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my husband’s book
comes out tomorrow!

 

if you know my husband,
you know that he’s funny.
very, very funny.
his writing is no different.
DON’T MESS WITH TRAVIS
is a hysterical novel.

 

“Bob Smiley gives us two things we really need:
1) a funny book about politics and
2) a Texas governor we can all get behind. Ben Travis forever!”
–Steve Hely, producer and writer for The Office
and author of How I Became a Famous Novelist

 

i’m not going to tell you to buy the book
(which you definitely should)
but i will let the pictures do the talking.

 

 

oh, what’s that that you’re reading, Woody?

 

 

oh, it’s a copy of DON’T MESS WITH TRAVIS!

 

 

looks like Woody’s pals give it two thumbs up!

 

as promised, here is more of the wedding weekend.

 

  

 

the girls got our nails done in town.

 

  

 

and then, Aunt CC, Uncle N and baby E arrived!

 

  

 

how proud i am that my son popped right in front
of the photographers to take the perfect shot
at the rehearsal.

 

 

Auntie B and Uncle J came to the wedding weekend early
to watch the littles while B and i headed to the rehearsal.
yes, they are incredible friends.
and no, they are not for rent.

 

 

the views at the rehearsal were incredible.
and i got a window seat.
amazing!

  

 

 

 

 

still more to come.
(like the actual wedding.)

 

Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings.
Hebrews 13:9a

2076. lemonade popsicles
2077. the perfect day
2078. sooo many photos
2079. the sweetest boy in the world
2080. blue tape

 

 

remember,
my husband’s book
comes out next tuesday!

if you know my husband,
you know that he’s funny.
very, very funny.
his writing is no different.
DON’T MESS WITH TRAVIS
is a hysterical novel

 

and as Steve Forbes said,
“If there were a Nobel Prize for political wit,
Bob Smiley’s novel Don’t Mess With Travis
would win it in a landslide.
Much needed in this angry political season!”

 

 

DON’T MESS WITH TRAVIS
comes out next tuesday, may 8th
(and if you pre-order it on Amazon
and select two-day shipping,
you’ll receive it on may 8th.)

 

here’s our week with instagram!

 

                                                

 

May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant
brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus,
that great Shepherd of the sheep,
equip you with everything good for doing his will,
and may he work in us what is pleasing to him,
through Jesus Christ,
to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Hebrews 13:20-21

 

2081. hot cocoa with the kiddies
2082. blisters being looked at
2083. really, really great therapists for L
2084. God closing doors
2085. being present

so only one week after
we got back from our warm trip,
(see here and here)
we left for a cold one.

 

you see, my sister,
just got married in Lake Tahoe.
and unlike other brides
who get married in April,
in Tahoe,
she was praying for snow.
and snow she got.

 

not just a little snow but
lots and lots and lots of snow.

we actually heard that Tahoe
got 12 days of powder all season
and three of the days
were while we were up there.

 

instagram came in oh-so handy on the trip.
here’s the beginning
with the drive:

 

                                                          

much, much more to come.

 

All these blessings will come upon you
and accompany you
if you obey the LORD your God
Deuteronomy 28:2

 

2066. finishing one project before starting another
(new to me)
2067. blank corks for a project
2068. warm beach days in April
2069. a photo swap
2070. lots and lots of girl time

here are the second batch
of our spring break photos.
let’s just jump right into them, shall we?

 

 

 

K jumped in the pool about 3 bazillion times.
D? twice.

 

 

each of our kids are so different from each other.
and i like it that way.

 

 

L gave me a snuggle like this
every single time we got out of the pool.
now he just does when he’s
trying to get out of an exercise in PT.
and by the way… it totally works.

 

 

we watched movies

 

 

the bigs got a golf lesson from B.

 

 

 

we were awed by the landscape.

 

 

our children
were our children.

 

Dr. P was had.
with lime
(of course).

 

my handsome boy seems to get
more mature every morning.

 

 

the kids took photos.

 

 

restaurants were open.

 

 

and a hot stack of pancakes was made by B.

 

 

we even got a family photo in.

 

 

and this is a golf cart, made by D.

I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonders.
I will be glad and rejoice in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.
Psalm 9:1-2

 

2046. texting life with friends
2047. the list getting smaller
2048. seeing the glimmer in my children’s eyes
2049. communicating without communicating
2050. only having a couple more clothes to put away

we had an
incredibly
incredible
spring break.

 

and here are the first batch
of (non instagram) photos
i took on our little getaway.

 

 

it was relaxing.

 

 

it was calm.

 

 

it was without school

 

 

and therapies.

 

 

 

get this: we did not go in the car for four entire days.

 

 

it was a lot like paradise.

 

 

we spent nearly every moment
of our days swimming.

 

 

and one of the most special things

that i realized while on this trip

was that L was able to do
every single thing that the big kids were doing.
because the entire trip was focused on
quality family time and swimming.
it was such a beautiful discovery for me.

