It's not always like that, so I am really trying to enjoy it and live in the moment.
After the holidays, it was nice to get back into our routine and settle down a bit.
We've also been enjoying some amazing weather the past month or so. It's still cold enough for weekend fire pits, s'mores, snuggly blankets, and boots, but mixed in with enough sunshine to be able to enjoy picnics in the park, playing in the driveway, and long bike rides. This is time of year it really pays to live in Florida.
I'm currently in the midst of some fun birthday planning for the boys. It's getting a tad more difficult to have "joint" birthday celebrations for them as they get older. Fortunately this year, they both agreed to forego a party and attend Monster Jam Truck Rally instead. But I still have a few tricks up my sleeve that they don't know about yet...
Other than that, here's a brief (and very eclectic) summary of what we've been up to around here lately...
Our community recently started hosting a weekly Farmer's Market on Sundays. I would love to see a lot more variety added to it (including a local florist...please!!!) but in the meantime, there's a great local farmer that brings organic produce and his prices are excellent.
And while we're on the topic of veggies, my kids have been going bonkers for roasted broccoli lately!
We have a tradition that you get to choose the meals when it is your birthday, and Payton said he's going to choose "Ritzy Chicken with a side of roasted broccoli." This is the first year a vegetable has been requested for one of my boys' birthday meals!
I made this dish the other night:
I did a super easy update to a Goodwill mirror that I scored for a mere $6.00! I liked the details and size of the mirror, but wasn't digging the gold.
A couple coats of white spray paint later and... it's gorgeous!
We renewed our Busch Gardens passes recently (thank you Mom & Dad Heckman for that awesome Christmas gift!!). The boys are at such a great age for theme parks. Payton is finally riding all of the roller coasters, and Parker loves everything he is tall enough to ride too.
We went to the park with our neighbors when the kids had a day off school and we all had a great time. The weather was perfect, there were barely any lines, and the big kids rode just about every roller coaster in the park multiple times!
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| Riding the sky ride with our neighbors |
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| It's hard to see, but Payton & the other two older kids rode the skyride by themselves. Such big kids! |
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| I'm always amazed at the beauty of these majestic animals. |
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| And the silliness of these gorillas. They crack me up! I think this one was doing yoga. |
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| The kids got to pet kangaroos. They're surprisingly soft. |
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| Beware of riding the bumper cars with a crazy 3-year old. Can you say "whip lash??" |
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| Sesame Street area is so perfect for him! |
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| The big kids were all smiles before heading up the new ride called "Falcon's Fury." |
335 feet in the air with a 90-degree face-down drop... they looked a little different coming down...
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| Avery was the only one who wanted to ride it again. :) |
As I mentioned, the weather has been so beautiful lately. We've had a lot of alfresco dinners and parties. I love a good plate full of appetizers. Yum!
And this little dude has started walking his stuffed ball pet in his stroller around the neighborhood. It's the cutest thing you've ever seen. We've been taking a LOT of walks lately.
Last but not least, I wanted to share that I have been consistently getting up every weekday at 6 a.m. for some quiet time. It's been so good for me. I love being awake and focused by the time the boys get up. Please feel free to pray for me that I can continue this good habit!
That's about it from my corner of the world. Come back soon for a roundup of my favorite Valentines crafts, free printables and more!
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