Kraft Challenge

On a very creative blog from across the world....Kraft it UP...I've recently tried their monthly challenge.
June:
Use a time line with at least three photos....find the entire challenge info here...
www.kraftitup.blogspot.com

Here's is my take on the June challenge....
Thanks Kraft It Up for the creative ideas and fun challenges!

Family Time

Why is it that some of our best memories of childhood are those just hanging out with our family. Not some special birthday party or a magical Christmas gift, but just hanging by Grandma's pool or playing with cousins. I want my girls to have these memories too, I want them to slow down and just enjoy hanging out with their extended family.
silly pictures of them stealing mommy's chair...

relaxing and letting life slow down {just a little}

special moments with sisters....{hopefully this doesn't change as they grow older}

being silly with Grandpa Doc....

the men are grillin machines....Ok, Doc was a grillin machine, Joe was keeping him company this time....

Quality time with Oma....I love when my girls talk about their Oma, the excitement they share with her is awesome to see

she is fast becoming a serious contender at ladder golf....

my handsome hubby....oh so sexy....

Grandpa Doc relaxing...

sweet summer time fruit...yummy...

my sweet grandmother...

mom....

so we sort of dared Alexis to eat the whole container....she gave a good effort, but thankfully she did not succeed at this challenge

she loves her cheese balls...

At the playground

So when Joe is scheduled on the third shift, it is extremely hard to keep the girls quiet so he can get his sleep. I hate to just set them up in front of the TV all day {although that does keep them quiet}. Yesterday we decided to head to the playground. I grabbed my camera and book and off we went....

Alexis was on the go, she didn't want to stop for a minute....
the girls love the slide and I set up my blanket right at the bottom of this so we got lots of shots from here...

a little creative editing....

I'm so amazed how smart and grown up this little lady is....I'm so proud of her

just chillin....

and the bully who kept telling the other kids the big slide was hers....had to keep reminding her to take turns

then Mikayla came over to take a break with mom....we chatted for a little then Alexis had to potty so we headed back home

Final Catch Up - round three

Final round of catch up photos for the last two months I missed blogging....

It's really amazing how spunky this little girl can be. She really has a personality that's all her own. She can be very sarcastic for a four year old and some times very naughty. But, she certainly loves to pose for mommy to take pictures.
Mikayla, our little helper....This little girl wants to help in everything she does. She is such an easy going kid and she's a very well behaved young lady.

this was her pose idea....in front of the school building

Mikayla finished up her last season with the U8 group...she will be moving up in the Fall...she has some pretty funny candids here...

what a stride....

here she looks like she knows what she's doing.....you go girl!

some extra photos on the sidelines.....

she almost looks like she's doing a little dance here....{note: she's looking at the parents not at the ball}

now I know where Alexis get her funny soccer face from....again I have no idea what my children are thinking...HaHa

Alexis took a trip with her preschool to a local greenhouse...they learned about all the things that help plants grow....

he really had their attention...

another round of poses.....sorry I just can't get enough of this beautiful little girl

play break....

back to photo op....

Mikayla was invited to a skating party....this was interesting since the girls really never had a good opportunity to learn to skate....lucky for us the skating rink had these clever braces for young learners....sorry pictures are not so great....it was very dark inside the rink.

more soccer candids....this one cracks me up....she was all by herself, nowhere near the ball...and she trips....we really should have named her "Grace"

not quite sure where the ball is, but it looks like they are all headed in the same direction...not sure where all the yellow team is....

sideline shot....

over Memorial Day weekend, we joined a group and went camping near a local amusement park....we spent a few hours at the park....

right inside the entrance is the skylift....as I'm not a huge fan of heights, I quickly volunteered to sit with the little ones and wait at the bottom, on the ground....Joe, Samantha, and Casey enjoyed the ride.

one of the first rides that all the girls went on was the swings...Mikayla was not too fond of the ride...in fact she was crying during the ride, she didn't like it at all....all the rest of the girls loved it

this was a big deal to Joe and I....since we both are retired race car drivers, it was extremely awesome to have a child that was thrilled to get behind the wheel...She was so excited and she did amazing....I think she has it in her blood

just plain thrilled....no hesitation

look at that determination....she had so much fun....and we were thrilled for her

look at her maneuver the turn....she was a little wide....we could help her with that

Alexis was absolutely fearless with all the rides....she was so excited to ride with daddy on this ride....

Mikayla was content with watching from outside the gate...

Sam sat with Mia on the same ride....

Joe's having some fun....Casey enjoyed the seat across from Joe

the ride was really spinning now....and Mikayla was just content watching

the next day we packed up and headed to the pool at the amusement park....as we were waiting for the guys to meet back up with us after they parked we had a little photo op....

the girls in their cool shades....

right before this Mikayla cracked her head on the tree....she put on a nice smile for the camera... they had a great time in the water....it was way too crowded for me....I was ready to go back to the campground as soon as we walked in...Mikayla was in the water as long as she could, she really had a good time...

the older girls took off, so we didn't get any photos of them...

Alexis was enjoying the shallow water, she just kept going up and down the steps..

and my handsome husband enjoying some cold ones back at the campfire...

our school district does a DARE program for all the students in 5th grade...it is run by the local police and they do a nice {very lengthy} graduation for the kids at the end of the year....here Casey received her diploma from the officers

then to my surprise, she got up with a chorus group to sing "Lean on Me"...it was very cool...and yes that kid does have a huge mohawk

Mikayla's soccer team held an end of the year party with the kids playing against the parents...we had a lot of fun and the kids loved the part when they got their medals....their coach also gave them a magazine cover photo...very cool

and of course some candy....