A Beatuiful Day

Found this at my favorite store in Lebanon, The Open Hearth.  Hanging on our dining room wall, it's a great story starter for my girls.  They love to read it while we're eating dinner and talk about the quotes and what they mean, and then relate it to their own lives.  My other print I bought in our mudroom says, "Today I will be happier than a bird with a french fry." 

Today was pretty happy.  Rob and the girls went rafting down the Little Miami River with the girls for Indian Princess, and there were no tears!!!!  Big.  Had some down time at the house (which it seems we haven't had a lot of this summer), then a great night at home. Just us. Nice. Nowhere to be. The girls spent the afternoon playing with their American Girl dolls, then took them out to the playset, only to end up on the dining room table.  Scattergories was a hit tonight.  We all got into the game.  I was so impressed with Ellie's involvement, even.  She came up with some really great words.  It's the girls' favorite game.  Looking forward to playing lots more family games together with Ellie getting at that "game-playing age." 

The last thing that made it great about the day was that Rob is going to RCIA this Fall to "officially" become a Catholic.  Yeah!

So Lucky

Papaw and his girl

"Mommy rhapsody" by Church on the Move

A Full Day!

After yesterday, I felt I should try to get myself in the sunshine to help brighten things up a bit.  Looking at my girls laugh, play, and hang out with friends is so good for the soul.  Here's our day at a glance:
1. PRP (Sunday School)- crammed in in the summer so the girls can go to church with us during the school year)
2. Packed picnic lunch
3. Swimming with my dear friend, Dana and her girls. 
4. Back to our house to hang with the Croppers.
5. Allergy shots for Erika
6. Dance show in the basement.
7. Scrapbooking, clay making, weaving (what girls did while I was on computer) the basement shows all the fun!!!
8. Some game playing at the coffee table
9.Silly Band swaps
10.  Sidewalk chalk drawing
11.  Quiet reading time, chores, walking dog...  the list goes on!

Really?!  All in a day?!  I think that I forgot lots, even.  I should really go to bed, but I'm on a mission, to try to remember the little things, like these sweet pics from today:

Squeezing in some math time

Had to capture this moment of "peace and quiet."  This image of the girls' flowers planted from Vacation Bible School, my candle, and my decorative tree in the living room, made me smile.  I was headed upstairs to tuck in the girlies, grabbed the camera.  Glad I did, because of the girls' pics sleeping. 

Our coffee table should be renamed our clutter table.

Could not resist these pictures.  Erika will be mad (especially because she thinks she has outgrown her sheet design (another blog post entirely!)  I haven't captured the girls' peaceful faces for a long time, except for in my mind, and I loved how Ellie is hugging all of her loves.  Her froggy she's had since birth, her teddy that Miss Beth gave her, her white teddy that Papaw got her when she was really sick last winter with her asthma, Lucky, her webkinz, Whiskers, the "stuffed, interactive" book she had as a baby beside her, and somewhere buried, (probably under her pillow alongside a picture of her Granny that passed away four years ago next month), is her teddy that she got from Granny's funeral.   Oh, bless these children, Lord.  My little angels.  I love 'em to pieces!

Night!

My Rock

I feel like I've been on blogcation!  Our summer days fill up and go by so quickly!  I feel guilty because I continue to quickly read through my friends' blogs, yet can't find the time to work on my own.  It's my loss.  I am the one that loves to go back through our days and see what a blessed life we live.  So I vow to do better in documenting our lives.  There are just so many distractions...

Besides that, this week I've been very sad.  Yesterday was our Anniversary, 14 years.  (Actually, 21 years since we've been dating!)  But that's not why I'm sad.  I am sad because a dear friend lost her husband at 38 years old.  The picture-perfect family, a beautiful wife, 4 gorgeous children, ages 5-9.  That is not right, it is so unfair.  My thoughts have been consumed by my friend's new life without the love of her life, and how she is going to cope.  (Her sister has a gift for words, you can read her blog about her loss, http://chirpandbuzzandroar.blogspot.com/, and her own blog is on the right called, The Great World City.  So I am sad that sometimes I miss my husband when he travels, but now, that seems so selfish.  Rob was out of town yesterday, on our anniversary, and it was our friends' husbands' funeral.  I stood in line by myself for three hours just to hug her and share hugs speechlessly.  She was blessed with an amazing husband, just not long enough.  So, on our anniversary, I toast my darling husband and my partner in life, and I thank God for everyday we have together.

