Monday Stuff

We had a great weekend.  Aidan was home for the whole weekend for the first time in over a month.  His social calendar is so full...parties to go to, campouts, spending time with his grandparents...it was nice to have him home for the whole weekend.  He's getting so big.  I hope he knows how crazy I am about him.  We went to my parents' on Friday night and decorated Easter eggs and had a yummy dinner.  My mom even made a banana pudding, which I had been craving.  I think I ate more than my fair share.  The only food that sounds any good to me lately is food that other people cook...in their own house.  If I cook it, or have to smell it while Mark cooks it, I can't eat it.  So, the dinner was great.  What was even better, was watching my kids and my brother's kids play together.  I'm glad they're all close.  Cousins are the best.  My sister in law is pregnant too...and we're due at the same time!  So, these next 2 babies in our family will only be a few days apart.  Ella and Hayes (my brother's youngest) had a great time together.  They loved wrestling with their pawpaw and jumping all over the house together.  Ella is always saying that Cooper and Hayes are her best friends.  I really hope we get some more girls in this family, or she is going to be a hopeless tomboy!

On Saturday, we got up and took the kids to Cracker Barrel for a family breakfast.  Then the kids used their Easter money to buy some new toys in the store.  Next, it was on to the zoo.  The Fort Worth Zoo has a Dinosaurs Alive exhibit right now that is really cool.  The dinosaurs are scattered throughout the zoo and they are very realistic.  They move and growl.  Ella thought they were real.  But, she wasn't scared.  She wanted to feed them--even the t-rex.

Saturday night, we had more fun family time.  Aidan decided to not watch tv or play video games for a challenge at school.  At first he didn't want to, but when he saw everyone getting prizes, he wanted in on the fun.  So, he spent the weekend trying to come up with other ways to entertain himself.  Saturday night, he turned every room in the house into a carnival.  He made a map for Ella and me and gave us each a bunch of tickets.  He had games like Basketball-Golf (that Ella STILL wants to play), painting, horse lassoing, etc.  He's so creative, and Ella LOVED it.

Next, we made our resurrection cookies.  It seemed to take on a lot more meaning for Aidan this year.  I could see him really processing everything.

Aidan's tooth finally came out at 5:30 on Easter morning.  I know this because Aidan came flying into our bedroom shouting, "Mommy!  Mommy!  My tooth came out on Easter!  I can't believe it!  My tooth came out on Easter."  I about died of a heart attack, but at least the tooth is out!

Speaking of the tooth...he put it under his pillow last night, very excited about what the tooth fairy would bring.  He said she would probably bring a lot more this time since it was an Easter tooth.  I was awoken again at 6:30 this morning.  SOMEONE had forgotten to leave money under Aidan's pillow.  So, I awoke to a little boy bursting into my room again.  He held up his tooth and said, "I know you're the tooth fairy, because I didn't get ANYthing."  He was not happy.  And, I was not awake enough to think of anything to say.  I patted him on the back and told him to try again tonight.  I'm a little offended that he KNOWS the tooth fairy is me, because she forgot to bring him something.  Am I really that forgetful?  I don't remember.

So, if you were me, which excuse would you use:
"I bet the tooth fairy was off last night because it was Easter."

Or:  "I bet the tooth fairy couldn't get here last night because the storms were so bad.  It would not be safe to fly with all that lightning and win."

Please leave your vote in a comment on this post.  I'll let you know how it goes.

That's enough rambling for one post.  I'll close with some pictures.  Hope you all had a great Easter weekend.

Look at this green mamba...yuck!

The t-rex is chasing Aidan!

Happy Easter!

Hayes and Ella

Cooper and Aidan

Bubbles!

Spring Break 2011

We spend almost every spring break in Arkansas.  It's paradise for children and dogs...with woods, and creeks and ponds...tire swings, wooden swings in a tree, lightning bugs and fishing.  It is so peaceful and quiet there.  It is one of our favorite places to relax.  We love getting to spend the week with Mark's parents.  This year we had the added bonus of my parents coming out for the weekend also.  It was a great time of much needed relaxation and family togetherness.

