First love letter

Hadley received her first "love letter" at school today and was pretty proud to show it to me. It was actually from one of her best friends since she started preschool but its still really cute that he carried it inside the school, handed it to her, and told her he made it for her last night. I asked her if he told her what it said and she said, "no, he said he was too embarrassed." I then asked her what she thinks it says and she said, "You look cute today."

It says, "you are pretty."

Our perfect weekend

We had the most fabulous weekend at the lake and exactly what all of us needed! With kids getting older and our schedules getting more crazy, we sometimes forget to sit back and relax sometimes. The lake, thankfully, reminds us how to do that. We made it down to the lake Friday as soon as we were done with work. Hadley, of course, had been asking when we were leaving all week and Hudson had no idea what he was in for. He hasn't been to the lake in nice weather since he was barely under 1 so we knew he would have such a great time. We never got the boat out (the water is still a little low at our dock) but there was no need. The kids had more than enough fun playing in the water (which was freezing to me), riding four-wheelers, cooking out, making smores, playing on the swingset, chasing squirrels, fishing, and chasing each other around. I was happy to actually make it out the door with my camera only to find I had left the charger at home and the battery was dead. Oh well, I would have probably wasted too much time taking pictures...so here they are from my phone instead:

Just arriving and already in the water. Friday night Hadley (4), Hudson (1), Peyton (6), Lexi (7), Jase (7), Kade (4), Emma (7), Cooper (2), Anna Mae (6), and Luke (8) loved playing outside and getting sand and dirt all over their bodies. Cooper, Anna Mae, and Luke had to leave that evening. Their family just bought a lake house across the cove so we are excited to have even more kids around this summer. With Erin and Tim's house right next door the rest of the kids only left each other's sides to go to bed.

Also Friday evening, we had a baby squirrel/chipmunk (the jury is still out on this one) come right up next to us as we were talking on our deck. My brother put on a glove on and picked it up but we realized quickly it was nice and no glove was needed. I could still not be convinced to touch it but it sure was cute in everyone elses hands.

Hudson loved the little squirrel!

Late Friday night Ryan released the squirrel into the woods only to have it follow him back. One more attempt to release even further in the trees and this time it stayed. However, day 2 it came back...with friends. Two more baby squirrels (only one would let anyone hold him) and they pretty much hung around the rest of the weekend. Peyton ended up taking "Justin Bieber" home with her and they bought him a cage and hammock. Unfortunately, Justin died just a few days later.


Sunbathing!
Next day...more playing in the water. This time, complete muddy messes! Who knew you could swim in Oklahoma in March? And yes, after a torrential rain, the water was so brown!

Time for some four-wheeler rides. With 4 child four-wheelers, 1 adult one, 1 polaris, and 1 razer, it went from being serene and peaceful to loud and feeling like we were at Little Sahara! So much fun and since the water is low right now we had quite a sand bar to ride on. There were lots of trails in the woods behind my parents house when they built it and Erin and Tim cut out trails behind their house so we could have spent the entire day on the four-wheelers. I think I can guess what Hadley will be wanting for her next birthday...

Getting geared up.

First time on a four-wheeler!

Hadley and Lexi are on the four-wheeler in the front and Peyton and Emma are on the back one.
Hadley and Lexi...



Hudson needed a turn on the Polaris. No four-wheelers for him yet!

Lexi and Hudson walking down to the water.

One of my favorites! These kids were pretty hyped up on sugar...

Sweeping the porch:
Lots of relaxing!!!
Home and EXTREMELY worn out! This weekend made me so excited for this summer and the fun we will have together!

St. Patricks Day

My cousin Chad's little boy, Truman, was born on St. Patricks day and he turned 3 this year. We had a little family celebration at their house and the kids loved playing in the sandbox, cooking out, and enjoying the great weather. Matt and I decided it wouldn't be a bad idea to invest in a sandbox since we couldn't keep the little one out of it!

Hadley had a small amount of green on her dress and it is actually the ONLY thing in her entire closet with any green at all. We may need to broaden our horizons beyond pink and purple!

All the kids had come in and I took this through the window as Hudson continued to play all by himself in the sand...


Hudson is rarely around kids younger than him but I am realizing quickly that he is so sweet around them. He can be pretty "tough" around older kids but he loves to hug and kiss little babies! Here he is laying the last of many kisses on Audrey. It was time to pull him away when she began to get a little annoyed.

Rainy days

We have had some amazing weather lately, and while I was excited about the much needed rain, the kids were bored in the house in about 5 minutes. Therefore, we played lots of games and played with toys that are often neglected. Even still they couldn't wait for it to quit raining!

First thing in the morning...Hadley puts on her swimsuit when she sees the rain. Within an hour we found ring pops (which Hudson has never had) and that kept their minds off going outside for about 30 minutes.

I kept laughing because it looks like a pacifier. I am used to thumbs in the mouth but it is was funny to see what a pacifier would look like in their mouths.

Hadley watching a movie and passing the time.

Hudson literally cried at the window to go outside and play. Unfortunately it was still in the 60's at this point and a little to cold to go out and play.

Finally, it warmed up and out they went! Making faces at each other in the window...

and dancing in the rain.



We decided to go to Chick-fil-A for lunch so the kids could play on the indoor playground and I asked Hadley to go get dressed. She came down in this and insisted that it was appropriate.

So we ended up at Mama and Papa's house instead.

It was a fun day in the rain and we had lots of laughs. We ended up getting about 5 inches and were especially thankful to see the lake rise about 1.5 feet. Hopefully we will be able to put the boat at the dock again soon if we can just get one more rain like this!

Dad's Day

I LOVE how much my daughter loves her daddy. She tells him he's handsome when he gets ready for church, does anything to make him laugh, wants to sit in his lap to watch movies, always picks the orange skittles at school because it makes him happy, wants to be an OSU cheerleader, cries if she doesn't get to kiss and hug him goodbye in the morning, watches for him to come home, and dedicates any picture she draws to him. I have a daddy's girl and I know how special that bond is. That being said, she still wants me to put her in bed and I'm NOT letting that get taken from me!

Hadley had her second "Dad's Day" at school and she was so excited to take her daddy to class with her. Matt had a pretty special day planned for her as well. The woke up and finished getting ready for school as I left for work. He took her to Panera for breakfast, El Chico (at the mall) for lunch, bought her a Hello Kitty watch (her third one), and then to see Lorax 3-D. Matt told me that while at school Hadley kept telling all the kids that she was going to a movie after school. Matt also said he got several bad looks from the other Dads!

Here is his invitation for him to join her at school:

The tie she made him to wear at school:

Hadley was very proud of their handprints and made me promise I would keep it forever! They also got to play outside, do some schoolwork, Hadley shaved Matt's face, and she answered questions about her daddy including his age...17 years old.

Here they are at the beginning of the movie...

...and here they are with about 30 minutes left. Safe to say her daddy wore her out and they had a great day!