Papa John's Field Trip

Elli's finished product all nicely placed in the box with her certificate!

There were 19 kiddos at this field trip so you can't see the chaos in this picture but it was sure fun.

Eating the deliciousness!

Preschool and Playdough

Playdough princess!

I took this picture during snack time at preschool. One of the little boys was sick. We are loving this cute little group of kids. Elli looks forward to preschool every Tuesday and Thursday.
The girls helped me make playdough the other day. Brinlyn asks to play with it EVERY day! She makes "meatballs" and "cookies". She must have learned that from her big sister.

Children's Discovery Center

I think one of the best things ever invented were children's discovery museums. I got a membership to the one here and it has brought so much joy to my kids, which makes for one happy mommy. Here the kids are making us some kind of asian food

Firefighter Elli to the rescue!

Beach!

This is one of the very few pictures I have of us at the beach. Who wants to worry about their camera getting sand in every gap of the camera? So, here is a picture of our kids and all their friends on labor day. We had hot dogs, snacks and played for several hours. The kids had a blast and the parents enjoyed the break from entertaining. Nate some how got recruited to help dig the huge hole.

Brinlyn turns 2!

"make-ups" as she calls her lip gloss are some of her most favorites things right now. She carries them everywhere with her.
For her party, I had all her little friends and their older siblings come over to our backyard for some water games. Of course the older kids dominated but at least I can say she had a party.

Brinlyn takes blowing out candles very seriously!

I was pretty lazy with the cake and went with a super easy flower shape.

Opening presents in the evening once dad was home from work. She loved all the attention. I can't believe Brinlyn is already 2. She has been so much fun to have in our family. She cracks us up on a daily basis with the things she says and does. She wants to be much older than she actually is, probably because she is always playing with all the older kids. Here are some things I want to remember about Brinlyn at age 2.
*She still LOVES her pacifier and calls it "passy". She also LOVES her blankie. She likes to rub the raised dots on the fabric to put herself to sleep.
*She is not potty trained but goes potty every day on the toilet. It is quite the ordeal as she is super independent and wants to do everything herself. She usually takes 30 minutes in there each time.
*She takes her naps in Elli's bed everyday. She can climb in and out of her crib but still likes it.
*She is super tough when she gets hurt.
*She loves babies. Every time she sees a baby when we are out and about she points it out..."baby!"
*She is stubborn and will keep asking for something until she gets it...I am weak and always give in.
*She loves to help me do the dishes everyday. We waste a lot of water but she loves it. I pull a chair up to the sink and she grabs the scrubber and goes to town. If there are ever any knives in the sink she tells me, "mom, knife".
*She likes to whisper to me when she wants something...like she thinks that melts my heart. "mom, juice please".
This girl has added a lot of spice to the family. We love her to pieces!

Sisters are the BEST!

Elli and Brinlyn get along most the time, with a few times each day that one bugs the other. Elli is super patient with Brinlyn as she destroys the castles she builds with blocks, or scribbles on her artwork, or pulls toys away that she is playing with. Most the time Elli just moves on and Brinlyn gets her way. So, when I see Elli reading to Brinlyn in bed at nap time, it just melts my heart. Sisters are the BEST! I would not survive life without mine. I hope Elli and Brinlyn always have a good relationship.

Crafts

My girls, especially Elli, love to do crafts. Almost everyday we come up with something to do. On this day we made candy butterflies. I love the looks on their faces as they concentrate so hard. The frosting was like glue and made such a mess! What was I thinking?
Elli is always so systematic about how she does her crafts. They are always done with so much care. She colors and does art several times a day.

Turning 30!

I was completely spoiled for my 30th Birthday. Matt and Lindsay were in town and Nate, the kids, and all my friends really made it fun. Nate told me the whole day that he had dinner taken care of. What that actually meant is some of my girlfriends would be bringing dinner for us. Ha ha. I should have known that Nate doesn't do the dinner thing. :) Cupcakes and treats, lasagna, bread and jell-o. Yum! I wouldn't mind turning 30 again and again and again.
I had no idea that the candles were the kind that relight and boy, that was hilarious. I love the look on Brinlyn's face when she realizes we can't get these candles to blow out. I am an easy crowd so I was dying laughing. For my birthday we got a babysitter and went and saw Jim Brickman in concert. I love his piano music so it was a great night! Thanks Nate for dropping a load on me!

Preschool!

I'm not sure who is more excited about preschool...Elli or me! I took this picture on her first day of preschool and she was sure excited. She has been going for the last month and just loves it. A few moms and I are doing a co-op type preschool and it has worked our perfectly. I only have to teach every five weeks. There are four other moms that teach the other times. So, every Tuesday and Thursday I have just Brinlyn from 9:30-12. It is amazing how easy it is when you are down to just one kid. I can sure bust out errands a lot faster, even though Elli really is an easy kid. We LOVE preschool!