Traveling the Smoky Hill Trail

I promise that my next post will address Ariel's first birthday that was 3 months ago (yikes, how did I get this far behind?). Speaking of our precious little one, she received a wagon for her birthday from Gma Pat & Gpa Leon. It started out as an ugly, green, utility wagon, but through the magic that only grandmas posses, has made a remarkable transformation.
Stage 1: ugly duckling

Stage 2: pretty panda cover and dissected swim noodles (for protection against bumps)

Stage 3: the panda express is ready to roll, complete with skin cancer fighting parasol

Stage 4: tripping back in time to the days of the covered wagon, all we need is a horse

Stage 5: 4th of july parade where the wagon was temporarily renamed "the sparkler express"

Ariel loves to ride in this thing! Seriously. I think it make her feels like a princess (which she is, just in case you were wondering). She is able to ride in style and wave to her subjects while maintaining complete protection from the sun. Some days I feel a little ridiculous hauling the wagon around, but then we get so many compliments, how can I not crack a smile? Maybe I should make her a pioneer dress so we can re-create the the game, "The Oregon Trail *." Wait . . . maybe not. I'm pretty sure all my peeps contracted the measles or malaria or the flu and died. So, the Smoky Hill Trail it is (it runs right behind our house). Yee haw!

* I know you remember this awful computer game we played back in middle school. I know I'm not the only one who lost everything. All but that one horse . . .

You Put Your Left Toe In . . .

Ariel's friend, Oliver, gave her an inflatable pool and a really cute swimsuit for her birthday. What a great gift! While my mom was up visiting (end of May), we decided to blow it up and test things out.

Eric did a great job getting everything set up, but he decided that using the hose was the faster way to fill up the pool. I don't think he thought about how cold the water was. Granted, it was a hot day, but obviously not hot enough.

We gathered a handful of Ariel's bath toys and threw them in the water. Then we put our little princess in. Let the hissy fit begin.

Ariel loves taking baths, so this should have been a no-brainer, but the cold water brought out her crabby side. She did everything she could to climb out of the pool and crawl into Mommy's lap, getting me all wet. There was no amount of convincing that would change her mind to get back in. So Eric and I put our feet in and enjoyed the water, while Ariel supervised (had to make sure we didn't drown).