Well, technically this isn't a sewing project, but it involved fabric, so I'm putting it here.

I realized the other day that Miss Megan doesn't know her letters. She can say the alphabet, but she cannot recognize the letters by sight. SO I decided to make her some fun magnets to help her learn.

Last week the kids and I made a list of all the things they wanted to do this summer. I put every item on a piece of paper, and we taped them to the wall. Each time we do something, we take the paper down, and hopefully by the end of summer, the wall will be empty!

Today we decided to make marbleized paper. Sounds complicated, but it's so simple. Just put some food coloring in shaving cream, swirl it around, pat your paper onto it, pull the paper off, wipe off the cream, and voila! Marbleized paper!

The kids had a lot of fun with this activity. There was really no way to mess it up, which was nice. We learned that less is more when it comes to swirling in the color, and Drew was excited to discover that blue and yellow make green when mixed together.

At the end of the gallery, there is a picture of each of the kids with their creations. They are holding their favorite one. We plan to use these pieces of paper to write short notes to mail to friends and family. So some of you might be seeing them in your mailbox in the near future!

I have been so blessed to have wonderful men in my life.

My Daddy is seriously the best daddy a girl could have ever had. Some of my favorite memories of my Daddy are from when he would take me to the stock car races. The track was dirt, and Daddy let me wear some super cool goggles so the dirt didn't get in my eyes. He always bought me a licorice rope, which was a HUGE treat, and once I even won a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles t-shirt. We'd sit on those hard bleachers, being sprayed with dirt, and watching the cars go round and round and I'd feel like the most special girl in the world sitting there next to my daddy. I love that man.

Another very important dad in my life is Ray. He is such a great daddy to our kids. When I watch him rough house with the boys, or paint Megan's fingernails, or sing to his Kaybelle, I just know that these kids are going to grow up feeling just as loved by their daddy as I did. I love that man.

And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention a dad that I never actually knew. Ray's dad died before Ray and I met, but he's definitely a special man in my life. I know that Ray is the man he is today because of his father's influence. And although I didn't know him, I still love that man.

And I also have to mention my two grandfathers. My Grandpa Edwards died when I was pretty little, but I can still remember sitting on the back of his chair and "fixing" his hair. He was so tolerant of us, and I know he loved us so much. And then there is my Grampa Cobb. Oh the memories I have of him. Grampa LOVES ice cream, and when we went to his house, he would always make us homemade ice cream. It took what seemed like an ETERNITY to a little girl, but when the paddles came out of the ice cream machine, it was heaven. He always let us take spoons to the paddle, and would always sneak us a little extra even after we were supposed to be done. I love those men.

I'm so appreciative of all of the dads in my life. God has truly blessed me.

A couple of months ago, my mom sent the kids some sidewalk chalk. We don't ever get rain, so I never felt like it would be okay to let them loose with it on the sidewalks of our complex. Then this morning, I had a lightbulb moment, and after sweeping off the balcony, I sent them out with their chalk to play. It kept them occupied for nearly an hour, which was so nice for me (gave me some time to get some sewing done!).

Today we went to the cactus garden and chocolate factory. We went pretty early, so it wasn't super hot and we had a very nice walk. Many of the plants were in bloom, so we saw many pretty flowers. Afterwards, we went inside the chocolate factory for our self-guided tour and free sample of chocolate.

I took a bunch of pictures especially for my daddy. They aren't nearly as good as anything he would have taken, but at least he can see what our plants look like!

The pictures of the kids on the ground looking at something...there is a bunny in all of those pictures. It's hard to see, but it's there!

Today we celebrated AJ's kindergarten graduation. It's hard to believe that he's already 6 1/2 years old, and will be starting first grade in the fall! My mom made an ice cream cake for him, and all of the kids helped to decorate it with sprinkles (AJ had to put one sprinkle on at a time). Popa video conferenced with us, so he was able to watch everything that was going on, and he also was able to explain his gift to AJ. (Popa bought AJ a really nice kids Bible.) After a few gifts, we all went to Cici's and stuffed ourselves silly. It was great fun for all.

These are pictures from our Sunday activities. First, is Kay-Belle smiling (isn't she adorable)? Then there are some pictures of the boys in church. They each got right up on stage and said verses. They did so great, and we are so proud of them! Then the kids who finished AWANA books were called up and recognized. And the last ones are some very green pictures that we took of all of us after church. I love being all matchy matchy.

Here are some pictures from our trip to the park with Ma tonight!

Tonight was the AWANA closing program at our church. The boys have worked very hard this year, and we are so proud of all they have accomplished. Drew earned a ribbon for completing his second book in Cubbies. AJ earned a ribbon for completing his first book in Sparkies and a pin for the extra credit he did. Drew is very excited because next year he will be in Sparkies with AJ, and Megan gets to join Cubbies!

Here's a link to last years pictures, in case you want to see how much the boys have changed in just a year.