Birthday Fun

Thank you so much for all the birthday wishes on here, Facebook and email!  It was so fun to have a constant stream of emails coming in that day from all my family and friends!  It made the day so fun!

So did this little man!

I had to take a picture of Andrew with my birthday cake! :)  Ha!  I cracked up when I saw what my mom had written on the cake!  "Happy Birthday Your Highness!"  

 This has been an inside joke for many years between my mom, dad and I (and has rubbed off on Craig as well!)  My dad used to call me "Highness" as a joke.  He would fold his hands and bow while backing out of the room if I had asked him for something, etc.  It used to make me giggle. :)  So my mom thought I would get a kick out of this!  And it certainly made me laugh out loud! 

We all went out to eat together at Applebees and came back to our house for cake and ice cream.  It was the perfect way to spend the evening.  

Andrew was so sweet, he sang "Happy Birthday" to me in his sweet little voice.  It just made me want to cry!  He loves birthdays and he gets really into it!  He really enjoys all of our birthdays, not just his.  Probably because he still gets to enjoy the cake and ice cream!  Ha!

He was so excited because he "helped" me blow out the candles.  When they went out he yelled "I got it!"  He didn't realize I had actually blown them out!  Ha!  I had to laugh, he wanted to wear his "bones" pajamas.  Sets the mood for fall, doesn't it?

He was helping me open my presents and cards, too!

 He was putting this sack on his head and it had glitter all over it!  He had tons of glitter in his hair and the next day was picture day at his school!  He had already had a bath so I just scrubbed it out as best as I could!  His hair will probably be sparkling in his picture!  Ha!

Surprise!  Mom and Jim gave me a super tiny camera I can carry in my purse and I just love it!  I had been wanting something small to carry that also has video on it, since my old camera broke, remember?  I love my new camera but it is so huge that it is hard to carry around places, and it doesn't have video.  I think I'm set for my photography hobby for a while!  Now I am just begging Craig for a new iMac to go with it!  Ha!  Wishful thinking.  

Andrew was so thrilled that he had to get out his Elmo camera too!  Ha!

And an evening can't go by without a ride on Papa's shoulders...

And some wrestling!  Ha!

Andrew thinks Papa is a human jungle gym!

 And he freaked us all out when he stood up and did this... then he JUMPED off!  Yeah, he's a daredevil.

I just had the best day, and I am so thankful for everyone who helped to make it special, especially this little guy!

Show us Your Life- Blog Event

Our Love Nest!

Kelly's Korner is hosting Show us Your Life- Master Bedrooms today!  I decided to participate, since I love sharing decorating ideas and I love reading other blogs to get new ideas!  So welcome to our love nest!

I love hanging signs above our doorways.  I do it for most of our rooms.  Above Andrew's door it says "Giggle!"  I just love it!

I am starting with our "old" love nest, from our town home several years ago.  We moved about six years ago, but I have always loved this master bedroom.  It was so roomy, and I even had room for a comfy reading chair (although I don't think I ever sat there to read!)  I would definitely redo these curtains with long ones that go to the floor if we had stayed here.  I loved the room but we couldn't afford to buy curtains at the time so I made them (and no, I didn't sew... I glued!)  Anyway, this was my bedroom set (sheets, comforter, etc) that I had from a while back, before we got married.  I always loved it.  I love to mix-n-match bedding so it came from all different places.  I still have it on our bed during the fall/winter months, but haven't changed it yet so the rest of the pictures show our new bedroom, with our new bedding.

This is mainly what our bed looks like during the summer with just the coverlet.  I don't use our big comforter too often, since it is pretty hot!  When we moved our room got lots smaller, so we don't have room for the chair!  I painted the walls the same color (with color matching!) since I loved our old bedroom so much.  The funny thing was, we spent hours and coats of paint on our old wall doing textured (sand) paint.  It was an awful mess!  I always loved the way it turned out but it took lots of work to get there.  This time I just color matched it and didn't do the texture.  Took half the time and money and looks the same!  Ha!

This is our bed with the comforter on, when I decide to dress it up with pillows!  Which during the week when I'm rushing out the door- never happens!  But I love our "C" and "J" pillows.  My mom knew I wanted them and she wrapped them up for us individually one Christmas.  The look on Craig's face was priceless when he opened his!  Ha!  I don't think he was too thrilled!

