Bingham Family Reunion

At the start of July we went to Texas for a week to catch-up with Chris's siblings and parents who live all across the US and Canada. We're trying to get together every 2-years and so it had been that long since we had seen some members of his family. The last reunion was just a few weeks before Chris and I moved to Georgia, his youngest brother Bry left on a mission, his sister Laurel-Lee moved to Portland for more school and his brother Tom moved to Texas... phew! 2-years on.... Bry is now back from his mission in Las Vegas, and the rest of us are more settled. And his sister Laurel-Lee not only got to go to school in Portland but also met someone wonderful - Robert and got married this time last year!

Chris is the oldest of 7. 6 out of the 7 siblings are married and between us we now have 15 children ages 6 and under! What a party! The youngest one is just a few weeks old and belongs to his sister Liz, who lives in Austin, which is where the family reunion was.

The cousins had a great time playing together. All the kids had one or more cousins around their own age. Activities included trips to the playground, a talent show, a birthday party and a photo shoot at the capital building in downtown Austin. And lots of good home cooked Mexican food from Rick Bayless's cook book Mexican Everyday which has been a family favorite for the last year or so.

We also got to spend time in Dallas with Chris's brother Tom and his wife Tonia. It was a really fun week and we look forward to doing it again 2-years from now!

Busy Binghams

Elliott started walking about a month ago and he also loves to climb. I thought that Owen was a busy toddler, but Elliott takes it to a whole new level. I stayed in bed for a few extra minutes yesterday and when I came out, this is where I found Elliott.... helping himself to his favorite cereal, Honey Bunches of Oats. I have also found him standing on this same table reaching up for the lights. He has no fear at all and is keeping me running!


This week I finally got two things done that I have been on my to-do list for a long time. I painted our living room blue and made Ella a new dress using one of my cousin Toni's fantastic patterns. Both the new blue wall and Ella's new dress are in the picture below. I can't believe I put both off so long. The wall didn't take as long as I thought to paint and Ella's dress was so quick and easy to make. It took about 20 mins to cut out Ella's dress and I sewed it all in a night. I even had enough energy left to make matching flower hair clips using scraps of left over fabric. Ella couldn't wait to wear her dress on Sunday and had to wear it the very next day. Thanks Toni for getting me sewing again! I can't wait to use more of your patterns.

One of Sam and Ella's preschool friends, Lauren, had a birthday party this week. Owen fell in love with a knight costume at Lauren's house and her Mum was kind enough to let Owen bring it home on loan for a few days. Owen had to have it in bed with him tonight because he loves it so much. Here's a picture of Owen-the-Knight...

Happy Birthday Owen!

On July 6 our little Owen turned 3. We were in Texas at a Bingham family reunion with Chris's parents and siblings on Owen's birthday and so Owen had to wait until we got home the next day for his presents. He was one excited 3 year old when we got home!!! We didn't arrive home until late in the afternoon but Owen couldn't wait a minute longer. I had to quickly finish wrapping his presents and then the fun began! The highlight for Owen was a Playmobil castle with knights, horses and swords. He has been playing with it for hours every day.





The next day we had Owen's birthday dinner. He wanted pizza, fizz, chips and a pirate birthday cake! Owen has had his eye on a pirate cake at our local supermarket for months. Every time we go we have to stop for a moment to look at the cake. Unfortunately the cake is $50 and so I had to whip up a cake that looked something like a pirate ship! It was chocolate with peanut butter and cream cheese frosting. Peanut butter was the only way I could think of to get the right color! Anyone want cake? The kids now don't seem to want to eat anymore and we have so much left!
10 things we love about Owen
- His love of books and reading
- His imagination & creativity
- His enthusiasm
- How he wants to be big
- He has a big personality in a little body. Owen is still wearing size 2 clothes!
- How he loves to play the part of Ella's prince and will dance with her
- His love of swimming
- His loud but cute voice
- His smile
- His tiny backside that looks so little in underwear