Monday, July 29, 2013

Madeleine's Birthday

It's hard to believe that Madeleine turned 9 this month! I'll have to do an entirely different post on what she's up to at 9, but for now I want to remember all about her special day!
 
We actually had a friend party at the end of the school year at the skating rink before everyone scattered for the summer. So, we had a big fun day planned for our family on her actual birthday.
 
She woke up to a birthday sign and lots of pink balloons! 
We let her open two gifts that morning before we headed out. She got a new outfit to wear that day & some sunglasses.




Our first stop that day was Krispy Kreme for breakfast! Yum!
After all that sugar it was time for some fun! We started out with putt-putt. It was early and we had the place pretty much to ourselves. We timed it right and beat the heat on this hot july day.




Then we walked next door to fast lanes and went bowling! They have been dying to go bowling for awhile now and this was such fun! Matt & I played too and we had a great time cheering each other on.


After bowling, we had to run by and pick up Madeleine's cake then dropped it off and home and grabbed a quick lunch. Then we headed over to the skating rink. Madeleine & I skated most of the time. Harrison & Charlotte got tired of it quickly, but Matt kept them entertained with video games. :)
We had dinner out -- Madeleine's choice -- at one of our favorite Mexican spots. Mimi & Grandad & Sugar, Stewart & Comac joined us there and then we all headed back to our house for cake and presents!





Madeleine was so easy to buy for this year -- she got lots of new earrings, books, Lego Friends, and American Girl stuff.


Her big gift this year was gymnastic lessons which she'll be starting once school starts -- she was beyond excited at this! She's been dying to take lessons for awhile now, but with Art Club and Softball, we didn't want to overcommit her and keep her too busy. But, it looks like now it going to be a good time.









She said she had the best birthday ever which made me smile. I always like to make their day special by doing what they love and making this one day all about them. I am so thankful for my sweet girl and every memory that I have from the past 9 years with her! Happy birthday to the little girl that made me a mommy! I am so thankful that I have you!

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

The Fourth

The 4th of July fell during Matt's week of "vacation." We actually had several offers of things to do, but we'd decided at the beginning of that week that this was time dedicated to just our little family.
 
We had a great time on the 4th! We made our first try at smoothies -- strawberry ones and they were yummy. 
We also made a Firecracker Cake and the kids had fun helping.
We went to the pool and I came back a little early and did some fun setting up for dinner that night. The lantern was one of my IKEA finds.

I set up a little drink station that evening for us. 
We had such a yummy dinner! I tried a new recipe from Martha Stewart for our BBQ chicken which was so good and I did bone-in chicken which the kids loved. :) There is always a fight over who gets to have the chicken legs so I made sure we had plenty this time.
The kids played outside while Matt grilled. We hung out on the porch and just enjoyed the view while the chicken cooked.
Everyone had a big appetite after swimming and playing outside. We had an "American" dinner -- grilled chicken, potato salad, baked beans, slaw corn on the cob and cantaloupe. Yum! And, plenty leftover for the next night -- even better!
The Firecracker Cake that we made. It's become our traditional 4th of July dessert.
I also did some ice cream balls which were the biggest hit! The kids went on and on about them, and I have a feeling they will be making an appearance again often. Ha!
As soon as it was dark we headed outside for sparklers. They are always the favorite for us.



We had a few other little firecrackers to do as well. But, before we could do them, our neighbor teens across the street shot a firecracker into our driveway right at us and the kids and they were done after that. I have to admit, it got my heart racing to see it coming at us and be grabbing the kids and running for cover. Harrison kept yelling "thanks a lot" at them in his most sarcastic tone and I think they were sorry, but the  kids were so scared after that. So, we headed inside until they were done -- then we sat on the back porch and watched 4 different great firework shows going on that night. That was fun! Every firework that went up into the air, Charlotte would yell "Whoosh, KABOOM!" and throw her arms up in the air. That right there was enough to make my night! They loved the shows and we decided to go to the big show in Farmington on the 6th.

They were all so tired that night. It's crazy that the night before, on the 3rd, we heard firecrackers all around us until well after midnight. And, we were prepared for the 4th to be a rough night. But, crazy enough, by 10pm they were all done. It was bliss!

And, when we went to check on the kids that night as we headed to bed, Charlotte's bed was empty. After a moment of panic, we found her snuggled up with her bubba. How sweet is this?! I guess she just crawled in there and fell asleep.
The big fireworks show on the 6th didn't disappoint. It was great! And, the kids loved it too!