our 4th of july

we spent our 4th of july staying cool at the pool. we have had some super hot 100+ degree temps here in NC lately and have been spending a lot of time indoors keeping cool. we knew it was time to get outside and enjoy some of the beautiful and HOT weather, so what better way to do so than to hang out at the pool. 

the pool we always go to is about 30 minutes away from out house, but they have a great kid's pool that my kids love. their kid's pool is HUGE and is no deeper than 2 feet all the way across. plus, they allow you to bring your own water toys. i also love that there is an indoor pool as well. it actually started thundering and raining breifly while we were there, so we just went inside until the storm passed. 

this pool also allows food and drinks, so we packed quick snack and drinks to take with us to hold us over until dinner. so many pools have such strict rules and only want you to buy the food they have for sale, just to make a few extra bucks. although the basic rules are pretty solid and lifeguards are on constant duty, i don't feel like i am being ripped off. it cost us $10 for all of us to get in for a full day of fun. 

today we are being lazy and recuperating from all the sun and fun. i actually got sunburned on my back. ouch!

are you still recovering from your 4th of july fun?

joni - sixcherriesontop (at) gmail (dot) com | twitter | facebook | pinterest | instagram: mamacherry

settling into summer

none of us really wanted to trade our yearly trip for a new A/C unit, but that's what grown ups do right?

making responsible decisions stinks!

now that we have had to cancel our summer vacation for something much "cooler", we have begun to accept that just because we won't be going away doesn't mean we can't have fun right here at home.

already, we have been spending a lot of time on our back porch and in the kiddie pool. a whole summer of fun for just $19.95 and 2 hours of lung power to blow it up. actually, i cheated, so it was more like 30 minutes of huffing and puffing, 5 minutes of thinking, and another 10 minutes of my hair dryer on the cool setting.

elijah is the splasher, phoenix is the relaxer, and tyler...good gosh, the child thinks she's a deep sea diver in the middle of the atlantic ocean. she is definitely my little ramona quimby.

summer is the season of birthdays around here as well. just yesterday was mackenzie's birthday and then in august comes elijah and tyler. i can hardly believe elijah is nearly two. how quickly he has grown from a dependent newborn to a little person.

his latest loves...trains, blueberries, and being naked.

 

he loves these awesome snacks from crispy green too. 100% fruit...freeze-dried fruit. no sugars, preservatives, or anything fake added. great for on the go (or hanging out by the pool)!

as long as he has these he will eat any fruit. on most days he won't eat any kind of fruit except blueberries, bananas, and cantaloupe. with these, he will eat them all. you seriously need to run out and get crispy green snacks for your little picky eater!

while jason is still away working out of town, we have enjoyed sleeping curled up together in our living room floor and have even knocked out a few bucket list items including a wizard of oz slumber party. we are already planning our christmas in july for next month and are really looking forward to it.

we won't make it far this summer, but together we will make it fun!

what do you do around your house or in your town that doesn't cost a lot of money and keeps your family active during the summer?

 *all photos taken with my point and shoot.

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