Take a Hike! :)

We've had a fun week!! As I mentioned last week, we had two field trips scheduled (one with Zander's class and one to help out a teacher friend at school) and two field days scheduled (both at my school..... I only made it to one since I was being "mom" on Zander's trip for the second day of our field day).  We also had some baseball in there and decided to enjoy the great outdoors and take a hike!  Fortunately, the weather cooperated for all the outdoor events!  We had some rain today on our hike but we were able to plan it that when the worst of the rain came through, we were eating lunch under an enclosed shelter.  I was impressed that our boys were able to make the 3 mile hike (which was marked strenuous.... and we even had someone on the trail tell us it might be too difficult for the kids!)  I guess we are a real "outdoors" family because we knocked it out with minimal complaining from the children or the adults! ;)  As you can see from the pictures, Maddox probably had the easiest time because he was carried in the backpack!

A couple other pictures from our week.... Zander had to dress as a clown one day for school.  He went for a striped shirt and plaid shorts along with spiky hair and a red nose!  I like the new hairstyle!  We might need to do it more often! ;)

 Chaperoning Zander's first ever field trip!

 Zander's class

Just to compare..... we went to the same place three years ago.... so here is Zander at 2 years old and 5 years old on the same wagon ride!

Practicing baseball in the backyard!

We love bath time...especially with bubbles!! We have to do baths every night with these dirty boys!  They also love taking showers with daddy!

Hiking fun!

Mid May

We are halfway through May, and I am counting down the days until I will get to spend some uninterrupted time with my boys!  I absolutely love my summers with them and the warmer weather is showing me that summer is coming soon!  We've had a pretty fun week and not as busy as previous ones have been.... I even took a nap today..... and it was glorious!  So I'm just trying to catch up on some of the highlights from our week.  I fit in the boys' 5 year and 2.5 year checkups on Monday after school.  I just thought Maddox was the cutest with the small blood pressure cuff on his arm!  He weighs about five pounds less than his big brother, and I am waiting to see when he will catch him in weight!  The checkup went well and more importantly we have two healthy growing boys!  (There were no shots at these appointments so that helped too!)

 We went to a baseball game Tuesday night.  It rained through some of it... so I didn't take any pictures to document our evening!  We had Superhero Day at school on Friday.  My co-worker's husband designed the shirts we wore with each of us as a superhero..... I was the Flash and it was hard to see in the picture I took.... I was on the far right when looking at the picture.  We also fit in a talent show at my school on Thursday evening and the boys loved it!

 On Saturday, I was able to spend the whole day with my mom and sister.  This has become a yearly tradition that we started when Linds was pregnant with Emmy.... something that we could do to celebrate being moms was a pretty good excuse to have a day of relaxation together!  We fit in a workout at the fitness center, got a massage and then spent the afternoon lounging by the pool!  It was calling for rain all day and we ended up having sunshine! Rain or shine, I always love time I can spend with these two ladies.  They have shaped me into the person I am today and every time we are together I feel so fortunate for their friendship and unconditional love.  It was great having some uninterrupted time to talk and just be a bit lazy!

 On Saturday night, we fit in an annual trip to Bowman Gray Racing.  Thanks to Grammy for babysitting, we were able to have the night out with friends!  We love going to dinner beforehand, tailgating a bit and then watching the cars go around the track! This particular evening they had skid races, chain races and a demolition derby added to the normal line up! It was quite entertaining!

 This evening we celebrated with Zander as he participated in the Awana Awards Night at our church!  He has memorized so many bible verses and absolutely loves going to our church!  I can't believe how much he is learning about God and His son!  He confidently shares that Jesus died on the cross for his sins and rose on the third day.  He even talks about going to heaven one day and how much God loves him.  We continue to pray that he will make a decision to accept Christ into his life when he fully understands that he is a sinner in need of this amazing Savior.  Pray with us as he continues on this faith journey.

This upcoming week holds a couple field days (at my school if the weather cooperates) and chaperoning two field trips (one for Zander's class and one for a class at my school... again if the weather cooperates!)  We will also fit in a baseball game and I have a work function on another night.  Zack is starting a new job (with the same company) tomorrow so pray for him as he gets acclimated to his new staff and new responsibilities! I am very excited about this opportunity for him and know that God has given him this job at this time for a specific reason!  I can't wait to see what Zack does while he is there! :)

Happy Mother's Day!

