June 7th through June 13th

Sunday, June 7th



Only one more Sunday until we leave for Disneyland! Here's a picture of our trip last summer. Can't wait to make for fun memories.

Monday, June 8th





Natalie got quite a lot of cute birthday gifts. Including some princess dress up items and a princess beauty palor set with hair dryer, curling iron, straightner, etc. She and her brother and have played with all...Ben pretends to seem totally tortured of course!

Tuesday, June 9th




It has been a stormy June so far and today we had a terrible hail storm followed by a downpour. It was quite a sight and in a matter of minutes the streets were flooded, the window wells were filling with water, the yard was shredded, and the kids were screaming. The pictures don't do it justice, but with two screaming kids, it was hard to focus and capture the trauma of it all. Isn't it supposed to be sunny and 80 degrees in June?

Wednesday, June 10th



Here's the aftermath of the hail storm yesterday. I literally cried over the damage and was sure I would have to replant the whole yard. But after some tiding up and fertilizing, I have hope that it's all going to survive. It'll just look a little sad for a few weeks. Thanks to Melissa who came out a helped me clean up!

Thursday, June 11th



Today was Ben's Kindergarten Graduation Program. They had a little fashion show where everyone dressed up in their favorite clothes and Mrs. Craven read a little bit about them while they walked the runway. Then they sang some songs, watched a slide show of pictures from the year and recieved a "diploma" from Mrs. Craven. Afterward they had cookies and punch and got a little graduation cap filled with a ding dong. It was bittersweet...we've loved Mrs. Craven and Kindergarten and are excited to go on to 1st Grade but I think we're all a little nervous about how it will be.


Friday, June 12th



Natalie got this cute princess hair styling kit for her birthday and has loved trying it out on everyone. This is her friend Rachel getting her hair straightened ever so carefully by Natalie!

Saturday, June 13th



Ben and Natalie started a game with Daddy at lunch...teasing and taunting him just asking for tickles...guess who won?

May 31st through June 6th

Sunday, May 31st



This picture tells of a quirky Peterson favorite...they love taking day old cake and pouring milk over it and enjoying a re-moistened dessert. It's actually not too bad - I have tried it before. It reminds of when my Dad used to have toast and milk...buttered toast or bread soaked in milk...Yuck! The cake doesn't get soggy as fast as bread so it's a bit more edible but still a bit quirky if you ask me!

Monday, June 1st



We're anticipating our trip to Disneyland in a few weeks so we checked out some Disney music from the library. My kids love marching around the living room to the Mickey Mouse March song. "Who's the leader of the band?" When we took Ben to Disneyland the first time (he was 2 years old), Aunt Sissa used to march him around Nana's house with Mickey ears on and sing this song. She and my parents went with us on that trip and she prepared him well befor we left!

Tuesday, June 2nd




We're winding down baseball. Here's a couple of pictures of fun games. He's learned a few new things and has had fun being on a team with kids in the neighborhood.

Wednesday, June 3rd



Today was Zoo Day at school for Ben. His class took a fieldtrip up to Hogle Zoo. Bryan was able to get the day off and bring Natalie up to join us. We enjoyed the Bird show for the first time this year and rode the new Carousel.

Thursday, June 4th




Today was Natalie's 3rd birthday! I can't believe has time has flown by. We're having a party on Saturday. To celebrate today, we went to lunch at Sweet Tomatoes...or Sweet Potatoes as she would say. At 3 years old she is quite the handful and has become a bit of a drama queen...okay a BIG drama queen but we love having this sweet little girl in our family! Happy Birthday Natalie!It was Ben's last baseball game today too! They had a little party afterward with cupcakes and snowcones. It was a good treat at the end of a busy day!

Friday, June 5th



We have spent any free time this week working on the swing set and are finally finished. Hurray! We just need to stake it in the grass and then we have a new park right in the backyard! The kids love it!

Saturday, June 6th



We celebrated Natalie's 3rd birthday today...we had a tea party and invited our families over to enjoy some treats and open presents. We had a fun party and Natalie got some really cute gifts. She got lots of cute clothes and PJ's, a baby that crawls, Princess dress ups, beads to make jewelry, a cute apron, flowers for her hair, Play dough, and cards from great grandparents. She loved every minute of it!

May 24 through May 30

Sunday, May 24




We planted these fruit trees last Spring and I took a picture of the kids in front of them ... the beginning of an annual tradition to measure the growth of both kids and trees. Here's last years and this years photos for comparison.

Monday, May 25



It was Memorial Day today. Bryan still working so I took the kids miniature golfing at Mulligans and then they ran through the sprinklers before we went to Great Grandma's for a BBQ. We made some homemade Oreos to share at the BBQ. It's GG's birthday tomorrow, so we had cake and ice cream for her too. We love GG!

