wild animal park adventure

every year since I was a kid (JD, too) I've been visiting Wilson's Wild Animal Park.. a local petting zoo for kids. it's so much fun, even as an adult I have a ton of fun with my girls & JD. I'm pretty sure mine and JD's favorite are the lions and tigers.. my all time favorite is the camels for sure. They've added so many new animals since I was a kid.. just this year they've added a giant sandbox, a big yellow slide, and a black tunnel you can use hay bales to slide through it. Kylee & Kaylee love taking random day trips to Wilsons, it's pretty reasonably priced too. This was our first visit of the season, but definitely won't be our last. 

animal park photo dump. 

 

photo bomber in the background.

climbing up to see the tiger made for a super cute photo op... thankfully these animals are pretty secured and there is 2-3 high fences built before accessing the large cages.

we were feeding the deer, and on the other side this little guy was making all kind of crazy noises until I walked over and fed him too. ugh, I love animals. SO cute.

 

this other little animal lover ran right up to the llamas, we kept trying to tell her these things could spit at any second.. she didn't have a care in the world.

 

look at all of those sweet babies running wild in the background.

 

happy smile after a perfect landing...

 

annnnd not so perfect landing... 

but, she was also just chased by a hissing duck which scared her half to death. so it just wasn't her moment.

Summer has been so fun, and I'm sure we'll do at least one more big fun adventure with the girls before school starts for them. however, I am SO ready for the sound of football on the tv, leaves falling, and to begin working on the girls halloween costumes while watching the scariest halloween movies, ever. I love Summer, but Fall is just my favorite. 

x0 Brooke

Kaylee + Kylee's Ice Cream Party

It's the middle of the week and I'm just now getting to write my blog post about their birthday party. This weekend was busy, but so fun. With two parties back to back, one being a bridal shower for a friend and the other being the girls' party.. I wouldn't have known what to do without all of Caitie's help while finishing up the decorations on her free time plus spending half of the night before their party with me finishing up what was left to do. This year we went with an ice cream theme.. and honestly it wasn't as easy as you'd think. Ice cream decorations are extremely hard to find, so we went to Pinterest for all the DIY ideas.. I am normally not a "diy" type of person, however, Caitie is basically the queen of party planning.. so, I've learned.. lol. The night I told her about the party, she requested off from work and was already pinning ideas on Pinterest. This was definitely one of the best birthday parties yet... it's the perfect age for the girls to enjoy other kids being there to play with, the decorations were perfect, most of everyone got to be there this year unlike last year, and my Mom recently opened up an ice cream shop so she was able to get any toppings I wanted for the ice cream at a discounted price. The girls' are extremely blessed with all of those who love them so much and were able to spend the day celebrating them turning four. 

Ice cream party photo dump.

I completely forgot to get a picture of my face inside the ice cream cone..

but at least everyone else enjoyed it. (insert girl shrugging shoulders emoji here)

Major shout out to this girl for not only being my absolute best friend/soul sister all in one, but for always being there when I need her, always being down to take my girls with us wherever we go when JD is working, for being understanding if I can't go somewhere because I do have two kids, and for spending late nights with me talking about anything/everything under the sun because that's just what we do. Who knew a blind (friendship) date at Viva a few months ago could bring us so close?! lol

Thank you for helping me make this ice cream theme party happen, thank you for loving my kids as if they're your own... even when Kaylee is driving you absolutely crazy over wanting your phone. 

hahaha...we love you!

Happy Birthday Kaylee + Kylee

The twins turned 4.. they start pre-k in the fall, they're speaking long sentences/full paragraphs these days.. & you can 100% understand exactly what comes out of their mouths.. which is always something shocking & unexpected.. but insanely hilarious. The night before their birthday party we sent them to bed, and filled the hallway with balloons + streamer. They woke up so excited because Trixie (our Elf on the Shelf) arrived for the night/morning.. she's the one who made all of that mess. That morning I made the girls birthday cake batter pancakes with sprinkles (via Pinterest), and they were a huge hit for the girls. It was rainy and calling for thunderstorms all day long so we did nothing on their birthday except plan for their birthday party which took place yesterday.. that day is for another blog post.

July 14, 2017

Ky;

My first born by 2 minutes.
You're so quiet, especially around strangers until you warm up to them. Your attitude is to the max some days, that mouth is as smart as a 15 year olds mouth at times, but your so sweet + cuddly 90% of the time. You love to play by yourself, you take after Momma on that.. you can sit in your room quietly and play for hours on end with barbies + babies. Your "sissy" or "sister" (as you call her) is your best friend most days, and enemy all in one. You are the girliest of all girly girls, but you love the color blue. You're a momma's girl over anyone else.. & you still (at 4 yrs old) wear your heart on your sleeve. You're the sensitive one of the two.. & your feelings get hurt easily. I hope you made the biggest wish, and whatever it is, I hope it comes true.
happy 4th birthday, sweet girl.

Kay;
2 minutes later -- the most random, most spunkiest kid you'll ever meet, who loves the color pink + hates any type of bug that lands on her or is crawling around outside, entered this world screaming for the world to hear.. but is a daddy's girl 100% + loves to do all things any other tom boyish kid would. You're tough + rough, you hardly ever cry over getting hurt, you're constantly the one to pick on your sister.. but yet the first to make sure she's ok + give hugs. Wrestling/fighting is your most favorite thing to do, and it hurts.. lol. You're hardheaded, have a temper from hell.. you can be smiling one minute and in a mood the second.. but you're THE funniest kid I know! We love you to the moon + back, girlfriend. We wouldn't know what to do without your smart remarks, & you keeping us on our toes 24/7.
happy 4th birthday, crazy girl.