Easter Sunday

I know this a couple weeks late, but I wanted to post pictures of our sweet, growing Peanut and Snowflake on Easter. I made both the their dresses, the first of hopefully many to come. 

Peanut in her dress after church. Her dress gave me the most grief (note to self: do not attempt to sew buttons and weird back pieces the night before she needs to wear it!). She would not look at the camera. It's tough getting a good shot of a constantly moving toddler!

Snowflake in her dress, probably watching her crazy sister doing something odd.

The Campbells - AKA Queen, King and Princesses of the Campbell Castle.

My attempt at getting a good shot of the sisters. This was after their nap, and Peanut was not thrilled with the idea of getting all smiley to take pictures. I'm pretty sure she has a talent for not smiling in photos when it counts!

Our Easter was spent at the church and with family. It was a busy, long day, but so wonderful. It's days like these when I realize how truly blessed we are.

Luke 24:46-47

"and He said to them, 'Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.'"

March Flowers

Here's a look at some of the flowers and plants currently blooming at the Campbell Castle:

Daffodils are everywhere! These happy flowers are excited about the warmer weather:

Color along the driveway flowerbed:

Close up of our front flower bed:

Early Spring

Today is a special day, it comes just every 4 years on Leap Year. I was getting kinda down that February, my least favorite month of the year, was going to be prolonged another day. But it hasn't been bad at all, it's been a wonderful day of welcoming spring!

It was 67 degrees, and let me tell you, after a long winter of being inside, that 67 degrees feels like heaven! We went on a mid-day walk and spent the afternoon exploring the new plants and flowers poking through in our garden and enjoying the fresh air.

It was also the first time Snowflake was able to be outside without being covered up. She was able to feel the breeze and taste the air!

I know we can still can get snow for another month, but I think the worst of winter is truly behind us now. Fresh open windows, flowers and sun are so close I can taste it!

Snowflake Snuggles

The past two weeks have been full of snuggles, surprises and getting to know one another! Here's a little peak into our days around here with our new addition:

Peanut and Snowflake snuggling up together- so precious!

A sleeping Snowflake, so peaceful:

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours! Baby Campbell #2 is still "baking" and only has 2 more weeks until his or her due date! We are so excited, and are keeping very busy preparing for both Christmas and our new arrival. So in the coming days/weeks, if you notice an brief absence of posting, you'll know why! I hope all my readers have a wonderful Christmas- many blessings your way!

Thanksgiving Family Photos

This was the first Thanksgiving in many years where Daddy C and I did not have to travel! It was so nice getting ready for the day and preparing food, without the rush of driving 1.5 or 3 hours! It's truly amazing how much Peanut has grown from last Thanksgiving!

Here is a picture of the Campbell clan- I am 35.5 weeks pregnant in this photo:

She loved "playing" the piano while we were there! She even climbed up there on that stool and started playing all by herself! It was too cute!

Just happy to be with family, and showing off her pearly whites:

17 Months!

My little peanut is growing everyday! It's truly amazing how fast the time has gone! She will be a big sister in just a few short weeks!

We took a little getaway to Amish Country here in Ohio a few weeks ago as a last hurrah before the new baby arrives. Peanut had lots of fun staying in our rental apartment!

We've also finished cleaning up the yard for winter. Luckily we didn't have too many leaves to rake, although we saved all the ones we did gather for use as organic material in our raised garden beds. Peanut had fun playing in the leaves!

My Little Cheeser

I remember as a child I loved to "cheese" for the camera. It seems my daughter does as well, and she preps for her shot before I even turn the camera on! She loves "cheesing"!!

Here she is sporting her sunglasses inside, with the famous paci and her favorite toys- a spoon and a bowl!

"mommy! I'm ready!"

The next day...

And again! (notice the little scab between her eyes- that was from falling and landing face first on a frisbee she was carrying off the step from the garage to the sidewalk!)

Peanut Goes Camping

Recently, we took Peanut camping with her aunt and uncle who live far far away in Virginia. We decided to meet halfway in Pennsylvania, at Laurel Hill State Park (which was gorgeous BTW!).

Peanut walking along the beachy lake with Daddy C:

Peanut splashing in the water! This girl loves to swim!

She also went on her first bike ride with Daddy C and I! Here she is in her seat! She kept saying "weee!" all throughout the ride! So cute!

We went hiking to a dam and could not resist cooling off in the water below! Peanut practically dived right in, getting soaked in the process!

All 3 of us hiking! Peanut is busy look at the water in the background, haha.

We had a great trip spending time relaxing at the campsite and catching up with family. Peanut did not sleep the best the first night (we arrived at the site very late), and the second night it had started raining around dinnertime, turning our campsite into a mudsite, unsuitable for a walking toddler! So we got an emergency hotel room and let Peanut stay up late! It all turned out for the best, and next time, we'll know to take the weather seriously when it calls for a chance of rain (or at least have a backup plan arranged). Peanut thought the hotel room was so much fun though! Of course, this girl thinks everything is fun.

I can't wait for our next camping adventure, although next time it will likely be somewhere a bit closer so we don't arrive so late and also free of rain!

Do you enjoy camping? How often do you go?

Peanut is a Walker!

