J Cooper Photography

Tomorrow is May Day and I have so many fond memories of my own “ding & ditch” escapades as a kid! I’ve noticed that this tradition seems to have fallen by the wayside here in our own community. I’m hoping for a resurgence…a re-birth…a refueling of the “ding & ditch” fever. As a child we decorated white styrofoam cups with stickers and pipe cleaners…adding in just enough candy and goodies to prompt a serious belly ache. Once loaded onto a cookie sheet…we carefully hobbled out to the car giggling in anticipation. And after a not-so-quick trip through the neighborhood depositing “the goods” on porches, ringing the bell, and running like the wind…we came home to a stoop full of our own surprises. We got caught more than a few times too. But that was at least half the fun!

Being on bed rest does complicate things a tad. But I couldn’t resist a chance to celebrate the onset of Spring with a bit of pomp and circumstance. Our baskets aren’t wonderfully hand crafted or filled with goodies baked from our own kitchen…but they were crafted with love by 4 chubby toddler hands and lots of giggles. Tomorrow I will send P and the girls out to deliver “the goods” to our bestest friends….and our girls will carry on the “ding & ditch” tradition

I’d love to see your creative take on May Day too! Consider this a challenge…snap a pic of your own May Day creations and post it on your blog! Be sure to comment here so I can come check out your own creativity!!! There are so many fun possibilities! We even made some boy versions with miniature sand buckets for containers! Now go have fun! And run like the wind!

The countdown has begun and although I’m still sitting here on the couch I couldn’t resist sharing some of my latest finds and projects.
First, I really contemplated making a super cool diaper bag…but that sounded like an awful amount of work. After looking around on ebay and etsy I found this super cool tote…perfect in every way and this seller was a dream to work with! You can find her HERE on ebay or HERE at her own personal website called Watermelon Wishes. I got to chose my own fabrics and she had my custom bag, changing pad, and mommy clutch on my door in less than a WEEK!

Can’t wait to load it up with some diapers and wipes and head out on the town! Isn’t the mommy clutch so cute??

I used up some of my random scraps and the girls helped me design some burp cloths and “big sister” tees! A and J chose the happy green tees (awww….girls after my own heart!!!) a few weeks ago and we dug through my scrap drawers to find some fun and funky prints to jazz them up a bit

Oh…and a moment to brag. I know I mention my sister (The Writer) often. I’m just so proud! This weekend she attended the Nebraska Press Women’s Conference where she won FIRST PLACE with her column! You can read her current column HERE. Her writing is fun, fresh, and full of enough humor and poignancy to make you laugh one moment and cry the next. Just wanted her to know that we are SO proud! K…you did it again

A had a special week at school. It’s not everyday that you get to sing “I’m H-a-p-p-y” in front of a room full of fans! I don’t think there is anything much cuter than a bunch of 5 year olds singing earnestly in a church sanctuary for their proud parents. Of course P and I played it cool and resisted waving obnoxiously at our little star (although I must admit to making P vacate his seat and squat in the aisle in order to capture a picture). And a few days later A’s teacher asked her to bring her violin to school to share with her class. She begged me not to come. HA…funny! The kids loved her mini performance and she handled herself with as much grace and poise as any other awkward 5 year old could! After her first 2 pieces her teacher thanked her for playing and sharing with the class to which A replied, “well I’m not done yet…I still have 2 more songs to play!”