mothers day, etc

I thought I had better blog while Colin was at Joy School so he couldn't stand behind me and read what I'm typing over my shoulder. He's been doing that lately. I'm amazed at how much he learns and how quickly he retains new information. It's hard for me to remember that he is only 3 when he acts so much older sometimes. (Most of the time he acts like a 3-year-old, what with the craziness, disobedience, and general naughtiness.)

Gray's high chair was taken outside for a good scrubbing, and then it was left outside to dry, and then it rained during the night so it was still wet in the morning. So Gray got to sit at the counter like the big kids. He was pretty excited.

He looks so little, which is kind of a new thing for him since he's such a behemoth.

I love this shirt, even though you can't really see it in the picture. It says Li'l Stinker. Also, Gray has the most beautiful dimples in his fat face.

Colin puts together some of the best dress up outfits. I can't tell if he was a pirate or Prince Phillip or a Star Wars guy or just a cool dude. His look has elements of all of them.

Gray likes to chew this squishy football. I believe Kate was poking him in the face while I took the picture.

Another classic Kate sleeping pose. What a weirdo.

Gray LOVES the curtains. He will play in them forever. He also likes to stand against the sliding glass door and look outside. He also likes to smash his face against the door and blow raspberries.

After a bout of mastitis, I decided to take the kids to the park for a picnic to remind them that I really am  a nice mom and I do like to play with them. We had a great time. This was Gray's first time in a swing at the park. He might have played in the swing at Granny's before, but I don't know.

They stayed in the swings forever. They were having such a great time.

Here is a picture of my Mothers Day present from Nate. We played Deal or No Deal. There were 20 prizes that ranged from 1 penny to a complete bedroom makeover. Some of the prizes were a Twix bar, 2 Twix bars and a Redbox movie, dinner at Zupas, a tent and sleeping bags, a Silhouette machine, a Bosch, a shopping spree, an iPad, a new bed, and a fancy Amish-made bed. Nate made a spreadsheet and randomized the numbers. With each round Nate had a website that told him how to calculate the offers for me. I ended up taking an offer, but if I would have held out with my original pick I would have gotten a new bed (assuming Nate actually paid up). Oh well. Maybe next year. Nate had a lot more fun than I did, because I had anxiety over winning a good gift and not a crappy one. Nate just laughed and laughed. I think we'll have to play again for Fathers Day. Sunday evening we ate dinner at Caleb's house with Nate's family, and it was delicious. Nate made smoked salmon that was awesome, and I don't even like fish. We had a great time visiting over there, and then we came back to our house to play games with my family. I had a great day. I love Mothers Day. And I love my sweet husband for being extra nice to me. And I love my sweet kids for continuing to let me be their mother. They are terrific.

We found a cool huge machine on our walk to quilt group the other day. Colin loves him some huge machines.

Kate rocking the the side ponytail. She looked so adorable this morning. What a sweet girl.

The end. I'll try to blog again before another month goes by.