Happy Easter!

Carl's parents were in town for Easter and it was so nice to spend the holiday with them. It was cold and dreary but still the perfect day to celebrate that Christ is Risen. Evie and Henry were thrilled to see their treats from the Easter Bunny. They were so excited that they woke up quite early. Evie was ready to wear her new white sandals. Henry looked adorable in his vintage sailor suit from Uncle Ben. My brother wore this as a baby which made it even more special for Henry to wear it today. We took a few pictures before church but I wish we had more. Church was wonderful with festive music and a special message. Evie and Henry enjoyed an Easter Egg hunt inside the church since it was rainy. We came home for lunch and then enjoyed the rest of the day at home. Happy Easter!

Week in Review: Snowy Spring Break

Happy Friday, Y'all! It's been a cold week here even though it was spring break. Snow fell on Monday but did not stick. By Tuesday morning, there was a bit of accumulation. It's been nice to have a break from our packed schedule although we manged to fill it with other activities.

Monday: We stayed home all day until after Henry's nap. Then, I took both kids to Aldi and Hobby Lobby. That took a few years off my life -I miss the days of Evie and Henry sitting contently in the cart. Evie walks now and Henry does not sit contently unless he in the deep part of the cart which leaves me without any room to buy anything. 

Tuesday: Evie wanted to play restaurant in her room with music and cinnamon toast. It was adorable! We met our friends at Pump it Up for some playtime. Evie and Leah had a ball while Henry and Eddie played together. Evie even braved the rock climbing wall after seeing Leah attempt it. She's a BIG fan now and is already requesting to go back.  I made dinner for two families that needed it. BBQ because it is easy and makes a lot. We delivered it quickly and then Carl came home while I took Henry to the doctor. It was so nice not to have her in tow with me. Henry needed a haircut so that was our next stop.

Wednesday: It was a rough day! All three of us were out of sorts and Carl was in Chattanooga. I dropped the kids off at the gym and then we headed over to the library. After naps, we went to Phillip's Toy Mart to see the live bunnies and the trains. Everyone else had the same idea and it was packed! We had a lovely time and enjoyed the bunnies. Evie was super impressed that the bunnies lived in castle. We stopped at Fresh Market on the way home to pick up our ham and some other items. I love Garlic Expressions salad dressing and the herb rolls. Delicious! Henry fell out of the bathtub and bumped his eye. He has his first black eye. Poor little guy!

 

Thursday: Karen came to keep the kids while I took a little breather. Preschool is a necessity not a luxury. I need a few hours to gather my thoughts! Both kids were sleeping when I arrived home and since they did not know that I was home - they slept until 3:30. We missed the egg hunt but I will take a nap over an egg hunt any day. It was a nice day so we played outside a bit. I cleaned out the garage a bit while the kids played. Evie and Henry dyed Easter eggs with us and enjoyed it so much. I kept Evie up with me since she had napped and we had a nice time together in the kitchen reading books, painting toes and preparing food.

Friday: We had friends over for playtime and lunch. It was so much fun - six kids and three Mama's - busy but fun!I made a yummy pasta salad from my friend Kristin and the kids played so well. Sometimes, I feel too busy for play dates but always have so much fun when we host a play date. Carl's parents are on their way to celebrate Easter with us. 

Hope all of you have a wonderful weekend celebrating our Risen Lord.

What I'm Loving Wednesday - Sweet Designs and Cole Slaw

Happy Wednesday! Here's my loves this week . . .

Wells-Fargo Mobile Deposit Ap: Changed my life! It's so nice not to pack the kids up and drive to the bank just to deposit a check. I am sure that a mother invented this ap. Amazing!

Sweet Designs by Amy Atlas: Carl bought me this fun book for Valentines and I just had the chance to read it. Lots of fun party ideas with brightly colored pictures but the best part is a detailed source list for all products. Definitely a fabulous resource for party planning!

Pulled Pork Coleslaw: I made this coleslaw to go with the BBQ that I took two families for dinner last night. Found it on Pinterest . . . obviously. It is so delicious. I usually always mix up coleslaw with the pre-cut cabbage or broccoli slaw but this is amazing. I'll be honest this was my first time cutting a cabbage and it was worth the effort. Celery and creole seasoning really make this salad. I did not have an celery seed and substituted with extra celery salt. Make this for your next backyard cookout.

Confidence: Evie mastered her first rock climbing wall yesterday. I am so proud of her blossoming confidence! Peer pressure can be a beautiful thing. Leah climbed up that wall and Evie was ready for her turn next. Check out that look of concentration!

And the winner is . . .

Heidi of Sweet Birdies Nest is the winner of the gorgeous Seychelle's earrings! I received mine and they are gorgeous. Thanks for entering the giveaway! A HUGE thank you to Kathy Chaney with Stella & Dot for hosting the giveaway. Congratulations Heidi, I know you will adore these earrings. Stella & Dot is my favorite line of jewerly. Enjoy!

