love letters.

A few weeks ago I picked up two of these cute little mailboxes in the dollar spot at Target.  My plan was, starting Feb. 1st, to leave a love note and a little treat in their mailboxes each morning.  Well Feb. 1st started on Wednesday- the day after I spent the night in the ER.  Needless to say, I totally blew it on remembering to write them a note and leaving a treat. whoops.

So we started today.  The kids were curious- Henry oblivious to the note.  But he loved the candy.  Maeve was more into the note- isn't that so like boys vs. girls?  It wouldn't surprise me if by Valentines day, Maeve was hoarding all the love notes, and giving her candy to Henry. 

Have I mentioned how much I love Valentines Day? :)

Happy Valentines Day 2011!

We are big holiday people around here.

I pretty much go all out for any and every holiday.  And we
start celebrating weeks in advance... I think it makes life that much more fun, right?

Valentines is one of my favorite holidays.  I love the pink, the candy, and of course, I love, LOVE :)

A couple of weeks ago, we decided to take the kids up to Auburn Hills for a night.  It had been about a year since we'd been to "The Rainforest Cafe" and I really wanted to see how Henry would react to the noises and sights.

We ended up getting a little bit of a dump for a hotel, (thanks Priceline negotiator...) but we still had a good time.

We left Saturday morning and spent the day at Great Lakes Crossing.  The kids had a blast- they rode the carousel, played in the giant kiddie land and ran like wild monkey's through Jeepers.  It was nice to be out of the house, doing something together, as a family of 4.  With Ryan working in Ann Arbor, its usually the kids and I.  Don't get me wrong, I love our days- and we do pretty well (besides getting stuck in our driveway last week :/) but its awesome to get out and have an extra "helper"...(aka dadda ;)

The highlight of the trip (for the kids) was definitely "The Rainforest Cafe."  The kids loved it.  Maeve surprised us both, when she reacted like a cat getting dipped in water, as we walked into the restaurant.  She was climbing up our backs, on top of our necks- completely terrified.  It took about 15 minutes for her to warm up to the place, but when she did, she was in awe.  Henry didn't really react to much- every once in awhile he'd let out a scream or shriek of delight, but he was more into the food.

Saturday night, we had high hopes for a good night sleep.  Afterall, the kids had had NO nap, and had been running like mad all afternoon.  Unfortunately, hotel rooms seem to hype them up.   And here comes the highlight of the trip for me... my kids snuggled together, eating popcorn and watched 15 minutes of a movie- WITH their arms around eachother.  Cue tears and a bursting heart :)

After popcorn and a movie, it was time for bed... the kids however, did not agree.  I have no idea how long they were up.  I lost track of the time.  All I know is that I'm pretty sure I saw every hour on the clock that night.  Henry would wake Maeve up and vice versa.  Around 7 AM, we were packed up and on the road back home.  Kind of lame... but there was no sense in hanging out in a hotel room with two wound up, overly tired, incredibly cranky kids.

Today (Monday ;)  is the "real" Valentines Day and even though we had celebrated over the weekend, I wanted to try and make it festive for the kids.  We had pink pancakes, heart sandwiches and (red) spaghetti ;)... We got each of the kids a little surprise that has kept them well occupied most of the night.   All in all, it was another LOVEly Valentines Day...

And I know I say this a lot, but I don't think I could ever say it enough... I am so blessed...so so so blessed.

Thanksgiving 2010.

I've taken notice that many facebook friends have been doing "Thanksgiving Day Countdowns." Each day of November, they note something they're thankful for. I wanted to join in, but it was a few days into the month and I felt too far behind. SO I decided to make one big "NOVEMBER THANKSGIVING....WHAT I'M THANKFUL FOR" post. Very cliche, but just go with it...

In no particular order, I am not only THANKFUL but, BLESSED as well, for....

11/1- A roof over my head. As broke as we feel sometimes, we have shelter- a place to call "home"- something many in this world do not have. And as much as I complain about the house... I am thankful for it.

11/2- My husband. A given, right? This man is incredible. He is a billion things and I could rattle them off, but I'll keep it short and sweet- he's humble, brilliant, selfless, loving, and mine. :)

11/3- Maeve. She's dramatic, over the top, and can function with little to no sleep. But she has the kindest soul. She's gentle and only knows goodness. For that, I'm thankful.

11/4- Henry. My manly mister on my hipster. (that's his new nickname). My bub is very clingy, which gives my arms and back a work out, but he's worth every ache! He's chubby, cuddly and my baby. I'm thankful for happy "surprises" (aka HENRY!).

11/5- Health. It's something that I genuinely thank God for each and every day. I'm not trying to be prideful, in saying that I pray and don't take this for granted- but its something that I try to keep in perspective 24/7. Whenever I'm having a rough day, I can look at my babies and say, "we're together, we're healthy, things could be worse." And that, my friends is the truth.


