Summer's Almost Here--Strawberries and Prom!

 Emery waited all year to go strawberry picking again.  She talked about last year's visit to Sandy Flat Berry Patch at least once per week throughout summer, fall and winter.  Our second trip did not disappoint!  The strawberries were plentiful and delicious.  Once again, Harper and Davis joined us, plus Emery's Kindermusik buddy, Eli.  Despite the fact the weather was super hot and muggy and bugs were swarming us, we all had a good time.

 After strawberry picking, Emery and I showered and headed next door to see our sweet neighbor, Katherine, get ready for prom.  We adore our neighbors and Katherine is Emery's favorite babysitter.  She couldn't wait to see her all dressed up in her "princess dress."  Katherine's mom, Jane, curled Emery's hair while Katherine dressed, which Emery loved.  Katherine looked stunning in her peacock blue gown.  What a great Friday!

Hayes is 3!

 Well, this is my first time using the new blogger and my pictures uploaded in the reverse order and I can't seem to get the cursor above this first picture.  Hmmm....well, I'm not about to reload my pictures, so this post will just have to be backwards.  In the picture above Bodie is showing off his Colorado State University socks.  Go Rams!  CSU is Ben's alma mater and to prove that I am not brainwashing our children to only love Notre Dame, I bought these socks for Bodie.  He wore them proudly at Hayes's Home Depot birthday party.

 Kelsey and Bodie

 Delicious cupcakes in Home Depot's signature colors

 The birthday boy and Emery hanging out after completing their bird feeders

 McKenna Calvo, Hayes and Emery ready to dig into their cupcakes

 Hayes with his two best friends, Jack and Connor, decorating their bird feeders

 Hayes and his daddy

 Listening to Miss Yvonne give instructions.  Hayes's birthday party was super cute.  Home Depot does these parties for free and they are incredible.  Each child got to build and decorate a bird feeder in our own private, roped off area.  Music was playing for the kiddos and each party guest was given a tube of bird seed to take home to fill their feeder.  Well done, Home Depot at Vinings!

 Dad/Opa with Bodie at Hayes's tee ball game

 Hayes racing to first

 How cute are these little three and four year olds???  The game was the funniest thing I have ever seen.

 Friday, April 20th, was Hayes's birthday so we did a small family party at Brian and Alison's house.  Emery and Hayes made pizzas and dessert was this delicious and adorable choo choo train cookie cake.  Happy birthday, Hayes!

The Cake

My good friend, Sarah Calvert, MADE the cake for Kelsey's baptism. It was stunning--and delicious! Sarah has only been making cakes for a short time but she's clearly got a knack for it. The fondant bow along with the lavendar monogram and piping were gorgeous. Having the cake made by a dear friend made the day even more special. Sarah is super modest so I just wanted to brag on her for a minute and give her credit for this wonderful creation!

A Fantastic Easter Weekend

Easter was really fun this year. Emery was totally into egg hunting, coloring eggs, visiting with the big bunny himself, etc. Also, having Bodie with us this year made things extra special. Hard to believe that last year he wasn't even on our radar and this year he attended the annual Thornblade brunch and egg hunt with us!

Emery has loved the Easter bunny ever since her first Easter. Santa Claus gave her a bit of a fright briefly, but she has never been afraid of the Easter bunny. The egg hunt and brunch at Thornblade Country Club is my favorite event of the year at the club. Thousands of eggs are "hidden" on the grounds and the children have so much fun finding them. It's great for the little ones.

Of course we attended with the Bell family. Emery and Davis can't bear to be separated for very long! Neither can Ben and Reggie....hee hee. Those two are double trouble when they're together.

Once again all attempts at a family picture were disastrous. Bodie was wanting to nurse and neither Ben nor Emery are looking at the camera. Oh well....maybe one day.

We headed down to Atlanta Saturday evening. The Easter bunny paid a visit to my parents' house! Emery and Bodie each received fun goodies in their baskets. Emery's favorite gift was a new "brella." Girl is obsessed with umbrellas. She has destroyed several. This one is super cute--it's from The Palm Gifts and is monogrammed. Presh. She also got a Strawberry Shortcake dvd, dry erase markers for her easel, a chocolate bunny, a Hello Kitty toothbrush and strawberry toothpaste, gum and a stuffed bunny. I asked the Easter bunny to limit the candy in the baskets this year and he obliged. Emery didn't seem to care.

Sweet little Bodie got some new rattles, car seat dangly toys and a light up ducky.

The main reason we went to Atlanta was to witness Kelsey Claire's baptism! I am honored to be her godmother (and Hayes's godmother). The baptism was held at Brian and Alison's house and the ceremony was performed by Brian's Uncle John, who is also Brian's godfather. It was very special. Most of both families were attendance which meant lots of little kids running around. Everyone had a great time and the ceremony was beautiful.

Brian, Hayes, Alison and Kelsey

My dad with Bodie

This picture cracks me up. Jake, the goddog, was right in the middle of the action during the ceremony. We all just worked around him. Too funny.

Emery and her daddy. Emery was so tired from playing with all of her cousins that she slept the entire car ride back to Greenville and then some. She never naps anymore, so this was a rare treat. Bodie also slept the entire time. I managed to read a bunch of 50 Shades of Grey. Juicy!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!

Slagel Visit

Ben's parents, older brother, sister-in-law, niece and nephew all came to stay with us for several days last week. We had a full house and lots of fun. The whole purpose of the trip was for Ben, Jerry and their dad to go to the Master's. However, we managed to squeeze in a day on the boat as well as some early Easter activities.
Jerry and Ben enjoying their sandwiches on Lake Hartwell's "Muscle Beach." This was our first outing on the boat for the year. Gorgeous weather, but the water was still chilly.

The cool water temps didn't stop Austin and Emery (and a golden retriever named Zoe they befriended) from swimming. CRAZY!

Bodie slept the entire time we were on the boat.

Emery kept trying to ditch her life jacket.

Alexa, Emery, Austin and Bodie--the Slagel cousins!

Austin and Emery were fierce competitors in the egg hunt.

After the hunt we colored eggs. This is best done outdoors and in minimal clothing--two of Emery's favorite prerequisites!

Emery thought the plastic eggs made great water toys.

Some of Ben's buddies from MI were also headed to Augusta in this huge motor home. They managed to time their arrival perfectly and joined Ben, Jerry and their dad for a round of golf at Thornblade Sunday afternoon.

This picture has nothing to do with the Slagel visit, but it cracks me up. Emery and Harper had a playdate at the mall the other day and were fighting over this much-too-big pink dress. So typical!