Random Ramblings

Jaden... started t-ball this week. (Pictures to come at some point). He is loving it, and my dad made the comment that he looks like he's in junior high when he's out there on the field - with his matching hat, shirt ---- and game face on. He has a great game face. When he's playing any sport (so far, that includes soccer and one t-ball practice), we can't ever tell if he's having any fun. He shows zero emotion except a couple of side glances at his mom when I'm yelling something to him from the sidelines. (Yes... I'm going to be THAT mom). But... when he's done and off the field, he's always bursting with energy and excitement and wondering when he can do it again.

Brandon... still picking flowers for Mommy and is happiest when sitting under a shade tree, placing them in the perfect little bundle for his "vases" at home. Leads us in prayer every night and has fallen in love with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Sometimes it's the only supper we can get him to eat.

Lucy... at the vet for the next two days and nights. I'm a little lonely without her, but it was high time we got her spayed and got rid of the claws on those front paws. I just hope she forgives me when she gets home.

Looking forward to... some vacation time in a week and a half. The end of the month "pay day." A day to myself to shop and float the lazy river at the Falls. Wearing my maid of honor dress we found in Des Moines last weekend (love it)... Cassi's wedding in November and seeing my boys walk down that aisle. Movies Under the Moon tomorrow night. (Lion King). Football kickoff NEXT MONTH... and Fall. Yes, I said it. I'm perfectly content waiting around another month for it though. I think my favorite thing about Summer is that the best season of all follows it.

 

Enjoying the small things... windows open, A/C off and no '90's' in the forecast, Cookies and Cream ice cream in the freezer, my Pandora station (currently playing 'Highway Don't Care'), Healthy Choice Café Steamers for lunch, a lunch break spent on the deck with a book, an ever-growing rainbow collection of nail polish bottles to choose from, and Instagram pics.

Sorry for being so MIA lately, but the summer breeze has lulled me into a laid back state of mind, and I'm trying to enjoy it before life gets really busy here in about a month.

Random Ramblings

Jaden... just one month left of daycare. I officially turned in his last day to the daycare office today. It felt surreal, a little sad -- and very exciting. His teacher told me she's going to miss him -- and that I must bring him back to visit. Last week his class studied ice cream. They went on a field trip to 4 Queens and decorated their door with ice cream cone pictures and words for each child describing what makes them "sweet." On Jaden's ice cream cones were the words -- Basketball. Loving. Cool. Caring. He has been having the time of his life this summer. His class has gone on multiple field trips -- to the pool -- different parks throughout town -- the movie theater -- and the youth pavilion. It will be interesting to see how he transitions from that to Kindergarten and the routine of school days.

Brandon... what a silly little boy. He's been challenging lately -- trying to test his boundaries more than usual, but after a rough couple of weeks, we seem to be sailing into smoother waters again. And even when he's difficult, he is oh so sweet. He obsesses over picking flowers for his mommy, talks about his two Kyla's at daycare every night and is really becoming a fishy in the water. It's been fun watching him get more and more comfortable at the pool and he'll even dunk his entire head under water from time to time. Even though he only talks about the girls at daycare, his teacher has assured me more than once that he plays with the boys, too. What can I say? He's just a ladies man.

Random note... last week, we had a really rough Tuesday night. Both boys were crabby, Mommy was crabby and Daddy was working again. I was determined for Wednesday night to be better. So after picking them up from daycare, we cranked up the volume on the car radio on the way home, and we threw a full-on dance party in the Taurus. I sang silly, danced and bobbed my head at the stoplights and had my boys laughing and calling me weird the whole way home. I know for a fact there were some other drivers on Rainbow Dr. who thought I was crazy, but my plan worked -- and it set the mood for a much better evening than the night before. Sometimes... there ought to be more dancing.

Looking forward to... Sally and Bob's visit in August. Jaden's first t-ball practice next week. Our first back-to-school supplies shopping experience. Only one more month of double daycare fees. An easy second half of July before a very busy August. My first order of printed Instagram pics.

Enjoying the small things... my iced coffee every day after work out on the deck while the boys eat their fruit snacks... my favorite puzzles app on my iPad... the way Lucy perches on the armrest of the recliner when she wants to stare outside for hours... my mint chocolate chip Bath and Body Works candle... the way the boys smell after their bath... clean sheets on the bed... Big Brother keeping us entertained during a dead TV season... Hickory Farms Chipotle Ranch Sauce... my current reading material... Mud Pie Blizzards from Dairy Queen... corn on the cob... summer nights on the deck... Brandon's tan lines on his feet from his flip flops... Dave Bartlett's sermon yesterday -- "Why are you still afraid?" My new washi tape from Target... watering my flowers... the assurance that Summer will turn into Fall.

