Fun on the Farm!

June 29, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Maelie and I visited the farm this week with our friend, Kris.

It was actually the dairy farm she grew up on, which made it even more cool…love seeing pieces of a friend’s life. :)

And for a kid, there’s nothing that’s not to love about the farm…yes, I’m talking about Maelie. 😉 Exploring, discovering, getting licked by a cow, chasing kitties, running around, driving a go-cart (ok, ok so that one was more me!)…oh, we had so much fun!

“Grandpa” and “Grandma” R were awesome hosts…we were very, very spoiled and loved. We were fed some of the most yummy food I’ve eaten in a long time, we stayed in the coolest farm themed room ever, and they even took time to love Mae…lots of stories and playtime and some coloring and exploring everywhere.

She had the best time, and She. Loved. It.

WE loved it. :)

I had a hard time choosing our favorite pics, so you get a lot of them. :)

Our first stop was to visit the baby calves. She was a little hesitant at first but was definitely curious.

Up close and personal. She loved it, though…you can tell.

Mae loved the cats, even if most of them didn’t want to be caught. Grandpa caught this one for her. She is still talking about “chasing kitties”. :)

I was surprised this one just sat and let her pet it!

Time for a story with Grandma! This was the first time Mae had ever heard the story of Chicken Little, and she was very, very worried throughout the entire book. It was cute. :)

This was too sweet of a moment not to share. Kris sat down to play the Veggie Tales song on the piano, and Maelie sat right by her, “playing” and “singing” along.

I loved driving the go-cart…it gave me a moment of Indonesia again. And as a bonus, no one died. Always a good thing. :)

I didn’t get too many mommy-Maelie pics on this trip. I like this one, though, even if she is much more interested in the kitty.

What a FUN adventure…YAY for friends and the farm! :)

Sig

Filed Under: adventures, being mommy, blessings, friends, just life, Maelie, travel

Where the He– is Matt? 2012

June 28, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

This is insanely beautiful.

Really.

I want to travel the world and dance with everyone I meet. Enjoy! :)

Oh, and come back tomorrow for a recap of our adventures on the farm!!!

Sig

Filed Under: adventures, random, travel

Let’s Talk

May 1, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

About…well a lot of things.

There’s a lot that’s gone unprocessed in this heart. Not sure how much I feel like sharing, but hey, we can at least start. :)

I really like coffee. Like THAT is news to any of you! So, yes, though it is late-ish, I am most definitely sipping the brew with some yummy cinnamon creamer. Happy, contented sigh.

Poor Mae has been fighting a cold all week. My momma heart was so sad for her, especially yesterday, when she was so clingy and looked completely miserable. I took the safe route and took her to the doctor, sure that she had bronchitis because her cough was so bad.

Nope. Just a cough.

It always happens that way, doesn’t it? Had I not taken her? I’m sure she’d have pneumonia.

I guess it’s better that I took her and made my wallet $30 thinner. At least we know and she’ll be healthy for the weekend road trip.

We’re jetting…well, technically, Dodge Caravanning…outta here Thursday night to head up to the Twin Cities to see Tobin’s family. And, of course, squeezing in some friend time. And, I think, a mandatory visit to Cafe Latte, even if it’s just for a slice of cake with two forks. Mmmmm…that is most definitely on my trip-to-Minnesota wish list. Along with dinner with some of our close friends, including Maelie’s middle-namesake. We can’t wait to hug them. :)

There will be lots of good grandma and grandpa time, and then we’ll make the drive home on Sunday, probably leaving sometime in the morning.

Though I love seeing parts of our former lives (golly, that sounded weird. sorry ;)) it is nice to be home. There’s a little slice of my personality that revels in the normal and familiar. That COULD be a shock to some of you. It certainly is to me!

So you know how I raved about the book, The Hunger Games? Three of my friends are finally reading it (two have finished), which means…………..yaHOO! People who will go see the movie with me! I think we have a tentative date for sometime next week.

Pretty exciting stuff!

In all of Mae’s sickness :( and clingy issues in the past few days, we’ve spent far too much time in front of the TV, cuddling. This mommy, who totally loves her girl, can still only take so much Sesame Street and Blues Clues and even Little House on the Prairie…true. (So we did lots of story reading, too!)

But when we were (both) sick of all of that, we resorted to watching You Tube clips…there’s a lot out there. I enjoyed some nostalgia as I browsed through old favorites. In keeping with my daughter’s love for Sesame Street, I’ll share this one with you.

Oh, how much I love this song. It was a sweet reminder of childhood…the days pass too quickly. :)

Thanks, y’all for stopping by the blog tonight! Love you bunches.

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, coffee, friends, just life, Maelie, travel, where I am

Precious Reunion

April 25, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

I love that no matter how much time has passed, we can always pick up where we left off.

I love these two. :)

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, friends, travel

Afternoon Tea

April 21, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Golly, I sound so British…tea?!

No, really, here’s the scoop. Afternoon=I-have-tons-to-do-before-Maelie-and-I-leave-tomorrow; Tea=let’s-fight-this-sore-throat.

Though I much prefer coffee, tea it is today.

And a quick chat. Not too long ’cause I’ve got plenty I need to do!

So life is kind of crazy right now, and I honestly can’t believe that I’m carving out time this afternoon to write. I think it’s more for my sanity…a chance to catch my breath. (And not fold laundry, pack, etc.) Maelie and I are headed out tomorrow after church for Iowa. We have about 5 1/2 hours to make a 5 hour trip…and we’ll need to throw at least one stop in there. We could be late, but I’d rather not be.

But I’ll have to tell you why later ’cause…shhhhh…it’s a surprise!

