Royal Wedding Watch

Call us crazy, but we had the best time watching the royal wedding LIVE!  Hats and a traditional English spread made crawling out of bed at 4am a little easier.  
Lemon shortbread and blackberry Brie bites paired perfectly with English breakfast tea

Kristin and I (along with our hubbies) had a wedding pre-party with the English band, The Struts.  

Mother’s Day Love

This Mother’s Day was the sweetest yet!  Operation “Breakfast in Bed” commenced at 6AM with military precision.  It was so entertaining to hear the boys working together to prepare a feast.  Jacob brewed my latte, Kenny prepped cereal, John peeled a cutie, and Darin made an egg sandwich.  Panic set in just before serving—-“Let’s cut an apple too!”  I barely made a dent in the feast:-).  

After breakfast in bed, the boys presented me with cards and homemade gifts.  Kenny’s inscription read, “I don’t no what I would do without you.”  (I often wonder the same thing🤣).  Jacob declared that he loved me from the top of my head to the bottom of my toes.  John’s card was a mini novel with “I like you because...” starting each sentence.

My Mother’s Day swag.

Jacob’s homemade gift bag featured a scene of us camping and being attacked by a bear—oh my!

In the midst of a relaxing morning, there was a paper airplane crisis that included the indoor use of a leaf blower—never a dull moment😜

We attempted operation picture before church.  

“The sun is so bright”

“I can’t stop squinting!”

“It hurts to open my eyes!”

“Why is it so bright out?”

This is as good as it gets—maybe we’ll opt for a professional photography session next year!?

Field Day Fun

Field Day was a family affair this year!  Darin judged long jump, I ran the fun run and judged softball throw, and the boys left it all out on the field with their participation!  I love how our long-time PE teacher puts on an old-fashioned field day.  There are lots of winners and lots of emphasis is placed on sportsmanship.  What a great day!
Jacob took 3rd place in the dash and 4th in the long jump.

John took 1st in his class for the 1-mike fun run and 4th in the softball throw.

Kenny—long jump action shot! 

Kenny dash action shot—he took 4th place in softball throw.

Kenny’s 7th Birthday with Friends

7 boys for turning 7!  Kenny had a great time celebrating at Jumpstreet (indoor trampoline park), eating a taco bar and jumping more on our trampoline.  Note the impossible nature of getting a descent picture of 7 boys.  This is as good as it gets 🤣

Jacob loved bull riding!

Kenny racing across the giant trampolines

John and Ragan ready for a game of dodgeball

Kenny—dodgeball action shot

Ian and Jacob shooting some hoops

John jumping off the platform

Bike to School Day

The boys love biking to school and met up with friends for the trek today.  Happy National Bike to School Day!

John loves the lunch lady

There are a lot of reasons why John likes the lunch lady.  He wrote this for teacher appreciation week—all on his own.  I had a hard time keeping a straight face when I read it.  And almost made him replace “lunch lady” with her actual name.  But decided it was too cute to change😂

Awana Awards Ceremony

What a great year of Awana!  The boys all completed their books, memorizing scripture each week and learning how to apply it to their lives.  Kenny earned a trip to the indoor trampoline park for his hard work!  Way to go boys!

Kenny’s 9th Birthday

How this sweet boy has grown in 9 years!  He is tall and smart and sweet and unique.

He picked waffles with strawberries and whipped cream for his birthday breakfast....Subway for lunch (I got to be the delivery person and he even let me sit with him at lunch:-)

He picked California Sushi bowls for dinner—and a Coldstone cake for dessert.

Happy Birthday Kenny!

Michigan Friends in Colorado are THE BEST!

Life is sweeter with friends—and these friends have been a part of our life for YEARS:-).  The kids since birth and the mamas for 15 years! 

We had a great adventure hiking to the top of Devil’s Head Lookout.  The boys showed Aubrey how to Boulder.

We were thrilled the tower was open earlier than normal, and that this long-time forest ranger (Bill Ellis) was manning his post. 

Grandparents + Spring = Bliss

We always love having Grandma and Grandpa visit!  This trip they “kidnapped” the boys for the morning—donuts and Target toy aisle while I got a morning of peace and quiet.  

Grandpa spent hours learning and then teaching the boys these 3-D brain teaser puzzles.  

Grandma spent hours playing speed and slap jack with John.

We all had fun eating Big Bill’s Pizza and playing Monster Golf.

The grand finale was a woodworking project with Grandpa.  It’s serious business when the saw comes out!