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popcorn + lemonade.



as i mentioned yesterday, 
this past weekend 
we headed to a local park 
as a family.
we brought popcorn and lemonade,
went down and up the slides,
ran on cement and through sand 
and rode bikes.
and yes, we successfully wore our children out.
isn’t an early bedtime for the kids just about the best thing in the world?
i think so.

don’t they look like they’re having a ball?

i assure you, we were.

see!

the moon was out and the weather was simply perfect.

L did some working out with B

and hammed it up for the camera
(as usual).

The LORD your God is with you,
   the Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you;
   in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
   but will rejoice over you with singing.
Zephaniah 3:17

881. L’s spontaneous hugs
882. the combination of popcorn and lemonade
(almost as good as popcorn and oj)
883. a simple and easy doctor’s appointment for L
884. finding K’s lost hat
885. getting geared up for some major spring cleaning

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pitter-patter.

while the kiddos rested/napped,
i ventured outside to our backyard.
i never do this by myself.
never, ever.
but i assure you, 
it will be done again.
again and again and again.

and what would be some lovely alone time
without my trusty dr. pepper and lime?
the perfect companions.
(well, of course, except for B.)
and don’t be thrown by the yellow of our limes. 
our limes turn yellow when they’re ripe. 
weird, right?
so weird but so good.

there was the perfect amount 
of the slightest breeze,

and the hydrangea that i nearly killed?

yeah, B brought that back to life,
and it was soaking up the sunshine as well.

isn’t the color of the benches to our 
square 
picnic table 
simply lovely?
yes, yes they are.
that color red makes my heart go a pitter-patter.

escaping to our backyard was just what i needed. 
nobody talked to me or touched me for a few hours.
and when i was ready to come back to the real world, 
i was in a much better place.

I will see you again and you will rejoice, 
and no one will take away your joy
John 16:22b

871. coldplay’s secret album
(thanks Aunt CC!)
872. sneaking pumpkin into our dinner and B didn’t even suspect it
873. knowing what we need to do and having B there to back me up
874. that perfect shade of red
875. clipped nails (for everyone in our house)

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awakened.

the sun has been shining.
really shining.
and boy, does it feel good.

even the air smells good.
so very good.

this is the first time in nearly two years
that i have felt rested. 
truly rested. 


the kids and i have been outside as much as possible as of late.
we’ve even ventured out for a wagon ride in the 8am hour.
yes, i said 8am.
that is simply unheard of around here.

(thanks for the photo, iphone!)

here, L was happily sitting in the wagon 
watching D and K do watercolors of our big tree.
it was glorious.
simply glorious.

i feel as though i have been awakened.
God is opening my eyes to the right now.
the right here.
and i am in awe of His blessings.
the blessings that i was blind to before.
the simple things that make life oh so full.
and i don’t want to go back to how i felt before.


I have come that they may have life, 
and have it to the full.
John 10:10b

and wow. 
i have been featured on 

head over there and check out other 
faith-filled, inspiring blogs. 

Photobucket


866. mister sun, sun, mister golden sun
867. faith blogs
868. the time change
869. hanging with my sis
870. being awakened by Him

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ten on ten.march

here’s my ten on ten for this month!



1. K and D’s artistic interpretations of our tree 
2. a last minute opportunity to finish my CBS lesson 
3. D helping toast a bagel 
4. a tree’s shadow 
5. fallen nuts 
6. the clouds 
7. aforementioned tree 
8. L sleeping on his tummy (a rare occurrence) 
9. making homemade lemonade 
10. L’s favorite thing to do in therapy: pop bubbles

861. a work night
862. homemade lemonade
863. a really clean dinner table
864. exhaustion from a fun night out with the hubs
865. being rescued


be sure to check out my weekly project, 
picture me {im}perfectly

ten on ten button

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watching grown men beat each other up.


B and i hardly have any photos together.
just the two of us. 
and the first one of these shots 
was at a horrible angle
and showed us sporting double chins.
so that leaves us with one less photo of the two of us. 


we got to go out on a very fun date.
it was daytime.
it was something that we have 
only experienced once before together.
it was free.
and since i was sporting neck-to-ankle hives, 
it was the perfect place to go
because i could stay bundled up.
(apparently i am allergic to penicillin.)


it was hockey.


it was definitely entertaining but i
could not get over 
the anger and violence between the players.
it was terrifying watching grown men beat each other up
while the crowd cheered them on 
and the refs just watched.


