June Cleaver



There is this dress that I have been wanting to wear for a while now.  It is a little more of a "dressy" dress so I have been waiting to wear it to church.  Since we have been taking the boat out so much we have missed church the past few weeks.  Therefore, yesterday I decided to wear it.  It needed a little something to "make" the outfit so I wore my pearls.  Of course it also needed a pair of heals.  As soon as I was finished I felt like June Cleaver ready to tend house and kids.  See that last part...I still had a house to pick up from the weekend and a total of five extra kids and my three to watch.  I don't know how June did it.  I only wore the heals when I ran my two quick errands.  I was sweeping and breaking a sweat which just seemed wrong in the nice dress.  It doesn't seem to matter if I get dirty and sweaty in a casual dress but it felt all sorts of wrong in this one.  But boy did it feel good when I would walk past a mirror and see how feminine I looked, that was fun!

Later today I was taking the laundry down off the clothes line.  I was barefoot but thinking, how did she do it with her heels.  She either had to stay on her toes the whole time or poke holes in the dirt.  So she either built up her calves or aerated the lawn.  I guess it is a positive either way. 

It was lots of fun when Brian got home!  To see the look on his face!  The Ward really liked coming home to June.  ; )



Boating

We purchased a boat three and a half weeks ago.  It is a 2004 21' Larson open bow boat.  I am sure that Brian would say more about what it is but that suffices for me.  (If it is not enough for you then you can give Brian a call.  He loves to "talk shop")  In that time we have had it out six different times.  We are really having fun!!  The kids were a little nervous at first since it was new for them (funny how Angela doesn't seem to remember the old boat) but they are really starting to like it now.  I can't wait to get them pulling behind it in some manner.

Connor Graduated (Pre-School)

It really does not seem like that long ago that we were living in our little house in Spokane and bringing Connor home from the hospital.  It also doesn't seem like that long ago that we had just moved to WI and were living in the 5th wheel celebrating Connor's 2nd birthday.  But reality strikes when soon enough he will be six and he just graduated from pre-school. 

 (Filing into their seats)

 (Going up to accept his diploma)

 (The proud graduate!)

(His whole class)

Pre-School was four days per week for about three and a half hours per day.  He did really good and had a lot of fun but there were still those days.  You know "those" days that we all seem to have ourselves and that our kids have too.  He would struggle with being over tired when he got home.  Or wanting to play more than work.  I know that is what pre-school is for, helping them transition into school and I think it had a good start for him.  Next year, Kindergarten, will be five days per week for seven hours per day.  It will still have some play but more work.  I know that it will be a big step for him, but I am confident he will be able to do it.  



May Photo's of the Kids

Here are a few photos from May.

Angela

Looking a little apprehensive before the Mother's Day Kid's Run (1 mile).

Now she looks a little more excited to be doing it!

There she is crossing the finish line.

She makes a pretty scary looking bat.

Connor

Playing around in the mud.

Crossing the finish line.

"My Connor, what big bat ears you have...."  "All the better to hear you with..." 

What a stoic bat he makes.

Enjoying the giant tortoise on a school field trip.

Emeric

The three boys being a little silly.

"CHEESE"

That would be Emeric's face in the sleeve of a swim shirt.

 What a silly little bat . . .

. . . and a scary little polar bear!

Laci's Birthday

This year, 2012, was a very fun birthday year for me!!  It was the BIG 30!!  Brian about had a coronary when he turned 30 but I was super excited.  The day before my birthday I participated in a half marathon.  That was really good to finish it especially with Brian and the kids cheering for me.  I will be trying to do another one of those again.  Then the day of, which was also Mother's Day, I got to sleep in a little bit.  Then the kids brought me breakfast in bed (breakfast casserole, orange cinnamon rolls and champagne).  After church we went to Madison to complete a couple of errands and we finished up with dinner at the Nitty Gritty ~ Madison's Birthday Bar.  We went to the Middleton location which I understand is a little quieter than the Downtown one.  They did sing to me but it wasn't any 'special' song like I had heard about.  I guess next year I will have to try the other location.  It was fun to get a special glass and free refills of birthday punch all night. 

To top off the fun of being 30 (and Brian being 35) we had a big party on May 26th.  We had invited close to 40 people to come but I think we ended up with just under 30 who showed up.  We had an absolutely amazing time that evening.  I think we need to do something like it again without the need of a birthday to celebrate, just a time to get a bunch of friends together!

"I" Date

May 18th was our "I" Date.  We were excited to go to an Indian restaurant, in The Dells, for dinner and then have some Cold Stone ice cream afterwards.  When we got there we found out the Indian restaurant had closed.  We ended up going to the Dell Bar.  Brian had been wanting to try it out for a very long time.  It was a nice dinner but I don't think it would be a place I would want to go often.  It seemed a little old and a bit more fancy.  I like the fancy dress up places every once in a while but I'd more often prefer a little laid back casual atmosphere.  Ice cream was great as usual. 

"J" will be coming up this month.  I have a few different ideas now I just need to sit down with Brian and narrow them down.  I am super excited for "K" and "L"!!  They are going to be a lot of fun.

Counters Are In (Finally)

Our kitchen has been quite the work in progress.  Back in March we installed our cabinets.  We knew it would be a wait to get the counter tops in but we didn't realize that it would be such a long one.  We did not get the counters until May 4th!  I tell you, six weeks with temporary counters gets to be a little messy.  But we did it!  We waited, we persevered and the kitchen is done.  I am so happy to have it all put together.  The only thing is that we now have to get the knobs/handles on.  We have them.  They are in a bag on the counter waiting for us to find the time to take care of it.  It is not that we don't have the time, we just choose not to use the time for that job rather we use it for other fun things. 

(To Whom It May Concern: I tried to scan the background items to make sure the picture was safe but should I have missed anything...I guess you look at your own risk. ; ) )