Science Everywhere.....

 If a typical husband walked through the door after work carrying this box in his arms:

most wives might panic.  Me?  Not so much.  The huge smile on his face was priceless.  I knew I couldn't intervene, so why try.  I knew something had sparked his interest.  Okay.  I admit I was a *little* afraid there might be a used body part entombed in this box as he stuck his hand in to retrieve the contents: 

I was completely relieved once he revealed there was only pellets of dry ice.  No stray organs.  

Then again.  Four careless hands near contents that could possibly cause them to lose a finger (or hand) if improperly handled?  Maybe I should've been a little more leery than I was.

After testing it in the sink Shawn put some pellets in an empty mountain dew bottle, took it outside, filled it with a little water, tightened the lid, and gave it a big toss over the deck.  It sounded like a gunshot.  And the kids squealed like it was Christmas morning.  Fabulous.  

Baking Beauties.....

A month ago when Kennedy and Jenna heard we were planning a neighborhood garage sale, they jumped all over the chance to hold their own little bake sale while we were selling all of our stuff.  Kennedy bought a book on creative ways to decorate cupcakes.  I took them to the store to purchase all of the items on her list, but that was the extent of my helping.  It's usually hard for me to let things like this happen without my interference.  I'm OCD and am typically afraid of what the outcome might be.  But.  This time?  I just set the tools for them to use on the counter and went downstairs.  I left them to their own devices.  Was I a little nervous?  Sure.  But not enough to intervene.  It's time for my little girl (and her friend) to figure things out on their own.  And.  Wow.  I'm sure glad I did.  Their creations wouldn't have turned out near as perfect as if I'd tried my hand at helping.  They made little "fruit pie" cupcakes.

 They also made a few "Easter basket" cupcakes.  These girls might one day end up on TLC with their own baking show one day. 

And.  They made a killing at the bake sale.  The pies went super fast, the baskets not as fast.  They made money faster than I did.  Must be their irresistible smiles along with the baked goods that grabbed peoples attention.

Naptime Carry-over....

This is what happens when Presley decides playing with her siblings is more fun then taking a nap.

Unfortunately this is occurring quite regularly.  It's cute.  But also ruining my afternoon plans. 

The Great Wolf Lodge.....

Shawn had this last week off of work.  It also happened to be my birthday.  I suggested (strongly) that what I wanted for my birthday was to take the kids to the Great Wolf Lodge.  Wish granted.  For those of you unfamiliar, this place is a hotel with an indoor water park.  It's large.  Loud.  And a lot of fun. 

This is what part of the inside looks like.  There is a lot more to this place.  The older 3 kids were tall enough for all the rides to ride alone.  I caught up with each one sporadically throughout the time spent here.  Landon, however, was only tall enough to ride the large rides with an adult.  Me.  Serious bonding with the boy.  Presley?  She wasn't so much of a fan.  Shawn took over charge of her.  She lasted only an hour the first night.  The next day he spent time exploring the area outside of the hotel with her while the rest of us swam.  It worked out nicely because by the time noon rolled around he was able to bring us back lunch.  Which we enjoyed in the comfort of our hotel room.  Then Shawn and Presley napped while we all went back to the water park.  At about 4:30 the boys were done swimming.  So.  I went back up and got Presley.  Her, Kennedy, and I hung out for another hour.  That also happened to be the only time I brought my camera out at the park.  Too much fun to worry about pictures.

Sadly, I think Presley enjoyed pressing the elevator buttons more than she enjoyed the water.  She's her daddy's girl.

 She started to warm up a little.  If I'd let her splash me.  That always makes her enjoy herself.  At the expense of the mother.

 Water splashing in her face wasn't so much her friend.  Unless she was causing the splash. 

Kennedy always manages to make everything more fun for Presley.  I love watching them together.

In the evening at 8 pm they host a story time around the fireplace in the lobby.  We got all the kids cuddled up in pajamas and headed down.  To the lamest story time.  Ever.  Landon said to me "why did you make me walk all the way down here for this?!"  Yep.  Lame.  I was tempted to just pretend I was with the lodge and get up and tell my own story.  It would have been more entertaining. 

 Ethan was a pretty good sport.

So was Kennedy.

Jack was even willing to take a picture with the token mascot.
 Next to story time was an ice cream shop.  Photo ops and ice cream?  Nice.

 We took our sweets back to our room to indulge in privacy.  (or to contain Presley) 

 Jack and his cone.  (notice he's actually wearing a shirt?  Crazy.)

 Landon is thrilled with his choice, Ethan drunk with excitement. 

 Kennedy opted for a crystal sugar sucker instead of ice cream.

