Chloe's Hair

It seems every morning Chloe and I have a discussion about how to do her hair.  It usually consists of which princess she wants to look like.  I bun is Cinderella, one braid is Elsa, two is Anna, long and down and free is Ariel, straightened and long is Rapunzel...
Today she wanted Anna's fancy over the top braid.  She was pretty proud of it and wanted a picture, so being the good mom that I am, here it is.  Documented.  :)

My Little Character

 

James is a character.  He is always seeing things in a different way, imagining things, creating things...
Today he was just hanging out upside down.  We'd be talking and he'd just get up and go do a headstand.  I later found him this way on the couch watching TV. 
I just have to smile and let out a little laugh.  I am doing it again now as I am writing this.  I am glad he has inherited his dad's ability to make people happy.

Best Mother's Day EVER!

Today I had the best Mother's Day ever!  What a sweet family I have.  I must be doing something right because my husband and kids spoiled me rotten!

I woke up to the sounds of someone working in the kitchen.  Seth was laying in bed next to me, so I sent him down to see what was going on and to make sure everything was alright.  He quickly returned assuring me that all was fine and that I would just have to wait and see what was coming.

Sam had made me breakfast in bed!  What a kid!  He brought me toast and orange juice in a fancy cup he got from Tressa's Wedding.  He apologized that it wasn't buttered because he didn't quite know how to do that yet. 

 He then presented me with multiple cards and a beautiful Lego creation. 

 I was glad to see that the #3 reason he loved me was because I let him have chips! :)

 James came in next with his Lego creation.  It was an exploding volcano that said I love you.

He also wanted to make me breakfast in bed so I got some yummy cereal that he made all by himself.

 Next came Chloe and her beautiful creations. 

 She drew me a picture on her Fairy drawing pad.  I loved it.

The rest of the day was just as great.  I got to start my new calling.  I got called back into Primary as the Chorister.  I was so excited.  I had a blast being back in there.  I had missed being the chorister ever since I was released a few years ago.
After church it was a nice relaxing day at home where I was waited on hand and foot.  It was fun and I enjoyed every minute of it.  After all it was a special day to celebrate one of my best accomplishments...Motherhood!

Parties and Cousins

Today was a party!  Chloe got to go to her friends Frozen birthday party.  This is her third party in a week!  She is such a socialite.  I never went through all this birthday party craziness with the boys, but Chloe makes friends with everyone she meets (just like her dad) so she gets to the reap the rewards of parties. 

 She even got to have a sleepover with her cousin, Presley.  Those two crack me up.  It's all about holding hands and playing girly things.

 When the boys found out that Chloe was going to have a sleepover they decided that it was only fair to have their cousins Thomas and Joseph come over for a sleep over too.  So we called them up and got them over as fast as we could. 
So with the boys running around the house with play weapons, conquering the world, and the girls prancing around in princess shoes and all the jewelry they could handle, we had a full house.  A very happy, full house.

Duck Crossing

 

This morning I was more than happy to stop and wait for a mother duck and her ducklings to cross the street.  That is one of the perks of being 3 blocks from the lake.  I love these little moments.  It makes me think of one of my favorite children's books, "Make Way for Ducklings".  I was glad to share this moment with my kids and then go home and read that book.

Megan's Soccer Game



Tonight for Family Night we decided to go to Megan's soccer game.  We had a great time watching her dominate the pitch.  She is good and fun to watch.  Nobody was going to get by her!

While Seth and I watched the game the kids had fun running around and playing.  But with running and fun comes the accidents.

Poor Sam was running on the tennis courts behind us and didn't see the wire that goes from the net to the pole a few feet away.  The wire clothes-lined him and he went flying backwards.  The poor kid had a huge mark on his head from the wire and big strawberries down his side where he skidded on the cement after he was shot back from the wire.

Then poor Chloe ate it running on the gravel.  Oh man.  All I have to say is that I am glad I stock my purse with band-aids and such.  It was a fun but rough night for the M family!

Easter 2014

What a fun Easter we had today!  The kids woke up to their baskets filled with treats and goodies.  We never have to worry about having time for this before church because we get up so early.  So it's nice that we have time to just enjoy the moment. 

 Sam was dying for a science kit of experiments.  All week he was asking me if I thought the Easter Bunny would be strong enough to carry one if he was able to find one small enough.  Well, it looks like he found just the right one.  Sam was so excited and have to do an experiment right away.

