Seriously, winter must go!

It is cold! We are a week away from April and it has snowed pretty much all day for the last two days here! If it weren't for the mid-70s we had a few weeks ago, we would be out sledding but instead it is just snowy, windy, and cold! It just doesn't feel right having to do Easter egg hunts inside or spend our weekends inside. They say it is supposed to get a little warmer after today.  Hopefully, they are right this time!
Drew and Anna Kate haven't been too disappointed about not being able to get outside but I think they are starting to get cabin fever. We got their swings out a couple of weeks ago when it was warm and they will mention them every once and a while. They also sometimes will say something about getting the bounce house out or going to feed the ducks at the park. We have been watching a lot of Barney and trying to find fun things to do inside but I am running out of ideas! I know before long we will be complaining about how hot it is so I will just patiently wait for warmer weather and try to remember not to complain once it is here!
I asked Anna Kate if she wanted to go grocery shopping with me Saturday morning and of course she did! Drew was content to stay home his Daddy and play with his cars so I packed my girl off and we headed toward Walmart.  She was so excited about going she even set her paci down before we left and told me she didn't need that or her lovey.  For the record, she did ask for it about 5 miles down the road but when I reminded her she left it, she was okay with that. I think Drew enjoyed some one-on-one time with John Clay and it was nice to have some with Anna Kate too. I want to try and start doing more things with them individually and maybe have special days for each of them.

 Two peas in a pod.  I am lucky they have such a good Daddy that enjoys getting in the floor and playing with them.

 Anna Kate loved her shopping trip. Can you tell?! She got hungry so we had to have a little snack before we made it out of there.

We had our normal Sunday with Aunt Ashley. She painted Anna Kate's toes which is always exciting for her. She really wanted to try and paint her toes herself (she is quite independent) so I told her if she would let Aunt Ashley finish her toes, I would let her paint my nails. She loved it and we eventually had to hide the nail polish from her before she got it up to my elbows! 

 Working hard.

She was so proud. It was so caked on it took me a little while to get it off but it was worth it to see how proud she was of herself!

Easter #1

We had our first Easter celebration this past Saturday at Pepaw & Ann's house.  This year's celebration was a far cry from last year's, for many different reasons.  The main difference was the weather.  Last year at this time, it was 85 degrees outside. This past Saturday the high maybe go into the 50s. Needless to say, the egg hunt was indoors! There were also lots of new faces at our Easter celebration this year.  Last year, Drew and Anna Kate were the entire show. This year, there were several new cousins there to celebrate. Drew and Anna Kate enjoyed having other kids to play with. The main event (for Anna Kate especially  was getting to meet her new cousin Rylee (or Rywee as they call her). They have enjoyed talking about Millie and baby Rywee in her belly since she has been showing. When I told them they were going to get to meet her for real this time, they were really excited.  Anna Kate went straight for her when we got there.  Millie was kind enough to let Anna Kate hold her on her lap. My sweet motherly girl loved every single second of holding baby Rywee.  She hugged her and patted her. Rylee started to cry so it didn't last too long but Anna Kate talked about it all night and the next day. She was so proud she got to hold her. She also kept holding up her baby doll and telling me that she was going to show Millie that she has a baby too.  

 Sweet girls! Rylee is Anna Kate's only girl cousin. I know they are going to have a very special friendship!

 We tried to get them to wear the bunny ears but they weren't really feeling them.

Drew picking his special egg out of the basket.  Ann is always so great to have fun things on holidays. I know Drew and Anna Kate are always going to look forward to celebrating holidays at their house.

John Clay had to leave early because his band played Saturday night and I was on kid duty by myself so that, unfortunately, was the best of the pictures that I got!

We went shopping!

Anna Kate is quite the fashionista and has decided that she really likes to go shopping. She hit up the easiest target she knows and has been telling her Mamaw Katherine that she wants to go shopping for a couple of weeks now. The plan was to go to Pigeon Forge Saturday afternoon after we had a couple of showings at our house (We are back on the market looking for a buyer!).  I got a little worried that we would end up in major traffic so we changed plans a bit and decided to just go to Turkey Creek instead. The trip was semi-successful. They got some really cute things for spring and despite wanting to tie them down in their stroller a time or two, it went pretty well.  Anna Kate is definitely a better shopper than Drew and if we decide to do that again, we may arrange for something fun for him to do with Daddy. Drew mainly threw things in the floor. Anna Kate went around and picked things she thought was pretty and would bring them for us to see. After Carter's we went to Target because Mamaw promised Drew a fishing rod (he has been "fishing" in their baby pool at her house with a stick). They both got new fishing rods and then we headed to dinner. They were a little wild at dinner and Mamaw said they are always much more behaved when she and Papaw take them to breakfast. It is nice to know that they don't act crazy with them and also nice to know that they just save their unruliness for me...  I foresee we will have many more shopping trips in a our future. At least for the girls!

 After a rousing rendition of Itsy Bitsy Spider, they started in on the ever popular, "I Love You, You Love Me" in the middle of Target. They even did the hug and kiss in their stroller. They are pretty precious!

 Anna Kate loves lemons.

 Drew liked the lemon but he really loved the orange slice that came with their dinner. That was the first thing he went for and ate it all including about half of the rind and peel!

