Lumber and Landscape

We have lumber!

Please pray that the rain holds off so the framers can do their job tomorrow.


Also, aren't the azaleas pretty?

We have somewhere between 35 and 40 azaleas in our front yard. Last year they didn't bloom, but after a little surgery and medication, they have hot pink buds all over them this year. Did you also notice the wisteria above? (It's behind the cute little girl in the orange pants and it smells heavenly.)

From Piano to Project

Two weekends ago Brandon drove down to New Orleans to pick up my Grandmom's piano. We are so grateful to have it. It looks beautiful in our living room and M&E really enjoy making music (if that's what you call it). I took piano lessons years and years ago so I don't remember much of anything. I bought a lesson book off of Amazon and am trying to learn again. So far, I can play Ode to Joy and Jingle Bells. The problem lies in finding practice time around here.





The lei has become a semi-permanent accessory in Madeline's wardrobe. It is often accompanied by Eli's camo hat (worn backwards only). Little Miss has recently acquired a serious interest in her daily ensembles. Basically, she wants to alternate between her Little Mermaid t-shirt and her t-shirt with birds all over it. Eli enjoys both of these choices because he knows the Little Mermaid song and sings it when that shirt is worn and on days when the bird shirt is worn, he points to it all day saying "tweet tweet." As for his own clothes, Eli, in true boy fashion, couldn't care less about what he wears. However, if 8:30 rolls around and he is not yet out of his pajamas and into his clothes, he starts tugging at his pj's and directs me to his dresser to get him dressed for the day (complete with shoes).

Last Saturday morning we had a screened-in porch. By lunchtime, we did not. Thanks to the friends who made up the demo crew...



The porch was sacrificed to make way for our new master suite. The framers should be here Tuesday!

Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys.

(Unless they look this good in a pair of boots.)

Sprung

We sprung forward this weekend and have not slowed down a bit. The weather has been glorious and we have been taking full advantage of it the past few days. M&E have been outside all day every day, save for naptime and bedtime. And oh how they have loved their beds lately! They actually giggled as I laid them down for a nap on Saturday. I guess playing outside in the warm weather without stopping will do that to you.

Today, we went to Spain Park for the morning. Here are a few pics...

When I say we've been spending all day outside, I really mean it. Tonight M&E came in for supper, which lasted maybe 15-20 minutes, and then they were stripped of their shirts and directed back outside to play until there was just enough time for a bath and a couple of books before bedtime.

Is it obvious that Madeline enjoys being shirtless?

Mardi Gras, Finger Painting and Noodles

Perhaps the three don't normally go together, but in our household they did.

M&E celebrated Mardi Gras with some beads and an authentic Gambino's king cake courtesy of Granddaddy. The beads are still alive and well. However, the king cake did not last more then 48 hours in our home; the first third of it was consumed within the afternoon of its arrival.



One afternoon it was warm enough to go outside and take a stab at some finger painting. I was surprised that it actually was not a hit. M&E were very concerned with the paint on their hands and weren't much interested in smearing it on the paper. They wanted me to wipe it off so they could climb the fence instead. (Climbing, on the other hand, is a huge hit in our home these days: fences, coffee tables, dining tables, beds are all fair game.)





A couple of days ago it was way too cold to go outside and both M&E have a cold so we were stuck in the house all day. However, some Montessori training freed me up to fix some homemade chicken noodle soup for dinner. Here is Eli practicing transferring noodles from bowl to bowl - very good for fine motor skills development.

Ride That... Dinosaur?

Last night, Eli mounted his toy dinosaur like it was a rocking horse or something.

Then of course, Madeline had to try it too.

Double up... what a couple of nuts!

How We Wind Down for Bed...

In Like a Lion

March blew in last night, bringing snow to Alabama. Unlike the flurries that usually define "snow" in Alabama, this is a real snow and I was glad to see that my little southern babies had no qualms about heading right out into it.







We wrapped up in a fleece blanket for a golf cart ride around the neighborhood. Along the way we provided a fun target for some kids' snowballs.



The wind has been fierce. Here is a tree down right around the corner from our house.



The snow is still coming down and we're all snuggled up by the fire for now!