Happy Easter!

Today was a beautiful sunny Easter day! We enjoyed a great day with our favorite family, the Barlows. The kids looked really cute for church so I had to snap a few shots to share.

Em and his little side kick Chloe.
I love when she scrunches up her face for a picture. She sure does have a little kick to her.
I thought you'd like this one Dad. This is Chlo in full swing, curls bouncing and everything. She was jumping with excitement to be outside.

The Barlow gang looking all spiffy.
The E.B. brought Zoey a "cat's cradle" book and it kept the kids entertained the entire day. Nice pick E.B., if I do say so myself.

My lovely family doing what they do best.

OK, they can be serious some times...

My four little cheesers.Rugs getting his little brother.

But, I've always warned him that Em was going to get bigger someday. Guess what? It's someday.

They are the best of buddies and now it seems to be a fair fight because they are just about the same size. What Em lacks in size, he makes up for in sheer will.

The twirlies and their fanciest. They were both thrilled to be going to church in puffy fancy dresses. I love that they are so girlie and the boys are so, well, boyish.

Happy Easter!

Friend Day...

The kids picked a day to have some friends over. We did an egg hunt, played outside, had a camp fire with smores and hot dogs, and rode the go-carts. I think they all had a great time.

Breckyn and Ali on the zip-line.

Jade and Zoey waiting for their turn on the go-carts.

Em and Jaden taking on the big blue.

Tim was giving the kids rides in the black go-cart. Don't worry, we're taking great care of your baby Dad.

Here's Breckyn and Drew out starting smores over the coals.

I think the eating part was more fun than the cooking part....

They had a blast. As you can see, our weather was a bit chilly. It was in the low 40s and a little windy. But the kids didn't mind a bit.

Children's Museum...

We also took the kids to see the Betty Brinn Children's Museum in Milwaukee. We use to come here all the time when the girlies were little. It was nice to go back and watch all the kids play. They have so many awesome hands-on stuff for the kids to explore, it was great.

Rugby is running the camera for the news studio.

Zoey is trying out this wheelchair obstacle course to see what it would be like to have a disability.

Brecky as an anchor on the news. It really did suite her nicely.

They were working as quite the team. My two little bosses were in charge of the show. (hmmm... that sounds about right)

There were so many other great things to explore. They had a sound studio, camping section, crafts, a stage, a bank, a shipping dock, a market, a bus, a mechanic shop, and lots of other things. It's an awesome museum if you are ever in the area, I highly recommend it.

The Domes...

We went to the domes this week. It's a place in Milwaukee that has three huge domes and each separate dome depicts a type of climate. They have the tropical, the desert and the Wisconsin spring dome.

Breckyn loved these purple flowers.

The whole gang had lots of fun exploring and running around.

Em and Rugs are standing in front of a little pond and a cute house. There are benches and picnic spots. It's a great place for the kids to explore and learn some things about different areas of the country.

The girlies were loving all of the flowers (and so was their momma).

What's a family day without a trip to Target. Every time we go, the kids try to move these cement balls. I think they've almost got it.

Please!

Today we have arranged to have a babysitter come and watch the kids all day long! Tim and I are going to have a day all to ourselves!!! I'm so excited about this-- giddy even. So this morning I'm getting dressed and trying to look my best. (You know, like in the "olden days," when we were dating.) I think I look pretty good. I add the finishing touches, a little perfume and some light lip gloss.... then Rugby comes in and I say, "What do you think?" He tells me in all seriousness, "Mom, I think you need a little eyeliner and maybe some lipstick. How about some jewelry?" He proceeds to pull out the colors and styles and tells me what to do. He is 5-- and he already notices all these little things. He did a pretty good job picking what would look good. I can't believe it's come to this. I'm officially out of it when my 5 year old does a better job at dressing me than me. Geesh!

Conference Morning...

This one is for you Mom and Dad. We sure do miss you!

Power Washer!

