Memorial Day Weekend!

This Memorial Day weekend Mike's family came for a little visit! The kids loved this and had a great time seeing them! They all played very well together with Hailey! Channing was chasing her around and giving her hugs. Olivia had a fun time bowling with Hailey on the Wii! Mike made some really good Brats and Chicken on the Grill and we all made a trip to Sam's club! It was a great visit that ended too soon! It's hard to be away from family. I wish all of our families could live really close together.

Mike's dad introduced us to some really good sorbet pops and the kids LOVE them! We do too! Hailey was such a sweet heart giving Gavin tastes of hers! She is very nurturing and very well mannered!

Update!

The kids had fun at the local splash park! summer is here!!!

Olivia's dance recital went really great! She did wonderful and had a lot of fun! :)

Olivia with her best friends, Kelsey and Bella

My little preschool graduate!

Olivia and her teacher, Mrs. Schelkopf

Channing

Me and Gavin! I have new color!


Olivia did it! She graduated from preschool!!! We had a lot of fun on her last week of school and now we are looking forward to summer break! We have a kindergarten meeting coming up this week! She's ready to move on and excited to be with her friends next year!

Her dance recital went really well! She may just want to do it again! We're up in the air with it. some days she loves it, while most days she would rather be doing something else. she says she would love to get into cheerleading or sports!

Channing is just enjoying himself. I'm thinking about finding a tee ball league for him or a soccor team! I think he would enjoy sports! Right now, he enjoys riding on his tractor and just being a kid!

Update!

Gavin is so close to walking now! :)

Olivia's Dance Recital!

update.

It's so hard to believe that this is Olivia's last week of preschool! Even harder to believe she will be off to Kindergarten in the Fall. Tomorrow, her class is going to the Mineral springs park for a big playdate! I'm getting up early and taking the boys. This gives us a chance to grab phone numbers of the friends Olivia has made so we can get them together in the summer.

Olivia's dance recital is this weekend!

Gavin is almost walking. He has been taking about 3 steps each time he gives it a shot! It won't be long! He's talking more and more. He nods his head yes now. He weighs a little over 20lbs.

Channing has allergies. I took him to the DR the other day b/c his eyes were so puffy and swollen. Red from him itching them. The Dr was able to tell Allergies and just recommended Clartion for the next 2 weeks. Seems to be helping so far.

This past weekend we had a garage sale! It went very well! We made really good money! I sold most all of my girl clothes!!! It was so hard to part with them. Some of my favorites were in the pile but it was time! The boys' clothes sold pretty well, too. At a quarter a piece you can't beat that!!!!! :) I was going to put in these adorable little red shoes that Olivia wore when she was a baby. Then, I couldn't bring myself to part with them. I'm waiting to see if any of my best friends have girls so I can pass the shoes onto them!!!! We sold all of our big things! The infant carrier, the Kitchen set, slide, fish rocker, high chair, changing table/dresser, LOTS OF TOYS went! All in all, it was a great turn out!

Next weekend is a busy weekend, but the kids and I are taking time out and we are heading on a road trip with my grandparents to visit family! I am excited for that!

Other then that........................... :)

Mother's Day!

This mother's day was very special for me. I decided to take the day from my busy life with my 3 wonderful children and go spend time with my grandma. Saturday, I was blessed that Mike took all 3 kiddos for the day and I took my trip to Iowa. It was a very peaceful trip and as much as I love and missed my kids, I enjoyed the time to myself. I got to Iowa and took my grandma out to garage sales! We had a lot of fun and created fun memories! After that, I took her to lunch, her choice. She decided Rudy's tacos! It was very good and we had a very nice time there. Afterward, I had told her that I would really like to go and pay my respects to my grandpa. Monday would have been his 71st birthday.

