Birthday Celebration Part 2

     I was quite the lucky gal this weekend- I was pampered and celebrated by my family for my birthday and Mother's Day. Besides making my birthday dinner, which I wanted to do, I didn't cook or clean the entire weekend! Thank you to my wonderful husband and kids for making my weekend so relaxing.

 This was what I was greeted with after John and I returned from doing some volunteer work Saturday afternoon. The girls had decorated the house with balloons, streamers, and lots of Happy Birthday signs.

 Birthday Girl and her little beauties.

We had a fantastic dinner which I will post about tomorrow hopefully. All made from scratch, except the bread, and it was delicious. Deserving of it's own post.

 After dinner JT and I sat down to open a few presents. Even if the presents aren't for him, he gets so excited.

 From Courtney- a coupon book! Filled with things such as cooking meals, giving a massage, and even refraining from talking about 1 Direction for one day to me. That will be a sacrifice for her-LOL! Thank you Courtney!

 From Sarah- 2 Ted Dekker books. The one pictured above and Obsessed. Dekker is one of my favorite authors and I'm looking forward to reading them! Thanks Sarah!

 From Lindsay- a beautiful flowering plant and mini balloon. Not sure if she got the memo about my black thumb, but I'll give it my best shot to keep this beauty alive. Thank you so much Lindsay!

 Then my handsome hubby- starting out with a beautiful card.

 John had 3 presents wrapped and I loved seeing these photos showing JT's anticipation and how excited he was to open the gifts.

 I look absolutely terrifying, but this photo cracks me up! JT was just so giddy about present time, so I clearly over exaggerated his excitement.

John got me a few pampering gifts- a gift certificate for my first ever mani/pedi! I have been told by several of my friends that I'm seriously missing out of a little slice of heaven by not experiencing a pedicure yet. I am looking forward to scheduling that soon. I'll also be getting my brown on with some tanning sessions. Don't worry, I won't be looking like that Mom from NJ. Just enough to not look like Casper the ghost and even up my farmers tan on my legs and arms.

 John also bought me this super adorable apron. Since finding my hidden Martha Stuart when I discovered Pinterest, I've found the need for aprons in the kitchen. Thanks so much for all the presents John!

 Check out this beautiful cake John ordered for me. It's from Sweet and Sassy bakery and they make some delicious treats. Loved these bright and happy flowers on my cake.

 Candle time! Thankfully John didn't put all 38 candles on the cake. JT, as always,by my side ready to help.

Wishing for many, many more birthday celebrations. 

Dino Tracks

The week we talked about the letter "D", the boys had a great time painting dinosaur tracks.

 Ready with all of our supplies- paint, paper, and dinosaurs!

 JT focused- tongue sticking out.

 Finn making his tracks.

 Dinosaurs everywhere!

 Happy to be painting!

 Finn loves making artwork!

Their finished projects.

Bath Please

     Most of the time, JT gets showers. Easier, faster, and can get a 2 for 1 when he's with John. This weekend, JT asked for "bath please", so we happily obliged.

 Fill 'er up!

 In LOVE with this photo! So happy!

 Bubbles!

 Alphabet soup

JT sporting a bubble goatee.

Birthday Blessings part 1

     Yesterday marked another birthday for myself. Sometimes I still can't believe that I'm nearing 40- just 2 short years away now. When I was younger, I remember thinking that time was dragging by and as an adult, it feels more like a flash.

     My day yesterday was filled with wonderful Happy Birthday wishes on Facebook and calls and texts from friends and family. I also received a few gifts from some special people.

 These beautiful gerbera daisies greeted me when I came downstairs to exercise at 5:30am. John had left them along with a sweet card to start my day.

 One of the little boys I care for, Mason, brought a gift for me to open.

 A decorative lantern! Lots of options for use and placement :)

 LOVE this shot! Mason was being so cute with his surprised expression.

 Miss Ella also brought a gift for me as well!

 2 of my favorite things- shower gel from Bath and Body Works and a scented candle! There was also a wonderful Women's Devotional book, but we were using that as the "bait" to get Ella to look at the camera.

My day ended with getting some unexpected flowers delivered from my Aunt Cathy! Beautiful 100 blooms bouquet- they were still a bit closed upon arrival, but are starting to open up now. I'll post some pics with Birthday Part 2 post.

     Since Thursday was volleyball night for John and the girls, we decided to hold off on my birthday dinner and cake over the weekend. Looking forward to that and will post photos after that part of the celebration. Thank you to all that helped make my birthday a very special day. Love you all.

Outside Time

     With the wonderful weather we have been having, a lot of time is spent outdoors playing. Since I have the privilage of caring for some of my friends little ones, outdoor time is a group event. Here are some recent shots from our time outside.

 JT ready to play outside sporting his sunglasses.

 This is Mason and Ella- they are almost 15 months old and only 3 days apart. I think this will be the closest I ever get to caring for twins.

 Ella loved hoarding all of the chalk and of course tasting a few before drawing :)

 Mason loved looking at the butterflies and birds that came in the yard.

 JT and Finn had a blast racing the cars, chasing birds, and drawing with chalk.

 JT found several dandelions and made wishes.

It was such a warm day that after we all came in the kids got a cool treat to help cool them off.

Face Time

     When John travels, we do our best to keep in touch as a family. I will usually send pictures and videos of what we are up to as well as texting and talking on the phone. At night, if both of our schedules allow, we will either Skype or Face Time. Face Time is basically Skype for the iPhone. I love these phones! What can't they do?

     Last week, when JT and I were having a session with John on Face Time around bedtime, we were having some connection problems and the call/video kept dropping. Since JT could still see himself on the phone, he thought that John was somehow missing. He starting yelling for Daddy which was quite comical, so I decided to hit record while we waited to resume our call.

Impatient 2 year old looking for Daddy on Face Time.

My favorite thing JT said here was "bada-bing". Not sure where he picked up that saying, but I

think it's from a game on John's phone.

C is for cars

     In working on tracing letters with JT and Finn, I've tried to incorporate artwork that compliments that weeks letter. A few weeks ago, the boys were learning about the letter "C". For these 2 boys "C" and cars couldn't be a better fit.

 A repeat of a project, but this was a hit the first time and worth repeating.

 Painting with cars!

 Vrooming across the paper.

 Fun ceiling camera shot of the boys in action.

JT and Finn had a great time painting!