It's all fun and games...

... until someone gets hurt.

When we woke up this morning, the sun was shining - a pleasant surprise. So, we headed to Parliament Hill up at Hampstead Heath to "ride the slide" as Isabelle calls it, play in the sandpit, and splash in the paddling pool. It was a great idea until Isabelle hurt her foot going down the slide with Maddie. Once we realized she couldn't put any weight on her left foot, we headed up the road to the hospital where we spent two hours seeing doctors and getting x-rays. Nothing is broken. The doctor's orders were to to give it a couple of days, hope for the best, and keep her on ibuprofen. Hopefully, she'll be up and running soon. For now, she's crawling and crying a lot out of frustration. Isabelle's daily routine consists of being busy and running around which is hard to do when you can't get up on your two little feet! We'll be sure to keep you posted on her recovery.

Here are a few photos of what started out to be the perfect summer day in London!

Old Friends

Yesterday, we met up with some old friends at the park. We had to say goodbye to some of our best friends -MaryBeth, Stephanie, Michelle, and Christine. At the moment, Switzerland isn't too far away. We just need to plan a trip before we leave England.

Michelle and Maddie

MaryBeth and Mom

Cala, Eli, and Benjamin with Maddie

Lucky for us, we still have a few friends left in London!

Playmobil Wedding

A few years ago, Santa Claus introduced Maddie to the world of Playmobil with a large, pink castle. She's been playing with it ever since and has added a few small sets to her collection. For her birthday, she got the new wedding set. She loves the church (which she calls the temple), the reception tent, and the "Just Married" car (not shown). She's had lots of time to play with it since the weather has been miserable - wet, cold, and windy. Hopefully, the sun will come out soon so she can try out her other birthday present - a new, bigger scooter!

I Love Paris in the Springtime

After posting about our summer vacation and watching the Tour de France with Luke, I realized that I never posted pictures of our spring holiday in Paris. It's probably because as soon as we got back, we were supposed to pack up and move. We didn't move, but we got busy undoing the move, finishing the school year, and heading to the States. So, better late than never! Here are the pictures from Paris.

Le Tour Eiffel

Maddie on the Bateaux Mouches

View of the Arc de Triomphe from the Eiffel Tower

Luke and Maddie

Izzie's view from the Eiffel Tower

View of Les Invalides from the Eiffel Tower

Le Jardin du Luxembourg
(the perfect place for the perfect, Parisian afternoon avec les enfants)

I loved all these pictures and couldn't pick just one of Maddie and the boats.

Maddie going for a pony ride

(maybe next time Izzie - when you're a little bigger)

The Playground

The Louvre

(Too much fun for little ones - Maddie lost interest after she found the Mona Lisa.)

The Pyramid outside the Louvre

Izzie cooling off at the Louvre

Ally and the girls at the Tuileries

A double decker carousel at Sacre Coeur

Maddie and Izzie at Disneyland Paris on It's a Small World

(It's Izzie's favorite ride. She also loved Mickey Mouse in the parade.)

The Family with Goofy

I promise that I will have Luke resume the holiday posts so you get the full itinerary and commentary. I'm not as eloquent as Luke so all I can say is that I absolutely love Paris!

Summer Vacation

After Maddie got out of school, we headed to Utah. We were able to spend lots of time with grandparents, cousins, and old friends. We were there for three weeks. (Well, Luke was only there for two. He had to make a quick trip to Melbourne, Australia in the middle of our vacation.) While we were there, we were able to spend lots of time at pools and waterparks which is something we don't get to do in the summer in England. We definitely enjoyed the warm, sunny weather. It actually felt like summer in Utah! Here are some pictures from our summer vacation.

Maddie and Izzie with Aunt Stacey and Uncle Alex

The girls with Nana

The girls at Nana's

Izzie and Emily - eating instead of splashing - at Thanksgiving Point

Maddie and McKay being silly

Maddie and McKay being a little more serious

Maddie and Presley at the pool

Maddie and Presley at the park

Maddie with Zaky and Presley at Cowabunga Bay

Maddie and Izzie taking Nana's wheelchair for a test drive

Izzie climbing in the tub with Maddie after she'd had a bath and gotten into her pajamas

Luke with Grandma Cokie and Papa Scott

Hailey and Maddie

Izzie with Aunt Alta

Maddie with Carter

Izzie's first trip to Cafe Rio



Maddie going for a drive



Maddie and cousins at Fiesta Fun

TinkerBell Party

Maddie had a Tinkerbell party to celebrate her birthday with a few special friends.

The Birthday Girl

Yummy cupcakes from The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook

(See Grammy Bammy's blog.)

TinkerBell

Sitting/Flying TinkerBell

TinkerBell blowing out the candle

Maddie and her friends had lots of fun having fairy makeovers complete with pixie dust, wings and wands, playing games, and eating cupcakes, ice cream and chocolate covered strawberries.

Maddie is her mother's daughter and has already begun planning her next birthday party!