Up on a Mountaintop!

It's been a while! I feel like a broken record, but we've been really busy! We've just had so much going on lately. Hopefully things are slowing down a little.

We got back on Saturday from our vacation in North Carolina. It was absolutely gorgeous and we had a fantastic time! It was so nice to spend a week together without anything going on and no distractions. We just got to enjoy each other and get extra rest. It was very relaxing! Wouldn't you know that I forgot to charge our camera battery before we left! We were able to get some pics, but not as many as I would have liked. We did take some some video too, so it wasn't a total loss!

The cabin was gorgeous and very homey with a spectacular view! We saw lots of chipmunks and Aaron saw a porcupine! We had fun looking for wildlife as we drove up and down the mountain. We didn't see any bears though.

On Monday we drove around and looked at the scenery. We drove all the way up a mountain, I can't remember right now, but we were up REALLY high. We stopped at a place called Wayah Bald and hiked up to the top and saw for miles and miles. There was a lookout tower there, and from the top of the tower, you could see several states. It was really neat! There were some college kids there at the same time we were and they all called Aaron "Sir." I loved it! I think it made him feel a little old. This is from Wayah Bald, but not up on the lookout, just on the ground. They're both making funny faces, but with a dying battery, you take what you can get!


This was on the side of the road. We saw a beautiful little waterfall coming down the mountain so we stopped and took a picture.


On Wednesday we drove about an hour from the cabin and went to the Cherokee Indian Reservation. We went to a museum there and learned a lot about their culture and how the discovery of America effected them. It was very interesting and they had some really neat exhibits. This is a New Testament that was translated into Cherokee.


Here are Aaron and Caroline in front of some wax figures in one of the exhibits.


There was a lake close by that we took Caroline to. We decided not to rent a boat or anything this time, but she loved playing in the water. She kept picking up rocks and throwing them. I think she thought she was skipping them like her daddy. It was cute! I was afraid the water would be cold, but it really wasn't and she had a blast playing until it started to rain and we had to go in.


We took some food with us and hit a grocery store once we got there so we didn't eat out much. We ate out Sunday after church and then again when we went to Cherokee and that was it. We grilled out every night but one. Here is Aaron grilling our oh-so-healthy lunch of hot dogs. Isn't the view behind him AMAZING?


We were surrounded by the Lord's creation in a way we had never been before. It is truly awe-inspiring to be surrounded on all sides by the mountains, trees, rivers, streams, and wildlife He created. It was a wonderful trip! We are so thankful to our friends, John and Becky Haley, for letting us use their beautiful "Cabin in the Sky."

Joy

Caroline is such a silly little monkey! She has recently discovered her new favorite reading "nook."




Yes, she loves to climb under our bar stools and "read" her books. Notice she's reading the cover. :)

She also discovered a fun new way to eat yogurt while at Oma and Opa's a few weeks ago.



Seriously, she ate almost the entire cup like that! Silly girl!

She also loves to help me with the laundry.



I'm not exactly sure how her climbing on the hamper is helping, but I'm sure she has a reason in her active little mind!

I spend most of my days smiling and laughing and it's all because of a little joy named Caroline. She is such a blessing to us. We beg your prayers as we raise her...pray for her heart and ours, that we may instill in her a love for the Lord.

Our Life in Bullets

*We've been so busy lately I haven't had time to think straight, and I won't be getting a break from the business anytime soon. We've got full plates for the next three weeks, but hopefully after that things will slow down around here a bit. I don't really know where to begin, so I think I'll just start from the beginning! (Always a good place to start!)

*We went to Birmingham for Mother's Day and had a nice visit with Aaron's family. We had some family pictures taken of the whole clan while we were there and had a really good time. They took me to eat at Jim and Nicks for my birthday and completely spoiled me with cake and presents.



Karen and Justin got me the Sara Snow book. I've really been wanting to read it because I find "green" living interesting and she is considered a Green Living Expert. My in-laws got me the Rachael Ray cookbook to go along with....



this gorgeous set of Rachael Ray cookware! I have needed new cookware for a long time---the stuff I got when I married turned out to be no good---and I was absolutely SHOCKED and THRILLED when I recieved the cookware! Thanks again Oma and Opa!

