Mother's Day Part 1

Today we went to Grandma's house to celebrate Mother's Day. It is always fun to see everyone. Caleb was very insistent that he wanted to get Grandma flowers. I had ordered some copies of the pictures that I had posted yesterday for her. So, we headed to Walgreens to pick them up, and then went to the grocery store to pick up veggies for a veggie platter that I shared and flowers. Both kids were very excited. The sang Happy Mother's Day to You...to the tune of Happy Birthday.  

 My kids LOVE their cousins. When I ask Caleb who he loves or who his favorite people are he always says, "Mommy, Daddy, baby Caroline, baby Isaac, and Kendall." Here is a picture of the kids with Aunt Rachel and Baby Caroline. It was about the fifth and best attempt.

Here are Baby Isaac with Caleb and Kendall. They are lounging on the bed for the picture. This actually really helped, since it forced everyone to be a little more still. Caleb and Kendall also played with my parent's next door neighbors. Caleb and his new friend had bike races while Kendall ran. Kendall beat the big boys on bikes 5 times in a row. I never realized what a great runner she is. She was very proud of herself.

On a seperate note, I got a call from Caleb's gymnastic teacher. He attends gymnastics while I am at work with his sitter. When I saw who it was on Caller ID, I braced myself for the worst, thinking what did he do now?!? Boy was I wrong.  He is doing such a good job, they want him to move up to the next level. I am one proud Mommy! Caleb is very proud of himself too.

Photo Shoots

So, today we went to my good friend's house to have dinner. She is amazing, and has started a photography business. She offered to take pictures of my kiddos for mother's day, and of course I had to say yes please, and thank you! Unfortunately, as with kids nothing goes as planned. 

We are having such a hard time with Caleb and his skin rashes. They are of course all over his face right now because of his allergies. He also had a few big scratches on his face. I actually think that Michelle did a wonderful job photo shopping this. But, this adorable smile is only in pictures where Caleb held his bear. He is missing his top lip in every other picture. 

Here Kendall is smelling tulips. But, she also had an allergic reaction. Do you see her eye? It swelled up, was red, and puffy. This is photo shopped and it looked much worse in real life...especially after the multiple melt downs that she had this day!

Here you can see the missing upper lip...Really, what is up with this!?!

I think this was the best picture of all. It was actually take while they were playing.

Here is the best picture of Kendall. All in all, not terrible, but not my favorites. I should add that Michelle has taken my favorite all time picture of  the kids.

Here it is. This is a terribly hard act to follow. I printed this on a huge canvas and it is hanging in my living room. I adore it. I feel like we are always going to be trying to top this one. I wonder if we can make it happen!

Mother's Day Tea

Today Kendall had a Mother's Day Tea at her school. It was very sweet. The children sang three songs and then gave gifts that they had made for us. Kendall's eyes lit up when I walked in. I am a teacher, and only get two personal days a year. So, unfortunately I have to be very choosy on which activities that I go to. I always have someone go instead of me, but it isn't the same and I get that. Her teacher had a craft for us to do as well. It was a bug catcher jar that looked like a bee. Unfortunately, it had to be hot glued, so Kendall really just watched me make it, but she was still excited about it when it was done. I dropped her back with my sitter afterward the tea and raced to work afterwards. It was a very nice morning and wonderful to spend some much needed 1-on-1 time with Kendall.

Last night I worked late, and really didn't see the kids. The result was two children who needed a ton of attention this afternoon. So, we adventured out to a park about a mile from our house. Caleb rode his bike. Kendall and I walked. Caleb was so proud of himself that he made it all the way there and back. He is still very nervous while riding the bike. He muttered, "brake, steer, brake, steer..." when he went down hills. I am so excited for him. He is finally enjoying riding his bike as well. It is great progress!

My Daughter the Poodle...

Shockingly, Kendall did keep those curlers in her hair all night long. I was really surprised. I can't imagine that she slept too well last night. She was so excited to take the rollers out and see her curls. Well, my lack of abilities shined through! I suppose I should have used bigger rollers because the best way to describe this is either a poodle doo, or an afro. She thought it was hilarious and we had a great laugh together. Tomorrow, is another day...hopefully I get this right before pictures on Saturday!

Mommy's Boy

Caleb has been all about Mommy lately.  It is really so sweet. Today I needed to run a few errands after work, and SURPRISE my husband was home early! So, I didn't need to drag both kids around, but Caleb really wanted to have some 1-on-1 time with me. He was so sweet in the car. Apparently he made a Mother's Day present at school today. This child was the gate keeper of the secret. He wouldn't even give me a clue about the present. He wants it to be a surprise. I am pretty impressed!

You may be wondering what is in Kendall's hair. They are rollers of course. Kendall has her first spring recital coming up in 2 weeks. Her costume is adorable and she is very excited. The only problem is that they want the girls hair curly and the front part pulled up. The interesting thing is that Kendall's hair actually has a bit of curl to it...curly in spots, wavy in spots, and straight in spots. It is pretty much a nightmare in my opinion. I think her hair looks best pulled back. So, we have been trying each night a new way to curl her hair. Tonight she actually agreed to sleep in rollers. I have NO idea how this is going to turn out. I mean, really what 3 year old will keep their hair in rollers all night? How uncomfy! Even if she does keep them in, who knows how this is going to even look in the morning. I guess I just have to wait and see what happens.

Chicks

We went to my school today to visit the hatching chicks. This is my first year having chicks in my classroom and I wanted to check and see how they were doing. I am up to three  chicks. Now, I am not a huge animal person. So, I was pretty proud of myself that I actually touched the chicks and moved them from the incubator to the brooder box. I gave my kids the opportunity to hold the chicks. Caleb wanted to cuddle the chick when we talked about it, but when I gave him the chance he wanted help. He was happy petting the chick and observing it. Kendall, on the other hand, is a girl of my own heart. She wanted nothing to do with the chicks. This picture was taken right after Kendall touched the chick...and shockingly it moved. We finished the day playing on the playground. Another fun day at our house!

Play 'Til You Drop

Caleb continued to practice bike riding today. He is actually getting better and only fell one time today. You can see Kendall behind him. She did not do well at all, and her bike ended up back in the truck. Caleb biked about a mile today which is amazing, considering he truly couldn't pedal a month ago. I am very proud of him. He also enjoyed climbing trees at the park today. After the park, we ran to the store to do some grocery shopping...Caleb fell asleep sitting up in the back of the cart. So, I gave him my bag as a pillow and he slept through the entire shopping trip. That was one tired little boy!