More Raliegh Fun!!!

I would be remiss if I didn't cover the rest of our adventure to Raleigh. It was a great time. The kids are so fun to watch as they get to know each other better and really begin to play with each other rather than play around each other.
Kristi got out the 'shark' pool and off they went. Within minutes they were all "fwimmin" in the pool. It is kind of funny watching all of them try to get their faces under water at the same time in this little pool.

Maylin is practicing the deadman float. Darcy was blowing bubbles, Pierson was splashing Aunt Kristi, Kylie was trying to keep her face from getting splashed and Caleb... well he was doing what Caleb does best; going here there and everywhere!

We did manage to get them all in one spot for a few seconds...

But that didn't last for very long before they were off!

Pierson had been ornery and spraying everyone with the big ball in the picture. (it hooks up to the hose and has holes all in it so it sprays all over the place.) Caleb couldn't let his cousin one-up him so he grabbed a cup and emptied it on Pierson's head.

Before long they had cars and wagons going every which way in the yard. It is hard to keep up with these guys!

After all of that play time it was definitely time for a bath. Uncle Ian had all of their horns... I mean hair squeaky clean.

We also made a stop at Goodberry's Frozen Custard Stand. AKA Blueberries according to the Kylie, Caleb and Darcy.

Grandma enjoying all five of her grandchildren while they enjoyed their custard! YUMMY!!!

What would be a sleepover without a dress up party?! These girls don't need crowns to prove they are our little princess'!

Thursday afternoon we went to a local swimming pool. The kids had a blast at the splash pad.

Pierson got a lesson in gravity. The swinging buckets tip over when they fill with water and drop several gallons of water down. It is quite of load of water on your head, but from the pictures below you can see that Pierson enjoyed every second of it!

Oddly enough at the end of this trip I felt like I had 5 gallons of water dropped on my head. It was exhausting, but worth every second!

Cute cousins!!!

(I am playing catch up! I am about a week and a half behind)



Last week we had a great time visiting cousins and Aunt Kristi (aka Ayi) and Uncle Ian. There was a MASSIVE consignment sale in Raleigh, where the state fair is held, which lured us up there. Kristi and I both volunteered to work several hours so that we were eligible to shop early! There had to be 50 yards of clothes packed in an upper and lower level for each size! It was impressive! We got there at 5:00 Wednesday evening and shopped until 11:00pm! It was totally worth the effort. After all was said and done we both got out of there with enough to outfit our kids through the next winter season.

People came in with quite impressive contraptions to help carry their purchases. It ranged from the less creative double strollers (which is what I used) all the way to women pulling wagons with clothing racks duck taped to them. It was very interesting and a lot of fun to shop with my sister. Fortunately for the kids sake it is harder to find "matchies" for all of them. This winter they will all be individuals (for the most part!(: ) With that being said I'll leave you with our latest "matchies" pictures.


These three just had to have a "guwirls pictuwe"


Then the boys decided they needed one too. This just makes my heart smile. I love to watch these cousins learn to love each other and play together.

This is absolutely a picture that captures all of their personalities. Sassy, tender, fun loving, ornery, and precious. These five cover a broad spectrum of personalities, but they have a common bond that will tie them together forever. LOVE

The posing didn't last long before it started to break down and they turned into a bunch of funny bunnies! Look and enjoy what we go through trying to take these guys pictures.

"MaMEE I cool?"

"I LallyBoooy!" (aka Larryboy from Veggie Tales)

"jump, jump, jump, jump"

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" :)

Art Time!

"Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain and artist once he grows up."

-Pablo Picasso

As an artist, one of my hopes for my children is that they will grow up to appreciate the arts. They may never be the next 'Monet', but I never want them to be afraid to express themselves through the arts. Therefore I make sure to expose them to as much art as I can as often as I can.

Deep in thought. This is one activity that will keep her attention for a while.

Pierson created his master piece. If you look closely at the blue spot you can see the airplane that "is going get i-cream"!

Happy Painting!

Back Yard Fun and Picnic

Another hot summer day brings another need for relaxing in the water tubs. Maylin really knows how to kick back and enjoy life. She makes me laugh.

She is one that doesn't need to know why earth spins, how the TV works, why dogs bark... she just accepts that they do and goes on relaxing and enjoying life.

Pierson on the other hand is completely opposite. He needs to know why Chaucer's hair grows and other dog's don't, how a pen works down to the tiny spring inside, and why plants grow towards the light.
In this picture he is figuring out that if you force too much water in a bottle it will come out like a rocket when released!

Maylin relaxing enjoying the cooling effect of water.

Pierson cleaning Chaucer's water bucket after inquiring why algae grows in it.

Pierson, working hard and scrubbing the bucket.

Maylin, playing hard and squirting her brother.

In some ways these two couldn't be more different. However, in other ways they are very much the same. They both make me laugh... a lot. They both have lots of energy and keep me on my toes.

And thankfully they both like pretty healthy food.

Maylin, however, doesn't like flies on her sandwich.

Those silly flies became a little too comfortable with us for our liking so I...
put out a "dummy" bowl of yogurt to attract them away from our food. Worked like a charm. Love, love, love summer days.

