Jen's Baby Shower

Today I threw a baby shower for Jen.  Some of her closest friends were here to celebrate the upcoming arrival of her baby boy.

Handley had the choice of staying here for the shower or going with Harper and Robby.  She wanted to know all about the details of the shower, who would be coming and what we would be doing.  Her decision was a hard one, but she ended up staying for the shower and I think she had a good time. She was actually a huge help to me this morning as we were getting things ready for everyone to arrive and took her job of handing Jen gifts to open very seriously. Everyone was very generous and Jen got lots of great things to help her prepare for Parker's arrival.

Look how tiny Jen looks (she is center in the green dress)!  From the front you can't even tell she is pregnant.  

The only picture of Jen and I together today and my little helper, Handley, took this of us.  She did pretty good!

Congratulations Jen!  We can't wait to meet sweet baby Parker!!!

The Art Barn

Yesterday we made our way north to The Art Barn.  Some friends told us about this farm and we were so happy that we decided to go.  It's a real farm where the kids get to pet, brush and hold all sorts of animals including cows, donkeys, horses, chickens, pigs, sheep, ducks, and rabbits.  They also get to take a tractor ride and get a step-by-step art lesson to learn how to paint one of the animals on the farm.  The kids had SO much fun and we all learned a lot about many different farm animals.

We arrived a little late, but Farmer Jenny helped us join in the art lesson that was taking place.  The girls did a wonderful job following directions and painting their chickens.

After painting was done we got to take a tractor ride and tour the farm.  It was a very bumpy ride, but tons of fun.  After the ride the big girls got to sit on the tractor and pretend to drive.

Finally it was time to meet the animals.  Farmer Jenny took us around to each group of animals, introduced us to each by name, and taught us a little about each of them.  The kids were fascinated by all of the animals and not the least be afraid to touch, hold or brush them.  In fact, as we approached each new animal one of their first questions was, "Can we touch him?"

After our tour of animals we ate a picnic lunch and even got to feed our left overs to the pigs.  :-)  It was a wonderful hands on experience and the people that work at the farm are as nice as they could be.  I would highly reccomend this outing to anyone!

30th Birthday Surprise

My sneaky husband had something really big planned for my 30th and I had no idea.  On Saturday afternoon Jen showed up and he told me that she was staying with the girls for the night and that I should go back an overnight bag.  WHAT!?!?!  I was completely taken off guard, but did as I was told. :-)

We went to check in our hotel room in Buckhead and it turned out to be the Presidential Suite on the 16th floor overlooking all of Buckhead.  It was AMAZING. The room was huge and so nice.  Then we got dressed up and went out to a wonderful dinner at Aria.  The food was delicious and it was so nice to eat somewhere like that.

On our way home this morning Robby made a turn I wasn't expecting and told me there was on more surprise.  He had invited all my closest friends for a surprise birthday Brunch at South City Kitchen.  I was overwhelmed and completely shocked.  It was so fun to visit with everyone and celebrate me being 30!

Apparently the girls had a great time with Jen and Justen eating Chick-fil-a for dinner, playing games and enjoying cinnamon buns (with sprinkles) for breakfast!

A big huge thank you to everyone that made this happen and especially to Robby for making my 30th birthday one I'll remember forever.  I love you!

Princess Birthday Parties

Yesterday we attended two princess birthday parties!  The first was for our friend Kensley who was turning 5!  She had a "pancake and princess" party.  Her mom went all out and it truly was a party suit for a princess.  As the girls arrived they got dressed up in princess clothes and decorated handheld princess mirrors.

Then it was time to head outside for a big surprise...a REAL horse drawn carriage and inside was Princess Mulan.  Handley's face just lit up with joy when she got to talk to the "real" princess.

Mulan painted their faces, made balloons for them and then it was time to get to ride on the carriage.  What a special treat! The girls even got to pet the horse after our ride, which they all thought was fun.

After our ride they enjoyed a pancake bar complete with every topping imaginable and they got to eat of princess pink china and drink their juice from real china tea cups!

Happy Birthday Kensley and thank you for including us in your special day!

Next we dropped Harper at home with Daddy so Handley and I could head off to another party for her friend Ava Brooke.  Ava Brooke's party was an Ariel party and once again, Handley was so excited to see the "real" Ariel.  She gave all the little girls a princess lesson, painted their faces, gave them special princess rings and taught them to curtsey.  I was cracking up because as she was doing all of these things Handley kept saying, "Hey Ariel, we're going to see you at Disney World." or "Hey Ariel, my sister is at home with my Daddy." She loved talking to Ariel.

