Plants and Popsicles

Ahhhh Springtime! I've already posted about how much fun Springtime can be - especially with Caleb! He's constantly pointing out flowers, buds on the trees, and (of course) BUTTERFLIES! He's been "studying" butterflies in Mrs. Thompson's class at Sierra Vista - including fun activities, books, and even a butterfly habitat. *One had come out of its chrysalis when I picked him up from school today!* I'm so proud of everything he's doing, seeing, and exploring at school!

Ok... back to the plants and popsicles! The weather has just been marvelous, and we really are trying to make the best of it. Yesterday Caleb and I planted small pots of chives, oregano, basil, zinnia, and strawberries. He loved pouring the water on the sod pods, watching them swell as they sucked in the moisture, counting the seeds, and covering them with the dirt. He helped me find the right pot by matching the beginning letter to the sound he heard when I would tell him what we were planting. So fun and amazing to see his little brain at work! I love it!

<---- Getting those seeds planted.

Having fun outside ------->

Once that was done, it was refreshment time! Plus, Connor had finished up with naptime and was ready to be a part of the fun. So I brought out the popsicles! Caleb went right for it, mmmm-ing and slurrrrping and telling me over and over how good it was. Connor wasn't quite sure what to think! He's already apprehensive about really cold things - not a big fan of ice cream, if you can believe that! He would stick his tongue to it, give a smile and a shiver, and try it again. He finally sat down to really work it over, BUT... it started dripping cold drops on his feet. *taking a break to giggle* He held his foot up at me and started whining, "Momma...momma!" not sure what to do about this cold stickiness attacking his tootsies! That pretty much did him in for the cold treat. He handed it over to me (awww, shucks) and went off to slap at leaves that were waving in the wind.

People, this is the sweet nectar of life! Enjoying the sunny days, soft breezes, giggles of children, and sticky popsicle drips... this is what we are here for! Thank you, God, for blessing me with MY LIFE!

Oh. My. Legs.

Ok... here's the new workout for fab calves and thighs...
I think I'm gonna make a workout video, patent it, and become rich!!!

Take your kids to an older park with nothing but equipment that would probably be condemmed if actually looked at closely. (You know, because it's the "old" metal stuff that WE used to play on!) Place your kid on one end of the METAL SEE-SAW and yourself and baby on the other end...

Now, with all of your might, JUMP to get your much-heavier-than-the-munchkin-on-the-other-end self up in the air and your child down to Earth.

Repeat.

After several repititions, realize that you're going to regret this BIG TIME in the morning, BUT... keep doing it because both your baby and your "big kid" are giggling like crazy and loving every minute in the sunshine with you - their Mommy.

Wake up the next morning and realize - Oh. My. Legs. THEY HURT LIKE H-E-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS!!!

Holy crap am I out of shape.

I think we need to go it again!

Spring Has Sprung... And so has Springtime Weather!

Oh my goodness! SPRING IS HERE! Caleb is so excited - he just keeps talking about the plants, the flowers, the caterpillars... Thank you, Mrs. Thompson!! We've been blessed with some beautiful weather! We've enjoyed playing outside with sidewalk chalk and bubbles, playing ball, going for evening walks, going to the park, flying kites - you name it. It's been awesome!

I guess after going back and searching for pics to post about our Springtime fun, I no longer feel so "bad" for being tardy in posting a new blog! *Big Grin* We've been doing what we're supposed to be doing - enjoying one another and having fun as a family. Disclaimer: the two pics of Caleb were actually taken by Granny who took the boys to the park. She just had better pics than I did! ;oD

Now for the REAL Springtime weather... we were rudely stirred from slumber at midnight to the terrifying sound of tornado sirens blaring away!! I know, I know... they don't mean a big, fat twister complete with the Wicked Witch of the West is going to suck us up and send us to Oz, but they still scare the h-e-double hockey sticks outta me! We got Caleb as cozy as possible in our "safe room" (aka laundry room) while Bill and I paced between the TV, weather.com on the laptop, and the patio door. Yes - we let Connor sleep through it all... I figure it's easy to snatch a baby up out of a crib, but not so easy to do the same to a 43 pound pre-schooler! We got some good-sized hail, and completely lost our "for sale" sign outside. (I still say that's God's way of telling us it's time for a new realtor, but that's an entirely different blog!) Luckily, the storm passed rather quickly and we were able to go back to sleep. Still had me shook up for a while. Nothin' scarier than West Texas weather sometimes...