856. free popcorn
857. chick-fil-a
858. the way L talks to me
859. library books
860. D reading to me
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KS visits.part 3

as it always does, 
our visit went by way too quickly.
how does that always happen?
one moment she is arriving and the next, the visit is over.
but we have carefully outlined many future trips to visit each other
(and maybe even one thrown in there without any children).

(photo taken by D)

we 
(of course)
never ran out of anything to say,

enjoyed lime dr. peppers with our kid-free lunch
the oatmeal, chocolate chip, butterscotch cookies i had prepared 
along with her oatmeal, chocolate chip, peanut butter cookies she had prepared.

we even got all gussied up to go out to a night on the town 

with our friend KP
which ended at the late hour of 8:30pm.
(i think i need to invest in some heels 
if i am going to hang out with these lanky girls.)

we stayed the night at my parents’ condo

where we posed for this 
much-too-early morning shot 
(with the red of my camera strap on the left).

yep, that’s right
it was the second time i have stayed the night away from L. 
and the first time was when he was 
admitted into the PICU at Christmastime in 2009. 
i don’t like to think about that night though.
but this night at the condo?
oh, this night was heavenly.
we stayed up and chatted 
while eating fro yo 
until it was much too late in the night.
we had to set alarms in the morning
so we would be sure to make it home in time to take D to school at 9am.
it was 
that 
dark and 
that
quiet at the condo. 
i don’t remember the last time i set an alarm 
to be sure that i was up by 8am.
that is definitely one perk about having children.
we’ll call that a perk.

and then we dropped her off at the train station 
because have you know it, 
KS is a world traveler. 
and how adorable is she?
too adorable.
she is such a fashionista.
(do you notice her “sippy cup” filled to the brim with coffee?)

846. being inspired
847. homemade guac made by the hubby
848. promised family time
849. thinking and dreaming about the future
850. K’s enthrallment over the trains


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KS visits.part 2

when she’s not flying in from the middle of the country to visit,
KS and i have a standing phone date. 
each and every week.

it’s so incredible how much life we can share 
in those 
never-have-enough-time-to-talk-about-everything 
quick fifteen minutes. 

and, it’s amazing how much life we can share 
without living near each other.
although, we do often dream about 
what it would be like to be next door neighbors.
we’d share our morning brew 
(especially since we are both totally and completely addicted),
we’d practically live at each others’ houses,
our girls would play baby doll together,
our little boys would nap at the same time,
and our husbands would golf with each other. 
especially since hers just shot 
a nice, low number while she was out to visit.
it would be really lovely.
i’m sure of it. 
but, until then, we’ll just hold onto our weekly phone dates.

(photo taken by K)

and here she is loving my baby like he is hers. 

she even babysat
all three children.
twice,
so that B and i could go out on dates.
hah. 
not quite.
we had a kindy to tour and a 
parent/teacher conference to attend.
but, B and i did hold hands
and our conversations weren’t interrupted,
so it was kind of like a date. 
kind of.

Photobucket


841. the sweet smell of night jasmine blooming
842. a happy little man who just received his first issue of lego magazine
843. a messy but quiet house
844. horse drawn carriage rides
845. finding out about a friend seeking the Lord

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KS visits.part 1

KS came to visit.
(more on her here and here.)
i know.
isn’t she one of the best?
one of the best, i tell you.

look at her in full mommy mode.
even though none of her children came with her.
here she is, on the phone with her kiddos 
(who were back home)
while entertaining mine.
by the end of the visit, 
my kids were referring to her as “other mommy”
(a name they’ve only called my sister).

and what out-of-state visitor can refuse going to the beach?
not a one.
we made sure that it was one of our first stops.

and oh, was the sun shining!
it was a glorious day.
and, when my kiddos started fussing 
because they were tired of being strapped in the stroller, 
she didn’t even flinch. 
now that, my friends, is a blessing.

stay tuned for part two of her visit. 

836. the warm wind
837. a party with the big kids
838. metal bowls that make clinking sounds
839. watching L flirt with his therapists 
in order to get out of doing the work
840. legos, legos everywhere
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