Memorial Day Weekend

We had a nice holiday weekend.  Lane worked on Monday, but we had fun going to The Track on Saturday.  The kids did bumper boats, go-carts, laser tag and the boys did the batting cage.  Sunday we went to early church service, had a quiet afternoon at home then went out to dinner at Joe's Crab Shack.

Rhett in his red, white and blue accessories (purchased for upcoming camp theme night) and the kids acting silly in the car.  :)

Dinner on Sunday

Very very thankful for the freedom that we have!

***

Monday night Crosby had a baseball game.  It rained (again), but still a fun night.

ready on 1st

Alexee and Crosby have been in a crafting mood since school got out.  :)  They both sewed pillows and made bead animals, and Alexee made clay donuts and clay charms (which we baked) for her charm bracelet.  

End of School Year

This school year went by in the blink of an eye!  Everyone had a great year...great teachers, great friends.  Here's a quick recap of the last few days of school:

Monday, 5/16, Career Day for Elementary.  Crosby went as a doctor, Alexee a teacher.

Monday morning was also the 6th grade awards assembly and talent show.  We're really proud of Rhett.  He received award certificates for math, reading, writing, science and social studies.  The teachers also did a really sweet 6th grade video.  These kids are moving on to the JUNIOR HIGH building across town in the fall!   Junior High...wow.  That does not even seem possible because I JUST dropped him off at Kindergarten.

Rhett and five other boys did a synchronized swimming skit (based on this video) for the talent show.  They did a good job--it was cute and funny!  There were also vocal performances, gymnastics, dances, comedy, etc.  Lots of talented kids!

the swimmers :)

Way to go, Rhett!

That afternoon I needed to run a few errands in Springfield so while I was there I picked up Hurts Donuts for an after school snack.

Tuesday morning, 5/17, was the 1st Grade Year-End Celebration.  Elementary does a summer camp theme where each class sits in a circle around a "campfire", and the kids receive badges for accomplishments throughout the year.  The principal and assistant principal also participate in funny games, and they play camp music as each student walks down the carpet for recognition. 

Great job, Crosby!  We are super proud of you!!

Last week of school silliness...wearing their pants up really high.  :)

And that afternoon, the 3rd grade ceremony!

So proud of you, too, Alexee!

Sweet friends 

This fall they will move to the Intermediate building across the street! 

Tuesday the 17th was also my parents' 41st wedding anniversary.  They sent me this picture from their dinner out that night.  Love them!!

Then Wednesday the 18th was the last day of school...and it was a half day!  Tropical Day for Alexee, Pajama day for Crosby.  I think they watched movies and and had a fun morning saying good-bye to teachers and friends.  

Summer break is off to a good start:

Sonic ice cream picnic in the driveway last weekend (with some sunshine, finally!  It has rained SO MUCH lately).

And now Memorial Day Weekend is here, which makes it officially feel like summertime!

Baseball, Shopping & Gardening

Still loving baseball!

It was sunny and warm at this one game, but the rest of the games have been rainy and CHILLY.  The boys don't care though, they love it.  And I love watching Crosby play!

Popsicles after school.

Lane took the boys to see the new Captain America movie one Saturday afternoon, so Alexee and I went shopping.  We had a lot of fun looking for theme clothes for summer camp.  The boys are going too, but we still need to shop for them.  The theme nights for Alexee and Crosby's age group are Red, White & Blue, Neon, Star Wars and Beauty & the Beast.  She found a cute blue and white striped skirt and red t-shirt, too.  We also got glow in the dark bracelets in neon colors and also patriotic colors.  Should be super fun for them--I wish I was going!  We used to count down the days until church camp when I was a kid--it was one of my favorite weeks of the year.

One day I was trimming limbs in the back yard and discovered this sweet little nest.  I looked it up and decided it was a chipping sparrow.  I saw the first egg on a Wednesday and by Sunday there were four beautiful eggs.  We checked on them periodically, and they finally all hatched...but sadly something got them when they were just a few days old.  I suspect it was a neighborhood cat because I saw one roaming around in our yard twice right around the time the birds disappeared.   :(  It was sad and disappointing.

Our tomato plants are blooming!  I put too many in this pot, but they actually look really healthy, I think.  And we have lettuce growing in some planters, too.  Hoping for a good BLT soon.

And the peppers are blooming.  I love this time of year!  (Except for the SNAKES.  I saw three snakes in four days last week, which is horrible for me because I'm terrified of even seeing a snake from a distance.  One was at the wood pile, one was in the bushes behind the house, and one was in the ditch on our road when Lane and I went for a walk.  There were some daisies just out of reach from the road so I stepped into the grass to pick a few and glanced down to see a snake right by my foot!!!!!  Of course I ran away screaming, with no flowers to take home.)  

