Marshmallow Kisses

Warm days

2012-01-26T14:38:00.000-06:00

We have had some beautiful and warm days lately. Sometimes I forget it is January. I took a few pictures of the girls out enjoy the nice weather.

Hadley had to stop and make a call.

Cheerleaders

2012-01-26T14:31:00.000-06:00

Making dinner and entertaining kids isn't always an easy task around here. Sometimes it takes me twice as long to get dinner made ( I am sure all the moms out there know what I am talking about). Sometimes I measure a good day by if the kids can entertain themselves long enough for me to get dinner made. One day last week was a good day. It was loud during dinner making but I had two entertained cheerleaders and got to hear "Go Wildcats" a hundred times.

Big girl decisions

2012-01-26T14:22:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago while Hadley was watching an episode of Scooby Doo she decided she wanted her hair cut like Velma's. I told her that I would talk to daddy. I really just thought that it was a one time statement and it wouldn't come up again. I was wrong she told Mike the same thing right when he got home that night. I gave it a week and she kept bringing it up. I made an appointment and told her we would cut it to her shoulders and if she wanted to go shorter we could do that another time.
Here are a couple before pictures.

On the way to the appointment I asked again to make sure she wanted it cut. She said, "Yes mom I don't want it to hurt when we brush it anymore." While she was getting it cut I had tears in my eyes. There was a lot of hair on the floor. The tears were gone when I saw the finished product. It is so cute! Even Daddy approves. The best part was the next morning when we were brushing it and she said, "Mom I love it and it doesn't hurt to brush it."

Basketball

2012-01-26T14:10:00.000-06:00

Hadley is playing basketball for the first time this year. She is playing through the Upward Bound program and loves it. She is the only girl on the team. She practices once a week and has a game once a week. Watching a team of 4 year olds play basketball is quite a funny thing.
Here are some pictures from one of her games.

Weekend with Lady

2012-01-21T10:03:00.000-06:00

The first full weekend in January, Mike and I made a trip to Texas to watch our Wildcats in the Cotton Bowl. The trip was fun and a little crazy. Unfortunately the Wildcats lost but we got some time away, good food, loved seeing Cowboy stadium and a free night at the hotel (did you know that hotel overbook and can bump you to another hotel???).
My mom came and stayed with the girls while we were gone. I think they all had a good time. Jillian got some one on one time with Lady while Hadley was at school and she got to show Lady her tumbling class.

The weather was beautiful so they spent the afternoon enjoy it.

Lady brought K-State noodles to have for dinner on game night.

Next up some fun in the bathtub.

On Saturday Hadley had her first basketball game. Mike and I were bummed to miss it but we know there will be many more games to come.
Here is the star ready to go.

And her biggest cheerleader.

The girls loved their Lady time and mommy and daddy loved their night away. Thanks Lady!

It is a...

2012-01-19T20:47:00.000-06:00

On Thursday the 12th I went to the doctor for my monthly check-up. Everything looked great and we were excited to know that the doctor could tell us if we were having a boy or girl. We are having a BOY!!! We are very excited to add another male to the family. We are even more excited that baby is healthy and growing. I was at the appointment by myself so I called Mike as soon as I was done. He was very excited and a little shocked. We kind of assumed it would be another girl and would have been perfectly fine with that too. Our conversation then moved to boys names and that is something we are struggling with. We can come up with girl names very easily but boy names are a struggle for us. It may come down to seeing this baby and naming him then.

After I was done at my appointment it was time to pick up the girls. I picked up Hadley first and told her she was going to have a brother. She said, "I can't wait to have a brother, now I will have my prince." She is ready to have a little brother to spoil. We picked up Jillian next and I let Hadley tell her. Jillian said, "I love brothers."

We can't wait to see what a it will be like to have a little boy around the house.

Christmas in Kansas Day 3

2012-01-19T15:47:00.000-06:00

Could I be more behind? Yes probably but sheesh, still blogging about Christmas. I think this will wrap up my Christmas posts and it will be full of pictures and few words.
We celebrated Christmas with my Dad and Terry on Tuesday the 27th. We spent the day eating, playing and opening presents. The kids once again had a great day together and I think the adults had fun too.
Jordan's family and our family stayed the week at Dad and Terry's. The girls loved waking up and having cousins to play with. Hadley and Brylee started the morning with some dress-up.

Grandparents and grandkids.

The Bryson family (little one coming in April)

The Kirk Family (little one coming in July)

The Sisson family

The whole gang

Kiddos and their electronics.

After some fun inside and lunch it was time to burn some energy with a trip to the park.

Back to Grandma and Grandpa's for presents and fun.

And we ended the night with four beautiful princesses.

Christmas in Kansas Day 2

2012-01-12T15:19:00.000-06:00

I guess since it is almost mid-January I should finish posting about our trip to Kansas for Christmas. On Monday we got up and headed over to visit my Grandpa. We got there at the same time as my sister and family were pulling up. We had not seen each other since May so we were very excited. When Jillian saw Sophia she said, "My Phia I want to give her a hug." They had a great time with each other and made me wish even more that we lived closer together.

Jillian, Hadley and Sophia

Grandma and Grandpa with some of their girls.

When I tell my girls that we are going to visit Grandpa Great the first thing they ask is if we can play coasters. They dump the coasters out of the container and try to throw them back in. The last time we were there this kept them and Grandpa Great busy for a good 30 minutes. They had to let Sophia in on the fun right away.

While we were are Grandpa's we also got to see my Aunt Ellen, Cousin Carrie and her baby Benton, Cousin Chris and his girlfriend Maria. Grandpa took us all out for pizza. It was fun to all be together. I think I usually get to see Chris about once every couple of years. We are only 5 months apart and were pretty close when we were little. We even got called twins a time or two. Kind of reminds me of Jillian and Sophia.

The cousins and Grandpa (notice that Grandpa cheers for the right team)

The little girls wanted their picture taken too. They were all about to breakdown at this point it was rest time for sure!

After lunch we headed to my Mom and Mark's to celebrate Christmas. It was a house full and lots of fun. All the cousins hadn't been together since last Christmas and they were glad to see each other.

Sophia and Jillian loving on each other.

Some of the cousins

Time for our annual sibling picture. We had a hard time deciding which camera to look at. I think Jess and I better look into our belly issue :)

Little Alex (who just turned 18) and Loryn

Mike and me

Jessica and Matt (poor Matt, Jess made me take this picture about 10 times)

Cammie and Jordan

The piano didn't get much quiet time will all of the little kids around. I think Sophia played the most.

Brennen doing some Lego work. I hadn't seen Brennen since June and I was so amazed at how much he had grown up in such a short time.

Brylee and Jillian playing their "games".

Time for some princess dress-up. No matter what dress-up clothes are around they always end up as princesses.

Granny and Grandpa

And we ended the night with some Lady love.

Christmas week in Kansas

2012-01-02T11:14:00.000-06:00

We are fortunate that we got to see almost all of our family members this Christmas. Christmas is the one time a year that all my siblings are together. We celebrated Christmas many times and had lots of fun. The girls were in cousin withdraws when we got back home.
We started our trip by going to Granny and Granddad's on Christmas night. The girls loved the new roller skates that Granny and Granddad got them and we had to go test them out right away. My favorite comment from Hadley was, "This is a lot harder than is looks mom." Lucky for the girls Mom and Dad had packed their safety gear.

We had a fun Christmas night with Granny and Granddad. The girls even ended the night petting Pumpkin the dog, this is a huge thing for my scared of dogs girls. We then headed to Grandma and Grandpa's to spend the night. Next up Day 2 of Christmas in Kansas.

Christmas morning

2012-01-02T10:54:00.000-06:00

Christmas morning was a fun time are our house. The first present we recieved was the girls sleeping in. Jillian and Mike finally had to go wake Hadley up so we could open presents before we got on the road to Kansas. The girls were so much fun to watch this Christmas. They both got so excited about everything they got. I think Mike and I got a hundred thank yous and hugs that morning. We then gave the girls a little time to play while the cinnamon rolls baked. We put candles in our cinnamon rolls and sang Happy Birthday to Jesus. The girls played some more and then we got around and headed to Kansas for the next of many Christmas celebrations.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T09:46:00.001-06:00

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve

2011-12-24T21:46:00.000-06:00

Our Christmas Eve was full of game playing, baking cookies for Santa, baking ham and mashed potatoes for dinner, reading the story of Baby Jesus, going to Christmas Eve service and getting into our Christmas jammies.

We had a great day as a family and can't wait to celebrate the birth of Jesus tomorrow.

Calla

2011-12-24T21:41:00.000-06:00

Our Elf on the Shelf, Calla, has been busy lately. She loves to make the girls laugh. Here she is taking a bubble bath in marshmallows.

Calla really likes our new pet, Prince Eric. He was a Christmas gift from our wonderful neighbors, Mr. Bob and Ms. Connie. The girls love to sit and watch Prince Eric.

