my little lovebugs

Thought I'd try to (quickly) put up just a few pics from recently...these all made me laugh hard and smile BIG!

My sweet Riley...can't believe she is almost 5!!

we've been doing A LOT of this...I mean every day before nap, after nap, after dinner, whenever...they want to be in the water! Sunscreen and swim diapers run out fast around here.

but it's all worth it to catch fun moments like these...love their expressions...

Blue Fun Dip anyone!?

You know how it goes...monkey see, monkey do...

(yes, she had a black eye, from hitting her face on the pool slide).

                                     and we're snugglin' on the couch when we're not swimming!

Helloooo SUMMER!!!

Just wanted to let everyone know we're still alive and kickin'!! (I had to think about my Blogger password when I logged back in it's been so long.) I went back to work the last 3 weeks of school and that was an adjustment. Not so much leaving behind my kiddos, but having to wrangle 65 kids back into check. To be kind, I should just say that my kids gave my sub a run for her money, chewed her up, and spit her out like a piece of bubble gum! Not good. I'm pretty sure it wasn't a glorious 7 weeks for all involved at school while I was gone, but we all survived the last 3 weeks and managed to get through it with a good ending.

Summer is here and I feel like I just had a summer vacation! We kicked off summer this weekend in high gear with birthday parties and a visit to the Kemah Boardwalk...LOVE this place!! This is something that should be on everyone's "to do" list at least every few months. We haven't been in years ( since before the kids were born) and I vow not to let that amount of time pass again.

We had a blast with cousins...we had a good dinner, let the kids run and play in the water while we listened to live music, they rode some rides, and then enjoyed Marble Slab ice cream...which I'm pretty sure they jacked up the prices bc of the location. ( Yes, two cones and 2 kid cups were $20 bucks!) Oh well, that is how memories are made and we had FUN!!!

                              Cole wiped out more than a few times...those pavers are slick!

                                                                    Reese and Riley

                                                     Misty and Chuck...(love this picture of ya'll!) Somehow I did not get a picture of Lana and JP...

                                                                This little girl (Blayke) is a ham.....

                               I don't think Misty put Ryann down almost the entire time we were there.

Ryann is ONE month old

Ok, so really she is now 6 weeks old but I made a slideshow of all the pictures we took and figured it was easier to click here rather than to try to post them all to Blogger!

http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=498120222215:1288762281&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharer

We also had Chelsea make her birth announcement and I just LOVE it:

Like father, like son

Yesterday I was so glad I had my camera handy to catch these shots between my boys...such sweet and funny moments between father and son. 

                 

Easter

Last Friday the kids spent dying eggs... it went pretty smoothly I should say. No permanent dying of their hands or my kitchen table. Nothing spilt on the floor. Cute aprons to wear and about 2 dozen eggs to dye:

The Easter Bunny stopped too and made sure to stuff Reese's peanut butter eggs in their baskets...and then Riley said she doesn't like them! (GASP!) What kid (or adult) doesn't like Reese's? I'm sure not everyone does, but that just seems so sinister to me. So I quickly grabbed them and yes, I will eat them. All of them. Ha ha.

(And no, the Easter Bunny didn't forget about Ryann...she got some clothes and a bathing suit for summer. )

They hunted for eggs and more candy at my grandparents house...and had a great time searching all over to fill their baskets.

 My mom helped them count their eggs and candy...some eggs filled with more candy, some filled with "piggy food" (money for their piggy banks)! Cole was helping count too, but missing a few numbers in between when counting. So cute.

 And while the kids were searching outside, this sweet little girl just did this:

Don't you just love the ruffle butt? Ha.

Next year she just might be out there running around with them too...esp. if she walks as early as her big sis and brother did. (tear).

a sneak peek

When Ryann was a week old, we had our favorite new photographer come and take her newborn pics. She did not disappoint, again! You can click here for the link to her blog to see them! Thank you Chelsea for another AMAZING job!!

Galveston

Last Thursday the kids and I packed our bags and headed to the beach with Brian's parents. Thankfully the weather was pretty good- it was overcast and a bit on the windy side, but it still made for a great trip and the kids had a blast!

They played in the water and ran around for a few hours- collected seashells, built sandcastles, and had a picnic lunch. We packed it up early afternoon and thought we'd see if we could take them by to see Jarod, Brian's cousin, who is a firefighter for Galveston.

We were in luck! He happened to be working that day and he gave the kids an awesome experience! They got the VIP tour of Jarod's fire station and they LOVED every minute of it. I'm not sure if they liked the beach or the fire station better!

You should've seen their faces when Jarod came around the corner driving the fire truck! He backed it in and then let them climb inside...

 He let them sit in his seat, right behind the wheel-and push ALL the buttons. (thank you Jarod for temporarily making us me deaf) Good grief, they had a blast...and that siren is LOUD when you're standing right next to it. ( Ryann slept right through all the noise).

 so next they climbed back and sat in the cab

 where he let them try and his gas mask and helmet- they thought this was super fun! It cracks me up how huge his hat was on them but I love that it was his and he let them play with it...

 I can just see the smiles behind the mask!

 and then he showed them how the ladder raises and they pretended to ride on the back of the truck!

He gave us an inside tour of their "bunk quarters" where he explained what happens when the sirens go off and showed the kids the fire pole...and he got his hands on Ryann too! ( sorry for the "surprised" expression, I think I caught him mid sentence. Ha ha.)

Thank you Jarod for making their day- I think we ALL thought it was very cool to get "VIP access"!