Luke's Second Birthday & Party

Two weeks ago, we had a big bash for Luke's second birthday.  As was our custom with Audrey, we dialed back inviting the entire extended family and "just" asked grandparents, great grandparents, my brothers and their families, and 2-3 family friends to join us.  (For both of their first birthdays we included both David's mom's side and his dad's side on the guest list. We are very thankful to have such a loving and involved extended family, but it's just not feasible for us to host 45+ people for every birthday party.  It's expensive, it's crazy for the kids, and it means less time we get to spend with each guest.) So we dwindled down the guest least to a mere 31, and 22 of them came over to celebrate.

I decided to do a Noah's Ark theme for it, just as I did with Audrey's second.  There was approximately five minutes of feeling guilty for the unoriginality of the choice, but then I got over it when I realized it'll likely be the very last time I can ever do that.  Somehow I don't think he'll be requesting a butterfly, princess, or tea party theme in the coming years.  

I went with a lime green and blue chevron color scheme and did quite a few things different to change it up a little.  The fact that it was a different house this time helped it not seem so identical as well.

At the front door, David (my sweet, patient husband who indulges my every party decor craft request because he loves me dearly) cut out waves from foam board and attached them on either side of the porch.  I had a little bubble machine blowing bubbles and a chalkboard sign up that read "Welcome to Luke's 2nd Birthday Party!"  As guests entered, they caught a glimpse of their favors:  A Noah's Ark coloring book and box of animal crackers for the little ones, a Noah's Ark Veggie Tales DVD and box of animal crackers for the older ones, and a bag of frosted animal crackers with sprinkles for each family to take home.  

As you'll see in the picture gallery, we put up the massive felt Noah's Ark mural we made for Audrey (I'd managed to save it and pack it away this long - you'd better believe we were going to try to get another use out of that piece of work!) and all of the wooden animal pairs.  I bought smaller glass jars to fill with animal-themed treats for the centerpieces - gummy bears, goldfish, teddy grahams, and animal crackers - and ordered animal print balloons to tie on them and elsewhere.  I printed small pictures and taped them to the basement walls in the shape of "2"s.  We had a slideshow running on the basement TV of the best photos of Luke from the past year.  In the kitchen was a tray of zebra cakes, a glass vase filled with skittles and sunflowers, and blue tulle on the island where the food was displayed.  The crowning glory of the decor was the amazing Noah's Ark cake my sister-in-law Jenny made.  It had a 3D ark on top with animals sticking out and it was awesome!  She outdid herself yet again.  The menu was pigs in a blanket, cheetos, a rainbow fruit tray, and potato salad (because David just really likes potato salad.) 

Of course, all of the yummy food and pretty decorations paled in comparison to how adorable the Birthday Boy himself looked.  Having typical second-kid guilt, I coughed up the money and ordered him a monogrammed Noah's Ark t-shirt to wear just for the occasion.  Amazingly, the dress I'd gotten for Audrey for her second birthday still fit after I had the hem taken out, so they both had cute monogrammed Noah's Ark outfits.  They didn't match perfectly, but they still looked great. I didn't think that far in advance considering I was about two weeks pregnant with Luke at AJ's party and didn't even know about him yet - hey, I plan, but not THAT well!  

He seemed to have a little bit of an idea about what was coming since we'd been decorating and talking it up all week.  The excitement built and the party didn't take long to get hopping with 8 kids ages 6 and under.  We did a Noah's Ark sticker scene and they ran around and played until it was time to eat.  After lunch we let him open his stack of presents. I was a little bothered that he had so many "helpers" in the older kids.  The poor guy barely had a fighting chance to unwrap his own gifts!  I fended them off a little and he managed to get a tear of paper in here and there.  He immediately wanted to take everything out, of course, but we distracted him with more presents.  Gotta love what that teaches a kid, huh?  "Here, no!  Don't enjoy that lovely and thoughtful gift to its full extent!  Toss it aside and open this one!"  Oh well.  Something else to blame us for when he's older and has problems with contentment I suppose.

