simple sunday

yesterday was a jam packed day - with morning "stuff" at home, my cousin's baby shower in the afternoon and then a night at friends' for a little birthday gathering, game night and sleepover.  a great day...and today we were pooped!  so... we rested and enjoyed lots of quiet time reading, cooking, napping and a pleasant dinner of chicken soup... a wonderful simple sunday.

a & a visit

ashley and her sweet baby girl adalyn visited for the day.  ashley, one of my oldest and dearest friends - we did everything together our teen years, and now years later get to enjoy some good ol' "mommy-hood" talk.  addy is a happy little girl and of course quiet snuggly as well.  way to go ashley & joel - we are so happy for you guys!  

sweet girls...  wasn't it just yesterday that my little girl was meeting ashley?

collage, cards and calico critters

a restful and creative day at home with ella and bennett.  some morning fun with these cute calico critters that the kids got for christmas.  aren't they sweet?

while sister was at school, bennett helped make his birthday thank you cards.  he gives his mom's "train" drawings more credit than they deserve - simply drawing one in red is james, blue is thomas (though they look nothing like thomas and his friends) - thank you sweet bennett!

 as brother rested (poor guy has a icky cold), ella and i made her collage page for little lambs.  i remember last year when she was not at all interested in helping me with this project...so i worked on it for way too long by myself (while wes went off to bed). today she picked her favorite pics (and some of mine) and we made this "ella" collage.  she is quite excited to share with her teachers and friends on friday.  i can also report that today's project took only 30 minutes vs. my solo-hours last year pouring over photos, discarded "drafts" and designed masterpiece.  lesson learned:  let your kids do their own school projects!

thankful tuesdays, 1/25

tuesday reflections & thanks

• book club & snuggling with andrew & peter
• snow days home as a family
• bennett's continued success with transitioning to his big boy bed
• crying, laughing, crying, laughing, crying...praying with friends
• my new pillows - sleeping so much better
• bennett's birthday party fun with our family
• cute train cake & excited kids
• blow-dryer fix to frozen pipes
• oven mishaps and helpful sister-in-law erin
• writing friend's adoption letter - an honor
• cuddles with wheezy kids
• swimming with ella
• sledding fun with family
• 2 nights of margaritas, mexican and catching-up with girlfriends
• pots of tea - sometimes a cup at a time isn't enough
• productive and smart business planning workshop
• finishing a book and finding my reading time again
• ella and her cute skirts - thank goodness for a break from 24/7 leggings
• irony cabernet 

chugga chugga choo, bennett is 2 party

we celebrated bennett's 2nd birthday with our family this weekend.  a fun day all around for our little train conductor and of course for us too!  check-out that cake!  wes, ella and i enjoyed making and decorating it... and everyone seemed to really enjoy their train car, hill or pond treat.

we hit the slopes for a little sledding adventure - and to get some fresh air.  bennett took in the sites from his snow throne (shown here). 

a big thanks to our sweet family for spending the day with us - and apologies for the several oven mishaps, including hockey puck nuggets and a brie & cranberry almond "soup"... at least wes' chili and the cake were good!

thankful tuesdays, 1/18

i so loved compiling my 2010 list of things i was thankful for this past year - and i know it was just a sampling of how the lord is blessing our lives.  my tuesdays are usually my quiet night at home night - wes plays b-ball and i get some quiet me time.  so...thought in this new world of having my little blog, i  start a weekly thankful tuesday reflection.  so, dear father - i look forward to reflecting each tuesday on your gifts and amazing grace from the smallest thing to the most powerful.

