Playing Catch Up!

Starting off with something precious... 

Here's my nephew, the Jaceman, and my niece, Miss Kyndal Faith, practicing for their walk down the aisle at my cousin, Emily's wedding later this month!  It's become a fun game for them -- Jace will just randomly grab Kyndal's hand and say, "Let's practice!"  Then they waddle-walk down the hallway together, and it's always adorable (maybe even more so when they're in PJs).  I'm a big fan of this barefoot/fancy combo, though!  And I love them oh-so-much!!

This is a catch-up post for the past month, so here are a few pics from our Mother's Day lunch at Chuck E. Cheese!  Jaceman cowboy-ing up, all the boys excited to go dance with Chuck E., and Missy K running over to kiss his picture on the floor before we could stop her! lol

Icees pic before seeing Pitch Perfect 2 with the Wilsons!

(I loved it and have now seen it 3 times in theaters; Chettles wasn't a big fan.)

I got bored and decided to paint one night... then ended up adding gold circles to the canvas already hanging on my wall... because it just wasn't busy enough already!? lol  #imustbestopped

This = a collage of pics from the "Ghetto Memorial Day Cookout" at the Wilsons. lol  (Their living room was full of furniture that had been covered to protect it, so we had to crawl under the kitchen table to get in and out, and the yard was wet and muddy from ALL THE RAIN, so we covered some of the chairs with trash bags.  Chet apologized for it being ghetto and said it reminded him of his childhood summers, which made everyone laugh. lol)  The guys were doing some intense tile demo... soooo much dust.... whilst the girls played with Lucy and picked strawberries. lol  Then we grilled hot dogs and celebrated Karli's b-day with cookiecake! =)  Sidenote: I love the pic of Kyle with Karli and her mom - the Tall Kyle nickname is definitely appropriate. lol

Speaking of the non-stop rain, I'm so glad I got my phone out fast enough to capture this... I laughed pretty hard when I saw her umbrella out!  

...I'm thankful the torrential rain and flooding has finally stopped... I had two pretty scary drives home in it.  I do get really happy every time I see the river so full now, though!

The girlfranz are doing well, just in case you were wondering. :)  They were as fluffy as they'd ever been yesterday morning, and now (after their grooming appt) their hair is as short as I've ever seen it, with an awkward lion-mane at the front! #groomerfail #maybenexttime  Hopefully they'll appreciate being cooler, but I will miss the epic flufflepuff fur! lol

Speaking of being cooler, my AC was leaking and stopped working about a week ago, and I had to get the entire thing replaced.... thankfully, they were able to come install it that very same day!  So it's a brand new system with a programmable thermostat, and the house is nice and cool again, and me and the girlfranz are VERY thankful for that!!

I picked Chet and Karli up after their Florida trip last week... I love airports, for whatever reason, so I went in and got to chat with Michael a bit before they arrived.  They ordered Marco's Pizza and I got Krispy Kreme for us, then the Myers brought Lucy back over and we all got to hear all about Disney and Universal Studios.  (I can't wait to go to Harry Potter World soon and try the Butterbeer, and to see the light show at Cinderella's Castle!!)  Anywho, the Wilsons had new tile, wood, and carpet floors put in while they were gone and it all turned out great... their table was still in the living room because of the kitchen tile being redone, so we ate dinner in there, being very careful not to spill anything on their brand new carpet. lol  #success

His and hers Mickey ears! lol

National Donut Day = yet another ridiculous holiday that I'm not sure existed before Facebook came around, but I'm more than happy to celebrate it! lol  Krispy Kreme was pretty popular that day, and I tried my first ever cream-filled donut!  #embracethenew ;)

The Jaceman helping his dad make some Kool-aid!  (...In the pitcher Mom always used when me and Rach were kids!  Aww, memories!)

Also worth trying... fried donuts. lol  Mom and Josh love them, and I have to agree, they're pretty great!  (I'm just full of healthy suggestions in this post!)

Missy McKay feeling big in T-man's flip-flops. lol  She's endlessly adorable!!

Triston reading to Jace... cuteness!!

That's all the pictures I have for now... so we're moving on to Words of Wisdom Wednesday, all themed around things God has been teaching me here lately!! :)

"It’s easier to numb yourself... waiting around for things to feel spectacular.  But this is it:  this is as spectacular as it gets, and you have a choice, to be there or not... deeply present in the present, in the mess, in the waiting, in the entirely imperfect right now."  
~Shauna Niequist

This popped up while FB was still loading - startled me a little, but in a good way!

 "Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be satisfied with what you have.  For God has said, 'I will never leave you; I will never abandon you.'  Let us be bold, then, and say, 'The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid.  What can anyone do to me?'"

~Hebrews 13:5-6

"I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord."

