Thursday, August 26, 2010

Cub Scout camping...

Saturday, Curtis went to pick Corey up bright & early...he came to spend the day with us, & that he did - from 8am until about 10pm that night! i think he must miss his brother & get a little bored on the weekends now...fine by us - that just means we get to see him more! :0)

that afternoon, we headed to camp Brethren Woods to spend the day with the Scouts...first, there was swimming for a few hours...

the kiddos really loved having Corey along...he's so great with them too - loves playing with em & teaching em new things...he's also super helpful to Curtis & i! we had a great time checking out his awesome diving board skills!

he encouraged the girls (who are normally nervous about the diving board & take lots of coaxing to work up the nerve to jump off) to just go for it...& pretty soon, they were trying out some tricks too! ~lol~

but my favorite part was watching him throw the kiddos around in the water...i remember begging my dad to do this to me when i was little...i bet it's fun having a strong big bro ;0)

we also got to do some fishing at the "lake"

& there were a few canoes & a paddle boat to play in too!

the rain showed up right around dinner time...but luckily, it was mostly just sprinkles

& we didn't let it stop us from taking a family hike...actually, we learned the forest makes a pretty good umbrella! ;0)

because Curtis had to work that evening, & i had a cake order to fill (plus 2 girls to watch), Jaden didn't get to stay over at the camp with the rest of his den...he was fine with that tho - happy to go home & set up his tent for some backyard camping instead

the girls had fun playing in the tent while there was still daylight...& of course, making some wild mushroom "soup" to eat at their "camp site"...but they had absolutely no interest in sleeping in the tent after dark!

i wondered if Jaden would mind going at it alone...i blew up an air mattress & got him all cozy inside...then Curtis went out for a bit when he got home from work - but Jaden almost insisted Curt go inside after about a half hour or so! i think he was interested in seeing if he could do it alone too ;0)

he woke up around 7am on Sunday & came inside...he woke me, to let me know he was up, then proceeded to fix himself some cereal...i asked him how it went, & he replied "well." ~lol~ so when he asked to do it again on Sunday night, i was like why not?! i snapped the above pic of him reading in his tent around 9pm...i went back out at 9:30 to check on him again & he was fast asleep with his light turned out!!!

if u know Jaden, u know that he sleeps very little (classic autistic trait)...he takes forever to go to sleep, & is up before the sun most days! something about that tent must soothe him (or confuse his body about what time it really is)...i was tempted to let him continue to sleep out there if he was that comfortable, but for now, we're only allowing it on the weekends (no school nights)

since Curtis felt a little guilty about the whole Jaden not being able to camp out with the Scouts thing, he did some sucking up on Sunday & took us all to the pool (a place the kiddos NEVER get tired of!)...we picked the perfect time to go too - we got there just as they opened & we were the ONLY ones for the first hour or so!

it was fun, having the whole pool to ourselves...& it also gave the girls a chance to practice their tricks off the diving board some more...it's too bad the summer is coming to an end - just as they're getting really comfortable with swimming in the deep end...oh well, i guess we've got something to look forward to for next summer!






Wednesday, August 25, 2010

(almost) wordless Wednesday...we survived...

yesterday was the 1st day of school!

the kiddos were actually anxious to go back...& even tho it was rainy & gloomy, they had a fabulous 1st day! i'm so glad that they LOVE their teachers!

Corinn began 1st grade...

Gabby started 2nd...

& Jaden is now a 4th grader?! seriously?!?!


believe it or not...this was the 1st year that Mama didn't cry ;0)




Monday, August 23, 2010

weekend cakes...

Friday, i brought this cake along with me to the office...Rylee's mom always picks up her birthday girl's cake the Friday before her Saturday party...i missed the 1st birthday, but have been able to do every birthday cake for Rylee since! (here's her 2nd & 3rd)

this year, she chose Phineas & Ferb...i was able to get all her favorite characters on there, & pull in some tie-dye to match her party decor! it was all yellow cake (all 72 servings of it!), iced & decorated in buttercream


then on Saturday, i had a bachelorette party cake picked up...

this one was all fudge chip cake...first, iced in buttercream - to create all the right curves ;0) then, covered & decorated in fondant & dark chocolate fondant

usually, i create any "naughty" cakes in the middle of the night...then have them hidden away in a box by the time the kiddos get up the next morning...but this time, i figured the design wasn't too risque, & didn't bother hiding it

Jaden giggled when he first saw it, then asked what flavor cake it was ~lol~ Corinn's first view of the cake was this, as she walked out her bedroom door...

her exact words...
"that's disgusting!"
~lol~

finally, on Sunday, i had yet ANOTHER Pittsburg Steelers cake to create...what is it with these VA folks & their love for the Steelers?!

it was marble cake, iced in buttercream & decorated with fondant

as always, thx for looking!




Friday, August 20, 2010

{this moment} piggy back


{this moment}

"Photos - no words - capturing a moment from the week.
A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember."

inspired by SouleMama - a Friday ritual





Thursday, August 19, 2010

farmer's market...

this past weekend, besides getting all tatted up...we also made some time to take the kiddos to a local farmer's market...we'd never been inside this one, & since i had a free Saturday morning (which almost NEVER happens), we wanted to check it out

right away, Jaden was completely intrigued by the 2 HUGE windmills they have outside...& there's a vendor that has big playground equipment for sale, outside the market...& koi ponds out front...we hadn't even made it inside yet, & the kiddos were having a blast!

there was some pretty cool stuff inside too...& we got there early enough that the place wasn't busy at all (the crowds started piling in as we were leaving)...it was nice being able to stroll through leisurely, not having to worry about the kiddos getting lost in the crowd or bumping into folks

we didn't spend any money...well, except for letting each kiddo get a big lollipop...& a big bag of Kettle Corn for Curtis ;0) Corinn REALLY wanted this bag too...


but sorry, Mama's not spending $30 on something that i'm pretty sure i could make! ;0)

afterward, we went out to eat at IHOP...something else that rarely happens! i think the fact that we don't go out often is really good for the kiddos...they're so well-behaved when we do...& they appreciate it tons more!






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