Memorial Day Flags

Oh my goodness, you guys, does it get any cuter than this?!  I really don't think it can.  They had their first official event with both of them as scouts... so incredibly cute to see them having something else to bond over.  We spent a couple hours at the Houston National Cemetery this afternoon raising flags.  Other people had come out earlier this morning to place the tiny flags on each grave but the scouts worked to raise large flags on poles that were placed all along the roads and paths throughout the cemetery.

The boys were such troopers even though it was incredibly hot.  Annie was too!  She clapped and said it was beautiful when the flags were finally flying! :)  It felt good to actually do something honoring veterans this year.  My boys were so respectful and serious about the task at hand.  I think it must have had quite an affect on Noah J cause this evening he told me he no longer wants to be soldier and instead wants to be a sea rescuer.  He's such a sensitive little thing - I just love his heart.

It's Beginning to Feel a Lot Like Summer!

I really don't think it can get any sassier than this!!!  Memorial Day weekend officially means that it is time to pull out the pools!  At least that is what it means to my parents.  :)  The kids have been waiting for this moment for weeks now!  Annie was super excited cause she called her Grandpa and convinced him to buy her a special pair of pink goggles just for this occasion.  She was so tickled with herself!

 She was pretty unsure of the cold water (their well water is frigid year round!) but eventually loosened up.  Such happiness to splash about!  We spent the whole afternoon outside while they played.

And of course the boys had all kinds of war games going on with the waterguns.  Annie even gets in on the action and will shoot ya when you least expect it!  And to make the day extra special they ended it with a fire.  Grandpa really knows how to make this group happy!

I had to sneak a shot of my dad with Annie all bundled up.  She was saying she was so "coldy" and needed to get warm by the fire.  What a sweet moment to capture!

There was no relaxing for Noah J - he had to throw everything he possibly could into the fire!  I love the relationship these two have.  Also love that we get to soak up as many grandpa and grandma moments as possible - so blessed to have them such an integral part of our lives.

We were getting ready to leave and my mom made me run into the bathroom and snap a pic of Annie - she was cracking us up all wrapped up in her towel sitting on the potty.  We have been working so hard on potty training her, but it is hard since we are out of the house so much!  We tried right before Christmas but she wasn't quite there yet.  As a matter of fact she pooped on the floor right under the Christmas tree, LOL!!  And then we all got so sick I gave up.  But I think she really is finally ready to finish it up!  She just lingers so long on the potty we both get bored!  So bored she makes faces at me while I take her picture.  Maybe she is just exasperated that I would photograph her on the toilet!  :)

Love Notes from Wy

So yesterday afternoon I was in the shower and Wyatt came in to tell me that when I got out he left me a surprise in my bedroom.  So I go to check it out and this is what I found.  :)  Could he be any more precious?  I saw him in his room earlier with the pipe cleaners but didn't think much about it.  Josh and I always say that his wife is going to be showered with little gifts and love notes.  He is constantly finding me sweet, little things and writing me messages and notes all over the house.  And this is my sweet boy who cries when he thinks about leaving our house... I am constantly having to assure him that he can live with me for as long as he wants. He's always telling me, "Love you more than the sun, stars, and moon!"  Right back at ya little boy!!

The Children's Museum

So we took our annual trip to the Children's Museum!  Well, maybe bi-annual.  But definitely not more than that!  There is only so much a momma can take!  We were lucky to have a couple friends join us for the fun.  Or the misery.  Whichever way you look at it. :)

The whole group was really tickled to draw on their faces.  We laughed cause the girls all drew cute flowers and whiskers and the boys only focused on looking as ridiculous as possible!  My boys were definitely braver this time...

They even tried the rock wall!  They weren't good at it, but they tried, LOL.  They had a new display with LED lights on a grid board thing - they spent a long time working on their creation.  It really came out great, but I got a horrible, fuzzy pic with my phone.

Annie loved everything!!  It was so nice that she was able to run around and play with stuff this time.  I thought she would just love all the "big" stuff like the ambulance, but she really seemed to enjoy all the little things she could manipulate - stacks of blocks, balls of all kinds, puppets, etc.

It was a long day, but it was actually the most pleasant time I've had at this museum!    I'm actually kinda looking forward to our trip back next year when all the kids are in school again.  Kinda.  Maybe. :)

Bath time!

