Easter
Sleepy Hollow with Cedar Creek Cabins (Sautee Nacoochee, GA)
Spending some time away over Spring Break. Playing “Spot It”!
Look twin bears in our cabin!
Karlie hanging out in the loft.
Easter baskets for the girls.
Ready for another great day in the cabin!
Travel & Vacation: Cute Panda Bears and Wildlife Show at the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA)
Panda Bear content to relax and eat bamboo
The panda bears were one of the girls favorite animals to visit at the Atlanta Zoo. I think the big fascination was watching the twin panda cubs. It was a little harder to get a picture of both of them at the same time, but the kids loved watching them eat and play. The Wildlife Show on birds was pretty neat too. Of course the girls went up after the show to ask more questions about the birds. The zoo worker was really great with the kids and patient in answering all the questions. On the way out the girls wanted a picture with the gorilla. It was a great day at the zoo.
You can read more about our adventure at the Atlanta Zoo on my Travel & Vacation: Visiting the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA), Travel & Vacation: Lions, Tigers, Seals, Reptiles, Bears, and more at the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA), and Travel & Vacation: Orangutan Easter Egg Hunt at Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA) blog posts.
Looking pretty cute!
Look out, showing some teeth this time. Watch out! They may look cute and adorable, but I think it would not be a good idea to pet them with teeth that size.
Someone found an Easter pinata
Loving the bamboo
Peeling the bamboo stick apart, eating some pieces, and putting the other pieces on his belly for later.
Crunchy, but delicious
Good stuff
Panada’s look so cute
Checking things out around the pen
Heading towards some more goodies
Twin panda’s in their cage. One sleeping on the log and the other one eating some bamboo
Relaxing and chewing on some bamboo
Bird Show in the Wildlife Theater at the Atlanta Zoo
Getting all their questions answered
Brina giving Willie B a hug
Karlie and Brina enjoyed the Atlanta Zoo
Karlie all smiles
Travel & Vacation: Orangutan Easter Egg Hunt at Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA)
He’s eying that cool looking pinata egg with sweet Easter treats inside it!
Another one of the neat events at the Atlanta Zoo was the Easter treats for the animals. We were able to get front row viewing at the Orangutan Easter egg hunt. It was super cute. There was a Mommy with a little one which the girls thought was adorable.
The Easter Eggs were made of jello and placed throughout the pen, pinata eggs full of special treats, leaf baskets with goodies, and cardboard cutouts with peanut like substance on the back for the orangutans to enjoy. They had a lot of fun finding and snacking on their treats. Even the baby found some. They had paper garland hanging up which the orangutans enjoyed moving and playing with as well.
You can read more about our adventure at the Atlanta Zoo on my Travel & Vacation: Visiting the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA) and Travel & Vacation: Lions, Tigers, Seals, Reptiles, Bears, and more at the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA) blog posts.
An edible Easter egg in the tree and one on the rock in the background….waiting to be found!
Swinging out to get the Easter garland
Oh yeah, this eggs mine!
Climbed up on top of the platform for this pinata treat
Enjoying the goodies inside the pinata Easter egg
Holding the cardboard cutout of the bunny rabbit and licking the treat off the back of it
Hanging out near the hammock picking up and eating eggs, delicious!
Look closely, he’s got a green jello egg in his mouth
Momma and baby
Sitting in the shade – Mom and Baby (the baby is not really little, but obviously still under its Mother’s care)
Mom and baby kisses
Licking the goodness off the back of the cardboard Easter egg decoration
Mom and baby looking for some more treats
The baby wasn’t too sure about everything at first so it stuck near its Mom at the beginning of the Easter Egg Hunt
The baby is getting brave. He is climbing the pole to get the Easter basket, with a little Chick, and goodies.
Made it, now to grab it and head back down.
The Mom watched the baby climb, get the treats, and bring them back down. Then she took the items from the baby and ate them herself, ha! The baby did get some treats, but Momma Orangutan got the first dibs!
Rearranging the Easter Garland in their pen.
Travel & Vacation: Lions, Tigers, Seals, Reptiles, Bears, and more at the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA)
Lioness pacing on her rock
We had a blast seeing all the animals on our recent trip to the Atlanta Zoo. We arrived just as the Zoo opened in the morning and stayed until closing. The kids loved seeing all the animals, the activities, and special events. It was a busy, packed, and fun day together. We walked all over the area of the zoo several times over. The morning was a little cooler, but it was very comfortable by mid-morning (not too cold or hot). You can read more about our adventure on my Travel & Vacation: Visiting the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA) blog post.
The two lionesses were playing and pouncing on each other while we were there. They were so fast we weren’t able to get a non-blurry picture of both of them together. It was neat to watch them playing around instead of just sleeping on their rock.
Better watch out….
Tiger giving himself a bath.
Out for a stroll
The seal was catching the fish they were throwing at them. You can see the fish right in front of him.
Karlie and Brina learning about snakes.
Karlie having fun
Learning more about this little turtle
Curled up and watching people as they go by his cage
Brina fascinated by all the animals
What’s in this one!?
Karlie and Mommy having fun at the Atlanta Zoo
Me and my girls! They are growing up so fast. Thankful for these little adventures together as a family!
Brina was always good a spotting the animals really quickly, not sure how she does it so fast!
The snake was following the heat from Karlie’s hand
Jake and his girls at the Atlanta Zoo
Jake is always so good about explaining and showing the girls different pieces of information about the animals. The snake is acting like it might try to strike Jake’s hand through the glass in this picture, but it never did.
The bear brought this branch with leaves on top of the platform so he could eat it by himself without the other one bothering him.
Fun times!
They loved learning about all the different wildlife.
Love my family! Grateful for the opportunity to hang out at the Atlanta Zoo for the day!
Such a rough life…. They look so cute and cuddly.
This is a “Tanuki” it is very timid and doesn’t come out very often per one of the zoo workers that we asked. We walked by its cage multiple times and never saw it out until almost the end of the day. It gets spooked easy so it is not visible very often.
How does your Mom carry you!? Silly girls – Brina and Karlie
Karlie loves brushing the farm animals. She is currently on her way to brush another one.
Brina talking with the zoo worker about goats and asking questions. He was really nice and pointed out several different types of goats and characteristics of the ones near her.
Brina and Karlie brushing one goat. Lots of TLC for this Mamma goat. They always love the interactive animal adventures.
The giraffe is eying us while the ostrich was too busy eating to give us any attention
Travel & Vacation: Visiting the Atlanta Zoo (Atlanta, GA)
Our family at the Atlanta Zoo!
We surprised the girls with a long weekend trip to Atlanta, Georgia over Easter weekend. They were very excited to go explore the Atlanta area. We are members of our local zoo so we were able to get into the Atlanta Zoo at a discount which was really nice. The kids love animals, learning more about various ones, interacting, and so much more.
Since it was Easter weekend at the Atlanta Zoo the animals were getting special treats to enjoy for the Holiday. The new Amphibian & Reptile Exhibit also opened the weekend we were there as well. There were a lot of people at the zoo, but it was so big we had plenty of time do see and do almost everything (some things the kids enjoyed it so much we did it again).
Pink Flamingos were hanging out peacefully near the entrance to the zoo
So excited….Karlie and Brina! They have their maps out and are ready to GO!
The birds were sleeping peacefully all together on one branch.
It was a little chilly when we first got there in the shade at opening, but no one was complaining!
Birds of all colors
Brina soaking it all in. She loves animals.
Playing around in the water puddles.
Karlie smiling as she quietly watches the birds and little kids.
Meerkat’s roaming around in their pen.
