today was one of "those" days

today was one of those days.

the ones that are so incredibly exhausting that you nearly fall asleep in the driveway when you get home.

the ones that leave you with bags of stuff to unload, sticky tupperware, muddy clothes to wash and a car full of even more crumbs (as if it was possible to have more)

the kids collapse and meltdown when you get home, dinner isn't made because you've been gone all day and the house is a wreck because you left in a tizzy in the early morning.

today was one of those days.

the ones that are so wonderful and full of adventure...

you really don't care about all of the mess and the exhaustion and the dinner and the tizzy.

because it was one of those days filled with dear friends and kids gallivanting and babies smiling and pure joy.

today was one of those days.

and now the outtakes :) 

sweet little eggs

we spend the day outside today. from morning until night, we sat with the neighbors and loved up some gorgeous sunshine. the kids literally ran for 10 hours. it was splendid.
amidst the running, we threw in some egg dying.
a certain someone is quite obsessed with water...

and water with food coloring in cute little cups?

oh boy.

little lady was determined to dump, kick, spill and pour the little cute pre-filled water siphons.

as the morning went on, the water lover went on a rampage...

look out all in her water spilling path.

"motivated" is her middle name.

this cutie pie loved his egg. LOVED his egg. he carried it as if there was actually a baby chick inside.

i love how much the boys have embraced "babies" and taking care of things that are fragile.

they going to be some really awesome daddies someday.

and when the eggs were all gone, we scoured the house for things that were white.

undies were by far the favorite find...

and then we entered the meltdown.

the concept of water she couldn't spill was too much for her extreem liquid love.

sometimes the meltdown has no end, no matter what kind of fun destractions are presented.

there is one known cure..."naptime" :)

 in happier news...these little egg decorators went to bed happy and exhausted. a day filled with friends from start to finish is the best way to spend a splendid spring day.

 happy easter :)

little miss chapstick {& her obsession}

 ever since we brought emery home, she has maintained a solid love affair with a particular item.
chapstick.
pink, sparkle, chapstick to be exact.

she has also added a slightly severe shoe obsession to her list of love affair items.

she changes shoes several times a day because she loves each pair so much.

these little puff-ball ditties are my personal favorite...

as well as these little sunglass spectacles of perfection....

but no obsession is quite as charming or long standing as that of her brothers.

she studies them more than any other...

their every move is memorized

big brothers are awesome. 

plain and simple. 

and thus, i give you...

a lot of pictures :)

we can't quite get enough of this little lady and these big brothers.
these three amaze me with their love for each other...even when they have not-so-loving sibling moments...they bounce back, forgive and show compassion in ways i didn't know they knew.
it's a beautiful thing, this thing call family.
hard, chaotic, busy, exhausting, challenging...
but beautiful.
and totally worth every hard, chaotic, busy, exhausting, challenging day.