let the summer adventures begin!

 School's out!

It's official... summer vacation has begun.

The boys celebrated with a buddy last Friday at the park...

pre-school party

Last week saw the winding down of the pre-school year... 

and Sam was so excited to party and play with his friends!

we took the boys to lunch after the last "real" day of school!

Then last Friday was the big celebration - snacks, games, friends, balloons, gifts, etc...

ready for some fun...

I got snagged to do the face painting for the kids - and although I didn't get to watch Sam and his friends run around and play, I did get lots of funny one-on-one time with each kid while I turned them into some abstract version of a butterfly, spiderman, ninja, or tiger!

When it was Sam's turn, he came to his momma with a request for his favorite color (to go with his purple fedora and purple shirt, naturally!)... so I obliged, and by the time I was half-way done painting his whole face purple, he had figured out what he was going to be...

... a purple panda! (fave color + fave animal)

Funny, I remember worrying last summer that the school experience could potentially wear away at some of Sam's individuality and unique sense of style.... 

but I think all of that is still well in tact, if not stronger!

Pre-school has merely given Sam some of the greatest friends who love him the way he is and all know that the purple crayon is saved for Sammy.

a one-ring circus

no... this is not a post about my house!

(otherwise it would have definitely been titled at least a two-ring circus!)

Seriously, the Carson & Barnes Circus landed in Meeker last week for a one night engagement and we were pretty excited to see it - and were NOT disappointed!

It was a very traditional circus: acrobats, clowns, great costumes, elephants, camels, dog & pony tricks, flying trapeze... and of course peanuts and cotton candy!

The highlights:

During intermission, Hamp found his buddies and snagged a photo-op with the circus python.

For the opening parade, Jason and I got to ride in on an elephant!!!!! (still waiting on that picture!)

One of the very neat things that the circus did the day they pulled into town was invite the elementary school students to all come see the big top tent go up! While the students were all there, they learned all about the 3 resident circus elephants and got to ask all kinds of interesting questions about circus life... in fact, the collective group of moms I know are all taking bets on which one of our kids is going to run off to join!

Possibly the best part of the day = a tug-of-war between the teachers and Rosie, the elephant!

That's Principal Hightower right in front - pulling SO hard! (maybe they'll win?!)

There's the other end of the rope... hmmm, this could go either way!

Whoa! Looks like Rosie is going to pull it out folks!
What's that? You want a better shot of the Principal being dragged by an elephant???
OK....

All in good fun... and good times had by all!

sweet boys

mothers

So, first off I have to share with you the gorgeous pictures of the boys that my dear friend Carly recently took - check them out here! Keep in mind she is not a professional (yet!) and does this pro bono for me and as practice for her, so I am particularly amazed at how clever she was at capturing the boys' sparkle and love for one another!

Anyway, I also have to say that I truly feel that everyday is Mother's Day in my house - I am honored by my husband regularly and my boys are never short on hugs or I love you's for their momma! Of course, the thoughtful creations and plants and sentiments are nice, but really I think today belongs to a few other people that I must celebrate and thank profusely for making my world a beautiful place:

YAYA (my mother-in-law)

When I saw this sign, I knew it was for her! She has raised two kind, smart, thoughtful, caring and conscientious men who know how to treat a woman like a princess! (well, it helps that my sister-in-law and I are so very fun and attractive and easy to get along with!☺) Seriously though, I couldn't ask to be a part of a more wonderful family, with a strong and beautiful woman at the helm!

MOJO (my mom!)

As she spends Mother's Day cruising around the Mediterranean Sea (awesome!!!) I want her to know that I miss talking to her every other day and having that one person to share the details of my life with who I know will always be on my side! Though this sign might scare my husband (just kidding!), it makes me happy to have such a great example to follow.

And finally, to all my friends who make motherhood fun to share:

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!

spring cleaning

MY SPRING CLEANING TO DO LIST:

1) re-paint my kitchen

2) re-paint my living room

before... (note the circled hole in the wall! yikes...)

after... hole is patched, wall is clean, I am happy!

I know it's not much different, but believe me - 

the change from a dingy, greenish yellow to a warm, buttery tan is MUCH nicer!!!!! ☺

3) get a bike rack!

I know it seems excessive... but check out what it looked like before! 

4) clean up the toys in the backyard

So, this was more challenging than one would expect... 

it seems that when the boys tried to throw the football it got stuck in the tree:

So naturally, they tried to get the football down by throwing a basketball at it.

Well that got stuck, too!

Then they threw a baseball bat up to try to get the balls....

I think you get the idea!!!!!

we think the tree perhaps is akin to Charlie Brown's kite-eating variety

the boys thought it was fun, though!

5) mow

The first cut of the year...

6) plant

My very kind neighbor gave us some purple iris bulbs to put in our front yard!

Sam had fun digging in the dirt and playing in the water!

and finally.... rest!

A few days of nice, sunny weather have gotten all of us out in the back yard for some relaxation.

Happy Spring!!!

get out

Sunday's adventure was a quick hike/bike ride 

along the newly refurbished trails at the top of town!

Jason rode, Gabe ran, and I walked with four kiddos - taking a couple of photos along the way...