Spring is Here!

 Spring is here!!

The weather has been absolutely beautiful here lately

signaling the onset of my favorite time of the year:

SPRING & SUMMER!!

Carter helped me change our message on the chalkboard to reflect the change of seasons.

We have already logged countless hours on our patio.

In fact, this is where we lived all weekend long.

Ryan and I spent a lot of time planting flowers.

I can't remember what these are, but I love them.

Anyone know?

My roses came back again this year!

This year we'll make sure to move these when Ryan uses the grill.

We didn't last year, and my sweet hubby burned all of them.

A little bee for the birdbath

Petunias

Begonias

I bought this wind chime at Hobby Lobby, got it home, unwrapped it,

and it makes absolutely NO sound.

Awesome.

Hibiscus
They always remind me of Hawaii.

Creme brulee petunias

No clue what these are.

Lemon zest petunias

You can't go wrong with petunias in the Texas heat

Annnnnnnnnd moving on.

These sweet boys had a blast hanging while "The Teenager" was away all weekend.

I love watching these brothers together.

Doesn't get any better.

There was not even one moment of arguing between the trio.

Heaven.

Silly Trysten.

The kid is going to be famous someday.

Seriously.

 Enjoying one of their favorites:

Steamed artichoke

 Even the dogs enjoyed the patio.

At one point, Shelby became consumed with some of the begonias waiting to be planted.

We soon discovered why.

This is Fred.

He's a lizard.

In her excitement, Shelby injured him.

The boys were determined to nurse him back to health and return him to nature.

Sweet boys.

Poor Fred.

Little did he know what his day would entail when he woke up Saturday morning.

The boys decided to carry him around the yard.

Poor Fred.

 Love this pic =)

Goodbye, Fred.

No, we cannot keep Fred, Preston.

I know y'all won't enjoy this video like I do,

but I love how curious they were about the tiny scaly creature.

Annnnnnnd done.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend, friends!

Go outside, and enjoy the weather!

A Little Update

Hello, friends!

Spring break has come, and spring break has gone.

It was a low key week for us while we stayed close to home.

Well, everyone except Trysten, who had a blast spending

some much needed time with his cousins in California.

For right now though, it's back to reality, so here's a little update.

* Trysten's Open House at school was the week before spring break,

and I had to include a picture of his writing project.

Can you guess who it is?

His dad!

Sweet boy.

* Plane tickets have been purchased, making Ryan's and my summer getaway official!

We were invited to a co-worker of Ryan's wedding in California in July,

so we decided to make a vacation out of it.

Sun, sand, food, wineries, Disneyland.

Yes, please.

Do not laugh that we'll go to Disneyland without our children.

* Speaking of children,

see "The Teenager" on the back of our golf cart in the picture below:

Notice the mud?

Yes, Austin and Preston asked to go catch a glimpse of Ryan and Carol playing golf on Friday,

and I approved as there are places in our neighborhood which make it possible to do so.

Some time after they left, I received a phone call from Ryan saying he was

 on the 18th hole and could see our cart off in the distance.

He called out to the boys and noticed a little blonde head pop up, make eye contact and return to hiding.

Not smart.

When Ryan finished playing, we went looking for the boys and found them covered head-to-toe in mud,

trying to get the golf cart out of the mud in which it was stuck.

Long story short, 2 men hopped the fence to help dislodge it,

and Austin and Preston spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning the cart

until it was spotless and pulling weeds.

Needless to say, "The Teenager" will never be driving it again,

and, yes, Ryan did buy the 2 guys that helped him a beer at the golf club later that evening.

Their response:

"It very well could have been our boys doing the same thing."

Moral of the story:

Boys do not think before they act.

* See this kid?

He was the only one that managed to stay completely ungrounded for the entire spring break.

Sweet boy.

I wish his 2 front teeth would never come in.

Of course, that might look a little strange when he's say...15.

* Grilling season is upon us,

so Ryan finally put together the extra-large

BIG GREEN EGG

that my parents gave us for Christmas.

Now, if you don't know what these are, click HERE.

They are the mack daddy of all smokers/grills.

The possibilities are endless on this big guy.

I have a feeling we may never use our regular grill again.

* Over the break, I received an email from one of the principals here in Prosper

asking me if I could stop by one day this week or

next to talk to her about the elementary art position available for next school year.

