Oh, it's been too long since this first Saturday of May happened. At least I think it was the first Saturday of May . . . again, it's been too long! I fell behind for various reasons but I am back to proclaim to one and all (and mostly ourselves...) what we've been up to for this most charming month of May.
Really, isn't May the most charming of months? It draws us in with its warm mornings and still evenings, plays on our craving for some sunny days and water-play weather...then, just when we are starting to bask in its warmth, triple-digit temperatures set in and we start to regret that we ever welcomed the warmth. But, by then, we're committed and can't help but be still drawn to the charm of Marvelous May. (Is it just me or does that sound like it should be the name of a character in Disney's "Sword in the Stone"???)
ANYWAY...
We have been working on getting a lot of little-ish and big-ish projects done around the house. It is amazing how much more you can get done when the kids are old enough to entertain themselves to a certain extent. (That "extent" means only requiring intense within-arms'-reach supervision eighty percent of the time and by only one parent instead of both) So, we've utilized the nice weather by spending our free mornings outside, me playing with the kids or straightening up around the yard and JC being the handyman with occassional breaks to spice up the kids' play with some chasing, tickling or intense listening (what is required when Bethany goes into one of her stories or several-sentence-long questions...I, uh...don't know where she gets that...).
This particular Saturday we woke to gorgeous low-nineties weather, patches of shade and sun decorating our backyard, a misting system we found for a steal (actually, we didn't find it; JC's sister, Melissa found it and told us about it, picked it up for us and brought it to our house. Thanks, Melissa!!!) ready for installation, kids in cheery moods (thanks to the heavens) and a new straw cowboy-ish hat I found at Target that was just begging to be worn.
Upon arriving outside, these two went straight to the sandbox. Which, is in need of a serious makeover before the summer gets too underway. Leaves, bugs, grass, and a lot less sand than we started with are calling it home at this point. But they love it anyway.
Here's this guy, ready for some hard work.
This was just a few days after he completely shaved his head. Notice how it glistens in the sun.
I like it.
And, actually, so did the sun. After this Saturday, he bought special bald-man sunscreen. It should be noted that it comes in a very manly looking bottle.
We got the pool dragged over by the shed for some shade and started filling it up. We have tried all kinds of kiddie-pools and never found one that worked for us. Then, last summer, we went to visit my grandparents in Texas and my grandpa bought a pool like unto this one for the kids to use. It was perfect. Thanks for the idea, Grandpa!
Bethany and Ben are in before it's even ready!
And James (and his animals) are waiting nearby, quite excited!
Of course, he gets a little distracted while it's filling up and finds other things to amuse himself. Like a chip clip that found its way into the backyard.
Once swim time got underway, we decided some music was in order. So, JC ran in and got a CD player and the new CD he had made for the kids recently with all the songs from their latest favorite movies - - Madagascar and Madagascar 2.
Or, as they are known around here "Move It, Move It" and "Move It, Move It 2"
That is how Ben asks for them, because of the theme song. So cute.
Anyway, he set up the CD player in his shed and opened the window.
And we LOVED enjoying our wonderful morning to our favorite tunes.
They discover quickly where the music is coming from!
Ben gets his groove on.
James continues as usual. I am pretty sure he's teaching his cow to swim.
We all got thirsty so I busted out the canteens. These are 'Klean Kanteen' water bottles, which we love. They are 100% recyclable, food grade, stainless steel water bottles that are BPA free...which supports my semi-wariness of plastic.
We all have our things.
Anyway, they use these for their daily water intake, water by their bedside, water while we're out, etc. JC and I have them in huge grownup sizes.
Refreshing!
A shot of Bethany through the branches of our peach tree which threw us for a loop and produced fruit in its first year!!! You can see they are growing well and starting to blush a bit...turning into actual, edible peaches. I love it. I LOVE IT!
Something else I love.
And...something else. As I was walking around, taking pictures, Ben ran over to give me some loves. I love being a mom.
This picture shows exactly why I am loving the onset of summer. Bare, bronzed feet...half-dressed warm-skinned babies...gorgeous green grass interrupted occasionally by lines of dirt that represent our newly-renovated sprinkler system that, in turn, represents our new trees and preparations for our garden...
Oh, love is in the air.
And in the ground.
The most showy of our fruit trees, the Pomegranate.
I call her Queen Anne.
With an 'e.'
Doesn't she look like a queen, all drapey and decorated with blossoms?
To follow a queen...a wet and wild princess. :)
Ben tours the backyard with his tricycle. It has the pushy handle things so you can help the kids peddle if they don't have it down yet. So, more often than not, he pushes the bike as opposed to riding it. It's just easier in the rough backyard terrain.
James made up a sort of dodging game.
Whenever I pointed the camera at him to get a picture, he would run the other direction. So, I started chasing him. And it turned into this:
Some happy kids...
As usual, if one of them gets a good laugh doing something, one or both of the other kids will attempt the same thing, hoping to get a similar reaction.
It usually works.
Snacktime!
Yummy, juicy, apples.
And...pool toys...?
While we were chomping down on our mid-morning snack, Ben wandered over to where Daddy was working on getting the misting systems all hooked up. The kids (like all kids, I'm sure) LOVE to 'help' Daddy.
The boys watched...
They hovered...
(This is, by the way, the best way to help your dad drill into concrete walls at an awkward angle)
Then, after helping dad, running around, swimming and playing...
they relaxed.
Oh, it was a lovely day.
Go ahead and come, Summer, with all your pros and cons;
We're ready!
1 comment:
i'm going to comment on your post in reverse order...
i love all the balls in the pool! that's totally what my kids would do.
i like that swimsuit of bethany's better than the red one. but, i've always been a sucker for green. :)
with an 'e' :) i need to read those books again.
i can't believe you got fruit this year!! i didn't think trees DID that!! lucky. and do the blossoms mean that queen anne will produce fruit this year? and let me know how your apple tree does, because my mom's tree is fickle. it will produce the weirdest shaped apples one year then giant ones that taste funny another year. and its the wrong time of year for her to do anything with them...i think she's at the cabin or something when they're ready. so yeah, let me know...
i love the pic of ben hugging your leg...
i've wanted to try those water bottles...they're expensive and we lose stuff like that. maybe sometime. where is the cheapest place to get them, online? also, i got complimented at the drs office last time we were there for having the kids water with us. he said he tries to push that with parents...how important it is to be hydrated. i think i started it when we moved out to qc and had a long drive everywhere and always had thirsty kids. but now that abbie and branson are so grown up i want to get away from sippy cups and more like water bottles. so i got some rubbermade ones that totally leak!! so that's my last question...how leak-proof are your fancy ones proving to be?
what kind of pools were you trying before? that is the only kind we have ever bought. they work great. but this year i'm thinking of buying an inflateable one even though i know it will get a hole, but i want to be able to pack it up if we need to move mid-summer...
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