Out to Lowes...

Yesterday the boys & i went to Lowe's Home Improvement store to get a new ceiling fan (one of ours unfortunately broke!!) Usually Daddy is with us if we ever hit this store, but today he was working so i had to fill in for him- I had to let the boys sit on all the lawn mowers out front. Who knew how exciting this could be? This is the reason these boys love to go to Lowe's with Randy- all the big lawn mowers!

The funniest part of this trip to me was that i noticed when we got out of the car (as Jackson was already asking about the lawn mowers), was that Jackson was also wearing a pink, beaded, strawberry shortcake bracelet! He loves to play dress up, but he also loves a good ride on a lawn mower! Eli enjoyed this too, even though he doesn't look like it in the pictures. He was irritated at me with the camera & just wanted me to move him to a different mower!

Say Ahhhh!

This week i happened to catch this shot of the boys. They can play so nicely together sometimes. Jackson said to Eli, "Open your mouth, Buddy. It's okay, Buddy.... it only take a minute... it won't hurt" They can be so cute! I couldn't believe how cooperative Eli was since he HATES this part at the doctor's office! Go figure!!

Playdate!

We went over to Meredith's house Tuesday to let the kids swim in their neighborhood pool (waterpark really!) & for the adults to have dinner together (don't worry, the kids ate too!). Jackson just drools over this pool when we pass it in her neigborhood & what kid wouldn't? He had been asking about going over there & this night was his lucky night! He was so excited that he was walking so fast ahead of us to get to the pool! I was so surprised that he actually went down this waterslide by himself! What a big, brave boy! I couldn't believe it! Eli went down too, but with me- i was afraid to let him go himself, but he didn't want to anyway! He was a little unsure of the water honestly, but he did manage to have a good time in the .5 inch area with water toys & a ball! He just doesn't like water splashing in his face. We are hopefully going to get over that before our beach week at the end of the summer. Fun times! Thanks guys!

More Water Play...

Water play is what is going to get our kids through this already hot summer. I am amazed at how hot is already is during the middle of the day. We went over to Aunt Becca's for lunch after church Sunday since Randy had to go to work for the rest of the day. Since it was a last minute invite (Thanks for thinking of us Becca!), the kids didn't have any clothes to wear other than church clothes so the boys are wearing Emma & Leah's clothes (including shoes!!) They were quite a sight.

Anyhow, to pass the time & get the kids out of our hair while we were finishing up lunch, we kicked them outside! But it was soooo hot, that we convinced Uncle Todd to find a tote or something to put water in on the porch in the shade to keep them entertained. Well, they certainly entertained themselves & SOAKED themselves. We went ahead & let them eat out there too while we enjoyed our meal indoors!! Of course we could see them through the glass in the door, but we had to lock the door to keep them from bringing water inside....

A Sunday Treat

Most every Sunday lately, there are treats for the kids (& adults) after church. A young lady that works at a local bakery brings in the "leftovers" from the Saturday night before & props all the boxes of goodies on the trunk of her car after services are over. We don't choose a treat every sunday because i don't want the boys to "expect" it & obviously none of us need it, much less just before lunch! But the last time we were going to let the boys get a treat, there were no more cinnamon rolls left & Jackson literally fell apart at the seams because he wanted one soooo bad! So this week, there was a cinnamon roll with his name all over it! And Eli chose a cookie (he was thrilled!) Thanks, Kimber for all the yummy treats!

Is your Mama a Llama?

I couldn't resist that title, being the teacher at heart i am & my love for children's books!

Anyhow, we have a new favorite, free outing... to watch the nearby llama's! We pass a field almost everyday that has 2 llama's in it (honestly, they could be alpacas, but i can't tell the difference & jackson can't say alpaca!). One day, they were RIGHT at the fence so we actually pulled over & whisted to them. They were so close to us, that even i felt like an excited kid! But to my disappointment, i didn't have my camera!! So today, we rode past & they were the closest to the fence they had been since that day so i got a shot of them. They actually perk their ears when you say, "Hey llama, llama!" The kids get so excited when we pass them & they ask long before we get to the field if we are going to get to see the llamas!

Sesame Street Live!!

This past weekend, my friend Meredith invited Jackson to go with them to Sesame Street Live since they had an extra ticket. Wasn't that so nice & generous? It was super helpful too since Randy & i were working in the yard all day & for half the day, it was one less child to have to keep an eye on. He got to go with Meredith & Hailee, Courtney (mere's sister, hailee's aunt) & Sarah Grace (Hailee's cousin, Mere's neice). They apparently had an absolutely wonderful time & the pictures Meredith gave me are great! Jackson was glued to the stage the whole time & didn't want to miss a beat!

