Proud Parent Moments

Here is a blog to show off the kids' brains. It fascinates me to see them learn. They surprise me everyday with what they know.

Here is Mason showing off spelling: 




And here is Donovan showing off his vocabulary:


This is Mason's first talk for Primary:

April Snow Days

This is how the weather works in Colorado:
Snow on Monday (lots of it), it sticks around Tues, melts on Wed, 50s and 60s the rest of the week, and just after you spend the weekend celebrating the arrival of Spring, it snows on Monday again. The first couple weeks were depressing, but I accepted the system and got over it the rest of the month. It's supposed to snow again this Wednesday. Bring it on. I'm glad Justin bought the snow clothes, it made a huge difference in happiness levels.
How would yall like to spend a day in the snow with us? (It's an accumulation of several snow days, but whatever. Details.)

Mason wanted to eat the snow, so he picked up the handful and shoved it in his face. It was funny.

I like this action shot of D getting his dad.

These gloves would last for five minute increments before he flung them off, felt how cold the snow was, and asked for us to put them on again.

We borrowed the neighbor's sled. We tried buying one, but no one was selling them in April. Go figure.

Wipeout. Didn't care. Mason got right back on. D rode for about three seconds, fell in the snow head first like an ostrich, and he was done for the day. Maybe next year. 

He's wearing shorts.

This is me, lying in the snow. I think this was the April 16 blizzard.

D's snow art. He would make a heart, take two steps, and make another. So cute.

D couldn't walk in the snow at first.

We had to bury Daddy.

Snack

Start em young.

The snow wasn't great for snowmen, but we managed a little one.

And here is a long video of it all. I didn't edit it.

Let's Go Fly a Kite!

Mason also received a kite from his Daddy for his birthday. They've taken it out a few times. This time when I came and took pictures, it was super windy (there was a snow storm blowing in. In April. Pictures of playing in the snow to come.), so the kite was mostly out of control. It was still a good time to enjoy the semi-warm weather.

Needless to say, the boys love it. All three of them.

Mason turns 4!

We celebrated Mason's birthday twice, once on his real birthday as a family, and then we had a party with friends. He didn't mind the extension. I can't believe my baby Mason is four years old.
He woke up from his nap on Easter/Birthday to a nice surprise from Dad and Mom! We just used an Easter Bunny Bun that I've made a few Easters as his birthday cake for the family celebration. He didn't seem to mind a bit.

Then the next Saturday we had a real party for him and his friends. It was a fun project for me to plan. And it motivated me to get the house in a little better shape. It was a monster truck theme, per Mason's request. We were planning on having the party in our backyard, but our landlord scheduled to have our lawn aerated that morning, and we had muddy pellets all over the place. We moved it inside. No problem.

They assembled their own monster trucks (taped on the wheels) and then ran an obstacle course.

The balloons and empty boxes are supposed to be like crash cars for them to smash. All the kids were pretty conservative and didn't really feel the need to smash and destroy. They were happier just running around the house with the cars. Even the little girl loved her car.

I love this picture of Donovan. He knows what that box is supposed to have in it.

Ta da! The cake! It was fun. Justin cut out the letters. If I did it again I would have added another layer of cake to it, but oh well. I'm learning more every year.

We did eat outside. Love the kids lips after the black frosting.

And he got more monster trucks! Yay!

We also did pin the tail on the monster truck, but we forgot to take pictures during that part. And here are some videos of the party

Easter 2013

First, we took the boys to a park the Saturday before Easter to do a big public hunt. I don't know why I do this. It's so crowded, the hunt lasts a whole seven seconds, and I feel like my kids are constantly at risk of being trampled under the feet of frantic parents trying to find Easter Eggs. Maybe I'll host my own next year and invite some friends. The boys had fun, though. Donovan only wanted blue eggs. It's is current favorite color. Last month it was purple.

Just don't look at me. The kids had to sit and wait for a long time. It was not easy to stay behind that yellow tape, with hundreds of plastic eggs screaming their names.

Mad Rush.

Seven seconds later, they emerge triumphant.

Showing off their blue eggs, happy as can be.

 


Then, Easter morning, the boys woke up to find the Easter bunny had hidden eggs in our house!

 My camera kept cutting off the video, I don't know why. Anyway, sorry for the poor videography, I don't see any improvement in the near future.

We tried to teach them throughout the day the true meaning of Easter, I'm not sure how much sunk in.  Easter was also Mason's Birthday, but I'll do a separate post for that celebration. He wore a button to church that says "Birthday Boy" so everyone would know. So cute. Didn't get a picture. Nor did I get a picture of their Easter outfits. We didn't buy anything new. We were just happy to get to church on time with all the morning festivities.

Justin is 36!

Happy Birthday to Justin! He received a Madagascar Car that Mason built, a new grill, and some crossfit classes. We love our Daddy! (His cake is a tiramisu, store-bought, of course. I haven't been brave enough for that one yet.)

Videos of Singing and Funny Faces