We went out to the grave site. It's always depressing to go and visit a cemetery but it's beautiful at the same time. It's so peaceful and even though we exited from a very busy road, I felt at peace as I walked to the stone that bear ed my grandpa's name. I didn't know how to feel at first. I was very sad and I had a lot of emotions running through me. I didn't know how to express them around my grandma and she asked me if I needed some time. I said yes. She left me to go back to the car. I got down on the ground and I talked to grandpa. I told him how much he is missed. How Much I miss him and How much it seems he should still be here. A part of our lives. I told him that it's still so sad to me to come and visit and his truck is no longer taking up that extra space in the drive. How I'm sad that I don't see his smiling face asking if I can help with something for the day. Sad that I don't hear stories of working on the tractor and the next project he has for it. Sad that I have all of these memories and that's all we end up ever being is.... memories to other people. My grandpa impacted so many people, most of all... he made such a difference in my grandma's life and she's lost without him. It's so sad. They would have been married for 50 yrs this year. Grandpa was holding out for her. He used to tell me as he sat in his chair. " I just pray the good lord will let me make it to be 71 and to reach my 50 yr anniversary b/c I know that's what Ma would love."

I sat on the ground stumped as to what to say next. The wind was very strong that day and the trees were making loud noises in the corner where he lay to rest and all I could think about was how he would be cutting those trees. I prayed. I prayed that he was looking down upon us and that he was happy and free from pain and that we will meet again. I prayed that he would never forget us and that he would be there waiting for us. I cleaned off the stone of grass and I cried. I cried. I miss him so much.

I went back to granny's car and we sat there watching for a few minutes of the grave diggers behind us. How their job was just a job to them. We watched as the guy walked up and down on top of the coffin and how they were talking and it was no big deal to them. They were used to this.

:(

We got back to granny's house and I seen the stack of letters she had that she kept from when grandpa was in the service. I read through some of them and became choked up. How sweet for her to have kept those and how you can hold onto every word and it's almost like you are there in that moment.

We decided after awhile to get some ice cream. I was finished with it in no time and granny was taking her sweet time. She looked at me and said that I reminded her of my grandpa. She didn't understand how we could have our ice cream finished in no time. I sure do miss him. I miss everything about him.

The last part of my visit consisted of us going through closets and deciding what she wanted me to bring back to the garage sale I'm having on Saturday. We started in her closet and worked our way to grandpa's room. I wasn't ready for this. I could never prepare myself for this. She said she was ready to do this. I grabbed 2 things out and took one look at her and we both lost it. She went downstairs. I wanted to follow her, but I couldn't. I sat on my grandpa's bed and I embraced the shirt against me. I could still smell him. I hugged the shirt and I cried and I wanted for him to hug me. I wanted to hear that "ah ah ah ah" as he pat my back in a hard embrace. I wanted his whiskers to rub my cheek. I sat there and I looked at the things around his room. I remember so much about him and I want to keep the memories of him, alive forever. Life is hard when you have to lose the ones you love.

I departed my grandma's house and I wished that I could just stay with her. I wish we lived closer so I could be there for her. No one could EVER know what she is going through. This was her LIFE. He was the one thing she counted on everyday. He was her rock and he's gone, forever.

I had a very memorable mother's day.

Busy. Busy. Busy.

It has been a while since I last blogged. Glad to say it's because we have been keeping extremely busy! The beautiful weather has kept us outdoors and enjoying the warm sun!

Olivia is getting ready for her dance recital coming up! She is so excited and I can't wait to see how well the year has paid off in practice! She loves her little costume and the socks that she gets to wear! She says that she looks like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz!

The boys have been keeping me on my toes lately! Channing is going through another terrible 2 phase. He has been very whiny and throws fits. Not fun. I'm sure it will pass soon. Gavin is getting his 2 front teeth, FINALLY!! He has been extra uncomfortable and crabby as well. I can't wait for him to be sleeping through the night again! Just as he had gotten into a routine, came the teeth!

Olivia had a field trip to a Children's museum last week! Her dad went with her and they had a lot of fun! A friend of mine took some really cute pictures! One them was a picture of Mike helping Olivia to paint a beautiful butterfly! I will be posting those pictures later!

Summer is right around the corner and we are excited! The pool will be opening up in a few more weeks and we will be spending a lot of time there with friends!

I'm also excited that garage sale season is back! I have found some great deals already and it's only the beginning! I found the boys some new sandals! Channing's pair was the same pair that I wanted to get from Kohls. Gavin's was a new pair of Stride Rite's. I only paid $4! You can't beat it!

The last sale I went to, I found Gymboree clothes and a bathing suit for Olivia all ranging from $1 to $1.50! You DEF. can't beat that! A lot of them still had the tags on them! It's nice to get a $20.00 new shirt for only $1.50!! I LOVE to Garage Sale!!!