LOWCOUNTRY LAPLANTES: Thankful Wednesday: Holidays, Double Dates, and Best Gals

Howdy Ho, neighbor. I know, I know...it's supposed to be Wedding Wednesday. But, it's my blog and I'll do what I want.

It's been a pretty full couple of weeks, and I've been a wee bit slack on the blog posts. But, fret not! I am back. (When I say fret I really just mean my Mom because I feel certain that she is the only one who always reads these things. Hi Mom!)

So here's what I'm thankful for this week...

1. Big family holidays

I absolutely love them. I can't help myself. My family is fantastic and I can't help but enjoy spending time with them. So here's what we did...

We went to an Easter Egg Hunt where Madison apparently wanted to show her belly to myself and my sister-in-law Kristen.

Norah was pooped.

Sawyer was a good boy.

And Norah met her cousin, Rodgers (*yes after Aaron Rodgers)

Note: The Amell sisters racked UP at the Easter Egg hunt. Just know that we are not to be messed with. We were raised to be competitive, and we win at all costs (including running past children).

We even made cupcakes for Heather's birthday. Madison was a huge help, and she put 15 candles on one cupcake for Heather.

Uncle D & Madison played chalk in the garage thanks to the rain.

Some centerpieces

Delicious ham

Popsicle cutting delicious ham

Pinterest-worthy eggs made by my sister

Pinterest-inspired centerpieces

A little mantle action

Someone discovered mud.

Us & my In-Laws

Madison was grumpy, so we went with the emotion.

Goofy picture (typical)

These two supervised the egg hunt.

THE CUTEST VIDEO EVER MADE

Madison, our two year old niece, is officially in her "I will copy whatever you do" stage. Here's a little taste of what was going down in my parents' garage on Easter Sunday. Too cute for words. The "hi-ya" is the best.

Overall it was such a fantastic Easter!

2. Having young couples to hang out with

We are ridiculously lucky to be surrounded by such wonderful people. We've been on so many double dates recently, and frankly I love it.

Most of them stemming from this group (our epically awesome kickball team that ended their season on a two game winning streak...this week we went ultra-American...hence the jorts and bandanas...please try to ignore that I look like Willie from Duck Dynasty):

Last week we went on a Tuesday night date to our favorite diner, Early Bird Diner, with Kayla (who is practically my little sister) and David (The Rip). Then, Friday we went to Dana, Lauren, and Penny's house for baked ziti and to play quite possibly the best game ever made (more about that on Friday).

We just feel really happy to have young, fun couples to be around!

3. Best girlfriends

I was recently talking to a good friend about how lucky we are to have found our friends in high school. It's rare that people keep in touch after school, but these happen to be my core group of friends at the age of 26. In fact, I met most of my favorite people in elementary and middle school. I just happened to find quality people pre-puberty. Don't get me wrong...I adore my college and law school friends, but I feel pretty lucky that over 100 of our wedding guests were high school friends and their families.

So let's get to it...I feel so incredibly blessed to have these four in my life.

These girls are the most loving, beautiful, and supportive friends a girl could ask for. I couldn't even begin to explain how amazing each one is without writing a book here. Just know that these are strong women who I am lucky to have by my side every step of the way.