Fun in the Sun

We are smack in the middle of summer heat around here with heat indexes of 100+. You would think that would make us stay in and take it easy, but for some reason it hasn't. We have been shopping, gardening, having playdates, reading (see previous post), picking berries (OK, we did that before it got too hot), and of course swimming, swimming, swimming! Thus, the reason for the bloggy silence lately. We've just been too busy to sit down at the computer.

We have a relatively quiet morning today, and while the kids are playing nicely together (for the moment at least), I thought I'd jump on here and share some pics of our summertime adventures. Here's what we've been up to...

Earlier in the summer, before the mercury jumped too high,
we went blueberry picking. This was our first time to pick fresh berries, and we loved it!

We went with friends which made it even more fun!

Of course, the best part was the yummy blueberries we are still enjoying!

We spent 4th of July weekend at Grandma & Grandpa's.
Despite the heat, the kids had so much fun climbing trees....

Driving the "tractor"...

And just being in the country.

What's summer without a trip to the county fair?
Little Miss and Little Man loved it all...the petting zoo,

The rides

And the food!
It's not the fair without sno cones and cotton candy, right?

Now that the heat has settled in, we've spent a lot of time in the water.

There is an awesome park nearby with a huge fountain for the kids to play in.
As you can see, it's a favorite water spot for us!

So, what have you been up to this summer?

Cute Library Totes

Summer is officially here and in our house that means summer reading programs!! I have so many fond memories from my childhood of spending hours every summer at our local library. It helped, of course, that the library was air-conditioned and only a 4-block bike ride from my house.

I'm so glad Little Miss has inherited my love for books, and it seems Little Man is following in his big sister's footsteps. Our recent trips to the library have produced stacks of books so large, we can hardly carry them all home. In fact, we live within 10 miles of two libraries and are planning to take advantage of both reading programs this summer! That's why I was so excited for us to make these fun, library tote bags (an idea I adapted from something I saw in a magazine).

First, I purchased the needed supplies. I am NOT a "crafter," so the simpler the better...that's why this was perfect. All we needed was some canvas tote bags (I found a package of 3 in really fun colors!), iron on decals (optional), and fabric markers or paints.

I let Little Miss and Little Man choose the tote bag they wanted, then they set to work unleashing their creativity on one side of the tote.

Little Miss is quite the artist and filled every inch of hers!

On the other side I affixed their chosen iron-on decals...so easy! (Can you believe this is the first time I've done an iron-on? I told you I'm not crafty!) I used the fabric markers to personalize each tote. For example, "Little Miss's Books." (This picture was taken before I wrote their names.)

As a bonus, the totes will also serve as a place to keep all our library books organized. In an attempt to reduce lost library books and save Mom's sanity, when a library book is not being read, it is stored in the tote which has a special place in each of their rooms. That way, when we're ready to head to the library, we know where all the books are (in theory at least).

They were pretty proud of their totes. (Little Man is growling like the lion on his bag in the above picture.) And, even though I'll probably still end up carrying all three totes--full of books--from the library on each visit, they've created something they are proud of and ready to use. If it helps keep us a little more organized along the way, all the better!

For more fun, summer reading program ideas, head over to visit my friend Lora at My Blessed Life. She has some great tips!

Happy reading!

The Wonderful World of DISNEY!

Well, it's been awhile since my last post. I had good intentions...really. But it seems the end of school and the beginning of summer brought parties, projects, and activities that took precedence. So, almost two months later, here it is--highlights of our trip to Disney World.

At the end of April we surprised Little Miss (on her birthday!) with a trip to Disney World. We literally left that afternoon. Not only were we going to Disney World, but she would fly on an airplane (the first she would remember), spend the week with her grandparents, aunts & uncles, and cousins, AND get to visit the Magic Kingdom with them all! Not a bad surprise for a 6-year-0ld. (I'm not sure who was more excited, Little Miss or me!)

Here are a few highlights from our trip:

We made it to the Magic Kingdom!

The boys

Our top priority: Seeing the castle!

The kids LOVED exploring Tom Sawyer's Island

What's a trip to Disney without meeting Minnie Mouse?

Downtown Disney was awesome, too!

The Honey I Shrunk the Kids! playground was a huge hit...Little Miss
loved the fact that this giant dog nose really breathed! Gross!

The Winnie the Pooh ride was awesome...even
while we waited in line there was plenty to do

Mary Poppins!...Little Miss was so happy to meet her...and
I was so proud that my girl knew who Mary Poppins is...not all the kids
there did (such a tragedy in my opinion!)

I LOVE this picture. The expression on Little Miss's face is priceless!

New friends :)

What exciting trips do you have planned this summer?

Little Miss is 6!

I can't believe it's been six years already since I first held my baby girl. At the time I knew my life was about to change, but I had no idea how much! I knew I would love her more than anything, but I had no clue what that would look like. Now I have a small idea, and here are just a few things I adore about my Little Miss...

