Memorial Day Weekend

We had an awesome Memorial Day weekend!  The weather was absolutely perfect!

On Friday night our neighbors on the corner had a get together at their house.  They have organized a gathering in the past.  There are 5 houses in our cul-de-sac but we really only see our neighbors next door since the kids play all the time.  Always fun to catch up with everyone.  They have a gorgeous patio and it was the perfect night as there weren't any mosquitos.

On Sunday we installed a new flooring in our basement.  A few weeks ago we discovered water damage in our basement (a pipe burst over the winter) so we had to rip out the carpet and we decided to install a wood vinyl tile. Nana & Papa came up to watch the kids so it worked out perfect for everyone.  It took us the whole day and both Ryan & I were quite sore after all the up and down all day long.  We are very happy with how it turned out and now we can't wait to put the basement back together!

It was a great weekend to be home as we got a lot done!  This year I think we will be able to get some outdoor projects done since both kids can play by themselves for at least a little bit.  Looking forward to summer!!!

The kids waiting for Nana & Papa to arrive

We even had a helper!

Madelyn finished off the final row!

The finished product!

It's hard work putting in flooring!

On Memorial Day we went to a new sub shop in Maple Grove….Firehouse Subs.  The kids loved it because they got these cool fire hats!  Jack crumpled his on the way home but Madelyn's made it home in good shape!

Jack is a toddler!

Jack moved up to the Toddler Room this week.  He's growing up so fast!  He had a hard time when he moved from the infant room to the mobile infant room so we figured it would be a tough transition this time around…..and it has been.

I think the biggest challenge for Jack is only taking 1 nap a day.  We have tried to only take 1 nap but he's so tired by late morning (on the weekends) that we finally end up putting him down as he is a mess.  I know he'll figure it out and it sounds like he did better each day.  They said he is basically falling asleep while he's eating lunch which I'm not one bit surprised at.

I really like the teachers in the toddler room so I know he's in good hands.  They are very loving and I think Jack will really like that.  By the end of the week he was giving hugs to one of the teachers that he wouldn't even look at earlier in the week.  He's still a mess at drop off - he is dropped off with the preschoolers and the toddlers so it's a big room and there is lots going on but I know he'll get used to it.

We are very excited for Jack to be in the toddler room and we know he is really going to like doing more especially since the toddlers go outside a lot more than the mobile infants.

Here are a few pictures from Jack's first week!

Weekend with Grandma Emily

Grandma Emily was up for the weekend.  We always have fun when she's visiting…..although we sure missed Grandpa Kenny as he was in the field.

Grandma brought up Madelyn's birthday presents from Uncle Marc & Aunt Jody since Jack was sick the day of the party.  Aunt Jody always finds the coolest presents!  I didn't get a picture but Madelyn got a sleeping bag with a cute pig pillow!  Maybe this will be the ticket to get Madelyn to use the covers on her bed.  So far she's gotten into the sleeping bag but won't stay there - we'll keep trying!

Minnie Mouse cup with a curly straw

Nailpolish, lip gloss, hair binders, barrettes -
Perfect gift as Madelyn is totally into these things! 

Ryan and I got a lot of things done since Grandma was watching the kids.  We cleaned up our lawn and pulled out a ton of dead/overgrown bushes.  I should say Ryan pulled them out and we helped haul them to the dump pile!  Ryan cut down a tree in our backyard, we put mulch down outside our front porch and then we planted a few flowers.

Ryan's family gave me money after my grandpa passed to buy a tree as to always remember my grandpa. What a wonderful idea!  Ryan and I went pick out a tree over the weekend and we got it planted.  I can't wait to see the red leaves this fall!!

Sunday morning we went to church.  It was Madelyn's last Sunday School for the year.  She has really enjoyed it and talks about going every week.  We barely make it through Sunday before she asks when she gets to go back.  So thankful she enjoys it and looks forward to going!

Grandma with her grandkids!

Mother's Day!

Best thing in the world is being called mommy by these 2!

We had a great Mother's Day weekend.  We had friends over on Saturday night and the kids loved playing.  Madelyn has really come out of her shell lately.  She used to be shy around people she didn't know well but now she loves playing and had a blast with Douglas.

