an affair, rekindled...

Adam walked the kids to the ocean the first night we were here.
We were amazed at the sight. As usual.
Always forget how much we L.O.V.E. the beach!
~chat soon!

finally got it...

we were on our way OUT of the smokies, heading toward south carolina and found this wonderful lookout point.
dug out the tripod and viola!
family picture with the mountain view.
had to quick change the girls out of their pj's.
my hair was still wet.
but who cares.
~chat soon

a smokie mountain photo shoot

the girls outside the cabin in the mountains.
~chat soon!

so....

we were in this beautiful place.

maybe, a place we will only see once. you never know if you will come back.

right? i don't mean anything 'dark' you just never know what the next year's itinerary will lead you...

so...we see this beautiful location. picture perfect.

i was totally envisioning a Christmas card picture.

I asked two strangers to help me out.
They both seemed slightly spooked of my camera.

I explained that you had to hold it up to YOUR EYE and PUSH THE BUTTON.

EASY...
well...this is what we were looking at....

And this is what we GOT.

really, a little blur never killed anyone, i guess!

Where did THE MOUNTAIN GO???????

Oh well...we will remember where we were, and remember the story that goes with it!Next time I will bring the tripod up the mountain! :)

~chat soon!

just an idea...

of what we saw....

since we live in the middle of Missouri. which I realize is a beautiful state, but it is pretty boring when coming to geographical attractions, if you ask ME, this BLEW ME AWAY!
can you believe that THIS is in the UNITED STATES?????
that we are lucky enough to drive to it, and take as many pictures as you want...
totally made me want to sing "Our God is an Awesome God". (anyone that knows that song by heart will be singing it for the next 12 hours)
truly breathtaking....
we'll be back for sure!
~chat soon

greetings from gatlinburg...

 

so we are packing up to leave in the morning for the next leg in our vacation.
gatlinburg has been quite a trip.
the scenery is beautiful. like nothing i have ever seen before.
i have made MANY attempts for a family picture in the mountains.
i will post those at a later time.
this was one from this morning on our deck.
chat soon!

Over and OUT!

it's 5:14am.
the van is packed.
we have everything but the barbie house, that anne sooo wanted to take.
counting down for 60 days now. trip has been planned for 5 months
excitement is building...
praying for safe travels, good weather, correct mapquest directions and good times.
~chat soon!

big stuff...

 

 

sunday, anne popped out another tooth.
kate pooped on the POTTY!
all in the same 20 seconds.
i had the camera out, why not capture BOTH things, RIGHT?! :)
they are growing up waaaaaay toooooo fast!

Happy Father's Day!

To my father, my father in law, Adam and all the other great dads I know...

A Father means so many things...
A understanding heart,
A source of strength and of support
Right from the very start.
A constant readiness to help
In a kind and thoughtful way.
With encouragement and forgiveness
No matter what comes your way.
A special generosity and always affection, too
A Father means so many things
When he's a man like you...

~Author Unknown~

countdown...to PANIC!

 

so we leave for vacation SOON.
the countdown calendar above, was taken a while ago. meaning it is MUCH CLOSER then it appears on the picture.
guess how much i have done for vacation.
NOTHING...i mean NOTHING.
i have picked up a couple things here and there.
made a list or two. lost a list, made another list.
but that is it.
usually, by this time in the countdown, i have our bags half packed, our clothes laid out, then we run out of clothes so we wear them, and i wash and pack again.
this year, i thought to myself 'sara, just wait till a few days before and then really crunch down, it always gets done, its not your first vacation, you know exactly what to take'.
well, here i am the friday before vacation and i am so panicked all i can do is walk in circles.
it always gets done.
i'll drink a diet coke.
eat a poptart.
regain calm and carry on!
HAPPY FRIDAY!
~chat soon!

hilarious.

my friend, michelle, brought in a bag to work one day toward the end of the school year and said. I have a SURPRISE for YOU! I got a little weird in my stomach, because a) i don't receive well. not because i think i won't like it but because i think i don't deserve it. weird. just move on. b) i just had NOT A CLUE as to what could be in that bag. since michelle has this innate ability to be so sweet you cry OR so funny you pee your pants, you just never can be too sure.
The picture above is what she gave me. She found the shirt while shopping with her daughter and thought it was perfect.
It is.
AND oddly enough, if I could wear it everyday I WOULD! :)
thanks michelle. you crack me up!
~chat soon!

to be two...

just a random day with kate.

b.e.p. (before eye procedure-last week...that's why her eyes are gross)

~Chat soon!

claaaaaasy!