If you know me well you know that my policy is, "anything can be put in the washer or dishwasher." I'm not kidding. I put everything in either, from toys to car mats, nothing has been spared a quick run for germ detox. This weekend I found something even better-- the pressure washer! Tim borrowed the Barlow's pressure washer for the weekend to clean up a few things around the yard. When he got started, it wasn't working quite right because there was a kink in our hose. He handed me the wand to hold while he went searching for the kink.... and the rest is history. The kink was located and the power was unleashed in my hands! OH BABY! That thing can blow the crud off of anything. I was cleaning toys, bikes, go carts, the lawn mower, our picnic table, the patio, the front door-- you name it, it got sprayed! If you recall last summer Tim was injured and I had to take over the man tools. I think the love of tools hasn't quite worn off yet. Move over gas blower, there is a new tool in town. My only problem is, I've run out of things to wash. I think I'll get creative tomorrow-- giddy-up!

Our Puppies...

This is for the Barlows. We are watching Lulu for them this week while they are out on an adventure.

As you can see they are doing just fine.

Breckyn is enjoying them more than anyone.

I took these pictures during the few brief moments that they were still. They have been having so much fun together. (...and Lulu has taken quite a liking to Timmy-- hee hee!)

Rugs...

I can hardly believe that this guy is going to be six in a few days.

This is what he does when it's too sunny out.

Such a handsome dude!

Today was our first official day of spring break. The kids have been dying to go for a family bike ride, so it was the first thing on our list.

Last break they had from school, we fixed up every one's bikes and got the right size helmets. We had to buy a bike for me since I haven't had one in years. Then it snowed-- so here we are a few weeks later finally getting to ride. Zoey kept saying, "This is the best day of my life!" Truth be told, it wasn't quite that good, but it was fun. We packed lunches and rode to a park to play and eat.

Tim is getting down to business. His plan for the week is to pressure wash everything that isn't moving (and maybe a few things that are...).
Breckyn is taking good care of your swing Mom and Dad. I just love this swing and I'm so happy to babysit it for you.

This is for you Dad. Things are still working quite the same. It's officially summer when the buns start coming out. He's working on signing his name to impress you when you get back.

Mom and Dad, I wanted you to see that the geese are back for the season. In a few more weeks we'll be seeing their babies. But for now we are still playing "dodge the geese poop" when we have to go over to Yaya's. Home is still just how you left it. You'll notice the blade in the back ground. Treibolt wanted it off to take it for a ride. It'll be back home soon. We miss you!

Easter Party!

Yesterday was the big day for Rugby's class party. I made some special spring nests for their treats.

I mixed chocolate and regular rice crispies to make a rice crispy treat nest. Then I added "robin eggs" and a peep on top. I made these last year and they were a real hit.
When the girlies found out I was making them, they wanted in on it too. So I ponied up and made some for their classes too. I ended up with 71 nests. Every class was loving the extra sugar. Emerson got to join the party too. We had an egg hunt and then we made crafts. We dyed eggs, made necklaces, made bunny hats, made cotton chicks, and played a few games.

Rugs and his friends really liked dying eggs.

Then the Easter Bunny stopped in to make a house call. They were so excited! It was a fun party.

Spring Fun...

I've been working on Rugby's class spring party today. It's taken a while, but I think I have some awesome games, crafts, and snacks lined up. It's all packed and ready to go for tomorrow.

Emerson tried this one on for me. I made it up for them because I love kids with silly hats. It makes me giggle. It even has a cotton tale in the back.

Tim helped me out by "cooking" dinner. He's such a good husband.

Here's my puppy-- just because he's so cute. He is almost 9 pounds now. Lulu, his sister, is still hovering at 5 pounds.

Play Dates...

Today was an exciting day in the Taylor house. Tim has been gone all week and he wasn't suppose to be back until late tonight. So I let the kids each pick a friend to bring home from school to play. They were so excited they were bursting at the seams for Friday afternoon to come.

Every fun play date has to have a good spread.

Rugby invited his friend Dakota. Dakota is Rugby's blonde equivalent. They were full of energy.

This is Zoey's friend Jade. She is Zoey's pink cheeked twin. I just love these two little bursts of sunshine.

This is Izzy and Breckyn. This is the girl that helped Breckyn come out of her shell last year. She also introduced Breckyn to soccer and she is a great friend. You can tell B is pretty excited to have her over.