Guess who got dressed all by herself today?

more bird watching....

I was watching some Bluejays the other day.

There were 2 of them, and they were so sweet feeding eachother and sharing food.

I was really hoping to get a picture of the two of them together.

I was just about to snap the sweetest picture when a big shadow caused the birds to scatter. 

It was a juvenile Red tailed hawk... 

It swooped in to catch the Bluejays but missed, and then he perched himself in a tree in our backyard.... 

He sat there for quite a while looking around.... 

It was fluffing it's feathers up when it heard a noise.... 

It then flew and perched itself on our bird feeder.... 

It sat there for quite a while before flying away.  Sad to say we didn't have many birds the rest of the day.

That's ok though...this bird was so beautiful...look at that coloring!! 

I would have loved to be there the day God decided how each bird's feathers would look ;) 

Spring, Spring...such a Wonderful thing!!!

We have really been enjoying Spring so far.  We did tons of clean up and pruning this past fall, and we are reaping the rewards this Spring!!!  I love having a beautiful garden, full of flowers that decorate the property and my home ;) .  I also love having plants that I can actually use in my cooking.  I have been looking into planting several types of vegetables and herbs, but we do not have anything set up right now for me to plant all the things I want to plant.  So, we are sticking with the things we can grow in a pot.  Last year I was very successful in growing basil, and I use a ton of it in the kitchen ;) , so we planted more basil outside in the beautiful planters Chris bought me a couple years ago... 

Basil is also a plant that repels mosquitoes - which makes it a perfect pick for our deck ;)

I am also growing basil on my kitchen counter.  I couldn't wait to have fresh basil in my kitchen, and I saw some on sale at the grocery store, so I grabbed it.  I didn't realize until I got home, though, that the basil still had roots on it.  I put the basil in a fresh cup of water - to keep it fresh until I use it - and low and behold, it is growing!!!  Craziest thing!!!  So, I clip what I need, keep the water fresh, and we will see how long that lasts ;) - YEAH!!!

I do not use a whole lot of rosemary in my cooking, but I love, love, love the smell.  It also happens to be a mosquito repelling plant, so I planted a pot of that on my deck as well.  I love to clip it and just put it in the house to smell ;) 

Joshua planted mint last year, and it came back this year.  He is very proud that it came back so healthy...it has lots of big juicy leaves on it!!  I love having mint handy.  I use it in my tea, as garnish for different things, and also in salads.  The kids love grabbing a leaf and eating it while they are outside playing - and yes, they make sure there are no spiders or dirt on it before they put it in their mouths ;)  And, our recurring theme of mosquito repelling plants returns, as mint also repels mosquitoes.  I love multiple purpose plants ;)

Jason helped to pick out and plant the strawberries.  Strawberries are a staple food in our home in the summer, so we might as well grow some ;)

There are lots of blooms and baby strawberries on it already.... 

Of course it helps to have a Gnome keeping watch ;).... 

In keeping with our theme of mosquito repelling plants, I planted some lavender.  Lavender is another plant that I love!!!  Not only does it repel mosquitoes, it smells AMAZING, and can be used in tea, in cooking, and in sachets and soap...I am going to have some fun with this plant!!!  

Elli helped me pick out and plant the lavender.... 

Trevor is a clown...have I mentioned that before?  Trevor found a nut - we have an inkling that it may be oak since we have so many oak trees around - that was buried by a squirrel and forgotten.  The nut actually had roots and a baby tree sprouting from it, so he planted that in a pot and is determined to "mother" it until it can be transplanted....he named it Rufus...

This year we also planted lambs ear.  Yes, that is actually the name of the plant....

You can see that the leaves are fairly big, and look a little like a lambs ear.  What you cannot see is how amazingly soft these leaves are!!!  Lambs ear is actually considered a weed in Turkey and Iran, where it originated, and it will take over your garden, which makes it perfect for a potted plant.  It is supposed to be an herb and have some medicinal use, however, Brandon came up with his own ideas about what lambs ear would be good for....I will give you a clue.  What could a large, extremely soft leaf be used for when you are camping and need to go to the bathroom or blow your nose...enough said?  What else would a Civil Air Patrol Ranger think of ? 