 Shawn chose strawberry in a bowl.  Which he had to share with Presley.

 Friday we checked out of the hotel and went to breakfast at IHOP.  Our families favorite breakfast destination.  Near the hotel is an amazing set of outlet malls.  And fountains for kids and dads entertainment.

Once the fun of flipping pennies in the fountain wore off, and the boys had pretty much drenched themselves, we started our journey home.  The joy of vacationing only an hour away is that it's such a short trip back home.  What a great little get-a-way.  Came at the perfect time.  Thanks babe for allowing me to celebrate my birthday how I wanted.

Let the Season Begin!......

Rock the Parkway 2011.  I love love love this race.  They host a half marathon, 10k, and a 5k.  It's a fabulous course.  Last year was the first year of this particular race.  So.  Of course we had to attend this year.  It's tradition.  After the half marathon I did in October I jokingly told my girls I'd see them in the spring.  They thought I was joking.   I wasn't.  I'm a fair weather runner.  I don't do ice.  Or below 20 degrees.  That's when I choose to bond with my treadmill in the comfort of my basement.  Which I did.  So.  Some of these girls trained all winter and did the half at this race.  I chose the 10k.  Because it's a great season opener for us out of seasoners.  And I LOVE a 10k race.  Not too long, but not too short either.  If this was the story of the three bears, this is the one Goldilocks would choose.  Because it's the perfect distance.  
Five of us took advantage of the weekend and drove up the night before and stayed in a hotel.  Of course we shopped a bit and ate also.  Why not? 

Me, Jayme, and Michelle pre-race.  Michelle was one of the girls to do the half.  She only actually chose to do the half the night before.  But she was ready.  Mentally and physically.  She was also the one that coordinated the matching orange t-shirts for all the running group from our hometown to wear so we could spot each other on the course.  Genius.  And made it much easier to cheer friends on.

Jayme, Julie, Michelle, Me, Sarah.  In the hotel lobby on the way to the race.  The temperature was 47 degrees.  We all have our perfect running temperature, hence the differing apparel being sported.

This is actually the first race I started and ran entirely alone.  I wasn't the only one in the group running the 10k, but the girls that match my pace ran the half.  The first mile was a little lonely.  Once I got in my groove I began to enjoy the experience.  I finished in a happy place.

Back: Michelle, Julie, Sarah, Christine.  Front:  Jayme, me, Jennie.  What's the best part of enjoying a race with friends?  Lunch after!  PF Changs was the venue chosen for this event.  Glorious.  It's good to be back into the season.  I know that for true runners there isn't really a "season".  Take it for what it is.  I'm debating on doing another half in the fall.  Training sometimes becomes burdensome and takes some of the fun out of running.  I kind of want this summer to be the summer of the "fun" exercise.  Run when I feel like it.  Swim when I feel like it.  Bike when I feel like it.  Without the pressure of having to run 11 miles this Saturday or I won't be able to do the half in a few weeks.  But.  I'm a sucker for running with these girls.  They make my summer fun.  Chances are if they are training for a half, I'll end up doing one just to spend time with the girls I love.  Welcome back running outdoors.  I've actually missed you. 

Miss Bee Polite Tea Party.....

For the last month Landon's preschool has been focusing on manners and being polite.  The culmination of this unit is the "Miss Bee Polite" tea party done fancy Nancy style.  We dressed in our Sunday best and our preschooler greeted us at the door, performed a few songs, and then served us tea party type food. 

The first performance the kids did well.  The performance after the food was hi-lar-i-ous.  One boy complained that his tie was choking him.  My friends daughter mooned us all as she tried to pull up her tights that were falling down.  Landon picked up the rug he was supposed to be standing on and made it into a trumpet.  Adorable.  And totally expected for this age group.  Mrs. Carroll has a lot of patience to teach these little bee's to be polite!

Trampolines And Preschoolers....

Xtreme gymnastics (located 30 minutes west of us) has preschool Fridays where it's open gym for the under age 5 category. Perfect for my two little jumping beans. We gathered a few friends and headed over a couple of weeks ago. We loved it.

There were regular trampolines built into the ground. They seemed more bouncy than your run of the mill trampoline. (which my paranoid husband refuses to let us purchase....)

There were giant foam pits where you could either jump in from a trampoline, or launch yourself off a giant foam block. Both were frequently used.

Of course a snack break needed to occur to re-energize.

This was a cool slide they had running to the ground from the main floor. Presley wasn't tall enough to climb back out so I spent a lot of my time lifting her from below.

I'm glad I discovered this place. My couches needed this jumping outlet.