• She has a great since of humor; my favorite moments are when she cracks herself up and giggles uncontrollably.
• She snuggles better than anyone I know.
• Her imagination knows no bounds.
• She writes fantastic stories (and illustrates them!)
• She loves to learn.
• Her world is black & white...if it's right, it's always right, if it's wrong it's always wrong.
• She has a big heart.
• She is intensely loyal to all her friends.
• She is a deep thinker.

Happy Birthday, Little Miss! We love you!

Rapunzel Party

I'm a little behind in blogging...with moving, birthday celebrations, a special vacation (more on that in a later post), planting a garden, and end-of-sch00l-year festivities there's been a lot going on, and therefore a lot to catch up on. Even though Little Miss's birthday party was a month ago, I ran across so many fun ideas while planning it that I just had to share...

As soon as we saw the Disney movie Tangled, I knew we had found the theme for Little Miss's birthday party...Rapunzel. There was just one problem...in the three weeks between viewing the movie and having the birthday party, we were also purchasing a house and moving. To make things even more exciting, our closing was delayed for almost two full weeks. So from the time the movers showed up, I had exactly 9 days to plan a Rapunzel Party fit for a princess. Fortunately, a lot of the "idea work" had already been done.

As is often the case, budget was another factor. Since we had just purchased a new home, cash flow was at a minimum. So I began the search for quick, easy, and affordable ideas. I stumbled across new inspiration at SuperMomMoments.com. I loved her simple, yet elegant ideas and attention to detail.

Armed with Super Mom ideas, my own creativity, and a budding almost-6-year-old artist I set out to tackle the tower. While I loved the idea of the invitations at SuperMomMoments, my choice was clear when Little Miss impulsively colored a picture of Rapunzel in her tower one afternoon. What better to adorn our invitations than her very own creation? We scanned the picture, I added some fancy font work, and viola...an invitation masterpiece for all her friends.

Little Miss's original artwork

I kept decorations simple by making these cute little lanterns for the stairs leading to the party area (i.e., the basement). This was perfect since I don't consider myself particularly crafty...I bought some purple lunch sacks (purple of course being Rapunzel's signature color), borrowed a heart-shaped paper punch (I think a sun or moon would have looked better, but I had to use what I had!), and purchased some LED no-flame votive candles at Hobby Lobby.

I also found a template for this fun banner on SuperMomMoments. (For those who've seen the movie, you'll recognize the design from the town festival scene.)

Snacks were inspired by the town festival scene as well...crackers, cheese, and fruit. And what would a Rapunzel party be without pretzel braids? Speaking of braids...I found the idea for the adorable wig pictured above here. It was a perfect addition to our little princess. (Although, in the spirit of full disclosure, it didn't last through the party...remember the part about my not being very crafty? Let's just say my workmanship left much to be desired...but it was cute while it lasted!)

My favorite part of the party was this Wanted poster of Flynn Rider that my brother-in-law so graciously drew for me when he was in town earlier in the week. Three guesses where I got the idea...yep,SuperMomMoments to the rescue again!

The kids loved trying get pin the frying pan right on Flynn's nose. I'm not sure who had more fun, the kids or adults. (And to make it even easier, I downloaded the frying pan template here.)

I found so many amazing cake ideas online, but since I was running out of time and already spreading myself thin I knew better than to try to take on a tower cake. I ordered this one from a local bakery. The girls loved it, and it tasted yummy, too...win, win!

Everyone seemed to have a great time, and most importantly my Little Miss princess deemed it "the best day ever!" (Worth it all, right there.)

Moving Day!

My Least Favorite Thing to Do: Waiting

I've had to go back and read my last post several times in the last week as we have still not moved into our new house. Isn't it funny how our perspective can change from the mountain top to the valley? The mountain is the same size, whether you're looking up at it from the bottom or at the summit looking back over how far you've come. However, it seems so much more intimidating from the foot of the mountain than it's peak. And once you've made it to the top, that doesn't mean it's smooth sailing from that point...there's another one just around the corner waiting to be climbed.

That's where we are now...after a year and a half of waiting, praying, searching, and hoping, we finally found our house. We were not only on top of the mountain; we were on top of the world. It is a great house and we were getting it for a great price. Suddenly, we turned a corner and there was another mountain to climb. This one doesn't necessarily require much action on our part...it's simply more waiting. Waiting on others to do their part. Waiting on the process to be completed. You may not know this about me...I don't like to wait. I find it more exhausting and taxing than actually doing something.

But alas, we wait. There's not much else to do at this point. So here we sit....waiting and praying. I must continually remind myself what I wrote before about God's timing being perfect. I still believe that...it's just difficult to remember it. It makes it more difficult that our delay appears to be caused by negligence and oversight on the part of others. That makes it even more difficult to wait. But what else can one do.....simply wait. I've always loved this song, but it means more to me now than ever before...

While I'm Waiting
by John Waller

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Takeing every step in obedience

While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it's not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait

I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve you while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting on You, Lord