EASTER, 40, 9...& THE THIEF WHO RUINED IT ALL | PART 1

Oh my goodness, girls.  I can't believe I'm saying this but once again, we had a crazy, eventful weekend.  We're typically pretty calm over here...we constantly border on flat out boring.  So 2 crazy weekends in a row is almost unheard of for us. 

Remember last weekend??  If you need a reminder, last weekend we had houseguests, baseball, birthday parties, Craig got baptized, Mason got sick...and then 3 more of us got sick.  (Me, my mom and Craig's aunt.)  It was a wild weekend.

And now this weekend.  This weekend was big for my family.  Not only because of Easter but also because my Mason was turning 9 and Craig was turning the big 4-0!  And it was all happening ON Easter!

Craig and Mason share a birthday, which is so fun. (More about that HERE.) But Craig always seems to have big things happen on his birthday.  He was drafted into the NFL on his birthday.  His son was born on his birthday.  (Not planned or induced.)  And his 40th birthday just so happened to fall on Easter the year (and weekend after) he was baptized.  Needless to say, we were ready to celebrate and had plans to go to church Easter morning and then head out to Six Flags to spend the rest of the day and enjoy a half-empty park.  It was going to be a perfect way to celebrate...or so we thought.

But let's back it on up to Saturday.  Mason had asked me to make him a red velvet cake for his birthday so I pulled everything out that afternoon and he quickly took over the cake-making duties.

He loves to crack eggs, add ingredients and use a mixer which I feel like is a good thing since I hate all that stuff.  haha  I'm hoping he'll turn into the baker and/or cook in the family.  

He did a great job on the cake and once we got it into the oven, we went outside to enjoy the absolutely gorgeous weather.

My parents got Craig this firepit for his birthday and I'd picked up a couple of cute new tables to spruce things up a little for spring so it was actually looking cute and for once, it didn't look like an old, dirty toybox exploded all over the backyard.  (Or at least it didn't in this shot.  😂  #dontpanright)

 This mosaic top table from Amazon is gorgeous and reminds me of the ocean.  And my little navy metal table is exactly what I've been looking for.  I even bought flowers the other day with high hopes that they'll last at least a few weeks before I manage to kill them. 😉  #blackthumb

I really am a work-in-progress when it comes to keeping plants alive.  I love them.  I really do.  I just have a hard time remembering to water them on a regular basis.  I feel like I've got enough going on being a mom, wife, business owner and caretaker to a 15-year-old blind pup who is on her last leg.  😢  Remembering to water the flowers is the last thing on my list but I feel like this is a good chore for the boys so I'll be adding this to their Chore Chart.

After the cake had come out of the oven and cooled, Mason added the frosting and decorated it.  Not too bad for a first-time baker!

After that, we dyed eggs using a new technique this year.  We skipped the vinegar and instead bought the tie dye eggs where you just drop an egg in a plastic bag, add a few drops of different colors and voila!

(PS:  I've had questions about my light fixture before and it was also an Amazon find for under $190!  I had been searching for a great deal on one last year after seeing something super similar on Fixer Upper.  I love it!)

And the rest of our evening was spent grilling steaks by the pool and playing with the new firepit.

At one point, I snapped a pic of Matthew while he wasn't looking and look how old he looks!!  I can't even.

And then it was Sunday morning.  Happy birthday to my boys and Happy Easter!  Before church, Craig and Mason opened their gifts.  Mason had been OBSESSING over these Under Armour shoes he wanted.  Two of his buddies have them so you remember how that goes as a kid, right?  He just had to have them too.  He was THRILLED to see them!

Once we got the birthday stuff over with, we got dressed and headed off to church.  My dress was a Jane find (because y'all know I'm a total fangirl of Jane.com).

We hurried home after church, changed clothes and headed straight out to one of our favorite places!  SIX FLAGS!!

My big 9-year-old caught a quick nap on the drive there.  He looks so much older than 9 sometimes.

We've decided to take a picture in this spot every time we come here and look how happy we all are!  If only we had a picture of all of us an hour later...

I'll be back tomorrow with the rest of our day.  Y'all. Let's just say this.  Thieves suck.  They are the worst.  And they did their best to ruin 2 birthdays and Easter for us on Sunday.  

I'll never understand criminals.  I feel bad killing a spider.  I feel bad accidentally seeing my kids' cards when we're playing Clue and they flash them without realizing it.  If I found a wallet on the ground at the mall, I'd go above and beyond to try to get it back to the owner.  So I'll never be able to understand how people can steal from others and then just go about their business without a care in the world.  How does it not eat them up inside??

The good news?  We had one of those amazing God moments.  The kind that you can try to write off as a coincidence but when you really think about it, it was total Godsend.  And those moments are worth all the drama and that it took to get there.

Anyway.  More on all of that tomorrow!  Come join me over in the FB Deals group today! I'm gathering the details for my upcoming giveaway over there right now and will be announcing it sometime this week so don't miss it!

See you tomorrow, friends!