Five yaers ago, even at this late hour (remember Steve & Corrie?), my little girl was about to burst into this world and change my identity forever… for the better, as I gained the title of “mother”. So cliche, I know, but I can’t believe my tiny 6lb 15oz wide-eyes bundle has grown into such a beautiful young woman. We had a lovely day (that started early due to the excitement!) with tiaras, bedroom makeovers, friends & family, princess cake, and lots of presents and love.

We just got back from an anniversary/bike race weekend… the first time in 6 years that we’ve had any time to enjoy our special day together!  It was lovely… right down to the chocolate mousse cheesecake we shared in memory of my our wedding cake.  (Thanks, again, to Dena for being the cake courier!)  My computer battery is dying, and bedtime is nearing, but I can’t let this day pass without saying how blessed I am.

Amazing memories from June 28th, 2003… rain most of the day, but it didn’t dampen our spirits; meeting Brian for a quiet few moments and prayer before the pre-ceremony photos; praying separately with our respective wedding party members before the ceremony; a ceremony that we still talk about as “perfect” with awesome music; surprising my sweet husband with a song during the ceremony; our first sweet kiss; a fun reception with delicious food; clouds of mosquitoes as we attempted a few outdoor photos; driving away with little gold hearts blowing out our air vents (there are a few still hiding in there!  We are determined that we’ll be newlyweds as long as we can see them reflecting in the front window!), sharing the day with the most special people in our lives.  If you were there… thank you!  And we probably talked about you today   So much has happened in these awesome 6 years, and we’re so very thankful and excited to see what God has in store for the future.

And Brian… I love you so very much.  I’m so glad you found me in Texas nearly 8 years ago!  You are my dearest friend, and I’m so happy to share this life with you.   I’ll always be your #1 fan!

Photo courtesy of Analise at a bike race earlier in June.

I swear… my kids are so cute.  Well, Josiah’s cute, but Analise is beautiful   We had photos taken this week (and Analise isn’t quite 5, but she’d excitedly tell you there are 3 more days!!!), and I’m so pleased at the way they turned out.

It’s been a relatively quiet couple weeks here.  We’re keeping busy and happy (mostly!).  Yesterday and today were the epitome of summer days… sprinkler, slip ‘n slide and water balloons on a hot day, popsicles and lightning bugs, a long day at the pool.  It’s in the 90’s here, so you either stay inside in the air conditioned cool or you stay wet outside

We’re leaving early in the morning for St. Louis, of course for a bike race!  Analise still remembers the Arch from last summer.  It made such an impact on her young mind!  Josiah has grown up a bit, though he’s still torn between playing princesses and following in his Daddy’s footsteps.  Brian’s racing in a big pro/elite race, the Tour of Winghaven, on Sunday afternoon.  His parents are joining us for the race, staying the night with us, and hopefully we’ll see the St. Louis Zoo on Monday, before the long drive back Monday afternoon.  Look for short photo updates from my iPhone!

Lastly… I have to put a plug in for one of my favorite sites, where my beautiful birthday Mom necklace came from, The Vintage Pearl.  Next week, she’s having a week of giveaways… so check in and maybe you’ll win something!  If I can’t win, I hope you do

I’ll admit…
We’re letting things slide around here. We built a fort in the family room this weekend… and it’s still up. The kids have been enjoying meals and movies in it all week. More and more of their toys are moving out of their room into the fort, or at least into the family room to be near the fort. And really… I’m choosing to not make myself crazy by cleaning up constantly. Because it’s just going to get un-cleaned-up again very quickly. With both kids at home most days, I know the potential for me to be frazzled and grumpy at the end of the day, probably due to my usually futile efforts at keeping things picked up around their happy, entertaining play.

So this afternoon we played in the sprinkler for an hour. Well, they did, while I relaxed in a dry spot (not without lots of drips when they came to bring me flowers and tell me they loved me… how lucky am I?). I made them dinner to eat in their fort while they watched a movie from the library for a later-than-usual bedtime. We even had a dance party before heading to bed.

My house is pretty messy lately. At least the bathrooms are clean. By my standards, it makes me crazy to not have things picked up. But really… we’re enjoying ourselves. And isn’t that all that matters? I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again because it was the best piece of advice an older, wiser mom ever told me… When my kids are grown, they won’t remember how clean my house was, but they will remember the fun we had in it.

So if you drop by, maybe whatever I’ve baked/cooked up will help you overlook the mess and join in the fun and laughter that is our family!