A Perfect Saturday

Today we got to do several of my/our favorite things...

Kevin, Whit, and I went to shop (at an outlet sale where things were 75% off nonetheless!)

 

Well, Kevin and Whit went to a nearby park while I shopped, but they rode with me to Raleigh and we enjoyed some quality time just the three of us!

After nap we went to eat yummy sweets with Suzanne and Sanna at Ketchie Creek Bakery (we ate outside, which made it even sweeter!)

And finally out to eat Mexican with Kevin's parents, sister, niece, and nephew!

Now it's time to veg out on the couch and catch up on some Winter Olympics! A perfect end to a perfect day!

Be Whit's Valentine

On Wednesday and Thursday of this week Whit is exchanging Valentines with his preschool friends and teachers. We did a VERY easy do-it-yourself Valentine, filling cellophane bags with Teddy Grahams, a red ribbon, and a Krispy Kreme Valentine. My camera battery is dead so I wasn't able to take pictures of our actual goodies, but with these images you can get the idea...

(picture from Family Fun Magazine)

If you buy a dozen doughnuts from Krispy Kreme by Feb. 14, you will get 12 free Valentine cards. On the back of each Valentine card is a coupon for a free doughnut! We punched a hole through these Valentines and attached them to the bear hugs cellophane bag with the ribbon so his friends could have a treat for now (bears) and a sweeter one for later (doughnut)!

(photo from Krispy Kreme website)

For his teachers (and his sweet Aunt Erica who keeps him 3 mornings a week while I work), we made chocolate covered pretzel rods dipped in milk chocolate, drizzled with white chocolate and topped with red sprinkles. Again, not the actual pretzels we made, but very similar ones below.

(photo from flickr)

I am leaving this evening to go to Durham with my mom and sister and then we're flying out very early Thursday morning for California for a girls long weekend! We have taken several of these girls-only trips, just the 3 of us, including my favorite where my mom and I traveled to Spain for a couple of weeks while Nancy was studying abroad there. I can't wait for a relaxing, fun trip! I'm speaking at a Women's Conference in Valencia, CA on Saturday morning, but other than that we plan on having some much-needed, relaxing girls time!

We'll be back on Sunday just in time for me to spend Valentine's with my two cupids!

XOXO

All Aboard!

 

(image from the W-S Journal)

We are so ready for spring! One of the things we did today on our dreary, indoor rainy/snowy day to look forward to spring was to officially purchase our Golden Rail Season Passes to Tweetsie Railroad in Blowing Rock, NC. We set aside some Christmas money just for this purpose, and are so excited for the park to open on April 30, 2010. The great thing about the season passes is that if we go to Tweetsie just two times, they've paid for themselves - what a bargain!

We took Whit for the first time last summer with Jeremy, Suzanne, and Sanna, and it was a HUGE hit. We saw Barney on that trip and in 2010 we can look forward to a Day out with Thomas, a day with Dora and Diego, frisbee dogs, Railfan weekend, Halloween ghost train, and so much more. Tweetsie not only has the train, but within the 200-acre theme park there's also plenty of rides, live entertainment, a deer park, chair lift, gem mining, gold panning, main street shops, face painting, etc.

Whit's latest obsession newest fascination is with Thomas the Tank Engine (and trains in general), and we figure that taking a few day trips this summer to Tweetsie will be a good diversion from our everyday pool activities. Plus we LOVE the park in the Town of Blowing Rock, so we can easily ride over there to play while we're on the mountain. And don't forget Grandfather Mountain, Mast General Store, and the Blue Ridge Parkway!

In fact, I'm not sure who's most excited at this point - Whit or his parents!

Looking on the Bright Side

Well, it looks like we're supposed to get some more snow, sleet, ice, and/or freezing rain overnight and into the weekend.  Have I mentioned that I'm REALLY ready for some spring weather?!?

This weather is really messing with our weekend plans!  I really don't want to miss MOPS tomorrow morning because we're supposed to be talking about romance/marriage and one of our MOPS moms is going to talk about the benefits and techniques of massage! We are all set to make a homemade body scrub using essential oils and sea salt, but that looks like it will all be on hold until our next meeting on Feb. 19. 

 Tomorrow night I am supposed to go to my friend, Suzanne's, house for a jewelry and Pampered Chef party. Also, Whit's good buddy, Wyatt, is supposed to have his 3rd birthday party Saturday morning (which was rescheduled from LAST Saturday morning - poor thing!), and Kevin and I have a sitter lined up for Saturday night so we can go to a friend's 31st (adults-only) birthday party. And then there's lunch at our house Sunday for my Dad's birthday and of course Super Bowl!

In the spirit of trying to look on the bright side of getting more frozen stuff and thinking of the glass as half-full, I thought I'd post some more pictures of Whit playing in the snow and sledding last weekend. Maybe seeing just how much fun he has playing outside, no matter what the weather, and realizing what great family memories we're making will make my outlook on the weekend better!

On your MARK...

GET SET...

GO!

 

Whit and Daddy getting ready to tackle the "Big Hill" of the neighborhood with the other big kids!

 

What goes DOWN...

 

Must come back UP!

After playing outside most of the morning, we told Whit it was time to go inside, eat some lunch, and get ready for his nap. He laid down in the sled...

 

...and said, "I nap right here." 

What can I say, the boy LOVES some snow! His warm weather-lovin' Mama is glad that he equally loves the water UN-frozen, in a big swimming pool or ocean, too! :)