Clayton's 6th Birthday

6!!!  What, how can we be old enough to have a 6 year old.  My how time flies.  Clayton is finishing his year as a Kindergarten and we can hardly believe it.  It has been absolutely amazing to see the transformation this year.  He really loves school (especially hot lunch).  He is reading and writing, really enjoys math and Spanish!  He is a great big brother too.  Isla lights up when he gets home from school and although they have their moments like any brother and sister, he and Maddie are still great playmates.  He is a super sweet kid.  He can't wait for the summer to play t-ball, swim, golf and play tennis.  He is really into the Box Car Children books right now and we have made it to book 10 already!

Clayton wanted a Lego super hero party.  Note to self, it is not so easy to have a theme that no one makes party supplies for.  Thanks to Etsy and some creativity we pulled it off!  He had some great friends come and we had a super nice day for the party.  It was almost 80 degrees and the kids all had a blast running around outside.  

We love you to the moon and back buddy!

Madeline's 4th Birthday!

Wow, April is a blur every year.  My advise when planning your 2nd or 3rd child don't have them 5 days apart from your first child  :)  I also feel the birthday pressure since my mom did a FANTASTIC job making sure we felt special every year on our big day.  But really, it was a TON of fun. (Also make sure you have fantastic friends who are willing to come to your house for parties 2 weekends in a row)

Madeline decided she wanted a Barbie Baking Party!  We decorated cupcakes, made chocolate chip cookies and played!  I think everyone had fun.  I found a recipe for cookie dough without eggs so a highlight was eating the cookie dough!  :)

I can't begin to imagine that Madeline is 4!  She is so grown up, yet still my baby girl.  She is mommy's little helper now that Clayton is at school everyday.  She takes awesome care of her little sister, playing with her, singing to her and making sure she doesn't get into trouble.  She loves school, and is sharp as a tack.  She knows what she wants and isn't afraid to tell it like it is.  (Hum, wonder where she gets that)  She is also an outdoorsy little girl.  Justin is sure she will be his hunting partner!  She can't wait to get the garden in again this spring.  Her favorite color this year is pink, if you can't tell by the pics below.  :)

Madeline we love you more than you can imagine!!!!

Spring Break

Wow, I can't believe how fast this school year is flying.  Maddie only has about 6-7 weeks left.  We are just finishing the kids Spring break and we sure packed it in.  So here is a quick list of the highlights.

• Awesome trip to Mimi and Papa's including
• Visits with Great Mimi and Great Papa
• Time with Super Aunt Barb!!!  (Clayton reminded me we had a SLUMBER PARTY with her!)
• Pizza, Candy Store and Bakery
• Swimming
• Coffee at the Inn (Ok, so that is always enjoyable for me)
• Ping pong, Air hockey and fun at the owner's club
• Trip to Springfield to go to Ergadoozy with Aunt Shannon and cousins.  Kids loved this place.
• Train Ride and Breakfast with Daddy
• Early Birthday fun with Grandma and Grandpa
• We can't forget our last day of vacation brought WARM WEATHER!!  The kids were outside from 9am to 3pm only coming in for some bathroom breaks.  We are so excited about being outside more.

So, on a side note, Tuesday is April 1 and I am not ready!  April is Birthday extravaganza.  

NO DON'T SNOW!

It hit 60 degrees here yesterday and today.  HOLY COW, I don't think we have seen that temp for over 4 months and it felt sooooooo good.  We got out on walks, jumped in puddles, rode bikes, climbed the still big snow piles from our total of 55+ inches of snow this winter and just ran around.  Maddie rode her big girl Minnie bike for the first time and she loved it.  I think she is already in a bicycle gang.  The only downside was we had to stay on the sidewalk or road.  I think our yard will be a swamp until August.  Oh well, it has been fun and now it will snow maybe 6 inches.  Looking on the bright side, it will melt by the end of the week and I know warm weather is coming!  Bring on the flip flops!

Too many Toys

So we have hit the toy limit, I don't think I will let anymore into the house.  :)  We got out a few old ones for Isla and she had a blast.  I know I will be sad some day when all these toys are gone, but I also know we have ENOUGH!  :)

We are busting out!

It's coming, Spring is coming.  I have watched the Weather App and it is up to 56 for Monday!!!  We are outside people.  I know we will be outside playing, riding bikes, riding scooters, picnics, play dates, oh and so much more once things warm up.  Daddy did a good job on the sidewalks so there was a small clear run from our house to the corner yesterday.  Maddie took advantage to give her new scooter its first ride!!!