A few Christmases ago, my in-laws gave us a chocolate fountain. It has turned out to be one of the best presents ever!! We pulled it out this weekend when we had some friends over and it was a hit!
The kids always want to dip weird things in it like pizza. They think that's the best!
As you can see, it is very messy!!! Jason was ready with the wet paper towels......Drew is the worst! You can't go wrong with the chocolate fountain..everyone loves it!
We spent Mother's Day above Las Colinas! We ate brunch at a restaurant with 3 other couples and 9 kids! Luckily, one of the husbands is the general manager and he got us a private room. It was nice as the kids could run around crazy after they ate--and they did!! 
Here are some of their buddies. 
Afterwards, we went down to see the mustang sculpture. Jackson using all his might to try to push this horse in. Believe it or not, we had to tell him to stop because it started wobbling! 
The boys and me :)
The boys were fascinated by the water and the fountains. Here is Drew and a friend taking a breather. We had a great mother's day and it was so fun to be able to spend it with friends!
A few weeks ago, we met my cousin and his wife and their new baby (4mos.) at The Great Wolf Lodge for dinner. The boys loved playing with him and Jackson especially took to him. He wanted to hold him and feed him...so cute. 
Check out the this baby as a hat on Jackson's head!! He thought that was hilarious! 
Jackson had field day last Friday....remember those? He loved it. I was out of town, but Jason went up there with Drew and watched and apparently, he was really into it. I'm not surprised. I used to think he didn't have a competitive bone in his body, but it is starting to emerge. 
Another thing about Jackson is that he typically is a rule follower. So, when some kids are running with their tennis ball on the spoon and it drops, they may keep running with it in their hands. Jackson will stop, pick it up, and go back to the place where he started from. What an great character trait to have. 
We are proud of him!
We had a baseball filled weekend. Nana and Papa came down to see the boys play. We kept our fingers crossed that the rain would pass and it did! They both had games on Saturday and they turned out to be great! Don't mind the grabbing of the crotch by Drew.....who knows?
Everyone is ready for the game!
Drew got the game ball for the Cubs! He has been waiting all season for this and he could not have been happier. He was running around smiling and has prominently displayed his game ball in the kitchen so "everyone can see it."
Then, Jackson got the big leauge chew for being the "big league player." He made 2 outs while playing 3rd and made a great throw from 3rd to 1st. So, we've been chewing on that gum all weekend. I think maybe Nana and Papa are the good luck charms :)
Drew is a collector. Of what, you might ask. Well, check out his collection that he is examining. Lately, he's into collecting the little plastic things that go on top of hangers at clothing stores that are either S,M,or L. He loves to scour the floor for those while I am shopping. We will leave a store and he will have at least a couple of new things in his pocket to add to his collection that he has found on the floor. We have a special box for these things because otherwise, they would be all over the place. He cracks me up.....what a piece of work.
This boy has more bumps and bruises than any other kid I know!! The thing is, all the bumps and buises are on his forehead. This must be a prominent feature on him because it seems to be the body part that runs into things before any other part of his body does. The past week, this scene has been familiar almost every other day. I'm just glad that kid has a hard head!
The time has come. After 2 years of watching his older brother play t-ball and then baseball, Drew is officially on a team. The Cubs. He is so proud.
When we got to the first game, Jackson felt like he needed to get Drew on the field and give him some grounders. He was begging to be the catcher and help the kids in the dugout. I guess he feels like he's the pro now.
As a beginner, Drew is more aggressive that Jackson was when he started. He ran for all the balls (even if he was on 3rd and it was hit to 1st) and he even fell while running and then crawled the rest of the way to ensure that he got the ball.
This shall be interesting. Of course, the most important part--snacks!! He was very happy to have his own Gatorade for the first time!
On another note, we had a bad storm last night, so the boys slept on our floor. I just had to snap this picture of them sleeping. They look so peaceful. Minutes later, the craziness had begun!!
So, we boarded a "real" pirate ship on our last day in Florida. We went all over the bay looking for buried treasure. Here are Amanda and Ben holding the smallest pirate.
The ship had pirates all over the place. Here they are sporting their new pirate tatoos that Ben got them. The one on Jackson's arm still isn't off yet!
To be a real pirate, you have to have a moustache and/or beard and you absolutely must have a "scar" on your face with a little blood. At least that's what these pirates said.....so, the boys waited in line to get painted by this pirate.
After all the kids looked like real pirates, we danced, did the pirate limbo, heard a pirate story, and shot a mini cannon........finally, we found the treaure and all the kids got some "loot" It was so fun and a great way to end a wonderful trip!!
While in Florida, Papa ran into an old pirate who gave him a treasure map. He showed it to the boys and they had to hunt for treasure!So early in the morning, we set out on the trail and tried to follow the clues.
Jackson found the pile of shells that the treasure was supposed to be buried under!
Digging, digging, digging.......
Checking out the skull and crossbones on the treasure chest...scary.
Running home down the trail to open the chest and check out the pirate's booty which consisted of eye patches, flags, gold, and pirate stickers! All the loot had held up well being buried there for so many years :) 
When we got home from Florida, Jason's parents were here ready to celebrate Easter with us! The boys were very excited! They went from being spoiled by one set of grandparents to the next. Jason and I are spending the week straightening them out!!
On our way to church!
A little brotherly love :)
They love dyeing Easter eggs with Grandma!
We had a great time on Spring Break with my family. More pictures to come, but here is just an introduction....
When I grow up I want to be....."A sintist becuse I like siyints egspermints and I do a lot at hom." This is what Jackson wrote when asked what he wanted to be when he grows up. We weren't surprised!
The kindergartners had a parade thru the school dressed as their future profession. The day we got the note home about the parade, he knew what he wanted to be. When I dropped him off for school that morning, he told me that he was just going to wear the science goggles in his pocket because he was embarassed. I was a little relieved that he kinda knew that it might be a little dorky. If he was totally unaware of social implications, then I would worry. So, when he showed up in the hallway wearing the goggles, I was surprised. Afterwards, I asked him why he decided to wear those and he said that his teacher said that he should. I agree....I mean, what kind of scientist are you going to be without the goggles, right? It was hilarious! 
And, here's Drew with his Webkinz, Biscuit. Drew believes that Biscuit is real and has real feelings, therefore we take him many places with us because he will be scared if we leave him. Sometimes, he even has to go outside to use the bathroom. It looks like Biscuit enjoyed the parade.
Some people may think this is a weird entry, but let me explain.....last weekend, my grandmother passed away. She was 94 years old and lived a wonderful life. So, all the cousins traveled to small town Kansas to remember her. She had expressed that her time had come and she was not scared, but ready to go. I love that. She had peace within her and she knew that she was going to Heaven. 
So, all the grandkids spoke at her service and we all shared some memories that we had of her. It was really a feeling of celebration that she is with God now and is no longer in pain. 
Although the boys did not attend the service, Jackson wanted to go to the burial ceremony with us. We felt that he was mature enough and he was. He sat solemnly and clasped his hands together to pray. It was very sweet and it opened up some good conversation and I expect more questions to come. 
I love my family and I love my cousins. We have all become friends as adults and we all have young kids (4 of the little kids weren't there)so it makes get togethers crazy and loud, but so much fun. My grandma would be happy :)
