Clare's Birthday EGG-stravaganza

Today was Clare's 6th Birthday EGG-Stravaganza!

She was so excited for the festivities to begin!

 We took bunny pictures,

decorated bags,

made "Bunny Bait,"

dyed eggs in Kool-Aid,

had an egg race,

jumped in a sack race,

threw bean bags in an egg toss,

ate birthday cake,

hunted eggs across the street,

and opened presents!

 

Even Graham participated in the birthday festivities!

We had a great day celebrating with Clare.  The party went off without a hitch, and most importantly, Clare had a great time and felt "birthdayed!"

It must be said....many thanks to all my PEEPS for helping me with the party.  Whether it was lending tables, manning a station, or popping popcorn, it was all very appreciated!

Now my sweet girl is officially six!

My 

girl

is

six

today!

SIX!

 

It doesn't seem possible that six years ago today the sweet girl that made me a mother entered this world.  Words fail to express the blessing that she has been to Casey and me.  

Happy Birthday to my sweet Clare!

Before Bedtime

Nothing like a little yoga to get you ready for bed....

In A Tough Spot

Spring Break 2012

Spring Break has come and gone.  We had a great week, balancing lots of fun plans with some good down time at home.  The girls had a slumber party at Deedee's, we played with Brody, lunched with our neighbors, and went to the zoo.  When we were at home,  we spent a lot of time outside.

Graham discovered the feel of grass!

 

The girls wore themselves out on these swings.  Sydney mastered pumping!

  

The girls loved having Graham outside!

 

 If the sun is out at all and we spend any amount of time outside, the girls want to put their bathing suits on and run through the sprinkler.  By the end of the week, I let them go for it!  If only you could hear the squeals of delight.....

Lest you think the whole week was sunshine and roses, we had a few fall-down-on-the-ground-crying fits thrown in!

But more often than not, we had smiles!

It was so nice having the girls home all week with no real schedule ordering us around.  I think everyone got a good break from the normal routine and enjoyed some relaxation.  During the school year, we sometimes get the grumpy leftovers of everyone's mood.  Over spring break, everyone spent most of the time in good spirits, and we really enjoyed hanging out together.  It made me excited for the summer!

Glad everyone is rested up...the next few weeks are busy ones!  Someone's turning six soon!!!

Up, Up, and Away!!!

What a Zoo!

Today was zoo day!  We took the crew to the Fort Worth Zoo for our little "spring break vacation."

The kids were so excited about going "out of town," and Clare even said, "Do they speak English in Fort Worth?"  Perhaps we need to take our kids out of town more often...

We got to the zoo right when it opened, and we set off to see the sights!

The obligatory flamingo picture....

The girls had a great time reading the map.  Clare was always telling us what was coming.

Graham is such a trooper.  He never fusses (except in the church nursery, but that's another post.)  He hung out in the stroller most of the day, and was quite happy.

Despite the increasing crowds as the day went on, we found a nice, quiet place to have our lunch. 

Jane's favorite animal was one of the tropical birds, Clare liked the hippos, Sydney's favorites were the zebras.  I don't have any pictures of those animals, but I do have one of this guy....

 

Combine spring break with half-price admission day and you get a TON of people who want to go to the zoo.  Thankfully, we got there early and saw most of the stuff before it got too packed.

Check out the crowds....
 

When I saw this...

....and this...

I knew we had worn ourselves out! 
It was time to hit the road.  We had a great day.  The weather was nice, the kids enjoyed it, and we are home to sleep in our own beds.  Not a bad vacation, if you ask me!

Brrr......

Shouldn't it be a bit warmer...

for SPRING soccer watching?

Triple Threat

Jane and Sydney have been taking gymnastics for the past several months. Recently, they got bumped up to the next level. Their new class is after school, which means that Clare is now available to partake. Tuesday was the first day for all of them to be together. 

Lucky for them, they were the only three in the class.

This is more of a "real" gymnastics class than the one Jane and Syd were in before.  "Real" gymnastics means that you get to put chalk on your hands before you get on the bar.  Very exciting stuff for these three.

Clare was excited to get in on a new activity.  She enjoyed the class, and I think she will learn a lot.

Sydney has the right amount of fearlessness to make her a good little gymnast.  Case in point....

Jane has learned so much, and she always loves to teach us the correct way to do things at home. She lacks the fearlessness that Sydney has, but she more than makes up for it with her control.  She is very exact in her movements.

Graham got to cheer his sisters on from the sidelines!

Olympics 2024 here we come!!