~Psalm 27:13-14

Happy Wednesday!

Evergreen

I'm way behind, I know (and don't care) -- but I LOVE this Ed Sheeran song!  And the music video, too.  He was singing on whatever show came on immediately after The Voice yesterday, so I finally downloaded this last night, then listened to it over and over.  I watched the video this morning and was impressed that he chose to do something so refreshingly classic and simple... and to work on it and do all the dancing himself! I could do without the colorful tattoo sleeve, but other than that, I think he's pretty cute and endearingly charming (and obviously talented)!

My favorite line: "'Cause honey, your soul could never grow old; it's evergreen!"

No wonder he and T-Swift are besties! lol  (I hate that term, by the way, but really do like them both!)  And I'm very hopeful that if they ever date, it will be the real deal -- not another terrible ending that will be memorialized in her songs. lol

Happy Wednesday!

Boo-dles of Fun!

Confession:  Since becoming the proud owner of the girlfranz, I've slacked off terribly in reporting on the adventures of the little Boo puppy! lol  So consider this a belated update.  If you don't already follow Boo on Facebook, you totally should -- seeing these pictures can't help but brighten your day!! =)

I'll start with the most important announcement:  For Valentine's day this year, Boo & Buddy got a new "brother," a Golden Retriever puppy named Bluebeary Pie -- umm, ADORABLE!!

So Buddy, Boo, and Blue are now called "the blonde mafia."  

...Be afraid - be very afraid!!  (Boo's face here cracks me right up!)

Prior to Bluebeary's arrival, Boo & Buddy celebrated their BFF-ness with a colorful photoshoot in the sun.  Best Friends Furrever. lol

They've spent loads of time taking power naps and dreaming of chasing squirrels! :)

They found the perfect clothes to bring out their inner fierce-ness!

(I loved this FB caption: "Legend has it that the Boo-rex was once the most feared creature in all the land.")

They enjoyed some leisurely bike rides around the city!

(I can barely handle the cuteness of Boo in a basket!)

They played some hopskotch on the stepping stones, smiling all the way! 

They got dressed up and went to some fancy parties together! #onfleek

They managed to stay nice and fit with their new exercise ball routine!

Sometimes they partied a little too hard and needed a rest...

But they felt revived when they stopped to smell the happy yellow roses!

#meandlaura

They celebrated Halloween by joining the Justice League and fighting to save the world!

(These costumes are the best because the arms shake as the puppies run! lol)

Other than that, they've just been kicking back and enjoying the perks of fame!! ;)

So that's the update, and here's a more current pic of Buddy, Blue, and Boo!  =)

Which I must say is totes adorbs ...because Pomeranians bring out all the ridiculousness in me!!

Embracing the Present!

"For God's kingdom does not consist of food and drink, but of righteousness, peace, and joy produced by the Holy Spirit."  ~Romans 14:17

I'm glad I'm not afraid of death, but I don't want to be fearful of fully embracing life here either.  I want to live for Christ and walk with the Holy Spirit in a way that brings the life and depth and sense of permanent, unshakable friendship I'm craving!!  And I'm working to believe and live as if that is possible here and now!

Now on to lighter things...

Yesterday, Laura and I spent a lot of the morning working on a project together, then had lunch at the Jenks America Food Truck Festival, took an afternoon nap, then went to Jeff's for a happy outdoor dinner and game night...

There were eight of us -- obviously, I'm the one behind the camera in these first three pics: A posed candid in our Nertz game; everyone crowding into the foyer as JEM announced the final scores; and a "sunburst" pic of our dinner on the patio (all of which was awesome)!

A clearer dinner pic; one of all our feet in the foyer (well, only one of mine so I could keep my balance while snapping the pic - lol); then another cards pic Jessica took to send to Evan, who wasn't able to join us that night!  I really enjoyed our dinner outside, thanks to fun friends and zero bugs attacking me! lol  And playing Nertz with everyone while breaking out into random singing was definitely entertaining!!  #sugar #yesplease

The Food Truck Festival -- Laura had a Nutella Banana Crepe from Mod's and I had a cheeseburger from The Local Table, mostly because it was by far the shortest line! lol  It was a beautiful day, though, and cute to walk around.  Main Street often feels like Stars Hollow to me, and for those who don't watch Gilmore Girls, that's a happy thing. :)  

On Friday night, after helping Lindsay move for a while, I came home and made a (half) sheet cake to bring for dessert at Jeff's!  It was the Pioneer Woman's "Best Chocolate Sheet Cake. Ever."  #yaaaas  I very wisely opted to use Heath bits instead of pecans. lol  And (if I do say so myself) it turned out great!!  I'm glad I chose to make a half rather than a whole, because we all know I heart chocolate, and this cake doesn't coincide well with my weight loss goals. =)  ...This also counts as embracing something new -- my first Pioneer Woman recipe and first sheet cake ever!  BAM!!

