In Search of Spring Break

We told the kids that we didn't have to go to school this week because we were on Spring Break and they kept asking "Where is it?"  "Where's Spring Break?"  So... we spent the week looking for Spring Break.  We looked at the lake, at Grandma & Grandpa's house, at Chuck E Cheese, at the Granbury Square, at the duck pond, and the park...
Oh how we love the park... it's free and the kids would be happy going there every single day. 

Slide, swing, repeat.  That's how we spent most of spring break this year.

Fat Ducks and Playdough Ice Cream

Everyone in Fort Worth had the same idea as us last week... Trinity Park Duck Pond.  Poor ducks were F.A.T by the time we got there and weren't at all interested in the bread we had to offer.  The kids pretty much chased them around the pond trying to peg them with bread pellets to get their attention.  I think Caden especially enjoyed the challenge.

Tucker got bored pretty quickly and decided he'd rather jump in and swim with the ducks than feed them.  The boy is quick, but we got to him just in time.

Emma and Caden are so great with the kids.  They just love their big cousins and want to be just like them.  I've said this before, but that Emma is the best helper!  I need a couple of her around all the time. 

Love this picture of Caden... he's growing up so fast.  He's still not too cool to play with his cousins at the park though!

After feeding the ducks and playing at the park, we enjoyed some much needed ice cream at Sweet Sammies.  There's nothing like cotton candy and play dough ice cream (gross) on a hot spring afternoon!

Boys boys boys... I see Tucker doing this to his little brother (if the peanut ends up being a boy) years down the road.  At least he has Caden to wrestle with though if it ends up being a girl. 

Reese and the Boys

Gotta love Spring Break.  I'm not sure what I would do if I weren't in education.  I just feel plain sorry for people who don't get teacher holidays.

We laid pretty low this spring break and just spent some much needed time outdoors with family and friends.  By mid-week, the weather was beautiful and we spent a perfect day riding the train, picnicking and playing at the park with the McDonalds.  Reese has gotten used to hanging out with the boys...

Campbell and Tucker were totally wearing the same thing.  I guess when you're best friends for 30 years, you start having the same great taste.  

I'm loving the park even more now that they are getting older... it's nice that they don't need my help or coaxing anymore.  The challenge now is keeping up with them though... crowded parks make me neurotic.

My babies still love to swing. How are they big enough to no longer need the baby swings?  Stop Growing! 

And little miss Reese has found a new love... the twisty slide.  She finally conquered her fear of the twisty slide and is now obsessed.   

Tucker still loves to climb... I can't believe we haven't had to frequent the ER with this boy. 

A day at the park must be followed by one thing... a good ol' LONG nap for everyone.  Mom included.  And that's just what we did!

Abundantly Blessed

Abundantly Blessed... that's how I feel right now.  That's how I felt on Thanksgiving and that's the feeling I want to hold on to all year long.  We've had our share of hard times... and its so easy to get bogged down by the "don't haves" and "didn't go as planneds" that I sometimes forget how abundantly blessed we truly are.  This year I want to be blissfully grateful... the way Reese and Tucker were when we spent Thanksgiving morning on the playground...

Man I love these boys!!!!

 And when we spent the day after Thanksgiving at the petting zoo...

Can you believe Reese??  I'm not sure what happened to this girl... she ran right up and couldn't wait to feed the horses.  There's hope for her after all.

We spent Thanksgiving in Houston this year.  The weather was beautiful so the kids got to do some fun outdoor stuff with all the cousins... we all enjoyed time on the playground and feeding the animals.  Another thing that we're abundantly blessed with... lots of family and lots of love... 

We were all amazed that we could get everyone on that staircase... and there weren't even any crying babies this time. 

Sunshine and Twisty Slides

Fall is here and it makes me sneeze happy.  Could it have been a more perfect weekend?  75 and sunny... absolutely beautiful. It was one of those "open the windows, decorate for fall, eat out on the porch" kind of weekends.  Shame on you if you stayed inside. 

We decided to make a trip to the zoo yesterday... well, until we got over there and realized that all of Fort Worth was there.  Visions of our Children's Museum Spring Break trip came rushing back as we approached the zoo and saw the traffic backed up on to University.  It took all of two seconds for me to call an audible.  Plan B... picnic at the park.  And since everyone else in Fort Worth was at the Zoo, we had the park all to ourselves.

I went through 2 boxes of Kleenex while we were out there, but it was worth it just to relax and play with the kids.  There's something about twisty slides that makes me feel like I'm 12 again. I hope I never get too old and busy to play with my kids.