a few peeks at the shower...

At the shower:

This one below is (obviously) much cuter of Andrea so I thought I'd take one for the team:She was definitely not tipsy:
Hugging all of her friends, they are all so sweet to her:
Like this one although she is out of focus. Ronan couldn't wait to be invited in. (He said he was going to park over in the lot across the street with binoculars.)
Love this. The party was officially over but we stayed for another 4 hours or so. This was when we added the remaining REAL sangria to the leftover fruit salad along with the leftover white whine and sprite. Voila! More sangria!
Impromptu birthday celebration for Kim. Andrea improvised with a Yankee candle on a slice of her shower cake.

xoxoxo

(there will be more some time later on)

the happy couple

I'm home. It was awesome. I feel bloated and only want to eat fruit & drink water for the next week. Can't wait for the wedding. They are happy. xoxo

errands are fun!

(ruby stayed in here the entire time, playing with my hair. love that.)

(james drove his corvette ALL over woodman's)

Well, today they are. We were out for about 4 hours today and got alllll sorts of stuff done, including an hour at dig & save. (side note here: I've spent the last 2 weeks looking for an off white skirt to go with a particular tank that I have. I even bought fabric to make a skirt but decided to just wear the shorts I have when the pattern looked too tricky to be fast. Guess what I found at the dig today? Yup, an off white linen skirt from Old Navy, in perfect shape. woo hoo!)

The kids were so good at the grocery store and I was happy to get everything they might need for the next 4 days. Of course, this all hinges on Patrick being able to find these things in the cupboards and refrigerator. He suffers from male refrigerator blindness so this will be harder for him than it sounds. I am hopeful.

I am finally REALLY excited to go tomorrow. I've talked with my kids a lot about me leaving, when I'll be back, and so on and I think they will be just fine...this lightens my mood tremendously. I know they'll have fun at Zoe's on Friday & Monday and they always have fun with their Dad. (please pray for Zoe and may God bless her.) :)

I have stocked up on new magazines, blow pops and cash. I have selected my airplane attire and my carry on. I finished my new little purse (basically a clothespin bag with a flap) and charged my camera. I am set.

Have a great weekend and I'll see you back here next week...probably on Tuesday. xoxoxo

what's up, doc?

Let me be honest here. My day went totally downhill after this happy little harvest scene. HOWEVER, due to extreme inner strength (aka cookies & iced coffee) and some afternoon game playing with my son, who is adorable and hilarious and a CHEATER, and not a very good one at that, things have evened out and are even looking up for the evening hours. I thought many rotten thoughts about my children today, mainly Ruby, but it turns out all she needed was a 4 hour nap. huh.

I hope your day was better than mine and here's to a happy Wednesday night! (clink!)

xoxox

pool rats

hey james, your knees are having a party. why don't they invite your trunks down?

ruby, rescuing megan: (um, let's not play drowning, girls.)

ruby, hogging the dolphins:

and, allison, cute as can be:

These pictures were from last Saturday evening at our local pool. They have a big pool as well as this small one, which is perfect for the kids to splash around in and makes it easy to keep tabs. I think James will be chomping at the bit to get in the big one more often as the summer goes on.

We were also there yesterday afternoon and it was a totally different scene. Wild and packed with moms & kids (both pools) and crazy but still cool & refreshing on the 90+ day. We're going with Patrick tonight (Wendy...you guys interested?) and again tomorrow afternoon. I am so glad we bought a family pass. James gets lessons all summer (well, we started him in July) and we all get in for as much open swim as we want for $110. Small towns are nice.

It's going to be 95 or so today and there is a heat advisory for the afternoon. I bet folks in Florida laugh at that, just like we laugh when everyone freaks out over a dusting of snow in Georgia. :) No denying it's hot, though. Right now we're going to go out back for a while before lunch.

I'm happy. This is a good week. A week of no running around...just hanging out at home in the morning (James decided to pass on summer school which was fine with me) and doing fun things in the afternoon. These 2 kids of mine definitely get after each other but sentencing them to playing in the (cooler) lower level seems to break most of it up. When they're stuck together they need to make it work. (will Tim be on the new Project Runway?? he better be.) I am slowly compiling a pile of stuff to bring to my sister's and have a couple small sewing projects to finish up before Friday. New bags seem almost necessary for a trip, don't you think? xoxo

p.s. Okay, I have to add this while I'm here. I'm very happy but also a little sad. As much as I love time on my own and can't wait to see my sister, I am a little sniffly at leaving my family. I know I'll have fun, though, and it makes it even better because I know how good it will be to come home. Also. I have good friends, near and far, and I love them. And one of them is sick, so could you please pray for her? She's on my mind all the time lately and she could use any extra prayers you have time for. thank you. xoxox

debbils lake*

My Sunday mornings now start out with these little people. I am a teacher's helper for one of the 3 year old rooms this summer and on Sunday we had EIGHTEEN kids in our room. Holy cats. One of them was my own this time...can you see her?