THanks so much Mere, for thinking of Jackson! And Grandad, maybe we ARE ready to go to the Backyardigans Live show in the fall.........

Water Play

While Randy & I worked in the yard yesterday, the boys had a blast playing outdoors as well. It was super hot, so i filled up the bucket that holds their outdoor toys with water & let them have at it. This kept Eli entertained most of the morning while Jackson was gone to a show with a friend (Thanks, Mere!) & then they both had a blast in the afternoon when i refilled it again. Of course, when Daddy got the hose out to water the yard, the boys became targets, too!Running from the water hose...But liking it all the while....Eli shielding himself from Daddy's unexpected spraying...And NOT liking it at all... in fact, he gave Daddy this nice face....Fussing after getting wet by Daddy...

Better First Impressions

Well, we are on our way to "better first impressions" as Randy puts it! For mother's day, i had the choice of getting "some" flowers for the yard or getting a kitten. I have to admit, i had to think about it for a few days. I really want(ed) a cat, since Opie has been gone now for almost 2 years, & i am finally feeling the urge for another kitty to love, but honestly, i have enjoyed not having to get attached to something else right now, & not having to worry with the maintenance of another animal. So, i chose "some" flowers. What Randy didn't know was exactly what he got himself into! But we have been needing a better first impression in our yard for a long time! The big trees have gotten SO big that the entire front yard has become mostly shade, thus killing most of the grass. So I (with MUCH help from my friend Theresa who has the brightest green thumb around) made a plan for the front yard. One thing constantly led to another & before i was done, i had the plans to revamp the look of the whole yard, rather than just get "some" flowers. Today was "D" day & since they called for thunderstorms & rain showers, & we found out that Randy would be working this weekend also, we decided we had better get a head start last night.

I started with the pruning (which i am ashamed to admit was so incredibly overdue!! I was amazed at just how much difference that made alone!!) while Randy tilled up the area that we were going to be planting shade grass. I trimmed 3 of the 4 japanese maples, all 3 myrtles, as well as several (poplar or oak?) trees. That pretty much took care of all our daylight hours last night ( & i was incredibly sore just from that this morning when i got up!! So out of shape!)

Then this morning, i took Jackson over to Meredith's house because she invited him to see Sesame Street Live (so sweet & more on that later once she sends me pics), & once i returned we got straight to work!

We started off transplanting several shrubs, including a lost/forgotten azalea that was basically buried in leaves & still alive (pray for this poor bush!) as well as 3 shrubs that we found in random natural areas along the sides of the yard.

Then we moved onto planting all the MANY shrubs & hostas we bought. This included 6 hostas, transplanting one hosta, splitting another hosta that we already had, planting 2 gardenia bushes, 4 new azaleas (which i forgot to take a picture of), a beautiful hydrangea bush, & 4 purple lorapetulum!

Later this afternoon, Randy planted grass seed & then we finished off with transplanting all of the 5 fire bushes that surrounded one of the japanese maples & moved them along the side of the driveway where we pulled/dug out these "ugly bushes" as we have labeled them- they are some kind of cedar i think. Here's one:

We still aren't finished but have made a huge dent in the work. We were unable to transplant one last "tree-like" shrub that is growing into one of our boxwoods, because it is housing a hive of bees right now. And we have to go back to Lowe's to get about 4 more hostas for the larger natural area & 2 more purple lorapetulum for the area in front of the porch. (I also want to plant some annuals for color, but we will have to see if i get burnt out first!) Then we will need to mulch the entire 2 huge areas in the front to make them the official natural areas (that is a days work in itself!)

We worked so hard all day (we literally had dinner around 8:30pm!) & the kids were troopers too enduring all the outside time & getting involved. Jackson especially enjoyed watering the plants for me with a little bucket once he got back from his morning outing. I let the boys play in a big tub of water i placed in the sidewalk with toys in it. This kept Eli entertained most of the morning & then again once Jackson got home & he was back up from his nap. They ate an incredible amount at dinner too which was probably due to all the work outside! Of course they were incredibly nasty like us, so they had to get baths, etc before bed so it has been one LONG day ( & i still stayed up to post this- i must be the energizer bunny or something- or just devoted to this blogging thing!) I will post the pictures of the fun the boys had in the yard with us tomorrow! I am too tired to do it tonight!!