Caroline's Valentine Party Photos . . . Finally

Well . . . I am finally getting around to posting some pictures from Caroline's Valentine party, which I realize was over a month ago! (how time flies!!)

It was a very sweet party and most of it was coordinated by Caroline herself. She looooves doing things like this.

the flowers . . .the favors . . .
the food . . .

little heart tarts and raspberry lemonade

heart-shaped ham and cheese / peanut butter and jelly sandwiches

"decorate yourself" cupcakes heart-shaped Jello Jigglers (a favorite)
strawberries and heart-shaped watermelon pieces

the sweet girls . . .

CarolineNoelle

Kelsey
Jillian
Bethany

Kelly
Alie
Caroline thought it was a fun party!
These girls are a blessing to Caroline.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

"Christ beside me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me. "

-Saint Patrick

On my way home tonight, I was listening to K-Love and they were talking about Saint Patrick. He was a missionary in Ireland. (don't you love his quote?)

Something I never knew before was that the shamrock represents the trinity. (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) Love it! :)

I hope you all had a Happy Saint Patrick's Day!! We spent it at the Arboretum. (pictures coming soon)

Little Artists

Caroline has been taking an acrylics paint class all year. I am so impressed with what she has learned so far. It is perfect for her because she loves all the different shades of colors and what they are called. So many times, she says things like, "Look at that crimson red cardinal, Mom." The other day she looked at me and very seriously asked, "Mom, do you think my shirt is more of a lily lavender color or a tropical violet?" My response?? "Caroline, I would have said it was purple." :)

She loves to mix her colors and see what she can come up with.
She loves to teach Luke about all the colors as well. :)

Simple Snack

There are so many times when we are hungry and are trying to find the perfect snack and we reach for things that are not good for us and won't satisfy us anyway. (like I just did with m&m's) One of my goals this year is to keep our fruit plates full of ready to eat snacks like these. yum

p.s. That pineapple was only 99 cents at Aldi. :)

Oh . . . and didn't John do a good job on that back splash?? I will post before and after pictures of that project soon!

Train Ride with Caleb

Last Wednesday, Diane and I thought it would be fun to take the kids on a train ride to Glen Ellyn. They have a very cute train-themed diner called "Two Toots" that we wanted to go to.

Here comes the train!!Caleb was so excited about his first train ride.Riding the horse at Two Toots.One of the fun things about Two Toots is that your food comes on a train!!Patiently waiting for dessert.Here come the cupcakes!! They came with train whistles on them.
Toot! Toot!
What a fun day!!!Caroline likes this picture. :)

Luke's Half Birthday

My mom called Luke on March 1st to wish him a happy half birthday. (thanks for the reminder, Mom!) We don't usually celebrate half birthdays, but I thought it would be a perfect time for Luke to bring in birthday cupcakes to school since he wasn't there on his real birthday. He said he wanted green cupcakes with sprinkles, so that is what he got. :)

Happy Half Birthday to my little cupcake. :)

Pink Shakes

Caroline checked this American Girl magazine out from the library. . . and wanted to make these . . .. . . so we did.The kids had fun shopping for the ingredients and making them.. . . and eating them. :)
They were yummy, but a little bit too sweet even for Luke and Caroline. Way too much sugary stuff. (Cool Whip, sugary strawberries, raspberry sherbet, vanilla yogurt, apple juice . . . yum, but yikes!!)