Patrick and the kids drove with me and went to the early service so we could leave for Devil's Lake earlier. This means I missed church, as I was helping during the service, so all day long, whenever I did something wrong (like forget the mustard), Patrick would comment on how, "that's what the sermon was about...wives who forget things all the time." hahahaha, he is so funny. I let him get away with it because it was Father's Day. He always whips the kids around like this after church. Not sure why but it always happens.At Devil's Lake, waiting for the hot dogs and playing with (the now departed) pet snail:
"That is one huge hot dog, Dad!", he said. Kids are so funny sometimes.
Love a man secure enough to drink a juice box.
On the tumbled rocks trail:
ruby:
this climbing did not make my heart stop:
this climbing did:
Dad to the rescue:

This is the second Sunday in a row we went to Devil's Lake after church. I think we have a new Sunday tradition. (except for this Sunday 'cause I'll be in BOSTON, BABY!!!)

xxoxoxooxoxo

*as ruby would say

a little show & tell

I found this awesome vintage waffle iron a couple of months ago and spent quite a while cleaning it up for my Dad for Father's Day. He has lots of cute retro stuff in his kitchen and I thought it would make a cute addition. And, it works! Although it gets VERY hot on the outside. So I figured I had better make him some hot pads, too, right?

Since getting my new machine I have been doing lots of little projects but haven't been taking the time to photograph them. (I love having a machine that actually works. We are becoming very good friends.) Also, I didn't forget that glittery project I did a while back. I mounted it on some black construction paper & white card stock and then stitched around it. I've said it before but I'll say it again, I LOVE sewing on paper for some reason.

true love is

making yourself comfortable on your father's bum.

xoxo

what I saw this morning

I'm sorry, Miss Hollyhocks, I will plant you in a better place next year. Thank you for blooming even though your neck must be hurting something awful.

I love these Sweet William my dad gave me. Look how they bloom in so many different colors! Gorgeous.Our sweet pea crop. We've already eaten a few of them. How fun.
I pulled one of these last week and yup, tiny carrots! (I planted a mini version) We'll eat these on Thursday, I think.
Love basil. Will never again not have basil growing in the summer.
My neighbor's clematis. Yes, if I lived next door to you I would probably creep into your yard early in the morning to admire your plants, too.
The lilies are blooming this morning! Just as the peonies are done. Excellent timing.
This little spot is WAY TOO MUCH. I photographed it from many angles to save for next spring when I start digging stuff outta here. There are 2 healthy hostas crammed behind that big purple thing on the end. poor buddies.
And my Lupine experiment. I carefully read the seed package and am keeping them in the shade all summer. Will transplant in the fall and see what happens. They are so picky but lovely and I want them. :)

Alright. That's it for my green stuff this morning. I figure I have one more month of garden interest ahead of me. I am sure that when I get back from my sister's wedding in mid-August it will take all I have just to water. I'm like that. xoxo

perhaps

Perhaps you thought I was so embarrassed about my last photo collage that I was avoiding you all. Oh goodness no. The boring truth is that I was busy feeling sorry for myself first for my poor irritated eyeballs (due to my neglect and over use of contact lenses) and second for my poor sick stomach after I got my new glasses. Turns out I just needed them adjusted a little and all is well again.

I had our sitter come on Friday afternoon so I could do some very important errands. Like taking pictures of myself at JoAnn Fabrics. hee! I was still kind of nauseous at the time of the above photo. My normal pleasant expression didn't return until after the adjustment. (perhaps more than my glasses need adjusting, hmmmm?)

xoxo

time I'll never get back

I spent way too long trying to get a cute picture of my new hair cut this morning. Here are the stellar results. I colored it yesterday, too, and am over all pretty happy with the whole package. My hair NEVER looks that different no matter what I seem to do. This time I got "bangs," one strand of them, so we are calling them "bang." I am so wild.

Summer afternoon - Summer afternoon...

"Summer afternoon - Summer afternoon...
the two most beautiful words in the English language."

~Henry James

We spent yesterday afternoon at Picnic Point celebrating a friend's birthday. It was a gorgeous day and lots of fun.

