Casey's First Communion

The banner Casey made

On Sunday Casey made her First Holy Communion.  And yet another milestone is behind us already.  While the day was filled with things like a pretty dress and a party with family, I don't think Casey will really appreciate her being able to fully take part in the mass until we go to church next weekend.  Because Sunday was full of nerves about not dropping the host and not gagging on the wine :)  I'm guessing Casey wasn't the only one a little nervous.  Actually, I'm pretty certain about this mainly because of the little boy who passed out in church next to us.  Nothing like a little pressure for Casey after that... as if taking communion correctly and not coughing up wine wasn't enough to stress about, she had to witness a limp classmate being carried out of church.  (I'm not trying to be insensitive to the little guy; he was fine and rallied for the rest of mass after some air and water). I noticed Casey held Tom's hand after that and had a white-knuckled grip on him the rest of mass.  She told us on the way home that she prayed for the little boy when that happened.  'Atta girl.

She did fine at mass and looked the beautiful 8 year old made for the part.  She picked out her own dress and headpiece and I think she felt like a very big girl getting to make such important decisions :)  We managed to agree on everything, which doesn't happen too often anymore.  The (only) dress she loved was in the budget I allowed for and I decided to splurge a little on the headpiece because I really did want her to have something as unique as she is and have it as a keepsake.  It is a sweet little headband that we selected from a neighbor's shop.  I don't think Sunday will be the only day she ever wears it, because the veil was separate.  I anticipate that Emily will one day wear the same veil and get a headpiece of her own for her own keepsake. 

The little boutique in West Chester where we found her headpiece and veil

Our gift to Casey was a bracelet with matching earrings.  A friend recommended a friend who likes to tinker in jewelry making and I worked with her to come up with a set for Casey.  She also made her a ring and Casey loved it.  (I was even told I was making her special day the best day ever a couple of times :)

The nice lady who made her jewelry

Because I splurged a bit on the headpiece, I decided to save some money and make the cake.  My friend, Emily, came over to help me stack and frost the cakes as well as give me some great tips on piping icing.  I actually made all of the little flowers on the cake out of gumdrops and then applied them after I piped on the cross and trim.  I was pretty (ok, really) pleased with how it turned out.  Like kind of proud of myself.  I thought cake decorating was out of my league, but I was thrilled to have learned so much from my friend and can only imagine a cake decorating class would be as fun as my photography class :)

 

I loved making these little gumdrop flowers and think they ended up being so cute!

 

Pretty on the outside.  Party on the inside :)  Casey wanted the zebra cake I made for her birthday (it's so easy to get this effect).

All of our family members came Sunday to help Casey celebrate her special day. 

Nana and Papa

Grandma and Grandpa

Great-Grandma Bickham

Casey's Godparents, Uncle Andy and Aunt Lorie

Little sister, who made sure to tell Casey that she looked like a princess :)

Our Family

It ended up being a beautiful, sunny day that ended like this at bedtime: 

Casey: Mom, in no possible way am I ever, ever, never going to drink wine again in my life.
Me: Yeah?
Casey: Yes. Never.  It's the most disgusting thing ever.
Me: Well, Casey I'm proud of you that you did it today and, no, you don't ever have to drink it again.
Casey: Good.
Me thinking to myself that one day probably before she's 21 she might decide otherwise, I decided to throw in:  Oh, and honey, beer tastes exactly like wine.
Casey: Well, I'm not drinking that either.
(And because my blog is considered permanent record of our memories, this conversation has been recorded and available for future use :)

My freckled face cutie.

Congratulations and God bless you my dear Casey.
 

Spring Break and Tips & Tricks

Where I went to school as a kid we did not have a spring break.  We got a few days off around Easter, but that was it.  I remember going to college and hearing of kids who, like, went to the beach for their high school spring breaks and was blown away.  Every school around here in the Cincinnati area has a week off for spring break.  Thanks to Facebook, everyone that does go away for spring break has the opportunity to rub those of us who stay behind noses in it with pictures of sun, surf and sand.  This was the spring break picture I posted this week on Facebook:

That's Emily riding on the front of the cart and Casey trying to photo-bomb the picture.... in the parking lot at Target here in West Chester.  :)  woo-hoo!

A trip to Target for paper towels wasn't our only fun (tongue in cheek here).  The girls and I stayed at my parents' for a few days after Easter to hang out and we had a lot of fun.  Braeden and Adysen came over on Monday and it was cousin fun all day long.  I love that we get to spend quality times like this there and the girls can form some lasting cousin relationships and memories - something I worry they miss out on not living close to any family.

 

 

 

 

 

I grew up in 'the country', which meant there were no close neighbors to play with and sidewalks to ride bikes on, but an abundance of area to fly kites, run and play instead.

My dad made this windmill (he's pretty ridiculously handy)

The girls were also interested in what my dad was busying himself with outside when the weather was nice out.  It didn't take long for Casey to want to help Papa out with trimming the grape vines.  She was really intrigued and listened as dad told her about not cutting the vines that were green inside and I'm glad I had my camera handy to get some shots of them.

 

 

 Casey and I started our training for the 5K we signed up for in June.  Let's just say we are off to a very slow start and leave it at that for now.  I'm still hopeful at this point that it's going to get better and her constant whining and complaining and whining will stop.  Stay tuned for updates to find out which of us kills the other first how we're progressing.  :)

We came home on Wednesday and have checked some projects off our list here.  Mostly stuff that will show up in future posts.  It's been a pretty low key spring break, but it has felt productive as well.

I know there are a few people that read this blog beyond our family, so I will take a minute here to share some really great tips and tricks I've come across lately.  They are really too good not to share.

1.  I had originally thought Tom and I were the only people that had stinky workout clothes until I did a little search online.  To my delight, I discovered we were not alone! (seriously, whew!!)  I wash our workout wear and it smells fine, but some of our things begin to smell as sooon as we start to sweat.  Yuck.  Tom was considering throwing away some of his Under Armour shirts - the special material ones that are supposed to wick moisture away.  After some research online, I decided to try soaking the odor-offending items in the bathtub with hot water and baking soda.  I let them soak for 3 hours, then threw them in the washer.  I sprinkled more baking soda on them, put Tide (our normal detergent) in the dispenser and white vinegar in the dispenser for fabric softener.  Ta-Da!  No more stinky workout clothes.

2.   I saw this just this past week on Pinterest:  After you paint your nails, spray them with Pam With Olive Oil cooking spray.  Let them set for a minute, then rinse them off.  Nail polish dry.  One minute.  Done.  I just did it tonight.  Amazing.  Try it.  Tell your friends.  Just don't tell your husbands - I know that hour when your husband is responsible for the kids while your nails are drying is some precious 'me' time.  He doesn't need to know your nails are really dry when your kids need help tying their shoes or going to the potty.  Spread the word through the underground - moms unite! :)


funny stuff!
 

3.  I saw this one on Pinterest, too:  Clean your ceiling fan blades with an old pillowcase.  When you wipe off the blade all of the dust just falls into the pillowcase.  I won't go into the much more complicated and messy ritual I have always done, just know all those hours on Pinterest have been justified by the use of an old pillowcase.