Spring Break

There are times when I dread breaks from school; having 4 kids pulling at me from every direction gets old real fast. But I was ready and looking forward to spring break this year. I lined up some play dates, tennis lessons for the boys, library trips, spring cleaning and a day trip to Wild Life Safari, so why wouldn't I look forward to it? It was great! 

I feel like the kids finally know my routine, my order of operations, so they don't need as much direction. Thank goodness! Dallin will say "Mom, I changed my clothes, my bedroom is clean, I read for X number of minutes, I jumped on the trampoline (active time), and I practiced the piano. Can I please play a computer game, or watch a show?" 

I try to keep them busy or distracted enough that there isn't much time left for screen time, but let's be honest, I am not going to micro manage every waking hour. I don't have the energy or discipline for that. 

So here we go. I tried to take pictures of it all. 

We did tennis lessons last spring break and the boys loved the sport. I love tennis for them. It is low risk for injury, what mom doesn't like that. :) Tanner did say his forearm was sore though. Yours would be too if you bounced the ball on a racket all week to see how many bounces you could do before it dropped. I didn't count myself, but he said his record was 200+ bounces. 

Lessons were at Bear Creek, so the girls got to play on their favorite park every evening.

 Ashlyn can be such a goofy girl. She is so fun. I love my girls! In such a different way than I love my boys. 

 Amber is goofy too. Look at this outfit! She picked it out.

 Isn't this a cool park with the wood play structure? I love it. It has been around since I was a kid.  

  

Amber wanted to play tennis too, but the rackets were too big for her to swing around, so she found a ping pong paddle. LOL. Whatever works! This was us heading into the library. She insisted on bringing it in with her. Don't know why. That is just Amber. 

Wild Life Safari

Nate and I are so different when it comes to taking pictures. I take pictures of things that are Blog worthy, while he takes pictures of EVERYTHING! I kept nagging him to GO! Just drive! We are going so slow! Let's get through this safari already! I asked him why he wanted to document everything, and he said so I can show Pam. Pam is probably our parents' age. She is the front office lady at work who is so sweet to think that everything Nate says and does is hilarious. She has an infectious laugh and delightful response to everything. She has a way of making people feel important and interesting. I can see why he would want to show it to her, I am not as excitable. :)

Anyway, these are MY pictures.

 Me taking selfies of Tanner and Me while Nate takes pictures of who knows what animal. :)

Nate loved the bears. It was crazy to see them so calm and cuddly looking. You always see them so ferocious in pictures and videos. 

 Tanner says jokingly "Look! A unicorn!" Whatever this animal was, it was missing a horn. ha ha

The Safari has a walk through Zoo-like place. They went in the big bird cage and a couple of parakeets liked Dallin's hood. You should have heard is giggle. So fun!

Darn it! Not enough face holes for everyone!

 A train ride around the park. 

 Enough for 4 on this one, but too tall! Who designs these things?!? Just kidding.

The fun ride-on toys that I never let the kids do. Have you ever watched a kid on these things? It is literally fun for the first 10 seconds and then it starts rocking them to sleep or giving them motion sickness or something. 

 Stinky farm animals! I get it! I hate bad smells too. Ruins a good time. Ashlyn kept wanting to leave this area cuz it smelled bad. 

 Does that animal behind them look like a deer? I didn't think so either. 

 Hello turtle.

 And snake. Bleck. Look a her face. :)

Here are a handful Nate's pictures. 

   

  

I took advantage of extra hands that needed something to do and had the kids weed, wash walls, and wash the car. Tanner and Amber didn't seem to mind. 

 Now I think I am ready to send them back to school. But it was fun while it lasted. 

The Circus Came to Town

Nate had never been to a circus and the kids hadn't either, so we went a couple weekends ago. So much fun! I was surprised how much we enjoyed it. Besides how expensive everything was. It always makes me mad when there are people selling junk at outrageous prices. Cotton candy $5. Light up sword $10, Elephant ride $15. Are you kidding!? And people were paying for it! Like almost everyone there. 

