Mommy's Day

I always look forward to May......Mother's Day and then my birthday that follows a fews weeks later means that I am extra spoiled. This year was no exception. I was able to spend the weekend with my mom here at home for Mother's Day, with very few kid interruptions. Saturday we enjoyed Luke's baseball game, dinner and margarita's out with the family, and a few laughs watching "It's Complicated". Sunday we were served homemade blueberry pancakes from the boys, walked the neighborhood home tour with friends and snacked on lunch, alone, in the afternoon. The boys showered me with special treats and gifts specially chosen from each of them. In just a few weeks I'll be off to Catalina for the bday. What a lucky mom I am.............

Me and mom with friend Rachel and her mom, Carol

Nothing says "i love you" like a good tussle on the couch

Toothless, for the Very First Time

Luke has been just itching to lose a tooth. So many kids in his class have lost several and he was feeling the pressure. Low and behold on the night before Mother's Day, dad yanked this loose one out and he now has a toothless grin. He was completely stoked and took the tooth into school on Monday where he received a special tooth box. Then he stuck it under his pillow for the tooth fairy (who by the way is sooo under appreciated for her stealth and dexterity), who left him a nice dollar bill.

...so tiny, yet such a huge milestone...........

Luke as Master Photographer

After creating these Lego works of art, Luke was interested in taking some photographs so that he could remember his artwork forever. Matt taught him how to use the camera and he arranged his priceless aircrafts on several different things in his room. Not too shabby.

Getting Crafty

I love getting crafty and I love Starbucks. So what better gift to give teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week than decorated Starbucks frappacinos. Once they drink up the yummy frap they can always save the bottle to hold those teacher treasures. You can also decorate the box that they come in as well which makes it way cuter. I've done some for Christmas gifts too with holiday decor. Very simple, creative, cost effective and teachers love them.

OK, So I've Been Slacking....

Okay, okay, so I got a little behind. I knew it was bad when I opened the Blog up last week and saw Halloween as the last entry. Where in the world do the days go?? I was not going to even attempt to catch up with all of the holiday stuff, so we jumped right into Spring. So much is going on with each one of us, this is just a sample:

• Kyle is now 2.5 going on 5. He wants to do everything himself and just like his brother. He wants to know what everything's "name" is and loves to paint, color, build, dig and eat. He is my best helper and is very good at emptying the utensils out of the dishwasher, taking his dirty dishes to the sink after a meal, and sweeping. He does very well with "pee pees" in the potty, but I can tell "poo poo's" are gonna be a whole other ballgame.

• Luke is 6 going on 14. He argues with mom and dad about everything, and I mean everything. The first word out of his mouth is usually "no". Lord help me. At the moment he lives and breathes baseball. He is an awesome big brother when he's not thumping him. He continues to receive excellent report cards with little improvements needed in the "listening" and "talking" departments. His first gigantic tooth is coming in on the bottom and the Tooth Fairy should be visiting any day now. He was just asked by his music teacher to be part of the Honor Choir for next year's school season which he most likely will accept. He LOVES to sing sing sing and we are so proud of him.

• Jenn is counting down the last few days of being 30, not very many to go I must say. The 30's were good times so I'm sad to see them go. 40 shouldn't be all that bad, I hear it's the new 21! We'll be celebrating in Catalina for a few blissful days and then off for a getaway with my aunties and stepmom, can't wait. My ole high school girlfriends and I started a "pass the shirt" campaign where each of us are passing along a "40" shirt, signing the back and taking photos to post on Facebook. By the end of the year, we'll have at least 20 or so of us who've turned 40 and will have a lot of laughs in between.

• Matt continues to work hard at Z Microsystems producing the ground control systems for the unmanned aircraft, Predator. What an amazing project to be a part of. He continues to assist coaching Luke and his team Orioles in T-ball and loves every minute of it. In his spare time he maintains 3 different Fantasy Baseball teams and somehow can remember which team has which players on it. I only have 1 team and still can't remember who's on it. Last year he was the champ of the family league so that should say something.

We continue to be blessed with all that we have, love of life, family and healthy bodies. Stay tuned for more adventures.................

