Fun with the Girls!!

This past weekend, Chloe and I were in need of some girl time. We got together with our girlfriends, Madeline and her mother, Amanda, and Sophia and her mother, Diana, for a little splash pad playdate! A splash pad just opened up in a neighboring city, so we thought that we'd give it a try.

These girls were so cute!

   
Afterwards, we went out for some frozen yogurt at Sweet Frog! Yum!

We had a fun time and I can't wait to get the girls (and ladies) together again soon!

Also, I attended a baby shower that was being thrown for a childhood friend of mine, Heather! It was such a cute shower and she couldn't have looked more beautiful!

We can't wait to meet Shelby Ann!

As you can see, we had a fun, and girly, weekend! Don't worry, the boys found something to occupy their time. Chris and Evan went bowling while Chloe and I had our girls' day, although they didn't come home with any pictures. Boo!

Blogging Milestone

I have been feeling a little drained over these past couple of weeks, so I decided to take a little blogging break. To be honest, I've been taking a break from a lot of our extracurricular activities. I blame it on the weather. It has been raining on an almost daily basis for a couple of weeks now and the forecast doesn't look that promising for this next week. Boo!

In fact, I had big plans to create a blog post marking the 1 year anniversary of my first blog post, but that day came and went (in case you were wondering, it was July 10th)...and I was okay with that. I did manage to squeeze in my 101st blog post before that date. My goal was 100. And to date, I have surpassed 5,000 blog views, many of them from blog spammers:/

Initially, when I started this blog it was to document our lives, so that Chloe and Evan would have a "journal"of their young lives, something they could look back on when it was long forgotten. Also, it was a great way to share our lives with the family and friends that we don't get to see as often. I disliked posting pictures and feeling like I wanted to say so much more about that event or that time in our lives and blogging gave me an outlet.

However, through blogging I have come in contact with a whole blogging community. It's so refreshing to have a peek into others' lives and realize that although we all do it different, it's special in its own way:) The entertainment, the laughs, but most of all, the support, is beautiful. No other word could describe it.

I've learned to look past my shortcomings, because we all have them, and just to be satisfied with what I have and how I do it as a Christian, wife, mother, sister, daughter, and friend. I decided from the very beginning, that my blog was going to be a positive one. I've dealt with my issues, dilemmas, and heartbreaks on my own time, but that's not to say that I haven't had them. From reading other blogs and coming in contact with other bloggers, I've realized that what seems to be, isn't always what is. This blog has provided some personal growth for me as well:)

Sorry to go off on that tangent...

All that to say,

Happy 1st Year Blogging Anniversary!!!

Our Weekend

Our weekend was pretty low-key with one exception...

We celebrated this sweet girl's birthday!!!

The littles with the birthday girl, Camdyn!

These were just a couple of my favorite pics from the party.

Jennifer, Camdyn's mom, is such a great party planner. Seriously, she could write a book (or blog;)) on theme parties! We always have so much fun celebrating birthdays with Camdyn and her sisters:) 

Also, we set Chloe's hair in curlers on Saturday night and I couldn't resist having a little photo shoot with her on the following morning in her Sunday best. (Evan was not having it...Remember, he's not a morning person. Ha!)

That pretty much summarizes our weekend. Whatever we end up doing, big or small, I always enjoy spending time with my family and friends:)

Happy 4th of July!!!

Our Fourth started at our church on Wednesday night with a barbecue and patriotic service.

Here were a few quick shots that I took of the littles on our way out of the door!

The barbecue and service were a beautiful way to start our Fourth! The littles had fun playing games that the youth group had set up and we enjoyed some yummy dogs and chips (very American)! Also, the sermon reminded us of the faith (in Him) that our Founding Fathers had when signing the Declaration of Independence and developing our great nation!

After the service, Chloe and I baked a cake! Chloe went to bed while the cake was cooling, so she didn't get to see our finished cake until the next morning.

While the littles were fast asleep, I set out a few surprises!

We started our 4th of July mid-morning with a patriotic brunch:) I asked Chris to pick up some square frozen waffles while he was at the grocery store, but he couldn't find any, so I settled for octagon-shaped waffles, but you get the idea. (Maybe it's time to invest in a waffle iron??) The waffle and layered drink ideas were totally "borrowed" from Pinterest.

Chris insisted on being a booger about taking pictures, so until he cooperates, I'm posting what I get!

After lunch, we had our big reveal! Cake instructions found {here}

The morning was a wash, literally! Our neighborhood parade was cancelled due to the rain. Luckily, Aunt Sara got a photo of the littles on their bikes later that afternoon.

 

 

We played with some new toys on the front porch...

 

 

And enjoyed some afternoon snacks.

 

 

Chloe also got her nails done courtesy of Momma's Nail Salon!

 

 

After a pretty uneventful day, Aunt Sara and Rob came over for dinner. Why I didn't get any photos of the littles with them...or, why I didn't take advantage of another adult being around to snap a quick family photo...I don't know:(

 

That evening, we decided to head out to our neighborhood park to watch the band which had not been cancelled. As you can tell, we were hot, sweaty, and tired by that point.

 

 

And, in case you were wondering, yes. Yes, that is a live frog that Chloe is holding in her hands!!! Remember those tadpoles that the littles would catch in the ditch during the spring....

 

 So, that was our Fourth, inspiring, lazy, fun, and tiring! I hope that everyone had a safe and Happy 4th of July! God Bless America!!!



Busy, Busy, Week!

This is the little blog post that could. I've lost count of how many times that I've sat down to type this.
 
Last week was a super busy week! At the beginning of this year, I made a commitment (for lack of a better word) to myself that I would lead a more balanced lifestyle. Last week I broke that commitment, but I made up for it this past weekend by doing as little as possible;)
 
We started our week by attending Maddy's 5th birthday party on Sunday. This was the first time that the littles had gone bowling. We did it kid-style with bumpers and these neat contraptions that helped to aim the bowling ball.
 

 
We had such a fun time!
 

 
I had to throw this one in that the birthday girl's mom, Meghan, took at the party. I always seem to be behind the lens. Ha!

It was a surprise party for Maddy and something tells me that she really enjoyed it!;)
 

 
Happy Birthday sweet girl! I always love catching up with old friends.
 
Also, last week was Vacation Bible School at our church, Kingdom Rock! The Children's Chapel was transformed into a Kingdom. The goal of this VBS was to teach the kids that the Kingdom of God is real and ways to "stand strong for God" in our modern world.    
 

It was 5 energy-packed nights (although I was only there for three of them) of lessons and activities reaffirming ways that we stand strong for God! Here were a few of the highlights.

I loved this one with Chloe and a couple of her girlfriends from Rainbows.
 

 Snack time

We enjoyed the Fanfare Finale at the end of the nights.

Evan dancing with his crew leader:)

Evan really liked Ms. Mary.
 

And of course, I had to get in one with my littles!

It was such a busy week, running from work to VBS. Even with my planned "rest nights," I was exhausted by the weekend. It was truly worth it though. Almost 50 children were saved and the church reached out to almost 200 children through VBS that week. It's amazing to see God's work!