Calla has also been known to hang off of pictures, hide in stockings, eat M&Ms, drive doll cars, and sit in the Christmas tree. We have had a lot of fun with Calla this year. This morning Calla brought a card and gift for the girls. The card thanked them for letting her visit this year, told them they were on the nice list and she would see them next year. The girls were very excited that Calla brought them something. Hadley decided that she wanted to give Calla a gift and write her a card. The girls spent time drawing cards for her and then wrapped up a couple of toys for Calla to take back to the North Pole with her.
Here they are with the gifts they left her.

I think they were both a little sad to say goodbye to Calla tonight but they excitement of Santa took over and all was good.

Edible Christmas Trees

2011-12-24T21:30:00.000-06:00

We have been trying to do some sort of Christmas activity each day this week. One of the activities was to make Christmas tress out of ice cream cones. I used this as my bribe to get the girls to behave at the grocery store on Monday. I told them we would make them when we got home. I did not count on Target being out of the actual cone shaped ice cream cones. So we made due with what we could get. They still had fun and looked somewhat like a Christmas tree.

And this is what Jillian looked like after eating her Christmas tree.

Baby Kirk #3

2011-12-19T09:38:00.000-06:00

We had an ultrasound last Tuesday and everything looks great. We got some good pictures of the baby but our scanner isn't working so I will post them when I can. Baby's heartbeat was 176. My doctor moved my due date up a little and I am now due July 2 (no I will not try and hold out for a firecracker baby). If this baby is like the other two he/she will be making an early arrival.
I was very excited when my doctor moved the dates because that meant I was less than a week away from the 12 week mark. I am hoping the 12th week marks a time of no sickness but we will have to see.
We took the girls with us to the ultrasound. I wanted them to be able to hear the heartbeat and see the baby. I prepared them by looking at ultrasound pictures from when I was 6 weeks pregnant with Hadley and 10 weeks pregnant with Jillian. As we were watching on the screen Hadley said, "That does not look like a baby." She was a little more convinced when she heard the heartbeat. Jillian on the other hand had been saying there was no baby in my tummy but after the ultrasound she is sure there is a baby in there.
We have started talking names and I think the girls are pretty sure they will be naming this baby. That could make for a real interesting name. We are excited to find out what we are having and hope to do that in January or February.

Christmas Parties

2011-12-19T09:30:00.000-06:00

Last week was a week full of Christmas parties. It started on Tuesday with Jillian's party at school. Here she is in her Christmas shirt. Her face cracks me up. I wasn't able to make it to her party but she seemed to have a great time. She came home with lots of goodies.

Thursday morning was Hadley's party at school. Jillian was in school at the same time so I was able to help with the party. They all seemed to have a good time. We made reindeer food, snowman and reindeer snacks and an adorable fingerprint ornament. I love getting to be back in the the classroom from time to time and see all the little kiddos. Hadley had a great time. One of the best parts of the party was when their class elf on the shelf, Jingle brought them a present. It was a huge box wrapped with lots of smaller boxes wrapped inside. The kids thought it was funny. Finally they got to their present, candy canes. They were very excited and thought their elf was very silly. Here is my girl all grown up.

Thursday afternoon was parent observation day and party day at ballet/tap/jazz class. Hadley did great. I had never seen her do her jazz dance and she really got into it. Here is our beautiful ballerina.

Friday morning was a busy morning and I was very thankful that Mike had the day off. Jillian had parent observation day and party at tumbling and Hadley was singing for the Grandma and Grandpa's at school. Both things were at 10am so we had to divide and conquer. I videotaped Hadley's performance and Mike took pictures at Jillian's. Jillian looks all grown-up in this picture.

We ended Friday night by getting in jammies and going to see Christmas lights. It was fun but about 30 minutes into it Hadley said, "Can we go home and go to bed?" It was a busy week and she was done.

December catch up

2011-12-12T17:21:00.000-06:00

This is the post where I try and catch up on all the things we have done this December. I am so tired right now that blogging is not even on the list of things to do these days. Most days I am doing good to clothe and feed the kids :)
We started December by decorating for Christmas. The girls were a big help this year.

The morning after we got the house decorated our Elf on the Shelf, Calla, came back for her yearly visit. She has been the silly elf this year.

This past Sunday Hadley was in the Christmas program at church. Her class sang 3 songs. She did a great job. She was a sheep.

Jillian felt a little left out of all the picture taking so we had our own photo shoot.

And then Hadley figured out what we were doing.

A couple of weeks ago Lady came for a visit and made gingerbread houses with the girls.

December has been quite the busy month and is getting even busier. I hope to update again soon but am not promising anything.

Exciting news...

2011-12-12T17:03:00.000-06:00

The girls got some exciting news from their elf, Calla, last week. This is how they found her.

They were both very excited. Hadley started jumping up and down and could not wait to tell everyone. When we took her to school that morning she was not even out of the van (yes we are now a mini van family) and she was yelling her news to her teacher. It was very cute. Jillian is excited but is sure there is no baby in my tummy and that it will be there in "ly" (July).
Mike and I are very excited. This pregnancy has really taken it out of me. I have been pretty sick and very tired. Hadley even offered to watch Jillian one afternoon because, "Mom making a baby is hard work." She also has been coming into the bathroom every morning when I am in the shower and asking if my tummy is bigger yet. I am so excited to see the girls with a baby in the house. I don't think July will get here soon enough.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T20:27:00.000-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving! I can barely type this because I am so full. We had a great Thanksgiving. We had 11 here at our house and I really enjoyed hosting. We had way too much food but that means I don't have to cook for a few days :) The girls loved having everyone here. Hadley said, "This is the best day. My favorite part was having all the people at my house." I did take a few pictures throughout the day.

Alex and Loryn having a relaxing morning.

Thanksgiving craft time with Lady.

The girls loved having Loryn to entertain them.

Our little pilgrim girl.

Lady is such a turkey.

The whole group.

Time to eat!

Time to work off all the extra calories.

We ended the day with a little webcam time with Auntie Jessica and Sophia.

Nothing new

2011-11-21T20:13:00.000-06:00

I am sorry to say that my camera is collecting dust. I just haven't been taking pictures lately and really don't have anything new to share. We are getting ready to host our first Thanksgiving at our house. We are very excited. Hadley has been in charge of decorations so there has been a lot of coloring and cutting going on at our house. I will get my camera out on Thanksgiving. To hold you over here are a few pictures from past Thanksgivings.

Hadley's first Thanksgiving 2007

Jillian's first Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving 2010

County Fair at school

2011-11-07T20:27:00.000-06:00

The Friday before Halloween was the County Fair at Hadley's school. They didn't have a Halloween party but a County Fair instead. It was for the residents of the assisted living center and the students. Parents and siblings could also attend. It was a fun time. The girls seemed to have a great time and loved turning their tickets in for prizes. Hadley went for the jewelry and Jillian went for the candy. Which do you think is more like me???

My Little Dollhouse

2011-11-03T20:27:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago was Fall Break here and the girls were out of school Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. We made sure to do something fun on each day. On Wednesday we had a special crafting MOPS meeting. We painted pumpkins and made Fall tree paintings. It was a great time and Hadley was excited to be able to see her old friends from MOPS. On Thursday we had a playdate with one of Jillian's best friends from school, Brynlee. The girls had fun and the mommies did too. On Friday we used a Living Social deal I had purchased for My Little Dollhouse. Niki and Olivia also joined us there. The girls got to dress-up, have their nails done, make-up done, dance and put on a fashion show. This was just right for the girly girls.

Dress like a princess night

2011-11-01T21:08:00.000-05:00

Last Tuesday was Dress like a Prince or Princess night at Chick-Fil-A. If you went dressed up you got a free kid's meal. Of course we had plenty of princess attire to choose from. The girls were so excited to get to wear their princess clothes to dinner. We met up with Niki, Ryan, Olivia and Audrey there. They had horse drawn carriage rides, pictures with Cinderella and a steal the dragon's candy game. I think a fun time was had by all.
Snow White and Cinderella ready to go.

Carriage ride

Hadley and Olivia acting a little crazy.

Pumpkin Festival

2011-11-01T09:18:00.001-05:00

Last Sunday our church hosted a Pumpkin Festival. They had a pumpkin carving contest, carnival games, cake walk, and pumpkin painting. We all had a great time. Hadley discovered a fishing game the she could win at each time and filled up on candy. Jillian loved the bowling game. Mike spent his time carving a pumpkin for each girl (he told me next year one pumpkin only). In one pumpkin he carved Snow White and Ariel in the other one. His hard work paid off and he won 3rd place in the carving contest. This is a church activity that we look forward to every year.
Mike hard at work.

Mike still working!

The finished product!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T14:44:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween from our Ladybug Girls!!!

