princess

last day of 5th and 6th grade

And just like that it’s the last day of 5th and 6th grade! 
Colorado weather has been ridiculous this week. We’ve had snow and rain and usually I don’t mind the manic weather here….but B and I have both been sick. All kinds of coughing and sneezing around our house. And I’m over it! Come on clear heads and sunshine!
After school we grabbed lunch at Summit a new restaurant with games and bowling. Let’s just say this was a one and done for us. It’s brand new but already feels dated. The food was not very good at all. 
We were disappointed mostly because we wanted to treat the girls on their last day of school. They didn’t really seem to mind though. They are excited to be on summer break. 

dallas • pool day

What a difference a day makes! We woke up to sunny skies and beautiful weather. We got a jump on the memorial day travelers by heading there a week early. We had the resort and pool nearly to ourselves. We had a late afternoon/evening flight which gave us most of the day to spend at the pool. The girls LOVE a good lazy river and this pool did not disappoint.

We had a few snacks and some froofy drinks by the pool. We spent every last minute we could there before heading to the airport.

We cleaned up, packed up and had to say goodbye to our Dallas adventure. Despite a little rain, we all agreed it was a pretty fabulous time and we can check off another ballpark in our baseball adventures.

dallas • rangers vs cardinals

We were quite nervous that the weather was going to give us a lot of trouble today. It rained…and rained…and rained some more. There were flash flood warnings and power outages. We waited out the storm at our hotel and kept our fingers crossed that the game wouldn’t be cancelled. 
After a two hour delay, the game was on! A little dreary and wet, but game on none the less. It was our first visit to Globe Life Park in Arlington and since they are building a new stadium this year it will be our last. It’s not an old-stadium but it does feel a bit run down. 

We grabbed a few hats, visors, baseballs, etc. We like to have our souvenirs. 

And then it was game time!

The Rangers played the Cardinals, which was fun because St Louis is my hometown. It felt like there were more Cardinals fans there than Rangers fans….but that feels true for the Cardinals wherever you go. 
Annabelle found this beauty…The Grub Tub! Nachos and a soda all in one glorious container. Disgusting or genius? 

Those outfield seats are standing room only and reminded me of a horse track. 
A view of the cranes building the new stadium next door. 
View of neighboring AT&T stadium

With our ticket purchase we had access to the Capital One Club. These were great seats inside with awesome views and access to special concession stands. Unfortunately because of the rain delay they ran out of food so the access wasn’t quite as sweet as a typical game.

After the game we went back to the hotel for dinner. We grabbed a table at the Italian restaurant that we could see from our balcony. See those girls waiving down to us?

The girls ran back and forth between the room and our table between courses. It was great they had a little freedom and we could kick back and relax and enjoy a little wine and dinner.

The day may not have gone quite as planned, but it was a good one!

dallas • storm warning

We woke up to a pretty dismal weather forecast. There were heavy downpours and floods projected for most of the day. We were worried about our baseball game getting rained out and we couldn’t take advantage of the outdoor pool, but we were happy there was still plenty to do inside while we waited out the storm.
A quiet breakfast on our patio
Gwyneth requested a braid so we got creative with it…
Our hotel had a Peter Pan theme going on in the courtyard so we explored all the cute little attractions:
B found us a good table for lunch right on the indoor river walk. This picture cracked us up because the girls and I were just sitting on a bench on the over side of the river and didn’t know where he went. He was sitting there at that table – right across from us! – just waiting and laughing. What a goofball!
We enjoyed some much needed Tex Mex while we waited out the storm. 

awards ceremony

We were back at school the very next day for the year end awards ceremony.  This is one of my favorites of the year as they celebrate each and every kid who attends the school.They find a gift in everyone and it is applauded.
Our girls were horribly embarrassed to be called up in front of the crowd but we were very proud of them. Annabelle received the language arts award for 6th grade. She is an excellent reader, writer, speller etc. Gwyneth received the reading award for 5th grade. What an accomplishment for our little dyslexic gal. It’s been a good year, but we sure are ready for summer. 
We had a late night flight out to Dallas that evening. We were all pretty exhausted from the late night travel. We didn’t get to the hotel until after midnight, but we were all pretty excited to get our mini-vaca kicked off. 
These gals fell asleep for about an hour on the plane. I love traveling with them. They are such great travel companions.
The view from our room. Maybe because we looked so disheveled when we arrived, they upgraded us to a pretty great room with a view of the courtyard. Even though we were all dead-tired we had to spend a little time on that balcony enjoying our view.
After a great night sleep we were ready to tackle Dallas!

spring program

We are in the home stretch. Only days left until summer vacation. It feels like we were just counting down the months and then down to the weeks and now we’re in the final days of this school year. Woah! And let me tell ya, middle school is not for the timid. We’ve had out shares of up and downs this year and we are quite ready for summer! 
Tonight we are headed to the school for the Spring Art and Music concert. The girls were looking lovely for their performance and I managed to get them to pose for a few pics for me…
Gwyneth still likes to get her picture taken, thankfully
Her hair is getting so, so long. She was pretty happy with those curls tonight.
Annabelle on the other hand is always irritated with me for the pictures. I like to take photos like this so I can’t understand why…
Ha! All that middle school emotion in one face…directed right at her mama. 
She got a good laugh out of it though and did smile for one picture for me. 
Tell us what you think about getting your picture taken Annabelle….
These girls…
These are my favorites. I love how they are together.
Gwyneth adores her sister…unless it isn’t obvious. 
And then off to the concert we went. 
The girls don’t like to make eye contact with me when they are on stage because I always make them giggle…
Taking a bow: 
That girl is not to be missed. She’s a tall one and I love it. 
And then it was time for the singing. You can see Annabelle made the mistake of looking at me during the song. I may make some fun faces at them. Just to ease the tension. Their friends find it hilarious. They think I’m annoying. Fine by me.
After the performances with their buds. 

