Everyday Adventures

Tessa and I went to Amarie's dance recital. Tess had been asking when she can watch Amarie in the Nutcracker again, and was so excited to hear that she had a recital the next weekend.

We both loved the recital! Tessa couldn't stop herself from dancing in her chair on all the upbeat songs, and was entranced watching all the ballet numbers. Amarie's trio was absolutely beautiful. She is a really great dancer and that trio is one of my favorite dances I've seen.

We went with Al, Caitlyn, and Hallee, which made it even more fun.

The girls were so cute taking selfie videos after the recital. Tess loves her cousins!

The kids and I went to Jonah's basketball game too. He's a great player and it's so fun to watch him do something he loves.

Paul got a gift card to the Water Gardens, so we took the kids to see How to Train Your Dragon 3. We all enjoyed that one.

I sure love these cute boys of mine!

A lot of weeks Tessa and Hallee show up to dance wearing the same thing without planning it. They are too cute!

We celebrated Grandpa Ham's birthday. Rockwell and Wyatt did a drumroll before every present he opened. :)

Al got him this shirt. Love it!

It was Katie's birthday this month, so we spent a night in a hotel to celebrate. It was so much fun to spend a whole night with best friends, and laugh and laugh, and support each other. I'm so grateful to have them in my life. 

Trying to get a good selfie gave plenty of opportunity for laughs! :)

There have been a lot of warm, sunny days lately and we have absolutely loved it! We spend as much time as we can outside on those days. The sun just makes us all happy.

Tessa has decided she really wants to learn how to rollerblade. On a rainy day, she wanted to start practicing in the garage. I wasn't able to help her, so she asked Damon to instead. That was adorable!

She's practiced a few more days outside and has improved a ton. She's very proud of herself, and we were talking about the learning process and how she's come a long way because of her practice.

Rockwell was listening, and then ran into the garage and brought out his bike. He said, "Well, I guess I could try this again." And he took off! He has been so afraid to even try riding without training wheels, I think because of fear of getting hurt. I'm so glad that he decided to really give it a try because he loves it. He is so proud of himself! He wants to show anyone who will watch. He said his favorite part about riding a 2-wheeler is feeling the wind in his face. :)

Damon is big enough for this bike now, and has gotten really good on it too. He cruises around the cul-de-sac, and just seems so grown up doing it.

Life Lately

Tessa went to a birthday party for a friend in her class, and she was so excited to get her nails painted and color in her hair.

Damon has started saying he needs alone time when he's grumpy like Tessa does. I loved the spot he chose for his alone time this day!

Rockwell's favorite thing to do lately has been building with Legos. He comes up with some great creations.

Paul and I went axe throwing with Josh and Mari. It was really fun to hang out with them and to throw the axes again. 

Paul started out rough, but ended up winning every single game. 

We got a treadmill and the kids had so much fun playing with the box it came in. They colored all over it, and built a little city with the styrofoam.

Tessa and Damon made a fishing game with the straps from the box. It's fun to see their creativity.

I love the time I get with Damon while the other two are in school. He's my little buddy and shadow all morning. 

Tessa passed off all of the Sam Books. She got to pick a couple treasures from the Sam Box Treasure Chest at school. I'm so proud of Tessa for accomplishing this. It's a lot of work to learn how to read, and she has done awesome at it!

We met Cindy and her kids at the Museum of Natural Curiosity. The kids were so excited to see their friends again and to explore the museum.

I love what the boys wrote on the marquee.

It was really hard to keep track of all the kids, so that was kinda rough. But it was so fun to visit with Cindy, and the kids absolutely loved it all.