Happy St. Patrick's Day!

We looooove St. Patty's Day around here!!!  The delicious dinner of corned beef and cabbage rocks our socks, and yes, ALL the kids love this Irish dinner!  We celebrated at my parents house with yummy food, cool desserts, fun crafts for the kids and a grand time all around.  These little Holidays are always so much fun!


Fun dinner set up!

Like our headpieces?  :)


The boys!


Sweet little helper!


An's first St. Patrick's Day!


Kids Table

A Handful of Date Nights for the Parents of 5 {yipee!}

My husband and I are so incredibly blessed that not only do his parents live an hour or so away, but that MY parents live less than 2 miles from our home!  And with that close proximity comes major grandparent involvement :)  As school teachers, my parents schedules are jam packed throughout the school year, but during spring break this past week, they had the flexibility to help out a TON.  They offered, we accepted, and a flurry of date night fun ensued!  It's always challenging getting out of the house with such a young baby (currently 6 weeks old) and nursing full time...but when there's a will, there's a way! 


Date Night Out at local Yogurt Shop



Hot Air Balloon Ride {more on this for next weeks Try New Adventures Thursday!}



Jerry Seinfeld Show (my gift to him for Valentine's Day) and Dinner at PF Changs!

Hieu Turns 5 Years Old!

Our only daughter, Hieu, turned 5 years old.  Seems like only yesterday she was a teeny tiny little baby born the Year of the Pig, and now she's a big girl with four brothers.  We are so proud of the caring, intelligent, observant young lady she has grown to be.  We love you, sweet Hieu!

The Surfing Flowrider {Try New Adventures Thursday}

For Christmas, my mother again out did herself with super creative gifts!  She presented my husband and Minh with 3 sessions on The Flowrider.  The what?  Well, turned out our local beach shop had recently installed this huge and super cool wave machine, called The Flowrider.  My husband and son went last week and had a blast and with one extra session, we packed up the 4 little ones and went back during the day to watch dad again...and I was able to snap some pictures.  It was so cool and after about 20 minutes, my husband really started to get the hang of it!

Strawberry Picking 2012

This past weekend we loaded up the kiddos and made the hour plus trek to go Strawberry picking!  Last year was our first time and although everyone had a great time, we ended up going to U-pick season on the very last day...



...So obviously the strawberries were less desirable.  However, I was ready AND organized this time so off we went!  Everyone had a marvelous time (I mean, boys + dirt +some bugs=awesomeness) and the sweet family who owned the farm even remembered us from last year and gasped when they saw us, "ANOTHER baby!?!?"  hahaha

I hulled and froze 4 containers worth and have a portion left over in hopes of canning homemade strawberry jam for Minh's 2nd grade teacher for Teacher Appreciation Week.  However, we shall see how ambitious I really feel tonight with a newborn ;)

If you've never been fruit picking before, I highly recommend it!  It's a wonderful, low cost family outing.

Second day of the Season! 


Our five kiddos all dirty, happy and proud of their perfect picking.


Some of our stash...I'd say it was a huge success :)

Maternity/ Family Photo Shoot

With a strong possibility of this being our last child, we opted to really go all out and do things we always wanted-to-but-life-simply-got-in-the-way.  And that included a maternity photo session by my dear sweet friend, Kenzie!  We met at a park and I was SO proud of the kiddos...they did awesome and so did I considering how stressed and swollen I was!  Below are some of the beautiful photos from our session.  I am so happy that we chose to document this precious time in our lives.  And if love what you see, I highly recommend you visit Kenzie's Photography website!  http://kenzieshores.com/

Top Ten Reasons I've Been MIA!

Well, it has been over FOUR months since I've posted.  Wow!  Where has Marissa been, you ask?  I've been busy multitasking and taking a break from blogging to focus on the real...real big changes, real life, REAL busy!!!  To catch you up to speed on what has kept me away, below are the Top Ten Reasons I've Been MIA.

1.  Bridal Shower Tiiiiiime:  My best friend was engaged and gave me the honor of being her Matron of Honor.  What a privilege it was!  However, along with the title came a new adventure for me...hosting a Bridal Shower.  I was incredibly nervous, especially since I decided to host it in a town that I've never been to.  But, long story short, with some creative ideas, assistance from my mother and behind the scenes cheer leading from the bride-to-be, it turned out to be a HUGE success and everyone had a marvelous time!

2.  11.11.11 Wedding:  Her beautiful wedding was held on the pristine beaches of St. Petersburg and it was GORGEOUS!  And who can beat that super cool wedding date of 11-11-11!?!  I was soooo proud of my sweet friend...she planned her entire wedding and everyone had a glorious time!  Just look at the amazing photos below :)  Such fun!  Even for being nearly 7 months pregnant! 

3.  My 10 Year Reunion:  I was Co-Coordinator of our 10 Year High School Reunion and was a beast it was to coordinate.  I don't think I've ever been so stressed about something in my life!  Between the location, finances, invites...oiy!  It was A LOT.  However, I think everyone had a marvelous time and we did the best we could!  And yet another event that I waddled around with my belly :)

4.  Teaching our daughter at home:  We decided rather than enroll our 4 year old daughter in the Florida Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten program, to teach her at home.  And each and every day we are so thankful for our decision!  Having 4 children 4 and under home full time is incredibly challenging, but it has been so worth it to see her learn and enjoy time with us and her siblings at home.

5.  Halloween and Thanksgiving:  Below are pictures of our Halloween with Spiderman, Mario, Princess Cat and a Pumpkin.  The kids were rockstars and had such a great time trick-or-treating!  We also had a wonderful Thanksgiving which included the Turkey Trot Race and a wonderful meal with our family.

6.  Cancun, Mexico





7.  Christmas:  I attempted some matchy matchy Christmas photos this past year, and they actually came out!!!  I was super stoked about that one!  ;)  Christmas was awesome and my husband actually had off Christmas Eve and day.





8.  Camping Trip:  We went on another camping trip with our awesome group of friends!  Each time our group grows and we had about 45 people join in.  If you ask my children what their favorite holiday is, they all say "camping."  Folks brought paddle boards, boats, canoes and we joined forces for meals.  Great memories were made!

9.  The ins and outs of everyday life:  Whew!  Enough said!

10.  Growing our baby:  Baby #5 grew healthy and strong and I really enjoyed the past 4 months of my pregnancy.  After all, it could be our last.