spring break..the highlights

Day One: Duck Feeding

We met up with Ruby & Caden at a local park for some playscape fun and a picnic. Good thing this momma packed some aging bread to feed the geese. The ducks weren't too eager to eat as 25 other preschoolers and their mommies beat us to the punch. They already had full bellies. Throwing bread bits into the pond is a great safe alternative to rocks.

Day Three: PLAY gym

We met up with some friends at an indoor gym. Since the weather was gorgeous outside, we pretty much had the run of the place. I love this gym as they have an indoor picnic area to eat. They even offered an arts and crafts activity for the kids. So much to do! Eliza Kate loved the ball pit and bobbing up and down on the jumpy equipment. I bounced her up and down on the large exercise ball. She crawled until her heart was content.It brought back memories of our former PT gym experience. She didn't cry this time:) Big brother blew off a lot of steam diving in the foam pit and rolling down the ramp while holding tightly to the huge bouncy ball. He never fails to give me an adrenaline rush. Yes, I'm going gray because of this one.

Day Four: Sweet Shoppe party

We celebrated Sophia's 4th birthday with sweets galore. Her candy buffet was a preschooler's dream come true. Miller kept filling up his bag until his heart was content. The theme was precious and the darling decor was super feminine and cute!

Too bad our prissy missy couldn't partake in all the sweets. She didn't miss out of the party spirit. She entertains herself these days by pulling up on anything and everything.

More jumping fun indoors. They sure did have a sweet sugar high to burn off.

Day Five: Park Fun with Allie & Michael

We ended up right where we started...more duck feeding. Spring Break came full circle. One of the things I enjoyed about this week was meeting up with friends out of our normal routine. Flexibility in the schedule was an added bonus and we didn't have fixed preschool days to plan around.

Catching Spring Fever over here!

Birthday Bike

As if turning four wasn't enough to make me notice that Miller's years are flying by, put this growing boy on a bike with training wheels and he really looks the part of four. Omi and Papa spoiled Miller with the wonderful gift of a new bike on his fourth birthday. Miller has been trying out friends' bikes on the block for a few months now. Little did he know that he would get one on his birthday. We had a great time as a family taking the model bikes for a whirl around Toys R Us to pick out just the perfect size. It was special for Miller to choose which model and color he wanted. We all chimed in with a lot of advice of course. We tried to steer him clear of a character bike..I know, we're no fun!! I must say that the CARS model was ever so cute.

We came home with high hopes of putting the pedal to the metal, but the weather was not favorable for bike riding that week. Miller really broke the wheels in this past weekend with his buddies. These boys like to admire and trade bikes for variety in the cul de sac. Omi and Papa came into town for an overnight visit. Perfect timing for Miller to show of his new balancing talent on his Schwinn. If only he could master the hand breaks. He's going to wear a hole in his crocs before spring is over. I have a feeling we're in for a few skinned knees and a whole lot of bike riding fun this summer.

pirate p"aargh"ty

Yo ho! A pirate's life for Captain Miller and his shipmates. We celebrated the big 4 with 12 swabby friends and a few itty bitty matey siblings at Pirate's Cove. Sand, cannons, swords, hats, eye patches, and loot..what more could a four year old swabby want?

Shiver me timbers, these swabbies had lots of energy to burn aboard the ship.

Since it was a birthday celebration during the week, we had the whole cove to pillage..pirate style. What's a pirate party without dressing the part? The boys sported hats & swords and the girl mateys were bedazzled in beads & hot pink kerchief headpieces. Captain Miller tried the eyepatch on for size but quickly realized it takes a lot of patience to see with one eye. Aaargh!

Then it was the long awaited cupcake time. Even pirates love frosting. In the four year old brain, this is what parties are all about. The birthday chorus did not disappoint. Miller felt so loved to have all his special pirate mateys in the room just for him. Sorry swabby mommys for choosing red frosting and sending your swabby home with a plastic sword for that matter. Stain remover sticks should have been included in the loot bags. It didn't take long for these scallywags to clean up and get into shipshape for another round of rowdy fun.

