Backyard Day's...

Let's Play..

Find our friend Chomper (guess why they named him that) back for his blue tail...

And set him free again...

Inspect a Toad found in the Garden...

Make a Rainbow...

Sun shines through the Silver Maple

Discover that Spring is in the Air...and on my tire...

Copulation Talk Time

Try not to get stung while watering the plants
Peonies competing for Light through the wildflowers...

So does our baby tree cast a shadow...
Let slugs tickle your hands...Let's Read here together...

Yes, More of This...

5 Stitches

Kyle calling family members to tell them about his experience, he thinks it's neat that he's 5 with 5 stitches.

You know the cry of your baby, and this was one of those cries that jerked me from the stove leaving dinner to cook on it's own. Kyle had slipped on the rug in my bedroom while he was running to hug his daddy home from work and hit his precious little forehead on the side of our bed. One look at the gash told me this wasn't one of those boo boo's Mama could kiss & bandage up. 4 children & I've never had to go to the ER, I had always wondered how I'd react in a situation like this, and all I knew was that I had to stay calm for him & the kids. I put my shoes on while his sister's and daddy hugged him and carried him to his carseat. I gave him reassuring kisses and we headed to the hospital which thankfully, is only 5 minutes away.

Kyle was so cute & nervous, asking questions of every nurse along the way, he had to know the what's, why's and how's of it all. It took 3 nurses to hold him down swaddled in a sheet, while the head nurse stitched. It was so hard for me not to scream with him crying "MAMA!" and all I could do was tell him I was there and it was going to be ok as I caressed his chin. I talked to him the whole time letting him know it would be over soon. He even caught the head nurse when she said, "only 2 more" and he just felt it shouldn't take that long, "I thought you said TWO more???" he asked. Before long it was over and the nurses joked with him that he was soooo strong it took all of them to hold him down, I knew he'd be ok when he laughed and gave his shy but proud face. I could breathe now, we made it through together.

And now he has lots of questions about the amazing human body, especially the bones that protect us...

He put this skeleton model together with the help of a diagram, while I read a book to him.


What does your skull protect? Your wonderful brain!
Brain Surgery, in the capable hands of my 5 year old...

Kyle is back to riding his bike and running around the yard, he fell & even needed stitches, but he got right back up and found the seed of equal benefit.

This is us, learning about Life by Living and asking questions....

Homemade Shaped Cake

So I know my boys' birthday's were in January...and I totally had plans for their party to be sooner than this, but that's just how it goes sometimes. I finally set a date for this Saturday and got to work! I thought it might be helpful to show how I make their birthday cakes, because it's super easy, not to mention low cost. First, I cut a simple shape out of paper like this...

I saw this rocket shape on Kobe's baby bib as I reminisced over his memory book.

Then I bake my cake using a 9x13 pan or a bit larger than the size of your paper. Use your favorite cake recipe, but add less oil for firmness that way when you cut your shape out, it will hold up nicely. Place your cut-out on top of the baked cake. You could put toothpicks around the shape to hold in place, then cut around the shape using a knife. Pull away the extra cake and eat it so as not to waste :0) After the cake has cooled, I then transfer my cut cake very carefully to a nice cutting board or plate. You can let the cake set in the refrigerator a little while to firm up for easier frosting.

Now is time to frost!! Use your favorite frosting recipe, I like cream cheese frosting mmm. Add some food coloring, remember those primary colors?! Piping does take some practice, and takes more frosting, but gives a great clean, textured look. Frosting spread on with a knife looks just as nice and tastes the same.

Here's Kyle's Rocket Birthday cake! He chose the colors. I notice my piping is going in all different directions! haha! But it's made with lots of Love :0)


I used Kobe's Paper Mache Planet as inspiration for his Earth Cake...
Their little eyes light up when I show them the special cakes Mama made them and that makes me smile.