Easter

I know that the Easter pictures should have been with the post from last week, but there were just too many pictures!

Gigi and Jaja came back to Louisiana with us to celebrate Easter! Mary Virginia had riding lessons - we were getting back into the swing of things and our regular schedule! She did great riding Bailey has usual and Gigi was able to see her jump! (Even if Bailey doesn't jump very high!)

Jaja and Ed went fishing on Saturday. Even though they didn't catch many fish, I still think they had a great time! They are getting ready for their next fishing adventure! While the boys were fishing, mom and I took the kids out to lunch and to get a "Jessie" doll for MV. JB has Woody and Buzz and MV was feeling a little left out! Then it was time to dye eggs. Now, if you read my previous post, you know that I am a control freak when it comes to dying eggs (also with play dough, but that is a story for another time), so this was a struggle for me. Thank goodness mom was there to help! The kids did great and I tried to stay calm!

(John Bay decided to use his hands to pick the eggs out of the dye. I am cringing just looking at the picture.)
....and the beautiful results!

We left our note and treat for the Easter Bunny on the mantel...we weren't too sure what the dogs might do. The kids were excited about their goodies - lots of pool toys, sunglasses and bathing suits (the Easter Bunny must have known we were heading to the beach).

It was off to church and lunch. Everyone looked great in their Easter clothes - and everyone was happy! We waited for pictures until after church and I am not sure that was the best idea - we were all tired, hungry, and the sun was sooooo bright!

The Easter Bunny stopped back by while we were at church to hide eggs. He said that he didn't want to hide them before church because he didn't want the dogs to eat them when they went outside. I guess he has been watching Princess, she will eat anything!

After lunch, we had more egg hunts. And more and more...but everyone was having fun!

Happy Easter!

Spring Break Week!

Week 45: What a fun week at home with friends and family! (Another picture heavy post)

After a busy weekend, we tried to take it slow on Monday - we relaxed and played! The kids and I did a little shopping and then it was off to the dentist! (We try to get all of our appointments taken care of while we are home!) Mary Virginia loves the dentist - she couldn't wait to show Dr. Morgan all of the teeth she has lost and which ones were coming out next! John Bay was a different story....he started out so good - he was watching MV and doing what she did and then they brushed one tooth and he flipped out! Dr. Morgan had to bride him just to look at his teeth. Overall, it was a successful trip to the dentist, but we were all happy to have that over with! Then it was off to dinner with the Stoffregens! It was so good to see them and catch up - the kids have really missed their friends - they have all grown up so much, I am just glad they could pick up right where we left off)!

Tuesday brought on another adventure...a trip to the zoo with the Youngbloods! It was a blast - the zoo has changed so much since our last vist! It is great to be able to enjoy all of the progress!The kids had such a good time running all over the zoo and checking out the animals! I think they had the most fun playing on the playground by the elephants.

Mary Virginia was playing the drums and Caroline started dancing in her stroller! She was loving the music!

Sweet friends! (We miss Ella so much, and her mommy, daddy, and sister too!)

The zoo is always fun and we are memorized by the animals - today the elephants put on a little show for us. As we were finishing our lunch, we happened to walk by the elephant exhibit and the trainers were taking in a snack. It was so neat to watch them call the elephants by name and they came right away to get the treats. We were able to see the elephants up close! (I think Allison and I may have been more impressed than the kids...)

After the elephant excitement and lots of "cats", it was time for a cookie break!

Tuesday night we celebrated Mimi and Jaja's birthdays at The Club. It is always such a nice way to end the day - great food and an amazing view! Of course, after the long day at the zoo, John Bay fell asleep in the car - he was not happy about waking up, but this seemed to cheer him up!

Mary Virginia loved looking out over Birmingham and running around the fountain!

Then it was time for dinner...YUMMY! The company and meal were wonderful as always. The kids especially loved the special chocolate milk that our waiter brought them, I think it was straight chocolate with a shot of milk!

Wednesday was a relaxing day (Ha!) - we worked on packing, getting haircuts, a visit to our old school, lunch with Gigi & Jaja, dying eggs with Mimi, and dinner with the Huntons! Both kids have certain people that they will let "touch" their hair and of course, only people in Birmingham will do! Haircuts are always a "fun" experience with John Bay - you have to bride him A LOT! Lunch at Zoe's was delicious as always - yummy food, a gorgeous day to eat outside, and fun with the grandparents! The kids loved dying Easter eggs with Mimi - and I love that Mimi loves dying eggs with them. I think that I am way too much of a control freak to have fun dying eggs - I like for the eggs to look a certain way and the colors to be bright and cheerful. The kids get excited just putting the eggs in the colors. I am really going to have to work on the control freak issue! Dinner with the Huntons was fun as always. Who doesn't love Mexican and a restaurant where the kids can be loud and act like kids - and not cause a scene! Allison and I topped the night off with a trip to the movies! It was a fun-filled day, a great way to end our visit home!

