Bubbles

I think next time when it is windy outside I wont be recommending bubbles, we'll be flying kites instead! Yesterday it was super windy and I had this brilliant idea that we should head out side and play with bubbles. The only problem with bubbles it the second you take the wand out the wind usually swipes the bubble away or you have bubble juice flying in the air soaking everyone around! It was fun for the 10 minutes we all lasted but seeing how Alyvia was wearing most of the bubble juice we had to call it quits and find another activity. Brock of course loved it and has a few years more experience but with the wind he still wasn't doing all that great. Next time we try this it most definitely has to be a nice and calm day outside!

Gardening

I honestly never thought I would be the person who would pick weeds, trim bushes, or pot some plants. It has just never been my thing, until now. Apparently you change your views when its your yard and your responsibility. When we bought our house almost two years ago, the landscaping was already picked out for us. I believe we had over 13 rosemary bushes. Now, for those of you who have no clue what that is, its pretty but I personally think it smells terrible! Ever so slowly James and I have been pulling them up one by one. Finally our yard has been looking a tad bit bare so we took a family trip to our local star nursery today to pick out some plants!

We ended up buying some really nice plants and flowers and if I could remember what they were called I would be more then happy to inform everyone. But I can tell you that we now have some beautiful yellows and purples and eventually some orange colors in our yard. That is the extent of my knowledge of plants! LOL Anyways James dug all the holes and Brock, James and I planted everything. Alyvia was more interested in playing with the dirt and rocks then helping. We had such a great time and we will probably be doing this again in a few more weeks. next on the gardening list is potted plants and hanging plants for the backyard!

Easter Sunday

Like most holidays we have a tradition with Easter. Every year my mom and Chad come over to watch the kids hunt for Easter eggs and then we have a delicious waffle breakfast. Not sure how it started but we've been doing this for years. So the kids woke up to there Easter baskets that the Easter Bunny brought them. The funny part was that every year Brock will usually wake me up to go down stairs with him to get the baskets only this year he decided to wake up before the rest of us and go downstairs and get his basket with out letting anyone know. It was so cute because when he finally came into our room he started telling us all about it and when asked about his sisters basket he ran back downstairs to bring it to her. I thought it was adorable but if he is that excited about Easter lord knows how he will react on Christmas next year. I will most definitely have to put the baby gate back at the top of the stairs.

So then it was off to the back yard so the kids could hunt down the eggs! It took Alyvia a little bit to understand the concept but once she finally figured it out she was on a roll. Brock of course was on those eggs and ended up gathering more then half of them but in the matter of minutes. It was so sweet to watch him help his sister too!!

After the egg hunt and waffle breakfast (which was so delicious) we hurried and got dressed so we could head on out to meet up with James side of the family. Before we left I of course made sure we took a family picture which I originally wanted outside but of course it was windy, so I settled for the kitchen! LOL Anyways we met up with the other half of the family at James' Nana's house and got to enjoy more great conversation with our cousins, aunt, brother, mom and dad. It was so nice to just spend some quality time with everyone.

I am hoping for a new tradition for next year and that would be to go to church on Easter morning. Its been a long time since we have been but thats all another blog story. :)

Alyvia's new bed

If I am ever asked for advice for a new mom it would be this, "Do not ever co-sleep because it is one of the hardest habits to break." Alyvia has co-slept with us, on and off since she was born. Now that she is older I hate it! We have tried so hard to get her to sleep in her own bed which was a toddler bed but to no effect. James had mentioned that maybe Aly just didn't like the toddler mattress because they are exactly the most comfiest things to sleep on. So one night the kids spent the night at my mom's house and Alyvia slept by herself in the spare room which has a twin size bed in it all night long till 8am! Once we heard that we new we had to get a twin bed asap!

