Frazzled!

Some days I question whether I'd really be able to make it as a full time stay at home mom. Yesterday was one of those days. I set myself up for failure. I somehow convinced myself that the kids and I would be able to run seven errands right in the heat of the day and before they'd had any lunch.

Jacob has a love-hate relationship with his shoes. He loves to wear them, but then he also loves to take them off and throw them. So, each time I'd put him in the car, they'd go flying and I'd have to crawl around trying to find them and put them back on every time we'd get to our next destination. I think he thought the whole thing was incredibly funny.

He is also going through a very independent stage and has decided that he is "big" now and doesn't need to ride in the cart. But, he doesn't want to hold my hand, either, and so I have to weigh out my options - deal with the temper tantrum that will ensue if I make him sit in the cart or deal with the likelihood that he will walk around the store picking things up at his leisure. His favorites, of course, are the candy that always manage to place right at the registers and at eye level for a toddler...

By the time we reached Kroger which was our seventh (and last) destination, I was singing the hallelujah chorus in my head. And that's when Emily kicked in. "Mom, you're a liar. You said we were going to the grocery store, but this is NOT the grocery store. Grocery store starts with G (and she proceeded to make the "g" sound just in case I didn't know). This is Kroger. Kroger starts with K...(followed by the "k" sound for emphasis)."

We made it home and I was unloading the car and counting the minutes until nap time and then I saw them there together at the window so excited and watching a little Gecko that was on the other side and then it hit me - it's these little moments that I get to share with them that I would ordinarily miss that makes these days that I get to be at home with them so precious.

I got another reminder later in the afternoon when they both crowded up on my lap wanting to rock and read books.

Girls night IN

For weeks now, Emily has been asking me if we can have a slumber party and I have been promising her that we could as soon as I was done with work. So, last Friday was the big night.

We had a fun-filled night and watched her two current favorite movies: Princess Protection Program and The Parent Trap. I don't think any slumber party is complete without popcorn and Sweet Tarts!



We painted nails (I painted hers and she painted mine)



We played games and danced....



But when it got to be after midnight and she asked if we could have a pillow fight, I had to tell her it was time for "lights out." There's nothing like having a slumber party with your 5 year old to make you realize how "old" you are. I think the last time I was up that late was New Year's Eve and it was a struggle to stay up until midnight then!

I'm not sure what I was thinking doing this the night before 4th of July since that was a long day, too, but it was worth every second, especially since she kept telling me repeatedly that it was "the best night ever."

Happy 4th of July!

I'm a bit behind in blogging and figured I needed to hurry and get caught up before we go on vacation this week!

We started out the day at a breakfast at our church. Here's a picture of my two favorite kids before we headed out (we didn't get any pictures at the breakfast because I was too busy chasing after the kids, cleaning up spills, and trying to hold on to plates so they didn't blow away!)



That afternoon, we headed over to my parent's house for some outdoor fun, a family BBQ, and then fireworks!

Both of my kids love the water. Here's Emily testing out the new sprinkler ball that grandma and grandpa got.



Here's Jacob (Mr. Strong Man) deciding to take the little baby pool and make it into a "boat" in the other little pool.



Here's both kids just chilling in the pool for awhile...



The kids are getting ready to watch the fireworks show



I had to share this picture because the expression on Emily's face cracked me up!



Here are Reed, Jamie, and soon to be baby Madison (we can't wait to meet her!) doing a few sparklers. Last year Emily LOVED the sparklers, but this year she didn't want to have anything to do with them and kept worrying the whole thing about someone (or something) catching on fire)



We hope you all had a fabulous 4th of July! I love the 4th of July not only because it gives me the opportunity to reflect on all of the blessings that we have living in this country, but also because it's such a great time for families to get together!

Fun at the pool!

The kids LOVE going to the pool. This summer we haven't had much rain which isn't a good thing, but it's good in the sense that we've been able to go to the pool almost every day.

Chef Jacob!

Last night I was headed downstairs to start cooking dinner and Jacob was trailing after me excitedly saying "Mama, I wanna cook! I wanna cook!" I have been trying to do more 'kid friendly' cooking and letting the kids help out, but I was a little nervous because last night's recipe wasn't the most ideal for kids to be helping with. Still, I couldn't turn him down, so I decided that if he had LOTS of supervision, he could help...and he was such a great helper - stirring, and stirring, and stirring that sauce and then helping me mix everything together when it was time.