Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Easter craft

I pin so many things that I want to do on pinterest...this is one I actually accomplished! Chelsey and I spent an evening crafting away and completing this cute easter garland....what fun, and it turned out so cute!




Grayson is such a smarty

This little guy is OBSESSED with writing his letters! He can write his whole name and the ABCs....such a smarty! We have been enjoying frequent trips to the library until the weather warms up and the last few times we have had the place to ourselves!



Wizard of Oz

Kenna and I got to see her bestie Keelin perform in the Wizard of Oz! We both agreed that we are not ballet people, but we did enjoy going to support Keelin! She played a munchkin and was oh so cute!



Kenna got her braces off!

Now its time for retainer...hopefully this will eliminate or at least greatly lesson the time she will need them in the future :)



Easter


Easter is always a toss of the dice when it comes to weather. We decided to brave living history farms again this year as the kids were old enough to attend sans stroller! The morning was quite brisk and I was glad I brought gloves and hats for everyone! The kids started with an easter egg hunt - also known as scramble to find oriental trading trinkets. But they all found a little something that they were excited about!





This year was fun because the kids got into some of the other games. Kenna enjoyed the pancake flipping game and the pile as many hats on your head and run game (sure this had a more creative title, but it slipped my mind.)


Josh was an excellent pancake flipper/walker...this skill has been hidden all this time.



It started to warm up and we headed into the bunny barn. I'm surprised these rabbits weren't more irritated with all the kids holding and petting them, but they were very well behaved!




The Iowa Egg Council was handing out free egg burritos. Zach couldn't tell if he loved or hated them...it was quite funny and I caught him mid bite below. Quite the character!


Token Grayson "cheesey 3 year old" grin





After the kids got to pet baby chicks and lambs, we went on about a 2 minute horse ride, but long enough for the kids. The horses were really beautiful and I snapped a cute pic of Josh and Zach :)



The highlight of my day was watching McKenna get REALLLLLY into this potato sack race, like jumping as high as she could as fast as she could to get to the end, just full on giggle fest!





We got a special treat on easter day when Gramma Great came to our house. She gets pretty tired when she has to travel very far, so we were so grateful that she made the journey. She brought pillows for the kids and we had a great meal! Kathy and Denny brought the main courses and I made a salad and fancy dessert :) (Carrots in dirt cake.)





Cute kids and my crafty wreath I made - love it!



Tali's Birthday (Jumping)

I realized that the only pictures I took of Tali's birthday were of the boys jumping on the trampoline and one of Kenna inside....sigh....oops! But, they did have an excellent time jumping on the trampoline :) Sorry Tali! Happy birthday :)








Zachary Turns 6

It seemed like the birthday festivities lasted forever around here! We started by celebrating Spencer's, Zachey's and my birthday all the weekend that the Shoemakers were in town. We had a combination of everyone's favorite food, which turned out to be quite interesting :)

Spencer wanted loaded mashed potatoes and pie. He had to opt for pie bars because I don't do pie. I also made sugar cookie fudge and white almond cupcakes with cherry buttercream. Zachary's favorites were fish sticks, pizza (I made a sort of home made pizza roll) and then we had fruit, sandwiches and pickle ham bites. Strange mix but it somehow all worked!


I LOVE watching my kids be cousins to Lily. They just love to make her laugh, and Grayson looks so big next to her! I can hardly believe it!









McKenna was so sweet. This year she got REALLY into Zach's birthday. She started about a month before by asking me if we could buy the skylanders game for him. She knew that the would love it and I thought that was very proactive of her! So we clicked on amazon and boom...on its way. When it arrived she insisted on wrapping it and spent a good part of an afternoon planning a scavenger hunt for him. Gona assisted in the reading and potential hint providing. He really enjoyed running all over the house and Kenna loved watching. Was so nice to see her really get into giving gifts!



Grayson got him some pokemon cards which is really the latest kindergarten craze. He just loves collecting them, trading them, talking about them with his siblings. They have all become pokemon card hoarders.


Because Zach's birthday always falls on spring break, we had to schedule his party a few weeks later. Since he has really loved going to Triad and doing gymnastics, he decided to have his party there. Aside from a few snafus like trouble ordering a cake (have always made my own in the past!) and a few people who RSVP'd and didn't come (what is wrong with parents?) He really had a fun day! Kenna, Grayson and Sammie got to come as well as his good friends Lucy, Coleman, Jackson and Mackenzie B.

Triad has this party thing figured out! They start with an obstacle course, then do a few inflatables, then let the kids run wild and do whatever they want! They end the day with singing and throwing Styrofoam blocks at the birthday boy, then everyone gets buried in the pit. Lots of giggles!










Grayons kept right up! I think this has solidified our decision to get him enrolled in gymnastics too!




One of the best games was the kids lining up behind this mat. Then the teacher would push it over with them and they would fall on it trying to blow air at the girls sitting across the room. Then the girls got their turn....lots of laughing!













I cannot believe my little man is 6. This year he has grown up so quickly. I feel like he entered kindergarten this sweet, naive, innocent little tiny person and he is exiting a much more socialized, smart, energetic boy. What I love about Zachary is his genuine laugh and his desire to make others laugh. Whenever I am blue he does this impression of a flying fish where he lays on the floor and puckers his lips that has me in hysterics - he just takes great pleasure in telling a joke or cheering someone up. He has a harder time than his siblings trying new things, or believing in his ability to achieve. But when he does achieve his goals he is so proud of himself, as are we! While this year he has struggled with keeping his hands to himself, and following directions he has come so far. He speaks more like an adult when it comes to problem solving techniques and how to treat others, which is knowledge he would not have gained if not for the trials he has faced. There is something about a mamma and her little boy that is so special. I love how he still asks to snuggle and holds my hand when we are walking. I love his unsolicited hugs and "I love you mommys" I know that these moments won't last forever, but while I have them I am so grateful. Zachary you are so loved and I cannot wait to see what this year brings my sweet boy! Happy 6th birthday sweetie!!