Memorial Day Weekend 2011

I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend.  Being a mom gives me a whole new appreciation for all those men and women who dedicate their life to serve our country.

 We spent part of our weekend out at Lost Pines which is one of our favorite places to be!  Cole, Mimi, the boys, and I all loaded up Sunday morning and headed out.  On our way in we spotted this huge activity room filled with TONS of fun things.  Bouncy house, bowling, air hockey, kinect, movies, ping pong...  Connor thought he was SO big and loved running around with the older kids there.

 Air hockey was probably his favorite game.

 An older boy came to play with him and sweet Connor would cheer every time the boy would score.  Another little girl whispered to him "You know you are losing right?"

 Bowling was also a hit!

 Playing a little tune for everyone.

 Carson was content just hanging out watching.

 After lunch we headed out to the pool area.  Connor made the splash pad his home for the rest of the afternoon.  Unlike his Momma, he was not a fan of the lazy river.  I on the other hand could have stayed there all day!

 After a full afternoon of fun we headed to our room to let the boys nap.  Thanks to Mimi, Cole and I went back and enjoyed the pool for a little bit longer.  After dinner we headed out to s'mores and a movie on the lawn.

 We were so full from dinner we skipped the s'mores and Connor went for the popcorn instead.

 Monday it was back to the pool for some more splash pad fun.

 He got a little more adventurous the second day.

 I think he will always be my cautious child.  I've learned that he will do things in his own time.  Maybe next summer he will be up for the lazy river. :)

Carson once again hung out and watched his big brother.  He went around on the lazy river a couple of times with me and had so much fun he fell asleep! :)  Little guy was not feeling that great this weekend.  I think he is working on some more new teeth.  Even when he doesn't feel good he has a smile on his face.

We made it back home and everyone took great naps!  Connor loves to tickle his "buddy boy."

Let's hope those teeth hurry up and come in!

A Little Bit of This and That

Recently my friend, Callie, posted a recipe on her blog for some sprinkle cookies that I just knew Connor would love!  Not only is she full of fun creative ideas, but she also has become an amazing photographer.  Check out her blog for the recipe and some pictures that will sure to make you go out and by a box of cake mix and sprinkles!  

 They were super easy and tasted great.

We have been busy doing a few things to get ready for Connor's party.  I can't believe he is going to be 3!

Speaking of Connor... we are now fully on the road to being potty trained.  He has had 2 (almost 3) successful days at home (w/ one trip to the park).  We haven't really been "out" while he has needed to go, but hopefully that will go just as smoothly.  

After searching around I finally found the perfect curriculum for some fun activities to do with Connor.  Little Hands to Heaven is a book filled with weekly units centered around a different Bible story each week.  Basically it has lots of fun activities that we can do together while learning God's word and some basic educational things.  Connor's BFF, Emily, is also going to be doing this in the fall so I am excited to start this new journey with Beth.  She also taught school so we share the same love for teaching and even more so with our own children.  Cole and I decided that this would be the best route for Connor instead of attending some type of preschool next year.  I love having him at home and so thankful that I have an opportunity to spend this time with him.

I'll let you know how it goes when we start up this fall.

Our Weekend

We had a pretty relaxing weekend filled with lots of fun things.  We enjoyed dinner out at Nana and Poppa's house on Friday with Amy, David, Kate, and Hannah.  Then celebrated Abby's 3rd birthday and Pop's 80th birthday on Saturday. 

My favorite part of the weekend was spending lots of time just hanging out as a family and loving on these two!

On Sunday we had a little impromptu photo session.

I was just happy to get both of them looking at the camera at the same time! :)  Not any easy feat with a 2 year old and 7 month old.

 Daddy joined in on the fun.  Can you tell someone is working on some new teeth?

 Then I started trying to give orders of where these 3 should sit and the fun quickly came to an end. 

 We decided to scratch our Sunday to do list and just enjoy the day pool side.

 Mimi came and met us at her neighborhood pool for our first trip of the summer.

 Carson was enjoying his first trip to the pool...

 and even got to take a little dip in the water.

It was the perfect way to end our weekend!

Happy 7 Months Carson!

 Casron, you are growing up by the minute!

 You bring so much fun and happiness to our family.

 We can't help, but put a smile on our face when we see you.

 This month you have learned all sorts of new tricks.

 Connor has become pretty interested in what you are doing and loves to make you laugh.

Green beans, peas, squash, carrots, and sweet potatoes have been added to your menu.  You still love your rice cereal and bottles (4- 8oz a day).

One big accomplishment this past month is that you can now sit up by yourself.  You are loving the new freedom to play.

With the weather warming up we have been spending more time outside.  This past weekend you took your first wagon ride.

Who knew a jumperoo could be so much fun?  It is surprising to see how high you can jump in this thing!  This is one of your favorite places to be.

Still wearing 18 month clothing and in size 3 (almost 4) diapers.

At night you usually sleep 12-13 hours and still take 3 naps that are about 2 hours each.

Bath time is more fun now that you can sit up in your bath seat.

You have the cutest giggle to go along with that sweet smile.

Happy 7 Months, Carson!  We love you!

California Trip: Day Four

Saturday morning we headed over to Kevin's to meet up with everyone.  Connor loved going to see his aunt and uncle for many reasons, but one important one was that you got to ride an elevator to get to their apartment.  This boy LOVES elevators!  He also enjoyed getting to know all of the neighbors on our trips up and down.

Rachel packed us the best picnic lunch and we headed to the beach.

Santa Monica beach was just a short drive from their place.

 Connor has always loved sand castles.  He had been dreaming about the day he could actually build one.

 We ventured out in to the water only to get our feet wet.  It was cold!

 This was Owen and Carson's first trip to the beach.

 Later that afternoon we headed back for nap time.

 Cole took Connor back to the hotel to rest and get cleaned up.  He made himself right at home as soon as he returned.  Owen was sweet to share some of his new toys with Connor.

 We had an early Mother's Day celebration that night since we were all together.  Rachel and Kevin made an amazing pasta dinner along with salad, bread, and banana pudding for dessert.  Rachel was so sweet and had also bought ingredients for Connor to make mini pizzas.  

 Helping in the kitchen is one of his favorite things to do.

 Mimi and her boys

 Sweet Owen

 We tried to get a few pictures with the kids.

 Carson was pretty interested in his new cousin.

I have a feeling these two are going to have a lot of fun times ahead!

Later that night we headed back to the hotel to start packing for our flight in the morning.  Our trip had finally come to an end.  It was a sweet time with family and lots of fun memories were made.