Walking at Cox Arboretum

Since it was supposed to rain the rest of the week, my mom and I headed to Cox Arboretum with the kids. It was very sunny and 70 degrees, so we had a wonderful time walking the different paths and looking at the flowers. There were also lots of ducks and turtles to see. We were also able to meet up with my brother, Andy, and his girlfriend, Alora.

Gabrielle on the butterfly bench...for only $1700 is can be yours!

Jacob

Emmaline

Jacob takes a break from running through the maze as Ellie rounds the bend.

Mommy and her kiddos (can you tell it was really sunny?)

The kids and Mimi

Andy and Alora

Mimi and Emmaline watch the ducks in the pond

Flowerbed Makeover

Our back flowerbed in the backyard was in desperate need of help. It had a butterfly bush that was beautiful in its prime, but has not bloomed in the past two years. It also had some creeping flocks that needed a trim. It took us two days, but we were able to do the following: pull up all old plants, but down a weed barrier, plant new plants - two burning bushes, a few flowers to attract butterflies, some creeping flocks, and tiger lilies (from another flowerbed), move the birdbath, spread mulch, and put up a new fence. Here are some before/after pics:

What a weedy mess!

Jacob shows off his new work gloves

Gabrielle shows her new gardening tools

Playing in the middle flowerbed (The birdbath used to be in the middle by the kids. We plan to take this flowerbed out this spring to widen the yard some.)

I'm not sure how she does it, but every time she is outside, Ellie ends up with dirt all over her face!

Nathan installs the new fence

All finished! Doesn't it look better?!
I plan to take more pictures as the season goes on and the flowers start to bloom.

An artist in the making?

Jacob got out of bed to use the restroom tonight. When he was done, he yelled down that we were out of cups in the bathroom. I told him that I would refill the cupholder when I came upstairs. This is what I found on the bathroom counter:

No wonder we're out of drinking cups!

Check Out This Giveaway!

The awesome gals at Mommin It Up (one of my favorite blogs) are having a great baby product giveaway in honor of the arrival of baby Samuel. Head on over and check it out!

Sick Day

Being homeschooled doesn't leave many occasions for sick days. Jacob has had a cold since last weekend and was complaining of ear pain last night. Gabrielle started coming down with a cold yesterday and Emmaline now has a runny nose. Due to all of those circumstances, we decided to make today an official "sick day" from school. The kids spread out their sleeping bags in the living room and enjoyed watching movies, coloring, and eating.

Let's Go Krogering!

Okay, so I'm not one to post about the good deals I get while shopping, but I couldn't resist sharing the awesome trip I had today at Kroger. They were having a Mega Event where if you purchased 10 items from their list, you instantly got $5 of you bill. And you could do this deal up to 3 times, which I did. In the past couple months, I've taken meals to friends 6 different times and have two more (that I know of) coming in the next month. I decided to stock up on some of the things I tend to use for that kind of thing so I'll be prepared when those occasions present themselves. Here is what I bought:

2 bottles of salad dressing

3 pkgs. goldfish crackers

2 Pillsbury cinnamon rolls (I had a coupon for one of them)

2 Pillsbury pizza crusts (I had a coupon for both)

2 cans Progresso soup (again, coupon for both)

3 cans Campbell's soup (coupon for all 3)

1 pkg. diced ham

2 Pillsbury crescent rolls 4 ct. (coupon for both)

2 cans Manwich

4 pkgs. Betty Crocker pouch cookie mix (I had 4 coupons for these)

1 jar dill pickles

3 boxes Betty Crocker brownie mix

3 boxes Betty Crocker muffin mix

1 Betty Crocker cake mix and frosting (I had a coupon for these)

1 pkg. Lean Pockets

green grapes

green onions

2 boxes donuts (2/$3 - these were picked out by Jacob!)

3 pkgs. Kraft shredded cheese

1 bar Kraft cheddar cheese

1 pkg. Aunt Jemima Griddle Cakes (I had a coupon)

3 boxes mac 'n cheese (3/$1)

1 Tombstone pizza

2 containers Cool Whip

1 pkg. bakery mini croissants

The total before coupons/discounts/etc. was $118.96.

The total AFTER all discount was $56.31.

I saved a total of 52% on our grocery bill (which totally crushes our old record of 34%).

Emmy uses a spoon

Today Emmaline used a spoon to feed herself. She mostly likes to bang it on her high chair tray, but occasionally some of those bites actually make it to her mouth. It will probably be some time before she truly gets the hang of it, but we're enjoying these small milestones along the way.