All Star Pro Rodeo

This past weekend, was a busy one.  Amy had Canvas and Cocktails on Friday, We attended a Rodeo and visited Gma and Gpa on Saturday and went to the Rockies on Sunday.  Whew; will be nice to just stay home and 'watch the children grow' this weekend!

The crew watching Mutton Bustin'...The boys can't wait to try it

The All Star Pro Rodeo was really neat.  We got free tickets from Marriott (Thanks, Kyle!) and decided to go a bit early to see what other festivities were available.  We are So Glad we did!  Kasey got to ride his Very First Horse!  Kasey's birth mother has a horse named Poncho and we Love seeing pictures of her riding him when she comes home (via facebook).  I have attached a picture of Poncho at his Ranch for Kasey below since this is his baby book.

Now, here is a picture of Kasey on his horse, Cowboy.  Kasey wasn't quite sure what to do with his hands, but by the end he was petting Cowboy's mane and saying "Yeehaw".  Karsten would not go near the horse.  We tried to get him to pet Cowboy, but no such luck.  Maybe next time.

Giddy up, Cowboy

They even had Carnival rides.  Amy watched the boys long enough to snap this picture, but not too long that she lost her lunch.  How will she ever admit to the boys that she can't do carnival rides?

Hurry up Mom, we want to spin around

Kasey found a great friend while we were walking around.  This is the Murdochs Cow and he was really great.  Kasey would see the cow throughout the day (near and far from us) and shriek in delight as if he saw a long lost friend each time.

We had Front Row for Mutton Busting (My Kids HAVE to do this!  Looks Awesome!) and pretty great seats for the rodeo too.  Here are some of the favorite shots of our crazy country crew.

This is how you ride the sheep, Jim

Notice everyone is watching the rodeo, except for Sarah and Amy

Kasey's favorite event, the "jumping horses"

Canvas and Cocktails

Erika recently invited myself and Alisa to join her and her sister, Laura, for Canvas and Cocktails.  Unfortunately, Alisa got the flu and had to back out.  She was definitely missed, but we still had a great time.  We already decided we will be doing it again and making sure Alisa joins us!

This is the teacher's painting she did along with the group

I have put together some progress shots of how this event worked.  They get you started with a blank canvas and all the paint you will need.  Then, the teacher walks you through each part of the painting.  The painting selected for the evening was Larimer Square (a famous street in downtown Denver).  I will admit that I was a little ... ok ... A Lot Nervous as the painting looks pretty hard.  Thankfully, this event is called Canvas and "Cocktails" ~ needless to say; the wine helped my creative juices flow! ha.

Yep, this was the point in the evening that I started to realize I have a Type A personality.  There is a reason I am an accountant!  I was so nervous with every brush stroke that I was actually making wincing sounds as I painted.  It even made me laugh.  Sitting next to Erika was perfect.  I would just 'cheat' and look at how she did hers and steal her perfect technique.  At the end though - I realized... I would much rather be on her rooftop patio bar than my street.  Yep - she added a Patio Bar!  What a creative Genius!

Laura, Erika and Amy's progress shots

I love this progress shot
Take a look at the girls with the painted mustaches!

My Finished Product!
(Can you believe this was NOT a Paint By Numbers???)

I have to say I am Super Proud of myself for stepping outside my comfort zone and giving this a try.  Kasey comes from a very talented gene pool and I am hoping his birth mother would be proud that I am trying to expand my horizons.  Eventually, maybe Kasey and I can do a class together!

Disney on Ice

Disney on Ice has been through Denver before, but ... my kids were not old enough to use them as an excuse for Kris to take me.  This year, the kids and I were all ready!  We purposefully did not tell them where we were going when we got in the car as we had a long drive to Loveland before the show.  This is the Perfect time for Naps!  Once we go there, we met up with Josh, Emily & Brianna and Erika, Luke, Julie & Laura (Erika's sister).  Amy tried for a group photo, but you will see a trend through these pictures.  The only camera allowed inside... your cell phone.  Doesn't take the best pics, but at least it will trigger the memories for us.