A special thank you to these boys for making me a mommy! :)  I absolutely love the current age they are and all the fun we are having.  There is never a dull moment and I am extremely tired by bedtime but they make me smile so big!  I find myself looking at pictures or videos of them after they've gone to sleep.  The wildflowers we planted in our yard and these boys in the picture below are a few of my favorite things right now!

The boys' school had a "Muffins with Mom" on Friday morning.  I was able to spend a little extra time with them before heading off to work.  Zander gave me a really pretty poem with his picture and hand print along with a potted flower that he had hand-painted the pot for.  Maddox gave me a sweet picture of himself in a flower pot he also painted.... and it said "If moms were flowers, I'd pick you!"  It was the sweetest thing to have them give me such special Mother's Day gifts.  You can tell from the picture below that Maddox enjoyed the muffin too. ;)

Here are the Mother's Day presents I received!  I also got a sweet card from my niece with her hand print on it! :)

 On Saturday, Linds and I ran our annual half marathon together.  We always have the best cheerleaders and I will have to admit that both of us get a little teary-eyed when we see them midway through the race.  They give us the motivation to finish strong!  It was a pretty hot day for a run but somehow Linds and I had PRs!  I finished in 1:57:08 (8:57 pace) and Linds finished about a minute ahead of me!  I was so proud of our performance given the heat and hills!  It is crazy to think that even with full time jobs and full time mommy responsibilities, we can fit in a weekly long run in preparation of 13.1 miles!  I am so proud of our accomplishment and equally excited about the time I get to spend with my sister.  I will have to admit that it will be nice to meet Linds for some shorter runs in the near future! :)

Here are some pictures taken from the photographer on the course... I think my favorite one is of Zander and I crossing the finish line together.... he loves meeting me at the end to run the last few steps.  I can't wait until he can run the entire half marathon with me one day!

 I absolutely love Mother's Day.  I love it even more that I am now a mom.  There is something about celebrating the special ladies in our life that makes me happy.  We have been blessed with some pretty amazing women.  The ladies in our life that love on our boys and have shaped us into the adults we are today....so thank you to our own moms for showing us a selfless love, thank you to our sisters for loving our boys like they are your own and for giving us the opportunity to love your little ones like they are our own, thank you to all our friends that stand in for us as additional cheerleaders in our endeavors and love on our boys at every opportunity.  I celebrate all the ladies in my life.... related by blood or friendship.... thank you for showing me how to be a better mom to my boys and for giving me someone to look up to!

 Henry was dedicated at Zack and Amanda's home church on Mother's Day.  It was so fun to celebrate with all of the family.  It is crazy to think that on this Mother's Day five years ago, we were celebrating Zander's baby dedication.  Time flies by so fast and I am trying to soak up moments like what we had this weekend with both sides of our family!

 I had hoped these boys would sleep the whole way home this afternoon (which would have been a fantastic Mother's Day present! haha), but I captured this picture in the fifteen minute span they slept on the way home.  As I type this, Maddox is already in bed for the night and Zander will be soon behind him! :)

Spring Folly Fun!

What a week!?  I feel like I keep saying this every week but this past one sure was busy.  I was only home one night the whole week, kept busy by work meetings, tee ball games, running the concession stand for little league (team mom responsibilities), going on a date with Zack and then spending Saturday at the Spring Folly.  I tried to see the boys whenever I could, which involved a few selfies so I could remember what they looked like while mommy wasn't at home! haha

 Zander loves pretending he can drive the car when we are in the driveway! (below) and Maddox loves the Hulk jacket he is rocking above!

The concession stand crew!  We had to grill hamburgers, hot dogs and cook french fries!  I had no idea all the food options at the concession stand!  We might be eating dinner there in the future! :)

Date Night included dinner at a local Mexican restaurant and then to see the latest Avengers movie (Infinity War).  I can't believe these Marvel movies have been out for ten years.... the same amount of time we have been married! Crazy huh?!  Also, these new theaters with the recliner seats might just be the best invention ever!! Since we go to the movies about four times a year, we might be going to this theater again in the future!

 We fit in a tee ball game on Tuesday night and on Saturday morning.  Grannie came to town to cheer on her favorite ball player!  Then, we went to the Spring Folly for lunch and dinner! We splurged on yummy food and lots of fun rides!  Zander put his arm around Maddox unprompted for the picture below... so sweet ;)