Back to the Busy Life

Well Monday the kids started back to school and life got busy again! i mean last week was busy but it was us keeping ourselves busy with fun stuff! Now the routine stuff is back. Not that that is a bad thing we enjoy that! But still last week was nice!
Well since the kids were both in school Monday that gave me a little time to go shopping alone. Well not alone b/c my friend Ashley and son Michael went with me but atleast I had that break from my kiddos. We had to shop for a baby shower for that evening. Well that was pretty much my morning. That afternoon we had a little quiet time and thankfully Austin picked both kids up from school which gave me a little more time to get stuff at home taken care of. I helped Colby with homework then I had to get ready for the baby shower. The shower was for my friend Lindsey and it was at church. It was really nice hanging out with some fun ladies for a couple of hours. Austin was so great to keep the kids and I think they had a fun daddy night! They were all tucked in bed by the time I got home which was awesome!!
Tuesday was scheduled to be a busy day but I decided to skip Bible study. I so hated to do this b/c it was the last one and I missed the one before that but I needed to get to the grocery store and with having lifegroup tonight and being out so much yesterday I felt like I needed some time at home. Tonight I think will be our last lifegroup for a few weeks so it will be nice to kinda get a break there! We ended up skipping lifegroup which I hated to do but Colby had a rough day at school. He came home with a note saying he just wouldn't do part of his phonics test even though they gave him like 3 opportunities. I got really stressed out and overwhelmed. We have struggled with phonics all year. Mid-year I felt like we had a break through and he kept a B average in that but he's struggling again. I even helped him during spring break and he seemed to get it! I think its more of an attitude like I don't want to do it right now and not a knowledge thing. I don't think right now he understands tests/grades and the consequences. Right now he has 3 Cs I am hoping he can pull those up but he's only got 1 more week really of school to get grades up! I am thinking about getting a tutor this summer or I might just work with him myself. My goal is to do a little homeschool each day with him.
Wednesday everyone goes back to school and I have a VBS meeting during that time so again I will be gone all morning. Thankfully we are finished Wed night church until after VBS so it will be nice to have a quiet night at home with the kids.
Thursday is austin's b-day so Lindsay and I are going to go bake a cake for him that morning. I am not sure what we will do the rest of the day. We had talked about going out to eat but I am not sure since we have lifegroup and all this other stuff happening I might try to talk him into grilling here...but I dunno we will see!
Friday is a free day! So yes the end of April start of May is starting out very busy! I will post about all the other days later!

Spring Break

We have had an awesome spring break here! I have really enjoyed having the kids around. This is probably the most fun on spring break we have ever had! The year Colby was 2 I was pregnant and very nauseous, the next year we all had the flu, and last year we were all well and had fun but Lindsay was still a little young to do a lot of getting out! Anyway this year has been perfect! We have stayed very busy since the kids got out of school!
Friday was the aquarium and the Good Friday service at church.
Saturday we had breakfast at McDonald's and went to the park and also dyed Easter eggs.
Sunday was Easter so church and then dinner at my parents.
Monday was the zoo!
All that I have blogged about so I will pick up with Tuesday!
On Tuesday Austin decided to take Colby out for a boys day! Really we were all going to have a family day and do a Zephyr game that day but I ended up volunteering to babysit one of Lindsay's school friends that day. I thought it would be fun for the boys to get out and do something though! They rarely get to hang out except at home or on little errands. From all I hear they had a blast! They rode the Double Decker buses and toured some of the French Quarter. I know this had to be so exciting for Colby! They ended their trip with lunch at Dat Dog. Lindsay and I also had fun. Her little friend Stella is precious! They played so well together and were soo good! I am glad she got to have a friend over all for herself. This was her very first playdate like that! That afternoon the kids enjoyed playing outside in their swimsuits while Austin washed the van!
Wednesday I had to grocery shop...I always hate doing stuff like that when both kids are home but it has to be done. Fortunately both kids are usually very good in the grocery store. I also try to look at it as great learning experience. After the grocery store and putting everything away we left for lunch at Chickfila. We were meeting Ashley and Michael there to discuss VBS. I knew it would be hard with 3 littles but we made it work! Plus it was a rare treat for my kiddos to go out for lunch mid-week like that! Now that church has wrapped up we had a pretty quite afternoon!
Thursday I had a hair appointment so the littles spent the morning at my parent's. It was nice to get away for me time and do that! Plus I think the kids enjoyed seeing my parents and playing over there! I picked Lindsay up after lunch and brought her home to nap! It was nice having a quiet day with her. I missed Colby but again it was nice to just have some quiet time! We had a quiet afternoon/evening and worked on potty training! She had a success on the potty as well =). Too bad I haven't worked with her since!
Friday morning we got up early and were going to go pick up Colby. I decided to make a stop by PJ's on our way to get him. This is Lindsay's fav treat and mine too! We normally got once or twice during the school week but since the kids have been out I haven't had it at all! I figured it was time! I really enjoy my coffee mornings with my girl. Its something we started when she was an infant and I hope to always keep the tradition! It'll be fun as she really learns to talk more and we can discuss life! So afterwards we left to pick up Colby. We got him and headed to the park. Thoughts crossed my mind for another big field trip day but we've been so busy I wasn't really feeling another across the river trip. We went to a local park and the kids had a good time. I am always glad to let them play for free outside. I hope this entertains them for a long, long time! After we left the park it was still kinda early so we stopped by Randall and Elizabeth's house. It had been FOREVER since we had done that so it was fun to just stop and chat for a few min. I think the kids had fun as well. The rest of the day was low key and just resting!
Saturday we were up really early and got going b/c we were babysitting our little friend Michael today. He came over about 8:45 and stayed until about 11. It was a fun, but busy morning. I had totally forgotton what 1 year old boys were like! He was a lot busier then my 2 kids and I had to constantly watch him. We did spend a lot of time outside which was nice though! I think the kids enjoyed being the "babysitters" especially Colby. Not sure what we will do this afternoon/tonight...probably play outside and maybe go for icecream or snoballs tonight...nothing major! I can't believe tomorrow is our last day of spring break though! I am a little ready for them to go back to school but I have also really enjoyed having them at home! We have had a great week and got to do a lot! For that I am thankful!

