Six Pics Of Summer

Here are six pictures I've taken in the past two days that I'm particularly fond of -

(or, "of which I'm particularly fond," if you're a stickler about prepositions).

1. THE LAUGH - Laney starts singing a song that goes, "Clean up! Clean up! Everybody clean up!" and Hagen begins laughing so hard his tummy probably hurts. We all agree that the concept of Laney cleaning anything is a real knee-slapper. 

2. CONCERNED BROTHER - Hagen watches Laney launch herself down the slide backwards, and considers lowering the deductible on our family insurance policy. 

3. CRUISIN' ON A MONDAY AFTERNOON - I can only watch Laney swing back and forth so many times before I have to find new ways to entertain myself in the yard. Yesterday, I popped Hagen on Laney's old toy, and he loved it. The problem: He can only launch himself backward, so it's all great fun until he realizes he's 25 feet away from me in the middle of the driveway. Then, I have to pick him up, bring him back, and let him do it all over again. I have created more work for myself.

4. HEY, HOLLYWOOD - This is the fight we're having right now: Laney watched an episode of Little Bill in which Bill learned to tie his shoes. Because she watched that episode, she now thinks she can tie her shoes, too. I've watched every season of Project Runway, but I don't think I can whip up a ball gown, ifyaknowwhatimean.

She can't get her shoes tied, but she has great fun sitting down and narrating the shoe-tying process, "You make a hoopsie..." etc etc. To listen to her, you'd think she had it down. Then you look, and see that all she's done is twist the two laces together. So you say, "Laney, can I help you finish that up? Or show you another way?" And she says - as if you're the one with the problem - "No! They're already tied!" You cannot convince her she's mistaken.

She's hard-headed, she's delusional, she's awesome.

5. MY FAVORITE - EVER.