*For my birthday my wonderful husband and daughter got me a new wallet to match my Vera bag and a food processor. I was the most excited about the food processor. When did practical gifts become exciting? My parents got me this really cool organizer for the refridgerator...again with the practical gifts that I love! I also got a really funny card from my brother---he always picks the best cards! I was so spoiled by my family...I love all of you!

*I think the MOST exciting thing about my birthday was the cake my mom sent...well, not the cake itself, but the people who brought it! Lauren and Becca came with their kiddos and arrived on my birthday! It was so wonderful to spend time with them! We had a blast!

*We went to the mall and Caroline got to ride in a double stroller for the first time.



*I discovered what a great helper in the kitchen Blair is and she helped me with the Baked Spaghetti.



*Bec and La surprised me and brought Caroline some pjs to match Blair and Abbey.





*Caroline and Logan had a blast playing with Blair through the window.




*We went to the book store and happend updon a 60% off sale of children's books. The kids had a good time reading while we shopped. Caroline and Logan also found some empty shelves to climb in....the little monkeys!




*We went to the park and Caroline loved climbing in and out of the tube. I think she only crawled across once, but she loved it.



*On their last day here we went to the beach. Caroline loves the beach and the ocean. I know she would just run right into the ocean if we'd let her. Instead of that though, I sat with her and Blair where the waves would crash over us and we had fun. I am looking forward to more beach days this summer!




*Well that's it. This week we've been busy playing catch up and I've had some Doctor's appointments. Hope all is well with all of you!

Tid Bits

On Friday we went and had lunch with some friends. It was so much fun and both Caroline and I thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Caroline made friends with their little man and he kept kissing her in the window! J and I couldn't help but laugh!

Sunday morning we had a little visitor.



We were in the kitchen having breakfast and Aaron looked out the window and exclaimed, "Is that a turtle?" He headed outside and took a closer look, then came back in for the camera. Caroline was watching intently, so he took her out, only after he promised me he wouldn't let her touch it. It was actually a really friendly little guy and walked right up to them and didn't seem scared at all. Caroline really liked looking at him, but she would wiggle and try to climb up Aaron if he got too close!





As I mentioned in one of my other blogs, I've really gotten into couponing lately. It's so much fun! I'm just starting out so I'm not really good at it yet, but I feel like I've made a great start. Aaron made me a spreadsheet to keep track of how much I've saved. It's really fun to actually SEE the results. I won't go into a deep analysis of all the deals, but I am really enjoying getting a lot of fee items using the CVS extra care bucks system. When I set out to start couponing, I decided that I wasn't going to buy something we don't need or won't use just b/c I had a coupon, which is a mistake I've made in the past. I've also had to learn to let go of some of my brand loyalties. I think that's been the hardest thing for me. I've had a lot of luck getting things for my home and our personal care for cheap or free. I've got things like laundry detergent, toothpaste, paper towels, toilet paper, and other things like that really stocked up. I haven't had as much luck with finding deals on food items, and I'm pretty sure it's because I have "what we like" in my head instead of what we can get for better prices. I'm trying to do better about that! I have some monetary goals that I want to get my grocery bill down to, and hopefully once I've been working on the couponing for a while I can reach or even exceed my goals.

Another big part of my couponing has been signing up to receive free samples. Yesterday was a really fun day at the mailbox! I had 3 free samples and a free magazine waiting for me!



If you'd like to start couponing and receiving free samples, I high recommend Money Saving Mom's blog. She explains things in an easy to understand way and she posts about free samples and printable coupons daily.

