breakfast with nana

nana came down to help watch josh during his time off from school.
remember, the schools closed due to the swine flu.
we picked her up at the airport and headed to breakfast at cracker barrel.

we sat near these funny old family pictures.
i noticed that anna kinda looked like the lady hanging on the wall behind her so i asked her to try and make the same face the woman was making.


she was so serious and still.
we couldn't help but crack up at her!
then she lost it too.


josh wanted to see if he could look like the man hanging on the opposite wall.
and he made this goofball face that had us all rolling.




yep, we were those people in the restaurant.


the loud, unruly, make ya smile family.
it was so much fun.

and speaking of fun, check out ben's newest trick


yep, he's standing on his own.
not for very long, but he's doing it. and i couldn't be prouder.

beach trip, final post

the last few days at the beach flew by.
we spent most of our time trying to soak it all in and enjoy the time we had with each other.

poppy finally caught a fish (josh helped),

but it really would have missed it's mommy, so we sent him home,


uncle jay was getting frustrated. while looking out at the ocean, i told him i think the fish are over there, and pointed down the beach about 25 yards. five minutes later, he caught a pretty red fish! game on!


nana found two sand dollars while she combed the beach,


and she and anna took long walks together,


ben was perfectly content playing in his bucket of water,


and poppy continued to search the ocean, trying to figure out how i knew where those fish were,


ahhhh, it sure was a pretty sight,


john and the kids pranced near the ocean's edge and benny loved having his toes wet,


nana and poppy just chilled in the sun,


josh and anna built a sand fort, (really josh built it and anna decorated it),


and we all ate lots and lots of tootsie pops, our families favorite at the beach,


and while i watched my children playing so nicely with each other,


i knew it was getting closer to the end of our little trip.
so many memories made, so many laughs and smiles.

thank you bob and julie for the privilege of staying at your home again.
it feels like home to us and we can't wait to return again.

MOMMY!!!

we watched this clip today and the kids roared!
it's for all mom's out there.



makes me laugh every time!

beach trip, part 2

the next few days at the beach were perfect. temperatures were in the upper 70s, not too windy, just about right.

we spend the majority of every day at the beach.
dipping our toes in the ocean,

acting like little jumping beans so the chilly waves wouldn't get us,

catching crabs and watching them give us the stink eye every time we messed with the big bucket,


giving uncle jay grief about not having a girlfriend right now (if you're interested and over 18, talk to me. he's such a good guy and sick to death of us bugging him!),


burying little mermaids in the sand,


figuring out what to do with all this white stuff,


oops, i think i was supposed to photoshop this picture! oh well, uncle jay was the only one having much luck fishing,


looking for seashells with our nana,


enjoying the sun shining on our new cutie pie hairdos,


collecting little clams in the surf for hours on end,


and watching poppy curse up and down and try to figure out how to catch a fish, any fish, to beat uncle jay.


when the day was over, poppy swore it was this goofy hat that kept the fish away!

up next, beach trip, part 3. (last one i think)

the library

we went to the library this morning.
the kids were so excited and happy to pick out all kinds of new books to read.


i love libraries. i have such great memories of going to the little west deptford public library. i remember the old spiral staircase that led to the lower level of the library. one time i even had a picture i drew for school as part of one of the displays there. at the time i thought i was a rock star for that. i think it was a picture of fish.

as soon as we got back, josh was complaining again about being "SOOOO BORED!!" and "I want to play outside with my friends! can someone come over?? pleaase??"

bah! this child is never satisfied. please tell me it's just a phase.
i'm trying to be patient, but it's tough. i think i yelled more these past few days than ever.

later on, while ben and anna (to my amazement) napped for three hours, i sat in my comfy chair and read annie leibovitz' new book. what a treat. and a nice way to chill out from all the yelling.

yesterday, to calm my nerves, i set off to complete a little project that i've wanted to do for months now. i wanted to have a couple of cute and meaningful black and white pictures of the kids in the downstairs bathroom. i was sick to death of my yardsale and hand me down prints that were hanging there.

for about $15.00, i made these.


i know it's just a little update, but sometimes it's the smallest thing that changes the way we feel about our homes.

walmart prints of the kids: 12 cents each
walmart frames: $3.00 each
walmart mats for frames: $1.50 each
leftover paint and sanding: free

now i'm happy and i love looking at my kiddos every time i use that room.
so much better.

now for a swine flu update.......................................................

we are officially stuck at home because of the swine flu. we are still fine, but there are multiple cases of it all around our little city. the school board has extended the shut down and they are now closing the schools for TWO WEEKS!! i have a feeling there's going to be a lot more yelling around here if we're all stuck at home that long.

tomorrow i'm hoping for no rain and a busy, happy family.
me included.