Our first day of vacation started VERY early Saturday morning. We had to be at the airport early for a 6:15 flight to make it there with plenty of time to be at my cousin's wedding at 5:00 that evening. Unfortunately, our flight was delayed an hour due to an "undocumented dent" that they found on the plane after we had already boarded it. Thankfully there was a plane already there that we were able to board without too much trouble. The hour difference didn't keep us from making it to Florida with plenty of time to spare, but it was a little nerve-wracking there for a while.
Once we got into West Palm Beach, we got our luggage and took the shuttle over to get our rental car, which also took quite a long time. Afterwards, we grabbed a bite to eat and headed to the rental house. It was just as pictured... and it was perfect for us. The kids couldn't wait to get in the pool! It was raining all day long, but that didn't stop them from getting in the pool. Ha! They swam, ate dinner and watched a movie with our nieces, Kyleigh and Alexis, while we got ready and went to my cousin's wedding.
The wedding was beautiful. Even with the rain, it was a beautiful evening. It was a casual wedding at the Old School Square in Delray Beach, Florida. I'm so thankful I was able to attend and be a part of their special day!
Here are a few pictures that were posted on Facebook by their amazing photographer. Just gorgeous.
It was such a great night celebrating Travis and Annelisa!
While we were in Florida this past week, I attempted to get a few family pictures taken. It was a struggle to get Jake and the kids to go along with it, but they finally did and they turned out so cute!
Our 17 year old nieces, Kyleigh and Alexis, who came along with us on the trip to help with the kids, helped us take the pictures. Kyleigh helped by keeping the kids attention and Alexis took the pictures for us with my camera. I then edited them and I'm so happy with how they turned out.
I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!! We certainly did! We had a great weekend and a great week of vacation in Florida last week.
We got back into town early Saturday afternoon and started gearing up for our big Memorial Day party. The kids spent the afternoon playing outside with their friends that they hadn't seen all week since we were in Florida, and Jake and I got the house/pool ready for the party on Monday.
Sunday morning, we went to church and then went to Jake's Aunt and Uncle's Farm house for a Memorial Day get-together there. It was hot, but fun to see everyone and spend time together.
Then Monday, we hosted a backyard pool party for all of our neighbors and a few families from Jackson's school. It was so much fun! We had it catered by a dad from Jackson's school. He made pulled pork sandwiches, macaroni and cheese and baked beans. Everyone brought an appetizer or dessert and it was all SO very yummy!! The party started at noon and we wrapped it up at around 8:00 so it was definitely a hit! The kids had a blast spending the entire day in the pool! Needless to say, they were all very tired and ready for bed by the end.
It was a great weekend and a great Memorial Day party! I hope to share a few posts from our vacation in the next few days, so stay tuned.
Happy Friday!
Today I'm linking up with Christina, April and Natasha for Five on Friday!
One
Tomorrow morning, bright and early, we leave for a week long trip to West Palm Beach, Florida!! I'm so excited. We are going because my cousin is getting married tomorrow and we're extending our time there for a week long family vacation. We have several fun things planned and the kids can't wait!!
Two
Jackson has his last day of Kindergarten today. I can't believe he's about to be a first-grader!! This year just flew by so fast! We have loved his teacher and we've made a lot of great friends from his class. I'm a little sad the Kindergarten year is behind us, but I'm sure first grade will be fun too. We just got Jackson's Spring school picture back this week and he looks so handsome and grown up.
Three
Avery had her end of the year party on Monday. I was off work so I was able to go. They sang a few songs for us and then got to play outside on the playground. Avery did great singing the songs and doing the actions. I can't believe today is her last day as well and next year she'll be in Pre-K!!
Four
Our front porch was looking so incredibly pretty this past Sunday evening that I just had to take a picture. All of our azaleas were bloomed. I love this time of year!
Five
I forgot I never posted about Mother's Day so I'll do a quick little recap here. We got up and went to church that morning and then we spent the rest of the day at Six Flags with my parents and my sister and her family. My sister's kids had never gone before and with our season passes, we were able to bring a friend for free that day. We had just enough passes to get everyone in for free, so it worked out perfectly! It was a really fun day!
Avery also made me this cute magnet for Mother's Day at school and Jackson made me some pretty paper flowers. They also both made me a cute flower pot with real flowers in it at church.
Jackson had his last soccer game of the Spring season this past Saturday. He had such a fun season and really enjoyed playing soccer this go-around. It's always so much fun watching him play.
