life in may

The month started off with the arrival of a sweet baby girl for the Dayley family.  We took them dinner a few days after Elizabeth was born and Brooke was delighted that she was able to get some newborn cuddles.  She's a natural with babies!  

The pool opened and although the water was still cold, the kids were excited to play.

We went on a nature walk/scavenger hunt for Activity Days and it was a big hit with the girls!  We lucked out with the most beautiful spring night.

Back row: Lily, Kaitlynn, Brooke, and Whitney

Front row: Abby and Marlie.

Every year, they celebrate May 4th as "May the Fourth (Force) Be With You", so naturally, Colby chose to wear his Baby Yoda wearable blanket to school. 

On the last day of Daulton Dashers, Ms. Stapp allowed the kids to play a huge dodgeball game and eat donuts together.  We are officially in the season of "elementary lasts" which just makes me sad.

Brooke and Ms. Stapp, the PE coach...

Brooke and Mrs. Cavitt, the assistant PE coach...

I stayed and watched for a few minutes, but then had to hurry home to make sure Colby was getting ready for school.

I honestly don't remember anything about this picture, but Brooke must have lost her tooth at school because that tooth hole looks fresh!!

It was SO hot one Friday afternoon, so we escaped to the pool.  I didn't take many pics because the kids were busy playing, but I did get these after the girls showed us their secret handshakes.  We always enjoy our time with the Nesbitts. 

I had a lunch date with my friend, Chelsea, and I lucked out with baby Lilah snuggles.  It was so good to hear her birth story and really just catch up with Chelsea.  (I don't see her as often now that I'm in Activity Days and not involved with the planning of RS Activities.)

We don't typically so swimming on Sunday, but our neighbor Anniyah was having her birthday party at the pool and we wanted to go and support her.  Their whole family is great and we really enjoy our friendship with them.

The theme was Little Mermaid and April did a phenomenal job with all the themed food and decorations...

Time at the lake...

One Sunday, we were in the hall talking with Teddi Parr after church.  She made a comment about how she used to teach Brooke in nursery, so I decided that I needed a picture of the two of them :)

We headed straight from church up to Flower Mound for a belated Mother's Day celebration.  

The kids each wrote sweet notes to Grandma, and I remembered to snap a quick picture of Colby's note. 

I'm not sure how we ended up doing the tortilla challenge, but my kids have been wanting to do it forever and it made for some great laughs.

Back inside the house, Emery grabbed a stack of books and snuggled up near Kevin. Moments like this are both really sweet and also kind of sad. I feel the pain of what might've been had we been able to have more babies.  I am extremely grateful for the two amazing children we get to raise, but I would've loved the opportunity to raise more.  The baby/toddler years seemed to pass so quickly, and although I love a lot of things about having older kids, I'm also nostalgic about their precious younger selves.

I was rereading about this afternoon on Instagram and I wrote about how Emery hardly played with the cousins, but instead wanted to read, snuggle, and play with Kevin and I.  As we were about to leave, she asked where Colby was.  I told her he was in the bathroom, so she went over to the door, knocked, and said, "I love you, Colby." in her sweet 3 year old voice.  Hearing Colby tell her that he loved her too was pretty adorable.  So she said it about 3 more times!  Living by family is the best. 

That last week of school was rough!!!  We were all just SO exhausted, haha.  Colby fell asleep in the moments it took me to pour him a bowl of cereal.

We did a special Activity Day's lesson about individual worth and seeing the good in others. I printed off papers with their name along the top and we passed them around the table and wrote sweet notes to each girl. My hope was that they would keep the paper somewhere they could see it often as a reminder of all their great qualities. 

The Fourth Grade does something called a "Clap-Out" to honor the graduating students since our district's elementary schools are K-4. All the lower level students line the halls and clap for the fourth graders as they make the rounds.  They also make a lap around the front of the school where all the parents are lined up and cheering.  I knew that I would get choked up as she walked past, but I tried to put on my happy face and wave. 

We snuck away after the Clap-Out and enjoyed the rest of the day together.  She told me multiple times how much she loved the day, and it really was the best!  We played tennis, stopped for lunch, hung out at the pool, then did a bit of organizing in her room.

Colby asked if I would teach him how to mow the lawn, so we made it happen.  I think his main motivation was earning a few bucks, but it was a great life lesson.  When he had done a quarter of the lawn, he asked if he could take a break.  As he sat and drank water, he commented that "it looks so easy just pushing a lawn mower around the yard, but it's harder than it looks."  Then a few minutes later, he said, "Thanks for always doing this, Mom." 

My favorite part was watching him jump up to get the momentum to pivot the mower.  He's a good, hard worker!

Brooke helped replant the knockout roses in hopes of bringing them back to life!  (Spoiler Alert:  they didn't survive the transplant.)

A quick visit to Hawaiian Falls...

Saturday morning boating session...

Colby has finally found a book series he's into, so he brought one along for the ride. Kevin wakeboarded, Colby kneeboarded, I surfed, and Brooke was the videographer.  Apparently, it was "too cold" for her to get in the water.

Then it was off to the Primary Temple Trip.  The weather was beautiful and I loved watching these sweet kids experience the beauty of the temple.  Per usual, I cried as they sang inside the foyer.

Sister Longoria teaching them about the temple...

Couldn't leave without a picture of just these two!

We attended Ridge Petersens' baptism up in Rockwall and it was so great to see their whole family.  We were so sad when they moved away last Fall, so it was good to catch up and be there to support Ridge on his special day. 

After the baptism, we had dinner at Rodeo Goat.  We waited for an outdoor table with swinging chairs and that was absolutely the best decision.  We had a beautiful view of the lake, a nice breeze, and a relaxing dinner.

Boating with friends!  And one of the only pics I took before my phone died...

We hit up Hawaiian Falls on Tuesday with Miss Danielle and her crew...

They especially enjoyed the foam party, which was a new addition to the summer lineup...

Danielle and I had fun watching the chaos!  The teenager with the megaphone was obnoxious, but the kids thought it was great.  Also, I totally fried my legs a few days earlier at the lake, so I had to wear biker shorts the entire day to protect my legs from further damage.  I felt kind of silly at first, but I didn't want a sunburn on top of a sunburn and I didn't want to cancel out date, so I improvised, haha. 

We always love our time with the Sturgills!  It officially feels like summer!!