This is how I spent most every summer day of my childhood. That is the best part of having a pool in your backyard. Even though we have to load up and drive a whopping three miles to get to Garan's, it is worth every moment of preparation. Ella was pretty scared and even a little mad at me for making her get in the water. She can touch the bottom of the shallow end this summer and I fully intend for her to be swimming by the end of the season. She did really good and I promised that we would try to spend every afternoon there after I picked her up from Heidi's. Sophie spent her afternoon in the shade, snuggling belly-down on the picnic table. Maybe when she has a little better head control and the water warms up a little, we'll let her take a turn. Until then, she's got it made ...
ella
Fashion Girl, Revisited
This is what my fashion girl wore to school yesterday. The first dress she picked was a long-sleeved denim dress, so we compromised on this one. In addition, she had on Hello Kitty wellies, mardi gras beads and a Jonas Brothers lunchbox. How could I not take a picture? ...
Nursery Update, The Big Reveal
I am finally ready to show you the finished nursery and it's about time, considering Sophie will be five weeks old tomorrow! We have really enjoyed spending time in here getting to know our newest addition and I can't wait to see how much she loves it as she gets old enough to play and spend time in her sanctuary. The crib is the first thing you see when you walk in the room. We finally settled on having it under the mantle long ways to keep the back wall from feeling too crowded. It was in the middle of the room in Ella's nursery and we loved being able to walk around it and I'm so glad we placed it here because people can stand on either side of it to get a good peek at her when she's sleeping. The bedding was in Ella's nursery and is Bubbles by Bacati in pink and green. We have a ...
Scrum Dilly
Scrum Dilly means scrum-dilly-umptious, as in scrumptious, which also means wonderfully beautiful, handsome or fabulous... depending on the situation I find myself in. These pictures definitely called for a hearty "scrum dilly." I swiped them from K's blog today and I can't wait to share the rest! According to her, I should have them all in the next few days, but you can click here for a few more beauties. Thanks, K. We love and appreciate you more than you know. ...
Front Yard Campout
Poppy called to see if Ella wanted to spend the night with him on Friday for a front yard campout. He has a two-man tent and thought it was just the perfect size for he and Ella to enjoy. Josh and I were skeptical about whether or not she would last all night... especially since she is afraid of a gnat. We asked Garan to please take some pictures with her camera. Ella & Poppy setting up the tent. All done. Of course, no campout is complete without a sack full of books and toys. Heading in for the night. I hear there were a few squeals and some cell phone room service requests, but all in all a very successful campout. The sun is up. and this is what I saw when I stopped to pick her up at 8:45! Not only did she make it through the night, but she wouldn't let ...
Field Day Crashing
Friday was Field Day at my mom's elementary school and Ella, Sophie & I decided to crash. It was awfully hot outside and Ella didn't play nearly as much as I'd hoped she would, but she told me she had a "great day at Garan's school" so I'm glad we spent the day in the heat! {Ella caught up with her friends Madi & Lauren} {We ate yummy cherry sno-cones and had our face painted} {Sophie got to try out her sling and LOVED it} {Ella tried out the inflatable obstacle course and declared it "too hot!"} {so we wrapped things up by playing games in Gran's classroom to cool off} ...
Strawberry Patch
My grandparents live on the same street as we do. And the same street as my sister, my parents and all of my mom's siblings. Small town, huh? I don't know if you'd technically call it a farm, but that what I call it. My Pop raises cows and grows hay because he loves to. In fact, he told me he had been thinking about selling the tractors and the cows and buying a fishing boat. He changed his mind and bought a new tractor instead; he was afraid he might get bored. We spent the afternoon at their house yesterday, riding the tractor, planting flowers, playing hide-and-go-seek and picking strawberries. It was a beautiful day. At first it was just me, Ella & Sophie enjoying the sunshine with Pop & Gran-mom. Then my mom got there, then K and Cory. Three more of my aunts and a ...
My Day
For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be a mother. Doesn’t every little girl put a pillowcase on her head and dream of the wedding… then stroll their baby dolls around and think about the perfect life? I always assumed I would marry young, go to grad school, teach elementary art and have a house full of children. All before I was thirty. That isn’t exactly how things turned out. I did meet my soul-mate pretty early in life; I was seventeen and he was captain of the football team. Pretty cliché, right? I knew not long after that that we would spend our lives together, and we have. We married the summer after I graduated college because he didn’t want to wait the one more year it would take for grad school. I always planned to go back, but never did. Although my plans took a very ...