El Dorado Springs

We had a great time last weekend visiting our friends, Kevin and Brandi, and their kids at their home in El Dorado Springs. Kevin and I were in the same class in pharmacy school and it has been so fun to watch our families grow together.  They have 2 boys and 2 girls just like us, and they are all very close to the same ages, too, so we always have a great time visiting them!

We had a gorgeous day for the kids to play outside, and they played hard!

They always have the coolest toys!  This year, the big hit was the electric Razor.  The boys could really get that thing spinning!

Rees was even kind enough to take Violet for a spin, and she loved it!

All of the kids except Calvin (probably still dizzy from spinning on the Razor) having a blast on the trampoline.  Even Evelyn and Baby Bree got in on the jumping!

Oliver also got to try out Blayze's "Zike Bike" and he was really pretty good at it!

Plenty of swinging in the backyard and climbing on the monkey bars.

A trip to Kevin and Brandi's wouldn't be complete without a little frog catching in the pond.  The kids set out with their nets to see what they could find.

Looks like Rees found a good one!

He asked Evelyn if she wanted to kiss it, and she puckered right up!

When we told her, "No! Don't actually kiss the frog!", she got very upset.  She was hoping for her prince, I guess.

Violet's favorite place to hang out was in the golf cart.  Thanks for the ride, Blayze!

The next morning, we woke up early for the "Run for a Reason" that Kevin and a friend started 6 years ago to raise money for St. Jude Children's Hospital.  This is the 4th year our family has participated in the run, and I think this was the best weather yet!  It was about 70 degrees with just a slight breeze, absolutely perfect for a nice morning run.

Kevin's pharmacy gave all of the kids cool sunglasses to run in this year.

The kids fun run came first -- they are off!

Then it was time for the actual 5K.  Calvin got 2nd in his age group, and Russ got 1st! Oliver finished up with the girls and me, and let's just say we didn't place.  We all had a really great time, though!  

Thanks for the wonderful hospitality, Kevin and Brandi!  We always have such a great time hanging out with your family!

Cramped Sleeping Quarters

Anyone who knows me, knows that it's not uncommon for at least one child to end up in my bed.  But this is a bit ridiculous.

No, they weren't all actually in bed WITH me, but this is how our bed looked when I got out of the shower.  Russ had left early for work, and Calvin had joined Evelyn and me in bed after he left.  Oliver had come in while I was showering, and I honestly have no idea when Violet joined the party.  I was cracking up at how it looked like Oliver was praying that he would avoid being kicked by stray feet.

Even though Violet was the one with a foot mere inches from her face.

And could Calvin and Evie look any more cozy?  They are definitely my snuggle bugs.

Someday we'll get our bed back, but I have a feeling that when we do, we'll look back on these days and miss them.  Because, of course, by then we'll have forgotten the lack of sleep and kicks in the night and the difficulty of trying to sleep in about 6" of real estate on the bed.  We'll only remember how sweet and warm and snuggly they were.  Sweet. Warm. Snuggly.  Mmmmm.

Hitting the Links

So the boys have participated in 2 basketball camps so far this summer and have played a ton of baseball.  This past week, they tried something new when Grandpa Kermit invited them to a golf clinic.  The weather was perfect, and the boys got plenty of instruction from the golf pro at the course.  They both told me that they enjoyed driving a whole lot more than putting, no surprises there.

Along with Tyler and Brynn, they attended two sessions and had a great time.  Thanks, Grandpa Kermit and Uncle Kyle, for taking them!  Maybe someday my boys will be able to keep up with Grandpa on the golf course!

Weird Animals!

We just finished up a great week of VBS at church, learning all about Jesus' One-of-a-Kind love and how God made us all special and unique.  The kids loved learning about some of the "weird animals" God made as well!

This wasn't the first time my boys got to experience Weird Animals VBS, as they also attended the Wellsville Baptist Church's a few weeks ago.  Here were a few of the crafts they made during that week. . .

As usual, the church looked great with all of the decorations.  We learned lots of great things from our Bible Buddies, like Fern taught us that "Even when you are left out, Jesus loves you!"

And Shred taught us that "Even when you do wrong, Jesus loves you!"

We started each evening with singing and learning the theme for the day.  Yes, that's Oliver up front helping to lead the singing.  Maybe he'll be a worship leader some day??

From there, we went to Bible Adventures, where we learned about how Jesus loves everyone, even if they are left out, different, do wrong, or are afraid.

 Next up, Critter Cafe!

Violet had Miss Stephanie as her crew leader -- Way to go, Steph!

From snacks, the kids went to games, which is always a good time.  Parachutes, sidewalk chalk, and relays kept the kids entertained.

Imagination Station came next where the kids got to do some cool science projects and make crafts.

The kids found plenty of weird animals to play with at this VBS!  Kyla discovered that the kangaroo made a great dancing partner.

And Evelyn tried to get this lazy tiger to give her a ride. 

I found this picture from VBS two years ago when Violet was 2. . . Seems my girls both like to ride tigers.

And all of the kids love playing with Jack, the only live animal at our Weird Animals VBS.

 

Violet always could find someone to hold her (even though she is 37 pounds and solid as a rock!).  Even the birthday boy, Pastor Randy got sweet-talked by my girl into being picked up.

 We finished each evening with more singing and reviewing our Bible stories.

All of the crazy boys up front dancing! 

And Violet was a dancing queen right by the speakers.  That was definitely her favorite place to be!

The preschool crew:

The elementary crew:

The Dwyer crew:

It was another great week at VBS!  Thanks to all who made it such a success for our kids!