Swimming Lessons Complete...for now.

Swimming lessons are finished, as of last night. Upon leaving the pool, the kids were each given a cookie and a piece of paper from their teachers. Realize that BOTH kids were in the 3-5 year old class together, which was a neat experience. Josiah held his own with the big kids! He was by far the youngest out there being still one month shy of 3 years old himself. Mackenzie has completed the 3-5 year old level and is officially promoted to level 1, while Josiah completed the 3-5 year old class but would still be in it for the next go-around, whenever that may be...

Here's the comments from the teacher to Josiah, on his form, "Josiah, you are such a hard worker! You always have a smile on your face and love to be dunked! I will never forget that. Continue to practice and you will be a fish in no time!"

Here's the comments from the teacher to Mackenzie, on her form, "Mackenzie, you have no fear! You are always willing to try new things and are determined to succeed! Continue to practice and have fun in level 1."

I think it is very nice that the teacher took the time to write specific comments for each child. I loved reading them and just wanted to share them! :)

Gardening

Better late than never....here's our pictures from gardening last weekend! Enjoy. David did a fabulous job of building our two garden boxes (double the space we had last year) and filling them with dirt! The picture above is of the kids helping rake the dirt into the box as David hauled it from our front yard (where the guy delivered it) to our backyard. I helped the kids rake, which was actually a lot of fun!
The kids also made great compactors for mashing the soil so that as it settles over time the boxes should still be full of dirt.

Mackenzie posing while taking a break from raking.

Josiah helping David shovel the dirt (1/2 topsoil and 1/2 compost) into the wheel barrow.

Mackenzie raking the dirt out of the wheel barrow and into the garden box.

TaDa! The finished product! Both boxes are FULL of seeds! You can see the 5 tomato plants we planted, but everything else we planted from seed this year. We'll see how that works as the season progresses!

We also added that Christmas type of evergreen tree in the corner. The garden boxes have tomato plants, cucumber seed, carrot seed, squash seed, broccoli seed, mesculin seed, corn seed, and sugar snap pea seeds. Perhaps a little bit crowded?! ;)

If you look closely, you'll be able to see the two garden boxes in the back corner of our yard. The maple tree is on the right.

Here's the swing set and playhouse area with the maple tree on the left, for reference.

You'll notice all the hay/straw (I never know which to call it!) scattered in the yard. We had additional topsoil brought in, the yard seeded, and covered in attempt to get some good grass growing. So far, so good! We're really pleased with how it's doing so far, and thankful to have a place for the kids to play.

My Two Kids

I just loved how this pictured turned out! I snapped it as we were building our garden boxes and filling them with dirt yesterday. I'll have to dedicate another post to the project itself...you know, the before, during, and after pictures! For now, I just had to share this pic of the kids. When Mackenzie saw it, she stared at it for a moment. Then she asked, incredulously, "Mom, did you really write our names on the fence?" Josiah, after studying the same picture (currently my computer wall paper/background), asked, "How did I get in there!" What a hoot. I love those precious thoughts and comments!!!

Josiah's Interview

I asked Josiah (2 3/4 yrs old) some questions (I'm copying this off of my friend Kristie's blog) and here's what he said...

1. What is something mommy always says to you? "Mommy."

2. What makes mommy happy? "Siah!" (Well, of course!)

3. What makes mommy sad? "I don't know."

4. How does your mommy make you laugh? "I don't know."

5. What was your mommy like as a child? "Siah."

6. How old is your mommy? "I don't know."

7. How tall is your mommy? "This tall!" (He says as he holds up his hands in the air!)

8. What is her favorite thing to do? "Play with me."

9. What does your mommy do when you're not around? "I don't know."

10. If your mommy becomes famous, what will it be for? (Total silence. No response at all.)

11. What is your mommy really good at? "Holding Siah!" (I love this answer!)

12. What is your mommy not very good at? "I don't know."

13. What does your mommy do for a job? "Play with Siah!"

14.What is your mommy's favorite food? "Fruit."

15.What makes your mommy proud of you? "Siah!" (Right on, Kiddo!)

