The Real Housewife of DC

Coronavirus Crafts: Part One

2020-04-10T16:35:00.002-04:00

Today marks four weeks at home for coronavirus.

I've worked hard to keep the girls busy while social distancing, working, and trying not to have my own anxiety-filled panic attacks.

This post is a compilation of some of the crafts we have done.

If you are looking for ideas, hopefully one of these will help. :)

#1: Crayola Light Up Tracing Pad

Both of my girls have the Crayola Light Up Tracing Pad.

They love it and we have given them as gifts multiple times.

It comes with papers and pencils to get you started.

I have just used regular printer paper to refill once they use up all the paper it comes with.

Here is a link to get your own Crayola Light Up Tracing Pad.

#2: Art with Mo Willems

The girls have LOVED lunch doodles with Mo Willems.

They are live everyday at 11am but we watch them later on YouTube.

It's FREE and all you need is a piece of paper and a pencil.

Just go to YouTube and type in lunch doodles with Mo Willems.

More art with Mo on a different day.

#3: Make your own magic wand

I had a kit in my craft closet that I bought from Target years ago.

But you can totally do this without a kit.

Grab a stick from your yard and use any string/yarn/fabric you have on hand.

Tie all the string/yarn/fabric at the top, let it hang down on both sides

and voila, you have a magic wand.

Also included: photographic proof that my kids aren't always happy and getting along.

Caroline was mad that her sister's wand had more stickers (or something along those lines)

#4: Chalk art mosaic

We didn't have a lot of painter's tape left, so our mosaic was small.
But... the kids LOVED every minute of this.
I have since ordered more tape, so we can do this again.
All you need it tape- painters or masking tape works best and chalk.

The girls thought it was really cool and had fun filling in the different shapes.

They didn't really understand at the beginning what it was going to look like, but when I took the tape off, they thought it was amazing. :)

#5: Steal ideas from other people/bloggers/pinterest

There are a lot of people in the world that are more creative than me.

So... I totally steal/borrow their ideas (and give them credit).

One of my favorite bloggers, Andrea, runs Momfessionals, her personal blog.

I LOVED her idea for Wassily Kandinsky art and so I used her exact format from this blog post.

Andrea linked YouTube videos and art tutorials and we had a ton of fun creating some new-to-us art.

The girls had a thorough art lesson, created beautiful worked, and stayed occupied for about an hour.

It was wonderful!

#6: Liquid chalk

I've been doing liquid chalk with the girls for years.

I use one cup of water to one cup of cornstarch.

I mix it all up and then pour into muffin pans.

After that, I drop in 2 or 3 drops of food coloring into each spot.

They like painting the driveway, creating new pictures, and comparing each other's work.

It washes away in the rain and doesn't damage the driveway.

#7: Michael's seasonal crafts

I buy these on clearance after holidays and save them for the next year.

This year worked out well that we were able to surprise the girls with a few holiday goodies that I already had at home.

The girls painted these eggs and now they are hanging around the house as extra holiday décor. If you look on the Michael's website, you might be able to find a few to use now or later.

I found these on the website today.

#8: Dying Easter Eggs

Tis the season for coloring Easter eggs.

Even if you don't have a kit, you can use food coloring and cups you have at home.

Instead of the five-dozen eggs we normally color, we did a dozen eggs and then ate them throughout the week. The girls had fun eating a snack while dying eggs and enjoying being outside.

#9: Painting. All. The. Things.

I had these wooden picture frames in the craft closet and pulled them out today.

The girls picked the colors of paint they wanted to use and picked the design to put on their frame.

If you don't have frames, you can paint rocks, paper, sticks, old shoes, anything you can think of.

Happy crafting everyone!

Happy Friday y'all!

St. Patrick's Day

2020-04-08T09:35:00.001-04:00

St. Patrick's Day was our first holiday during coronavirus lock-in.

I had purchased some treats in advance and was so glad that I did.

The night before, I decorated the table.

When the girls came down in the morning, they were excited to see a few treats on the table.

Caroline woke me up dressed like this :)

She's so bubbly and happy almost all the time :)

They wanted to eat their St. Patrick's Day cookies for breakfast and I said yes.

They couldn't believe it. Cookies for breakfast (and lucky charms).

I printed off a few St. Patrick's Day crafts and activities.

After all the activities, they played in the playroom for a bit.

I decided we would have a lunch picnic since it was sunny.

Not totally warm (hence the jackets), but we enjoyed the sunshine.

After lunch we made green Granny B sugar cookies.

I bought the girls South Carolina cookie cutters when I was on my trip.

We used those plus a few spring-themed cookie cutters for our cookies.

Palmetto's, the state of South Carolina, and flowers!

In the late afternoon, I set-up a rainbow craft for the girls.

I cut a paper plate in half for them to paint.

Very easy set-up and clean up is a breeze, just wipe down the trays.

They both LOVE art and painting is their favorite.

Our after-dinner dessert was green pudding with whipped cream and lucky charms on top.

It was a tasty ending to a fun day!

Happy Wednesday y'all!

