superheros & princesses

We partied it up five year old style at Jack & Sophia's double birthday party. The boys were superheros and the girl's were glamorous in their perfectly princess attire. Loving Miller's proud Batman pose.  He zoomed into the party with a special Batman accent announcing his presence...ha!You can see his full confidence in his superhero power with hands on his hips. "Batman ready" is the posture he was assuming. I think the padded muscles give him an extra ego boost. The flying cape help him fully assume character. It was an unusually cool spring day, so the Halloween costume made it's second appearance.

There's birthday boy Jack. He started the day as Batman and with a flip of the cape became Superman for his special day.

Our party princess jumped from girly activity to activity. We don't own any princess dresses yet, so the tutu and crown was our best attempt at dress up. Princesses get thirsty you know. I let her try to sip her water bottle like a lady....Lady Elizabeth Katherine that is.

Bubbles and sidewalk chalk captured her princess heart.

She loved the cardboard castle. Every princess needs a castle.

Miller was jumping away in superhero bliss for most of the party while I shadowed the little miss. Miller doesn't need me as much these days at events like these until lunchtime. But, little sister steals all of my attention with her two year old ways. There's a reason there are books written about two year olds. I'm trying not to meet her immediate demands right away. She voices a lot of requests...That's what princesses do, right?

There's the party queen, Sophia. Five candles for these two.

Right at home in the castle waiting to let down her hair;)

Batman enjoyed playing hooky from school. Now that it's spring, he's assumed the five day a week schedule. Since, he is still in preschool,  we are a little more flexible with absences for special events like these. You can't dress up as a superhero everyday to celebrate with friends.

Tutu cute girly swinging the afternoon away. A rare mommy and me shot thanks to Miss Kristen. Happy Birthday to Sophia and Jack.

Easter Sunday

Forgive us for our little blog-cation .Disney blogging wore this momma out.Not to mention, spring has sprung our family into lots of dramatic adventures & I've been overwhelmed to be quite honest. More on that later.

Here are my two southern dah-lins all dolled up in their Easter best. Hand in hand down the stairs anxiously wondering just what hopped into their baskets is how they started the day. Landon added to the excitement by singing our favorite hymn "Christ the Lord has risen today"...the kids get a kick out of his operatic touches to the Hallelujah part. It's always a performance of some kind around here. Eliza Kate shouted, "again."

This was an after shot with all their basket hoopla spread out around the family room. They each got some pretty cool bath toys to jazz up that end of the day scrub up time. This stressed out momma gathered all their basket goodies the day before Easter. {sigh} Another, tiny detail overlooked;) But, I do have to laugh at the craziness I've put myself through planning out their goodies a month in advance in the past. These details really don't matter in the scheme of things. But, I do have fun with the details.  Having a two year old who clings to me at all hours of the day has a way of slowing this momma down. I do appreciate that girly's love for her momma!

At the cross, is where we meet up every year for our family photos. It really IS what Easter is all about. We tried to focus on the greatest gift Jesus gave us on this day. The goodies & matching clothes & egg hunts add to the festiveness of the day, but it really is about salvation and the cross. I always feel like meeting at the cross refocuses the kiddos about the real meaning of Easter.

The belt...Miller's belt caused me so much grief. I finally found just what I was looking for at a little consignment store for 3.00...sold! After searching high and low for canvas, I was relieved to check that tiny detail of my to-do list. I managed to pull off coordinating outfits with accessories (which almost didn't happen). It all hinged on finding a canvas belt for Miller man. It all came down to the night before the Easter morning deadline. That's how I've rolled these past couple of months....last minute and feeling like a frazzled mess on most weeks.  Minus the bruised shins, I can clean him up pretty nicely... sweet boy of mine.

Loving how she gazes at her big bro. I hope he learns how to protect her when he's a little older. Moments like these are precious and are rewarding. It definitely makes the hard days easier to witness such affection between this pair.

Grandmama and Poppy joined us after a wonderful Easter dinner at their house. We ate on the back porch overlooking the lake.

We tried a mommy & kids shot...{tried}

Here's the family shot with Miller pulling out a contorted curtsy. Oh yeah, he knows how to command attention.

This one just makes me laugh. They were running around the flowers. It shows how Miller keeps our Eliza Kate in stitches.

Cheek to cheek. She surely has her daddy's heart. Happy Resurrection Day! Thankful for the cross.

flashlight hunt

The traditional egg grabbing this year was replaced with a nigh time challenge. We grabbed our flashlights and baskets for a fun hunt across the street. Now that the kids are getting older, they need more of a fun game hunting for eggs to hold their interest. The Holmans hosted several families for a pre-hunt cookout. We are truly blessed by their family's friendship and how perfect that Miller has a built in playmate. We don't take these things for granted. But {sigh} both of our families have our houses on the market, so we know more than ever that the golden days of Islandora are numbered. And, they have been just that...golden.That's exactly why we are counting each day as a gift while our boys can be across the street playmates.  Can't handle the cuteness of what looks like a double date with these preschoolers.

 Grant and Miller up to their cupcake shenanigans. We have pictures of these boys riding their trikes at two. They even rode in a wagon to our neighborhood Easter egg hunt at two years old in their handsome polos. They get a kick out of seeing the beginnings of their friendship in pictures.

This girly heard cupcakes and obediently took a seat to pick out a pink one.

Here's the whole  backyard gang minus Eliza Kate and baby Harper & the Pierce fam. The Holman's have the perfect yard for gatherings like these.

The boys enjoyed this fun game of Monkey Toss while the daddy's played our game of  corn hole out front.

The eggs were numbered 1-10 and each child was assigned a number to hunt for in the dark. Since we put Eliza Kate to sleep across the street, Miller had numbers 8 and 10 to collect.

