A Walker

Elee's been more of a crawler preferring to be in a position that she could move quickly to keep up with everyone. She would walk back and forth between Bronze and I and occasionally make a detour to the sofa but that was about it, until the other day.

Are you talking about me?

Then out of no where she just started walking all over the place.

She suddenly takes off walking to the other end of the house acting like it's what she's always been doing.

This kind of mobility makes her happy, one of her favorite things to do now is grab Ardon by the hand and drag him all through the house with her.

Trimming

Aside from Ardon not being home, since he had spent the night at meme and grampa's, our cloudy, cold and damp Saturday started out fairly normal.

Elee started her day with a breakfast tortilla roll up that she generously shared with her baby.

.

Then suddenly, there was a commotion out front that she had to check out!

.

There are people up in our tree!

The trees at our house seem to have been neglected for years before we moved in. It was getting to the point that it wasn't safe to play out in our yard any more. Any time there would be a slight breeze it would end up raining down so many branches and limbs that it was hazardous to be outside.

.

I got a really good bid on getting the trees trimmed so we decided to go ahead and get it taken care of. This is just from the tree out back.

.

And this is the starting piles from the from the tree out front! The guys did a really good job and I'm so glad to finally have it finally taken care of. It was funny to watch Elee as they were working, every time a limb would come crashing down she would holler "uh oh" and tell me they broke the tree.

A Dinosaur Egg

For Christmas Ardon got a dinosaur egg with bones on the inside. It comes with little tools that you use to uncover the bones. We had put it away but came across it when we were going through some things the other day.

He has been asking to dig into it ever since we found it. Today I told him that I would let him use his quiet time to work on it while Elee was napping, that way she wouldn't be in the middle of everything. He was ecstatic and could hardly wait.
.

We set up a place to start work by the back door, in the sunshine.

Digging into dinosaur eggs is quite a bit of work and takes a lot of concentration!

.

What is that??? Could it be part of a dinosaur?
.

It is! He could hardly wait to get it out.

(The pieces were so tiny I was afraid they would get flicked out and lost forever!)

.

Hurray, we got it!

.

After a bit more digging and finding a few more bones this was the aftermath.
.

I think next time it would be a good idea to get him bathed and dressed in clean cloths 'after' a digging expedition!

.

The reconstructed dinosaur! This little, bitty thing is made up of 7 parts/bones that you have to assemble. I don't know how long it will stay in tact and with all pieces accounted for but it's a treasure to Ardon for the moment!

MOM

Some things in life we choose,

others we are given with out a choice.

I'm so thankful that this is the mother I was given,

but she's who I would have chosen as well!

.

Happy Birthday mom!

Thanks for being such a great mother, grandmother and friend!

I love you!

'Re-Carding'

It seems like we always have left over birthday cards that we've received and saved. I decided that rather than let them continue to pile up I'd start using them to make new semi-homemade cards to give out. I did a couple the other day and another one this morning for a party this afternoon.
.

I got my foam letters out and picked colors to go with my wrapping paper.
.

Then I picked out a card and envelope.
.

Cut out the part I wanted to use and added some ribbon and a name.
.

Then I cut out and glued a piece of the envelope to the back so I could have a place to write.
.

With a sticky foam heart to hold it in place it's ready to go!
I really enjoy crafting and don't get much time for it but this is a simple, easy and great way to use up old cards while putting a personal touch on a new one!

Wind Blown

It's a little windy at our house today!

But she doesn't seem to mind.
.

Neither does he.

.

But when playing outside and dirt is involved a lot of things can be overlooked!

.

"Elee, are you eating dirt?"

.

"It's gross, it's gross!"
(she responds emphatically)

"Yes Elee, it is gross, keep it out of your mouth!"

.

It seems like we have been so busy that the kids haven't really been able to play outside on the nice days we've had. I know it's windy and not as warm today, but the kids couldn't stand being cooped up any longer so I had to let them play out back for a bit. I think the dirt and fresh air did them good. They would have stayed out all afternoon if I let them!

Another Birthday

This time of year we have a lot of birthdays to celebrate between our families. There are 8 that fall within a 1 month time frame and Bronze happens to have one of them.

.

Yesterday was actually his birthday.

He had been thinking about bratwurst for a while so I cooked up those and some sides and we started our celebrating.

After dinner Bronze opened the cards he received in the mail.

.

Then it was on to his card from us,

.

and a little bag of birthday goodies.

.

Wednesday is usually a really long work day but since the schools are out for break next week it cut down on the number of stops Bronze had. He was able to make it home a couple hours earlier than usual, so it ended up being a nice 'short' day and he only had to put in 14 hours :-P

Out With The Old

We have been waiting a long time to get rid of these-

The dryer wasn't terrible but the washer was one we picked up from a curb. We were told it didn't really work, which was true, but we've made due with it for 4 years. It was definitely time to invest in a new set!

.

They're here!

.

It provided a lot of entertainment this morning.

(At one point I looked over to see Ardon watching the guys, who were totally oblivious to him, aiming his Nerf gun into the laundry room at them with an ornery grin on his face. I panicked but was able to get his attention & make him put the gun away before anything disastrous/embarrassing happened!)

.

They brought them in and got them all set up.

.

Sears was having a 30% off sale so we were able to get a really good deal. I was originally against a front load set but after reading reviews until my eyes were crossed and with a little persuasion from Bronze this is what we finally decided on. Now hopefully I can figure out how to use them so that I can actually wash cloths!

Twirling Tinker Bell

After hearing a little sing-song voice for about 10 minutes I decided to turn my attention towards it.

.

Hello Tinker Bell,
.

would you care to dance?

.

Why don't you put your hands in the air like this.
.

Then twirl around on one leg like this.
.

You're such a good dancer Tinker Bell!

Santa Fe, 4th & Final!

I was really nice to catch up with everyone while we were on our trip. Most every one has a pretty busy schedule so it was nice during the times where we were all able to sit back and visit.

.

Ardon was grandma's little buddy, when ever there was an opportunity to tag along with her he took it and she spent plenty of time spoiling and entertaining him!

(including, but not limited to; stuffing him with goodies, showing him how to cut up books the right way and teaching him how to start fires)

.

More sitting around and visiting with Aunt Netta and Bronze's dad. As tradition would have it a guitar is of course present

.

Grandpa at the table, trying as usual to convince everyone to eat more of the food stocked up in the kitchen and Uncle Tom relaxing in the background.

.

Zanna had taken the train down the day before we drove down so she was the only other 'Wichitan' there.

.

She has decided to try moving to Santa Fe for a while so she can attend college there this fall. She would like to start by getting her Associates then expanding on that and eventually becoming a pastry chef. We will miss her back home but wish her well with her new endeavor!

.

Bronze, Elee and Grandpa hanging out on the floor.

.

I think she had marshmallows that she would occasionally chuck his direction.

.

Ardon hanging out with Uncle Tom.

.

And here Aunt Netta was helping him peel some little 'Clementines'. They were a favorite of his while down in Santa Fe and grandma would feed him as many as he could eat!
We had such a nice time and will, like always, miss everyone greatly! We look forward to their hopeful visit to Wichita sometime after our newest addition gets here this summer(hint, hint)!