Cute girls

I just wanted to post this picture because I thought it was so cute. We sure love our girls.

Dental visit

We went to the dentist last week, and the girls got these cool toothbrushes. The first day I was happy that they were so excited to brush their teeth, but then I got tired of them asking so much and had to put some restrictions on how often we can brush our teeth. Nikki and I both had cavities. Mike (it's so nice to have your brother be your dentist) said she did a great job. They didn't have to give her any numbing medication, and I didn't know he was going to give me any until he stuck his pre-numbing swab in my mouth. I guess it's good I didn't know beforehand. He is actually the most gentle dentist I've ever been to. I really could hardly feel the needle. Anyway, we're all fixed up, and the girls love brushing, and I'm now becoming an avid flosser. Thanks for the great service, Dr. Bass.

The Vengeance of a Fire Ant

This picture really doesn't do justice to the swelling in Nikki's leg and foot. She got bit by a fire ant Friday evening just above the ankle on the top leg in the picture. The swelling and redness has spread almost to her knee. Last summer she got a couple of bites on her foot, and JW finally gave her a shot of something because her foot was turning purple from swelling so much. Hannah reacts pretty much the same way. Thankfully, they have never stepped on an ant hill. They have also never been stung by a bee or wasp, but it does make me pretty scared to think about what would happen if they were.

A Date to Remember

Not once did Nikki ask to watch a movie today, and the TV stayed off all day long. Miracles do happen!

Slip-n-slide

We bought a swimming pool at the beginning of the summer that got a hole in it within about two weeks, so I've told the girls that we can only get another one if it's under $10. Finally, they saw the slip-n-slide at Wal-Mart yesterday for $7. They can't wait to get back out there tomorrow.

Skating in the laundry room

This morning while I was in the shower Hannah asked me if she could make some more bubbles. I said that was fine and was thinking how wonderful that she is satisfied with her own homemade bubbles and we don't have to go buy any at the store. Then a little while later as I was finishing up my hair she came back in and said she needed to make some more. I didn't think much of it beyond the fact that I was happy the girls weren't needing anything while I was getting ready. As I finished up in the bathroom and came out I realized that they weren't blowing bubbles outside. Sometimes when it's rainy or too hot outside I have let Nikki do bubbles in the laundry room, and that's what they were doing. It did cross my mind that two bottles of bubbles in the laundry room was probably not the best thing, but then they were happy so there are worse problems in life to worry about. Well, I think Hannah ended up making three batches of bubbles. When I heard them say, "Hey, let's go skating," I could only close my eyes, shake my head, and know that this was my fault. By then, there was nothing to do but let them skate. It was pretty funny hearing them crash around in there. I kept waiting for the tears, but they were alright. So tonight when I went in to clean it up I found that not only had she made three batches of bubbles, but she had been filling up three separate containers of bubbles. So much for my parenting supervision. I have never seen such a clean laundry room floor in my life. It took forever to clean it up, and there is still a good chance that the next person to go through will end up on their back.

Seasoned Travelers

Here are the best car riders ever. When Nate got home from work Thursday evening we drove straight through to New York and got there the next morning around 7 am. Then on Sunday we left after church to drive another 12 hours, getting home late that night. Hannah and Nikki got along so well and were just so happy. I was so impressed with how well they did with the long ride.

Palmyra, New York

We got to see the print shop where the Book of Mormon was first published. I thought it was interesting that they said E. B. Grandin only agreed to publish it after his friends assured him that everyone would view it simply as a business venture and not associate him as a sympathizer of Joseph Smith. I wonder what he would think now of what he started with that first publishing.
This is the replica of the log home where the Smiths lived on their 100 acres of farmland in Palmyra, NY.
This is the hearth where Joseph dug up the bricks and hid the plates from one of the many searches of the mob trying to locate them.

Hannah, Nikki, and Kira in the Sacred Grove.

While we were walking through the Sacred Grove it started raining, and I loved the sound of the rain hitting the trees. The rain kept us in the grove a little longer hoping for it to clear up so we wouldn't be soaked on the way to the car. In the end, that didn't matter much because it drizzled off and on for pretty much the rest of the day. It even rained through the pageant, but we wrapped up in blankets and ponchos and enjoyed it anyway. The pageant is incredible. The girls enjoyed it all the way up until they fell asleep. It started at 9:15 pm, so it was a late night for them. When I woke them up the next morning to get ready for church, Nikki was convinced that I had woken her up before morning. I guess she felt like she had just fallen asleep.

It was such a great trip. We met Nate's brother, Steve, and his family in New York and got to see all the sites with them. Hannah and Nikki were excited to meet some new cousins. Even though they have met before, it has been so long that they really didn't know them. They had so much fun with Kira. On the way home, Nikki kept asking where Kira's car was. It will be fun to see them again in November when we go out for Thanksgiving.

Cutie Petuties

The girls are taking a little break on a park bench. While Steve's family went over to the Canadian side of the falls we walked to the aquarium. It was quite a hike for Hannah and Nikki, but they were such troopers. I can't believe I didn't get any pictures at the aquarium of the sea lions. We got to see them do a show, and it was so good. At one point a sea lion was swimming around the tank with a ball balanced on his nose and Nikki said, "Wow, I can't even do that. I wish I was a sea lion." We also got to see them feed the seals, and there was a freaky-looking one with enlarged white eyes. The trainer told us she was blinded from two gunshot wounds to the head. I thought that was really sad and gross. All of their seals were saved from being wounded or orphaned in the wild. They did a lot of tricks to get their fish, so that was fun to watch. We also saw a magic show that the girls would have really liked except just the day before we had an awesome magic show at our library storytime that was a lot more exciting. All in all, the aquarium was a fun side trip.

Niagra Falls

The falls are a pretty amazing sight. Nate had never been, and I was twelve the last time I saw them. We thought it was pretty spectacular. The girls really enjoyed seeing them, too.

Steve, Nate, Erik, Susan, Nikki, Kanessa, Kira, Hannah, and Taunya. Here we are in our Maid of the Mist garb waiting to get on the boat. Too bad that I wore my glasses. The mist was more like rain, and I could see better without them on than with them. It was really neat to see the falls from the boat, although when we got into the end where the horseshoe falls are I couldn't really see much because of the mist.
Hannah on the Maid of the Mist