How do you get through Two Hours of Disney??
The men made the best of it with a Coors Lite of course!

The boys Absolutely squealed through the two hours of Disney characters coming on stage.  It started with the Incredibles family, then came Timon, Pumba, Tinkerbell, Aladdin and Jasmine.... you name it.  Every Prince and Princess was present for this big show!  I think I spent more time watching my kids reactions than I did actually watching the show.  No other way to say it ~ the day was Priceless!

Kris, Karsten, Erika and Julie
All Happy Campers!

Oh Pah-leeze let Tangled (aka: Rapunzel) come out next!

YES!

All our favorite Price and Princesses during the finale

Julie was not ready for her pic... and as you can see...
we had trouble getting Everyone to cooperate. Ha

 The perfect way to end our big day?!?!  Dinner at Red Robin!  Can you say "Endless Fries!"?  Thanks to the Prehms for organizing our tickets and thanks to the Kruegers for taking on the long drive to Loveland so we could all enjoy this together!

Easter Brunch with God's Sun on Our Shoulders

What is the best way to celebrate Easter? With God's sun on our shoulders.  What a Beautiful day He provided for us this past weekend.  After our egg hunt, we found some time to enjoy some mid-morning baseball before our big meal.

This year was especially fun for us as we were blessed with having Alisa join us for Easter.  Ty and Miley (David's dogs) were especially thrilled she came to visit!

Normally, we do the big Ham dinner with mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, etc.  This year we decided on an Easter Brunch!  Amy has been hooked on Pinterest lately and found a couple of ideas online.  We have now determined she is no longer able to try out new recipes on a holiday.  Regardless of the failed "egg boat"... we all had an amazing meal of ham, egg casserole, blueberry pancakes, mango raisin bread, fruit pizza... the Works!  We even had beautiful tulips on our table; thanks to Alisa!

How do you spelled Spoiled??? In this house we say "K-A-S-E-Y" and "K-A-R-S-T-E-N".  Alisa arrived at our house carrying some gorgeous tulips for our table and some not so little Easter baskets for the boys.  As you can see the boys were thrilled!  The baskets had dinosaurs, sandbox toys, puzzles, books, bubbles, cars ... Wow.  Yep ~ Spoiled!  The baskets were extra useful as it kept the boys entertained for hours on end that day.  I was amazed at both of them being able to take a brand new 12 piece puzzle out of the box and being able to put it together all by themselves! Such Smart Little Guys! Watch out Harvard... The Cannode boys are on their way (Scholarship pending!)

Did I mention it was Beautiful outside?  Yep - we spent the rest of the afternoon chatting it up in the sun.  Even had to put up the umbrella since it was SO Sunny!  Here are some pics of us enjoying more of our Blessed day outside!

Yep; relaxation at it's best!

Hmm - little help on the monkey bars, eh Kasey?

Buzz Lightyear flys Really, Really High
(Hence the need to be on Gpa's shoulders)

 After our lovely guests got sick of us... er; I mean left for the evening... we decided to have the boys dye some Easter eggs.  There was quite a bit of independence from the boys; which resulted in a lot of Splatter, but overall... Everyone had a blast!

Happy Easter! We hope your day was as Sunny and Bright as ours!

Hippity Hoppity... Easter is Here!

Boy, Oh Boy!  When we got home from Church last Sunday; the boys were playing on the deck and noticed some color in the backyard.  The Easter Bunny had visited while we were at Church!  How Exciting!  Kasey came inside, grabbed my hand and said "Momma, come look!"  We have enjoyed watching the changes in their behavior each year during their egg hunts.  Normally, they both 'casually' walk through the yard and pick up eggs at their own pace.  This year was Not the same!  The boys just started Running Everywhere like kids looking for ... candy!!  Daddy thought he was going to miss out on the fun as he was still searching for his shoes while the boys were picking up the eggs.

Couldn't quite get them to stand still for a pic

That Sneaky Bunny!

Whoa.  That was Fun!  Now, Lets go enjoy some Candy!