My niece Casey

While my niece Caset was here, we did a little photo shoot.  It started of like any other pile of cuteness.U

Until the 10 year old starting coming out. Things digressed a bit from there.AU

Until we starting flipping hair.  Then we had endless photos and laughs.  It was really quite fun.  Such a silly thing, but very fun, and I think some of the photos are pretty cool.  She's really a natural beauty.

Hole in the Wall

My dad has named our favorite swimming hole "the hole in the wall."  At the right tide, you can go through the chute and then circle around in the lazy river right back into it.  It is just remarkably refreshing and so enjoyable.  Even little Remick goes through though he doesn't like when the water hits him in the face.  Everybody likes to watch though!  My niece Casey and her friend Jo liked it a whole lot.

They're here!

 Okay so technically they've been here for a while, but here are some signs of their presence: a lot of beach time.  A lot of playing cards (Makili is obsessed with crazy eights.)  And can you believe that soon after their arrival, we found a cache that had  pirate map in it that led to our house!  And can you believe that it had Pitt t-shirts in it, among other things?  Crazy coincidence!  WOW!  Mostly though we're just enjoying Grammy and Opa, and Casey and her friend Jo.  It's so exciting that my Dad is retired now, and the fun doesn't have to end!

These are a few of my favorite things.

Visiting the Ainsworths in CT is definitely a summer treat for us every year.  Great company, great scenery, great food, great everything.  We are so lucky.

Ima Olive

 Ima (pronounced Eema) Olive is the newest addition to the Matty clan.  So before I get ahead of myself with our recent adventures, a necessary pause to share the wonder of a newborn baby.  And really there isn't anything more wonderful (in the truest sense of the word) is there?  I mean really. 

Birthday

 So the day after Makili and Remick's birthday party, we attended one of Makili's friend's birthdays.  It was quite a difference from our casual party.  It must have been interesting for some of our friends who were at both parties.  Our party was outside, we grilled, Raph made a treasure hunt that was over a mile!!! (exhausting most of the kids, and all of the parents), there was a messy craft, a few gifts, ghetto games like air golf (which involves throwing a ball through a wire hanger that has been formed into a circle and hung in a tree.)  This party involved a bouncy house, face painting, pizza, dance class, party favors, a huge (in my opinion a little grossly huge) pile of gifts, hula-hooping.  It was very fun too and I enjoyed taking a few shots of our friends with their kids.  And isn't that picture of "jaguar Makili" just breath-taking.