 

 

time was spent crawling.

 

 

and coloring and journaling.

 

 

movies were watched.

 

 

and eyes sparkled
in the gorgeous sun out there.

 

 

 

we took golf cart rides.

 

 

and bathed in a big tub.

 

 

time slowed down out there.
as eyelashes were even noticed.

 

 

 

and, one of the best gifts of all…
an impromptu
completely child-led
photo opportunity was captured.

 

We demolish arguments and every pretension
that sets itself up against the knowledge of God,
and we take captive every thought
to make it obedient to Christ
2 Corinthians 10:5

 

2026. three kiddos
2027. help with the dishes
2028. deep, deep breaths
2029. time stopping moments
2030. connecting with others.
half way around the world.

we got to go to a pre-Easter event with my parents this year.
it was screamingly wonderful.

 

 

K picked out the cutest little bunny to adorn her face.
she even convinced me to let her save a few glittery hearts
so that she could show them to all of her friends at church the next day.

everyone gathered eggs.

 

 

and L was so happy to find them.

 

 

K was a more serious egg finder.
she didn’t crack a smile even once.

 

checking out her loot.

 

 

my bunny and her bunny.

 

 

she is such a sweet girly girl.

 

 

and this big guy

 

 

and this guy got a ton of eggs, too.

 

 

now, D has never, ever wanted to ride a pony.
but this time, he was thrilled to.

 

 

and she could have stayed on Babe all afternoon.

 

 

do you know my pony story?
i was given a pony for my first birthday
(what one year old does not need their very own pony?)
her name was Annie and she had one blue eye and one brown eye.
at some point, my grandparents ended up getting rid of Annie
and one day, my mom and i were at the grocery store
and they had pony rides in the parking lot
and i saw Annie.
her eyes were unmistakable.
poor Annie.
and that’s my pony story.
so now you’ve heard it.

 

 

D and Shorty.

 

 

L either wanted to walk up the steps
leading to the ponies
or ride on the pony.
so, we put him on a pony
and boy oh boy
he did not like that.

 

apparently it was the steps he was interested in.

 

 

but this girl, oh how she loved it.

 

 

my babe and her Babe.

 

 

our climber girl.

 

 

she tried a couple of times to make it up to

 

 

the tippy, tippy

 

 

top.

 

 

and P with our L.
how he loves her.

 

So, if you think you are standing firm,
be careful that you don’t fall!
1 Corinthians 10:12

 

2001. the afternoon glow
2002. being so inspired by books
2003. clean to-do lists
2004. more adventures to come
2005. reminiscing about spring break

 a dear sweet friend of mine

asked me to come over
to take some photos of her
six day old baby.
yes, you read that right.
six.
days.
new.
and yes, he was as tiny as ever.

 

 

i just adore this super special family.

 

 

how does one set up for a newborn shoot, you ask?
well, i don’t know how anyone else does it
but i asked the big sister
to supply me with the nearest baby doll
and this is what i got.
and as you can imagine,
the doll was very well-behaved.

 

this momma is such a devoted wife and momma.
our conversations usually cut to the chase right away,
which i love because you never know
how long you will have before you are needed once again.
i have gained so much insight from how she
loves her husband and parents her three children.
she is truly a blessing to me.

 

 

this shoot was such an absolute treat for me.

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory
and the exact representation of his being,
sustaining all things by his powerful word.
After he had provided purification for sins,
he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.
Hebrews 1:3

1981. not feeling like i started my day at 4am
1982. the children’s excitement
1983. the bigs reading in bed
1984. B who is willing to go out in the rain for me
1985. baking cookies with my love

do you remember this sweet family?
well, they are some of our
dearest, dearest friends
who had to audacity to move to Chicago.

 

anyway, back to my story.
they came in for a little visit
because really, i think they missed all of us.
madly.

 

and i got to do a quick little shoot for them.
although this time, they had one more child!

 

 

meet the Os.

 

 

and meet little B.

 

 

little Miss G.
she was so concerned (nearly to tears)
that she had gotten sand on my blanket.
which i brought to the beach.
to get sand on.
such a sweet, sweet heart that girl has.

 

 

 

we all had a grand time
and seriously, is this momma
not one of the most beautiful
people in the world?
stunning, i tell you.
absolutely stunning.

 

 

Miss G was as curious
as any nearly three year old.

 

 

and might just be
a daddy’s girl.

 

 

and sweet little B,
had
the
most
gorgeous
brown
eyes.

 

i can’t wait to see
how this mom and daughter’s relationship
blossoms as the years go by.

 

the Os are such a fun family.

 

and they are as silly and wacky as ever.
oh, how we miss them.

until next time…

 

Let the light of your face shine upon us, O LORD.
Psalm 6:b

 

1966. blue and white striped sweaters for the boys
1967. getting lists in order
1968. rainy days
1969. the bigs splashing in puddles
1970. an impromptu fun lunch