103 months

We went down to Miami, this time mommy got in on the fun, for a few days before Nana headed back to Georgia. Was a nice change of scenery and to get our of our house! Being at home for the last three months in quarantine with no where to go was getting boring, a new house and new people made the days not feel as redundant. Within an hour of arriving Uncle Mikey was ready to go out on the boat and by 4pm we were eating chips and catching fish! J is the little water girl and seeing her love for the boat and the water made me smile. While the other were more interested in eating snacks she was more interested at first in catching fish, she cast and caught her first fish, I couldn't get her to touch the shrimp to bait her own hook. Then she joined the others and their snack club while the adults got to fish for a little while uninterrupted! We went out to the ocean to watch the sunset and she caught her first baby yellow tail. We had a nice time on the boat, we caught lots of fish and some to bring home to cook, I don't think the kids hit their pillows until almost 11pm that night, and of course they were up by 7:30am! Mommy and Aunt Boo tie dyed the kids shirts, they were supposed to help but when we saw what the dye was doing to our hands we decided to keep them away from it other wise we'd have colorful kids! They got to pick their colors and what went where, when they saw them finished they loved them and couldn't wait to put them on. The kids were waterlogged this trip between the boat and the pool, if we weren't doing one we were doing the other. We couldn't leave Miami without a second trip on the boat, this time the fish weren't biting so we hung out at the sandbar instead, J enjoyed floating in the water looking for critters. We found a giant stingray that she followed for some time, was neat that she got to see it up close but was surprised she wasn't scared of it, she is braver than I thought she would be! 

While we were in Miami the girls finally got to meet cousin J! Corona virus kept them from meeting her earlier this year and we were fortunate everyone was healthy enough to have a short visit with her. She hasn't had much interaction with other kids and was so excited when she saw the girls and so happy to spend the afternoon playing with them. I love watching them with babies as they get older, kinda makes me want another one but then I quickly snap out of it as we have our freedom to do what we want! I think J would take a baby and specifically a brother if she had her choice!

The girls have taken over G&G's house, the guest room has officially become theirs too since no one comes to visit, they both love the BIG king bed and that they can fit as many pillows and stuffed animals as they want in the bed! They love taking all of the pillows from all over the house, building forts and having pillow fights with Grandpa. They love Grandpa's BBQ's and Grandma is now making them salad bars and having them try different things besides Caesar salad and broccoli!

We spent 4th of July just like every other weekend since the beginning of quarantine, swimming and bbqing, but this time we brought in some sparkler action once it got dark. I thought the girls would have been more scared holding fire but they weren't and 6 boxes of sparklers later they were still asking for more, note to self, buy more next year! We were able to watch the neighborhood fireworks from daddy's office window and stay away from the mosquito's. After 6 weeks with us and two trips to Miami it was time for Nana to head back to Georgia, the girls enjoyed her extended visit with us and know they are going to miss her, we don't know when we will see her again but hopefully soon!

They continued with their on-line art classes this month, a couple of them were more self directed to where they did almost the entire lesson by themselves. They had fun painting the jellyfish, a waffle man and doing their abstract watercolor piece, their little portfolios are filling up fast! They've really been into playing with their American Girl dolls and I as lucky enough to score them a bunk bed and some living room furniture for pretty cheap on a resale board. I didn't tell them and they got so excited when we went to "run an errand" and they saw what I was loading into my car,  one of the beds was missing its cover, thank goodness I have lots of fabrics and the ability to sew one, best $30 I've spent in a long time! J and her long legs were struggling with her bike so it was time for an upgrade, this time daddy decided she needed a better bike and after waiting 4 weeks for it to come in her bike finally arrived! She was so excited she got the same one as her friend and that they have matching bikes, we had to teach her how to use the gears, now to get her to let us raise the seat a little more to give those poor legs more room!

Here are the pictures from the month.