• snow days home as a family
• birthday blizzard and sweet loves from my family
• my mom and her gift of babysitting so wes & i can have a date night
• savory dinner out and wine
• ella & bennett sharing a bedroom
• cute ikea decor
• peaceful dinner at home - soup, bread, conversation and everyone staying in their chair
• watching home videos from a year ago with ella
• sunday's sermon on imperfect families in the bible and how god's plan was above all the dysfunction
• pastor mike's gift of digging deep and wonderful storytelling
• an understanding and helpful husband when i'm feeling under the weather (even on date night)
• bennett's morning celebration - "momma i sleep in my big-boy bed."  you are growing up too quickly little boy!
• snow fort fun
• monday morning visitors - aunt claudia, cousin laura and ella's friend sinead
• creaky cranky and cranberries with bennett in the morning
• this writing time - so thankful for this new time

like jane & michael banks

we transitioned to a new phase this weekend - brother & sister are sharing a bedroom!  definitely a bit earlier than we had planned - but since the week bennett turned 2, he has become a professional crib jumper! so... a new phase.  exciting, really cute and a little sad for mom...how could it be that bennett is old enough for this?!

ella is beyond excited - "now we share a room like jane & michael banks in mary poppins!"  bennett is quite proud of his "big boy bed" - and we are proud of him - he has transitioned so well!

thank you to ikea for lots of fun decor we've purchased over the years, and for the fun "bunk-bed" alternative that works so well for this space. we are looking forward to years of brother-sister bedtime stories together, night-time snuggles and sweet whispers.

snow fort fun

 wes built the kids a fun snow fort today.  we are looking forward to enjoying it...though i think wes has had the most fun so far (look at that smile).

birthday blizzard

celebrated 31 with a doozy of a blizzard!  winter appears to like defoyd birthdays, as bennett had one too on 12/26. how wonderful it is to be snowed-in as a family - a great day!  wes & ella were busy little bakers in the kitchen making what ella called "a super special cake that i know you will love - no peeking mommy."   love that she wanted to put her signature rainbow on the masterpiece.

we enjoyed playing in the snow, climbing massive snow piles and sledding down the road.  ella thought it was "super awesome" and bennett thought it was "cold."

ended the day with a birthday kiss!  thank you wes, ella & bennett for making the day extra sweet!   

homemade playdoh

tonight we stirred up another 3 batches of homemade playdoh to give to the kids' friends for christmas.  i gotta say - these jars are just the cutest! this last set of 3 makes about 15 batches made this christmas season for friends, classmates and cousins.  each batch has gotten a little bit better...fun with colors, scents and smushiness!  we saved some for our own fun tomorrow.

a look back at 2010

since the blog was on my "to-do list" this last year - thought i'd start with looking back at 2010.  in no particular order, some of our favorite things this year.

