Martha's Vineyard Getaway

My good friend Missy and me down at Vineyard Haven.

It's hard to believe not even a week ago I was enjoying my escape to Martha's Vineyard. It's amazing how quickly you have bounce back into reality once your home! The weekend was a blessing. Though Hannah came with me, it was still a relaxing and refreshing time for me. I got to scrapbook, read, do a little shopping (I've been there enough times, I FINALLY bought myself a Black Dog shirt), exercise, but mainly just spend time with friends. I shared a devotional on Friday night just about what God is doing in my life through his forgiveness and grace and that was a beautiful time to share together. The whole weekend could not have been better. I am so thankful that I was able to go. And as far as Dave and the boys go, Dave was amazing. He took them to a couple of stores and to the playground. He wasn't even counting down the minutes until I got home. He was so relaxed when I came home. That made the weekend that much better. I just can't wait to do it again!!!

Hannah and I on the ferry on the way to the Martha's Vineyard. It was her first time there and her first boat ride. She hasn't even been on Pappy's boat yet!

Some cuddle time for mommy and Hannah. This is my favorite place to lounge and I have a picture of the boys on it too so it was perfect.

Scrapbook time! Except for Paulette who is scowling in the middle. She was there to encourage us in our "sticker books" as she liked to call them.

I was so glad Lauren came on the trip and we got to spend time together. We always enjoy scrapbooking together.

We were all crammed in Alana's "Wonderbus" on the way back to the ferry. You can't see the passenger or Alana who was driving. Sardines! (Don't worry, Hannah was buckled.)

And yes, it got late so there was much time for silliness...this is my impression of Dora the Explorer at midnight.

Everyone was so helpful with Hannah. I a little more luggage than the average traveller so everyone pitched in. Paulette even carried the boppy around her neck (in public!). I had to bring it since it was the only way Hannah can sit up with tumbling over every couple of minutes!

Ahhh, the best for last. I was so incredibly excited to get this picture. The weather was gorgeous so we could make it happen. I have a picture just like this with each of boys on Martha's Vineyard and I so wanted to get Hannah too. She couldn't have given me a better picture. Can't wait to scrapbook this one!

A Little of This, a Little of That...

This week was school vacation so our week has been a little different than usual. I still had to work a couple of days but despite that it was nice having some more time with Caleb this week while he was off of school. He is enjoying too. He told me earlier in the week that he likes "home days". That is what his teacher calls them so they know how to distinguish from one day to the next. And we have keeping busy this week. Yesterday we had a friend visit which helped our rainy day and we came up with all the rainy ideas you can think of. The crawl tunnel, sticker books, movies, coloring and it amazing how busy the boys kept with an egg carton and markers! I tell ya, it's the simple things in life, isn't it? It's tough because you have been in all winter and you get through that but then when the kids have been outside so much, a rainy day becomes difficult! Today I had to work but the boys went to a friend's house which they were quite excited about. Tomorrow will be a busy day too. Dave has a tiling job to do and our day will entail a doctor's appt. for Hannah, cooking, a playdate for Caleb, laundry, a Dave Ramsey presentation at church and mommy getting ready for her girl's weekend on the Vineyard. YEAH! A bunch of ladies are heading to Martha's Vineyard to craft, relax and enjoy some quality time together. So I hope to get some scrapbooking in and maybe a little reading. And since Hannah is still nursing, she will be coming along but I'm ok with it. I don't have high expectations for scrapbooking, maybe a few pages and I am looking forward to the time with her. So much of my time and energy is consumed with the boys that I don't always get one on one time with her. I mean I do in meeting her needs throughout the day but not real quality time. With her coming, I may not catch up on sleep but I know it will be relaxing nonetheless. Dave will have a couple days with the boys so keep in mind this weekend. He's amazing father so I know he will be fine and the boys will love the time with their dad. It's supposed to be beautiful weather so we can all enjoy it this weekend! I'll post about my weekend when I get back. Here are just some goofy pictures from our week.

