Weekly Happenings - 1/20 - 1/25

1.  On Wednesday, Peyton & I took advantage of a smoothie class that was offered at our local Hy-Vee store to learn how to make healthy (and tasty!) smoothies!  There was only one other woman who attended so it was a small class but we had a great time and Peyton did 90% of the work all by herself!  Here she is with her 7 pre-made smoothies that are now in the freezer.  We can't wait to try them all!!

2.  On Thursday night, we had the elementary school's family game night!  My friend Angie & I got ourselves roped into planning the game night (even though we had never been before!) and it turned out GREAT!  We had ~300 people in attendance.  Everyone enjoyed lots of games of Bingo, extra smaller games in the library, concessions and books / raffle tickets for prizes.  The 90 minute event went by so fast but was lots of fun!  We were pretty busy running around that night but I got a couple of pictures on my phone.  Such a fun evening!!

3.  On Friday, I had a pretty big day at work turning around an analysis - like a 17 hour day. :(  I was supposed to take the kids to Grammy & Grandpa's on Friday evening to help Grammy with the garage sale the next day but since that wasn't going to happen, Chad met them half-way because the kids were looking forward to going for a visit!  On Saturday morning, everyone started at the garage sale but the kids didn't last long "helping" and "selling cookies & water" so they spent most of the day with Grandma Mintun & Grandpa!  They had lots of fun playing games and keeping the adults on their toes!  I did make it to Clinton on Saturday but only for about 2 hours before I got called back to the city to meet with our CEO and other executives.  It was a whirlwind to say the least but it was a great opportunity to attend some high-level executive discussions.  Grammy wrapped-up the garage sale, with some help with her favorite 2 kids.  It was quite a success!  On Saturday night, late, Garrison came down with a stomach bug and reminded Grammy that she needed to keep her quick sheet changing skills fresh!  He got sick a few times that night but started to bounce back during the day on Sunday with lots of cuddle time.  After lunch, the kids came back home.  I was very excited to see them - I hadn't seen them since Thursday evening at game night and I was even in the same location as them at least twice over the weekend!  Geesh.  It happens - and will be a crazy weekend to remember!

That's it, folks.  It was a super busy week with lots of fun but not a lot to talk about! :)  Until next week!

Weekly Happenings - 1/5 - 1/19

Ok, so I'm WAY behind but trying to catch-up now so combing two weeks together! :)  Likely I will miss several things and will probably be out of order but hey, I'm here and blogging! :)

1.  Grammy, Grandpa & Grandma Mintun came up for a visit!  Chad & I needed to run a few errands to look for a few things for the spare bedroom so we took care of those while the kids kept everyone entertained!  They played lots of games and took a road trip McDonald's for lunch and play time at the Playplace!

2.  We had our friends, the Sizemores, over for dinner and playtime.  Peyton & Kylie had fun cuddling under the blanket in her room!  We made homemade pizza and it was YUMMY!  After evenings like these I'm never sure why we don't do this more often - maybe we can correct that this year!

3.  We in general got back into the swing of things!  Piano lessons, gymnastics, swim lessons and school all started back up and the transition back to reality for the kids (and adults) was incredibly smooth!  Peyton was out from 12/19 until 1/5 and didn't go to daycare at all!  She had a great break and we all had a lot of fun.  I'm very thankful she was excited to go back to school!

4.  Last weekend it was beautiful so we were able to get outside and play (and get a few jobs done too!).  On Sunday, Daddy had to work :( so the kids & I spent the afternoon outside raking & playing in the leaves!  They had so much fun!  We hadn't really raked the back yard yet this year so needless to say we had a LOT Of leaves.  I think we ended up filling 12 bags!  This was the first time Garrison really played in leaves and he thought it was great fun!  He also really enjoyed "helping" by raking leaves OUT of the piles I had made!  Good thing he is cute! :)

5.  On Monday it was time to take the lights down.  Of course, a ladder was involved, so the kids had to participate too!  They thought it was so fun to 1 - be like Daddy and 2 - climb super high!  Thankfully (I think!) they do not seem to have my apprehension with heights!

6.  Peyton had 2 birthday parties during this time - 1 for her friend from school (Tristen - who apparently has quite the crush on Peyton!) and 1 for her friend Victoria from daycare.  They don't get to see each other often anymore so Peyton got to go over to her house for lunch and a play date before the party - so fun!!

Hopefully I can get back into the swing of things and back on track.  This week is a busy one so should have lots to blog about on Sunday!

Weekly Happenings - 1/1 - 1/4

1.  On New Year's Day, Aunt April, Wyatt & Whitney came up to our neck of the woods for a shopping trip so we joined them for lunch and a little shopping.  The kids both had a GREAT time with their cousins - such a fun spur of the moment visit!!

2.  Isn't Peyton the cutest Daisy Scout you've ever seen?  I sure think so!  She is well on her way to her goals for cookie selling this year!!

3.  On Friday, we took advantage of open swim at our pool to burn some energy on a cold day and for Peyton to practice snorkeling.  She is doing really well and liked trying out her new dry snorkel that doesn't let water in the tube.  What a big girl!  Our friends Hailey & Ethan even joined us for the swim!

4.  On Sunday, Daddy worked on painting the "main room" aka, the spare bedroom, after finishing the ceiling earlier in the week.  Of course, the kids couldn't miss out!  They both put on old t-shirts so they could join in the painting fun!  They did a great job!!

5.  Peyton got two new cookbooks for Christmas and she was ready to try them out!  On Saturday we made spaceship pancakes and for Sunday dinner we made football meatloaf!  It tasted great AND looked awesome!

6.  They may bicker, pick at each other and always want the same thing, but then there are moments like this where they lean on each other and just relax.  These are the moments that melt this momma's heart!

7.  Garrison is working really hard on finishing with potty training - if he goes 5 days in a row with no accidents, he gets to sleep in underwear at night!  Fingers crossed he can get across this finish line - we are SO close!!