After presents, it was time for cake and ice cream.  I think it finally hit him that it was his special day when everyone was singing to him and he got to blow out the candles (which he did perfectly and on cue!)  We served up the Noah's Ark cake, which was a yummy as it looked, and he ate all of his and a bite or two of mine before I cut him off.  We attempted to do animal masks crafts, but realized they required glue, so we entertained the kids with the party balloons and slowly people started drifting out.  We put Luke down around 1:45 as the last guests left and my mom stayed to help me clean up a bit.  Audrey went down for a rest too after Nana left and then David and I followed suite and snoozed for a few.  It had been a wonderful, fun-filled but exhausting celebration.  

After Luke woke up, the kids and David went outside to play while I began breaking everything down.  Normally things are a lot slower to get back to normal, but since we host a couples' small group on Sunday afternoons now, we had to flip the house back very quickly this time.  We ordered pizza for dinner then let Luke open his present from us - a new toy workbench.  He is so into tools right now, so it was the perfect gift.  He played with it for a little while (and by play, I mean fought with his sister over getting to use it for a single second.)  We ended the day on a tired but happy note.  

The whole day was a wonderful time of celebrating our baby who is daily reminding me that he is no longer a baby anymore.  Thank you to all who came out and helped us enjoy his big day.

In closing, a note for the Birthday Boy:

We love you so much, sweet Luke.  The only thing bigger than your dimpled smile is your heart.  You are funny, smart, and sensitive to others' feelings...traits that I hope stay with you for life.  There is nothing more precious than hearing you pray to Jesus every night, even if we can't quite make out all of the words.  He knows, Bubba.  He'll always be there to listen and I pray you'll never stop talking to Him.  And while your fierce independence is in full terrible-two swing, I know that there is nowhere you'd rather be at the end of the day than rocking with me in your rocking chair, your head snuggled just under my neck and your "bobble" in your mouth.  

Thank you for all that you have taught me so far.  Through you I am learning to relax more, to laugh more, and that if you have a hand to hold, you're pretty blessed in life.  May you always know how blessed and loved you are and how much your Daddy, sister, and I are in your corner.  Speaking of your sister:  she loves you more than she loves anyone else in the world and often tells us so.  Though normally shy in group settings, she sang the loudest when it came time to serenade you with "Happy Birthday" song at your party.  She may sometimes be your biggest annoyance, but she will also always be your biggest fan.  Each of us are, Luke.  We are your own personal cheering section.  We are proud of all you can do and what a kind and helpful spirit you display.  The milestones are only going to speed up from here and we can't wait to be by your side for each one.  Happy, happy birthday, Lukey.  I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always.  As long as I'm living, my baby you'll be.  


Love, 

Mommy
xoxoxoxo

January 2014 Recap

January was a lot of fun for us.  We managed to get quite a bit of play time in through various activities and outings, which was a nice change after the hectic pace of the holidays.

On the first Saturday of the month, the four of us drove up to the Children's Museum INK and spent the morning there playing with the kids at all of the different exhibits.  They have little rooms set up as different real-life places and the kids can role play being a dentist at a dentist office, a waiter at a 50s diner, a beautician at a salon, a doctor at a hospital, a judge or lawyer in a courtroom, a shopper at a grocery store, etc.  They also have an indoor playground area, an old police car, and a huge old firetruck to climb all around.  It's a blast for them!  We packed our lunch and ate there before hitting the road.  It was a nice way to spend a Saturday doing something different as a family.

The next week Audrey started back to school, but before sending her we had a Mommy-Daughter date to conclude her winter break.  We went to the dentist (okay, that part wasn't as fun for me at least), then to lunch, and then I gave her a choice between painting pottery or getting a new stuffed animal at Build-a-Bear.  It took her .02 seconds to decide on Build-a-Bear and she ecstatically put together a new bunny she named Cutie Pie.

The following weekend we took a road trip to Lexington, South Carolina to visit our friends the Taylors who moved there about six months ago.  It was such a blast hanging out for two days and the kids enjoyed playing together nonstop.  Everyone got along very, very well and the only issue was Audrey having second thoughts about spending the night in the girls' room.  At 3am. When we were on the other end of the house and couldn't hear her. So, that meant waking poor Mrs. Kara who then had to come wake us. (It's not like she doesn't already have to get up to feed a baby.  What's one more time?)  David and Brian snuck away for a quick golf game on Sunday morning, which thrilled them to death.  We ate delicious food, played games, and talked nonstop about big issues, little topics, and everything in between.  Both Kara and I teared up when it was time to go on Sunday after lunch.  We miss them terribly and are looking forward to our next marathon catch-up session!

