One.
Organization is the key to having a successful picnic. Be sure to lay everything out, check and double check that you have something to sit on, the perfect location, family and friends to enjoy it with you and please, don’t forget the delicious food and drinks. That is, after all what makes up a picnic.

Two.
Pick the perfect location. Consider the people you have invited along with you. For me, I would be considering my husband and 7 month old, so somewhere with a lot of shade would be ideal for us. If you have small children, perhaps a park with a playground nearby would be the perfect location. If you live near a lake or beach, that would also be a great choice. If you are wanting to host a romantic picnic with a loved one, pick an appropriate atmosphere.

Three.
Consider the time of day and pack your food accordingly. Are you going in the morning? Pack breakfast foods and don’t forget that thermos full of coffee, sugar and cream. Are you going for lunch? Sandwiches and carrot sticks are perfect for this time of day. If you’re going around dinner time or my favorite time of day – sunset – pack hotdogs or hamburgers fresh off the grill with chips, pasta salad, etc. It is summertime after all. It’s important to plan the perfect picnic menu for the people you are inviting. Consider their preferences, food allergies, etc.

Four.
I know I stated this in my first point, but don’t forget something to sit on. Consider the people who will be joining you. You may need to include a lawn chair for older people, or maybe bring along a bumbo or bouncer for baby to play in. My favorite thing to bring is an old quilt. I have a bit of a quilt obsession. I carry the quilt my grandma made me in my car most of the time because we always find ourselves needing it.

Five.
Pack your food well. Try to keep them at proper temperature and to bring foods that do well at room temperature for a little while. Pack everything in zip-lock bags, jars, tupperware, saran wrap, whatever will keep it fresh. I recommend bringing drinks in bottles. Bottled water, root beer, coke, etc. are all great options. Anything with a screw on lid will help with spills. No one wants to clean up a mess. If you have a small cooler or thermal bag, feel free to throw some bottles in there with an ice pack to keep the drinks cold.

Six.
Pack napkins, paper plates and plastic utensils. Depending on the number of guests you have attending your picnic, you may consider packing a roll of paper towels. They will be easy to dispose of when you start to clean up. Also, be sure to bring any condiments, salad dressing, salt, pepper, syrup, etc. depending on what you’re eating. These things can literally make or break a meal so be sure to remember to pack these in your basket.

Seven.
You may want to bring bug spray, especially if you live in Alabama where the mosquito is our state bird. Sun screen is also a necessity, especially if you’re like me and bringing along a baby. Protect your skin, folks!

Eight.
Think about entertainment. If you want to bring an Ipod for background music, a good book or magazine, or toys for the kids, be sure to pack those things.

Nine.
Prepare for clean-up. Bring a trash bag, or two depending on the number of guests. Pack wipes for everyone to clean their hands with and maybe even some hand-sanitizer.

Ten.
Have fun. Make good conversation, laugh, relax and enjoy the company and delicious food that you worked so hard to prepare and pack. Everyone loves a picnic. They are the perfect summer day activity for adults and children alike. Enjoy your time with the people you love.

Where do you like to go for your perfect picnic? Have you been on a picnic this year?

Memorial Weekend was so busy for us, a good busy. We had an amazing weekend. Hampton and I had a play date with a dear friend of mine and her baby boy who is one month older than Hamp. We had the opportunity to catch up and the boys had a blast.

We drove to Dothan on Friday night to my cousin’s graduation. It is that time of year, graduations, weddings and birthday parties galore. We are so proud of her! She is the tenth and last grandchild in our family to graduate from high school.

Saturday we attended a crawfish boil. It was a lot of fun. I skipped the crawfish part because I just can’t seem to eat my food when I see it crawling around before it’s cooked. Gross. We enjoyed the pool for a while. It was Hampton’s first time in the pool. He loved it…for a while and then got tired.

Taken with my brother’s GoPro Camera

Don’t you love his socks? That’s America, folks!

Sunday we took a break from festivities and I caught up on some housework. Laundry is so much fun!

Monday we had pizza and laid by the pool all day. We played dominoes with my family for a while that night. I spent some much-needed time with my family and saw great friends as well. It was the perfect holiday weekend.

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May 13th is a special day for my family. This year, we celebrated my brother’s 24th birthday and my oldest nephew’s 2nd birthday. They were both born on Mother’s Day. How special is that? Last night, we celebrated my brother’s birthday with nachos, cookie cake and lots of laughter. These moments with family are so precious to me. We have so much to be thankful for. Our health, a roof over our head, money to pay the bills, we have everything we need. We are so blessed. We will be celebrating our nephew’s birthday this weekend with Ryan’s family and I can’t wait. Little kid birthday parties are so entertaining. It is always fun. Plus there’s cake…

Happy Birthday, Bub and T-man!

First off, I want to say a huge thank you for the response I received from yesterday’s post. That is exactly why I love the blogging community. I loved all of the feedback and encouragement from everyone.

