VBS Week

Jaden attended Vacation Bible School for the second time this week, and though it gives us a hectic schedule, it's always nice to have lots of one-on-one time with one child. Since Brandon has to wait another year to attend VBS and Cody works most nights, Brandon and I had a lot of bonding time. My patience was tested several times, but I also got to soak up this adorable little three-year old of ours. It's amazing how much you can take in when you are allowed to focus on just one child for a while. Just his vocabulary and the way he expresses himself seem to grow by leaps and bounds every week, and truth be told -- this little one of ours never stops talking!! He is our littler chatterbox lately, and we had a lot of interesting conversations this week. ;)

It's also a goal of mine to make each night special for him since he knows Jaden is off doing fun things without him. And Jaden did have so much fun. The youth program at our church is fabulous, and it's one of the big reasons we choose to be members there. By the end of the week, Jaden was even brave enough to get up on the stage in front of the entire group to help lead the last worship song!

Yup... that's our three year old. Protesting pictures and no doubt sticking his tongue out at me underneath the helmet.

Memorable moments from each night this week:

Dinner time was always a mad dash to get the food ready, get the kids fed and fit in time for potty breaks before dropping Jaden off. Monday night I resorted to pb&j sandwiches - made special with my sports themed cookie cutters. A baseball glove sandwich is a super easy way to get rid of that pesky crust that no kid likes.

Monday night Brandon and I went to one of his favorite parks. It was hot, and there was a loud youth baseball game going on nearby, but this kid would have slept there. He is my little monkey...

We packed a lot in to Tuesday night. A Scratch cupcake, a walk through downtown CF, some time with our water table and a walk in the stroller through our neighborhoods. Brandon picked the sprinkled cupcake, and of course ate all the frosting off of it first. Priorities, right?

Wednesday night... the night of the twisters.

Okay not really, but it was a crazy night. VBS was cancelled, and the tornado sirens started sounding just as I was pulling into the daycare parking lot, allowing me to take part in their emergency procedures. We all had to huddle in the baby room and wait it out. Brandon loved it as it allowed him to play with new toys he'd never seen, and Jaden stuck close to me - not asking any questions but obviously aware that something was amiss. As soon as we were able to try and leave, the second round of sirens starting sounding and we drove home amidst very dark skies and me constantly eyeing the clouds for rotation. As we pulled into the driveway, my husband was out cutting the grass -- which isn't the greatest way to teach our children to take the warnings seriously! Brandon shouted at Daddy to come inside to get away from the "tomato" and we spent the rest of the evening looking up tornado images on the ipad and watching the weather on the TV. I tried to educate the kids on what tornados are without scaring them, and Brandon assured his brother (who tends to be very dramatic) that his head couldn't blow off because it's "stuck to me." Boys...

Thursday night I raced the kids to McDonalds for a Happy Meal where an elderly lady purposely cut in front of me in line, none of the food we needed was prepared and Brandon spilled all of his chocolate milk directly down the front of his shirt. From that chaos, Brandon and I went to the pool for the first time this summer, and I marveled at the difference in Brandon's enthusiasm for the pool from last year. Last year, I had to carry him around a lot, he was slightly hesitant to get into the deeper water, and this year he dove right in. He was freezing part of the time with blue lips but sobbed when it was time to leave and is begging to go back.

It's been a wild week with all of us running in separate directions. Brandon asked me this morning, "Is tomorrow a stay at home day? With Daddy? And Jaden?! All of us together?!"

Looking forward to getting back to some normalcy around here...

Which does not include this little friend that showed up on our property yesterday:

I've been seeing lots of posts on Facebook about turtles since just yesterday! Maybe remnants of the flooding from a few weeks ago??

Happy weekend!

Wednesday Ramble and Random Pictures

This week has been exhausting, and it's only Wednesday! Cody has been working until really late every night, and Jaden is attending Vacation Bible School every night this week. That means single parenting for this mama - plus quick dinners - plus lots of driving and pickups and drop offs -- and later bedtimes for all. The later bedtimes and weird routine have Brandon's terrible threes coming out in full force, and his heartbreaking words last night of "I really miss my Daddy" have Cody feeling guilty. Plus, I think I'm getting a cold, and Brandon has been coughing the last 12 hours. Even Lucy seems to be feeling neglected and has been acting out more than normal. I realize I talk about my cat like she is another child in the family... but sometimes... that's exactly what it feels like!

I'm so glad that Jaden is having a blast at VBS because it sure wreaks havoc on our schedule!

Sharing some recent Instagram pics that are too cute to keep to myself. What did people ever do before phones had camera capabilities??