Sprinkles Cupcakes and USA Guided Tours

2020-04-06T12:30:00.000-04:00

This post is not sponsored, I just want to share my great experience. Enjoy!

The week of Valentine's Day, I entered a contest sponsored by USA Guided Tours.

You had to submit a love story and like their post on Facebook and Instagram.

I found out at the end of the week that I was one of two winners!

Fast forward to March and I was able to pick up a dozen cupcakes and scheduled our tour.

I have to say that Sprinkles Cupcakes is amazing!

The tour company handled placing my order, and when it was time to pick them up, I pulled up outside their store and they brought them right out to my car.

This is especially amazing for two reasons:

1. They are located in Georgetown and parking is AWFUL

2. This was before everything was locked down, so curb-side delivery was not a thing

After I had my cupcakes, I headed over to see my sister-in-law and nephews.

The box was cute and the tour company had left me a note.

A dozen vanilla cupcakes with chocolate icing.

AND... they put the tour company logo on top of the cupcakes!

I thought that was really cool and will keep that in mind when I need custom cupcakes.

I left a couple cupcakes with my nephews and headed home later in the afternoon to get the girls.

Caroline and I enjoyed a cupcake after school.

I might have enjoyed another one later that night :)

And that next day :)

Our DC at Dusk Tour is going to be rescheduled because of Covid-19, but Ben and I are looking forward to it when the world re-opens.

The cupcakes from Sprinkles were amazing (I did share with my family) and I will definitely keep them in mind when I need a special dessert.

Happy Monday y'all!

2020 Girl's Weekend Away!

2020-04-03T11:06:00.006-04:00

My annual girl's weekend away was the trip that almost didn't happen.

The entire week before I was sick, Elizabeth and Ben had the stomach flu,

and Coronavirus was on the rise.

However, at 10pm on March 6th, I was able to hop onto my plane, sanitize my seat, and take off towards Columbia, South Carolina!

Reagan was pretty empty on Friday night.

On my flight down, I scored free wine!

My flight attendant was training a new flight attendant and used me as an example on how to "comp" a cocktail. :)

Landed in Columbia at 11pm and Stacy picked me up!

I would love to tell all of you that we hit the town, but we did not.:)

We went back to her house, chilled for a bit, and then went to sleep because we had a busy weekend planned.

On our way to Charlotte on Saturday.

Dana and Stacy wanted coffee and I thought this Chick-Fil-A drive-thru cover was AMAZING!

Dana and Stacy laughed at me, but we don't have anything like this in DC.

It's the small things folks.

Stacy got all the food recommendations for us and #1 was 7th Street Public Market.

We walked around to all the booths and then settled on lunch.

I had the most delicious salad...

while my lactose-abled friends enjoyed grilled cheese and tomato soup!

We split this strawberry-Nutella crepe with a glass of rose.

After lunch and cocktails, we headed across town for a mural walk.

One of my favorite artists, Evelyn Hansen, lives in Charlotte and was hosting a walking tour.

We walked for an hour, checked out about 10 murals and even stopped at her most famous piece.

This is Evelyn and she is telling us about her mural, Confetti Hearts Wall.

You should definitely check out her work, here is a link to her website.

Stacy, me, and Dana enjoying the #confettiheartswall

I had so much fun (this was one of my favorite parts of the trip)

After the tour, we headed to Evelyn's studio and made a few purchases.

We walked around Southend enjoying the day, shopping, and relaxing.

Before dinner, we headed to the mall and did a little more shopping.

For dinner, we met up with a few more friends and had the best time!

Shelley and I had a great time catching up!

Our dinner group.

Saturday night, we drove back to Columbia and relaxed in town with wine.

Sunday morning, Stacy and I picked up Dana and we headed to brunch.

Dana recommended Momma Rabbit's and it was SO GOOD!!

All of these pictures are just of my food. Haha.

Our appetizer.

Homemade cinnamon roll.

Homemade chicken salad.

So much good food in the South!

After brunch we headed over for pedicures.

Second round of cocktails for the day :)

After pedicures and champagne, we headed to the State Museum for their Sherlock Holmes experience.

They had props from different Sherlock Holmes movies and TV shows.

We had to solve a murder.

Dana won!

We headed into Five Points to shop and have a snack.

Stacy recommended The Baked Bear!

Homemade chocolate chip cookies, lactose free chocolate chip ice cream!!

This was so good!

After ice cream and shopping, it was time for me to fly back to DC.

I had a fabulous time with my ladies and hope we can do it again next year!

Happy Friday y'all!

A little bit of this and a little bit of that

2020-04-02T20:45:00.003-04:00

Towards the end of February, Caroline was invited to a birthday party.

The party had an amazing magician and ended with a cute bunny for all the kids to touch.

She had a great time at the party and thought it was cool to touch a bunny.

So happy!

Some of our favorite friends came over for dinner in February!

One of my New Years Resolutions was to have a family over for dinner every month.

We got January and February... I'm guessing the rest of the year we might not make it.

We celebrated Mardi Gras a few days late, but we did celebrate!

