lily had a sleepover with her little buddy ren this weekend.  we picked him up friday morning and had him with us until friday evening.  he and lily had such a good time with each other.  i really wish the thurmonds lived closer to us. 

practicing their prom pose

building butterfly houses at the home depot kid workshop

the finished butterfly houses.

bakers extraordinaire! 

sharing secrets in their fort

they had so much fun they fell asleep on our drive to drop ren off with vanessa.

lily and the zoo

kevin had monday off work for a spring holiday (alas, i had to go to work) and took lily to the zoo.  they had a blast, and my phone was blowing up with photos of all the fun they had.  lily has the zoo mapped out, knows what she wants to see and do, where she usually has a snack, that we take a photo in front of the giraffes for aunt kerry.  

traditional giraffe photo for aunt kerry. this time she posed herself.
also, it should be noted that she chose her clothes and dressed herself while kevin was in the shower.
she has sort of a cindy lauper look happening.  i guess the '80s are back. maybe they never left? who knows.

brushing the goats

playing on the insect playground

aren't my people adorable?!

lots to see from the train

the fire truck is always a favorite

learning to fly. like a boss.

saturday is a busy day...

our backyard was a jungle, so saturday was dedicated
to weeding, mowing, and tidying up.

lily helped with all the yard work

and then played in the sprinklers when we were all done.
she's a big fan anytime she gets to put her swimsuit on and
"go swimming."

kevin & i celebrated six years of marriage with a fancy dinner out.
and because we had a babysitter, went shopping without distractions.
i know...we're boring. 

and this cute munchkin steals our hearts over and over. every day.

happy easter!

we had a very quiet easter weekend.  we introduced lily to the art of dying easter eggs, and on sunday the easter bunny stopped by with an easter basket for lily and hid the eggs we had dyed and a few candy-filled plastic ones.  lily had a blast running around the backyard and finding all the eggs.  

it was nice to have a quiet weekend, to reflect upon the gift of Christ's atonement and resurrection.  i know that because He rose on the third day, and lives again, that i can also live again; that i have the opportunity to have my family for eternity.  i am incredibly grateful for that gift, and am grateful for the easter weekend that allows me to more fully reflect upon it.

i have so much fun with my little tribe

only the best in egg-hunting fashion for miss lily bean

easter dress and a goofy grin.  

jokes by lily

lily has been developing and discovering her own little brand of humor lately.  it is usually pretty random and funny only to her (kevin and i are in the amused bafflement category), but she has come up with a couple gems that made me LOL for real.  read on for the ticklement of your funny bone.

1) backstory: we have two cats; sirius and jasmine

mama (to lily about something she had said or done): are you serious?
lily: no, i'm jasmine!

2)
lily: why did the chicken cross the road?
mama: why?
lily: to get to the other side!  why did the cat cross the road?
mama: why?
lily: to get to the other side! why did the mouse cross the road?
mama: why?
lily: to get away from the cat and the chicken!

tulips!

lily & i met up with vanessa, ren, & soren this afternoon at dutch hollow tulip farm for a little picnic, wandering amongst the tulips & picking some, and viewing the animals at the farm.  the tulips are gorgeous; there are so many colors and varieties.  i wanted to take one of each (at least!) home.  buuuut, i don't have the budget for that many flowers, nor do i have enough vases or surface space.  i did come home from the tulip farm with a few bunches.  it was a wonderful afternoon and i cannot wait to go back.

sweet dreams

she climbed up on the chair with me, put her head on my shoulder, and fell asleep.  sweetest thing ever.  i really love this little girl.