 James was hoping the Easter Bunny would bring him Galaxy Squad Legos because I told him I wouldn't buy them for him.  The Tooth Fairy and the Leprechauns had come through so far, so he couldn't wait to see if the Easter Bunny was just as reliable.  To say he was ecstatic about it would be an understatement.  You would have thought he had just won the lottery for a million dollars!

 Chloe got a Frozen play set.  She was so cute when she noticed it.  Just big eyes, jaw dropped, and complete silence as she admired it with awe.  After her wonder and amazement for the castle wore off she was able to dig through her basket and see all the girly things she loves stuffed in there.

 Chloe wanted a picture with Bostyn after church since they were wearing their pretty Easter dresses.

 Later in the day we headed down to my sister Joy's house for dinner and a family egg hunt.  Seth and the boys had fun finish stuffing the over 300 eggs we had.  They kept having competitions to see who could stuff the most marshmallow peeps into one egg.  I think Mitch won with 5, but only because he rubber banded it closed.  I felt sorry for who every found that one!

 We had a yummy dinner and a fun egg hunt.  While all the adults were hiding the eggs I pulled out my balloons and made some fun things for all the kids.  I was a little nervous, hoping I could really do it and remember all I had learned.  I was pleasantly surprised with how well I did.  I got a request for turtle, which I hadn't learned yet.  I guess I have some homework to do! :)

Karen's New Talent

This weekend I decided I wanted to pursue a new talent; that of balloon animal making.  For some reason Chloe has been wanting a balloon animal.  She must have seen one on a show or something.  So I called up my friend's husband, Jamon, who I know knows how to twist balloons.  He let me come over last night and learn a few animals and things and the different twists and ties there are.

So today I had fun on YouTube learning how to do all sorts of fun animals and things.  The kids (and I) were loving it.   

There were a lot of pops and unidentifiable creations, but I am getting the hang of it.  Pretty soon there were dozens of balloon animals all over the house.  Who knew balloon tying could be so therapeutic?! :)

I just may have to take balloons to our family Easter get together tomorrow!

Dying Eggs

I don't know why things I love, like dying Easter Eggs and Carving Pumpkins, are so hard to get done sometimes.  So when we woke up this morning we got right to it before the day could get away from us.  I wasn't going to miss letting the kids dye and decorate their eggs. 

One of my favorite things about activities like these is to watch and listen to my kids.  I love their reactions to different things like the splash the eggs make when they are dropped in the colors, the magic crayon that you can't see until you've dyed an egg....  I love little minds making little discoveries.

I also love their conversations.  It's very educational to sit back and see what they find to be important and funny.  I love soaking up their lives during times like this so that I make sure as their mom that I know what they like and think about so that I can talk to them about it.  After all, if they know I am into their interests and know what's going on in their lives now, that will still be the case when they are older.

I'll Take my Breakfast Outside Today, Thank You Very Much

 

I guess the morning was just too beautiful to leave because after I had watered the garden and went in to make breakfast Chloe still had not come in.  When it was time to eat she informed me that I could bring her breakfast out to her today. :)

Our New Favorite Park

We have a new park in our community that is just amazing.  It has rock hills, a stream, tunnels, slides, swings, zip lines....  It's pretty awesome.  We had fun going there on a picnic with some friends today. 

 James and Fynn and best buddies.  They would walk up and down the stream just talking and playing together.  James almost had a melt down when he slipped and got his bottom wet, until he saw that Fynn did it too.  Then suddenly (thankfully) it was funny.

 Bostyn is Chloe's "adopted" big sister.  She is so good to Chloe and they have a blast together.  And best of all, I didn't have to spend the whole time pushing Chloe on the swings!  Thank you Bostyn! :)

 

 

Silly Walk

 

Every morning before Seth leaves for work Chloe has to do the "silly walk" with him.  She hops on his feet, hooks her fingers through his belt loops and hangs on as he walks her to the garage door where she then stands and shouts parting words to her dad until he is out of sight.  It is one of the things I love about my mornings.  There is a special bond between a little girl and her Dad and I am glad that Chloe and Seth have it!

Story Time

We are newly frequently attenders of our library's Story Time.  I don't know why we haven't gone before, but we have been loving it.  I usually just take James and Chloe while Sam is in school, but when he is off track he loves going too. 

They get to sing, move, read, play games, and at the end they always get a little coloring page and a science experiment.   And best of all they get to go search for books and check them out.  It has been really good for them (and me).  It has helped us get back into a better routine of reading daily.  Plus, I love free activities to look forward to.