Caleb got this funny things called "Wikki Sticks" at school so I made him a pair of glasses like daddy. He thought that was hilarious!

You never know what you'll find on Hannah's heads these days with her 2 big brothers around.

Hannah's first taste of sweet potatoes. She has learned to like it more since this picture.

Caleb and his friend Luke riding around in our yard. They had so much fun together.

Auntie Tammy bought the kids penguin shirts from the St. Louis Zoo for the kids for Easter. They were so cute all matching!

Here is just a cute video of Hannah and all the moving she is doing now. I can believe she is already 6 months old! She is almost sitting on her own, rolling from time to time and LOVES kicking those feet!

Easter Fun

Though there was so much preparation for Easter at our house, I was determined to watch the movie The Passion of the Christ. I try to watch it every year on Good Friday to remind myself what Easter is really all about. Well, this year was so busy and I didn't get to watch it until Saturday night at 9:00. But I am so glad I did. It made Sunday morning that much more of a celebration of the resurrection of Christ. Though it is difficult to watch the movie and see what our Lord went through, that's the point. What he went through was by no means easy but he did for us and he would have done it for only me because I am loved that much. Watching that movie made everything about church better the next morning. Worship was amazing, the sermon was incredible and celebrating with my family was a joy because I know how loved and blessed I am and how forgiven I am because of his blood on the cross. He is risen indeed!

It was great having Easter at our house. Here are some fun pics from the day. The kids enjoyed having family over, eating candy, finding eggs, eating candy, playing with cousins, eating candy...well, you get the idea.

The boys loved checking out their baskets on Easter morning.

There he is...my candy man!

Hannah opening her first Easter basket. We gave her a couple things and Auntie Tammy sent her the cutest little outfits. Thanks Auntie Tammy!

BUSTED!!! We had to keep a close eye on Josiah all day. He was sneaking candy left and right out of any basket he found.

Thank you Grandma and Grandpa! Our baskets were nothing compared to the CARS cars Grandma and Grandpa sent the boys! They were in CARS heaven!

The most handsome little boys in the world...if I do say so myself!

Princess Hannah's first Easter.

I know he looks like he is trick-or-treating but really he is on an egg hunt...for MORE candy! He just kept looking at the camera and saying CHEESE! My little ham, I tell ya!

Caleb was pretty into the hunt this year. It was so great to have it our backyard this year. It was absolutely FREEZING (I think about 30 degrees) and windy but the kids still had fun. Ahhh, Spring in New England. You never know what you are going to get.

Hannah couldn't fine eggs but she was looking cool in her new shades from Nonna!

Love and Laughter in the Libby House

We are gearing up for the Easter festivities tomorrow but I wanted to leave you with a couple of cute videos as you eagerly await our Easter pictures. We have been coloring eggs, picking out our Easter outfits, cooking, cleaning and enjoying the holiday together with a couple of days off of work and school. I will post some pics in a few days. Happy Easter everyone!

A favorite song in our house is "I Got You Babe" by Sonny and Cher. Dave and I had it sung at our wedding when we cut the cake so the boys have learned to love it and make a personal request for it once in awhile. Josiah will just break out in song at any given moment and it's so cute. He started to sing to Hannah and Caleb joined in! Hence, why the house looks the way it does in these videos...I'm just too busy taking videos of my cutie patooties!


I had the song playing in the background but Josiah decided to sing another version..."I love you." And if you are wondering why he is walking around with his onesie open (because I would wonder), he decided that he wanted to try the potty a couple of times that morning and wouldn't let me put a diaper on! He hasn't gone in the potty yet but it's a start I guess.


Hannah has just started laughing out loud within the last week of so. It doesn't happen often and it's usually one of the boys that gets her going. Here Caleb is just in front of her make faces and noises and she loves it. Sorry that the video is a bit wobbly. It was hard to get it steady while she was swinging.


