...went to a wedding for a dear friend from high school. Danielle and I spent many summer nights in high school together dreaming big girl dreams, and it was so sweet to watch her get married. She is the sweetest person you will ever meet and a devoted follower of Jesus with a heart of gold. She looked beautiful in her princess dress and is so deserving of her happiness.
...watched it rain. For three days straight. We got out toys we hadn't seen in a while, put new batteries in race cars and watched all four Shrek movies from the comfort of our living room.
...while the guys all went to a movie together, the boys and I ventured to our go-to rainy Saturday happy place. With a Memorial Weekend coupon in hand, I scoured the Barnes & Noble shelves for summer reads and board games while the boys sipped on their chocolate milks around the train table.
...made a giant pitcher of Strawberry Kool-Aid. Just because. I was craving summer drinks out on the deck but had to settle for a movie night indoors and the look on Jaden's face when he took his first sip. I'd never made Kool-Aid for them before as I tend to favor healthier drinks, but I was desperate for something to break the rainy-weekend blues. Mission accomplished. The boys are fans.
...purchased Brandon's preschool workbook. I bought this same book for Jaden two years ago when he was entering preschool, and he felt a huge sense of accomplishment (as did I) when he completed the entire thing. Now that he is entering Kindergarten, Jaden has a new Kindergarten workbook, and Brandon feels like such a big kid getting to do homework next to his brother. He knew just what to do when we opened it to the first page -- "Can I trace the lines, Mommy?!"
Cancelled our Memorial Day picnic plans and replaced them with a trip to the Dome. We took soccer balls, held races on the track and wore the kids out by having them climb the steps. We've decided that we are going to take better advantage of our access to this space in the Fall and Winter when the football field is down and the goal posts are up. After we ran them tired, we went up to James's office and drew pictures on his white board. It felt kind of cool being the only ones in the Dome, and it reminded me a lot of my Sunday mornings when I was little and my mom would take me with her to her office in the NW corner. It's funny how life can come full circle, and I love that my kids are getting to re-create some of my same childhood memories. The Dome is home!
...by the time we left, the sun was actually trying to come out. So we spent some time outside -- finally -- with chalk and basketballs and caterpillars.
...the kids found a caterpillar. Made a home for her and named her. Brandon got extremely attached to this thing and dissolved into a puddle of tears on the bathroom floor when we got home and he realized he'd left it at Ella's house. We're on a hunt for a new caterpillar now...
...ended our holiday weekend with sprinkled ice cream and fresh pajamas while watching our daddy finally mow the grass. It was starting to look like a jungle out there. (Jaden actually asked us if corn was going to start growing in our front yard).
Three days of downpours was not at all what I had in mind for our Memorial Day weekend, but this is Iowa. And there's no place else I'd rather be.
(Keeping fingers crossed for some much needed sunshine and dinners on the deck this week!)