Tuesday, May 26

Bryan got called out on a case Friday morning and we haven't seen much of him since then...this is becoming a familiar sight...an empty plate. He's called during the day to report he'll be home for dinner but has yet to make home before 10pm. Ben keeps asking "when is Daddy ever coming home?"

Wednesday, May 27



Ben got to try out school lunch today to see what it will be like when he goes to first grade later this year. I went to help out and got to snap a few pictures of him enjoying chicken nuggets and tater tots. When I went through the line with him, and I saw them serving up tater tots I had to explain to Ben what they were as he has never had them. I actually couldn't believe he'd never had them...I used to eat them a lot when I was little. He loved the lunch and was of course one of the last to finish. He is usually last to finish at home too!

Thursday, May 28



When we got home from Ben's baseball game tonight, he kindly shared his after game snack with her. They put two straws in his bottle of Gatorade and sucked it dry. So fun to watch them share!

Friday, May 29



Here's a picture of one corner of our growing garden...the lettuce, spinach and peas are doing great. The carrots are also making some progress. Our giant sunflowers are sprouting too! I planted 12 different tomato plants...6 or 7 different varieties. I hope I don't regret it later!

Saturday, May 30



We bought the kids a swing set a couple of week ago and finally got some time to work on it this weekend. Here's the progress so far. We hope to get it done soon...the instructions said it takes 8 to 12 hours to put together! Wish us luck, it feels like a never ending project! The kids can't wait to try it out when it's done.

May 17 through May 23

Sunday, May 17



We enjoyed a Sunday dinner at Heidi and Aaron's house this afternoon. The weather was nice enough to eat outside. The kids had a great time hunting around looking for bugs to catch with Kaleb's nifty bug catcher. It was fun to watch them catch and examine a jar full of roly polies and a baby grasshopper. A fun simple toy that entertained the bunch for quite awhile!

Monday, May 18



The thermastat reached just over 90 degrees today. The kids enjoyed the sun by getting out swimming suits and the sprinkler toys for the first time this season. Ben got quite brave and had a great time getting wet. Natalie on the other hand wasn't so sure about getting wet and stayed clear of the spray.

Tuesday, May 19

We're looking forward to our Disneyland trip in a few weeks with the Handy's...we've been working on some homemade autograph books to take to the park. Jennie borrowed a Disney cartridge from a friend and we ended up with some cute books.

Wednesday, May 20



This is what happens when you combine a terrible nights sleep, no more naps, a morning at the park, an afternoon with friends, and several temper tantrums...crash at 4:30pm!

Thursday, May 21



We had corn on the cob for dinner tonight... the first time this season. It was alright and the kids loved eating it and pretending they were Mickey and Donald eating corn on the cob...a scene from one of our favorite old Mickey cartoons.

Friday, May 22



We bought a couple of portable DVD players for Christmas for our car. Sometimes they end up in the house when 2 kids can't agree on what to watch on TV. We also recently purchased headphones for these DVD players as someone likes to watch them with the volume super loud! Natalie and Ben were so cute laying on their stomachs watching a show together, but when I got out the camera, Natalie refused to pose. Oh well...Ben did a good job giving me a cheesy grin.

Saturday, May 23



Here's another image of Natalie biting the dust in the afternoon...we'd been to the mall and ran some other errands and she'd been up since 5:30am! Following this peaceful image, however, we ended up with a different scene as we dealt with the "Nap Hangover".

May 10 through May 16

Sunday, May 10



Mother's Day today! I had a wonderful day with my family. Bryan and the kids surprised me with a new Kitchenaid mixer...a kitchen gadget I've desired for a long time but the price tag kept me from getting one. However, my generous husband was kind enough to surprise me with one! I love it and even used it this morning to make cookies! We enjoyed church, visited Grandma Peterson's grave, and then had dinner at Great Grandma White's house. It was a beautiful day!

Monday, May 11



We've been trying to help my sister, Jennie's, friend raise some Monarch caterpillars into butterflies for a wedding. Here's a current photo of one of the little bugs who has gone from a teeny baby caterpillar to a big juicy caterpillar who eats constantly. We've had several die and we hope to have success with at least one. We'll see how it goes.

Tuesday, May 12





Haircuts for Mommy, Ben and Natalie today. This was Ben and Natalie's first experience with real haircuts from my stylist Marie. She did a great job as always and the kids ended up with some cute do's...Mommy did too! Natalie got a bit cut off and got a cute little bob. Ben said..."She looks like someone else!" We're so used to her curly locks that it was a bit of a change to see her with straigth hair. So cute though!

Wednesday, May 13



The past week or so, Ben's Kindergarten class as been studying animals at school and had to do an animal report on an animal of their choice. Ben chose monkeys and we made a cute poster and puppet to go with his report. He did a great job! His favorite tidbit about monkeys was that a group of monkeys is called a troop.

