Portrait 24.52

Giggling and soaking up the setting sun.

"A portrait of my daughter once a week, every week, in 2015."

Evening Walk

One of our favorite things to do as a family is go for walks in the evenings.  We load Claire up in her stroller, put Rory on her leash, and go out and explore around our neighborhood.  There is a little park area with a walkway and pond a few blocks away that we like to go to.  We stopped there on Friday evening and let Claire get out and explore.  I took my camera with me and captured some of my favorite photos I've taken of Claire.
Bryce took these last two photos of Claire and me and they turned out so pretty.  I'm going to make a photographer out of him yet!  I am not a big fan of the heat, but these summer nights with cooler temperatures and gorgeous sunsets are making up for it.

Portrait 23.52

Always admiring the flowers everywhere we go.

"A portrait of my daughter once a week, every week, in 2015."

An Afternoon at the Park

Claire has been feeling a little under the weather this week.  She seemed to be doing better today so I thought it would be nice for both of us to get out of the house and go on a little outing.  We decided to go to one of our favorite parks near Beus Pond.  
We had the whole park all to ourselves.  Claire was in heaven exploring every inch of the place without interruption.
She likes climbing the stairs but she doesn't care too much about the slides or anything.  Mostly she likes to walk around under the playground and find random places to stack the wood chips.  
This little window was probably her favorite part of the whole park.  She kept peeking out of it then would wave and say "Bye!" before ducking out of sight.  After we played that game for a while she dropped wood chips out the window for a good five to ten minutes.  I love seeing the funny things that entertain her at this age.
As we were leaving we passed this flowering bush and I couldn't help but stop to take a picture.  Afternoons like this with my little girl are what I always dreamed about before I became a mom and I'm glad I'll get to spend a entire childhood of them with Claire.

Portrait 22.52

Claire playing in her kiddy pool.

"A portrait of my daughter once a week, every week, in 2015."

Splashpad & Swimming

After a month of rain it finally warmed up this week and is starting to feel like summer!  We got our swimsuits out, we're ready to break our sandals in, and maybe get a few tan lines while were at it.
My sister and I decided to take our girls to the splash pad on Monday since it was supposed to get up to 80 degrees.  We planned on going earlier in the day and getting the girls all worn out for nap time.  However, we found out the splash pad didn't turn on until 1 pm!  Claire usually naps around 11 but can sometimes make it until around 1 if we're out playing and doing something.  She was so tired and sad by the time the splash pad turned on she wanted nothing to do with it.  She hated it and just clung to me the whole time.  If i tried putting her down she just burst into tears, which is what's going on in the picture above.  Needless to stay, we only stayed for a half an hour.  We're hoping to try again soon but AFTER naps next time. 
We set up Claire's little kiddy pool out in our yard at the beginning of this week and she has been having so much fun with it.  She will happily splash around in it for a good hour or two.  It has provided lots of entertainment already and I think its going to be a lifesaver on all of the hot days this summer!  
We are so happy to finally get some sunshine and warm weather!  You can find us swimming around in the kiddy pool basically everyday until August.

Farm Day with the Leishman Cousins

Last week when Bryce's brother and his family were here visiting from Missouri we took all the kids on a little trip to my parent's farm to show them all the animals.  They got to see the sheep, mules, and pigs.  We didn't quite make it as far as the cows and chickens since towards the end it was getting late and everyone was ready for dinner.  
Claire got to go on a four wheeler ride with Nana & Papa!

All of the kids loved taking turns feeding the mules.

Another favorite activity at the farm is getting to ride the pink tractor.  My mom helped Claire sit on it so I could get a few pictures.  Claire absolutely loved it, she couldn't stop smiling!

And of course it wouldn't be a trip to the farm without Claire playing in the dirt and collecting rocks.  We had a great night and are so glad all the Leishman cousins were able to go with us!