Hubs turns 35!!

On April 28, Tanner turned 35 years old.

It's not every day a guy turns 35, so we made a special purchase this year. He wanted a Polaris RZR and that is just what he received.

Here it is!

The kids and I baked him a chocolate chip cake with chocolate frosting. They decorated it with sprinkles and had fun singing Happy Birthday. It was a nice little celebration at home.

That evening, I surprised Hubs by taking him to the House of Blues to watch Jamey Johnson perform. It was a great night!

Jamey Johnson - In Color video

Nashville Elementary Fun Fair

Every year, our local elementary school has a fun fair to help raise money. We love participating!! I believe that the parents of students are encouraged to help, so hopefully next year I will be able to volunteer.

We always park at a nearby church and take a small shuttle bus to the school. This is definitely the kids' favorite part!

Every classroom has games and activities for children of all ages to play. After they play, they get to pick out a small prize to add to their goodie bags. It's such an encouraging and positive environment. It was fun to see Lauren get to participate this year and Turner got over some of his shyness and played quite a few games too.

 

A bounce house and a giant inflatable slide are always set up in the gym. Turner and Lauren climbed up without fear. They had a blast!

 

 

I couldn't correct Turner's red eyes in this pic, but I had to add it because it captures their joy. Here they are jumping up and down and cheering while they waited their turn in  the bounce house. I love that they are buddies!

My guy can officially swim!!

I cannot express how much of a relief it is that Turner now knows how to swim!

As another year of swim lessons comes to an end; here are a few pics. Turner always enjoys when all of us are there to watch him jump off of the diving board and he likes to demonstrate to us what he has learned.

Lauren has especially taken interest in it and I'm excited to get her started in the Fall.

He's always freezing!!

Lauren loves to wade through the water.

Quiet Time Activity provided by Melissa & Doug

When there are times that I need to keep Lauren busy (usually when I'm nursing Tyler), I can count on Melissa & Doug puzzles and games.

Lauren was gifted this Melissa & Doug birthday cake play set and it is perfect for those times when I need the house to be quiet for a bit.

It's so cute. It comes with a wooden cake plate, a wooden cake that is divided into 6 pieces, Velcro candy decorations, and Velcro candles. Your little one can interchange all of the pieces to decorate their cake any way they please. It's lots of fun!!

Connect Four

When all else fails, pull out Connect Four and let them freestyle.

Bubble Foam Fun

I found this idea on several sites and decided to give it a try.

What you need:
Plastic bottle
Sock
Shallow bowl
Bubble Solution (Bubble bath works as well)

1. Remove the lid and cut the bottom off of the bottle.
2. Push sock over the end of the bottle.
3. Dip sock into bubble solution.
4. Blow air into the top of bottle to create the bubble foam.

Have fun!

Quick and Easy Entertainment for your Toddler!

Here is an activity that Lauren enjoys and it's an extremely simple idea using everyday items.

 Dropper Painting

Items needed:
Empty egg carton
Water
Food coloring
Medicine dropper
Paper towels
Cookie sheet or large shallow container

It's pretty self-explanatory. Fill each empty egg carton space halfway with water. Add different colors of food coloring to the water. Place paper towels on top of cookie sheet or container. Allow your child to use a medicine dropper to pull out water from the carton and drop it onto the towels to create their art.

They get to create art and work on their fine motor skills at the same time.

Easy!!