let there be photos, lots of photos

i'm so tired of bare walls! with our house on the market, i'd really done a lot of packing up and de-personalizing our house so buyers could "picture themselves living" in our house. well, now that we can picture ourselves living in our house for a few more years, i'm very excited to get to personalize our space again!

i've had issues with what i wanted to do for the staircase wall every since we moved in back in 2007. i had continuous searched for inspiration and ideas and finally, i found this courtesy of Pinterest....

this inspiration comes from the cutest blog, forevercottage--check it out here. i love the personal aspect of this gallery. photographs mixed with memorabilia and family touches. so, i took this to heart and started digging my packed away personal items. i gathered and hunted for about 2 weeks. i repainted frames, bought a few new ones and distressed some old one's. i found some of our wedding photos i'd never hung, one honeymoon room door key from the tutweiler personalized with our names and wedding day, a old photograph of my grandparents and lots of other great items. here is where my gallery wall is right now....

i love the lab bust on the wall instead of picture of our lab--although, when i find a good one it's going in a frame to be added too! i still have some room to add more items as i continue to unpack all the personal stuff in the attic. for now, i'm most happy with where the gallery is and i'm working on  few more. glad to have my house back! Pin It

Water Logged

When I say we're water logged, I mean it! I believe the only time we weren't in the water this long Memorial Day weekend was when we were sleeping. It was a great weekend with family and friends and we are excited to get this summer started. Can't wait to post some of the CUTEST pics of the boys enjoying the water! More to come...

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Easter 2012

Easter this year was one of the best Easter's we've had as a family in a long time. I credit that to our return to our old church, Dawson Memorial Baptist Church. Ray and I went to Dawson when we were dating and we attended pre-marital classes there before we got married. After we were married, we attended the young marrieds class and met some really great couples. Then, life sort of took over and we decided we lived a bit too far to drive to Dawson every Sunday so we opted to have "church on the couch" for some time. Some Sunday's we'd even have "church at the gym" and watch Dr. Fenton's message on television while working the elliptical.

After moving to our current house, we visited several churches in our community to grow our faith and to get better connected with our neighbors. Although each of those churches were great churches and unique in their own way, they just weren't home for us. So, a few weeks ago we decided to return to Dawson and we couldn't be happier. This decision comes at a time in our life and marriage where we need faith and a church family more than ever! Let's face it, raising children and having careers can be time consuming and stressful. We feel like we've let our faith suffer and we have made a decision to mend ourselves with our Dawson church family. And, we know our decision was the right one because Jackson & Macklin couldn't be happier! They LOVE Sunday school and have adjusted better than we expected.

Once we got home from church, we had Easter lunch together and enjoyed hiding (and finding) Easter eggs and our Easter baskets. It was a great Easter Sunday! Pin It

The Carle Cowboy's Western Celebration--Part 2: All the CUTE Guests

I have to admit, when I decided to plan a joint birthday party for the boys this year I was a bit nervous. Then, once I decided to have the party at our house, I was even more nervous. Let's face it, a lot of planning goes into any event, but when it's your boys birthday party and it's at your house, you will stay awake around the clock (if needed) to make sure it turns out as close to perfect as possible (I know my friends with girls are laughing and saying thank God she doesn't have girls)!

Well, most of my planning was done on-line with the help of many blogs and party sites (those links to come) and a few hands-on help from family and friends. And, there weren't too many sleepless nights (hard to believe). The guests had an amazing time (kids AND adults) and the turnout was spectacular with just over 70 people in attendance. Check out all the fun our party guests had and come back tomorrow for more party details.

  

 

 

Everyone had a rootin' tootin' good time and I'm sure all the outlaws were plum tired when they got home!

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The Carle Cowboy's Western Celebration--Part 1: All the Details

Saturday, March 31st, we had a posse saddle up and mosey over to the Carle Ponderosa for a western celebration for Jackson's 5th birthday and Macklin's 3rd birthday. Our "chuckwagon" included BBQ, baked beans, chips, piggies-in-a-blanket, rice krispy sticks & cupcakes--all served in aluminum pie plates. The little outlaws enjoyed "cactus juce" and "well water" all served from the "watering hole". The sheriffs enjoyed sweet tea served in mason jars with "howdy" straws.

The little outlaws enjoyed the "Pan for Gold" station, the "Carle County Jail" photo op station, and riding ponies. It was a rootin' tootin' good time and Jax & Mac loved hanging out with their posse. This is an overview of the celebration set-up--I'll have several posts throughout the week that will provide more detail and photos of the festivities.

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