My cousin, Zana, was married this past weekend and I had the pleasure of standing beside her on her perfect day. She was married in the backyard of her home in Dothan, on an island in the middle of their pond. The weather was absolutely beautiful and Zana was breathtaking. It was an emotional weekend for me because she is not only my cousin, but also my best friend. She and Landon have been together for over 6 years. They started dating just a few months after Ryan and me. Needless to say, it was about time they got hitched! I couldn’t ask for a better man and husband for my Zana. I’m so incredibly happy for them.

Their wedding was southern chic at it’s finest. They did almost everything themselves as far as flowers and decor. Everything turned out so beautiful. The guests had a lot of fun at the reception, and as a bride, you can’t ask for much more than that. Here are a few pictures I (and my sister) snapped of their wedding.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter! Hampton was definitely spoiled by the Easter bunny this year. Here are a few pics from our day:

I went to the beach for my cousin’s Bachelorette party this past weekend. When you put us together, there is nothing but fun and good memories in the making. Although it rained most of the weekend, we did get a little beach time in. We shopped till we dropped and ate…and ate and ate.

Once we got to PCB, we went straight to Margaritaville, wore funny balloon hats (I didn’t get a picture of myself, darn) and got our Parrotheads on. I also enjoyed a Cheeseburger in Paradise that was as good as always.

We spent a beautiful Saturday in Auburn, (home of the War Eagle and Auburn Tigers) with my younger sister who attends school there. It was a wonderful day. We had an indoor picnic (because of rain) and took pictures with Aubie. We enjoyed time with family and friends and later that afternoon we went on a hike through Chewacla State Park. I love Chewacla. It makes me miss living there. If you didn’t know, Ryan and I love to hike. I love being outdoors and working out, so hiking is like a 2 for 1 deal. This was our first mini hike since Hampton has been born and we really enjoyed it. Of course, Hamp was in tow.

After our hike we got cleaned up and went to Toomer’s drugstore for their famous lemonade and then out to dinner at Little Italy (one of our favorite pizza places). It was a great weekend spent with family and friends. Here are a few pictures from our day.

Of course we couldn’t go hiking without Simon.

We can’t be on rocks without doing a little yoga, duh.

What did you do over the weekend?

Do you ever look around you and think, wow, is this really my life? I had that moment Saturday. I’m not going to lie, I felt like superwoman/ the luckiest most blessed mom and wife on the planet. Why? Because. I slept maybe 4 hours total Friday night. Yep. Hampton is waking up every 2 to 3 hours again. He has been for the last month. Anyways. I woke up to this precious face and had some serious snuggle time with my boys. I feel pretty blessed to be their mommy/wife.

I then cleaned the house and did ALL of the laundry Saturday morning. Holy, wow. Then I ran a 5k. My fastest one yet. 35 minutes is a pitiful time, but for me it’s pretty awesome. I’ll take it.

I then cleaned out my car, went to visit my dad, and took Hampton to Toys-R-Us for the First. Time. Ever. Yeah, I did that. He may have left with a few items. Some necessity, some…no, all of our purchases were necessary. Among these items was Frozen! I have been about to die to see this movie. Needless to say, we had a movie night, popcorn included. I may have fallen in love with Olaf. Hampton passed out in the car on the way home. I wore him out. Which if you’re a mom, you know that is a very good thing! Peace.

Helping me clean my car…sort of.

Passed out after we hit Toys-R-Us.

He was pretty excited when I showed him his fave new movie…if you can’t tell.

I even took a bath later that night. That has only happened probably one other time since Hampton was born. I couldn’t believe it.

I do believe this is the first time since his arrival that all the laundry has been done, the house and car (and me) have been clean AND I got in a good workout all in the same day. Yippee! #MyLifeRocks At least it did Saturday…

Ryan and I have been so blessed with an amazing church family, family and friends. We have been so overwhelmed by their support, prayers and beautiful gifts over the past few months. Our little boy is already so blessed and has more clothes than I do. Our first shower was held in our church building and honored us and 3 other couples. It was a very special night.

Silly friends!

My cousin actually had her baby 4 days after this picture was taken! We are so excited to welcome Natalie to our growing family! I’ll post about our third shower once I get some photos back from it. 🙂

This Labor day weekend was spent celebrating our family. We started the weekend off by celebrating Ryan’s great-grandmother’s 90th birthday! She is the sweetest and most generous person. It was so much fun to see the family and enjoy time with her.

Sweet Tanner sporting his Auburn hat at Nanny’s party.

Later that day, we took a fairly spontaneous trip to Jax Beach. We decided at the very last minute to go. We celebrated my grandfather’s 80th and my grandmother’s 75th birthdays. We surprised them by showing up late that night. The weekend was very relaxing. Pippa seemed to enjoy the trip.

On Tuesday we went to a few used bookstores that we like to hit when we go down there and we hit the jackpot! 22 books for $19! Now we just have to find a place to put them all. We also lucked out and found a highchair for baby H! I’ve been looking every where for an old high chair like this one. It does need to be re-painted, but we have just added that onto our list of things to do before baby. I’m absolutely in love with it! We found it at a yard sale for $20. You can’t beat that!