Shifting gears completely, one of the trainers posted this on the FT group page, and I loved it.  Never seen Fight Club, but this note made me laugh and it made me feel more normal and less alone, which are all things I can always use! :)  #owningthecrazy

One of my favorite movies is FIGHT CLUB. Not just because of the primal display of aggression portrayed throughout, but really I love the content of that movie and book.

One of my favorite lines in the movie is Tyler Durden's speech, "You are not special. You're not a beautiful and unique snowflake." I'm sure everyone has their own interpretation of what he's saying and I'm not here to say your's is wrong or mine is better but what I take from that is simple...

WE'RE ALL CRAZY!

Every single one of us is crazy in our own right.

We all have issues.

We all have things we're faced with every day that trouble us.

We all have problems.

We all have personal demons that plague us.

And we all have the audacity to think we're alone in these problems.

We like to believe that we're the only CRAZY ones out there when in reality, I'll have you consider that "you're not special. You're not a beautiful and unique snowflake" when it comes to your own personal CRAZINESS.

The truth is---> YOU'RE CRAZY JUST LIKE EVERYONE ELSE.

But that's not the best part...

The best part is that you have the power to choose...

You can choose to own your craziness before it drives you crazy.

You can choose to accept your craziness and realize you're not alone in it.

OR... you can keep resenting it and yourself and let it control your every thought, feeling and emotion.

Me, I like my craziness... it's kinda fun.

~Michael Watkins

FINALLY, this = a verse Laura and I used for the project, and a fantastic verse to meditate on!

Picking Flowers

Me and Rach on Christmas Eve... enhanced by Portrait Pro! #yesplease :)

(I was showing Mom how that program works, and we used this as our practice pic.)

So Triston's class read Charlotte's Web recently (I loved that book), then they did a project where they sent her spider babies to people in other cities/states, along with a page to journal about all her activites, and pictures were encouraged.  So here's some of my adventures with Aranea! lol  #weirdestprojectever #gladthegirlfranzdidn'teather

Missy McKay couldn't be any cuter if she tried. :)  I was gonna just get a candid pic of her drinking her bottle, but she pulled it to one side so she could say "cheese!" lol  The bottom corner pic is JaceMan hugging Reagan, who didn't appreciate the gesture as much as most of us do! lol  And the top right is Triston and Carter opening their B-day cards from me between soccer games on Saturday!! :)

By the by, kids sporting events are super entertaining!! =)  If it wasn't for some overly aggressive parents stressing me out (they're 7-year-olds having fun -- CALM YOURSELF and stop crushing their self-esteem), then I'd enjoy spending the whole day just watching them play!

Coach to Payton, who was far more worried about finishing his snack than being subbed in to play:  "You can eat your chip out there, buddy!" while literally pushing him onto the field! lol

Josh to David, their goalie: "Better stand up, David!"
Another dad, seeing him bending down cupping his hands:  "Is his hand hurt or something!?"
Josh:  "No, he was picking flowers!" hahahaha #awesomesauce

T-man standing back ready to play defense, turns to me and Mom:  "Whoa, there was a huge bee that just flew right by me!  And one earlier hit me right here in the head... it was like (demonstrating the bee flying around)..."
Me:  "Bees are the worst!" while casually pointing at all the other players running toward him! lol
I just love it that they don't really care yet.  Clearly, most of the parents care enough to make up for it.

After the game, Mom and I walked through their new house, which is coming along so much faster than I would've expected!  The golf course and pool as their backyard view is gonna be pretty great!!

I also got to have lunch at Cheddar's with my favorite cousin, which was definitely one of my favorite parts of the weekend!

This was last night... I bought a new welcome mat that was too thick for my front door, so I decided to just put it out back.  #badidea  Sammo and Bellsy-doodles were excited about their new chew toy!

An adorable K-Faith pic Rach texted me this morning! #babyboots

The tiny eggs have officially hatched, and three little birds are living in my Spring wreath now!  Me being me, I'm scared to get too close, but I did have to get at least one picture! :)

I'm 98% certain God is preparing me for a major change, and I'm feeling very okay with that. #remix

This = one of my favorite Gilmore Girls quotes, and today's "Words of Wisdom Wednesday" moment:

Not sure if it's my maternal instinct kicking in or what, but I bought this set of 10 classic children's books a couple months back, and have now read all of them + Little Pilgrim's Progress!  My predictable favorites were The Secret Garden and Anne of Green Gables.
#puresimplicity #picturebooks

Thanks for reading, and Happy Wednesday! =)