Jeremy's Visit

We had a blast having Seth's brother, Jeremy, over for a visit.  It is always a blast when he comes to stay.  This time Chloe became his little admirer and shadow.  She was so cute with him.  When I put her down for bed she would cry and scream, "I want Uncle Jeremy to put me to bed!"  Where ever he was, there she was too.  We hope it's not too long until we see him again!

Bedtime Stories

I love a good bedtime routine, even though I'm not always up to the task! At our house it is teeth, potty, talking about what we did that day and what we're thankful for, prayers, songs, books, stories, kisses, noses, zurbers, knocks and bounces and our traditional name calling as we tell each other we love each other.  So, yeah, you can see why sometimes I am not quite at full speed for all that after a long day, so tonight Sam stepped in a read the books for us.  It was such a sweet moment.  It was one of those moments I wanted to stop and freeze and keep forever.  I loved that we were all cuddled up enjoying a good book that my son was able to read for us.

Chloe's Cruisin'

We had a fun day of shopping with Grandma M this last Saturday.  Each of the kids had a specific "want" that they went looking for.  For Chloe it was a bell for her bike.  Well, anyone who knows her Grandma M knows that a bell is never just a bell.  As soon as she heard that I was just going to spray paint James' old blue bike pink for her she decided that just wouldn't cut it for Chloe.

Enter pimped out princess bike. :)

She finally got to test out her bike today.  It was such a long, torturous, rainy weekend, so as soon as the blue skies appeared, Chloe was out in the alley refining her pedalling skills.  She got really good really fast and soon I couldn't keep up.

It's official.  She's a big girl now.

Mom, Can we Have a Picnic?

This is what you will catch us doing at least once a week.  We LOVE LOVE LOVE spending time out of doors, running around, eating good food, and soaking in the sun.  We usually invite at least one friend to go with us which always makes it more exciting. 
I just had to log this picture and count it as one of my many blessings.  I am so grateful for the beautiful neighborhood we are blessed to live it.  Seeing this picture makes me want to sing my favorite Primary Song, "My Heavenly Father Loves Me."  Each and every creation around me testifies of His love for me and I am so happy inside when I stop to think about it and give thanks.

Happy grandMOTHER's Day!

We had fun making aprons for the Grandmas today.  The best part was that we got to get paint all over our hands and feet and it was just fine.  We sure do love our Grandmas and are grateful we have an excuse to show them just how much.

Best Buds

Sam has a great friend next door who he just loves.  Andrew is a great buddy to Sam.  You can find these two cruising the streets on their bikes, playing video games, or hanging out in the backyard.  Sam will even run notes over to Andrew occasionally, telling him what a great friend he is.  We are so blessed to have great neighbors.

Alley Cats

If weren't not out in our backyard or on a picnic you'll find us crusin' in the alley.  We love riding our bikes all around.  We'll even bring out some orange cones and make obstacle courses we have to try to ride through.  Chloe is enjoying it a lot more too now that Aymee let her borrow a cute pink scooter that is just the right size for her.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Sam decided that he wanted to play baseball this spring due to his strong love for Charlie Brown.  So we signed him up and began our season.  It was so fun to watch him slowly understand and pick up on the game. 

Seth and I ended up coaching the team due to a stinky team.  I was so disappointed with the parents on our team.  They just sat around hoping that someone would take charge instead of helping out.  Not many things bug me more that men who sit around while women do things they should have the good sense to do.  But we ending up having a good time and Sam learned a lot and enjoyed it...and that's what really matters.

It's Better to Look Up (Usually)

I took the kids on a bike ride today for some desperately needed time out of doors.  I was laying in the grass looking at the beautiful sky and how the sun was peaking through the tree above me.  It was so relaxing and pleasant until...

 ...suddenly two jets flew over and made this huge "x" right over us.  All I could think of was how weird that was and how "x" usually "marks the spot".  I got over it quickly though and wasn't unnerved enough to move from my cool shady spot! :)

Chloe's Hair

Anyone who knows Chloe knows that she has some impressive hair...in terms of fro goes anyway.  So sadly it came as no surprise when she came to us with a problem with her bubble gun. 

Sweet Grandma M gave the kids these fun guns and boy did we love them until we saw what they can do to poor Chloe.  She was so patient as we tried to untangle her hair. 

 And no, this is not the same picture.  This is when she brought her gun back to us about a half hour later!  Poor thing.  Needless to say, the gun was retired and we had a much less painful day. 

Make Way for Goslings

On our way to Lagoon we noticed that the cars in front of us hit their breaks.  We slowed, worried that an accident had just taken place, but then soon realized that everyone was trying to help a family of Geese cross the freeway safely.  I couldn't help but think of my favorite children's book, Make Way for Ducklings.  These are the experiences that help me see that the world is still a kind place.

And We're Back

Today we had a really good reason to be at Lagoon.  The kid's cousin, Madi, was performing with her dance team and we were excited to go see her and support her.  We had to wait a while until it was her turn, so the boys had fun:

Riding around with Grandma M on her scooter

Striking posses with Madi

Following each other around

And finally watching Madi strut her stuff.

Lagoon was so packed with dancers and their families that we decided to do some of the fun things we don't always do because we are so busy running from ride to ride.  We had fun:
Eating yummy treats

Checking out the fun Museums

Watching all the Geese and their families

Running around poles

And wearing our hats backwards.

We finally got on some rides and had some thrills.  We of course had to do the Dino Drop.  Chloe absolutely loves this ride and is a regular.  The workers know her face now and always say hi!

Before heading out we had to get a few runs on the go carts.  For some reason we always seem to forget about this one, so when we actually do it the kids have a blast.

As soon as we got in the car the kids were exhausted.  It was a great time that left us dead tired.  Good day!