PROM DRESS SHOPPING

Thankfully I have a daughter who loves to shop as much as I do.  (NOT!)  And so she made this experience bearable as we were in and out of the mall in under 30 minutes.  She tried on a total of maybe 5 dresses and came away with this beauty.  We have some alterations to do so that this 'immodest' dress can become 'modest' in time for prom.  (will do an updated post when it's finished)  

And because it was only $48?  

We celebrated with some FIVE GUYS!

QUARANTINED

It's been a rough spring break in the Orton home.  We've had everything from the stomach bug, to mono, to pneumonia.  All boys.  Thankfully the girls were still up and running.  The ship might have gone down had they succumbed.  

 I know what you're all thinking..."THANK YOU for posting this picture of vomit on your blog".  This happened on a day that chaos reigned.  I had taken the two smaller boys to church and ended up leaving in the middle of sacrament because Jo was hacking and Brady threw up everywhere.  Later on in the day I had a church meeting to go to and as I'm walking out the door, Stevie is doubled over with stomach pain, Brady threw up ALL over the carpet (see picture), Jo was coughing non-stop and Bubby was on the couch unable to drink or swallow because of his mono.  I waved goodbye to my husband and walked out the door.  I smiled just a little bit because it's usually ME that's left behind with utter chaos. It was good to know he had my back!

MONO...(take 3)

Like clockwork, we've been struck with mono THREE TIMES!  Bubby is (hopefully) the last to get it and he was hit hard.  Thankfully most of his down time was during his vacation.  His lymph nodes were SO swollen that we had to make a visit to the ER for some IV hydration, steroids and pain meds.  He dropped from 190lbs to 168lbs over the course of three weeks.  His spleen is so big you can visibly see it when he lifts his shirt.  He didn't get to play in one lacrosse game and will be out for the rest of the season.

ALL I WANTED TO BE WHEN I GREW UP WAS A MOTHER...

NATURE

This boy is at one with it.

(makes me smile, makes his dad cringe)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY STEVE!!!

 (Steve couldn't decided this year what cake he wanted so I made his top three: 

German Chocolate Cake, Carrot Cake, Cheesecake)

WELCOME TO SPRING IN NEW ENGLAND

 Where one day it's COLD...

And the next it's BEAUTIFUL!!!

HAPPY SPRING!

BRACES

Welcome to the world of BRACES!

WEEKEND IN VERMONT

It was supposed to be a family affair, but due to illness and injury it ended up being a weekend of just Stevie and I.  We had a BLAST!  She had a basketball tournament in Vermont and so we stayed over night in a PLUSH suite.  She got to swim, play ball, tour the Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Factory and eat out.  Aside from the minor concussion she received from one of her games, we had a really fun time together!

THIS (BIG) GUY

He's lost over 50 pounds this past winter...and now he's WALKING with me.  It's one of my favorite things to do with him.  And taking the (little) guy with us is an added bonus.

SISTERS

 There's NOTHING like 'em.

GRAMPY AND JOSEPH

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!!

Even though it was YOUR day, I felt like your presence was OUR gift.  I love you to the moon and back!

HAPPY ELEVEN IN HEAVEN!!!

I made you another carrot cake for your birthday this year Benny.  I'd like to think that it was your favorite cake, even though you could never have any.  Happy Birthday Ben!  We'll be celebrating with Grampy this weekend.  I love that you both share a birthday.  Two of my favorite guys. :)

ORLANDO

 This past weekend I had the opportunity to fly with Brady down to Orlando, Florida to visit Kara and have some fun.  We stayed at a BEAUTIFUL and luxurious resort called Westgate.  It was a world all in it self.  During our quick stay, we visited Downtown Disney three times (mostly for the Ghirardelli Sundae's), went to the Orlando Zoo, swam in the pool and just had fun being outside.  Brady was so happy to be in the sun, run on the grass and play in the sand.  He's definitely an 'outside' boy.  We had lots of fun and felt so lucky to have a quick getaway weekend.  

(thank you Kara!!!)