ZOO Day!

This week with the kids being out of school I wanted to make sure we do some fun stuff! Monday with Austin being off we figured it would be a nice day to go to the Zoo. We haven't done that in awhile as a family. We also invited a friend and his daughter to go along with us. I think the kids really had fun. It was a very low key trip. I did tried to guide us to do things we don't normally see but other then that we kinda went at the kid's pace. We started the trip with going to see the leopards and bears. We then to the playground to let the kids run and stretch their legs for a bit before it got super crowded. We then went to see the monkey exhibits. Afterwards the kids were begging to go to Monkey Hill. We saw a few animals along the way as well. Colby and Lindsay had a blast running around on Monkey Hill. Our little friend Esther was really too little to join in this fun! We then set off to see the giraffes and then jaguar jungle. That is a part of the zoo we never do! It was nice to see different stuff on this trip! Colby really seemed to have a good time and Lindsay as well. We ended our trip with rides on the carousel but as usual Lindsay freaked out!
After the zoo we stopped at McAlister's and had lunch and our friends also joined us. It was a little crazy with the 3 littles but we had fun! So glad we got to go do this while the kids were out of school and that we had gorgeous weather for them to enjoy!

Easter 2014

Well this weekend has been wonderful! I feel so blessed by the entire weekend! So Saturday it was just the kiddos and I again. I chose to do something with them Saturday morning that I don't ever do...we woke up that morning and got dressed and went to breakfast at McDonald's. I know it doesn't sound like much but we rarely ever eat breakfast out so that is truly a treat! The kids were so excited about their pancakes and the playground. Afterwards the weather was so awesome that we went to the park and played for about an hour. We had the whole place to ourselves but the kids played really well together. I know I say it often but I am loving their ages right now! Its so easy to get out and about with them and they can play together so well! This time last year I know I was still mostly trying to chase Lindsay all over playgrounds to make sure she didn't fall but now I can pretty much turn her loose! After the park we came home to enjoy a pretty low key day. I tried to work around the house and they played. It was nice to not have to go anywhere that night. We did our traditional dying Easter Eggs.
Sunday...well Easter morning is always quite busy with littles. Colby was up early he was excited to see what the Easter bunny brought him. We had to drag poor Lindsay out of bed. We all got ready for church. Church was wonderful. Well I worked with the preschoolers and we had 11! It was crazy busy but not actually too stressful b/c all the kids were fairly well behaved! I am really enjoying having Lindsay as part of my class. She is doing soo well! She is one of the younger ones but actually behaves like some of the older ones so that's great! After church they had Egg decorating. This was the first year they had anything like this but it turned out to be really neat! The kids loved making their own creations. After church we came home b/c we decided to do Easter a little different this year. Rather then everyone going to my parent's after church which is usually not until 1 we decided to move our get together to 4 instead. I really liked this better. It gave us time to come home from church and let the kids relax and play and Lindsay was able to take a nap. I felt like going over there at 4 we were all fresh and well rested! It made for a much more peaceful holiday gathering. Plus this year it was just us, my parents, Randall, and Elizabeth, and her mom. Small sometimes is better as well especially with young kids. So we ate soon after arriving. We had only had a small lunch so everyone was hungry by that time. It was nice to visit with everyone and enjoy some yummy food.  After dinner we took the kids outside to hunt Easter Eggs. I think everyone had a good time and we were blessed with such great weather. Afterwards we came in for cake and visited a little while longer before heading home! It was a really fun day! I honestly think one of the best Easters yet!