So, here's how we spent our spring break:

We went fishing...Aidan caught around 20 fish on this trip.  I think he had the most out of everyone.

We went hiking and shot guns in true Arkansas style...well some of us did.

We did not wear a watch the whole week...and never knew what time it was.

We saw a sign on someone's property in which they had spelled "notice" like this:

We played with our blue eyed super dog.

We did not put our kids to bed by 8:00.

We did go out to eat at Pier 27 with the whole family.  Aidan declared it the best catfish ever.

We never got tired of this view:

We laughed at how the kids thought riding in the back of a pick up truck was the best treat ever...when I was a kid, that's just how we all went places.

We spent lots of time with grandparents.

We played on the swings...A LOT!

We went to visit the home of Aidan and Ella's great-great-great grandmother:

We pushed each other in carts...again, only some of us did this:

We acted silly when we were supposed to be posing for pictures:

We raced the dog and each other around the house:

We rang this bell...the kids can't resist ringing this bell:

We did whatever this is:

We rode on the tractor...(and Aidan even drove it!).

We played in creeks and on bridges:

We had picnics in the woods:

We had a great spring break.  It was over too soon.  The night before we had to leave, Aidan cried because he didn't want to go home and neither did his dog!  We are hoping to go back soon before it gets too hot.  I hope everyone got to relax and have fun over spring break!

Cowgirl BIrthday Pictures

Ella's 3rd birthday party was yesterday.  We had so much fun.  The weather cooperated, thank goodness, and we had a great day at the farm.  We had our party at Homestead Farms in Keller.  For a very small fee, you get to feed the animals, have a hayride and use the picnic tables for your presents and cake.  It was the most stress free, easy to put together party I've ever done.

Here's the cake:

I always make the kids' cakes myself, because I just can't bring myself to pay $30-$60 for a cake when we could use that money for something more permanent.  Plus, the kids really like it when I make their cakes.  I am no where close to a professional, but it's fun to do.  I got this idea from Betty Crocker.  It was very easy, and Ella loved it.

These pictures are of Ella with one of the baby goats at the farm.  There were 3 brand new baby goats; they were triplets...only 1 day old!  There are no words to express how cute they were...and the little squeaky sounds they made--I felt an irresistible need to sell all my worldly goods, buy a farm and several goats.  And that dog in the picture...he's only 16 weeks old...still a puppy.  That is going to be one HUGE dog.  He was very sweet though.

This is Aidan checking out the bunnies at the farm.  I love it when Aidan wears this cowboy hat.  I could just eat him up.  I don't know why I say that...it's kind of weird if you think about it...so, I just don't think about it...because he's so sweet I could eat him with a spoon. 

Chickens!

Feeding the goats...this was ONE hungry goat.

This donkey followed us for a good portion of our Hayride.

The horses and dogs followed us for a bit too.

This horse wanted to get a closer look

Time for some Cactus Punch!

To drink, we served root beer and cactus punch.  To make the cactus punch, I mixed 2 liters of Ginger Ale with 2 packets of lemon-lime kool-aid.  It packed a punch, but the kids loved it.  You could also use Sprite and Kool-Aid, or just Sprite died green with food coloring.

Ella got so excited when everyone started singing, "Happy Birthday."  I love how she clasped her hands together...so sweet.

Baby Goat Triplets...did I mention they were CUUUTE??

Sweet Birthday Hugs on a Tractor

A few more notes about the party...the cake isn't very big, so I also made chocolate cupcakes with a cream filling.  They were yummy.  I didn't get a picture.  But, I found some boot decorations for the top at Hobby Lobby.  The kids really liked those.

For goody bags, I bought pink bandanas at Hobby Lobby, filled them with some little horses, sheriff badges, candy, and a couple of other trinkets.  I tied them with Jute cords (also from Hobby Lobby).  I covered the cake board with a pink bandana also.
You can see the goody bags in this picture of my sweet little nephew, Hayes:

It was a great and easy party.  Here are a few more pictures from the day: