Tuesday with Sneaky Boy

 

I'm gonna give her a big smile so she thinks she can trust me sitting on this chair with her

 

 

But the second she lets her guard down, I'm going in for the hair grab!

BUSTED!!!

 

I can't help it.  It makes me so happy

 

Two fist fulls of blond hair...mission accomplished!



Gettin' Ripped

Carter seems to be working hard on his upper body lately.  And by working hard I mean, being forced to do push-ups in class for being tardy, eating/drinking during class, phone out in class, etc.  Sounds like he's getting quite the workout at school.  Ugh. 

 

And because Cate is such a giving person, she's more than happy to help Carter build his strength! 

Lake Trip!

Last weekend we took a roadtrip to the Lake of the Ozarks to hang out with Aunt Fran and Uncle Mike in their new lake house.  One word...AMAZING.  And if they ever questioned themselves about whether a 6500 sq ft. lake house was too big, I'm pretty sure having our traveling circus visit confirmed that the house is just the perfect size!!!

The less-than-three hour drive is the perfect distance for these clowns. 

 

As soon as we got there, Bennett grabbed food and made himself comfortable.  Not really any different than home, eh?!

 

Main floor kitchen.  Hello 12-ft ceilings...made everything feel even more awesome!

 

Main floor living room (Fran and Mikes room is also on this level)

A stairway leads up to the boys room or "dorm".  This is pretty much what they look like at home too.  Minus the huge clean room.

 

That's more like it!  I think Brady tried to sleep in all five beds :)  Thankfully he didn't realize they were all trundle beds!!!

 

Our bedroom, and Bau Bau, and Grammy's were on the bottom floor.  Don't think we were stuck in a basement though...it's just as luxurious as the first floor!!

This is the bottom floor kitchen

 

View from the stairs. 

 

Grammy and Bau Bau hanging out.  We spent the entire weekend lounging down here.  It was awesome :)

 

 

 

 

Brady practiced his downhill run from the garage, over the dock, and (this summer) into the lake.  He only fell once and slid all the way across the bridge.  It would have been a very cold lesson to learn!!



Our foodie made biscuits and gravy for breakfast 

View from the first floor dining table. 

I woke up from my nap (!) to find Carter practicing his kendama.  This is the reason we don't have a 6500 sq ft house.  (well, one of the reasons!!)....no matter how many rooms we have, our kids are always right next to us!

Brady did not care how cold it got on Saturday, he was going to fish!  As soon as they got down to the dock, it started to rain REALLY hard.  I stayed in the house and took pictures :)  Needless to say, they caught zero fish. 

Fran had a secret room under the stairs filled with new toys. Of course Cate loved the dress up chest, and Mike helped Brady with the Legos.  

Carter's thinking a summer job working at a marina would be perfect for him!!

Scott loved the screened in porch the best

He hung here a lot too!

 

This is the first floor laundry room (there is one downstairs too).  I think it is my dream laundry room.  12 foot ceilings and soooooo much room.  I would put a tv in there and hide all day long!!!

Carter started the trip home in the drivers seat.  But about halfway, he pulled off because "his back hurt" which I think means, "sleeping on roadtrips is way better than driving".

 

We had the best weekend!  Some people have said a trip to the lake during the winter is boring and not worth it, but Scott and I felt just the opposite.  We loved the laid-back feel of the not-so-crowded Ozarks and it was one of the most relaxing weekends we've had in a long time.  (Ironically, it was probably one of the loudest, wildest weekends Bau Bau, Grammy, Fran, and Mike have had!!) They have one month to rest up before we do it all again!!

mystery solved

"WHAT???"

 "I can't believe that someone pee'd on Uncle Scott's side of the bed"

 

"Let me think about who it could be..hmmm"

"Oh yeah....itttttt wassssssss meeeeeeeee!!"

smorgasbord

Cell phone photo dump!

 

On the first Thursday of every month, Brady and Ben's school hosts a skating party.  January's was held on the first day back from Christmas vacation and I was hoping to get out of it, but no such luck.  Ben chose baseball practice, but Cate and Brady insisted on going. Thankfully Candi was there to keep me entertained

Cate and Reid...soon they'll both be "officially" qualified to attend the skating parties!

Brady won the limbo contest.  Duh. 

Cate skates with all of Brady's classmates, they're so good with her.  And this Molly can rock a school uniform.  I will soon be asking her mom for shopping advice for Cate's kindergarten wardrobe!

Molly, Cate, and Julianna (for my highschool friends out there, this is Lisa Shrums daughter!)

****************************************************************

 

Crazy Hadley! She always tucks her pacifier in her bottom lip :)

As soon as she gets in a cart, or car, or home, she rips her shoes off!  She looks pretty comfy here

This is the nice artwork she added to Cate's room.  With a Sharpie marker.  Looks like I'll be painting this week!

Bennett is playing in a Bethalto basketball league and I have quickly realized that I am not a basketball mom.  For some reason, it makes me soooo nervous.  I literally spend the entire game doing anything and everything to avoid watching (counting bleachers, cleaning out my purse, etc).  I know. I'm nuts.

Made his first free throw!

And his second one!

Cate avoided watching the games too

On Tuesday, Murphy got his hair cut.  For some reason, he came home and was soooooo clingy with Cate.  Very strange considering he's gotten his hair cut every six weeks for the last 8 years and he's never acted this way before. On Wednesday, Cate did not have school and Murphy would not leave her side.  He even followed her downstairs, which was his very first time ever going down to the basement. And  I'm sure going out of town for the weekend isn't going to help with his new mental issues.  Regardless, he's still a sweet puppy and Cate loves all of the attention she's getting  :)



But clingy dogs make cute pictures

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Everyday on our way out the door trying to get to school, Cate has at least two toys that she insists on bringing along.  These toys do not make it out of the car, or into her school, so by Friday, my car looks like a portable ToysRUs driving through town.

She created this bagel/cream cheese/bird food feeder to hang on a tree.  She insisted it be placed on a thin twig next to our window so she could watch the birds eat it.  However, the twig is not strong enough to hold a bird, so the feeder just blows in the wind and teases all of the birds and squirrels that would love a bite!

TWO MORE DAYS until Scott's 8th grade boys basketball season is O.V.E.R.  Coach Vaughn blew out his knee the first week, so Scott took over for the season.  Unfortunately, that season overlapped Scott's girls team, so he has yet to have any break from coaching.  After Tuesday's final game, he'll have ONE MONTH free before highschool baseball starts. And once that starts, I'll kiss him on the cheek and tell him I'll see him at the end of May!!!