Easter Sunday

We had a really nice, relaxing Easter Sunday- just our family of 4 celebrating the resurrection of our Lord and savior! We went to early service at church where Alli got to sit in big church with us for the first time. Even though she had a little bit of a hard time sitting still and remembering to whisper when she felt it necessary to say something, she absolutely loved it and thinks she's extra special that she got to go to big people church. After all, "4 year olds get to do that, not 2 year olds."The egg hunt was so fun this year now that both kids knew exactly what was going on!

We decided to bust out the tripod to try to get a family pic since it's so rare that we all look this nice at the same time and were thrilled with the results... Our best family photo to date!

Yay!! Chocolate Easter Bunnies!

Mmmmmm! Yummy bunny heads.

This year the Easter Bunny delivered store bought cellophane wrapped Easter baskets - GASP! I know! I never thought he would be so lazy or cheeseball either. But, Dwaine and I both agreed that we thought they were super cool as kids and always secretly wanted one. And, as expected, the kids loved them!

As a matter of fact, there were a ton of neat boy baskets, but I was having a really hard time finding a girl one that didn't have something that we have a ton of already. So, I had Alli pick out her favorite one at the store and told her I would tell the Easter bunny which one she liked. Unfortunately, by the time the Easter bunny went to the store, that basket was no longer there, so he improvised. So when Alli saw her basket on Easter morning she immediately said (in a cheerful tone) "Hey, that's not the one I wanted, but that's okay!" Phew!

Lake LBJ Trip

We took our second annual family fishing trip to Lake LBJ a few weeks back. To sum it all up (for the sake of actually getting this posted), we had a great time, did some family bonding, TJ fell in the lake (life jackets DO save lives), we brought home a freezer full of fish, and had fun with Grandma and Pop who joined us a couple of evenings for dinner and even took the kids back to their place one night. This fun annual event will definitely continue!

Our little blue house. The kids thought it was super cool and really enjoyed all the neat places to hide.

I love these two pics!

The kids enjoyed a lot of fishing...

But not as much as they enjoyed the boat rides. That's all TJ wanted to do. Every time we would slow down for the "NO WAKE" zones. He would yell "GO SUPER FAST DADDY. DADDY, GO SUPER FAST!"

What more could a boy want?

He was like a dog sticking his head out of the car window...

This was not the way he fell out of the boat in case anyone is wondering. We were actually tied up under a bridge and he was pretend fishing, leaned over too far, and splash! That handle on the back of his life jacket came in very handy. He was cold and soaking wet with no change of clothes on the boat, but he was most upset about the fact that his Scooby pole was in the bottom of the lake and he would not be getting it back.

Evening and early morning fishing just Dwaine and I (thanks to Grandma and Pop)...
I forgot how much I enjoy that.

Monkey Business

Just a little sampling of a typical day in the Dement household...

(Thanks Maddy and Lainey for all the fun new clothes to try on!)

That's Alli in the background taping my shoes together. She has an obsession with scotch tape right now.

So, there you have it. Those are my kids. They truly know how to have fun and enjoy life and for the most part- we let them! They are only kids for so long after all. I mean you can't get away with that "get-up" when you reach double digits, but it sure is cute at 2.

So, after viewing this post, you may be wondering, "Do they wear their pajamas all the time?"

And, to that my answer is, "Yes. Many days, we do. And I'm lucky if they have the pants on at all, as you can see."

Time for a Third??

We kept our friend baby Davis and his big brother Jack recently and I got a kick out of TJ interacting with the litte guy. Jack and Alli were busy doing big kid stuff in the back room, but TJ was more interested in entertaining and talking to Davis. He was so sweet with him...

Days of the Week

Good to see we're getting our money's worth out of Mother's Day Out! She comes home singing new songs a lot, but I thought this one was really cute and useful! She was mumbling a little bit, but you get the idea.

A Visit from Maddy and Lainey and a Trip to the Rodeo!

My sister, her husband and their girls, Maddy and Lainey came out for a visit a couple weekends back. These are some pics from the weekend...

TJ and Maddy having some fun at Chuck E Cheese while Alli and Lainey were at the father daughter dance. It was a late night for TJ, but he had lots of fun.

The next day we headed out to the SA Rodeo grounds and carnival...


Enjoying a few rides.

The bumper cars were a HUGE hit! For about half the ride, Alli just sat in one spot not knowing how to make her car go until the ride attendant walked over to help her. Then she was off and bumpin'

Daddy and TJ on the airplane ride- perfect for TJ!


Daddy did his best to earn an Army strong T-shirt by doing 75 push-ups. He hopped down thinking it would be no problem (it wasn't back in the day), but was completely worn out by about 40. I think he pushed himself to 46 or something and then called it quits. He likes to round up to an even 50 when he tells the story. Either way- no T-shirt.

On the way out we passed another Army booth and Dwaine tried to talk them into letting him finish up with the last 25, but instead somehow they talked me into getting down on the push-up platform. I busted out 30 (which surprised me 'cause I didn't think I'd make it past 20) for some souvenir dog tags- still no t-shirt. When I stood up, there was a small crowd gathered around that had been cheering me on and a former neighbor had been watching- how embarrassing!

As crazy as it was trying to keep track of all the kids and stay together in the crowds, we had a great time. As we started the drive home after a very difficult walk back to the car with TJ in a screaming fit over who knows what, Alli summed it all up with "Well, that was a cool little place."

Yes, I guess it was- carnival rides, food booths, bounce houses, foot massage chairs, all kinds of farm animals, spinning wheels for freebies, bumper cars....

Pretty cool!

Rodeo Day

The kids had Rodeo Day at their mother's day out program today...

