Mother's Day 2016 and a Scrumptious Sunday!

This year we celebrated Mother's Day for two days.  On Saturday, after Amalia's tee ball game ...

... we went to my parents' house to celebrate with my parents, sister, and grandparents.  The kids had fun reading.

Mollie, in particular, needed to rest a bit; she played first base during her game and chased after the ball A LOT.

It was such a beautiful day to be with family.

Baylor and Bryson played Code Master for a while ...

... then Baylor helped Oma make popsicles in her new popsicle molds.

Christine made an amazing cake for the occasion: four layers of vanilla cake with a layer of raspberry preserves, a layer of cream cheese buttercream frosting, and a layer of lemon curd, topped off with another layer of cream cheese buttercream frosting and raspberries.

Seriously, just look how beautiful this thing was!

And yes, it tasted as good as it sounds.

Sooooo many layers of goodness!

Then we played euchre.  I had a great hand, a GREAT hand, but my dad called diamonds and spoiled my loner.  That's the way the cards fall sometimes, though, right?

Before GG and GGpa left, Amalia showed off her new-found skip it skills!  Look at those moves!

Great food, great weather, and great company made for a really wonderful day.

Today - actual Mother's Day - I woke up early to have some alone time and get a few things started before everyone else woke up.  I did some laundry, sorted through the paper a bit, and worked on the dishes a bit, then Baylor woke up a little before 7:30.  He and I had snuggle time on the couch before he started work on his Snap Circuits.

Once everyone was up, I opened my Mother's Day gifts.  Amalia gave me a marigold and some treats she made at school, as well as a card she made the day before at my parents' house.  That's me in the picture holding my marigold and treats.

Baylor gave me a card as well, along with a magnet he made at school; the heart is made with his finger prints, and it's beyond adorable.

Bryson got me an electric pencil sharpener ... just what I wanted!  (Seriously, I really wanted an electric pencil sharpener; we use pencils a lot at our house, and my manual sharpener just isn't cutting it anymore.)

For dinner, I asked Bryson to make a replica of a salad I had while we were on spring break.  (The Honey Sesame Chicken Salad from Mangos Dockside Bistro in Marco Island, Florida, in case anyone is interested.)  I had already made it once, and since everyone seemed to like it well enough I thought it'd be okay to ask for it again.  I even helped make it a little easier to make by suggesting we get some frozen pre-breaded chicken strips to use instead of trying to do that ourselves; it really didn't come out as well last time when I tried.

So he chopped and peeled and tossed.

And weren't the results beautiful?!

Seriously, it was delicious, too!  Even the kids ate it without much hesitation.

So here's the Scrumptious Sunday part of the post ...

The Florida Salad  (based on the Honey Sesame Chicken Salad at Mangos Dockside Bistro)

~ serves two adults and two children ~

1 ripe mango, cut julienne-style
1 lb. of strawberries, sliced
1 24.5 oz. container of mandarin oranges
about 2.5 oz. of spring mix salad
about 15 Tyson Lightly Breaded Chicken Breast Strips, cooked
1/3 cup honey
sesame seeds
tortilla strips
cashews

Directions:
1. Lay down a bed of the spring mix salad in each salad bowl.  Add mango, strawberries, and mandarin oranges.  Set aside.

2.  Coat the chicken breast strips with honey, then sprinkle with sesame seeds to taste.  Slice into bite-sized pieces.

3. Sprinkle tortilla strips and cashews over salad, then top with sliced chicken.  Enjoy!

Also:  You can also add some sweet onion salad dressing (like this one) or drizzle a little honey over the top.  (I highly recommend the Michigan Bee Co. honey, found at Meijer and D&W in Grand Rapids.)

After picking up the living room, getting ready for bed, and reading a little bit, the kids took a picture with me!  I am so proud to be their mom!

All in all, it was a great couple days, full of love and warmth and laughter.  Motherhood isn't always the easiest job, but I wouldn't trade it for anything on this earth.  A and b, I love you so much!

Happy Mother's Day, everyone!

Captiva 2012: It's Curtins (and Cartwrights) For You!

After a quick breakfast at the hotel, we packed up our things and made our way over to Sanibel Island to see our beloved Mainers, the Cartwright/Curtin family!  We said our hellos, enjoyed some long-awaited hugs, and suited and slathered up to take a walk on the beach.  It was a gorgeous day!

Baylor got to see the ocean for the first time in a while and he was definitely intrigued.  (Yes, I know it is the Gulf of Mexico, but isn't it still part of the Atlantic Ocean?  Whatever ...)

This was also the beginning of one long conversation Baylor would have with anyone who would listen/was in a confined area with him.  It's amazing how much my little man can gab!  He ALWAYS has something to say!

After getting a look at the lighthouse we turned back.

Mollie went off to walk with some other family members and I got to chat with Baylor.

And then he got tired.  (Oh, and it's right about here that I got a lovely sunburn on my back.  Thirty years-old and you'd think I'd have enough sense to ask for help when applying sunscreen!)

