Memorial Day

First and foremost, a special thanks to all those (past, present and future) who serve this country.   We are forever indebted to you.   Thank you!

The Stiff clan opted to head down to the good ole Lake of the Ozarks for some fun at Grandma and Grandpa's condo.  To the girls' chagrin, minus Grandma and Grandpa.  

Since the McDonalds in Kingdom City gets old REAL fast, we were lucky to be turned on to this random gem off highway 70.   Cranes Country Store.
My apologies to my Instagram peeps, but you have already seen these pics.... 
We ventured over to a little spot with a 'beach' and outdoor restaurant. I tried to convince myself the brown, muddy water was really a crystal clear, light blue. It didn't really work. But thankfully the ladies didn't care. Or they are color blind. Either way, it worked in their favor.
Ryan bellied herself up to the bar...as any self respecting almost four year old would
The girls dined on such delicacies as chips and salsa and greasy quesadillas
Back to that beautiful brown water we went
Among other lake activities, Reese in particular enjoyed her down time:
As well as her first Shirley Temple, while her sister did some pole dancing in the back.
And somebody sures looks like they could get used to this lifestyle
Last night as we were getting ready for bed Ryan told me "mom, next time we come back, we're coming back for five days......so, mom, that means you need to pack five underwears for me".

Randomness.....again

Another hodgepodge post of pics I still have on the computer that I have never posted...
Ice cream
Another stylish concoction courtesy of Reese:
In somewhat sad news, Spencers has taken a back seat lately as Grant and Ryan stumbled upon a cute spot on Delmar and have been venturing down there for a few weeks now....Winslows Home. Now for the cool and informed, this would be super old news but for us slow adapter, suburbia peeps, it's new to us. Reese and I have been known to tag along and we even celebrated Mother's Day at our new haunt. Only negative (if I may) is that the service can be slow. Like turtle crossing slow. Which is not always a fun thing when dining with Ryan and Reese. But the charm of the restaurant and the food will keep us coming back.
Double fisting is always encouraged
Now this is a terribly grainy picture taken with my phone but it gives you the idea of what happens to my house when the little ladies find my stash of party plates/napkins:
Tents are a big fave around here....especially on a nice, rainy day.
Sometimes I find Reese naked, in a corner, reading a book. I choose to celebrate the quest to learn vs. harping on the fact that she may urinate all over my floor.
PS - in related news, we are attempting some potty training this week - I've been doing 3 hour stretches in the morning to see how she takes to it. So far we are 5 for 8. No real casualties as she is relegated to the hard wood floors only.
Every single day, you can find the girls in my closet at some point playing dress-up. Ryan raids my clothes while Reese tends to stick to accessories.
How's the tire swing - you ask?  Great, thank you. Still gets tons of use. We had some new friends over last weekend and these girls (Ryan included but she had hopped off by the time I got the camera out) wouldn't get off.....a good 30 minutes of laughter.
That's it for now.....back to a naked two year old, a potty and a dwindling supply of Pez.

These boots are made for walkin'....

The pool is open

The Stiff Country Club is open for business.  Thanks to a well spent $35 and our least favorite activity imaginable (venturing into a Wal-Mart on a Saturday), we were set up and ready to swim over the weekend.
Fill er' up
I don't believe this will shock anyone:
Built-in slide? I mean, we don't spare any expense for our children...
Guns.  Fun for kids of all ages.
Stop taking my picture and let me go down the slide already...
Perhaps a bigger hula-hoop is in order
Throw up some gangsta signs if you prefer playing outside the pool vs. inside the pool:
Ryan....the anti-water queen
And my favorite pic of the day....
The Reesers learned the Stiff Snack Shack won't open until Memorial Day and she was not pleased....to say the least.

Friday catch up

Long week.....sorry for the absence.  I know it pains you all.  Here is life in assorted randomness.

Ryan has allergies. So on our last visit to the allergist she had the pleasure of meeting the 'catepillar' - the lovely contraption that pricked her back 4 times (8 pricks each for a total of 32)  to test for all sorts of reactions. Basically the girl is allergic to all things outdoors. Which perhaps explains her vampire nature.  Anyway, she was a trooper - whimpered a bit but didn't throw any big fits. Of course she was rewarded handsomely with a trip to Tar-jay for a 'zerbert' afterwards.
We passed the 15 minute waiting time doing crafts with my planner.
PS - I'm always amazed how far medicine has come since we were all kids - my mother was recalling how my brother had to have 150+ shots (individual shots) in his back to test for every allergy under the sun. The 'catepillar' Ryan got was a small prick, didn't really hurt as much as just scared her. 
She and her dad shared silly faces via text.....he helped lighten the mood even from his office. You can see the dark circles under her eyes - the doctor can spot children a mile away by the 'allergy eye'.
Moving on....we discovered that leaving chalk in water creates a fun paste to finger paint with. Also comes in handy when trying to morph into a Smurf.
Ryan had her end-of-the-year school field trip to the library and the custard station.
Reese was invited too....although the story time portion at the library may not have been a great idea. Somebody has an aversion to sitting still. Imagine a 30 minute story time in a quiet library. I'll let your imagination take you there.
iPad mania - the girls were lucky enough to receive Ella's very first iPad as a little gift. To say they love the thing is an understatement.
Naked Reese and electronics....the girl is in heaven
Reese has recently taken to lounging, Hugh Hefner style, in her robe after a bath. Pajamas are forbidden until she deems herself ready.
Dressing around these parts is still a mismatched assortment of terrible. And now that Reese has joined the opinionated club, it's a gamble as to what we'll leave the house looking like.
Our collective guilty pleasure is grabbing a few munchkins (and coffee for mom) and hitting up the park before 9am.
We went to the zoo earlier this week - just us three girls - they felt right at home here:
We rode the carousal
Reese was in her usual goofball mode and vacillated between this (eyes closed):
and this (faux serious) for most of the ride:
but I busted her and caught a smile.
We threw in an elephant for good measure:
Of course Ryan's school picnic ended with Reese like this:
Ryan was channeling her inner prison guard and jailed her sister and Amelia:
Instagram pics from the Reesers and I park visit on Mother's Day:

From May 2012

Happy Friday!