Weekend alone with Daddy

This past weekend I had the priveledge of getting to fly and see my mom-in-law by myself!! It was FANTASTIC! She and I spent the weekend eating great, getting toenails and nails done, and organizing her closets in her home. Thank you Gail for such a lovely weekend. While mommy was out there, daddy was on full-time patrol with two kiddos back at home. He kept busy with the help of friends too. Friday some friends watched the kids and he ended up joining some friends for a movie night (no pool because of the rain). I did hear about this one from Vivi on the phone because she loves movies and she also got to have pizza which is not very often. Saturday he took the kids to the Museum of Science which he never gets to enjoy as we only have one pass. He also let the kids play in the water fountain out front which was a first time for them and I think they REALLY enjoyed it. Saturday night he made breakfast dinner which is always a treat and they crashed hard that night. Sunday he took them to church by himself and then a fun lunch and some time at the park before we got to have a homecoming dinner. I really wanted to post some of these sweet pics daddy took with his phone. Way to go daddy!!

Week #8- VBS- High Seas

Last week we participated in VBS- High Seas. This was our theme. Outside of VBS, I really didn't do too much. We had so much fun with this theme inside VBS and since it was every day with music, snacks, and crafts all around this theme it worked great! I'm going to post Vivian's VBS journal which she helped write each day after VBS and a couple of shots. We got to bring our little friend Blake and I think he also really enjoyed the time. On his last day of VBS, we went and swam with him and his family so there's one pick of all the kids in our van.
VBS-HIGH SEAS JOURNAL

MONDAY- Vivian's favorite part of today was the snack. The snack was made of M&M's, cheerios, marshmallows, potato sticks, and pretzels. In other words a trail mix. Vivian heard the story of Peter getting freed from the jail by God. She also enjoyed wearing her VBS t-shirt.
TUESDAY- Vivian's favorite part of today was her RRRRBuckle tattoo. This tattoo was of a parrot in a sailor hat. It is on her right hand. Vivian sang the praise song "Today is the Day!" while she clapped her hands and stomped her feet.
WEDNESDAY- Vivian's favorite part of today was getting her VBS buddies. These included Marina the dolphin, Scully the rat, and Wink the monkey. Each is holding something special. Marina is on an anchor. Scully has a compass. Wink has a telescope. Wink is looking through his telescope for a surprise because God's word is surprising.
THURSDAY- Vivian's favorite part of today was having mommy dance with her to one of the praise and worship songs. Vivian has been enjoying the music in the car as we found our VBS cd-Praise God!
FRIDAY- Vivian's favorite part of today was getting to take everything home. Today was the last day of VBS and I think it was overall a GREAT week!

Week #7 Ice Age Dinosaur Week

This week we studied dinosaurs from the Ice Age. We had a few big outtings and some carryover from the previous week. We visited the Museum of Science to see some dinosaurs last week (but also stars). Still I thought I'd include some shots of mommy and the kids with the dinosaurs as well as daddy with the kids and the dinosaur skeleton. Monday the kids enjoyed their favorite part of the week a new dinosaur set that they set up and played with all week! Tuesday we set up our igloo tent that they used for a dinosaur cave most of the week and we enjoyed "ice cream" on our back porch. Wednesday the kids got to go see our one free movie of the summer "Monsters v. Aliens". I told Vivi it was kind of combo of the previous week (aliens from outerspace) and this week (monsters kind of like dinosaurs). She bought it and enjoyed it okay. We also had another big event this week happen on Wednesday. Look for a blog post on this soon! Thursday we headed to my sister's and painted dinosaurs with our cousin Chloe. Friday we watched "Dawn of the Dinosaurs" from the Ice Age series and enjoyed some snow cones as a family. Saturday was our big outting. We traveled a little ways to the Dinosaur Valley State Park to find dino tracks. They had two large dinosaur statues and we did actually see some tracks. The best part was allowing the kids to sit in a little river and Nick and I to stand in it and get cooled off. That night we enjoyed our time at home. Sunday afternoon we headed to a company party for daddy where the kids got to play unlimited video games and try their hand at bowling. They had a blast!

