"Hi, my name is Trouble!"

It is no secret that Lily Kate is a trouble maker and totally in to everything and so full of life she can hardly stand it!  We change her clothes about 3 times a day because she cannot stay out of a good dirt pile, water puddle or other messy temptation.  She laughs...like a belly shaking laugh...as she gets messy.  She sneaks around in order to find new and possibly "against the rules" things to do.  This girl lives life to the fullest for sure.  She climbs everything she can and she runs her heart out as often as she can.  When she is quiet for very long we know we are in trouble when we find her but we love it.  We love watching her explore....watching her test her limits and try knew things.  She has confidence...life changing, "no one is going to stop me" confidence and I admire that in her.  And the girl has fun....she has a whole lot of fun.  While her independence and spirit wear us down at times we are so excited to see where they take her in this life.

"Catching" Strawberries

This week we did something that both Rhonald and I loved doing as kids...we went strawberry picking.  Cole loves a good garden and all things "country" so he was in complete heaven in the middle of that strawberry patch!  He doesn't even like to eat strawberries but he absolutely loved "catching" them.  He kept saying that, "I love catching these berries!"  Lily's favorite thing to do right now is to organize...she love to sort and stack anything, including strawberries!  She was so happy to sit by the buckets and move the strawberries around into different piles.  About half way through Lily figured out she could eat the berries...as many as she wanted and boy did she.  I think she ended up taking one bite out of a million strawberries.  The freedom to roam and explore was perfect for both of the kids in their own way.  Cole was so proud of every berry he picked and wanted us to see each and every one.  We ended up picking 9 quarts in about 45 minutes.  Cole would have stayed out there all day if we would have let him!  It was an absolute amazing morning of fun and family time for us.  Rhonald and I already plan to take them back later in the summer when the blackberries are in season.  It was simple and fun and completely yummy!

The First Game of Spring Soccer

Spring is here and with is comes lots of fun ... one major fun thing in our lives?  Soccer!  Cole had his first practice/game this past Saturday.  While we loved Winter soccer there is something magical and fun about actually playing soccer outside.  To make it even better Cole has several buddies on his team as well.  Cole plays through Happy Feet and we truly love it.  The coaches are really awesome and make soccer fun while also teaching techniques and rules.  I don't think Cole even realizes he is learning half of the time.  It was so much fun to watch them all run around, kicking the ball and having a wonderful time.  And sitting on the sidelines with friends who are also cheering on my son as well as their own....well, there is nothing better!  After soccer we made a Sonic run and Cole kept saying over and over, "I love this Mom!  I love soccer so much!"  I love that he loves it and I love watching him enjoy himself so much.  Here's to many more fun Saturday afternoons on the soccer field!

Fun With Grammy And Pops

We had so much fun and made so many memories at my parents' house this Easter.  Cole keeps asking me when we get to go back.  It was a great time for the kids to get to spend lots of fun and uninterrupted time with Grammy and Pops and I know they all enjoyed it very much.  I think all 4 of them were pooped out by the end of the weekend!

Wordless Wednesday

The Dying of Eggs

Cole and I found the cutest egg coloring kit at Target...perfect for Cole.  It was a bug kit and it was so much fun!  To let Cole have some freedom to decorate and create in peace my parents took Lily Kate to their neighborhood play ground.  Cole was thrilled to have some alone time with Rhonald and I and we all quickly got to work.  In true Cole fashion he was very serious about how the eggs would look and what was drawn on each on or stuck on each one.  He had so much fun making a mess in the dye (dyeing his fingers, my fingers, everything he could find to dye) but he loved the decorating.  The true artist in him came out with flying colors!  Aren't they the cutest Easter egg bugs you have ever seen?

Fishing With Pops

The last time my parents were at our house my dad promised Cole that he would take him fishing over Easter.  Cole loves to fish and he did not forget this promise.  I believe he started asking to go fishing about 10 minutes after we walked in their front door.  Cole, Rhonald and my dad set out on Saturday morning to fish at a near by lake.  Cole caught 2 "huge" bass and the big guys each caught one.  Cole had a total blast and loved telling Grammy and I all about the great fish he caught.  The funniest part was when I asked him what he enjoyed most about his fishing trip.  I thought he would say something about being with Pops and Daddy but no....he got very excited and began to tell me all about the neat "house" he went potty in.  A port-a-potty - he loved it!  He was a bit disappointed that it did not have a sink but other than that he said it was the coolest thing he has every seen.  Boys!