We got his individual and team pictures back on Saturday so I thought I'd share them here.
Happy Friday!
Today I'm linking up with Christina, April and Natasha for Five on Friday!
One
This week I finished the book, The Good Girl. I really, really liked it. I finished it in less than a week.
Two
Last Friday, Jackson had his Kindergarten Picnic at school. Jake and I went and brought Chick-Fil-A to eat for our picnic. It was at Crestwood Park, which is just right behind his school and also the same park we have all the kids birthday parties at. It was a fun time for the kids and their principal surprised them with having an ice-cream truck come at the end. The kids had prepared a book to show us and it was just a really fun time for everyone.
Three
We leave for Florida a week from tomorrow! I'm so excited! As I said in a previous post, we are going because my cousin is getting married on the 19th and then we are staying through the next week for a fun family vacation. I finally found a dress I liked for the wedding and ordered it while it was on sale last week. You can find it here.
Four
A friend of mine opened a little shop on Facebook and was selling these cute frames. I ordered one a few months back for our master bedroom and finally got around to adding pictures to it. I thought it would be a fun way to display some of the pictures from our 10 year anniversary trip to Washington State. Now I just need to get it hung on the wall. Ha. I'm such a procrastinator sometimes.
Five
Yesterday Jackson had his last field trip of his Kindergarten year! It was a fun field trip to the Zoo! I was able to go with him and we had a great time! I can't believe he only has 1 more week of school left as a Kindergartner. It's been such a fun year and I'm a little sad that it's almost over.
Avery's 4th Birthday and Party were both last Saturday, April 28th. I know I say it every year, but it blows my mind how fast the time goes by when you have kids. I can't believe she's 4 already!
(I found the Free Printable Invitation on Pinterest here.)
We had a GREAT day at the park. The weather was in the low 60's and Sunny and everyone who came had a great time, including the birthday girl! The kids had baseball and soccer games that morning and early afternoon so we had her party at 3:00 and served a few light snacks and drinks. It was a great time! Many of the girls wore their princess dresses, which Avery was so excited about!
I made a cute little tag for each of the food options and put them in these handy Ikea frames. I'm excited to have them for future parties as well.
Our Menu was...
Princess Pretzels (Soft Pretzel Bites) with "Gus' Cheese."
Wicked Queen Queso Dip and "Chips' Chips."
Cinderella's Pumpkins (Halo Oranges)
Flounder's Fish Friends (Gold Fish)
Sven Snacks (Carrot and Celery Sticks with dip)
Fairy Godmother's Fruits (Fruit Tray)
Merida's Meat and Cheese Platter
Snow White's Non-Poisoned Apple Sauce (Apple Sauce Pouches)
Then the Beverages were...
Belle's Enchanted Punch
Princess Tiana's Southern Sweet Tea
The Beast's Brew (Beer)
Rapunzel's Capri Suns
Melted Snowman Water (Bottles of Water)
My Mother in Law helped with a majority of the food and it was a big help. I also used this idea for the favors and they turned out to be very easy and only about $10 to put them together. They were a hit at the party and so cute. Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of them, but they were really cute!
My Mother In Law also brought a box full of kites and outdoor toys for the kids to play with that she had picked up for our Easter picnic that had gotten rained out. The kites were a big hit at the party!
Avery got a ton of presents and was so excited to open them! The biggest hits were the two little sister LOL dolls she got (she's obsessed with LOL dolls), the Pop the Pig game from Grandma that she's been wanting since Christmas and the Frozen bike my parents got her. She got so many other cute gifts and some really cute outfits. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful friends and family!
Avery opening Pop the Pig!! She wasn't excited or anything! Ha! She's so fun to watch open gifts.
A little video of Avery opening Pop the Pig!!
(Avery was so excited about her gifts that she went from sitting on the bench to standing on the table in the matter of minutes, just to get to all of her gifts. I made sure to get her down, but took a quick picture to show her excitement!)
After presents we sang happy birthday and ate princess cupcakes! It was such a fun party for our little princess.
Singing Happy Birthday to Avery!
Avery, I hope you always know how much we all love and adore you! You are such a blessing to us all. You are surrounded by so many people that love you and I'm so very thankful for that. You are such a smart, sweet and sassy little girl. You are Mommy's "princess" and Daddy's "Sugar" we love you to the moon and back!
