Splash Day

This week is Shelby's last week of preschool!  I can't believe the school year went by so fast!  This year took some adjusting for both of us, but I have had a blast getting to watch her become her own little person away from me.  I feel so fortunate to be able to have spent these years at home with her!!!  Even thinking about her going everyday next year, even if it is only half a day, makes me want to cry so I will spend the summer in denial.  In celebration of summer, Shelby had a couple splash days at school.  This basically meant she got to wear her swimsuit to school and run around in sprinklers all day.  She had a blast, and Abby and Macey were SO jealous!!!  The big girls and I did enjoy our alone time together though.  It's tough having a younger sibling sometimes, especially one that is as strong willed as Shelby!  Here are a couple pictures of Shelby before her splash day, and one of her in front of the cupcakes I made for her class.  She was so proud of them because they were wheat and dairy free which meant she could actullay eat them! 

Seven

My sweet little Macey turned seven last Saturday!  Staying true to the sweet, undemanding disposition God has blessed her with, she did it with a bright smile on her face and a thankful, happy heart.  Bret and I both wanted to do something special on her birthday, but coming up with that something proved to be a little difficult!   All I knew was that she really wanted a butterfly cake because she loves butterflys.  It wasn't until a week before her birthday that I came up with an idea, so the planning was all a little rushed!  If you know me, then you know I plan for these things months in advance.  I don't like doing the last minute thing.  However, I think her birthday ended up being a great sucess (even if I did forget to wrap her presents until right before she opened them).  We threw her a party at our house, and I planned the theme around a favorite poem of ours called "The Butterfly's Ball and Grasshopper's Feast."  It's really cute.  If you have not read it, you should google it.   I love poetry, and I am trying to teach my girls to love it too!  The poem worked great because it incorporated both boys (grasshoppers and bugs) and girls (fairys and butterflys).  The party was out on our back porch.  Thanks to my hard working hubby and weeks of work, we got our backyard landscaped and fixed up just in time!    My sister Lizzy helped me plan the whole thing, including helping me make a butterfly shaped cake! The kids painted and decorated flower pots and once they were dry, planted flowers in them. We were lucky enough to find (in the Target $ section no less) kid size potting shovels, kid size butterfly nets, pencils with bugs and butterflys on them, and even slime with a grasshopper in the middle.  The party favors were put inside the butterfly net, and Macey handed each of her friends one after she opend their presents.  They were a big hit!  Everyone seemed to really enjoy planting flowers and being outside.  The weather couldn't have been any better, and Macey went to bed saying it was the best birthday of her life.  What could be better than that? 

The invitation

I put the poem on one side and the party info on the other.

Cousin Shilo and Shawnee

Macey's BFF Kadin (Daddy's not too happy that he is a boy!)

Macey just adores her Uncle Davie!

My beautiful Co-Host.

Aunt Jenny even got to be here!

Macey and her Nani

 Time to open presents!

 Her sisters both loved watching her open the presents from them!

Abby and Kelly are never far apart!

Dad and cousin Stormie making the same serious face.

Macey stared right at Bret the entire time we sang Happy Birthday to her.  This is the sweet look she was giving him.  There is something really special about the way little girls adore their daddies!

Another one of those days!

Abby and Macey had their last day of school on Wednesday.  I was so excited about them finally being out for summer break, and I am always happiest when by girls are at home with me.  However, our first two days of summer have not gone as I expected.  I don't know what has come over my children, but it is a little like watching three male dogs run around the house marking their territory.  Nothing in our house has changed, but suddenly the girls all feel the need to keep their toys separate from their sisters.  This isn't possible when almost all the toys are in the very same toy room!  They also think it's necesasry to claim space in the house.  Abby found a corner of the living room she doesn't want her sisters near because it's where she likes to read.  Shelby doesn't want the older girls upstairs because that's where her bedroom is.  I could go on and on!  They have had one argument/shoving match after another over dolls, books, Barbies and space...you get the picture.  Why they are doing this is beyone me, I just hope it stops soon!  Here's hoping tomorrow is a better day!

Today, Abby won the prize of most challenging.  By the end of the day, I was sitting in a chair crying, certain that she didn't love me at all!  However, this evening, I found an apology note in the kitchen.  Not only was this proof that she loved me, it was also proof that her little heart is in the right place because she was convicted and knew she needed to aplogize.  I felt much better after reading it, and I also couldn't help but laugh out loud at what she wrote!  It was so sweet!!!!!

  Sorry Mommy that I was bad.  Please forgive me.  I wish that we could lay together forever.  In green meadows. With blue lambs.  While eating cottin candy.  Love, Abby

                                

Ever have an afternoon like this?

This is Shelby after being forced to wake up from a late afternoon nap. She got very upset when her Nutrigrain bar broke in half and cried herself back to sleep at the table. What am I gonna do with this girl!!!!

My almost seven year old!

Macey's birthday isn't until the 22nd, but she celebrated her birthday at school today since this is the last full week of school.  I took McDonalds happy meals and cupcakes for Macey's whole class at lunch, and had a great time having lunch with two of my best gals (Abby's lunch period is only 10 min after Macey's).

As we were leaving this morning for school, I tripped while trying to slip my shoes on.  Of course, I had the tray of cupcakes in my hand!  All I knew was that there was no time to make more so no matter what, I couldn't let the tray flip.  I fell flat on my face, but I somehow managed to keep the cupcakes from flipping over.  They did need a little touching up, but at least they weren't ruined!  I guess when I fell, I was saying something about the cupcakes because the first thing out of Macey's mouth was "I don't care about the cupcakes, are you ok?"  If she only knew how good she made me feel right there!  What a sweetie she is.

These last two I had to take with my iPhone because my camera battery went dead.

Just like her momma, and nothing like her daddy :), Macey does not like a lot of attention!  She almost died when the entire cafeteria decided to sing Happy Birthday to her.

Happy Mother's Day

Our sweet Huckie Boy

Huck was exhausted after a long afternoon of keeping a sick six year old company and  picking his other two girls up from school.  He takes his job very seriously!