Our local library (which we LOVE) held a Fancy Nancy Party back in August. Norah & I were invited - and THIS is what Norah lives for. If you have a little girl & Fancy Nancy isn't a household word... it's a book series by Jane O'Connor... find them, it's fun!! Norah chose her outfit all by herself...
Inside the Tea Room at the library, where Norah got to decorate a headband, make a corsage, and add sparkles to whatever she wanted... THEN gets to sit in this chair for photo ops.
Next, into the Fancy Nancy story room.
Mrs. Bulger, the Children's librarian (who is amazing!) put some Fancy Nancy & other princess books out for all the girls...
Mrs. Bulger is the one in the purple gown... 
Out to the terrace where tea & snacks (and a chocolate fountain!!) await... (If I had to do it all over again, I'd get married on the perfect October day, out on the library terrace - it's so beautiful out there!)
Norah was ready for the tea party to begin!
As if Norah wasn't already in heaven... the chocolate fountain, where she could dip marshmallows (which she LOVES) was a sure hit with Norah...
What a fun afternoon to spend with her - we had a blast!
He actually has now wrapped the beds all the way around - connecting to the front bed.
Both our kids are WONDERFUL helpers - Norah would scoop & deliver mulch & after a few turns, Noah would take his turn.
A cheerful helper.
She'd even dump it exactly where Jeff told her to!
Noah, taking his turn.
The kids also played in the mulch...
and played.
And Norah would try her best to keep it in a nice, neat pile.
And when Jeff got tired of mulching...he also tackled scraping & painting the garage. I was a bit... shocked, shall I say, by his scraping "arrangement" - but it worked.
Jeff doesn't like heights, but I was so proud of him - he did it!
Norah had her basket & was ready to pick.
Rara would help Noah find just the right berries...
...and Papa would also help Noah (truth be told, he was often caught with his hand snatchin' berries out of other's buckets... pretty smart, Noah!)
This is Norah, popping a berry in her mouth & proclaiming, "Mmmmmm!" I'm thankful they didn't weigh Norah before we went in the patch & when we came out...she ate A.LOT. of berries.
I had to chuckle, as I was picking & was watching Noah hang his basket on a branch.
She asks, again, for her picture to be taken. Should have known.
And off she goes - without a care in the world.
He has Mrs. Decker this year - and we are SO thankful he's in her classroom. She's wonderful. 
Noah, with his new Nike sneakers for school ( and GYM class, I mean, Physical Education) 
Norah had to get in on the action, despite still being in her pj's and messy bed-head.
Of course, Noah is still cruising around in his Gator...
And now Norah...unstoppable in that Hummer! It's so fun to see the kids ride around together, make "roads" and "stores" along the way & having a blast together!
The kiddos playing on 1 of the trees in the yard. I believe we had 13 acres to explore!
First night down on the beach... kids were SO thrilled that we came back to Presque Isle, after our wonderful vacation there last year.
Norah loved running to the water, then back to play in the sand!
It's fun to see their excitement each year...
Both Noah & Norah have become quite the little swimmers this summer... we'd swim every morning, then typically go back to the beach house after we ate our picnic lunch on the beach, then head back in the evening for more beach-fun!
Noah, swimming his little heart out! He has always loved the water!
My surfer-dude!
I'd find it entertaining to watch what Norah would do everyday. Always something different... this day, she enjoyed just pouring sand on herself.
Sunsets are always beautiful (interesting fact: National Geographic currently lists Presque Isle as the #2 most beautiful sunsets in the world!)
On Monday night, July 25th, the 7 of us rented a surrey for an hour! We peddled 6-miles & completed the entire loop! 
1/2 way there... posing for a photo :)
One night we went down to a pier ...a place last year Noah loved because of the big machines there...
This is one of my favorite pictures. Noah was shocked at how large the tires were... this is SO classic Noah - his love for all things trucks, tractors, wheels - you name it.
Noah & Norah at the lighthouse.
We ended that evening with some yummy ice cream at Sara's
mmmmmmmmmm
And after ice cream - some kite flying down on the beach while we watched the sunset.
It's so enjoyable to me to see my family together, enjoying our vacation, & enjoying each other's company...
Here we are:
Wednesday, the 27th...and still not tired of the beach! Yay for another day! (Tuesday was spent at Waldameer Park, the water park in the morning & the amusement park at night...but, I didn't take my camera with me that day)
Jeff & Travis helped the kids make sandcastles!
If you look closely, you can see Noah flying his Buzz Lightyear kite.
And Norah- flying her Princess Ariel kite.
Jeff & I were able to have some alone time while Becky & Travis watched our kiddos Wednesday night. We decided to do the Sunset Cruise on good ol' Lady Kate.
And..the next morning - down at the beach again!
Noah drew a circle...and had fun simply standing in it.
Another one of my favorite pics... Noah found a flat rock, stuck in behind his glasses & waited for us to notice. He told us he was a pirate. I LOVE Noah's sense of humor - he's become quite the funny little guy.
And another sunset...
Norah's pure inhibition.
And another sunset.
I love these 2 so much - I'm so thankful that I have vacation time to take & that I can spend such fun times with my family. We have such fun memories!
Our last trek over the bluffs down to the beach...
Becky & Travis built this before we came down to the beach that night. The kids had a blast playing in their little "fort"
Another one of Noah's favorite things to do: play with his trucks in the sand.
My pretty lil' beach bumpkin
One last group shot...
Best of buds: Noah & Norah
