A little Easter OVERLOAD...........................

Don't get me wrong, We had a wonderful Easter weekend.......................It was GREAT! Just very busy and smack full of ALOT of candy and junk food............Which is probably why Emme tossed up all that candy and junk food starting about 12:30am early Monday morning............

Here's how it went..................starting with Good Friday----

Impromptu dinner and egg coloring, or spilling, or questions as to why are we giving them dye and yelling at them not to make a mess????

anywho...........Lots of fun and one of the best dinners Laura has made yet.........Beef tenderloin with a cheese and mushroom spread with merlot sauce.......Seriously? And it doesn't hurt that Jason is a wine distributor for Gallo..........Have Mercy!!


Oh don't worry, kids ate chicken and Mac & Cheese...............Do you think we would waste a meal like that on THEM??? ha! I kid, sort of...........

Saturday morning started early with ANOTHER egg hunt (egg hunt #2) at the neighborhood I play tennis out of..........They did a great job separating everything by ages and really had it looking nice, kids had a great time and filled their baskets quickly!!





And of course, no hunt is complete without your shades, right? It is all about the style!! Here are Hanley and Emme posing and trying to patiently wait for the start of the hunt!




And the hunt begins!!



So after every last basket was filled, we went to Emily and Justin's house for an afternoon of grilling and chillin............And I mean CHILLIN............Don't let the purple lips fool you, these kids had a blast!


That's right, this is actually in their backyard!! Hopefully by May, things will be alot warmer and think of all the money we'll save...........who needs White Water!! Thanks again, Emily and Justin, for a wonderful day!!


Now, one would think that after a busy day like this, we would go home and crash. Oh no, not us, we just recharged the batteries and headed back out to Emily & Dave's house............a little final four, a little pizza and a lot of fun............They have the most beautiful back patio area with firepit and outdoor kitchen, just beautiful! what? no pic? sorry, do that next time!



Shew........I am tired all over again, just thinking about this weekend!! Now, it's time for Easter!!


I am not sure about your house, but the Easter bunny leaves quite a mess at our house!
Good news is he leaves lots of goodies, too!!



I still do NOT have a picture of my kids for Easter..........so far, this is it! May have to do a reenactment..............

Now, for church, we were supposed to bring a flower to put on the cross out front.........And let me tell you, I came about as close to "Heart Failure from Swelling" as I ever had in my life!! I do not have the best memory, but I swear this memory will be with me forever.................




My blessings overflow like this cross overflowed with flowers...........And knowing that although my kids may not understand the meaning right now, He does. And I do.

So of course, what is Easter without another Egg hunt (egg hunt #3) !!
We went to my cousin's Kasey's house in Rockmart, Georgia............What a haul but always worth it! Food was great and company even better..............



The end...................

Oh yeh, the vomit.............that came about 12:30 and continued till about 2:30...........The hubby stayed home with her and by lunch, all was well...............Could have been a virus but I am guessing that virus was more like a little easter overload!

BORN....RAISED......and perfectly content with STAYIN'

This past weekend.........65 degree weather..................The reason I am a Southern Girl............

As my fellow blogger says.........."It don't get no better than this!!"

Life bloomed this weekend............

As I was teetering on the edge of WINTER INSANITY.......God sprinkled a little bit of spring our way.........Now, you know better than to start planting because we will surely get another freeze before Easter but it was NOT too early for Popsicles and a little vitamin D.........SUNSHINE!!


My mixed tennis team kicked some butt this season and we made it to the playoffs on Saturday.....Now, our butts were equally kicked back as we were eliminated day one but it left Sunday open for a major family day.........And Mommy and Daddy even snuck in a date night with fellow tennis friends and had a great night (Thanks Emily & David).......no pics, but dinner and drinks at 5 Seasons Brewery was fantastic and I almost felt like a cool and hip couple...almost!

We finally got to enjoy our "park" that Santa delivered in our backyard and this will surely be a source of fun all spring and summer!!



Thank heavens for our yard workers..........AND we don't even have to pay them!

Big Papa and I decided to leave the yard work for the workers, we were just going to enjoy our afternoon and our popsicles!!

Check out my little poser........I guess after 4 years of life with a camera and a very camera happy mama, she's gotten the hang of this!!

The FINISH LINE...........and the fun that was missed!

So The Hubby has officially finished graduate school at Penn State.....................And he flies home tonight...............aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!

For two years, he studied all hours of the night, planted in front of the computer!! And now he's done. No more "studying" no more "conference calls" no more excuses to miss crazy birthday parties and wild family outings.........He is DONE!

And we couldn't be prouder..............well, maybe if he had graduated from The University of Georgia, we might be a tad prouder, but we really are so proud! And we are looking forward to him getting home...................

BUT, while he was gone, check out these pics............

That's right........The top of the telephone pole was on FIRE...............so, after a call to the fire department, then a call to the power company, and 10hours without power, we have a NEW POLE! How about that.....................
Crazy things happen in these neck of the woods!!!

A little family tradition.....................

So, Thanksgiving weekend always includes lots of extra calories, In-State football rivalries, and a trip to the Big Lots parking lot for a very special Christmas Tree.........

Now, this years tree might have had some pretty big shoes to fill, but traditions ARE traditions. Last years tree was approximately 12feet tall (although they swore it was 10feet) and an unbelievable girth (not unlike my belly after thanksgiving dinner), this years tree needed to be a bit smaller!! We went from 24foot ceilings to approximately 8!! And a living room that was a tiny bit smaller................ok, pretty much like a closet!! However, us Williamsons are making the most out of it and a Tree was a MUST!!

