Pump it Up

A party is not a party unless there are two busted lips and a pair of broken eyeglasses! We had Gracie's birthday party at Pump It Up this past weekend. Pump It Up is a huge warehouse full of inflatables. I didn't get a whole lot of action shots because I was too busy playing with the kids!
17 kids showed up and they had a ball despite all the injuries. My baby is turning 5 years old :( Thank you to everyone who came to celebrate with us.

Our first guest, RobbieListening to the rulesMason was a hit with the ladies

Brian, Michael and RonThe cause of all the injuriesMy husband being attacked by a bunch of preschoolers

The party room!Boy Wonder

Lemonade for Sale

After her recital Gracie wanted to give it a go at her Lemonade stand. She has been prepared for a few weeks now, but we never had the time or the weather was too bad. She got the idea from a little boy at the park who was raking in the dough with his traveling (he just carried the pitcher of Lemonade with him) Lemonade stand. We set up her outdoor play grill at the corner of our driveway, made a sign and voila she was in business! She got very frustrated with the wind because it kept blowing her cups away. She was about to give up when she got her first customer and then they just kept coming. One lady stopped and made a donation just because she said that Gracie was cute! After that, Gracie just sat at that stand and would put on the biggest smile she could muster every time a car passed. It was comical. She ended up making a few bucks.

This is when the wind started picking up (Hee Hee)

Waiting patiently for her first customer

Waiting and Waiting

Our neighbor's granddaughter came over to lend a hand.

You Can't Stop the Beat

Yes, that is makeup on her face
Granny and Popee
Mamere
Nanny Rhonda

This year's Recital went off without a hitch. Gracie did FANTASTIC! wEI only got to see her performance from backstage because I was the class monitor......that was stressful. Hence, I don't have any pictures of her on stage. We only have video. I think we may have a dancer on our hands! I signed her up for Gymnastics this summer because she has been begging. We'll see if she prefers dance or gymnastics. I have a feeling it will be both.

Saturday in the Park

Nothing like spending 3 hours in the park! We played hide and seek, Troll in the cave (Gracie made up that game), and American Gladiators.......I'm the announcer and Gracie is the gladiator (hee hee). I pray for other kids to arrive, so that she can be entertained by others! And she certainly does not have a hard time making friends. The minute anyone walks into the play area, she runs up to them and introduces herself to the kid and the parents. Then she brings them over to meet me. Too funny! We say that she takes after her Granny Joyce because my mom can talk to anyone, anywhere. She certainly does not get her extrovert personality from Ron or myself.

These recent pictures remind me of this picture taken in the Spring of 2005. My, how she' s grown.

William's Birthday Party

Our friend William turned 4 on May 6th! He celebrated his birthday with a big bash at the new DAC Kids! That place is sooo cool! There was an indoor sand pit with foam ball cannons. Gracie had an absolute blast despite the fact that her Daddy tortured her with those cannons. I tried getting pictures of the kids together, but I couldn't seem to get their attention. They were way too busy!

Baby sister Maren soaking it all inGracie and Maren. Obviously not interested in the camera.

The happiest boy on earth!

Sweet Jack slept through all the chaos
Miss Hannah with her ammunitionMy little monkeyBombs Away!

Sadly, this is the only picture I got of the birthday boyMost of the day, I just got this.....backs of heads

Sugar Pie Honey Bunch!

Gracie's 2nd dance recital is coming up next weekend. They are going to do a tap number to the song "Sugar Pie Honey Bunch". We're so excited because Nanny, Granny and Popee and Mamere are all coming to see her performance. To my amazement, she really has no problem getting up on stage in front of hundreds of people. My little ham!