Spring Break 2011

Our Spring Break was a mixed bag of ups and downs. We started the week off making the trip to my bestie Blake's, parents' house in Mansfield. Her dad is a fireman and invited all the kids to come take a tour of his fire station!

Our first stop...Mop's and Pop's House! (Blake's Parents)

The Big Crew...Landon, Avery, Reagan and Hudson

Landon and Avery have known each other since they were babies!

Such Buddies!

This is a "re-enactment" of a picture they took when they were 2!

Here's that picture!

After time playing at the house, we headed to Sonic to play outside on its playground!

The Kids from Oldest to Youngest...

Avery

Landon

(Nice hair, Dude! He was THRILLED that I wanted to take his picture!)

Reagan

Hudson

Payton

McClain

Once we had blown off some energy at the Sonic play area, it was off to Chick-fil-a for dinner and then to the fire station!

The minute we got there, one of the firemen led the kids to a closet filled with bags of stuffed animals. They give them to kids in accidents, and obviously had plenty to share with these five! In fact, the guys kept trying to send home more than one with each child! Blake and I stood our ground and insisted that they only take home ONE!

Pop showed them the inside of the fire engine and let them loose to explore!

Payton was not too sure about being up there, so Mommy climbed in to help!

They even took a truck out back and unrolled the hose! Each kid took his turn spraying the hose and soaking everyone nearby.

LP's turn

Reagan's turn

Even Payton got out of Blake's arms to hold on for a minute!

Pop and his girl (I love this picture!)

Time to try on some bunker gear!

The bunker gear is SO heavy!

Pop, Mop and the whole gang!

***While I was taking the picture above, a couple of sirens went off and Pop very calmly told me to "snap the picture because the trucks are leaving." He was not kidding. Within SECONDS (and I am not exaggerating) all of the firemen were in their gear and loaded up. The trucks, with sirens blazing, were off to help someone in danger. It was incredible! I truly have a new respect for these men and the job they do. I had chills from head to toe watching them respond to the call that someone needed their help. Amazing! I loved that my children got to witness firemen in action and see how important their jobs are and how they risk their lives for people they don't even know every single day!***

That night, Landon started to act very tired and was pretty grouchy! I had a feeling something was up, so he headed off to bed early. He slept fine that night and the next morning acted fairly normal.

Mop's waffles and bacon were a hit!

We had the BEST time in Mansfield and cannot wait to go back! Thank you, Blake, Mop and Pop for having us and taking such good care of us while we were there! We love you!

After breakfast, we loaded up and headed to Waco to spend the rest of the week with my family. My parents live right down the street from my sister, so we take many trips there to swing and play in Aunt Alli's and Uncle Kyle's backyard.

Mimi and her crew heading down the street

My sweet, big girl on the swing

Payton would stay in her swing all day if you let her. We all have to take turns pushing because she NEVER GETS OUT! Uncle Kyle took the first shift.

Then it was Aunt Alli's, Sam's and Riley's turn! :-)

Landon's new addiction is beyblades! If you have a 7-8 year-old boy, you know what these are! His Mimi even bought her a couple of them so she could battle Landon's beyblades. I over-heard him telling his friend the other day that his Mimi loves beyblades, too. She doesn't even know how much it meant to him that she did that! She's pretty cool in his book!

Battle Time! 3-2-1 Let it Rip!

My Girls

After our first day in Waco, Landon spiked a fever and felt horrible! I took him in to see

Dr. Uncle Kyle the next morning and he had the FLU and an ear infection! UGH! So - Landon and I loaded up and headed back to Allen. I didn't want to risk getting anyone else sick. (especially my sweet sister who is pregnant with my niece and nephew!) I left the girls with my parents and came home for a couple of days. It was not how we intended to end our Spring Break, but we made the most of it. Once Landon started to feel a little better, I was able to take him to the movies and spend time with just him. This was something I didn't know I really needed until I was able to do it! It was so refreshing and so special just to have time with my oldest child. My sweet boy! It made me realize I need to make a point to spend time individually with each of my babies! It's hard, but so worth it!

Happy Spring Break 2011! The countdown to summer has officially begun!