16. If your mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be? "I don't know."

17. What do you and your mommy do together? "I don't know."

18. How are you and your mommy the same? "White!"

19. How are you and your mommy different? "I don't know."

20. How do you know your mommy loves you? "A hug and a kiss!"

21. What does your mommy like most about your daddy? "I don't know."

22. Where is your mommy's favorite place to go? "Sam's!"

Interviewing Mackenzie

I asked Mackenzie (4 1/2 yrs old) some questions (I'm copying this off of my friend Kristie's blog) and here's what she said...

1. What is something mommy always says to you? "Have good manners." (Am I really?!)

2. What makes mommy happy? "Me!" (Well, of course!)

3. What makes mommy sad? "When you cried at your friends going away." (Rebecca & Sara, she's talking about you!!!)

4. How does your mommy make you laugh? "When you make a funny face at me."

5. What was your mommy like as a child? "A girl." (That's logical!)

6. How old is your mommy? "28" (Right on, Kiddo!)

7. How tall is your mommy? "30 feet!" (Then she looked at me and asked if that was right!)

8. What is her favorite thing to do? "Play with your little ones." (Meaning her and Josiah!)

9. What does your mommy do when you're not around? "Play with Josiah."

10. If your mommy becomes famous, what will it be for? "What does famous mean? Okay, this is a hard one. Your friends." (So....I won't be famous...my friends will be famous and that's as close as I'll get! ;) )

11. What is your mommy really good at? "Driving." (I'm glad she thinks so!)

12. What is your mommy not very good at? "Taking us to swimming lessons because you don't know the way." (I actually asked the kids to help me watch for the place yesterday!)

13. What does your mommy do for a job? "Cook." (LOL! I don't even like to cook. Um, try being a momma or seldom going to work as a RN!)

14.What is your mommy's favorite food? "Spaghetti and meatballs." (Not my favorite, but I do like it. We happen to have had this for supper tonight.)

15.What makes your mommy proud of you? "Obeying!" (Right on, Kiddo!)

16. If your mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be? "Dora!"

17. What do you and your mommy do together? "Cook. Actually, play."

18. How are you and your mommy the same? "If I have a head band in and then my hair's straight just like you!"

19. How are you and your mommy different? "When my hair's dry and curly and your hair's dry and straight."

20. How do you know your mommy loves you? "Because she takes me shopping in the Disney Store!"

21. What does your mommy like most about your daddy? "The love he gives you." (Impressive answer!)

22. Where is your mommy's favorite place to go? "Shopping!"

Our Easter

Thanks to our friends, the Causey's, we enjoyed a fabulous Easter Egg Hunt yesterday afternoon at their house. The kids had so much fun that neither one wanted to leave when it was time to come home! Josiah hunting eggs at the Causey's Easter Egg Hunt.
Mackenzie proudly displaying a green egg at the Causey's Easter Egg Hunt.

Our kids checking out their loot from the Easter Bunny first thing this morning...at 7:15am.

Then we headed to the kitchen for breakfast. What could be better than bunny cake for Easter breakfast?! The kids were both delighted to see the bunny cake, as I did not finish it until after they were in bed last night. Long story short, my mixer broke while I was making the icing! One quick trip to Target and I was able to finish the cake with my new mixer! :)

Here's Josiah seeing the bunny cake for the first time. (The one above this was Mackenzie seeing it for the first time.) I was proud of my bunny cake! Usually my momma makes the bunny cake...every single year...but this year it was my turn as she's too far away to make it for us! I think it turned out okay. The kids reaction made it worth all the effort.

After seeing the cake, it was to the table for breakfast and into chairs as fast as possible! I love the looks of admiration for the cake on their little faces.

After breakfast we got dressed for church and headed out into our yard to hunt the eggs that the Easter bunny hid.

I love this picture of the kids both crouched over looking for eggs in the bushes!

Here's Mackenzie displaying her pink egg. Notice she is NOT in her Sunday Easter dress. After some tears, we decided not to push the issue for the egg hunt in our yard. :)

Here's Josiah proudly displaying his prize egg. Those big decorative eggs had toy prizes (cars and princess figurine key chains) in them.

Mackenzie and her prize purple egg.

Josiah and his prizes: a Lightening McQueen, Mater, and Stitch key chain!

Mackenzie carefully set her eggs and their contents all on one stair after the hunt!

Here's our traditional Easter Sunday picture taken after church this morning. Josiah has his tongue out. No surprise there! Notice, Mackenzie IS wearing a dress. ;)

The kids making "tea" in the bird bath after church today. Thirsty, anyone?! ;)

I do hope you all had a fantastic Easter. May the Lord continue to reign forever and ever!!