So tonight was just CRAZY trying to get everything done that needed to get done.  And of course all at the same time a million things go wrong.... the cat pukes in the hallway, the timer is going off on the oven for dinner, Annie is sobbing that her hiney is raw and needs to get in the tub, and a hundred other things.

So I stepped over the cat puke, cleaned Annie up and got her into the tub.   While I am sitting there waiting for the tub to fill up I look down the hallway and notice that Noah J is cleaning the cat puke.  On his own.  Without being asked.  And actually doing a good job of it.  Now, some of you might think no big deal, but for my work avoiding son, this is huge!!  He came over and I gave him a huge speech on how proud of him I was to show such initiative.  His response was "and you didn't even have to ask me!!"  LOL  Next on the list of course is the beeping in the kitchen so I asked him and Wyatt to come and sit and watch Annie while I moved the pots around and came right back.  So when I come back around the corner to tell them one more minute longer I see this.  And they proudly proclaimed to me that I didn't need to wash her cause they had already done it... even her hair!  :)  I was so tickled pink I had to take a picture.  These boys really surprise me some times.

They even dressed her in her jammies and brushed her hair.  They told me she only gave them a little trouble.  :)

Noah turns eight!

So hard to believe this little guy has been around for 8 years!  Although my memory is starting to get a little fuzzy and I've almost forgotten what a difficult little babe he was! :)   Sometimes I remember but it all seems a bit rosier now that I am watching him grow up.  He asked me the other day if I was sad he was getting so big and I told him just a little bit and he told me, "Don't worry, I'll let you hug me even when I'm grown."  So, so sweet.

The morning started off with name pancakes, cards, and gifts.  Luckily by now Annie had the routine down and there were no tears.  Wyatt got him a train he has been wanting and Annie got him one of those rubbery splat ball things.  You can see he was thrilled with both!

He even needed to show off his muscles to us... I'm pretty sure he thought they got bigger like Wyatt, LOL!

We had the whole family, along with Sara, Maddie and Emma over for dinner again.  Noah picked the menu and it was identical to Wyatt's (of course) except he insisted on also having pretzel sticks and Cherry Coke.  And of course cake and the opening of gifts!  He was thrilled with everything.  They were so happy to get so much of the stuff from their birthday buckets at Learning Express.  And even happier to get to hang out with his BFFs! 

A Dream Come True!

Do your sons desperately want to go onto the roofs of buildings?  Please tell me mine aren't the only ones.  We showed up at my parents house today and my dad was on the roof fixing something and the whining and begging immediately began, "Can't we PLEEEEEEEEEAAAAAASE go on the roof with Grandpa?"  Of course my answer is no but then I see my dad's face like I'm being ridiculous and I decided to trust him on knowing what boys need and send those 2 up there.  So over the top happy, but scared me to death. :)  And what did Annie get to do special while the boys cavorted on the roof?  Eat a bowl of strawberries with a spoon of course.  Grandma spoils this girl! 

Organization for My Father's World Papers

So this is a random post for me, but I am sharing how I organized my papers from MFW.  Somebody requested pictures of how people organize their papers so I posted this one on Facebook.  I had a request to post this so they could pin it on pinterest, so here it is!

I used a 3.5" binder and Avery Big Tab Slash Pocket Dividers 8 tab, kind of like these.  I founds shoplet to have the best price on them at the time.  I stuck the papers for each week from MFW in the front pocket and all my extras for each week in the back pocket. 

I have loaned out my kinder binder so I don't have it on hand to look at, but I think I purchased 4 packs for it and 5 packs for Adventures, which left some extra for whatever I wanted to file in the back. 

Donut party!

As I mentioned before we did not have a huge party this year, but we did invite all of their friends over for donuts and to jump on the new trampoline!  We somehow managed to only take a few photos, I guess cause we felt so relaxed just hanging out with our friends.  We had tons of donuts and milk and lots of jumping to go around!

I tried to make some of those donut cakes you've seen on pinterest but they came out horribly!  I was just glad they didn't fall over while lit.  :)  And of course a party isn't complete without presents.

And that is it!  Told ya we didn't have a ton of pics.  So thankful for our dear friends who stick by our side!