My Oh May

I can hardly believe that so much has transpired over one calendar month, but it did and we're thankful that the Lord has carried us through both the wonderful and difficult times.

Here's a recap:

Arboretum: we LOVE the arboretum here. It's green, hilly and gorgeous. But as much as my boys love the arboretum, they love the little girl in the pink top even more!

I don't think I got a good picture of Robert on his first day of school, so I was determined to get a good one on his last day!
We love you Mrs. Vermeire and will miss you so much next year!
An after school treat - ice cream! Poor Connor looks so focused here and intent on devouring the whole thing. It fell on the ground a few bites in so Robert shared the rest of his with his little brother. I was so impressed that he did this without hesitation, but I'm pretty sure he was already quite filled with end-of-the-year goodies from the school day.
We took a trip to Vermont for a friend's wedding. Carlton and I met in this very town in Vermont many years ago, so it was especially sweet to bring our boys here. I fell in love with the state - it's stunningly beautiful! Here the boys are showing off their muscles to a local policeman.
For a little boy who will only sit for a video for 10 minutes, he could have stared at this waterfall all day!
The little men were so excited to be in Vermont that they woke up both days at 5:30. We were out the door by 6 and had two mornings of the most lovely and quiet walks! Dad slept in while we walked the first morning, but joined us on day #2.
Their favorite stop on our walks was to a farm down the street from our hotel. It was beautiful and we were there early enough to watch the farmers feed the animals!

Texas Trip Times Three!

Papawyn (Carlton's dad) came in town for a conference. The boys and I met them downtown on Saturday afternoon and enjoyed a gorgeous afternoon running around Rittenhouse Square together (the boys ran, we chased)!

We miss Texas, so we decided to visit. We went, we saw and it conquered us (or our sleeping schedule anyway!) but we had a blast!

First stop: Dallas. A precious reunion with some of our favorite people on earth! Charlie, the superhero on the right, is Robert's first best friend. They were inseparable when we lived in Dallas, and they were inseparable when reunited!
This might have been the stillest moment of the visit. Thank you, Curious George.
We took the kids out for hotdogs and frozen custard at one of my favorite Dallas eateries. Fortunately we went early because I'm pretty sure we would have been asked to leave had more people been in the restaurant. Don't you love Charlie's french fry impression??
We left Dallas to join Carlton's family in Fort Worth for his brother's TCU graduation. I didn't get any pictures, but we're so proud of you Uncle Nay-Nay!

On Sunday we headed back to Dallas to attend Providence Presbyterian Church's worship service. It was a little taste of heaven worshipping in their beautiful new building with so many we love so much!

Next stop: Houston. This was the scene five minutes after we pulled out of Dallas...
Robert learned to play the guitar.
Connor learned how to ride a horse. They're both determined to be Texans, I guess.
We were able to get together with almost all of Carlton's family at a BRILLIANT restaurant that had outdoor seating with a big sandbox and play area for the kids AND the food was amazing!

The boys got to spend some time with their cousins. I love this shot of Connor and Jody. She was playing "catch the bunny lovey" with him and he loved any bit of attention she was willing to throw his way!
We managed to get a picture of all seven grandchildren who were present (poor sweet Ross was sick at home). I guess you can call it impressive, but they did each have their own chair...

Spring Finally Sprung!

Happy belated Easter! We intended to get some good shots of our boys in their matching outfits (as this only occurs on special occasions (hand-me-downs don't usually come in sets of two)), but Mommy couldn't figure out how to work my camera so most of what we got was dark or blurry...oops!

This is their "He is risen!" rendition.
Well spring has certainly sprung around here and it is BEAUTIFUL! Dare I say it was worth the wait?! And with spring comes lots and lots of trips to the Arboretum. This is from a special visit with my littlest while his brother was at school.
An exciting part of living in a new house is seeing what pops up come spring. I was elated to see the color of this azalea in our front yard!
Today we met Daddy at the Arboretum for lunch. The boys had a blast and we're always thankful for more time with Daddy!
The boys found a frog! They climbed all over that dirty thing again and again and again!

My Little Boys

The other day we did a "craft." I do not consider myself to be very crafty but I can manage if it's mostly store-bought stuff. So here were my store-bought items: one box on Easter egg ornaments (bought after Easter last year) and two Dollar Store "trees." I was fortunate to have bought one for each boy because I realized early in the game that their craft styles are very different. Do you see the intense focus on this child's face?? Incredible, right?? Well, it lasted for about five seconds at a time and then he was off to other things.

