "Shaggy J." Her bangs drive me nuts, but they're almost grown out!! And I did have a clip in there originally.
My friend Amanda came to visit, and we went (along with Livia) to a production of Annie Get Your Gun.
37. Go see a musical or play
Livia has been singing "You Can't Get a Man with a Gun" ever since.
One day Livia asked if I would teach her how to stitch.
How could I say no??
Not bad for a first attempt at a running stitch! I was a little nervous to put a needle in her hand, but she did great! And she's asked me to help her stitch some more a few times since.
One Saturday we took the girls bowling. Jane kept trying to kick it.
Proof that I beat Chase! I may or may not have only won because we had bumpers, but hey, I was just utilizing all available resources! We both took turns letting Jane bowl for us, too.
Then I took Livia to a birthday party where the highlight of her life was getting her face painted.
Chase and I went on a date night to an Earthquakes game
#70 Attend a professional soccer game
Livia took gymnastics this summer with her friend Ally, and really loved it.
I had a birthday
We went to Happy Hollow
and saw a great animal show that included a trained alligator (brought out without a leash or muzzle or anything), a hawk that swooped centimeters above Jane's head and scared her half to death, and this cute little Joey and magnificent (though injured) bald eagle.
Chase convinced Liv to go on the roller coaster with him. She tries it about once a year. Still not a fan.
On another date night Chase and I went to the Santa Clara county fair. We decided to go on one crazy ride. Apparently I'm too old for crazy rides. Yeesh.
Chase kept saying how he wanted to win me a stuffed animal and watch me take it back to the car. I told him he could play one game if he wanted...
Dream fulfilled!
Both girls wanetd to wear tiaras on a walk one evening.
Livia has also been doing soccer this summer. Jane's a good spectator.
Weekly play date with these cuties! (Notice the amount of art projects that Livia did one week and hung up herself all over the house. School could not come soon enough!)
Cheese!
Linkedin had a "bring your child to work day"
Both girls had a blast, and Jane surprised us by not being at all bothered by all the bigger kids on the bounce house and tackling the giant inflatable slides with no problem.
Jane's favorite thing to do in the morning
More soccer. Jane did her own accessorizing that day.
We also had swimming lessons and lots of play dates with friends. It was a great summer!
