Let's Go BRAVES!!!

Yesterday afternoon Robby called and said he had tickets to the Braves game if we wanted to go.  The girls and I jumped at the chance for a fun night out.  We picked him up from work and headed on to the stadium while the girls did the tomahawk chop nearly the entire ride there.  It was such a great evening to spend at the ballpark and we all had a blast.  We ate a quick dinner inside the stadium before heading to our awesome seats (right behind home plate).

View from our seats

Handley was very interested in the game and what was going on, so I spent a lot of time explaining to her how the rules of baseball work.  Harper liked clapping when everyone else did and thoroughly enjoyed climbing in and out of the seats again and again.  We got the whole fan experience in last night, including doing the tomahawk chop, the wave, and even ended with some dip-n-dots for dessert.

The game didn't start until 7:30, but we made it until about the 5th inning in our seats.  Then we stopped by the kids zone on the way out to let the girls play, slide, and run the bases, which was Handley's favorite thing to do.  She even told me that she'd like to get real bases at our house and a bat for her birthday so she can play baseball too.  :-) Both girls fell asleep in the car about 10:30 on the way home.  It was a late night for them, but so worth it for all the fun.

Art Show

This evening was the Art Show at Handley's school.  They hold this event each spring and we always look forward to attending.  Each class has several pieces of art displayed and it's so fun to see their unique and creative presentations.  Some are interesting bulletin boards, others are hanging from the ceiling and some even create elaborate scenes.  We enjoyed looking at all of Handley's art work, visiting with her classmates, and seeing her teachers.  

Every time I'd try to take a picture of Handley beside some of her art work, Harper would run up and pose for the picture too. She enjoyed running around like she owned the place.  That girl is just going to be in heaven next year when she is attending school too.

The girls with Handley's teachers,  Mrs. Gloria (L) and Mrs. Nina (R)

And, because I never have pictures of me with the girls, I set up my camera on the timer to snap a few when we got home.

I'm having a hard time grasping that the school year is already coming to an end!  Only 3 more weeks until summer vacation begins for us.  I'm excited about spending lots of time together outdoors, at the pool, and with friends though so I know we will keep busy one way or the other.  

Hudson's Nautical Nursery

With my first pregnancy, Robby and I had decided that if we were going to have a boy we'd do a nautical themed nursery.  The same was true with my second pregnancy and it didn't change this time around either.  I've had fun working on it and although I still need to do a few things (like get Robby to bring the ottoman of the glider up from the basement, get a changing pad cover, add a few picture frames, etc.) it's pretty much done so I thought I'd go ahead and share some pictures.  

We're using the crib and changing table from Harper's nursery and the green glider from Handley's room.  The canoe book shelf came from Robby's parents' lake house, via our lake house, and was the perfect fit for the room.  The sailboat window picture was my gift to Robby for his 21st birthday.  I just spray painted it to match the room and I'm so happy to get to use it in the nursery.  I made all the bedding and curtains and found most of the nautical accessories in NC when I was there visiting my parents a few months ago.  I'm really happy with how it's all come together and can't wait for our baby boy to arrive this summer.  Having his room done definitely makes things seem a lot more real.

Recap of our week so far...

Handley seemed a little off on Sunday, but a I just wrote it off to a busy weekend and really didn't think much off it. Monday morning I went with her class on their "walking field trip" to the Smyrna Library.  While they were there they had a storytime and a tour of the library.  She had fun, but wasn't acting like herself.  

I was happy I got to go with her and so glad that Christy was sweet enough to watch Harper for me.  She had a blast with Jake and Reece (as always) and was so happy to get to have some playtime with them.

Monday afternoon Handley kept telling me that "inside her mouth" hurt, but I didn't think anything of it.  Finally she was able to articulate later that night that it was her throat that hurt.  That was also the first thing she said to me Tuesday morning so we all got dressed, ate a quick breakfast and sat in rush hour traffic so that we could get to the pediatrician's office before the walk-in sick hours were over.  She was acting like herself, happy and playing, so I was kind of surprised when the strep test they gave her came back positive.  She was happy to get a popsicle to help her throat feel better, but devastated to learn that we couldn't go to playgroup and that she couldn't see her friends for 24 hours.  

Yesterday afternoon she and Harper played, ran around outside and I really never would have known that she was sick.  Same was true today...she feels fine and told me that her throat doesn't hurt anymore. So happy it was short lived.

