If you can't say something nice...

On our way home from school today, Greyson was lamenting having "to be nice for 8 hours to [his] friends," which, I suppose, is a reeeeally long time when you're only 6. He questioned me...

"Do you know how hard it is to be nice?"

Yes, Greyson, yes I do.

Today

Today, my baby got to play in the snow for the first time this year. She went out twice this morning. I had to get a couple of pictures even though I was bare legged and freezing! She insisted on wearing her dress coat. I couldn't resist because she just looked too darn cute in it to say no.

Today, I was driving and acting like a crazy in the car to this song. I was reminded of my sweet niece, Georgia, who said, "this song makes my bum wiggle!". I couldn't help but dance in my car, and yes, I looked like one of those moms driving down the road with carseats in the back. It was about then that I realized, "yea, I'm that cool.".

Just What I Needed...

I was planning on more catching up with the whole Summer posts, but this quote caught my eye. If I remember correctly one of my sisters posted the You-Tube link to this talk, and I wanted to do something similar on my post but life got in the way and I didn't get to it. Anyway, I was reading a friend's blog and she has this as a header quote and it was so nice to read-the boost that I need. So, I thought I would share it.

"Don't give up. Don't you quit. You keep walking. You keep trying. There is help and happiness ahead. You keep your chin up. It will be alright in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come. Some blessing come soon, some come late, some don't come until heaven; but for those who embrace the gospel of... Jesus Christ, they come." ~ Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

We are Faamiiily (as in the song...)

So. I decided that when I start having dreams (anxious crazy ones...not the good, fluffy ones) about my blog it is seriously time to update. So, without further adue, here is some major summer catch-up!!

We started off the summer in the best way, I can personally think of--with family!! Lib, Kit and her kiddos were able to stop by in Oklahoma before they moved to Virginia. Whit and her munchkins were also able to visit Mom and Dad's while we were there. We had such a great time. It always seems, that the visits are never long enough, though.
My parents were sweet enough to indulge their grand kids with a few summer playthings. One of them happened to be a large inflatable pool. {my camera ran out of batteries while I was uploading picture...shocker as the huge amount there are on this post... So, there are a few of the pool fun that I didn't get to. Hopefully I will add them on as soon as I get my new battery charger.} The pool was so much fun, especially for the older kids--and lots of fun for the littler ones when the big kids were out of the pool. :)

Here's a sweet picture of my beautiful sister, Whitney, and darling little niecie Emme. They are out enjoying the day while the kids are cooling off in the pool.

MiMi and my adorable niece, Scarlett. How beautiful are these girls?!

We tried to keep the kids busy--or else they make their own kind of fun. So, we packed up the troops and headed to a favorite destination--The OKC Zoo.

Here is a pic of my Coop. He is so great for posing for his mom. He is giving me a 5 star cheeser in front of the flamingos--one of his favorite things at the zoo.I personally get a kick out of the "stand in front of ...and look like a... In this case I believe it was a centipede. I know, I know they are supposed to bring great joy to the little tots...but it just looks so darn funny to see a kid sprout imaginary insect legs. Thank you Greyson for appeasing your mom.Here is my sweet, sweet nephew Jos. He was such a sport for posing on the bronze turtle. Most of my nieces and nephews look at me like I'm a crazy. :)My boys in front of the flamingos.They have an adorable butterfly exhibit. You and go into a netted "room" and there are butterflies that are flying free. It is really fun. The little girls especially enjoyed it. Ella loved pretending that she was a butterfly (something that she does often).I was able to catch a sweet picture of my adorable niece, Georgia.Who could resist this face?!! She is so sweet I could just squeeze the stuffing out of her!!Here is a picture that has been eluding me for a long time. He's cute, cuddly and fun to play with...nope, I'm not referring to the bear but my oh-so elusive nephew, Gavin! That little guy is a hard one to catch in front of the camera. I guess he decided to appease his Auntie to get a shot with a bear that appears to be nuzzling him. I believe that this picture happens to be one of my favorites. I took another one that doesn't have my water-bibber nephew {Gunner} in it, but then it just isn't nearly as fun. Thanks for the fun memories at the zoo, kids. {not pictured--Georgia and Emme} (I believe that G. was on a much needed potty break and Emme was well, being a little one ;)Another hot spot by our clan is the Cushing Aquatic Center. Now that I have moved away I realize what a gem that place really is. We had such a fun time there and got some great pictures.

