{michigan love}

We got some Michigan love this weekend!!!  

Miss Lyndi came to visit for a few days, and brought Gabi with her to see Kate & Emma.  I didn't tell the girls that Gabi was coming--I wanted to say something so many times, but I knew the looks on their faces would be worth the wait.

Lyndi texted me when she was close, so I could get the girls away from the window.  I told them a surprise was coming, so when the doorbell rang, they knew it was for them.  Oh. my.  It was SO fun to see their shock...there was a slight pause while they tried to process it (I could see the wheels turning), and that was pretty much the only quiet moment for the duration of the visit!  

We  talked, ate, laughed, ate, shopped, and ate.  ☺  We ate way too much Mexican food and frozen yogurt, and...and could have eaten more if we had had more time!  Friday morning we took all the kids swimming at our clubhouse, and spent several hours there.  The kids wanted to stay longer, but they were getting tired. Rick got off early that afternoon, and we took the girls out for dinner and to see Monsters University (which was so cute!). We also rode the trolley, which we REALLY regretted, because it was so, so hot.  But hey, they were introduced to our 107 degrees and 100% humidity summer weather.  ☺

Saturday morning we got up and headed to our fitness center to work out, and that was one of my favorite things. It's been a long time since I've worked out with someone else, and it went so much faster with her there.  I've missed all of our running days, so it was big deal for me.  

After we got home and showered, Lyndi and I spent the day shopping...and eating.  Rick was awesome, and stayed home with ALL the kids, even the baby, so we could go alone. LOVE that guy. I took her to one of my favorite stores--Charming Charlie's--and we spent more than two hours taking advantage of their Buy One Get One Free sale of their clearance items.  Hello!!!??  We were like kids in a candy store, and certainly came home with a lot of jewelry.  ☺ I took her to my favorite Mexican restaurants, and to the best frozen yogurt place in town.  I showed her some of my favorite spots--a live concerts and Christmas lights at The Waterway, the Cupcake Shack,  and Market Street. 

Our church is super early in the morning, so they had time to come to church with us before their flight.  It was perfect timing as far as Sundays go, because the entire Primary Presidency was gone except me, and I was flying solo.  Rick stayed home with sick Caroline and Henry, so he wasn't there to help with Jack who was having a hard time in Primary.  He ended up snuggling with "Miss Lyndi" the entire time--they totally bonded.  ☺ 

The whole weekend was fabulous.  Best of all, we just had time to talk. And laugh. To snuggle up on the couch at night and watch a show.  To hang out at the pool for three straight hours and play with our kids. To see her with my baby for the first time. To watch our girls giggle, paint nails, play outside, sit together at church, watch movies in their beds, sleep in the same room and stay up late--it was wonderful.  A huge thanks to Trenton and Rick, who stayed with kids and manned the respective forts, so we could enjoy this time together. Love you guys!

{charming charlie's}

{fro yo}

{l & k}

 

{the girlies}

 

{on our way...girls' night out!}

{a little heat}

{the trolley}

{at the movies}

{trying really hard to get a good picture, but finally settled on this one!}

{swimming!}

 

 {they loved doing timed jumps, cannon balls, and "trees" into the water}

{the "tree", a.k.a. belly flop}

Now...who's next????  ☺

{summertime}

I was dreading this summer.  Not because my kids were going to be out of school but because of the HEAT.  Last summer was so miserable, and I just couldn't imagine doing it again.  A good chunk of my misery was the horrible morning sickness that pretty much prevented us from doing anything fun, and just exacerbated the heat. We had also just moved, and didn't know the area at all. It was a really hard few months, and I was glad for it to be different this year.  However...it was still going to be hot. Anywhere it's over 100 degrees, it's hot, but it's not the heat that kills you...it's the humidity. Ugh.

