Washington DC!

Hello Everyone! Charlotte here :)  I recently had the opportunity to go to Washington DC for a couple days, so I jumped right on it!

Unfortunately, many of the official buildings don't allow cameras, so I wasn't able to take many photos, but I thought I'd share the few that I have!

Here I am in front of the Supreme Court, it was so huge and beautiful! I got to go inside and learn all about how the court works, it was quite fascinating.

 And here's the Capitol; it's so grand! The interior is amazing: so many statues and paintings. I love all the architecture and design, it's simply breathtaking. One of my favorite parts of DC was all the quotes from great leaders engraved around the city. The Lincoln and Jefferson memorials were my favorite, but I saw them the day I saw the White House, which doesn't allow any cameras.

Lastly, here I am at the National Gallery of Art. It was amazing seeing so many original paintings, so many are quite large--and beautiful. I think my favorites were Albert Bierstadt's gorgeous landscapes, I wished I could've stepped right into them, like Alice into the looking glass, they were just so lovely. 

Well, I hope you enjoyed this quick update; sorry there aren't more photos!

Outfit Details:

Shirt: Janie Jumps

Shorts: Daisy Chains

Headband, flip-flops and watch: American Girl

Until next time!

~Charlotte

Picnic at the Lake

Charlotte here! Per my idea to go somewhere for the weekend we made a last-minute trip to the lake. After a long day of packing and traveling, we decided to have a simple picnic dinner by the lake. 

We had to walk a ways down to get there, but it was a beautiful trek! Everything was green (and rather wet) and there were flowers everywhere. It was also a wee bit chilly, but not too bad. We had just come down some large stone steps when we saw the most darling bridge ever! 

"Oh wow!" exclaimed Becca, running up and leaning over the edge, "Look at this sweet little creek!"

I was carrying the basket, so I couldn't run, but Kirsten went over to have a look. 

"Isn't this bridge just perfect?" she asked.

"It is!" I agreed.

"Ooh, let's play 'Pooh Sticks!'" Becca ran over and got two sticks. 

If you don't know, 'Pooh Sticks' is a game from the Winnie the Pooh books, which we all read when we were little. To play, you drop two sticks off of a bridge and watch to see which one floats the farthest.

I set the basket down and came over to see the fun. 

"Okay, ready?" Becca asked.

"Ready!" we said, and she dropped the sticks.

"Oh-ho! Mine's winning!" I shouted

"But mine's catching up--oh!--oh, now it's stuck on a rock." laughed Kirsten.

We played a few more rounds, but then Becca said she was hungry, so we continued on down 'til we got to the dock, where we spread our picnic dinner.

"What did you pack for dinner?" Becca asked me.

"Well, I didn't have much time, but we have ham sandwiches, watermelon, and milk."

"Sounds delicious!" she replied

"Mmm-hmm" we concurred. 

It was a perfect evening: there was a slight breeze, the sun was just getting ready to go down, and there were ripples going across the lake. As we ate, a family of ducks swam by and we threw them our crumbs.

"I'm so glad we could come!" said Kirsten.
"So am I," Becca agreed, "this is the perfect weekend get-away!"
"Isn't it?" I exclaimed, "d'you hear that frog? He's so loud!"
He really was very loud, singing his croaky song, and he didn't stop once night came either!
Once we finished, Becca wanted to dangle her legs over the dock, so I packed up the remains and we sat by the edge, dipping our feet in the cool water and singing campfire songs, though of course there wasn't any campfire. But those songs are just fitting for any outdoor occasion, don't you think?

Until next time!
~ Charlotte

At The Pool

Hello Everyone! Wow, I can't believe we haven't posted since the 4th of July. Whoops! Well, it's been a pretty busy summer, and it's also been pretty smoky around here; the fires are really bad, so we haven't gone outside as much.

However, a few days ago we did finally get out to the pool!

It wasn't too hot out, so we stood around in the shallow end, chatting and splashing each other. Well, it was mostly me splashing them, hehe! 

"Well, we have about a month left of summer, so we'd better make sure it's good!" I said.