Couponing is FUN! :)

Pigtails and Picnic

Saturday we went to a picnic with a bunch of our friends (of all ages!) from church. We all chipped in and rented a covered pavilion and brought food and just enjoyed being together. I decided this would be a good day for Caroline to try pigtails in her hair for the first time. Aaron and I both LOVED them, although they did make her look older, which was bittersweet. Our little baby isn't so much a baby anymore, and it's sad! Yesterday when she got up from her nap she was in a cuddly mood so I sat in the rocking chair and we cuddled and rocked for a while. It is so rare that she will just sit and cuddle anymore in the middle of the day. I tried to savor those "baby" moments again. Anyway, back to the pigtails and picnic!

This was before the picnic, but I loved this pic because it's Caroline "reading" To Kill A Mockingbird. She loves our books and is surprisingly careful with them. Generally, I don't let her play with this one b/c it's signed by Harper Lee, but I had to snap a pic before I took it from her! :)



She was so busy playing all over the playground I couldn't get her to look around long enough for my slow-snapping camera to catch her face. But, here are a few I thought were cute anyway!







I did manage to get this shot of her face. I think you can tell she's been playing hard and is tired!



Here is Caroline loving on baby Olivia. She LOVES, LOVES, LOVES Olivia! It's super sweet. I hope they grow up to be great friends. Caroline is a little over a year older than Olivia.



Jaxson was chillin' in his stroller, but Caroline needed to share her love with him too. :)



It was a really fun afternoon!

A Great Visit!

We had a lovely family day yesterday! Dad and Mom were still here and it was so nice to spend Easter with them! We had a wonderful visit and I was sad to see them drive away after lunch. We are already looking forward to their next visit!

Caroline made beeline for her Easter basket...you'd think she actually had a clue it was a holiday! :) She seemed to really like all the things the "Easter Bunny" brought her.




A few weeks ago Aaron had run an errand for me to Target and he came home with a bunny ear headband he found in the dollar section. He was excited about them so we planned to put them in her basket. She thought they were hilarious and loved them! Although, once she had them on her head she wouldn't leave them alone!




We've never really given Caroline candy...maybe a bite or two here or there, but not much at all. We decided she was old enough now for her own chocolate bunny. We bought her the smallest one from Target. It was so funny because she was looking in her basket and taking everything out and she took it out, looked at it for about a second, and tossed it aside! I laughed and told her, "That's the best thing in there!" But she had no clue what it was! Once I opened it and gave her a bite she agreed with me! It's now resting in the fridge for later consumption. I think it's missing an ear and that's it! :) She'll enjoy it for a while!

I loved her dress. I bought it at Kids Market and got a great deal, which made me love it even more!




We wanted some pictures of her by herself, but she was too interested in her shadow to look up!




All in all, we had a great day!

While Dad and Mom were here Dad and Aaron got a lot of stuff done around the house. The major thing was they finished the storage building! I am so excited! We don't have much storage space in the house so our closets are jam packed, but now we'll be able to store things in the building and I am SO HAPPY ABOUT IT! Caroline's swing and bouncy chair are still just sitting out in the bedrooms (one in hers, one in ours) because we haven't had a place to store them. It will be wonderful to get them put away! Dad and Aaron also: shaved the legs of our bar stools so they're not so tall now, hung curtains, did some re-weather stripping on the back door, fixed a broken dining chair, and worked on a small leak in the roof. Dad will probably need a week to rest up from all the work we had him doing! I'm so thankful he was here to help and I know he enjoyed helping us.

Mom and I did a lot of chatting, playing, and cooking while they were here, which was wonderful! I loved spending time with her.

I want to write about my adventures in couponing, but I think I'll save that for another blog! :)

Egg Hunt

We went to an Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday morning. Caroline had a good time---especially because Granny and Poppy are here and got to go with us!

Poppy and Granny with Caroline...





While the big kids were off eating Caroline and I got in the bouncy thing and she loved it!



It was also one of the little girl's birthdays and Caroline, Granny, and Mommy had fun playing with one of the Birthday balloons.



The hunt...




Daddy snagged a few eggs and put them on the ground for Caroline to find. She did find some under a small bush too---she really liked it!

Just for fun, here is Caroline at the Egg Hunt last year.



Time sure is flying by!