sunny days

flip flops on, long walks, chats with neighbors

flowers on the front lawn

the first sunny day we have had ALL week! we headed out to the Shaker Village to see the Baby Animals......farms all over the county bring there new baby animals to the village for a few weeks in the spring...one giant petting zoo! the shakers were amazing...they lived a very simple life, made beautiful furniture, and grew amazing gardens......the kids actually showed interest in exploring the buildings this year, instead of just the animals.

we met up with some friends of course! Cooper could of sat here all day.

and Caroline couldn't wait to pet this calf

Caroline traded her hat for this one.... and played a little dress up.

in order to preserve the wood floors in the old buildings they have us put on these slippers over our shoes....Cooper was not having it....but when he saw the kid size brooms he changed his mind....are these my kids?! we stayed in the kitchen for over 30 minutes while they sweeped....dust was a flying! this never happens at home!

and a Friendly's shake for the ride home....life is good!

my first completed bag! the other one is still waiting buttons to attach the strap......I sewed the strap into the lining of this one.....I've yelled at both of the kids, each one thinking I made it for them.... life is quiet these days....no holidays to get ready for, no trips planned....we are all anticipating warmer weather for the weekend....much needed after the 38 degrees we woke up to this morning.....someone even whispered snow....but i didn't see any. Cooper is becoming an expert puddle jumper.....and Caroline is already wearing out her new sneakers Gramma bought her.

weak

I am weak.....I went to our local fabric store to find buttons to finish this..... no buttons ( i have to drive 30 minutes 2 towns over to find buttons...aghhh!)....but i found this fabric and had a weak moment.....I just needed buttons, and i wasn't going to buy anymore fabric (said the voices in my head).....but since when did this shop start carrying Amy Butler.....I'm in trouble....it was hard not to buy a yard of everything.
can't wait till a little somebody takes a nap!

really random

really random today...kind of out of it....after I took care of everyone with the stomach bug...I was hit last Friday, thankfully a day that Rob was home. So I am having one of those days....I could be doing a million things...other than the dishes, laundry, cleaning.....but i can't seem to focus. I found a great purse tutorial here that i would like to try, I have to tag clothes for a consignment sale, organize junk for a tag sale......but the weather is blah....therefor i feel blah.

here are a few random pictures to go along with my random thoughts.......like Cooper's new haircut? awful!!! it's not in his eyes anymore but the bangs are all wrong...oh well, we are also finding that he is between sizes.....2T is too short, but he can't seem to hold up a 3T...poor coop.

How come it takes 30 minutes to set up all the paints.....and the kids only paint for 5 minutes?!

I want to fill my yard up with these!

I found Caroline's pjs, goodnight lulu, for a great price at a consignment sale....she likes them because her nickname is lulu....not sure why we started calling her that, pretty random! Now that's all cooper will call her...we say "say Caroline" and he says "Lulu!"

caught Bella taking a nap with bunny.
the kids Easter morning before church.
Having a quiet week......everyone is feeling better after the stomach bug this weekend. The crew was suppose to arrive today to work on the screened in porch...but they are a no show.

ready.....set......
GO!




Checking out the loot. Notice the winter coats, splash boots and Rob wearing shorts....a weird weather day!
all smiles!

one scary rabbit....Caroline is not afraid.

coop is a bit weary...i don't blame him.

we were on our way home when Caroline realized she had the special egg....she won this bunny! ...one bunny + 2 kids = fighting over it all day!

table set

flowers and decorations in place

eggs decorated (yes, Caroline loves wearing her hat ALL the time) (and yes, that's plywood where the screened in porch is suppose to be...I'm told Wednesday, i won't hold my breath)

found a GREAT recipe here for Easter cookies...the recipe explains the story of Easter while making these yummy meringues!
we sealed the "tomb" ....the next morning we opened the tomb to enjoy the cookies...they were hollow...to represent the empty tomb that was found on Easter morning.


we had a wonderful Easter weekend! although I'm not sure what is worse...on Saturday we hosted a sit down dinner for my side of the family...filled plate up=ate WAY to much! The next day we went to Nani and Grampa's house....the food was out all day=we ate ALL day! I might not have to worry about all the food i consumed...Caroline has been sick all morning, and Rob is home sick from work.....stomach bug.....I'm on the 4th load of laundry and trying to disinfect the house from germs.

the last of the vacation pictures...i promise....we have Easter to move on to anyway! The kids loved the craft room at the Children's museum......i liked the marker holder...cooper loved the scissors.
A picture of the kids before our night out to a "fancy" restaurant....no kid's menu at Garibaldi's! So we plan accordingly.....backpacks filled with quiet activities, early reservation, our favorite seat by the window, one parent ready to dash with screaming child, threats made, bribes set, hair combed, shoes on....dinner was great!

loving the blue sky and sunshine!

Our last night we met up with my college friend and her 2 kids! I got to hold the baby and Caroline got to snuggle.
Coop and Sully kept busy eating peanuts....Cooper learned the smash with bucket method and smash on head brought on lots of giggles! No worries here...they even had a pirate treasure box filled with treats for the kids.

Charleston vacation

Even though we only had a few beach days, most days were perfect for exploring Charleston...there is plenty to do: the kids loved exploring The Battery..........I was just happy to see green grass!
We headed to the aquarium on the rainyest day.....Caroline and Rob are taking in the view....even pretty in the rain.
A beach day! 2 kids playing within inches of each, working on the same castle, and not killing each other......priceless.

This year Caroline ordered her own crispy flounder at Garibaldi's.....I wasn't willing to share mine.

Enough procrastinating for me...still settling in from the trip, cleaning house, catching up on laundry, getting ready for a visit from Gramma and Shener, hosting Easter dinner on Saturday, get a start on garden planting, Easter decorations and baskets....gonna need more coffee!

I love posting happy pictures on my blog......it helps me to stay positive because i really do have so much to be thankful for...i am truly blessed with a wonderful husband, and 2 healthy kids. But like i said before this vacation was not our finest hour.....so here is my darling boy.He was like this for most of the trip. It was a long week.
The 15 hour trip down was uneventful....Caroline didn't get sick this year! We stopped around midnight and crashed at a hotel.....Cooper literally crashed...when I asked where he wanted me to set up his pack-n-play ( he needs to be contained when he sleeps) he said "here momma" and he layed down on the floor and fell asleep! We woke up and kept driving...made it to Hilton Head Island by the afternoon...we spent the first night in a beautiful house that Rob's dad was renting with his golfing buddies.

a little golf anyone? the kids loved the game room!