a decade

Today is our ten year anniversary.

For ten years I have had the amazing privilege of walking alongside this man and doing life with him.  It has gone by so incredibly fast, and it seems like forever ago.  I'm a sentimental, emotional woman, so of course I can't help but think back to where we started and where we are now.  We've been through so much together.  There's been a lot of ups and downs.....maybe a few more downs than we bargained for.  But I know that God is writing our story, and I know that he has wonderful plans for us individually, for us as a couple, and for our family.  I know that there are more blessings and more trials in our future, and I know that we will weather it all together.

I love this life that we've built.  I love this family that we've made.  I love this journey that we are on.

And I really, really love this man of mine.

| select photos by Jennifer Dunaway Photography |

summer happenings

and according to Instagram.....

watching fireworks  |  they don't like the smell at Starbucks  |  family night mini-golf game

library story time  |  just dance in our pajamas  |  dinner on the water

washing grandpapi's truck  |  family selfie at the pool  |  picking flowers {aka weeds}

daddy buys them silly things  |  a beautiful morning calls for breakfast outside  |  lazy day fun

she loves her shades  |  morning play-doh session |  haircut

playing at the library  |  family selfie at movies in the park  |  good morning

Our summer has been flying by, but we have been having a blast!  It's been a little laid-back, a little busy, and a lot of fun!  We have been doing so many things that we don't normally get to do during the school year.  We love having our little man home with us during the day, and I know it's going to be especially hard on Makayla when school starts back up.  And it will be hard on this mama as well!  Even though the days can be very long and very tiring, I really do cherish this sweet season with my kiddos!

Here's to the last few weeks of summer!

school is out

School's been out for a few weeks now, and we are really enjoying the summer so far.  May was one heck of a busy month - I guess when you have a school-aged kiddo that it just goes with the territory!  We made it through a field trip to the zoo, Muffins with Mom, Doughnuts with Dad, Field Day, and Awards Day.  Caleb got the Spunky Spirit Award.  No surprise there!  Our boy is most definitely spunky!  He also got a third place ribbon for his artwork, which he was super excited about.

I mentioned way back here about how nervous we were about kindergarten for our boy and what a big decision it was for us.  We knew he would likely be fine academically, but we were concerned about some social aspects and maturity issues.  We debated a lot about doing another year of pre-k or moving ahead to kindergarten, but kindergarten ultimately won out.  Well, Caleb absolutely rocked this year! We are so proud of our boy and so thankful for the work that God is doing in him.  It has been pretty remarkable to see his progress and how much he has changed and grown.  

Next up.....first grade!

strawberry picking

The kids and I went strawberry picking yesterday with my mom and my grandmother. I have been wanting to take them, but life has just been so dang busy! Strawberry season is just about over here, so I'm really glad we made it in time! It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun too! We all filled up our buckets and headed inside while my grandmother stayed out there and kept picking. We finally had to drag her away - I think she would have stayed out there all day if we had let her!

Today, after church, we went to my parent's house and we made pancakes with strawberries on top for brunch, and then my mom and I made a big batch of strawberry jam. We used the Barefoot Contessa's recipe, which is so, so good.  (We did cut back on the amount of sugar it called for.)  I'm going to bet that it won't last too long!

an angry birds party

Well, since our boy went and turned six on us, we figured a party was in order!  Superheroes are still his main love at the moment, but we went with that theme for last year's party.  So we switched it up and went with another one of his loves - Angry Birds.  There are a ton of ideas out there on Pinterest.  Those little birds made for a lot of fun for this creative mama, and daddy even got in on the fun with the whole slingshot thing.  Any excuse to get out some power tools and he is in!

We still keep our parties pretty small and have them at home with mostly just family, which I love.  I know the day is coming when the kids will want big parties at some cheesy play center, so I am enjoying these sweet parties while we have them!  I love planning them and thinking about all of the details - to me it's just another way of loving on my kiddos.   

And Caleb was happy as could be, so there you go!