Summer fun!

The kids have been playing with the neighbors a lot this year.  Reggie and Carson are the closest in age and have made some big sand creations and built a treehouse using 3 trees!  He worked really hard on it and is so excited to finally have a treehouse (he has been wanting one in Livermore, but it is pretty low on the priority list!).  They are going to be working on the walls soon, so it is a little safer!  Ainsley has found a friend in their 12 year old daughter, Cami.  She has 4 brothers, so doesn’t mind playing with the younger girls.  They draw and dance and have all kinds of fun.  Ainsley told me last night that she wanted to live with her because she is so nice :o).  They are really good kids and a nice family and I’m glad the kids have fun with their new friends.
The girls....

 Tree fort!

We’ve gone on a few walks in the woods since our arrival.  Liha thought it would be fun to find the old beaver dam.  That turned into quite an adventure!!!  We really had to weave in and out of bushes, climb over fallen trees, cross streams, but we were “on the trail” because we could see the colored flags!  We finally found it and it somehow turned into a manmade structure (the damn that has been holding the lake water steady is rotting and letting way too much water out), but seemed to be doing its job.  The lake had an algae bloom that really made the lake stink and it could have been caused by the warm weather and low lake levels, so it really got people’s attention this year.  K’s foot sunk in some mud and he was not a happy hiker.  Things were better when we found water and got him cleaned up, but he seems to be panicking easily these days, hmmm.  Two hours later, we finally made it back to the car!  Let’s just say they ate a lot for lunch!

We also went down to Everett a couple of Tuesdays to watch the Regal $1 movies and then play at the Rinehardt’s.  They have a nice, big back yard where the kids slip and slide and have all kinds of other fun.  We stayed the night this week and went to Elevated Sportz (many trampoline’s and a large McDonald’s type maze) and the kids got nice and tired out.  

Ryan and I spent a lot of time two weeks ago at the Kirkland house.  It has been the most disappointing experience we’ve had yet.  It made sense that a single guy would have been easier on the house than a whole family, but that wasn’t the case.  He completely let the yard go and stained the carpet, both upstairs and downstairs and we had to replace it downstairs.  There were lots of other issues, but the main thing is he didn’t take responsibility for anything (even though he had taken over 100 pictures when he moved in and it was pretty clear who was the cause) and we believe he lied to us about having a pet.  It has been a good learning experience for us and I even shared with the kids how lying and not taking responsibility for things impacts other people, so not a total loss.  The new family signed a 3 year lease, so if all goes according to plan, we won’t have to deal with this for a few years which will be a really nice break for us!  
While I was down at the house working I got to visit baby Marley!  She arrived on Tuesday, July 9th, and weighed a whopping 10 lbs., 6 oz.!  Forget the newborn clothes.  

More fun pictures from the lake:

 Dad's birthday...not sure what was said, but the faces say it was something crazy from grandpa...

Albino deer!

 So happy to have a "pet".  Not sure Maui agrees...

 We went to the maze again this year and we got lost for quite a while.  The kids enjoyed the slide, but grandma treated everyone to ice cream, so according to K, he would go back there for the ice cream, but not all that walking around in the trees!

The kids went to Grandma Peggy's again this weekend and went to see Despicable Me 2 and they loved it!  I had a nice day shopping around and then a night out with the girls.  Jill invited me to Kirkland Uncorked (a wine tasting event downtown) and it was great!  
The dynamic between K & Ainsley was a bit tough this morning and Reggie and Khalif were crying in the car 5 minutes after I got them.  Reggie was tired and K was a mess.  Things were good after K had a nap....they played outside all afternoon and were in the water for a couple hours after dinner without any issues!  I kinda missed them, but after the first 10 minutes with them, I was ready for them to go far away.  I'm glad things were better this evening!  We had a nice fiesta with the neighbors tonight, lots and lots of good food.  The weather has continued to be beautiful and there's nothing better than being at the lake when the sun is shining!