A new season

It's summertime for our family. Noah finished his last day of preschool last week and we're getting our heads wrapped around the fact that we've got a kindergartener on our hands. But, before we get ahead of ourselves we've got a summer to enjoy!

Levi got in on helping Grandpa with a landscaping project.

As far as our boys are concerned, the milk barn is just about the most fascinating place on the farm these days.

We're hoping for a summer full of good times with good people.

Re-Growth

We went from this:

on March 26, to this on May 20.

Not bad for two months of wacko spring/summer/spring weather.

It's HOT outside!

Yesterday it hit 100 degrees in Central Kansas. The ground is parched, the flowers, trees and crops are struggling and the sun has brought us mid-summer temps when we were just getting into the swing of spring. Cooler weather is headed here later in the week and there's a chance of rain too - we'll see if that really happens.

So last night, Levi got a haircut on the deck and the boys ran through the sprinkler.

Pure joy - the simplicity of childhood.

They made a few rounds through the sprinkler without their shorts and undies. That had all four of us giggling.

Mother's Day

You gotta love those smiles! They hooked the wagon to the tractor and Levi wanted to give Rylee a ride to the shed. He didn't make it the whole way, but he gave it a good try!

We spent Sunday afternoon and evening out at the farm. It was great to see Erica, Sherri and Rylee again. Mom cooked us a delicious meal and we had a good time exploring the farm. Rylee loves animals so we always make sure she gets to see the calves and cows.

I think the highlight of my day was when Rylee first saw me that evening - she pointed and said, "Tina!" There's a first time for everything. :-) Rylee's been talking for a while now, but that was the first time I had heard her say my name.

I'm not sure I've covered this yet on the blog...Noah has become a busy biker. We regularly take his bike with us to the farm so he can peddle his way ALL over the farm.

He's learned how to get himself started and can stop himself without falling over. He's making a funny face in the next photo but that's because the wind was blowing sand in his face.

We played some games outside. Well I should say we tried to, the wind was blowing strong enough that we all ended up getting frustrated.

It was a great day. My pedicure/time away with friends was my Mother's Day gift. But, I did get a bag of chocolate and a lovely card from my 3 boys.

A little time away

It's rare, maybe once a year, that I go to a spa. But, a little while ago 4 of my friends and I went to Healing Waters Day Spa in Wichita for pedicures. The most stressful part of the afternoon was picking out what color we wanted our toes painted.

Otherwise, we sat back, relaxed, drank some wine and visited

while the lovely ladies at Healing Waters did the work.

Then we walked to Il Vicino for dinner

and Cocoa Dolce for dessert.

Oh me. Oh my. It was good, soooo good.

Not only do they make their own chocolates, they also make their own hot chocolates and coffee drinks!

And when our time away was over and it was time to get back to our families at least we had pretty toes to remind of us our time together.

Easter happenings

Easter Sunday was a busy day for our family. Somehow, I managed to be involved in 3 different things at church. All three were good things, but when you combine a busy morning at church with Easter it makes for a really full time.

During Children's Church - one of the 3 things I was involved with at church - my mentee Tia and I helped the children make pipe cleaner and ribbon crowns. I was inspired by the illustrations in an Easter book. I had tons of ribbon on hand (I tend to purchase ribbon at the Et Cetera Shop b/c I'm attracted to colorful cheap ribbon) and it just seemed springy and fun and like something to celebrate with.

Anyway, as far as a craft goes it didn't go quite like I had envisioned but the kids seemed to enjoy having them on their heads. Most of them wore them during the Easter egg hunt and it was fun to see the ribbons dance in the breeze.

This photo captures Noah's mood for most of the day. Ben and I couldn't quite figure out why, but he was in a foul/downright awful mood on Easter.

Ben even got in on the crown action.

We didn't dye eggs this year or do an egg hunt with the boys. We did get them chickens that laid/pooped bubble gum eggs. The chickens were fun for the whopping 2 minutes that they worked before they broke.

In the evening we gathered at my cousin Megan's house for our Epp gathering. We ate a fabulous meal and enjoyed time together as a family. My sister baked wonderful cupcakes and a to-die-for white chocolate cheesecake with cranberry, raspberry and orange peel sauce on top. It was the perfect ending to our meal.

It was so good to see miss Rylee again. I kept staring at her during dinner amazed at how big, grown up, capable, independent and beautiful she is.

The kids did an Easter egg hunt and searched for their Easter baskets after dinner.

All the kiddos - there's a lot of personality packed into this photo. It's great watching them grow up and change before our eyes.

We actually got a family photo! It's been a year since we last took one. Thanks for being our photographer Megan.

The kids begged the dads and grandpas to play kick ball after the Easter activities wrapped up. They had a rousing game going - shoes were flying and everything!

Levi and Cambry were swinging on the swing set near by,

the kids were waiting their turns nicely and cheering each other on

and then Ben accidentally kicked the wooden home plate. He hopped around in pain for a while, but claimed he was fine. So the game went on. Unfortunately, on Ben's next turn he used his trusty left food to kick a whopper right between second and third base - too bad Caiden's head happened to be between second and third base at the exact same time. It knocked Caiden down and probably gave him headache, but later in the evening he reported to Ben, "That was awesome!" Go figure - leave it to a boy to declare such things. The thing is though, that Ben's foot wasn't actually OK.

He iced it for a while, went to the doctor the next morning and found out he has a hairline fracture. So, crutches and pain killers are helping him hobble around these days. He says it seems to be feeling a bit better and we're all hoping he heals quickly.

Safety doesn't always come easy

It's good to play it safe, even when mowing with a toy mower inside the house.

But it's not always easy to be safe.

Ahhh, that's better!