Louisville

I recently went to the family days at Churchill Downs which is where they have the KY derby every year. My friend and I and our children went and it was definitely an adventure.  Stuck in traffic for over an hour with kids that talked non stop and we're hungry but when we got there it all changed.  Ashton the teenager wanted to watch the band play , Addy the 3 yr old just wanted to see the horses and Jack my 7 yr old wanted to bounce and play the carnival games. So I guess there was something for everyone.  The weather was beautiful that day too. I slept great that night ,I was worn out.

Chill Time

Is it too much to ask to have some alone ,chill time?  Jack and Jason were watching The Matrix so I took the opportunity to swing on the porch swing while  reading a book and watching the sun go down. Did I mention that the dog was with me? Well she was. I thought she could handle being outside with supervision and not run off. Boy was I wrong, it is like mole and bunny season in the fields next to our house. GRRRR

Teacher appreciation week

Teacher appreciation week was a little harder for me this year. I'm a planner so I usually plan way ahead of time and make beautiful cards and paper craft stuff but it snuck up on me. So thank goodness for Pintrest and my printer. I don't have pictures of the daily stuff cause it was just thrown together so fast. Monday I gave her a hershey bar that I paper crafted a cute wrapper and card with then  on Tuesday a pack of gum with a funny saying ,don't remember now what it was. Wednesday just some school supplies for her classroom. I volunteer in the classroom amd know what she can use , first on the list was scissors, hers don't cut very well and are sticky from dealing with tape and glue.  So I got disinfecting wipes ,scissors ,glue sticks ,zip lock bags ,post it notes, red pens and dry erase markers. I found a cute printable that I attached to a card and that was Wednesday's  gift. Here is the printable. 

http://whattheteacherwants.blogspot.com/2012/05/parent-volunteer-gifts.html?m=1

Thursday was a pedicure kit and I made a card that said "Thanks for a toe-rific year". Friday she gets the last and biggest gift which is the only one I managed to get a picture of. It is a summer relax kit. It has a magazine, a beach towel ,sunscreen ,lip gloss ,a drink cup with drink, drink mix and lotion. Then Jack surprised me Thursday morning and said he wants to give all his other teachers something and he went through a list of like 12 people. Including bus driver ,music teacher ,librarian ,art, computer, pe ,guidance counseler ,math teacher, receptionist, principal my whew. So I'm thinking about this all day at work and I have access to several Hersheys bars but I didn't have time to decorate them pretty and make cards.  I remembered that I had Avery printable shipping labels and yay something easy to whip up for so many people. Once I figured out how to print them it took 3 minutes. 

Roughing it

I have not tent camped since I was maybe 10. A friend wanted everyone to go camping for her birthday.   I had a blast. I know how to put up a tent ,kayak and campfire cook now. It was so much fun. We had a nice hike too. I have never grilled before. In my family all the men do the grilling. Cyndi taught me to kayak and grill steaks. So the next day I wanted to do more. I made eggs and bacon for breakfast in the iron skillets and for lunch I grilled my bratwurst directly on the grill. I know this doesn't sound like fun to a lot of people but it was and I had a blast. A few days after going camping ,Jack's very first pet Swimmer ,the goldfish passed away.

The rest of Easter

Finally posting the rest of the Easter pictures.  My Mom made an awesome gluten free peeps cake to look like a sunflower.  We had a nice relaxing Easter at my Moms then an exciting Easter at Shannons where we pummled each other with eggs filled with confetti. Then there are a couple of shots of Jack playing baseball. At the Southern Kentucky bookfest I got to meet Charlaine Harris and had a one hour question/answer forum with her. She was shockingly funny. I would totally go to her comic showcase , if she had one.

Easter/Wedding

The first picture is of the awesome cake pops that a volunteer Mom made in  Jack's class. They were pretty and the kids loved them.  Then just pictures of Jack playing outside.  Chaney's Dairy Barn has a new bounce pillow and Jack had allowance saved up so that was a no-brainer for him. The weather has been awesome compared to the  bad winter we have had, so we have gone to the park several times.
I had the honor of attending a coworkers wedding and kind of a going away party too. She is getting married and moving to North Carolina. Everything was beautiful and I was so happy I went. She was an awesome coworker and I loved getting to see her let loose at her wedding and dance and have a great time. I hope they have a wonderful life together.  She will be missed.