I was ecstatic!

I worked a lot on my art binder during the week to prepare for our meeting.

It's full of lesson plans organized by grade level and artist.

I heart art!

Annnnnnnnnd done.

I'm sure there's more to share, but I'm out of time, my friends!

I hope you have a wonderful week!

Weekend Recap

What a great family weekend!

It really was.

Lots o' togetherness.

We spent about 5 hours at Main Event on Saturday night.

Bowling, laser tag, pool, etc.

Good times for sure.

The Teenager even joined us!

I love these boys.

Would someone please tell me how to get Carter to smile without having to show the bottom teeth?

Preston does his hair like this every.single.day.

I have chosen to pick and choose my battles.

He's such a great kid.

Doesn't it just warm your heart

to watch your children with automatic weapons in their hands.

And blowing up anything that crosses their path.

Makes a parent proud.

Boys will be boys.

What a fun night!

Sunday was my niece's and my birthday.

She's 4.

I'm 38....

The cousins had a blast hanging out as usual.

I love sharing the day with Addyson!

Could she be any cuter in her princess dress?!

The boys made me homemade cards.

They have no idea how much these mean.

More than any gift they could have bought.

It was wonderful birthday.

Next year will be the final birthday I celebrate.

Ever.

Look what my hubby bought me for my birthday!

Seriously.

Is he not the best!

I have been wanting a tufted wing back

 headboard for our bed for so long.

It should be finished in a few weeks.

I can't wait!

And look what we'll sleeping on in our new bed!!!

We needed a new mattress so badly,

and we finally made the investment.

When we went to the Sleep Number store to check out the mattresses,

I couldn't believe how far apart our sleep numbers are.

Ryan is a 90 and I'm a 20.

It should be delivered about the same time as the bed.

Can't wait for a good night's sleep.

Annnnnnnnnnnd done.

I'll leave you with my current find on Pinterest.

You know you can relate.

Random Update

Are you ready for a random update?

Good!

* Carter is about to lose his other front tooth.

Is there anything cuter than when they're missing both their front teeth?

Sweet boy.

* Austin attended a"lock-in" this past weekend called

FREEDOM

It's a huge event here organized by the Prosper campus of Prestonwood Baptist church.

He stayed with 20 of his friends at host family's house all weekend and had an absolute blast.

Needless to say, Austin came home Sunday exhausted.

I'm proud of that kid.
I cannot believe how quickly he's growing up.

He's made some good changes as of late.

* My beautiful mother turned 65 recently,

and my father planned a special family birthday party for her.

Picture Mexican food catered from their favorite spot,

margaritas and what else?

A Mariachi band of course!
How cool is this:

                   

My mother loves this Mariachi band, and my parents often go listen to them.

She was on cloud nine having them in her own living room.

I loved watching her so happy.

* I have been coveting the lamp, below on the left, from Pottery Barn for a very long time:

 

I told Ryan about them awhile back,
and guess what he gave me for Valentine's Day?
Yep.
My man surprised me with 2 of these bad boys.
I am ecstatic to say the least!
I really want to lighten up our decor,
and these lamps and seagrass rug for the family room are a good start.
Since we're just renting,
we have no idea what the layout of our home will eventually be,
so I'm focusing on things that can work in any house.
Speaking of houses, our lease is up in May,
and after LOTS of discussion and weighing all options,
we've decided we'll have to wait one more year.
I know.
Another year.
On a positive note, our plan is fool proof, and with the steps we've taken,
we will, without a doubt, be homeowners in May of 2013.
I said it.
It's true.
It's actually pretty exciting because we have time to find the perfect home.

* So, I'm turning 38 this weekend.
38.
Only 2 more years.

On that note,
Have a fabulous weekend, friends!!!

What Happens When...

What happens when you and your husband return to a house full of sweet little boys 

after a quiet, romantic Valentine's dinner together,

and one of said boys gets his paws on the camera?

This:

Finally...

After collapsing in bed last night following such a great Valentine's Day,

I was once again reminded how we can convince ourselves for so many years

that we are right where God wants us to be

because admitting we made a mistake is too hard.

I'm forever grateful I finally listened to Him.

I hope you had a wonderful Valentine's day, friends!!