Angry Birds Party

We had Riley's Birthday Party today.

He will be 6 on Wednesday.

Have you heard of the game Angry Birds?

The boys are ADDICTED to it.

Riley really wanted an Angry Birds cake for his party.

So we asked Aunt Mary if she would make one.

The answer?

YES!

Mary took on this challenge & did a FABULOUS job!

In case you've never heard of Angry Birds, here is what they are:

There are Angry Birds:

and there are the evil pigs who steal the birds' eggs:

The birds fling themselves off of a slingshot to get to the pigs.

She made all of the pigs, birds, rocks, bricks, etc. by hand out of candy melts.

After we oohed and awed over the cake, we had a yummy lunch and then Riley opened his presents.

He got so many cool things!

Thanks everyone!!

Then it was time for the moment Ri had been waiting for ALL day!

CAKE!

He chose to eat the top layer of cake with the bird's nest and the king pig.

He had a great day and can't wait for his actual Birthday!

Brothers

These two boys drive me CRAZY sometimes.
Sometimes they fight continuously.
Sometimes one just tries to make the other one mad.
Sometimes they run around like they have ingested 10 pounds of sugar.
Then I see this:

and I remember what sweet brothers they can be.
I remember that they stick up for one another.
I remember that they help one another.
I remember that they love one another.

Sometimes it is hard to remember, but these sweet moments help. =)

Flying Kites

We took advantage of the warm, windy weather yesterday to fly some kites!

The kids had a lot of fun flying their kites!

Using Our Patio

We put our patio to use Saturday night. Our kids and some of their cousins roasted marshmallows on the fire pit.

Then since it was cold, they sat around the fire for a little bit.

This did not last long though.

It was a little chilly Saturday night. =)

That didn't stop Jeff & I though.

After everyone left, we put a movie on for the kids, grabbed a couple glasses of wine, and sat out by the fire.

It was cold, but a nice ending to a busy day. =)

New Patio

This is what the front of our backyard looked like 2 weeks ago: We decided that adding a patio coming off of the deck would be a nice addition. That way we could put our grill, smoker, and fire pit on it and not be in the mud if it had been rainy. So, we had 4 tons of sand delivered. To our driveway. We needed it in the backyard.... So, I enslaved my children and made them help me get it into the backyard.

They were a TON of help. ;0)

Jeff raked out the sand piles we had made in the backyard and leveled it all out.

Then he and his brothers started laying down the bricks we had picked out.

Thanks Aaron & Richard!!!

By the end of the day this is what it looked like:

All that needed to be done was the bricks that had to be cut.

Sounds easy, but really it wasn't.

It took Jeff almost the rest of the week to get it finished.

After he got home from work each day.

This is what it looked like on Friday evening:

Jeff had gotten all of the bricks cut and laid, and then we had swept sand into the cracks and Jeff added dirt to the edge where we will plant new grass.

After seeing a brick fire pit at Lowe's, we decided to copy it.

Here is ours:

Then while we were at Menard's where we bought all of the bricks, I saw this patio set and thought it made the perfect addition. =)

So here is our new patio:

We LOVE it!!

Amy's Bridal Shower

This is my baby sister and her fiance, Sam:

They are getting married next month!
So, we had a Bridal Shower for them today. =)
My sister Mary made the cake.
It was beautiful!

My mom, sisters, sisters-in-law, and a few of Amy's friends helped with food, decorations, punch, etc.

I could not have done all of this on my own.

Thanks everyone!!!

We played a fun game where we divided everyone into groups of 4 - 5 people.

Each group got a bag filled with tulle, ribbons, sequins, headbands, flowers, etc.

Each group then had to make a veil for Amy to wear at her Bachelorette party.

Everyone did a great job!!!

They turned out really cute.

Then it was time for presents!

She got a lot of nice things.

I think she was pretty happy with her haul. ;-)


Here is Amy and her bridesmaids:

Me, Tonya, Amy, Theresa, and Ragan.

Congratulations Amy & Sam!!!!

First Day of Spring!

Today was a beautiful day.

Perfect for the first day of spring!

We played outside a lot today.

I have some tired kids right now,

but that's OK, it's a good kind of tired. =)

Here are some pictures from our day:

(This is Zach's "I Love You" written in the sand. :0)

We can't wait to enjoy the rest of our spring break!!