Good Friday

So today is the official start of spring break around here! I have been so ready and excited for this to come! I feel like we have all been in need of a break and a slow down! We finally got here!
Anyway since today was the kid's first day off school I knew something fun was in order! We chose to do the aquarium. We picked this b/c 1) It had been awhile since we had been and 2) It was cloudy and overcast when we left so I wasn't sure it would be a good zoo day. I think it was my first time to bring both kids by myself. They are at great ages right now though to get out and do stuff! They were both very obedient and cooperative. I was a little concerned when we got there b/c there was a HUGE line outside the door but I guess it was partly b/c it was just opening. I knew it would be a little more crowded then we were used to though b/c of it being a holiday. It worked out ok though ...we went the opposite way through so most of the exhibits we enjoyed were really quiet. They both really got into this time. Colby was more interested in it then he usually is. It was fun to even "teach" him a few things as well. We were able to take our time and I mostly just followed the kids lead. We still finished up in about 45 min though. This was mostly due to the fact though that the exhibits towards the end were SO crowded we just breezed past. We did enjoy having a snack in front of the large aquarium with all the sharks. I think the kids enjoyed that as well. We even stopped outside and enjoyed the sights on the river for about 15 min. Again nice just to stop and really appreciate our great city!
That afternoon we rested up for the Good Friday service that evening. This was the 3rd Good Friday service we have attended at Calvary I think. This year they started with an interactive walk through of the Easter story. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but it turned out it was really really good! We got there at 6 and they first let you go in this room with refreshments and chairs. It was a nice to just visit and enjoy a little snack. You then lined up in a group and took the tour. The actors/actresses did such a good job! It took you through the entire Easter story from Palm Sunday through Jesus rising from the dead. A lot of hard work went into it. I think the kids enjoyed it although a few scenes I think were almost too much for them. Not graphic just the actors really got into their part and it ws a little loud and maybe intense for a 2 and 5 year old. They did well though. Afterwards we had some time to let them just run around and enjoy the pretty weather outside before going into church. They offered childcare from kinder down but Colby wanted to go into big church so since he stayed with us we decided to let Lindsay go with us as well. Since she's been having such a hard time seperating from me I hated to send her in there alone plus with their probably being a lot of kids and she has had a small cold anyway. Well the kids did excellent in the service. It started at 7 and didn't end until about 8:45 but they both hung in their really well. Colby was tired though and got very upset/emotional during the taking of the Lord's Supper. We had explained it a little to him but I guess he still thought he might get to have a "snack" as he called it. He did a lot of crying/whining but all in all I think for 2 kids who don't sit in big church often they did really well! It was a late night so we came in and rushed them off to bed!

