It's a wrap on 3s preschool!

Miles completed his first year of preschool! He has come so far since September when he was barely talking and cried every time I left him at school. 

He ended the year quite the little chatterbox and confident to explore his surroundings.

It has been amazing to see his personality come out more and more.

He took this picture on my big camera, he was very pleased with the results. 

He's very observant, funny, and I'm pretty sure has a future in rapping. It's all those Beastie Boys songs we listen to in the car!

He's still super cuddly and checks in with me regularly with huge hugs and lots of sitting in my lap. But he can also be crazy and wrestle with the big boys.

He loves Nolan and follows him around everywhere but also is standing up for himself more and more with him.

I can't wait to see how else he changes as he continues to grow. But I hope he keeps the cuddle part.

At his school graduation party. 

Reading his yearbook

Catching up

Going back a few months here:

Nolan went on a field trip with his class to the aquarium and I got to go as the chaperone. Here he is with his buddy and the wolf eel. 

Looking at something truly amazing obviously.

Shopping at target, lazy kid style. 

We went to the Spring Fair with Yaya. Stopped by to say hello to our favorite cow.

Miles discovered his love for ball pits. Meanwhile I tried my best not to freak out about germs.

The boys went on a few of the easy rides.

And worked their way up to the big time swings. They didn't want to do these at first but ended up loving them most of all.

Nolan's class did an underwater themed musical. I didn't get any good pictures of him in action but I did get this cute one of the boys afterward. 

Nolan wrapped up the year with a broken arm and finally getting to be student of the month. Something he has worked so hard to get these last 2 years. He was very excited to tell me and even more excited when the entire family came to his lunch ceremony. 

The broken arm didn't slow him down at all . He was up to his usual shenanigans and has gotten really good at riding his 2 wheeler. 

Mother's Day

I feel like I kept my Mother's day goals pretty simple this year. I wanted to sleep in, cuddle with the boys and maybe get a picture with me and the kids. I'm happy to say all 3 happened!

I woke up around 10 to eggs, bacon and toast. Plus Nolan made me tea, something he was very excited about getting to do this year. He even told me a few days before that he I should expect this. 

After breakfast we drove up to Marysville to meet up with the Revards, Yaya and Gigi for a mother's day picnic.

I lucked out and got a ton of great pics of the boys. They have been especially elusive these days when the camera comes out. Not today though, they were posing up a storm!

Don't they look precious? Ha! Not a word I'd use to describe these two but they sure do look calm and serene here. 

Here's a close up of that one, doesn't this just scream BROTHERS!

Emily was smart and brought bubbles for the kids to play with while we ate. The sun had just popped out and was perfect for more pictures.

 
After lunch was time for more exploring. Miles found Yaya and Gigi in the garden...shocker!

I love this picture because it is just so perfect that the two on the left are busy chatting up a storm while the 2 on the sat ready for their photo. I definitely know where Nolan's (and my) talkativeness comes from in the family.

Now everyone's paying attention. This was the last photo I got before Miles' dashed off. Phew!

I'm so glad this picture turned out. He was chasing me pretending to be a T-Rex and I tried to get a picture of his eyes. They are changing again. They're still Pat's steely gray color but now there is all this brown/hazel mixed in. Can you see that in the picture? 

Finally my turn to get on the other side of the camera. After a quick camera lesson for Yaya and a couple scene changes (thank you blinding sun) we finally got this gem. Thanks Yaya!

After all that posing it was time for more exploring. We found this little pond that was stoked with fish for kids to fish out, tadpoles and all kinds of interesting things.

Nolan quickly made friends with the local fishermen.

Friends that knew how to catch tadpoles.

The kids were content here for a long time. Watching their buddies reel up fish and spotting tadpoles in the water.

It was quite scenic at this little park in Marysville, we will have to come back next time with our poles.

Easter

I just realized I never posted these. Oops! Here is Easter a few weeks late. Nolan woke up bright and early so we bribed him with some TV watching to get a little more sleep for Miles. We held him off a little while but the Easter excitement was real with this guy!

Light saber bubble wand?! Yes please!

We lucked out and spotted the Easter bunny taking a break from Egg hiding to eat our grass. How lucky are we?

Miles eventually made it downstairs too and was much more interested in watching the bunny than dig through his basket.

It was finally time for the egg hunt and we quickly realized the Easter Bunny has stepped up his hiding game.

That bunny egg next to moss bunny was a clever trick!

After all the indoor eggs were found it was time for more egg watching before the outdoor hunt.

Found them all!

Finally all washed up and ready for brunch!

That early morning finally caught up with him after brunch. Nothing daddy cuddles can't fix.

We had another great Easter celebrating with friends, eating way too much candy and watching the kids get so excited over every little prize in their eggs. I love this holiday!

After Easter

This little guy can be a bit bossy, and is almost always making a mess but he is just the sweetest when it comes to loving his mama.

At bedtime tonight, after an action packed, sugar filled day he asked me to lay down with him. We talked about our favorite part of the day and what we're doing tomorrow. A few minutes passed and I could tell he was starting to doze off so I told him I was going to go. He sighed a deep sigh and said "alright" in a sleepy voice. Just as I was about to get up he asked, "One more kiss?" "Of course!" I responded. He put his (still sticky even after washing up for bed) hands on each side of my face and gave me a big kiss. Then he looked me in the eyes and said "I love you mama!" And curled into his bed. Just what I needed.

I need to remember this moment the next time he throws an epic fit because I made him wear pants to school.