Ice Cream Social

Bernie showing off her yummy bowl.

 We held our annual Midsummer Night's Ice Cream Dream this year. As always, it was so much fun. I made five plus gallons of goat milk ice cream that was delicious. We provide the ice cream and each family brings a topping or mix-in to share. This year was especially fun with the variety of toppings brought. We had crushed oreos, no-bake cookies, sprinkles, mini Reese cups, whip cream, and jelly beans, just to name a few. The hardest part was choosing which ones to put on!

Beautiful Ezra.

There *may* have been some pee on the slide. I'm not naming names.

 It just so happened that the ice cream social coincided with milking time, which usually draws a crowd. It always fascinates me to see who is interested in trying their hand at it. Jane, for instance. Jane is my good friend Bon's mother-in-law. Bonnie now lives in California with her new hubby, Colin. They happened to be in town for the ice cream social (yay!). I then found out that Bon's in-laws would be in town, too and promptly invited them to be part of the fun. I don't know them very well, but I never would have expected that she would jump at the chance to milk a goat! Who knew!? I was so pleasantly surprised!

Bonnie and Me. She came all the way from Cali for my ice cream! 

 The thing I love about recent parties at our house is the kids. They run wild. They have free, safe reign of our huge yard. I love to feel so confident that nothing bad is going to happen to this wild group of kiddos. They are crawling through the corn rows, whooping, hollering, finding secret hideouts and being beautiful, happy children. I really love it.

Not quite whooping and hollering with the big kids yet.

My gal Melissa and sweet Cece or "Baby HeHe" to Maggie who doesn't say her "S"

 Here's one of my favorite pics of the evening. Bonnie, her sister Amanda, Melissa, and me. We all grew up together and I was glad to capture this fun moment with the four-of-us.

The most exciting part of the evening happened after most of the guests had gone. There was a missing set of keys. It was well after dark by this time, so we got out the flashlights and scoured the yard. Looking in every nook and cranny we could think of. Alas, no keys. I got up the next day and searched the yard in a grid-like-cop-show fashion. Alas, no keys. Luckily, the keys were found later that day in the belongings of one three-year-old boy who may or may not be the culprit of the slide pee. Can't wait to see what next year brings!

Easter!

 

We had a really lovely Easter this year.  We have tried to create some of our own family traditions related to this holiday.  We celebrate the religious reason for Easter, but we also incorporate eggs and a special Easter breakfast.  We don't do Santa Claus, Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, etc around here.  We don't eat a lot of sweets around here, either so we have tried to avoid the candy-filled Easter Eggs.  Lila's second Easter (when she was about one), Cam snuck into her room Easter morning and had a big spread of beautiful cut fruits and flowers.  He set it up to look like her dolls were going to partake of it, too.  It was really cute.  So, we have stayed generally with that idea.  This year, we took the cut fruits and put them on... a sugar cookie crust with cream cheese icing.  I said we didn't eat "a lot" of sweets around here.  Give me a break.  =)

Easter Fruit Pizza

 We colored eggs this year and both the girls really enjoyed it.  Maggie kept saying "ta da!".  It was really cute.

Lila studiously coloring her eggs

Hunting Easter Eggs

Hard-boiled Chicky Face

I got this idea from a website that I don't remember.  Ooops.  It's a sliced hard-boiled egg with poppy seed eyes and a cheese beak.  I thought it turned out really cute.

 

Lastly, we finally got a family picture!  I really didn't realize it, but the only family picture in existence (I think) was a horrid church portrait where Lila is 2 and refusing to cooperate.  I wish I could find it to scan.  It really is a gem. Ha ha.  Anyway, this one turned out well.  Happy Easter.