In closing, a few pictures to share from our time at Community Safety Day. For two years now, Jaden has said he wants to be a fireman when he grows up. First, he's going to have to get over his fear of that really tall ladder...

2011-'12 Photo Book

I am over half way through creating this year's photo book, and it dawned on me that I never shared last year's finish project. I am addicted to these yearly books now, as I am terrible about actually printing pictures for photo albums. I love the idea of having a yearly scrapbook of our family -- and a saved product that we can go back and order more of if need be. It's a lot of work -- and seems to be more so this year, as we're only half way through 2013, and this year's book is already longer than all of last year's! But I've found that if I do a little at a time -- one month at a time -- it's not such a daunting task. I usually work on the previous month's pages at the start of a new month. I'm fully engrossed in our 'June 2013' pages now, and the book of this year will definitely be my favorite masterpiece yet.

So... for a little mid-week (it's almost Friday!) entertainment, I bring to you... our 2011-'12 Shutterfly book. ;)

Click here to view this photo book larger

Start your own Shutterfly Photo Book today.

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Click here to view this photo book larger

Start your own Shutterfly Photo Book today.

4th of July... Part II

How we spent our four day weekend...

After spending the entire 4th outside in our own little water play land, the boys and I woke up to a slow-paced Friday morning. I took the day off work, took our time with breakfast, let the boys start their day with a movie and then took all of us downstairs for a little playroom cleanup and "come to Jesus" meeting. I spend so much time and energy picking up the messes they make down there -- and I'm all about them getting into their toys and having fun -- but when pieces of toys start going missing and there's no longer any room to walk around on the floor -- I start pulling my hair out and wonder why I bother. So, we had a discussion on picking up their own toys when they are done with them, reminding them where the toys go and discussing the fact that they are getting older and should be taking better responsibility of their things. Our new motto when it comes to the basement is: "Before you come up (the stairs), pick up." So far in its first three days of implementation, Jaden is doing a very good job with this. Brandon on the other hand -- will take a little work. Friday afternoon, we went to the pool for a couple of hours, but Jaden was so tired from the day before that he didn't even want to go down the water slides, and eventually asked to go home and take a nap. Brandon was having a blast and threw a fit when we left, but when we got home -- they both slept for three hours. It was heaven! We ended the day with chicken enchilada pasta and family movie night.

Saturday...

We took a little road trip to Dubuque and the Mississippi River. Our dear friends Casey and Hayley got married in a private ceremony in Hawaii in April and returned to Iowa and Casey's family this past weekend for a little gathering post-wedding. They put together a potluck in Eagle Point Park -- a beautiful and large park with several different playgrounds, shelters and this awesome view overlooking the dam.

We spent three hours here eating and talking, and the kids enjoyed watching the boats, learning about how the dam works and rolling down the grassy hill right by our shelter.

Watching the pelicans in the water...

Saturday night we returned home for our town's fireworks festival. It was a beautiful night, and we got there pretty early so that we could get good parking. Last year 20,000 people attended these fireworks, and this year's show was supposed to be even bigger. We were a little concerned about how patient the kids would be while waiting, but they did great.

While waiting, Daddy and Jaden went after some strawberry smoothies and Brandon and I walked through the petting zoo nearby. This little one adores animals and his face lights up every time he gets close to one.

Spotting the turkeys!

He was most interested in petting the pony and made good friends with some baby chickens.

The fireworks show itself was awesome with the best finale we've seen yet. The kids loved it -- Jaden asking a lot of questions about how the fireworks work and Brandon getting excited every time a purple one lit up the sky. And during the finale -- Brandon just giggled the whole time. It was priceless. Lots of star gazing before the show started...

Preparing himself for the loud "booms"...

It was a good long weekend, but now that it's over, I'm looking forward to a pretty care-free July before a busy August. T-ball, Florida visitors and the start of school! Between Brandon starting preschool and Jaden starting kindergarten, we have a lot of pre-school meetings and activities to attend, and I think we will be snapping our fingers and summer will be over.

Have a good week!