Hello blog world (or self, in five years when you come back and read this). Austin and I do puzzles and watch movies after we put the kids to bed so I don't make time for blogging anymore. It seems like every few months I gear up and do some catching up but it never sticks. I'm fine with that - this is a good sampling of our life, and it's okay if it isn't fully complete!
Here are the pictures that I've taken in May so far:
Natalie had a choir concert so my parents, Grammy Bee, and Jack/Sara came to town for a weekend. It was so fun! We spent a few hours on Saturday hiking at Vedauwoo and getting "lost," then working together to get back on the trail. It was hard to find because of the snow cover and the tall trees blocking our sight lines, but it was an adventure and so lovely to be in that glorious wilderness, especially together!
When we took water breaks we took turns sharing survival tips and wilderness stories. Poor Sara had sandals in the snow and could hardly feel her toes, and the rest of us had soaking wet socks and shoes after. Totally worth it!
Jack made us gourmet nachos for dinner!
The kids love this "among us dance" video, and they always do all the actions in pretty good sync. It's funny to watch their heads bob together.
Stockton got a new vacuum, and Claire finally warmed up to Big Jack.
We went swimming at this awesome hotel pool - the spraying water was boiling hot and felt soooooo good when you stood underneath. We took turns trading off with the kids so we could have uninterrupted hot spray time haha.
more views of nacho time....mmmmmm
We also made our favorite brownies. They taste just like something you'd buy at a bakery - I am so happy that I finally found a keeper homemade brownies recipe! (Box brownies are also delicious but they haven't been turning out very well since we moved. Probably the elevation, but even when we make adjustments for that they still are weird. Hence, the search for this perfect recipe!)
Natalie got to sing in the 3rd grade choir for All City Children's Chorus, the same choir that my brother and I sang in when we lived in Cheyenne as kids! We even had the same royal blue shirts with the logo. It was so nostalgic to be there! It was fun for my parents too...they watched their granddaughter up there on stage instead of their twins, twenty years apart!
They have a tradition at this last concert of the season where they invite any past choir members to come up and sing the last song with the choirs. I vaguely remember this tradition now, but I was surprised and hesitant to participate. I'm glad my parents forced me!
Natalie was so professional and decorous. She knew exactly what to do, wasn't fidgety, and clearly knew her part. I was so proud of her! They streamed the concert live, so a lot of our other family got to see the concert. It was especially fun for Jack and Stockton to watch their sister "on TV" - we got home and they were so excited to hug and congratulate Natalie. Very cute!
Very fun to spend time with my Grammy Bee too : )
We all passed around a nasty cold and Jack stayed home from school one day. He and Claire were buddies and both took cozy naps.
While they were sleeping I went through closets and found more things to give away! I am actually kind of depressed that I don't have much to get rid of now.
Later that night Jack came out of his bedroom and was trying not to cry. I thought he felt sick again but he was just worried about not being able to finish his school work that he had missed. He cares so much about following the rules and doing what's right, he was anxious about falling behind, the cute thing. We had some good cozies and talked it out and he felt better.
Claire's new dollhouse (which the homeowner of my friend's future house gave to me when I came over to tour the house, so random!). And her omnipresent rat tangle of hair, sigh.
Photographic evidence of why I need to have some alone time after I put the kids to bed...they literally need to be as physically close to me as possible and it is sweet and cute and exhausting.
Ten minute difference between these pictures. Cute little reading buddies!
When the weather is nice, it is so fun to play at Jessup after school. Claire loves running back and forth on this bridge.
More photographic evidence that it is impossible for me to find two seconds of solitude without my kids being on top of me.
Lovely tea and puzzle date with Austin
My new favorite drink at Sonic is diet coke and mango....sooooo good.
Sweet Mario doggy
All the kids have been in a good reading phase lately, but Jack especially looks forward to reading in bed at night.
I found this note written by Jack and left it there because it makes me smile every time I go in the backyard.
Our house has become the after school gathering spot, and I am okay with it even if it means we go through food faster, the house is messier, and chaos abounds. It's cute to see how they all interact and play together, and I love that they feel comfortable and welcome in our home.
Austin sets up the Switch every night after Claire goes to bed and the kids look forward to it all day, especially Stockton.
Jack wrote this sweet book "Beeing with Mom" for Mother's Day. Heart melting! It is a good reminder that all my children really want from me is
me. They want my time and attention and love, and don't need me to be anything else than their MOM. I am good enough, great enough, just as I am.
I've been donating plasma for a few months and my friend Annie started donating too, and we often go on the same days. We giggled for a long time about this secret picture I took of her from my chair hahaha.
You'd think spring would be safe in May, but not in Wyoming. My poor tulips are weathering it as best they can!
Also, big announcement: we bought a house! Austin accepted the job from his current company, Brant Audiology, to head up the Casper branch, so we're moving to Casper, WY in June when school gets out. We closed on our house yesterday though, so Claire and I took up a big van load to get started setting things up.
Claire was super happy with her potato oles, tortilla blanket, and Moana in the car. It's 2.5 hours from Cheyenne to Casper.
I brought a whole bag of toys and activities to keep Claire occupied during closing. She did an amazing job staying in her chair and letting me sign everything! I had to sign via power of attorney for Austin since he couldn't be there, so my hand was pretty tired when we were all done. So exciting though! A house that's actually OURS!
Claire fell asleep in the car afterwards so I picked up some local pizza and unloaded the car.
Our first meal in this house! McDonald's on the floor.
I broke a drill bit so Claire and I went to Home Depot where we got replacement bits and then decided to pull the trigger on the washer/dryer combo I've been eyeing for a while. I am sooooo excited to do laundry with these bad boys!
My tasks on the first day were curtain rods and shower curtains. There is this huge living room window and then 6 other windows in the house that needed curtains, so in total that is 14 brackets and 28 drilled holes. I found out I am completely inept with a drill, so I did what I could in the living room and one other window and then decided Austin could help me do the rest. I did hang the shower curtains and unload the car before we packed up for the day.
Goodbye, new house! And then hello again, almost immediately! We came back today to take another car load and show the kids their new home. It was also the first time Austin had actually been inside the house, so it was exciting to see it afresh through their eyes! We hung the rest of the curtains (Austin is a drill whiz, turns out I just am really terrible haha), unloaded the car, and put together our new bed frame. The kids had fun playing hide and seek, picking dandelions in the yard, and playing soccer in the basement. Three more weeks until we are actually living there!
Claire was tired of being in the car (10 hours in 2 days, eesh) so I gave her markers and paper and she was thrilled. I love the art she made on the paper and will keep it, but I am glad that a bath washed off the "art" on her face haha.
We also took the kids to Pizza Ranch when we were in Casper, always a popular option, so that was super fun too.
Next week's tasks are to set up the bookshelves and unpack all the books that we moved today! Juicy!
Comments
Post a Comment