A few weeks ago, a nearby church had a vacation Bible school that I thought might be fun for the kids. I didn't realize that Dorien was too young to go, which just about fit his summer experiences up to that point. Poor kid. His cousin, and also our neighbor, Tagg, was having the same kind of summer. So on the last day of VBS, Aunt Anna did something extremely nice and took Tagg and Dorien to the zoo. Just the boys. They had a blast.

Tagg is a few months younger than Dorien, and they have begun to really enjoy hanging out over the past few months. It's been a process, because for so long, Tagg attached himself to the "older kids", Brooklyn and August, and didn't see Dorien as a playmate. That seems to be changing.

The two of them are in the same class at church, too, and I have seen them becoming more like buddies this summer.

Good times and photo opps abound at the Little Rock Zoo!

When it came time to choose positions for this photo, Dorien informed Tagg that "he could be the woman." Tagg agreed, and they make a hilarious pair!

Meanwhile, as animals were being seen by Dorien and Tagg, I was overseeing the VBS wrap-up festivities that involved a whole auditorium of screaming kids and a chicken. It also involved one of the more chaotic "pick-ups" I've ever seen...I'm sure there will be no shortage of parents suggesting a different format next year. 

We managed to safely exit with all the right kids - including cousin Avery. And we pulled in a friend for a picture. Ah, VBS. The smell of church hallways, animal crackers, juice boxes and sweaty kids. Some memories never fade.

After starting over with our flock of chickens, it has been a waiting game of when they'll start laying. The first eggs typically arrive around 21 weeks of age, give or take a few weeks.

Every now and then, we let our girls (dog and hens) roam the back yard together. 

Thankfully, the hens and Singer don't mind each other.

They rarely ever wander up this far from their coop, but occasionally they'll tag along after us and end up hanging around the kitchen door. Which, of course, is highly amusing for us. They like to cock their heads and peer up at us or try to sip from Singer's water bowl.

Here is our first egg! So tiny!

They usually start out teensy weensy and get larger as the hens get more experienced.

The Auracana-Americanas began laying first, which makes more sense, as the Light Brahmas get so much bigger - so developmentally they're a little behind their coop sisters.

A day or two after our first egg, a second hen began laying. It's interesting to see the variation in hues between the two hens. For over a week or two, there were just two hens laying-  both Auracanas (which lay the "Easter Eggs"). 

Here's a comparison of a "first egg" and a more normal sized egg.  Although, the second egg could also just be a double yolk-er, which is also common when hens begin laying.

Finally, what we've all been waiting for!

A few more weeks in, we now have some Light Brahma's laying (the brown eggs) which makes for some beautiful color variation in our egg cartons.  As of today, not all the ladies are laying yet, but we know at least 6 are. We have been getting about 5-6 eggs per day. It is so much fun to go check for eggs and find them waiting for us!

At the beginning of July, Kyle's younger sister, Kara, flew in from the West Coast to introduce her boyfriend, Daniel, to everyone.  Kyle's parents live in the country outside Fayetteville, so it makes for a beautiful early morning running locale. 

I was enchanted to find a herd of sheep grazing in a pasture. I later drove by the same pasture to show August, and there was no sign of the sheep. Mysterious. Or they just retreat to shadier pastures after a certain hour.

The area around where Kyle's parents live is truly beautiful. Rolling hills, farmland, cows...it's serene.

Looking back across a meadow towards Northwest Arkansas.

As I returned home after my run, the sun was beginning to make its presence known, and the deer that had been grazing were starting to return to the woods.

We had an unexpected adventure on our visit! Grandad (Kyle's dad) was giving Kyle and the kids a tour of their new RV and one of the kids turned the deadbolt - which apparently was broken.  We realized this when they tried to get out of the RV and the deadbolt wouldn't budge.  They were locked in. Kara, Daniel and I tried to unlock it from the outside with the key, but it had no effect. We even dismantled the whole locking mechanism and could not budge the bolt from the lock. It was no small amount of disconcerting. I knew, of course, that there must be a second exit point from the RV, but it was still causing my stomach to lurch feeling locked away from my babies. 

There came a point when it was time to quit messing with the lock and just get everyone out of there. 

So we had Kyle and his Dad pop open the emergency window and we lowered everyone out one by one. The kids found it incredibly exciting! 

Thank goodness for emergency windows!

It was an experience that I'm pretty sure the kids won't forget anytime soon.

Once safely out of the RV, the kids rode bicycles, tricycles, drew on the sidewalk with chalk and just had a great time.

Kara and Daniel

Wyeth and his Aunt Kara

Dorien snuggled up to Daniel.

Freshly showered and ready for bed, but the kids needed one last hug from Kara and Daniel.

Sweet Wyeth munching on some Cheerios.  

Nan and Grandad's house has a wonderful long porch that extends the length of the front of the house and looks out over their beautiful front yard. It was a lovely place to sit and watch the kids playing.

Wyeth was happy just to clamber around on the porch railings.

Kyle's older sister, Beth, came by with her two daughters. Reagan and Brooklyn tested out some new "Monster" feet from Nan and Grandad.

Wyeth wanted to sit on top of Kyle's bike. For just a second.

Because August's birthday was just around the corner and Reagan had been sick on her birthday, we did a joint celebration for the two of them. Cupcakes and cake. 

Cheeses all around!

