12 Hour Power Outage

 A huge storm woke Adilyn and I up around 7am on Saturday morning. Kacy and Brooke slept right through it all. It was a ton of rain and crazy wind. The power went out, but I didn't think too much of it. We had some cereal in the dining room because it was lighter out there, while we ate the girls were asking what we were going to do since there was no electricity. I tried to explain to the girls that pretty much everything uses electricity - no phones because there is no internet, no tv because that's electric too, etc. They didn't know what to do with themselves. We don't sit around and watch tv all day on Saturdays, so I don't know why they were so upset about this situation. I told them they just needed to play. "But we can't see anything!" Um, there are windows that are letting the sunlight in. I told them they could color. "But it's hot down here." It's only 75 degrees. Finally, I just decided to continue painting Adilyn's room. I figured if they were going to fight, maybe if I wasn't around they would figure it out. I figured wrong, Adilyn and Brooke were fighting, then Brooke and Kacy were fighting. It was a mess. Of course, I am in a room with wet paint everywhere, but I kept trying to put out the fires. I finally separated everyone to give them all a little break from each other. Eventually it was time to get ready for the volleyball game. Without Cory to watch the little ones, I was a little worried about how it all would go especially since we had such a rough morning. Brooke was a little bit of a mess before the game, but luckily one of my friends brought an extra electronic device to keep her busy. Kacy was just fine, but she kept showing me all her drawings. :) We were hoping that the power would be on when we got home, but it was not. At this point, our fridge was getting pretty warm, so I loaded up a bunch of our meat and freezer things to take to the Hrobars. I also stopped to get some ice for a cooler. Everyone said they were hot, so I let them hold the bags. They weren't hot for long! We took the long way home and found a bunch of trees that had blown over. Once we got home the whining really hit full force! It was stuffy in the house, there's nothing to do, it's boring, when will the power be back on, it's boring. I was about to go nuts! We found some bunny stickers and took turns putting them on our faces, we read, we played with boxes, and just when things were starting to get really ugly, the lights came on. Hallelujah, we saw the light! What a day!

The Hot Shots Win Some Games!

This new 1st and 2nd grade division for volleyball is fantastic! All the teams are so much more evenly matched, and the girls are having so much more fun winning some games. Our record is 2-1 so far. The game on Saturday was a very close game, but we pulled out the win. The girls are getting so much better, and it kind of feels like watching "real" volleyball. By that I mean, it's not hitting the floor on every single serve. There are actually some rallies, and most of the girls are moving at least a little bit when the ball comes toward them. It really all comes down to serving, and all of the girls are doing pretty good serving. Adilyn and another girl keep throwing the ball on their underhand serve and they get lucky sometimes and it goes over. It's actually a pretty amazing technique :) I am having a lot more fun this year, and my frustration level is much lower than it was last season. Let's keep it going, Hot Shots!

Room Makeovers

It was time to move Brooke to a normal bed, and I really didn't want to get her a new bed. We decided to move Kacy's old double bed to Brooke's room and get Kacy a new bed. She was forever convinced that she wanted a daybed with a trundle underneath. We went to the furniture stores, and then she realized that she really wanted a loft bed with a desk underneath. They had a pretty cool one at Ikea that was much cheaper than the daybed option, so we went with it. Of course, Adilyn was a little upset that she wasn't getting anything new, so I told her that I would paint her room a different color since she hates pink now.  We wanted to paint it a teal color, and unfortunately, it turned out a little lighter than we wanted, but it will be what it is! She likes it and that's all that matters! I also got her a new bedspread and a few new things to put on her walls. She redid the area under her bed, and loves that it's her little reading area. Brooke wanted her walls painted, but I convinced her that the blue was an "Elsa" blue and that it was perfect. I also put a few new Frozen things up on her walls to make her feel special. Kacy got the new loft bed, but we didn't get the desk yet. She loves her bed, but she hates that we don't have our super snuggly time at night because I don't want to climb up there every night. Sacrifices we make, I guess! She likes her little reading area by her window, too. I think they all turned out pretty cute for now!

Swim Team - A new adventure!

I have thought about doing swim team with the girls for the last year or two, and we finally decided to give it a try this year. We started practice much earlier than I thought we were going to, and the pool was pretty freezing! They had hot chocolate for the kids after practice was done, so that made them warm up a little bit. I just didn't realize what the time commitment was, so it's been interesting. They practice Monday-Thursday, so when I am working at the Y I have to miss practice. They seem to be having an okay time, but Adilyn isn't trying too hard to learn the different strokes and Kacy is afraid to jump off the blocks. We will see how it all goes, but outlook not so good right now! :)

Cook-Off Fun

Our friends, Joelene and Steve do a cook-off every year, and they invited us this year. Their tent was a circus theme, and all the other tents had cute themes and free toys for the kids. Kacy loves ribs, so she was in heaven! All the kids loved the picture booth in Joelene's tent and they kept going in and dressing up in all different hats and glasses. I think everyone's favorite were the clown noses! It was a nice day to be outside, and a fun change of pace in our normal weekend routine.

Brooke at 3!