So Many Things to Do at Easter

There are so many things to look forward to at Easter time, egg dying, family gatherings, chocolate, chocolate and did I say chocolate. We paid a visit to Grandma Carol and Grandpa Pat's the day before Easter. We braved the cold outdoors to dye eggs and enjoyed a warm Irish stew for dinner indoors. The Easter bunny arrived Sunday very early, with lots of fun treats and crafty things in our baskets and over 50 hidden eggs. Kyle thought he needed to eat the contents of each egg as he found them so after egg number 12 mommy started snatching them away as soon as he found them. Our hearts were warmed that day knowing that He had risen and died for US.

All bundled up and crafting our eggs.

I even needed my hood on.

Our masterpieces.

Look what I made! And no cracks!

Ohhh, now this can come in handy.

I spot something.......! That sneaky wabbit.

Crashing after the sugar high with

"friends" watching T.

Singing Praises at the Easter Concert

Luke's school puts on an Easter Concert each year for grades Kindergarten through 2nd grade. He looked quite sharp in the tie and was only 1 of 3 kids to wear one. His teacher proclaimed upon entering the classroom pre-concert "here comes the next President of the United States".... In case you haven't ever noticed, Luke LOVES to sing so it is no surprise that he was also asked by the music teacher to be in the Honor Choir for next year's school season (1st Grade). We are so proud!

Our grown up boy.

Vote for me in 2060!!!

Luke and his best bud Joe.

Sing it baby, sing it!

Annual Fantasy Baseball Draft, Sacramento

Baseball season already? Yes indeedy. March 18th we headed to the Michalak Homestead in Sacramento, CA, the headquarters this year for our family Fantasy Baseball Draft. We enjoyed lots of family time and watching the NCAA basketball tournament. The 2009 trophy and big monies were handed out to Matt, as the Grand Champion of the world, whole worlds and universe! This family loves the game of baseball.

For some reason, Matt and Alli decided to wash cars just minutes before the draft started, thanks Alli for distracting him.

Kyle was re-organizing dad's strategy and making last minute changes.

Ryan made himself comfy on the recliner.

Guru decided to use the yellow pages to pick his team from.

Let us know how that works out for ya.

Beloved Papa was there in mind and spirit, he so loved watching us

do this and interupting from time to time.

While we were enjoying the 70+ degree weather in shorts and flip flops,

poor Keith drafted from home in Kansas City under several inches of snow.

Beautiful Laska

Kyle made good use of the play house in the backyard.

The Michalak Homestead

Magnolias in the backyard.

Maverick and Luke hanging out.

Baseball Season with the Orioles

Take me out to the ballgame.... but not if everyone is injured. Luke's team, the Orioles, played a little joke on coach Mike on April Fool's Day during practice and showed up with a variety of injuries. Coach Mike thought he was going to have to put everyone on the DL and forfeit the game on the weekend, but discovered that it was only a wee joke. We are thoroughly enjoying this baseball season as Luke continues to shine, showing his offensive and defensive skills. We are proud to have Team 3 Training (Uncle David & Aunt Margaret) sponsor the team!

What happened here???

Luke at catcher, he's got the squat down and everything.

The team saying the Pledge of Allegiance.

Getting suited up by dad.

Making a play in center field.

Be Sure to Stop and Smell the Flowers

Kyle has started practicing the art of "stopping to smell the flowers" at a young age. Actually sometimes it's hard to get him to move on to anything else, but I will take this over playing in poop any day. These flowers are in our next door neighbor's yard, she tends to not mow for months, maybe even years. The only time we don't mind is spring, when the lovely yellow flowers from the clover pop up.

Hey bee, get out of my flower!

A Little R&R with Grandpa Hanson

Grandpa Hanson and Kyle took some time out of their busy day for some R&R (rest and reading) during his recent visit.

Queen Calafia's Magic Circle

Queen Calafia's is a magic sculpture garden hidden behind one of our local parks that I love taking the kids too. This was Kyle's first trip and he was just as enchanted as Luke was at his age. So many colors and textures and interesting characters, just like in a story book.

The secret entrance....is like a maze.

Queen Calafia herself riding an eagle.

The eagle totum.