11/6- Good friends. They are few and far between, but I have them. They're the ones who send me little messages just saying "I miss you." Or the friend that I don't often see, but always has an ear and a shoulder for me. The friend that may not be within driving distance, but will always have my phone number and the right to vent, celebrate, and cry with. The friend who calls me nearly every morning, just to chat. The friend that drops goodies off on my door step, just to say, "hi." I am so blessed. And SO thankful for you, my dear friends. :)

11/7- The Incredibles, (aka my family). I could go on forever here, but my fingers can't form out the words that are flooding my head at the moment. So instead, I'll just say, they're really great. Really, really great. And I am thankful that I was born into such an amazing family.

11/8- my blackberry (and THIS, is where the list gets to be a smudge shallow). Or as my husband refers to it, my "crackberry." Yeah, its addictive. But its purple, it connects me to everyone, all the time, and it always gets good service. Thank you Verizon/Blackberry people :)

11/9- Jeggings. AMEN. The end.

11/10- Obstetricians, gynecologists, midwives, etc. I was sitting in the office the other day, (let me make certain, the reason for my office visit was NOT for obstetrics!) thinking how unpleasant of a job that could be. I won't get into detail here, but I think we should all be thankful someone is willing to deal with that...area. Ya know?

11/11- Medications. I've said it before, I'll say it again, I am thankful for modern medicine. From tylenol to my trusty altenelol, I give thanks that these medicines provide comfort and relief for me!

11/12- the ocean. "You don't want, you don't wait, you don't love, but you don't hate. You just roll, right over me, and you pull me in." -Jack Johnson

11/13- Crocs. My kids walk really well in them and the jibbitz are addicting.

11/14- food in my belly.

11/15- citrus trees. My parents have their "graperine" tree in the back yard. I take pictures of the sun coming up every morning, through the "graperines." I am thankful for the fruit itself; the yummy taste and smells, and also the happy feeling I get when I see the bobbing orange blobs.

11/16- pacifiers/bottles. They calm my kids down. Thank you.

11/17- the most magical place on earth. DISNEY Y'ALL! :) Oh Walt, I THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for having such a brilliant imagination and the capacity to dream like you did. THANK YOU.

11/18- fans. They help me sleep. I like the whir and the breeze they create.

11/19- good books that help me escape for a little bit.

11/20- pedicure and massage people :) I love you all.

11/21- I'm going to say this, and perhaps get some backlash for it, but FACEBOOK. Yup, I'm thankful for facebook. It can be very evil, but most of the time, it connects me with family and friends. I get to network with other moms from across the country. I get to photostalk. I love you facebook.

11/22- my cameras. What can I say? From the days of the disposable cameras to my baby (the 40d), photography has been this itch that always needs to be scratched. It will always keep me on my toes. It will always keep me wanting more, reaching for better, connecting me with people and places. It's the heartbeat of my creative, artsy side, and I'm thankful that there are people out there who think I've got potential. I'm thankful that I have eyes to see, and a fast shutter speed to capture anything I want.

11/23- time. How deep is that? But really, how could I (you, anyone?) not be thankful for time. The time we've had, the time we will have. I am thankful for every minute. Even as the days pass, and I wish bedtime would swoop in, I'm thankful for these days.

11/24- I am thankful my parents made me take piano lessons for 15 years. I can remember dragging my heals to each lesson, but my mom pushed me in the door every time. THANKS MOM! I am thankful that I can read music and pick up and play just about anything.

11/25- Life time movies. They're short, to the point and have enough drama to keep you awake. Love 'em.

---yeah, I know its not the 26th yet, but I am on a roll with things I'm thankful for... so I'm going with it.

11/26- living in the USA. I don't think I need to expand much on this, but I will, because its my blog, and I can. I am thankful I can pray to my God. I am thankful that I can say what I want, when I want to, where I want to. I am thankful that I have every opportunity to make my life how I want it. I am thankful for our freedom and for the men and women who have given it to us, time and time again.

11/27- I am thankful for recyclable bags. They're a fab invention and thankfully there are some super cute ones.

11/28- I am thankful for this blog. It has been a journey. And it will continue to be, I'm sure. I don't know what opportunities blogging has in store for me, but I'll keep on, keeping on. Speaking of blogging opportunities, I'm sure you've noticed the buttons on the right side of my blog- with the excitement of being a "public" blog now, I've joined a ton of networking sites. I encourage you (mommas) out there to do the same. I want to keep ((it)) a surprise, but I got a package in the mail (as told by Ryan), that will be another give away! I am SO excited- for me, for you- for these fabulous companies that have entrusted me with hosting a givvvve awaaaayyyyyy! :) ...readers stay tuned... ;)

11/29- The Chelsea Tree House. How could one not be thankful for a safe, enclosed playground, where your children can run a muck, and you, can sit back and drink coffee?

11/30- My Lord. I did save this one for last, because He is the reason I can even be thankful for everything I've listed. He gives me new days. He gives me forgiveness. He gives me the will to be a better person, to get up and do something. He gives me hope. I have promise in Him. I am thankful that I am able to worship the only God who saves. I am thankful that I am saved.




