Picture Day

School photos- gawwww...  As a kid I remember practicing my smile in front of the bathroom mirror before picture day.  And of course we all remember 4th grade when mom had a migraine and couldn't do Heather and my hair for picture day.  I think I had a scab under my nose and my bangs looked homeless.

But those are the photos we remember. 

Life Touch is evidently hard-up for supporters these days because we now have fall AND spring photos.  The spring photos are nothing but a guilt trip though.  They send kids home with the actual prints... a calendar... a puzzle... bookmarks... you name it.  It's like School Carnival Gone Wild.  The front of the envelope says "See inside for how to order!".  And... "How resistible is this smile?"  Ross brought me his school photos and said, "Don't order these, I look like hell" 

Not a problem.

Just tilt your head to make it straight.

Maisie showed me her photos and I told her how sweet she looked. Because she looks like an advertisement.

And then there's Molly....

My heart could absolutely explode.  This is my baby in her lace dress for picture day.  But she didn't like the Life Touch Lady.  Something tells me the feeling may have been mutual.

The Latest on the Homefront...

Spring Break Comes to an End

Well I'm sure you're all dying to know how the fashion jewelry turned out.  Don't let your eye's deceive you... those are true crystals hanging from their necks.

And because Spring Break isn't Spring Break without water, swimming took place Thursday.  It was Lakeside Casino in Osceola, but still.

There were friends, so all is good.

And if life were simple, we wouldn't think about water fear.  We'd forget Mack was traumatized in the Ocean as a little guy. 

But life's not simple and just isn't the case.

It's gonna take time, and luckily for him, we've got all the time in the world for him.

And because parks are fun, we went to a few.

This is the girls eating ice cream at Montross Pharmacy Friday afternoon.  Molly isn't as full of smiles because she didn't like the old guy who sat next to her. 

So thankful she only scowled and didn't tell him she hated him.

But afterwards there would be Barbies swimming on the front porch while the girls soaked their feet.

And the door to the playhouse is finally complete!

Spring Break Day 3

Tuesday (Day 2) Spring Break started with a very serious question from Ross.  He wondered if he could print a photo off his phone.  I said, of course you can.  You just have to email it to me so I can put it on a flash drive.  We'll head on up to Montross Pharmacy to get a print.  "What photo do you want?" as if I didn't know.😏

And that's how I ended up in Montross Pharmacy Tuesday morning printing out a wallet size photo of Sweet Caroline so Ross would have something to put in his wallet.

Maisie was invited to go roller skating in Des Moines with a friend, Ross was swimming with a friend at a hotel in Osceola and Mack was shopping for track shoes and going to lunch with Papa, which left Molly and I together like the good 'ol days.

We did lots of coloring...

And she totally passed out on our way to Winterset that afternoon.

Maisie and her best friend Kayla have been inseparable for the past 36 hours and counting.  She stayed at her house last night and tonight she is staying with us.  This is certainly the 'craft' age.  I suggested they play Barbies or Dolls and they pretty much looked at me like I was hideous. 

Below we broke out a crystal making kit and we're currently waiting for our baby crystals to sprout on pipe cleaners so we can complete the gems for the finished necklaces tomorrow.

And because I'm cleaning the basement, I've got loads of boxes to get rid of.  Of course a puppet show was the first thing that popped into these 8 year old minds.

The show was about 2 best friends who turned out to be mermaids. 

Naturally. 

Apparently 'Eggs' sponsored the performance.

And then they talked me into making slime.  Yep, we're currently on batch 2. This stuff is like crack for elementary girls.

Don't question Macks bottle of tea/lemonade.  He likes to put fruit snacks in his drinks. 

As he would say, "Don't know!"

I asked the kids what they wanted to do today.

We could've gone to the mall, we could've gone to a Spring Break activity at the library, we could've taken friends to the Science Center or hiked up Clarks Tower or gone to the Historical Center.  I know, we're crazy and wild people with all these riveting possibilities, but nobody was interested.  Ross and Mack have Brandon over to spend the night and didn't want to leave the premises.  The girls just wanted to craft and I've heard nothing but hysterical giggles, Good Luck Charlie and gas all afternoon.  There's no place like home...