This is a view from the doorway.  One of my favorite things about this room is our chandelier.  I picked it out when we moved in, and we took out the ceiling fan.  Now I am somewhat regretting that decision!  Esp in the summer when it's hot!  But I do love the chandelier so much that I just can't care about missing the ceiling fan!  Craig put a dimmer on it and I love the "mood" lighting!  The other thing this picture shows is a glimpse of my other favorite item...our heart rug!  Ha!  Again, Craig is not a huge fan.  But I believe the master bedroom should be cozy, warm and romantic!  When I saw this rug I fell in love with it.  I knew it had to go at the foot of our bed!

This just shows the pattern of our bedding a little closer.  This set doesn't mix and match quite like the other one, but I still think it is rich and cozy and I love it.  

I also love our vaulted ceilings.  We have room darkening shades behind these long curtains and I absolutely love how dark it is in here in the mornings!  I could sleep in forever!  Andrew loves to come in bed with us on weekend mornings, too.  It's one of my favorite things to do...sleep in with my family and cuddle with my boy (Andrew, that is!  Ha!)!  I want to get some wording for above the curtains here- something from uppercase living with a special phrase.  I am waiting for just the right thing.

 This is our dresser we got with our headboard when we got married.  I love the rich color-cherry wood.   I have a small jewelry holder on the right corner that matches- along with my necklace holder that is a little out of control!  Ha!  I think I need something different for sorting jewelry!  Maybe I'll get some ideas on other blogs today!

I also feel a master bedroom should tell your story somehow.  I like to add little touches to the room to remind us of special things.  This vase that the greenery is in was my grandmother's.  I just love it, and it matches our wall color perfectly.  Our wedding photo is framed on the dresser, along with some family photos.  In the back left is a wooden plate we got on our honeymoon in Hawaii.  It is "A Marriage Prayer" in Hawaiian and English.

This is hanging on a wall in our bedroom.  It is my wedding bouquet, which has been freeze dried and arranged with our wedding invitation and some seashells (since we had a beach themed wedding in Clear Lake).  I just love it.

This is one of my very favorite things in our room.  These were very old postcards that my great-grandmother had in an old rickety frame that was falling apart and would have given anyone splinters!  She had cut the cards out by hand and they were crooked and yellowy.  My mom knew how much I loved these pictures, so she gave them to my aunt who owned a frame shop and she framed them for me as our wedding gift.  It is truly one of those gifts that meant so much to me and always will.  It is a family heirloom.  Each card tells the sequence of a couple falling in love.  The first picture says "The Proposal," then "The Trousseau," "The Wedding," "The Honeymoon," "Their new home," and last, a photo of them with a baby, "Their new love."  It just gives me goosebumps.  I love it so much.

I recreated the sequence of photos of us in a frame we got for our wedding.  I have the last 2 photos to add now (I didn't then!) but I need to find just the right frame with 6 photo holders.

I believe it is important to have a cross in our bedroom, and I just love this one.  I love the colors and texture.  It is hanging right by our doorway so we see it every time we go in and out.

Our master bedroom has a walk in closet that I'd like to be a little bigger!  Craig and I have to share it, which is not easy.  I rarely let anyone look in my closet but since it is part of our master I had to include it!  Ha!  We put some clothes in our guest room closet too, since we run out of room in here!

Our bathroom is also next to the closet in our bedroom.  In our town home I made these tall curtains to hang by our sinking bathtub with jets, which we don't have here.  But I improvised and hung them anyway.  I like how they go all the way to the ceiling- it really makes the room look bigger.  We also have a curved shower bar, which makes the shower seem more roomy, too.

So there is a little glimpse into our lives!  I hope you enjoyed the tour and I can't wait to see some other bedrooms!  Thanks for visiting!

Bittersweet

I think I titled a post a year ago with this same name.  But there really isn't any other word to describe it.  Last weekend marked the last time at the lake for the summer.  Only it wasn't really summer because we had to wear our sweatshirts!