Here is Miss G playing with one of our many inflatable toys.Ella decided that one of the inflatable rings was really hat. I guess she figured it has somehow been mislabeled. Also, on the left is my cutie-patootie nephew Ezra, enjoying the sprinklers.BFF's--oh, and cousins too, Cooper and Jos. I absolutely love this picture.Little Gun Gun had such a great time. It was so much fun watching Gunner, Ella and Georgia all playing together. They are so close in age they have built-in playmates. I was even able to get Gunner to go down the "froggie slide" a couple times. Small victories folks, small victories!Mmmm, I'd say she's adorable...but then again, I might be biased. ;)Here's my ever beautiful sister, Whit. I think I thought at the time that Scarli was smiling. I'm having my doubts now that I am getting a better look at the picture...There is always so much to do when you're at MiMi and Grandad's and there is a built in forest in their backyard. It is ready-made for imaginative play. Evidently the fairies/butterflies came out to play this evening.Also one of my favs. Ella just threw her head back and laughed at something her Auntie Whit said. These are the moments, to me, that make it all worth it. {Note: Dad in the background doing his ever present work ;)}While all the cousins were here Greyson celebrated his 6th birthday. If you were to ask me what would've been the very best thing about his birthday, he would've said being able to spend it with his cousins. I'm thinkin' he has a bit of a "boy crush" on 'em. He was so excited that they were able to help him celebrate his special day. We started off the day opening his presents. The kids were all pretty willing to indulge me in all my snap-happy picture taking. I currently have this picture in my house in a frame titled "The Boys". I would have to say this is a pretty priceless pic.
Now we couldn't leave Little Ell-Bell out...Greyson was in luu-uuuv with these sandals. He had showed them to Phillip and me quite a bit earlier and we decided to indulge him for his birthday. Parenthood makes you do crazy things, like buying unattractive, light-up sandals. He was thrilled, and I guess that's what counts.Grey with all his "loot".After the presents and the always favorite lunch at CiCi's we decided to take a small jont down to Pop's. I think that the adults love this place as much as the kids do. Greyson chose his favorite pop--orange creamcicle. I'd say any orange drink would've done it, though.My beautiful niece, Emme. Look at that sweet smile!!There is rarely a picture that is taken that doesn't involve some sort of child. While, I am a great proponent of picture taking (especially when it involves kids because they generally crack me up) but it is nice sometimes to get a picture of me with...gasp...other adults. This one just happens to be with some of my very favorite people ever.I don't think that Greyson would've accepted any other type of cake than one that said "OSU". That kid seriously bleeds orange (you should see his room...but that's another post for another day). Happy birthday, Little Man, happy birthday.

Ahh, it feels nice to get this post under my belt. Thanks for sticking with me, and if you didn't a really don't blame you. :) But, nonetheless we had a great visit with my sister and their kiddos. I can't wait for the next time this happens.

Super-Duper Spring Catch-Up

I vowed that I wouldn't let my son's 6th birthday get lost in all the hub-bub of the summer. So. This year I thought that I would actually play a bit of catch-up and not the annual skip-over that usually happens. Because I am doing that, I thought to myself, why not go even a bit farther back then that and post some of the other memorable events?? Then I thought, yep, why not indeed. So, without further adue... Here is the Catch-Up's of all Catch-Up's (well, sort of ;)...

Cooper's Spring Presentation

About every season Cooper and Greyson's school puts on a little presentation. Mrs. Casso, their music teacher, is brilliant with her little subjects. From 1st through 4th grade they each put on their own little shows. Their "concerts", if you will, are adorable, well thought out and very well executed. I am sure, though, that the parents get the most enjoyment out of it. I absolutely beam with pride watching Cooper, and eventually Greyson, perform. For the spring performance the 2nd graders were given the opportunity to try out for soloist parts. Cooper gathered up all of his courage and tried out. It ended up being pretty rigorous tryouts and I was quite proud of Cooper for his courage and his determination. He ended up being one of the soloists and I couldn't have been more proud of him.

Here he is before the performance. He was able to help post the colors, along with some other boys from his grade."Do you hear what I hear"?? Naw, just kidding... They were actually singing patriotic songs. Which just happened to be adorable (go figure a mother would say that...).Here is Cooper right before he sang with the other 5 soloists. He was quite nervous, but ended up doing great. And, in all of his "Cooper-ness" he was trying to direct and instruct the girl next to him about what to do and where to look right up until they were singing. His uber tendencies to direct is going to be of good use later, right??? Here is Cooper and his good friend, Keaton. They are in the same ward, school, scouts and their birthdays are only a few days apart. We've been able to meet a lot of wonderful people like the Vests here in Amarillo.

