MOPS and Happy Birthday Connor!

I have been a member of a terrific MOPS (mothers of preschoolers) group for two years. I am truly blessed to be a part of this great organization. I have made some wonderful friends and have grown as both a Christian and a mommy. If you are a mommy of a preschooler (just meaning that you have at least 1 child younger than school-age) and are interested in this fantastic ministry, visit www.mops.org to find out more (and to locate a group near you!).

I had a MOPS steering team retreat last Friday night and Saturday. The purpose of our retreat was to bond and connect as a group of leaders, to train for our upcoming positions, and to plan the meetings for next year. What a terrific time with a fantastic group of women! **I have requested the group photo from the weekend and will post it when I get it.

The boys were invited to Connor's 2nd birthday party on Saturday. Because I was at the MOPS retreat, Brant took them by himself. It was his first solo outing with both boys (other than going to grandma's house)! I packed the boys' bag, laid out the clothes, and gave some (or lots) of instructions. And . . . Daddy did a great job (not that I ever doubted his caregiving abilities!)! The boys had a terrific time. There were baby pools, sprinkles, a bouncer and more!

**Thanks to Laura for sending me some photos (the boys kept Brant too busy to take many pictures!)!



Holden watching Connor play and have fun in the pirate pool!















Looks like the outing was a success . . . maybe I need to be busy/out of town more often! :-) Happy 2nd Birthday Connor!

Open Art

Our parks and rec department (which I think is completely wonderful, if you can't tell from a number of my posts!) offers a Preschool Open Art on Thursday mornings. Just like Open Gym, the cost is $1 per child. For an hour, the kids have access to paint, chalk, markers, play doh, and more. I took the boys today, and they both got into the action and had a great time!

















There's a playground right outside of the community center. So, we walked over, and the boys played a little bit . . .









Before heading home, we stopped at Target. Quinn had been given some money for his wallet (from Papa and Mama Quinn), and he was ready to spend it! He made a price/age appropriate selection and paid the cashier all by himself! His choice:




He bought an airplane! Thanks so much Papa and Mama Quinn!!!

Monkeying Around!

The boys and I met Maridith/Lawson/Wes at Monkey Joe's this morning. It has to be one of Quinn's favorite places on Earth! Now that Holden is mobile; he is really having a ball, too. It was so fun to watch them having such a great time!


Quinn's favorite part? THE BIG SLIDE!!!




Quinn: "Weeeeee . . . that was fun!"


My boys are in LOVE with this place. Just look at their expressions!













What fun!

Open Gym

Our parks and rec department offers a "preschool open gym" every Tuesday morning for an hour. The cost is $1 per child (18 months and older). Quinn is out of preschool for the summer; so, we gave it a try yesterday. What a great time!

The scene:

The above scene may look chaotic. However, there were 3 staff members there to manage, referee, and play with the kiddos. It was amazingly calm and orderly! So, of course, I LOVED it!!! :-)


The boys having some fun:
















You just can't beat all that fun for $1! You know that we'll be there next Tuesday!!! :-)

Hill Ridge Farms . . . oops!

The boys were invited to a birthday party on Sunday at Hill Ridge Farms. Brant and Papa Tom were playing golf; I invited Mama Carol to come with us for the adventure (and to give me a hand with my wild boys)!

When we got there, we discovered that the party had been canceled and that we (along with one other family) did not get the message! But, the folks at the farm were super nice and allowed us to stay and play. We decided to make the most of our journey and enjoy the attractions! I was able to distract Quinn from the other shelters/parties/cakes. After all, they have a sandbox, petting zoo, train, bouncer, giant slide, and more! He was such a good sport about the whole thing! We all ended up having lots of fun!!!


Quinn went straight to the sandbox and the big truck!



Feeding the animals:













And sometimes, you have to visit the "Funny Farm" . . . Ha!












An attempt to get a great picture of the boys in front of the Hill Ridge sign . . .

Quinn: "Here Holden, I'll help you!" . . . too cute!




Well . . . we tried!



A choo-choo ride (of course!):




Lots of fun!

Papa Tom's visit

Papa Tom (Daddy's daddy) came into town (from Michigan) and spent the weekend with us. It was a great way to spend the holiday weekend!


As soon as he arrived, we all went straight outside and started playing:



On Saturday, Papa Tom, Daddy, and Quinn went to Lake Johnson to look at the boats:



Then, they went putt-putting (Quinn's first mini golf experience):



Quinn played 3 holes (YES ONLY 3 HOLES!), and it was all over when he discovered this . . .






The Spesshardt Boys:




Happy Memorial Day! Papa Tom, thanks for visiting! We hope to see you again soon!