On Sunday, Madelyn & I went to church, had donuts waiting for us when we got home….thanks to Jack and Daddy!  We played outside and went for a walk in the afternoon.  The McCormick's came over for ribs on Sunday night.  So fun to have them over and so thankful for the friendship we have formed with their family!  Jack is getting to the point where he wants to play with the girls……sometimes that works for the girls and other times the girls aren't so interested.  This time there was a lot of "No Jack, you can't play with us" "only girls are playing"……and so it starts :)  Good thing Jack doesn't really care so he just finds something else to do.

Towards the end of the night the girls were outside playing and it was pretty quiet and then we heard some giggling.  Ryan found that the girls were painting and had painted their faces!  Never a dull moment!  They looked so proud :)

Pink eye = Mommy & Madelyn day

Late Wednesday I received a phone call from Foundation Hill suspecting that Madelyn had pink eye.  Sure enough it ended up being pink eye but that meant that Madelyn and I got to spend Thursday together.  We had a busy and fun day!  I haven't spent the day with just Madelyn since she's been at this fun, independent age.

We went to the park in the morning.  We were the only ones there which was pretty awesome.  It was a little overcast but otherwise a great day to be at the park.  Madelyn did everything but I think her favorite thing to do is swing!  Here she is dressed in just about every shade of pink you can find!  The picture is a little deceiving as it really wasn't that cold out - Madelyn insisted on her winter boots & hat though!

Then we met daddy for lunch.  Madelyn told the daycare teachers (when we dropped Jack off) that she was going to see daddy for lunch!  Pretty special seeing daddy during the day :)

After lunch we did errands and then we stopped over at Auntie Shari's house.  Madelyn hadn't seen Shari for a long time and Shari couldn't believe how grown up M has gotten.  Shari co-authored a book so I was excited to get a copy for myself!  We ended up staying for a couple hours and playing and chatting.  Shari always has things for Madelyn……this time it was a princess crown, lipgloss, earrings and wand along with hair clips.  Madelyn loves the hair clips and played with them for the rest of the day when we got home.

Then it was already time to pick up Jack!  Madelyn asked about Jack multiple times throughout the day.  She wanted me to make sure we didn't forget to pick up Jack!  So cute!  

Even though it's a bummer when the kids don't feel good, pink eye is the thing to get because it's easy to treat and the kids feel good enough to be out and about!  Loved my special day with Madelyn!!!  

Tea Party!

Maple Grove hosted a Mommy & Me tea party yesterday.  It was a lot of fun!  We went with the McCormicks which made it even more fun.  Nana was in the cities for a dinner with her friends so she joined us for a little bit as well.

The girls had a blast dressing up and they looked so cute!  There were balloons for the girls and 3 of the Maple Grove Ambassadors were there so the girls had their pictures taken with them.  Then they got to eat treats and drink lemonade while coloring and decorating their princess crowns.  At the end the girls got to walk on stage with the MG Ambassadors!  Some of the girls really got into it…..Madelyn was a little shy and didn't know what to think so she walked with Teagan :)  Makes me excited for all the fun events to come for the kids!

Pictures before the tea party:

At the tea party: 

Evie & Madelyn

with the Maple Grove Ambassadors

Love this picture of the triplets!

Walking down the runway….Madelyn wasn't quite sure what to think!

Quick pic with Papa when he came to pick up Nana

The girls made it in the Maple Grove Newspaper!

Great Grandpa Arnie's burial

On Saturday we went to Owatonna for Great Grandpa Arnie's burial.  It was only our immediate family which was nice.  The pastor read the scriptures from Arnie's funeral and then they placed his urn in the ground.  We all took dirt and started the burial process.  The kids even got into it and really enjoyed it putting dirt in the hole!  The kids loved being outside and running around.  They bring such happiness and a sense of hope to everything we do!  It was a super windy day but that didn't bother the kids.  It was a wonderful afternoon, surrounded by family and celebrating Great Grandpa Arnie!

Since I forgot my camera I'm using Carla's pictures!

Nana loves her grandkids and her grandkids love Nana!

Happy Jack!  Makes me smile!
He was so excited and every time he put dirt in the hole he clapped!