Disclosure Statement: I was compensated with a pair of Seychelle's earrings in return for hosting this giveaway. All opinions are mine. Winner was chosen through Random Number Generator.

Sweet Siblings

 Don't forget to enter the Stella & Dot Giveaway! If you do not have a blog, click on anonymous and then leave your contact information for me.

Weekend Wrap-up: Storms, Supper and Sickies

We had a low-key weekend! Always the best kind of weekend now that I am a Mama.

Saturday: We stayed home most of the day. Evie went out with each of us for some alone time. She went to Home Depot and Chick fil A with Carl. I took Evie to Publix and to pick up her Easter dress from Sew What. It looks precious! The Onello family came over for supper and we kept it simple with carry out pizza from Sal's. It was delicious and easy. I might have friends over more often if it was always so easy. Our kids played well together and we had the chance to catch up a bit. Evie had a ball with Abby. I am pretty sure they tried on a large portion of Evie's dress collection but they had a blast! It was a fun evening. Evie's favorite part was the birthday cake. Maura recently celebrated a milestone birthday so we wanted to share in her celebration! Maura is just beautiful on the inside and out and such a down to earth friend - just what every Mama needs in her life. Happy Birthday, Maura!

Sunday: Evie woke me up in the middle of the night feeling sick. Sure enough, within minutes she was sick and it was a rough night. I felt terrible for her especially since I had just experienced this bug on Friday. Evie camped out with me all night since continuous sleep was not really an option for either of us under the circumstances.  Carl took the early shift with Henry at 5:20 and 7:20 so I could sleep a bit longer. Evie slept so late this morning that we woke her up at 10 and then she took a little nap on the couch this afternoon. It was the perfect day for being sick with lots of storms. Rainy days are the best days for napping!  All of that rest made Evie feel back to normal so we all headed out for a family walk after the storms cleared out. She felt like playing a few games of Candy Land and Memory. Then played dress-up from my closet, which seemed like a good idea but Evie had a little bit too much fun with my clothes. Henry spent the afternoon eating popcorn and requesting "more pop pop" which his father happily agreed to the request.

That about sums up our weekend! It's spring break but it feels more like winter break with a chance of snow tonight. Brr!

Week in Review: Sewers, Stella & Dot and Sickies

It's been another whirlwind week! Most weeks are though these days. It's been an adjustment to get back into the swing of things after my respite last weekend. Parenting would be a lot easier if it was not so constant. That must be why grandparents love grandchildren so much - they get their dose and then go back to their quiet houses. I know - I'm going to miss this one day.

Monday: Both kids were great, we had a fun day at home in our pj's reading books, catching up on laundry and listening to the rain. It was stormy and yucky so we just stayed home and skipped all of our obligations. That will not always be an option. Evie decided to nap her babies on the stairs which resulted in Henry not napping for long. Thankfully, a friend called me around 3 with sewer problems at her house so we ran over to sit at her house for the plumber that never showed up while she picked up her son at school. I felt horrible for her - such a mess! Henry and Evie loved having a new house to play in plus pets. 

Tuesday: We all went to Evie's school for a conference this morning and received a glowing report on our little scholar. Evie stayed at school and Henry went with me to drop off copies of our will with the financial adviser. I grabbed two envelopes and they were both my documents. Ugh, so now we have to go back again. Be sure that you give copies of your will to a few people. I had no idea about this until recently. Henry had a ball with Ms. Judy because she filled him up with Andes mints - that's his favorite. Henry will be happy to go back with the correct documents! I had a productive day because Henry took a whopper of a nap which is super rare. Evie had swimming lessons and then we called it a night!

Wednesday: Another PJ day at our house! We just did some cleaning up, messing up and organizing. You know it goes! I tried to bake some lemon blossoms and they did not turn out. My oven is doing crazy things these days so I need to have someone over to check it out. None of my baked goods are coming out anymore. 

Thursday: Evie and I dropped off Henry at school and then raced back home for our Stella & Dot party. Be sure to enter the giveaway. I will select the winner on Tuesday during nap time. Party was fun and it's always good to see friends. Evie loved her new necklace that Kathy brought her as a hostess gift. She has not taken off since she got it. Evie and I went out for ice-cream after the party since she is on spring break. She gets a big kick out of spring break for some reason. Her school was actually closed for conferences but spring break sounded better!

Friday: I woke up sick, sick, sick and it just got worse all day. My kids had the run of the house and I did not have enough energy to care. Evie woke me up to tell me that Henry had rubbed banana into the carpet. It was that kind of day with lots of movies and independent play - AKA destroying the house. Evie loved being "in charge" of Henry and took the liberty of putting him in a dress. He looked pretty cute to me but Carl did not agree. Carl came home early with wonton soup and I went straight to bed. So sad, because I missed the Nashville Blogger dinner but I just could not make it. I am feeling much better today. Hope everyone is having a great weekend.