We say the word "pool" and the kids start stripping, leaving clothes all over the house, are instantly in their bathing suits, and look like this. Travis snapped this with his iPhone and it is his favorite picture right now. I'm kind of sad because Reagan is starting to thin out--his legs have suddenly become long & thin, and he has lost that precious baby belly and the muscles are starting to develop. Why, oh why, can't that suddenly happen to me?

On a not so cute note, the Mario Brothers guarded the car for us during a recent SuperTarget trip. Ugh. Can anyone that knows me believe I have three carseats?

Or at least one of them. Tal was in heaven here.

I got out Tal's old tent--the kids are playing in it, sleeping in it (left), and loving it. We even put their play kitchen in it this morning. It was in the great room for a bit, but has migrated back up to the balcony. I had to get out the old picture of Tal's room when we first moved into the big house. It seemed so awful to have him so far away in his new room, so we set up shop for him inside the same little tent. He must have lived in it for a year. (At night, people, no need to get freaky.)

Tonight is the (postponed) annual Father's Day campout at the in-laws. It has been raining for two days, so it will more likely be movies & a sleepover with the in-laws, but we'll have fun either way. It happens to be National Backyard Campout Day.

I booked their haircuts all at the same time. I pay extra to go to Dillards because they can actually do all three at once. Oh, but they had a no-show and a late person this morning. So we had to wait. And wait.

I dug into my purse for entertainment. And I found my camera. The kids grabbed it and started posing and clicking. Here is a sample (I took out the stroller parts and feet).

Okay, the kids truly do like the packages better than what is in them. This Christmas, I'm wrapping stuffing. Seriously.

I. Love. This. Picture.

So The kids and I are visiting one country at a time at Epcot, calling it educational, and enjoying the heck out of it. At least I am.

We did the lovely Canada tour while Daddy was actually IN Canada. Boy, were the Rs steamed when Daddy wasn't in the Oh Canada! video. Guess I didn't explain that too well.

They have these beautiful gardens in the Canada pavilion, and I always wonder why, because isn't there snow on the ground there so much of the year???

For our Canada theme week, we also looked at my honeymoon album (phew--it was in an album and not a box, I was a little worried) and did some other fun stuff.

Not a great pic, but we were rained out and having a good time doing oddball attractions at Epcot.

Mom's birthday request? No restaurants, just relaxing! Our family is finally learning how to relax. We actually all swam with the kids a bit. The last holiday we even played some games! Who knew? And we had a nice, all-Hungry Girl recipe BBQ dinner that was fun to make (and healthy).

We're lucky to have such a terrific Gramma!

So my friend Marilyn came over the night before and made me a VERY chocolate cake, and put on lots and lots and lots of candles, which the kids had a blast with. My parents have been very sweet and stretched my birthday out as long as possible (and I think I still have a raincheck waiting for a kid-sitting night).

I hear people have different ages that make them reflect more, some more depressing than others. This was the first one that made me think, but I finally realized I have more to be thankful for than I ever dreamed I would, so it is time to just be grateful and stop focusing on the numbers :).

So the Cozy Coupe is so famous, it made it into a museum. I was a skeptic (of course), but my mom saw one at a garage sale for $5 and decided to keep it at her house for Tal. The thing is STILL a hit with CAMDEN, I tell you. And I will tell you the secret of it's success. It is annoyingly bright and of course looks like a Fred Flinstone car, has no mechanical parts, and really has nothing special about it. EXCEPT FOR THE DOOR. Kids love opening that door. Opening and closing, opening and closing. Getting in and out. Whether they meant to or not, they found the mother lode with that magical door.

They have sold over ten million of the cars, more than any other car (even grown-up cars) in America since its inception, and it is going into a museum in Cleveland. The new model has cartoon-ish eyes that make my kids giggle. Here are a couple of our best Cozy Coupe memories.