Super Bee

2011-10-17T20:48:00.000-05:00

When we picked Hadley up from school on Friday she had a special friend with her. His name is Super Bee and she got to bring him home because she had super "bee"havior at school. We are so proud of her! We got to keep Super Bee for the weekend and take pictures of all the things he did with us. Then Hadley drew a few pictures of her with Super Bee, wrote a few sentences about his weekend and then we printed some pictures to add to her book. She had to take Super Bee back to school this morning and was a little sad to see him go.
The first thing Hadley and Super Bee did was go for a bike ride (Uncle Matt this was a picture before the ride, she did have a helmet on to ride).

Then Super Bee came inside to meet stripey.

Next up time for some Highlights magazine with Super Bee.

Hadley let Jillian touch Super Bee at total of one time!

More bike riding and a stop for a snack picnic.

Super Bee got to play dress-up.

Saturday morning Super Bee came with us on a trip to Lowes.

On Sunday Super Bee went with us to the Pumpkin Patch to meet Hadley's class. It was neat to see Hadley interact with all of the kids in her class. I did learn she is a social butterfly! She also seems to be very popular with the boys (shhhh don't tell her daddy).

Both of the girls asked to go on the pony rides. With their fear of animals we jumped at the chance to get them close to a live animal. It did not go well. Hadley rode but cried the whole time. Jillian would not even get on the horse.

Jillian did like the tractor train ride.

We are so proud of Hadley's behavior and hope that Super Bee comes to visit again!

Half Marathon and more

2011-10-13T20:29:00.000-05:00

I am happy to report that after 20 weeks of training I have completed my running goal. This last weekend Audra and I ran the Prairie Fire Half Marathon in Wichita. It was tough, emotional, wet, exhausting, exciting, and fun all at the same time. My running journey started in January of last year. I was trying to find some kind of exercise that I enjoyed and decided to give running a try. At that point I knew I needed a goal to strive for. Audra and I decided to run a 5k that March. I started doing the Couch to 5K program. I did the training off and on. The 5K was fun but I had to walk during it and said I was done running when I finished that race. Then about a week later I realized that I actually missed running. That is when I started to become a little more serious about running. The rest is history. I have now run a 5K, 10K and Half Marathon.
I won't say the race on Sunday was easy because it wasn't easy. It was hard and I had to dig deep to finish. I was ready to throw in the towel at mile 10 but knew after all my hard work I was not quitting. My goal for the day was to finish the 13.1 miles in 2 hours and 30 minutes. My official time was 2:29:58. I still had 2 seconds to spare :) I don't know if I will run another half marathon any time soon but I will continue running. Here is the only picture that Audra and I took on race day. We do have proof of running on the professional photographers website but I hope they are erased soon. I am very glad I do not look in the mirror while running.

After the race we headed out to lunch and then headed back to Winfield. Mike and the girls were at my Mom and Mark's waiting for me. This is what they had made me.

Thanks to Audra for running with me. I am so glad to have reached this goal with you. Thanks to Mike for supporting me and my new love of running. I am still waiting to run a race with you!

Now on to the real reason people read the blog, my girls! We have had a busy week. The weather has been nice and we have been enjoying. Jillian and I have spent a few mornings outside this week and she is loving the scooter.

One afternoon this week Hadley went over to play at Olivia's house. When we went to pick her up the girls played outside for awhile. Niki and I saw a flash into the future and I am not ready for it yet.

We are finally home for a weekend and plan on relaxing and enjoying it!

Weekly Update

2011-10-05T21:32:00.000-05:00

How is that for a boring title? I have decided my new goal is to blog once a week. I am a schedule girl and I think I can work that into my schedule. Many of you are laughing now because either you think schedules are funny or you know all about mine. Anyways back to the blog...
Last Friday we headed to Kansas for the weekend. We stayed at my Dad and Stepmom's house. They watched the girls on Saturday so Mike and I could head to Manhattan for the football game. It was a great game. I can say that now that the game is over and we won 36-35. During the game I was not saying it was a great game and I about walked out with 5 minutes left. I am so glad I didn't because the ending was wonderful.
We had a good time tailgating before the game. Audra and Kane brought Lydia for this game and it was fun to spend some time with her. She was such a good girl!

Mike and me

On Sunday my Aunt Ellen and Grandpa came over to Dad and Terry's for lunch. We spent some time outside watching the girls play. It was a beautiful day.

It was a fun weekend and the girls did not want to leave Kansas. I enjoyed getting to visit with friends and family.

Blog???

2011-09-29T20:35:00.000-05:00

I bet some people are wondering if I still know what a blog it. Yes I do. I will say that these days it just isn't at the top of my to do list. Fall is always such a busy time for us with K-State football. Add Hadley going to school every day, ballet class, tumbling class, church, training for a half marathon and life in general and you get a busy schedule. By the time the kids are in bed at 7:30pm I am beat. I can usually stay awake long enough to talk to my husband for a few minutes, start a tv show and I am out. So now you know why I can never make time to blog.
Anyways... we have been living life and having fun. The girls have been loving the cooler weather these days. We have been spending as much time as possible outside. I think one week we managed to eat most of our meals outside. We are making up for the awful heat of the summer. We have managed to have a few cookouts with friends, go to our church picnic, watch lots of college football, ride bikes and have family time in the last week. With all this going on I have not gotten my camera out much. Which some may think of as a bad thing but I will say that I am more in the moment without my camera in hand.
We got a friend in the mail the other day. My friend Brenda's little girl Laken sent us Flat Stanley to visit. We had a great time showing him Oklahoma.

We hope Flat Stanley had a safe trip back to Missouri.
This last Sunday was Children's Sunday at church. Hadley's class sang two songs. It is so fun to see the little kids up there singing. Hadley takes it very seriously and pays close attention to her teacher.

Before we headed to church we took a few pictures. The girls wanted to model for a few.

Then it was time for a few group shots.

And that is about all I have to report. Hopefully I will be back sooner than later :)

Nothing new

2011-09-17T22:51:00.000-05:00

I really don't have anything too exciting to blog about. We are busy living life and having a good time.
We celebrated Mike's birthday last week and I managed to not take a single picture. I think he would think of that as a birthday present. He sometimes thinks I might go a little overboard on the picture taking.
For Mike's 35th birthday I surprised him with a night away at a local historic hotel, The Ambassador. My mom came to watch the kids and we had a nice relaxing time away. We had dinner at a seafood restaurant that was delicious, Bodeans. We spent most of our time relaxing and sleeping in. I did manage to talk Mike into a picture before we headed to dinner.

The girls have both adjusted to going to school and activities well. They are both very tired when bedtime rolls around at 7:30 each night. Hadley is loving school. She says her favorite parts are outside play and painting. She also loves all the new songs she is learning and can't figure out how I know them and can sing along with her. She always asks, "Mom did you teach that song too?"
Jillian loves school as well. She loves to play on the playground and playing with the toys. I love that she comes running to me when I come to pick her up and says I love you about 5 times on the way home. Helps me to know that she misses me as much as I miss her.
Since we haven't taken pictures of anything exciting, here are a few of the girls from the past week.

Jillian's First Day of School

2011-09-08T09:33:00.001-05:00

Tuesday was Jillian's first day of school. She is going to school 2 mornings a week. She has been asking when she would get to go to school since Hadley's first day a few weeks ago. After we went to meet the teacher last week she kept saying, "I love my school." She had a great first day and said they played books, outside and had snack. She can't wait to go back.
Here she is ready to go.

Labor Day Weekend

2011-09-07T21:32:00.000-05:00

We had a busy Labor Day Weekend. Our weekend started on Friday. Hadley didn't have school and Mike took the day off. We spent the morning at home and then headed for Kansas after lunch. We stayed at my dad and stepmom's for the weekend. Saturday was my dad's birthday so we took him to dinner on Friday night. He picked Carlos O'Kelley's for dinner.
Hadley wanted to get a picture of the birthday boy.

Grandpa, Hadley and Grandma

Hadley got the camera again.

Saturday Mike and I headed to Manhattan for the first home football game of the season while the girls stayed with Grandma and Grandpa. Mike and I had a good time at the game but the game wasn't pretty. K-State did win 10-7. I only got the camera out once the whole day.
Me, Audra and Kara enjoying the tailgate before the game.

While Mike and I were at the game the girls were enjoying their day with Grandma and Grandpa. They went to Botanica Garden kid's area, ate pizza and went swimming. Here are the pictures from Grandma's camera.

On Sunday we headed to the Wichita Zoo. It was beautiful out and we had a great time. Mike's mom and stepdad met us there.

What is wrong with this picture??? Oh the 4 year old thought she needed to ride in the stroller.

Jillian and Grandad checking out the giraffes.

The best seat at the zoo.

Baby giraffe

Jillian, Granny and Grandad

It is no secret that my children do not like being near live animals. The only animals they wanted close to at the zoo were the statues.

After the zoo we had a good dinner with Granny and Grandad and then headed back to Grandma and Grandpa's house. We spent the evening outside.

