10 months

Wee Eliza Wren is getting close to her 1st birthday!  10 months old today and loving it!  She's on the move - in her own style...standing with her rear in the air and toes on the ground while using her hands to crawl...and then some sliding on her bum and other times crawling traditionally.  She's hilarious!  

This weekend she cut her first tooth, so there's little ridge coming through on her bottom gum.  Mama's thinking she's working on the other one too...based on her recent restless nights. 

Happy Day, sweet girlie!  We love your energy, happy squeals and sweet spirit!

Carlisle Weekend

We spent last weekend in Carlisle, and brought our dear friends from Philly with us. 

 It was a lovely time together with a good balance of rest and activity.

We hiked a few miles of the AT on Saturday.  

Our toddler girls impressed us all by walking for nearly 2 hours!

We strayed off the trail and found this beautiful field...

After church on Sunday we share a picnic with Jane's childhood friend, Sarah, and her family.  

Between our three families we had 9 kids under five years old! 

These sweet girls continue to love being together and play so sweetly with each other.  

september evening

This month has flown by for us.  We've been quite busy with some home improvements (woot!) and all the usual activities.  More posts to come on those areas...in the meantime, here are photos from a lovely September evening we spent in our back yard.

Mama forgot that we didn't have graham crackers for our s'mores...

...however, we discovered that ice cream cones are a very tasty substitute!

Refreshed

And...we are back!  Back into the blogging world again.  You've noticed, I'm sure, that our blog has been silent this summer.  It was by choice, and a good one for me.  I was able to dig deeper into all that is before me each day - these wee girlies of mine, neighborhood friends, trips to Seattle, Chicago and Carlisle, hosting meals and many guests, spending time updating our dear-to-me photo albums, and working my fingers and toes into lots of dirt.  This summer is a treasure trove of memories with my sweet family of four!

 I am grateful for the break, and now, thankful to be back.

Our summer in photo summary...

family photo!  Aleksa and Glenn's wedding, June 2013

4th of July backyard picnic with dear friends

porch visits with sweet Fran, our loved neighbor in Germantown

cousin time + water play = LOVE

late night canning dates - 100+ jars and going strong!

family beach day in August

Grandpa and Grandma Petersons visit in August!

new found treasure - sisters city park in downtown Philly!

weekend in Perry County, PA with dear friends