Me and Cooper. Cooper was starting to get the "I've smiled for too many pictures" smile. I tried to get him to relax...but as you can see, to no avail.

My mom, the kids' MiMi, was able to be with us. My kids, naturally, were thrilled. You'd think that my mom was their mom over how excited she gets over these performances. I guess that comes with the territory of grandparent.

Now, these next set of pictures are when 1.) Mom's still asleep 2.) the kids are very much awake and, 3.) they find the camera and decide to document their waaaay-too-early activities.

Yep, that'd be Cooper and I'm supposing that Greyson is the photographer. The real problem is, I'm not exactly sure and therein lies the real problem.Now, we have Greyson. I'm darn sure that the photographer this time is Cooper as he is taller than a sitting Grey and I know that Ella would be eye-to-eye in that scenario...but that's all I'm going on, folks. The other problem that I see is, that it is still so early that Grey has "morning crinkle face". That is, in my opinion, way. too. early.
And finally, last but never least, is Ella. Yes, that would be a whole box of cereal in her lap and her arm in it. Something tells me that I need to either get up earlier or get locks on the outside of their bedroom doors...as for me, I'm leaning towards the locks.

While my mom was here we were able to take her to one of my favorite parks in Amarillo, (they have tons!...they have the land to do it, so why not). The kids had a good time and it was wonderful to feel the sun on our faces after such a chilly and unpredictable spring.

A few days after Cooper's singing performance, Greyson our kindergartner, graduated!! It was quite a big deal and the school ordered little caps and gown for all the kids. It was adorable. Mrs. Casso helped prepare a few musical numbers that the kids did (with actions) and they were also supposed to say their name and what they wanted to be when they grew up for the graduation. About a week to two weeks before the actual graduation Greyson let me know that he in fact did not want to go to his graduation. Up until this point he was aaallll about his graduation. In fact, anytime we saw anything that said "Happy Graduation" or anything of the like he thought I needed to get it for him. After all, he was going to be a graduate. So, I talked to him about the total 180 degree shift. He let me know that he was scared to death to say his name and what he wanted to be when he grew up in front of all. those. people. He just knew there would be masses of people and they might just laugh at his name. I assured him that indeed they would not laugh at his name and helped him try to figure out what he wanted to say about his future career. He told me a scientist, no wait, a veterinarian, and then settled a few days later on the Navy. I was perplexed at this sudden career change and asked why the changes. He let me know that when they had a run-through at school that he said Navy and then everyone copied him. I asked why he had changed and he said that is what he had allllwaaaays wanted to do. Um, okay... Finally the day of Grey's graduation came and he was still a massive ball of nerves. I tried and tried to reassure him that it would be okay. I let him know that we would all be in the front cheering him on. When the graduation started and they sang a couple of songs I could tell he was nervous, still. He wasn't singing at all, but did the hand motions. Then it was time for his class to announce their names and future careers. The first classmate showed up, did their thing and then another. Then, there was a little shuffle going on behind the curtain, that incidentally I couldn't see, but my mom could, and it was Greyson so terrified he couldn't come out. He was comforted by a helper and finally, made it out after all his classmates had gone. I was so proud of him!! No one laughed, naturally, and he ended up saying Navy like ohhhh, half of the boy's in his class did. I'm thinkin' that Greyson's career choice wasn't exactly his unique idea...Here's Greyson before he goes up to say his name. He is so nervous, poor little man!

Greyson "facing his fears" like Cooper loves to say.Yay, our little Graduate!!Cooper was so proud of Greyson , he especially knew of Greyson's fears...they talk a lot (too much) at night.The three kiddos.

Momma and Daddy proud of our Kindergartner Graduate!!

Here's MiMi super proud of Greyson. She was able to see Greyson unravel behind the curtain, so she was so proud of him-for not only facing his fears, but for getting through kindergarten!!

Wow!! We both made it!! It's been long enough since I posted. It kinda feels like airing out the carpets...is that even a term any more??? I have another uber-Oklahoma post nipping at this post's heels. We've had a busy couple months and I can't wait to share out adventures. Until then, this'll have to do. Thanks for making it through!!