I am about as exciting as a stump right now, unable to put even my simplest thoughts into sentences. I might need a nap. 5:00am might be a little *too* early for me to get up.

xoxo :)

james' first day at kindergarten (kind of)

james' first day at kindergarten, originally uploaded by stephaniekg.

It's a big day for buddy. He has a 3 hour orientation today & tomorrow at school.

xoxoxo

mugshot, with yogurt pop.

mugshot, with yogurt pop., originally uploaded by stephaniekg.

(there is one more pic of them both on flickr.)

welcome to my life with James

(that would be my bedroom door on the left)

the beginning of my 39th year

I have been sitting here for nearly 45 minutes this morning (my bad) so I'm pretty much out of (tv show ending) time. Here are some pictures from the park yesterday afternoon, to fulfill my mother's requirements.

Yesterday was an excellent day. We had a laid back morning at home making cupcakes, a couple beautiful hours at the park with our buddies, and then a delicious dinner. I hadn't really thought of getting a babysitter (too spendy right now) so when Heidi offered earlier in the week it was a very nice surprise. I fell asleep last night utterly exhausted and very happy. Thank you everyone for the birthday comments, emails, cards & phone calls! Now I must go take over my parental duties from the television.

xoxo

this cracks me up

This picture is so old, but it is in the folder that my Picasa program opens up to, so I see it every day. It kills me.
Poor kid, modeling his mom's aprons. :)

it's a good day

for a birthday!

It's my birthday today...38. Holy cats.

How did that happen?

I picked myself some pretty flowers from the yard (okay, the yellow one is a weed but pretty, nonetheless), made myself some yummy cupcakes, and am having an all around good day. Tonight Heidi is watching the young ones so Patrick and I can have dinner. Birthdays are fun. :) Oh yeah, and I have a new sewing machine, some spending cash and a round trip ticket to Boston. Birthdays are really fun!

xoxo

sneak peek

Here's a little project I worked on yesterday. I love the fabric and am happy with how it turned out but my goodness, it must be hard to make a whole quilt! Lining up all those squares (and only 9 of them here) was tough!

I like my new sewing machine. I have yet to fall in love with it. I think I am holding back a little...still skeptical. I'm afraid to fall in love and then have it break and feel like I wasted money. I think with a little more time together I will be open to a more trusting and intimate (not in that way) relationship.

HAHAHAHAHHAHA. I just went off the deep end there on purpose.

xoxo

little sneak

I was talking to James and spotted something moving out of the corner of my eye. She had cleared the shelf of my tshirts without alerting me to her presence and was climbing up to make her and her baby comfortable. James was telling me the plan he figured out to sell some of his board books. He owes me a new quilting ruler to replace the one he broke this morning. (on purpose, so yes, he does need to make ammends)

Other points of interest:

James had to have vinegar on his tongue yesterday for saying he was going to kill his sister.
Ruby had her turn with the expression, and the consequence, this morning.

Just a guess, but I don't think I'll be hearing either one of them say that for a while.

xoxo

monday

gracias

my kitchen friday morning...peaceful requirement fulfilled (at least temporarily):

this is how I go outside to hang my laundry...lovely, eh? ;)

best buddies, available for only $1.29 at Kwik Trip!

First off, thank you all for your sweet comments last week. I know we all feel that way sometimes. Sometimes it's hard to say it out loud though, but for me, it's usually so much better after I do. Has everything around here magically fallen back into place? Nope. It's Sunday afternoon again, and I have another mess to deal with, but I don't mind so much because I have the whole week ahead of me with nothing to do except what I choose to do. Ahhhhhhhhh.

Also, there were a few super awesome things that happened on Friday. Friday was a great day. I woke up early, got some time alone, had some time with the kids, drove to Susan's garage sale, went to a meeting at church, took kids to a park...we were out all day and just enjoyed ourselves. I got home Friday afternoon and sitting on my porch was the new sewing machine I had ordered as my birthday gift earlier in the week...5 days early! And then a few minutes later I was talking to my sister about missing her shower (another thing that bummed me out on Thursday was getting her shower invite and not being able to go), and one thing led to another and about a half an hour after that I had a solo ticket to Boston compliments of my Dad and husband. And then James learned to ride without his training wheels (we had put them back on after a long winter of no practice) and was being so cute about it all. (starting & stopping were the most challenging part...my neighbors fence post and one of my peony bushes can attest to that.) Holy cow, right? One can never tell what the day has in store for you. Blessed. I am so blessed and it has nothing to do with me or my actions...it's all God's grace. Amazing. And I'm not saying that it takes a big present and plane tickets to get me out of a funk (although, being totally honest, that didn't hurt) because that whole day, right from the moment I woke up, was all good. It all felt like a big hug from God. And then He just kept piling the good stuff on and I had to holler, "STOP! I'M SO HAPPY I'M ABOUT TO POP DOWN HERE!!!!!"