Nate snuck a pic with the Tiger even though the grumpy lady in the back was purposely standing in front of it to prevent people from taking their own pictures. 

The Elephant cost $15 per person for about a one minute ride. Ridiculous! We had the kids practice their math skills and figure out how much it would cost if our whole family rode the elephant, and they quickly realized that it wasn't worth it. 

It was hard to get good pictures in the dark. But we had a blast. 

Outings this week

We headed over to Griffin Creek to play. I am trying really hard to keep the kids active and not in front of the TV. Sometimes I just feel like being at home, but the kids like to play on the computer or watch TV, so it is better to get away sometimes. I love being out in the fresh air and seeing  the kids play together.

 Amber started calling Tanner "Bubba". I think it is cute. I don't know how she comes up with these nick names. 

We go to the library a couple times a week usually. There is this weird looking statue that they kids play on sometimes. 

 Drew and Whitney had a little family birthday party at the Family Fun Center. Paula and I ventured up into Cactus Jack with the kids. It was actually really fun to feel like a kid again playing tag and getting all sweaty from playing hard.

 Nate went up to Portland for some classes this weekend, so me and the kids went to visit Grandma and Grandpa Tanner in Rogue River one afternoon. Dallin liked messing with the chickens. 

They played on the zip line a bit too. 

Growing up

Ashlyn's preschool went to a farm for a field trip. Siblings and parents got to come if they wanted, and Amber thought she wanted to go. We lasted about 15 minutes then Amber was too cold to stay. {thank goodness} I am not an animal lover. The smell of animal poo and hay was grossing me out. 

There were llamas, donkeys, horses, dogs, goats and cows. Ashlyn loves preschool, and Amber is super excited to go next year. She is growing up faster than the rest of the kids did, I think. I don't like it. :(

She even thinks she is ready for a bra. 

And to give up her naps. Grrr. Sometimes all she gets is a quick power nap in the car. She was the quickest to give up naps.

Speaking of growing up too fast, Ashlyn went to the Kindergarten Launch this week. She met the teachers and the principle and got a tour of the school. She is so ready and super excited. Why am I so nervous to send my little girls to school???

Look how mature Tanner is, reading scriptures on his own. Not sure how much he is absorbing, but I was happy to see it. It is a dream come true. :)

Field trip and fun

Dallin's class went to on orthodontist's office for a field trip, and I went to help. Kind of a weird place to go for a field trip, but they made it kind of fun. The kids made a mold of their thumb with plaster. Learned about x rays and heard about how bad thumb sucking is for your teeth. :) Best part was getting this fun tee shirt probably.

 When I go into say good night to the girls they always ask what we are going to do the the next day. I try to have plenty for them to do so we don't get bored and watch TV all day. The library is so fantastic. We go there for Toddlerobics and story time sometimes. They do movies sometimes and crafts.  These pictures below are from Todderobics last week. They dance, sing, blow bubbles, shake rattles and ribbons and play with a giant parachute. 

 The girls are best friends. I am so glad Ashlyn's birthday is in October and I had her at home with Amber this school year. I am already thinking about what we will do next year when she goes to school. :(
Found the girls like this again. I just can't resist taking a picture. 

 We have had many lovely sunny days lately. After gymnastics one day we went to the park. That is why she is in the little unitard. She is going to be a great gymnast. Very flexible and surprisingly strong. 

Home Depot does a free building clinic for kids every month. We don't always get to go since we have sports a lot of the year, but it worked out for us to go this past weekend. They built wagons. These projects end up in the trash real quick, but it is a fun project where they get to learn how to follow directions and use tools. Such a fun time. 

It is supposed to rain for the next couple of weeks, so maybe some Kid Time and library this week. Being a stay at home mom is the best!
I am taking classes to be a Physical Therapy Assistant right now. Just one pre requisite class at at time until Amber goes to Kindergarten, but I will miss this time I have with my little ones. They are definitely more fun than a "real" job.