Another bridal shower to remember

Last night my (other) little sis got married! Today, in the aftermath of the chaotic (but exciting!) week we've had, I realized I wanted to share pictures with you from the bridal shower we hosted for her last month. So, without further ado, here they are :)

We were blessed with a beautiful fall day, and the large windows lining the room offered a great view of the fall foliage.

The shower planning committee, plus the bride-to-be

Delicious and beautiful home-made cakes

Friends and family joining in the celebration and generously showering my sister with gifts

Cousin love

A couple little games to embarrass the future bride

An appearance from the future groom to help open all those gifts

And the post-shower pictures in that glorious fall golden hour light

So happy you two finally got hitched! Welcome to the family Stephen!

Birthday Week!

The past two weeks have been full of fun and celebration (and candy and sweets!)

First, we went to Oma and Opa's neighborhood in the city for some good old fashioned trick-or-treating fun on Halloween.

My little Darth Vader has much to learn, because he told me his hand was up because he was using 'the magnetic force'.

And everyone thought my little duck was a little girl.

Then, a day later, my little Lincoln turned THREE!! We kicked off the morning with the traditional (and much anticipated) run through the 'birthday wall' of streamers and balloons.

Still working on getting those fingers into the right formation.












Then, five days later, my big guy turned FIVE (I know, he looks like it should be seven :)

He loves running through those streamers so much. Last year, after a long day of many fun treats and activities, he confided to me that the streamer wall was his favorite thing :) I already rue the day when he no longer wants to do this.

But I think I've got some time until then.

Over the weekend, we had a (slightly) pirate-themed bash to celebrate their birthdays. My talented artist sis drew this lovely pirate for 'pin the patch on the pirate'.

It was a big hit with the kiddies, though I'm pretty certain they all cheated.

As always, the many aunties, soon-to-be-uncles and close friends showered them with love, hugs, kisses and great new gifts.

I worked my tail off (remind me not to do this next year) cooking and baking and prepping for the party. I decided to emulate this pirate ship watermelon I saw on Pinterest. What you don't see on pinterest is yours truly, a procrastinator non-realistic-view-of-time kind of person, so it's about one hour til the party start time, and here I am, not showered, no decorations up, frantically carving masts out of watermelon rinds. :) Keepin' it real folks.

That one turned out decently. But what I was REALLY proud of (though the process was fraught with grief, stress, doubt, and frustration), was this pirate ship birthday cake.

I sweated and fretted over this cake for about 24 hours (and loudly declared numerous times that cake decorating is so not my thing!), but it was all so worth it for those looks of joy and excitement on my little boys' faces.

So, the birthday festivities are over.
My goofballs are growing into crazy boys, and (often, or sometimes) loving brothers.

Now we're on to the next big celebration...six days to go!!

Pacific Northwest

This month, we were lucky enough to take a spontaneous little trip (without the kids, thank goodness for amazing family!) out to visit family and friends in Portland and Seattle. As I was taking pictures on her beautiful farm in Oregon, my dear friend seemed to insinuate that she might never actually see any of those pictures...so, that's it, the challenge was on to get this blog post published into blog land.

Here are some pictures from our adventures.

The first two nights we stayed with my dear college roommate and her family in the Portland area. They recently moved into a beautiful new property, studded with rows of vibrant evergreens and bunches of apple and pear trees, heavily laden with many varieties of ripe, delicious fruit...all against the backdrop of rolling Oregon hills.

After an incredibly peaceful and refreshing night of sleep in their adorable little guest house, I awoke to the most glorious morning sunlight peeking over the distant ridge, which was shrouded in waves of mysterious fog. I don't care if that description feels over the top. That's exactly how I felt as I walked out that door, taking in the scents of fresh dew and evergreen needles in the crisp morning air.

Each needle was resplendent, covered in crystal drops, each illuminated by the golden sunlight.

Sipping coffee over a delicious breakfast, speaking of the joys and travails of homeschooling young children, life on a farm...new careers, family drama, pressing cider, raising sheep, raising children...then later getting a tour of every nook of their two-acre farm, excitedly navigated and narrated by her hilarious children. Gathering freshly laid eggs, picking crisp asian pears and honey crisp apples, watching my beautiful friend, a hard-working momma, a veritable pioneer woman...it was a pretty neat experience. A lovely glimpse into her life, one in which she seemed made to be living (and I'll admit I was ready to move out and join her).

We were able to have some grown-up time for a few hours, enjoying some drinks at a lovely brewery in the midst of rolling hills of hazelnut trees

Thanks for letting us invade your life and your farm Mary and Ben! It was so great to see you guys, we love you and your cute family, and were thankful for the hospitality that abounded!

Once this adorable family bid us adieu from their cute front porch, we set off in our rental car for the little road trip to Seattle.

It (predictably) rained most of the trip, but we did manage to get a few shots along the way

In Seattle, we spent two days with my brother and sister-in-law and our little nieces, who are progressively getting less little.

We did some sightseeing, some doughnut eating, some game playing, some ice cream licking, some craft beer drinking, some delicious coffee sipping, and had an all around lovely time. I was sad my boys couldn't be there to spend time with their cousins/aunt/uncle, but really, I wasn't all THAT sad :) It was a treat to be kid-free, so I could tote my camera everywhere and imbibe myself in my love of photography.

 (Photo credit goes to my sis-in-law)

Thanks for opening your home to us Uncle Jay and Auntie Em, it was great to catch up with you all - We love you!