(This is where, if I had the time, talent & inclination, I would tidily summarize all of this with a little nugget of wisdom.) ;)

xoxo

fresh

Tomorrow is a new day, right? Thank God. I have been a little off today and just am not sure why. I feel behind, I think. I feel frustrated and rushed and even more frustrated because it's summer and I'm not supposed to feel rushed! I have one more "thing to do" tomorrow morning and then can relax. I'm not making any plans for the weekend and maybe even next week...I need to get my house under control. I usually keep on top of things around here, not that my house is spotless, but on top of the day to day picking up. With all the other stuff I've done this week it just hasn't happened. I am so sick of toys. I am so sick of stuff piled everywhere. I know I am whining but I feel like crying and I'm hoping this venting will help me calm down so I can put the kids to bed and be kind to them. I don't think I ever want to go anywhere before noon this summer. I like mornings here too much and feel so much better when I have my morning routine to start things out. Now I just need to get up a *little* earlier to make it even better.

We just got back from a walk to the library, with James on his bike. HA! I had about 50lbs of books to walk home with and one boy who kept tipping over. Oh! And Ruby pooped again at the library and I had no wipes and no diaper and they were huffing around wanting to close up. Patrick had plans tonight so I am on my own for bedtime...which is coming right about NOW.

I do feel better. I hate to whine, but you know? Sometimes it just all feels too much!!! xoxo to all you moms out there and here's to a fresh start tomorrow. (thank you, Lord, for that amazing gift.)

p.s. Ruby just came and asked me for more grapes. I just realized why we are having all the poops today! (she pooped at Wendy's earlier, too.) (and Wendy, the best part of our day today was going for that walk with you guys so please don't think I'm complaining about that! and talking to my sister, that was pretty good, too, but she made me promise not to tell anyone. (I'll work on her, because it was such a gooooood story!) ) ;)

sometimes, boy, I could just eat you right up

This was one of those moments that I felt so proud of James. He sat right down with a bunch of drumming strangers and had a go at it. He was polite, respectful of their instruments and really enjoyed himself. I pray that he will have many more moments of being this sure of himself and willing to try new things.

Aren't kids awesome? Isn't it just the greatest gift to have them? (happy sigh.)

(now I have to go because there is one writhing around at my ankles for somethin' to eeeeeeeeat.)

xoxo

here is some of the random

(our yard, 5:00pm yesterday, 2 kids not shown)

SO EXCITED ABOUT:

• my sister's wedding

• liking my dress for my sister's wedding...no spanx needed, it's very flattering

• ALL of my girl cousins & aunties on my mom's side being there!!!!!!!!!
• being home this week and doing whatever we want
• getting caught up around the house
• all the sweet hugs from my kids today. maybe they sensed I was on the edge this morning and have been working together to bring me back?? whatever it is, it worked.
  

NOT SO EXCITED ABOUT:

• gaining 1/2 lb last week. might need spanx after all. (pms week is a no point counting week for me but not totally crazy, either...I suppose I should be glad it was only 1/2 pound!)

STUFF I'M EXCITED TO DO:

• sew new hammock (is the part you lay on the actual hammock? that's what I need to sew a new one of for a metal frame I got.)
• finish a couple clothespin bags (that picture was deceiving...I wear mine over my shoulder like a messenger bag...just hung it on line for photo opp as it was hard to crop both my stomach and ass out of other self portraits.) (hehehehehhehehehehehe...I said ass.)
• go straighten garage (I love garages. I love how garages smell and making them neat. However, ours gets messed up just as quickly as our house does.)
• vacuum van
• sew curtain for front window!!!!
• pot some tiny plants for house
• plant clematis (DON'T say it, Mother.)
  

STUFF I'M NOT EXCITED TO DO: (boo hiss)

• write thank you notes

Alright. That's all the brain dumping I have time for. OH WAIT, if you're into the library, the new books for JUNE are looking GOOD. Serious good stuff there. I'm back up to my 75 hold limit. (Go to SEARCH and then DON'T MISS LISTS)

Resume morning. xoxo

found: new park

I realize this may not be earth shattering news for most of you, but to find a beautiful new park just 10 minutes away is very exciting around here.

It has toads AND a giant stump. good stuff!!


*******************

I miss rambling on about my (super exciting) life. Maybe I'll get a chance later. Have a good Tuesday. xoxo
(p.s. last night I dreamt about a perennial with a bloom that looked like a baseball. do I need to get out more??)