"I can't believe it's already the middle of August!" exclaimed Kirsten, then added, "Hmm, we'll be going to the beach with Gwen and Megan in September...I'm not sure what else we should do. What do you think, Charlotte?"

"I've been looking into play auditions for myself, so I've got that, but maybe we should go somewhere for the weekend!"

I liked the sound of that, and asked "Ooh, like where?"

"I don't know, but we should look into it!" Charlotte replied, getting out of the pool.

"Hey, d'you think you can just get out of the water like that, without actually getting all the way in?" I said, pulling her back in. As we jokingly struggled, she slipped and fell all the way in! But then she pulled me under. Of course, then Kirsten was the only dry one, but just as we came for her she jumped in on her own so we didn't have a chance.

We chased each other around the pool for a while, but then we were exhausted, so Kirsten and I returned to the shallow end, and Charlotte finally got to leave! 

While Charlotte sat on her towel, us two continued to chat.

"I'd say it's been a pretty successful summer so far," Kirsten said, "I've sewn several doll dresses and I've re-read the entire Chronicles of Narnia!"

"I agree. I've baked a ton, and I've practiced piano every week. That's pretty good!"

Charlotte chimed in, "And I've gotten to learn more about designing and acting! I'd definitely say it's been a great summer."

"And it's not over yet!" I added. 

It was so beautiful out, and there was no reason for us to leave, so we stayed there all afternoon, just relaxing and spending time together. :)

I hope your summer's been as spectacular as mine! 

~ Becca

Picking Raspberries

Happy Independence Day, Americans!!!

A few days ago, I'd noticed that the raspberries were pretty ripe so this morning I suggested that we go and pick them for an Independence day pie! We all love pie, so they agreed immediately. 

Once we got down there there were so many raspberries!! Charlotte didn't want to get her hair tangled in the prickly bushes, so Kirsten said she could just carry the large bucket and I was happy to use the pail. 

"Wow, look at these huge red berries!" Kirsten, exclaimed, picking a beautifully plump one. She has pretty fair skin so she wore her straw hat. 

Charlotte stood back with the bucket so as not to catch her long hair, but Kirsten and I had our hair in braids so we didn't have to worry about it. Well, I never really worry about my hair anyway, hehe. 

They seemed to have a pretty good system worked out and they were chatting away when I decided to wander down a little further to find another patch. 

It was super hot out, and weeds kept poking my bare feet, but I didn't really mind. It was just so much fun to be out there picking berries with the bees humming and the chatter of my sisters in the background!

Near the end of the patch, I found a large clump of ripe berries, so I stopped there and started filling my bucket. Not that I didn't pop a fair amount into my mouth as well, they were so warm and juicy!

As I made my way around the other side of the bushes, my bucket was feeling pretty heavy and I could no longer hear the girls' chatter. I was getting quite warm and a little bit tired when suddenly I heard footsteps on the rocks.

It was Kirsten and Charlotte, and they were lugging the bucket full of raspberries between them! They were chatting and didn't seem to notice me, but I figured they knew I was there.

Having filled my bucket, I went running across the rocks to meet them, being careful not to spill my beautiful berries along the way.

Once I reached them, they stopped as well and we set down our berries to rest and admire our work. It was so nice and shady, out there by the bushes, that we talked for quite a while before returning home for lunch.

We had a wonderful time picking raspberries today, and, now that I've finished writing this post, it's time to make the pie! We hope you all have a wonderful 4th!

~Rebecca

Our First Garden!

Hello All!! Well, we meant to start a garden a few weeks ago, but we had to finish school and we've just been busy! Today was rather hot, but the evening was just right, so we decided to finally plant our garden. Because there aren't any nice places in our yard where we can simply plant right in the ground, we decided to use these pretty tubs instead. We each chose our favorite color!  

"Okay, who wants to plant what?" I asked.

Kirsten turned to Becca, "What do we have?" 

"Well, we've got carrots, strawberries and wildflowers. Those were the only three that I could find that we'd want. It's pretty late in the season to get started!" She replied.