I get pillsbury cinnamon rolls and sprinkle purple and green sprinkles on for our Mardi Gras celebration.

The girls love the masks and necklaces every year.

(I save everything and reuse it year to year)

On Super Tuesday we met up with cousins for lunch.

Then we headed to a little playground and enjoyed the swings and playground.

They had a swinging contest and played for about 30 minutes.

The girls love playing with the filters on Instagram.

These are some of my recent favorites.

Happy Thursday y'all!

LOL 8th Birthday

2020-04-01T15:49:00.001-04:00

While we aren't doing birthday parties with friends, we are still celebrating BIG TIME as a family.

Elizabeth had requested a LOL-themed 8th birthday.

Caroline had 5th birthday that was LOL-themed, and thankfully I saved some of those supplies.

Last year I started making the balloon arches for birthdays, and I just love it!

This balloon arch is over the fireplace in our family room.

I placed the large LOL balloons into gift bags filled with tissue paper to get them to stay in place.

I added the banner in the morning because we had a fire in the fireplace the night before.

(The banner was from Caroline's birthday)

Happy birthday girl with a happy little sister. :)

Our dining room.

Our kids also get a number balloon every year for their birthday.

We display their gifts on the sideboard and I added a few more balloons.

We do a special themed breakfast ever year.

Elizabeth requested donuts, bacon, and sausage for her birthday breakfast.

I had the LOL cupcake toppers left over from Caroline's birthday.

We all enjoyed a yummy breakfast and then it was off to school and work.

I had lunch with Elizabeth at school for her birthday!

And stayed to have lunch with Caroline too.

After school we surprised Elizabeth with a playdate with some of her best friends from school.

I set-up the table with LOL plates and napkins and made a tower of snacks.

LOL cupcakes and lots of snacks.

After the playdate, we went out for a family dinner birthday celebration at Chili's.

When we got home we had cake and presents!

It was a great day celebrating our 8-year-old!

Happy birthday Elizabeth!

Happy Wednesday y'all!

Ski Trip

2020-03-31T09:28:00.000-04:00

Trying to catch up on blogging since I am at home.
Going back to February... when we could travel.

This year we decided to forgo birthday parties and take family trips over the girls birthdays.

It started by planning a trip to Disney World during the fall (during Caroline's birthday) and then we added a ski trip at Elizabeth's request for her birthday.

We took the girls to Liberty Mountain Resort for a weekend of skiing.
I was still not feeling great and Ben doesn't ski, so the girls enjoyed skiing in ski camp for two days and then hitting the green slopes after camp.

Caroline and her BFF, they skiied together all day on Saturday

Here they are on the chair lift.

Elizabeth is headed to the chair lift with her class.

Caroline headed back to the chair lift.

The birthday girl LOVES to ski!

She's in her happy place :)

After camp, the girls skied together for a bit down the lower green.

This was Caroline's second day to ever ski.
I'm amazed at her confidence and natural ability!

Elizabeth was so focused on going again, she skied right past us.

Sunday morning, we had breakfast at the hotel and then headed to the resort for a half day of ski camp and then an afternoon of skiing down the green.

Caroline went from red group to green group.

Elizabeth was moved to an advanced green group.

End of camp on Sunday

Caroline was TIRED after two days of skiing.

Isn't she so cute?

We had a yummy, warm lunch to heat everyone up.
They were very silly.

Love these two!

We had a great weekend of skiing, the girls improved A LOT!
It was a great weekend of relaxing, yummy food, and time with friends.

Happy Tuesday y'all!

A little bit of this, a little bit of that

2020-02-27T17:07:00.001-05:00

At the beginning of the school year, we discovered a new restaurant called Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers.

The first Tuesday of every month is their kids night.

With the purchase of an adult entree, kids get a free entree.

They also get: a free frozen custard, free face paint, free t-shirt, and free balloons and coloring pages.

Who doesn't love free everything?!?

The girls and I went at the beginning of February and they enjoyed getting their faces painted while we waited for our dinner.

Caroline was patient and calm.

Caroline picked this colorful bird.

Elizabeth was super excited!

Elizabeth picked this awesome butterfly.

After dinner, they enjoyed their complimentary frozen custard.

Chocolate for Elizabeth.

Vanilla for Caroline.

A couple days later, we were working on Caroline's 100 days of school project.

And Valentine's for our school friends.

The girls made one Valentine for girls and another Valentine for boys.

They both have large classes (23-24 kids), so they spent a lot of time writing names on their Valetine's.

Ninja stickers with a Ninja valentine for boys.

Scrunchies for the girls.

On February 9th, it was our 12th date-anniversary.

We had a GREAT time, but we were both horribly sick.

We powered through with antibiotics, DayQuil, and cough drops.

Dinner and a movie to celebrate 12 years together!

February 11th was the 100th day of school.

Caroline dressed like she was 100 years old.

Cutest 100-year-old!

And that's a little bit of this, and a little bit of that.

Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Thursday y'all!

Groundhog Day

2020-02-26T11:46:00.000-05:00

The girls have been very into Groundhog Day for the last couple of years...