Week #6- Science/Space Week

Personalize a slideshow design

This past week we were running quite a bit to try and squeeze in some "space" or "science" type fun. Like many of you, we got to have daddy for an extra day after the fourth which was really nice. We mostly stuck around the house trying to clean up and mow in between all this crazy rain! We did sneak in a quick show at the Planeterium about meteors which was a great start to our week.
Tuesday we made some star cookies which Vivi put her special touch in to. We also set up a little space station for the kids where they created inventions for their space ship and we made Vivi an astronaut helmet and gave Isaac her old one from school. Thanks for the great idea Ms. Diana! Also, I'm including some extra pics of Isaac's room which I blogged about a while back but never included any shots. We finally gave him his own room which has been rearranged and contained the space station as well as many stars (appropriate for our space week).
Wednesday we got ready to head to my sisters. Vivi worked on puzzles while mommy cooked. We also traded our books at the library for some space books. We made constellations out of chalk and black paper (the kids connected the stars with chalk and made some cool pics!) The kids also enjoyed some dressing up at Chloe's and Isaac enjoyed some rocket rides around their house.
Thursday my sis came here and we just hung out. We did sneak in a showing of "Curious George" which has some sweet science themes throughout. I was real proud of her for being brave to drive here. Unfortunately, we didn't have a car at all as our Jetta had some problems. Fortunately, that's fixed quickly and not too costly!
Friday we headed to the Museum of Science with some friends. We discovered a new 4D ride which was really cool. It had us traveling through space, the ocean, and the downtown of our city. We had fun checking out the museum a little more and I think Vivi is excited about attending museum school in the fall. That night we headed back to my sister's for a slumber. The kids watched "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" while I finished dinner. This was really cute and included a scientist who makes all kind of inventions (really cute!)
Sunday we wrapped up our science week finishing painting a solar system. Vivi was a trooper really painting at least half of the planets and the big yellow sun. It turned out really great!

Happy 4th of July!

This free photo slideshow made with Smilebox

We had a great Independence day weekend and it's still going! Like many of you daddy got to have today off and it's been so fun having him for a long weekend. Saturday we went to my sister's to grill out and swim. The kids had a real fun time with a little dance party during lunch. It was hilarious! We actually got a little pool time right before a HUGE thunderstorm quickly came in on us. It was so fun, because Vivi got to practice her swim moves and we were so proud to see her swim! We also got to enjoy a nice dinner out and then came back for some poppers in the back. Enjoy the shots. Sunday we tried out a new church with a great sermon that was timely on praying for our government. Very convicting but good! Then we headed back for leftovers and some r&r. Finally, we ended the night going to see some fireworks with friends. This spot was great and totally free. We had a nice time just watching the kids run around and Vivi especially liked the light up bracelets. It was a great transition to our next week of themes.

Week #5- Jungle Week

I just believe our new summer plans are to be "content" with whatever God throws our way. This week we were at my sister's quite a bit and I also forgot my camera a number of fun activities. Above are the few pics I got.
Monday we decided we'd make one last attempt at the zoo before the heat overtook us or the rain! We got to see the lions, tigers, and giraffes with our friends the Jones' who were also feeling adventurous. We also started swim classes for Vivi which she is doing great at!
Tuesday it poured rain which changed up our morning plans, but not our afternoon. Swim was not canceled and Vivi was a trouper jumping in the water in the pouring rain! Tuesday afternoon we headed to my sister's for some fun craft time and safari adventures around her house.
Wednesday we went to the library for a short while and traded our bug books for safari books. We went to swim and back home for lunch and rest. That afternoon I took the kids to the mall to play around the indoor area and enjoy a special treat in the food court.
Thursday we packed for a sleepover we were having that night at my sister's. Swim was all the same and I actually saw Vivi swim by her self! That afternoon we headed to Em's for some play time and a special evening activity for she and I. We went to see "Eclipse" and that was truly fantastic!! We stayed the night and the adventure carried over to Friday.
Friday we decided to take the kids out or at least make an attempt at it. We loaded all three car seats in to her car and took them to a cute indoor park called Safari Park near her place. We'd been there in the winter but hadn't revisited and it's too cute especially with our themes. The kids loved the ball pit and the train ride. We picked up some lunch and headed back to her place to try and get the kids down. It proved more challenging than I thought. After two hours of trying Isaac finally went down and I brought the girls downstairs. They fell asleep watching "Horton Hears a Who" and then Isaac was up. WOW! We hung a little while longer and headed home late afternoon. I was good for nothing after all this adventure. Fortunately, I had my fellow mate at home willing to make dinner and help a lot!
This was about the wrap-up of our jungle themes. Enjoy some shots of us playing around the house, Chloe's house, and Safari Park.