I'm Blessed

Today I'm joining up with Gretchen and her "I'm Blessed" blog party.  It is always good to take a moment to reflect on our blessings, and as Gretchen points out this week, so often counting our blessings simply means framing our complaints in a positive light!

This week I am blessed by:

- A little girl who is learning talk and who can finally TELL us what she is thinking
- Friends with healthy new babies
- A husband who continues to pick up the slack left by my morning sickness and exhaustion
- Baby #3 starting to make him/herself known with flips and kicks
- A family trip to the museum
- The beach
- Visits to and from good friends
- The first week of our CSA and the first taste of our garden

enjoying

Currently enjoying

:: my fashionista and her current interest in headwear

:: homemade summer clothes (and the energy to make them)


:: pizza playdates

:: birthday celebrations filled with picnics, family time and cake

:: our three baby birds and their momma who has been both full time chef and umbrella this week

:: tuckered out siblings

Keeping Cool

It is HOT here.  The kind of heat that dries things instantly...which is good, because the idea of running a dryer on a day like today is ridiculous!  We're staying nice and cool though.  You may notice a theme in the pictures- Violet with water.  I don't think the girl will be dry again until September.  She is loving it!

A New Corner

The second trimester has finally kicked in.  For me, that means more energy...for Matt, it means more heavy lifting as I seek to "optimize" our home.  Today's project- the messy area next to our back patio.  We all put in a few hours of effort (some worked for the cause, others not so much...).

I'm thrilled with the results...a shady place for our bench, place for two new (to us) chairs, space on the patio for the kids to ride their bikes, and a patch of rocks for them to dig in.  Here it is:

BEFORE

AFTER

A Shower!

This weekend I had the joy of throwing a bridal shower for my little sister, Hannah.  With her July wedding fast-approaching, this was her last trip home before the big event.  We went with a JAZZ theme, as Hannah is not only a trumpet player herself, but marrying a musician as well. 

A new use for old sheet music- that belonged to our Great Grandma

A jazz combo from the high school

Everyone wrote some advice for Hannah- even Violet

Cousins, Aunt, Grandma, Sister, Mother-in-Law-to-be...lots of family!

The chefs of the afternoon