Pancakes and Movies

Today we started the day off early, but right. We had Pancakes! Mason was up at 6:15 and so I started breakfast with the idea of having it all done before my "Big Helper" awoke. Wrong. When Emma Kate got up and I told her that we were making "panpakes" she ran to her room saying "I need to help!" When she came back this is what I saw

Fortunately, I had already passed the messy part (flour, eggs, baking powder, etc.) and was onto the table setting. She enjoyed helping put it all on the table (you always need an apron when setting the table!)

After breakfast we got ready to go to the summer movie series that Harkins Theaters is putting on. It is a great deal. There are ten movies for ten weeks (one movie per week...today was Space Chimps, throughout the summer they will show Horton Hears a Who, Madagascar, Tale of Despereaux and more). You pick the day you want to come and it is only $5 (for all ten movies, 2 and under are free). I thought that I was crazy for thinking that I could take a 2 year old and an 8 month old to a movie theater! Loud movie...sitting still...quiet?! I was wrong for doubting. They loved it! It is dark for Mason (he got to nap) and EK sat still in her seat (unless she was scared) and only got antsy once (thank you for mini chocolate chip cookies). We will definitely be going quite a bit this summer (not all of them because only half are cartoony, the others are geared for older kids) and it is going to help us beat the summer heat!

Yesterday we stayed in because EK was coughing quite a bit and a little runny nose. Since we were inside all day Mason had a lot of opportunities to do this

Mason has also been crawling up a storm. He is pretty fast and knows it. He gets so excited when he gets crawling in a good rhythm. EK gets down and crawls with him sometimes and it tickles him so much that he accidentally smacks his forehead on the ground. It is cute and upsetting in one quick second!

Earlier in the week we made a cake for Daddy (which didn't turn out as expected but EK didn't mind licking the entire beater clean) and as you can see I had A LOT of help in the kitchen. We also hosted playgroup on Tuesday and baby Kaitlyn came. EK obviously loves babies. She would have held Kaitlyn all day and was sad when Kaitlyn had to go and eat.

Have a great weekend!

Funny sayings

Emma Kate has become very verbal recently. In other words...she talks ALL the time. It is great that she has so much to say (most of the time). She has been saying some pretty funny stuff recently.



Me: Emma Kate, you need to say you are sorry to Daddy, Mason and Mommy for pitching a fit at the table.
EK: sorry (still whining, crying)
Me: what are you sorry for?
EK: sorry five


While we were in AL she was sitting at the table with Gigi and Uncle Nelson. I had told her that she needed to finish eating. She looked around the table and said(not whining, very straightforward)

EK: Gigi help me
Gigi: Don't get me in trouble!
EK: Nelson help me
Nelson: I can't...Mommy wants you to eat your lunch
EK: (yelling) Abbey...Sada...HELP ME!
Gigi: (laughing) Abbey and Sada aren't here sweetie!
EK: (looking down at her plate, quietly, whispering) I need help.



This morning we were all in the kitchen and we were sitting down to have breakfast. Matt turned on some music and before he could sit down she said " Daddy hold me and dance". We know that these times won't last forever and so we are treasuring them for as long as possible.




After breakfast we were all settling down in the living room for a Saturday morning. She turned to me and said "I need Barney", meaning she wanted me to turn on her Barney video. She was very matter of fact about it.

There are so many more that I will have to start writing them down in order to remember them all.

Our own beds!

We are home after a wonderful trip to AL. We loved seeing everyone but are very excited about sleeping in our own beds and getting back into our normal routine. We were gone for almost 4 weeks and had a blast at Gigi and Daddy Mac's lake house and Gran Gran and Daddy Steve's house. Gigi flew to Arizona and flew back to AL with us on March 23. The plane trip was okay but we could not have done it without Gigi and all of her energy. Once we got to AL we settled into a routine of helping Gigi with the remodeling of the house. Emma Kate's favorite was Mr. Jerry (the landscaper) who is about 70 years old and would bring her a prize everyday (muffins, granola bars, etc.) She even woke up one morning asking if Mr. Jerry was at the house. While we were in Birmingham we visited with our good friend Hank who just happened to be in town as well.

After a week or so in Birmingham we headed up to the lake house. Uncle Nelson and Presley came up from Mississippi State and we really enjoyed getting to know Presley. She is so sweet and willing to help with everything. We had a lot of fun just being at the lake house playing pool, playing wii fit, making cookies, and too many other things to count. Abbey, Warren and Baxter came that weekend and stayed for a few days. While they were there we tubed and wake boarded. Emma Kate LOVED the "tuba"! She would get on and then give a thumbs up to get Daddy Mac to go faster. It was really funny. Mason also loved the boat. He would pretty much sleep anytime the boat was moving. It was a great time for him to take a nap.