For the 4th of July, we went on a family vacation to my aunt and uncle's cabin in northern Michigan. The cabin is so peaceful and quiet, situated on a small lake not to far from Lake Michigan and Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

This was the second time that we visited together, but the first time that Peanut joined us! We had such a good time relaxing, swimming, boating, exploring, hiking and spending time together! And to add to the memories, Peanut started full-time walking on this trip!

The drive there was 8 hours, the longest we have ever gone with Peanut in the car. We tried going through the night thinking she would sleep most of the way, but that did not go over well. She only likes to sleep about 2 hours at a time in her carseat! So on the way back, we drove throughout the day and took lots of walking breaks, and that went much much better. As long as she had plenty of books to look at and interesting new toys every so often, so was pretty content! She did really well sleeping in the pack n play in our room at the cabin, and we didn't have to fight naps with her either, which was really nice! I think all the new experiences tired her out fast!

It was so nice to have some quality time together as a family! Daddy C took off 3 days so we had 5 whole days to spend there, which is the longest vacation we have taken in some time! The best part was that it didn't cost us hardly any money since we stayed at the family cabin and ate almost all our meals there. Including gas, we spent less than $400 for this trip! That also included a day excursion to one of the nearby islands!

Enjoying our hike on top of Alligator Hill! She loves hiking and does really well in the backpack- this hike was 2 hrs so I was happy she was so content!

Playing with the rocks at Lake Michigan. She loved picking them up and banging them together!

We had a great time on our vacation and can't wait to go back next year!

Now that she is walking, we have to keep an extra eye on her to make sure she doesn't get into anything she isn't supposed to be in or run off unexpectedly. But it's so wonderful to watch her explore and find things! She is so fun!

Summer Days

Thought I would share some recent photos of Peanut! She will be 1 year old this weekend, I can hardly believe it!!

Here she is at the pool playing with her toys! This little girl simply LOVES the water - I have to constantly have my hand on her or else she will try and dive under!

Again, at the pool, keeping cool with a bandana:

Watching the Memorial Day Parade! She was so interested in all the horses and bands that passed through:

Garden Progress and Harvesting Time!

It's been a while since I've updated this blog, but rest assured everyone, I am still here! About 8 weeks ago, we found out another Campbell Baby will making his or her entrance in December!! Since I suffer from rather terrible morning sickness, some things have sorta gotten thrown to the wayside. However, I am feeling a little better now that I am about to enter the 2nd trimester.

My garden pretty much got neglected the entire month of May. Terrible, I know! But we had one of the wettest springs in decades, meaning I really didn't have to water anything and some growth was stunted for a while. However, now that we've dried out, the weeds have been growing like, well, weeds! In fact, I was too embarrassed at the state of my garden to even take a picture- the vegetables were completely overtaken by those nasty intruders! A good 2 hours of weeding was required to get it back in shape, but now you can see how things are really doing.

My onions are starting to pop out! I expect in another month we will have plenty of onions for our cooking needs!

I think I was a little over-zealous with the lettuce plantings. I think we could feed the whole neighborhood with this harvest!

I really did not know what to expect from our cauliflower plants, but they turned out great! Here's a picture right before harvesting:

Beautiful cabbage heads ready for picking...

Our garden, 2 months along! (The empty space in the front bed next to the cabbage is where our radishes were. We harvested them about 3 weeks ago - they were perfect! My mom was a grateful recipient since we don't really care for radishes.)

Today I bought tomato, pepper and squash plants. I also plan on getting some zucchini, peas and beans. I can't wait for our summer harvest!!

10 Months of Breastfeeding!

We recently reached our 10 month milestone of breastfeeding!

Here's a recent photo of me and Peanut, all dressed up for Easter just 2 days prior to her turning the big 10 months!

I can't believe my baby has gotten so big! The fact that I have been able to provide her almost all of her nutrition during this time is amazing! She currently has chubby wrists and thighs, compliments of Mommy's milk!

She has changed so much over the past 10 months, it is just hard to believe. Breastfeeding her during this time has been challenging, but so incredibly worth it. Now that she is on the move more, the nursing sessions are much shorter, as this child doesn't have patience for eating when there is so much to explore!

I hope to continue nursing Peanut until the one year mark (which, GASP! is only 2 months away!), and after that we will take it day by day. But considering how much she loves it, I'm willing to bet she will nurse as long as I let her, whether it be one year or three!

How does your garden grow?

We've planted our first garden here at the Campbell Castle, and as the lingering spring days continue to bring more sunshine, it's been such a blessing watching it grow!

Homemade rabbit sign: Rows of radishes:

A radish seedling!

Romaine lettuce and broccoli:

Our entire 10 by 15 plot (constructed entirely of salvaged materials!): We're so excited about growing some of our own food this year, allowing us to have extra fresh organic produce on hand while saving money at the same time!

*This post is part of Frugal Gardening 101, hosted by Getting Freedom From Debt.

Spring Hiking

Last weekend, we took a hike out to a nature preserve near our local farm pickup. We're trying to take a family hike once a week this year, committed not to miss too many opportunities to witness the wonders of nature and share it with Peanut! She had a great time as always - this baby loves being outside. As soon as she gets strapped in her pack, she starts giggling! During this hike, she loved watching the cold, moving spring waters. Who could blame her? The peacefulness this time of year on the trail is captivating. Every sound and song of a bird is magnified and appreciated as the earth roars back to life after a deep sleep.