Mother's Day 2014

 I can't believe how quickly the year went by! Last year, I was due with Mae on Mother's Day and now, here they all are! :)

Saturday, I told Bo how Mamas like to get breakfast in bed sometimes (hint hint), so they brought be pancakes and scrambled eggs in bed on Mother's Day morning! I also told him that children didn't whine on Mother's Day, but that trick didn't work. 

Arabelle and Bo piled on the bed with me (Jared had to take Mae out because she was trying to climb on me and steal my food, despite already eating a HUGE breakfast). Arabelle gave me a card she had made and a bracelet she found and wrapped up. She was really excited about Mother's Day (and yes, I reminded her all week that it was coming up)!

We went to church, which included Mae's baby dedication, then to Sambo and Leigh Leigh's for lunch, then home for REST! I actually laid in bed extra long and guilt free this one Sunday. We ended the day with outside play and some great steaks that Jared grilled. 

Great day with my babies, thanks to Jared! 

Here are the six years I've celebrated Mother's Day:

So thankful for these three and the fact that God saw fit for us to raise them. I really do treasure each moment with them (yes, even the trying times) because I can already see how FAST it all goes by. 

Spring Porch Washing

Once it warms up in the Spring, we always get out and wash the front porch down and have a little fun!

It was definitely difficult taking a few pictures while making sure the camera didn't get wet and keeping Mae from falling down the steps.

Mae loved the soap bucket (and yes, she's gnawing on a stick Bo put in the water. Oops.).

Arabelle took the job very seriously.

And Bo was, well, Bo. :)

The water hose has a little hole in it, so they had a 'sprinkler' too.

Mae saw Bo washing the door and joined in.

This is hilarious to me. Sums up our days around here...WILD and CRAZY! :)

I guess this is another 'thing' we'll be doing every year and I'll take pictures of. I always wonder how long I'll get away with these things and have them smiling. Do you think they'll be grinning like this when they're 17, 15, and 12??

Strawberry Picking

Saturday morning, we went to the strawberry patch for some fresh strawberries!

Arabelle kept saying, "I love picking strawberries!!!".

Mae has never eaten strawberries when I've put them on her tray. She tried them, then would spit them out or ignore them all together. I handed her one to play with while we were picking and she surprised me and ate it (uhhhh, stem and all).

Here she is Saturday afternoon eating a few outside.

And a hilarious video! Strawberries are definitely an 'outside snack' for Mae!

Cousin Fun

A couple of weekends ago, we spent some time with the cousins in Pineview! 

Ok, obviously it's easier to take a picture of Mae than the other kids because she can't run away and is easy to 'trick' into a smile. So, most of these are of Mae. ;)

I think she's saying, "I'll be one soon!"

She LOVED sitting on the Gator and pretending to drive. She can't quite reach the pedal yet.

Grandma found a baby turtle that we kept as a pet for a few days. We set him free before we accidentally killed him.

Here's Mae sitting in her great-great Grandmother, Lora Mae Love's chair.

Looking forward to more family fun this next weekend!

Arabelle's Kindergarten Graduation

My girl is a graduate! She worked hard this year and learned SO much!

When I looked at the curriculum at the beginning of the year, it seems like a lot and I couldn't imagine progressing to the end, but we're almost there!

Her graduation with our homeschool group was last Thursday (we had it a little earlier than normal due to scheduling issues). 

There were 4 kindergarten graduates this year!

Each child recited a Bible verse. Arabelle said Proverbs 3:5-6. She practiced in the car the entire drive to graduation, just to be sure. :) She spoke very clearly, but wasn't quite confident enough to stand up straight. So proud of her!

 She was so proud to have a lot of her favorite people at her graduation. It was such a special time to her!

Her Sunday School teachers, Aunt Jane and Mrs. Tammie, came to support her.

After the Graduation and Honor's Night ceremony, we had a delicious dinner. Here's Arabelle with our sweet baby sitter, Alyssa, who is also a homeschool student.

The yummy graduation cake:

The balloons they decorated with were a BIG hit with all the kids! We've still got a few in action at the house.

Family picture with 3 kids and 3 balloons? Nice try! ha!

Thank you all who came! 

*I know I haven't done a homeschool update in a while....I got behind on the updates and haven't tried to catch up. I'll do one more when we're done in a couple of weeks. :)