And here are the boys having a blast in the truck. I am amazed at how Caleb can get that thing moving!!! I know he will be sad when we have to take it back to Nonna's house.

Toe Sucker

Yes, that's right, "toe sucker". Little Miss Hannah is a toe sucker...when they are right in front of her face that is. When she is the sling, she is sort of folded in half and sitting in like a pouch. (Yes, now I am a kangaroo!) It doesn't look comfortable at all but she loves it, doesn't make a peep and usually follows asleep as I am walking around with her. Last week, I had her in "pouch" and she was eating her toes but her socks were getting wet so I took them off and I just had to share this picture because it cracks me up. Everybody thought her feet were her hands! Maybe she likes this because this is how she was inside me for the last few weeks!

As for the boys, well they are busy being boys. This week for family night, we talked about the Easter story which Caleb has also been learning about in school. We have the Resurrection Eggs just like he has in his classroom so all week he has been opening them and telling us the story of Easter. It has been so neat to watch him tell the story with true understanding. Josiah has been absorbing it all too. Today, he was opening the eggs and when he gets to the 12th egg, he opens it up, spreads his arms out as wide as they will go and says as loud as he can "Jesus Alive!". Certainly the most precious moment in my day today.



We are having Easter at our house this year (we are hosting our first holiday since we now have the room in our new house!) and my mom thought it would be fun to bring the truck up so the kids could use it on Sunday. Well, Dave had to pick it up today and needless to say, the boys are in truck heaven and are zooming around our yard. Caleb really gets going and he likes to stop and load up the back just like daddy (don't worry, daddy doesn't load Josiah up in the back!). Josiah still can't reach the pedal so he is happy to be a passenger.

And not that the Red Sox got to play because of the rain, but Monday was opening day so the kids were all garbed out in their Red Sox attire!

Happy Birthday Josiah

Ok, he's been 2 years old for a week now and I'm finally blogging the festivities! We had a fun week with Josiah's birthday. On his birthday, Dave and I took the kids to Chuck E. Cheese. The boys had so much fun spending their tokens (and sharing a few with mom and dad too). They were mostly into just the rides until we showed them they could win tickets! Then they were all into how many tickets they could get (I know, it has been said, Chuck E. Cheese is gambling for kids). After Chuck E. Cheese we went back home to open some gifts from us and Grandma and Grandpa. On Saturday, we celebrated Josiah's birthday with family and friends. He chose to have a CARS party and was excited to see all the McQueen decorations. I think he was in CARS heaven for a moment. It's amazing to me how much he loves that movie! So, here are the moments we captured and we will be sure to keep you posted on our wonderful upcoming year with yet another 2 year old. I'm sure there will be stories to share!

The boys wouldn't take a picture with Chuck E. Cheese without mommy so we have a nice family picture with Chuck!

Caleb and Josiah spent most of their tokens on this fire truck!

There is a story behind this McQueen. For a couple weeks before his birthday, Josiah had been asking for a BIG McQueen (he says it much cuter). We went to a friend's house and there was one just like this. He absolutely lost it when we had to leave the house. I asked my friend where she got it and she said it was bubble bath actually and then it turned into a car to play with. Off to Walmart I went to find the famous bubble bath McQueen. I found it and it was the best 4 bucks I spent so far this year! Of course, Caleb was "helping" Josiah to open his gifts.

Josiah loved it so much that he slept with the bubble bath...I mean McQueen.

Josiah wasn't really into blowing out the candles. I think he just wanted to EAT the cake!

Auntie Lauren made another fine cake...Lightening McQueen...Kachow!!

Mum helping Josiah with his cake. We just love mum. 94 years old and at everyone's birthday party to celebrate. We are so blessed!

He wears it well, doesn't he?

Josiah got a lot of CARS gifts and was so excited!

Next to all the CARS gifts, Josiah particularly liked the crackers from Auntie Wendy and Uncle Rick. We all know how much of a "cracker boy" Josiah is.