The many faces of Hazel Rae

I love this girl!

Family fun

With Heidi, James, and Wes around for the summer, as well as Andrew and Brittany, we got to have lots of family time! Gigi and Poppy were so nice to always let us come swim and play.

I took this picture because Tyler was wearing his Texas suit and Hazel matched! 

Harvey loves the rock wall on Gigi and Poppy’s play set.

Millie and Max learned to play Telestrations this summer. It definitely takes longer when they play and involves some imagination, but it is so fun! I love seeing how their minds work. Gigi is always so patient and sweet to help them with their drawings or guesses.

Watching American Ninja Warrior on the back porch with Poppy.

A random shot I loved. These kids are sure lucky to have such a great dad.

We got to have a triple date before H&J and AJ&B left Houston. Torchy’s and Bahama Bucks were a must since Brittany had never had them! 

Harvey and Wes. Thick as thieves all summer, even if Duke Caboom came between them sometimes haha.

4th of July

Actually, backing up to the 3rd of July here. We had planned to go to the Houston Symphony’s 4th of July celebration in The Woodlands, but Millie had a little fever bug and we didn’t want to keep her up late that night knowing that the next day would be full. So I stayed home with both girls and Tyler took the boys. They said it was fun but very hot! And Millie and I had fun doing her nails and watching a movie.

We met up with the Juergens crew early on the 4th for a parade in The Woodlands. It was crowded and hot and fun!

I was very grateful for our little stroller fan. We really couldn’t have done much this summer without it!

The whole crew at the parade. Garrett, McKenna, and Morgan came down from Fort Worth for the weekend and it was so fun to have (almost) everyone together!

We went back to Gigi and Poppy’s house for swimming and barbecue. I finally got some pictures of these cute kids in their swim suits that Gigi got for all the grandkids.

We ate, swam, watched the hot dog eating contest on TV, and passed baby Hazel around.

After swimming and while some of the babies were napping, Botz showed us some old pictures and things from his time in the Navy. The kids loved hearing about life on an aircraft carrier, especially after having just seen the battleship a few days before.  

Everyone took turns playing pickle ball. I had forgotten how fun that is!

And Harvey fell asleep during his snack. It was hilarious.

We grabbed some dinner at Mod Pizza before heading to Towne Lake to watch the fireworks. We got there plenty early and enjoyed the nice evening.

The fireworks were awesome! There was a little drama getting out of the parking lot - one truck in particular blocked everyone else from getting out for a good long while - which was funny. We love the good ol’ U.S. of A.!

Battleship Texas

Tyler had the whole first week of July off of work, so we planned some adventures. First up was a trip to the Battleship Texas! It was a hot, beautiful day.

The kids got to sit on the big guns and move them left and right and up and down. 

They also learned what it means and looks like to swab the deck! They were thrilled to do it here, but unfortunately that didn’t translate to being thrilled about mopping the kitchen floor haha.

Pretty view with the San Jacinto monument in the background. I’m noticing now that it looks like the ship is on land, but it definitely was not!

So many stairs and levels. Tyler took the big kids up pretty high and they thought it was so cool.

Then we went below deck and saw the living quarters and learned about life on the ship. It was really fascinating. This ship served in both World Wars and housed thousands of people at a time. They had everything you could ever need - dentist office, laundry, barber shop, post office, etc. 

A day’s schedule that I found interesting.

The kids thought this bunk bed setup was pretty cool and were deciding which level they’d sleep on if they had to sleep there. 

Baby’s first battleship! Haha she was a trooper.

We went to see the San Jacinto monument real quick before heading home.

We did go inside the little museum but didn’t last long. Hazel had had enough! But we took the opportunity to talk a bit about our country and those who have given so much to defend our freedoms with the kids.

Rounded out the day with dinner at a fancy Italian restaurant since we had some free meals thanks to the library reading program. All around a great day!

End of June

This is how 4th babies learn to survive their older siblings. Ha! But really she’s a trooper.

We had a crazy rainstorm that flooded the park by our house. We took advantage of the cooler weather the next morning and went for a walk and the kids thought it was pretty fun to attempt playing.

I think this was the first time I wore Hazel in the wrap. Haven’t done it nearly as much with her, mostly because it was summer and crazy hot.

But I sure was grateful for it when both kids were demanding to be held!

And it kept Hazel within kissing distance. 

An early morning party with my two youngest. 

I decided to take Hazel’s monthly pics on the blanket I crocheted for her. Her 1 month pic happened to be at almost 7 weeks, but that’s further evidence that she’s the 4th child!

And a super sweet one at that.

First smiles caught on camera!!

Millie wanted to make a friendship bracelet. We looked up how on YouTube and she spent a long time braiding with the end hooked on to a clipboard. I remember thinking those bracelets were so cool as a kid too.

And that’s a wrap for June!