Ahh Spring!

This has been a great spring!  We've had lots of fun and enjoyed some great time outdoors - in between the raindrops.

We found a new park close to our house and we spent some time finding all the fun things to do there.  Besides all the fun things there is this great view too.

Check out this super giant slide.

And all the rocks that you can climb to get back up to the top.

There is a great zip line too.

And swings and climbing structures.

And there's even a creek that runs through it.  We had to stop and have a stick race - I won.

In other news - Aunt Jen Jen came to visit for the holiday weekend.  She brought treats - chocolate zingers which we had never had before and boy were they yummy!

We ran another race on Saturday morning.  This time it was a 2-miler.  And - - - even though the weatherman said it wouldn't rain until the afternoon, it was pouring rain when we got up.  Fortunately, the race was about an hour south of our house and by the time we got to the location the rain had let up and we got to run . . . without the rain!

Here I am at the start.

And here is a long-distance picture of Sam about 1/2 mile into the race.  See him there in the red hat and green shirt.

Here I am coming in to the finish.  This race didn't use timers but I came in around 12th place overall.

And here's Sam finishing strong.  He came in around 20th place overall.

Aunt Jen Jen came to watch us and cheer us on.

Boy was I tired after the race.  Two miles felt like fifty miles - according to Sam.  It sure was a fun race - we're loving these races.  Stay tuned for another one in a few weeks.

Sam Alert:  Hey everyone - Sam here.  May I present a couple of my favorite things from the week.  Other than our race, we spent time playing outside.  Here I am launching rockets for dad and Mason to catch.

And here I am reading to Aunt Jen Jen.  We love when she comes to visit.

Adios for now - have a great week.

Curiosity, Weddings, and Spring Programs

We're back this week with lots and lots of pictures.  Mom was out of town again and you know that means there are no pictures to prove what happened while she was away.  Since she's been back, there's been a lot going on.  Get ready - here we go.

First up - we got to go to a brand new museum that is just now opening in our area - the Museum of Natural Curiosity.  We were lucky enough to get to go on a preview night before all the big crowds.  It was really really fun and we can't wait to go back again!

In the rain forest there are all kinds of fun things to do - here Sam is being a sloth.  He held on for 222 seconds.  That was way way longer than any one else around.  

Here are all the boys inside hurricane force winds - up to 90 miles per hour.  Sam's lucky he didn't blow away.

We did a little building and made ourselves a fort.

Here is Sam - Behold the Floating Head!

We also got to play outside too - here I am on the zip line.

And here we both are on the slides.

Last Saturday we got to go to friend's wedding.  It was up in the canyon at a beautiful restaurant - with everything outdoors.  The only problem was that it was a freezing cold, dreary, rainy day.  We were super cold - but it WAS beautiful!  Thank goodness for all the warm patio heaters that kept us warm (mostly).  

Beautiful settings make for good family pictures.

And then there was Mother's Day.  We took some flowers up to Grandma June's grave with daddy.

Finally the week of our spring programs at school was here.  First up was Sam's program.  We've included a couple of videos for your enjoyment. 

First up - for Aunt Jen Jen - Fifty Nifty United States.

And then we have Happy Trails. 

We also get to share our Young Author projects after the program.  

Sam's book was called "The Big Race" and it was about two cheetahs (named Bacon and Avocado) that had a race and became friends.  

We also get to share our Art Fair projects.  Sam's was the sand art (blue skies, sand, and shells) that you can see him pointing to.

 Then my program was next.  Here we are singing My Old Kentucky Home.

 This song is called Grandfather's Clock.

And my last song is I Believe in Music.

My book is called "The Mysterious Gold Stealer" and it is about a family of Leprechauns.  

And my art project is the really cool spiral art above my head.  

Sam Alert:  Hey everyone - Sam here.  Check out this cool bell that was beside the patio at our friend's wedding location.  It had the softest, coolest gong sound.

And I finally got to celebrate my birthday at school this week with the Sam Spotlight.  All my friends sang to me and I got to blow out 6 "candles".  See those candles/friends lying on the ground.  

Sam out - have a great week!

A Celebration for Sam

Hey everyone - Sam here.  I get to do the blog today because this weekend we had a celebration all about me.  My birthday is this coming week - I turn 6 years old.  We decided to have my birthday celebration this weekend because we knew we couldn't fit everything in on just one evening after school/work.  

We started out the morning with balloons, banners, and a gift.

Mason and mom and dad each got me a Skylander.  

After a quick breakfast, we headed out to a big book fair.  Mason and I got to go through the warehouse and pick out books we wanted to add to our book collection/library.  We had the best time!  We even got to take a picture with Clifford - he's one of our favorites!

From there we headed to the Tulip Festival.  It was a gorgeous, warm day.  And despite the fact that there was a ton of people wanting to see the tulips, we had a really good time.  Get ready for picture overload - there were just too many pretty pictures to choose from.

And these pictures don't need a lot of narration - just enjoy the beautiful flowers.

Look at this flower - half pink, half white.

A couple of handsome boys!

The sun was soooo bright!!

There were a couple of these hand-blown glass displays in the garden - super cool!

Here we are in the Italian gardens.

We found a shady spot with some chairs to relax.  The gardens are 55 acres big - a lot of walking.  But so worth it!

Here we are with mom.

And a picture with dad and the boys.

 After the Tulip Festival, we went miniature golfing.  One of our birthday traditions is that the birthday person gets to pick a family activity to enjoy.  I love golfing and it was a beautiful day - so it was an easy choice.  

We golfed on the haunted house course.  

Later Saturday afternoon, we enjoyed some dinner.  I got to pick my favorite thing for mom to cook.  I chose Top Ramen - she makes it with some secret ingredients that she learned about when she was a starving college student.  It makes me warm all the way down to my tummy.

Then I got to open another present from dad and mom.  

And finally - my cake!  I requested a giant cupcake with chocolate frosting.  Mom added some little pink piggies digging and floating in the "mud".  

And my wish will come true - I blew out all the candles.

Another tradition is to mark our height on the growth chart every birthday.  Believe it or not, I grew 2 1/2 inches this year.  

Then we got to stay up late playing.  I got a new Nerf gun from dad and mom and I put it to good use.  

And finally - no birthday is complete without a Sam Sandwich picture.  It was a great celebration!  I love birthdays and can't wait for my next one.  

Mason Alert:  Mason here - we had such a great day celebrating Sam.  Enjoy a picture of me hanging out in the mountain garden at the Tulip Festival.  I'm ready for my birthday.  Just a few more weeks!!!