On Monday we headed over to Winfield for the day. We met Grandlady, Eryn and Ethan at the park for a few hours of fun. Then we went out for lunch and back to Lady's. I promise Lady and Eryn were there I just didn't get any pictures of them.

We ended the day with a visit to my Grandpa's and then hit the road back to Tulsa. It was a fun weekend but we needed to get back for Jillian's first day of school :)

Kiddie Park

2011-08-31T10:29:00.000-05:00

We have been wanting to make a trip to the Kiddie Park all summer. With it being so hot and lots of busy weekends we just had not made it. This last weekend we had no plans and our friends Jill and Philip were planning to go, so we decided it was a great time to go. I am glad we did because it was the last night they were open for the season. Just like the times before the kids had a blast! It was warm but nothing unbearable. The girls both loved the "bummpy" cars. Hadley was the driver and I might be a little scared of our future :)

Here are the girls ready to go have some fun.

The first ride the girls picked was the roller coaster. We had just read a book from the library called Roller Coaster" and Jillian was very excited. Once we got closer in line she got quiet and asked if I was riding with her. I decided to avoid crying during the ride I better join them. We all three crammed into the little seat and were ready for fun. It was a fun time but jerked you around. Jillian didn't really care for it but Hadley loved it.

This is Jillian saying no more roller coaster.

Time for the bumper cars or bumpy cars as the girls call them. They loved these so much we had to wait in the long line to ride them twice. Once Hadley figured the pedals out they were could to go and they loved running into Peter and Harry. Of course Peter and Harry loved running into them as well.

The next ride Hadley and Peter wanted to ride on was the Tilt-a-Whirl. Jillian and Harry were not as excited and decided a train ride would be better. I am glad they opted for a train ride because I think Jillian would have been green after this ride. There was a little girl that I was afraid wasn't going to make it on the ride. Luckily Peter and Hadley loved it.

I love this picture. Peter and Hadley can have a great time together and they can get on each other's nerves as well. They are quite competitive with each other. They got along great this night. We will probably have to use this picture to tease them as they get older.

Time for a groovy picture. Too bad I couldn't get everyone to look at me at once.

Poor Caroline was too young to ride anything by herself. I am sure next year she will be loving it all. Jill decided to take her on a ride with all the kiddos. I think they all enjoyed it.

The last ride of the night for us was the carousel. This has always been a favorite of Hadley's.

We had a great night and can't wait to go back next summer.

Tumbling, Granny and PreK

2011-08-22T20:44:00.000-05:00

On Friday, Jillian started her tumbling class. She was very excited and started asking if it was time to go right when she got up that morning. It was fun to watch her in a class. She did great and had a lot of fun. I think her favorite part was the sucker at the end. Here she is waiting for class to start.

Mike's mom came to visit this weekend. On Saturday, Hadley and I had a baby shower to go to. While we were there, Mike, Granny and Jillian spent the morning at the aquarium. That afternoon we all went shopping. Granny bought the girls new school outfits. They loved shopping with Granny. Here are the girls and Granny.

Jillian and Granny at the aquarium.

The girls had a great time with Granny and didn't want her to leave. We were glad she was able to come for the weekend.
Today was Hadley's first full morning of school and she was very excited. She had to make sure she had just the right outfit on and all the accessories. I got a few pictures before she went in.

Hadley and her teacher, Mrs. Fleming

Waiting in the drop off line.

Hadley and Reagan, friends since they were born.

Hadley got into the car at pick-up and talked a mile a minute. She loved everything at school. It is going to be fun year!

School days, school days...

2011-08-18T15:37:00.001-05:00

Our summer has come to an end and it is time for school to start. We have had a great summer but I am ready to get back into a routine. I am a little sad that we now have to be somewhere 5 mornings a week and can't stay home for jammie day. I am sure we will survive. Hadley has been talking about the first day of school since our vacation to Texas. While we were there we let her pick out a first day of school outfit. Our girly girl could not wait to wear it. On Tuesday we went to finish paper work and meet her teacher. I will tell you that at one point when I was in the first of two paper work lines and had been there for 30 minutes already, I was considering walking out and just forgetting the whole school thing. But then I remembered it wasn't about me and Hadley will thrive at school. She is such a social little girl and wants to learn about everything. I am so excited to see all the new things she learns this year. She loved meeting her teacher and I know they are going to have fun this year.
Today was her first day of school. She only went for an hour this morning with 4 of her classmates. Monday will be her first full morning of school with all 22 students there. We celebrated the first day of school by going out for donuts with daddy. We also had to take a few pictures before leaving.

Jillian was on the run this morning and it was hard to get a picture of her. She wanted to go to school this morning but will have to wait a few more weeks.

So yes, I am the mom that will probably cry on the first day of school every year. I won't say I cry because I am sad, I am just not good with change. I am very excited for my kids to do new things and grow-up but I also like to keep them close and under my wing. We have considered home schooling but I am just not sure that would be the right fit for Hadley and me. She is more like me than I like to admit. I know Hadley could tell I was having a hard time this morning. I think I told her I loved her a million and one times. On the way to school I was talking to her and going over rules and manners with an I love you and you will have fun stuck in there about every other sentence. Finally Hadley stops me and says, "Mom, stop whining. I know all this stuff and will be fine." Then we pulled up to drop off and her teacher started getting her out of the car and she about forgot to say goodbye to me. She was to busy telling her teacher all about something. I am sure she will talk her teacher's ear off by the end of the year... or month :)
When I picked her up from school she talked a mile a minute about everything. She kept stressing that they had kid sized computers. She also said there was a real dog there but didn't scream and stayed in line. If you know Hadley this is a big deal. She said, "Mom, it was short and I didn't even need my kissing hand. But I might need it on Monday when I am there longer." I said she was probably right. I didn't want to tell her that I had to use my kissing hand a few times in the hour she was gone and I think Jillian did too. We tried to keep busy at the library and grocery store but felt a little lost without our Hadley. I am sure we will get used to the change and it will all be good! Now off to the first dance class of the year.

Weekend

2011-08-16T21:22:00.000-05:00

This last weekend my dad and Terry were in town to Volunteer at the Professional Bull Riding event. We got to spend some time with them when they weren't at the event. The girls had a great time playing with Grandma Terry and Grandpa Kent. They loved the school supplies they brought them. Most of the weekend was spent coloring and cutting. We went to the Philbrook Museum on Saturday for their free 2nd Saturday program. I think everyone really enjoyed it. Here are the girls doing artwork with Grandma and Grandpa.

Grandpa and Jillian looking at pictures on Grandpa's phone.

Grandma and Hadley coloring.

More art time.

It was a fun weekend. This week we have been gearing up for school to start. Hadley got to meet her teacher today and is very excited for her first day. I am still having a hard time with the fact that she will be in school 5 mornings a week. Seems like the last four years have flown by. I know she will have a great time and love every minute of school. I am sure going to miss having my buddy with me. I am really excited about the PreK program she is in . Her classroom is in an assisted living/nursing home. It is a very unique program. You can read about it here.
Jillian is also getting very excited about school starting. She will be going to school at the same place Hadley did last year. She will be going 2 mornings a week and starts in September. I am not sure I will know what to do with myself on those two mornings :)
The girls also start dance and tumbling this week. Hadley is taking a ballet/tap/jazz class and Jillian is taking a tumbling class. It is going to be busy and fun school year!

Hot days

2011-08-11T21:14:00.000-05:00

This summer has been one of the hottest summers ever. I never thought I would be so excited to finally see highs in the 90's. I am hoping the cooler weather is here to stay. I am also hoping that our air conditioner holds up. Last Tuesday when the high hit 113 our A/C decided to quit working. The girls and I spent the hottest part of that day at the pool.
The day before that I had decided to document what we were doing to beat the heat. We started the day dancing to our Vacation Bible School DVD.

Then on to hours and hours of coloring. I kid you not this girl could color all day.

Cheese!

Time to check the temperature, a cool 111 degrees.

Time to get in the toy box and play.

Video game time while mom makes a meal.

And maybe some dancing in the kitchen.

I am sure we did a few more things but these are all the pictures I had.

Time with Lady

2011-08-10T21:13:00.000-05:00

Last Thursday morning I heard this question more than one time, "When will Lady be here?". The girls could not wait for their Lady to come visit for a few days. I was excited to see my mom but I was also excited to get a weekend away with my hubby. Mike and I headed to Manhattan on Friday for a weekend away. We relaxed, shopped, saw 2 movies, had dinner with friends and I ran a 10K. It was a great weekend. While we were away the girls and Lady were having a great time.

On Monday we decided to have some more girl bonding time and went for pedicures. The girls were wearing their new K-State headbands.

Time for some pampering and relaxation. Note to self getting a pedicure with a 2 year old is fun but not relaxing.

The finished product.

Two very happy girls.

We spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out at the house doing a little dress-up.