21 years ago, I went bowling with a group of friends, and he was there.  Afterwards, he stopped by with a group of guys at my best friends' house.  We hung out for awhile, and I thought, I REALLY like this guy!  We've never looked back.  We've had our less easy times, and some pretty big sorrows, but we've worked hard to keep the lines of communication open, and have done our darndest to keep our bond, on many levels, healthy and strong.   A marriage needs tending, regular doses of laughter, gazing stupidly at each other, and the unwavering insistence on being the best friends we can be.  We fit, and I couldn't be happier.  Happy anniversary, my love!

So we had a good time, it was nice.  Caught up with some great friends after 20 years.  Wish I would've pulled out the camera just a bit earlier.  What was I thinking?  My camera is usually attached to my hip at every occasion- sometimes even at home, even when I'm making luch- just so I don't miss anything.  Well, here, for my 20th - that I had no set expectations for, feeling very overweight and not-so-proud of my physical state, I did feel the need to still go to see my friends from some of the best years of my life.  It's hard committing going to your 20th!  All everyone sees is your appearance, because they don't know the life you've lived for the last twenty years.  So, as happy/content/fulfilled as I was on the inside, to show up at your 20th a little droopy in places and a lot in others, it's pretty hard to suck it up and head on over to face everyone head on!  After catching up with so many familiar faces, I loved sharing about my life and our roller coaster of events that have brought Rob and I even closer.  Would I change one thing about my 20th?  For sure my weight and maybe a really good wrinkle cream to work some miracles.  But would I change the friends that we still talk to from my graduating class ("The Gang"), and the memories we've made since 1990 and WAY before.... not for a minute!   

Mexico Memories

Free photo slideshow customized with Smilebox

All in a day....

My sweet cousin, Steph, at Young Life fund raiser car wash cleaning up our van-- thanks Young Life!

Erika, taking pics of the clouds- making a book of cloud stories

Nighttime- went to tuck my emmy in, had to run down and grab my camera, can't miss these moments!  (she is listening and following along to a CD Audio book from the library)

Thought Bear was in bed, and she was surprising me cleaning the playroom- she cleaned the kitchen the other night while I was working out--- she's growing up too fast!!!!

Loving the prints in the girls' bathroom- found them at the Pink Hippo in Lebanon.  Needed to "update" the girls bathroom a bit, so maybe they won't hang out in mine so much; just a little more grown up in there.  Now I can't get them out!!!! 

All in a day in the life of a camera...

Downtown

Well, us girls hit the town- downtown Lebanon, that is!  We had a few days where it was the perfect 75 degree weather, and when I asked the girls what they wanted to do on such a gorgeous day, (I was preparing for a trip to the zoo) they squealed, "Lebanon shops!"  So off we went!  Allowance in hand, agenda in mind, and giddy with excitement as to what shop to hit first.  Our favorite is the Enchanted Village, but I tried to explain to the girls that we need to spread the money around a bit- just to keep it fair.  We visited two new stores that we adored and found some great "giant pears" for the kitchen.  We stopped at Whit's for ice cream, then went to Oh Suzanna (which my mom tells me is closing- it was hard enough for Fella Bella to close their doors, but Oh Suzanna is also an icon in Lebanon.  I hate to see it all happening before my eyes. 

Anyways, the girls were determined to find a "good buy" and find a Vera Bradley "something!"  They get it honestly.  Not that I'm proud of that- I was 35 when I bought my first Vera bag- can't believe my girls save their nickel and dimes to buy a handbag as well.  Ellie looked at me with the utmost reasoning in her voice, "But mom!  I am six and I have yet to carry a Vera bag of my own!"  (yikes!) 

