The beauty of a cardboard box.

One big cardboard box + a pair of scissors + a magic marker = entertainment for the entire weekend.  Mostly this car was used for trips to the ice cream store, or the grocery store to get cookies, and they even drove to California!

Hope everyone's weekend was as equally delightful!

Easter (and a lot of pictures)

We had a wonderful Easter celebration last week! Our weekend began with dying eggs on Saturday morning...

In the afternoon I baked my traditional Loyola Easter bread,

And put the finishing touches on the girls' dresses...

I was quite pleased to find some sweet knitting patterns for egg cozies! (patterns are here and here)

On Easter morning, we headed out for an egg hunt before Mass.

 

 

We spent the rest of the day with Mum Mum, Popeye, Uncle Ryan and Aunt Cecilia...

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter and Passover!

This past month

We've been:

.: shedding jackets, coats, mittens, scarves and heading outside at every available minute. ("Mama!" Neva shouted to me as she ran outside in a t-shirt, "it's like my arms are FREE!")

.: digging up our backyard for a vegetable garden

.: continuing the never ending search for the rare and elusive WORM.

.: listening to Mary Poppins over and over and over again.

.: picking daffodils from our backyard, at times quite literally picking every single one within view.

.: enjoying these over  and over and of course this one.

.: refusing to allow myself to be intimidated by sewing and trying to finish up Easter dresses for the girls (as of tonight, one down, one to go)

.: stretching out and breathing in and ready for SPRING

.: Out and About :.

On Wednesday the girls and I hopped on the subway and headed downtown to City Hall for the Public Hearings on the Philadelphia Police and ICE Collaborations.  You can read more about why this important  HERE.

For those of us supporting an end to Police/ICE Collaborations here in Philly, the day felt very hopeful and it was exciting to allow Neva and Frances to experience "democracy at its finest"!

Afterward we took advantage of the 70 degree weather and had lunch outside City Hall.

But by far the best part of the day for Neva and Frances was riding the subway!

.: 2 :.

She turned two yesterday....our little one, our spunky one, our Frances.  The day was simple yet very sweet, starting out with a quiet morning over breakfast just between the two of us. (Neva slept late...an unprecedented 8:30!) I presented Frances with the baby doll I somehow managed to finished in time for her birthday!  She was quite delighted.

 (*Sigh* The bruise requires an explanation.  This was a "ring-around-the-rosie" related injury.  Only our rough and tumble Frankie could get an injury of this sort playing "ring-around-the-rosie"  She is fine. In a way, it's rather fitting considering that she spent the majority of her second year with a bruise on her forehead!)

She also received and immediately put on her birthday sweater, which is getting to be a sort of tradition for our girls!

 

(Neva and Frances in their birthday crowns)

 

After a quiet morning Neva and Frances and I headed out to one of our favorite bakeries for cookies! We had a great dinner party with some very special guests...Emily and Will and Popeye and Mum Mum, who brought the greatly anticipated CHOCOLATE CAKE!!! 

 

 

 

Frances received a very special gift from Mimi and Grampi, her very own "bicycle"! She was extremely excited about it, and didn't really get off of it from the moment we presented it to her until it was time for bed.  

 

 (sorry for the blurry picture...as you can imagine, Frances doesn't really "stay still" very often and definitely not when she's on her bike!)

What a special day is was for all of us.  I kept catching myself watching Frances and feeling so much joy and gratitude for this sweet, hilarious, wild, bold, cheerful little person.  How glad we are to have her here.

 

 

.: looking back :.

February may be the shortest month but somehow for me it always feels like the longest.  And this February has felt longer than any before!  We started the month with everyone of us getting the flu; we were all down for about two weeks.  Robb and I could tell Frances was quite sick simply because she was so still!

(Neva was such a good nurse...very serious about reading to Robb while he was resting!)

But we were back on our feet in time to enjoy the constant, all the time, everywhere snow.

 After what felt like a few weeks of hibernating, we sure were glad to be out in the sun, climbing, digging, building, laughing, and breathing in the fresh.  After celebrating Robb's birthday last week we are now getting ready to celebrate Frances' s birthday next week!  I've been busy with finishing up some birthday projects for her...I like to make the girls sweaters for their birthdays and this year Frances will also be getting her very own baby doll, similar to the one I made for Neva when she turned two.  (remember this?) 

Even though there is more snow headed our way tomorrow night, somehow it's starting to feel like spring is around the corner.  As the snow melted in patches here and there last week, Neva and I were excited to see the tiniest hints of green...crocuses, snowdrops, and daffodils making their way up to us.  Neva looked up at me and declared, "oh Mama, I'm ready for spring!"