Thursday, May 14



One of our favorite things to do when the weather is warm is go on walks around the block or up the ravine path after dinner. Lately the dandelions have been out in full force and the kids love picking the white fluffy one and making a wish as they blow the seeds off. So much fun but not helpful in stopping the spread of these little annoying weeds. Bryan's constantly asking them to leave them alone but I can't resist letting them have at it. I love watching them have fun picking and making wishes. Here's hoping some of them come true!

Friday, May 15

The iris's in our garden are starting to bloom. The pretty purple color really brightens up the yard.

Saturday, May 16



Another lawn mowing picture as the kids help Daddy in the yard. We bought these toy lawn mower and trimmer a few years ago when Ben was about 2 years old. We sure have got our money's worth!

May 3 through May 9

Sunday, May 3



Ben decided to read the paper this morning..."like an old man!" He got the idea from one school. His class is working on little plays for a Mother's Day program and in one of the skits, one of the boys is an old man reading the newspaper. So this morning, while he ate breakfast, he poured of the front page and asked me a thousand questions!

Monday, May 4



As I've posted a few weeks ago, Ben has been intersted in exercising with me in the mornings. I bought me a pair of exercise shorts and he wore them this morning. It actually motivates me a little to have a "partner" to work out with! Look at those muscles!

Tuesday, May 5



Rookie Baseball keeps us busy twice a week...here's Ben taking a swing! He loves playing ball and looks forward to the games each week.

Wednesday, May 6



It has been Teacher Apprecation Week this week and I've been busy sewing every night to finish this little quilt for Mrs. Craven. I embroidered the handprint and signature of each student on it. It turned out to be a bit more of a project than I planned. I finally finished it tonight at 10:30pm. I'm so glad it's finally finished...we're giving it to her in the morning!

Thursday, May 7



Ben's class performed their Mother's Day program at school this morning. It turned out so cute. They share a few poems and songs, performed their plays, gave us Mother's Day cards, and served us fruit pizza for dessert. I loved it! The boys recited a cute poem called "A Mother Knows." They listed lots of great things mothers know but then at the end, the last line read: "What I want to know is how a Mother so wise can be so dumb by kissing my in front of all the guys!" It was so cute! In his Mother's Day card, he wrote, "I love my mom because she makes me lunch and volunteers in my class." What a lucky mom I am!

Friday, May 8


Saturday, May 9



It was a warm afternoon and the kids helped me plant some flowers in our yard. It's taking shape slowly and we hope to get the vegetables in next week. We just ran out of time today! Saturday's seem to race by with all the projects we have to get done!

April 26 through May 2

Sunday, April 26



Here's an oldie but a goodie...this is Ben playing with a dollhouse that was mine when I was a child. Each of my siblings had one that was given to us by our Grandma Anne. She spent lots of time collecting toy treasures. This was just one of many. She loved finding a good sale on antique things. My parents recently gave us one to take home. They had been sitting in their storage room for years. My kids have loved getting it out and setting up house. It's fun to remember all the times I used to play with it with my siblings. We'd set up a little neighborhood and make up names and such for our little families. Good times!

Monday, April 27



After all the rain we've had the past week or so the grass had become a bit of a jungle. Bryan spent a couple or hours mowing and edging, trying to tame it. Natalie was a bit of a helper. I love this picture because I know somewhere I have a couple of Ben at this age doing the same thing!

Tuesday, April 28



Some friends invited us for a picnic at the park after school today. It was a little cool in the shade but we all had fun playing and visiting. Park play as been a favorite of the kids this year. There are several around and we have tried them all out at least once already this year.

Wednesday, April 29



My sister Jennie's neighbor is helping her friend try to raise some monarch caterpillars into butterflies for a wedding in a few weeks. We are lucky enough to have a few as guests in our house. We started out with 2 babies and larger caterpillar, but the larger one has already bit the dust. It'll be a fun science experiment for us. Hopefully we'll have a picture of a butterfly in a few weeks!

Thursday, April 30



It was a rainy day today...Natalie spent some time watching it out the back door. I love Spring rain. It makes everything seem fresh and green and clean!

Friday, May 1



Teacher Appreciation Week for the teachers at Ben's school starts next week. As the room mom I'm in charge of a few projects. We kicked off the week by decorating her door. Our theme was "Mrs. Craven, You Take the Cake!" and I made a 2 dimensional cake with the students name surrounding it on stars. It turned out pretty cute, I think!

Saturday, May 2



Here's an update on the caterpillars...some are growing pretty fast. This project has inspired many questions from Ben. He's constantly quizzing me about the process of a caterpillar turning into a butterfly. I need to get a book or something...he's relentless! I hope we get a butterfly soon!