Weekly Happenings - 5/20 - 5/26

I honestly wasn't sure this post was going to happen tonight.  First the computer was out of memory...then figured out I had ~7K pictures that I had deleted over the years that were "hanging out" in the trash can - that will take up some space!  Ugh!  Anyway, away we go!

1.  On Monday, Peyton & Garrison had dentist appointments - 3rd or 4th for Peyton, 1st for Big G.  They both did great!  Peyton even had x-rays taken, what a big girl!  Both had zero cavities and received certificates!  We are now reminded nightly how we should be brushing by Miss Peyton - she wants to stay in the zero cavity club!!  And of course, how better to celebrate zero cavities than with ice cream, right?!

2.  You may notice a theme here, we again landed at Orange Leaf for ice cream on Friday night.  This was, however, after we "patiently" waited for the ice cream truck to come around to our street.  We heard the truck in the neighborhood for about 15 minutes before we gave up on the truck making it down our street and made a trip to orange leaf - yum!  P LOVES it there since she can get her own ice cream!

3.  On Saturday, we ran a few errands in the morning and after Garrison went down for his nap, Peyton & I made our first trip to the pool for the summer!  We were pleasantly surprised to find the pool was heated - score!  it was a perfect temparture and we ran into one neighbor and met a few new people during our visit.  

3.  Later on Saturday afternoon, Grammy & Grandma Mintun came to pick-up the kids for a visit.  While they were away playing, Chad & I ran a few errands, went to pick-out new appliances for the kitchen and enjoyed dinner at Styx for our 11th anniversary - wow - time has flown by!  Since Peyton doesn't like hibachi, we treated ourselves for our anniversary and were reminded how much we love hibachi & sushi!

On Sunday, we joined the kids in Clinton for a visit and for Daddy & Grandpa to play golf on Monday morning.  Garrison learned to ride Harvey, the bouncy horse, on this visit, we found a turtle in the back yard, the kids played in the pool and sprinkler, we went to the church playground, Peyton & Grammy tried their hand at a few puzzles, the kids painted and an overall great time was had by all!  Garrison is very much a Papa's boy right now - if Grandpa ever gets up and starts to head toward a door, he chases him down and says, "go" - he always wants to go to pick-up or take Grandma Mintun home - never misses a trip!

4.  After we got home on Monday afternoon we heard the familiar music of the ice cream truck - this time, the truck was ON OUR STREET!  Peyton & I rushed outside while Daddy ran to get some money - teamwork!  We were able to catch the ice cream man and the kids enjoyed their tasty cool treats - success!

After our ice cream, we got ready for our 2nd visit to the pool - this time, Garrison & Daddy joined us.  We had a great time and Garrison loved it!  As soon as he would jump in from the side he would pop up and say, "gain" (again!).

5.  Peyton hit a milestone this week - she learned to pump her legs and swing herself!  She still needs a little help to get started but once she gets going she can keep it up!

6.  Garrison's vocabulary continues to grown and he tries to repeat just about everything he hears.  Some favorite words right now are gain (again), sit, socks, shoes, Pollo (Apollo), Mickey, Goofy, Minnie.

7.  Peyton has been struggling to go to sleep at bedtime here recently has has become quite sneaky!  In the last couple of weeks we have found her in the spare bedroom a few times, just hanging out, laying on the bed watching a little TV.  The second time, she gave herself a way a bit quicker when we heard a door shut - that's right, she closed herself in the room so hopefully we wouldn't hear the TV!  Then, on Friday night, she snuck downstairs somehow and was hanging out on the couch in the main room when we were in the hearth room - stealthy!  

Weekly Happenings - 5/13 - 5/19

1.  On Saturday, Peyton had her first gymnastics meet!  This was her chance to show us all she has been working on with us inside the gym!  She wasn't much on showing "ta-das" but she did a great job with her vault, bar, balance beam and floor routines!  We were very proud of her and all she has learned.  But mostly, we are proud that she put herself out there in front of a group of people and did her thing!  Garrison was a very supportive little brother and stayed calm throughout the meet and clapped for her and all her friends!  Peyton was most proud of her trophy, a trophy just like her Daddy's!  She has her trophy proudly displayed by Daddy's next to the fireplace!

