The Longest Final in the History of the World, Cooper 5K and Finally a Date Night!

This was such a great week! Jeff had a break from classes since he took some finals, so he got to come home more often in the week and spent a full day and night on Saturday with us, it was the best!

First off, I have to say how proud I am of Jeff! He took a 19 HOUR ACCOUNTING FINAL on Saturday. I can't even comprehend taking a final that long! But in the end he did great with a high pass (he was only 3 points away from a superior pass)! He worked extremely hard to prepare for this final he was very blessed. We feel so grateful. 

On Thursday I had a really hard day and felt kind of like I was having  little mental breakdown. Jeff was so kind to come home from work early and took over. I think I was just overwhelmed from some very long weeks. The week before the test we didn't see Jeff all week and the week of the test we didn't see him until church on Sunday. So it must have taken its toll and I broke, but Jeff was wonderful to help pick me back up. 

Our friends from church, the Logans, held their annual Cooper 5k, which brings awareness and raises money to help fight Kawasaki Heart Disease. Neither of us have been running in a very long time, but it was fun to get out and push the strollers. Unfortunately for Jeff, Ryan preferred him pushing, so Jeff got to push the heavy double stroller more. Even better is that we were able to be on our friend Shawn Murray's team (who is also a member of our ward) sponsored by his orthodontist office. He paid for 125 participants so we were blessed to just be able to show up! I'm so impressed with generous people and felt grateful we could participate in this way. 

At one point Lily wanted to run off on her own, do you see her with the pink pants and blue jacket? She did awesome!

Free face painting and no line is the best thing ever. 

Kenna Cormack ran the kids race with Lily. She is so good to our kids. 

This is out of order, but just shows the love these kids have for their dad. 

Some friends from church: Tara Smith, me, Tami Thurgood, Kari Murray, and Alexis Kelly.

Jeff and I decided for a last minute date night. We have discovered that painting is what we love doing best. Jeff is so funny though because he likes doing something different so he ends up changing his picture around a lot. It's fun to watch him in progress. 

Taking a little bit of each color and deciding later what he'll use. 

Painting the background color is always the most fun and relaxing. 

Using the palette knife for most of the painting. 

My picture, I was trying for a pink flower since I knew Lily would love that. 

Adding drops of water on the brush so it would run down the painting. 

Kind of different, but it was fun. 

Lily has both paintings in her room. She says mine is beautiful and daddy's is awesome. 

And Lily was lucky enough to go to Kalissa Thurgood's birthday party. She got to dress up like a princess and have some fun girl time. She had a great time!

Jeff went to help with a move and since Lily was at the party, Ryan wanted someone to go. He was crying at the end because he didn't get to move anything. But the family quickly found some items that were just the right size for him. I love how these kids are so happy to be helping others!

Lily talked about the temple in her Primary class so her idea was to go to the Fort Collins temple after church. We walked by the construction and it was a beautiful evening. We can't wait until it's completed! The cap off the walk, the kids found a hill by the stake center and across from the temple that they rolled down for about 15 minutes. And then another family came and their kids joined in the fun too. 

I just had to add this picture because Max's new thing is eating apples whole. He walks around with it for 15 minutes or so, it keeps him pretty occupied. 

Farm and the Pet Store

I sometimes forget how much I love sidewalk chalk, it's quite the entertainer. I traced Lily, Ryan, and our neighbors Leah and Taryn and then spent a long time decorating the bodies. 

At the farm. Daylon dressed up like an Indian and painted the kids faces. Lily's head band is actually meant to represent a tree. She made it the day before at the book mobile stop by our house and didn't take it off once today.

"Look Mom, at tree is in the tree!"

Good friends.

They all love playing in the sand and digging for gold. These wheelbarrows were a lot of fun too. 

Lily and Kalissa. I love my kids having wonderful friends from church their same age, it's the best!

Lily traded her gold in for paper dolls and had so much fun playing with them. She's still sporting that tree head piece. 

Always the lover of bugs, Lily was so excited to find a fuzzy caterpillar. 

We had a great night out with Jeff and went to Cafe Rio. Afterward, it was getting late and I wanted to go home, but Jeff suggested we go to Pet Smart. The kids had so much fun! They stared at the fishes and Max loved staring at the birds, rats, and guinea pigs. Ryan often says, "I wish we had a dog." They would love any kind of pet really so hopefully for their sakes their parents soften their hearts a bit. 

Favorite Activity, Catching Grasshoppers

One day out back with Jeff, the kids discovered catching grasshoppers (thank goodness for Jeff because I never would have suggested this activity). This quickly turned into their all time favorite past time ever. Even Max loves sticking his hand in the glass jar to pick them up. 

Ryan and I watching the clouds go by. 

Costco trips with Jeff are much more fun. He threw Ryan in the stuffed bears. 

One afternoon nap at Mama Baer's, Max pulled lots of nearby items into the crib with him. 

Our favorite treat, Dunkin' Donuts.

This was so nice, Lily wanted to put lotion all over me. 

Ice Cream treat with Daddy. 

At the farm with Blake Smith. 

Dartanon pulling the kids with his tractor. They had a great time. 

Sweetest pictures ever. 

The kids were so excited to tell me what they found. I about had a heart attack, but Jeff assured me via text that it was a garter snake. I told the kids to stay inside, but Jeff encouraged me to let them go out. So they did and had fun throwing grass in for him to eat. The keep checking to see if he's still there, but he left, thank goodness.

Always fun to interrupt a bike ride to catch grasshoppers. 

Lily got a book on how to draw animals. I thought she did a great job! She then ventured off and created a crazy eyed crab, I love her creativity. 

Max looks pretty cute in his shorts out shopping. 

It's always fun to take the couch cushions off. 

My friend Janna (my roommate in Uganda) and I got together at the zoo. We had such a wonderful time catching up and Diana came too and helped with kids, which was awesome. Janna's son Jack had fun with Lily and Ryan and overall it was really the perfect day. There's nothing better than dear friends with whom you can be completely open with and know they will love you no matter what.

Lily said, "Max has a great idea!" Let's make ice cream out of the pom pom balls! So they got the bag out and put some in their ice cream cones. But then Ryan and Max really let loose and pom moms were everywhere. Ryan even threw a bunch down the stairs and when I came to look I was tempted to get upset. But I remember my parenting class and how we should spend less time in the parent ego and more time in the child ego. There's no need to be correcting and directing all the time. So I said, "wow, look what you did!" He replied, "yeah, I worked really hard on it."

I just had to capture the chaos of this room. Lily and Ryan love filling up Max's crib with lots of stuffed animals and blankets. They always say they're on a boat ride and need to bring a lot of books and toys too. I often take pictures to show Jeff so that when he sees how clean the house is when he comes home, he can fully appreciate the transformation.