Staycation.

In need of escaping the monotony of everyday life?
Ready to bend the rules a little, celebrate a little, and let your actions become a bit more spontaneous?

Got a long weekend at your fingertips and considering a getaway? But...not interested in the financial hassle of travel? Tend to shirk away from the mental anguish of preparing to embark on extended excursions with a family in tow?

The answer?
Easy.
Stay home. :)

Here's how we do it.

With visions of amusement parks dancing in our heads, we turn instead to local places to play, just waiting to be utilized. One such place never before discovered....Golfland/Sunsplash. I would have thought it would be a few years before our family graced this locale with our presence (and even then begrudgingly...I tend to find the place, well, GROSS) but upon investigation, JC discovered there was a brilliant play area for little ones on location in addition to water slides and no-grow putting greens.
Perfect for a celebration spot after preschool graduation. The kids LOVED it and affectionately call it 'The Castle Park.'

Venturing in...

Braving a slide down...

Scaling a tricky web of rope...

Staying hydrated...

Rescuing little brother when he becomes entangled (mostly psychologically) in the web...

Cooling off in a booth indoors, waiting for lunch...

Enjoying some tickle-torture by Daddy...

Legoland, Six Flags, Sesame Place...eat your heart out.

Hundreds of miles away from The Happiest Place On Earth...somewhere the kids often speculate about given their current obsession with any and all Disney characters...I wanted to give the kids a taste of the excitement that comes from a visit to said happiness. Who needs The Magic Kingdom when we've got...

The Disney Store at San Tan Village.

It was like Christmas. Chaotic, joyful, and rewarding.

The very front of the store is currently crawling with Toy Story gear. LOTS of it.
The boys went crazy.
A little bit of gazing and a LOT of grabbing.

The concept of narrowing things down to a single choice was not an easy one to grasp.
Geez, standing in line for Space Mountain might actually be an easier feat.

We came away with an Iron Man action figure, A Cinderella doll, and a Jessie doll instead of sunburns, Mickey ears, and tired feet.
Good enough deal if you ask me.
(But that doesn't mean I'm going to stop daydreaming about a future trip to Anaheim...)

Rather than braving a crowded water park or exploring a wild array of sea animals at Sea World (yet), we enjoyed a bit of fun in the sun (sort of...it is actually shaded) at the splash pad that acts as a rambunctious neighbor to The Disney Store.

As with any outing during the summer, water intake plays an important role here.

Excited boys trade the excitement of splashing for the anticipation of newly acquired toys. Anything Disney just does always overshadow anything else, doesn't it?

But little Bethany takes the opportunity.

After a very long and busy Friday, this is where we ended up.

Crashing.
And in our own beds too.
That's the best part about staying home, isn't it?

As Saturday dawned sunny and promising, we lazied around a bit, as one should on vacation mornings...

JC spent some time appreciating James' choice in toy.
(Come on, though, who wouldn't? Iron Man is awesome.)

Is there anyone out there to who the beach doesn't call? (who or whom? grammar check calling for all sisters...)
I literally get goosebumps thinking about visiting the beach with our kids someday. The sun, the surfers, the shells, the sand, the salt in the breeze...ah. Love love love.
Finding a substitute for the beach here in the desert?
Not as hard as you think...

Beach = sand plus water.
Check and check.

Ah, refreshing.

Cute girl having a great time!

They all had a blast playing beach. Water into the sandbox, sand into the pool, a lot of both in everyone's hair and swimsuits, and a fun new activity established that saves us many times a week since!

One of the great memories of my childhood...road trips to visit out-of-state family! One of the great joys of my life right now? Having family close by!! No road trip required...and now that we no longer have any baby babies, traveling the ten to fifteen minutes to grandma's house doesn't even require packing as if for a road trip anymore! Just a change of clothes, a couple diapers, shoes (sometimes), and a few toys wrapped tightly in excited fists, and we are all set!
We headed over for a swim and some fun family time this particular Saturday evening...

After swimming, a game with Aunt Katie makes everyone happy.

Aw, and some bonding time during a comfy showing of a movie makes for a good time.

The next couple of days were full of playtime and creative ways of spending time together.

Bethany took some time to draw some pictures for Scout.
She wanted to be sure he knew they were for him.

She ended up hanging them above his usual resting spot instead of attempting to attach them to his nose. He seemed to appreciate it.

Ben enjoyed browsing a new coloring book bought just for that weekend.

Daddy made up a new game involving diving for treasure in the ball pit.
The kids waited anxiously for the go signal.

And...go!

Searching...

Searching...

And...success!

Woohoo!

Yesss.

Found!

A glorious dessert for a Sunday evening...
Almond milk, coconut milk-based ice cream and dark chocolate cocoa powder come together to create a novel experience for the Ballard kids.
Milk shakes. They were a BIG hit.
(Except for with James who was throwing a fit in the other room about something or other...)

Cheers!

I found Daddy and Iron Man offering James a peace offering.
(see the milkshake wedged into Iron Man's outstretched arms)

A Sunday evening also calls for a handmade tent.
The kids call this a kitty house.
Just like the fort thing connected to the swingset out back is the kitty ship.
They like to pretend to be kitties.