Of course, he perked up a bit when we passed by the pool and was revived enough to enjoy a quick dip before lunch.

It was so nice to see Laura, albeit for a very short time, and we're now greatly anticipating seeing her over the Christmas holidays.  It was also nice to see Aunt Cynthia, Uncle Andy, and Delaney as well, though we got to enjoy their company a few more times during our Florida stay.

After our visit, we split up.  Mom and Christine headed off to do the grocery shopping, and the rest of us made our way to the condo to check in and settle in as much as possible.

Mollie, for her part, got all sorts of dolled up in Florida gear.

Let's give smiling a try, shall we?

There ya go!

The first day is always a bit much - the unpacking, the figuring out where everyone (namely Baylor) is going to sleep, the upset of schedules - but we made it through quite smoothly.  I know I'm biased, but the kids were absolute champs and I can't imagine having any other little travel companions!

Captiva 2012: We're Off!

A couple weeks ago we left for a fun family vacation to Captiva Island, Florida.  As we reminisced about years passed, I realized that I have been visiting this spot, this little divine slice of earth for over twenty years!  Honestly, it's hard to imagine I have been doing any one thing - besides living, breathing, and using the potty - for more than twenty years.  But here I am.

Anyhow, we left and took the route we did last year ... Grand Rapids to Atlanta to Ft. Myers.  Baylor loved it because it was familiar and the rest of us loved it because we had an idea of how to navigate the airport with only a thirty-five minute layover.  We nearly missed our connecting flight, but somehow we made it and our trip began without a hitch.

Mollie, poor girl, had to sit in her car seat on the plane.  

Which was all fine and dandy until you realized she only had a few inches of leg room.  Needless to say, I was constantly badgering her to get her feet off the seat in front of her and made very apologetic eyes to the unfortunate passenger in it.

Baylor got to sit in a seat like a big kid for the first time and he enjoyed it thoroughly.  Thank goodness for Finding Nemo on my parents' iPad!

Mollie got stuck sitting next to me on every leg of our journey, there and back, and was left to enjoy sticker and story books on repeat.

Baylor loved flying from the takeoff to the landing, and I honestly couldn't be more relieved; I detest flying, especially the takeoffs and landings, and I was so worried my anxieties would rub off on the kids.  So far, so good!

Once in Ft. Myers, we grabbed our bags and headed off to our hotel.  Usually we depart early in the morning and make our way to Captiva immediately after landing, but this time we were going to have the chance to see one of my cousins the next morning (Hi, Laura!) and getting the kids up at o'dark early isn't really much fun so we did the late night flight instead.  Luckily, this option was well-received by the kiddos and they were beyond geeked to get to spend the night in a hotel and basically have a sleepover with Mommy and Daddy.

The next morning Baylor woke us up setting the mood for the rest of the trip, though I didn't know it at the time.  After getting them ready and getting the okay from my parents and sister, we opened up the adjoining door and let the kids enjoy their first morning with Oma, Grandpa E, and Aunt Christine.  Of course, all the kids wanted to do was play safe cracker/burglar.

Then Baylor decided to make like Curious George (who he had just seen on t.v. doing this very thing) and play with the microwave.

It was a new way to spend the first day of our vacation, but it certainly was a welcome change for the kids.  Hotels are a blast when you're that young!

A Busy Evening at Oma's

The kids and I spent some time at my parents' house last week a couple weeks ago (yes, I just realized how long ago these pictures were taken ... yikes) and, as usual, the kids had a blast.

We're preparing for a trip to Florida in April (because traveling with kids takes an extreme amount of planning), and since Baylor has trouble with loud noises - and planes are surprisingly noisy - my mom brought out her noise-cancelling headphones to see if they fit him and if he liked them.  Of course, Mollie had to get in on the action.

Baylor, rockin' the huge noggin he has, fit my mom's headphones perfectly.

After that, the wild antics began.  Mollie cut loose ...

... and helped her brother take apart my parents' couch.  She's amazingly strong for how little she is.

That night the couch became a hotel, and the kids settled in for the night.

They even invited Aunt Christine to join them!  You can tell how thrilled she is.

Of course, the fun must halt for beautification.

Grandpa E's "room" was on the floor, and closed eyes are like catnip to kids ... they can't resist someone even pretending to sleep.

Transitions are tough for Baylor these days, and a departure from Oma's house is one of the worst.  So, while attempting to get the kiddos into their pj's (to make the bedtime routine easier upon our arrival home), my dad "read" Aladdin.  Rather, he was asked to tell the story just by looking at the pictures.  Since he hasn't seen or read the story in a while, Aladdin and Jasmine ended up going to Starbuck's and other interesting places.  It was quite hilarious for the adults, but the kids sat there rapt by the story he was creating.

As usual, we had a wonderful time, and the kids were asking to go back to Oma's already on the ride home.