Easter-Finally!!

I am so behind on our blog, but I didn't want to miss anything so I'm going back to Easter before I post my new pictures. I just got a new camera so I am now inspired to take lots of pictures and share them on here!


We had a very special Easter that began with a visit from the Easter bunny, a yummy breakfast, a wonderful and inspiring Easter service at our church, lunch with my family at Gigi and Pop's house and afternoon of fun at the Farm with the DeRieuxs. It was a full day, but we had so much fun and Anna Leigh didn't want to stop!

Easter Basket goodies!

Coloring a picture on her new MagnaDoodle (I loved mine when I was little!)

Giving Elmo a bite of her white chocolate bunny

A bite for Anna Leigh too!

My Mom smocked Anna Leigh's Easter dress and it is absolutely beautiful!! It looks perfect on her! I got to pick out the design, colors and fabric and it was so much fun! I hope there will be more smocked dresses by Gigi in Anna Leigh's future :) She is also able to wear my old desses that Mom smocked for me and I love seeing them on her!

A close up of the smocking. It's a little bit hard to see in this picture, but it's ecru with pink flowers and green vines between the flowers.

Family picture after church

 This is a common scene around our house...she carries as many purses (or watering cans or Easter baskets) as possible and walks all around the house.

Checking out what the Easter Bunny brought to Gigi and Pop's house with Pop!

Egg Hunt and Prom Pictures

Last Saturday our church had their annual Easter Egg Hunt. We went last year, but Anna Leigh was tiny and didn't get do much. This year she got to hunt eggs and had a great time! She also got to see several of her friends and cousins. Gigi, Pop, Uncle Stephen and Uncle Wooly came too!

 Daddy teaching her how to "hunt eggs"

 She caught on pretty fast!

Mommy tried to get a picture but she wanted down so she could keep finding eggs

That night was Jonathan's senior prom, so Anna Leigh and I went with my Mom to take pictures before they went to dinner. Jonathan looked very handsome and Jordan looked beautiful! I only have a few pictures but Jordan was sweet to share some of the great ones her Mom took. I now have an updated picture for our fridge :)

Smelling the roses with Gigi



One year Pictures

We had Anna Leigh's one year pictures taken a few weeks ago and they turned out so cute!! Jennifer Neely took them and she did a fabulous job! Anna Leigh was the perfect little subject...she had a great time being in front of the camera. I wish she would do so good for me when I try to take her picture! Here are a few of my favorites...enjoy!

A Very Merry Christmas!!

I am so behind on blog posts! A few months behind! Hopefully I'll get caught up soon so I'm going to start with our Christmas! It was wonderful and we had such a special time celebrating it with our ONE year old and our family and friends. Anna Leigh turned one a few days before Christmas (that will be it's on special post) so she was at such a fun age for Christmas. She was everywhere!

We decorated the Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. Anna Leigh and I baked cookies for our little party!

Sugar cookies with red sprinkles..yum!!

Every year Anna Leigh gets a special ornament from her Mommy and Daddy. This year it was an angel. Here Daddy is helping her to hang her ornament.

A DeRieux family tradition...turing out all the lights and laying under the Christmas tree to watch it sparkle!

Daddy and Brinkley joined in and Mommy did too after she took this picture.

Riding the carousel with Daddy. We met Gigi and Pop for dinner and then we went for a ride on a reindeer!

Santa visits Anna Leigh's school and she loved him! The picture they took was so cute..much better than this one by Mommy since I was farther away.

Dancing with Daddy at The Club

Family picture

Ryan's family after our annual Christmas dinner at The Club

Playing with GanGan

This is what happened when we took her to go see Santa...she wanted Daddy

My family (including Granddaddy Hallmark and Aunt Wendy and Uncle Bruce) come over to our house Christmas Eve for lunch. Uncle Wooly and JoJo gave Anna Leigh the most special gift! They read The Night Before Christmas and recorded it for her! It was perfect and Anna Leigh loved it. She will listen to them read the story to her every year!

It is our tradition to have a wonderful dinner and open presents at Ryan's parents on Christms Eve. Playing with Beau in the laundry basket on Christmas Eve at Mimi and GanGan's

Christmas Eve...ready for Santa!

Still to come...another blog post from Christmas Day!

The Fair

Ryan and I took Anna Leigh to the Alabama State Fair and she loved it! There was so much going on, so many sounds and activity so of course she was very entertained. We had fair food for dinner, rode the carousel, watched a pig race and walked around and took it all in. It is an outing we want to start as a tradition for our family.

Ridding the carousel...it went a lot faster than Mommy was expecting!

A Summer full of birthdays

This Summer has been full of birthdays and we have loved it!! Thanks to Daddy, Anna Leigh has been introduced to SMALL amounts of cake and ice cream and she's a huge fan. Jonathan turned 18!! We had family dinner at La Fiesta and he even let them sing to him. Anna Leigh kept looking at him while he was wearing the hat. She couldn't figure it out!

Leah's fourth birthday was next. The girls had lunch at Olexa's (Leah's choice).

That night we celebrated with dinner at Leah's house. Anna Leigh looked adorable in her party hat!

That Sunday was Leah's birthday party at Serendipity Sweets in Vestavia. It's an ice cream shop and a perfect place for a birthday party! Anna Leigh has a special seat next to the birthday girl at the table of girls!

Daddy let her taste some of his snowcone which of course she loved.

Leah had a Kitty themed party

Mimi with her babies

After Leah's party, we went to my parents house to celebrate my birthday!

 

My Mom made me a yummy cake and on top of was the August angel my Granny always put on the top of my Mom's birthday cake every year.

Helping Mommy blow out the candles

Playing with Pop

Mimi's birthday is a few days after mine, so we had dinner at Ross Bridge to celebate our birthdays. They gave us a private room (when they saw us coming with 2 babies and a four year old they decided we needed our own spot!) and it was perfect because Beau and Anna Leigh could play on the floor together.

Next was Gigi's birthday! We celebrated at our house with dinner and cake at Grandmother's with the Wolbach family.

Anna Leigh helped me make the cake and helped Gigi blow our her candles!