2.  On Saturday evening, our friends the Baalmanns came to visit!  The kids jumped in like they have never been apart and the adults had a great visit too!  We miss our neighbors so much but are thankful to see them from time to time!  Can't wait until we can get together again!

3.  Oh, our Garrison...he is all boy all the time!  At least Apollo is a very patient dog and let Garrison hang out on his back for almost 5 minutes!

4.  There are times when Peyton & Garrison can be on each other's nerves but then there are these sweet moments - the first watching family videos from when Peyton was a baby in the same chair and Garrison almost falling asleep on Sissy's shoulder on Sunday night.

5.  On Sunday, Grammy, Grandpa & Grandma Mintun came up for a visit!  We started our day with a picnic outside since the weather was nice.  After game time, a run for Mommy, baking of cake pops & cupcakes and lots of time on the play set it was time for our visitors to go home.  It was a laid back Sunday but we had a great time!!

Weekly Happenings - 5/6 - 5/12

1.  Our week started off a little rough when P wasn't feeling so hot still on Monday morning.  So, we went to the Dr. - ear infection and likely bronchitis - yuck!  Needless to say, she started an antibiotic and by Wednesday was feeling well enough to go back to school.  I am so very thankful that we have jobs that are flexible enough to allow us to work from home when needed to take care of our kiddos!  Peyton & I had some "quiet time" while she was home - we played lots of card games and put together several puzzles.  Hard to start to feel better but still need to rest.  I think she was ready to go back to school by Wednesday.

2.  On Friday, the kids treated me to Muffins with Mom before I had to head into work.  It was GREAT!  We all enjoyed muffins and juice in Garrison's room and Peyton & I had another when I took her to her room!  I didn't have a reason to rush into the office, very refreshing after a crazy few weeks recently, so I took my time and enjoyed being with the kids in their element.  Priceless!

3.  On Friday night, Daddy wanted to put together a couple of sandwiches to take on his golf trip planned for Saturday to IA.  He, of course, had two willing helpers for this task!  Peyton did a great job spreading the peanut butter and adding the honey to his sandwiches.  Garrison couldn't be left out, however.  He tried to spread the peanut butter but ended up tearing the bread more than helping....so he settled for helping Daddy by eating some peanut butter straight from the jar!

3.  On Saturday, Daddy left pretty early and before Grammy arrived for our fun day, see below, the kids were in the bathroom with me while I was getting ready.  Love these two so much!  Garrison is on the phone with Grandpa Arthur - these two talked for 10+ minutes easily.  And Peyton, the light was coming through the window just right so she caught a rainbow on her arm - she was very proud!

4.  For Mother's Day this year, Grammy came up to spend the day with us on Saturday and man did we have a GREAT time!  We started our day with a trip to Deanna Rose.  Garrison got up close and personal with the calves in the barn and Peyton of course rode a pony, Sadie.  They both fed the goats (a first for Garrison!), fed the fish and fed the big goat too!  Thank goodness Grammy came with lots of quarters to feed all the animals!  We wrapped-up our visit to the farm with a hayride (another first for Garrison at the farm).  The kids both loved the hayride and it was much longer than I anticipated - very relaxing and quiet!

After the farm we took Grammy out for lunch for Mother's Day - her choice - Culver's!  Of course, the kids loved this option because it meant we had ice cream at the end of lunch, can't be beat!  Next up was rest time followed by lots of play outside (and a little clean-up of the front yard/driveway).  We even worked-in a trip to the mall to ride the carousel and go to the Disney store.  Our fun day ended with dinner outside on the patio and some more time on the swing set - the kids LOVE to be outside and we finally have nice weather to be able to spend time outside!  We had a fantastic day - Happy Mother's Day Grammy!