I had planned to make a good dinner that night and just enjoy the last night of my mom being at our house. That isn't exactly what happened. Late afternoon I headed into the office to check my e-mail. I walked in as I usually do and ran right into the wheel of my mom's suitcase. I screamed and fell onto the mattress that was set up in there. I knew something was not right but thought maybe I had just hit my toe really hard. After a trip to Ergent Care I found out that I had broken my toe. What a bummer. The doctor said not to run for 3 weeks and I think that is what upset me the most. I have finally hit a place in my running where I feel like I am getting somewhere. I am 8 weeks out from my half marathon and am afraid that this may set me back a long way. Oh well that is life. I am just hoping it heals faster than the doctor thinks. I was glad my mom was able to stay with the girls while Mike took me to Ergent Care. Not the evening I planned.
Tuesday we took Lady to the airport to head out to see Jessica, Matt and Sophia. We were sad to see her leave but happy for her to get some time with the Bryson family.
Thanks Mom for all of your help!

Vacation

2011-07-30T21:34:00.000-05:00

Last weekend Mike, the girls and I headed out on a little family vacation. We headed to Grapevine, TX and had a great time. We left Saturday morning and came home on Tuesday. It was about the perfect amount of time to be gone, although the girls cried when we got home because they wanted to sleep at the hotel again.
Here are the girls loaded up and ready to go. We were about 10 minutes into the drive when Hadley started asking, "Are we in Texas yet?". Luckily Mary Poppins got started and she didn't ask that question too many more times.

We stopped for lunch at a Chile's and had to take some pictures.

Most of Saturday was spent traveling and getting checked in. Our hotel was booked full the night before so we didn't get into our room until about 6pm. Luckily my sweet talking got us a credit on our bill :) To kill time that afternoon we thought we would go to the Legoland Discovery Center. Hadley was very excited when we told her where we were going. She soon would be disappointed due to the 2.5 hour wait to get in. We bought our tickets for Monday and assured her we would be back. She kept saying the rest of the evening, "I am disappointed mom." To help with the disappointment we let them ride a few rides at the mall before we headed back to see if our room was ready. Hadley always tells us that she wants a car without a top and I think she found it.

Once we got checked into the hotel we got settled, walked around the hotel and ate dinner. Hadley had to do a model pose by the fountain.

By this time we were all pretty tired and hit the hay early to prepare for a big day of swimming on Sunday.
We stayed at the Gaylord Texan Hotel. This is the hotel Mike and I stayed at 3 years ago when we left Hadley overnight for the first time. They just opened a new resort pool area this summer. It was perfect for the girls. They had a lazy river or crazy river as the girls called it. A zero entry pool with lots of sprays to play in. They also had a zip-line and slide that Mike and I could do. We spent all day on Sunday at this pool with a break in the middle of the day for rest time. While we were there they girls and I got spray on tattoos and the girls got braids and beads put in their hair. It was a great day and both girls fell asleep on the way to dinner that night. Here are some pictures of swimming.

Monday we got around and headed to Legoland Discovery center. We wanted to be there right when it opened because we knew it would get busy. In the end we were very disppaointed in Legoland and sad that we spent so much to get in. They highlight of Legoland was the Bob the Builder 4D movie.

For lunch we went to the Rainforest Cafe and the girls loved it. Jillian was a little scared of the animal noises in the beginning but got used to them.

After lunch we did some back to school shopping and then went to the Sealife Aquarium. By this point the girls were getting very tired and looking back we should not have planned so much for one day. We made it through the aquarium but left at the end with Jillian in the middle of a fit. Both girls were asleep in the car before we got the 2 miles back to our hotel. A power nap was all the girls needed to be ready to go swimming again. So we changed and headed to catch the bus to swim. The swimming area was just down the road from the hotel and they have a bus going every 10 minutes. This might have been one of the girls favorite parts of the trip. Jillian asked to ride the bus no less than 100 times while we were there. We swam for an hour or so and then headed back to get cleaned up for dinner. By the time we got back from dinner we were all ready for a little movie time and bed.

The next morning was time to pack up and go home. The girls and I walked around the hotel to kill time while Mike waited in line to check out.

On the way home we stopped at an outlet mall for a little more shopping. I think I can say we all had a great trip. The girls keep asking when daddy can take us back to another hotel. Hopefully we can talk him into some time off again soon :)

Changes

2011-07-18T15:32:00.000-05:00

This weekend we had some change going on at our house. We moved the girls into a room together and made Hadley's room into a playroom. We have been talking about it for some time now. We knew the day was coming that Hadley would need to move to a bigger bed (she was in a toddler bed) and Jillian would need to move out of her crib. That being said Jillian never crawled out of her crib and was sleeping fine in it. We just knew that the transition would go smoother if she saw Hadley getting a bigger bed at the same time. We had taken them to look for bunk beds and even let them pick out their own bedding. Luckily I was able to manipulate the choices so they somewhat matched. We finally found the bunk beds we wanted. We wanted some with stairs (just seemed a tiny bit more safe). On Friday late afternoon, Mike and I started putting them together. While we worked on putting the beds together Jillian and Hadley had fun with the boxes.

We stopped for dinner and got back to work. The girls really wanted to sleep in their new beds that night. We finished up and started our bedtime routine. We knew it would be rough because it was new and past normal bedtime. We weren't planning on them not being asleep until 11pm and up the next morning at 5:55am. Good news is that each night seems to be getting better.
The girls have been having fun playing in their new room together and in the playroom.

It is so much fun to watch the girls play together more and more. They love to play make believe. I hope that they continue to love sharing a room.

Porter Peaches

2011-07-07T20:40:00.000-05:00

Last Wednesday we made a trip to Porter, Oklahoma to get some peaches. It is about an hour drive. We started the morning with swimming lessons and then loaded up in Jill's van and headed for Porter. Loading up in the van took a little longer than expected. Getting 5 car seats to all fit was interesting but Jill and I got it done!
Here was my view looking into the back of the van (Hadley was with us but you can't see her).

We stopped at McDonalds for some lunch. The kiddos really weren't in a picture taking mood.

After lunch we headed to the Peach Barn to get our peaches. We didn't go to pick them just buy them from the store and have some homemade peach ice cream. It was delicious! We had to take pictures of the kids being the cowboy.

Yummy ice cream.

We wanted a group picture in front of the peaches, this is the best we could do.

We brought home a good amount of peaches and Jill taught me how to make peach jam. It is delicious and I am going to try to make some more on my own this weekend. I may also try to make strawberry jam.
This was a fun little road trip. We thought for sure the kids would nap at least part of the trip. Caroline was the only one that slept. The kids did great in the car so we might have to plan another road trip soon.

4th of July and more

2011-07-04T22:07:00.001-05:00

It is still the 4th of July so Happy 4th to all. I had intended on getting a post up earlier in the day but the day got away from me. We have had a great weekend and this post should fill you in on all that we did.
Friday night we went out to dinner at Red Robin and then did a little bunk bed shopping. We are planning on moving the girls into one room eventually and wanted to start getting ideas on beds. We haven't found what we want yet. After the girls ran all over the furniture store (actually they were very well behaved) we went out for frozen yogurt. This is one of our favorite things to do in the summer.

Saturday started early for me. I wanted to beat the heat and get a good run in. When I got home Mike went out to shoot his handgun while the girls and I ran errands. After lunch we put the girls down to rest and nap and I headed over to Jill's for a lesson on making peach jam. We had gone to Porter earlier in the week to get peaches (post coming soon). We made a batch of peach jam and it is delicious. Thanks Jill for teaching me! After our jam was made we all headed to the pool. We are members of the pool in Philip and Jill's neighborhood so Mike and the girls met me there. We enjoyed some pool time. Both girls are improving with their swimming. After swimming it was time to go home for a quick dinner and bedtime.
Sunday started with church. The girls were very excited to head to church in their red, white and blue. We even got Daddy in on dressing patriotically.

We spent Sunday afternoon taking it easy and preparing for a late night of watching fireworks. Mike and the girls doing some work.

Jenks did their fireworks show on the 3rd this year. The aquarium stayed open late so that you could set your chairs and blankets out on their back lawn and walk around inside while you waited for the show to begin. This was a great idea because it was still pretty warm in the evening. We met Philip, Jill and the kids there (we all joked that this weekend was full of Kirk/Maud time). The kids had a blast doing a scavenger hunt that was set up throughout the aquarium. When we finished that it was just getting dark and we headed out to wait for the fireworks. It started to sprinkle while we were waiting and cooled down to the perfect temperature.
Since I missed getting a picture with the girls before church we did it before we left for the fireworks.

Family picture and yes Mike has food in his mouth.

Our model striking a pose.

Philip, Harry and Peter

Jill and Caroline. I love Caroline's outfit, Jill made it. Maybe that should be the next thing I have her teach me :)

Jillian checking out the planes during the fly by.

Mike and Hadley watching the fireworks. I have to admit this is the first year we have let the girls stay up for the fireworks. We have always been in a lack of sleep mode and never wanted to mess with their schedules. This year they are finally at a point that they actually sleep and we can stay up later now and then. It was well worth it because they both loved the fireworks.