 Waiting for Mamaw outside, sitting on the bench, looking all cute!

This is her new cheese face.... 

You can't see them in this picture but she got some new beaded flip flops on our shopping trip that are hot pink (almost neon). She kicked off the beloved "farklies" (which we almost ended up leaving behind) and HAD to wear them out of the store. They no where near matched the outfit she had on but she loved them so much, there wasn't any way she was taking them off. It is worth noting that unless she has been sleeping or in the bath tub, she has not taken them off since.

Sunshiny days!

The weather at the end of the this week and this weekend was perfect! We definitely loved getting out and enjoying it!  I hope it is here to stay and winter will become a very distant memory! 

 Playing in the backyard Friday evening. Papaw came over to help Daddy with one of his mowers so we grilled hamburgers and he and Mamaw stayed for dinner. Uncle Aaron and Megan came by too! I can't believe they are tall enough this year to reach and hang from this bar! Another reminder of the big kids they are becoming!

 My other monkey!

 Anna Kate woke up extra early Saturday morning and just could not wait to wake Drew up too. They had a little game of catch when I finally let her go get him up.

 Aunt Ashley was out of town this weekend but we still went for our Sunday afternoon lunch date at DotDot and Grandaddy's.  Mimi Jo and Pops came too. After lunch we went outside for some swinging, sliding, and golf cart riding.

*Funny AK story.... While we are on our golf cart ride, we stopped by Dennis's barn to see him. We also got to see two baby pigs! Drew and Anna Kate have decided for some reason that they are terrified of Dennis's dog, Dixie. She is friendly so I am not sure why they are so scared. Anna Kate practically stayed wrapped around my head the entire time Dixie was in sight.  As we were driving away Anna Kate said, "Bye Dixie! I don't like you!"  Hahaha!

 Loving playing on the swing set.

It seems like just yesterday, they weren't tall enough to see over that railing that Anna Kate is hanging over! Time sure does fly!

Spring Fever!

We got a small taste of Spring this weekend.  It was sunny and warm, a nice turn from the rain and cold! It rained most of the day yesterday and now it is cold again but the weather man says it will be warm again by this weekend. I am very excited!
We took advantage of the time to get outside this weekend and it was wonderful! I got to take the day off on Friday and take Drew and Anna Kate to the park for Easter pictures with a real bunny! I talked the bunny up for several days hoping to get them excited about it and that they would be cooperative when we got there.  This was a mini-session so we only had about 30 minutes to get some good pictures! I have seen a sneak peek and I think they are going to be good! Besides Anna Kate being a little cold, they were very cooperative and they really like the bunny. DotDot went with us for pictures and we made rounds to visit Grandaddy and Mamaw at work before heading home for lunch and naps. It was a great day to get out and about.
On Saturday, John Clay and I had a wedding to go to so Drew and Anna Kate spent the day with DotDot and Grandaddy and Aunt Ashley.  Since we knew we would be home pretty late and things didn't go so well in the sleep department the last time they had a slumber party with DotDot and Grandaddy, Aunt Ashley kindly agreed to bring Anna Kate and Drew home for bed and spend the night with us so we didn't have to hurry home. It was nice to get out for a night and from what I heard, Drew and Anna Kate had a wonderful time too!  They got to play outside on their cars, go for a wagon ride and golf cart ride and Grandaddy brought their swings and slide out from winter storage. They were quite excited about their return.  They also loved spending some special time with Aunt Ashley. Anna Kate woke up at 3am Sunday morning with a very wet diaper. I went to get her and she cried for Aunt Ashley. I think she remembered she was the one who put her to bed Saturday night.  After I changed her she laid in bed with John Clay and I for a while to get settled back down. When I laid down with her, she said, "I rode is "Ashey's" car, Mama!". She obviously thought that was special!
Sunday morning I went to the grocery store and Anna Kate and Drew stayed home with John Clay and played in their sand table. I poured mass amounts of sand out of their clothes last night while doing laundry so I am guessing they had a good time! After they got up from their nap, we headed to Mamaw and Papaw's house for dinner. Uncle Aaron, Megan, and Tami were there too! They got to spend some time playing in the yard before dinner and they just ran and ran. We are so thankful for longer days and are looking forward to more warm weather!

 Drew fishing. I am not sure how he knows about fishing but he never ceases to amaze me with the things he knows how to do that seem to come out of the blue!

Picking flowers. Of course, she needed to have her purse.  She is so very girly. Her brother is as much of a boy and she is a girl. They couldn't be more opposite if they tried!

Once upon a time....

I know I've been posting a lot of videos lately, but they are just too darn cute not to share.
Anna Kate having story time with her Daddy...

"I love you"

It is quite known that Anna Kate and Drew's favorite show is by far Barney.  They don't really even entertain watching anything else (they have even moved away from watching "Caterpillars") They are both learning all the songs that Barney sings and really like to sing along, especially our little songstress, Anna Kate.  She really likes the "closing" song that Barney is so famous for. The other night after she decided that instead of eating dinner she was going to serenade Drew.  I love how theatrical she is about it. I also think it is funny that Drew wants no part in "loving" his sister. For the record, she ended up getting in trouble with her Daddy for bothering Drew while he was doing what he was supposed to and eating.  I guess I might be partly to blame for provoking her but it was too cute not get a video of!