Here We Go

With no reference to basketball, I think "March Madness" should be changed to "May Madness." May is much crazier than March around here! :) But I'm making a conscious effort to have fun in the madness. To check things off my calendar means nothing. To enjoy the opportunities set before me, and to love the people God's placed around me, is everything. Yesterday, with all the things going on in my day, I surprised Aaron by showing up at his field trip unannounced. He was having a great time in the park with his friends, and I arrived just in time for his picnic lunch. 55 kindergartners were swarming around and I found my kindergartner in a heartbeat. He couldn't stop hugging me. With a pre-teen son needing to pull away from his mama in public, I soaked up Aaron's public displays of affection. :) This was, by far, the best part of my day. And to think I almost missed it by being too "busy."

Aaron helps himself to the water spout at our kitchen sink. I guess it's easier to climb on the counter than use the step stool that's stored 5 feet from the sink. :) Aaron's also found a love affair with rubber bands. He's wrapped one around every cabinet knob in the kitchen. And every chair knob. And the banister. Silly boy! :)

Two weeks from today we'll be done with 5th grade, 3rd grade, and kindergarten. Our summer looks like lots of fun, and hopefully, rest. Not just lazy-day-rest-by-the-pool kind of rest. (although I hope for some of that!) But rest from homework, planners, backpacks, papers, and even piano. How liberating it feels to stop the paper clutter from funneling home every day! I'm hoping to have some chore charts in place so our boys clearly know what's expected of them this summer. The older they get, the more I'm realizing I can't (and shouldn't) do it all. Household chores don't go away during summer vacation. They actually increase with everyone at home during the day. With everyone pitching in, I'm expecting a fun-filled summer break.

But first: more field trips, classroom open houses, an egg drop, talent shows, 5th grade honors night,  middle school parent meeting, track meet, school lock-in, Boy Scout service projects, 3 talent shows, and many, many high school graduation parties. Here we go! :)

To wrap up this post, I'm posting some recent mowing pictures. I had fun snapping the pictures while my men worked hard in the yard. :)

Also, Kaleb and Aaron spent lots of time last weekend using their imaginations. Kaleb was "Hank the cow dog" and Aaron was his side-kick, "Drover." They crawled on all fours and used Ginger's dog house and cot as their "gunny sacks." The swingset was the ranch house, and the rocks were Sally Mae's yard. The pine trees were the chicken houses, and the picnic table and steps were the lookout points. If you've never listened to or read any Hank the cow dog books, you have no idea what I'm talking about. But it's something I want to remember. :)


Our very own "Hank," also known as Ginger Girl. :)