We put the bag up on the kitchen counter...and on tipy-toes Elsie could reach just far enough to help herself to the sugar filled candy! I think the cotton candy kicked in quite quickly...for both Emma and Elsie...both were laughing and wild in no time! Amazingly enough Elsie calmed down after everyone left and fell asleep with no fuss! Note to Grandma and Grandpa...next time...leave all sugary food in the car...please!
I am so excited that Elsie is "into" making lovely art work pieces...I love the look of displaying children's art work...I think making a point to hang Elsie's art work makes Elsie appreciate art a little more...every time I hang a new picture somewhere Elsie "helps"me while commenting "pretty" or "wow!"
We look the long paper-roll outside, stripped the clothes off, and poured some paint out...
Like always Elsie was careful and tidy when first starting to paint...
Before long she stared to get a little more carried away...and look at all her art work! She is painting beautiful hearts, people and sun! (okay...maybe that was me!)
She finally discovered that finger paining is the best...she was happily "paining" my finger nails for me...for some reason she only wanted me to have blue nails...this is the only time you will ever see blue nails on me! Love all the colours on Elsie's hands!
Finger painting really is the best...I still love to feel the paint squish between my fingers...I think every child really should have such creative opportunities... 
Elsie thinks body art is great...she got so creative with the paint that she had to have a bath...
Elsie was so excited to eat on the new table...she was dancing around with excitement inside while I was preparing lunch...
I just loved watching her little feet go back-and-forth excitedly as we were eating...I don't think toddlers ever sit still...
We had left-over from the night before...chicken and rice soup...I loved the soup...Elsie on the other hand did not at all...eventually I just warmed up some mashed potatoes for her...
For dessert we had fresh peach pie...a very good treat! Elsie loved the pie...and wanted more! I found out that the brown sugar I borrowed from my parents to finish the pie must have been cross-contaminated! So...while the pie tastes great...it does not agree with me...bummer!
I think I took about a dozen pictures of Elsie eating the pie...just because she looked so cute using a huge fork...She finally said "Mommy, no...eat!" oops...I guess it is bad when a toddler has to remind me to stop taking pictures and eat! 
It was Grandma that answered the phone...and Elsie talked to her for quite some time! Really she listened and occasionally said a few words here and there...Grandma does all the talking!
Elsie just looked so cute...she was just looking out the door talking on the phone like a teenager! and the 4th of July crown in the hair just completes the look!
Elsie just loves the water park...all the way to town she sang "park, park, park..." from the backseat... Her favorite was the big water slide...she wanted nothing to do with the little kids slide! 
Jon and I took turns bring her up ALL the steps and down the slide...we went down at least 20 times!
As soon as we would come to the end of the slide, Elsie would be shouting out, "again, again, again!" with a huge smile on her face!
Her other favorite was the big bucket of water...she and Daddy would stand under the huge bucket and wait for it to tip over and get them all wet...
Elsie and Daddy waiting...when Elsie notices all the water gushing from the bucket she always hides her head and squirms with excitement...
As we were getting ready to leave Elsie noticed the water spraying up from the floor...so we just to stay longer to let her play a little more...
Love this picture...she sure was having fun!
We had a very fun afternoon at the water park...Elsie was very tired out after all that playing...she slept all the way home and went to bed early!
I enjoy all the little phases that a toddler goes through...and I do my best to look away as my house gets more and more messy with her new little habits like baggies everywhere!
We saw lots and lots of dogs...some did tricks...like this one below jumping through a hoop...other pets just slowly wondered out and got too scared to take another step...
What a fun little afternoon outing...I love finding simple things to keep us busy!
Elsie got too impatient waiting an apple to finally be peeled and sliced...so she just ate a whole apple...peelings and all!
* While talking about dogs one day Elsie patted chest saying " Me...Hold" meaning that she wanted a dog...I asked her what she would name a dog...without missing a beat she said "Hotdog!" with a big smile!* We have discovered that Elsie knows her colours! She is very into colours right now...and likes it when we can all wear matching shirts or shoes!
* Elsie has a favorite singer...Taylor Swift...if you think that is an unusual choice for a toddler...just thank her teenage aunts! Elsie is to the point of being able to recognise a "Tayla" song on the radio with no one pointing it out! She likes to listen to "Tayla" music far to loud in the van! I think she is turning into her teenage aunts!
* And lastly...Elsie has decided that her name is Jane...for some reason she has picked up on her middle name and chooses to go by that! If you ask what her name is she never ever says "Elsie"...last week I found Elsie digging dirt out of one of the house plants...when I said "who is digging in Mommy's plant?" Elsie quickly shook her head and said "Jane!" as if it was not her at all...
What a busy girl...
We had a lovely weekend of visiting with everyone...we have not seen any of Jon's family since we moved north over a year ago. One evening we all went to Jon's dad's house for a nice meal...prepared gluten-free so Elsie I could eat also! (what a treat to not have eat out of the cooler the entire time!) Elsie was able to play with her cousin again...and to meet some new little second cousins to play with! Hopefully we can get down a little more often to visit with everyone! We stayed at Grandma B. sister's house...Deb and her husband Jim. They were very welcoming to us...and they tried so hard with Elsie...but she wanted nothing do with either of them. I think the weekend was a little overwhelming to her...far to many new people! 
I did sneak out to the corn field with Elsie for a few pictures...she proved to not be much of farm girl...she kept going on about the corn stalks being "dirty" and did not want to stand next to them!
I love the position of the sun in these pictures...
A little bit of a smile peeking out...It had been a very hot day with not much of a nap...so a little smile was a good thing!
An entire drive way filled with little rocks...could any girl be quite as happy!? Elsie is a rock collector...and wanted to pick up lots of rocks from the driveway...but we managed to leave with only 1 rock...
This picture is probably my favorite from the photo shoot...I love the strait driveway in the background with the corn field on the side...and the way Elsie is standing with her hand on her hip!
We ended the photo shoot with rocks in the sandals...Elsie picked out a few rocks and shoved them down the toes of her sandals! You have to wonder what kids are thinking when they do such crazy things...most people take rocks out of their shoes!
In the last carton of fresh eggs from my parents I found a hard-boiled egg! Hopefully one of the kids were trying to play a trick on me and the chickens have not taken to laying hard boiled eggs! Ya just never know!
We had a tasty lunch of tacos...we pulled the little table outside for the kids and enjoyed the fresh air while eating...
And we had lots of watermelon for dessert...in fact we ate an entire watermelon in one afternoon!
After eating the kids put the slip-and-slide on the hill...and we set the little water sprinkler at the top...what a fun way to cool off...
We had little bikes laying around, the little tent outside, the pool, sprinkler, swings on the clothesline pole...and I was enjoying every minute of it! I love the busyness of children's activities...
After lunch my Mom, Colter, Ceara and Lisa all came back to my house...and the kids all enjoyed more watermelon while taking a little break on the picnic blankets...
Water sprinkler fun...
I love this picture my mom captured...Colter going down the slip-and-slide...big splashes!
We might need to up-grade to a larger pool by next summer...they look just a little cramped!
While all the kids were busy playing I was able to cut some squares out of fabric for making a little blanket...
I think all the kids had a fun afternoon of water play...Elsie took a very long nap that afternoon!
