What We've Been Doing. . .

It's been a while, and a lot has happened since I last posted. My parents and both sisters came out, Mark's mom came out, we celebrated Mother's Day, we dedicated Michelle, we discovered more food allergies, we've had playdates, we've played outside, we've played inside. In short, we've been busy! Oh, and did I mention that I am now pretty much in charge of our church nursery?! Yeah, it's been a busy May.

I hate the heat, and I don't like being outside, but I put both of those aside and took the kids out back to play twice this week. When I pulled their pool from the "attic" of the garage, I found a few other things in it. The kids had a blast playing with their toys and even had a bit more fun that I intended when they dumped an entire bag of cheese puffs onto their picnic table and went to town. And Steven did what must be logical to any two year old--he dumped all the cheese puffs he and the girl weren't able to down into the then empty pool and watched Sadie gobble them up :)

Riding the Airplane

Getting Caught Mowing the Dirt

Dumping and Eating Sidewalk Chalk

Dressing Himself and Wearing His Trunks Backwards

Grilling the "Crayons"

Relaxing in the Pool

Playing the Guitar while Riding an Airplane Sitting in a Pool

Charming Mommy into Forgetting all the Trouble She's Been Getting Into

Visit with Auntie E and Kids

On Friday night we went to see Auntie E and the kids for an early Birthmother's Day celebration. She had recently discovered a nice park, so we all went there and had a great time. We brought KFC for everyone (although Auntie E's kids were too excited to eat much!), and she bought all the kids popsicles from the ice cream truck. My kids had never had one before, and both of them started chewing on the stick. I'm hoping that it's just because of the way I handed them to them and not that they are both that odd :)

We met at Auntie E's new house, and her youngest was the only one there. He knew where his siblings were playing, so we started walking down the block. The older kids saw me coming and all came running full speed yelling my name and tackled me with hugs. They had been waiting all day for us to get there, and it was so cool to see their excitement. They then ran to the car and gave the kids hugs. Steven did better with it than he has at times in the past. He didn't say anything, but he tolerated it and didn't start crying.

As we were leaving at the end of the night, the little 3 year old came running over to the car telling me he "needed to give his brother a hug good bye." It was so sweet! I am making plans to go see Auntie E by myself, so I can give her a Bible and have a real conversation with her. You just can't do that with six kids running around!

Riding on the Duck with One of her Big Sisters

Playing on the Giant Snail with Daddy

As Cute as Can Be!