After writing this, I realized that all of our visits revolve around food...we have found that it is the best way to catch up with friends that we miss so dearly (and we all have to eat...)!

Thursday, it was time to head back to Louisiana! The trip was great except for the rain! It was nice to have my mom and dad drive back with us to celebrate Easter!

Ready For Our Trip Home

Week 44: I have split up our trip home because it fell over two weeks...so keep checking back for the second part of the week!

The week went on as usual with school and Girl Scouts! The kids and I spent most of the week getting ready for our trip home for Spring Break! We did have a surprise on Monday night...Mary Virginia had a tooth that was just barely hanging on and after trying to eat an apple and lots of wiggling - she wiggled her front tooth right out!Both kids had fun getting ready for their Easter parties and egg hunts! John Bay wanted to take cupcakes - we had fun making cupcakes with green grass icing and jellybeans eggs! His school had a pizza party and the kids got lots of fun Easter goodies! Mary Virginia decided that she wanted peeps and rice krispy treats (thanks Pinterest). MV's school had and egg hunt and ice cream sundaes! We skipped horseback this week - there was just too much going on with trying to get ready to head to Birmingham! I was able to have a Girl's Night Out before we left with some of the B & G wives - somewhat of a baby shower dinner for one of the wives. Ed and the kids were so sweet for letting me go have a fun night out!

Saturday, we hit the road to Alabama! We had an easy trip - this was my first road trip home without Ed...just me, the kids, and Bandit! Everyone was excited throughout the trip, but especially when we got off the interstate and headed toward Gigi and Jaja's (my mom and dad) - kids were screaming and giggling and telling me to speed up and Bandit was crying to get out! It is always fun to come home!

Sunday was Palm Sunday. MV was so happy to get to see all of her friends and to carry the palm branches into church! Sunday started the whirlwind trip home...after church, Mimi and Balba (Ed's parents) came to see us and have lunch.

Then it was off to the park to celebrate Ella's birthday party! She was such a cute birthday girl in her strawberries and what a cute party - I am so glad that we made it home in time - and that Allison waited to have the party until we made it! Allison did a great job with all the decorations the delicious cupcakes and the balloon lady!

John Bay loved his balloon monkey!

This was the perfect start to our Spring Break! We can't wait for the rest of the week!

Girl Scout Camp, Ponies and Egg Hunts - Oh My!

Week 43: Another week down in Louisiana! We took tons of pictures this week, so get ready!

This week we were looking forward to Girl Scout Camp and Lucy's birthday party! We kept up with our usual routine throughout the week. Mary Virginia got another wonderful report card! Even if she claims she doesn't like school, she is doing great and learning so much! On Friday, we spent the afternoon at the barn as usual and MV rode Cayenne. We had a special treat, Cayenne's owner came to watch the lesson, so MV got to show off a little!

MV posting/trotting on Cayenne, showing off in front of his momma!
Girl Scout Camp
Saturday was a LONG day! Mary Virginia and I had to get up around 5:00 to make it to camp on time! She was such a trooper! Once we got to camp the girls were all so excited! We met the rest of the troops at the flag pole for the pledge and then it was off to our activities! Our first of the day was a nature hike and leaf rubbing. The trail went up and down a pretty steep hill, I was so relieved that no one fell (especially me)! Our girls led the hike and they didn't complain once! (I heard some of the older girls in the back fussing a little, so I was so proud of our girls!) The girls collected leaves native to the area, like magnolia, sweet gum, oak, and lots more! Once the hike was over, we showed them how to make leaf rubbings and they look great!
After a quick water and snack break, it was off to the next activity...Face painting and a hay ride!
The girls loved the face painting - they all wanted to be painted to look like kitty cats!

The hay ride was ride around the camp. The girls had a chance to look around the camp and see the cabins where they could stay when they got older. They also were able to see all of the activities they could do as they got older - archery, horseback, ropes course, and the canoeing.After our morning activities we had a little down time (3 hours) - we had a picnic lunch and then we took a hike around the camp. The girls played by the lake and in the canoes and then we hiked up to the horses to see if we could catch their attention! We ended up in a field, playing tag!

Then it was off to the campfire to cook smores. The girls loved the smores and all of the roasted marshmallows (They ate so many that I lost count...I am surprised no one got sick)!

