Who invited rain to the summer party?!

Today was the last day of school for Andrew and Brennan, and all week we have had dreadful weather! :( It is warm (80*), muggy, and we have had rain and thunderstorms off and on. It doesn't feel like summer to me, and my boys are a bit stir-crazy!! So, I made them some playdough and all three boys are playing happily (knock on wood) for now.

6 more school days!!

The end of the school year is always bittersweet.  I look forward to not dealing with homework and the alarm clock  not going off before 7am, but I do NOT look for forward to filling the boys days with activities, while keeping up with work.  I love the sunshine, popsicles in the backyard, and swimming at the lake.  

The Journey Continues...

I haven't blogged all year long. It wasn't out of a lack of desire. I wanted to, but life just got in the way. We are at the end of the school year. Andrew is about to finish third grade, Brennan is about to complete first grade, and Parker has only a few days left of his first year of preschool. This has been a full year. Matt and I still work for Sparrow Clubs and we love it! In addition, I work two nights a week at Redrock Italian Eatery as a server. Andrew has progressed in karate and now has advanced to "weapons training" (in addition to his regular classes). Brennan is playing soccer again. He loves it. I would like to enroll all three boys in swim lessons this summer. I am hoping that blogging will become a regular part of my life again. The boys grow up and change so fast that I think that this is an amazing way to document the journey...especially with Parker. I would never have believed that he would have made the progress this year that he has. He is talking so well and is making huge social gains!! I have had a few opportunities to go up to Salem to speak to legislators about Parkers story and the importance of adequately funding early intervention. This last time I went up and testified to the Dept of Education. It was a scary and humbling experience. I am always amazed that God would choose to use someone like me...just a mom...to speak to decision makers. But He does, and while it is WAY out of my comfort zone, I am trying to be obedient.
Now...lets see those cutie boys!!

First Day of School pics

Yes, school has been "in session" for over two weeks. But I figured that most of you would want to see these...even if I am a "lame-o" blogger. ;)

Andrew started 3rd grade

Brennan is in 1st grade



And Parker goes to Early Intervention preschool 3 mornings a week

A summer pictorial

This summer has been way to busy for me to have much *fun computer time*, so rather than writing pages and pages of all that you have missed from the Sampson bunch, I decided to show you in pics.  

Here we go...

Father's Day weekend we went to the Oregon Coast.  The kids and I hadn't been to the Oregon coast ever.  It is very different than the California coast that we are used to, but we were prepared for chilly, windy weather.  We had fun playing on the beach, shopping in downtown Seaside, and we rented a bike for 5 (super fun!).

Brennan turned 6 and Parker turned 3!


In July, we took a trip back to Missouri to visit the Sampson family and spend some time with Grandma Sampson.  That trip was so much fun for all of us.  Andrew and Bren were in *big boy* heaven (giant trampolines, 4-wheelers, the Ranger, huge slip-and-slides, swimming with frogs, and more). What I miss most is fresh sweet corn, picked by the boys from the fields any time of day!!  Mmmmmmm....

We just recently got back from a long (but fun) trek down to the Bay Area.  Matt and I were able to work on some stuff for the first Bay Area Sparrow Club :) and spend some great time with family.  We attended Mark and Emily's wedding, celebrated my dad's bday with him, and I went on my 30th birthday trip to Disneyland!!!

A picture taken especially for Alisha!  Wishing that I was having Mickey ice cream with you!

And at the end of our "Cali Adventure" we were able to take the boys to 75 cent night @ the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.  Mom and Poppi took us to Gilroy Gardens (which was beautiful!).

Wrinkles

Honestly, my 30th birthday has barely come and gone, and I am getting wrinkles.  Not really "laugh lines" or "crows feet", but what I will call "autism mommy exhaustion circles".  I seem to be getting perma-lines from where I get bags under my eyes from lack of sleep or stress.  I really want to do something about them (I am afraid that they will get worse), but I don't have the money to go and try out different things that create promises of clear, wrinkle-free eyes.  Getting wrinkles is a part of getting older, and I am ok with that.  That being said, I am realizing how vain I am.  I find myself glancing in every "shiny" surface around our house, peering in hope that the lines have disappeared...they haven't.:(  

Matt says that he loves me, and doesn't care if I have wrinkles. (He is a wonderful man)  He thinks I need more sleep.  He is probably right, although I think that it is more a lack of quality sleep than the actual hours.  

Meanwhile, I will just do what they do on TV.  Cucumber slices.  Because instead of $50 for .2oz of a miracle, cucumbers are 3 for $1 at Food 4 Less. :)

End of the school year

Even though it doesn't feel like the end of May (weather wise), it feels like another school year is coming to a close.  The boys are excited for summer and the thrills that come with the last part of the year.  For instance, today Bren climbs excitedly into the car as I am picking him up, and exclaims, "I had ice cream at school!"  Unfortunately, he could not remember WHY they got ice cream (apparently all of the sugar so early in the morning had gone to his brain).  Andrew came home yelling, "Guess what, Mom!?!  No homework today!!  Mrs. Coleman forgot to copy our reading logs!!"  

You would have thought that Christmas had come early. 

So now they are outside playing some game involving weapons (as boys will do), and dreaming of days with no school, running through the sprinklers, and Sonic slushes!

Days like these, I love being a mom of boys.