Showtime!

I took Allie to her first movie today!  Owen has been dying to see the new Night At The Museum, Battle At The Smithsonian.  And his buddy from Pre-K, Owen Sherwood, asked us if we wanted to see it with them.  I was a little nervous since I knew it was around the time of Allie's nap.  The movie started at 12:00, so we went through the McDonald's drive through to get lunch (the toys are from the very movie we saw).  We got our tickets, used the cool bathroom, got our popcorn and found our seats.  Owen LOVED the movie.  Allie snuck her binkie into the theater and was asleep about 20 minutes into the movie.  She did wake up for the last 20 minutes.  It was a perfect trip to the movies.  Maybe she'll make it all the way through the next one! :)

S'MORES, PLEASE!!!

What to do on a gray, over-cast day?  Make S'mores!  Yummy!  It was fun to watch the kids get sticky and messy while enjoying their treats.  We've never gone camping, but now we are experts at making the basic survival substance.  S'mores, Anyone?

Nice Day, Let's Go To The Park!

It was beautiful today, so we met some friends at the Andover park.  We were planning on checking out the new one on Central, but it won't be complete until next week.  (Another time, another blog.)  It was the first time we've been there that I was confident my kids could independently play on the equipment and not need my help.  They loved it!  We finished the trip with lunch at Subway.

Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over,

This morning we released our Painted Lady butterflies.  We successfully raised them from 5 caterpillars.  I (of course) documented the last two weeks in photos.  The kids were fascinated by how quickly they changed.  It made me think of how I look at Owen and Allison every day.  They are starting to develop the personalities that make them unique and it amazes Jake and I daily.  Lucky for us, we get to keep them for longer than a few weeks and enjoy every moment.  And YES, I will continue to document their progress as well!

Pool not open... make your OWN!

Last fall, Owen won a pirate themed auction basket at his school.  In it was a box that said contained a blow-up pool.  So this morning, we decided to open that puppy up and let the kids play.  Little did we realize exactly how MUCH blowing we would have to do.  Lucky for us we have the best daddy ever!  Here are some pictures of our day.  As you can tell the kids are wearing different clothes in these because they played in it through out the day.

It's SUMMER time!

Today was the first official day of summer vacation!  If this is any sign as to what the rest of the summer is going to be like, sign me up!  Both kids played wonderfully together all day, they ate a great dinner, followed by ice cream at Braum's and went to bed like big kids.  I am so looking forward to tomorrow!

Let's Celebrate Pre-K!

Today, Owen had his last day of Pre-K Celebration.  It was short, cute and a little touching.  His class did a couple of songs followed by the two classes coming forward to get their certificates and bubbles.  He was the first one in his class, but didn't pause long enough for me to take a good picture.  I was also video taping it.  All of our family was represented.  (We missed you Gramma Karen!)  Owen got a total of $22 dollars in cards.  However, I think he liked his Star Wars card even better.  Maybe this weekend we'll go and let him spend his cash.  Next step of his journey... KINDERGARTEN!

Mirror, Mirror...

Today I was wearing one of Jake's old hats.  He told me I looked good in it.  I responded by saying I hadn't worn it since college.  He then gets a sly grin and says, "The you now could kick the you then's ASS!"  Talk about a huge compliment.  And he is so right!  As of recently, I am stronger, I am faster, I get better sleep, I have more energy, I am more positive, I look great and I feel great!  It seems almost backwards.  I take more pride in my health and appearance then I did when I was hoping to catch a guys eye.  Lucky for me, I caught the eye of a guy who saw the diamond in the rough.

Recently I was working out with some amazing friends and I remarked as to how funny it was that we were in our middle-30's and getting in the best shape of our lives.  We are going to make the most of our lives and enjoy every moment of it.  Here's to the inner "hottie" in all of us, it's time to let her have some fun!

Happy Mother's Day!

Mother's Day 2009, Olive Garden Lunch

Today we celebrate the one who brought us into this world,  Mom!  A friend of mine was "commenting" on how hard it has been this week, since her husband was out of town and she was basically a "single" mommy.  After much thought on this subject, I realized how blessed I am.  There are women out there who are raising children all by themselves and working full-time to support her family.  I admire women like this.  I have a loving and wonderful husband who works, so that I can stay home, and helps in the raising of our two beautiful children.  He tells me on almost a daily basis how thankful he is to have me as a wife and mother of his children.  I love what I do and wouldn't change it for the world.  I never saw myself as a stay-at-home mommy, but I definitely feel I am doing what I was made to do.

Knowing that I am not alone in the motherhood.  I want to give a quick acknowledgement to those I know.

Sunnye - My mom will be the first to tell anyone that when she became a mommy, she didn't have a clue as to what she was doing.  But from her lack of knowledge, I learned to prioritize what is truly important.  Years from now I will always remember how she never wasted time keeping our house clean, but she would drop everything to play with us.