happy mother’s day

Oh boy, I don’t know how that husband of mine puts up with me! I was a bit of a mess this Mother’s Day. My studios were slammed and I was getting work messages through out the day. Not to mention,one of my employees sent me a text after closing the night before QUITTING. A text at 9:30 pm on a Saturday night. Absolutely no notice and she wasn’t showing up the next day — one of our busiest days of the year. You gotta love the work ethic of some folks (insert high levels of sarcasm). I like to think that I’m a fair and reasonable boss. I work around schedules and do my best to accommodate.  I guess some people will just take advantage and for that they just suck.  I don’t really take offense but I have zero patience when people are jerks and mess with the time I get to spend with my family. 
I did manage to turn my attitude around. Life’s too short to waste it being grouchy!
B and the girls surprised me with homemade scarves and air pods. I never would have purchased those airpods for myself and I’m really excited to listen to my books with them. How cool am I? Yep, I listen to books any opportunity I get. I know, pretty hip and happenin’. 
We had lunch at The Pig and The Sprout. It’s one of our family favorites but it was a little off today…or maybe it was my attitude. Ha! It was a gorgeous day and the walk to the ballpark was lovely. The streets were packed with people. Everyone was out for the ballgame, Nuggets game, and celebrating moms. It was a great day to be out and about in the city. 
It was a bright sunny day at the stadium and our seats had no shade. We ended up standing behind the bullpens most of the game and had a blast!! The Rockies got a big win while sadly the Nuggets lost and are done for the season. 
The girls went to the gift shop and bought this for me. 🙂 
My awesome crew!
Taking a stroll through the milk market after the game. 
We stopped and checked it out. It is essentially a food court with beer and wine. It was slammed after the game, but I think it would be more enjoyable without the big crowd. 
The girls got ahold of my phone and took some lovely photos of each other. 
Thanks for an amazing Mother’s Day. I’m one lucky momma!

happy birthday, jade

Our dear friend, Jade turned forty this week and her husband organized a surprise party for her. I’m always so anxious about surprise parties. I have a big mouth and have trouble keeping secrets.  I always seem to spill the beans. I managed to keep my trap shut and the surprise was pulled off beautifully. Jade said she had no idea and was all smiles. She’s such a great friend and momma. I’m so glad we could be there to celebrate with her!

happy 50th mr lansing

I had an event at work this morning for Dads to paint Mother’s Day gifts with their kiddos. It was a pretty big hit and I needed to run down to Aurora to help out a bit. Gwyneth finished Harry Potter #6 yesterday and is eager to read #7 before the end of the month. If she can finish the last book, #7, (which I have no doubt she will) she will have read the entire series over the course of just one school year. Pretty darn impressive! She decided to ride around with me today to the studios and we started #7 in the car. We are already 3 hours into the final book — only about 18 more hours to go! 
We arrived home in time for lunch at La Fogata. It’s our absolute favorite Mexican restaurant near home and never disappoints. Happy Cinco De Mayo!
Gwyneth and I sat on the patio and enjoyed a little sunshine, more Harry Potter, and painted her fingernails. I tell ya, that’s a pretty great afternoon in my book. 
We grabbed the gifts straight from my kilns and headed down to the Tyler’s. Wyatt and Rhys celebrated their confirmation today: 
And Mr Lance is turning the big 5-oh!! I made him this Bronco mug and I’m pretty happy with how it turned out. 
We hopped on down to the Tyler’s house for the fiesta. 
Sheila outdid herself! Everything was decorated and so festive. What a bash!
The girls found Steph’s little guy and couldn’t get enough. They sure do love babies. 
Happy, happy birthday to Mr Lansing!
I found these quirky little hooks while at IKEA last week. I had no idea what I needed them for but I thought they were too cute to pass up. I have found them all over the house. I may not have found a place for them yet, but they are keeping the kids entertained. 

After the Tyler’s party we weren’t quite ready to call it a night. It was a beautiful Colorado night – definitely perfect for smores.

sleepover friday • ellie and kierra

B had another Friday night of parties at the Kitchen so the girls each had a friend sleepover. This is becoming quite a trend around here. The girls seem pretty happy about it.

Annabelle had her bestie from school, Kierra over. They are just thick as thieves. Gwneth invited her friend Ellie. They use to go to school together, but haven’t been at the same school in 2 years. It was so nice to see them right back in step together. They were all smiles and sweetness. It’s so great to have a house full of happy, lovely gals.

The girls made pizzas, played shuffleboard and Foosball, and watched Hidden Figures before heading off to sleep. Ellie had soccer practice after school while the other 3 participated in their fun run so they were pretty worn out. They were all asleep by midnight which has to be some kind of sleepover record.