So I try to make it fun with a little craft and special snack.

Caroline and I started the day by watching Punxsutawney Phil predict an early spring.

Well, you guys, it was all over after that.

Caroline insisted it was "now spring" and that I could pack away all of her coats.

She didn't understand why it was snowing in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania since it was now spring.

She also wanted to know why her grandparents were not with Phil since they live in Pennsylvania.

I tried explaining how Phil's prediction works... meaning he is hoping for an early spring, not that it immediately becomes spring that specific minute.

If y'all have any suggestions for explaining it to a five-year-old...I'm open to hearing them.

After the video, Elizabeth made an appearance and we went into the kitchen to get ready for breakfast.

I had set-up a few groundhog day coloring/worksheets for them to complete while Ben made a special groundhog day breakfast for them.

Elizabeth got to work right away on labeling the different parts of a groundhog.

Caroline and I were discussing what color she should make her groundhog.

Caroline decided to make her spring predictions before coloring. :)

While the girls were working, Ben made them Groundhog Pancakes!!

I think that is a #pinterestwin!

In the afternoon, I surprised everyone with groundhog snacks.

Chocolate pudding with teddy grahams.

Yummy groundhog day snack.

The rest of our day was spent celebrating the Super Bowl with the Giacobbi's.

Groundhog day was a fun day for sure.

Happy Wednesday y'all!

Natural History Museum

2020-02-25T17:32:00.001-05:00

Towards the end of January, we headed to the Smithsonian Natural History Museum.

Ben's parents were visiting for the weekend and it was a chilly day, so we opted for some indoor fun with the museum. The girls had not been to that museum in over a year and they had forgotten most of it. It still amazes me how much kids can forget, even if they have been to something a dozen times.

We started in the Ocean Hall when we arrived at the museum.

The girls spent almost an hour in here exploring everything.

They were very into all the "animals that used to be alive".

Nana found these giant polar bear for us.

We made our way out of the ocean hall and explored other animals.

Elizabeth asked me to take her picture "just like this".

Then Caroline insisted on jumping into the picture with her sister.
They were super into the porcupine for some reason. :)

Last but not least, we checked out a few dinosaurs.

Check out those bones!

Happy Tuesday y'all!

Eight

2020-02-24T11:13:00.001-05:00

Dear Elizabeth,

Last week you turned eight years old!

I'm so excited for you to be eight! You accomplished so much while you were seven, that I know eight is going to be great! You amaze me almost every single day at how smart, funny, silly, brave, and insightful you are.

You had your well visit last week and you are 49.5 inches tall. You are wearing a size 1 shoe and size 7-8 clothes. You LOVE accessories and you are always trying to decide which necklace/bracelet/headband combo will be just right for school or outing.

You had a pretty amazing year, despite getting the flu twice (on your birthday and Christmas) and having strep throat. You helped your sister recover from breaking her collar bone and you took many tumbles while learning to ride a bike. You always got back up and tried again.

This past summer we traveled to another new country- Canada. We spent a few days in Niagara Falls and a few days in Toronto. We also went skiing in Maryland and Pennsylvania.

We sold the only house you have ever lived in, our townhouse, and moved into our new house. You had a really hard time leaving your house, but have grown to love your new house and all the fun that comes with having a yard to play in.

You attended Nationals and Wizards games, and watched the Nationals win the World Series!
You celebrated Easter with your cousins Jessica, Noah, and Oliver and your grandparents Nana and Pap Pap.

Mom and Dad went on a week long cruise and Ga-Ga kept you for a week.

We received season passes to Six Flags and went a bunch throughout the year. One of your favorite days was when the Giacobbi's came with us in June! Throughout the summer we did a lot of swimming, bowling, girl scout camps, and family time.

You love to play outside, ride your bike, and have a good time with friends and neighbors.

You started second grade and have been loving school, even though the work is harder. :)

We went to a Pitt football game, a mommy-daughter girl's trip with Kylie and Kelly, and celebrated Caroline's birthday with a princess party.

You joined Run Fit Kidz in the fall and completed your first 5K race!

For Halloween, you dressed up as Wonder Woman and trick-or-treated with Caroline, Emmy Lou, and Jada. Thanksgiving week; Gramps, Ga-Ga, Uncle Andy, Aunt Lolly, Annalise, and Emi all came and spent the week with us. You loved playing with your cousins all week.

In December we celebrated most of the month by going to ICE! at the Gaylord, Brunch with Santa, Zoo Lights, and a lot more. We celebrated Christmas at home (with the flu) but a few days later traveled to see Nana and Pap Pap.

You have done Girl Scouts this year, your first year as a Brownie. You have loved it and enjoyed camping, cookie rallies, volunteering, earning badges, selling cookies, and going to meetings. You also loved having your sister join the troop this year.

Seven was fantastic and I know eight will be even better.

We love you nugget!

Love,

Mom and Dad

Ranch chicken with potatoes and veggies

2020-01-29T20:15:00.002-05:00

Tonight was Elizabeth's turn to make dinner.

