Insta Joys

it's friday.

this week has felt like it went on forever.

i have been in recovery mode from being gone last weekend.

yesterday was running a bunch of errands.

today we will be organizing, cleaning, and laundry before a full weekend.

 last friday morning we had the opportunity to go to a special screening of A Dolphin's Tale.

we met up with a friend and her kiddos for the screening.

the kids were thrilled as part of the special screening was popcorn and a drink.

the movie was great.

 i whipped up a double batch of chocolate chip cookies to take with me to cali

pretty sure she would have left me at the curb at LAX without them

 a highlight of the weekend was meeting sweet joy after being bloggy friends for almost 4 years

 the blog sugar loveliness on our tables

yummy!

on monday after blog sugar, we had breakfast at the camp in costa mesa

each parking spot had a saying

we all loved this one: show up for life

yes, show up for life.

be intentional

be present.

live a good story.

monday afternoon back to LAX for my flight home

this boy spends most afternoons playing football with the other boys in the neighborhood

he plays football until its time to go to football practice

he is living and breathing football right now... at least until basketball starts

working math with my boy

i am so happy lance put up these white boards in our school room

it makes teaching so much easier when we have a big space to write on

 she was NOT tired

she did NOT need a nap

pretty sure she was right :O)

i went outside to get the mail the other morning 

the sun was shining

it was warmish

so i sat down in the grass to sort the mail and sneak a minute of quiet

a picnic lunch in their fort by flashlight

 mauryn has been working on this move

she thinks its pretty cool she can touch her toes to her head

 a very full afternoon of errands

a sonic happy hour stop is a requirement to get us through the rest of the afternoon

i did go through a little sonic withdrawal while in cali

so happy to be reunited with my diet dr pepper with cherry and the sonic ice... yummy!

this guy had a football scrimmage last night

in 85 degree temps

when will fall ever get here??

what was the highlight of your week??

linking up with jeannett for insta friday

 

Camp Out

i have a little bit of OCD when it comes to my house.  

so when landon and mauryn started to make a fort in our living room i started to hyperventilate a little bit.  i knew this fort was going to create a BIG mess.

i also knew how much joy it would bring them to create the fort and spend the day playing in it.

i took a deep breath and made a deal with them.  they could build the fort and use the baskets from the coffee table to hold down the blankets if they did not empty every basket on the living room floor.

they gladly took the deal.

they found a bunch of blankets and pillows, covered the coffee table, and made a cozy spot underneath.

they found a flashlight and had their lunch laying in their fort. {deep breaths}

they talked.

they giggled.

they created stories.

they used their imagination.

they didn't ask to watch tv or play the wii.

they spent the entire afternoon living in their fort world.

then last night they asked to sleep in it.

i thought it would last about 5 minutes.

i was sure there would be a little face in my bedroom in the middle of the night.

it didn't happen.

these two little ones curled up next to each other, under the coffee table with blankets draped over them, and slept all night.

i am so thankful i said yes when i wanted to say no.

it would have been so easy for me to say no.

saying no would ensure that the room would have been tidy but then i would have traded a tidy room for memory making, imagination building, laughter, and sweet moments between a brother and sister.

i need to remember this more often.  

what have you said yes to lately?

WIWW: Blog Sugar Edition

since i was at blog sugar this past weekend, i decided join in with lindsey and document some of my outfits.

a few disclaimers: i do not like having my picture taken let alone taking self portraits.  so in some pictures i look like i am in pain. i was... this was painful!

i took the photos on my iPhone in the hotel room in cali.  i know the lighting isn't the best but since i was not comfortable with the pics i was too lazy to go close the curtains and do the pics over again. so these pics will have to do :o)

saturday: travel day

jeans: maurices

top: maurices

tank: modbod

shoes: target kids section

bracelet: gift from sarah

sunday: lunch and a little shopping

jeans: maurices

tanks: maurices

shoes: kohls

earrings/necklace: maurices

bracelet: gift from sarah

sunday pm: BLOG SUGAR

jeans: maurices

tanks: maurices

earrings/necklace: maurices

ring: ny company

bracelets: gift from sarah/lisa leonard

monday: travel day

jeans: maurices

tank: mod bod

shirt: maurices

earrings: ny company

bracelet: same

flip flops: old comfy tevas

Sugary Sweet Weekend

this past weekend i hopped on a plane and headed for cali to meet denise for a blog conference called blog sugar.

