Get your cameras ready!

Can you believe it's already the last day in April? This year is just flying by! It's CRAZY!

Anyway, the time has arrived... and tomorrow is the official kick-off for 2011's "A Photo A Day In The Month Of May". YAY!

This is such a fun way of documenting bits and pieces of our every day lives. I've embarked on this fun little endeavor for the last couple of years (you can see 2010 posts here and 2009 posts here) and I have loved every second of it.

A few of you have mentioned that you'd like to join/rejoin in the fun this year. For those of you who have asked, no, you don't have to have a blog. If you have a Facebook account, just create a "A Photo A Day In The Month Of May" album and post all your photos there. I am SO excited and I can't wait to see your pictures!

I've created this fun little button this year:

Feel free to add it to your sidebar if you are playing along.
The code is on my sidebar →

Have fun clicking away...

See you tomorrow!

This Very Moment

Our neighbors across the street had to have three huge pine trees cut down recently. While the guys were over there Monday morning, working on cutting down those trees, I asked about the possibility of cutting down some very tall (and prickly) holly trees we had by our front door. Anyway, one thing led to another and both of us ended with a huge pile of yard waste in front of our homes ready to be picked up.

With all the storms/tornadoes we've had around here for the last month or so, and all the fallen trees you see as a result of such storms/tornadoes, I thought for sure the city was pretty backed up. So imagine my surprise when I heard the trucks pull up this morning.

Well, apparently Sam heard them too. And not one to miss any truck action, he immediately ran to the front door. As soon as he saw what was going on, he called me and told me I HAD to come see this.
 

The scraper truck was there doing what it does.

The workers were busy doing what they do.

And Sam was mesmerized. 

Asking one question after another. 

And we talked and talked and talked.

Until apparently, satisfied with my answers, he decided it was best just to watch. 

In silence. 

And so we did!

He watched intently all the action outside our front door.

And I watched him intently. 

Taking him ALL in.

My baby boy. 

Growing up way too fast.

Right before my eyes.

And right then and there I decided I never want to forget this very moment.

 I love this picture!

Not because it's the best photo I've ever taken of my sweet boy.

But because of the emotions I feel with this sight and memory.

He does in fact, take my breath away.

Wordless Wednesday - LOL

These two make me laugh.

HARD!

Every single day.

 And for that I am ever so grateful!

Ten on Tuesday

1. We managed to take the kids to see African Cats and Rio last weekend. We all loved them both. I think we've all agreed to wait for Hop to come out on DVD. And I'm trying to figure out what night this week I will make my escape to go see Water for Elephants. Anyone interested in coming along?

2. I took SO many pictures when my brother was here last week, that I'm going to have to share them on a couple of posts. So, stay tuned...

3. I am still very much in love with Craigslist. Although, sometimes it irks me when people treat it like it's eBay, I'm still loving the deals I'm getting and coming back to check in on a daily basis.

4. Speaking of Craigslist, I just posted my first "for sale" ad on Sunday evening,... our old washer and dryer. I had four different people contact me. They were sold by 1:30pm on Monday. For full asking price. Saweet!!! Now we get to use that money towards a little kitchen renovation we have in the works.

5. Our local schools added three additional days to their calendar to make up for the snow/ice days we got hit with this winter. This does not make me happy. Not one little bit! I am SO ready for summer break, it's not even funny!

6. I am in desperate need of a family vacation... just sayin'.

7. With Isabella wanting to enroll in some of the summer art classes and some of the the summer pottery classes, in addition to taking swim lessons,  think I better start thinking about how to organize our days. This might get tricky!

8. I have a new love affair with Red Box. I just wish they had a bigger movie selection. It's been a little bit challenging for us since Blockbuster closed.

9. I am SO excited to be starting my "Photo a Day in the Month of May" project this coming Sunday. I have embarked in this little endeavor for the last couple of years and LOVE all the everyday memories that I've been able to capture. Some of you have even played along on your personal blogs or Facebook. I sure do hope you join me again this year. It was SO much fun looking through your everyday life captures. So, if you decide to play along, please do let me know, so I don't miss a thing.

10. We went strawberry picking while my brother was in town (this also falls under #2). It was so much fun. But as we were getting ready to leave, I couldn't help but wonder if the check-out attendant would suspect that Sam might have eaten a strawberry (or twenty) while he was busy picking. I'm still not 100% sure. But seriously, be honest and tell me, what do you think?

Nah,... I doubt it!

;)

Our FUN Easter

We kicked off our Easter celebration on Saturday afternoon, 

when we went to Hope's first service with my parents. 

I loved everything about the service ~ the music, the message, even the rock we got take home. 

 

We followed church with dinner with my parents and then called it a night.

After all, we had to get some sleep so the Easter Bunny would make his appearance.

Easter Sunday started out with lots of oohs and aahs, 

when the kids came downstairs and found their Easter baskets. 

Unfortunately, they knew there was more fun to be had and so we quickly 

got dressed and headed outside to see what the Easter Bunny might have left behind.

And so the hunt began....

And pretty soon their baskets were overflowing with lots of bright colorful eggs...

 

filled with all kinds of treasures and delicious treats.

And then it was time to head out to one of our favorite family traditions, 

a picnic lunch at the Botanic Gardens.

We got to twirl around:

We made a new friend:

We enjoyed our picnic lunch under a shady tree:

 

We ran around, A LOT!

And of course, we fed the fish:

 

And being that this was the first weekend for feeding, 

they were extra hungry:

And then the kids decided to roll down a grassy hill.

A number of times.

 And almost immediately, they were super itchy.

And SO crabby.

And that, my friends, was our cue... it was now time to head back home.