The result: a precious little tree with only a couple of ornaments (his brother took the majority of them). Connor not only learned how to put ornaments on a tree, but he also learned that playing "kick the tree" is not an effective way to keep your tree adorned.
Robert was focused and determined, too. Some of this was definitely driven by a desire to acquire as many ornaments as possible before his brother could. Mission accomplished.
So proud of his final product!
I've wanted to capture them doing typical Robert and Connor activities and climbing up and sliding down the stairs is definitely one of them.

As is riding bikes up and down our driveway - never mind the rain!

Today the boys found mommy shoes and tried them on. Daddy would be so proud...

Joke's on Us!

I have to confess that while I've been trying hard to remain positive about northern winters, I've neared the end of my rope. Earlier this week I thought the weather channel was pulling one over on us. They were predicting snow for Friday. "Ha!," I thought, it can't snow on Friday, Friday is the first day of APRIL. Spring was suppose to start a month ago...or so I wished...

We indeed awoke to snow falling and, though it did not come down for long, it came down hard. There was enough to make snowball snacks! The good news is that the boys loved it and didn't think it was abnormal in the slightest!

To alleviate some of my winter blues, I took the boys to the train station and they shared one of the most gigantic cookies I have ever seen served at a place like this. Even split in two, there was an enormous portion for each little guy. It was worth dealing with the aftermath of the sugar load to see the delight on their faces!
Waiting for the train to come...
Braving the cold to wait for another train. Mommy wasn't so brave, so we ended up heading home shortly after this shot.

Spring, we're SO ready for you! :)

Lately We've Been...

Getting ready for next year's football season. Connor's still working on the three-point stance. Fortunately, we still have some time...

Wrestling with Daddy. This is one of the boys' favorite activities.
Sliding with mommy and cousin Katie.
Running through the Atlanta arboretum with our cousin, Jack. (Which was precious until Connor face-planted just seconds after this shot was taken. Still needs some months under his belt before he's up to the big boys' speed.)
Sliding again...
Riding around with cousin Katie in a small basket.
Practicing our oratory skills. (Preacher's son?)
And climbing high.

It's Sunny, but Freezing, in Philadelphia!

I'm remembering now what I'd clearly forgotten since college - just because it's sunny outside, doesn't mean that it's warm! We're getting our fair share of snow and cold weather, but we're managing in large part due to the wonderful people whom we've gotten to be with!

This pic is from a quick visit to see my dear friend, Jess, and her darling girls, Carolina and Gracie, in NYC.

And with another precious friend, Sonya, and her little darling, Connor!
And now I will begin a long tale of our Christmas journey around the world (or from here to Texas) in just 15 days!

First stop - on the road - West Virginia! The boys were GREAT on our long drive to Atlanta and the only time they were really fussy is when we put them back in the car after enjoying snow at a gas station in WV.
We stopped in Charlotte to see some of our favorite people. Robert is pictured here with his betrothed, little Elizabeth. How sweet will it be to pull this out at their rehearsal dinner? :)
And Christmas in Atlanta! Fast, furious and so much fun! Connor and Katie got floor pianos - a huge hit for these musical darlings!
And for the big boys - guns! We are starting with the Nerf dart variety. A great gift to be enjoyed by boys, brothers, mommies and daddies alike! :)
Cutest gift I opened on Christmas morning...
Next stop - Dallas! What a sweet time with friends we miss and love so much! We've decided not to reveal how we always get our children to sit perfectly still and to smile directly at the camera all at the same time. Sorry.
Here's proof that you can take the boys out of Texas, but you can't take the Texas out of the boys!

Next stop - Houston! We had a blast getting to play with grandparents and cousins. Our trip to the zoo was a highlight. It was such a blessing to get some cousin time in!
Robert and Ross - PRECIOUS together!
And back home again! Instead of gearing down after our big trip, we geared up for the snow that kept coming and coming (and is still coming!). If you're thinking that it's odd to be in a swing on a cold, snowy day, you're right, it is.
Robert got his first dose of hot chocolate. He insisted that is was "coffee" - a clear nod to his grandparents' love for the stuff!
My snow bunnies!
First trip sledding. I think I can say with certainty that Mom and Dad had the most fun. Robert had a great time, but there were three kids participating in the sledding festivities that day (two just happened to be over thirty)...
Connor opted for the car instead...
After sledding and hot chocolate, we headed to the dentist. Robert had so much fun and we have Dr. Erik to thank for that! He was amazing and now Robert asks if certain foods are good for his teeth before he gets a snack (Because apparently all of the snacks that he was getting beforehand were not good for his teeth. Oops...Mommy's fault.).