Each bag perfectly decribes their personality, and they definitely had fun picking them out.  Erika decided on a navy blue and pink lunchbag that was a "steal", Em wanted a wristlet in the same print as her Nana, and Ellie, welll Ellie just picked this hideous purple print- oh my! 

 It's the memories that count, right?!

4th of July Fun!

After having my 20th year reunion this weekend, it is so comforting to know we have a core group of friends we still get together with from high school in my graduating class.  We have gone on vacations together before we started having kids, helped each other move before we could afford to pay movers, taken pregnancy tests together, and watched our kids grow up together.  Each time we get together, the luckier we feel.  This past year, we were at the Wright's, and had three families missing and we were still nonstop/outnumbered by children! 

Summer Days

                                         Our favorite summer snack, yum!

Ten on Tuesday

                                                    ten on tuesday......

1. On one of those perfect 75 degree summer days last week, the girls and I hit the downtown lebanon shops.  We did everything girls love to do: went to the library and checked out a couple great summer reads and filled out our summer reading list, checked out a couple new shops, checked out the vera bradley sale at "oh susanna," and grabbed a frozen yogurt at Whit's.  Found a few pieces of wall art at the pink hippo from the kelly rae roberts collection for the girls' bathroom.  Trying to get them excited about using their own bathroom to get ready in, instead of mine.  Thought maybe an update would help.  Today Ellie and I went to target while the girls were at golf camp and found a shower curtain and towels.  So tonight, erika yells down after her shower, "Mom, the bathroom pictures do not match the shower curtain!  Why didn't you take me with you?!?"  Live and learn.  so I guess the shower curtain goes back. 

2. Things have definitely slowed down here since school has been out, and we are loving every minute of it.  We were playing the "ungame," last night and one of the questions was "If you had a million dollars, what would you spend it on and why?"  ellie said flip flops, just because. Emily said, a horse farm and donate the rest.  hmmm

3. At target, (should really stay away from target!) i found a chair em has been wanting for her room.  a great deal, i thought, so i had to get it.  doesn't really match her room, but that's no worries, it's a comfy chair for her to read in!  So today as she cuddled up in it, she squirmed and re-positioned as she tried to find the right "reading position." and she said, "It's just not going to work. My neck hurts, my legs can't get comfortable, I need something else.  It's pretty, I just need a better reading chair, sorry mom."  (I didn't want to look at her and ask, "so just what does that reading chair look like?"

4. Ellie had her silly bands on her arm, and she said, "Just look at the colors, mom.  now that is art."

5. Am I really celebrating (is that the word?) my 20th year reunion this weekend?  It will be so wonderful seeing old friends, but at the same time, I am disappointed in my weight and wished I looked 1990ish again (without the hair)

6. Thinking the screened porch really helps put things in perspective for Rob and I.  Love sitting out there, listening to nothing, and enjoying his presence.  

7. just went in to let the girls know it's bedtime, and they are all crying over the extreme makeover home edition.  

8. I love that ellie is still young enough (at least she thinks she is!) to still pee in the yard while playing in the sprinkler.

9.  Can't wait to get our Mexico pics in my hands- love digital photography, just wish I ordered them more often!

10. Emily loves reading http://devotionsbycarly.blogspot.com- she actually gets her Bible out and reads and reflects on what Carly says.  Carly is one of Erika's friends sisters that writes this blog and does a wonderful job! 

Lazy Days

I had to capture this moment as the girls were hanging out in the hammock planning their "summer school" for some neighbor kids.  I guess they get it honestly.  This is the second summer they've invited some little ones over and had planned activities for them.  This year they seem much more innovative and structured.  They have a lesson plan format to write down their activities on their typed out form and they wrote out invitations and hand-delivered them.  Too cute.  Even the language they used in the letter is appropriate.  They've pulled out some of my resource books, are going to send home little books, and teach them some theme-related sign language and create centers.  How fun is that?  I pray they always continue to love school and love to learn.