"Hmmm...I think I'll plant wildflowers, if that's okay with you two!" said Kirsten
"That's fine with me!" I agreed, "I'd like to plant strawberries. And you, Becca?"
"Sounds great! I love carrots!"

Kirsten was the first to start 'cause wildflowers are quite easy. She poured the seeds in her hand and slowly read aloud the instructions,
"'Sprinkle the seeds evenly throughout the bed. Water well until plants are about two inches tall.' Well, that's simple!"

As I began to read my packet, Rebecca prepped her garden. She had to create rows in the dirt and drop seeds throughout them.
"Whoo-oops!" Becca cried.
"What's wrong?" Kirsten and I asked at once.
"I kinda spilled most of the seeds all over!" she giggled. "I guess I'll have a lot of thinning to do!"

I didn't want to make the same mistake, so I carefully dug four small holes and gently placed four seeds in each. I can't wait to have fresh strawberries this summer!

Because I was last to begin, the other girls were already watering theirs when I finished. Thankfully, Becca did not spill the water on the way over. Sometimes I think she could use some dancing lessons with all the silly blunders she makes!

 I covered up my seeds and watered them, being careful not to overwater them. Strawberries are rather sensitive! When we were all finished, I said,
"I can't wait 'til they're all grown! It'll be so pretty!"
And Kirsten noted whimsically, "The fairies will probably love my flowers! Especially since they're wildflowers."
But Rebecca only said, "Ouch!" cause she had leaned back too far into the bush and gotten prickles down her shirt!

Until next time!
~ Charlotte

Pancakes!

 This morning the sun came up early and woke me up! So I decided I might as well get up, too, and make some pancakes! I slipped into my favorite outfit and tip-toed upstairs, cause Charlotte and Kirsten were still sleeping. The first thing I did was get out all the ingredients.

I couldn't find the recipe, so I just kinda guessed. Whoopsie!

I must have made some noise, cause the girls came up, yawning and stretching, just as I was pouring the batter.
"Mmmm, it smells really good. What're you making, Becca?" Kirsten asked.
"Pancakes!" I said.
"Oh, yum! Let's set the table, Kirsten." suggested Charlotte.

So I finished up the pancakes and they set the table. I was finished pretty quickly and came over with quite a stack!
"What should we do today?" I asked
"Well," Charlotte said. "I was thinking maybe we should plant a garden."
Kirsten and I were pretty excited about that idea; we'd never had a garden before!
"That's a great idea! We can plant tomatoes and zucchini, and carrots-"
"And flowers!" interrupted Kirsten.

"Why not both?" added Charlotte. "It'll be so much fun!" 

I must've been pretty excited, 'cause the next thing I knew one of my pancakes was on the floor! It scared me a little and I might've shouted  a bit loud in surprise. Coconut came running to see what happened.

Hehe, silly Coco. He liked the pancake a lot and trotted off to eat in private. Even though I made them from memory, they turned out really well!

Well, I hope we do plant a garden soon! If so, you'll probably know. :)

~Rebecca

Looking for Fairies

It's so beautiful and warm here! The other day, Kirsten and I went outside to explore the bushes and look for fairies.  Rebecca didn't come with us because she doesn't like to sit still for long, so she'd probably scare them all away. We looked around in a large bush with pretty white flowers; it seemed like a logical place for fairies.  

While we were searching, Kirsten told me lots of fairy tales that she's read in the Fairy Books by Andrew Lang. They're her favorites, but I've never read them! There were some really good ones, like Thumbelina and The Twelve Dancing Princesses!

Suddenly, Kirsten turned to me and whispered, "Look over there, isn't that a perfect fairy house?!" I looked, and it was! Right in the middle of the large bush was an opening perfect for fairy gatherings! 

 We went over to it right away and looked around for a fairy ring, which is a circle of toadstools made by fairies when they have dances and councils.  But we couldn't find one, so we sat down to rest and watch for fairies. It was so magical in that little fairy hideaway!

I thought I almost saw one flitting about among the leaves, but they're tricky little things so I didn't get a good look at it. Of course, we don't really believe in fairies, but we pretend to believe, and that's 'most as fun as believing! 

~Charlotte