She picked ranch chicken tenders, mashed potatoes, and mixed green vegetables (steam fresh bag).

Elizabeth and Ben made dinner tonight.

Here is what (and how) they made:

Mashed potatoes:

As for the potatoes, I cut up two large brown potatoes that we had left over.

We boiled them to soften them up.

Ben and Elizabeth mashed them up in our Kitchen Aid Mixer and added garlic, salt, pepper, butter, and lactose free milk.

Chicken:

I had a Hidden Valley Original Ranch dry seasoning mix.

They threw the tenders with some extra virgin olive oil into a gallon bag, dumped in the seasoning and shook it all up.

Once the tenders were coated, Ben and Elizabeth baked them in the oven.

Once the chicken tenders were done, Elizabeth wanted to pose like her sister did last night.

Elizabeth put a bag of stream fresh vegetables into the microwave for five minutes, and that was our dinner.

Chicken, mashed potatoes, and veggies.

It was really yummy!

Thanks Ben and Elizabeth for making dinner!

Happy Wednesday y'all!

Easy dinner- Sheet Pan Shrimp Boil

2020-01-28T20:43:00.004-05:00

This week we are trying something new.

I had both girls pick out dinner recipes for us to try.

They are each helping me cook the meals they picked.

Tonight was Caroline's dinner: Sheet Pan Shrimp Boil

Let me back this up before I tell you about the meal.

I don't like to make dinner.

I despise having to decide what's for dinner.

I will make breakfast and lunch all day and all night, but I HATE making dinner.

So part of this experiment with the girls was to also help me:

learn some new recipes

get out of my dinner rut

and involve the girls more in cooking (so hopefully that enjoy it more than me)

Now... back to the meal:

IT WAS SO EASY!!!

From start to finish, I think it was 40 minutes.

15-17 minutes of that was the food cooking in the oven.

While the potatoes boiled, we mixed up the seasoning and put the sausage and shrimp on the sheet pan. We tossed in the corn the last five minutes like the directions said and when everything was done boiling, we added it to the shrimp and sausage.

Caroline was so excited about this recipe.

Everything ready to go into the oven.

Posing with her meal :)

Showing off her dinner after it came out of the oven. :)

Looks yummy!

Ta-da!

Looks yummy and tastes yummy!

All four of us liked this recipe, which is a miracle.

I recommend using a mild sausage if your family doesn't like spicy sausage.

If your family likes shrimp/sausage and potatoes/corn then this recipe is for you!

Happy Tuesday y'all!

Air and Space Museum

2020-01-23T20:54:00.002-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, we had a snow day in the middle of the week.

The girls and I were both out of school, but there wasn't a lot of snow on the road.

We waited until around 10am and then headed into DC to check out the Air and Space Museum.

The Air and Space Museums are their favorite.

Caroline wants to be a pilot and Elizabeth loves learning about the history of space.

First up, experiments in the "kids area"

Then it was time to practice flying a plane. :)

Would you let her fly you around?

Then they learned how to turn a plane.

Elizabeth took a turn flying.

More flying practice :)

Behind them is the space suit Neil Armstrong wore on the moon!

We had a great morning at the museum and can't wait to go back.

Happy Thursday y'all!

Washington Wizards Game

2020-01-22T21:21:00.001-05:00

At the beginning of January, we took the girls to their first Washington Wizards game.

Ben scored tickets from his office and it was over winter break, so we thought it would be a fun family outing.

Our tickets were on the second row of the floor seating.

Caroline and Elizabeth LOVED being so close to all the action and we had a great time teaching them about basketball.

Caroline wanted a picture during a time-out

Free throws!

Complimentary food and drinks came with the seats.

I think Caroline ate three containers of popcorn. :)

I think Elizabeth had three bags of potato chips. :)

So close to the action.

Elizabeth wanted to "get on THE floor"

Naturally, Caroline wanted to as well.

They were dancing when I took this picture.

The cameraman came over and put them up on the jumbotron.

After the game we ran into G Wiz and some cheerleaders.

They gave the girls basketballs and t-shirts.

The next morning...with a backstory.

During the third quarter, our old neighbor came over to say hi.

He works for the Wizards and brought the girls NBA head bands and wrist bands.

They wore them all day the next day and most of winter break.

Love these sweet pictures of childhood.

Happy Wednesday y'all!

Whirlwind Trip to Pittsburgh

2020-01-12T21:07:00.003-05:00

We had a great weekend with a whirlwind trip to Pittsburgh and back.

We left at 7am on Saturday morning to drive to Pittsburgh.
I drove the first two hours and this picture is from 9am when we switched drivers. :)

The girls were in silly mode

Watching movies is serious.

Unless your sister wants to lean across the seats

Love these two!

We went to Pittsburgh to celebrate our nephew's first birthday!

We had a blast spending the morning and early afternoon with family.

It was a great party and we all enjoyed catching up with everyone, the good food, and celebrating the boy of the hour!

After the party we spent a little more time with the birthday boy and his family, then we set off to explore Pittsburgh for awhile.

Ben went to college at The University of Pittsburgh and we wanted to show the girls around campus.

