A Visit with My Aunties

I was so excited to have my aunts, Cathy and Kim, come down from Indiana to stay with us for a few days! They arrived Friday night and stayed through Sunday morning. We had a great "Girls Weekend" together! Jeff was super sweet and watched Noah for me on Saturday, while Cathy, Kim, and I hit downtown Winchester to do some serious shopping! We had lunch at a lovely restaurant called, "The Colonel's Lady Tea Room". They served the food on mismatched China, and each table had a set of antique salt & pepper shakers adorning their centers. I had such a great time with my aunts, that I forgot to take pictures! I did get a couple of Noah trying out the new romper that Aunt Kim got him...

Check out the cute little frog jumping across his back! And the ducky on the pocket!

Noah has been reluctant to stand thus far, but Cathy pulled some OT moves on him and he stood right up!

In Need of a Name

About four years ago, when I took my first teaching job, I began thinking about a part-time business that I could run during the summers. I wanted it to be something that I would enjoy, that would use my skills, but be different than being in the classroom. I decided that I would like to be a professional organizer. Someone who helps others organize their space. Whether it be a closet, home office, nursery, pantry, storage space, etc. I thought I could be another set of eyes and hands to come alongside them, and help them to de-clutter a bit. Well, that brings me to now...I'm really going to try it! It may take me a while to get things up and running, but I'm taking the steps to get it going! One of those steps is to decide upon a name. I've posted a poll in the sidebar of my blog--you can vote for your favorite name there. Or if you have a suggestion for me, I'm open to those as well!

Scott & Amanda

Our friends Scott and Amanda, came down from Muncie last weekend to visit. We've known Scott pretty much all our lives. I remember sitting next to him in the elementary school cafeteria....they made us sit in alphabetical order back then, so we sat by each other a lot! Jeff and Scott were on many of the same athletic teams together, as we made our way through school at Daleville. Then Amanda joined in (she grew up in Yorktown--arch rivals of the Broncos!) and we've all been friends since!

When they first arrived at our house, I was trying to get Noah to take his afternoon nap. When I realized my efforts were in vain, that he was too excited about having guests to sleep, I let him skip the nap, and play with Scott and Amanda instead! We think that Scott reminded Noah of Jeff, because Noah reached for him and said, "da, da" when he first saw him. They had a great time playing ball together!...

That night we had yakiniku for dinner. I just got this new serving platter, and we put all the fixings in the platter before we cooked them. It looked beautiful! And it tasted even better than it looked!

On Sunday, the guys went to the driving range while the girls (and Noah) caught up on some R&R. Then we headed over to the Hayes house for a cookout and some cornhole! It was really fun! Amanda took some pics of everyone playing cornhole...I'll add those once I get a copy.

One Lovely Blog Award

Jen Swendiman, of Point B & Beyond gave me this award! (Jen is Jeff's cousin.) Thanks Jen!

The rules of accepting the award are as follows:

1. accept the award

2. post it on your blog together with the name and link of the person who granted the award

3. pass the award onto 5 other blogs you enjoy following

Don't forget to let the recipients know they have been chosen so they can continue the links & awards!

Here are the 5 blogs I have chosen to receive this award:

1. Whipple Words --by Janet Whipple. Janet's blog lets you take a peek into the adoption process, and shows how big God's plan is for us! I love to read her updates and see the incredible journey they're on. She's so genuine and authentic in what she writes, you may need some Kleenex!

2. Raisin' 4--by Whitney Daugherty. Whitney is such an inspiration! She has four little ones, and her blog is about their daily adventures. I love to read her posts, because she's real. She shares her ups and downs and always brings things back into focus with God's word.

3. The Long Family Chronicles--by Allyson Long. Allyson is a friend from college, and became a mommy not too long after I had Noah. Her blog is about life with a newborn, and everything that's goes along with that! We've supported each other through the sleepless nights, baby illnesses, and feeding challenges. We've also shared in each other's joy as our little ones reach new milestones! She's always an encouragement to me!

4. Mixon Mania--by Sara Mixon. I knew Sara back in high school, and we've recently been reunited through Facebook and our love of digital scrapbooking! She is a budding photographer, and does beautiful work. You can check it out at her photography blog Sara Mixon Photography.

5. Two Walls and a King--by Jennifer Walls. Jennifer is another friend from school, who I was also reunited with through Facebook and digital scrapbooking. She has just started a cake business, and is so creative with what she makes! Her cakes are amazing! Take a look for yourself Frosted.

Bonus: Point B & Beyond--by Jen Swendiman. I know, she's the one who gave me this award, but she's also the very first blog that I ever followed! We share many of the same interests, and her ideas have inspired me to pursue some of the dreams I had tucked away. In her blog, she shares organizational tips, recipes, and her wisdom.

I've realized that all of these blogs have one thing in common--They're all written by moms. Real moms, who are trying to make a difference in the lives of their children and everyone around them. Thanks ladies for sharing your lives through your blogs!