The Slide arrived...

One of the kids' favorite things of summer is their big Banzai water slide. I decided to buy it for them last summer when Andrew was a baby because I didn't feel comfortable taking a 9 month old baby and Caleb who was 3.5 at the time to a public pool by myself. There was too much risk for something to go wrong.... Anyway, welcome water slide! My kids LOVE you! Actually the neighborhood loves you! LOL.

If you've been reading the blog for very long you know we have a neighborhood FULL of little kids. Literally, somewhere over 50 of them, and let's just say.... when the water slide is out, our backyard is the "hot" spot for sure.

Last night I took Katherine to try on dresses for my sister's wedding. We found some really cute dresses that will work perfectly for both Morgan and Katherine as the dresses come in several different sizes, but still cut the same. So the girls are super excited about that! There's nothing better than getting a brand new super fancy dress! Katherine was equally excited about the shoes. She's "hoping" for something with a little heel!

Anyway, while we were gone, Matt put up the water slide for a party Katherine organized. She invited all the little girls from her gymnastics class over, and had planned activities, treats and trampoline time. However, when the neighborhood kids saw it come up they instantly asked if they could come over too. Katherine wasn't "thrilled" with the idea, since she wanted it to be just her gymnastics friends (and one little boy she invited for Caleb to play with -- how great is she??? I mean really? The thought of not including him didn't even cross her mind. She wanted him there, wanted him to have fun and made an effort to make sure that happened. Love that girl. Love her big heart. Love how thoughtful she is).

Everyone arrives at 1 and the slide goes up. Water is everywhere. Little girl laughter and screaming literally fills the backyard. The show they are putting on in the trampoline resembles circus monkeys! 7 girls arrive, plus Jenna and Olivia her friends from the neighborhood, plus the two older sisters of the friend she invited for Caleb and she has a rockin' party in no time -- music and all!

At this point, several of our neighbors start coming over and before you know it, we've got 23 kids in the backyard. Julie, my friend from gymnastics, couldn't believe it. They live on an acreage and don't have any neighbors. When kids come to their house they have to go and pick them up. No one just shows up. Her kids don't have instant play dates, and her house isn't filled with commotion.... I love it. I love knowing what my kids are doing and who their friends are. I don't mind feeding an army or having my backyard flooded. I know the kids my kids call their friends, their friends know me, they are comfortable at our house and want to hang out here. I love that now and in 10 years it will be invaluable.