...to juggle

...a little of this and a little of that

1.  Work day.  Success.

Yup.  AND I was productive during the cancellations I had.  And the I even fixed the d$%@ printer paper-feeder-mechanism-y thing.

2.  First day at horseback riding lessons.  A perfect success!

beaming 

3.  Soccer.  Another success!

this kid plays hard!

4.  Drop car off at dealership to get fixed again.  Fail.

It was much to tiring coordinating all of the above said events with Amy, Katherine, and Mark to shlep to yet another destination at 7:00PM.  Defer drop-off until tomorrow morning.

5.  Feed family healthy, wholesome meal.  Harry Firetruck.  F-  

Unless ordering Audrey apple juice at Burger King counts as healthy...

Sigh.

Win some.  Lose some.

Anyways....I love onion rings.

And I really enjoy watching my big kids experience activities they love so much.

...bedtime to be early.

...do I need to explain?

For the record...This was #4 in recovery mode.

As in, she was experiencing one of her best moments of the evening.

(A moment in which she was not screaming, grunting, moaning, or whining).

Bedtime was early.

I did finally win.

_____________________

Note to self:  Next time it is 2:00 in the afternoon and I think she should take a nap....I should probably put her down for a nap.  

...to check on our newest house guest

...Isn't she lovely?

She has laid four eggs in the nest she so carefully built.

Eggs numbers 1 & 2 came after SEVERAL checks by the Crow family children on May 11.  By Sunday morning eggs number 3 was there and finally sometime late in the day Egg #4 was laid (May 12).  

According to the big kids' calculations (and this book) our houseguest's family should be complete by May 24.

We had the pleasure of watching her build her nest from the comfort of our living room couch.

And every morning since the kids rush down the stairs, scare the living d-a-y-l-i-g-h-t-s out of her (so that she flies away), and then beg me (till I can no longer resist) to check the status of her four eggs.

Still there.

We love watching her.

She tolerates watching us from afar (whilst we dare sit on her porch).

She flies from tree to tree chirping at us, sometimes walking on the ground close to us...

...and every now and then she is quite brave and flies up to her babies even while we are sitting...

...right, here, with her.

...to bring lovely into my home

...and what is more lovely than lilacs?

Last week I was browsing at TJ Max.  I actually stop in there about once a month to check on their toys and games...I tend to find new materials that I use for work there (since I actually play children's games for a living....)

I found this little gem:

It is one continuous vase with four separate holders.

And it just so happens that these beauties are growing right outside our front door:

The lilacs and the vase are a perfect combination.

My very favorite flower in the whole wide world only happens to bloom for about two weeks in May.

And now it also thrives in our dining room...

 

Sniiifff....ahhh.  The fragrance is breathtaking. (Possibly, quite literally for Mark and Isabella given their allergies.)

But...so very lovely.

They make me so happy.

...to attend the school concert

...well it was actually on Tuesday evening.

It was a Broadway Show.

Sort of.

Here are three of the main stars of the show:

Can you sense the style?

Can you feel the beat?

Can you appreciate the pizzazz?

Mark and I and Audrey got to experience all of these sensations....for an hour and a half.

At least the tunes were catchy and the kids sure were cute.  

If you would like to see a flash from the past click here.

______________

Disclaimer:  I had surgery yesterday and thus, I am: recovering, slightly incoherent, and most definitely not timely with my posts.

...to get back on schedule

...since I most definitely I have been out-of-routine.

I think it must always be obvious to my friends and family when Mark is home...I become unreliable at posting to the blog, I am not good about returning phone calls, and for me, the time slips away all too quickly.

Mark was home this weekend to celebrate my birthday and Mother's Day with the kids and I.

We drank several cups of hot, pour-over coffee (this week's selection was imported from Puerto Rico), we went out to lunch twice this weekend, and we even managed to fit in a nice long nap on Saturday afternoon.

For the most part the weekend was completely uneventful.

This is exactly how we like our weekends to be.  It makes them last SO MUCH LONGER.

_____________

Here are a few 'make-me-happy' photos I took over the past few days (if you have already seen these on Instagram than I apologize for being redundant)....

1.  On Thursday of last week I thought it would be fun productive a.terrible.idea to take all four children shopping at the mall.

Huh?

Yep.  You read that right.

Me and all four kids.  Walked through nearly every store in the mall to look for uniform shorts for Isabella.

Guess what?

No.  Uniform shorts.  In stock.  Anywhere.

But Will picked out these super cool sunglasses and this fedora.  He has since rocked them every day this week.

2.  Isabella baked me a cake for my birthday.  I think...she put...the candles in...a little early?  They melted.  In case you are wondering: the pink one is worth twenty, the yellow: ten, and the green: nine.

3.  My crew sang me Happy Birthday...several times (since everyone had to have a chance to blow out my candles).  

4.  We went to Buffalo Wild Wings for Mother's Day.  For the record, we had no trouble getting a table!  Will got the award for enjoying his meal the most.

5.  My birthday present from Mark was a beautiful silver pendant that was engraved with the following quotation: 

Warms my heart.

...to spend the morning with Abbey

...in her class for their Mother's Day tea.

My days are always pretty full.

I am getting better at trying not to put extra tasks on my calendar.

But I have yet to regret any time going to the kids' classes when I am asked.

And this week is no different.

Two times in one week to spend time with my 'lil ones.

I rearranged my whole work week this week to attend the Mother's Day tea in Abbey's class this morning.

All to spend time with this little lady.

She made me a flower arrangement and served me delicious scones!

And we were able to spend some time with them on the playground.

She is such a sweet young girl...and getting so grown-up.

I can't believe that she is almost finished with pre-school but I am also so excited to see what experiences await her in Kindergarten!