Easter Morning

The kids were so adorable when they woke us up to go downstairs on Easter morning. They were in their Easter jammies and I couldn't get over their cuteness. The carrots and water they left for the Easter Bunny were gone. He really had been at our house! The baskets were super simple and the kids LOVED them. The big hit was each got their own roll of patterned duct tape. Very exciting. Summer left a note by her basket before going to bed with instructions that she did NOT want any bubbles (she thinks it's for little kids). So Forrest did get bubbles and Summer did not. Phew! Foil wrapped chocolate, a few bouncy balls, watercolor paint set and stickers and the kids were thrilled. We had the egg hunt in our backyard. It is so darn cute watching them. I got them little green felt baskets a few years back for our egg hunt and now it's a tradition. They love those little things. It was such a simple and fun morning. Happy Easter!

Hoppy Day

We had a really nice day today. The Easter Bunny did not disappoint this year. The kids woke up to LOTS of chocolate and an Easter Egg hunt. After church we had two of our dear friends over for Easter Dinner. I took lots of pictures but am just too tired to even look at them right now - except for this sweet little one I saw of Forrest. Here he is in his new Easter outfit this afternoon. He says its not complete without his bow tie. Adorable. I was walking up to see why the front door was open and there he was watering the plants. The sweetest.

Just "3 more sleeps"

... but who's counting?

The Counter Debate

I've been having a hard time making my decision about the kitchen countertop for a while. If you know me well enough, it takes me forever to make a decision... poor David. But I can't justify (or afford) buying the most expensive ones. I've decided on Caesarstone's Misty Carrera quartz which is a soft grey that resembles carrera marble. I saw a sample at a kitchen showroom the other day and immediately loved it. I'm crossing my fingers it will turn out how I've imagined.

Until then, the cardboard boxes will do just fine.

Dress Down Day

Summer's school had Dress Down Day. Normally the students wear school uniforms every day so this event was a real treat. The students get to dress up a character from a book of their choice. Summer has always said she wants to be a reporter like Amy Namey from the Judy Moody books. When we talked about which character to pick, she looked sad at me because she thought "no one would know she is" if she went as Amy Namey. I told her I could figure something out to make it obvious that she was Amy Namey, The Reporter. The apron was full of pencils and post-it notes for the important questions. She carried a clipboard around and I pinned a name tag on her. The white rhinestone rimmed glasses were her favorite part. She said Amy Namey wears TWO watches so those were an easy make. I thought she looked adorable. She did too until it was time to get out of the car. She kept saying she was nervous and would NOT open the door. I told her it was no big deal because if she didn't want to be in costume, all she had to do was put the apron and clipboard in her backpack and she was in a perfectly cute and normal outfit. She agreed and hopped out of the car. Watching her walk through all of the kids was painful for me. I thought for sure when I picked her up from school that there would be NO sign of her costume. I was happily surprised to pull up after school to find her still in full costume. She said she had a really fun day. I don't know if she'll continue to want to be a reporter when she grows up but I do know she would sure make a cute one.

Monkey See Monkey Do

Summer is one awesome life coach.

She passes on only the most important life skills to her little brother.

Love

When we put the kids to bed last night, David and I went down the stairs to clean up the kitchen. While we were cleaning, he took my hand, and gave me a kiss on the cheek. And you know what? It was just as thrilling as it was the first time he did that, 13 years ago on February 13th. That day David and I volunteered to help with the Special Olympics Ski Team at a ski resort in Boone. After everyone had gone home at the end of the day, it was just the two of us and maybe a few other skiers on the slopes. We rode up on the chair lift in the cold wind as the sun was going down and skied down the mountains as much as we could before we got kicked out. When I loaded up my skis in my car and said my good byes to David, he gave me that first kiss on the cheek.

I am so glad he's my Valentine.

Photo from our family ski trip in Whistler in 2006.

Heart Attack

On Valentine's Day, after Summer and Forrest got out of school we went straight to the neighborhood down the road from our home. We have the world's NICEST friends and gave them a "heart-attack" on their front door. My kids refer to them as Oma and Opa and love them dearly. They really are like Deaf grandparents to our kids. Oma always remembers their birthdays and brings over treats for each holiday. Opa used to ride his motorcycle and both Summer and Forrest loved to sit in his side car... in the garage. He recently sold his motorcycle and got a VW camper van so they can travel with their dog, Emma. She is the sweetest dog. Summer and Forrest beg everyday to get a dog just because they love Emma. Needless to say, we just adore them. So for Valentine's Day we cut out hearts and Summer and Forrest wrote little messages to them. We snuck over and taped them all over their front door. I think we need to make this a tradition because it was just too much fun.

Valentines

Forrest and Summer passed out Valentines in their classes today. Here are Forrest's and Summer's. They are too cute. That really is their profile and they both felt so excited to pass them out to their classmates.

After school today we gave our sweet friends a heart-attack on their door. I have the cutest pictures that I am trying to upload. I'm having a hard time uploading them but will get that figured out in the morning. Forrest had a class party at school that was adorable. We had dinner as a family and got to use our fancy dinner plates for the first time in months. We've been using paper plates during the kitchen renovation, and yes we are STILL renovating. After David got both kids showered, into their jammies for bed and read them a story. That was the best gift EVER! A busy and happy day.

Valentines from here

Asheville

We just returned from three days in Asheville visiting my parents, Grandaddy and Grams. I almost never took my camera out but was so glad to capture this one with Grandaddy in the back of their house. All Summer and Forrest could talk about during the six hours drive was riding the zip line. I think this picture says it all. A fun memory for sure. For those of you who are curious, that's a paper airplane in my dad's mouth. He was holding it for Forrest. So sweet.