Church Ball

I totally love that this tshirt from 1991 is still in Aaron's regular laundry rotation. That's some serious church ball pride, right there. I was Reese's age when he won this trophy shirt. It's also brag worthy that he fits into the same shirt 24 years later. I used to cringe every time I pulled it from the wash, but at this point, he's earned the right to wear it until it's threadbare. 

Mother's Day

I had a wonderful Mother's Day. It's probably my favorite day of the year. I love the role of mothering, I love my mother, and I love being a mother. 

On that note, I received an email from Quincy via her teacher on the Friday before Mother's Day. Quincy is in a tech classroom this year. Her teacher became tech certified, then wrote a grant and received an iPad for every student in her class to use daily. This was one of her projects. It's so adorable I took a screen shot of every page so I could save it on the blog. 

It was called the 

"#momyoumatter" project.

Oh thank you, Quincy! I love you so much and I love reading with you, swimming with you and fixing you grapes for dinner. xoxo

Reese and Quincy hosted a Mother Daughter party at church with their Activity Days group. This activity was well planned and the video interviews that the leaders put together was my favorite part. I also really loved the mother daughter photos. The girls made me really cute fabric flower pins and cards. 

I loved being showered with homemade handprint cards all day. We ate waffles for  dinner and Aaron gave me some beautiful flowers. The Young Women put together a very nice lunch program during church with music and talks that were very well done. It was so nice. 

I'm so thankful for the example of Aaron's mom. She raised a perfect son and is the most selfless person I've ever known. A true angel on earth. I love Lynda so much and can't wait to visit her in July. Thank you, Lynda, for mothering such a wonderful man. You are the epitome of mothering perfection.

And finally, a picture of my awesome mother. I feel like by age 33, I shouldn't "need" my mom, but I do, every day. I love her and I'm thankful for her being not only my mother, but my friend. We have so much fun together and encourage each other and she has really helped pull me out of some muddy post partum depression this year. Spending my birthday/the week before Mother's Day with her was such a gift. Thank you, Aaron, for making it happen! 

Awkward

The chicks are in the really ugly, really stinky phase. Poor girls. Adolescence shows no mercy.  

Because she's just too cute

Right before she christened the new sofa with spit up. The kids put her up to the task of breaking it in cuz they know I won't get mad at the baby. Way to take one for the team, Sloane. 

Under the Sea: Soren Hosts Preschool Playgroup

It was our rotation for mommy school, last week. The theme was under the sea. We read Rainbow Fish, One Fish Two Fish, commotion in the Ocean, and Hide n Seek in the Ocean. We sang Slippery Fish 

The boys painted their own rainbow fish

They put together magnet fish peg puzzles, played a talking color fish match board game, did a floor puzzle, and played with plastic fish galore!

The big hit was when I set up a water table out front on the porch (it was raining) and let the boys mix colors, and pour and splash to their hearts content. 

All Aboard

Last weekend, we checked out a new furniture store in town based on some good quality reviews from friends. I can't believe it. We found a sectional we both like. We've been searching for almost a year, and when we found we both liked, we purchased it without hesitation. I had buyers remorse ALL week, thinking we'd made a huge mistake for deciding so quickly. We both prefer more modern shaped furniture and this sectional is not modern at all. Did we make a mistake? What if it's too big?  We'd ordered an extra armless loveseat piece to fit in the middle, to provide enough seating for our entire family to sit together in the living room. There are 7 of us, and 5 are growing bigger daily. 

It arrived yesterday and it's massive. Like 16 feet long on one side, massive. But we're in love with it. Buyers remorse vanished within moments. 

(Yes, I have moved the rug over. Is it bugging you too? Don't worry.) 

 It's already been christened with Aaron falling asleep on it while watching star wars last night. (On VHS, folks.) 

The older children sat with me in the big cuddler corner and we read from Treasure Island, in the afternoon. We're on chapter 8 and they're totally hooked. I love watching their expressions. Quincy gasped and stood up on her cushion. Reese threw her face into the pillows,  "One leg! The Captain warned Jim to watch out for the man with one leg! Long John Silver's not a cook, he's a pirate!"  Corbin kicked back with his feet up, "They shouldn't trust him! He's lying! He wants treasure!" Oh it was the cutest thing ever. 

The new sectional is more than a "couch" (I loathe that word, btw), to us. It's our new schooner. It's home base in a million games of tag, it's the "lets cuddle, I had a bad dream," spot. It's an island dry land surrounded by hot lava, it's Calamity Jane's Deadwood Stage, an Olympian gymnastics mat, a fort, a sickbed, a safety net for wrestlers, and our vessel for adventure.  Our living room is where we read, watch movies, imagine, and play.  Many new adventures await us on this massive ship and I feel happy about our selection. First stop: Treasure Island.

Daddy's Girl