Reagan helped pick out and plant the lambs ear...it is soft and sweet like he is.... 

Remember the mums that came back last year?  They returned for another season.... 

They won't bloom their beautiful red flowers until fall, but I still think it is amazing that they keep coming back....

Leah is also LOVING the Spring.  She is getting old and grey, but she feels like a pup running around outside, playing with the squirrels in the sunshine ;)  You can see a little of my beautifully blooming garden in this picture....

Here is another beautiful bloom...all tuckered out from gardening with mom ;) 

Spring Cleaning....and cute pictures ;)

***EDITED***
We had lunch outside today...Yeah!! 

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Last week was Spring Break for us.  I wasn't really looking forward to it because Brandon had lots of school commitments he had to attend to over the break.  Yes, one more reason I hate New Jersey...the schools even take over your vacation days and require students to attend activities for the week even though there is no school - STUPID!!  I am pretty sure we are the only people here with a FAMILY LIFE!!  Anywho...I have to say that the week ended up being very relaxing, and fun.  We had days where we hung out inside, played Wii, and ate snacks ;).  We had days where we hung out outside, pulled weeds (I know most people would say ewe, but when you are doing it with your kids it's fun ;)), planted flowers and herbs, rode bikes, played ball, went to the park, and shot air soft guns.  We pulled "all nighters" every night and slept in the living room.  Jay and Ray LLLOOOVVVE  sleeping downstairs in the living room with everyone!!! 

We also had days - THANKFULLY - that Daddy stayed home and we got to go to the library, the book store (Daddy treated everyone to a book - thanks Daddy!!), the mall, out to eat, and we even went to a gooney golf place and the boys got to drive some golf balls and play gooney golf and play video games...fun, fun, fun!!!  The last two days of Spring Break turned into work days, and although there was A LOT of work involved, accomplishing all that we did ended up being great!!  Saturday morning, Trevor knocked on doors and mowed lawns for money, Joshua helped him.  I cleaned out the garage - swept, cleaned, sprayed for bugs ~ick~!!  And...Chris began the HUGE task of refinishing the deck!!  It was a GINORMOUS undertaking...our deck was in desperate need of some TLC.  It took Chris and Trevor (when he returned from mowing lawns - he actually had a customer - and she told him to come back again ;)) all day to power wash the deck.  Sunday was spent sanding it - Brandon got in on the action on Sunday, the schools have left Sunday alone - so far ;).  That too was an all day event.  It still needs to be sealed, but Chris will do that when he returns from a week of SWAT training in Virginia.  I managed to take a couple of pictures...

I am soooo impressed with how clean it is....unbelievable!!! 

 

I ended up doing lots of gardening while the boys worked on the deck...my rose bushes and hydrangeas are going to be amazing this year!!  I will take photos as soon as everything blooms and then you can see how beautiful it all is!! 

Don't forget to check out my Scentsy Sale ;)

Don't forget about my Scentsy sale ;)

Only 2 weeks left...

Easter Pics!!!

 Easter morning...ready to hunt for Easter eggs.... 

Joshua found a "Golden" egg!!

(there are 3 that get hidden every year and they usually always have money in them ;)) 

Elli found her "Name" egg first (Each kiddo has an egg with his/her name on it and only they are allowed to find it...if you find someone else's name egg you have to put it back and not say anything;)).  Elli was excited to find the eggs, but it isn't  until the last picture that she truly understands why hunting for eggs is so much fun...no cheating....go in order ;)

Reagan had a blast.... 

Joshua found his name egg.... 

Jason found the "jabberjaws" egg that Trevor decorated.... 

Elli got the hang of it real quick.... 

Of course, she enlisted the help of her older brothers to hold her heavy basket for her.... 

My Brando.... 

Elli discovers chocolate in the eggs.... 

All dressed up...headed to church to celebrate Jesus' Resurrection!!!