Going to the Chapel

This past spring, my brother and his sweet girlfriend Alicia got engaged. We are SO excited for them, and feel blessed that Alicia will be joining our family next June :)

Shane did such a great job with the proposal, and even planned a surprise engagement dinner for her afterwards.

It started storming halfway through dinner, but everyone just cuddled up under a bar area and kept the festivities going. Ashlynn is SO ready to see "Uncle Shane get mawwied!"

Easter 2015

Somewhere I have pictures on my camera from Easter, but cell phone pictures will do today, because it is officially fall-and I am still blogging about spring!!

We did a few fun learning activities based on Easter. The girls had Hand/Foot/Mouth disease, so we laid low for the most part.

They were, of course, spoiled with lots of dye-free goodies, thanks to their grandparents!

On Easter morning, we made cross and stone pancakes, to resemble the stone rolling away from the grave.

We couldn't go to church because of the HFM, but the girls still donned their dresses. Mark and I filled their baskets with sunglasses, swimsuits and a new beach towel.

We went to Mark's parent's house for the afternoon and had such a good time! 

They hid different colored eggs for each girl-and the girls loved hunting for eggs!

Remember Me?

It has been 2 months since things were quiet enough to pick up the laptop and blog. I 100% plan on having a blogging marathon one day soon, to catch up on April-July. 

My reason(s) for not blogging are simple...These summer days have been full. Full of swimming, playdates, story times at the library, soccer camp, and going to see family.  Full of laughter, full of sweetness, and full of a whole lotta crazy! These two littles are growing up faster than ever, and I am racing to savor, and be apart of each precious moment.  Daytimes are spent making memories, decorating a bedroom for sisters, cleaning up "oopsies" and navigating life with 2 "no-napping" kiddos. Nights are spent watching daddy play softball, grilling out, munching on watermelon, and cuddling on the couch.

It may be a bit until I get caught up on our little family scrapbook here on the ole' blog. Until then, we will be soaking up every minute of summer and fun!

Tiny Dancer

Ashlynn had her first ever ballet recital this past weekend! She worked so hard, and was SO focused. We are so proud of her!

She is on the back left in these pictures. Her teacher talked to them about staying on their dot-and she was VERY concerned with not moving off of it! 

Afterwards, she was delighted to see that all of her "friends" had come to watch, and she loved the flowers from her daddy and her Papa!

I am pretty sure she looked 15 that night...Thankfully that will be our last attempt at make-up and hairspray for a while ;)

That's What She Said: Take 2

The girls have a friend over to play, and that means things are surprisingly calm and quiet in our little world! I thought I would take a chance to jot down a few funny things the girls have said lately!

*They have both been in a "my mommy/my daddy" phase. One day they were arguing over who's mommy I was. They went back and forth for a while saying "my mommy!", when finally Bailey spat back with "NO! YOU Daddies. I Mommies!"

*Ashlynn has gotten into telling stories (of the fairy tale nature). She starts every story with "Once about a time..."

*I am in the process of doing some painting. Ashlynn pulled up a stool one day, and very thoughtfully said "Mama, this is a good show to watch!"

*Ashlynn needs a haircut, and one night while fighting bedtime she cried out "MAMA! This hair is just NOT working for me!"

*On our way to ballet this week, Ash said "Are we going to dance? That would make my heart very happy!"

*I normally let the girls pick which smell I put in the Scentsy.  Yesterday Ashlynn smelled a scent and said "Mmm! This smells like lemons and sunshine!"

*At dinner one night, Ashlynn reached over and patted Mark's stomach and asked him why his belly was so big.  She later stood up in her chair, looked down at the top of his head and asked "What are those white hairs doing there?!"

*When Ashlynn was going to Bible Study on Wednesdays, she must have picked up praying like her teachers. Here is her current prayer:
"Dear God. Dear God. Thank you for God. Thank you for God. Thank you for food. Thank you for food. Amen. Amen."

*If Bailey poops, she will walk up to me and growl "GIANT POOP!" with a big goofy grin on her face!

*When I tucked Ashlynn in tonight, she said "When we open our eyes, tomorrow will appear!" Such a sweet dreamer!