April/May Update

It's crazy how guilty I feel when I haven't updated my blog in a long time! I feel like I'm failing the world in general--when the actual sad truth is that probably no one has even noticed! I've got to get this guilt off my shoulders, though, and update my blog. Bear with me--I will abbreviate this, but it is still bound to be long.

From past to present:

Okay, we decided to light a fire and roast hot dogs and smores on the Hickory Hill Farm. Was this crazy on a hot Georgia day in April? Yes, but it actually turned out to be really fun. I experimented some with my camera. I would say some of them actually turned out good!





Oh yeah, BIG news: LUKEY'S WALKING!! It's an amazing thing!
Some craft tidbits. We were studying "K" this week so we read a cute book about flying a kite and then made our own out of freezer paper, glue and water, and tissue paper. Then we went out and actually flew a real kite. I haven't had that much fun in a long time. It totally reminded me of being a kid again. It was so fun!


Kk-"K" is for Kite!!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Lukey has not only become mobile, but he's also undergone a HUGE transformation. See if you can spot the thing that keeps changing in these next few pictures...


Better bald than mohawked, huh? Tragic!! That mop will grow back out pretty soon.

Okay, more fun at the Allred farm. They are always so generous to let us come play on their pluthera of adult toys...the decent kind of adult toys!:)



Then we headed down to Florida/pool/beach for some fun in the sun and some fun getting to know Beau's new "Boo", Amy. She was pretty cool, passed my test. Admittedly, Florida was hard with having to take all 3 kids to the pool by myself sans Jake. Even harder when I got hit by the "stinky bug" and had the runs for 2 days straight. Miserable! Overall it really was a lot of fun, though! Here's Beau and Amy--
Isn't she cute?? Will she soon be a Jewkes? Who knows?

This is all Ethan did for 3 days. Lucky boy! Isn't he cute?
Luke didn't love the pool, as you can see...
Coop wouldn't get out of the pool, as you can see...
Finally getting to hang out with someone his own age! Jonah was born just a few weeks before Luke, though you couldn't tell by their sizes!

Yeah for Mother's Day! I LOVE being pampered and I was totally pampered. I pretty much stayed in bed and read all day. Didn't have to change one diaper, nope, not a one! Julie made us some FABULOUS crepes that I'm still salivating over. Jake made us a FABULOUS steak dinner (okay, would have been fabulous if the steaks weren't cold by the time we ate them since my parents were really late to dinner). It's the intention that counts. Thank you to my chefs--Julie and Jake. Thanks Jake for letting me be so lazy!
The fabulous reasons for my Mother's Day... (I love you guys!)


Okay, more crafts. Here's our next book project, "The Hungry Caterpillar". We made a caterpillar by dipping a balloon in paint and then on the paper. Don't you love Cooper's sun? I was shocked by it. I drew the circle and told him to color it in and he started putting rays on the darn thing. How did he know how to do that?

Ll-Lions!! and lollipops, of course!
This was really fun and I thought of it all by myself!! The lion's head is Coop's palm and the mane is his thumb. He loves his lion!

I love this pic of him roaring!

Ahh, THE END!

Going Green

We've been admonished by our Stake President to plant a garden. With a little pushing and shoving and a lot of tutelage from Jason, we finally set out to do it. This method is called square foot gardening (I think) and I am a huge fan! We had fun planting and playing in the soil and we even have little sprouts starting to come up. I'm so excited to see if we actually get anything to grow! Regardless, I feel a little bit more righteous for following counsel and a little bit safer for having some food.

Grammy sent us some really fun self-decorating pots and seeds for the little boys for Easter. They had so much fun putting them together--thanks Grammy! We'll let you know when we see some green!