Lake Day & Mother's Day

Last Saturday was Crosby's last soccer game for the spring season.  It has been such a fun team with awesome coaches.  He loved it!  Then Saturday afternoon we were invited to join our neighbors out at their lake campsite for a cookout, and Rhett and several other boys his age (12 kids, I think!?) camped out in tents that night with our neighbors.  It was a beautiful location with plenty to do to keep the kids entertained...swimming area, fishing, playground, basketball court, games, etc. 

Picnic time! 

We took s'mores, one of our favorite (super easy) desserts.

Our neighbor had fun games planned for the kids:  find the gummy worm in the plate of whipped cream, donut-eating contest and cheeseball/shaving cream toss!  :)  

swimming & fishing

Crosby was proud of this little fish that he caught.

Rhett had fun camping, too.  I wasn't sure if he would like it or not, but he said he had a good time with his friends.  They stayed up super late and did an early morning scavenger hunt around the campground.  He looked a little tired when we picked him up on Sunday.  :)  We picked him up then hurried home to finish getting lunch ready because my parents were coming up to eat with us after church.  We were so glad they came!  It was nice to get to spend time with them on Mother's Day.  We had a simple lunch menu: spinach artichoke dip appetizer, Mandarin orange green salad, chicken salad sandwiches on croissants and toffee caramel pound cake with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce.  (Recipes below)

We love you Mom/Mo!  You are such a blessing to all of us!!!

And of course I always treasure the sweet homemade things that the kids make for me.  Rhett made a chalkboard flower pot at school (with a pretty purple petunia in it) and Crosby and Alexee made artwork at school.

These "all about mom" sheets are always so cute and funny to me!

And A & C made these in their church classes that day.  

I'm so thankful for the opportunity to be Mom to these three!

*****

RECIPES

Spinach Artichoke Dip
1 (8oz) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 clove fresh garlic
1/2 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
1 jar artichoke hearts (drained, chopped)
1 package frozen spinach (thawed, drained)
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese

Allow cream cheese to warm to room temperature.  Mix cream cheese, mayonnaise, parmesan cheese, garlic and seasonings.  Add artichoke hearts and spinach.  Lightly grease pan, pour in dip.  Top with mozzarella cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. 

Mandarin Orange Salad
green leaf lettuce
red leaf lettuce
1 can of Mandarin oranges, drained
1 package sliced almonds*
(*browned on stove in a few tablespoons of melted sugar)
Toss with dressing before serving:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
Lawry's seasoned salt, to taste

Chicken Salad
I don't really have a recipe.  I use different things in it from time to time, but usually:
rotisserie chicken, shredded
mayonnaise (and this time a little bit of plain Greek yogurt)
chopped celery, apples and sliced grapes
dried cherries
dill weed
garlic powder
white pepper
chopped pecans on the side

Toffee Pecan Caramel Pound Cake & Caramel Sauce
Recipe HERE from carlsbadcravings.com

May Happenings

May has been a whirlwind so far!  Our last day of school is May 18th, so there are many end-of-school-year events going on.  Here are a few highlights:

Year-end Math Club party at CiCi's Pizza.  Rhett with his wonderful math club teacher, Mrs. P!!  (I think this was actually the last week of April, but anyway...fun time of pizza and games for the kids!)

Art Show

Crosby and Alexee both had artwork featured in the show.  Crosby's piece was his 100 Year Old Self-Portrait (created during their 100th day of school activities).  His portrait is the one with the blue background on the top row.  :) Alexee's was a bedroom diorama, which included a cute kitty blanket on the bed and a hummingbird feeder visible through the bedroom window.  :)  And the art show was on May 5th, so we went to eat Mexican food afterward for Cinco de Mayo--yum!

Crosby has had baseball practices...love this picture of him walking to the field with two of his buddies

And they had their first game on May 2nd.  So cute!  He couldn't wait to play!

He was at bat twice (coach-pitch), and hit it both times!  He did great!  He has never played baseball or even T-ball before, so this is all new.  I'm so proud of him.  He now says that baseball is his favorite sport, but I think he has said that about flag football, soccer and basketball at some point...he just loves to play any sport, and I love to watch him! 

Alexee and I went shopping for tomato plants one evening. 

Crosby's class hosted a Meet-the-Author Celebration where they showed parents many of their writing pieces from the year.  Each Author had an illustrated box full of their work.  C's included a reports on hawks and eagles, a paper about life at age 100, an All-About-Me book and many other great things!  :)

Crosby and a friend delivered chocolate chip cookies to the guests at the beginning of the party.  :)

We did have a quiet Saturday morning before a soccer game.  We made homemade waffles and hung out on the porch with Bogart.

Rhett went on a field trip to a nearby college for another writing conference on May 6th.  He had a really great day there.  He said it was interesting and a lot of fun.  We hung out on the school playground waiting for the bus to return to school.

Yesterday was the Celebrate Literacy Carnival at R's school, so I helped with one of the stations there.  I didn't take any pictures, but Rhett had fun eating cotton candy and playing games all afternoon with his friends!