So...I decided to embrace it.  We're fortunate enough to have a really nice pool at our clubhouse just a half mile away, and the kids could literally swim 8 hours a day, every day.  That's pretty close to how much we're there, too!  It's too hot to go to the park, to the zoo, or pretty much any other outdoor activity, so swimming it is!  We go during the day, and we also going after dinner, when Rick's home.  It's not unusual for us to go twice a day, and we are all enjoying it.  I have to admit that I was worried about taking so many little kids with me to the pool, but it's not been bad at all.  We all stay in the big pool, at the more shallow end.  I take Caroline into the pool with me, so I can keep a close eye on on Jack and Henry.  They've already abandoned their puddle jumpers, and love to jump off the side.  The girls are good swimmers too, and I can also see them and make sure they're doing well.  The only hitch is when someone has to go to the bathroom...then we all have to go!  If Ryan is with us then he can help, but often times it's just me. 

It's amazing how much their skills have improved even in the short few weeks since school got out.  There are lot of really good swimmers here, and I can see why.  We start swim lessons tomorrow, and it will be the first time in years that the water won't be cold!  

The Waterway fountains are such a fun place to meet friends and play!  We bring a lunch, sit on the grass, and watch them run through the fountains.  That whole area is one of our favorites, with the restaurants, free concerts at night, fountains, river walk, and more.  At night it's completely lit with white Christmas lights on every tree, and it's so beautiful.  Rick and I love going there on Friday nights, but our whole family enjoys it as well.  

We're also loving the $1 movie at our local movie theater each week. You can't beat $6 for all of us to see a movie in a nice, cool theater!  They are showing them in their largest theater, and it's packed.  We're not the only ones trying to escape the heat!  

 The library reading program is always a favorite, and this year is no different.  Ryan has also really enjoyed the teen program, and they are extremely generous with their activities.  Gaming and pizza nights, chocolate tasting (yes...not fair, I say!), tons of prizes including an iPad mini and gift cards to restaurants, iTunes, and more, are just a few of the things they offer.  He's also enjoyed getting to know people from other schools, and has been a fun summer getaway for him.  

I've loved having my girls be such good readers, and I've been introducing them to some of my favorite books of all time.  SO fun.  The Betsy Tacy books (LOVE these), Strawberry Girl, The Bobbsey Twins, All-of-a-Kind Family, and more.  

Another thing that our library does that we love is Family Game Nights.  Two Mondays a month they host a huge game night, where they set out tons of board and card games Families come together to play, we meet a ton of people, and the kids love it.  Did I mention the food?  The spread is quite a sight...cookies, drinks, candy, chips, Klondike ice cream bars...you name it, they have it.  You should have seen the looks on the kids' faces the first time they saw it...

We've also been doing more date nights, now that Rick's home more, and that's always a favorite of mine. 

So...it's a full and busy summer, and I can't believe we only have 5 weeks before we leave for Utah!  I have SO much to do, it's kind of ridiculous, so I'm trying to start it all now.  We are driving, so with that comes everything you need to keep six kids entertained for two days. 

Summertime...it's a good thing!

{picking blackberries}

One of our most favorite things to do every summer has been to pick blueberries, and we were hoping when we moved to Texas the tradition could continue.  We were very happy when we discovered not only blueberries, but strawberries and blackberries too!

Because of the difference in climate and temperature, the growing and picking seasons are earlier in the year.  We missed strawberries while I was having the baby, but we were just in time for blackberries--which happens to be a huge family favorite, and my personal favorite as well.

We found the cutest farm about 30 minutes away, and couldn't wait to go and check it out.  We weren't disappointed...it was perfect.  We stepped into their barn, and found a mini farmer's market, in addition to everything we would need to pick our own berries.  We were each given our own bucket, and then grabbed a wagon from the side of the barn.


 
We had to walk a little ways to get to the blackberry bushes, and before we got there, we came to a really fun play area with gigantic slides, and a huge tire swing.  We decided to play before...and play after!

 

Jack and Henry were in charge of pulling the wagons...something they took very seriously.