All cowboy and cowgirled up and ready to go!

TJ couldn't seem to break the suction on his thumb long enough for the stick horse race. He just dragged the horse beside him as he walked. Not gonna win any races like that!

He also decided riding the real horse was not a good idea. This was as close as he would get. When I handed him some hay to feed the pony, he just threw it at the ground in front of him and when I suggested he get a little closer, he said "He might get me." Apparently that cowboy get up is truly just for looks.

Alli on the other hand would probably stay on the horse all day if you let her.

A Royal Affair

Our church holds a Dad and Daughter dance every year around Valentine's day. Last year was the first year Dwaine and Alli attended. Dwaine was not very excited about it thinking Alli was a little too young to enjoy it and that it may be a little cheesy or something, but I talked him into trying it anyway. Turns out, they had an absolute blast together and danced the night away staying to the very end.

So, this year they were really looking forward to the event again. The theme was "A Royal Affair" which is perfect since Alli is very much into the princess thing right now. It was a very fancy evening with decorations, corsages, professional photographers, door prizes, and lots and lots of dancing- it's done up just like a prom. So cute.

Daddy with his little princess.

She was so excited to finally be going to the dance. They had been talking about it for weeks.

Well, you can't always count on a smile from a 4 yr old exhausted from dancing so much. She apparently was really getting into those dance moves. And she now wants to do the chicken dance every night before she goes to bed and will listen to the song on repeat as she falls asleep.

Superbowl Party

No- you didn't misread the title. This is how Alli occupied herself with friends Hannah and Kendall while mommy and daddy watched the Superbowl at our friend's house...

She absolutely loves hanging out with "big girls"

Unfortunately, all the girl stuff only kept TJ occupied for about the first half, so I missed a lot of the game, but we still had a great time.


When we tried to brush through the dried glitter in Alli's hair the next day, she said "Hannah and Kendall should NOT have put glitter in my hair." As if she wasn't a very willing participant in the whole ordeal.

Daddy's Birthday

We headed out to Fredericksburg for D's birthday this year. His choice because there was an artifact show in town and we figured we could make a fun family day trip out of it. It turned out to be an awesome day! The weather was gorgeous, D got his artifact fix, we had lunch at the Fredericksburg Brewing Co (our favorite), then did some hiking, fed some overly aggressive geese, let the kids play on the playground, and had a peaceful drive back home. It was as close to a perfect day as it gets.

I tried not to bust my camera out at every little happening to allow myself to truly enjoy the day, but I did get a couple of cute pics while waiting for a table at the restaurant.

Birthday kisses for Daddy!!!!

Bedtime Dress-up

Now that Alli no longer naps, she's in bed without a fight by 8:30 and we don't see her again until morning- very nice. However, on days that she does get a nap in, this is what we get...

She energetically comes prancing out of her room almost 2hrs after we have put her to bed in full dress-up attire. We just have to laugh, take a picture and send her back to bed.

A boy and his dog

Chili needed a bath. TJ wanted to join him. Why not?I think TJ enjoyed it much more than Chili. Bathing and TJ- 2 of Chili's least favorite things.
TJ sure does love him however. Maybe one of these days Chili's feelings will change, but it's not likely.

Alli's Ariel Party

Alli had been asking for an Ariel birthday party for months before her 4th birthday. Thankfully, she never changed her mind so mommy got to planning and we pulled off a pretty fun party fit for a princess...As most of you know, I insist on making my kid's birthday cakes. I really enjoy the creativity of it and learning new baking and decorating tips, but I would enjoy it a LOT more if I wasn't trying to accomplish it with 2 little "helpers" who can't seem to stay out of the kitchen.

Let's just say cake making day is rather stressful and is starting to make me think that it's not worth it. Especially since it coincides with house cleaning day being that we have always had the party at our house. One of these things may have to go next time (I'm thinking it will be a location change- not sure if I'm ready to throw in the baker's hat yet).

Alli enjoyed showing me exactly where she wanted each starfish, seashell and Flounder icing decoration. She was really excited about the whole thing!

We rented a princess castle bounce house and it was a big hit- not only with the kids. Daddy and Mr Travis have a few bumps and bruises to prove it. Somebody forgot to tell them they are in their 30's now.
Alli striking her best mermaid pose. Unfortunately, bounce houses make for some blurry pictures.

Alli was so excited to have so many of her friends come to her party. You could tell she really felt special.

Even 2 of her best friends from mother's day out were able to make it!

Alli showing off the princess wands she decorated.

Helping TJ decorate his crown.

Cake time!!!
Yummy!

Jake and TJ decided it was more fun to tear the streamers down than to walk through them. Those boys are T-R-O-U-B-L-E

A new personalized Belle nightgown- super cool!

And she really likes her new dollhouse and so do all the princess Barbies who now have a place to live!

After all the festivities were over and the kids were resting, Dwaine and I were laying in bed and I glanced up at some pictures on the wall of Alli when she was about 15mos old and I started to cry. Where have these 4 years gone and why is it all so fuzzy in my memory? I want so desperately to hold on to these times and yet they keep racing past. I jokingly tell the kids they can't get any older and to stay just like they are knowing that tomorrow they will learn a new word or phrase, grow a little taller, speak a little clearer, get tiny freckles on her nose, those curls will become straighter...

So, Dwaine did his best to help me recall some memorable moments of them at younger ages. It was hard, but eventually I could see it in my head. I don't want all of my memories to come from a picture or a video. I want to see it in my head and it upsets me when I can't.

I want to truly soak in every moment, enjoy these precious children as they are right now, and remember all the fun times we've shared as a family knowing that there will be many more to come.

Thank you God for this amazing experience known as motherhood. It truly is a blessing!