Thursday, April 25, 2013

Our Little Spring Vacay...

I should be working right now; I really should, but this is way more fun and almost makes me feel like it's spring break all over again, so...

While my children sleep peacefully and the sun pours through the window behind me, I think I'll just reminisce about some fun family memories instead.

We snuck away (or sneaked as Madi would say) to the coast for three days over spring break and we were lucky enough to have the sun shine every time we headed down to the beach.  Once again, we benefitted from my parents Worldmark and landed ourselves a sweet deal with an ocean view and a two bedroom condo in Depot Bay that we swore was bigger than our house.  Maybe it was just the lack of toys, but either way we were all loving the space.  It's always a good thing when you have no expectations for the Oregon coast and then end up with sunshine. That's a win-win in my book. 

We spent one morning visiting the old lighthouse outside of Newport and petting **cough, cough** squishing **cough, cough** caterpillars.  Our kids are so fun, and so very different. Madelyn wanted to rescue every last fuzzy creature she saw and Emmitt was definitely the enemy.  Although he may appear kind and gentle {at times} the evil laugh in the third picture was definitely the result of his little finger going right through the middle of a caterpillar. 

It's a good thing the insect world had Madelyn that day...



People tell me it's just "boys", but I'm skeptical. This kid never ceases to disgust me. He'll literally squeezed a worm into two pieces. He's been caught smashing dog poop (and his own fecal matter, for that matter) between his hands and he REGULARLY eats handfuls of dirt.  I swear I feed him (and a LOT). So. Gross. 


 I guess it's a good thing he's so cute...

We spied lots of seal pups swimming pretty close to the shore!



The inside of the lighthouse was closed, but it was fun to walk around it and talk about it with Madi.  She was pretty much obsessed with lighthouses the entire trip and since just about every store in Lincoln City uses a lighthouse in their logo, we heard all about them!

My favorite people. 

Love this smile!




Revenge...


We did lots of relaxing and swimming in the (indoor) hotel pool.  I read a book (say, what?) and the kids took long naps and slept incredibly well each night.  We stood by the windows at night and watched the waves crash during the somewhat stormy evenings. It was perfectly low key and we all enjoyed every second of our getaway. 

Our kids love the beach. We only go a couple of times a year, but every time we break our feet out of our shoes and squish our toes between the sand we get the same reaction. They both squeal with delight and run like crazy-people... until they each completely crash. 
And if you're Emmitt, you add throwing giant handfuls of sand to that and he's pretty much died and gone to heaven.

Eventually Emmitt discovered what he thought was a giant bathtub and started screaming "wa-wa" and running toward the ocean with every muscle in his body.  Pure heaven. 


Love me some nice smoochy cheeks...

He totally mastered throwing handfuls of sand and jumping at the same time, FYI...
...because that's a skill most people are looking for. 


*sigh*

And no beach trip is complete without a nice double-chin selfie, right?!? 
Humor me...



And he crashed folks...



We're some pretty blessed peeps; that's for sure! 

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

The Ball...


This weekend marked the first annual Santiam Canyon Father Daughter Ball. It was a fundraiser for our local library and the committee did a fabulous job of hosting what I don't doubt will turn into an annual tradition that will boast princesses and their princes from near and far.  

Madelyn could. not. wait. for the "weal ball". She talked all about it for weeks prior to the event.  She had her outfit picked out (her wedding dress, duh?!? ;) and Matt's outfit picked out (his "dapper" suit that he wears for basketball) along with all of her jewelry and accessories.  It's true; this girl has read a little too much Fancy Nancy, if that's possible...

Saturday was a little rainy, but the clouds broke and the sun peaked through just in time. Grandma and Grandpa kept the little rascal at home while I snuck off to the red carpet event to take some pictures. 







This picture might be one of my absolute favorites, ever. 



I wasn't supposed to see the "real" ball, but I asked the right person at the right time and they let me sneak in for a minute and take a few pictures.  None of them are very great, but you get the idea. Very princess-y. :)



I also heard a lot about these cupcakes... She's totally my daughter. 

Tickets were taken at the door to the library and the couples were bombarded with paparazzi before they had their pictures taken professionally and then headed over to the Ball.  



Madi's friend Adrie got to go with her Daddy too. This was pretty exciting! Tickets had sold out about a week prior to the event and they hadn't purchased tickets yet, but another friend ended up being sick and so Adrie and her Daddy got to go in their place. A fun surprise, although sad for poor Reesey. :(



Heading in, where Mommies were not allowed! 

These two were my favorite Instagram pictures, so I added them as well. Oh man, these two were so cute I could hardly stand it! I have no doubt Madi thought she was a true princess indeed. I love these pictures and I love these memories.  She has the best daddy who treats her like a princess (*with rules) and I look forward to many more Balls in our future! 



When they arrived home for the night, Madelyn barged into the house telling me all about doing the Harlem Shake. She was pretty stoked. But who wouldn't be after getting to dance their little heart out!?! She reported that dancing with Daddy and Adrie was her favorite part.  Matt also took some pretty funny videos on his phone of her holding hands in a giant circle with all these sweet little girls swaying back and forth! Aw, what a dream come true for a room full of sweet princesses! 

A big huge thanks to the committee who organized such a smashing event. As Fancy Nancy would say, "that's a fancy word for 'successful'!" ;)