Super 5 Swim Time

On Saturday, we celebrated Kylie's birthday by having a party at the local water park. It was

Kylie's SUPER 5 Swim Time.

My sister Katy did all of the decorations! Adorable!!

And here are a few shots of the party.

The kids had a great time and I love having parties at Splashville. It's a great price, I don't have to clean my house and the kids love it. That is a win/win!

Maddie turns 14.

Maddie turned 14 last Sunday.  I can't believe another year has flown by!

I tried to get some pictures... let's go with tried. They aren't great but at least we have a record of the event.

Yes, Maddie is taller than I am. Given that she isn't finished growing, my bet is that she will be 5'8 or more.

We had Lexi and Kylie take pictures to see if we could get a decent group picture...

I ordered a special birthday cake. YUMMY! and cute! What was so special is that the lady who made the cake wanted to use Maddie's favorite colors on it, so she decorated an additional layer of fondant and then placed it on the white icing.

And for presents.. Kylie chose to give Maddie a purse.

 And Lexi chose, 

...a pretty dress!

We gave her a new-to-her laptop. 

And lastly, I wanted pictures of the girls. Love them!!

Celebrating my 39th and an interesting realization

I turned 39 this past week. It was not earth shattering or anything really all that special. In honor of the day I refused to wash dishes or cook. I should have been more specific as so did my children and that only meant that the day after my birthday I did twice as much cleaning. Lesson learned.

 

As my big gift, Doug wanted me to pick out a new wedding ring. I don't need one really, I have a BEAUTIFUL one. See below. However, he feels (and I agree) that it will remain beautiful much longer if it doesn't live in an art room every day.... there is just something about a diamond ring that attracts paint and clay!

 

Here is my OLD looking hand with my awesome 15 year old ring that has just been cleaned, polished and repaired...

 

And here is my bday present. I have to say, it's really great. I like that I was able to keep with the two tone look. I know the braided center will end up with gunk in it, but James Avery can clean it up!!

And let me just say... my pride forces me to... my hand really isn't that fat! The ring is a size 6 and typically I look like I have long slender fingers. These pictures however make my fingers look like sausages! Oh well!

 

My other part of my birthday gift was a trip to the Texas Rangers game and a night away from the children. While we were away, we did a little shopping. I love this shirt. It SO FITS ME!! (I'm not a television fan!)

 

Here was our view of the game. The Texas Rangers are my favorite team and I'm glad to say that I've seen them play enough times in person that I know they are not always that BORING! But man, if it hadn't been for the fight that almost broke out between a Ranger fan and a Cincinatti Red's fan, there would have been very little excitement to the night! But even a boring game in person is fun to be at!

 

This morning we got up and had a leisurely morning and then worked our way home. On our way home, I had an interesting realization. I have not spent a single night IN MY HOUSE without at least one of my children present in the last ten years. Possibly longer. Wow. Yes, Doug and I have gotten away, but I haven't slept in MY bed without a child in the house in, well, I can't remember. It has been that long.

It's a really good thing we have made opportunities to get away. (Thanks Mom and Dad for keeping the girls!) Kylie says that she is going to be ready to spend the night away from home when she turns 4. Her 4th birthday is August 20th. Any takers? :)

Mom's Birthday Party and the Flu

My mom turned 60 this past week.

As she said, this birthday was hard because you can't pretend that you are young anymore.

 

It's funny, in my mind, my mom is 40. We had a huge party for her when she turned 40. As I was a teenager, she seemed young and old at the same time. While she has aged over the last 20 years, she hasn't aged THAT much. She can't be 60.  But then, I'm closing in on 40, so my math has issues it would seem.

 

Anyway...

 

We had a big party for her Saturday night.

Most of the family was there. I even took my 3 sick kids. We had to go..sorry everyone we exposed. Doug bought me boots for Christmas and gave me a gift card to pick out an outfit... so I got a new dress for the party.

Aren't we cute!!

 

Here are a couple of pictures from the beginning of the party. Lots more people came in, but Lexi was in full meltdown about wanting to go home as she was getting sooo sick, so the camera got put away.  I'm hoping that my sisters got more pictures and a video of my dad singing to my mom! 

 

 

We left just as the party was getting going. I hope everyone had a great time.  And I hope no one gets sick because of us! Sorry!!

By the time we got home, all 3 girls were in sad shape. As of Sunday, Kylie was on the mend after being sick for a week, Maddie is in the beginning stages of getting sick and Lexi has all the flu-like symptoms including the fever. Oh man.

The Best Birthday Party Slacker Mom Ever

I happen to be a birthday party slacker mom. I am completely aware of this fault. Each year, I get a little worse.

For summer birthdays, I have figured out the best ever birthday party!! So attention all you closet slacker moms, you will want to take notes!

1. Reserve a tent at the local pool. We have "Splashville" and it's reasonably priced, my kids love it and it's convenient. Big perk: I don't have to clean my house pre or post party!!

2. Send an evite to the parents. Yep, evites are easy and free. Make sure your evite includes the parents. This is important later.

3. Go to the event a little early and get your kids sunscreened and swimming so that when guests arrive you can direct them to the correct area without the kids underfoot.

4. Swim. All those parents that came with their kids are now entertaining and supervising their own children. SCORE!

(poor Doug. Lexi's best friend was getting a little too close for comfort..)

5. After everyone swims a while, take everyone to the concession stand and buy ice cream and drinks. Believe me, the money spent at the concession stand is less than a custom cake! And, each kid gets to pick his/her own item. The kids LOVE THIS!!

6. Swim some more.

7. Open presents. (hey look! I'm in some pictures. cool.)

And there you have it. Kylie's 3rd birthday party.

And your 101 Birthday Parties for Slacker Moms is complete!

She's ONE!

When I was young

I rolled my eyes

At those who claimed

Time flew.

Now I wish

That time would slow

So I could stop

Just once.

The days will roll

And months will race.

The years will surely roar.

Oh how I want to freeze.

But knowing that

The waves of life

Must crash upon the shore

I treasure each and every day

For while fleeting,

life is oh so sweet.

Happy First Birthday!!

Sweet Kylie Faith!