J3 Sunday Shenanigans: May 2013

Sunday, May 26, 2013

May 26, 2013

Annie is now old enough for gymnastics. She had her first class last Monday. She took to it like a fish to water. She's been watching Lily for so long now, she knew exactly what to do. And she was so happy that it was finally her turn that she stayed right by the coach and did everything she was told to do. It was fun as a parent to see her have so much joy. She is going to have a fun summer in her class.

We are still very busy princesses in this household. The girls had a tea party for lunch complete with finger sandwiches, apple slices, and chicken noodle soup.

The weather is warming up. Tommy really likes to be outside - as long as the sun is not shining on his face. Lily loves to dance outside and pick flowers in the warm afternoons while Annie naps. And we broke out the bike trailer for our first ride of the season!

We had Lily's friend Claire over for a playdate. It was cool and rainy that day so we had to create our own fun indoors. I made a batch of chocolate cut out cookies and some frosting and the girls went to work pretending to be a cookie factory. They frosted and decorated over 40 cookies. It took nearly two hours and they had a total blast. My kitchen and dining room were a disaster, but it was worth it.

Lily got her first taste of what it's like to perform on a big stage this week. She was super excited to have a real performance. She's the one with her arms crossed like an X in the group picture and she is the 4th in from the right in the dancing picture.

The real fun of the night was watching the girls dance in the aisle during the other group numbers. The recital was so fun and energetic - and family friendly. Lots of little dancers were dancing along to the groups on stage. Annie was definitely bitten by the jitterbug! She couldn't stop moving.

We're so proud of both of our tiny dancers - and we're happy Grammy and Grampy could make it over to see the performance.

We tilled and planted the garden this week - here's hoping we have more success this year than we did last year. Gardening in our area is tricky due to the extreme temps and shorter growing season.

Grampy and Grampy only stayed with us for one night - to see the recital and to decorate family graves for Memorial Day. It was a short visit, but they helped us a lot with the house, the garden, and the kids.

That's all for this week. Tommy is doing great. The girls are growing way too fast. And Mommy is struggling to maintain her sanity with three busy children. But we love each other and we're so thankful to be a family!

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Beautiful Life

There's nothing like the birth of a baby to open your eyes to the beauty and fragility of life. My friend Katie Wells is a photographer in the Idaho Falls area. She captured the little ones that make our life beautiful just before Tommy turned one month old. These are my favorites from the shoot.

For more information about Katie Wells Photography visit her blog at: kwellsphotography.blogspot.com/‎ or her website at: http://katiewellsphotography.com/

May 19, 2013

We had a great drive to Boise. Tommy slept for most of his first road trip - much to the relief of Mommy and Daddy.

The girls enjoyed their first time playing Twister with Uncle Brady.

We checked on our rental property in Meridian and learned that part of our fence was falling over. Papa, Grampy, Uncle Brady and Daddy spent half of Saturday removing the old posts, installing new ones and putting everything back together. Jeremy and I were thankful for the extra help.

It was such a gorgeous day, we decided to spend the afternoon at the zoo. Lily loved the interactive Prairie Dog exhibit. You've got to enlarge this photo to appreciate their expressions.

Annie loved feeding the goats and drinking juice from a pink dinosaur bottle.

Tommy did not love wearing a sun hat!

One last picture with Grammy and Grampy before going home.

Before beginning the long drive home, we stopped to visit some old friends. It was great to play with their buddy Sarah again. Lily and Annie especially enjoyed this four wheeler and a large swing attached to one of the trees in the yard. Lily cried when it was time to go. We miss Sarah and her parents a lot.

Jeremy is most excited about his work on the basement bedrooms this week. Papa hung most of the drywall back in February and Jeremy has been plastering and sanding like crazy to finish off the walls. Our friend Loren Jephson came over to help with texturing the walls and ceilings. The pictures don't do it justice. It really looks great. We plan on painting soon. There is still a lot to do, but we're making progress!

May 19, 2013 - really May 12, 2013

I didn't do a post last week since we were with all the grandparents who I write this blog for. I figured I could give myself a week off for Mothers' Day and let the grandmas enjoy their grandchildren in person rather than through a blog post.

The highlight of last week was blessing Tommy. We traveled to Meridian and Puna, Papa, and Brady joined us for a weekend stay at Grammy and Grampy's house. The girls were in Heaven having all the attention of their grandparents and we got a surprise visit from some cousins too. Jake, Diana, and their children drove up from Utah to spend part of the weekend with all of us.

Here are some of the photos from Mother's Day: