Callaway Gardens day 1

I have so many memories of going to Callaway Gardens with my family as a little girl. I can remember going with my Grandparents and seeing the different butterflies flock to my Grandpa and he used to joke "all bugs love me because I'm so sweet". I can remember being amazed at all the flowers and plants and how HUGE the conservatory seemed to me. I also remember another time taking pictures with my sister outside and we both posed like we were statues. When Charlotte got the Fancy Nancy book "Bonjour Butterfly" her obsession with butterfly gardens began. Once she said she wanted to see one to my Mom the idea was hatched for us to go see the butterflies over Spring Break. It is a very fine line with Charlotte of when to tell her about something. I have to give her enough time to digest it so she is not scared when we get there, but if I tell her too early then we hear over and over again about how much she wants to go. Every single morning for probably the past month Charlotte's two questions have been "Are we going to the butterfly garden today?!" followed by "when do I go back to swim class?!". The day of travel was finally here and Charlotte was so excited she was skipping around the house. Bryce's parents watched our dogs for us and Charlotte only gave them a moment's thought before she said "Ok, let's GO!".

The first thing Charlotte did when we checked into our cottage was entertain herself while we unloaded the car:






How is it that even two year olds know that there are different rules when you are on vacation? She is NEVER allowed to jump on the bed at home!

After a quick lunch we headed to the butterfly conservatory:




Checking out the butterflies. Notice the stance, she's not too sure about this place.


Me and my Momma


Charlotte flapping her wings like a butterfly

After nap and dinner, we decided to go on a butterfly expedition to find some of our own. Callaway has acres of azaleas and different flowers planted with trails you can walk:



My Mom and Dad brought a net and "house" for Charlotte's butterflies



I think we found something! Oh, it's just a leaf.


Look at her legs crossed like she's a little model.


I think this is one of my favorite pictures.






Notice who's holding the net now!






Charlotte's favorite mode of transportation!

Do you want to come to my tea party?

Bryce's Momma got Charlotte a tea party set that changes colors when you pour cold water in. Charlotte went around asking everyone in the house, "Do you want to come to my tea party?"


Perfecting her "pour"


Giving it a taste


"mmm, it's good!"


A perfect little lady, she poured some for everyone AND served



Everyone tasted her tea, even Uncle Charlie (shhhh....don't tell anyone!). There is no fooling this girl though, you have to really drink it or she gets offended!

Last Swim Class

Charlotte really enjoyed swim class this year. Every day when we woke up she would ask how many more days until swim class again. She was a little pouty during this class because she knew is was the last one, but she still had fun. I am so proud of how much she has accomplished. She is fully comfortable with going under water now, she knows the safe way to get in and out of the pool, she can swim by herself with a noodle around her middle, and she will float on her back on top of your arms. She is doing so good....and she has grown SO much since last year's lessons!










Her certificate and her candy. Now she's happy!

Charlotte's First Haircut

After much debate, we decided it was time for Charlotte's fist haircut. I was really hesitant because I didn't want to lose all her sweet curls, but it was starting to grow in a V shape so it had to be done. Plus, Charlotte is a little jealous of the kids at Mrs. D's house who get a haircut so she has been asking when it would be her turn for awhile. I could only find one kids place that took appointments, so Kidz Klips it was. We got a really sweet lady who worked fast and made Charlotte feel really comfortable. I think waiting til she was a little older was the right decision because she totally understood what was happening and sat like a perfect angel. She didn't cry at all, and while I was sad to see some of her length go I didn't cry either. It was time for a change and her hair looks so much healthier now.


Charlotte checking out her ride


"Before" shot from the side


"Before" shot from the back. This is what her hair looked like if I didn't fix it.





The first cut! Once that was over I could breathe again!


Look how long her hair was!


Watching Toy Story, not paying attention to her haircut at all.


"After". So cute!


The hair dresser put this bow in her hair and Charlotte loved it.


Her hair is actually curlier with all that weight off. So so so cute!

Prom 2011

I think I have attended my eleventh prom. I went to three when I was in high school, and I have chaperoned at least 8 but honestly I am starting to lose count! Bryce was in charge of Prom for his high school, so off we went. The night turned out to be really special (though really rainy) and we even managed to get over to South City Kitchen for dinner in between setting up the prom site and kids arriving. Bryce does an amazing job getting everything together for his school, and more importantly he stays so cool, calm, and collected. When I was in charge of Prom at my school I felt like a crazy lady for a month leading up to it and I even had to bring it home a lot of the time. With Bryce you would never know all the effort he puts into it from the outside, he is really able to just get the job done and not worry about it. His school is lucky to have him!

Pictures from the nitrogen blast at Prom:








It only lasts about 30 seconds, but what an effect!

Swim class

We enrolled Charlotte in Swim Class for the second year in a row. She made leaps and bounds in progress last year and I wanted to continue her growth (and make sure she wasn't scared of the water again!). Charlotte cried the whole time during our first session last year and this time she cried too.....because we had to leave! She absolutely loved it this year and she was quite the show off. The swim instructor used her as an example for everyone, and I even kept hearing one of the other moms saying "See honey, Charlotte can do it!". I wanted to tell her that Charlotte has done this before but the class isn't really set up for parent conversation. We are really all over the pool this time. We worked on climbing up out of the pool (elbow, elbow, knee, knee) and the safe way to get back into the pool (roll over onto your stomach and slide in holding on to the side). We also worked on paddling our arms and feet at the same time, and floating on our back. Charlotte loved every second and cried the whole way to the car because she wanted to get back in. I am so excited for the summer now, we are going to have a blast!

Grandma Deb's Birthday Party

We headed to my Mom's house for "Grandma Deb's birthday party" (according to Charlotte). My Mom has definitely fallen more into the mode of "all I want for my birthday is for my family to be with me". This is what we hear every year now, which is sweet but can also be infuriating for the Virgo child who likes to buy the perfect gift. Nonetheless, we had a great day together and Charlotte was sad to leave "Grandma Deb's birthday party".


Charlotte "playing" with my Dad on the computer