We got home around 11pm and got the girls right to bed. We had to wake them up early this morning to get to the Firecracker 1K Fun Run. After our family 5K in May Hadley has been asking to do a race with me. I decided we should do a Fun Run as a family and what a fun way to celebrate the 4th of July. To round out our Maud/Kirk weekend the Mauds joined us for the Fun Run. Peter and Hadley had been talking about who was going to win throughout the week. I was a little worried it the race might end in tears but it did not. Peter was the winner in our group but everyone did great. Hadley ran almost all of the 1K we had to slow down a few times. At one point I was starting to get a few steps in front of her and she pushed my leg back. She did not want me to beat her. If anyone would start to get next to her she would get a very determined look on her face and start to run faster. I can see she might be a little competitive. Mike pushed Jillian in the stroller for most of the race but let her out in the end to run across the finish line while we cheered her on. We all had a great time and ended the morning with brunch.

Can you tell that Jillian is a little fond of Harry?

Hadley refused to have her picture with the group and Peter was too fast for me. But Harry, Caroline and Jillian look cute before the race.

My girls after the race.

After brunch we came home to relax. The girls watched a little Mary Poppins while Mike and I tried to keep our eyes open. When the girls got up from nap we headed outside for some sidewalk painting. That lasted all of 5 minutes before they were complaining of the heat and even a popsicle bribe wouldn't keep them outside.

Mike didn't get to go in the cool with us, he had to stay out and mow.

VBS and our weekend

2011-06-26T21:32:00.000-05:00

This last week was a very busy week. Hadley had swim lessons Monday-Thursday in the mornings and we had Vacation Bible School each night. We had a fun time at both. Swim lessons started out a little rough because Hadley didn't want to go under water. They got much better as the week went on and she is actually looking forward to them this week. We had a great time at VBS. Both girls loved their classes and are asking when we can go again. I helped in Arts and Crafts and was exhausted by the end of the week. On the last night the kids put on a program. Jillian was in the nursery all week so she wasn't in the program but still sang from our seats and danced during the program. The sanctuary is not a great place for pictures so these are a little dark.

Friday was our day for doing nothing. The girls and I didn't get out of bed until 8:30am. Jillian woke up but I managed to get her to cuddle, play and watch tv with me until Hadley got up. We had a relaxing morning of playing outside in the pool and with bubbles. While we were at VBS all week Mike finished up staining our picnic table and getting our umbrella up. We were very thankful for this on Friday.

Friday night we had a sitter come watch the girls so Mike and I could have a date night. We went to dinner at Pei Wei and then went bunk bed and mattress shopping. Doesn't that sound like an exciting date night? Saturday morning I got up early to run and then brought donuts back . We headed to the pool around 11 and took a picnic lunch with us. The girls love being able to go to the pool with their daddy. That afternoon Hadley and I went to a birthday party for her friend Tessa. The party was at a gymnastics place and Hadley loved it.

We got home and Mike and Jillian were busying making us a great dinner. They cooked us baked potatoes, grilled chicken and watermelon. It was a great summer meal. Sunday was church, lunch, naps and an ice cream social and hymn sing at church. We had a great weekend and are ready for another week to begin.

Weekend

2011-06-20T14:23:00.000-05:00

This weekend was a girls and Mommy weekend. Mike spent the weekend with some friends at the Mid America Ford Meet. The girls and I kept busy all weekend. On Saturday we started the morning with donuts and then on to haircuts for the girls. After the girls were looking beautiful we ran a few errands. Hadley has already out grown her swimsuit this summer so we had to find her a couple of new ones. Especially since swim lessons started today and are Monday through Thursday for the next 4 weeks. Hadley loved getting to pick out her own swimsuit at Old Navy and in true diva style could not decide between two, so she got both of them. We couldn't leave Jillian out so we bought her one for next year. After a few more errands and lunch we headed home for nap and rest time. When the girls got up we headed to the splash pad. They had been talking about it all day. They had a blast.

These pictures make it look like the girls were the only ones at the splash pad. That was not the case, it was packed! Luckily they had a bench in the shade for me to sit and watch the girls have a great time. After the splash pad we headed home for some pizza, bath, and bedtime.
Sunday was another busy day. We started the day by telling Mike what a wonderful father he is. The girls and I headed to church and Mike headed back to the car show. Afternoon was rest time and then the girls and I headed to Vacation Bible School and that is where we will be for the rest of the week. It is going to be a busy week!

Princess Camp

2011-06-18T15:32:00.000-05:00

Hadley attended Princess Camp this week. It was a ballet/princess camp. They danced and did a craft each day. She loved it. She wore her leotard a few days and her Ariel dress a couple of days. On the last day they invited the moms for a tea party. Hadley told me that there would be a princess there but Ms. Casey said it was a surprise and she couldn't tell the princess' name. Hadley was pretty sure it was going to be Ariel or Aurora (her favorites). The princess was Belle and she was very excited to see a "real" princess. All of the girls were very curious about whether Belle was real and where she lived. I wanted Hadley to get a picture with Belle but she was very shy. She finally decided she would take a picture with her friends.

Princess Ariel and her adorable sister Jillian.

Jillian wanted to be a princess too.

Me and my princesses.

The girls listening to Princess Belle sing a song her friend Cinderella taught her.

Taking the princess oath.

Princess Belle, Olivia, Reagan, Hadley and Tessa.

Hadley and Ms. Casey her ballet/tap teacher.

Pool time

2011-06-14T09:20:00.001-05:00

This summer we will be spending a lot of time at the pool. The girls ask everyday if we are going swimming and I am hoping to answer yes most of the time. We joined a pool this year since our neighborhood does not have one. Both girls will be taking lessons there. Hadley will take for 4 weeks and Jillian will take for 2 weeks. The pool we joined is in Jill and Philip's neighborhood. It will be nice to be able to meet them there. That is what we did for our first pool trip of the summer a couple of weekends ago. We even had a picnic lunch while we were there. The kiddos got to sit at their own table.

I only got two other pictures. I am not big on having my camera at the pool so these may be the only proof of the girls at the pool.

If you can't find us this summer, we are probably at the pool.

Weekend with friends

2011-06-13T21:53:00.000-05:00

This last weekend I was able to get away for a weekend with my best friends. We try and get away without kids once a year. We met in Wichita for a weekend of fun. We did a lot of shopping, talking and eating. We also managed to fit in a movie and a little sleep. I did not take very many pictures on this trip.
Laura and Megan on the ride into Wichita.

Christie, Laura, Audra and Megan after we ate at P.F. Chang's.

Christie took the next picture so we had proof I was there :)

Audra and Christie at Il Vicino (I said we ate all the time and I meant it).

Laura and Megan

Megan and me.

This was the back of Audra's car when we were ready to head back to Winfield. This is just the stuff for 4 of us, Christie had all of her stuff in her car. We might have helped the Wichita economy.

A group shot before we parted ways. I am so thankful to have these girls in my life. We have been through everything together and pick up right where we left off when we get together. I had a great weekend and can't wait until we are all together again.

While I was away, Mike and his mom were keeping Hadley and Jillian entertained. From the pictures Mike took I would say they had a lot of fun as well!

Conclusion of Kansas Trip

2011-06-13T21:19:00.000-05:00

This is the last post of our Kansas trip and it is going to be a long one. Be prepared for a lot of pictures.
We spent Memorial Day at my Dad and Terry's house. Our plan was to spend the day in the pool but that changed with the crazy wind. I thought that Hadley and Jillian might blow away out there. We did swim for a little bit. Here are the girls, ready to go out.

Mommy and Hadley

Time to swim.

After swimming it was time for lunch. Here are the girls posing before lunch. Hadley is in a stage where she is either smiling huge for the picture or making the saddest face she can.

Next up was nap and quiet time. The big kids got to watch Tom & Jerry for quiet time.

I got to cuddle with Sophia.

When the girls got up it was time to play.

On Tuesday we had a play date at the park with my friends and their kids. Lady, Jessica and Sophia came along too. It was a fun time! Lady spent a lot of time swinging kiddos.

Poor Barrett was the only boy.

We had a picnic there for lunch. They have kiddie sized picnic tables. Sophia, Hadley, Jillian and Lydia are ready for some food.

Barret is trying to decide if it is ok to sit with all those girls.

Caroline is ready to eat.

Sisters!

Mom and Jessica

Jillian with her kids meal prize on her head.

After playing at the park we headed back to Lady's house to play and nap.

On Wednesday we were back at Mom's for the day. Mom fixed a wonderful taco dinner for us. It was delicious. Granny, Grandpa, my cousins Avery and Abby and Abby's daughter Kira all joined us. The girls got right to dressing up.

Jessica, Cammie, Abby, Avery, me and Jillian

Can you tell these two are mother and daughter?

Cousins all dressed up! What I love about this picture is I remember dressing up with my cousins at my Grandma Barrick's house.