We went up to the lake to take the boat and dock out of the water.  Every year when we do this, I have mixed feelings.  I love summer.  I am a lake girl at heart, always will be.  My best memories of childhood are of growing up at the lake.  I often say that I could write a whole book about my lake memories.  There are too many to mention, but each one is engraved in my mind.  I'll never forget them.  They are such a huge part of me.

I always wanted my child/ren to grow up the same way I did- loving the lake.  Andrew does.  He can't get enough of it.

And it makes me so happy.  Here he is pointing at a ton of ducks we saw!  You can't see them in the picture (they are specks!) but there were about 50 of them!

Andrew had to take one last opportunity to drive the boat in circles and make us dizzy!

I love how this last ride of the season is sort of a "transition" into fall.  The fact that we are wearing sweatshirts on the boat is just a perfect illustration of this.

Because I absolutely love the fall.  I love getting out all the decorations, lighting candles, wearing jean jackets and making pumpkin bread.  I even still secretly love my birthday (which is tomorrow, actually!) even though I hate to think about how old I am!  I still love it.  It's just fun to have a day all about you, ya know?  

Anyway, back to boating!  We pulled the boat up on the trailer and Andrew was fascinated by this.  He watched Daddy and Papa very carefully.

He thought it was pretty cool to "drive" the boat on land, too!  Ha!  This purple colored building is part of the marina at the lake.  It used to be an old camping lodge, which is now a restaurant we love to eat at.  Outside they have a little Tiki Bar by the lake and serve burgers, etc outside in the summer.  They also have delicious breakfast overlooking the lake.  One of my most favorite things to do growing up was to take the boat here for breakfast.  I loved that we could do that instead of drive a car!

Andrew enjoying his boat ride on land!  Ha!

 He wanted to help Papa and daddy park the boat.

We laughed so hard at him doing this.  Directing us right into the water!  Ha!  He held out his hands and motioned for us to come this way!  Just like Daddy and Papa were doing while parking the boat.  What a funny kid!

You can rent waverunners and other things at this Lighthouse by the marina.

I'm not even sure why he was so excited here, but I can say that he has us laughing more than anything else.  He keeps us busy, but it is these moments we treasure!

Tonight when I got home from getting my haircut, Andrew and Daddy had been up to something for my birthday tomorrow.  I walked in the door and Andrew said "Hi Mommy!  Mommy's birthday!"  Then he hugged me so sweet and said "Happy Birthday" over and over.  My heart just melted.  I asked him if he got mommy a present and he goes "yep!"  Craig made me stop asking him for information because he doesn't exactly know how to keep a secret yet!  Ha!  I don't need one thing for my birthday except for this sweet little man, my sweet husband and my family and friends.  I am so blessed!

Random

Every once in a while, you have to do a catch up blog post.  And there's just no way to make these topics flow together, so I've titled this post "random."  This working full time has been kicking me in the a difficult transition, to say the least.  I spend my weekends cleaning and doing laundry, trying to organize clothing because seriously... is it fall?  Or is it still summer?  I spent last weekend completely converting Andrew's closet to his fall wardrobe.  Got all his clothes organized in bins in the basement according to season and size, and now I'm running out of his shorts!  But I refuse to go downstairs and dig up all the clothes I've stashed away!  Ha!  I kept a few shorts and t-shirts out but I'd say after this week we're on round two.  Needless to say, I've had little time for blogging.  I've completely forgotten about half of these pictures, and even forgot to upload Andrew's first trip to the dentist this summer.  Gasp!  Time for catch up... here goes....

So, Andrew went to the dentist this summer.  I figured it was time.  He loves doctors, so I just called this the "teeth doctor."  He loved it.  Once he found Alex the dinosaur, he was good to go!  He got to brush Alex's teeth with a giant toothbrush and this entertained him the entire time.

Open wide!

Notice him still trying to brush when the doctor is counting his teeth?  Yeah, he never stopped.  He wanted to take Alex home...

But he settled for a prize instead.  He got two- since he was such a good boy!  It was a great experience, and they said his teeth look great!  We can mostly thank daddy- he is the official tooth brusher.

