A Good Four Days

What a blessing to have had such a great long weekend. Ron's parents came in and they all went to the Twin's game. Got a call from one of Cooper's friends saying they had been on TV...that would involve me actually watching a baseball game on TV so of course I missed it. Friday I took the kids swimming and then we grilled steaks and used the firepit for the first time this year. We did s'mores which were delish...We tried to take the jet ski out but the boat launch was closed due to so many people at the lake...we ended up going to the neighborhood pool which was great.With a stop at Dairy Queen to cool us off. Ron managed to fit in a round of golf with a friend and I went and saw a movie, did a little shopping, and had dinner with a friend. The kids spent some time playing with friends, lot's of outside play, did the slip and slide... checked out a new splash pad/ swimming lake nearby. They have been staying up late and sleeping in... too bad we have a week and a half left. I feel like we are already on vacation.

Likes/Dislikes

Things I'm loving:

the beautiful warm weather

the fact that I've been to the pool twice in one week in MAY!

the smell of fresh lilac

raspberries and strawberries

sweet tea

the kids playing in the sprinkler

a cold beer

s'mores

hanging out with friends

school is almost out

spending time with extended family

the smell of sunscreen

Things I'm not:

road construction

the housing market

people who drive way below the speed limit

that my days of child free errand running on a weekeday are coming to an end

My likes are way more than my dislikes so life is pretty good I think

Piano Recital

The kids had their first piano recital today. It is fun because we have lots of friends from school and even some friends from our neighborhood go to our piano teacher. There were even some violin players too. So sweet to see the little ones(the youngest was four!) to a graduating senior. Cooper and Quinn both did a great job.No jitters and they played beautifully. Quinn even played her piece one extra time.they have learned so much in the last seven months. even if getting them to practice is a pain. They are learning that hard work/perseverence pays off.

A Little Steamy

We are having a heat wave in this neck of the woods. not that I'm upset. It feels like Louisiana up here. Ahh, the memories of having your clothes stick to you.I am savoring evry bit of it because I know it won't last.we had to turn the air on because the humidity is high. We also hooked up our snake sprinkler, filled up the waterguns and the kids had some backyard fun.

Call of the Wild

Seriously, I feel like I was in the jungle all day. Quinn had her kindergarten field trip to the Minnesota Zoo. Had a great time on the bus ride visiting with all the moms and a few dads. Once there, we ended up traipsing around the zoo with some of Quinn's pals. There were arguements on trying to let everybody in the space to see the animals ("they won't let me in"), tears over who was bossing who, running way far ahead of the parents so we had to split up to find them.. a wee bit different from when I went with Cooper two years ago. I guess girls are a little bit high maitenence. Cool things we saw..the grizzly bears feeding time..we were front row! the sea horses and sea dragons, sharks, and Quinn's school zoo project animal..the puma. I think the girls favorite though was the fossil playground;it's where we(the parents) finally got to sit and catch our breath.... and finish a sentence. We missed alot due to time. Look foward to taking C and Q this summer....to check out all the rest. Quinn was worn out she fell asleep in my arms on the bus ride back.. that was my favorite part as that doesn't happen as often anymore.

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Thursday Thoughts

We have had three nights of soccer this week...beautiful weather to sit and visit with friends outside.and watch the game of course. Add in some dance and piano to the mix and I am looking foward to tonight(Thursday)where we can just stay home

Been in spring cleaning mode..had the carpets cleaned, cleaned out the basement storage room(goodbye old wreath and Pier One margarita glasses from my wedding almost 11 years ago)) ordered a new storm door for the front that actually works, and plan to paint my front door..need to decide on a color today..what goes with Minnesota beige??hmmm....

Hurt my ankle last week on an evening stroll with the kids and Ron..swollen and a little sore so I took off a week and am going today to run and face the music today(yesterday's hip hop with my friend doesn't count)nothing gets my heart rate going like a good run.

These last few weeks of school are here and there is so much packed in and it is throwing my usual routines way off.I like my routines.... Quinn read in church yesterday so I stayed for mass. She was so cute.She spotted me when she went up to the podium.I gave her a big smile and she nailed it of course. We also have a Minnesota Zoo fieldtrip on Fri, Pizza with Dad and Cooper's field trip next week, upcoming dance and piano recitals and of course the class picnics. Throw in some road construction to make getting to and from school a major headache I am sooo looking foward to summer.

Cooper is getting braces on his top teeth. Now he's really going to look like a tween.Quinn has a permanent tooth growing BEHIND her loose baby tooth. Lot's of $$$$ is going to go to our orthodontist in the coming years.

On a final note..I am loving this beautiful weather...the sunshine is spectacular and I love the warm temperatures and I want them to last until November!

Freddy Jackson's Visit

Cooper finally got to take home the second grade class pet for the weekend. A guinea pig named Freddy Jackson who is five years old... I wasn't too excited at first since he's a member of the rodent family..but he is kind of cute and stays in his cage except when the kids are holding him. Quinn is definately the Dr. Doolittle of the two wanting to watch him and hold him more than Cooper..Freddy is the best kind of pet...one I get to return to school on Monday morning.

Someone Call the Tooth Fairy

Quinn finally lost her first tooth. She is beyond excited because now she can get her name listed on the lost tooth chart at school...which I was getting nervous about since there are only four weeks left of school..she was so excited and proud of herself. She finally realized that when you're tooth is hanging on by a thread it does NOT hurt when you pull it out...so I'm expecting the other loose tooth she has will come out a lot sooner.

Lucky Mama

A wonderful Mother's Day..lucky mama to two awesome kids...sunshine all day....brunch at Jax with dear friends...hanging out with the family.. wonderful homemade cards from my kids... a Macy's gift card from my mom... a giant ceramic garden urn from Ron ;-) nope..no complaints from me. Hope all my friends that are moms had just as lovely of a day as I did

Mother's Day "Picnic"

The word picnic usually conjures up sunshine and lunch on a blanket, especially in May. So I, and every other mom looking foward to the Mother's Day Picnic with their sweet kindergartners were shocked to see a rainy, COLD mess.Oh well, that's life in Minnesota for you. So instead of lunch outside and playing at the park we had lunch inside and indoor recess in the classrooms. Which was still alot of fun. I was able to take lots of pics of Q and all her friends in her classroom. We played Memory, Ice Cream Scoop, Legos, and magnetic dress up dolls. The kids sang a cute song for their moms, gave us a plant in a hand painted pot and made a portrait of us that described us. I'm appearantly 6 feet tall and 39 years old!!!! I'm a little saddened that kindergarten is coming to an end. Where did this year go??????

Afterschool Special

The kids have been occupied with all their extracurricular activities lately and getting together with friends from school have taken a backseat. Finally, on Monday, Cooper and Quinn had their friends Howie and Jack come over. Quinn has known Howie since preschool and he also in her class now.She has been to his house to play so she was so excited to have him come see where she lives. We went to the park and they did art and played outside. Jack and Cooper were all about art and Legos. A fun night!

On the Go

Finally able to sit down and blog.We've had three soccer practices, second grade mass at school, ice cream social at school, dance pictures, piano lessons, 4 soccer games this weekend and I had bunco(woo hoo-a chance to dress up!) and finally on Sunday a relaxing day...a chance to catch up on laundry, yardwork,etc.Ron put up our THIRD arbor on our deck. Third times the charm-fingers crossed that a tornado or strong winds don't mess with it. Cooper got his first goal of the season and it was fun to watch the tournamnet with the exception of the frigid, windy weather. Quinn had her last game until summer soccer starts up. A fun filled week that kept us running the roads and grabbing dinner on the go...