Of course we got some work done this month, too.  It can't all be fun and games (at least to this Type-A.)  We finally painted the guest room and worked hard cleaning out three closets in the basement.  We threw out 5-6 bags of trash and took a huge load to Goodwill.  I began consigning the kids' summer clothes from last year.  I also went through mine and David's old memorabilia, trashed stuff that neither of us had a clue about, and reorganized what was left.  We got a new roof put on, a new TV for the basement, a new TV table, and several other accessories/pieces of decor for the basement, which all required hanging/putting out/arranging.

The last weekend of the month, I got to cash in my Christmas gift.  I wrote about it in a previous TT post, but I'll give a brief overview again:  On Saturday the 25th, after the roofers woke us up bright and early putting on our new roof, David and I dropped the kids off at his parents' and drove downtown for the Hot Chocolate 5K/15K.  We went straight to the expo at the Georgia World Congress Center to get our race bibs then back to the hotel for naps and not naps.  ;)  We took a walk around Piedmont Park then through downtown before changing and going out to a delicious dinner at a local Italian spot called Pasta da Pulcinella.  We were in bed by 8:00 and after turning down a $17 in-room movie option, we snuggled and watched Modern Family reruns until turning out the lights around 9:30.  That next morning, we bundled up and drove as close as we could to Turner field and found a deck.  (Reminder:  Next time pay the stupid $10 for a parking pass in a lot there!)  We walked about 3/4 mile to the start line and jumped around in our corral trying to stay warm. I think it was about 25 degrees and David had the beginnings of a cold.  Nonetheless, we rocked it and crossed the finish line.  Maybe not super fast, but we did it.  They had our chocolate bowl "goodie bags" (fondue with various dipping foods plus hot chocolate) waiting for us after the race.  We walked back to the car, showered, and got ready to go get the kids.  It was a wonderful, much-needed break!

The next week we had a snow and ice storm hit that crippled the city.  The problem was that instead of happening overnight, it began mid-morning.  Then everyone decided to leave work early and dismiss school early and DOT workers couldn't do anything to help the frozen roads because millions of cars were on them.  People were stuck in their cars for 6 plus hours and kids in several counties had to spend the night in schools.  It made national news, mostly as the butt of Northerner's jokes.  I made my feelings clear on that in an earlier post, so I'll choose to point out that we were incredibly blessed to be safe and together and that it was awesome to hear of all the ways people, restaurants, stores, etc. came together to help one another out.  I'm proud to be a Georgia Peach, even if it means we don't handle snow well!  We of course played outdoors in it (Audrey loved it, Luke kind of just tolerated it).  We made a snowman, we made snow angels, we had a snowball fight, we "sledded" in our laundry basket, and we tramped through the gorgeous and scenic woods.  Then, when we couldn't stand the cold anymore, we did play dough and bubble baths and movies indoors.  It was just enough to get it out of our system.

Hmmm...what else this month?  I got new glasses, David went to Ohio for business for two days, we had two great play dates with our friends the Eries, and I had a lovely girls' night out dinner with a friend that lasted 3.5 hours.  It's been a wonderful month, but we are still very much dying for routine.  Even in routine in a single area would be nice!  For instance, Audrey started back to school on the 8th, then had MLK day off then missed a day for snow.  Kind of a big deal when you only go to school three days a week anyway!  Several of my runs got cancelled or had to be done indoors on a treadmill (YUCK) due to the weather.  David traveled, the kids fought colds, etc. etc. etc.  Maybe by the end of my February update we'll be able to report some normalcy.  Nonetheless, the amount of fun stuff we got to do and the few important projects we tackled balanced out the unpredictability pretty well.

We hope your new year started off well, too!  Enjoy the pics:    January Picture Gallery

Thankful Thursday

I have finally started my January Recap and had really hoped to be finished by now, but it hasn't happened.  So, I am interrupting my work on that post to bring you this week's TT post, because I'm just that dedicated.  You're welcome. 

Beginning Tuesday morning and continuing through this morning, we've had snow and ice in metro Atlanta to the tune of 6" + in our area.  Yeah, yeah.  We know.  That's nothing compared to what Northerners have to deal with, especially this winter.  Welp, that's a huge reason we live where we do.  Because we aren't huge fans of this kind of weather and we don't know how to handle it!  As one blogger put it, I invite my Yankee friends to meet down here in July and discuss ways we can better prepare ourselves for the snowy weather.  We'll do it outside without the nonsense of shade and it'll be so hot that within 4 seconds you'll want to peel your own skin off.  High temps and humidity?  Yeah, we can handle those.  Tornadoes?  We know just what to do.  Snow?  Not so much.  And that's okay.  (Yes, I get defensive about my South.  And that's okay too.)

