catching up

A few weeks ago Jennifer and I took the kids to the zoo. I'd been having feelings lately that maybe I should just stay home permanently for the next few years to avoid 3 (almost 4) year old meltdowns and the exhaustion that comes from trying to keep a 17 month old in a stroller when he wants so desperately to walk along side his sissy. But then I realized that I could not be defeated by normal childhood behavior! Every child occasionally has a hard day and when mine do I guess I get embarrassed and totally stressed out and I want to hide under a rock. So I asked Jennifer if she wanted to go to the zoo, and on top of that, did she want to ride the DART train to the zoo! I'm pleased (and relieved) to say that the trip was a success and gave me courage to take more fun trips with the kids!

I didn't get many pictures but here is a sweet one of Addie and Alexandra waiting for the train.

and my attempt at a family picture-sadly this is Addie's face about 1/3 of our days now-so sad!

__________________________________________________________________

That weekend we saddled up and headed west to celebrate Makynna's fourth birthday. We went early so that we could see Camryn's t-ball game. Addie, Doak, and Makynna entertained themselves running in open fields and looking for ladybugs. After the game Cam gave Doak her hat and he was SO excited!
After the game we spent a few hours at Amy's house just relaxing and playing outside. Addie and Makynna did what they do best-pick flowers! Aren't their wildflowers gorgeous? They had tons in their yard!


The kids love the trampoline and Keri had to get in and show off some of his skills from the good old days.
There also may or may not have been a contest between Keri and me to see who could do a cooler 'trick' on the trampoline. (This was immediately followed by me hopping off the trampoline after realizing I'm NOT as young as I used to be!)