This House

This is our home...I love our little house in our little town

{which you may have heard about lately...Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco is our hometown boy}

Our little house needed some up dating, I have been waiting to do this since we bought the house more than 9 years ago. The front porch was a big selling feature to me.

I love front porches. I grew up playing on my parents front porch, listening to music and hanging out with friends. It still remains a great spot to sit and visit with my parents and brothers.

I love it!

But with two layers of out door carpet {YUCK!} and dingy siding it was time for an update! We thought this would be a perfect way to add square footage to our little home, too.

Here are a few pictures of the progress so far!

 

Don't you just love the brown cedar shake shingles??

I am beyond pleased with our new space so far.

And thanks to the energy audit we got before Christmas we were able to get rid of the oil tank that was below the porch and open that room up to get a full size storage room! Adding more space to our little house!

The excitement of what it is going to be over flows as I look for ceiling lights and doors.

Did I mention that we are also redecorating the kids' nursery into a bedroom for the hubby and me?? Nothing like project on top of project!

Looking forward to posting more pictures

Hookey

Jake and I needed some time together...he needed a break from the hustle of everyday and I need a morning of just the two of us. A Mommy and son date! So we took off for breakfast at our favorite place.

 

 

Counter service at The Pop Shop and his favorite breakfast. He was a happy boy and I was a happy momma! He is growing up so fast...finding it hard to let him go! If I have learned one thing in the last few months is that this life is not mine and I can't control anything that happens. So I am going to do my best to enjoy my children and guide them down the straight and narrow paths as best I can. For now, I loved having a  morning with my boy. We don't get many of these types of days anymore.

A Tea Party

So I am not the girly type...but I have to say that ever since I had Lizzy I have been secretly hoping that we could do a tea party for her and her friends. And I got my chance!!!

So it was more of a lemonade party than a tea party. We went small, she picked the guests...the brother wasn't an option but she still wanted him there. Highlights: Large engineers print from Staples (my favorite), paper pink and gray striped straws, mason jars, snowman ornament craft, pink flower cupcake liners, green and pink paper pompom, the perfect tea sets from The Christmas Tree Store (I love that store), pink carnations, sandwiches cut with cookie cutters, great friends.

Happy Birthday Lizzy!!

It is amazing to me that she is 4...how did this happen?? Where has the time gone??
She has grown so much...
She is the light of our lives...
She is talkative...
She amazingly loving...
She loves princesses and all girly things..

Jeff's birthday is two days before Lizzy's so they shared a Holland party with MomMom too and we had a Reinert/Spatola party just for her...on Jeff's birthday :-) We had a Mommy/Daughter date the day of her birthday. Jake was in school so Lizzy and I spent the day doing whatever she wanted. She got her ears pierced at Sweet and Sassy...she picked out the cutest pair for sparkling earrings. Chick Fil A was her lunch choice. In her very subtle way she told the cashier at Chick Fil A that it was her birthday and after they brought us out our lunch they brought a balloon and a special ice cream sundae and sang her happy birthday. It was really sweet and I think it made her day! It was a really fun day! The next day we were able to send in cupcakes for her preschool class. She was so excited! And we couldn't let the celebrations end there...for her friend party this year we kept it low key...just a few friends and a simple tea party for five! Saving that one for my next post!

With her recent health issues this birthday was so much sweeter for me. Now that we know it is nothing serious and very managable our heavy hearts have been lightened. I can't wait to see what God has in store for her!

First Sleepover

My Florida family has come home and it gave Jake the perfect chance to have his very first sleepover at our house last weekend! My cousin Matt is not quite 2 years older than Jake and they always play so nicely...so we started the night with some Nintendo DS-ing. Matt wasn't here more than five minutes and they were at it...it's a whole new world!

Elements to a perfect sleepover!

Pigs in a blanket with mac N cheese for dinner

laying on the floor to watch The Avengers

popcorn

oreos

crazy rounds of DS gaming

and

Morning pancakes!

 

 Both Lizzy and Jake loved having cousin Matt here. And it won't be too long before we invade their beautiful Florida home!!!

I'm Here....I promise!

 

So 2013 is barely here and I feel like it is going to fly by already! And I have so much to share with you. I am putting some finishing touches on a few different posts including a diy that I am in love with!!!!
But for now check out this awesome blog that I found while scrolling through Pinterest.

Introducing Holly Mathis Interiors

 

She has some awesome ideas for just about everything...and I love the Christmas stuff. Wish I had found her a month ago! Well, go check her out!!!