Egg Decorating

I'm usually the one that's all about the holiday festivities.  Unless it's Christmas.  Then Craig is right there with me.  But for the rest of the holidays, it's usually me organizing the holiday themed activities, pictures, etc.  So when Craig suggested we decorate Easter eggs this past weekend, I was on board right away!  I hard boiled the eggs on Saturday and then while Holden napped on Sunday morning, we decorated the eggs!  (Sorry Holden, you'll get your turn someday!)  Brantley seemed to enjoy it, though he wanted to dip every egg in every color of dye.  And it took everything I had for my type A, control freak personality to allow him to do what he wanted and be okay with it!  It's the memory that counts, right??

















 

#BoyMomSwap

While many people may think the world of blogging is weird (putting your life out there for strangers to see and following the lives of people you've never met), I find it very entertaining.  I absolutely love following blogs similar to mine, especially other bloggers who have kiddos around the same ages as Brantley and Holden.  I don't watch much t.v. in my down time; instead you can usually find me catching up on social media, which includes all of my favorite blogs!  I've connected with quite a few people through blogging, and though they may not be my real-life BFFs, I feel like many of them could be!  Through blogging, I've also realized how small of a world this really is!  For instance,  I learned that one blogger I used to follow (Katie; she doesn't seem to blog anymore) is the cousin of a past student.  Another (Ashley) was a sorority sister to my friend Lauren in Atlanta.  Another (Sarah) used to live in Olathe and has all kinds of similarities to me, and yet another (Desiree) has both Kansas City and Iowa connections and we have a mutual acquaintance!  And then there's Brittany.  A local blogger whose blog I found in 2012, when we were both pregnant with our firsts--both boys and both due in July.  I couldn't not follow her (due to the crazy amount of similarities) and one day I mustered up enough courage to comment on one of her posts.  We've followed each other ever since, and in January, we met up for a play date!  Weird?  Maybe to outsiders, but to us, it was completely natural and normal! 

There's a whole other slew of blogs I love.  One is Elizabeth at Chasin' Mason.  She has a little boy who is just a couple of weeks younger than Brantley.  You may remember that I guest posted on her blog last spring about being a Boy Mom.  Anyway, when Elizabeth announced a Boy Mom gift swap, I was in!  The idea was that you'd be paired with another mom and her son(s) and the two of you would swap boy gifts.  Again, a gift swap between bloggers that have never even met?  Sounds a little weird, right?  Perhaps...I'm pretty sure my husband thought so...but so fun too!

I was paired with Rosemary and her sons Gabriel (4) and Rafael (2) at the blog Raising Bridges.  We sent them some little kiddo card games (War, Skip Bo Jr., and I Spy) because we are game-lovers at this house!  But because it was a boy-themed swap, I wrapped them as Legos!  So cute, right??  We also included some "dirt and worms" (i.e. crushed Oreos and gummy worms) to top their favorite ice cream or pudding (which I didn't take a picture of). 


From our new friends, we received some puzzles (Brantley loves the one with balls, obviously), Little People cars (Holden's favorite), veggie straws (always a delicious snack), and Laffy Taffy (my fave).  Brantley was pleasantly surprised about receiving a present in the mail and was super excited to tear into it!  So much so that I didn't have my camera ready and only snapped a few horrible iPhone photos.  Oops.  Bad blog-swapper right here!  Live and learn. :)




Thank you to Rosemary and her boys for the fun new toys!  We hope you are have enjoyed a family game night or two, complete with dirt and worm sundaes!

And for anyone interested, Elizabeth (and a few others) are now hosting a Mother's Day Mom Exchange.  Just for moms!  Because we deserve a gift every now and then, too!  Check out her blog ASAP if you're interested in signing up!  I think the deadline is tonight!  Thanks Elizabeth for helping to organize these fun swaps! 

Furnished New House Photos

As promised, some updated house photos!  We still have nothing on the walls, except for in the boys' bedrooms.  It's tough deciding what to put where and it's hard nailing holes in brand new walls.  So our picture frames sit and wait for me to decide...

But most of the boxes have been emptied for a few weeks now.  Which is a great feeling!  The basement is another story, but it, too, will improve over time.  For now, we are really enjoying the extra space and updated features!


The view upon entering from the front door...



Look to the left and this is what you see.  Our dining room turned playroom.  We had plans to fill this space with a farmhouse table, but now we can't decide.  It's sort of nice having the extra room for toys.  Any advice would be appreciated!




Looking straight after entering the front door.
 



The kitchen.


A view from one side of the kitchen to another.



And looking back at the dining room play room.



Looking from the kitchen to the hallway off the garage and the main floor bathroom.



Furnished covered deck.



Looking from the kitchen to living room.
 

Brantley's sports-themed room.



Holden's nursery.


 

Guest bedroom.



Guest bathroom.

 

Master bedroom.


Master bath.


I hope you enjoyed the update!  Until next time!

 

An Update...With a Few New House Pics!!

Happy Friday, friends! I've been such a bad blogger lately.  We moved 3 1/2 weeks ago, so that kept us pretty busy, and then I was sick for four solid days the following week (with symptoms STILL lingering), but truth be told, we haven't been up to much that has been blog-worthy!  Well, there's the new house...but it's still a work in progress.  I promise to take some pictures and post them soon!

In the meantime, I'll leave you with a few of my recent Instagram photos at/around/in our new place. For me, it took awhile for the house to feel like home, but I'm getting there.  We really do love it and we've especially enjoyed the warm weather, the walks to the neighborhood park, and the walks around the lake.

Night 1: Kinnick was confused, I think
Night 2: We shipped the boys to Wichita the weekend we moved.  This was the night they returned home.
Not only did he come back to a new house, but a new BIG BOY bed too!  He loves it and has yet to fall out!
He also loves the basketball court at the neighborhood park.  Bless his heart, he tries (and tries and tries) to make a shot.
A typical weekend wagon walk around the lake.
Our west-facing window lends itself to some pretty great Western Lenexa sunsets.
Enjoying a bit of my Spring Break on the deck.
Since moving, this kid wants nothing but real people food.  No more purees for this big boy!
Last weekend, I looked out the window to our deck and saw Brantley just chillin'.  Pondering life, perhaps??