Antelope visits!

Last week, Lauren took a day off work and came down to hang out for the day. We went to the beach in the morning and then hung around the house in the afternoon to visit. Chris was out of town for work, so it was fun having it be just us and the girls!

Lauren brought Eleanor and Jane a couple toys, the favorite being these little capsules that dissolved in water and became little animals.

She was supposed to head home in the afternoon but ended up staying for the beginnings of pizza movie night, much to Eleanor's delight.

(Lauren took all of these pictures!)

Thanks for coming to visit!!! We loved that you were here!

River beach week

Last week we had a few gorgeous days in a row and the girls and I ended up at Jamestown Beach three days in a row. The third day was for a birthday party, which was very fun. We love living within a couple minutes (or a two mile bike!) of the beach. I know it's not the ocean, but with little kids, it's actually much easier for now. 

Almost this entire upcoming week looks like rain, so I'm glad we we took advantage last week. I'm sure we'll be spending a lot more time here in the coming months.

May, the month of travel

This month has been a bit of an odd month for us - between work-related trips and our family trip to Harrisonburg, Chris has traveled for a few days every single week of this month. On the flip side, all of our school-year long organized activities are coming to an end this month, so the coming weeks are starting to look much clearer. The older I get, the more and more I've started appreciating the seasons. I love when all of our activities cease and we have free time to explore our area, go to the pool and amusement parks, and have lazy indoor play dates with friends when it rains. On the other hand, as summer draws to an end, I love pulling my jeans and sweatshirts back out and feeling the crispness in the air and the newness of all our activities for the coming year (pre-school is a big one for us next fall...how is my big girl already big enough for pre-school??).

Eleanor rocking her side-ponytail the other day. Notice all the hair on the other side that doesn't fit in anymore because she cut it.

Mother's Day strawberry picking

First, Happy Mother's Day to our moms, Grandma and Gaby! And Happy Mother's Day to all the other mamas and future mamas out there. We had a fairly low key weekend, but lots of fun family time. On Saturday we decided to go strawberry picking out in Surry at College Run Farms. We took the ferry over the river and got to enjoy a demonstration heading out of Jamestown Settlement while we embarked. They sent one of their ships out and did some cannon fire right when we were leaving.

It had been raining for days, so picking wasn't as easy as it normally is. There were lots of mushy berries, but we were able to pick around and get some decent ones.

Then, the whole reason for actually going to Surry to pick berries...ice cream. We got homemade strawberry ice cream and it was absolutely worth the journey.

My favorite part about actual Mother's Day on Sunday was that Eleanor made me a homemade card and worked really hard to write "Mommy" on the front and "Eleanor" on the inside.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Graduation, Ashleigh and Jessie!

Last weekend we headed to Harrisonburg to see Chris' sisters graduate from JMU! They are the last of our family to graduate, so it was a little exciting thinking that we are all "grown up" now. Here is a picture of Chris with all his siblings - everyone was together at Brothers Craft Brewing in Harrisonburg after the graduation:

We got over to Harrisonburg on Thursday afternoon and went to Cross Keys Vineyard for a family celebratory dinner.

Jessie's boyfriend Henry brought a nice camera and took pictures of the family, which was so kind!

On Friday, Chris and I took the girls swimming at an indoor pool where we were staying before heading over to the main graduation ceremony. We spotted the girls down on the field! There was a reception on a nearby lawn afterward including popsicles and ice cream sandwiches. Then we headed back to the place we were staying for dinner.

Saturday morning we headed out early for their departmental graduation where they actually got to walk across the stage. They both were under the same school in different departments (Psychology and Social Work). It was raaaaaainy and cold. We were sitting under an overhang, so at least stayed dry, but by the time the ceremony was over, almost everyone had left - the graduates off the field (after they walked) and their families out of the stands. We were all a little chilly. (Below is a pictures of poor Ashleigh's mortar board after getting rained on all morning).

We headed to Greenberry's (where Ashleigh works) for coffee and then over to Brothers Craft Brewing.

That afternoon, the families of the graduates hosted a get together at the girls' house, called the Birdhouse. We had fun chatting with the girls' roommates and hearing who was doing what the following year, as well as watching a slideshow of pictures from their eventful senior year. It was very nostalgic and reminded me of good times that I had with my roommates during college, too. Such a fun time of life! We also headed back that night to watch the Kentucky Derby at the resort. My horse (Lookin' at Lee) came in a surprising 2nd place, while Chris' took first (Always Dreaming). We won $20!

A HUGE congratulations to Ashleigh and Jessie on graduating this past weekend!

Shug and Grandma visit

Last week Chris had to go on a work trip and the girls got visits from both Shug and Grandma! Shug came down first and we headed out to CW for a walk. We, of course, stopped at the Peanut Shop while we were down there.

Eleanor had prepared by painting a picture for Shug before he got down here.

We headed to Chick-fil-A for lunch (the girls' favorite) and had some fun playing before the girls went down for naps. Later that evening, Grandma came! Grandma got Eleanor a brand new nightgown that she loves because she gets to wear a dress to bed.

On Friday we decided to head to Busch Gardens for the morning. We all took a ride on the log flume (Le Scoot), and then Jane spent the entire rest of the day huddling in Grandma's arms because she is scared of all the rides (including the shuttle train to get to the park from the parking lot, and the sky ride which is sort of like an air train around the park).

Poor Jane, we're still hoping she warms up to Busch Gardens a bit this summer like her sister did. Thanks for visiting Shug and Grandma! We had a blast!