Tate's End of the Year Preschool Party

Tate's school had a party in the park to celebrate the end of the year. In theory, it was a great idea. They had us bring a picnic lunch, they had cake and we had plans to play on the playground and in the splash pad area. However, it was freezing and so windy and there were three school buses full of kids from different schools. But, we had fun playing for a little bit and eating our lunch all wrapped up in towels. :)

Trying to enjoy lunch

Corey had a blast too!

Tate's teacher for this past year, Mrs. Padilla

Great Weekend

We had a really nice weekend. The weather was great and we didn't have too much planned. So, we spent most of Saturday working in the yard and garden and playing outside. We even got out the little pool from last summer and the boys loved playing in that. I love these kinds of weekends!

Corey loves playing golf!

The boys love Louie the dog

Our garden this year....let's see if it is more successful than last years :)

Dancing in the Pool (with a golf club and a rolling backpack)

Tate's Spring Preschool Program

Tate had his preschool program tonight and they were supposed to dress up as an animal or bug. I asked Tate what he wanted to be and the only thing he wanted was a blue macaw (from the movie Rio). So, I bought a bunch of cheap blue feathers and found some stuff around the house and came up with a costume. I think he looked adorable. The program was really cute and Tate did a great job. The little girls behind him kept pulling off his feathers, but Tate didn't seem to notice or care. :) Tate loved Growing Tree Academy and has had a great year there. He has really made some great strides this year and we couldn't be happier with how things went. He is really excited to go there again next year!

Tate getting his "diploma" from Mrs. Buonefort

I sure love this kid!!

 Here are some videos from the night:

Saying Goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa Hess

 Our trip wasn't too long, but it was such a great one. Nathan's mom worked really hard on some great meals and she really made the stay amazing. AND, Ryan also came down as a surprise so it was great to see him. Nathan and Ryan made us all breakfast for Mother's Day so that was really sweet. It was a great Mother's Day!

Nathan grilled us a delicious dinner!

Nathan and his mom on Mother's Day

The family in front of their Merced house

We framed the pictures of the brothers for their Mother's Day present

The Hess names etched in the concrete

On the way home, we stopped in Vegas for the night. We stayed at Hooters (the fine family establishment), which was actually really nice, as well as cheap ($20).

Guess what time this photo was taken? 2:30 in the morning! They were insane!

There was a really cool pool at the hotel and the boys had so much fun!

Having some good food at Hooters

And, here is a Mother's Day Song from the boys :)

Merced!!

We made a quick trip this past weekend to Merced to see Nathan's parents. We made the decision to go pretty last minute and it was a surprise for Nathan's family. It was a long trip (12 hours each way), but definitely worth it! AND, as a bonus, Shelley, Alan and Baby Ella were there. It was such a great trip!

Picking cherries from Grandpa's Tree- YUM!

Grandpa Hess, Shellsies, Alan, Ella, Tate and Nathan

Snails in the garden!

These two are 4 months apart! Can you believe it? Corey looks like a giant compared to her!

A little show by the cousins (please excuse the fact that Corey has no shirt on) :)

Grandpa has the most gorgeous garden!

Nathan's cousin just happens to be a missionary in the Merced area- how random is that??

Isn't she the sweetest? We miss her already!

Swishing it

We love Aunt Shelley and Ella!!

Nathan found one of his dad's old flight suits. Doesn't he look handsome? :)

Grandpa's orange tree