Reagan tests out a new bow and arrow, while Dorien looks around suspiciously. 

Does anyone know if she's practiced before this??

A tire swing is a timeless enjoyment.

Getting practice tottering around...

August, Dorien and Brooklyn built the tallest block towers possible...

With a teensy bit of help from Wyeth who then proceeded to topple the super-tall-towers!

Trying on a hat before we headed back home.

Kara and Kyle swing with Wyeth while catching up on each other's lives. 

So....where'd the month of July go? That's my question for you. It seems to have disappeared.

In a flurry of summer activities, I have made enjoying our summer my priority and this blog has suffered. For that, I apologize. To bring you up to speed on some goings-on in our lives, here is a smattering of randomness from our life. 

If you're wondering what's the deal with the sewing pattern above, I'll tell you.

Over the past year or so, my Grandma Barbara has been cleaning out her house and has found boxes of vintage sewing patterns that she no longer needs.  She is a seamstress, or was, once upon a time, and used to make most of my mom, her sister and her own clothing. In sifting through the boxes, which was no small task, I found some absolute jewels.  

I love vintage clothing. I love the simplicity of the lines, the clean cuts, the short skirts, the sheath dresses...there are so many great styles from when my Grandma was buying patterns. I chose to photograph a few of my favorites so you can see what I'm talking about. 

Are these dresses not awesome? Once my kitchen renovation is complete and I can use (heck, at this point it'd be great to simply lay EYES on) my dining room table, I'll haul out my sewing machine and attempt to create some outfits for Brooklyn. 

One thing I found interesting is that my Grandma and my Great-Grandma apparently ordered tons of patterns through magazines. They would come in these pastel colored envelopes from McCalls or something with the pattern enclosed inside. They're so neat!

Sorry this picture is side-ways...I took the picture with my iphone just to send it to my sister-in-law and didn't realize it would be sideways.

I find it hilarious that they put that little disclaimer on the pattern envelope:

"Adaptable for Chubbies"

Priceless.

I haven't looked lately, but I'm betting they no longer include that disclaimer. If anything, they probably go the other way..."Adaptable for Skinnies".

I certainly have a hard time finding things that fit my twiggy children.

These dresses just speak of another time. I look at the pictures and think, "Leave it to Beaver...Nick at Night television". I get this mental picture of cookie cutter neighborhoods with pristine lawns and children riding tricycles down the sidewalks while their mothers put dinner on the table. Idyllic, and probably unrealistic, but that's the image conjured up in my mind by these sweet dresses.

Fast forward a few decades, and here are my own sweet dudes - decked out in goggles and ski hats - their version of aviator gear. And their matching shirts. 

It is so fun watching these boys play together. 

They have a game they call "Buds". It's not really a game, per se, it's just their version of play, really.  They go around pretending to be worker men or business men or men doing manly things and they call each other Bud the whole time. 

"Hey Bud, wanna go drive this tractor with me?"

"Sure Bud, let me just grab my sword and worker boots."

Dorien looks up to August in a way that literally grabs my heart and squeezes it, taking the breath out of me. He adores him.  Thankfully, August is very patient and kind and a superlative big brother. He occasionally loses his patience, but for the most part, he is usually willing to play with Dorien.

Dorien will ask a question of August and then say, "Yeah, that's right, August! Uh-huh!"

August can do no wrong in his eyes.

Roaorr!!!!! 

Kyle took the kids to see the dinosaurs prowling around the Clinton Library.

The kids approved.

August and his "Smoopshie-Poo".

Much to Wyeth's aggravation, August loves to hug and kiss on his littlest brother. Wyeth would rather tackle August.

Can you see the sheer joy on this kid's face? 

Oh my goodness, Dad, this is where BIG PEOPLE SIT!!!!

Don't worry - no driving actually took place.

A sight to bring joy to any mom's heart - kids hard at work creating something together. No fighting. No bickering. Just concentration on making something lovely.

What they're actually working on is a huge activity sheet that came in a Tea Collection order that arrived. I buy lots of their clothes from Tea Collection, and they occasionally send interesting activity books or creative things. This huge sheet was all about India. The kids loved it.

Even Wyeth found a space and got to work.

This is our gym pool. For the first time, we have actually spent time here in the summer!

In previous summers, none of my kids had any swimming ability, so for me to take them to the pool was tantamount to a nervous breakdown (on my part).

Last summer, Brooklyn and August began to get the hang of swimming, and this year, it really all came together for them. They are officially fish.

Dorien, not so much. But, with a kickboard, he's pretty safe. So he toodles around on the shallower side of the rope while Brooklyn and August hang out in deeper waters.

Wyeth....now he's another matter. He LOVES the water, but just doesn't swim yet. 

He is fearless, and will go underwater and come up smiling - water streaming off his eyelashes and off his nose. For reasons that would bore you, the poor kid doesn't have any type of flotation device, other than the occasional kickboard he'll confiscate. Then he'll drape himself over it and kick all over the place.  He knows how to climb out on the side by himself, and I'm working on his floating on his back. I have been trying to schedule some Safety Before Skills classes while he's still teachable and fearless.

The day this picture was taken, I decided to do a late evening dip with the kids. We were pretty much the only people at the pool, and it was extremely relaxing. This was pre-100 degree weather, too. 

As you can see, Dorien loves the water - especially when his kickboard is handy.