Still, we did much better this go-round than a few weeks ago when it started coming down mid-morning and millions of people left work at the exact same moment and schools let out early.  People were trapped for 6, 8, even 12 or more hours trying to get home.  Kids spent the night in schools (none in our county, but many elsewhere), loved ones were separated with dead cell phones, interstates and roads were covered with abandoned cars.  It was awful!  So you can imagine that when this forecast came out, people did all they could to hunker down and stay home.  David worked from home yesterday and today, thankfully.  Audrey was out Wednesday and will be out tomorrow and we've all got cabin fever creeping in.  Truthfully, it hasn't been as bad as I expected though.  We really have had a great time together and soaked up all of the normal "snow day things", which brings me to my list:

1.  S'mores.  Eewwwy-gooey and oh so yum!  Luke enjoyed his first this week.

2.  Long bubble baths.  Not just for me, but for the kids too!  When all else fails, throw them in the tub to play!  

3.  Getting in a run.  I missed Tuesday's run because of weather and thought I'd have to skip today's.  I am so used to running early in the morning that it didn't really dawn on me to go this afternoon until, well, this afternoon.  David finished up work around 4:15 and I hit the pavement.  It was really weird to go that time of day (and to be surrounded by snow!), but I'm glad I did.  Half Marathon #3 is just around the corner!

4.  Playtime.  We are on the go a lot. These last couple of days offered us some time to slow down and play together for hours on end.  We did science experiments, pretended our living room was the beach, made snow cream, drank hot chocolate, had a snowman-building contests, watched home movies, and read a lot of books.  There was a bunch of giggling and laughter and only a small amount of yelling.  It was fun!  

That being said...

5.  That power stayed on.  Not only for heat and cooking and all that super important stuff, but also because...well, as I put it on FB:  Snow Days #1 & #2: "Let's play in it! Let's build a snowman! Let's make s'mores! Let's pretend we're at the beach! Let's have hot chocolate! Let's build a fort! Let's do some fun experiments!" Snow Day #3: "...Y'all wanna watch some more TV?"

Yeah, we're kinda done.  So long, snow!  You were beautiful, but we need to return to our regularly scheduled programming.  Try and make it back for Christmas, though!

Thankful Thursday

We're on the verge of wrapping up another busy week in the Sinyard household.  I had such high hopes of this one FINALLY being back to normal after the holidays.  It seems we haven't had a full week where Audrey has school on her usual days AND all my workouts get done AND David is in town and not working late AND things were just, well, normal since well before Christmas.  But alas, it wasn't meant to be yet.  Luke came down with a double ear infection on Wednesday and the poor baby is not feeling well.  He's had four doses of antibiotics, which is typically the magic turnaround for him, so pray he wakes up feeling much better and his appetite returns.  When his fever is gone (which still isn't happening without the aid of Motrin or Tylenol) he acts pretty normal, but I can tell he's zapped.  He's not sleeping well which means neither are we.  

The rest of us are hanging in there health-wise, though if AJ's cough doesn't hit the road soon, we'll be getting that checked out as well.  Ah, winter.  What a giant pain in the behind you are.  Aside from harboring germs, you are also absolutely ruining my early morning runs.  I truly have no use for you past December 25th.

But now to focus on the positive, here is this week's TT list:

1.  A surprise visitor!  My mom came out on Tuesday, which was very nice.  What was also super cool was that she brought my niece Annelise with her!  She and my SIL were in town for a few days, so my mom arranged to get Annelise and bring her to our house so Audrey and her could hang out for a bit.  It was such a treat and we loved seeing her.

2.  Preschool teachers.  Have I put them on this list before?  I can't remember because children ruin your sane mind, which is another reason I am so grateful for these sweet ladies who take a turn with my girl each week.  They do so many cool things with them to get them pumped up about learning.  Two weeks ago was Wild West Day and this week was Toastie Toes (pajama) Day.  Around here we usually just have Don't Kill Your Sibling Day and Laundry Day, so it's definitely a plus for her to get to be a part of such a neat program.