Spring Break Day 1

It's Spring Break and I'm totally eating it up.  There have been so many Spring Breaks in my mom-career where I've been working and the kids had to go to daycare.  Talk about a punch in the gut. Today I spent the first day of Spring Break with my 4 babies and watched them together.  Like seriously, 'watched them'. 

They aren't babies anymore. 

Sure, they're slightly winey and self centered, but when we're tired and hungry, aren't we all?

Today I was able to drop the kids off in the lobby of the Science Center while I parked.  I know!  I left them to each other- for 5 minutes in downtown Des Moines without me.  Baby steps or not, my babies are taking care of each other.  It feels so liberating.  It also makes me realize how quickly time is ticking by...

But isn't that the point?  The entire purpose of raising our children is so that one day we can set them free.  Each day, they are one day closer to not needing us anymore.  Sorta makes me feel like puking, but whatever.

And what brings me so much peace is knowing they've got each other.  As they jump out of the van (thankfully not into the wet puddle), I can holler to Mack and Ross, "Keep your eye on Molly", and I know they will.

The day will come where they will be out of the house.  I have so much peace in knowing they are together. They are a unit.  Unbreakable.  They've got each others' backs.  Is there any better feeling than knowing your kids are growing up and have a team?

I took them to their very first IMAX movie Monday afternoon.  This is how we killed the time waiting to enter the theater.  I love the look on Maisies' face.  She's totally ready to one-up her brother once he's done.

When we entered the IMAX theater, the look of awe on these little faces killed me.  And this was before it even started!  As the first 'preview' began, I looked down our isle and have never seen those 4 beautiful faces looking back at me with the nerve-wracking excitement that only kids seem to possess. 

Ignore the red-eye- that screen was HUGE!

New Couch!

Our new couch arrived!

And yep, I'm LOVING it.  Everyone has a spot!  Gymnastics, the flu, potty training, bowls of cereal and the cats took their toll on our old couch.  Sorry, to those who have had to sleep on it...

Crutches, Cupcake Wars and Literacy Night

A couple weeks ago, Molly began limping.  At the mall, school, everywhere. And the owie leg was consistently the same leg.  Of course my mind played all sorts of tricks on me and I feared the worse.  I scheduled a doctor appointment to rule out anything serious. 

So me, being a secret undercover agent, plotted to spy on her during P.E. the day of the appointment.  Now I realize how important crutches, wheelchairs and braces are to young girls, but seriously this girl was quite the convincer!

She was the fastest runner in the class.  I cancelled the appointment immediately.  When I told her we weren't headed to the doctor after school, the tears began to fall.  She just REALLY wanted some crutches.  Which is how I ended up in the front yard after school gathering symmetrical branches and cutting up an old bed skirt to cover them in.  Mailing tape finished 'em off.  Maisie models the crutches below in a Tiny Tim pose. 

Trash to Treasure... I think so.

Yeah, I think she'll make it.

In other news, it's Cake Wars Time in Foods 2!!!

Celebrating that they didn't get last place.

Meanwhile, our school held Literacy Night Thursday night, complete with a Chad Elliott concert. Which was awesome!  Of course for the photo op booth, Ross posed in a way to light a fart on fire. 

This is my life.

Bobby Cuts

So I got a little scissors happy this week.  Maisie asked for long layers to match her best friend at school.  No big deal, easy peasy.

ugggg.

Which led us to a salon in Winterset for an emergency fix that evening. 

I think this was our first experience seeing someone with this hair color, let alone matching eye brows...

But on the fun side, look what she ended up with!

And of course Molly's been asking for a Bobby-cut for over a week, so she got her haircut the next day. 

Both girls had a friends over to play after school Friday. 

I don't think I've ever seen Molly smile so big.