Guatemala Girls June 2013

In the summer months our get togethers usually center around some kind of water activity. This month it was at Roxie’s house and the girls had so much fun with the slip and slide and water sprayers.

I think this picture of Ally sort of walking down the slip-n-slide and getting wet in the spray is hilarious.

Soon they discovered the water sprayers (I hate calling them guns). Ally was quite the serious sprayer – she got everyone else wet and was so intense with it. I was quite proud of her when she took a direct hit in her face and did not cry – just came over for her towel and then took a break. During their time in the sun, she and Roxie giggled and had a lemonade tea party and hid under their towels every time I tried to take their pictures.

Rosa had fun drinking out of her sprayer – I have no idea how or why she liked getting water up her nose like that but she kept doing it!

We missed Alice – but Rosa (zebra print), Gabi (blue floral), Ally (polka dots) and Roxie (cream floral) all had fun!

Another Birthday Party

Ally's friend Angelina turned 6 recently and her parents held a joint birthday party for Angelina and her older sister Francesca who just turned 8. Lots of girls at the party!

And lots of fun:

There was a professional entertainer there who painted every one’s faces and then put on a comedy-music-juggling show.  Ally waited patiently for her turn and decided she wanted her face to look like her friend Daniela’s.  I think it was the red lips that she wanted the most.

 

The 3 swan girls – Daniela on the left, Catalina in the middle and Ally on the right.

In such an Ally move – she had fun getting her face painted and at the party, but the first thing she did when we got home was wash it off!

Friday Night is Movie Night

 

It was a scorcher of a day. So hot I picked Ally up from school and she changed into her bathing suit at school and we went straight over to the park where she played in the fountain with school friends for an hour!

When we got home her swimsuit was all dry and it was time for movie night! She gathered up her favorite special things (4 bears; Pooh, Booey, Flower and Rainbow and 1 Bunny) asked for popcorn and settled in to watch Barbie “Princess and the Pauper” I watched with her, and was surprised with how good it was.

Gardening or Gymnastics?

Recently Becky decided to do some work in our yard. Ally loves gardening so she put her boots and gardening gloves on and went out to help. After a while I checked on them and discovered Ally turning cartwheels and doing handstands.

 

She did pause for a picture and to pull a few weeds.

 

The very next day Ally begged to do more gardening. I was exhausted, and Becky had school work. So I dragged a lawn chair up from the basement and sat down and watched Ally while she weeded. To be honest I did blog while sitting there!

A childhood memory repeated

Alice and her parents came over for dinner, and it was going to be a bath night for Ally. She asked if they could take a bath together – like they used to when they were little. I suggested it to Cheryl, Alice’s mom and they came prepared for that.

I think its obvious that they had a blast! Such big grown up girls now, they can do everything themselves with little help from us.

Bubble Themed Birthday Party

 

Ally’s friend Zach turned 6 recently and he had a bubble themed birthday party at our local park.

The kids made their own bubble blower with tape and straws.

They lined up for a few organized games like – who could blow a bubble the farthest?, Who blew the most bubbles? and Who can catch a bubble?

In what I thought was a pretty cool party favor game, containers were hidden around the park. Each guest had to find the container with his/her name on it. Then each guest got a favor bag and took 1 thing from each container.

That is Max, another friend of Ally’s with Ally at the cupcake stand.

Fun with Lauren

 

Lauren took this one of her and Ally after school fun days. Becky and I just love it – I think its Becky’s favorite picture of the Spring.

 

Lauren recently completed her Master’s Degree  - its in Theater, and her thesis / project was to create the above 3 costumes from scratch – she designed and sewed them all herself. The theme was something about women and empowerment and employment during the 19th century. There is a barmaid, a geisha and someone in royalty. Lauren took Ally with her to school one day to see a class mate’s presentation, and Ally got to see the costumes in person. We were all so happy and thrilled for Lauren. We told her she’s “always been a Masters babysitter to us”. We will miss her everyday presence in our lives next year as she moves on to something else in her professional career. But we are glad she’s going to be staying in the area and is willing to see Ally as an occasional babysitter.

One evening we came home and Lauren with some serious trepidation showed us the portrait Ally drew of Lauren.

I think Lauren was concerned that is how Ally really sees her. Even proud mommy that I am I have to admit it is horrible likeness of Lauren – its an excellent likeness of a witch, especially the one in Snow White who comes to give Snow White the apple. But not of Lauren!