Birthday boy pirates like to dig for golden treasures beneath the sand. It's hard work ya know! Between shoveling sand in buckets and filling them to the brim with foam balls from the cannons, these bucaneers were a hard working crew.

With a heave ho these shipmates worked together to get the job done.
Little sister stayed out of the line of fire and sand to celebrate her brother's big day. Just one month shy of her big day. It's a whirlwind of birthdays at our house.

A big thank you to my friend Tracy at sweetpeachpaperie for helping me with the printed products. I'm in love with her cupcake toppers and favor tags. It was fun to decorate in reds and blacks and I couldn't resist bringing in the fun polka dots to pull it all together. This was a fun theme to work with. I wanted to keep it preschool- pirate friendly instead of scary. Miller wanted to know why there were doggy bones on his pirate hat...so cute! I didn't want my four year old exposed to skulls & crossbones just yet. My painted pirate turned out looking more like Calliou the baldheaded PBS character than scary Jack Sparrow;)

The Happiest of Happy 4th Birthdays to Miller!

Our lives changed forever four years ago and we'll be forever thankful for the sweet blessing of your life. Love to you!

Spring Week

Happy first week of spring. We took advantage of this gorgeous Atlanta weather and headed to the park with an extra "spring" in our steps today. Sunny days are such a mood lifter especially for this stay at home mommy whose had a little too much inside time lately.

Lots to celebrate on this bathwater warm day. First day to wear shorts, Iron Man shades, a picnic parkside, new friends, Miller's last week of being three, and the SUN!

Not to mention a happy baby girl in the swing. After 10 minutes, she sank back, drank in the sun and started to doze off with her white hat flapping in the breeze. Such a sweet sight!

One thing that I didn't plan for with our crawler was the shredded tire playscape floor. I watched Eliza Kate like a mommy hawk as she wanted to sample the rubber...eww!

Capped it all off with a picnic and 8 ounces of bottle goodness and we called it a day!

Babyhood

Baby rolls, baby face, baby legs, baby sounds, baby expressions are all disappearing with our girl. It hit me in waves this month. Ten Months has a way of doing that to me. Eliza Kate has one chubby fat padded foot in babyhood and one foot in the independent semi-toddler world. She's slimming down and getting wispy curls in the back. Her hair pattern reminds me of Miller around 15 months. Chatty Cathy is saying "Uh-Oh" and "t-t" each time she spots kitty. She's growing in confidence pulling to stand and is finally feeding independently. All the milestones I was hoping for came to fruition this month. Maybe that's what has me all worked up and sentimental that my baby is growing up.
We celebrated her babyhood today with a mini photo shoot in the guest room.We're just a few days shy of the eleven month mark..Hey, it counts as her ten month photos in my book.

Muah..love to you sweet baby of mine!

Bedtime

Bedtime...it can be the most exhausting time of day! Crying kids, impatient mommy,bathtime, drying hair, brushing teeth, hunting for jammies, final bathroom trips can all tire this mommy out. Seeing my kiddos snuggle in Eliza Kate's crib made it all worth it tonight.
They were enjoying one another in her crib cozying up to Landon's guitar serenade. Moments like these make me want to press pause on their sweet little lives and the time Landon and I have when they're so young. We'll take the exhausted state as long as we can experience the joy of our children. They are a complete joy for us!

Sweet thing loves reaching out tickling Miller's ears at this stage. She can't keep her hands off his hair. When Miller flashes her a smile and a laugh, Eliza Kate smiles and giggles the sweetest sound in return. I have a good feeling about these two.

On the Move

Untitled from Erica Fokens on Vimeo.

Sample footage of the little miss on the go. Listen for Miller cheering and clapping her on to the finish line:) Grandmama thinks she looks like a little bumble bee getting around. She's our queen bee, that's for sure! Nothing like a tutu'ed tushy swishing around the house. I like to watch her diaper padded bottom creep around. We're smitten with this little one...big brother too!