At the end of the week it was time to head back to Birmingham and get Matt from the airport. He arrived on Saturday morning and we stayed in Birmingham with Gran Gran and Daddy Steve. While we were in Birmingham we got a chance to visit with Tara and also Jeremy, Wendy and Tyler. We have such great friends in Birmingham and we love catching up when we come into town. On Sunday we celebrated Mother's Day with some barbecue and fellowship. After lots of fun playing in the pool, playing in the tent, having tea parties, playing hide and seek, taking walks, etc. we headed back up to the lake for a few more days.



While we were at the lake Katherine and John came down from Huntsville for a visit. It was our first chance to get the boys together (Mason is one day older than John). We had a great visit and I took pictures but my camera decided to make me sad and erase all the pictures I had taken after a certain point in the trip. Looks like we will just have to get together again soon! Gran Gran and Daddy Steve also came up to the lake. We had a blast! Daddy Steve water skied and Gran Gran went out on the boat. They also got to enjoy Emma Kate riding on the "tuba". We had a great dinner together before they headed back to Birmingham. We are so fortunate that our parents and in-laws are friends as well as family.



It was a great trip and we miss everyone so much. Emma Kate talks daily about swimming in Gran Gran's pool and riding the "tuba" at Gigi's house. We look forward to seeing everyone soon! God bless!

The kids (especially Mason) enjoyed the race car buggy at Bass Pro Shop

Hanging out with Hank

Mother's Day

We did a lot of eating. Gran Gran made sure that no one was ever hungry

A rare shot of me with the kids

Nelson so kindly helped entertain Emma Kate with a small painting project while at the lake

Just for fun!

I took some pictures of the kids just for fun!

Easter Weekend

We had a fun filled Easter weekend with friends and family. Of course we couldn't have a holiday without someone being sick and so the weekend started with Emma Kate going to the doctor on Friday. She just has a cold but she has FINALLY being diagnosed with restrictive airways. Every time Emma Kate gets just a little sick it turns into sounding like a big kind of sick because she starts wheezing and labors to breath. She just can't catch her breath. We dealt with this a lot in the fall but we are just now getting it diagnosed and able to treat with a nebulizer. This will be a lot of help with future sicknesses!

Saturday we stayed around the house and got our chores done. We got to see Bret, LeAnn and Ela on Saturday night for dinner and the girls had a blast! Sunday was busy with church and then lunch and dinner at friends houses. The kids had a lot of fun hunting eggs and are enjoying having Monday to rest!

This is how kids two and under hunt eggs ... hide them in plain sight

Emma Kate liked the polka dot eggs

Trying to get a Easter playgroup picture...never got everybody in one picture

"I love you Mason!"

Camera won't focus fully when she is moving this fast!

Mason and Jackson Dunn. They are buddies!

Emma Kate decided she was done hunting eggs and the trampoline looked like more fun!

Mason after bath. What a handsome guy!


On Saturday, Emma Kate and Ela decided to play dress up. They were making the animals sounds and everything.

Happy Birthday Emma Kate!

I can't believe it, but Emma Kate turned two yesterday. The last two years have passed so quickly! We had a great birthday party and Emma Kate loved having her friends over to celebrate. This morning when she got up she kept singing "happy birthday to me". We had such a fun time with all of our friends and missed those that couldn't make it. I am going to post some pictures of the party and also of the fun week we have had with Gran Gran and Daddy Steve. Matt's parents came last Sunday and left today. One of the main reasons they came was to help us out after Matt had hernia surgery. His surgery went well and we were really happy to have Gran Gran and Daddy Steve here to help us. The week flew by with lots of activities. We miss them already and can't wait until we get to see them again soon. Gigi and Daddy Mac got Emma Kate this picnic table for her birthday. It is perfect and we couldn't have had the party without it!

We had butterfly and flower cupcakes. They were great and I didn't have to make them! Yay!

We are so excited to have Ali and Mikey back in town!

Dan and Ethan have a relaxed time at the party

What a great family picture!

Mason enjoying Gran Gran at the bowling alley

Ela bowling

Emma Kate bowling

Mason thought he was such a big boy in this car. Anytime it would stop he would try and stand up and rock back and forth trying to get it to move again.

Gran Gran made this cute dress for Emma Kate. She loved it and didn't want to take it off!