Pouncing kitties sometimes.

Blurry fun.

More weekend crafty time.
New markers! Our old supply had dwindled down to three markers and I figured they could use a new assortment.

A heart.

A flower.

An abstract piece.

An eager artist turning his heart into a 'heart man' complete with polka dots.

Arts and crafts is good and all, but sometimes you just need to run around.

And sometimes you just need to try on your sister's clothes to change things up a bit.

And be overly dramatic about being chased down by your younger brother.

But considering our easy-going, fun-having, stay-homing weekend right here in Gilbert, AZ...drama, dilemmas, and chaos played a very very small part.
Thank heavens for that!

Sign me up for another.

A Fond Farewell...for now

Okay...I feel like I just wrote the post about Bethany starting preschool.
Seriously. Wasn't that yesterday?

Well, guess what? We have a graduate on our hands. It is so exciting!
Yesterday, Bethany dressed in cap and gown for a very sweet little graduation ceremony at our beloved Evergreen Cottage Preschool. Oh, it was so wonderful! I love that place. She does too but she was so excited to "gradserate" that she counted down to the day all week!

Here she is, filing in with all the other cute little ones! They even played the graduation music!

A smile for her daddy as she passes.

And one for Ben when she spots him.

They recited some things they have learned, including the Pledge of Allegiance. They used these cute little flags that they passed down their row "take one and pass it" style. I don't know why but I was quite impressed with how well they did this! Haha, I guess that, as parents, we are always impressed by all the little things our children are capable of!

The little ceremony was so sweet. They called the kids up one by one and Miss Ashley, one of the teachers, told everyone what made each child special. I loved this. I haven't been able to spend time helping in the classroom, considering the boys are at home with me, and it was great to have the chance to get to know all the children she has been spending hours with in the last two years! Better late than never, right?
Of course, our favorite moment was when Miss Ashley told all about sweet Bethany and what makes her special. She said that Bethany's beautiful brown eyes are what she first notices about her each day. That Bethany is an artist and loves to spend time coloring pictures for others. She said that often during the time of day when the kids have "free choice" and can play with whatever they want, Bethany can often be found coloring pictures for her friends. She has practiced her writing a lot and can usually write each child's name on their picture. Miss Ashley also talked about how much Bethany loves Mr. Rob (who happens to be the husband of Miss Jody and the dad of Miss Ashley...cute little family preschool) who sometimes comes by to fix things and visit. Miss Ashley said that was special to her because it makes her happy knowing somebody else thinks her dad is great too. :) She talked about how Bethany is very curious (amen!) and loves to learn. Then she said that what she loves most about Bethany is that she is so kind and loving, especially to the other children. (And she started crying while she said this, which made me cry of course...)
I thought it was so very sweet listening to Miss Ashley talk about each child because it was very obvious that these teachers truly do know and love all the children there.
Miss Jody talked a little then, telling a story about when she opened the preschool. She, Miss Ashley and Miss Tawna (who I haven't actually met before, not sure when she teaches there, but she sure seemed nice!) all needed to get TB shots when they opened the preschool back in 2003. The doctor they visited to get this done had, on her wall, her preschool diploma hung along with all her other diplomas. (And she started crying while she said this, which made me cry of course...) How very sweet!
I loved her story because it reminded me of how important these early years are for children! And I know that, for my kids, preschool at Evergreen Cottage will be a wonderful memory.
Then it was time for these guys to get their own diplomas!

Miss Jody and Miss Ashley with Miss Bethany and her new diploma!

...this is what James did the whole time...

Here is the whole class! So sweet!
Miss Jody and Miss Ashley are such loving teachers.

Ben congratulates the new graduate!

It seems like just yesterday I was taking a picture of her in this same spot on her very first day!

The first graduation in our little family. :)

Grandma Trudie shared it with us.

As did Grandma Teri.

We know there are so many others who would have gladly joined us if daily duties didn't call! Darn those daily duties! Especially since...

There were desserts.

James spent a few quality moments with his napkin.
Before he could wipe his face with it, he had to gently unfold it...

Every. layer. of. it.

And...
there we go.
Finally usable.

Ben tested out the play equipment like he does every time we go there!
He looks forward to his turn at preschool so much!

I loved these silhouettes that they did as the backdrop for the cute little ceremony. Bethany is in the lower right corner. (This silhouette was also on a mothers' day card she gave me. So cute.)

I love how her cute short hair is all spikey in the back and her looong eyelashes are evident. Such a pretty girl, even as an outline!

One last shot with her beloved teachers!

Bethany loved her two years at Evergreen Cottage. Her teachers, her friends, and all the fun ways they do things there will be very missed! I am so so grateful to these lovely ladies for getting our start into the academic world underway and in such a special way!
I know Bethany will have a great summer and a wonderful time at kindergarten (gasp) next year!
I would be sad about saying goodbye to Evergreen, but...

They're not getting rid of us for a few years yet.