VBS Finesse

The kids and I are at VBS (vacation bible school) thus week, which exhausts all of us. But it is so much fun. I'm working with the 5th graders (I had them last summer as 4th graders and in Sunday school this past semester). I love these kids!

Anyway, here are a few pics from today during stoy time. We were re-enacting the 10 plagues on Pharoah and Egypt. To refresh your bible knowledge, head over to Exodus to read about how strong and mighty our God is!

I think we were being gnats here...




Caleb as our Trinidadian accented Phaoroah....




Pretty sure we were bein flies here....



Ah. The good part. At thi point in the story, we were pretending to be dying cows.




This wasn't from Vbs. This was when we were Krogering yesterday. But I had to add it in here just because it a cute picture!


-- Post From My iPhone

Big Girl Bed

Cade and Jack were both exactly two years old when we moved them to big boy beds. Since Claire is 5 days away from being two (where did the time go???), it's time to put our baby in a big girl bed. I have been looking on Craig'sList for months for a bed for Claire. I really wanted an antique bed. There seem to be plenty of full-sized beds out there, but not tons of twin antique beds. And since Claire's room is smaller than small, a full bed just wouldn't work.

Finally. After months of looking, I found a bed outside of Austin. My mom graciously went to buy it for me, and this weekend she brought it up to us! So this afternoon, after Jack's party, we took apart Claire's crib (the crib all the kids have used, actually), and set up her big girl bed.


Claire was so excited about her new bed. Until it was time to actually go to bed.

I don't have bedding for her yet, so she's sleeping on extra Cade & Jack sheets. But even with blue sheets, isn't it the cutest? Can't wait to figure out how we'll do her room.

A little creepy, yes? Claire wanted no part in sharing her blanket with Cade.

The boys acted like they had never been on a bed until Claire's. They seemed unusually excited about her new bed too.

Happy Jackday!

We had an impromptu birthday party for Jack Jack today. That we organized yesterday. *sigh* I'm up for Horrible Mother of the Year.

I put Jack's party on our calendar over a month ago but somehow managed to never tell anyone else about it. I've discovered that inviting guests to a party is a crucial step in party planning. So my trusty husband, who is just plain awesome, called friends yesterday to invite them to Jack's "party". Unfortunately, because of the late notice, only two families were able to come.

Thankfully I don't think Jack noticed that it wasn't as big of a deal as normal; he was happy to have his friends with him. We went to Chuck E. Cheese early (at 10:30), and thankfully, it was still a somewhat normal place. Fever pitch didn't hit until we were leaving around noon. After noon on a Saturday, that place turns into a nuthouse with sensory overload. But while we were there, I could still communicate with everyone without yelling, I wasn't dizzy from the loud screams of bratty children, and I could walk around without getting body slammed by a 12-year old sprinting around the place. We then came back to the house for a little bit of chocolate cake, presents, and play.

Here are some of the images from today!

Cade & Jack with Alessio and Diego (brothers, if you can't tell!), two of their best friends. Alessio & Cade were in Mothers Day Out for 3 years together and now go to the same elementary school. Jack & Diego have been in the same class at MDO for 2 years now, will probably be in the same class for a 3rd year, and then will go to the same elementary school as their brothers.
Daddy & Claire Bear

Jeff, Shelly, Collin, & Cameron
Can't believe Jack is four! And I'm not sure it was completely sterile to serve this cake after Jack blew out his candle. Oh well. Guess we'll have good immune systems.
Scotty helping Jack open his presents. Play-doh! Jack's favorite!
How devilishly cute is this boy?

Time at the mall

Yesterday morning the kids and I met our friends Teri & Hailey at the mall for a little indoor playground action. It's getting so hot out so early now, that you have to seek refuge indoors.


Here is my charming little Cade in top of a bridge.



And then there's Jack Jack. He's the most smiley kid. He always has a good time!



Wherever her brothers are, Claire will be. She's always in the middle of it!



When the kids had finally had enough, we caught Cade and Hailey playing footsie (or sharing athlete's foot fungus; we're not sure). We're pretty sure they're going to get married, so this picture will be making an appearance at the rehearsal dinner.


-- Post From My iPhone

Back from MawMaw's

Last week, the kids and I were at my Mom's, doing work around the place, selling stuff on Ebay, and generally making a mess out of Mom's house. We had a great time, and I got to take some great pics of the kids playing outside.

When Cade was 2, my parents bought him a little Ford F150 ride-on truck. He was petrified of the thing. It wasn't until he was 4.5 or 5 that Cade really got in the truck willingly. And then a few months later he learned to drive the thing. Now it's a constant thrill for the kids to ride in the truck.



Jack picked up pretty quickly on the steering thing. He does really well! In fact, he would drive toward a tree on purpose, and then swerve at the last minute, missing the tree by inches. It was hours of giggling, screaming, and fun. It is so satisfying to see your children laugh together and have a great time with one another. Yummy, and satisfying.

Wee! It's the Wii!

Hello to all you Frantling Junkies out there.



For Cade's 6th birthday a few months back, we bought him (and ourselves) a Nintendo Wii. Scott and I had just come back from a short vacation jaunt to Austin where we met up with dear friends Matt & Shannon Blackwell. Matt...er, I mean They had a Wii (supposedy) for their oldest son Tyler. So of course, after the kids went to bed, the adults comandeered the thing. Oh my! So much fun! After I almost broke their TV, I decided that it was indeed very wise to put the wrist strap on. Securely. It was either that or buy them a new TV. Wrist strap it is!

Competition runs in our genes. Can I just tell you that it has been a blast having this on in our house? Cade has especially become very adept at Mario Kart. Often our evenings have included team racing and competitive racing. Jack still hasn't gotten completely onboard; he won't try driving. But he will hold the steering wheel and pretend like he's driving in the game. Or he'll sit on Scott's lap and "help" Daddy drive. Claire prances around, sings, and dances. It's not really a part of the Mario Kart game, but it's cute.

Proof/Homey

As proof that I am actually going to post a picture... Wait for it.... Here is our darling Claire Bear (10 days away from being 2 years old!). She has taken to wearing any baseball cap she can find. In this pic, claire is sporting the summer collection of UT paraphenalia with a pigtail twist. Homey style, of course.




-- Post From My iPhone

Long time no post

I've become lazy in my old age. No pics, no words... I apologize. My mother-in-law emailed me with encouragement to blog again. So Lin, for you and the other person who reads this rag: I will post some pics and words regularly again.


-- Post From My iPhone