We got to the bushes, parked our wagons, and started picking. To our surprise, the berries were HUGE.  Seriously gigantic. We're talking almost 2 inches in height, and so big that our kids could barely fit them in their mouths, and much different than what you find at the grocery store!

 

We were seriously hot and sweaty.  Poor Henry's little face was totally red, despite the masses of sunscreen we rubbed onto his skin. I was seriously regretting my decision to keep the girls hair down--it was making them so hot, and was totally damp and frizzy.  I learned my lesson on that one!  Despite the hot weather, everyone was having a good time, and intent on picking a lot of berries. There was also some tasting involved...of course.  ☺

Once our buckets were full, we headed back to the barn to get them weighed.

Guess how much we picked???  17 pounds!!!  

We piled into the car with our loot, guzzled about a gallon of water each, and talked about all the things we were going to do with our blackberries.  Jam, cobblers, and pancakes were all on the list.

But what goes best with blackberries???

Ice cream!!!

 

And this little baby?  She was a perfect angel!  I carried in the front pack while we were picking, and she slept the whole time.  ♥

We can't wait to go again!

{riding the trolley}

Rick took this past week off, and the boys were in heaven having their dad home during the day.  We did spend time getting projects done, but we still found time to go and have fun!  

One day we headed to the library to catch the Waterway Trolley--one of our favorite things to do.  It goes in a loop around the Market Street/Waterway area, and makes several stops on its way.  You can get off and on whenever you want to, and it's a super fun way to get somewhere!  

The boys' favorite spot on the trolley is the very back seat, and we head there right away!  They actually sit still on the ride, which says A LOT.  Sometimes we just ride the trolley without getting off, and going on the entire loop, but this time we got off in Market Street to get some lunch at our favorite burger stop.  While Rick and the boys were waiting for our food, Miss Caroline and I headed over to Charming Charlie's to do a little shopping. ☺

After we ate, we hopped back on the trolley and when we got back to the library, we headed inside to get books before going home. I even discovered a new book by one of my favorite authors, which made the day perfection.  What a FUN day--enjoyed by all!

 

  

It's going to be hard to go back to the "real world" tomorrow!

{tidbits}

I really do not know what possessed me to take all five of the littles to the store this afternoon after school. Admittedly, I was very motivated but the cutest pair of wedges that were on sale, AND I had a coupon for which was about to expire.  It only took about...oh...3 seconds before I regretted it.  It's hard when you're 3 years old with a lot of energy to stay by the stroller and NOT TOUCH anything.  Including breakables, which of course are located next to the shoe section.  

I felt a little bit better at checkout, when I had them all lined up against the wall next to us, and the lady told me that they were very well behaved.   Which they are.  They (Henry) just have moments of craziness that take over.  

.....

I got an e-mail from the ballet studio that since the ballet they are performing next month is classical, they have to have ribbons on their shoes.  And *I* had to sew them on.  Ha.  I don't think they know about my sewing abilities, which really only consists of straight lines. After, oh, at least an HOUR, I figured it out.  I hope.

.....

Sunday before last, about 45 minutes before we had to leave for church, we discovered that there was something wrong with the fridge and freezer.  Nothing was cold, and it obviously wasn't cooling or freezing as it should.  We dashed around. filling coolers with blue ice, and hoping to save as much as we could.  Of course it was the morning after I had just done a huge shopping trip, and both were totally stocked--Murphy's Law.  We're covered by the warranty, thank goodness, but it's been 10 days!!! I have to watch the boys like a hawk...it's much easier to get into a cooler on the kitchen floor, then to get into the fridge.  Fun times, I tell ya, fun times.  

.....

The pool is open!!! The kids are DYING to go, and I'm pretty sure we will be there all.day.long on Saturday.  And every single day, all summer long.  ☺

.....

Rick is off this week...hooray!! It's been a long, long five months, and it's so nice to have him here all to ourselves.  On the docket?  Lots of swimming, some blackberry picking, adventures in "duckland"  (the duck pond), and more.

.....

Summer is here.  I simply can't believe it.