a little of this, a little of that

 This past school year, Kate and Ryan participated in Cubbies at church (the 2nd step in the Awana program).  They had a lesson each week that we went over at home and a verse to memorize.  They also earned badges for their vests throughout the year.  I am SO proud of these kids learning to hide the word of God in their hearts at such a young age - what a blessing to their mama and daddy (and their Heavenly Father, as well!  In May they had their awards ceremony and earned their certificates.  After the awards ceremony was the Awanaval (Awana Carnival) with food and inflatables.  One little guy was so worried he would miss the fun - hence the look on his face as mama tried to take his picture.

 Last Friday was National Doughnut Day and the good people at Walmart were giving away free doughnuts to celebrate - yum!

 Why, yes, that is Kate out on a walk in a tiny chef's outfit - Ya know, because regular clothes are just boring!

 Of course, last Sunday we celebrated Father's Day.  We made him breakfast in bed and got him some goobers and khaki pants as well.  He's a great daddy and a silly guy and we love him so!

Woolaroc

 On Friday, Matt had the afternoon off from work, and the weather was beautiful outside, so we loaded up in the car and drove to Woolaroc.  Woolaroc is the former ranch of Frank Phillips that has been developed into a nature preserve with animals roaming around, a museum, a petting zoo, and a playground.  It's outside Bartlesville (where Matt grew up) so he was pretty familiar with the place.  I had been there twice before this trip, but not since I was in 9th grade (just a few years ago).

 Kate and Ryan had a blast!  They loved the playground.

 Kate really loved the petting zoo.  She would have spent the whole time in there if she could have.  When a baby goat tried to get a bite of her dress, she said "Well, he must have thought I was a zebra!"  Ryan was not too sure about the petting zoo - he liked looking at the animals, but was not interested in actually touching any of them.

 The kids also loved the observation tower, which they kept calling the Eiffel Tower.  They wanted to go again and again.

Before we left for the day, we made one more run by the petting zoo.  Ryan finally decided to work up his courage and pet a baby calf.  He told us later that night "I'm sure glad I met a nice baby calf at Woolaroc!"

Frozen Fun

 Oh how I LOVE Pinterest!  I find the best ideas on there (I often joke that I don't even have to be creative anymore, its all on Pinterest!) and here is our latest fun find...SNOW!

 The "snow" was very easy and inexpensive to make.  All you need are 2 large boxes of baking soda and 1/2 bottle of lotion or conditioner (I used lotion since I already had that on hand).  Mix it all up and it actually feels cold!  And for the really fun stuff - we added blue glitter, glass beads, and our Frozen characters!

 These kids LOVED the snow!  They played for about an hour the first day and have had it out everyday since (it keeps several days if you keep it in an air tight container).  

They even built an ice palace for Queen Elsa to stand on and sing "Let it go"

tiny dancer

 Sunday was a big day at the Mills house as our tiny dancer, Miss Kate, had her very first dance recital!

 K's recital was at the Coleman Theatre.  It is a beautiful place built in 1929 in downtown Miami.  What an exciting venue for her very first time on stage!

 The little ballerina received beautiful flowers from her many admirers - MomMom and Papa, Nana and Poppy, and The Prescott family all came to celebrate with us!

 After the recital, everyone came back to our house for some yummy cake and ice cream.  What a special day to watch this precious little girl dance with her friends.  Looking forward to the many recitals to come!