MOPs Adventures

Over the past year I've enjoyed meeting lots of other Moms and their children through the MOPs group at our church. MOPs=Mothers of Preschoolers. This group has truly been a God-send to me. Where else can you gather with Christian women who have the same responibilities, are going through the same day-to-day crises (read potty-training, terrible 2's, etc, etc), and yet still love being Mommies?! All while your children are being cared for in the church nursery! It's 2 hours of good food, fellowship, inspiration and reflection. Over the summer we have lots of playdates and Mom's Nights Out too! One of our favorite places to visit in the Forest is the Cradle of Forestry, the birthplace of forestry. We had a playdate/field trip with some other MOPs friends recently and we really had a lot of fun! I encourage anyone in the area that hasn't visited the Cradle to go! And it's free on Tuesdays!

Ice cream at Dolly's is a MUST after any forest adventure.

Be forewarned: This a "Kiddie Cone"...It's HUGE!!

And she ate every last bite...

We enjoyed a picnic potluck after a long hike.

On the way down the mountain we stopped

to feed the fish at the Fish Hatchery.

The kids all piled into the helicopter to go fight a forest fire in Idaho.

No adults allowed!

Gracie and Aiden brought up the rear, usually sharing a snack.

Let's Party!!

Saturday night we invited some close friends over for a cookout to celebrate Gracie's 2nd birthday. We had a great time and Gracie really enjoyed having all the kids over! We ate hamburgers, hot dogs, baked beans, pasta salad, cole slaw, lots of chips and dips and then cupcakes and strawberry pie. Thanks to everyone who brought food and drinks! Gracie got lots of really cute gifts and we enjoyed hanging out with friends we don't see as much as we'd like! Her big gift from Momma and Daddy was her play kitchen set. She's been playing for hours, cooking "boop boops" (fruit loops) which we've enjoyed every bite!