Booked it

We're going to Disneyland!  It's just me, Reese, Ryan, & Mimi that are going for a girls trip.  The girls have never flown on an airplane and we decided a trip to CA would be fun and easy for their first time.  We're leaving on April 29th and staying until May 2nd.  Last time we went to Disneyland the girls were little, almost three, and I was pregnant with Ryder.  Needless to say there were a handful of rides the three of us couldn't go on.  I can't wait for this trip and all the adventures we're going to have.  Watch out, Disneyland, here we come!

Rockin' the van

I'm finally driving my dream car and it's soooooo nice.  We couldn't be happier. 

We were in Mexico last weekend and our rear suspension went out in the Navigator as we were driving home.  It was SO stressful to be in the car with three kids, in Mexico, with car problems.  Our wheel well was grinding on our brand new tires and making a horrible noise.  We unloaded all our stuff out of the back, put it in my parent's car, and drove home really slow.  God was taking care of us because we got home safe and sound and the suspension started working again.  Needless to say, it was time to buy another car. We got an amazing deal on this brand new 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan.  We almost always buy used cars so having a brand new car is such a treat for me. The best part about it all is our payment is less than the Navigator and it gets much better gas mileage, so we're saving all around.  I'm beyond happy about it and it's the perfect car for our family.  We are blessed in so many ways and I'm so grateful to have a car that is safe and reliable.  Take a look at our black beauty :)

Gammie's treasures

The entire family has been going through Gammie's possessions since she passed away last month.  Uncle Mike & Jared have been in charge and it's pretty much been a full time job for both of them.  She had SO much stuff.  Most of it has sentimental value and is worth keeping, but there is a lot of stuff that just needed to be thrown out.  Everyone in the family had a chance to go around the house and put their name on items they wanted to keep.  I didn't have a need for any furniture or big items but I got some little treasures that I'm so excited about.  

This bench has sat on my Gammie's front porch for as long as I can remember.  

It's got some rust on it but nothing that a little spray paint can't take care of.  

The hand stitched pillows were in a pile at her house and no one else wanted them.

 I couldn't wait to put them on the bench.

This pillow below is my most favorite.  

My great grandmother, Florence Ryan, made it and it has her initials FR on it.  

I'm kind of obsessed with heirloom items like this.  

 

 This eagle was in her garage.  

I really wanted it to go outside our front door.  

It looks patriotic to me and gives me some warm fuzzies.

 Uncle Mike just got out all the Easter stuff and this metal Welcome sign was in the pile.  

The girls and I really liked the flowers and the colors.  

It's on our front door now.

 I couldn't resist this rusted garden shovel with a picture painted on it.  

When you love all the rusty stuff no one is standing around fighting you for it.

 This little low table was all rusted up and held a planter.  

I spray painted it heirloom white and I'm deciding what to do with it.

 This might be the best yet and I haven't decided what to do with it. 

It's a vintage bird cage that was hanging on my Gammie's front porch.  

 The girls love the parrot inside and have named her Polly.  

The bird cage was in my parent's wedding and it's awesome.  

I have some ideas for it but haven't taken action yet.

I know one thing for sure...the fake bird has got to go.

 Doesn't get much better than a cast iron Dutch oven.  I plan to make lots of chicken and dumplings in this bad boy.

 I found 10 Tiki torches in the garage. 
Cory set them up in the backyard this weekend.
They look awesome.

 My Gammie loved windchimes and had six on her front porch.  

I share her love for them and I got four of them.

 I'm still waiting for Cory to hang the last two.  

They are big and make the most beautiful sounds.

An outdoor chair set w/ an umbrella.  The chairs recline and they are so comfy.

I also got some cookbooks, photos of my grandparents on their wedding day, and some other knick knacks. 

It's so nice to have some of her things that I can keep forever. 

Parting gift from the teller

I love drive thru anything--Starbucks, Walgreens, & most of all, the bank.  I cash checks at least once a week and they always try to give us Dum Dum suckers for the kids.  I usually say NO and tell my kids they can get a treat at home.  They usually forget by the time we get back home and I'm off the hook.  This was a day that I just had Ryder in the car and I thought, "Eh, why not?"  Bad idea.  Now I know why I say NO to suckers and other crappy candy.