Ben thought our first stop should be Forbes Field.

He tried explaining to the girls that they were standing on an old baseball field.

I thought it was super cool!

We took the girls through the student union and I had to get a picture of the phones.

I didn't check to see if they worked, but was highly amused that they were still there.

The girls saw a lot of students sitting around, so they wanted to sit around like college kids.

Outside the student union is this Panther.

Caroline wanted to "rawr" like the Panther for her first picture.

I made them smile in this picture. :)

We walked around some more and then headed into The Cathedral of Learning.

It is so beautiful on the inside!

If you ever visit Pittsburgh, you should definitely go in and walk around.

The Cathedral of Learning is 40 stories tall.

We were able to go up to floor 36.

This was our view from the (almost) top.

From the other side of the building.

After The Cathedral of Learning we walked around more.

There is a light show on the greens right now, so we watched that.

This is my poor attempt of a selfie of us with the lights.

After touring campus, we met up with family for dinner.

The kids were pretty tired after dinner so we headed back to our hotel.

The kids crashed and Ben and I watched a movie, enjoyed some popcorn and wine and crashed.

This morning we were up and out bright and early for a birthday party and CCD back here in DC.

Hope everyone had a great weekend.

Happy Sunday y'all!

Unexpected Day

2020-01-07T21:25:00.002-05:00

Today took a turn for the unexpected.

As soon as I walked in the door from dropping the girls off at school...

I received a text, phone call, and e-mail letting me know school was getting out two hours early.

I couldn't believe it.

I thought we were possibly getting a slight dusting of snow, but nothing serious.

I raced around getting all of my errands done and then picked the girls up from the bus.

We came home and we made cookies and did a few art projects.

We made Monster Cookies for the first time.

My girls don't really like peanut butter and I was trying to sneak it in.

I found the recipe here and I thought they were easy to make.

We enjoyed them later in the afternoon after playing in the snow.

Caroline was "making a book about colors" and

Elizabeth was using a painting page she received for Christmas

Craft time is their favorite time :)

While the girls were crafting, I noticed the snow was starting to accumulate.

I opened the front door and our neighbors were outside playing in the snow.

The girls finished their projects and I took them upstairs to get dressed in all their winter gear.

It wasn't going to snow too much longer and I thought they should it enjoy it for a bit.

Snow angel

Time to sled down a "hill"

Top of the hill

Bottom of the hill

"Hey Caroline"

"You are cute!"

The girls played for about 45 minutes and burned off a lot of energy.

We came in and enjoyed hot chocolate and more art projects.

It was an unexpected day of fun, snow, and art!

Hope everyone had a great Tuesday!

New year, new (old) hobbies

2020-01-05T21:39:00.002-05:00

Hi everyone!

It's been a long time since I wrote (about 11 months) and I have missed it greatly.

I didn't realize how much I missed writing until the end of December when I was thinking about my New Year's Resolutions.

I love creating New Year's Resolutions, as you can see from

Okay, you get the idea. I like setting goals. Sometimes I meet them, and sometimes I don't.

And that's okay.

So, when deciding if I wanted to go back to blogging, I was thinking of all the reasons to do it AND all of the reasons not to do it. Ben's suggestion was to figure out what I wanted to blog about and my answer has remained the same- I don't know specifically AND everything- life/vacations/coupons/recipes/Pinterest fails and whatever else I feel like writing about.

So in continuing with tradition/old hobbies,

here are my 2019 resolutions results and my 2020 resolutions.

1. Get back to blogging/ Blog more.

I have always been a scrapbook person. Well, I gave up the physical book for the digital one and I need to get back into documenting our adventures, life, and everything else.

Well, we all now know how this ended up. Ha!

I didn't blog more, but I am hoping to this year.

We shall see!

2. Run more races. While I originally thought I would try to run a race every month, I don't think that is an achievable goal for me due to availability of races near me AND my availability during race dates. So my goal is to run more races and try to do some long ones as well to challenge myself.

I did run a few races, three I think (maybe four).

I already have one big race planned for April.

There are some February and March races I am looking at too.

I definitely need to get back into running.

3. Enjoy life more.

I am the first to admit that I am a type A, gotta get it done, make-a-list person.

While I recognize this is a personality trait, I also recognize that it would be good for my stress levels to try to re-prioritize my lists and spend more time having fun with my kids and less time mopping, dusting, and vacuuming.

This was a GIANT fail the last half of the year.

2019 was a rough year for a lot of reasons, but A LOT of good happened as well. I find it difficult to remember all the good and fun when I am so focused on the bad. 2020 will be about focusing on the good more than the bad.

4. Travel. To new places AND some of our favorite (old) places.

We already have a few trips planned and I am so excited!!

Travel was a goal and travel we did.

We went to Canada last summer (a new country for myself and the girls).

Ben and I went to Turks and Caicos (a new country for both of us)

and the Bahamas (returning to an old favorite).

I returned to Florida with Stacy and Dana for our annual girl's trip.

Ben went camping in West Virginia.

