Family Time and Down Time

We got to have dinner in Parker at my Aunt Shelli's house the other day.  So fun for them to have another little cousin around and eat on a deck.

Sandbox was a huge hit.

Here I am at 32 weeks!

My cousin Emma with lots of little boys!

It was an eventful few days, and by Friday night we were needing nothing more than a movie and a "whole bag" of marshmallows.

Nolan was down with the low key vibe as long as the Pirate's Booty was flowing.

Our towels from Land's End came in the mail for our trip next month.  Went ahead and got Story one too :)

We sure have a lot of towels hehe.

Summer Days

Just a catch up post to capture a few of my favorite moments from the past week or so...

Took them to Sensory Park and Warren added up their weights and sure enough it was about even.  Speaking of size, Warren had his 10 yo well child checkup last week and measured in at 90% for height and 30% for weight :)  Mini Bryan for sure!

Luke loves the water table this Summer.  We do this almost daily.

Lots of friends playing Mario Super Slugger to take a break from the heat.

Spent a morning at a nearby park with a small lake with bikes and picnic lunch.

When I am able to look back at pictures like this at the end of a long tiring day, it helps me to refuel for another day.

Look!  She has more babies than me!

Sunbathing beauties working on their farmers tans.

The little garden I have going is producing strawberries at least.  Still waiting on the blueberries and cherry tomatoes.

Little Nolan crashed out after playing hard in the rain at Jack's final Little League game.

Father's Day 2014

Yesterday we celebrated Bryan, as the awesome over achiever dad that he is. Got the whole clan spiffed up and headed out to the History Colorado Center, which was really worthwhile and exceeded our expectations by the way. So much to do with great interactive exhibits. Then we had lunch at an Irish Pub and came home to watch the Rockies beat the Giants and relax the rest of the day.

Whole lot of handsome going on here!

Totally unrelated but Nolan fell asleep on the way to his last Tball game last week.  Typical :)  It was a successful first year of Little League for him. 

Today, I have a doctor appointment and Jack has his first tournament game for Little League. Pretty much a typical Summer day. I just signed Nolan up for a music program this coming school year that I am really excited about. Not much else to report. Looking forward to another decent week with these guys soaking in the Summer.

This and That

On the way out of the door to run and get a little treat, I noticed Warren and Jack's sneakers. Whoa. Giant boy sneakers are invading!

These are some HAPPY boys right here.

Anyhow, it was little sister's idea to get Oreo McFlurries :) She has got one heck of a sweet tooth. Every time I indulge, she gets all rowdy in there for a bit and then gets the hiccups and goes to sleep. Cannot wait to see this darling baby on the outside! In the meantime, I am having way too fun spending consignment store credit from selling boy clothes on things that catch my eye...like this sleeper...oh yes she is definitely going to be one of a kind around here...and footless star tights, yes please!!

Gonna pair these with a denim dress and some little Mary Jane's.  Oh yes! 

Anyhow, in other exciting news, we booked a trip for next month in San Diego! So Nolan will get to spend his 5th birthday at Lego Land! We have a downtown day planned and a beach day planned. So excited for this little trip as our last hurrah as a family of 6. It will just be a month after we return that we should expect Story's arrival! Wow!!

Eldorado Canyon (with 4 wild boys at 30 weeks pregnant!)

On Monday morning this week, I struck out solo with all four boys and a neighbor friend with her two kids and niece to Eldorado Canyon for a morning of hiking with the kiddos.

Aren't we a motley crew?

At the Fowler Trail head.

Warren, King of the Hill!

Awwww...

Now this one makes me laugh.  Nolan, you are such a Colorado dude!

Taking a small break and someone is grumpy for getting reprimanded for leaving the main trail for too long...

All smiles again, these are my guys and I couldn't be more proud of them!

Luke and his good buddy.  These two will be in the same grade together.

Both were equally enamored with this filthy puddle on a rock.  No really, they would have drank the murky water if we hadn't prevented it.

First fire of the Summer!  S'mores were so good!  Such a cozy vibe in the back yard.

And because somehow that isn't enough adventure for one day, we concluded the day with a Little League game and then s'mores with another neighbor buddy too. Whew!

So...I stayed up WAY too late last night googling all things related to baby teeth and cavities in the molars on the sides where they touch.  Ordered a couple things on Amazon with xylitol and am so glad to be getting a second opinion on Friday.  Hopeful that we can just fill them instead of capping them in the OR as this new dentist had said.  Am also hopeful that by using a couple new product and putting a new found emphasis on flossing baby teeth we can stop this in its tracks and maybe even reverse it to an extent.  Will be back with more information soon!

First Dirt Biking Outing of 2014

Bryan took the boys dirt biking on Saturday for the first time so far this year. It has been an unusually rainy wet spring, and in fact it even rained a bit on them on Saturday.

Sometimes I cannot believe I have two kids old enough to partake in this sort of thing.  Wow!

I'm told they had a blast in Berthoud, and they were certainly gone long enough for me to get a lot done here at home and also have some good play time with these two:

Playdoh is on a huge kick here at the Lawson household.  Luke got a new set for his birthday last month, which has totally sparked their interest again.  Amazingly, the dough I made last year is still super soft and great. 

We had a really fun Monday too, which I will have a separate post for soon. Today, though, I took all the boys to the dentist for their regular check up and cleanings. It was Nolan's first time getting dental x-rays and unfortunately his results did not come up roses. He may need to get several baby molars capped since they have cavities on the sides where they touch and they don't fall out until he is 12. Such a bummer. I'd like to say I took it in stride, but truth be told I didn't. Gonna seek a second opinion on the treatment course this Friday, but I'm not holding out much hope. Looks like he will need to get caps. I tend to take things like this way too personal...like I have failed him or something. Sigh. Being a mama is an emotional journey! Things like this tend to rattle my confidence and make me second guess our visits to places like Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory.

But we looooove candy, Mom!

Stay tuned for an update on Nolan's teeth situation and a fun post on a pretty big adventure we went on yesterday!

Typical Lazy Summer Days

I didn't enroll the boys in any camps or activities this Summer, other than Little League baseball, which is about to wrap up next week. Instead we are taking each day as it comes and spending long stretches of time at places like the library and the mall sandbox.

So far it's been really nice and allows us lots of freedom to do spontaneous things like have lunch at Target or stay in our pajamas magnadoodling all morning and yet also keep true to Luke's nap schedule and our workbook and reading time every afternoon. Warren and Jack are also doing a chore every day, which is so incredibly helpful and good for them too.

This kind of a Summer, I am finding, also blends well into the weekends seamlessly. This past weekend after Warren's baseball game we headed downtown to leisurely walk the 16th Street Mall and have lunch at Earl's. Of course Warren and Jack wanted salmon and wings. Nolan thoroughly enjoyed his fries :) And we even treated them to Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory afterwards (Story wanted a milk chocolate macadamia cluster...or two.) Then it was homemade pizza for dinner while I sorted through some amazing hand me downs for Story. These Robeez shoes are brand new - so cute!

Now today, Bryan took Warren and Jack dirtbiking at Berthoud and I am having a nice quiet day at home with Nolan and Luke. They took a long hot bath, played outside, had lunch and are now both resting. I am able to get so much done on days like this, it makes me actually feel partially sane for once. I've got a good handle on all the girl clothes that have entered the house so far even, which feels good. Soon, I'll be folding laundry into 7 piles instead of 6! :)