Happy 4th birthday to our little man!

 Cade turned FOUR on Saturday!! Happy birthday, Little Man! He started the day off right sharing a birthday donut with his cousins!

 We planned a birthday brunch complete with a Mario Kart theme. I was having major mommy guilt because there were so many other things I had hoped to do, but just ran out of time. The best thing though- Cade didn't know the difference and thought everything was perfect! ♥

 The cake was adorable!

 The birthday boy and his big sis

 Harper couldn't keep her hands off "baby" Ty

 The kiddos burned off their brunch with some outside play.

 My handsome boy

 Pinata fun was up next. Cade took a turn first.

 Ella hung with her BFF, Kylie

 Ella's turn

 Even Harper gave it a whack!

 We missed having Payton there- he is usually the one who hits it hard enough to open it! After a few rounds with the bat, we resorted to pulling strings and voila! Candy!

 Opening gifts. Ella couldn't wait to give Cade what she picked out- Wreck It Ralph and Madagascar 3. He was thrilled!

 Mamaw and Papaw gave Cade his very own left-handed junior golf clubs. Awesome! Daddy is pretty excited about this present, too!

 New games and a basketball from Grammy and Papaw

 New cowboy boots from Jason, Carla, & fam. Cade can't wait to be like his best bud, Carson!

 Of course, he put them on right away. Lookin' good, Pal!

 A new fishing pole and all the goodies from Mom and Dad!

 He also got some new clothes, a fire truck, and $$- thanks, Everyone, for such nice gifts!
Family birthday photo

Happy birthday, Cade!

To our sweet boy- Mommy and Daddy love you so very much and are so proud of the kind, thoughtful, and loving boy you are growing to be! We hope your 4th birthday was wonderful! ♥

Easter fun

 We made some Easter goodies in preparation for the weekend. These little bird nests were so cute and easy to make. Ella and Cade had fun making them and Harper couldn't have been happier since she had an entire bag of jellybeans at her fingertips. Love her cheesy grin!

 On to the Easter eggs! We did glitter eggs this year which turned out so pretty.

I didn't take many pictures- all that glitter and dye in my kitchen required more than one-handed attention! Plus a certain little boy loves to make everything splash! ha!

I was surprised by how much Ella and Cade enjoyed eating those eggs the next day- they peeled and ate them for breakfast and lunch!

My birthday

We celebrated my 33rd (?!) birthday this week. 33 sounds so grown up and I do not feel that way! ha! It was a busy, busy day, but Chris and the kiddos still made it special for me. They gave me flowers, took me to dinner, and gave me some thoughtful gifts- including a new MK handbag Ella thought I needed (good thinking, El!). 

 So thankful for my sweet family that takes such good care of me.

I'm excited to see what 33 has in store!

My cup runneth over...

Just a girl and her babies

 My little gal sure loves her babies. I could sit and watch her play mommy all day.  

 ♥ ♥

She knows her babies need lots of kisses to grow and she likes to share the love. Whenever we see a baby out somewhere, she'll say, "Here, Baby! Kiss! Kiss!" and she'll smack those little lips. Too cute!

Happy birthday, Daddy!

Chris turned 34 at the beginning of March. Celebrating birthdays with these three kiddos is so much fun. They get so excited about giving their special cards and gifts. Ella helped me plan Chris's birthday dinner and she even rolled up her sleeves and helped me make the meatballs, making one extra large for her daddy. Once dishes were done, they couldn't wait for him to open his cards and presents! 

 Harper wanted to help...

 She gave Daddy a new watch!

 Ella picked him out a new Reds sweatshirt.

 ♥

 And Cade picked out some new tennis shoes. I love that little hand over his mouth- he was so excited about those shoes!

 My sweet boys

Dad and his buddies. God sure blessed these kiddos with a good one!

 Over the weekend, the Davidsons came up to celebrate with us. On Saturday night, we had dinner out at the Mellow Mushroom. It was yummy. Ella, Cade, and Payton had fun entertaining each other.  

 The Davidson boys

 Happy birthday, Daddy! We sure do love you!

Sass

For my own record, something has to be said about my adorable, sweet, innocent daughter that is not yet two years old...

She is such a SASS!

 This girl marches to the beat of her own drum and she just is NOT going to do anything that she doesn't want to do! If it's not her idea, forget it, and don't dare try to change her mind or you're going to hear about it! =) She is beautiful and fun and precious, of course, but the sassiness is enough to surprise me sometimes.

I told a friend last night that I have always thought our dramatic Ella would be the one to try us when she is older. However, I have decided Ella is the one who will ask to do something and if we tell her no, she will cry and scream and put on a show, but in the end, she will obey. Harper, on the other hand, may or may not ask, and even if we say no, she will do it anyways. I love her fiery, independent spirit, but I just have a feeling this girl is going to give us a run for our money!

Chicago

 Chris and I celebrated nine years of wedded bliss in February. We were hoping to celebrate by heading out of town for a couple nights, just the two of us, and then a friend of his from college invited us to meet them in Chicago for the weekend. Perfect timing! We had reservations at Chicago Cut for Saturday night. It was a great night. The conversation was entertaining. The steak was delicious. But the best part? Not having to settle arguments, pick food up off the floor, or apologize to other diners for a screaming baby. =) Just being able to sit and enjoy the good company= wonderful.

On Sunday morning, we decided on brunch at Yolk. The place was hopping and we waited for a table for over an hour, but since there were no fussy kids, it didn't matter! I ordered pumpkin roll french toast. It was amazing! And so pretty that I took a picture. Doesn't it make you hungry??

 Chris and his college roomie, Jason.

 Jason and Jenny headed back to Wisconsin that afternoon. Chris and I spent the day walking up and down Michigan Avenue. We shopped a little bit, drank coffee, stopped for treats. I loved this special time with my man.

 The city was beautiful as the sun started to set.

 Sunday night we found a small Italian place for dinner called Osteria Via Stato. They just kept bringing us all this wonderful Italian food- eight courses in all!- and then gave us free dessert. I felt bad because we had so much left over, but it was so fun!

We took our time heading south on Monday. I sure love my kiddos, but I miss time with my husband. I treasured these three days together, being able to talk, hold hands, and just be young, carefree, and in love. Cheers to 9 great years, Baby!

Cade on marriage

We have a nanny, Kate, who comes to the house a couple days a week. She is engaged and planning her wedding, so naturally she always has wedding "stuff" with her. Cade has been completely fascinated by all this wedding hoopla and has so many questions about the what and why of marriage. This is a conversation that happened between Cade and Kate the other day.

Cade: Why do you want to get married?
Kate: Because I love Alex and I want to spend the rest of my life with him.
Cade: Is there a baby in your belly?
 Kate: No, there's no baby in my belly.
Cade: But are you going to kiss him?
Kate: After we get married, yes, I'll probably kiss him.
Cade: I think kissing's yucky!
Kate: Well, when you're a grown-up and you fall in love, you might not think it's yucky.
Cade: But I don't like to kiss! I don't ever want to kiss. I don't ever want to get married.
Kate: You don't have to get married if you don't want to. That's your decision to make.
Cade: Well, maybe I will get married someday. I don't want to kiss, but I really do want to cut the grass!

hahaha! Oh, the sacrifices he's willing to make just so he gets to cut the grass! I sure love that little boy!

Sisters

  I love watching Ella and Harper together. Harper thinks Ella hung the moon.

 In the afternoons when I tell Harper it's almost time for Ella to get home, she squeals, claps her hands, then runs to the door to watch for her. They are so sweet together!