Kelly and I took the girls on our 2nd annual mommy-daughter weekend.

We went skiing twice, Caroline skied for the first time.

And a lot more little trips in there as well.

5. Financial/Home goals:

- Continue to increase our emergency fund

- Continue to put money into the girls college fund

- Possibly move to a new house*

- Possibly start working again*

We did continue to increase our emergency fund.

We also started contributing more to the girls college fund.

The biggest surprise of all- we moved into a new house during a crazy 30-day period that had us out of town every weekend and then out of the country.

And almost as big of a surprise as moving- I went back to work (part-time)

My 2020 Resolutions:

1. Maintain a positive outlook more often than not.

I will actively work on staying in a positive mind-set and away from the negative.

2. Blog more.

3.Get to a healthy weight and maintain that all year.

Enjoy working out and trying new activities.

4.It is my resolution to give up candy for all of 2020.

I've made it 5 days so far. Wish me luck. :)

5. Pay off my graduate school student loan.

Continue to put money into the girls college fund.

Increase our emergency savings.

6. Travel. Often.

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy New Year!

Night before/First day of First Grade!

2019-02-28T10:34:00.002-05:00

When Elizabeth started pre-school we started a special night before school dinner tradition.

We introduced the girls to fondue and it has been our tradition ever since!

This year, both girls are in school, but Elizabeth started a few weeks before Caroline.

This is the night before Elizabeth started first grade.

Before we start the cheese fondue.

We ate almost everything. :)

After cheese fondue, we have chocolate fondue.

We ate all the cheese and all the chocolate and then put the girls to bed.

In the morning, we do pictures outside.

This is the morning Elizabeth started first grade!

Elizabeth was so excited to start first grade.

She has loved every single day of school and I am so thankful for a great year.

Happy Thursday y'all!

Golf and Baseball

2019-02-21T17:15:00.001-05:00

At the end of August, we did our best to fit in all the summer fun before Elizabeth started first grade.

We spent an early morning (before it got too hot) playing putt-putt at Top Golf.

Elizabeth wanted to go first.

Ben's turn!

Ben helped Caroline line up her shots.

I stood in the shade as much as possible :)

Caroline LOVED the water feature.

Elizabeth's "shy" pose.

And her "silly" pose.

Elizabeth took a picture of us :)

The next day, we took the girls to see the minor league team, The Potomac Nationals.

The girls and I walked in the pregame parade because they were part of the summer reading program from the library. Both girls received free tickets from the summer reading program and parents got in with each child.

On the field

It was HOT HOT HOT

In our seats

Sweating for some baseball :)

Leaving the game, we snapped a quick pic with the mascot.

Happy Thursday y'all!

First haircuts and FREE pizza

2019-02-20T16:54:00.001-05:00

The day after we got back from the Little League World Series, I took the girls to get school haircuts. This was also Caroline's FIRST haircut!!

Elizabeth got her hair washed.

And Caroline got her hair washed, the brushed out.

She was nervous but oh so excited!

She had about 2 1/2 inches of hair cut off.

Almost done!

All done!

Fresh hair!

That night we went to Domino's and redeemed their free pizzas from their summer reading program.

Showing off their coupons

And being silly

Free pizza!!!

They always love redeeming their rewards from their summer reading coupon book.

And I was excited for free dinner :)

Happy Wednesday y'all!

SEVEN!

2019-02-18T21:57:00.001-05:00

Dear Elizabeth,

You turned seven today!

We curled your hair and painted your nails!

We had cake after your pancake dinner!

We had a lot of fun celebrating your birthday on Friday night. You had a few girlfriends over for pizza, a movie, and ice cream sundaes! We were going to go skiing today, but you (and Dad and Caroline) have the flu. We have postponed your ski birthday a few weeks so everyone can get better and we will have a blast hitting the slopes soon! Seven has not taken me by surprise like six did. You have grown up so much this past year and you have tried so many new things. We are constantly in awe of your fearlessness to try something new.

We had to take you to the doctor last night, so I know you are almost 48 inches tall and you weigh about 42 pounds. You wear size 6-7 clothes and a size 12-13 shoe. Your favorite colors are purple and turquoise.

You and Caroline are still sharing a room and continue to be best friends, although you both can pick a fight. You like to stay up after bedtime chatting and you like to get up together in the morning. Your new school for first grade starts an hour earlier than your kindergarten school, so we have to get up and out early this year. You would much rather be sleeping, but you are starting to get the hang of it.

You are doing Girl Scouts, Intro to Acro, and CCD this year. In January you took swim lessons and in the spring you will start softball. You love being active and trying new sports (like acro) and you are excited to move up from t-ball. You have a few different shows you like to watch and you are fine switching between something you want to do and something your sister wants to do. You love to play dress-up, barbies, ponies, princesses, and anything that is an art project. You love to color and create.

You still LOVE amusement parks, especially roller coasters. You enjoy bowling, playing outside, going to parks, swimming, going to water parks, and anything else active.

