Mom and Dad are breakin’ loose!

For the second time since becoming Owen’s Momma and Dadda…Jer and I are leaving town and going somewhere overnight without him. Since having Owen this will be the longest time Jer and I have spent together just us. I will admit that I am feeling the pang of separation from Owen already. It’s such a bittersweet feeling!! I miss him already and we’re not even gone. BUT…I know the time will be just what we need. A few days to focus on ourselves. Leave work, stress, dishes, and responsibilities behind us.

What do we have planned? In all honesty, nothing too much. We rented a condo. We’re taking frozen pizza and movies. We have dinner/date night plans and a little shopping to do. And we hope to snag a hike at the State Park. Our condo has “sweeping views” of the lake according to the rental agreement. So my biggest goal is to sit and stare out the window…or if the weather is ok…off the porch and watch the water sparkle and enjoy some alone time with my hubby.

See you next week!

There are no better words...

Thank you April for this post.  I wanted to join you in this prayer, so I'm copying the words and posting them here as well. Strength in numbers right? 

My best friend also told me to keep my head up and to rally together.

I think we will be ok, if we hang onto God and each other.

I was sure by now
God You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say "Amen", and it's still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

[Chorus:]
And I'll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
And every tear I've cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to you
And you raised me up again
My strength is almost gone
How can I carry on
If I can't find You

But as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

[Chorus
I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The Maker of Heaven and Earth

A Wedding Teaser

So I sat down to do some editing and downloading of photos from the wedding…I had a ton. And realized it’s going to take me awhile. So…in the meantime I wanted to load a couple teasers.

The only photo I have from the rehearsal is this.  And this was at dinner after the rehearsal.  This pretty much sums up Owen's rehearsal experience.  He did NOT understand why it was necessary to do any of the business we were doing at the church that night!  The end!

 This cutie patootie was just adorable with her hair all curled ;)

And Miss Jackie after her do was all finished up!  So pretty!

More to come!

Thankful Thursdays...a few days late!

This week I am thankful for:


Hanging with Owen on Thursday…even though he was sick there is nowhere else I’d rather be!

Shopping on Friday. Just me and my grocery list. I made 3 stops, loaded up on household needs and groceries. It was great!

Making caramel apples with Jer on Friday night

Seeing this little man dressed up on Saturday!

Celebrating Jer’s 28th birthday and talking with Steff and Bryan until 12am.

Take Care Clinic for the ear infection I got from catching Owen’s cold! The clinic had me set up with
antibiotics and on the mend within a few hours

A lazy Sunday in sweats, watching movies, snacking and relaxing at home.

Time to snuggle with Jer on the couch and watch a movie

An open Monday afternoon and evening!

Watching How to Tame Your Dragon…so so cute!!

Finding a new nickname for Purcey after watching “How to tame your Dragon.” There will be a post about this coming soon!

The motivation that being sick twice in one month has given me to take my vitamins, add some vitamin C to my diet and eat better!!

Linoski pizza night and the finale to our garland crafting!

Seester conversations…they truly are the best!

Planning a mini-get away with Jer, our first since Owen that is just the two of us…we cannot wait!

A Boy at Play

And my personal FAVORITE!

It's a Jungle Out there!

Last year during Halloween we had a monkey among us...

This year we had a lion in our midst...

I LOVE Halloween!!!

What I’m going to miss…

I have a tendency to write things down that I intend to post and keep them in a word document. It’s kind of like a journal. A place where I write things down…the good stuff makes the blog…the bad/untimely or out-dated stuff hits the cutting room floor. This stuff never goes beyond my journal. But I rarely delete a working idea.. And as I was scrolling through this document on my desktop and I found this one. I’m not sure why I never posted it…maybe it just got too past the right moment for posting? After reading it I realized that though I love fall…there are many, many things I love about summer and spring. As the days turn darker earlier and earlier and the weather sends me shivering into the warmth of my house…I will miss summer even more this year because of the beautiful yard we were blessed with this summer. I truly enjoyed the escape…and looking back at this old post, I realize just how much!

Where my mind wanders…a post I wrote this summer...

A few weeks back…one night after all the chaos of my house was at rest…dinner made…dishes done… kitchen counters wiped…PJ’s on…milk drank…story read…sleepy head snoozing in his crib…I wandered outside. Jer was working late…and I found myself in quiet. My first order of business was to water our garden. The weather was absolutely perfect. I’m willing to say that I could have that kind of weather all year round and never ever grow tired of it.

As I stood out in our yard I took a few deeps breaths and just tried to soak in the moment. It was the first time all day when I was peacefully enjoying a moment only for me and my mind wandered. I watched a lightning bug flash around in the dirt of our garden. I calculated the distance I want to put between some homemade lanterns I want to make and envisioned where I want to put them. And hoped I might ever get to them with all the other crazy ideas I’ve got rolling around in my head. Then I looked around the yard a bit. I have always loved the way the lightning bugs pop up around our yard in the summer. At the end of the day, they get to showing off…and it’s dazzling. I actually was inspired to write this blog…and contemplated ways to make it work like that scene from Marley and me…where he lists what he did for a whole year in simple sentences. I had a couple good ideas…and then as soon as they came they left. My mind wandered some more. I remembered a conversation with Jer last week about the lightning bugs. He told me he discovered them one night while outside working on the yard (insert link to previous post) It was completely dark out and he said it looked like someone was flashing pictures there were so many. I then made a mental note to remember to tell him how right he was. Anyway…I found myself lazily wandering around my plants, watering, picking, day dreaming. Totally lost in thought. Totally at peace. Totally content. Thinking about nothing and everything in a matter of 20 minutes. In that time, I realized how much I love this time of year. I have this little slice of heaven out in my backyard that I can take refuge in. And all I have to think about are the things happening back there or what comes to my head. Nothing more. Nothing less. I love looking at how much my barrel has filled in over the summer so far. How big our tomato plants are getting. How well our butterfly bushes are doing and how one is getting ready to bloom and be beautiful. It’s a space that always welcomes me. Good mood, bad mood or otherwise. I can go outside and check to see what it’s doing. Or loose myself in some other world of thoughts. It’s amazing how this can be an escape from the everyday. The everyday is where I live all the time…and every once in awhile…an escape is pretty awesome! Especially when it’s in my own back yard.