Auntie Chloe comes to visit

August 13th was a happy day in our house - Auntie Chloe arrived to spend a week of summer vacation with us. She was also here to take in some classes at our church that were happening that week, so she had some time out and about as well as some time with us every day. 

And of course... Auntie Chloe means... presents!!! Hope and Joy didn't take long to spot the delightful packages Chloe brought with her, and they were delighted with the new clothes she had made for them.

Along with the clothes came a delightful stash of red, green, yellow, and blue building blocks for the girls, and a Scrabble game with a rotating board for me! :o) She lucked out at a local garage sale back in Lethbridge, and brought us the treasures. :o)

Chloe said it was Joy who came up with this idea - tickling the face with the tip of a pencil crayon. Chloe called me in from the kitchen to take pictures because it was making Joy giggle merrily when Chloe would do it back to her.

And my dear talented sis helped us out with haircuts again. :o)

I think the pencil tickling idea got Chloe's brain going, and she introduced the girls to a game our Mum used to play with us when we were little. A simple Kleenex is all it takes... (and yes, that unfortunately is a plastic hammer you see in contact with the top of Hope's head... Ahem - JOY!)

I remember not being able to last very long at that game myself, unless dared or provoked by some overly successful cousin or sibling. :o)

Hold still Joy.... YEAH RIGHT!

This game was well suited to her personality! :o)

That week also brought more company to our house. Reid and Bev Wilkie had asked to stay with us several months prior, as they were to be in town for the National Floor Hockey Championship, which Reid was competing in. :o) We had an extra grand time with them and Chloe at our house both at the same time, and Auntie Chloe was gracious about the amount of sleep lost due to bunking in with Hope and Joy. :o)
Skilled Uncle that he is, Reid charmed Hope and Joy with new activities when he was around between games and the word "hockey" was merrily added to their vernacular.

Just cute. :o)

Bev (Reid's Mom) was a fast friend of Hope and Joy's as well, as she has four granddaughters of her own, and is great with kids!
Josh had other plans this evening, so Bev, Chloe, and I toted the little girls off to watch one of Reid's evening games. At breakfast the next morning, Reid asked Hope if she had seen him. Her reply couldn't have been more honest - "No - I couldn't see you because you were running too fast. You need to run slower so I can see your face!" This, of course, made all of us laugh, and required an explanation as to why it was not a good idea for Reid to run slow!

Reid helping Hope trace some shapes for her to colour.

Someone to read stories! Reid and I agreed afterwards, that as children it never seemed that books like Curious George or Berenstain Bears were long when they were being read to us, but boy - when you're on the adult on the other end of the picture, they do seem a tad lengthy!

The Wilkies left on Saturday, and while Auntie Chloe was occupied giving someone a massage in our basement, Daddy and the girls put together Hopey's new bed, which had just arrived that day.

They wasted no time in trying it out.

Joy seemed quite content to pose as the doll...

...while Hopey, motheringly covered her up with a blanket. :o)