Your favorite dinner food is still rotisserie chicken, anything chocolate, and ice water. You are good sport about trying most foods but definitely have your favorites- chicken, peaches, oranges, string cheese, yogurt, smoothies, chocolate. :)

You went to following places this past year:

Arlington, Texas

Lake Palo Pinto, Texas

Fort Worth, Texas

Cumming, Georgia

Columbia, South Carolina

Greensburg, Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Hagerstown, Maryland

Rockville, Maryland

Washington, DC
Bridgetown, Barbados

You have had so many great adventures this past year. You have traveled out of the country for the first time, went away for overnight girl scout camp, took a girls trip, had new cousins be born, celebrated holidays with family and friends, changed schools, and started learning a new language. I am so proud of you!

I want you to always believe in yourself. Trust your gut. Be a good listener. Be a good friend. Always tell the truth. Don't be afraid to ask for help, everyone needs it sometime. Remember we love you- always and no matter what. Be brave. Be fierce. Be kind. We love you.

Love,

Mom and Dad

Little League World Series

2019-02-14T11:48:00.001-05:00

In August, the girls and I headed to the Little League World.

We went to see our cousin Jansen and his team play in a game and enjoy spending time with family!

In the car, starting our road trip!

We arrived at the Little League World Series!!

And took pictures with everything :)

The girls loved the giant baseball!

And the Chick-Fil-A cow!

Jansen's team before the game started

We went out to get a drink and found the bracket

Sitting with Sharon in the shade! :)

Elizabeth wanted a picture by the field

And a picture with Chris

More snacks!

We loved watching the game (Jansen's team WON) and the girls are now obsessed with baseball.

It was the first game they have been to and watched someone play that they had a connection to, I think it really reinforced the game to them.

Post-game interview on ESPN

Jansen being interviewed on ESPN

The girls and Sharon enjoying the LLWS!!!

After the game, the girls and I took Sharon back to her hotel.

Chris met us there a little later and we all enjoyed dinner together.

After dinner, the girls and I headed back to our hotel and in the morning we headed home with a little pit stop on the way.

I surprised the girls and took them to Hershey World on the way home.

We did the Chocolate World tour, had lunch, picked out some treats and got back on the road.

Trying to get a cute picture...

We LOVE chocolate!

And we LOVE s'mores!

On the ride.

And that's a wrap on our road trip to the Little League World Series!

It was so much fun to go and experience a once-in-a-lifetime event!

Happy Thursday y'all!

Rainbow Rocks and Zoo Day

2019-02-01T17:20:00.000-05:00

In the middle of August, the girls and I headed into DC for a fun day in the city. We started our day by attending the Rainbow Rocks Concert and then going to the zoo.

Both girls enjoy the Rainbow Rocks band, so I knew it would be a fun summer treat! Both girls even made it to the stage and performed with the band!

Enjoying the show

Elizabeth is on the stage!

Caroline on stage (in a mask)!

She was singing, but I think she was too scared to move :)

After the concert, the girls played in the fountains and we enjoyed lunch at Five Guys.

Then we headed to the zoo:

First stop: The Elephant House!

Caroline's favorite animal is elephants and if we are parked at the top of the zoo,

it's always our first stop.

Then we head down the Asian trail to see the Giant Pandas

39406 photos- not one of them both looking :)

They wanted to pose with all the statues.

We love the red panda, but hardly ever see it.

Giant Pandas!!!

Bison

This photo cracks me up.

Looking in the picture box/view finder thing (?)

More posing.

I wish it was as warm today as when the photos were taken.

Happy Friday y'all!

Summer friend-cation and Ben's birthday

2019-01-31T08:57:00.001-05:00

So.. way back in August of 2018, we had our annual summer friend-cation with Kelly, Jared, Kylie, Scot, Nick, and Nico.

I've been REALLY BAD about blogging, so I am trying to go back and document all of our adventures (hence the five-month-delayed post).

We headed up on Friday, August 3rd for a weekend of fun and celebrating Ben's birthday.

Road trip time!

As soon as we got there, the girls jumped in the pool with Kylie.

And these moms relaxed with a cocktail :)

Snack time!

Caroline was obsessed with swings this summer.

She wanted to swing ALL. THE. TIME.

Scot showed up later in the afternoon and the girls wasted no time holding him to uncle duties.

Ben and Caroline had a blast in the pool!

Kylie and Elizabeth having the best summer!

Ben turned 37 on Sunday and Scot had a birthday later in the month, so we celebrated both of them on Saturday afternoon.

Happy Birthday!!

I thought this was a fun cake!

Saturday afternoon...time to try a Zima (?)

Birthday man on vacation

Fun times in the pool!

These four have a blast togther.

Saturday night we made s'mores

And the kids enjoyed sparklers

Sweet friends!

Sunday was Ben's actual birthday and we headed over to his parents house.

Birthday cake at 10am is winning on your birthday!!

Caroline wanted to go for a ride

And the girls enjoyed some two-on-one with Ben

We arrived home Sunday evening and had presents waiting for Ben

(Elizabeth wanted to pose with them)

Happy Birthday Ben!

(Trying to get a good picture of him with the girls)

Happy Thursday y'all!