The End of Spring Break

Friday we spent the day shopping and eating yummy crepes while Andrew once again confined himself to a room studying. I was able to help Deb pick out some really cute new outfits for herself! Saturday was Andrew's birthday and Sunday was her last full day here with us. After church we came home and had lunch and then drove out to Tunica. We wanted to show her the river park. It ended up being closed, which we were bummed about because the weather was really nice. So instead we drove around the Casinos and then headed back home. We had dinner and then put the kids down early and played games. It was a nice relaxing day! Monday Deb wanted to get crepes again (they really are that good!) and so we drove and ate lunch then dropped some lunch off for Andrew and then drove her back to Little Rock. Thankfully the drive was normal this time although we planned just in case with lots of snacks and activities! It was so fun having her here and showing her around. We miss her! She spoiled us rotten, especially the kids! Ella asks every day where Deb went. We can't wait to move home and spend the summer with our families!

This is what happens when our kids don't get a normal nap in there beds for almost a whole week, they get a little crazy!

Easton thinks the stairs are his new hangout spot, makes me crazy! He loves to climb up them but can't get back down so I end up going up and down a hundred times a day!This dress works like magic on Ella, she loves to wear it and it makes Sunday mornings that much easier because we don't have to fight to get dressed! Taking it off it a battle at night because she just wants to keep wearing it. Finally she agrees and tells me I have to wash it at night so she can wear it again. She says "Mommy wash a dress for tomorrow." She is into combing hair as well, Deb was the lucky one last Sunday to get her hair "combed" or pulled whichever way you look at it!

Wheels On the Bus

Singing the Wheels on the Bus (and about 10 other songs in our line up) is a daily or should I say hourly occurance at our house. Ella would be happy if I just sang to her all day :). We finally got it on video and now even Easton gets in on it and loves to move his arms when we sing it and then quickly loses interest.

Andrew's Birthday!!!

Last Saturday was Andrew's birthday! He has been lucky enough that his birthday has always fallen on spring break! We started out the day with German Pancakes and Bacon. We then got ready and drove up to the temple. Ella asks all the time to go and I told her we would when Deb came. We wanted to show her our temple here and see how small it was in comparison to Utah temples! We were able to walk around and enjoy the beautiful weather. After we left the temple we went to the mall. We were going to have the kids ride the merry go round but it was crazy busy. We just walked around and people watched, it is a whole new experience to people watch in Memphis! We also let Ella run around again in the Disney store. She loves princesses and Mickey Mouse and that store just makes he happy, literally she had been so grumpy all day and she had perma grin on her face the whole time we were in there!

After we left the mall Andrew had requested Corkys for his birthday dinner so we went there. We hadn't been there in almost a year so it was a treat! Deb was nice to spoil him for his birthday and let him have his own rack of ribs! I don't know what we are going to do without all these yummy BBQ places someday!

After dinner we went home and gave the kids baths and then opened presents. Andrew had told me I couldn't buy him anything and I almost didn't but I thought I would get him a little something. Deb got him a new card game and he got lots of cards in the mail from family. The kids were excited to help him open his presents!

The kids gave him some yoohoo. He was excited and they didn't last long!I made him a cherry chocolate cake with some chocolate frosting. I had never made chocolate frosting and kind of just dumped a bunch of stuff in but it turned out great!I got him a new board game. He really thought he wasn't getting anything so he was pretty excited to get this. We played it a few times with Deb before she left. We were able to use our birthday banner again as well! It is fun to use and nice to be able to since it was a very time consuming project!Then we blew out the candles and enjoyed our cake and ice cream!

I love how this picture is foggy due to all the smoke!I don't know what we were thinking doing baths before cake. Easton was a mess and put frosting in his hair, behind his ears, everywhere! He dug more into it than at his birthday!

Lambert's Cafe

After the arch we decided to drive back home. About half way between Memphis and St. Louis is a restaurant called Lambert's Cafe. It is the "home of the throwed rolls." They literally throw rolls across the room at you. They are hot and delicious. They have really yummy apple butter they put on them as well! It was another one of those bucket list places to go before we move! It was also nice to get out the car for a bit and have a little break! I ordered the chef's salad. It was big enough to feed all of us plus some. It came out in a huge bread bowl. It was pretty good and I was able to enjoy it for a few days! They have a few sides that they walk around the restaurant handing them out, one of them being fried Okra. Easton ate about ten pieces of it, he loved it!

Pictures don't do this salad justice!Group shot! Ella was less than charming and had to be taken out for a while and talked but she came back in and ate her food, so whatever Andrew said to her worked!Easton trying to get every last drop of his juice!Outside the restaurantThey have a wooden train outside as well, the kids loved playing on it and both got upset when pulled away so we could get out of there!

Spring Break

Last week was Andrew's Spring break (probably his last one since he will be working at a private practice next year at spring break time)! We knew it wasn't going to be much of a break since boards are coming up in a couple weeks. We spent Monday and Tuesday doing the normal routine, Andrew went to school and studied for 8 hrs both days. Wednesday he studied all morning as well why the kids and I drove to Little Rock to pick up Andrew's sister Deb. We were excited for he to come visit us and see where we live. We thought we were going to be back by late afternoon but we got delayed big time. What is usually a two hour drive each way turned into a 3 hr trip on the way there and a almost 4 1/2 hr drive back. We were literally parked on the freeway for a good 45 min, and interstate 40 is lined with semis so it was us and all the truckers. Luckily we had lots to snack on and talk about and movies to entertain the kids! We finally made it back and were so hungry and Deb requested we go to Gus's fried chicken, can't go wrong with Gus's it was delicious!

Thursday we woke up super early and drove up to St. Louis for the day. We love going up there and going to their zoo and science center/planetarium since it is all free. We arrived just after noon and went into the zoo and had a picnic of Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches and some leftover chicken from the night before. We sat on a nice deck overlooking some water. After we ate we went and saw the penguins. They also have some in a cold stinky building with puffins and penguins in it as well!

Ella wasn't a fan of getting close since they were sticking their beaks outThis is my stinky face, it smelled so awful in there!We then went and saw all the different monkeys. Ella loves monkeys and was pretty excited and actually got up close to the glass!Easton was happy to be let out of the stroller to roam around. He loved standing at the windows of all the exhibits!Easton loves to be on shoulders!

Seeing the giraffes! Easton loves to point!Before we left we drove by the arch. We actually found a spot to park across the street from it so we got out and walked around. The kids were tired and done otherwise we would have gone inside for a bit. It was a windy day! That would be us standing at the top of the hill!Looking towards downtown from the arch!I love how you can see the little piece of the moon in this one!It was fun to take Deb around to all the different places she had never been!We went to the planetarium before the arch and walked over to the science center. They were closing soon so we just walked around quickly. We crossed the sky bridge that goes over the freeway a couple times. The kids loved looking in the little windows on the ground that look straight down to the freeway! They are just happy anywhere they can roam free!

Tent

Last Saturday I was gone for the whole morning at Super Saturday. While I was gone they all built a tent. Ella was so excited to tell me about it when she got up from her nap. I think she was still on a high from being able to spend 5 hrs with Dad with Mom gone! Andrew was nice to take that much time out of his studying to take care of them. It was nice to have a break from breakfast, dressing, lunch, playtime, putting them down for naps and so on. I felt like a whole new person that day and getting dinner on the table was a lot easier.

While making said dinner I went and found them all back in it again playing!Easton is always happy when he feels included in the "big" kid stuff. He just soaks in everything we do and every more what Ella does.