the mandel 5

Another busy day here. Two tee ball games at the same time - Rob coached one, I coached the other. Then we went to get some bday presents and Rob ran to Costco. We headed across the street for Stephen's birthday party. I left the boys there to take Megan to her end-of-the-year-Sweet-and-Sassy-Girl-Scout-sleepover-party. I left her there after I snapped a couple shots of her chocolate facial.... Came back to Stephen's party for a while.... Then Dawn and I took Logan and Kylie to Magic Mountain. I bought passes for me and the kids. Dawn, Kylie, Colleen, and Alex all got passes, too. I haven't been in....um...I'm going to say 15 years. And it's right down the street. I used to work there WAY back in the day and had so much fun. With gas being what it is, this will be some good, cheap, local fun for the summer. We could have just driven around town with these two in the back. They were SO happy to be together and be sitting so close! After Magic Mountain, I d...

Well, Nathan woke up this morning with an ear ache. I dropped Megan off at school at 7:30 and was at the pediatrician's office when they opened at 8:00. Yep, ear infection. I could have probably taken him back to school but I didn't have time. I ran home for a 9:00 session and a 10:00 meeting with my framer and a client. Nathan rested upstairs while I did that. Then he asked if we could finally make the pretzels from the kit that Bambi had given him for his birthday. It was the perfect time because it was just the two of us. We had so much fun!

Just filled up my car with gas and that's what it cost. And it took 2 credit cards because apparently they have a limit for the gas station. And, I do not drive a big ol' suv either. :(

So, I finally broke down and signed the boys up for swim lessons with Miss Karen. Practically all of my photo families have used her and promised me they would be swimming by the end of the two weeks. I really need them to be water safe this summer. I was warned that the kids would be upset at first because they go under water right away. That was true. Rob took them Monday and when I asked Nathan how it went, he said, "Bad. She made us swim across the pool underwater with no floaties. And Logan drownded a little bit." The next day , Logan asked Rob if they could go to a different place for lessons. But tonight they were so proud to show me that they can swim on their own. Yay!

Just added this one of Nathan. I didn't get many of him yesterday because he and Grandma Verna were off on their own picking fruits and veggies. Today was another busy day for us. Rob fished. Bambi is in town (!) so she met us and came along to the farm near Rob's mom's house. The kids love it here. It was cold today - weird for May 25th. I've never seen a peacock do this before. Every time we come here, they tell Megan it is her last pony ride. She's a few inches too tall but 20 pounds under the weight limit. We went to Grandma Verna's for lunch and Auntie Verna met us there. Then they both decided to come back to our house for Sunday dinner. Everyone wanted to see our carpet, couch, and Logan's new room. The kids out back. Getting crazy with Auntie Verna Logan's room is done. Jason came yesterday and finished it. Logan LOVES it and tells everyone he has an "awesome room." I can't believe I left it bare for so long. I just have...

I had a session this morning (see 365 blog). My friend David and his wife Lisa own a cabin in Pine Mountain and invited us up for a bbq and fun with mother nature. I took the kids and let Rob have some alone time with his new kayak. She's all ready for her maiden voyage tomorrow. We saw some strange sites on the way up the mountain.... I wasn't sure how long the kids would last because they aren't really "nature kids" and I wasn't sure if it'd be all grown ups talking photography or what. But guess what? There were other kids there and turns out, the cool, clean, fresh mountain air was GREAT for all of us! We brought the bat and balls.... Megan brought Jess Look how pretty it is up there. We walked to a duck pond to feed the duckies. This is about when Logan lost it for about 45 minutes. He did recover but a cranky kid on an uphill walk is no fun. Especially when he's too heavy for me to carry. How cute is she? Megan loved playing with this l...