Celebrations

We rounded out the last three days of break with more celebrations. 

Friday, we had an early celebration for cousin A's 7th birthday. (sitting beside Aaron) 

Lunch out, playground time, and a hike around the lake. 

 An exciting discovery in the woods

Then Darin was in charge of the kids for the remainder of the afternoon/evening and I got to pretend 

I was an adult. I had the pleasure of hosting a going away party for a sweet friend. About 30 minutes

 before the party, the house was clean, I was dressed, and the food was ready. (Much thanks to Darin

 for all his help cleaning!) The main party planner was on her way and I could just sit and be still. 

How lovely to enjoy the quiet and calm. We will miss you Tara!

 The next morning (Saturday), the kids and I loaded up to head to Grammy's to celebrate AGAIN! 

The kids made this great sign. We are all about decorating signs at our house. 

After lunch, we played our own version of Pictionary. It was REALLY great. 

Definitely the highlight of my day. I could have kept playing and playing. 

Watching the kids think and draw and smile was precious.  

We sang and ate a yummy pumpkin cheesecake. Recipe HERE. 

 My mom had some sniffles, so the kids blew out the candles and shared their germs. ;)

 Birthday buddies... cousin A's birthday was the next day. 

While we were in the singing mood, we sang to A too. 

He opted to use the candle snuffer to blow out the candles. Super cute!

 After cake, we watched a movie together at my mom's request. Swiss Family Robinson. 

It was a perfect day to cuddle up in front of the fire and watch a movie. 

Then we dressed up and went out for dinner. In our rush, we forgot to take a group picture. :( 

I didn't succeed in getting a reservation for 12 at a more notable restaurant, 

but it worked out perfectly to have dinner together in a quiet, out of the way, 

Italian family restaurant. (leftovers were delicious!)

Happy 70th Birthday to a special Mom! Hope you felt loved.