Day 17: Oh La La

So, yesterday was date night! I must say it was long needed too. Don't get me wrong, we had fun all day with the kids, but we needed couple time. I have Gwynnie Bee to thank for this very sexy dress I had on. Steamy! My husband and I went out for Italian food and ice-cream. Perfect, I didn't even have to share my ice-cream! 

Now, during the day we took grandpa bowling with us. Benjamin got to wear his brand new bowling shoes. He was SUPER excited. If you are doing AMF's free bowling with your children, I would recommend buying them a pair. The cost of rentals can get expensive. We bought Benjamin a size too big, so he is a bit clumsy in them. Hopefully that means he will make it through the whole summer with them!

The boys all had a good time and enjoyed a little friendly competition. Grandpa won.

Today did not go as planned however. My husband took my son to Regal theaters' summer movie program in the morning. Many theaters offer summer deals, so check it out! We were supposed to go to the park in the afternoon, but off and on storms prevented our plans. Perhaps tomorrow or Friday we will make it up to him. Tomorrow is library day. We have a special story time, but we should be able to "squeeze" the park in.

Orange Rhino

Unfortunately, I have failed twice today and once yesterday on my no yelling challenging. I didn't really yell, but I raised my voice unneedingly. When nerves are short and things seem stressful, its very hard to keep your cool. I quickly lowered my tone and got myself in check. It would kill me to have to start the whole thing over again. Perhaps I'm glad I'm not doing the full Orange Rhino Challenge yet. I truly want to be a better mother than I am. Some advice I got recently from the the author of the Orange Rhino blog has helped me a lot. She said,"All day tell yourself positive affirmations." So today when I felt down and like a "bad mommy" I reminded myself that I take good care of my boys. I make sure they are fed, the get baths, teeth brushed, nails clipped, ears cleaned, the have toys, and clothes. I can say that my kids don't realize when money is tight, or they don't have what I want them to have. They see that I read to them every night and kiss their boo-boos and thats all that matters!

Looking Forward

The Giveaway comes to an end on Monday the 24th. So make sure to check out the entry requirements here!  Also, I'm interested in hearing what you all are doing with your families this summer. Anything fun and affordable? Also, next month is my BIRTHDAY! I will be doing a little more soul searching next month. I will be sharing all the things I have done over the past 25 years and sharing a few things I want to do on my way heading to 30. I will discuss what I feel I lack and what I have more than my years worth of. It should be interesting to say the least!

Day Nine: First Day of "Summer"

Ah, today was a good first day of summer for me. We started our summer schedule and had a blast. Tuesday's are bowling days this summer, so we started that today. We learned some ups and downs and played two great games!

Here is what we learned:

1. Buy your own bowling shoes.  (If you are going to be going many times over the summer, the shoe rental can break the bank, especially with the games being free.)
2. Pack snacks (Alley food is expensive)

We also went to the dollar store and picked up a few things, including a toy bow and arrow set. Of course we had to try it out when we got home!

After we played a while, I wanted to get a photo of both the kids with their newly planted trees. We hope to watch them grow together. Pappy planted them in a pot to give them a good starting point. As they get bigger we will have to move them into the yard.

I really think planting trees is a fun way to record growth with children. The kids enjoy watching their tree grow with them.

Orange Rhino

Today on Orange Rhino we were supposed to start picking one trigger to work on eliminating. My husband found that extremely difficult, so I decided we needed more help, We did a little research and I found some typical, expected developmental behaviors of 2 1/2 year olds. Sometimes its hard to remember  who we are really dealing with. Seeing it written helps bring us back and see the situations we face from the outside. There is also a great list of alternatives to yelling on Orange Rhino's site.

Looking Forward

Tomorrow I am linking up with other blogs for something very exciting! I dont want to give it away, so stay tuned!