3.  My children's sense(s?) of humor.  I can tell already they are funny.  Audrey gets and uses sarcasm like a champ and Luke will do just about anything for a laugh.  His latest hilarious trick is to do the "sad trombone" noise that David sometimes makes when things go wrong.  His timing and use of it is right on.  For example, when he and I were loading the dishwasher the other night, we closed it up and then I said," Oh no, we forgot to put in Mommy and Daddy's plates."  He immediately responded with "Waaa, Waaa, Waaa, Waaaaaaa." Another night David flipped the switch on the nightlight and it didn't come on, so Luke piped up with his sound effect.  Hilarious.

4.  The one Wolf Camera in metro Atlanta.  If you've known me for any length of time, you know I used to single-handedly provide a paycheck to at least half of our local Wolf Camera's employees.  Sadly, my contributions were not enough and they closed it down along with every other store in Georgia.  Except one.  And I found it.  And I drove over an hour to get there and print some pictures to frame.  I realize there are services that do this online, but I wanted it done now and in person.  I'll be back, Wolf Camera.  I can't promise you the kind of faithfulness I gave before, but you'll see me a few times a year, I assure you.

5.  Deep conversations.  I know it's quite cliche to say so, but in this technologically-driven society our "conversations" can be brief, surface, and fake.  Lately I've had several real talks with real friends and it's been a breath of fresh air in my life.  The subject matter isn't really what has made the difference, it's just that there was a level of connection and understanding that fosters real relationships.  And with all of the Pinterest and Facebook facades, I'll take more real.  

Pray for health and a good weekend!  I'm dropping off all of my consignment stuff (YES!) and we're hosting our first small group this weekend (YIKES!), so we'll have a lot going on these next couple of days.  Happy Friday! 

Thankful Thursday

1.  Snow!  Though it reeked HAVOC on our city, we were blessed to be home together, safe and warm.  David worked from home on Wednesday (and I actually mean worked), so we didn't play outside a ton because I didn't want to handle two kids in those temps and conditions by myself.  Still, we got in enough for our taste and did the usual snow-y stuff: snowman building, snow ball throwing, and snow angel making.  We were out about an hour each day and even trekked to the lake then back through the woods to enjoy all of the gorgeous scenery.  Audrey loved it, but Luke just kind of tolerated it.  Me?  I like a little play time, but mostly prefer watching it from the inside while drinking hot chocolate.  

And with that, we're done with it.  Where's Spring?

2.  A (new) roof over our heads! And just in time for the snow! After several of our neighbors filed claims with their insurance companies and were getting granted new roofs, we decided it was worth a shot.  Sure enough, our insurance company determined there was enough wind and hail damage to cut us a check and our new roof went on last Saturday.  It looks awesome and really boosts the appearance of the whole house, especially since the garage had a different roof on it altogether.  At 15 years old, we knew we were going to have to bite the bullet in the next couple of years, but are so, so thankful it only cost us our deductible.  

3.  A WONDERFUL weekend with my husband.  For Christmas, David gave me the gift of an overnight stay downtown and the commitment to run in the Hot Chocolate 5K/15K.  We dropped the kids off of at his parents', went to the expo, walked around downtown and in Piedmont Park, then had a delicious dinner at a nice local Italian place.  The next morning, due to my lack of training and the cold temps being an awesome wife, I decided to do the 5K with him instead of the 15K.  It was a great route similar to what we've done before during the KP Corporate Challenge.  We finished and enjoyed our delicious hot chocolate, fondue, and various dipping treats then walked a mile back to the car, showered at the hotel, and ate breakfast.  On the way home we stopped to buy David's late Christmas/early b'day/early anniversary/early next Christmas gift of a new TV.  This was our second time buying a TV around the Superbowl and I, along with Clark Howard, highly recommend timing your TV purchase likewise.  We got an incredible deal on an open-box model someone brought back to exchange for a larger one.  We picked up the kids and went home to set it up in the basement.  We're waiting on the wall-mount, but it looks sooooo cool.  So, in conclusion, awesome weekend full of sweet, precious time with my husband...and cool gifts. :)

4.  Audrey's new bravery.  In the last week, we've gone to two Monkey Joe/Catch Air-type of indoor play places.  Audrey used to be very timid about trying many of the things there, but no more.  Now she runs fearlessly from giant inflatable slide to giant inflatable octopus to giant inflatable pirate ship.  I love watching her come out of her shell and enjoy it all.

