Spring break was really pretty good to us. Once I recovered from the half, we settled into a nice groove of just hanging out and going on little adventures every day. One day, I took the boys to the McDonald's play place. Nothing big, but we rarely eat there, so going inside and playing? They loved it.

One of my favorite days was the afternoon we went to a local arboretum and hiked. It was a little cold and windy, but the boys had a blast. I love watching them run around and interact with each other. Tommy just follows Luke and does EVERYTHING he does. It's so cute.






When it started to get dark and even colder, we got in the car and went to Dairy Queen. It was such a good afternoon. I am hoping for many, many more like this over the summer!

I love Easter. It is my favorite of favorites and always has been. It's about hope. Life. Renewal. And also, candy and deviled eggs, both of which I love, amen.

Thanks to the unseasonably warm weather we've had this year, the lilacs are blooming. They don't usually bloom until May, so I took advantage and filled three centerpieces with lilacs. This one was my favorite.


My Easter also included these bad boys, which are just as delicious as they look.

(Source)

We didn't get a family photo because guests showed up early and we ate during Tommy's nap time, meaning he was none too interested in photos. I did manage to snap these two photos of my favorite guys. We played outside for hours after we ate. Luke insisted on the world's longest game of tag, which is not so much fun when you have a stomach full of food, but we had an absolute blast all the same.




Linking up to You Capture!

I've been running in the morning to avoid the insane afternoon heat. Despite it still being dark outside, the air is warm and the birds are chirping and I just think that this season makes life worth living.

“For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;" ~ Song of Solomon 2:12

I know that it's not quite spring yet--and I'm probably jinxing us into a giant March snowstorm--but didn't yesterday's sunshine feel so good? (Unless you live somewhere that was lacking sunshine yesterday, then I apologize for being a braggy jerk.)

We were all in heaven.

We opened up the sandbox, a plaything with which I have a serious love hate relationship. The kids love it and can play for hours, but the SAND. Why is sand so messy? And why does Tommy always have so much of it in his pants?



The best part is knowing that even if I jinxed us into a snowstorm or even if the next two weeks are rainy, we are going to have more and more days like this. Yes, knowing that put just a little spring in our step.

Although it's only 39* outside, I just walked out to get the mail shoeless, because I miss the feeling of grass beneath my (unpolished, because why bother?) toes. This winter seems to be long, longer than most. I'm sure I say this every year, but I can feel the cold seeping into my bones. I can never get warm, even in layers, even under blankets, even in a warm bathtub.
I want nothing more than flip flops, sitting in the grass soaking sunlight into every ounce of my body, playing at the park, smelling the flowers.


I wonder when I'll get to dig my hands into the dirt and plant this sweet geranium? I'm starting to feel like we're living in Narnia, where it's always winter and never spring.

I have been a really lazy blogger this week, so I thought it would be best to get my You Capture photos up early...otherwise I might just forget that I have a blog all together! I took all of my pictures while lying on the ground, either on my stomach or back. Lucky for me the neighbors already think I'm crazy, so I have nothing to lose.

Spring is green grass juxtaposed with a stormy sky

Playing at the park while the 6 o'clock church bells play "Bringing in the Sheaves." {Sometimes I love living in a small town}

Bright bursts of yellow

Being too big for the baby swings, but also, just big enough to give your baby brother the best swing ride of his life.

I love spring. I'm fairly certain I've said this about eleven billion times, but I do. I love spring. If I could marry spring, I would.

While on the March of Dimes walk, I captured a lot of gorgeous spring pictures. And then baby Godzilla unleashed himself on my laptop, where I had, sadly, uploaded the photos and then deleted from my camera. Luckily, my husband recently acquired a laptop, so I was able to steal his while anxiously awaiting a replacement power cord for my laptop! Technology. It's wonderful (and confusing, if you're my husband), but kind of annoying in its breakability.

ANYWAY, I did manage to snap some pictures that are very, very spring to me. In the field behind our house, there is a ditch that has three lilac bushes growing in it. They're very big and since no one really lives by them, I consider them fair game for flower cutting. Cutting the flowers is a little treacherous since it's pretty overgrown and I, of course, wear flip flops to do it, but it's worth it for all the flowers I can put in glass vases around the house.

Aside from cropping, this next one is SOOC. Isn't it lovely what the spring sunshine can do?



And finally, this photo represents spring because after months of spending every night inside, we finally get to go outside and play at the park every night after dinner. We're all thankful for this, but no one is as thankful for the warmth that spring brings as Luke!

You Capture: Spring

When I went through my photos from the last week, I realized that I took approximately 8,000 pictures of food when thinking of Fresh. Clearly, I have a problem, but I was able to narrow it down to just two food pictures.


Fresh donuts with my favorite guy. While Shane slept in Sunday, Luke, Tommy, and I snuck out to Dunkin' Donuts AND Starbucks. It was a great morning, with fresh donuts, fresh coffee, and lots of smiles.


Then, Sunday afternoon, I met Julie and Love for coffee, at which point I indulged in a very fresh cinnamon roll with brandy buttercream sauce. Yum. And wow.

On the rare moment that I think outside of FOOD for fresh, I think flowers for sure. I have this lovely little glass vase that I use for just one or two single flowers because it looks so pretty.

Don't you think?

Flowers reaching through the still cold ground for the sun. I love Daffodils for how hardy they are, for how they reach up while all the other flowers are still hiding.


Before I took the above photo, I had to get a photo of my little Leprechaun. It was a little hard, though, because every single time I tried to snap a photo, he kept reaching out for me. Every single time.

I love when he reaches for me.

The theme of this week's You Capture is SPRING. Emphasis all mine because I love spring. Spring is my favorite season because it makes me so hopeful. Winter is ending, and everything is blooming, fresh, green, and colorful. It makes me think of new beginnings.

Despite my love for spring, this wasn't as easy as I thought. We had SNOW on Sunday, and I had to break my winter coat back out on Saturday night. Still, when I pulled in the driveway yesterday, I saw these hopeful yellow flowers pushing up against the house, and I remembered why I love this season so much.

I love how despite the lack of sun lately, the wind, and the cold, this little flower is trying so hard to grow and reach the light and warmth. Aren't we all?