May's Fast Pace

We've been busy lately. May is always that way. I think busyness is good though. It's way better than being bored, and these busy spring days are WAY better than the long days of winter.

How nice it is to get outside and work in the gardens and enjoy the warm sun! We've recently put in 3 new trees. I can't wait to put in more flowers too. I'm a little behind on it.

Kaitlyn's been home from college for 3.5 weeks now. I've enjoyed the extra activity in the house. We've accomplished so much, in preparation for her wedding. We do a little something on most days. During the past week, we have: had a bridal gown fitting, found shoes for 4, jewelry for 1, found my dress, finished and addressed invitations, helped buy and plant flowers in our friends' garden (wedding site), and I'm sure the list could go on.

Jadyn's had her funny moments as usual. Two that top the list this week are: "Mom, do animals burp?" Where does she get these questions? ☺ Yesterday, I was letting my hair dry as I sometimes do, for curl and wave. She told me that my hair looked like a dead leaf. What a great start to the day!

Here are some recent, random photos. They were all taken with my phone. A serious blogger would have a real camera ready at all times I suppose. ☺I whip out my handy phone all of the time, and I get what I get. At least I capture some moments I would have otherwise missed. Are they blog worthy? Hmm, that's debatable.

Berry Good

Kaitlyn's helping Jadyn send a text to Dad. You know, at the fast pace that today's society seems to move along, she made need a cell phone and texting ability by the time she reaches Kindergarten. Never hurts to learn early. ☺

Lunch time fun with our playgroup. Can you find Jadyn?

Having fun at a fountain.

Kaitlyn and Jadyn

We spent a little time with Ronald today.

Well, her fiance' wasn't around.

Oh Boy

Thought I'd do a post about our boy. I am almost a week late with posting his prom photos after all.

A few times recently when I've greeted Bryan, I've said, "Hey little man." These things don't phase him anymore. He's past getting annoyed with me when I use silly nicknames. He's pretty comfortable with who he is. He is 17 after all, and he'll officially be a high school senior in just 2 weeks. It's a little hard to believe that he could be at this stage, but I guess we'll have to just go with it. Do I have a choice?

Here are some Then and Now photos, just for perspective. Wow, how he has changed! I miss that boy of long ago, but every stage of life is special. I'm learning a lot about that, as my kids get older.

Here are photos of Bryan, his girlfriend Erin, and other friends ready to go to prom last Saturday. They stopped by our house for a bit before dinner.

Here is Bryan with Kaitlyn.

Lions and Tigers and Kids, Oh My!

I've finally decided to stop procrastinating and do a post. I do enjoy posting photos and sharing the "exciting" details of our lives. I just had a little slump for a few days.

Last Friday, we went to the zoo with friends. It was an absolutely beautiful day. The zoo was crowded with school groups for a while, but it was so fun to be out with friends, enjoying the beautiful day.

The girls had the best time. Running, squealing, climbing, and did I mention running? It was so much fun for them.

Cate, Zoey and Jadyn with the flamingos.

Flamingos are my favorite birds to see at the zoo.

Eight happy children

Up close and personal with the giraffes

I do believe that God had some fun when he created the giraffes and zebras. :) The weather was so nice. All of the cats were out enjoying themselves, and not trying to escape the heat.A couple of the children were so wild, at one point we had to cage them as well. :)

Now we know where Santa's reindeer stay, when it's not Christmas time.

Hanging around at the zoo.

Unexpected Beauty

Jadyn was so excited about the dandelions at her preschool on Tuesday. There were a lot of them growing near our car and so she took time to pick some. I saw it as a photo opportunity, of course. Oh, to be young again and see the dandelions as beautiful, wonderful flowers. ☺

Here's a photo of Jadyn picking dandelions in the spring, last year. Look how much she's changed in just one year. My baby is growing up!

Have a wonderful Friday! Don't forget to see the beauty in the little things. ☺

“Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.” Ashley Smith

A Special Day at Preschool

Yesterday was Jadyn's preschool "graduation". No grad hats this year, but there were certificates, memory books, special treats, and group photo time. Alan was able to attend with us, so that was nice.

Here are photos. I couldn't believe it when I saw how many new photos were on the camera. All were taken yesterday. I may include some with another post soon. The pure anticipation of that will make you come back, won't it? Just kidding.

Painting a pretty flower.

They painted flowers here, using spikey little rings. I thought that was a neat idea.

Receiving certificate and memory book. The memory book is great, with photos, etc. A keeper!

Looking at memory book with Mom.

Fourteen 4 Olds and Ms. Lynn, Mr. Chris, and Ms. Greta

Our Weekend

Our weekend was nice. We accomplished a few things around the house and even found a little time for getting some rest.

Alan went to the much anticipated Star Trek movie with our son-in-law, Aaron. They enjoyed the movie a lot. It was nice for them to spend time together.

On Sunday at breakfast time, Alan and Jadyn had cards for me. Alan gave me a lovely hydrangea plant. I had strongly hinted during the week that I wanted one. "Hmm, Sunday is Mother's Day, I'm just sayin'. By the way, I love hydrangeas." Am I shameless, or what? I'm usually not so bad.

We went to church, and then to lunch as a family. When we came home, the kids had gifts and a card for me. Lauryn realized that it was my 25th Mother's Day, and so she made a card. In it, the kids had listed 25 things they love about me. The list was very unique with things describing me. It was a very sweet list, and also pretty funny. I really enjoyed the card so much. It was neat that they took the time to make the list. I enjoyed the laughter too.

At the restaurant

These two photos were taken with my phone, so please excuse the quality. Just wanted to share them, especially the one below. Gotta love this gang!

Here is everyone, minus Alan, who was taking the photo.

They wanted to have a silly picture.

I love being part of this family. It's always good fun.

Busy, Busy, Busy

It really has been a very busy past few days. I can't believe it's been almost a week since I've posted. Here are a few of the things we've been doing, and a few photos...

• Last Friday morning, very early, we went to a mini concert of Bryan's at school. The jazz band played, and also his sax quartet played the piece they did at the state competition. Very nice to finally be able to hear the result of all of their hard work.

Sax quartet - Bryan is 2nd from right.

An improvisational solo. He loves jazz.

• Spent time with our playgroup. Kids and moms, getting together and having fun! Here are 9 members of our crew.

• Kaitlyn arrived home on Sunday night from college in Missouri. It's been very nice to spend time with her and catch up on all of the latest.

• Kaitlyn was ready to hit the ground running and get busy with wedding preparations. This girl has had us both very busy all week with errands and crafts. It is great to see lots of things being done and lots more plans being made.

• We've made numerous trips to the craft stores. Michael's employees now greet us by name and have a cart ready and waiting for us. Just kidding about that last part of course.

• Bryan, his girlfriend, Erin, and I went to the tux place and he made a decision about what to wear for prom. Prom will be next weekend.

• We found a new home for our little Sophie. It's a long story, but involves the fact that our 2 cats never got along, even after a year of living together. We had debated for a long time about whether or not to find a new home for her. It was sad to make the decision to do it, but we found a wonderful family for her. I received an update yesterday, and she seems to be doing well.


We will miss her, and we hope that she will be happy with her new family.

• We finished making decisions about new kitchen counter tops and sink. Yay! It's about time. I look forward to the installation!

• I helped catch a wasp for Jadyn to take for show-n-tell at preschool. That sounds safe, doesn't it? The wasp goes to school. She's a girl, and Jadyn will correct me every time I refer to her as a "he".

• We visited Bryan at work, on one of our many errand trips. He works at an Arby's-Sbarro restaurant.

We were thinkin' Arby's.