Finished project!

It was a crazy weekend, but we got the project done (minus a few finishing touches) with the help of Big Event and a few very kind neighbors and friends! The Big Event crew was actually an hour and a half late. :/ So that is why some sweet neighbors/friends jumped in to help. And once the students arrived, they were super helpful!

The kids are loving it because they can now ride things around the driveway, down the sidewalk and along the back porch. They have invented all kinds of games already. And Austin and I really like not having to trudge through mud, etc. to get take the trash out, etc. Yay!

BIG project

We have been wanting to put in a sidewalk from the driveway to the back porch for a while. This year, we decided to finally get it done by taking advantage of Big Event (where the students spend a Saturday helping out the community in various ways). There is a lot of prep work to be done even though they will be helping pour the concrete this Saturday! There was digging, forms to build, and sandy soil to lay. The students are also helping us revamp the yard a bit with compost and mulch. So on Monday, we had a big load of sandy loam, mulch and compost delivered and dumped in our driveway. Such fun. I think we had the entire neighborhood playing in our driveway!

More birthday stuff

Pawpaw and Manah had birthday lunch with us. They gave him a couple of balls, his favorite toy and favorite word by far (and some bday money!). And we discovered another way in which he is a clone of his Daddy...he loved the cookies Allia baked but still wouldn't eat the cupcake. Austin is a cookie fan, and I am a cake fan. But we have discovered the GACC is the perfect blend of our two tastes. ;)

From the picture, it looks like he is enjoying the cake, but make no mistake. That is cookie all over his face, and the bite of cake missing was force-fed and spit out!

In the evening we went to mass and then out to one of our favorite restaurants with the P family. Such wonderful friends and family to celebrate with. What a blessed boy!

Happy First Birthday, Sebastian!

That year really flew by. I am not ready for my baby boy to grow up just yet! :/

Then

Now! (sporting the Aggie outfit his Godparents gave him for the occasion)

 He loved the tissue paper. He really likes this stuffed animal penguin of Allia's, so she decided to give it to him for his birthday. So sweet!

He is lovin' the balloons too!

 And some new shoes from Lito and Lita!

We had a little party this past weekend with some sweet friends whose little girl, Mary Clare, is only 2 days younger than Sebastian. They had a great time celebrating together! Unfortunately I did not get any good pics of the two of them.

This boy loves to eat. He had a whole avocado, a banana, two spoonfuls of baked beans and a handful of blueberries!

 He didn't care for the cupcake so much.

 I always love to get 1 year olds a balloon because they are so intrigued by them.

And his wonderful Godparents celebrated with us. So fun!

And of course, Happy Solemnity of the Annunciation!

Miss Hollywood

We have a little Sunday tradition with the R family that sometimes we walk/ride bikes to their house in the afternoon or sometimes they come here. We had the blessing of seeing them yesterday, and they gave Anastasia her birthday gift while we were at their house. It was a cute little purse with all kinds of girly goodies in it. What a hit! She wore the sunglasses and purse proudly all the way home (a nice long walk for a 3 year old girl!) I couldn't help thinking she looked a little "Hollywood." It was precious. She hasn't stopped playing with it since!

Spring Break!!!

We found out just as the week began that Austin had an extra day off this year. So we decided to celebrate by using some of his well-earned travel points for an overnight trip Wednesday.

My guys on St. Patrick's day

The 3 older girls and I planned an excursion to the American Girl store and dinner at the Bistro. Austin had the 3 little ones, and they went to ride the big carousel and find dinner on their own before we met up for a beautiful evening mass.

Allia and Alina

Mariana and Saige

 

 Gloria and Kit

The girls' fruit came cut in little heart shapes

 For dessert (which we had because it was the Vigil of St. Joseph's feast day!), they had cupcakes to decorate and mini cupcakes for the dolls (which I claimed, and the girls generously obliged).

The waiter laughed at these two for sucking the extra icing out of the bags! Yum!

 Mariana was very generous with the icing on the mini cupcake for me. Sweet girl...she knows I am an icing fan too!

Don't feel sorry for these guys! They had lots of fun including some toy shopping with money that Pawpaw and Manah sent for them.

And some hotel time. It was a nice one bedroom suite. So we were packed in, but it was cozy for just one night! Sebastian had a great time exploring, and the kids enjoyed some cable TV (Disney Jr.).

 Of course, you have to play on the beds a little!

And we even stopped at the giant statue store on the way home. Austin has been wanting to check it out for years!

Brothers

I love it when they play together. Hopefully those moments will become more frequent as Sebastian gets older!

K family visit

Our friends, the K family, came to share a few days of their spring break with us. We will be going (God willing) on a big beach vacation with them this summer. So it was nice to still have a home visit with them. We always have such a great time!

It rained pretty much the entire time they were here. But we made the most of it with crafts, inside play, and a little bit of puddle splashing. So fun!

Family visits

We had the blessing of seeing lots of family this weekend! Aunt Cathy and cousin Sarah came all the way from New Jersey. Unfortunately, the kids were already in bed, so Allia was the only one who met them. It was still nice to see them after so many years!

Then the next day, Aunt Karen and Uncle James drove up. We had lunch with them and Jared. Uncle James worked hard to charm Sebastian and finally succeeded!