Jackie - My grandma is the matriarch of my family.  From her I learned that if you want something in your life you have to be willing to work hard for it.  I take great pride in thinking that I do this with every thing.

Joannie - My mother-in-law is a woman filled with adoration.  I see how much she loves her son, my husband, and that love continues to grow.  It is unconditional and unwavering.  I am learning first hand that special love through my own children.

Karen - My step-mom was selected for me, not by my choice, but with my heart in mind.  She accepted me and my sister and loves my children without a second thought.  From her I learned that we always need to keep our eyes and hearts open to what we are given.  Sometimes unanswered prayers bring the biggest rewards.

And to all my dear mommy friends - I love watching us grow and learn from each other.  I take and give the best I can find.  We are amazing women doing the most amazing things on a daily basis.  I am so lucky to have you all.

Kindergarten Day Visit

The sign to Owen's new school.

Owen running ahead of me and into the building.

Owen getting escorted to his classroom by Hannah!

(Notice not even saying "Good Bye" to mommy.)

Finally, I got a picture of him!

(That is Allie in the green shirt/black pants running to see Paige.)

Paige and Owen

(Owen was jumping up and down.)

This morning I dropped Owen off at Wheatland Elementary School for his Kindergarten visit.  I was a little sad about the whole thing, so to cheer myself up I took my camera in order to document this occasion.  As you can see from the pictures, he was very excited and didn't slow down or turn to me in order to take his picture.  I was able to get a few pictures when I picked him up.  He was very chatty for the next 3 hours.  He told me all about the classroom, Paige was in the same visitation class.  He said they had animal crackers in the cafeteria and were able to pick out what kind of milk to drink.  (He had chocolate, of course!)  His teacher was Mrs. McEwen, she actually taught with my good friend Julie.  So I got the low down on her teaching abilities.  (It would be awesome if he gets her next year!)  They even got to take a bus ride.  Owen's first comment about this new experience was, "The bus didn't have any seat belts!"  That's my son.  He even got to take home a treasure from the class "Treasure Box".  Of course, he picked out a dinosaur!  Now I just have to remind him (every day) that he doesn't start Kindergarten until this fall.

Dairy Farm

Today, Owen's class went on a field trip to a dairy farm.  We got really lucky in the weather department.  It was hardly muddy at all.  And the smell wasn't that bad either.  Allison just joined right in.  She can't wait to be in school.  This is the last trip of the year.  In 2 weeks, he'll be done!  Next step... KINDERGARTEN!

Confessions of a S.A.H. (surprised and horrified) Mommy

I recently went blog searching and stumbled upon an entry from another mommy about her adventures in laundry.  I was entertained to say the least.  In fact, I shared her story with several of my mommy friends.  Little did I know that "fate" would give me a taste of that medicine.

This morning I started a load of laundry before taking Owen to school.  (In my mind, I am praising myself for being so productive.)  This surge in energy, however, fizzled.  I managed to transfer the load to the dryer just after putting the kids to bed.  Here is where the story gets good.  As I am lifting the clothes, I spy with my little eye the makes of a Dora pull-up.  You guessed it!  I had washed a pull-up.  And to my surprise, they can really hold a ton of water.  I quickly pulled it out and continued to transfer the rest of the clothes.  This time I catch a glimpse of something electric blue stuck to the side of the washing machine basin.  I pause and reach in to examine.  Wouldn't you know it, somehow I had thrown a fist sized glob of play dough with that load.  Apparently, when you add an enormous amount of water to this medium it loses it's pliability.  It was this sticky, gooey, slimy mess that once I got some of it off the machine I couldn't get it off my fingers.  I didn't want anyone to see my wonderful domestic skills in action, so I quickly cleaned it up and threw the evidence away.  Now I am just praying I didn't miss some other little surprise that is currently spinning in my dryer.

To be continued...

Boys vs Girls

While waiting in the car today, I saw one factor in the difference between boys and girls.  I played a popular song on my i-Phone and watched as my two children enjoyed the tunes in their own "unique" way.  This explains a lot in adult behavior.  (Notice my daughter has even taken the common "Slinky" toy and turned it into a fashion accessory!)

What goes around...

Comes around!  When Jake was growing up, it was a common ritual for the child to mess with the parent.  You know the wet willies, the sneak-up scares, etc.  Well, our apple Owen didn't fall far from the tree.  While driving home from dinner tonight Owen managed to get his arms free and decided now was as good a time to, you guessed it, mess with daddy!

Allie is no different.  When I was pregnant with her we took a trip, "Baby-moon", to New York City.  While we were there I bought a tee shirt from this cool candy shop.  I've worn it a few times, but it has mostly hung in my closet.  Today she spotted it and wanted to wear it.  So she wore it around the house for a while and even took her nap in it.  Well take a guess what she wanted to wear to bed tonight, again you guessed it, my tee shirt!