the summer wind down

We have had an absolutely magical summer.. the best one yet in my opinion. The endless sunny days have gone on and on.. just delightful.

We have continued to be busy, just haven't been doing a great job of bringing our camera with us. We recently got together with the Leestmas for dinner one last time as our neighbors. Sam & Aaron have been incredible neighbors and we're so bummed to have them leave. Sam touched my heart instantly. She is vibrant, so sincere, energetic, and so delightful to be around. It's been so fun to get my hair cut by her for the past 3 years because it's an instant 3 hour chat fest with one of my favorite friends. We met as newly married couples, and now we both have kiddos. In fact, Sam went into labor and had her baby on the day of one of my hair appointments. haha. They aren't moving too far away, so our friendship will continue, but it's been so nice having them right across the street.

We also tried out a new farmer's market in the University District. Ben thought of the great idea to go around and buy different things for dinner. That might, Austin & Kelsey came over and we cooked up an awesome meal with all ingredients we got from the market.. fresh mozzerella, fresh sausage, homemade pasta, heirloom tomatoes, basil,and garlic. Austin & Kelsey brought a fresh baguette that was awesome.

Our friends Matt & Adelle moved out to Arlington to save some money to put towards a house. They hosted a huge bbq/campout at their property. There was no way you could pay me to put us all in a tent next to 8 other families with kids, but we went out there for the bbq and came home for the sleeping.

We've started doing a date swap with our friends & neighbors, the McIntires. Ben & I went out last Wednesday for a "foot massage" which is really an hour long full body massage in a chair. It was awesome. Afterwards we promised each other we'd go there at least twice a year. That is until we woke up the next morning and felt like we had both been run over by a truck. We were SO sore .. I even had to use a heating pad! Needless to say, I guess the elbow to the back wasn't such a great idea even though it felt good at the time.

We went to the big day of play hosted by the Seattle parks and rec department.. it was insane. We went last year, but Colter wasn't old enough so it wasn't near as fun as it was this year. Booth after booth of awesome kids activities and freebies galore! Each booth gave you a ticket to redeem for a free item of food.. roasted corn on the cob, a salad, iced tea, and nut clusters. There were free bounce houses, a bubble play station, face painting, a mini soccer arena, a little gymnastics area, playdough & clay, panning for gold, lots of different art projects, the list goes on! Colter had an absolute blast.

That night Ben & Mark went to a mariners game. Ben always wears his angels hat when the angels are playing and i'm just waiting for the day that he gets a soda dumped on his head. They had a great time and there was no soda spilling. Jessie & I decided to have a sleep over that night and we made the crazy decision to put James, Saisha & Colter all in the same room. We weren't sure if they would actually sleep, but much to our surprise they did! No peeps from them all night! It was awesome and they had a blast.

In perhaps the biggest news of the summer/year/EVER, my sister found out they are expecting twins. Double the love people! We were absolutely shocked, but as time as gone on, I am just SO excited to love on these little two bundles. I just can't wait for them to get here!!!

Colter and I collected 3 fall looking leaves today off the ground. The nights are getting shorter. The days are much more overcast. I guess this means our beautiful summer is coming to a close. What a time it's been.