1. time at home in 4 mansion street
2. bennett learns to walk, talk and play, play, play
3. little lambs - ella's pre-school and her teachers, mrs. mansfield, mrs. blenkhorn and mrs. mcglynn
4. friday night small group at the jackson's - our church family
5. summer vacation on the cape - 2nd time renting an old farm house in bourne
6. cheering on wes and the church softball team (2nd place this year!)
7. turning 30 and celebrating with friends
8. outings to local farms to pick strawberries, apples, pumpkins, sunflowers. blueberries, tomatoes
9. 1st annual cousin easter egg hunt at grandma & papa's
10. celebrating wes' 30th birthday with a fun weekend in boston just the 2 of us
11. throwing rocks in "charlie" - the charles river that runs behind our home
12. anya visits - what sorts of fun will she have her in bag this time
13. guacamole and drinks at ole with the girls
14. after dinner wrestling, tickles and horsey rides
15. quarterly afternoon tea with the old small group girls - dana, jody, alison, adrian, jennifer and dagmar
16. sleepovers and game night at the russels
17. step into africa outreach out our church
18. a fun day in princeton with justin, maggie and calvin at their family cabin
19. running mercer's 2nd annual global conference in washington, dc 
20. family game nights - zingo was the favorite this year
21. wes perfects his homemade kettle corn - a family favorite
22. my mom's group - a wonderful group of local friends and their little ones
23. letters to evelyn and difa our sponsored children in milawi, africa
24. uncle matt & tim visits and ella trapping them up in her room for some 1:1 play
25. spring outing to drumlin farm to visit all the baby animals
26. favorite kid snacks - rice cakes, carrots, frozen peas, strawberries, m&m and kix
27. cousin logan's sleepover (we've gotta do that again)
28. medway community farm and running the first fall festival and fundraiser
29. starting a meal swap with friends
30. 3 summer camping trips
31. busy year of work travel to london, new york, chicago, washington, miami, dallas, san francisco, philadelphia and long beach - and wes holding the fort at home
32. sending cards and kid art creations to relatives near and far
33. the princess phase with ella - sleeping beauty was her favorite. 
34. ran a 5k as a family with the double-stroller
35. favorite book of the year - help by kathryn stockett
36. favorite movie - eat, pray, love
37. hysterical white elephant and regifting parties with the girls
38. visiting katie in san francisco
39. browsing at the local fabric mill - so many ideas (must dust-off the sewing machine)
40. answered prayers
41. kid's first ice cream outing with grandpa and mary on their own
42. ella learns to ride her bike with training wheels
43. bennett's hair twirling snuggles
44. wes' promotion at work
45. visit from the weimer girls
46. california women's conference
47. tours-de-playground - how many playgrounds can we visit before lunch
48. dinner at the lobster trap on the cape
49. 2nd annual reardon family body surfing beach reunion
50. dressing as m&ms for halloween
51. game nights with our neighbors after the kids go to bed  and sad they moved away
52. easter at my mom's, thanksgiving saturday and new year's christmas at judy's
53. fun with the jansons family
54. $3.99 margarita night with the girls
55. dear friends become mommies - some for the first time and some for the 2nd, 3rd or 4th time
56. book club
57. wes - my love, rock and dear friend
58. ice cream at tangerini's
59. bennett falls in love with the world of thomas the tank engine
60. swimming at lake winthrop
61. ella learns to write 
62. humility
63. making meals for new moms
64. "big" parties in our "tiny" home
65. taking the bikes and the ferry to martha's vineyard
66. curious george; dora the explorer; thomas; peep & the big wide world; max & ruby
67. ella's first school concert
68. celebrating the niece & nephew birthdays
69. taking on the organizer role for the mom's group
70. fall hikes
71. ella's love for rainbows - god's promise
72. breakfast at galante's & reed's
73. sharing mary poppins for the first time with the kids and giggling right there with them
74. our church and its gifted pastor, active community, love for children and serving those near and far
75. day trips to cambridge to visit friends
76. the world of puzzles, tinker-toys, legos and tiniest of tiny toy pieces
77. saturday night wine & a movie at home with wes
78. swinging with the kids
79. recipes both new and old
80. connecting with old friends on facebook
81. special projects with ella while bennett is napping
82. wes' political excitement - he keeps me informed these days
83. taking the kids to circus night at camp putnam
84. picnics - at the beach, at the park, in the car and in the backyard
85. our new camera to capture even more of these busy kids
86. ella's field-day-fun 3rd birthday party at the local park with obstacle course, balloon toss, parachute and yummy picnic
87. morning snuggles & cereal with the kids
88. baking with the kids
89. parenthood - our new favorite show
90. blizzard on bennett's birthday
91. running with my neighbor, stacy
92. pillow pets and care bears
93. worship on sunday mornings
94. sledding and hot cocoa tailgates with friends
95. chats with our librarian
96. wes' burgers on the grill
97. buckets of beach treasures (though they can get a little stinky)
98. dance parties to the beatles in ella's room
99. ella's shyness and bennett's friendliness
100. quiet time (like the time now to create this list...looking forward to adding to it in the year to come

new year's resolution

my 2010 new year's resolution was to start a blog as a way to journal and remember the adventures and experiences as a mom, wife, daughter, sister, friend and believer.  well... it was on my list for the entire year and i never got around to it.  so...happy new year 2011 and happy beginning to this blog.  i look forward to sharing happenings in the defoyd home, ella & bennett's childhood treasures, parenting memories and the sweet ways the lord is enriching our lives.