It's like Little House on the Prairie up in here.

We're living like the pioneer-folk here at casa Ludwig lately.

For instance:

Making our own savory snacks from things we have around the house


(I was feeling sentimental after Paul and I discussed these little beauties that Mom used to make when we were little. Every bit as good as I remembered - and easy! Too bad I had to eat the whole plate myself because Chris doesn't like peanut butter.)



Working the land to grow our own food






(Ok, ok, by "working the land" what I really mean is "using the steamy bathroom as a greenhouse and planting herbs in decorative pots which will have to stay in the kitchen until the fear of frost has passed.)



Making our own food for the youngun', which he is OH SO appreciative of.




(It's nectarine and contrary to how it appears, he really did enjoy it)



Wearing appropriate outdoorsmen garb.


(What, Ma Ingalls didn't wear flowery rain boots from Old Navy?)



Entertaining ourselves with everyday objects found around the house and hand-whittled toys.





(Ok, epic fail on that one!)

You Are My Sunshine, My Only Sunshine....

You make me happy...when skies are gray...



Lots of gray skies around here this weekend. We had to try really hard to find ways to entertain ourselves. Easier for some of us than others....



"Bailey, you chew on that and I'll chew on this"

Max also entertained himself (and us) with a little bit of pole dancing. He likes to practice his highly technical routines while in a harness for safety reasons.









Late Saturday we did finally manage to leave the house and make it over to Mimi and PopPop's for PopPop's birthday celebration.


"What are you looking at? Yes, I am wearing a jacket over my pajamas, so what?"

And I look good!


Max and PopPop were pretty smitten with each other.


Meanwhile, I was pretty smitten with my galoshes. I bought these things MONTHS ago, after complaining during our many snowstorms this year that I had no good boots to wear. I promptly put these boots in my closet and forgot about them every time it rained, only to remember them as soon as the sun came back out. FINALLY I remembered to wear them on a rainy day. And just to make sure I got proper use out of them, I tromped through a huge puddle and Mom and Dad's. They worked! Yay! I can't wait to wear them again. I was hoping Chris got them in the picture, but this is as close as he got. Maybe next time...and there WILL be a next time. I love galoshes!



And, although I look like warmed-over death in this picture, I have to post it because Bailey looks so hilarious.


"Don't forget about me, Mom - I'm your first child and I LOVE you."



And one more, since Chris said we look like a sitcom family in this one:


Of course Max made his usual rounds:








So, was it a good party? If you ask a college kid to rate a party, he'll probably only give it a 5 star rating if someone vomitted and/or took off their pants. Based on those criteria, PopPop's birthday party was a smash, thanks to Dennis, who did both. (Oh, and apparently he also got a tattoo...bonus points for that)



One final thing: Julie made Max this darling Easter basket. I LOVE it...thanks again!

S'More Please!

I can't get enough of the weather...too bad tomorrow it's taking a nosedive. Max and I have been trying to take advantage during the days it's been nice out.

St. Patrick's Day was a nice day. It was Max's first St. Patrick's Day...and Mimi and PopPop's 38th Anniversary. They've been married longer than I've been alive! That's crazy! Wait a minute....

Max started the day in this oh-so-perfect-for-St.-Patty's-Day outfit.


He and Bailey did a bit of celebrating. Bailey forgot to wear her St. Patty's Day collar, but she did sit on her green chair.




Later in the day, however, it was much too warm for the green-bean outfit. Time for shorts and playing outside!









Max wrapped up the day by watching the Greenville St. Patrick's Day Parade...on TV. (Yes, this is the perfect example of "How Not To Raise Your Kid." I promise I don't really park him in front of the TV. I just wanted to get a picture of him enjoying the bagpipes!) Notice the temperature on the TV...delicious.



The following day, Friday, we had s'more of the same...great weather, and Chris came home from his quick trip to Germany. Yay!