There is always one Meerkat on watch (or guard) for predators
They gave the Meerkats a pillow case stuffed full of hay, little bugs, and special treats. They were a little timid about it at first, but before long they were all taking turns going into the pillow case and digging out their special treats.
Are you done yet! Hurry up and get your bug so I can get my turn inside the Easter treat sack!!!
They look cute, but serious. Look at those claws on this meerkat! Yikes!
Rhino heading out into the sun after getting some sticky mud on itself to protect it from a sunburn.
This rhino was moving the stick around and chewing on it. Must of had something tasty on it.
They drew flowers, easter eggs, and bunny rabbits with chalk on the rocks in the Zebra’s pen.
The warthogs got hard boiled and colored Easter eggs for their special treat. They both found the first one about the same time.
Someone found the purple Easter egg!
The elephants had Easter eggs that had a jello consistency that they place in baskets made of leaves. This elephant just discovered the basket of leaves and is moving it out of the way so she can eat her jello Easter egg.
Whole lot of elephants! They had a huge pen and sometimes if you couldn’t see them on one side you had to go around to see them in a different section.
Jake and his girls exploring the Atlanta Zoo
Beautiful bird
Brina found Big Bird’s Nest!!! HA!
My two little chickies in the huge nest!
Karlie thought the nest was hilarious!
Counting My Blessings: Week In Review
Last week was a great week with the kids home on Spring Break! I have so many reasons to be thankful every day. It was a blessing spending extra time with the kids. We packed in a lot of fun adventures, quality time, and more during their Spring Break!
I want to be accountable to you so the following are snip-its of some of the things I am thankful for this past week. Counting My Blessings – Week In Review:
Monday – Thankful for a chance to spend time with the kids at the Greenville Zoo, Cleveland Park, and Library today. We even spent a few minutes with my brothers family and ran into some friends I have known since a little girl from KS at the park (they use to go to my grandparents church in Smith Center) which was an unexpected surprise blessing.
Tuesday – Thankful that my two nephews could come over to play with the kids for a few hours. The kids had a blast playing inside and outside on this beautiful day.
Wednesday – Thankful for finding some good deals to stock up our pantry at a local store that was having a big sale.
Thursday – Thankful for a chance to talk with Grandma Willa today since she will be having surgery tomorrow. Grateful for my family and Grandparents who have been part of my life and the positive impact they have made. Treasuring all the good times and memories.
Friday – Thankful for a great Holiday weekend – Good Friday and what it means in my life. Easter is a wonderful Holiday to celebrate my Savior who gave his life so that I might live. Grateful that Jake was able to take off Good Friday so we could spend the day as a family exploring Atlanta’s Museums, Zoo, and so much more. Love spending time with my family. Thankful that Grandma’s surgery went well.
What are you thankful for today? I encourage you to take the time to write down a few blessings that you have in your life today. It will help cheer you up and turn your focus on the amazing blessings you encounter each day!
Wishing You A Very Happy Easter!
Wishing you a very Happy Easter!
The girls have been off this week for Spring Break. Yay! It has been wonderful having extra time with the kids! Thankful for an opportunity to celebrate this amazing Holiday. While there are a lot of fun events and activities around the Easter Holidays the real meaning of Easter goes a long way back in time. Easter is the day we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I am grateful for a Savior who conquered death. So many reasons to be thankful this Holiday Season!
Sweet sisters!