Thankful Thursday

I would say that my kids are very thankful for everything they have. They constantly say, "tank you, Ma-ME!" when playing with toys, or going on a walk, or riding scooters... They are very thankful it seems for just about everything.
However I guess they wouldn't be normal kids if they didn't have the occasional desire for something new.

In case anyone has already started thinking about Christmas and these two are on your list to-buy-for they have already started a list. (even though they don't understand the concept of Christmas yet, they definitely have a "want dat" list. Here they can be seen cutting out pictures from an educational toy catalog. Best thing is they are Mommy approved too! They have a whole list I'll publish to family closer to the holidays!


So while they are in fact Thankful for what they already have, they wouldn't be normal kids if they weren't going to be hopeful for things to come! :)

Fireflies on a Summer Evening

What can be better than chasing fireflies on a Summer Evening? Not a whole lot. Especially when you aren't familiar with these "shinny hinnies". The smallest of things are still amazing to them and I love it!

They ran all over the yard chasing these things! It was a lot of fun watching them get better and better at catching them. At first we weren't very good at being 'gentle' with them. Oops. But before long they were catching them and keeping them alive. Sorry little 'shinny hinnies', rest in peace.

Pierson got a little frustrated as it got darker and they were getting harder to find. :)

But he sure was fascinated by the jar full of the little critters. (yes we poked holes in the lid so they could breath.) He thought he should get a penny for every bug he caught. Pennies are like gold around here! They will do anything for one! I love it! I think he thought he was helping control the bug population so he should be rewarded. :)

Maylin wanted to hold her friends for a while before she put them in the jar. She would say, "Mommy, MayYen catcha buga!"

I used to be upset that fireflies only came out during the summer, but now I understand that if we had them all the time we wouldn't appreciate the sheer entertainment they can bring to our lives. Thank you Jesus for all the fun you provide for us that we often take for granted.

Another Funny Friday

After trying to tell the kids that they would in fact "Not Like Lime Juice", I decided there was no better way to teach them then to let them try it for themselves. Here is their reactions after about the 5th time! I guess the first 4 weren't enough to prove to themselves that it was not very good! Or they are gluten's for punishment?






Is it wrong that I thought it was really funny?! :)

Swimming Lessons Needed!!!

(This post is several weeks behind)

The kids first day in a swimming pool was an adventurous one! Our friends (Teniah and her kids Anna and Aaron) had invited us over to swim at her Mom's pool. The kids were excited to see the "2 water". We loaded up on sunscreen and bathing suits and off we went. When we arrived several of the other kids were already in the pool swimming around and jumping off the diving board. Everything was going well... until Maylin decided she wanted to go off the diving board with no help (without warning). Luckily I was in the deep end close by because despite what you hear that kids natural instinct is to kick to come up she was perfectly still and just sunk. I rapidly grabbed her arm and pulled her up. I expected her to cry and be scared. Wrong! She thought it was hilarious! That is the moment I decided we needed to sign up for swimming lessons ASAP! Fortunately our friend Mrs. Cindy teaches lessons and she still had space open for the next session!

That next Monday we stared lesson's everyday for two weeks. (Mrs. Cindy is amazing! I highly recommend her for anyone in the Midland area!)

Here Mrs. Cindy is showing the kids what not to do when they are underwater. Maylin looks a little worried!


Now Mrs. Cindy is showing them what to throw in the water to save a drowning person. I love the hands on the hips from my "stinkerbell". Pierson I think was watching a bug on the ground.

These first few photo's are from the first few days of lessons. Cindy was teaching Maylin how to blow bubbles and kick her legs.

Here she is "swimming and doing chick monk cheeks.

"Right now I am still a little more interested in watching the camera than learning to swim."

Pierson insists on wearing his goggles in the water. The first few days his big accomplishment was just going all the way under and blowing bubbles.

Learning to swim on her back was not high on Maylin's list either. But Cindy persists!

Pierson was not exactly excited about going off the diving board. And he was freezing. The first few days our lessons were at 7:00 pm after the sun was behind the trees. We soon switched to the 2:00 pm lessons which went much better because the kids had the sun to help keep them warm.

But Cindy is a miracle worker and gets each kid to go off the board and helps them swim to the ladder and then on to the shallow end. In the beginning Pierson wasn't thrilled about swimming with his head down.

She also teaches them life saving skills. Here Pierson is pulling his partner in to safety.

Within a few days things had changed so much! Pierson has the blue kick board and Maylin has the pink. They both have their heads down and kicking across the shallow end all by themselves!

This picture has Pierson actually swimming by himself!!! I am in the background holding Maylin's hands after she practiced the dead-man-float.

Pierson is jumping off the board to Mrs Cindy's feet! After coming up for air he proceeded to swim by himself to the ladder! I have been so AMAZED at the transformation!

Pierson is saving Maylin

Maylin is actually diving in! (with a little help from Cindy on her form!)

And there goes Pierson, or is that Super Man?!

And almost as important as learning to swim is the cookies Mrs. Cindy gives after each lesson!

My little bundles are going to give Phelps a run for his money! ;)

Thanks Mrs. Cindy for being such an AWESOME teacher!!! My kids love you and so do I!!!