 On our way home Handley asked if she could have a real princess come to her birthday party.  I know she'll be just thrilled when we get to go to Disney in a few weeks and get to see all the princesses.

Happy Birthday to ME!!!

Today was the big day.  I turned 30!  I can hardly believe it and it sounds kind of funny to say, but I'm so happy with my life at 30 and wouldn't change a thing. I feel incredibly blessed with 2 precious kids, a loving husband, and amazing friends.

Today after Harper's tumbling class, Jen too me to lunch.  We always have so much fun together and today was no different.  I was overwhelmed by Facebook birthday messages, texts and calls from friends, cards, flowers and gifts.  It was a pretty awesome birthday.  Tonight Robby got home a little earlier than normal so we were able to go out for a quick dinner at Chili's so I wouldn't have to cook.

Before heading to dinner he gave me this:

A fancy new embroidery machine!!!!  Be warned, from now on you'll probably only see my kids wearing clothing with their name or monogram on it. :-)  In all reality though, I'm SO excited and hope that it doesn't take me too long to figure out how to use it.  I have LOTS of projects in my head that I can't wait to make a reality.

Potty

We had a pretty fantastic Monday.  After dropping Handley off at school Harper and I ran a few errands and met up with my BFF Jen for lunch.  She happened to be in our neck of the woods so we met at the mall.  I had a gift card I'd been wanting to use for some shoes.  Harper loved running around the aisles and was a great shopping partner.  That girl loves any type of bags and she didn't miss a beat when we walked by the handbags on the way to the register.  She picked one up, slung it over her arm, and was ready to go.

Next it was on to the food court and as we were approaching the Chick-fil-a counter Jen and I both realized that it was November 1st.  That could only mean one very exciting thing...THEY'RE BACK!!!  Peppermint Chocolate Chip Milkshakes, that is.  Yum, yum, yum.  This made my day. :-)  If you haven't tried it, you should.

The past few days Harper has become obsessed with the potty.  She wants to climb up on it every time she sees it.  This afternoon when she kept trying to climb up with Handley I decided to run into the basement and bring up the little potty.  She sat there for a good 5 minutes and was mad at me when I made her put her diaper back on.  I have NO intentions of potty training her right now and I really do not think she is ready, but if she wants to sit on it, then sit she will.  The funniest thing is that she kept getting  toilet paper, standing up, putting it in the potty, and sitting back down again.  The cuteness wore off when Handley tattled on Harper and let me know she'd gone through an entire roll.  Harper sitting on the potty just tickles Handley to death.  After she was done using the restroom she pulled up a stool and offered to sit beside Harper.  Those two are a hoot.

This afternoon we soaked up the fabulous weather at the neighborhood playground and enjoyed tacos for dinner (which are always a crowd pleaser in our house).  I'm so thrilled with the way Handley and Harper play together now and love how well they get along and entertain each other.  It was a pretty amazing day!

Trick-or-treat

Pure joy is how I would explain Handley's trick-or-treating experience tonight.  Each time she would get candy she'd turn around and was so happy I thought she might explode with excitement.  

This morning when she woke up up she told Mimi, "Tonight when it's night-time we get to go on an egg hunt!" Ha! Wrong holiday, but she knew something fun would be happening after dark.  The girls had been practicing saying "trick-or-treat" all week and Harper knew that she'd be getting candy after that phrase.  

The first few houses Harper was hesitant to go to the door and kept crying, but as soon as she saw the bowl of candy she turned the tears right off and dug right in.  By the end of the night her bag was so heavy it was dragging behind her.  Handley was a pro and herded our little crew around the street to each house.  

We were lucky enough to be able to trick-or-treat with our friends Addyson, Avery, and Dylan tonight and that made all kids happy.  

Everyone had such nice manners and they were great about saying thank you at each house.  At one house the person handing out candy gave Handley a huge handful.  She handed some back and said, "I really just need a few."

All night I heard, "This is SO much fun!!!!  I love trick-or-treating!!!"  The huge smile did not leave her face all night.  

Before trick-or-treating we watched the UGA game with Trey, Stefanie, Mimi and Dadaw.  The girls were so happy to have everyone here with us.