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
The kids are on Spring Break this week! WooHoo! I am looking forward to spending extra time with them. We have some fun activities and adventures planned for the week. We’ll be wrapping up March, starting April, enjoying Spring Break, and celebrating Easter this week so it will be a fun one! The main goal this week is to spend some time with the kids. I have a lot of items I would like to get accomplished, but there are second to my family this week. Here are my goals for this week:
Last week’s goals
Family Goals
- Finish reading Rascal by Sterling North to the kids – we are getting further into it, the girls love this book about a pet Rascal (this was a book I had as a kid)
Plan one special activity with the familyPlay a Game with the KidsPrepare for Upcoming Spring EventsSpend time Monday – Thursday helping the kids with HomeworkAttend After School ActivitiesLunch Boxes & Book Bags packed the night beforePrep for upcoming Family AdventureFigure out the kids Science Fair Projects– got them approved now we need to get started on them….STEM Club Event Presentations for Family Night at SchoolPrep for upcoming Spring Break
Personal Goals
Drink 8 glasses of water each dayContinue my YouVersion plan(s)Go to my Doctor Appointments Scheduled this week
Home (Yard & Pets) Management Goals
All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one dayWeekly Dinner Menu planned out for the weekClean House (Focus – Unpack Suitcase and Items Away from State STEM Robotics Trip this weekend)- Organize Chaos (Focus – All pictures downloaded & organized from FL and STEM trips) – still working on this one, school and other activities took priority last week but hoping to get everything caught up soon
Yard / Garage Cleanup (Focus – Sweep out my side of Garage)- Pet Care (Focus – Pick Up Mineral Bucket for the Goats) – store was out of mineral buckets, will need to check another location or check again this week
Business Goals
Work on ideas for upcoming blog postsRespond to Inquiry – Business Relation EmailsKeep up with the day to day items that need my attentionWork completed for clients
Ministry Goals
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
Financial Goals
- Payoff the Car – working on it
- Payoff Medical Bills – working on it
- Payoff Other Outstanding Debt – (replacement microwave, refrigerator, hot water heater, bed, and other debt) – working on it
Pay Bills & File PaperworkGo grocery shopping one time to one store this week and stay within budget
My goals for the upcoming week
Family Goals
- Finish reading Rascal by Sterling North to the kids
- Plan 3 special activities with the family
- Play Games with the Kids
- Prepare for Upcoming Spring Events
- Prep for upcoming Family Adventure
- Start prepping for the kids Science Fair Projects
- Enjoy extra time with the kids on Spring Break
- Celebrate Easter with the family
- Spend time working on projects with kids
- Focus on quality family time
- Upcoming STEM Event
- Play with the kids
- Go for a bike ride, walk in the woods, and have relax
- Take time to really listen to the kids and what they are thinking / doing, etc…
Personal Goals
- Drink 8 glasses of water each day
- Continue my YouVersion plan(s)
- Keep up with my FitBit Goals (Walk 10,000 steps / 5 miles / 10 sets stairs per day)
- Go to my Doctor Appointments Scheduled this week
- Update Counting My Blessings and Other journal entries daily
Home (Yard & Pets) Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week
- Clean House (Focus – Deep Cleaning on all 3 Bathrooms)
- Organize Chaos (Focus – All pictures downloaded & organized from FL and STEM trips)
- Yard / Garage Cleanup (Focus – Vacuum Van)
- Pet Care (Focus – Pick Up Mineral Bucket for the Goats)
Business Goals
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Respond to Inquiry – Business Relation Emails
- Keep up with the day to day items that need my attention
- Work completed for clients
Ministry Goals
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
Financial Goals
- Payoff the Car
- Payoff Medical Bills
- Payoff Other Outstanding Debt – (replacement microwave, refrigerator, hot water heater, bed, and other debt)
- Pay Bills & File Paperwork
- Go grocery shopping one time to one store this week and stay within budget
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Why Share My Goals?
- To keep me accountable
- To share a piece of my life with you as I strive to be a better Child of God, Wife, Mom, Friend, Homemaker, Entrepreneur and the many other roles I have each week
- To have my goals consistently written down so I can gauge progress more accurately
- Create healthy habits in my life
- To encourage you to share your goals with me as you continue to grown and learn
How did you do this week on your goals? Feel free to share or link to your list of weekly goals.
The picture above is one that I created for my own purposes, however, The “SMART” acronym was originally coined 30 years ago by Peter Drucker in his classic work, Management by Results.
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