i really had no idea what to expect from blog sugar other than an opportunity meet up with some of my blog friends in real life.

blog sugar was so much more than a blogger meet up.  i left feeling challenged and encouraged by our speakers.

i have spent the summer struggling with finding time and desire to blog as well as feeling a little insecure about my blog.  i spent too much time in the comparison game: i am not as good of a writer, i am not as witty, i don't have anything profound to say, and the list could go on and on.  one of the things i came away with from the conference is that this blog is as unique as i am.  we each have a unique voice and a story to tell.  i shouldn't try to make my blog like anyone else's.   i am taking sarah's advice and reevaluating my reasons for blogging and working on a mission statement. i want this blog to have serve a purpose not just my purpose but His purpose.  as jeannett stated so well we need to be ready to bring it.  

i definitely left renewed and excited about my blog again :o)

here are some pics from sunday:

each seat had a little bit of sugar to start out the night.... who can pass up a cake donut with pink frosting and sprinkles.  yum!

i've been friends with joy for about 4 years and was thrilled that i finally got to meet her and give her a big hug.

so fun to meet kim, heather, and erin

my sweet friend sarah was a speaker at the conference. it was so wonderful to see her!

they had a great photo booth set up for pics. 

denise and i posing for a photo op.

so great to meet up with lindsey, who was also speaking at the conference.

lindsey, me, joy, denise

me, denise, and sweet chelsea 

kim, denise, me, jessica

kim and jess are my faithful words with friends/hanging with friends players :o)

me, lindsey, denise, and mel {thanks for the photo mel!}

i was so thankful for the opportunity to get to meet some blog friends in real life, see old friends, and be  rejuvenated and renewed about blogging.

thank you rachel for your vision!

Insta Joys

it's finally FRIDAY!!

i have thought it was friday since about wednesday which makes for one long week.

we' ve been crazy busy with kids' activities and school.  

so once again two weeks worth of iphone photos.

landon has some crazy muscle definition for a 7 year old boy.

like c.r.a.z.y

he is strong

he throws out pulls out like nothing

someday i'd love to do one

the other night he did 7!

game face on

he is loving football

his team, the skyhawks are undefeated so far

there are only 2 kids who will move onto tackle next year

for the first two games this guy was hawk of the game...getting the most flags

whoop!

i finally finished up these art on the go trays

my kids have loved them

they are perfect for the many hours we are in the car each week or for mauryn to use at landon's games/practice

this little lady mastered monkey bars at the gym

she is pretty excited

dance started up again

she has been waiting and waiting for this day to come all summer long

dance is her passion right now

little miss had a run in with a metal pole at the playground

i thought we had two teeth that were going to fall out but they weren't even loose

so a trip to the dentist ensued

we are in a holding pattern hoping they stay in as long as possible

someone likes to take my phone and take self portraits

always a treat to see this face when i upload pictures

one of our college kids gave landon some football pads

he got his pads on and was ready for some football

 our first field trip of the fall was to the botanical gardens

we've lived here six years and i have never been there in the daylight

we usually go in the winter for their winter garden a glow celebration

the kids loved it

the weather was perfect, they were able to do a little hiking, and learned about plants native to idaho

we did the lewis and clark field trip... lewis and clark found 260 different plants on their journey and 120 of those plants came from idaho

 oh someone found my phone again

geesh!

morgan has been taking stills at landons games so i can get some video

she is loving her job as photographer in training {although she would tell you she doesn't like it because she is almost a teenager and admitting you like it would be so uncool!}

 new kicks for my little lady

she can run SO much faster now

 sonic happy hour... i do love you!

i am totally in love with their diet dr. pepper with cherry

it is my absolute favorite

 landon was working on his bible verse for his sunday school class

he got up to find a highlighter to mark it in his bible

made his mama's heart smile

 landon can be the master procrastinator when it comes to his school work

his latest form of procrastination was creating a tic tac toe board and then cutting out x's and o's from paper to play the game

as i was walking around the house the other day i noticed that pretty much any piece of wooden furniture had a tape cross on it with some decorations

courtesy of mauryn

how was your week?

linking up with jeannett for insta friday