Darby Smart

I just ordered from the cutest company! It is called Darby Smart. It is this awesome concept where you order a crafting kit and it comes with everything you need to complete the project. It is perfect for those of us who want to do something with our hands but the idea of going to the craft store is overwhelming. Or for when you want to experiment with a new craft but don't want to buy the full size of everything you need. The projects are totally on trend. I wanted almost all of them! They are so sweet and you still have creative leeway on how you want it to look.

This cute little ring dish is the kit I ordered. It hasn't actually arrived yet, but I'll tell you all about it when it does.

I'm not getting any sort of kick back from them. I just thought it was a really cute concept and the projects are amazing and wanted to share. I'm really hoping it is awesome and then I may place a few orders for Christmas presents. My sister would love a little kit.

You can use the code "howdydarby" to get $10 off your order! That would make some of these adorable kits just $9 and I believe if you sign in to their website you get free shipping for a year. It's really a great deal.

Have any of you had any experience with Darby Smart?

June

 I love having Calder home for the summer. It took him a week or two to adjust to staying home and not seeing his school friends Monday - Thursday. Thankfully we've had lots of play dates with them so we don't miss them quite so much.

 I've tried to do some really fun activities since Calder is out of school. We have been doing some art projects. The kids love it. I don't tend to get the art supplies out as much as I should. It gets messy quickly and takes a long time to get set up and clean up but I'm trying to do it more.

 This happens a lot. Colette thinks the doll stroller is her own personal seat. She really loves to have Calder push her around but she is still quite happy just to be sitting in it. If she's not in it she is pushing it around with one or two babies in it.

 We've been hitting up 'kids eat free' day at Ikea. It's a fun outing and Calder loves to play in the Smaland area.

 And we went strawberry picking. The farm we go to has goats, dogs, chickens, alpacas and sheep.

 I think Colette ate her weight in strawberries. She wouldn't eat them for a few weeks after this, but she's willing to again.

 This is our haul. We made delicious sugar free jam.

 The farm has two very sweet, very docile dogs. When asked what kind of dog Calder wants he will tell you a farm dog. This is totally based on temperament. He doesn't care too much about size and color and type. He wants them to be lazy dogs.

 Red eating a snack with Colette.

 Our sweet friends the McAllisters just moved from Virginia to Texas. We love them and hope to cross paths again soon. We went out to visit them right before they left. And we played in their swamp back yard. The kids were in heaven and both required a change of clothes.

 Colette prefers to swing over anything else at the park. I think she could swing for hours.

 I love this picture because I feel like it really shows what our life is like. We walk most places. This day we went to the fountain in downtown Silver Spring to play. Then we stopped by Whole Foods on the way home to grab milk and a few other things. That stroller is a work horse and carries so much stuff. I love the board Calder rides on so his legs get tired. Seriously the best investment we've made in a while. And I love that Calder wanted to wear his helmet and rain boots to the grocery store. Which is totally him.

 This is what it looks like when the kids get a box from their grandparents. Permagrins all the way.

 We got Jason a grill for Father's Day. Due to overwhelming demand they didn't have any assembled and I got the last one they had. Thankfully it wasn't too awful to assemble in the basement with the help of the kids. It works too.

 Calder is such a good woodworking helper. We've made a few projects so far and I love doing it with him. Our first project was a bookshelf. I'll have to find a picture, but we love it. Calder helped me measure each piece and held it steady while I drilled it in. Our second project was a laundry sorter as seen below.

 When we went to get Jason's grill from Home Depot we borrowed our friend's truck. Calder got to have his booster seat in the front seat of the truck. (The airbag was turned off) He thought he was being so risky. He didn't want me to take a picture because he didn't want anybody to know he sat in the front seat before he was 12.

And that was June. It was awesome and fun and just perfect in every way.

Colette's Birthday

 Colette had a perfect and fun first birthday. She was so happy and excited to get so many fun gifts. Calder was thrilled to choose a baby doll for Colette. He named her Red. Red and Calder's baby Isabelle go everywhere with us. They went to church today.

 We did a low key family party. We initially wanted to have friends over but most of them were out of town for Memorial Day. It all turned out just fine though. Colette was happy.

I can't believe how fast the last year has gone. I love this girl even more every day. She is so fun and happy. She loves to run and chase her brother. Her doll is her most prized posession and she loves to give her pats and kisses. Today she asked me to put a dress of hers onto her doll Red. It is so fun to have such a girly girl.

She just recently started eating more and nursing less. Although she still won't drink milk. She likes yogurt and cheese, so she gets dairy, just not milk. I've tried skim, whole and chocolate. She won't have any of it. Jason and I aren't that crazy about milk either, but I wish she would at least drink it a little. She does love eating fruit, broccoli, pasta and grilled cheese sandwiches. Oh and she would live off popsicles if I would let her. That is one of her favorite words and will run to the freezer if I mention them.

May

 May was such a full but fun month! Calder finished his first year of preschool. He absolutely loved it. They had a superhero planet pal day. Each kid chose what super power they wanted to have and created a costume to go along with it. Calder was fight stopper. He got people and animals to stop fighting. Here's his finished costume.

 This is our favorite park. It has an artificial turf soccer field. It's nice it is always green and perfect to run on. It also has play equipment but no shade, so we don't go as often now that it is hot.

 Calder found a robin egg that fell out of a tree in the yard. It fell quite a long way but didn't break.

 I had a superhero over for lunch. I served hot dogs.

 Then these crazy kids tried to sell me a hotdog at the mall.

 Calder's Grandma Kate sent him a butterfly kit for Easter. He loved it. He loved watching the change from caterpillar to butterfly. He was sad when we released them and they flew away without landing on him first. He frequently looks for them in the yard.

 This picture is 100% Colette. She LOVES to wear her sunglasses and will leave them on a very long time. When she gets tired of wearing them she pulls them down and they become a neck accessory. She also loves hair bows and headbands. Each morning she chooses one to wear and leaves them in all day. She is clutching an apple which is awful and awesome at the same time. She really likes apples but she doesn't swallow them. She just chews them and spits them out. It makes a horrible mess but she is so happy when she eats them. The word apple is probably her clearest.

 This is Calder's friend Charlie. Charlie just moved about 30 minutes away and in two months is moving to China. There has not been a day that has gone by that Calder doesn't tell me how sad he is that Charlie moved. I'm sad too. That friendship was just so perfect. Thankfully they can still send letters and email after Charlie's big move.

 This is so funny to me. I took Colette to Ikea and was walking by the kid section and noticed her outfit looks just like this blanket. I was ever so tempted to buy it because it seemed so serendipitous.

 On the last day of preschool when I went to pick Calder up I saw this outside the classroom. I love it. They wear those boots most days because they go hiking and ponding and puddle jumping.

 This is Miss Katie. She is Calder's favorite teacher and will be his teacher again next year.

And this is Ms. Mary. Calder really liked her too.