Jump!

When I asked Carter what he wanted to do today, his immediate response was, "Jump!" I had just heard about a new jump place in our area, so we decided to check it out. The boys had a blast jumping and sliding. They even had giant foam cars that both boys adored. To quote Carter, "Today was a super-fun day!"

Powder Room

My kids have always been early risers, but lately it's been REALLY early. We tell them to stay in their room until the sun comes up, but since they've been waking at about 5:45, that leaves a considerable amount of play time in their room before they can come out. They don't have any toys in their room (they're all in the play room), so they've been getting creative to entertain themselves in the early morning. Today they were rooting through the dresser drawers and found a bottle of baby powder. They completely emptied it all over EVERYTHING! There was powder in every nook & cranny; I wouldn't have guessed one bottle of powder could hold so much. I had already cleaned most of it up before I took this picture of the inside of Carter's pajama drawer. My crazy boys! What am I to do???

Good Movie, Great Book

I don't often make time to watch movies or read books, but this week I did both! Kevin & I just re-subscribed to Netflix since there are no Red-Box rentals near our house. We watched our first movie last night, Memoirs of a Geisha. I know it's been out for a while now, and most of you have probably already seen it. It was better than I had expected it to be; it made me reflect on how blessed we are to live in America and to have all the freedoms that come along with that. I give it 4 out of 5 stars. The book I read was Sunset, the last book in the Sunrise Series by Karen Kingsbury. It was incredible. Definitely 5 out of 5 stars. I laughed, and I cried (a lot). For 3 days, nothing got done around the house while I read it, but it was worth it! If you haven't read anything by Karen Kingsbury, I highly recommend her books. My favorite was her Redemption series, but I'll warn you - her books are addicting! If you start with the Redemption series, you'll probably find yourself unable to quit until you've finished the 15th book!!!

Birthday Party

Last night, the 4 of us went to a birthday party. Our friends from church have the sweetest little boy, Asher, who just turned 2. The party was at a park, and the boys had so much fun playing on the playground, eating yummy pizza & cake, and playing with their friends. Happy Birthday, Asher!

Zoo

This morning, we all went to the zoo with a group from church. There were 4 families with 6 kids, but it felt like twice as many! The kids had a great time leading us around and running from exhibit to exhibit. We even made time for the carousel and a train ride! It was lots of fun, and Kevin & I really enjoyed spending time with our new friends from church!

Hide, But We Won't Seek!

Tonight our friends Robert & Jenny came over for dinner with their kids. Carter & Bryson just love spending time with Cameron & Sierra, and tonight was no exception. While the adults were downstairs, the kids decided to play hide & seek. Cameron & Sierra hid, and Bryson & Carter were supposed to be looking for them. After a couple of minutes without any luck, Bryson & Carter became bored and quit looking. Poor Cameron & Sierra stayed in their hiding spots for a really long time! Finally, Jenny & I tracked them down. It was a fun evening!

Choo-Choo!

Today the boys & I went to ride Thomas the Train! We went with Gaylee and her kiddos, and we all had so much fun. Carter & Bryson both loved everything about it - the bounce house, the temporary tattos, the train ride, everything! My favorite picture here is the one of the 3 "big kids" holding hands. It was Bryson's first time holding hands with anyone other than family. :-)

Kitty Costume

Remember Smokey? The cat that we're not claiming as our own? I bought him a Halloween costume yesterday. I'm still telling myself we're not letting him in the house, even when it snows this winter. Even I don't really believe it.

Story Time

Today our Mommy & Me group met at the library for story time. I love the library -- all the aisles & aisles of books, the big comfy lounge chairs where you could curl up & read for hours (if you weren't there with 2 crazy boys!), even the smell -- I just love it. Although our new library doesn't offer the playtime that we loved at our old library, it does offer plenty of other events. We have been to story time several times now, and it was fun to go with the other moms and kids today. Afterward, we headed over to a fast-food play place for lunch. Lots of fun! (Yes, Bryson IS standing on his head in this picture. :-))

Superstars & Cheerios

Despite our already busy weekend, we still managed to find the time to take the boat out (twice!). Kevin's becoming quite the superstar on the wakeboard. I'm really impressed with how quickly he's picked it up. Carter & I had a great time swimming and tubing, too. I also had to include this picture of Carter with the artwork he brought home from MDO. He's learning to write his name and practiced his letter "C" by gluing cheerios to construction paper. He was so proud!

In Tow

If you know our family well, you know that Kevin drives a bit of a "clunker". This clunker replaced his last clunker just over a year ago, when it was towed off for parts. Yesterday, Kevin's black beauty died in the road on the way to church. We towed it back to the house with a tow strap and our truck; today it was towed away to CarMax. Luckily, my smart man bought the optional warranty offered by CarMax when he purchased the car last year, so hopefully it won't cost us anything to repair. The boys loved the tow truck that came to pick it up this morning. Here's a picture of Bryson clapping as the car was raised onto the tow truck. :-) I thought that when Kevin became a plastic surgeon, I wouldn't be towing him around town anymore... I guess I was wrong. It's not exactly Dr. 90210, is it???

Celebrity

Tom Cruise? Matt Damon? Nope, better. Our very own -- Kevin! The hospital ran an ad in the Sunday paper with his picture and the information for his new surgical practice. The ad was huge, practically life-size! ;-) I'm so proud!

A Quick Visit

This morning, Mimi & Pop-Pop stopped by for a short visit on their way through town. They're traveling cross country to visit relatives and had time to stop for lunch before driving on. The boys were so excited to see them; they were talking up a storm and showing off to get their attention. I love this picture of Bryson giving Pop-Pop a big hug. :-) (I don't know how Mimi always manages to disappear when I've got my camera out!!!)

Good Friends

Yesterday we went to the lake with our friends Justin & Casey and their girls, Charli & Chloe. Carter & Charli are so sweet together; they're becoming the best of friends. They had a blast together, playing and giggling on the boat (I even saw a kiss!). I'm so glad that Carter has such a sweet friend here! -- I also had to include at least one picture of Bryson, who as usual, spent the day on my lap. :-)

Love 'em or Hate 'em

Crocs... do you love 'em or hate 'em? - Vote now (in the poll in the upper right corner of this blog)!Most people have a strong opinion one way or another about these silly shoes.

I like them for the following reasons:
1. This is a biggie in my book - My kids can put them on themselves.
2. They can be personalized with jibbitz to reflect my kids' interests.
3. They're great for the park because they don't get rocks & mulch caught inside like other sandals.

Now that summer's coming to a close, I find myself hating to put these away for the cold weather seasons. I must admit - I'm considering buying mammoth crocs for the winter!

Some-More Smores, Please!

Tonight our friends Robert & Jenny & their kids came over for dinner and smores. We sat around the campfire and roasted hot dogs and marshmellows. The kids, especially Carter, were so excited to make smores. After dinner, the kids ran around in the yard playing on the swing and in the gator. We all had a great time!

Another Great Park

Our Mommy & Me group (which turned out to be just me & Casey) went to a great new park this morning. It had all the usual fun stuff - slides & swings, rock walls & steering wheels, but it also had some unique features. It had a 3-story tower with an enormous slide coming out of it (a little daunting, even to me!), music-makers, and teeter-totters. The boys loved the park and had a great time playing with Charli.

P.S. I took this last picture at home, not at the park. Bryson was playing hide & seek (by himself). He was "it", and he went behind this tree to hide his eyes and count to 10. It was so cute, I just had to snap his picture!

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