We're Going to Party ALL WEEK LONG!

We had an awesomely busy and fun weekend and I refused to let Monday put a damper on my mood. It did not disappoint... It's been a good Monday! The rest of the week should follow suit accordingly!

First off, it was a weekend of firsts... for several! The Hubby and I went kayaking for the first time. So fun!! I have wanted a stand-up paddle board for a couple of years now, but it would be fun to have a pair of these to play with too! If only our summers were just a bit longer... And we had a few million to buy a beautiful place on a lake where we can escape to and never have to work again... Oh, sorry! My daydream got away from me.

Anyway... I was so sore after that little kayak ride. We went farther than we thought we had and you use far more core muscles than you'd think to row one of those little things! When we got back two of the three kids decided to try snorkeling. The little man gave up after choking on water he sucked in the mouth piece a couple of times, but the oldest loved it. I think she's 1/2 fish!

Then we loaded onto the pontoon and took the kids out to jump off for the first time. Oh the squeals of delight for those who were brave enough to keep jumping. The ones who just climbed in were full of giggles too. We were so deep that the anchor wouldn't even touch, so to them it was just crazy that they were "so far over their heads." We played and played and played! Then The Hubby swam back to shore - quite the workout, but his first true open water swim, with some distance, since we started swimming together. Needless to say, it was a fantastic weekend and our lakeside hostess was amazing to share everything and hang out with us!

The Hubby and I also stayed mostly on plan, but splurged on ice cream at the little ice cream shop that is a tradition during each cabin visit. Plus, it's been so hot up here that I have actually been craving ice cream for weeks. I don't EVER crave ice cream. It sure was yummy though. We shared a cone (they make HUGE cones) and listened to the kids squeal and giggle over their brain freezes. Goofballs!

Back to the grindstone today though! Although, I was welcomed back to work by a nice couple of surprises... First, my boss finished my letter of recommendation for my application into a master's program I applied for to start this fall. It was an awesome letter! Then The Hubby showed up with some flowers to brighten up my day as well! He's a keeper!

So, bring on the rest of the week! It's scheduled to be a pretty darn good one! We have the whole family home for the next two days. Then Wednesday is girls night with my two best friends to celebrate on of their birthdays. Thursday my big girl turns EIGHT followed up with a sleepover birthday party with three friends on Friday and a full-fledged family/friend party on Saturday. WHEW!!

You know what though? I live for this kind of stuff! I live for being busy, but even more, I love parties. I love planning parties and I love throwing parties. I love spoiling the kids rotten for their birthday... It took 7 years to hold this one in my arms and hug my own baby and take her home with me. It took another year to hear the word Mama and almost another to hear I love you Mama from my own little miracle. I don't spoil my kids year round, but I celebrate birthdays like they are royalty! Without them, all four of them, my life would be so empty and incomplete. So, I love to celebrate each one of them and try hard to give them the dream parties they have in their heads that year. For this one, it's her first big sleepover - complete with spa treatment for all 4 (plus a little sister who will be thrown into the mix because, well, she's there!). I think I'm just as excited for this sleepover as my big girl is! The count down is on and I have plenty of prep work to do, but that's also me. Miss Procrastination! I'll pull it off though.

The big thing here is... with all these parties and birthday celebrations I have sworn to myself that I will stay on track and I will avoid the naughty goodies and party yummies. We will have plenty of stuff out, much like the last party in June, that The Hubby and I can splurge on without guilt. Plus,w e still get to take her out to dinner and her choice this year... A Hibatchi grill! Oh how I love that kid!