Pirate Porch

After last years awesome pirate-themed porch, I couldn't let the idea rest, and I certainly couldn't copy myself. So I spent the entire year thinking of ways we could pull off an even better porch, and because Teag is the sort of person who is incredibly patient (and he also secretly loves it), he helped me to pull it off. I ordered a ships wheel, and he created a mount, cutting the wood and staining it to match. He tied some rigging, and figured out how to secure. And most of all, he looked the other way when I spent more money than I should have on the whole thing. But the end result... magnificent.

It was so much fun to see it all come together, and even more so to surprise the kids with it. Every time I looked outside, I was happy to see the porch. And then... very early one morning, so stupid jerk came and stole the booty chest right off of our pirate's lap!

We'd talked about finding a way to secure it, but hadn't found a good solution. Everything in it was super cheap costume jewelry, but it was more the principle than anything. Especially because I'm sure they just chucked it in a gutter somewhere. I couldn't appreciate the irony of having my pirate porch robbed. I'll admit, it did take the shine off the whole thing a bit, but no one else messed with it, and we made sure everything else was secured really well.

Despite the thievery, I'm sure I'll come up with a new idea for next year. I'm thinking something with a gallows...

St. George Ladies Trip

The five of us girls and my mom all decided we needed some time away from kids, and hubbies, so we headed down to St. George for a weekend. What ensued was a lot of hiking, hilarity, and hair products.

Our hike was lovely, with the sun hanging out behind some clouds, keeping the temperature perfect. We enjoyed getting out and stretching our legs, as well as working off at least some of the goodies we consumed. We also went to see Mamma Mia while we were there, and really, is there a more girly show than that?

Meg let me do her hair curly, and she was excited to see that her hair could actual be curly.

Something I learned that weekend is that women of a certain age are prone to wearing "nighties", and not the sexy kind... unless you want to make them so. Katie and Meg were determined to bring Elle to their side, and provided her with her very own nighttime apparel.

It was a lot of fun, and I'm glad we got the chance to hang out.

First Day of School

First day of school came, and for the first time since we began procreating, all of the kids were leaving. It's something I've been looking forward to, a chance to have a little me time, to pursue some goals of my own that have taken a back seat for the past thirteen years. Maisie was starting her first day of 8th Grade.

 Danyn was starting 5th Grade.

 Rory was beginning 3rd Grade

And little Finn was starting his first day of full day Kindergarten.

We didn't realize when we bought his backpack that it was the same size as he is.

Despite being rather tired for the first few days, he's done well adjusting to school. He loves his teacher, and his class.

The school year is now half over, and so far, it's continued with as much promise as it started out with. We're so glad our kids are having a good year, and that they're thriving where they are.

Rory Turns Eight!

We got to celebrate Rory's eighth birthday last year. It was also a party year for her, so she got to invite some friends, and we went to see a movie. I think both Teag and I could have easily nodded off during Despicable Me 3, if we weren't, you know, responsible adults.

She enjoyed the company, and also all the presents she received.

Many hours were spent building and crafting after this party. She chose an ice cream cake for her dessert, and there's something pretty awesome about watching your kids candles multiply every year.

Given that she is now eight, we also got to celebrate Rory's baptism. It was such a nice event, and we were so grateful for the choice she made to be baptized.

 She asked for Teag to baptize her, and for her Uncle Kevin to confirm her.

We're so proud of our little Rory, and grateful that she's part of our family. She's very creative and will spend hours making things for her Littlest Pet Shop sets, and then even more hours making videos with them. She's a good student, and loves to read biographies. This year, as part of her third grade curriculum, she got to do the Biography project, and she chose to be Laura Ingalls Wilder.

It was great fun to listen to her recite facts, and Rory got the highest score in her class, both for her costume, and for how knowledgeable she was on her subject. We love this sassy girl, and are excited to watch her this year.

Denver Adventures

Teag needed to take a plane to Denver for maintenance last August, but it was a smaller plane, with only five seats. It just so happened that Maisie would be at Girls Camp for the week the plane was being fixed, so we decided to pack up the other three and head to Colorado to see what they had to offer in the way of fun.

We spent our first day swimming, and eating chips as big as our heads.

The kids were good about sharing a king sized bed, and got to be all snuggly in one place.

The second day we got went hiking to a reservoir. It was a lovely day for it once the sun came out, but we were definitely feeling the 10,000 feet.

The next day we went to the Argo Mill and Mine. It was quite an interesting site, and full of cool old stuff. At the end, we all got to  pan for a little gold, and take home a few flakes.

It was definitely weird not having Maisie with us, and there were a few rough spots, behavior wise, but we had a good time and learned a few things... like that we don't actually care for Denver all that much. But hey, a free trip is a free trip.

Finn is Five!

We celebrated Finn's 5th birthday this year, and he had a blast. That morning, he and I got to hang out at a park.

Then that evening we opened presents.

His Kylo Ren costume was super legit, and he definitely looked the part. It was fun to see him look like a tiny super villain.

Super villains need sustenance though, so we had to have a mint chocolate chip cake to celebrate.

This year was a party year for Finn, so he invited a bunch of friends and cousins, and we had a water party complete with a pool, water guns, and water balloons.

He had so much fun with his friends, but both Teag and I learned that seven  preschoolers can go through 200 water balloons in about five seconds flat. He got a RescueBot cake, and even more presents.

But mostly, I think he got a lot of fun and good memories.

We absolutely love our Fantastic Mr. Finn. He's such a light in our family, his enthusiasm, and boyishness are such a fun contrast to the loads of estrogen this family produces. He's happy, he's sweet, and best of all, he's still a great snuggler. Looking forward to another year with this sweet boy.