Things I Learned In Boston

I got to spend a fabulous 4 days in Boston to help celebrate and cheer on my AMAZING brother-in-law, Jim, in accomplishing one of his life-long dreams--QUALIFYING AND RUNNING IN THE BOSTON MARATHON! For those of you who don't know, this is a MAJOR feat! Only the best of the best make it in and it is a worldwide race, not just national. Yes, Jim, I'm proud of you and I know you're loving all of my praise! By the way, he did amazing, finishing somewhere in the rank of 4,700 out of 26,000. Let me remind you, this is a world competition. Basically Jim is the 4,700th best runner ever in this galaxy! Jim, have I sung your praises enough??

Okay, there were some definite lessons that I learned during my sojourn in historical and beautiful Boston. They are as follows:

Lesson #1

Frankly, I look better with make-up. After coming home and looking at my pictures I realized I look pretty horrendous without make-up. I have made an effort ever since ( a whole 2 days!!) to wear it more often so my hubby still thinks I'm a hot mama!

Exhibit A: without make-up Exhibit B: with make-up (this is the USS Constitution--the longest running commissioned ship in the Navy--a.k.a. "Old Ironsides")

Lesson #2

People in Boston are RUDE! I mean the people from the city, not those visiting. Love the city, hate the people! We were purposely mis-directed MANY times, I was personally sworn at several times for pushing a stroller on the sidewalk (for crying out loud, how do they think they got around when they were still in diapers), many a men watched idly as my sisters and I struggled to get all of our luggage, babies, and strollers on and off of buses (whatever happened to chivalry?), next to no one offered their seats on the subway when both Rachel and I were carrying babies ALL day long, and I could go on but I won't. I love southern people!

(This is at a DELICIOUS breakfast place in Boston. It was so good that we stood in line for nearly 45 minutes before eating. It was worth every second!)

Lesson #3

In the words of Claire, "I would look so hot if I lived in this city!" Here's why. They had this AMAZING farmer's market where there was gobs of fruits and veggies for next to nothing prices. I'm talking 3 lbs of yummy grapes for $1!!! AAHH!! I felt like I had died and gone to heaven. I would totally eat healthier in a city like this. Negative to farmer's market: I had the "F" word thrown at my many, many times for DARING to bring a stroller in--crazy Bostonians!

Lesson #4

If you take a child, it's not a vacation. I don't think I'll make that mistake again. Love you, Ethan!

(This is Ethan with his cute cousin Lauren)

Lesson #5

Some things just shouldn't be done with a baby in a sling. These pictures need no words.(This is at Harvard--they had tire swings set up all over the common. I thought it was a fabulous idea--too bad I couldn't fit my left thigh in it!)

Lesson # 6

Sisters and mom's are the best to vacation with! You can stay up all night and gab, cry because you had really crappy sleep, eat chocolate to your heart's delight, and walk around in your garments and care less. I had such a blast! (Jim and London, you were fun in your own way, too!)

Lesson # 7

This is the most important one so I saved it for last. If you have a dream, even if it seems unattainable and super human, go for it anyways! Jim really did inspire me with this one. I really, really am proud of all his work and determination. I never would have set my heights so high because it seemed impossible, but he set it high and then he accomplished his dream! I've learned that it's okay to dream big and hope that I'll be able to accomplish the dreams/goals I've set for myself.

I love me some Boston!

Things I Have to Worry About

I've decided there are a lot of things that I have to worry about that most mom's don't. This comes as a consequence of living in the country--which definitely has it's perks too! Okay, here's my list in no particular order:

A pool that is usually gated but now just in pieces. Could my children fall in there? You betcha!
This is about the 5th body of water that concerns me on this 52 acres. There are 2 lakes, a pool, a fountain that my kids love to try to climb in, and a stream. All of them scare me.
Trees. We have so many trees here! There are constantly things falling from the sky. This one fell not 20 feet from my kids bedroom. When there is wind out I get scared.

Not to mention rattle snakes, massive snapping turtles, a long steep driveway that has drawn a lot of blood from those knees, cars speeding around corners, on and on and on. Someone's looking out for us!