April shower are just about over and that means I’m excited to get my May flowers into the garden in the next couple weeks!

Wayfair sent me two unfinished wood Adirondack Chairs to customize so I could put my own spin on them and add them to our backyard patio. I’m still in the process of cleaning the space up and getting our garden ready for spring and summer. Nature does not want to cooperate. I don’t want to plant anything until I’m sure it won’t freeze. I can’t do yard clean up if all the leaves are wet because it’s been raining for days. I can’t paint chairs on the patio if it’s pouring. And also (this has nothing to do with nature) it’s hard to make my garden dreams come true if my handyman (aka husband) is always gone on work trips.

But between rainstorms and travel, E got the chairs together and out to the garage and I got them painted and accessorized.

The chairs are solid wood and really sturdy. They came in long thin boxes and it took E a little while to put them together, but they are definitely not coming apart again. (They almost ended up living in the basement though, because they baaaaaarely fit up the stairs.) They’re very generously sized, with wide armrests perfect for resting drinks.

The idea of painting in between every one of the slats with a brush was exhausting, so I went with the easier option. I bought 3 cans of the yellow and used 2.5 of them to cover both chairs. I used painter’s tape and some old paper to define the stripes I wanted to paint. To be totally honest I just did my best guesstimate and it turned out FINE – the screws on the back of the chair made it easy to line up the tape and I was trying to finish during naptime so finding a tape measure wasn’t going to happen.

How fun are those colors? Our outdoor seating is dark brown with beige cushions so that bright pop is going to be so cute out in the yard. Our old wooden table fell apart over the winter so we’re in the market for new patio furniture table too, but these will be perfect for sitting and relaxing with snacks and a glass of wine or a beer now that it’s finally warming up.

And today it is FINALLY nice out, so I moved the chairs to the yard where I can keep an eye on Linc’s dirt digging work while I enjoy the sunshine. I picked up a couple of throw pillows to make them even cuter. I got super lucky and found these at Big Lots – aren’t they perfect?

Linc definitely approves of the new chairs.

And now that the sun is shining I can mow that crazy grass. I’m so happy it’s finally time to sit back and relax in the yard!

Someone shared this article about Grand Designs on Facebook last week and I’ve been binging the episodes available right now. I really need everyone to go watch it so we can talk about how bananas some of these houses are. I can’t even decide which one I love the most, but the very best part of the show is that it follows through ALL THE WAY to the end. The home flipper shows on HGTV drive me crazy when they say “if we sell it, we’ll make $100,000! So far, no offers.” WELL THAT’S NOT REALLY YOUR PROFIT YET, IS IT? The British have weird houses made out of mud, by at least they FOLLOW THROUGH.

That had nothing to do with this post, except it’s what I’ve been watching while I catch up. And now I’m caught up!

Sunday:

Easter bunny haul

He bought this with his birthday gift card and is SO pleased

Just chilling out, feeding myself a bottle as if that’s something I’ve EVER DONE BEFORE

Monday:

Super happy to be shopping with me!

SUPER over shopping with me

Oh you know, just letting the 2 year old run away (E is watching him from behind that tree)

Tuesday:

Gorgeous weather for a beach wedding!

My new glasses are…big

Did nothing else but edit wedding photos because I was so excited

Wednesday:

Staying hyrdrated

Toddler yoga

Lots of naps

Thursday:

Octonaut playdate was VERY much enjoyed by toddlers

This is called Nine Man Morris, they learned at Old Sturbridge Village and E made them a board

Starbucks date

Friday:

Puddle playdate

The futuuuuuuuuuuuure!

The opposite of the future

Saturday:

SQUIREL!

How to escape your children

The opposite of escaping your children

It turns out Grand Design does sometimes give up on people – the mud house never got finished. So I guess I don’t have to feel guilty about being terrible at following through with some things. I think tonight I’ll finish a whole pint of ice cream and celebrate my success. Hashtag goals.

Currently: It’s raining, Linc is sleeping on the couch, Finn is napping, Caroline and Evan are finishing homework, and I’m knocking out busywork while watching this crazy-ass photography show on Netflix called Tales of Light. It’s part nature documentary, part adventure story, party Canon commercial, but the cinematography is gorgeous and it’s great background noise.