Thursday was the day we headed home. We took all the kiddos out to see Grandpa before we left. Here is Grandpa with some of his great grandchildren.

Me and Grandpa.

Grandpa Kent and all of his grandkids.

Auntie Jessica and the kiddos.

We went back to mom's for lunch before we left. Lady and the kids put on a concert before we left.

This last picture sums up what my girls do when they see Sophia (Phi-Phi as the call her). The love to hug and baby her. You can tell in the picture that she likes her personal space. I love that my girls feel so close to her even though we live so far away from each other.

It was a great trip to Kansas!

Kansas Trip, Race Day

2011-06-08T21:05:00.000-05:00

One of the main reasons for our trip to Kansas was the Get Your Rear In Gear 5K. They have races all over the United States to raise money and get the word out about colon and rectal cancer awareness. My family put together a team in memory of my Uncle Doug who lost his battle to cancer on December 31, 2010. It was a great day spent with family and an emotional one as well. We had a team of 19 people and won the award for the largest team. We met at a church before the race for dinner and time to chat.
Just a little about the race. I have been training for it for a few months and am currently training for a half marathon. I was excited that I had talked Jessica into running with me. When I looked at the forecast I knew it would be a warm evening but I had no idea that the wind would be blowing as hard as it was. It was 25 to 30 mile an hour gusts. I joked that I could tie a string to Jessica and she could be my kite while I ran. So we started running and it wasn't too bad but then we turned into the wind and it felt like I was running as fast as a could and not going anywhere. I was pretty bummed that I ended up walking about 3/4 of a mile. But good news is I beat my last 5K time and hope to keep improving.

Here are Jessica and Sophia before they headed to the race.

Sophia fell asleep right as we got to the church.

These cousins love each other.

Grandma and Grandpa with all their grandkids.

Aleshia created these great shirts for our team. Uncle Doug loved the slot machines so we incorporated that into our team shirts. The shirts say, don't gamble with your health, get your colon checked.

Our whole team

I am sad I didn't get a picture with my Aunt Sandy. Here she is with Jessica and Sophia. Aunt Sandy is a very strong lady and I am sure this day was extra emotional for her. We hope to make this race a yearly tradition to honor my Uncle Doug.

The little girls ready for race time. My dad and Mike took turns pushing them.

Hadley and Brylee ready to go. Hadley ran part of the time and rode part of the time. She was pretty upset that she could not run with me so we are going to do a 1 mile fun run on the 4th of July.

Time to get this race started.

Cammie and Jordan ready to go.

At the end of the race we walked back to meet up with the walking group. We let the little girls out of the stroller to cross the finish line.

Aunt Sandy and her sons, Matt, Nick and Scott.

While we were at the church the kiddos got some time to play outside.

Kansas Trip Days 1 and 2

2011-06-06T21:06:00.000-05:00

We started our Memorial Day weekend a couple of days early and headed to Kansas. The girls and I left Thursday morning and headed to my Mom and Mark's for the day. We picked Mom up as soon as we got to town and took her out to lunch. Then we headed to the park for some play time. Audra, Lydia, and Caroline joined us at the park.

After the park we headed to my Dad and Terry's where we would be staying for the week. We enjoyed a fun dinner with Dad, Terry, Cammie, Brennen and Brylee. Mike drove up that night after work. The next day we headed to Winfield to have the girls' pictures taken by Laura. The girls did a great job. Hadley was telling Jillian how to pose, it was very cute. When we got done with pictures we headed over to Mom's to wait for Jessica and Sophia to get there. While we waited Jillian enjoyed a few books.

The girls, Ethan and Papa watching Thomas the Train on the computer.

As soon as Auntie Jessica arrived my girls wanted little to do with me.

I can't get enough of Ethan's blue eyes.

After lunch Jessica and I went with my dad and Grandpa to decorate Grandma's grave. I remember many Memorial Days of going with Grandma to decorate graves so it was nice to go decorate her grave.

We went with Dad to take Grandpa home and had to go in and see his new ride. We call it his candy apple red ride :) He is a speed demon!

Next up was dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, The Triangle. Here are the girls ready to go.

After dinner we had to take pictures outside like we always do.

Next up race day.

Catch up!

2011-06-06T13:27:00.000-05:00

Time for another post to catch up on our lives. I know I say that we are busy all the time but our summer schedule is jam packed. We just got back from a week in Kansas and had a great time. I will write a few posts on that another time for now what we did the week before we left.
Last Tuesday we had many warnings about the severe weather that would be headed our way. After the Joplin tornado I was not going to be caught off guard. We got our flash lights, blankets, bike helmets, water, first aid kit and shoes all in the closet in case we would have to take cover there. We watched the weather all evening and decided it was going to miss us and went ahead a put the kiddos to bed. Not 5 minutes after we had them in bed the sirens went off. We got the girls out of bed and headed to the closet. Luckily the storms went around us and we were in the closet about 45 minutes. Here is a pick of the girls (you can laugh at the helmets but my girls' brains our very important).

On Wednesday of the week we headed to the zoo with our MOPS group. It was the perfect day to be at the zoo. The weather was beautiful. The girls had a great time!

Hodge Podge

2011-05-24T21:44:00.000-05:00

We don't have much news to report here. This post is just a hodge podge of things.
We had a very busy weekend. We had two birthday parties, Vacation Bible School meeting, open house at the pool, and dinner with our Sunday school class this weekend. I haven't been taking very many pictures and need to get back in the habit of taking it with us. We are planning to go to the zoo in the morning if the rain is gone by then. Hopefully I will get some pictures there.
We are getting excited to spend some time in Kansas soon with family. While we are there we will be running/walking a 5K in memory of my Uncle Doug. The 5K is put on by the Colon Cancer Coalition. I am excited because we have a team of 21 and we all have shirts with Uncle Doug's picture on them. It is going to be a great time!
We have been saying a lot of prayers for all of the people in Joplin, MO. I just sit and look at all the pictures and can't believe all the damage and lives lost. I had Hadley and Jillian help me gather things to donate. She has been praying each night for the people that are hurt or stuck. It is so neat to see her start to have empathy for others.
On a storm note today has been an active day in Oklahoma for storms. My prayers go out to all the people in western Oklahoma and the Oklahoma City area. We spent some time in the closet tonight. I have always been one that got nervous about storms and tonight was no different. Yes, I had my kids in the closet with bike helmets on but I wanted them safe. I feel like I need to teach them that there is no such thing as too safe.
And now for the only picture in the post. Hadley had quiet time in her room for an hour each afternoon. You never know how she will be dressed when she comes out at the end. On this day she said she was pretending to be cold and put all of her dress-up clothes on. I am not sure about the microphone sticking out of her clothes. She is always performing.

Last Day of school

2011-05-17T20:40:00.000-05:00

Today was Hadley's last day of school. They has track and field day and she loved it. She got to eat lunch there and stay until 2:30pm. She was one tired girl when I picked her up. Before we left we had to get a picture with her teachers, Ms. Belinda and Ms. Tonya. She has had a great year and will miss her teachers and classmates. She even teared up as we were leaving. She is my emotional girl.

I took a picture before we left for school this morning to compare to her first day of school picture.
First Day of Preschool, September 2010

Last day of Preschool, May 2011

Time for a fun filled summer!

Catch up!

2011-05-16T21:53:00.000-05:00

This is a blog post where I catch up on all the stuff we have done in the last week or so.
We started last week with 2 and 4 year old check-ups. Both girls are very healthy. The bad part of the check-up was that Hadley had to get 4 shots. Jillian didn't have to get any this time which made the 4 Hadley got that much harder. First let me just say that I am getting paid back for the horrible time I gave my mom when I had to get shots. I actually remember running away from a nurse in the ER once when I needed a tetanus shot. I think the crying about shots started for Hadley on Sunday when she overheard me tell Mike that they had check-ups on Monday. She did great throughout the whole appointment until the nurse walked in with they syringes. Then she went crazy. You might think I am exaggerating but I am not. She was like a koala bear hooked on to me and the nurse had to help me pry her off and lay her on they table. Then each time we tried to lay her down she would pop back up. All of this while she is screaming at the top of her lungs. While this is happening Jillian is crying because she is scared and I can't hold her. Hadley is screaming so loud that another nurse comes in to help. She ends up taking Jillian down the hall to calm her down. We finally get the shots done and the screaming is over. Now starts the whining that her legs don't work and she needs me to carry her. At one point she asked if her daddy was going to bring her a wheel chair when he came home from work. I didn't know if I could keep from laughing when she said that. Her legs didn't work for a few hours and then she would forget about it for awhile. I think she is fully recovered now :) Good thing no more shots until Fall when it is flu shot time. I think I might pay for her Child Life Specialist aunt and uncle to come and take her to that appointment.
Later in the week the girls we able to enjoy the warm weather and play outside. One of those days it was actually very hot and humid so we decided it was a good day for a popsicle.

