june happenings: week one

Asher recently saw the movie "Muppets Most Wanted" and he's completely obsessed.  He loves the Muppets and loves "the world's most dangerous frog, Constantine".  If you've seen the movie, you know that Constantine is Kermit's Russian doppelgänger, except that he has a mole on his cheek.  This is Asher making a mole from his chocolate chip pancake and "tricking me" into thinking he's Constantine.  His imagination and dedication to the scene cracks me up!

Speaking of obsessions, Hadley has discovered Hello Kitty (who she calls "Kitty Cat") and LOVES her.  She's Kitty Cat crazy.  We were grocery shopping this week and she spied this Hello Kitty ice cream cake and declared it "Had-dee's birt-day cake!".  

We also found a kitty cup at Target this week and she refuses to use any other cup.  I just love it when they get a new favorite.  :-)

Grandma Linda (who we're living with while our house is finished up) has a lot of fun toys, including this doll bed.  H spends a lot of time putting her babies to bed, then saying "baby waked up mommy.  You turn to hold her!"  bahaha - guess this is my grandma practice.  

Asher needed a haircut so I took him to a real life New Jersey barber shop.  I feel like that's an event that needs to be documented.  Ash has really thick hair that shows every awful cut line so someone recommended I take him to a barber shop since blending is what they do best.  I can't believe I didn't think of this myself!  It's so true!  They did a great job!  

At my in-laws house they have glass doors on the bathtubs, instead of curtains.  The kids love it when I close the door so they can splash a little without getting water everywhere.  The first time I did it Asher said "wow Mommy, it's like we are animals at the zoo!"

Yes.  Exactly.

On Thursday morning I glanced out the living room window and saw a visitor in the backyard!  It was much bigger and closer than it seems to be in this picture.  Bambi was glared at us and was clearly annoyed that the flower garden was fenced off.  haha!

 This girl cracks me up - sailing the high seas at the park.  :-)

sesame place

The wedding party was only about 30 minutes away from Sesame Place so we decided to take all the little cousins there on Sunday.  Who doesn't love rides and Big Bird?!

Right inside the gate we ran into Super Grover.  Hadley was only excited while Daddy held her hand.  :-)

Look at this adorable crew.  I might have made the girls' shirts.  ;-)  The kids were such troopers.  It turned out to be a HOT day and really, really crowded.  Since we were in the area for a different event we didn't have a choice on when we went, but if you can choose I'd highly recommend going during the week.  Holiday weekend visits are for the birds.  

Some of the cousins are afraid of characters, so Hadley and I split off from the group when I spied Abby Cadabby.  We waited in line and gave her "BIG hug, BIG tiss!!"  I love this sweet girl!

Really though, is there anything better than seeing your kids happy and excited?

We changed the kids into their swimsuits in the afternoon and let him cool off a little in the splash areas.  Drew was the brave one who also put his suit on and took them on the lazy river.  Asher loved it!  Hadley hated the life jacket, which made the whole experience bad in her opinion.  I wished I'd had my suit.  Did I mention that it was a HOT (HOT) day?

We had such a fun day! 

a wedding celebration

Last weekend we traveled to Pennsylvania to celebrate Drew's cousin's marriage.  He and his wife were married a few months ago, but decided to wait until Memorial weekend to celebrate with their friends and family.  It was so fun to see everyone!

The day was absolutely beautiful and the outdoors made a wonderful setting for the party.  They had a tent for the tables and a dance floor - Hadley was so impressed.  She loves to dance and this "center stage" was right up her alley.  ha!

The outdoor setting made it great for the kids (there were 30 kids under 18!).  There was space for them to walk all over and they loved the lawn games.

Asher was a big fan of the buffet - ha! 

Meanwhile, Hadley personified dancing like no one's watching.  She's a hot mess and found her equal in Emmy!  These two are just a few months apart in age and had so much fun dancing together.

Haddie LOVES bigger kids and was tickled pink when her big cousins took her under their wings.  So stinkin' cute!