So, Saturday Chris and Max got to spend the day together while Julie and I took a photography class downtown. I was hoping to be a professional-level photog after the day-long class. I'm not. Nothing has changed. I learned nothing. AND...let's leave it at that.

And to add insult-to-injury, just as the class was letting out, a HAIL of a storm came up and after running through the rain to the car, Julie and I literally had to drive through hail to get home. It was crazy. We were scared that the windshield was going to shatter; and the yards that we passed on the way home looked like they were covered in snow. It was crazy, did I mention that? It looked like someone had emptied their ice-filled coolers around our gutters.



But we couldn't let a little crazy weather keep us from our fun-filled plans for the evening. So after loading enough baby gear in Chris's rental to last us for a week, we headed off to Greer to have dinner with Paul and Olympia. And, most importantly, to test out the new fire pit with some S'mores!!!

Before dinner, we enjoyed the nice weather (no hail here!) on the deck.


Max also regaled us with some interesting tales and his highly developed humor.



Then some of us enjoyed a yummy dinner of Barbecue Chicken with Lentils and Garlic Bread prepared by Olympia, while others of us enjoyed a milk and oatmeal puree...




And FINALLY we got down to business at the firepit. This is where I will demonstrate my newly acquired photography skills. Look at how I've captured this fire. Amazing, right?




Actually, I did learn this impressive technique in class. (Don't worry, the fire didn't actually explode volcano-style and nobody was injured). Seriously, this is the only thing the photography teacher "taught" us how to do...something about a very slow shutter speed. I can see SO MANY uses for this....



But back to the S'Mores...I LOVE S'Mores. I think this was actually the first time I ever actually had them...and I WILL be having them again. Also, I covet Paul and Olympia's fire pit and I want one in my yard. I'm not sure that's ever going to happen, so I foresee some trips to Greer in my future. Paul and Olympia being at home (or even inviting me) is really optional since I don't need a key to get to the fire pit :) Hopefully they won't train their ferocious housecat Leonard to keep me away.

I mean, look at how much fun Paul and Lympi were having:



Actually, Lympi MAY have been steaming about the fact that Chris was continously bombing her baby Magnolia tree with magma-hot marshmallows. (She really wasn't...I think she was actually on high alert for the wild fox in this picture).

A fun time was had by all, including Max, who was a trooper as he hung out by the fire with us, sleeping in his carseat.

The next day saw the return of the Omi and OpiLu from their cruise and a few more days of bonding before they headed back to Germany. They even managed to fit in a Skype session with Uncle Oli.



So, now we're all caught up...and dreading the upcoming rainy days. Not sure how we'll entertain ourselves. Maybe we'll do some further training with straw drinking...

As if I need a reason to clip coupons....

But if I did, the reaction I get from Max would be a pretty darn good reason.



I have lots of good pictures that I wish I had the energy to post right now, but maybe tomorrow!

Spring has Sprung?

While I was eating my dinner, 3 big fat Robins (of the red-breasted variety) flew onto my back deck. The arrival of Robins is always the sign I use as a sure predictor that spring is right around the corner. Other signs that point to spring: my Cherry tree is popping out some baby blooms, my peace lilly is sprouting up, my tulips are about to bloom, and I'm getting the itch to go to the beach. I literally CANNOT wait to spend countless hours outside. I better start prepping Translucent Baby #2 by spending a few minutes per day outside. Today we discussed how much fun it's going to be when we go swimming this summer, and Max was really excited about the idea...bathtime is quickly becoming one of his favorite activities. He even tries to "swim" in our fountain on the deck.


Also on the topic of fresh new starts: Nana got a haircut today! Mom took her by Great Clips for a little snip. I like it. It reminds me of how Nana always wore her hair when we were growing up. I really think she feels "lighter" too - she was quite the fiesty little lady today.




Tomorrow is going to be gorgeous...I'm not sure what Max and I are going to do, but you can rest assured that it will be something outside. I really think Max is going to love spring.