Connor's School Carnival

For the year end party, Connor's Preschool was doing a carnival. It was meant as a fundraiser so of course they talked it up BIG to the kids! Connor had been talking about it for weeks! We had to go! It was the event of the season! But of course the stomach flu hit Brennan and Ryleigh the night before. I was faced with a dilemma. My Mom was busy until later and the options became limited. After Connor asking about 100 times if we were going to the carnival, I decided I would just make it happen.
Armed with two throw up bowls, a movie and a full tank of gas, I loaded everyone up! I parked as close to the school as possible and started the movie. I then left Brennan and Ryleigh with strict instructions to keep the doors locked and the bowls close. And then Connor and I went to the carnival! ( Keep in mind moms it was a very small carnival) How fast could I do this and make Connor seem important? It turned out great. We checked on the sick ones every 10 minutes and in between Connor was on top of the world. He played plinko, jumped in the castle, had a snow cone and cotton candy, painted his hair blue, made a sand art, bought toys for his brother and sister and I even got a picture of the two of us together. It was well worth the wasted gas and panicked fear of having someone throw up in my new car!
What can I say, we are in survival mode! Can't wait until Daddy comes home!






Connor challenging Miss Ann to a game of Tic Tac Toe

Hair do's

I have learned that little girls must have their hair done twice a day. It has to be redone after nap to avoid this! We call it the Bam-Bam look!

Brennan

This is the epitome of Brennan at age 7yrs. He is just silly! He makes me laugh to the point of frustration at times. This is what he believes the spray bottle should be used for; deodorant, or good old fashioned sweat rings. It was really bought to help with Ryleigh's hair. He loves to ham it up and this is just one of the many times he recreated this for us! I thought I should share this idea with the world, incase anyone else needs a good laugh!
I Love my Brennan!

When I grow up...

Lately, I have been getting a lot of... "When I grow up" from Connor. It all focuses on his Dad! "When I grow up, I am going to be a dad just like dad", "When I grow up, I am going to kill bad guys, just like dad!" ( I am not sure how I feel about this one.) "When I grow up, I am gong to be super strong, just like dad!"

Connor loves to play costumes, as I have posted about before. But on this day, Connor determined to "Be Dad". It was so cute! If I didn't miss Kyle so much it would have been a lot more fun! As I was taking pictures, Connor decided to give me all different faces. He can sure light up my days, and this was one of my favorites.








This look is my least favorite, and yet I am sure I will see it more around the teenage years if not before.

And in true little sister form, Ryleigh copied everything Connor did! Right down to needing a hat too!



This was my quick fix to the needing a hat!

Now Ryleigh watches everything everyone does. She is driving cars like the boys, copies the little girls at the park, and is already wanting to wear makeup like me. And seriously, it is just so cute when she wants me to put makeup on her I can't seem to pass it up. Yet I know I am creating what will someday soon be a big problem.

My point, they are watching us! I hope I am being a good enough example!

Tender Heart

Today I watched "Where The Red Fern Grows" with the boys. I thought they would like it because they are anxiously awaiting the puppy they have been promised when we move. I also have fond memories of reading the book as a kid.

I forgot how sad it was though. As we watched Old Dan die, I was watching the reaction on Connor's face. He was so taken back by it. He just quietly sat there. He asked if Dan would die. I told him yes. Then tears rolled down his face. He hid his head in my lap and said, "I don't like this show!" He had just about recovered when Little Ann past away. And then he got mad. "She died because no one would feed her!"

What I thought was a touching movie my kids would like turned out to be very poignant to me. I saw that gentle, yet masculine side of my, to this point, very tough little boy. The red fern and its symbolism just didn't sooth him. He said he would never watch that again.

Later, I tried to coax him to tell Kyle about it. He said, "It is too sad to talk about." He had the same reaction when I tried to get him to tell Grandma.

I hope I didn't scar him for life! I love my Connor!

Tulip Festival

Last week Teriann and I braved the hour drive, the rain threatening sky and the fact that we had four kids between us and went to the Tulip Festival. It was well worth the trip. What a photo-op! I was in heaven with so many things to take pictures of! My boys were not in cooperative moods for picture taking unless they came up with the shot. Surprisingly, I still got a few good ones. The highlight was find the geese and their babies, and the huge fish. We just had so much fun letting the kids discover as we snapped shot after shot. Here are a few of my favorites.


















Don't you love how Connor can howl? I'm not sure what that was for.

Just plain cute

Well, it seems I have been posting about Easter for a long time, but what can I say, these pictures are too adorable to pass up. We had a moch Easter egg hunt the Sunday after because cousins were together again. They had so much fun! I think Easter egg hunts could last all year!
I was trying to make the most of the photo opportunity. Julian my nephew was dressed up so cute and he was trying to be a little gentleman. So I asked him to give Ryleigh a kiss. This was her reaction.






How about a hug instead?

Little ones are just so cute!
Here are a few more pics from the day.


She just couldn't wait another minute when she lucked out and one of the eggs was open and filled with jellybeans!


This was our more advanced egg hunters. I have a few pictures of them but nothing great. They were moving fast and in it for the candy!