Beach pics (part 1 of many:)

Hey friends! Popping in to share some beach pictures. We had a wonderful vacation! This is the third year we've rented the same little house in Miramar.  We have a routine that works for us: hit the beach at 9:30 with toys, drinks, and lots of yums, have lunch, then head to the pool after lunch for more fun.  In the evenings we drive into Seaside/Seagrove and have dinner and treats. Our favorite spot is George's in Alys Beach (Riffault Sancerre, yes please!), but we also love Great Southern Cafe, Pickles burgers, and Seagrove Market Cafe among so many others. I mean, anything there is great, you can't go wrong!

I was excited to actually use my camera again because I had a looong dry spell. I'm feeling inspired again though and I've really missed it.

These vacations to the Gulf are the highlight of my year. So blessed to have this time with all 3 of my boys:) Here come the pictures...

I not so secretly love this picture with my babies.

I take silhouette shots every year, I need to dig the old ones out and compare them! The boys are getting so tall.

The boys LOVE these angry bird kites. One ended up on someone's balcony, OOPS.

Have a great weekend!

Life lately and what I'm ready for

Hey strangers! Life has been busy lately, no slowing down! School is ending and we've had teacher gifts to buy, programs to attend, and parties to wrap up. Plus, I've been doing some fun things with friends that I'd love to share.  I'm just so behind I don't know where to start!

Birthdays...I have a ton of pictures to edit. My boys are officially 4 and 6! I've been wiping a lot of tears lately and I know the world is tired of me saying this, but they grow toooo fast. Ah, my babies:)

I obviously need to do posts just on the birthdays, but until then, this will have to do! They had great birthdays this year surrounded by lots of friends. Very special. Touched my heart to see all the smiles.

****************

Opportunities... A friend invited me to a taping of a new bible study series Beth Moore is writing. I wasn't allowed to take pictures but it was fun to be part of her audience and see her in action. Wow! She's such a charismatic speaker! And can I just say how pretty she is.

source

I'll share one snippet that resonated with me from the taping I went to: Sometimes to get us into something new God brings us someone new. The study inspires renewal and is on Thessalonians. It also touched on how renewal often comes from unexpected places.  It brought to my attention something I'm aware of in my own life but need to be better about: I often pray out of habit.  And when I do that I realize that I'm not even thinking about the words I'm saying. This is also something I work on with the boys -- not repeating the same prayers (although we do do that at night time), but consciously thinking about what we're saying when we pray.

This was a personal message I took away and perhaps you'll take away something different if you do the study. And I only saw one segment -- there were lots more to go! But it was so inspiring and I can't wait to do the study when it's out. If you're interested here's her link. It won't be out till next May but you can at least get sneak peek from her blog!

***************

Switching gears in a major way, some friends and I went to a very different kind of taping the very next night  for CMA Music Fest. The festival is in June here in Nashville (will air in September) and they pre-taped Darius Rucker, Kacey Musgraves, and Jason Aldean.  We were there for Kacey, who is adorable and very talented and so young I could be her mother. (My 2 other friends stayed to see Jason but Patti and I were starving and left to eat!)

We watched her sound check (and her performance of course) and I had no idea the amount of work that goes into a song. The band worked on their instruments with the sound crew making changes (louder steel guitar please, turn this down, turn this up, thumbs up!) Lighting people worked on lighting. Camera people shouted about angles and told the crowd (us!) where to be and what to do (don't sing if you don't know the lyrics! act like you're having a ball! dance if you can! don't dance if you have no rhythm!) Then Kacey came out, picked up her guitar, and started practice. Oh and we were right against the stage!! Look for us in September, I'll give you a heads up!! Here's the song:

The song has a cool rhythm and I loved watching everyone work. There's a person for everything. Someone even came out and changed her shoes for her, removed her flats as she stood there at the mic and slipped stilettos onto her feet. Then the makeup artist came to touch her up. More singing, more lights, more singing, more makeup.  They taped 5 full segments of the song to edit. I know every word to Blowin' Smoke now. The life of a rising star, wow!

****************

And now (as I exhale),  it is time for a road trip.....

that ends here......

source

Yep, it'll soon be beach time. Could not come at a better time;)

If y'all are still here, thanks for reading;) Happy weekend!!!

My picks

via

I went to the Kentucky Derby in 2001 and loved seeing those horses run! Here are my picks:

#5 Normandy Invasion.

Reason: I hear he likes to run in the mud and his name is sentimental (my Papa was in Normandy on D-Day).

#3 Revolutionary.

Reason: I was a fan of Kevin Borel on Mine That Bird years ago and I think he (the horse) looks strong.

#12 It's My Lucky Day

Reason: I like his name and think his jersey is pretty.

Sentimental favorite: #15 Charming Kitten

Reason: I loved Barbaro years ago when he won and Edgar Prado (the jockey who rode Barbaro that day in '06) is on this horse. I hope he has a great run!

Happy Derby Day!

As of late

First things first, I'm on SkinnyRunner today under 'Crappy Race Pics', go see! I'm a huge SR fan so you can imagine I'm doing my happy dance right now. Thank you SR for answering my email (so fast, just like you run!) and for including me--yippee!!

Random pics this week:

I love this glass water bottle from Target, it doesn't leak. Jo Malone in Wild Bluebell mixed with Nectarine blossom and honey makes me smell like heaven.

Been workin' on:

I found that BrainQuest workbook at Costco and the kids are in love with it?! They tear out worksheets and play school. I had no idea they'd get so into it. C is especially proud that it is 1st grade level and he loves to show me his completed worksheets and remind me he's doing first grader work. Who taught my child math???

I also whipped up some bear sandwiches for my other C's picnic this week. Boy were these a hit.

I'm finally getting to the monogram art for the boys' rooms. I can't wait to get finished and share it!

Some great memories from the week:

This week also included a little time with my mom.  She's the best. I loved seeing her bounce in the bounce house with the kids! She proves age is just a number.  We also picked up plastic bugs for the boys and would hide them in the yard for the boys to go find. They LOVED it, thought it was so great. I need to be better about doing little games like this, they think the simplest things are so fun.

And for the finale:

I indulged in a chocolate shake from CFA this week, complete with whipped cream and a cherry. I can't remember the last time I had one and it was SO.GOOD.  YUM!  Happy weekend!