So we have this fountain, in the landscaping in the front of our house.
I thought I would be helpful and clean it out, since it was quite gross.
I did not pour a cleaning soulution that bubbled, into it.
Yet, this is what I got.
Guessing, one or two, little girls had some fun with a bottle of bubbles when the fountain was empty, early this spring.
Nice.
It's clean now!

~Chat soon!

Monday mornings in MO!

Aren't we wierdo's?
Girls ate breakfast on the deck, with just their bottoms on.
You would have thought I took them to a 5 star restaurant.

it's the simple things, really.

 

oppresive heat and humidity=great pool day.
10 days till vacation.
12 roses looking really great on the counter, received for no particular reason! :)

simple things...
~chat soon!

and all is right with the world.

 

we survived the eye probing procedure. ;)
kate looks great. it is helping already.
no goop. no boogers. no tears, for no reason!
it's awesome.
she is more beautiful, if that is even possible.

my photog skills are not up to par this week. so pardon the blur of the picture. but in the same breath, may be one of my favorites of kate so far!

~Chat soon!

sweet sweet sweet

Oh goodness. There is NOTHING sweeter then a brand new babe.
This little bundle of love is our dear friends Meghan and Casey's new addition.
Brian Casey came into this world June 10, 3am, weighing 9pounds 3 ounces.
So, so sweet.
(by the way the hormonal fire truck is here to extinguish the dose of baby fever I now have!)

~Chat soon!

This is Kate...

Kate has to have a small procedure on her eye's tomorrow.
No big deal.
Just to unclog her tear ducts.
We have begged, and pleaded with her to just fix it herself, but since it's not working, we have to have Dr. Goodrich do it. :)
He's a great guy. Highly recommended.
Not too worried, except for she is OUR daughter and OUR daughter has to go 'under'.
BARF!
A few prayers wouldn't hurt anything...
It will all be over tomorrow by lunch!
~Chat soon!

a little paint, and some boxes

equals complete euphoria for two little ones i know! :)

starting early...

too funny...
just a random saturday for kate. catching up on her people skills.
happy tuesday!
~chat soon!

pardon the picture it was just a quick shot...

getting in the swing...

...of things.

last week the chicks went to the babysitter a couple days and then we started our summer fun.

beginning with Grants Farm and the neighborhood pool we go to.

it was a great kick off to the summer season!

looking forward to lots of good ole fashing fun this summer! :)

~Chat soon!

MMMMMMM.........

**SORRY, FOR NOT POSTING THE LINKS--THAT IS WHAT I GET FOR DOING THE POST AT 6AM AFTER THE TOOTH FAIRY VISIT**
I was folding a ton of laundry while watching Rachael Ray. (I don't want y'all to think I was sitting sipping hand squeezed lemondade and snacking on cookies)
Rachael made this.
It looked so good that I thought I could get past the odd combo of ingrediants.
It was sooooo good!
Try it. I promise, it is awesome. Going under 'company recipe' in my cookbook!

~Chat soon!

Breaking News...

 

Anne Clara is the proud owner of ONE LESS TOOTH!
Semi-tramatic, but expected since we have been trying to pull it since Wednesday.
Hopefully the Tooth Fairy will come tonight!
~chat soon!

Happy Summer

 

Adam found this little dude on the driveway. He was nice enough to bring it in to show the girls.
Kate almost crawled up my skirt.
Anne just covered her ears. I don't know why.
Either way, isn't he the cutest little thing???

~Chat soon!

silly...

I must admit something. It's silly. But I will still do it.
The transition to summer is hard for me.
I love it. I love not having to wake up at the crack of dawn. I love not having to stress out about anything major. I love the relaxation that comes with the lazy days of summer.
BUT-deep down. It's tough.
For a few short days, it's hard.
Kind of like a grieving period. That isn't exactly the right way to put it, but the closest I can come. I feel like I don't fit. My school friends/family, are busy getting settled for summer, my non work friends are either working OR carrying on with thier normal lifestyle. It's just odd.
Adam works from our home, so that is even wierder. Kind of like two caged animals trying to figure out who is the biggest. ;)
Luckily, I am on the down hill slide of that wierdness.
We have made our summer list. I stole the idea from many people, too many to list. I love the idea of it. Total focus. Things that you would love to and hope to do. We can't wait to start checking them off...

~Chat soon!