Tuesday, May 31, 2016

MAY it always be so good

Monthly Recap coming...
This month I decided I better start some detox!  Not all that different from normal living but extra supplements and cutting out all sugar.  Good thing these smoothies are so good!  I had to get a huge glass straw so I could just go strait to the source!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My little Shiloh and her love for worms.  She has such a nurturing heart!  She made a bed of leaves for this one and then gave it a ride with her on her bike.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Art museum time again!  This month with a glass theme!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Somebody got a new hat and he couldn't be any more excited to be like his daddy!
Watch out there ladies!
Ezra is so reserved with almost everyone but I'm so thankful to get to see his sweet personality!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
These buddies!  Shiloh comforting Ezra during a "scary" part in veggies tales!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Co-op day and Shiloh's directive activity of choice....water color paintings!
Another time she gave the cousins rides in the truck...wanting to find a way for them to have fun!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There have been a  couple of mornings lately we have had daddy home for breakfast.  This is a rarity these days but a treasure when it happens!
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wonder what he will be like when he gets even older.  Baseball in the future?  My dad would hope so!
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We had very special visitors bearing awesome books!
My aunt Maggie and uncle Walter were visiting on their way up north.  It's been a few years that we have gotten to see them so it was extra sweet visit.
The girls were drawn to seeing all the pictures that Walter had to show.  My only regret is that I didn't get a picture with my aunt, too!  So thankful that the next time we are together won't be so far away!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rainbow fish painting with celery at the library this time around.
It was our last one for the school year and it did not disappoint.
Later that night the kids dug into their new books.  Zoe couldn't be any more proud that she read her new book herself, all 61 page of Put Me In the Zoo.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Our local library had reading time in PJs and Zoe was excited to join us this time.  They wanted more stories and just continued to sit and wait when it was all over.  We have come such a long way over this past year!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Zoe's good friend from school had a fun party that the whole family was able to go!
Complete with amazing face painting!
Happy Birthday sweet Jastaria!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Zoe is often at school when I workout but if she happens to be home she often joins me, even if it is in her PJs!  This time she wanted a sweat band too.  We often end the workouts with plank drags down the hallway.  These are no joke (I couldn't even make it the whole way in the beginning without stopping).  She is a good competitive sport, though, and takes it like a champ.  I wonder how much longer it will be before she is faster then me!  This was her "high" for the day when we gave reports at dinner.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So thankful that Ezra is a pretty obedient child and not to much of a climber.  I have heard crazy stories of how there can be much trouble to get into at this age.  However, one day I walked into to see this...oh little Ez!  Your dad does not want you playing with his antique coffee grinder!
Alright summer, I'm not sure if we are ready for ya but ready or not!

Saturday, May 28, 2016

Anniversary - Swamp Style

So life is a bit crazy right now (you know that kind of crazy that is just not appropriate to share on this platform).  However I wanted to do SOMETHING to celebrate the 11th anniversary with my man.  We had a blast last year on our getaway trip, and as much as I wanted to do something like that again, I settled for a trip across town. 
The Congaree Swamp has free canoe tours on the river.  The catch...you have to sign up weeks in advance (or at least I did) in hopes that the day would work out for us to go.  Thankfully it did!  It was a larger group, so Beach luckily volunteered us to ride in the kayaks, since there were not enough canoes to go around.
We slipped in a little mud but made it into the river, which was pretty low.  Thankfully the area is so shaded that it was, surprisingly, not hot and there were not any mosquitoes either!  Score!
The area was so beautiful and this was such a fabulous way to check it out, feeling like we were truly in nature. 
Our guide was very knowledgeable about the area.  You could tell that he really enjoyed his job... who wouldn't!
The one downside was that the water was so low that we couldn't explore as much as we would have liked.  It took a little more skill in getting through the lower areas, at least for those in the canoes. 
I'm so glad we got a chance for this fun adventure and am so excited for the next one!
This whole marriage thing is no joke!  Throw in a few kids and your own business and it is beyond what I can handle.  Thankful that we have the Lord to depend on together.  Our marriage is worth fighting for, Beach is worth fighting for, and I'm just depending on the Lord to help me to fight well! Thank you Beach for sticking by my messed up side, may our love continue to deepen as we continue on this journey together!

Friday, May 27, 2016

Field Day Fun

I have fond memories of field day as a child and was excited when I was able to attend Zoe's first.  They had some interesting challenges...
As well as some of the traditional favorites...
And it was pretty exciting when the girls beat the boys. (It was also fun when I got to join in the adult only pull - guess who won ;-)
This can be a little dangerous, too, when at one point most of the kids took a tumble.
  The snowcone break was a welcome treat (although Zo was probably the only one without flavoring).
Then they had some free time to play, line dance... 
and eat some watermelon.
It was, also, the time when Zoe rather run around with these two cuties then play with her momma.  So I found another sweet girl to play with.  How did she get old enough for that to happen?
Then it was off to some more planned actives. 
Including this one with wet muddy sponges.  Which Zoe was then beyond ready to change after.
The three legged race = Zoe was very proud how they worked as a team and did not fall down!
The last event was a fun way to have the kids race, which Zoe is very into right now, while putting a book in the bag at the end.
Such a blast of a day, thanks to it being well organized, many helpers and great weather.  So glad all the kids seem to have a great time, too!