I hope everyone has a terrific Thanksgiving. Stay safe, eat turkey and be thankful. :)
xoxoxoxoxo!

Halloween 2010!

OH MY :)

Best Halloweekend/Halloween to date in my book!

Starting Friday, we jam packed every minute we could into making the weekend as spooky and festive as possible for the kids.

I spent Friday morning googling Halloween recipes and getting a menu ready for the weekend. Later in the afternoon, our doorbell rang and this was what was there:

Talk about starting our festive weekend off right!

My grandma had ordered balloon boquets for the kids- and they were smitten.   Maeve was a tad hesitant with a few of the balloons because they were "too spooky."  But Henry dove right in :)  Actually, Maeve was good with her boquet of balloons- it was the walking pumpkin balloon that she was/is terrified of. 

(see the 2nd picture from the top:)- that pumpkin floats around our house.... kind of creepy- but cute.  Maeve finds no cuteness in it though- only the creeps!  She will be sitting on the couch and the pumpkin will float over to her and within seconds she's on top of me (or Ryan) begging us to "put the pumpkin away."  Henry on the other hand, loves it.  He bats at it and cracks up at the sight of it. :)  good times...

Here are some pictures post-balloon delivery... note Maeve's face.  SO not thrilled with the spookies...

and yeah, that last picture is capturing Henry sinking his chompers into the bag of m&m's... go figure :)



Friday night we had worms (spaghetti), a veggie skeleton (veggie tray...) and muddy brownies.  Good eats for sure.

                                                (note Henry's face in the background....)

-I also just noticed that I didn't compress any of these images... therefore, blogger is doing it for me, thus creating super crappy images... blah.

Saturday morning, I realized we had yet to get pumpkins...whoops.  We decided to take the kids trunk or treating at Meijer and then swing by that farm on Michigan Ave for some pumpkins.  It was truly, a great, great morning. 

Maeve decided she wanted to be Minnie Mouse (on Saturday) and Henry wore a shirt that said "Chocolate...GOOOOOOD."

 To be honest, we didn't get either kid a halloween costume this year.  Maeve has every Disney princess dress in her closet, and even though they had been worn a thousand times each, I knew if I asked her what she wanted to be for Halloween, she'd say some princess anyway.  Henry's costume came from my mom and grandma... it's some sort of dinosaur or alligator- we're not sure- but its stinkin' cute.

We had so much fun with the kids at Meijers- Henry pounded each and every treat he was given- from the sugar cookies to the gummy worms (hey, it was Halloween, right? :)  Maeve was mesmorized by all the different costumes and activities.  Her favorite thing by far (and it might have been her fave. thing all weekend..) was the face painting.  FREE face painting (even better...)- she initially picked out a tiger face but the girl that was doing the painting wasn't the friendliest and told her it would take too long, so Maeve agreed to the standard butterfly that every other kid was getting :)

    
In case you didn't know- she is a clone of me. I can't tell you how many pictures my parents have of me, giving the camera that same look. In fact, I'm sure they're in Florida right now, saying "THAT'S ASHLEY!"

After Meijers, it was punkin pickin' time.  We had a good fifteen minutes at the farm... but we'll remember that two kids on a sugar high at nap time don't make for the greatest company.... eeek.

We carved the pumpkins Saturday night.... but having my hands full of goo (and kids) I slacked BIG time on taking pictures... I have ONE picture... and its stinky... but save-worthy I suppose.

Sunday morning, we woke up late- really- the kids slept until 9.  It was heaven.  Happy Halloween to US.  We needed a few things (ummmm like Halloween candy for our neighborhood...HA we procrastinated big time this year) so  we set off for the stores (Target to be exact:).  We got some picked over candy, a pair of cat ears and then, I somehow convinced Ryan to drive ALL the way out to Flavor Fruit Farms for some donuts.  He's not the drive kind of guy... but dang I wanted some donuts.  We were the only souls out there- but we snagged a dozen HOT, fresh donuts.  It was worth the 25 minute drive.... for SURE!

Sunday afternoon we lazied around... tried to take naps- and failed... Around 5 or so, we started getting ready for the big night.  I told Ryan to take the kids in the living room so I could get myyyyy costume on.  This woud be the 2nd traumatic thing that happened to my daughter over the weekend.

Apparently, momma in a furry vest, cat ears and whiskers, is not fun.  It's downright terrifying.  She wanted nothing to do with me- and then we convinced her to pet me.  So she did... and thus began the night of attacking momma the cat.

Along with the standard trick or treating and posing in front of pumpkins, we also had mummy pizzas and spent some time with Aunt Emi...

SO... that was our Halloween/weekend. :)  It was fab.  And I hope the pictures convey that...

Mom & dad- I know pictures aren't as good as the real thing... but I tried to capture everything!  NEXT year, we'll be together...