Archive Page 38

11
Jul
11

fashion misses-channeling blossom

This week, I’ll be doing a little series I’d like to call “fashion misses”.  This past weekend, I organized my mom’s closet that was FULL of old photos.  I had so much fun and really hadn’t laughed that hard in a long time.  It makes me wonder if my kids will be saying the same thing as they scroll through my blog or look at their scrapbooks…I really have tried hard to not dress them in silly trends, but when they get into jr. high?  I know that terrain is rocky, and I will have to loosen my rein in some degree.  So today’s post is called “Channeling Blossom (the TV series)” for a reason. You will probably figure it out right away if you watched that show.   And, yes, I definitely was in jr. high.

I look like summer, but indeed, it was Christmas, and I was putting out decorations!
my Jr. High graduation picture
I remember “making” this hat and I was so proud…ugh.
the girl who started it all
07
Jul
11

29 years later

29 years later we are still praying for each other, loving each other, taking turns visiting each other.  Kristy and I met in preschool where we started the “kissy club” and ran around at recess time trying to kiss boys.  Having so many memories with someone is like having a sister, only you don’t fight!  😉  Here is a picture of us with our best friend necklaces.  We have had several throughout the early years, and unfortunately, we each lost different ones.  But Kristy will always be “Be Fri” and I am “st ends”!

Whenever we visit each other, we go through all our old pictures together. This time we found a picture that we wanted to try and copy now! Unfortunately my head is cocked the wrong way, but you get the idea!

I did fore-go the scrunchies in my hair this time!  And yes I had a bad perm then!

Some other fun pics of us growing up:
1983

we were 4 years old!

Matching outfits of course!

anyone else rock the kool-ots?

I always thought I was short until Kristy moved away to Idaho! She is 6 feet and I am 5’8″!

chuck-e-cheese!

Us in college!

at Northwest Nazarene University
06
Jul
11

july 4th with no fireworks

For a scrapbooker like me, July 4th with no fireworks devastated me.  No cute pictures under the bursts of light, no cute firework stickers…the holiday is just not the same!  We celebrated at my parent’s house this year instead of the Octaranch in College Station because we couldn’t light our own fireworks.  We swam and my dad grilled!  We ate LOTS of good food and enjoyed great company with my brother’s family and Kristy and Bill.

they were trying to do synchronized pool entrances!
Love cousin Caden’s hair as he flys off the slide!
Asher’s turn on the slide!
Have to have a picture on the July 4th float!

Leave it to my mom to give the kids all light sticks!  She saved the holiday!  So when we got home that evening, the kids ran around and had a “light show”. They were totally happy and didn’t even remember there was no fireworks this year.

running with American spirit!
05
Jul
11

“austin-y” things

We have done plenty of “Austin-y” things while Kristy and Bill are here from Idaho.  I took advantage of having another couple with us on South Congress to take the picture of James and I against this wall.

Jo’s coffee

We also went to Stubbs BBQ, Home Slice, and Hey Cupcake. Before cupcakes though, we watched the bats come out from under the bridge on South Congress!

You can see the bats in the sky too.  I guess all those boaters don’t mind bat guano!
yummy dessert
Bill and Kristy with their goodies!

On Saturday we remembered the Alamo. 😉

me and the girls

Again, I took advantage of having adults with us to take pictures for me with the kids. I realized I don’t have too many! Here is me and my Ella Bella eating at the Riverwalk.

On Sunday, I did a little photoshoot with Kristy and Bill at Mayfield Park. Click here to see those! Here is a peek:

playing with shadows

After church, Kristy and I went to a card-making class! I’ve decided that next time, I will bring my girls! I love that Kristy loves to scrapbook like me!

cell phone pic-sorry!  We made 4 cards in 3 hours!
02
Jul
11

the Capitol

My oldest and dearest friend, Kristy, is here, from Idaho, visiting my family with her husband.  (That will be a different post.)  Because she was coming, I wanted to show her around Austin.  So yesterday, we went to the Capitol.  I’ve lived here for 4 years, and have never been!

a rare picture of me with the kids!

The visitor center is pretty neat, especially for being free!

Ella looking through the telescope to see the Capitol
you could dress up like a cowgirl

We have discovered that Rilyn loves museums. We took a tour of the inside of the Capitol, and Rilyn had to be at the front of the group to listen to the tour guide’s every word!  She kept telling me “how fun” it was to be at the Capitol.  She did not get this from me people.

If you can see the gold bars that are behind the tour guide (the young gal in a white top and khaki skirt), Asher went behind them and started hanging on them.  I knew this was bad, but I couldn’t get to him fast enough before the tour guide stopped talking in mid-sentence to reprimand him.  He could of cared less.  Me…um, that is pretty much mortifying.  I was definitely embarrassed.

the tour guide was explaining the painting

So, yes, Asher was becoming rambunctious at the end of the 45 minute tour. I guess I couldn’t blame him.  The thing was that I wasn’t allowed to have any food inside which would normally be my “go to” fix for his behavior. But, I discovered he liked me taking pictures of him and then showing him what they looked like afterward on my camera screen. He must be my son! 😉

this is where the Senate meets…I think.  I really wasn’t listening.  oops.
Look at me mom!  Take a picture!