Easter Parties

So this week my week is full of Easter parties and events! With having 2 littles in schools and 2 different schools I get to hang out at their little parties twice!
Anyway Lindsay had her first school Easter Party today! It was so adorable! I am really so thankful I get to go to these things! I have so many fond memories of Colby at his! This has always been one of my favorite parties to help out at. Although this year I didn't sign up for this party and didn't even make my little Easter Egg cookies like I usually do! Life has just been SO busy and I didn't have time =(. Hopefully I can do that for them again next year!
So Lindsay's party started at 10. They had an Egg Hunt first during their regular outdoor playtime. She loved this and knew right away what to do! She gathered up a lot of eggs! After all the eggs were found they were able to just play outside. The weather has been gorgeous! Its been cool but pretty nonetheless! It was fun watching her play and interact with her little friends! Her friends Grace and Stella are just precious! After playground time they went in for a craft and snack. I couldn't believe how easy going and well behaved all the kids are. I think they all really enjoyed snack time! I think Lindsay ate every single thing on her plate! She didn't eat much breakfast though so I wasn't surprised. After that they just let the kids enjoy and play together in 1 room. Lindsay had a blast during this time! I even asked if she was ready to go a couple times and she quickly answered NO! It was fun to just sit back though and watch her play. It was also nice to visit and interact with her teachers. I feel like we have been so blessed the last 4 years with teachers!
Today Colby had his Easter Party. They don't really invite parents to their parties but I volunteered to come up and do the Resurrection Eggs with his class. He's been asking me to come up and read to his class so I figured this was a good opportunity. I really enjoyed interacting and hanging out with his class. It was very short and sweet but I am glad I got to go see him for a little while!
Now Spring Break is here and I am really excited about having the kids at home and being on a slower schedule. We also have a lot of fun activities planned but resting is also on that list!

Easter Egg Hunt Party

So Colby was invited to an Easter Egg Hunt party today. I honestly had it all wrong though I thought this was a party for the kid's birthday. I even bought a present! Anyway it was at a local park and Colby has been so excited about going. The invitation said 12-3:30 which I thought was a really long time so I knew we couldn't make the whole event. It just so happened that today Austin was working and my mom had something at her church so I had to bring Lindsay with me. Had I had a babysitter it would have been a different experience. With Colby I could have sat down and visited but with Lindsay I had to actively follow her around and watch her.
Anyway so we first got there and I realized that it was not the kid's birthday so I felt a little silly. Oh well atleast we only spent about 10 dollars total on the gift! The kids went right to playing. At first I felt a little awkard because I really didn't know anyone there. Finally his teacher and her daughter arrived so I spent sometime talking with her. It was really hard to keep up with both kids though and visit. I wasn't too worried about Colby I just had to glance up every now and then and check on him but with Lindsay I felt like I had to actively chase her around. She is fine climbing most things but there were SO many kids out there I was just afraid someone would knock her down. She had a blast though! I was really shocked at how well she did for the length of time. They had pizza and chips so my kids just had a bag of chips and a drink. Luckily I had fed them a little snack of crackers and cheese and fruit before we left b/c I was worried it would be pizza. They seemed to both have fun. I was glad Colby got to see and interact with his school friends outside of school. His friend Max was even there which was so random! I got to visit with a few parents which was cool too. Around 1:30 or so though Lindsay somehow got knocked down or something made her cry...I could tell she was getting really sleepy and with no Easter Eggs in sight we decided to go ahead and leave. I felt soo bad for poor Colby. I hated to dissapoint him but even he was getting bored and there were just so many kids it was getting stressful. I tried to make up for it by picking up chickfila nuggets and a chocolate milkshake =)
Austin got in early enough that evening to let the kids play outside some which was great! Sunday he was off and we had a nice morning at church. That afternoon we all spent time outside which was lovely! We don't get to do that often so the kids had a blast! We did water balloons, sprinklers, and they played on their swing set! It was a great way to close out the weekend!

VBS and Friends

This week has been a blur! We have been very busy each day...between errands, church stuff and school stuff I am running on empty! Its been a wonderful spring full of great activities! I love all of them but I am kinda glad we will have some relief from all this activity soon!
I have also been asked to co-direct preschool VBS. We had our first meeting on Thursday. I am excited to be working with Ashley. We have become good friends but I am sad that they will be moving this summer! I am thankful we get to partner together on this one last thing before she leaves! We met Thursday in our activity room at church. Reason because we both had our littles with us! The kids had fun running around and playing while we met. The only bad thing was it took Lindsay a little while to warm up. That morning before our meeting she and I also had one of our little coffee dates at PJ's as well. I love doing this with her! I hope its a tradition that continues as she grows up! She loves a good PJ's coffee and banana bread ;)
Friday she and I had another playdate with Ashley and her son Michael. We went to the park. It was nice to get out and enjoy some outdoor air. It had been awhile since we have been able to do this. The last few Fridays have been rainy and stormy so I knew it would be good for Lindsay and I to get some sun and fresh air! I feel bad b/c our weeks are so busy right now she and I don't get to go on many fun field trips! We had a great time. We were out there for about an hour and a half.
The afternoon we rested other then getting Colby from school then we had pizza and rested some more. I really try not to plan much on Fridays b/c we are all so DONE by the weeks end its nice just to kick back and be lazy! I will update more later on the rest of our weekend!