As we drove home Scott and I talked about how much fun we had, 

and how blessed we are to have such amazing and healthy kids, 

and how we hope to be able to continue these little traditions of ours for years to come!

Hope your Easter was everything you hoped it would be!

I'm wondering...

How can we possibly arrange our weekend schedule (and budget) 

so as to fit this:

and this:

 

and this:

 

and of course, this:

Any suggestions?

Happy Birthday, Hector!

My older brother turns 40 years old today.

And he's in town to celebrate.

And in true Torres fashion,
the celebration started on Saturday...

With an amazing impromptu harmonica/rap duet:

trust me, you don't hear this everyday

And a visit to an awesome new playground in town:

 It's hard to tell who liked it more,

the kids or Hector.

OK, so maybe it was Hector!

And of course, gifts:

 
the girls presented him with an original,
one-of-a-kind masterpiece

And we ate and drank.
Like way too much.

And we played cards.
And argued.
But mostly laughed.
Really HARD!

And we had cake:

And sang Happy Birthday!

But mostly, we enjoyed being together.
And letting him know that he is loved.
A lot!

Happy birthday, big brother!
Thanks for letting us share such a special day with you.
We love you SO much!

Wordless Wednesday - Our Colorful Life

Life is about using the whole box of crayons.  

~RuPaul

Our weekend in pictures

First order of business,... 

I hate to be Mr. Obvious here, 

but did you notice the blog just a got a make-over?

Isn't it SO purty?

The very talented Kristina from Two Happy Mamas 

is responsible for this much needed face lift.

And I LOVE it! 

She's got a lot more designs to choose from,

or you could be MUCH more brave than me and go custom.

Either way, be sure to go and check out their site.

OK, so moving on...

We had another beautiful weekend around these here parts.

Which lead to a whole lot of outdoor activities.

We did a lot of this:

and we couldn't get over the amount of grasshoppers we saw (and caught) 

Isabella's makeover is courtesy of our neighbor, Madison

Doesn't she look stunning?

;) 

and we made a couple more trips to Lowe's

and he picked up another scoop of mulch

and since it got to be so hot, out came the water hose

 

and water = a whole lot of FUN!

 

And now we're back to Monday.

A stormy one. 

AGAIN! 

But hey, after the weekends we've had lately, 

I can't much complain!

Wordless Wednesday - Little Fingers

I ♥ these little fingers.

With dirty, overgrown fingernails and all...

Ten on Tuesday

1. Yesterday we had terrible weather. Like really, really scary weather! Rain, lightning, thunder, super strong winds, tornado sightings, sirens blaring ~ the whole shebang! I was working at Eclectica when the worst of it happened. I looked over at my friend Ellen and noticed she was stressing out. I kindly told her it would be OK and advised her to take some deep breaths. Then I made the mistake of saying what was on mind, "I wonder if Isabella is freaking out...". Ellen apparently also said what was on her mind, "She probably is." Yeah, that was the beginning of the end! I started thinking of my little girl, away from me, sitting in the hallway at school, scared out of her mind. Hello! Can you say panic attack?! I called Scott and started crying just thinking about it. Scott managed to talk me off the ledge and calm me down by telling me that the kids were probably in a safer spot than I was and quite possibly completely oblivious to what was going on outside. I bet Ellen was thinking "Who needs the deep breaths now, huh?"

2. When I finally picked Isabella up from school, I immediately asked her about her day. She gave me a run down of her day. Never once mentioning anything out of the ordinary. After waiting a while, I specifically asked if they had to huddle in the hallway because of the weather. She responded with a less than enthusiastic "Oh, yeah". She forgot. Alrighty then!

3. You know when people type LOL and LMBO? I often wonder, really? Are they really laughing out loud or laughing their butts off about this or that? Well, last night while catching up on my blog reading, I literally lol,... to the point of tears. One of my favorite bloggers, Meg Duerksen from Whatever, posted pictures of her attempt at grooming her dog. Oh my goodness, I'm still laughing at the pictures of poor Waffle. Go check it out here. That is some funny stuff! Best laugh I've had in a while.

4. I love me some canvas prints and the Canvas People are offering a free 8x10 canvas (not including shipping and handling) or $50 towards any upsized canvas. I hate that I missed out on this promotion last year, but trust me, I quickly jumped on it this time around. I ordered an 8x10 print, and the s&h came to about $15. I can't wait to get it! I think these would make great Mother's Day presents. Go check it out and order yours here!

5. Isabella says she is madly in love with a little boy in her class named Luke. She talks about how much she loves him and how much he loves her and how they're going to get married soon. I explained that it's OK to really like Luke and that they can be the best of friends, but Kindergarteners are much too young to even think about getting married. She thought about for a minute and then said: "Well, since the two of us are really smart, after we finish Kindergarten we can skip to the fifth grade, and then we can get married." Apparently 10 years old is the magic number. Yeah... good times!

6. I don't know about you, but I don't remember really noticing boys until I was like 12 or 13 or 14. What's up with that?

7. Scott and I did some exhaustive research and made some reservations. Disney in 2011! And we are all thrilled!

8. For some unknown reason, Sam was super excited to see his pediatrician for his three year check up. During the visit, Dr. Higgi told Sam he (1) HAS to sleep in his room, not in mom and dad's, (2) HAS to use the potty, no more Pull-Ups, and (3) could only drink one cup of juice a day. Needless to say Sam left the office feeling quite deflated.

9. Sam has slept in his room ALL NIGHT for the last 9 days. He has been sporting some pretty cool big boy underwear for the last 6 days, using Pull-Ups only at nap and night time. And his juice consumption has been drastically reduced to 1 (and OK, sometimes 2) cups per day.

10. Dr. Higgi is our hero! And Sam has been handsomely rewarded for all of his hard work!