On one of the days when we were out playing it started to rain. It was a nice shower so I decided to let the girls play in it. They thought it was great.

On Friday the girls got a birthday box in the mail from Auntie Jessica, Uncle Matt and Sophia. They couldn't wait to see what was inside. Hadley got a beautiful dress-up dress. She said, "This dress is amazing." She actually thought it was a dress to wear all the time and was a little sad when I told her it was only for dress-up. Jillian got the Elefun game that she loves. She was so excited when she saw it. She loves to play this game at Reagan's house. She also got a paint smock and wanted to wear it to nap that day. Thanks Auntie Jessica, Uncle Matt and Sophia for the great gifts.

On Saturday, Hadley had her first dance recital. She has been asking when it would be since she got her costume in February. She couldn't wait to get all dressed up and was very excited to get to wear eye shadow and lip gloss. Sometimes I really wonder if my sister is secretly teaching her all of this girly stuff because we all know it doesn't come from me. My mom was here this weekend for Hadley's recital and she was telling Hadley that when I was her age all I wanted to do was wear a football helmet and play with GI Joes. Back to the recital. It was great. Hadley did a wonderful job. We were so proud of her. She got a trophy and her daddy gave her a dozen pink roses.

After the recital we went back home to get Jillian (she was at home with a babysitter). Then we headed to lunch and it was Hadley's choice. Of course she picked the place she always picks, Buffalo Wild Wings. For some reason they took forever getting us our food and we ended up getting a $25 gift card to use. After lunch we headed home for naps. During lunch we realized that Jillian was starting to get sick and she went downhill the rest of the weekend. Poor girl has had a horrible runny nose and awful cough. She seemed to be getting a little better today and I hope that continues. After Mike was done doing yard work he got busy putting the girls' new playset together. They loved it! We also gave Lady her Mother's Day gifts while she was here.

It was a great weekend. Thanks Lady for coming to visit.

Dance Costume

2011-05-10T20:16:00.000-05:00

Recently Hadley had pictures at dance class. She had to wear her costume for recital and I couldn't resist taking a few pictures. Her recital is this weekend and she is very excited to dance on a big stage. I know she will do great!

Royal wedding, Granny visit and tumbling

2011-05-10T08:25:00.001-05:00

2 weeks ago when Prince William and Princess Kate got married I had one very happy girl. Hadley was all about the royal wedding. We had not talked about it at all before that day. When she got up that morning I had it on and she was instantly glued to the tv. She thought it was so neat that there were real princesses. She started asking questions and did not stop all day. She wanted to know how you become a "real" princess. When I explained that we did not have "real" princesses in the United States she said she was moving over there (meaning England). She also wanted to look at Mike and my wedding pictures. After doing that she informed me that she would be wearing my dress, tiara and veil at her wedding. She also told me she would not be wearing flip flops like I did but she would wear shoes like the princess. I decided to go up on the attic and get my veil and tiara for her to wear.

She now has a picture of William and Kate hanging in her room and loves to look at the People magazine with their wedding pictures. She is a princess for sure :) That weekend Mike's mom came to visit and Hadley made sure that they watched the wedding together and talked and played all things princess. They also got in a little time playing doctor before heading to a soccer game.

After soccer, lunch and naps it was time for Hadley's tumbling performance. We took some pictures before we left.

Hadley wanted a goofy picture.

Is this little one cute or what?

Here is Hadley at tumbling. She did a great job and has improved a great deal over the year.

Jillian wanted to get in on the tumbling action.

Doesn't this look like a comfortable position?

After tumbling we went out for dinner. The girls and granny went home and Mike and I got to go on a date. It was nice to have a date with my hubby. Sunday morning Granny had to head back home. We took a few pictures before church. We got one good picture and quite a few goofy ones.

5 kids

2011-05-09T20:15:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago Mike and I got to see what is was like to have 5 kids. It was fun but something tells me it would be a little different if all 5 were our own. Peter, Harry, and Caroline came to stay for a couple of hours while Philip and Jill were at a meeting. It was a beautiful night out so we spent most of it outside. Hadley was gone for part of it at soccer and was a little upset that we had played outside without her. So we went back out after dinner. We did a lot of bike/trike/scooter riding.

Harry

Jillian

Caroline enjoyed watching all the "big" kids from her stroller or in my arms :) I loved getting my baby fix.

Peter

Jillian had to come check out who had all of her mommy's attention.

After we were done with bikes and while I was getting dinner ready I set them free with water and paint brushes. This is an activity that would keep kids busy forever.

Hadley wanted to get her baby fix too.

It was a fun evening!

Hadley's Birthday

2011-05-03T21:25:00.000-05:00

I am finally getting around to posting about Hadley's birthday. Life has been busy.
Hadley woke up on her birthday and headed to our room like any other morning. When she passed through the living room she caught a glimpse of her new bike. She came running into our room and was very excited. We did manage to get her to cuddle in bed with us before we took the bike for a spin. While in bed Hadley said, "Mom, I feel fourish." Before we could start our day we needed to do something girly. All the girls got pink toenails in honor of Hadley's 4th birthday.

After painting toenails we got dressed and ready to go have birthday donuts with daddy. I caught a quick picture of the big 4 year old before we headed out the door.

We couldn't leave for breakfast until she took a ride on her new bike. She loves that she can take baby for a spin as well.

Jillian needed to get in on the bike action.

We then headed our for donuts with daddy and picked up donuts with pink icing to take to school for a snack. Hadley went to school and Jillian and I ran a couple of errands and went home to wrap a few more presents. For lunch the girls and I went to Red Robin. We told them it was Hadley's birthday and they sang to her. On the way home Hadley said, "Mom, I was a little nervous when they were singing to me." She smiled big the whole time and really enjoyed the ice cream sundae they gave her. She even willing shared some with her sister. After lunch we went home to wait for our visitors to arrive. My dad and Terry came down to give the girls their birthday presents and for a visit. As soon as they walked in Hadley was begging to open some presents.

Tuesdays are tumbling days for Hadley. We left Jillian at home to play with Grandma and Grandpa while we went to tumbling. It was picture day so she got to wear her performance outfit.

After tumbling we headed back home. The girls talked Grandma and Grandpa into bike riding before dinner. We let Hadley pick what she wanted for dinner and she picked Buffalo Wild Wings. I think that Mike and Hadley would be fine to eat there every night. It was a good dinner and they gave Hadley chocolate cake for her birthday. Of course we also had cake at home so she could blow out candles.

Grandma and Grandpa with the girls.

After cake it was time for presents.

On Jillian's birthday I wrapped a present for Hadley and I did the same for Jillian on Hadley's birthday. They both got snuggies and love them. They wanted to put them on right away.

When Hadley went to bed that night she was one tired girl. She had a great birthday!

Happy 4th Birthday!

2011-04-26T00:00:00.001-05:00

My oldest baby is 4 today. Where has time gone? It seems like not too long ago we were picking the name Hadley out and wondering what our little girl would look like. Now we are watching her grow and mature all the time.

And now a big 4 year old.

Hadley is a very girly girl. She loves everything princess and girl. She wakes up in the morning trying to decide what shoes to wear and how to do her hair. She loves to wear dresses and jewelry.
She is quite the drama queen. I say that someday she will win an Oscar. She can act with the best of them.
She loves to play mommy and daughter with Jillian.
She loves going to school but is a little nervous about going to a new school next year. And she will tell you she is "nervous."
She has quite a vocabulary and amazes me everyday with new words that she knows.
She loves her "school work." She is just on the verge of reading. She loves books and can be found many times throughout the day with a book in hand.

Happy Birthday Hadley! We love you!

Easter

2011-04-25T20:48:00.000-05:00

We had a very relaxing Easter this year. We started the day checking out what the Easter bunny brought and finding eggs. Hadley ran around like a crazy woman finding eggs. Once Jillian found one she was just interested in finding out what kind of candy was inside. The Easter bunny had to hide plastic eggs this year because we never got any dyed.

We took a few pictures before we headed to church. We had to take all of our pictures inside because it rained all day. Jillian was in no mood to take pictures. We bought the girls Easter dresses a month or so ago. Then this week they got a box of Easter goodies from Aunt Tammy, Mike's sister. In the box were these beautiful dresses and Hadley asked right away if they could wear them on Easter.

Some have heard this story but I want it in our scrapbook. A month or so ago Hadley asked me why I never wore dresses to church. I told her that I really didn't care for dresses. She asked me when I would wear one. I told her to ask daddy if I good get a new dress for Easter. I was actually hoping he would say no mommy doesn't wear dresses. But instead he said sure. So I had to go get a new dress to wear for Easter. Hadley was in our room when I came out of the bathroom dressed. She said, "Mom you look amazing. Can I wear that when I am your number." Even if I don't feel comfortable in dresses it was great to see Hadley so excited about it.

After church and Sunday school we came home for Easter lunch and a relaxing afternoon. We took naps and had family game time. It was a very relaxing and nice Easter.