365Project.2016 | May

I'll be honest ... I'm pretty sure May is the reason I managed to dig up motivation to plow through March and April. Things like first ice cream cones and family bike rides and walks by the canal and flying kites ... yep. Lots of good stuff filled the days of May. ♥ Enjoy. :)

Day 122. We enjoyed sharing our first week of summer vacation with Grandma and Grandpa! Grandma kept busy with her camera, capturing lots of pictures of the grandkids. :) (Thanks for sharing, Grandma)

Of course, the boys broke out the Lego kits they received for their birthdays. :)

And, Grandpa began teaching Hannah and Peter how to use the lawn mower safely. 

I personally spent a good bit of time on meal prep ... breakfast, lunch, and dinner. :) Seriously, it was a blessing to have extra hands about, and I loved having extra time to craft wholesome food for my kiddos to prepare in Abby's new kitchen. ♥ So. Much. Fun! :)

Day 123. Matthew learned some of the finer points of Battleship technique ...  

 And Abby had lots of fun with her new kitchen. :) 

 Day 124. Peter finished up his Lego kit ...

And then had fun demonstrating it at our homeschool group's open house later that evening. :)

Day 125. Hannah sneaked in a few minutes with the sewing machine when Mommy wasn't monopolizing it. ;)

 And Abby commissioned some trips on her trike. :)

 Day 126. The boys enjoyed some target practice with the air rifle.

 And Chris and the kids took a short bike ride while Mommy refilled the fridge.

 Day 127. Did I mentioned that Grandma got plenty of pictures of the grandkids? ;)

 

And she had fun shopping with Hannah-bug ... this cute Vera Bradley purse at the Thrift Shop was their favorite find. :)

 She also enjoyed taking the kids out to lunch at Taco Bell. :)

 And Grandpa provided some more mowing instruction ...

 Gettin' good! :)

 Day 128. And then it was time to head home! Just a few more pictures ...

 

However, our last day with Grandma and Grandpa was also our first day at a local(ish) historical village!

Looks like school is back in session!

 

 Somehow I doubt that he's the first one to doodle on his slate ... ;)

 Watching them make a hand-hewn ox yoke...

Grating veggies ...

 Feeding lambs ...

Watching ducks (and contemplating how to get much closer ...)

 Meeting up with friends ...

 Watching the potter ...

 

 And in general, just having a fabulous time with hands-on learning! ♥

 Day 129. The kids definitely made Mommy feel loved on Mother's Day. ♥

 Compliments of Hannah-bug ...

Day 130. Time to go exploring! :) We decided that the Canal Trail was going to be seeing a bit more of us this year. :)

 

 

"I'm walking Toby!"

 Mommy's crew ♥

 AND ... Hannah's first flute lesson!!! ♥ So exciting! :)

 

 Day 131. Happy 13th Anniversary to us! ♥

 Day 132. The kids have spent lots of time in their fort this spring!

 Practicing flute ...

 Day 133. Happy 11th Birthday, Hannah-bug!! We love you!! ♥

 ♥

 

 

 Day 134. Caught a frog!

 Caught a forager ...

Day 135. Girls' Morning! Time to go garage saleing! :) And wow ... Mommy and Hannah-bug look quite a bit alike ... almost scary much like! :) ♥

Mommy's birthday dinner ... Daddy surprised Mommy with a steak when she was expecting grilled Fireman's Chicken! :)

 We interrupt gifts for ... story time with my cutie. ♥

 Mommy & Crew ♥

And after the kiddos were in bed, it was time for some fun with my hubby ... Dominion is our current favorite game. :) And yes, I managed to win this particular round in about five turns. :)

 Day 136. Abby-girl decided that Mommy's scarf made for good dress up play. :)

 Day 137. We have rising 1st, 4th, and 6th graders!!

My laundry helper ...

 She's definitely at a better height for grabbing the stuff out of the washing machine than I am, and she loves doing it! ♥

 Day 138. Fun at the park with our homeschool friends! :)

 

 

 

 It was so sweet to watch these three big girls spend extra time playing with the little ones. ♥

 

 

 

 And then we came home and prepared for Daddy's birthday celebration! :)

 

 

 

 Abby definitely thought Daddy's birthday was worth cheering about! :)

 And the picture may be blurry, but nothing beats the sweetness of an Abby-girl hug. ♥

Day 139. I have begun teaching Missions for Kids (TM) at church on Wednesday evenings, and I had the distinct privilege of borrowing an authentic Indian saree from my mom's friend and wearing it while teaching the children about the country of India. Such a special opportunity! ♥

 Day 140. I just love seeing Abby with Toby. ♥ Toby is so sweet and gentle.

And Abby sure does love Toby!

 Day 141. Visiting our local library

 

 Day 142. Daddy created a beautiful jewelry rack for Mommy's birthday ...

And Hannah is crocheting a beautiful "weather blanket"! Each day she crochets just one row, the color of which is determined by the high temperature of the day. She's nearly finished with the first panel. On July 1 she'll begin a second panel, and at the end of the year she'll sew them together to make one twin size blanket. :)

Day 143. So when the music lover is ready for church, but it's not quite time to leave, sometimes you let her watch the orchestra ...

We were blessed to be able to be a part of Uncle Scott's ordination service. :)

 And didn't this tree bloom beautifully this year?

Day 144. We have thoroughly enjoyed our walks on the Canal Trail. It was fun being able to watch a couple trains this particular morning. :)

 

 Big sister helping little sister to catch a view of the geese ...

 

 Love these munchkins! ♥

 Day 145. Play date and lunch with friends! :)

This week marked some major changes for Abby-girl ... Mommy decided that the size of her cheese slice was not worth debating. ♥

Daddy got home a bit earlier than usual, so we decided to celebrate with a spontaneous family bike ride!

 We biked 11 miles!

 Day 146. Kites are so much fun!

 

 

 And, portrait-quality photos of my six-year-old make Mommy extra happy! :)

 Day 147. Cuteness alert! Abby thoroughly enjoyed her first ice cream cone! ♥♥♥

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 148. And while not nearly so fun as first ice cream cones, this was the pile of laundry that made Mommy decided it was time and past time for big kids to begin folding their own laundry. Actually, in Mommy's book, that's probably better than ice cream cones! :)

 

 Abby enjoyed exploring her new purse while the big kids were busy with chores. :) Thanks, Grandma!

♥

 Day 149. Putting the mean green machine to work again. :)

We are SO thankful Grandpa is willing to share it with us!

And this young man continues to be a huge help with yard work! So thankful for his energy and hard working spirit! ♥

Day 150. The post reached out and bit my toe Saturday night. I spent most of Sunday with ice on my foot as a result. :-/

 But I had fun doing some coloring ...

 Day 151. Hey, sweet girl! ♥ Those shoes are just a wee bit big on you ...

 Day 152. Morning coffee on a swinging bench with my girls ... perfect. ♥

And that be May! So much fun and memories packed into one month! June has turned out to be quite memorable as well ... albeit for slightly different reasons. ;) But that's a story for another day. :)