Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Sand

Who knewnew sand could beso much
fun!

Monday, June 14, 2010

Visiting Mommy's School

School is done! Hooray!
Yes, today was my first day of summer...well, sort of. Tomorrow is really my first day of summer, but today was the first day without my kids. The end of the school year is always bittersweet. That's because I'm always sad to say goodbye to my kids (especially if it's a group like I had this year!), but I'm excited to have the summer ahead of us. It is very fun because the kids are just at that age where they "get it." They were counting down the days just like we were. When we woke up on Saturday, C said, "Mommy! It's summer! No more school!" It is so much fun to be home with them. We are so lucky because J is home, too. Yes...I do know how lucky we are! People ask that a lot, and especially now with the kids, we really love having the time together as a family.
With the end of school comes my kids' annual visit to my school. They came in last Thursday to see my class, which my school kids loved! They asked A & C lots of questions. A & C both answered them very readily-favorite colors, animals, things to do, toys, things to play, etc. It was very fun to hear the questions and answers from both ends. We had indoor recess that day because it was raining. Again!!! On a side note: Did you know it has rained the last 12 of 14 days here?! Crazy! Anyway...lucky for our kids, they got to play in the classroom during recess. Everyone loved it! Pretty soon it won't just be visits that the kids will be making to my class...they'll be in the school, too (but not in my class)! Hopefully that will be the case!

Do we really get to stay up that late?


The answer was, yes! J and I (try to) have a regular bedtime for our kids which is usually between 7:30 & 8:00. Now during the summer, it can move to 8:00 or 8:30. But we really try to stay consistent. That's because no matter the time for bed, they're usually up by 7:00 in the morning. So to keep our kids up later at the cabin can be a risky move as parents. Now by "risky" I mean that we could have some crabby kids on our hands the next day since they didn't get enough sleep. It's not always pleasant and isn't always my first choice, but there are exceptions! Exceptions like having the first campfire of the year!
We let the kids stay up for their first campfire. This was also their first time they had 'smores and they loved them. C did ask about when it was time for bed while we were out for the fire. Clearly he was a little on the tired side, but that didn't stop him from eating his treat first! One of the best parts of the fire for C was that Matt, who's 10 (and who C just loves!), was the one to roast the marshmallows for the kids. They thought it was great!
This is just the first of many campfires and 'smores to come!

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Everyone Loves a Parade!


Over Memorial Weekend we went to the cabin, as we usually do every weekend. Our cabin is in between two small towns about an hour away from our house. That's what makes it so easy to be able to go so often. Every Memorial Weekend the town has a festival called Wild West Days. They have a small carnival, lots of things to do and a parade. I remember going to the parade as a kid, so it is only natural that we would go with our kids. And, if you know me, you know I love parades. I love going to them and watching them on TV. I know, I know...
So we took A & C to the parade and they loved it. They went last year, but I'm not sure they remember. This is only their third parade they've been to, but they already know all about the getting candy part, see...
There were noisy fire trucks and lots of freeze pops that were passed out as well. It was about 90 degrees that day. Not that I'm complaining...but it was HOT!!
Just look at our kids' faces:
Everyone loves a parade!

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Tubing behind Papa's fast boat...

...not behind the pontoon boat. That was sooo last year.
So, A went tubing for the first time behind "Papa's fast boat" this weekend. She loved it! The order of events went something like this:
Let's try behind the pontoon boat first. Check. Hmmm...this doesn't work so well because Mommy is with and dragging the pontoon boat behind. Ok-now let's try just A behind the pontoon boat. Well, this works, but it's not fast enough for A. Next, break time for a bit and then behind Papa's Fast Boat. Ok, this is better.That's about the sequence of events. A LOVED going behind the speed boat. Her little head bounced up and down and up again. For every wave that I was worried about hitting, her smile grew even bigger! It was so much fun watching her. Later on in the day we took her again. This time J rode with while I drove. She didn't last quite as long because there were many more boats on the lake and it was much wavier. She tapped her head like Papa taught her, we slowed down, and she said her arms hurt. I can imagine! She did great and just loved it. I'm sure this won't be the last time we'll be tubing multiple times in a day at the lake!Oh, and if you were wondering about C, well, he was a great cheerer for A. We asked him many times if he wanted to try it out and every time he said, "No, I'm good." He loved watching his "big" sister (by one minute!) tube.

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Hostibal...aka...Hospital

My mom just had surgery yesterday-her second knee replacement. She had her first one done last year, and did really well coming out of it. We are hoping for the same kind of thing this time around. We went to visit her yesterday in the hospital, and it was a telling sign that we really have 3 year olds on our hands.

The kids went to the hospital with us last year, but I'm pretty sure they don't remember. Last night they tried (very hard) to run down the hallways, play Cars in the hospital room, and talk as loudly as they could. That would be what I mean by really having 3 year olds. Oh well, I guess. They were quite curious about Mamma Jo's tubes, beeps and wires. They didn't so much care for the tubes in her nose with the oxygen. They tried to push buttons on the end of the bed (which wouldn't have been good-raising the bed up and down). What else...

All in all, the visit went ok, but about 15 minutes was all we could handle! When we got home they asked to read the Franklin (the turtle) book about the hospital. We looked closely at the pictures and talked about everything Franklin had, just like Mamma had. We said our prayers, and prayed extra prayers for fast healing for Mamma. So, Mom, we hope you're feeling better soon. We know it hurts, but we know you're tough and strong! We love you!

Love

I just visited my friend, Shelly, who just had a baby girl at the beginning of May. Her daughter is adorable and lovable, as any baby would be. There is a special kind of love a mom has for her kids. The baby love is the newest love, being that we are just getting to know our little ones. Then the love grows into different kinds of love-love for their voices, love for their new tricks, love for the laughs they bring us.

A mom never thinks twice about the kind of love they give their child. I never have. I don't think any of my friends ever have either. A mother (and a father, because this could be about dads, too) loves their child unconditionally, no matter the circumstances. This was very evident today as I visited Shelly. She has a strength about her, even though she is a "new mom" for the second time. She and her family have faced some unforeseen challenges with their baby girl, but always seem to be on the positive side of things. They have a love for her, just like any new parent would have.

I think about love in a few different ways, but today I thought about how lucky we are to love and be loved. No matter what the circumstances are...What a wonderful thing love is. Don't you think?