Saturday = Family Time

It was pretty warm today. Definitely more like summer than spring. So after lunch and before naps, Daddy scored big points with the Little Ones today.

He got out of the attic, blew up, and filled up a swimming pool.... with. a. slide.

Noah was ecstatic and loved going down the slide, splashing around and jumping on the "blue rock" when the slide wasn't in the pool.

Ellie did not like the cold-because-it-is-straight-from-the-hose water. It was almost too cold for me, if truth be told! She didn't last too long, but was still not too happy when it was time to go in for a much-needed nap.

A few quick errands after they woke up from naps and then...

picnic + movie = perfect ending to a fun-filled family day

More Goodbyes

Oh. my. soul.

This Little One.... she kills me. PAINFULLY cute. Immediately after I snapped this photo, she did her crazy evil laugh {must.get.that.on.video.} and rolled herself off of the couch so she could tackle Noah and run away with the Retro Rocket.

Painfully cute but terribly ornery.

And the other Little One. Not so little now. He's getting big and showing off his skills. I asked him to "write" a little on a thank you note and he told me he wanted to write his name. I thought he'd just do a few scribbles, per his usual norm, but instead, he wrote this:

"Nnnnnn - Ooooooo - Aaaaaaaa - H! That spells Noah, Mommy."

It literally took every ounce of strength I had to mail it.

Ah-mazing, I tell you!

Today for lunch, we met up with my dear friend Katie and her husband, John at Chickfila. I'm seriously so sad that one of our few military friends here in Texas is moving away - especially considering how much my kids just ADORE Katie and how she just dotes on them.


Katie, you and John are going to LOVE Vandenburg. Have fun and tell that beautiful little town I miss it! My kids and I already miss you! ♥ And, by the time we got home {less that five minutes after loading into the car}, somebody was already out!

Goodbyes and Chores

Grandma and Poppa Haze had to head back home to Colorado this morning, but not until after Grandma had gotten in a little extra time with the Little Ones.

The kids didn't mind the extra time... and neither did I.

Grandma and Poppa Haze, we're so glad you came for a visit! We love you and miss you already!! Thank you, for all you did for us while you were here!

♥

***

We've been slowly adding to the "chores" that the kids do around the house. Both kids {mostly} take their plates to the sink. Both of them know how and where to put their toys when it is time to clean up. Ellie takes her bib to the laundry basket after meals. Noah helps make his bed and puts his and Ellie's clothes in the hamper just before baths. We can now add one more thing to Noah's list:

washing dishes.

There are not too many dishes that we have to wash by hand - most of them go into our dishwasher. But lately, when there are dishes to be hand washed, Noah quickly and willingly pulls a chair over to the sink to "help".

And by help, I mean he just rinses the non-breakable, not-sharp pieces.

Baby-steps. Now if I could just get him to fold laundry.

Oh! And, we officially have FIVE chrysalises!

Relaxing and Playing

Today, we did a lot of this:

and this:

And after naps, we left the house to play some more.

♥

Lions, and Tigers, and Chrysalides! {Oh my!}

This morning, after everybody got ready, we loaded up and headed out to the zoo. We I had been debating about getting another zoo pass and I'm glad we went ahead and did it - the kids LOVE the zoo!

{Ummm.... Ben. Turkey Vulture? Seems pretty close to those Texas Chicken Vultures to me!}

Before we left, I asked Noah if he wanted to take his camera and of course, he did.

{Photo by Noah}

After naps for the kids, MarioKart for everyone!

One of my favorite things about Grandma being here? She and Daddy do bathtime!

And, in other news, we came home last night from dinner to find one chrysalis!

Tonight, Chris and I got to watch TWO of them shed their skin to reveal the chrysalis underneath and I even caught one of them on video... just for ya'll!

Monday Fun and Madness

Noah and Ellie are having a blast with their Grandma and Poppa Haze.

They've gotten in lots of playtime.

Extra stories.

And even a few extra snuggles while watching Daddy and Grandma play MarioKart.

For a special dinner, we headed out to Cypress Street Station for Monday Mug Madness. Daddy and Poppa tried to teach Noah the finer art of shooting with straw wrappers.

And Ellie kept Mommy and Grandma busy with her cute laughs and silly faces.

Noah kept me busy too.... by taking off his shoes AND socks.

And, once back home, baths, bedtime for Ellie and a few rounds of CandyLand castle before bed!

Landscaping and Visitors

When we first bought our house, the landscaping was out. of. control. We had to remove one shrub the day after we closed just so we could get our stuff moved in {we really wanted the owner to do it, but he refused... ugh}! Last summer, I had all the shrubs and bushes removed. They were driving me crazy: wildly overgrown, attracting bugs wasps, and hiding the house from view.

Yesterday, we finally got our new landscaping all put in. And by "we", I mean the nice man who owns Twin Oaks Lawn Care.

It looks so much better - I'm anxious to see how it looks once it gets some more growth!

***

This afternoon, Ben's Mom and Dad arrived in town for a little visit - to just spend some time with us {particularly, Noah and Ellie!} and to see Ben before he deploys.

It goes without saying, I suppose, that the kids have already been spoiled rotten! So happy you are here! ♥

They are getting BIG!

These little guys are getting BIG.

And, so is this Little One!

{shirt made using freezer paper stencil cut using Silhouette and a long piece of knit gathered for the the camera strap}

Overheard Today:

E: "Aahhhhhhhh...."

N: "Mommy! Look at all the flowers!" {finally getting some landscaping put in after I had all the shrubs ripped out last summer}

S: "Playdo is SO stinky!"

N: "Playdo not stinky, Mommy! Playdo fun and happy!"

N: "It's a booger truck Ellie."

S: "Daddy has to work late tonight. Do you two want to have a picnic and watch a movie?"

N: "Wanna watch new pwincess movie, Mommy? With pwetty hair?"

S: "Sounds great to me. What do you think, Ellie?"

E: not a sound as she runs to the blanket and plops down, waiting for food and entertainment.