This next picture frustrates me because I never can get all three kids to sit still together in one picture. And at this moment, in this ugly spot under some random painting of a man, they wanted to sit, and they were still. Ugh.

 

30
Jun
11

our engagement

11 years ago today we got engaged!  (And the only reason I know the exact date is because my mom bought me a Christmas ornament with the date engraved on it!)  🙂

James’ plan was to take me to the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens and propose there, but when we pulled up, the gates were closed for some reason.  James then had to quickly think, because his mom and sister were going to secretly find us there to video tape and take pictures!  This was before cell phones were popular, so he just thought his mom and sister wouldn’t be able to find us, and he went to the nearby Trinity park.  I had no clue that anything was up.  We walked around the park and stopped at a grassy bridge.  He pulled out his Bible and read Ephesians 5:25-27  “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.”  Again, I did not think anything special was going on.  Just James trying to spiritually lead our relationship.  He then began washing my feet.  Still, no clue.  I thought he was being very sweet though, (not to mention super spiritual!)  😉  While he was washing my feet, I saw James’ mom and sister behind a nearby tree!  (They drove around and found us!)  My first reaction to James was, “Why is your mom taping us?  This is a personal moment!”  Still, no clue from me.  Well, they thought I knew what was going on because I saw them, so they started coming in closer snapping pictures and taking video.  I just got embarrassed.  That’s when James bends down on one knee…

this is the actual moment!
sorry for the bad copy, but it’s all I have!  Me hugging James in disbelief.
James’ turn
27
Jun
11

zaza fun!

We had a college girlfriends weekend in Dallas this last weekend and it was so much fun!  Jen’s husband paid for an amazing (and very interesting) hotel room for us four girls on Saturday night to celebrate Jen’s birthday (and our 14 years of friendship!).  Our room at Hotel Zaza wasn’t ready when we arrived, so we got upgraded to the “presidential suite!”

view of dining room and living room
bedroom

We had to take pictures at this cute kitchen nook in our room. The sign and the lighting were too fun!

look closely at Jen’s nose, something is about to hit…
poor Jen.  Let’s all have a laugh at her expense though!  😉

This is the dining room in our room. Notice our classy cups we were drinking from. Before we pulled up to the swanky Hotel Zaza (where you only can valet, no option to self park), we stopped at the Race Trac gas station and bought drinks. We didn’t realize how “unsophisticated” we probably looked to everyone when we walked into the lobby with our big gas station drinks. So we had to take a picture in our room with them naturally to commemorate our “classiness.” 😉

Our view from our balcony of the Dallas skyline.

Very cliche, I know, but we had to do facial masks at night!

Jen, Kim, me, and Casey (in case you can’t recognize us!)

People watching was sooooo interesting that night. Apparently Hotel Zaza is the place to be seen at night (if you are a yuppie in your 20s/early 30s) at their pool where it turns into a nightclub of sorts. Pictures here.  Our balcony overlooked the valet and the pool.  We saw lamborghinis, ferraris, lime green sports cars…basically all of Asher’s coolest Matchbox cars were there to get parked!  🙂  We saw a girl jump in the pool in her mini dress, strip it off, flail it around, and throw it in the jacuzzi, only to be escorted out in her high (very high!) heels, bra, panties, and her purse!  She wasn’t able to get her dress back either.  They just kicked her out.  She was definitely drunk, so it was a sight to see.  The DJ there played until 2 a.m. and the music was so loud.  We could hear every beat in our room!  Crazy!  But apparently that is what you pay for to be at the “it” hotel in Dallas!  We were definitely out of our element at this hotel.  The next morning at lunch, a woman came up to us and said we all reminded her of the Sex and City girls.  Geez, I sure hope not.  My friends assured me it was only because there was four of us and we were having a good time with each other.  Hmmmm….

26
Jun
11

Marry Me

took a little while but here is a short video our trip to Kauai celebrating ten years…I’d ask her every day if I had to! I love you Julie

24
Jun
11

staying cool

I babysat my nephew Caden yesterday, and the kids had so much fun playing in the backyard pool with each other (minus Rilyn, she said “it’s a baby pool!”).

Asher making a face because he wants to go swimming NOW!

patience is not his gift let’s just say.
these boys l.o.v.e each other!

Time for popsicles!

mmm mmmm good!

Ella got out to go to a friend’s house, but the boys? I had to make them come out after 3 hours of play! And they have the hands to prove it!

23
Jun
11

summer’s here!

In honor of the first official day of summer on Tuesday, here are some photos that I took of the kids in front of some sunflowers.  Rilyn and Asher were not into this mini photo shoot, so Ella has a lot more pictures of just her.  Ella is my little poser, she is always telling me to “go get your camera!”  🙂

So after I got a couple of these cute shots…

Then this ‘tude happened.

bad attitude

And they were done taking pictures. But Ella still had it in her!

posing!
how about I run?