Brandon had his first dentist appointment last week, and he was a ROCK STAR. He sat in the chair, legs crossed, arms folded over his tummy, sun glasses on to protect his eyes from the bright light, and opened and closed his mouth like he'd been there dozens of times before. Even the dentist marveled at how great of a first appointment it was, and when it was all done... that balloon did not leave his wrist. So proud of him and so mad that I left my phone and camera in the car!

Maybe one of my new favorite places to eat. It's not new to town, but it's new to me as a new sushi lover. I now get cravings for it, and my mom's jaw dropped when she saw me using chop sticks. And I can't get enough Wasabi!

I mean really... no words needed. These two pictures melt me.

Cookie baking on a rainy Saturday night. This brings back so many memories of my childhood when my dad would bake his famous chocolate chip cookies. Brandon likes to help me pour and mix the ingredients just like I used to do. And of course, he's a pro at licking the spoons.

Playing tag in the backseat on the way to rent movies. They couldn't stop giggling.

Our cribbage night on the deck.

Date night! Dairy Queen every Sunday night... it's our tradition in the summer.

Cupcake date while Jaden was at VBS. He of course ate the best part of the cupcake first, and in order to get him to eat the remaining part, I had to excite him with the idea of finding all the purple sprinkles trapped in the middle. He likes purple.

I love watching him lose himself in his own little world of play.

Even though it seems we've had our fill of rain lately, I'm actually looking forward to some thunderstorms tonight. A hopeful movie night and our daddy being able to come home early is just what we need right now!

Sweet Summertime

The forecast this week finally looks good for lazy river traveling and water slide adventures. Jaden has Vacation Bible School every night this week, and our weekend included things like strawberries, bouncy houses on grassy lawns, yard work, outdoor cribbage games and four thumbs up from these little dudes...

Summer... I'm happy to say... seems to be here. And since we had to wait extra long for it this year... it's all the sweeter. We had fun the last couple of days, and now there's nothing stretched out ahead of us except for pool nights, park picnics, carnival rides and fireworks. I never used to be a fan of the Summer months. Before marriage and kids and family pool passes and a work-from-home job, there was summer classes, endless retail work hours... and boredom.

But now that my two little's aren't so little anymore, it's becoming a favorite season of mine. Nothing will replace Fall and Football in my heart, but hot and sticky days are growing on me, and my kids are in a sort of state of bliss right now. And if they're happy, Mama's happy.

How we packed the weekend...

We started with Live to 9 downtown CF on Friday night. Live music, vendors for food and an addition this year -- bouncy houses and slides for the kids. I purchased a wrist band for each of them -- $5.00 is worth it to keep them happy and bouncing for two hours... and the weather was gorgeous. We'll be back!

 

Saturday we went out to Cody's shop to pick up some tools and visited with Lucy's sister. The kids love going to explore Cody's work environment -- there are three kittens, a dog and lots of space to just run.

Meet Jazz...

Lucy's sister. Lucy is definitely the runt of the litter.

We also hit the jackpot on Saturday. Our neighbor up the street was having a plant sale and getting rid of a lot of Hostas. Since our yard is incredibly shaded, that's about the only thing that can grow regularly. We picked out a bunch, saved a lot of money, and planted all afternoon. The kids both love helping Daddy in the yard, and I think they are going to inherit his green thumb.

On a rainy Saturday night, we made chocolate chip cookies and took the kids to Family Video to each pick out a movie rental. We skipped bath time, laughed at Monsters Inc. and made plans to take them to the sequel when it hits the theaters. It will be Brandon's first experience in front of the big screen!

After the boys went to bed, Cody and I ate cheese, grapes, crackers and chocolate on the deck while he taught me how to play Cribbage. He's a pro. I'm a beginner. But I am already hooked. Cassi and James came over for a glass of wine, stayed until late, and we were able to enjoy a lazy Sunday morning before a later church service. In our pj's until 10 a.m...

Sunday was the kickoff to Bible School at church so after a family service, we ate hot dogs and ice cream at the church picnic and bounced in jumpy houses once again. We love our church.

Sunday evening... an impromptu cookout at our house. The rain held off, and the kids were wild.

 

And then an unexpected "date night." The boys went to stay the night in Aplington with Tim, Deanne and Ella, and Cody and I enjoyed a couple hours to ourselves. A WalMart run for kitchen lights, a stop at Dairy Queen and a movie rental for us. This morning, without kids to get dressed and fed before daycare, I "slept in" until 7:30, allowed Lucy to be my alarm clock and watched the Today show before sitting down at my computer for the day.

 

Sweet Summertime...

 

 

Even Lucy is worn out...

 



This week? The POOL!!