After smores, the older girls joined us at the campfire to sing songs and exchange SWAPS. These are pins that each girl makes to exchange with the other girls. You can make as many or as few as you would like and you put your name and troop number on it. The girls usually pin them to a vest after the exchange so that they have something to remember all of the friends they have made at camp!

It was an exhausting but fun day! We can't wait to do it again next year!

John Bay and Ed - Boy Day!

The boys had a special day too! They started their day with a trip to Waffle House - this was going to be John Bay's first time, and what a memory it will be! They took one of the girls from across the street with them, thank goodness. After they placed their order, the griddle caught on fire. As the fire started to spread, Morgan took JB out of the restaurant while Ed waited to see if they needed help putting out the fire. (There was a volunteer fireman having breakfast there.) Once that excitement was over, they enjoyed a yummy breakfast!

It was off to Lucy's birthday party after that! JB had so much fun, he got to be just like his big sister, riding a horse!

He had so much fun riding the pony, petting and feeding the animals, playing and eating cake and ice cream! He was worn out too!

Eggstravaganza

After church on Sunday, we had the Easter Eggstravaganza! We had lunch - hot dogs and jambalaya (...is there ever a time when you can't serve jambalaya). The kids played on the bounce while we waited for the egg hunt to begin.

We found lots of eggs...which made everyone very happy!

It was a great week - we are counting down the days until Spring Break - we can't wait to go home to visit all of our friends and family!

St. Patty's Day!

Week 42: I think we are finally getting used to life with Princess Lucy Anna and she is starting to make herself at home! This week she has ventured out of the kitchen (her hiding spot under the kitchen table). She has slowly moved to the back of the house, but her favorite spot is John Bay's bed! This wouldn't be a problem if this wasn't Bandit's favorite spot. We also can't leave Princess alone in a room - she will eat anything she wants...toys, shoes, socks, plastic bags, you name it!

It has been such a beautiful week (with the exception of Monday) that the kids have been outside all week playing on the swing set and on the NEW trampoline!

Friday was "Biscuits with my Buddy" at MV's school. Of course, her buddy was her daddy! They had a great morning - and Ed brought home the most amazing artwork that MV had done for her buddy.

Then it was off to the barn for our usual Friday routine! I think John Bay is starting to enjoy the barn - at least running and chasing the cats and dog and petting the horses! MV rode Sealy again and did fabulous! Sealy usually has a little attitude, but MV took control and made her behave. It is so much fun to watch her ride!

Saturday was St. Patrick's Day. Being in Louisiana, they celebrate here with a parade and lots of beads! It was far more crowded than the Mardi Gras parades and a whole lot more college kids. We waited and waited, but once the parade started it was so fun. The kids loved all of the beads, candy, footballs, cups, and frisbees! I think our favorite float was the Angola Prison Rodeo - it was pulled by 4 Clydesdales. That is one amazing animal! The kids had never seen a horse that big and couldn't believe it, especially since the day before MV rode a precious (tiny) pony!

After a few floats and lots of bag pipes, the kids were ready to go. They were happy with their stash! This was fine with us, we didn't have to fight traffic since we left early! The rest of the weekend was so relaxing - we stayed outside and enjoyed the extra daylight!

Basketball Awards

Week 41: A fun, hot week in Louisiana! MV's school had their monthly fundraiser and they were able to wear pajamas to school. It was in the upper 70's all week but she wanted to wear her favorite fleece pajama pants and long sleeve shirt!

John Bay wanted in on the pictures - you see that he had to wear long sleeves and pants just like MV!

On Saturday, MV and Ed had their basketball banquet. The kids got trophies for playing such a great season and a few of the moms went in and made pillows with the jersey numbers!

Here is MV with her trophy! (Ed dressed her and fixed her hair)Ed playing Chubby Bunny!

He had to stuff marshmallows in his mouth and try to say "Chubby Bunny"!

I think he only got 5!

John Bay and I went down to Navarre to help out some friends! I took the kids to play on the playground overlooking the bay - I love the view and the kids had a blast!

After a trip to the park, lunch at McDonald's, and a quick trip to the grocery store...we made a sign for Michelle to come home (and tried to get the house cleaned up from all our craziness)!

John Bay and I had so much fun visiting with friends during a quick trip to Florida. I wish we could have stayed longer to help out, I guess we will just have to go back for another visit!

Ed and MV had a fun weekend enjoying some much needed "daddy-daughter" time. They surprised us by putting up the new trampoline! I think we are all looking forward to a low key week next week.