5.  Luke's unchanging laugh.  We were watching home videos the other day and came across one from our old house when Audrey was cracking Luke up with a game of peek-a-boo.  He was probably about seven or eight months old and his laugh sounded exactly the same as it does now.  It was and is the sweetest sound to my ears.  

So, that's this week's update disguised as a Thankful Thursday list.  Hope you and your families didn't have too much trouble with the weather and that you enjoyed your snow days!

Thankful Thursday

1.  My oldest brother, Brian, who turns...well, older...tomorrow.  Love you and thankful for you, B!  

2.  Outdoor playground time.  We got to get out a little while on Monday and play at one of our nearby parks.  It seems a distance memory considering the low today was 15, but we soaked it up while we could.

3.  "Right now" moments.  Today the kids and I ate lunch at Subway.  Luke really wanted to sit with us in the booth instead of his usual highchair spot.  Audrey wanted me to sit with her.  So, naturally, we all sat on the same side of the booth.  I asked Audrey if she thought we'd always be able to squeeze in together like that.  "I don't know.  Maybe not.  But we can right now."  Wise words that made me grateful for that "right now" and many others that won't always be possible.    

4.  Toddler time at the library.  Because of my Bible Study schedule I haven't taken Luke to a toddler/story time more than once or twice.  We went this week and he really enjoyed it. He didn't participate much, but I think he will once he goes more often.  He did show a lot of independence when it came time to get his "activity toy" (a lettered beanbag) and hand stamped.  He made his way through the crowd up to the front and back to me without hesitating.  Oh my big boy.  Slow down!

5.  That I have 1/4 of the amount of stuff to consign than I've had the last two big sales.  Since I'm only doing the kids' previous season of clothes plus toys that don't get played with, it's going much faster than usual.  I'm also doing maternity this go-round, but it's still not as all-consuming as it typically is.  I'll miss the bigger check, but having a life the month before drop-off is nice too.  

Happy Belated New Year

Well, Happy New Year, folks!  I mean, I'm only 22 days late with my wishes, but at least I made it in January!  

Oy.  I hope this isn't an indication of how well my blogging is going to go this year.  I had so hoped to do better and even - yikes - start back up my Imperfect Perfectionist site?!  I know, I know...one thing at a time.

We had a great December and Christmas and, so far, 2014 isn't kicking our tail.  Audrey and I are both fighting off little colds, but other than that and a few more ear infection worries for Luke (but no actual infections), we're doing well.  My running has slacked off considerably with these cold temperatures, but I'm still doing at least 5 miles 2-3 times a week.  A far cry from my 20-25, but it's something.  My ever-shrinking jeans beg to differ that it's enough, though.  I could just lay off my cookie habit, but I'm not willing to go that drastic just yet.  I'm anxious to get back into a regular exercise routine.  

David and I have a race coming up this weekend downtown.  I was originally going to do the 15K and he was going to do the 5K, but then I decided since it was a date weekend and the 5K started almost an hour earlier, I'd go ahead and do it with him.  Yeah, yeah.  That's it.  It has absolutely nothing to do with my inadequate training and my being totally over running in 20 degree temps.

I haven't been a slacker in all arenas, though.  We've been tackling some projects around the house that we've been putting off for quite awhile.  As in, boxes in the basement closets that David never unpacked from our move and junk that had been stuffed in our old attic since we got married.  We've been cleaning out and cleaning up.  Normally there are few things I enjoy more, but too many projects at once mean I'm not making a lot of headway with any of them.  Cleaning out 3 basement closets + painting and decorating the guest bedroom + decorating the basement + consignment sale pricing + Luke's birthday party + cleaning out the master bedroom linen closet and all our memorabilia = a whole lot of physical and mental clutter and very little progress.  But, it'll get done eventually.  Beginning February 9th, we'll be hosting a couples' small group so that is my deadline.  And then there's Luke birthday and party later in the month, which will be my "okay-for-real-deadline deadline."  

So, busy business as usual, but we wouldn't know what to do with ourselves otherwise.  

I'll save the rest of the updates for my monthly recap, which if you're lucky, may get written sometime before May.  :)  

Hope to see you back here for Thankful Thursday!