So we loaded the kids and headed to HOME DEPOT..........What????.............I thought I said Big Lots?? Well, I did but that visit was later............First, we needed to get us some Icicle lights. Decided we needed some new traditions to add to our old ones...........New house, New lights!

Many pennies (and actually 3 trips) later we had all the necessary items for displaying quite a fancy light display! We had to keep up with the Porters (our new neighbors)..............

So then it was tree time. And although it was way past lunch and nap time, and against the urging of the hubby, we headed to Big Lots for our traditional photo op..........And photo op we got!!





Now, due to these tough economic times, we actually ended up taking the kids home, putting them to sleep and I snuck back to Home Depot to save $15 dollars on a tree .............. Yes, I know, but $15 dollars is actually 3 trips to Starbucks.........And I do love me some Starbucks :)

So we got a lovely tree, kept with our traditions and spent a great day welcoming in my favorite Season of the year...................
Although the picture does NOT do it justice, here is a sneak at the hubby's amazing work!!

Puts a smile on my face every time I come home and I love to listen to my little monkeys tell me how OUR lights are the BEST!!

And speaking of monkeys.............My little ones did an excellent job helping me put up our tree.....



Sometimes it just wears me out counting all my many blessings.................

Family...................

Boy, does this have many definitions...................................
I am learning too many definitions...................I kind of like the old fashion kind with a mom and a dad and two kids and extensions from there like grandparents and aunts and uncles and don't forget the cousins.............or the friends...................

When the cats away.......................

The mice will play !!!!

What a great weekend...................The hubby had a busy week working late, haircuts & furniture pick ups, as well as leaving town early Thursday morning. So, of course, me and the monkeys had a blast! Starting with dinner at little azio's on Wednesday evening. It is so fun watching Big Papa, Ems & Madison play together......Ems plays mama and the other two see how much trouble they can get into!! If there is a bug, they'll look at it, If there is a fountain, they'll be wet, If there's a hill, they'll climb it and If you aren't fast, they will surely touch something they shouldn't!

So Thursday, we had an impromptu gathering of monkey friends.......

Madison, Caroline & baby William ate pizza and played with us right up until bathtime!!!


Between the backyard & the play room, the kids had a blast pushing strollers, playing kitchen and giggling non stop! We even managed to get them to eat a few veggies! Then it was bathtime for four and bed for us all.............Well, except for Ems, but that is another post!!

So, as Friday rolled in, more fun was to come...........Went to Zucca's for dinner with some of my favorite people........The Smith Family & The Welch Family.....................Some of the best people I am blessed to know! Dinner was great, although some plants lost their lives and a few "gun control" topics came up, we had a great dinner..... Even ran into other fellow "Oxford" friends and the kids played around the fountain.

So, with full bellies, all the monkey's went home, took baths, and bedtime arrived. Well, except for Ems, but, again, that is another post!!

Saturday mornings are our "MUSIC CLASS" days! Which we love. And by "WE" I kind of mean the kids, cause face it, after several years of doing this, it isn't always easy to get up and down, dance all around, keep moving........ok, sorry, that was totally a wiggles song!! But the kids really love running around, dancing, singing, and playing with all the instruments!!

Once everyone had sung till their hearts content, we ran home to hang out with Miss Kelly and Audrey. The mommy's were going SHOPPING...........Well, we were helping one of our new mommy to be's get some baby registering! And I do love me some baby registering!! We knocked out the furniture in 2 stores flat, and hit Babies R Us............And by hit, I mean Lori took the gun, took charge, and left us running behind her trying to see what she's shooting! Oh, and did I mention that Jessica was the "Mom To Be?" It was hilarious and had us laughing the whole time............

Oh, and the day didn't end there...................After a few minutes of solitude while our kiddos slept, a new game plan was made.........Which, of course, included FOOTBALL since it was Saturday, you know!! And where else can Moms with crazy kids actually watch football? Why The Palazzo's home, of course!!

And in a group consensus, We decided if ever we had inclement weather, we wanted to get stuck at The Palazzos! With a basement full of playrooms and media rooms and a fridge stocked with beer and food, where better to watch the DAWGS play some ball.............

It warms my heart to see my monkey's play so hard and laugh so much!! They may squabble here and there but how blessed are we to have such great friends. I love watching how they grow together and how each and everyone of their little personalities are growing bigger and bigger. What one does, they all do. Even if the little one's can't quite do what the big ones are doing, it's such a joy watching them.

And for my own monkey's? Ems is such a girly girl..........With tea parties and babies and always a crown, She's pretty shy but so very loving.....Her little brother may push around the dolls, but if you don't watch out, he's likely to give you the old body slam! He's far from shy and is such a comedian but he's my snuggler.........And the great thing about friends? Is I can count on them to pick up where I might be lacking........like baseball, or throwing, or choir practice on wednesdays!

Now, by the time bedtime drew near, we were all pretty beat but still managed bath and books before hitting the sheets............Well, except for Ems, Did I happen to mention I'll be doing a post on this???

So, Sunday should have included church, for sure..............but pj's and an Ice Cream social at the end of the day, seemed a little more our speed...............




And of course, A bath was a must with all the vanilla and sprinkles that got consumed!! For me too, since I couldn't help but kissing their cute little dirty faces and holding all those sticky little hands. I live for the weekends, since work is a must during the week. We laughed and played in the tub, read our favorite books (Big papa's is The Very Hungry Caterpillar book by Eric Carle
and Ems loves anything princess) and off to bed we went...............OK, OK, You get it, I'm having some sleep issues with my little princess................Hoping the SuperNanny cameras are hiding somewhere and Jo Frost will appear soon, right?


Anyway, sleep finally came for all of us and we got ready to start a new week...................And to quickly clean the house before the hubby came home late Monday night :)