Crawfish Boil

We hosted a crawfish boil last Saturday for Steve's company. Last year for our first crawfish boil we had several of the guys that work for Steve and their families, and they brought all the supplies and made the crawfish. They all wanted to do the same thing this year, but it got big quickly and ended up being an event for the entire company. 

Steve assured me that he and the guys on his team would take care of everything and I didn't need to worry about the planning, and that's exactly how it worked out! 

Josh did the crawfish this time and set up this professional looking station in our backyard

Because we had so many people, we needed over 100 pounds of crawfish! This is just the first batch-

By the end of the third batch, just a few people still going...

Ella and Jake steered clear of the crawfish but had a fun time swimming and playing all afternoon and late into the evening

 

Lily and Andy looking adorable

The party went great, and it was so nice that I had only minimal responsibilities throughout!

Field Day

Last Thursday was Field Day for Ella at school. She had a dentist appointment in the morning so I didn't drop her off until 10:30 am, and Field Day started at noon, right after recess - she said it was the 'most awesomest day of school all year.'

Field Day is all different water games, activities and bounce houses, and she loved it. Here are some cute pics that her teacher posted on the class blog - 

Gymnastics Show

Monday night was Ella's end-of-year gymnastics show. She has loved her class this season and gymnastics is currently her most favorite activity. She was really excited for her show and after all season of being on the other side of the glass, I was so happy for the chance to get to watch her up close and get some pictures and videos. 

Ready to go!

Warm-up and stretches

Vault

Waiting for her turn on the bars

Videos from the vault, bars, beam and floor

With her medal at the end!

I am so proud of how hard she worked this season and love that she's enjoying gymnastics so much!

Weekend in Boston

I went to Boston last weekend for a visit with Kelly. She came here last summer but it's been several years since I went to Boston, and I was so looking forward to the weekend away. 

I took off on Friday and arrived in Boston in mid-day. We spent the afternoon talking and catching up, walked around a lot, saw a movie, had dinner and talked some more! 

The weather on Saturday and Sunday was absolutely beautiful - sunny and mid-70s. On Saturday we got manicures and pedicures and then enjoyed lunch outside. We saw Blue Man Group that night, and went to the North End for delicious Italian food.  

At Faneuil Hall on Saturday night

On Sunday we went down to the harbor, enjoyed the beautiful weather and had a great brunch

Such a great weekend and so good to have a few days away and spend the time with Kelly!!

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was a really great day. Steve and Ella both went out of their way to make it a special day for me, and it was fun, relaxing and chore-free. 

We spent the day together, and I had lots of time to reflect and feel grateful about motherhood, and to think about how thankful I am for Mom, how fortunate I am to have Ella, and now for the chance to be a mother again to another baby daughter on the way.

So thankful to be mommy to this sweet and amazing little girl!

Fun lunch out after church

And lots of pool time in the afternoon!

Mother's Day Breakfast with Ella

Ella's class had a Mother's Day Breakfast last Friday morning, and it was awesome! We all waited in a line and Ella came to pick me up, held my hand, and led me to her chair. She sat me down and then pushed my chair in, and brought me a muffin, fruit salad and orange juice. 

They had been working on their projects for weeks and Ella was so proud and excited to give everything to me.

This picture is the absolute sweetest thing and I was so happy and charmed to read it. 

It says:

My Mother

My mom's name is Colleen and she is 33. Her favorite color is violet. She is pretty in the nighttime and in the afternoon when she's working or making dinner. I think Dad married my mom maybe because she is pretty. My mom is really good at cleaning up and making dinner, but she's not good at doing things I can do. Like she can't do a forward flip or a backward flip. Mom likes to go on walks with me and she likes to relax. When no kids are around she likes to get her nails done and go out with my dad and stuff. The best thing my mom cooks is chicken nuggets. Her favorite place to eat is Which Wich. Mom lets me have 2 desserts sometimes. Mom almost always says "after dinner" when I ask her something. My mom is the BEST because whenever I ask something it's usually a yes! I know my mom loves because I just know...and every night she says "I love you!"

With love,

Ella

I just love it so much, this one will be prized for many years to come!

And there were a bunch of other great projects Ella had made --

A tile picture holder

All these amazing goodies!

And a bookmark 

And the flowers in this pot were each labeled with a different thing Ella was supposed to do - one said give me 10 hugs, one said feed the dog, and one said do the dishes. She readily paid up on the hugs and feeding Cory but gave me a raincheck for her dishes night! 

 

And the kids sang several cute songs - 

It was really such a fantastic morning and the perfect start to our weekend!

Teacher Appreciation Day

This past Friday was Teacher Appreciation Day so Ella made this letter for Mrs. Dooley to go with the gift we gave her. The letter was SO sweet!

Translation: "Mrs Dooley, I love you in all different ways. You are perfect. You are very sweet. Love, Ella"

Roller Skating

Ella's friend Karsyn had a roller skating birthday party last weekend and it was Ella's first time at a roller skating rink. She had a great time, and it was a blast to watch her try to skate and have so much fun with her friends. They are all so silly and funny together!