So, it all happened rather suddenly but we now have a twin bed for her. I was curious to see how the night was going to go and very anxious. Bed time was a lot calmer then I expected and she was actually ok with going to bed in her own room for once. I am happy to say that she went to bed at 8:00pm and didn't wake up and come to my room until 6:30am! Needless to say I was do the happy dance the entire day. She loves her bed and Brock loves that she has a big bed to because he can lay down with her or hang out in her room now.

Easter Eggs

Easter is really not one of my favorite holidays, mainly because James has never really been able to celebrate with us. This year though because of his new schedule he was home for the first time. The night before is when the kids and I would dye our Easter eggs, it's always hectic because they make the biggest messes and I swear by the time it is all finished I have a few bald spots. This year thought James was able to participate and witness the wonderful mess our lovely kiddos make.

Alyvia's entire right hand was completely stained with every color imaginable thanks to her dad! James and Alyvia teamed up and did there own eggs while Brock and I partnered up to do ours. This way we could alternate the camera and I was actually in some pictures. So back to Alyvia's hands, James would let her drop the eggs in the dye and then instead of helping her get the eggs out he just told her to pick them up with her hand, hence the nicely dyed fingers. She is definitely our free spirit and loves to get messy. Brock and I on the other hand are usually more disciplined. Our fingers did get some what colored but we followed the rules and used that spoon like tin thing that came with the dye packages. We all did have a blast and laughed a lot. I even managed to get a family photo at the end of it!

And as always once the kids go to bed I put on my bunny ears (not really) and got the kids baskets all put together.

Small Family Reunion

Its definitely not the type of family reunion anyone is thinking about. Last year in June my sister in law Gina and her two kids moved to Washington State to be with her boyfriend. It was a bitter sweet move on every one's part. We all missed her terribly and she is really the first one to actually move out of state but she was so happy to be up there and the small town is absolutely perfect for her.

Finally over spring break her, Ty, and the kids drove down for a visit. Its about a 15 hour drive so it's not one that anyone is willing to drive a whole lot. But they made it down and I tell you James was over the moon about seeing his sister. It has been almost a year since he last saw her so there reunion was so sweet. He missed his big sister so much! Brock remembered his Nina and the kids like he just saw them yesterday, but Alyvia took a little bit to re familiarize herself with them expect for my niece Haley, Aly remembered her and went right to her.

We had a great time visiting with them while in town even if it wasn't a lot of time. Now it's our turn to drive up to see them, which we are hoping to in June or July depending on when James can get time off. That should be a fun drive with two kids but hey it worth it see family!

Walk with the Dinosaurs

Walk with the Dinosaurs was held at the Thomas and Mack center by UNLV. James and his buddies from work have been talking about this event for months. It was a complete guys night out! I think there were 4 dads and 5 little boys that all went together. Not sure who was more excited about it more, the boys or dads?

I was somewhat jealous about them all going because it sounded like so much fun. But the tickets were way pricey and I was given the hint that I was just not welcome! LOL Oh-well. James took Brock and everyone met up about an hour before the show started. The first thing those kids saw once they walked in was cotton candy. I already knew that Brock was going to be inhaling sugar that night, but i mean they hadn't even sat down before the adults got the kids sugar. I'm pretty sure that at sometime there was also snow cones and lord knows what else.

The show started and from what I gathered the dinosaurs were so life like and huge. Of course when the T-Rex came out all the kids screamed and then the baby t-rex came onto the stage and every one was like "awwww". That's the extent of the details of the show that I was given. Figures!

Afterwards everyone headed to Denny's for a late dinner. Terry, he works with James, then showed the kids all how to stick crayons up there noses and make funny faces. The night would have been perfect except once the food came out, poor Brock took one bite of his meal and needed to run to the bathroom to throw up. He was perfectly fine afterwards but that's what happens when there is to much excitement and sugar. I had learned that last year while at a football game with Brock, and now James learned that same lesson. Oh-well they all had a great time anyways and they are now talking about trying to get together at least once every other month for a boys night out.

(I am so proud of James for actually taking pictures... I've taught him well!)