Spring Break

Since we just got home from Florida, we spent Spring Break lounging around our house this year.  We planned a few play dates, Carter took two art classes at the Art Center, we made a couple of trips to Guthrie, met Cary for lunch, spent time at the pool, and just relaxed around our house.  Here are a few photos I snapped this week:

MICHIGAN!  They've made it to the Sweet 16 and we've been cheering them on all week.  The kids both have new Michigan shirts and I'm trying to make my regular Michigan t-shirts fit over my growing belly.

Carter asked me to take this picture of his Lego piece.  Not sure why this one is special, but he's definitely been Lego-obsessed for the past few weeks.  I hate the mess of Legos all over the floor (and table, and end table, and in closets, and in the bathtub...), but I love that he's being creative and playing quietly.  We've actually been pretty impressed with some of his creations...usually vehicles of some sort.

The POOL!  We joined a new gym a couple of weeks ago and it has been awesome! It's closer to our house, has better childcare hours, has a huge gym that the kids can shoot hoops in at any time, and best of all, has both an indoor and outdoor pool.  We went to the pool five times this past week.  The kids just put on their life jackets and off they go.  It's been so good for so many reasons.  First, it keeps them occupied so they're not arguing at home.  And they actually play really well together in the pool. Second, it's great exercise for both of them.  Third, they are both getting so brave.  Carter now jumps from the side and goes completely under and touches the bottom without freaking out.  And Brynn will "swim" the whole length of the pool with her life jacket on.  Fourth, they don't seem to mind that I don't get in, so I actually get to sit and relax while they are completely entertained.  To top it all off, it's made working out more of a family affair...I'll work out while Cary takes the kids to the pool and vice versa. And an added bonus is the Kids' Club on Friday nights.  We can take the kids from 6:00 - 10:00pm and leave them there while we go out to eat.  During that time they swim, play in the gym, play Bingo, eat pizza, and watch a movie.  It's a win-win for all of us!

Brynn's been taking gymnastics for the past month and has been really liking it.  We signed her up at Chow's Gym because it's right down the street, but I've been really impressed with their discipline and organization.  It's been great for her to get out of her comfort zone (aka Away from Mom) and learn to follow a teacher's instructions and rules.  She's always a bit shy for the first few minutes, but then is smiling by the end.  And she loves telling us about the naughty boy in her class afterwards.

We didn't do a ton of projects around the house over break - mostly because there aren't a ton of projects to do right now.  I felt like there was constantly something to be fixing or updating in our old house.  And in this house I just feel like everything is okay the way it is.  (Now, when warmer weather hits, we have several outdoor things we'd like to accomplish.)  But we did hang a gallery wall in our basement and I love it.  We just picked out some random photos of our life over the past 13 years and printed them all in black and white.  Cary did a great job getting them all straight, which was not an easy job!!   

And although it was great to have a week off, it's time to be back to the daily grind.  There was a lot of "togetherness" with the two little ones and there were several days that I said I didn't want to hear the word "MOM" again.  :)  My kids both love to talk.  And talk. And talk.  And after awhile, that can get a bit wearing.  I took this photo of Brynn playing in the bathroom while I was getting ready one morning.  The girl would literally be happy if she never left my side.  I stood right in the middle of the gray rug while she played around my feet.  So yes, although I love togetherness, I love a little space too. :)