Sunday:

Linc was acting like he was going to eat this goat

But then it followed us all over the property, so he didn’t scare it too much

My face on the last day I am 34

Monday:

This is the “before” picture of my vegetable garden

SO EXCITED that Bumpa offered to wear him for a walk

Star Wars obsessed

Tuesday:

Chance of me every being able to do that: less than zero

Blogger baby slept through half the show

But was totally into the candy store

Wednesday:

I pulled the covers off my patio furniture cushions. It didn’t do much good.

Cheese face

That’s not where I left my baby

Thursday:

Doing a little chilly morning photo modeling

YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT THAT SAYS (it’s to go over the baby carrier)

Egg decorating is serious business

Friday:

Doing important grinding work at OSV

Tiny woodpile helper

“Good news! You get to play Jesus in the pageant! Bad news…it’s for Good Friday.”

Saturday:

SO EXCITED TO SEE THE BUNNY

This is adorable

How many times is too many times to watch Moana? (The answer is it’s never too many)

Now I’m only a week behind on iPhone posts! And if it ever stops raining I’ll have actual content to share too – it’s just hard to get my vegetables in the ground when we’re expecting 48 hours of downpours. I also have a baby who refuses to stay put and keeps trying to pull up on things but then getting stuck and crying. That means I have about 3.2 minutes to get stuff done at a time. Turns out I’m not super productive in that timeframe.

During spring break we took the kids to Old Sturbridge Village, which is one of our favorite places. We only made it 45 minutes before Evan started complaining his feet hurt, and after 3 hours all the kids were D O N E with the walking and looking at stuff and waiting a whole 10 minutes for a carriage ride. It does not fill me with confidence that our trip to Disney World will go well.

(Have I told you we’re going to Disney World??? We’re going to Disney World! I am SO EXCITED.)

The kids don’t know we’re going yet. I’m not planning to tell them anytime soon. But I do need them to get used to walking, so I’m instituting the Disney Training Plan. Basically, that just means we’re spending a lot more time hiking and a lot less time watching Netflix between now and June.

But I’m not trying to make their lives miserable, I’m just trying to whip them into shape, so I’ve planned our hikes in places they will have fun. I need them to enjoy the walking now so they will REALLY enjoy the walking when it’s between rides and parades and restaurants in Florida. Our first training day involved a 3.5 mile hike around Bluff Point. I wore Finn, Evan and Caroline walked the whole way, and Linc did about half walking, half in the Tula on E’s back. We all survived!

He really wasn’t as annoyed as he looks in that last photo.

Everyone went to bed very early with no argument tonight. I think *I* am going to need the longest to recover, I haven’t hiked with a baby on my back since last spring and it’s a lot of work when you have a super chunk for an 8-month-old. Our next walk will be a nice short one around the neighborhood, then a longer hike again. I’ll let you know how the Disney Training Program worked out once I force them to walk 10 miles a day for four days. I figure if we all survive, that’s a success.

I can’t believe I am still doing this, even after falling behind, even on weeks that are super boring, even though when I started I had ONE KID and was pregnant with Caroline. The blogger friend who inspired it hasn’t blogged in years. And yet I refuse to give it up – it’s like the longest baby book in the world.

Sunday:

Feeding baby goats is fun even if you’re a cool 8-year-old

Baby snuggles, front and back

We are SO GLAD it’s spring

Monday:

This is a good look

Selling some of my favorite baby wraps

Unicorn helmet is life

Tuesday:

This is why I usually wear him

So far, the Caffeine eye cream and the Niacinamide are fantastic

I’m being attacked by balloons

Wednesday:

Eight today!

Sup, frog?

Linc has to ALWAYS be touching someone

Thursday:

Rainy day walking

Super excited to be at the doctor, I guess

I don’t know what’s happening here

Friday:

Skillz

Everyone loves Bumpa

Oreo cake was requested, Oreo cake was purchased

Saturday:

Still 8, and I still can’t believe he’s so old

They made hand puppets out of the silverware sleeves

Bubble bath + tub jets = LOTS OF SUDS

We turned off the heat in the house, which means I’m putting away the winter coats but also wearing a sweater all day because it’s actually still pretty cold. But the trees and flowers and blooming and that means winter is OVER. I had forgotten how dirty children get when they’re out in the garden. I should buy stock in a bubble bath company.