Well, our little baby Brooke is turning into a full-fledged tantrum throwing, bossy pants little girl. Wow! Literally, a couple days after she turned three it was very apparent that she was growing up and getting feisty. She will learn, like they always do that throwing tantrums doesn't really get you what you want in this family. Until then, we will endure the screaming. :) Even though she's bossy, she is still so sweet and cuddly. I like to think of her as a sour patch kid - sweet and sour all at the same time.
She really likes school, even though she is never super excited to go. I know she likes it once she gets there. She talks about her friends and how they tickle each other and run on the playground. She loves trying to keep up with her sisters in everything that they do. She draws and colors pretty well for her age, and she loves to do anything art related. Unfortunately, she still likes doing her art on the walls. Thank goodness for the Magic Eraser! She loves looking at books, and I think that she really thinks she is reading. This little 3rd child is an amazing blessing to our family, and I cannot imagine what our family would be like without her as part of it!
She was adorable at her 3 year check up as she did the eye test and all the doctor check up things. I don't remember them testing their vision or the strength/development at this age, but it was hilarious to watch her follow all the doctor's instructions. I couldn't stop giggling. Of course, she did everything just perfect! She is still little for her age, but I never remember (or care) about those percentiles and stuff. All I know is the doctor said she was little, but not too little. That's all that matters to me!
Here are her birthday question answers:
Favorite color - blue
Favorite song - "Let It Go"
Favorite movie - "Frozen"
Favorite princess - Anna
Favorite food - chicken
Favorite TV show - "Little Charmers"
Best friend - Hannah
Favorite thing to do with Kacy - Tickle
Favorite thing to do with Addy - Hug
Favorite animal - Squishy (Kacy's stuffed hippo)
Favorite snuggler - Raja
Where would you want to go on a trip? - The beach
What really scares you? - Dragons
What dessert do you love? - Ice cream 

Brooke's 3rd Birthday Party

The weather may have changed our venue for the party, but it didn't change the amount of fun we all had! I am not going to lie, I was a little mad about having to clean the house to have the party, but I survived :) We had a face painter and balloon animal maker, and she was a hit! We got everyone balloon animals first, and then did face painting. Everyone had a great time destroying my "clean" house and playing together. It was a fantastic surprise that the Griffins could join us! I think that baby Hannah was the hit of the party, though. Everyone loved holding her! The kids also enjoyed the cupcake sundae bar where they could make their own cupcakes in a cup complete with their own ridiculous toppings. We played Just Dance toward the end, and it was hilarious to watch the kids dance together. Adilyn and Mason had the most fun dancing. All and all it was a wonderful day, complete with three birthday girl outfit changes throughout the party in perfect Brooke style.

Moore Spring Festival

The weather was not looking good for the Spring Festival. The forecast was about 80% chance of rain, but we got lucky and it was a beautiful day. It is amazing how much work all the volunteers put into the festival! We went over there after the volleyball games and had a great time. Dad and Kris were in town, so they helped out a lot with the girls all going in different directions. Everyone had a fun time playing all the boardwalk games and riding the rides. Kacy and Marley had a great time hanging out together. I love seeing them in their environment and with their friends. Kris and I bid on some of the silent auction items, and we won them. I had to go back up and get them when the festival was done, and the one we got was so cute! It was a "fiesta" themed basket, and I didn't have any idea what was actually in it. Man, did we hit the jackpot! There was chips and salsa and other little food items, but then there were amazing little kitchen items! Chili pepper cutting board, chip and dip tray, little dip holders, a cooler on wheels, a sombrero, etc. It was so fun to see all of our goodies! Another fun festival in the books!

The Birthday Girls

I love sharing my birthday with Brooke! I am not sure how much she will love it when she gets older, but I think I will always love it. ;)
We went to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Santa Fe Flats. I love the veggie burrito, and I love that it has a little sandbox for the kids. It was a beautiful night, and we just sat out there and hung out for a while. She had a little party with cupcakes at school with her friends, and I could tell she kinda liked celebrating with them.
37 and 3 never looked so good, in my opinion! :)

Easter Celebrations

The Frio has been our Easter destination for a couple of years, but this year it was supposed to rain all weekend, so we decided to stay home. The girls had fun dyeing eggs, but something was very wrong with our dyes. I bought them on clearance last year, and apparently they don't have a shelf life of a year. All the dark colors were just peeling off as they dried. The girls were getting a little upset, so we just decided to use Sharpies, and they turned out just fine. Brooke's hands ended up looking like individual works of art because she just put her hands in all the colored cups getting the eggs out.
Easter morning always makes me remember that morning that the girls were hunting their gifts while I was in active labor with Brooke. Good times, good times...this year, of course, there were no contractions, and the girls had a great time finding "Oh" from the movie "Home" all over the house to find their gifts. The Easter Bunny hid the baskets out on the camper in the garage this year, and they were filled with toys and candy.
Later that day, we went to church, then we went over to Lani's for a family Easter egg hunt. Everyone was there except for the littlest cousin, Hannah. There were eggs everywhere! Some had candy, some had toys, and some had money. The kids gathered over probably 150 eggs in a matter of minutes. They had a wonderful time, and it's always great to see all the cousins having fun together. I must say that the cutest little hunter was Colt with his rosy cheeks and bunny ears!