Every week I like to take a moment to showcase the moments that brought me the most joy, but also keep it real with the chaos. The key is seeing that despite the chaos, there is still so much good! Sometimes it’s awesome activities and other times it’s a sweet moment between the kids. There are always moments that can fill us with joy if we choose to see them with a thankful heart.
Another week done, another school year in the books! But before I get to the last day of school photos I’ve got share about the rest of the week!
Sunday was Jamison’s turn for a Mommy-son date. He chose Chili’s and he chose well because I had coupons and gift cards! We got a free order of chips & salsa for being Chili’s Reward members plus I also had a free kids meal reward. Our meal ended up costing less than $13 before tip and we both took food home for the next day. Now that’s a great deal!
We also swung through the new-ish toy store at our mall and had to take a picture by the giant triceratops for Parker because that boy loves dinos. He’s already asking to go see it on his next date.
Monday was Memorial Day so the kids were out of school and Micah had the day off as well. We made sure to take advantage of the extra family time with a long bike ride to a favorite park.
We played hard then took some time to wander across the field to a fountain.
Swapping babysitting with friends is a great deal because it doesn’t cost any money and helps out both families! Last week I watched a friend’s three girls while she went to work and this week she took our three little kids so Micah and I could catch a matinee of Solo: A Star Wars Story. Our theater offers $5 tickets on Tuesdays for all showings so we were able to see it in the super gigantic screen which has normal prices of about $13-15 for evening showings. Yay for frugal fun!
We didn’t pick up the kids until just after lunch and by the time we got home I decided it wasn’t worth trying to get them down for a nap before needing to get them up again to get the big boys from school. They love the treat of skipping nap so they were thrilled when I told them the plan.
That afternoon the kids brought most of their stuffed animals and blankets into the living room and were having a rowdy but fun time. Anders came and told me that Cade had fallen asleep. I went to check and sure enough, he was sound asleep on the floor!
And not only was he asleep, he had fallen asleep when all of this was going on around him! Also, this is what our living room looks like all the time… until about 10 minutes before getting ready for bed when I make them clean it up. All about real life photos here, y’all.
On Wednesday we went out to run races around the house. The kids were bursting with energy because ONLY ONE DAY OF SCHOOL LEFT and we needed to not be inside with that much excitement. I love that the words “Ready, Set, Go!” can instantly set them in motion.
Then there is this boy and his face. He was in the middle of hollering for Cade to come see him and I caught him just right. But I love this shot because it’s just so him.
I actually took quite a few pictures on Wednesday when we were outside because the clouds looked cool and I knew we’d have to head in soon when the rain came. Sure enough the drops started just as we went in for dinner. But I did catch these two pictures before we went in!
Thursday brought us together with a sweet friend for a playdate. It was fairly spontaneous and we simply hung out at her house while the kids played and we talked. I love, love, love laid back time with friends. She quickly whipped up some peanut butter and nutella sandwiches plus some diced fruit for lunch when the kids said they were getting hungry. Simple and wonderful – that is hospitality!
And the kids were big fans of the trampoline 😉
It was also the last day of school! AAAHHH! They made it through 3rd and 2nd grade! After I took these pictures and put them side by side I realized the slight difference in angles made it seem like Parker grew a crazy amount. He definitely grew, but only a couple inches at most.
And of course I got a full group shot – even though it’s always a challenge to get anyone to cooperate.
I’m constantly glad I put chalkboard contact paper on those closet doors. It makes these photos and keeping track of chores so much easier!
Did you know Friday was National Donut Day? That’s right! June 1st is National Donut Day and I’ll take any excuse to celebrate with food so I was all over this. Last year we picked up donuts on the 31st so we were ready but this year I decided make my own. These cinnamon roll donuts are amazing! I’ve got a large donut pan and mini donut pan that I use for this recipe. I made a quadruple batch and we ended up with 18 large donuts and 12 mini donuts.
Friday also meant shopping and we couldn’t help but have some fun while we were out getting groceries.
Now that the boys are home from school I’ll be getting a lot more board game practice in and we started summer break with a round of Mall Madness. They seriously love this game! Also, after searching for it on Amazon, I can’t believe how much people are selling it for!!
I also got to try my hand with the new mower after Micah took the first round the other week. I knew it was self propelled but I didn’t realize that I had to grip a certain lever to make this happen. I finally realized it when I was about three-fourths done with the yard! At least I’ll know better for next time.
And on the chaos/real life side… I mowed over a dirt pile and it was fairly windy on Friday. All the dirt flew right back IN MY FACE. I was so sweaty because it was about 85* that it all stuck to me. I was so gross by the time I finished! Lesson learned. Don’t mow over the dirt areas just to get the few random weeds cut down.
We ended the week with Mercedes playing hair stylist to herself, Anders and Cade. I can remember dressing my little brother up as a girl so this doesn’t surprise me one bit!
And finally, a trip to Pizza Ranch with Micah’s parents where Anders gave himself cracker eyes, Cade tried to eat way too much ice cream, and Jamison managed to somehow fit ten slices of pizza inside his body. I think he must have shoved some in his pockets because I don’t see how he could eat that many!
Oh man, what a week. Now that you’ve heard all about ours…
Where did you find joy in the chaos this week? What was your favorite part of the week?