He got too excited wondering what treasures were inside the plastic. There's no rush to collect your eggs once you discover that your number will still be there waiting.

Landon & Nate quickly left the hunt laughing hysterically. I knew they had something up their sleeves.  When Nate came back, he brought his hippity hop friend. Yes, Landon hopped along to be the surprise bunny. And, all the kids ran to greet him when his white furry self. What a dad! The kids had no idea that it was Mr. Landon.

Miller finagled a headgear flashlight.

 

Carter was the basket checker to make sure the younger crowd had their correct numbers. Miller politely showed him his accuracy. These details are important when candy is involved.

Easter playdate

The Zimmermans invited us to an outdoor Easter crafting playdate on the Friday of our spring break. Ms, Kristen thought of all kinds of fun Easter crafts to enjoy. Miller loved dying a couple of eggs & dunking them in the colors. That's the part he enjoyed the most---- the dunking.  He managed to adorn his orange egg with lots of sparkly glitter too.  Glitter was everywhere. I love how all the kiddos showed up with their green monogrammed aprons from Ainsley's baking birthday party.

I'm proud of Miller for coming a long way in the crafting department. He's matured a little more this year in his ability to concentrate on a craft for longer than 2 minutes. This egg dying project surely captivated his interest!

Ta-da! The prized Easter egg.

Eliza Kate dunked an egg or two. Although, I was alarmed when I thought she'd crack the egg into pieces while decorating it. Ms. Paula talked me out of my egg cracking anxiety:)  Eliza Kate wandered over to pour water from tea cup to tea cup. Water playing was more her "cup of tea".  Sweet girl....

Miller was having a BIG time riding Ainsley's princess bike. Hey, as long as it drives..he'll conquer pink. Sophia was chasing Miller trying to catch him with her net. As you can see, it proved to be a fun little game with both boys catching Sophia in the end. They caught a cute one...Nice catch boys!

All the kids enjoyed playing on the driveway on this cool morning outside.

Eliza Kate's newest obsession are "sun-gl- asses" She says it ever so cutely. I think she fancied this hot pink pair. What's not to love about hot pink? Oh the fun I'm having watching her little interests unfold. She loves to accessorize. Notice Maggie chilling in her sun chair. These are ladies of leisure, ya know.

Lunch was picnic style on the grass. It was a collaborative effort by the moms to feed everyone. Yogurt with a straw is always a genius move. No squeezing mess! 

Then the older kids had fun hiding plastic eggs all over the yard. An impromptu egg hunt is always a great way to have fun. Although, they could barely hide them in time for the little kids to spy all their great hiding spots.

Just had to capture the back of my little honey bunny. Eliza Kate made a fun game of opening all the plastic eggs. I think she was searching for candy somewhere in the empty stash.

Love Mr. Personality cheesing it up for the camera. We bribed them with Ms. Kristen's chocolate covered peeps. They had to sit still and work the camera for their treat. We've got this group photo op down pat.

Well, kind of. On the count of three everyone yelled "PEEP"! So much for not saying a "peep".

This was the best I could do of the whole group. Aren't they a darling bunch of Easter cuties? Lucas, where are you?

Chocolate covered teeth on my boy with a spotless shirt. 

Thank you for hosting Zimmerman family.We had an "eggcellent" time!

 

And, there's little man Lucas. Eliza Kate's matching little friend of the morning;)

spring break

Landon was the only member of our family that made a Florida trip this spring break...although a business trip doesn't really count as a real vacation. We still managed to play and enjoy a staycation while he was away. I really enjoyed my week off from my tutoring schedule. We all slept in everyday & it was glorious.

 Grandmama and Poppy invited us to have dinner at the Marietta Square one evening on break. Miller jumped to find his conductor hat as soon as we made our plans. He always requests his train uniform when he knows we'll be on the train themed playscape. That's my child already...matching his outfit to the event:)

This was the little missy's first time to play on the train. Two years ago she was a newborn snoozing away in her carrier. Once she warmed up, we couldn't pull her away from the slide.

Eliza Kate also enjoyed using the conductor's wheel to steer the train. Then she surprised us all with a rowdy "All Aboard" announcement. Peek a boo games followed from the steam engine's window. I have similar pictures of Miller at this age peeking out the window. Memories....

She really got into the whole imaginative play game at the park. It was cute to witness.

Miller now requests for me to take his picture after he strikes a pose. Then, he runs over to see what I captured on my LCD screen. Times have changed for our wild camera striker from a few years back. It was a beautiful spring evening eating pizza curbside and listening for the real choo-choo to come through town.

We played outside on most afternoons with neighborhood friends. It was nice that a few families stuck around to enjoy late afternoons on the block. These little friendships bless the socks off my kids. We don't have to plan a whole bunch of formal playdates as we just walk to the cul de sac.

The Escalade got a spring cleaning and a little tune up. Dylan just turned four & all of sudden Miller has taken a liking to a new buddy from  the end of our street. I think Miller noticed his maturity & as the years go by their age gap shrinks. Dylan's ride on truck is a big hit too!

While the boys played, Eliza Kate enjoyed the backyard. She's really into bubbles and sidewalk chalk these days. Oh, and she also likes to run full speed into the street without looking. Talk about a heart attack. I can't blink for one second without this little lady running away from me squealing with delight.  It's all a game!

I do love having a flat, open backyard that she can run safely in. An almost two year old needs to run! Too bad we don't have a fence to cage her in.

Don't try to take that pink bubble wand away from the little miss. She is quite fond of dunking it over and over in the bubbles. It's hit or miss, but most of the time she ends up licking the wand more than blowing a successful bubble.

More fun with her "pin-cess" ride on toy. Slowly our garage is adding more and more pink. Loving these relaxed spring afternoons outside with the family. Spring fever is here!