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Open House

We had a blast at BYOP this past weekend, but before I post those pictures, I need to catch up a bit. We attended the open house at Ella's school last week and Mister had a lot to say about it. You should hear him talk, it is the cutest.thing.ever. He's using sentences and can repeat any word that you say. Most recently, when you call his name, he will respond with, "what."


It was pretty chilly that evening, and even though I encouraged someone to wear a jacket, she choose not to. And then she complained about being cold. Imagine that.

Mister was in awe when he came across the playground. He shouted, "I wanna play!!"



Someone is very proud of her locker.


And her brother was impressed as well, he went inside to check things out.

To find Ella's desk, we had to look at the clues posted. What gave it away was, "If I had a million dollars I would... buy lots of candy." We're so proud.


Grandma and Grandpa came along to check things out, the newly renovated school is really nice. You should see the indoor playground!

Our girl loves, LOVES to read, which really does make us proud.


Ella has the same teacher that she had in kindergarten, thank goodness she likes her!

Mister was really wound up, so Grandma gave him a lollipop. She carries them in her purse at all times and he has, of course, figured this out so he is always asking for a "pop pop." He picks up her purse sometimes, grunts and says, "oh, it's heavy."

Ella's BFF Rachel is not in her class this year, but thankfully she made a new friend. This is her daytime/classroom BFF and Rachel is her after school/evening BFF.

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Picnic

A few days after Ella's birthday, we took the kids on an impromptu picnic at Brady's Run park (impromptu = pick up KFC and find a picnic table). It was a few days after Mister's first hair cut, I can't believe how big he looks in these pictures.

Craig and I have adopted, or shall I say, shifted, our thinking since he received his severance package.


We realize that nothing is more important than praising God and spending time nurturing your family.


So we have become more relaxed and flexible when it comes to our schedule (something that is difficult for two rigid, engineering types).

It's a beautiful evening? Let's take the kids to the playground!

We all know these kiddos grow up way too fast, so we are trying to worry less about all of the work that needs to be done, and have fun playing.

The kids have responded well.

Amen.

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Playground

Mister loves climbing in/around/through anything. He climbed through this tunnel, stuck out his little face and said, "peek-a-boo!"

It was the cutest thing EVER. I could have died. Melted right on the spot.

But you have to hear him say it... he uses a very deep voice and says it really fast and it sounds like pick-a-boo. I'm hoping is father will capture it on video one of these days.


I love, LOVE this shot of him and the sun, it was a beautiful evening. I will post more from this adventure as soon as possible.

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The Great Bee Caper

So one day about a month ago I was sitting on the front steps of our home in the early evening hours when I noticed this deafening buzzing sound. I quickly realized that an entire swarm of yellow jackets was approaching OUR home as if it were their own. They found this little, tiny opening where the brick meets the porch roof in the corner and decided that it looked like it might make a nice foyer (my assumption, of course).

As the weeks went by, it seemed as if they were getting more aggressive. I started to sense a hostile takeover and pleaded with my husband to be a man and protect his family.

There was some talk of calling a "professional," but those guys are expensive. I don't blame them, I wouldn't want to deal with bees either. Although watching the Bee Movie makes one think that bees are actually very friendly. And they can talk. I believe this to be a conspiracy, however. Because I can tell you without any hesitation that these yellow jackets were just plain mean. Angry about something, clearly.

It got to the point where we could no longer use the front door in the evening when they were coming home. Craig's first plan of attack was to rig the small (but powerful) shop vac to a ladder and secure the end of the hose right at their foyer and let it run for several hours. That way, whenever they attempted to approach or retreat, WUMP! They were sucked into the vac.


His second plan was to wait until they had all returned home and spray them with the strongest, deadliest poison he could find. I think it's prudent at this point to explain that Craig is a well thought out, cautious person. It took us almost an hour, and a lot of duct tape, to get him bee-proofed.


In the end, we counted a few hundred bees, yuck. Unfortunately, I saw a few flying around the other day, so I'm wondering if they are trying to make a come-back. I told Craig to block the hole once he sprayed, but he didn't listen. So the few remaining bees have come home to find their brethren massacred. And now they are very ANGRY. Stay tuned.

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First Day of Second Grade!

Look at our big girl!

She was soooo anxious for everyone to get to the bus stop (which is directly in front of our house).

Her back pack, completely empty.


Someone named mister had to get in on the action. He kept asking where the bus was at. And, as predicted, when it came he cried and cried. He's been on a field trip on the church bus before and I think he wanted to get on. Or maybe he was just sad because sissy was leaving. Or maybe he is reminiscing about how they are growing up so fast. He's a deep thinker, that boy boy.




I love this picture of my girl and I. Both with our fresh hair cuts (I got mine highlighted in an effort to look more like her).

Her BFF Rachel.

Hooray for school!!!


ps. She gets her blonde hair from me. My hair was even more blonde than hers when I was little. So I just get it highlighted to maintain some sense of normalcy.

pps. My hair got significantly darker after each pregnancy. Why? Is there a scientist out there that can explain this to me? It's bad enough that they made me soft around the middle, but why attack my hair follicles? Seems cruel.

ppps. I also acquired more freckles/moles after each pregnancy. Why? Is there a dermatologist out there that can explain this to me? It's bad enough that nursing resulted in tissue loss, but why attack my epidermis? Seems cruel.

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Ella's Birthday

Several pictures from Ella's birthday party.






A little pre-party snack. He loves those Craisins (notice the bed-head from nap time).


Mom makes the most delicious stuffed pepper appetizers (with fresh jalapeno's from her garden) and I convinced Ella's older friends to give them a try.






Miss Rose was brave enough to try one, but you should have seen her dive for the water when her mouth started burning!




Mister loves being with the big kids (notice messy, long hair).







He didn't care that it wasn't his birthday, he just enjoyed the festivities.








After everyone left, it was time to give my dad a hair cut. Well, I decided (after a few drinks), that I was tired of combing Mister's hair in the morning, so he got a buzz as well!

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