Growing Pains

So my sweet precious children have both experienced some growing pains in the last week. I thought I would record it here just so I could look back and see how life was when they were 2 and 5.
Colby is winding down his very first year of real school. Kindergarten has really taught him so much. He's grown up so much this year! He has struggled in phonics and reading. I know part of this is due to the fact that he was just introduced to these concepts this year and also that he is young for his age. We were so proud of him the 2nd quarter when he made Beta Honor Roll. He has really worked hard this year. Well last Wednesday he came home with a note saying he basically shut down while they were doing their phonics class work. He gets frustrated I think when he doesn't quite understand something and decides to give up. His teachers have really worked with him this year. I know at this point of the year too he is tired and in need of a break. Anyway apparently it took him quite awhile to complete his work but he finally did. Well that evening we had a talk and we stayed home from church. I explained that Wednesday night church is a privaledge and if our school work suffers we will quit going. I think he understood I meant it. I wasn't mad and I told him he wasn't in trouble but I believe school is important and going to bed early and having proper rest contributes. We went over his sheet which he hated but I feel like it was the best decision. Plus we all needed some downtime anyway! This week they are doing Terra Nova Testing. I pray he is being able to stay focused during that and not getting frustrated easily.
Lindsay is also experiencing her own set of growing pains. well she has always been my sensitive child and the one that has cried more about being left places. I mean Colby went through seperation axiety but not nearly as fierce as my sweet girl. She really seemed to grow out of this though around her 2nd birthday and seemed so confident about going to church and school. I know she loves both! Well in the last month she has had that anxiety come back. She is crying/screaming when I leave her anywhere! Its not just a few tears ...her teachers have told me it lasts anywhere from5-20 min. It really hurts my momma heart and it makes mornings stressful when I have to leave her. I know right now the best thing I can do though is keep leaving her places so that she will get over it. It just sometimes makes me not even want to go through the trouble. But she has to learn to trust other adults. So anyway that's where we are right now!
I think we are also in spring over load. Between church and school lately we are just always so busy and its starting to take a toll. We have taken a few nights off lately from church activities to regain our sanity. I love all the stuff we are involved in but we are in def need of downtime! Thankfully most of our "spring" activities are winding down this month so I feel like May maybe will be a little more relaxing!

Strawberry Patch Field Trip

Today Colby had his 1st kindergarten field trip! It was actually his first field trip since he was 3! He's been so excited about it! They went to Mrs. Heather's Strawberry Patch in Albany, LA. We have always talked about going but never have so I was glad to make the trip over there! We wanted to make it a family thing so Austin took off and we brought Lindsay. We felt like she would really enjoy it as well. We won't always take her on his trips but I figured this would be a fun one to do all together. The kids took a bus and we just followed them in the van. Austin's parents also met us there which was fun! They haven't seen the kids in awhile. It actually really helped having 4 adults there!
So when we first go there we went straight to picking strawberries. Lindsay LOVED this! Colby liked it ok at first but his interest didn't last long b/c he was ready to go play! We picked half a flat and then I took the kids over to the animals and play area. There was tons for them to do! Lindsay mostly just wanted to swing. Colby ran around and did basically everything. It was easy dealing with him. I had to follow Lindsay around though. She warmed up to some of the playground things you could climb on and played there for quite awhile. I really didn't get to visit with many of the other moms but maybe a few really briefly b/c it was so spread out and all the kids just moved around so much! Around 11:30 we decided to stop and take a break to eat lunch. It was nice to sit and relax for a bit. Around this time Lindsay acted really tired and I wondered how she would make it through 2 more hours but she ended up hanging in there. She went back to the swings for quite awhile. I left her with mawmaw and pawpaw for awhile so I could hang out with Austin and Colby. By about 12:30 I was worn out and ready to go. I found a table in the shade with his parents. Lindsay sat there and mostly ate strawberries. Colby also joined in for awhile. Pawpaw walked the kids around a little bit more after that but then thankfully at 1:15 they started loading the kids on the bus! It was a great field trip though! On the drive home Lindsay ofcourse sacked out! We followed the bus back to the school then checked Colby out early. I hope we can go back to this place maybe even this season. We had SO much fun and the strawberries were so yummy! The kids also really enjoyed themselves! It was a fun and great day!