Chandler's 4th birthday

Our sweet friend, Chandler Dobson, would have turned four today.  We gathered at the Dobson's house to celebrate his birthday with a potluck dinner and releasing orange lanterns in the sky.  It was amazing.  He has such a wonderful family & friends and I'm so happy that we could all be together to celebrate his life and his birthday.

 Check out how cute these girls are!  I love them all so much :)

 

Spring Break

Two weeks seems like a long break from school but I can tell you it's not.  Our time off from school has been busy and I'm sad that our days are numbered.  We haven't had a chance to do all we wanted to do or see everyone we wanted to see.  We did squeeze in an impromptu Mexico trip at the last minute that was SO much fun.  We decided last Wednesday that we were going to join my parents in Rocky Point for a long weekend.  It's hard for us to get away from work but we managed to get away for 4 days.  The weather was great on Friday and Saturday but a storm rolled in Saturday night and it felt like a hurricane.  We bundled up, put the kids to bed, and watched a movie.  Sunday was cooler, but really nice.  The kids have so much fun playing on the beach & the grassy area right outside the condo.  We get our hair braided, eat mangos, & keep the beach vendors in business buying waaaay too much stuff we don't need.  It's such a great time.

Here's Cory on the drive down.  He loves when I snap photos while he's driving :)

 It's a given that we'll get our hair braided while we're there.  I usually haggle with the lady and try to knock $5 off the price but then I realize that she really has her work cut out for her with Reese & Ryan's crazy thick hair.

 Reese was waiting patiently while Ryan was getting her hair braided.  I love her hair in this photo.

We always get really excited to see the Mango guy.  He peels them and puts them on sticks. It's like eating a huge delicious mango popsicle.  We all love eating them.  They are such a juicy treat.

 Reese with her mango, getting her hair braided.

 Ryder boy got a new hat and it looked so cute on him.  He wouldn't take it off.  He loved the car on the front of it.  I loved that he kept a hat on while at the beach.

 Papa, Ryder, & Will relaxing together.

 Uncle Mike brought Jess & Will down on Saturday.  I think Jess was scared for her life because he's a speedy (but safe) driver.  They arrived in 3 hours, 15 minutes.  Pretty sure that's a record time.

Will is the sweetest kid.  He and Ryder have so much fun playing together.

 Ryder wouldn't go anywhere without his cars in each hand.

 The beach was so pretty but it was windy on Sunday.  I love this view.

 We were bundled up pretty good.

We were practicing some cheerleading moves like cartwheels, round offs, & toe touches.  There is a huge grassy area in front of their condo and it's our favorite place to play. 

Daddy & Reese running in the grass.

 More dancing and jumping.

 We could do this all day long.

Another zoo trip

We are getting lots of use out of our zoo membership lately.  

The weather has been so awesome and the kids love running around outside.  

We're taking a break from gymnastics right now so we've got Fridays wide open.  

A zoo trip on Friday morning with Karen & her kids was the perfect way to kick of the weekend.

Spirit Week at school

Last week was spirit week at the girls' school and they had lots of fun dressing up.  Monday was pajama day, which I forgot and Mimi took their PJs back to school for them.  Oops on my part.  Tuesday was character dress up day and they went as Rapunzel and Tinkerbell.  Very cute and I'm bummed that I missed out on taking a photo that day.  I finally got on the ball on Wednesday for crazy hat day and took a photo.  We didn't really have any 'crazy' hats so they wore their fedoras that they just got at Target.

Thursday was crazy hair day and this proves to be quite challenging because they have SO much hair.  We opted for the triple pigtails and looping the hair around with bows.  They were really excited.  Of course when I picken them up at 3:30 it had all fallen out.  Gotta love that thick Pantene hair :)

Ryan loves her jewelry.  She still wore her heart necklace over the shirt that has a faux necklace built in.