Happy Easter!

Just wishing everyone a Happy Easter! I'll attempt to do an Easter post later...with pics of the kids, the bunny cake, and the egg hunt. Here's a pic of the four of us at church this morning. Praise the Lord for a risen Saviour!!!

My Little Fish

My two little fish are taking group swimming lessons! They are totally excited about it as they love the water. They'll be in class for 8 sessions over 4 weeks. I had fun snapping some pictures tonight! Enjoy. The above picture is an overview of the 3 classes in the pool. Josiah's class is on the far right edge; Mackenzie's class is the one farthest away from us. It's a busy place!
Here's an up close of Josiah and David in the parent tot class. Josiah's teacher promoted him from the parent tot class, which is for kids up to age 36 months, to Mackenzie's class starting next week! He is excited to join the big kids, and his skill level is ready for the next class anyways. My baby is growing up too fast. ;(

Here's Mackenzie swimming with the noodle. Notice her new friend smiling in the background...those two girls just hit it off! I've had fun watching Mackenzie make friends these days. She LOVES making new friends. That will be helpful for starting kindergarten in the fall.

I like the way you can see the water splashing in this pic! My two boys are having fun together. I'm so glad David is such an involved Daddy. That's a huge blessing for the kids and me! :)

So...where is Mackenzie? She is completely under the water! Her friends are watching the place in the water where she went under, directly behind her teacher's head.

Here's Mackenzie swimming with her face in the water while holding on to the noodle. She can go for several seconds like this while holding her breath!

We're all having fun with the group lessons. We did private lessons last summer, but figured the group ones would be cheaper and the kids would enjoy the other children this way, too. As for me, I'm enjoying watching!

Easter Snow

As mentioned in a previous post, we decided to dye eggs twice this year. Talk about a fun activity...! This time Josiah got in on the action, too. Here we are, stirring the tablets into the vinegar and water. Ready to begin!
Josiah's checking out a blue egg.

Mackenzie's checking out a green egg.

Josiah's finished product!

Mackenzie's finished product!

(The pink tablet did not dissolve for some reason, so we're missing a color! They turned out pretty, anyways.) Fun times. Why only enjoy it once? :)

I never thought I'd dye Easter Eggs on a Snow Day! Ha.

Hope everyone enjoys the week and has a very Happy Easter!!!

Ummm, April 7th?

I really do believe it is April 7th today. That means Easter Sunday is only five days away. And it snowed today. REALLY snowed today. Check these pics out! Josiah and I went grocery shopping while Mackenzie was in school today. This is what we saw on our way home. I pulled the camera out and snapped some pics as we drove.
Notice the beautiful dogwood tree full of white blooms...with gorgeous white snow flakes falling, too! Too wild.

Here are our neighbors pretty pink flowers...and white snow flakes pouring from the sky!

Here is the view from our driveway of the snow falling.

And while I unloaded groceries, Josiah caught a few snowflakes. :)

Happy Snow Day, Everyone! ;)

Hide and Seek

One afternoon last week, we played hide and seek in our front yard. The weather was gorgeous. (Today is rainy and dropping temps to freezing and below--in April!) As the weather had just recently warmed up, we had not yet mowed the yard. Really, it had not needed it! But as soon as I saw where the kids were hiding...I decided perhaps the yard really DID need to be mowed. ;) Can you find Josiah?
Can you find Mackenzie?

Grass need to be mowed? No worries! Josiah to the rescue!

Just a cute pic of the two kids together in their "hiding place!" That picture was taken right before the hiding place got mowed down--for real. Thanks, David! Our yard looks great.

Gymnastics

Today was the day. Both Mackenzie and Josiah were moved by their gymnastic teachers to the next level. That put Mackenzie in the 5 yo class at age 4 yr 7 mo, and Josiah in the 3 yo class at age 2 yr 10 mo. I am excited that they have enjoyed gymnastics and continue to progress. I had no idea when we began gymnastics slightly over a year ago that we would still be taking lessons over a year later! I just didn't realize how much they would enjoy it and seem to excel at it. They have definitely built more strength and coordination, as well as listening skills and following directions as a result of the gymnastics lessons. Lots of fun! Just wanted to record the milestones met, more for my own sake than any other reason! :)