It's official....

I'm 29... ugh. I think I dreaded this birthday worse then I'll dread actually turning 30. Poor Isaac has heard my comments and keeps asking me why I don't want to be 29. I just tell him that I'm being silly. Finally, today I told him that I was okay being 29, and I think he believed me :) Today was a nice day. Francis got up with Gracie this morning, so even though I didn't actually fall back to sleep, I was able to enjoy an extra hour in bed that I don't normally get. Grace just loved singing happy birthday to me... it came out more like "happy momma" or "happy day momma", but it melted my heart everytime. And Isaac sang it to me several times, and once tonight as we were snuggled in bed together he sang it by himself... so cute... brought a little tear to my eye :) I love being a mom and watching them grow. Each stage they are in bring laughter and joy and special moments that I will treasure in my heart. For supper tonight, Francis, Isaac, and Grace took me out to Red Lobster. It was a fun day... made turning 29 a little easier. :)

Lilac Festival

Going to the Lilac Festival in Rochester has become one of our favorite spring time traditions. If you have never been I would recommend it highly. The number of lilac bushes (there are 1,200 bushes covering 22 acres) in one area is just amazing and the smell from them is incredible. I love lilacs and amazed by the beauty as we walk among them. Again this year, I took many pictures and smelled more lilacs then I can count. I commented to someone there that I was taking pictures again and that they would look the same as the ones last year, but I just couldn't help myself. There are over 500 different varieties, each bush is marked with it's name and a number. This year we kept track of our favorites (look and most fragrant) and are going to try and get one to plant in our yard, my momma's day present this year. :) At one point, Francis took Isaac to the bathroom, so it was just Grace and I. We found a spot near my favorite lilac bush and just enjoyed the sunshine and beauty that surrounded us. She had a great time running to the bushes and smelling the flowers too. She kept trying to pick them for me, so I had to steer her to the dandelions and other flower on the ground. After about 45 minutes of being separated from each other (a VERY long story), we found a spot to have lunch and were entertained by a musician who was there performing kids songs. Finally, we ended the day with the kids riding on some kiddie rides. We had a few meltdowns after that, but it was to be expected after a 2nd day of missed naps. Another day filled with fun and memories! :)

Momma's Day 2008

"The birth of a baby is also the birth of a mother..."

I'm not sure where that quote is from... but it is pretty neat. Today was a special day. It started out with a Happy Momma's Day from Isaac as I got him out of bed this morning. It's so cute now that he is starting to understand the significance of different holidays. We scurried to get ready for church because the men were cooking breakfast for all of the ladies (and then did the clean up too!) :) We enjoyed waffles and eggs and sausage. All very yummy. Isaac, Grace, and I didn't stay too long into the service... we left right after the children's story... because the best part of the day was to come. We came home and got all of our things ready to go. As soon as Francis got home we hopped in the van and headed to a town 1 1/2 away to spend the "Day Out With Thomas"! What fun. We went last year on Mother's Day and couldn't help doing it again this year. Isaac and Grace were just blown away when Thomas came chugging into the station. They couldn't believe he was there "in real life". Even though Isaac had remembered seeing him last year, he was still in awe. It was so cute seeing their reactions to something they love so much. They spent time playing with trains, having tattoos put on their hands, having their characatures done by an artist, jumping in a bounce around, running through a maze, seeing Sir Topham Hat, listening to stories, and watching movies. The big deal was when we finally got our chance to ride in one of Thomas' passenger cars. They thought it was the greatest thing to ride on Thomas. Just before we headed home, Isaac and Grace both rode on a pony. I never thought Isaac would get on, but after seeing Grace go (and that she didn't fall off!!) he was all ready for it. :) On the way home, we stopped and ate supper at TC Hooligans. All in all it was a wonderful, fun, and joy-filled day. I think we'll make this a Momma's Day tradition for many years to come!! :) Happy Momma's Day! :)

Africa, Elephants, and Our Zoo

So, here is a piece of the conversation I overheard between Francis and Isaac while they were playing in the playroom this evening....

Isaac and Francis were playing with cars and Isaac was talking about how his cars were in Africa. That was surprising to us that he would talk about Africa since I'm not sure how many times he's heard about it.

So Francis says: "do you know what's in Africa? ... Elephants"

Then Isaac says: " that's where our zoo is? ... in Africa?"

It was very cute and funny. We couldn't help but laugh. He's only seen the elephants at our zoo, so when Francis associated Africa with elephants, Isaac assumed our zoo was in Africa. Boy, I'm glad we don't have to go THAT far to see an elephant :) It's amazing to see how their little minds work and perceive the world around them :)