This morning we ran some errands and then met Jen and Parker for lunch at the Dwarf House Chick-fil-a.  That little red door was the main attraction of the day.  Both of them went in and out of it about 15 times!

Currently I'm watching the weather reports and happy that it doesn't look too bad for our are, but I'm prepared for the worst.  With all of the tornado damage that has occurred today in Alabama I'm not messing around.  I've got blankets, waters, the girls' bike helmets and a flashlight by the basement door, just in case.

Happy Easter!

We had a wonderful Easter Sunday today.  We woke up to the sun shining and it was such a beautiful day to celebrate.  The girls were excited to come downstairs to check out what the Easter Bunny had left for them.  We ended up having to wake Harper because she was snoozing away and Handley couldn't wait any longer.  Despite Harper's fear of the Easter Bunny yesterday at our egg hunt, she sure did seem disappointed this morning when she learned that he had come while she was sleeping and wasn't actually there to greet her in person.  She kept looking outside the window and asking where he was.  Ha!  Harper's favorite things in her basket were the band-aides, her new Pez dispenser and her Biscuit's Easter book.  Handley was excited about the "Tangled" movie, her new watch, and the princess Thermos water bottle.

After breakfast and a little relaxing we got ready for church and enjoyed a GREAT service with GREAT music!!!  I loved that the service ended with the Hallelujah chorus...it was so moving!  Then it was off to Gigi and Papa's house for another egg hunt and fun treats.

How perfect are these PJ's Gigi found for the girls?!?!

We had a quick lunch and then Robby chose to go running while I chose to try to take a nap.  I had layed down with Harper in the hopes that she would nap, but she wasn't about to miss any playtime with Gigi and Papa.  Every time my eyes would close she kept saying, "Wake-up Mommy!"  So, instead of napping we all went outside and the girls helped Papa shuck corn for our dinner. They loved doing this and took their jobs very seriously.

We decided to pass on the traditional Easter meal and instead enjoyed grilling out for and spending lots of time outdoors today.  We literally had to drag the girls to the car to come home this evening because they did NOT want to leave.  I can't believe I didn't get one picture of them with Gigi and Papa, but a BIG thanks to you both for having us over today and for making the girls' Easter so very special. :-)

My mom worked long and hard on the girls Easter dresses this year and they looked adorable as ever.  Thank you mom!!!

Neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt

Yesterday was our neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt and the girls had been looking forward to it for at least a month.  My friends Carrie, Christy, and I plan and organize this event for our neighborhood and I collected all of the eggs from everyone.  Everyday we'd come home and the girls would run to check the basket on our front porch for more eggs.  This year we had over 90 kids participate and it was our largest turnout!!!

The weather was not the greatest the morning of the hunt, but that didn't stop all of our wonderful neighborhood volunteers to come and help us set up and hide over 1,000 eggs.  We have lots of help for this event and are lucky that we live in a neighborhood where so many people are willing to bake and prepare treats, donate their time to set up and clean up, and help pull off such a fun event for the kids.

The kids could have cared less about the weather and were just thrilled to be there with all of their friends.

The Easter Bunny himself even made an appearance and showed up in style...riding our golf cart!  Of all the planning that goes into this, finding someone to dress up as the bunny is always the hardest.  This year, our good friend, Bryce filled the role and did a FANTASTIC job.  A HUGE thank you to Bryce.  Robby just happened to see the Easter Bunny "hopping down the bunny trail" on his way to the egg hunt and decided to give him a lift.  Harper wanted nothing to do with the Easter Bunny and tried to stay as far away as possible, but Handley was excited to run up and give him a hug.

Right after this picture was taken and we were walking away, Handley turned to me and said, "Did you see the Easter Bunny was wearing tennis shoes?!?!?" Ha! 

Thankfully at one point the girls were posing together and the Easter Bunny snuck up behind them for a photo op with out Harper even knowing he was there.

 When the countdown begin, the kids were so excited and as soon as they were given the go-ahead they all took off running!

 After all the eggs were found Harper made a bee-line to the treat table while Handley was more interested in playing with Avery.  Finally we all ended up sitting together to enjoy some sweet treats before starting to clean up and head home.

Notice the cupcake frosting still on Harper's lips! 

 At home, Handley spent a good hour opening each egg to inspect it's contents, adding it to her growing "Easter candy bag" and giving me the plastic eggs to pack away for next year.  Harper helped for a while, but after I wouldn't let her have any more candy, she moved on to playing with her baby. It was a great day and a fun way to kick off our Easter weekend!