Ballerinas and Ballers

See what I did there?

Softball is back! What red-blooded American doesn't enjoy and night at the ball park, eh?

Same goes for a little one's ballet recital. So many warm fuzzies! All the feels! It was the sweetest thing I've ever seen in my life. Here is a video from the dress rehearsal. They were nervous, on stage under the big lights. But they bravely carried on, smiling, "even though it was hard to smile that whole time, Mom" and totally won the show. (If there was a competition for cuteness.)

The dress rehearsal went great and then we had a girl's night with Riley's friend and her mom. We went to dinner and shopping, and let me tell you, it is getting so fun to shop with Riley - she has opinions. "Ooh, that looks so good. Ooh, Dad would love that hot dog shirt."

The next day was pouring rain ALL day, but never mind. The first half of the day we spent house hunting. With the kids, their raincoats and umbrellas, in and out of the car, in and out of houses. Definitely the best way to house hunt ;). Then we headed back to the auditorium for another rehearsal right before the actual performance. Those girls were super prepared.

 Warming up.

Eagerly waiting the big reveal. We haven't watched any of her practices this year so we really didn't know what to expect.

 (No pics during the actual performance, but here is one from the rehearsal)

They did such a great job! I was mush inside, absolutely melted.

Here is Riley and Gracie, and Riley and Ms. Zachari. Their teacher does all the choreography for all fifteen or so dances for all abilities and ages - she is very, very talented. And Riley loves her - totally wants to be a ballet teacher now.

So beautiful. I see so much of my mom in this picture.

Following the recital we went (back out in the rain) to...Snuffy's!

 Kid-approved as a great place to celebrate a sweet ballerina victory.

And for the "Baller" portion of this post: here's Dave.

It was so fun to be back out at the ball park. I love how no matter the ballpark, there is always a mismatched gang of happy, wild children packing around, running up to the fences to yell at their Dad or Mom, trying to hug the dogs, bumming food off each other's parents, leaving socks, shoes, and jackets strewn across the bleachers and playground, and basically having the time of their lives without any regard to bedtime or the dirt on their toes. It's also fun to watch the teams though. Dave's team appears to be something of a "comeback" team. It makes games extremely engrossing and satisfying to watch. We are going to have a fun summer!

Mother's Day

I had a very nice Mother's Day! It could have just been sad and hard, but Dave and the kids made me feel really special and appreciated. I requested, and was granted, breakfast in bed and episodes of Fixer Upper on my computer. I couldn't stay in bed though, because they brought me their extremely thoughtful presents, and I was so touched and happy, I felt like being with the family and up I got. So that's good :)

We went to church and Riley and Joe sang this beautiful song with the primary and had everyone crying (not me...but had I not been distracted by Henry trying to electrocute himself, I might have.)

It was a gorgeous day for a Sunday walk. 

We walked and talked, and ate Twizzlers, in honor of Mom. Twizzlers always make me think of Mom. Specifically, sitting in the car with Mom waiting for one or more of my siblings to get out of music lessons or sports. Sometimes we'd pass around a pack of Twizzlers to "tide us over" till dinner, and now they taste like peace and comfort and well-being.

We talked about Mom, "Grandma Jan" while we walked. Joe asked if there were Twizzlers in Heaven. Dave figures anything we want to be in Heaven will be in Heaven. Sounds right.

I'm glad I'm a Mom! It's been really good for me! You could drown trying to not mess it up and be everything for your little people, because they are amazing and they deserve everything! But here is a thing that I've learned: God takes our best efforts and makes them enough. That is my mantra on the hard days and I'm relying on the Atonement now more than ever. The calling of motherhood has led me to that. I suppose life is a proving ground to learn that and make choices that lead you to Christ no matter your calling, but that has been my experience and there is nothing I'd give up for that knowledge.

Also, these kids, man. Pieces of my heart walking around outside my body! They have turned me into a doting, protective Mama bear I never thought I could be. Thanks to Dave and these three cherubs, I laugh more now than I ever used to (very likely sleep deprivation plays a part in that too - we're slap happy a lot these days...Dave came home and laid face-down on the carpet yesterday and Henry toddled over to sit on his head. Life's just fun!) I love experiencing things for the first time through the eyes of a child. The questions like, "What's the healthy part of candy?" and "How many money's do you need to buy a house," said while counting his pennies. Riley, stroking your face and looking deep into your eyes to bend you to her will. Henry, and his heart-melting cuddles.

And finally, my Mother's Day favorite's roundup: (Putting my scrolling to good use.) If you haven't already seen these lovely Mother's Day gems, well, enjoy!

• This blog post I read a long time ago and still think about when I change my kids into cute clothes
• Language but LOL (have your brunch at home)
• Sharing this solely because it recommends catching crawfish: summer fun for the thrifty parent
• One of my favorite parenting podcasts of all time - this lady has GOOD advice