Last month (I know!  I am so behind!)  Craig's family celebrated their family farm being 100 years old.  This was his grandpa and grandma's farm, and his uncle and his family live there now.  They celebrated by threshing.  I realize I should know what threshing is, seeing as though I was there and everything.  But honestly, I can't even begin to explain.  It has something to do with separating grain from the stalks (and sadly, I had to google that!) My husband is going to be so proud of me!  Ha!

Daddy gave all the kids gator rides.  Andrew and cousin Jack loved the rides!

It was so hot, so the kids put on their suits and filled plastic containers from the sprinkler and dumped it on the driveway.  This thrilled them for hours!

Then they all attempted to squeeze into this tiny pool together!  They were having a blast!

A few weeks ago we watched Andrew's cousins Evie and Jayden for an evening.  Andrew loved having them come over and hang out with us!

He gave them gator rides... I love how Jayden is holding on for dear life and Andrew looks like he's tearing up the road!  Ha!

Our little trip to the park began like this...

And ended with Craig lugging the bike all the way home!  Ha!  We did put it in the back of the gator for a while, until it kept falling out and Andrew didn't want to stop!  Ha!

I gave all three kids baths and daddy made popcorn and we watched Toy Story.  Whew!  It gave me a little insight on what having more than one kid is like!  We were exhausted!  Ha!  But it was a really fun evening and the kids all had a blast together.

We've had lots of fun hanging out with Ga Ga and Papa too!  Papa found this old baby Mickey book that he had for his grandkids and brought it for Andrew.  Andrew loved it!  He laid on the couch while Papa read every word.  Several times.

So sweet!  He loves his Ga Ga and Papa so much!

Papa plays with him and is so much fun!

Whoa!

Andrew wears Papa out!  He wants Papa to play with him every minute!

One Sunday after church the weather was so gorgeous so Papa and Ga Ga came over and we took a long bike ride on a nice bike trail.  It was flat the whole way- that's my kind of bike ride!  Ha!

Andrew loves riding in his Burley!

This was taken on Andrew's first day of Sunday school at our church.  Now that he is three and potty trained he can go to KQ (our church calls it "Kingdom Quest").  He was a little apprehensive at first, but when Craig and I checked on him he was dancing and clapping to Bible songs and having a ball!  Craig and I finally get to sit and enjoy church, which is a nice change.  Plus it's time for Andrew to start hearing Bible lessons and learning what Jesus has done for him in his little life.  That is going to be so important for us to teach him.  I pray that he will grow up knowing Jesus and that He is the reason Andrew is alive and thriving today!

 Sorry Hawkeye fans!  Here's our little Cyclone heading off to preschool the day before the big game.  Trust me, after the game we kept our ISU gear off for a while.  The game was a little embarrassing, to say the least!  Oh well, we'll always root for my alma mater!

  Andrew dug out his old Yo Gabba Gabba stuff the other day and wanted to watch "Gabba" the whole day.  That was a fun day... Ha!

If that wasn't funny enough... here's a funny for you!  So he used to wear his slippers with no pants, but now he's moved on to his Woody and Buzz boots that Ga Ga bought him.  We cannot get them off him.  He wants to wear them to bed, to school, you name it.  

Look how he's clutching Woody.  And his skinny little legs!  This kid is too funny for words.  I realize someday he might not appreciate me posting pictures of him in his underwear on the internet.  But I'm sorry, I can only hope he'll forgive me because it is too.stinkin.funny not to share!

So we took it one step further.  We figured if he won't take off the boots he might as well have the outfit to match!  Ha!  Normally I like to keep his Halloween costume a secret.  But I think I can safely assume that most people who know Andrew and read this blog would guess!

And yes he wanted to wear this to bed, too.  And school, and everywhere else.  

I love the bottom of the boots!  Daddy teases me and says it is his name on the boots!  I have to laugh because when we named him "Andrew" I was adamant that his nickname would be "Drew" because I didn't want his nickname to be "Andy."  Turns out Andy would have been fitting, considering how much he loves Toy Story!  Ha!  For now we really haven't done the nickname thing.  "Andrew" just seems to fit him!

So here's our little Sheriff Woody- Who's ready for trick or treat!??

I think that's everything I needed to catch up on.  For now.  And just because I want to try to make this flow as much as possible (which isn't much!) I'm going to end the way we began...

 Andrew says "say cheese!"   

And that tied it all together- right??