This was a very good weekend . . .
Friday, Elle turned 2. I think that these have been the fastest 2 years of my life. It is just like everyone says it will be – it is flying by too fast.
Elle has been the most perfect addition to our family and everyone is CRAZY about this “little mama.” The boys are fascinated by her toddlerhoood – learning to speak, dancing to music, potty training. We all adore her.

And we don’t have to mourn all of the stages that have already passed because we get to do it one more time!

Elle calls me by saying “Hey Mama” over and over again. It reminds me of the Michael Franti song, “Say Hey”. We’ve started to sing it back to her. It’s about 2 minutes in before he starts singing “hey mama” but it is exactly how she says it to me. It makes us laugh every time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehu3wy4WkHs

The birthday girl “helped” make her cake. She was so sweet, she kept saying “Elle cake, Elle cake.” It’s an honor to get to do things that make them feel special. She was so excited to show her daddy when he got home. This reminds me of Fleet’s third birthday. We had a party at the Pirate Park at Folly Beach. As we were singing Happy Birthday, he looked up at all the people around the table who were singing to him, like he was realizing for the first time how loved he was.

My mom made this delicious strawberry cake for Fleet’s birthday last weekend. I tried to recreate it but I think her’s was better. (Recipe at the end.)

My MIL made this beautiful little dress! She’s so talented!

Mother’s Day

I wanted a family more than anything else in my life. I have to remind myself when things are tough that this life is literally my DREAM COME TRUE. I wanted a loving, loyal, hardworking husband. And I have that. Luke really made Mother’s Day special. I was pretty burnt out from cleaning the garage the day before but he spoiled me so well yesterday that I feel totally refreshed today. And my children, never in my wildest dreams did I think it would be this good (or this hard!). It is way better than I could have dreamed. I will never give up trying to be the best mom possible because they are SOOO worth it.

Even during the hard times, I know that I am the perfect person to be their mom. No one could ever love them like I do. When they are sick or have their feelings hurt by a friend or a sibling, and I have the opportunity to love on them and help them see their value, I know that I was made for this. And all you mama’s out there, you are too!

We spent the day at the beach with my parents and Luke’s mom. The weather was perfect and everyone had a great time. It was so relaxing. Even Elle, who didn’t get a nap, was pretty much perfect all day. We need lots of beach days this summer! I didn’t get any pictures of little Luke, he was just too busy all day. Most of these pictures were taken by my dad.

This guy is too big.

My beautiful mama! And look at that belly! It’s getting to the point where people look surprised when I tell them that I still have 7 weeks to go. I asked my doctor if there was any chance that my due date was wrong because I’m so big and she was like, “Nope, that’s just what happens when you have 4 babies, you get big, faster!”

Walmart Turnaround

I’ve been trying to do the majority of my grocery shopping at Walmart because it really is cheaper. For example, the cereals I like to buy are $1.25 more per box at Harris Teeter and we eat about 4 boxes a week! However, I really don’t like shopping at Walmart. It’s so huge! I get a little anxiety every time I go in there.

Today I had the most random fantastic shopping experience. I had three different women stop and talk to me about my pregnancy, ask me questions, tell me about their pregnancies, congratulate me. They were all so genuine. I’m telling ya, people love a pregnant lady! So, I bonded with Walmart today and that needed to happen because I need to keep shopping there!