These two stole my heart.  There's just something about daddy and daughter dancing!  

Even when it's mostly spinning and she's laughing like crazy.  :-)  

Such a fun afternoon to spend with our family and celebrate gaining a new member!

may happenings: week three

Hadley and I went on a mommy-haddie date on Monday morning.  Starbucks have these ad-or-able mini Frapps right now and they are everything a mini drink should be.  Not as cute as the girl sipping on it, but close.

After 2 months of having my embroidery and sewing machines packed up I finally couldn't stand it any longer and busted them out.  Naturally I had to test the machine on a shirt for myself.  Had to make sure it was working properly.  ;-)

After seeing a friend with a doll booster seat I've been keeping my eyes peeled for one for Miss H.  I knew she'd love it!  I found this one at Babies R Us and it was an immediate hit!

This little sister sure looks up to her big brother.  Love them.

Asher was trying to double dutch at the party without much success so Drew handed him his beer and (literally) jumped in to show him how it's done.  I almost died laughing.  Hey, he's still got it!  

The Sunday after our family wedding event we took the kids to Sesame Place!  It was a great day and such a cute amusement park!

Drew was super dad and bravely took both kids on the lazy river by himself.  Asher loved it so much they did a second loop - Hadley, not so much. 

Happy Memorial Day!  

may happenings: week two

Happy Mother's day to me!  I love these two so much!  Most days I can't believe I've been entrusted to raise them.  They are such a blessing to Drew and I.

On Mother's Day we all went to visit Drew's grandparents in their nursing home.  I'm so grateful that Asher and Hadley have the chance to meet and spend time with their great-grandparents.  How wonderful does Grandma Stella look for being in her 90s?!  

On Tuesday the kids and I took a road trip to PA to visit my sister and her family for a very special reason...I'm an aunt again!!  Erin and Ryan recently adopted little Penn and the kids and I got to meet him for the first time.  He's the sweetest little peanut!

While in town we had to go to Chocolate World to see the sights and breathe the amazing smells.  There's a fun ride you can take through "the creation of chocolate" and the kids loved it.  Lots of music, animatronics, and free chocolate at the end.  What's not to love?  :-)

My parents have been so kind to send us our mail (for a couple crazy reasons we are without an address right now - need to stay one step ahead of the law, you know...gah).  They included some important things we forgot at their house in the mail package, like Hadley's queen crown!  She was so grateful to be reunited with her jewels.  

One of the great things about living in NJ is that some of our good friends from Cleveland have family here and visit regularly.  We were able to meet up with them for brunch on Sunday!  So fun!  The kids weren't into taking a group picture so mine will have to do to document the day.  ha!  Next time.  :-)

may happenings: week one

On May 2nd the kids and I packed up the mini and headed north for the last time.  We were making the permanent move!  Our house isn't ready yet, so we'll be living with my in laws for the duration.  Leaving North Carolina and my parents was so hard.  The kids were sad and so was I!  I'm so grateful we had these past 2.5 years to live near them.  

The next day was my birthday!  Drew and I went over to the new house to check on the progress and I was so happy to see this gorgeous cherry tree in bloom next door.  I'll love seeing it every spring!

When Hadley saw this chocolate peanut butter cake that my mother-in-law made for my birthday she said "I have some your hummus cake, mommy?" bahaha!  Hummus cake sounds like maybe the worst birthday cake I can imagine, but I see where she was coming from.   

Hadley loves to try Asher's scooter so we decided it was time for her to get one of her own!  It's still a little big for her, but she's determined to get it down and keep up with her brother.  I might be biased, but the cuteness is kind of off the charts here.

Wait.  Cuteness trumped.  Don't you eat ice cream sandwiches by eating one cookie, then rubbing your face in the ice cream?  Oh.  Strange.

I love how well she naps.  I mean, come on - this is professional level work. #toesout #headburied #donotdisturb

Asher and Hadley made some Mother's Day crafts for their grandmother and great-grandmother.  Handprint crafts for the win!