Date Night!

Now that the kids are getting older and a bit more flexible, Barry and I have made a renewed commitment to monthly date night. I'm a firm believer that it's good for our marriage and our family for us to get out and enjoy time together as husband and wife without our children in tow. And the kids love having Granny Diane put them to bed!

Tonight we tried a new place, Arnold Myint's PM. Arnold is a Top Chef vet and it's one of our very favorite shows, so we were really looking forward to trying out one of his Nashville restaurants. It didn't disappoint, but it didn't exactly sparkle, either. The cocktails and the sushi were fabulous, but the entrees left something to be desired (at least mine did...Barry was pretty happy with his Pad Thai, but I think it's pretty hard to mess up Pad Thai) . I would certainly go back, but next time I think I'll stick to sushi.

Family

Yesterday was my mom's last day in town before heading back to Florida, so we had Brandon and his family over for dinner (they happened to be in the city for a trip to the zoo to celebrate Tyler's preschool graduation!).

These past few years we have seen too little of them. So many babies, so many sleepless nights, so many days stuck at home while the babies nap. They live only about 1/2 hr drive from us, but it sometimes seems like it might as well be a 1/2 day drive. I really hope that as the kids all get older it will get easier for us to spend more time together, because we truly cherish our time with them and the kids just adore each other. I grew up spending so much time with my cousins, and I want the same thing for my kids. I think Brandon and I are very blessed to have ended up living in the same area.

We had a great little impromptu dinner and the kids could have played all night.

For dessert I made this Maraschino Cherry Cake. It was delish! I tore the recipe out of Ladies Home Journal (disclaimer: I used this icing recipe and added a couple tablespoons of the reserved cherry juice...I didn't use the frosting included with the cake recipe because I didn't have enough butter on hand).

I know my Mom really loves having us all together in one place, but we also miss the other cousins (Ashley, Caroline, Kevin) and wish they lived closer. They would be great babysitters for their baby cousins!

I'm working on a post about our recent trip to Gatlinburg, but I take so gosh darn many photos and it's a real pain to wade through them all. Hoping to get them up soon.

Henry is out of MDO for a couple of weeks before the summer session starts and, while I love having the kids home with me, the days can start to seem pretty long. We are trying to take advantage of the beautiful weather and spend some time outside before real summer hits us.

Saturday

What a perfect day!

We had our favorite blueberry multigrain waffles for breakfast, spent two hours hiking at Radnor Lake, then celebrated Tyler's 5th birthday.

This was my kind of Saturday. There is nothing I love more than spending quality time with my family.

Yesterday, Henry and Eleanor learned the hand-holding chain. I suspect we'll be doing a lot of this in the coming years.

School's Out for Summer!

And we're quite sad about it, actually.

Today was Henry's last day with Miss Sue, who has been such a special part of his life (our lives) this year. We are going to miss her terribly. I'm praying Eleanor will be placed with her next year.

There is only a two-week break before the summer session starts and then I will have *both* kids in MDO. I really can't believe that in such a short time I will have 10 hours a week to myself. I can taste the freedom already!  (But let's be realistic...by the time all the errands are run and the house is cleaned I'll have about 32 minutes a week to myself.)

In other news, Eleanor has started wearing her sunglasses on top of her head like her mama. Silly girl.

Eleanor at 15 Months!

(Because it's just so darn bright in the waiting room.)

I took E to her 15-month appointment. Sweet baby girl is NOT a little baby girl. Of course we knew that, but it's always shocking to see the numbers.

25 lbs 8 oz (90%)
32 1/4 inches long (90%)

Sister is nowhere near the size of her brother at this age (Henry was 30 lbs at one year!) but she is healthy. And I love it! Love her big head, love her chubby legs, love it all!

What can I say? We make big babies.

Right now she is obsessed with her shoes and her sunglasses. She wore her sunglasses throughout the entire doctor's appointment, except for the 30 seconds our dear pediatrician took them off to check her eyes.

Eleanor blew the pedi away with her vocabulary, which now includes "thank you."

Granny Margaret is visiting right now and the kids are in heaven. I had to wake Henry for school this morning and the first thing out of his mouth was, "Where's my Granny?"

Sure wish she lived closer.

(How big is Eleanor? SO BIG!)

Mother's Day!

I had the very best of Mother's Days!

Woken at 6a by sweet Eleanor.

Waffles, scrambled eggs, maple sausage made by my dear husband.

Lots and lots and lots of indoor family time due to a steady all-day rain.

(What could be more fun than an empty toy bin?)

A nice, long bath followed by my favorite soup/sandwich takeout and then a nice, long nap.

Capped off by a fabulous dinner made by my sweet mother-in-law.

(Granny's curtains provide endless entertainment)

Oh, and there was a beautiful bracelet and a nail salon gift card, also!

I couldn't have asked for a better day with my beautiful family.

Tea & Planes

Just finishing up a busy Saturday. Henry and Barry had a great time at the Great Tennessee Air Show with Puck, Calvin, Brandon & Tyler...a great time, that is, until the noise of the Blue Angels scared Henry and it was time to leave. Barry assures me they had a great time and Henry collapsed at bedtime, so it must be true. It's so fun that he's getting old enough to enjoy days like this.

While the boys were at the air show Eleanor and I attended a Mother's Day tea with Nikki and my mom at Nikki and Brandon's church. It was a very nice event and Anna and Eleanor had a great time together.

It was a great day and we're always thankful to be able to spend some time with family. The only damper was that Eleanor and I are feeling a bit under the weather. Hoping we perk up by tomorrow so we can enjoy a relaxing Mother's Day!