5.  My Mother's Day started out great when Daddy got up with the kids so I could sleep-in a bit.  May have only been until about 7 but it was a special treat for me!  Next up, Peyton was able to give me my Mother's Day gifts she had been waiting to give for a while - she was excited!  She had picked out some beautiful earrings and bracelets for me and Daddy had ordered for me a special necklace - one with the kids' names on it - something I will treasure always.  Peyton even wrote "Happy Mother's Day" on my card and signed both her and Garrison's names.  What a big girl!  Since we were up, we got ready and enjoyed a tasty breakfast at First Watch to celebrate!  Once it warmed up we played outside and then I snuck away for a 90-minute, yes, 90-minute massage.  It was very relaxing and I returned home to a quiet house where all were resting or napping so of course I joined in!  Once the kids were awake, we spent more time outside swinging and playing restaurant on the play set.  Can't think of a better way to spend the day!

6.  Late Sunday afternoon we went to meet Grandma & Grandpa Todd & Nana & Papa Sanders for a tasty dinner at Houlihan's.  The kids were excited to see everyone and did very well at dinner.  Dinner was delicious!

7.  And what better way to wrap-up a great weekend than with Ice Cream!  Well, frozen yogurt, but you get the drift!  Peyton walked straight into Orange Leaf and filled her bowl all by herself - she has come a long way since we first went to Peachwave a little over 2 years ago!

Happy Mother's Day to all of the amazing moms out there!

Weekly Happenings - 4/29 - 5/5

1.  On Monday, Peyton picked-out her outfit.  Shorts, t-shirt (jacket to start the day) and boots, of course?!  She was quite proud and asked for a picture.  Of course, I was glad to catch this one!

2.  You may think this picture is on the wrong week but unfortunately, it is not.  This is the SNOW we had on Thursday - May 2.  It didn't stick around for long but still.  Ugh!

3.  This week was a big one for the house - we had our cabinets refaced from honey oak to this beautiful dark bamboo wood.  It really dresses up the kitchen and looks like we have all new cabinets.  So glad we made this change!!

4.  On Friday, Grammy & Grandpa came up to spend some time with the kids while Chad & I went to see Ironman 3 at the Fork & Screen.  The movie was great and I loved having dinner at the theater - and was pleasantly surprised at how yummy the food was!  Grammy helped the kids make Mother's Day cards and had a yummy dinner.  They also helped us get the kitchen put back together since we had to empty ALL of our cabinets to have them refaced.  We made yummy blueberry muffins for breakfast and after lunch on Saturday it was time for Grammy & Grandpa to head home - we had a great visit!

5.  On Sunday morning, Garrison wanted some water so Peyton wanted to help.  She didn't quite get his sippy lined-up where it needed to be so water landed on the floor.  Check-out this team-work to clean up the mess.  

6.  Daddy also has been working on the kids' playset this weekend, even in the sleety rain we had on Saturday.  It is coming together and today he had two excellent project managers helping him out!  Of course, they had to take a break or two to stomp in some mud puddles in the back yard!

7.  Garrison gets more words every day, but still loves to stomp his foot for emphasis.  Such a silly boy!  He was very excited that Apollo arrived home after an extended visit at Grammy & Grandpa's and doesn't like him to get out of his sight!

Weekly Happenings - 4/22 - 4/28

1.  On Thursday night, Peyton & Garrison started their visit to Grandma & Grandpa Todd's while Chad & I went to Branson for a golf tournament.  While they visited, they stayed very busy, even if it did rain a lot of the time!  They made beautiful bead bracelets, made and played with play dough, had a visit from their cousins Wyatt & Whitney, visited Nana & Papa, went to church and even rode the roller coaster in the basement.  Of course, one of the biggest hits was a green blow-up chair Peyton & Whitney found in the basement.  Seriously, why do we need toys?!  Grandma & Grandpa brought them home on Sunday and both were in bed when we arrived.  I do believe a great time was had by all!!

2.  Chad & I were in Branson for Chad to play in a golf tournament and for me to have some quiet time to catch-up on life & do a little shopping.  Friday night we enjoyed an awesome dinner at Level 2 near Branson Landing with Courtney who drove down to visit.  It was a rainy visit to Branson but golf must go on!  Chad played at Murder Rock on Saturday and at Branson Creek on Sunday.  After the first day he was in 2nd for the tournament but on Sunday he had a great day and pulled out a win - by 4 strokes!  This was a "Major" for the am tour and since he won he is now qualified for Nationals in Palm Springs - YAY!  Check-out the last picture here, his name was on the scroll on the Golf Channel - pretty cool!!