Then we’ll spend Monday and Tuesday in Creston, which will be interesting. I’ve been warned that it’s pretty tough seeing the damage and devastation and that there’s still a lot of cleaning up that needs to be done. Crazy how a storm that lasts for minutes (even seconds) can cause damage that will take years to rebuild.

Then we’ll drive up to Des Moines on Tuesday afternoon and spend the night and part of Wednesday with my two best friends. Oh, good times…I love those two so much!

Then it’s back home Wednesday night…I’m hoping we won’t get in too late, probably 10ish. Which is late enough. 😉

So we’d appreciate your prayers, especially as I navigate the world of road-trips-on-my-own-with-a-toddler. I’ll admit I’m a little stressed about it all…and maybe a little scared. I was reading Jesus Calling and yesterday’s topic was about being strong and courageous.

I guess that includes 5-6 hour road trips alone. We’re in His hand, so it’s all good. 😉

Happy weekend, all! Hugs.

 

Sig

Filed Under: encouragement, just life, Maelie, travel, where I am

Oy…

March 23, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

…one of my current phrases.

And this time, it totally applies.

Tonight I had planned to share my favorite pictures from Morocco with you. Alas, our computer had other plans. (aka: I can’t get to the pictures right now.)

Major bummer.

It’s at a time like this that I’m thankful I married a computer guy. Because I wouldn’t have a.clue. what to do otherwise. Looks like it’s not too tough of a fix, thankfully. :)

So I guess you’ll all just have to wait another day or two…sorry about that.

At least it gives me extra time to come up with witty captions for all of my favorite photos…trying to look on the sunny side, here… :)

Hope you all had a fantastic week…wishing you an even better weekend!

:)

Sig

Filed Under: just life, travel

The Best of Spain

March 20, 2012 by · 2 Comments

…as promised. :)

The walkway along the beach in front of our hotel. We walked it many, many times. And isn’t the Mediterranean just beautiful? 😉

Look! They sell white chocolate Magnums! Mmmmm….or, not really. The regular ones are much better. But we had to try one, just to say we did. The ice cream part was good. :)

Another pretty view. I honestly never got tired of standing on the balcony and seeing this. :)

We had chai and a latte one afternoon. I may be a cool barista, but I can’t pour a latte that beautiful.
Yet. 😉

The “Old Town” center in Marbella…it was a cool place to walk around and explore. Lots of history there.

So, this is what we had for dinner almost every night in Spain. :)

In keeping with the food trend, this is what I had for breakfast almost every morning. Yeah, it was as good as it looks…probably better. :) Mmmmm…

Tobin took this shot from our balcony…Marbella at night. I think it’s a great picture. :)

Just a shot we took of ourselves…there are a lot of those.

Spain was cool. Very, very different from what I was expecting but still fun and an adventure we’ll always treasure.

I’d always wanted to see it…and so it was a dream come true to do just that with my man. There’s no one I would have rather shared this experience with. :)

Coming soon: Morocco Love!

Sig

Filed Under: adventures, blessings, Tobin, travel

A (Poor) American in Paris

March 16, 2012 by · 1 Comment

At the end of our trip we stopped in Paris for a day.

Since I was a little girl, I’d dreamed of seeing the Eiffel Tower and all of the things that made Paris so magical.

The Eiffel Tower was cool…and when the lights twinkled at night, it was magical. Like seeing something I’d only ever imagined…and it didn’t disappoint.

But Paris…I have to reflect on this city, and here’s why.

I couldn’t believe the amount of Gucci and Chanel and Prada and expensive purses and coats and boots I saw. It seemed that everyone around me was just a walking advertisement for Vogue…and I looked down at my Target jeans and $5 combat boots that I wore while tromping through Paris.

And I felt poor.

We’d see people lounging in the late afternoon sun having a drink and a chat with friends at an outdoor cafe…and a quick peek at the menu told us exactly what they were paying to have that drink.

I felt poor again.

We wandered a bit around dinner time, looking for a place off the beaten path, but the prices just killed us. (Obviously, figuratively ;)) We could have paid the money and eaten that food, but we just couldn’t do it.

If that makes any sense. :)

It was a reminder, once again, that I felt poor.

As the evening wore on, Paris crept into every part of me, nagging and whispering to me exactly what I didn’t have. Lots of money, expensive things…

And then I caught myself.

And as we walked back through the narrow, cobbled streets and passed bakeries and bought bread…what we could afford…I stopped.

Thought for a moment.

And smiled.

Eight days of adventure with my honey, courtesy of some hard-earned frequent flyer miles. 😉 Going to places we never thought we’d see. Exploring and having adventures that didn’t require emptying our savings account. Riding a camel and suriviving the Tangier market. Basking in the beauty of the Mediterranean and the mountains and the sunshine. Laughing, mostly. Learning to love more deeply. Knowing that when we went back, we’d have our amazing daughter waiting for us in a place that is home…full of friends and family and community and love.

So I tromped through Paris feeling very, very poor.

And when we arrived home…had a precious reunion with our girl, saw some dear friends, started feeling a bit jet-lagged…I opened my purse to see a small paper bag containing my Eiffel Tower key chain, my lone souvenir from Paris that I paid half a Euro for.

I clipped it onto my keys and stared at it for awhile, thankful for the reminder.

The reminder that I am very, very rich.

Sig

Filed Under: adventures, blessings, culture shock, Maelie, Tobin, travel, where I am

Home Again :)

March 14, 2012 by · 3 Comments

We are home.

And tired.

But blessed.

And enjoying a sweet reunion with our girl. :)

Since I’ve been up for about 24 hours straight, and since the world is kinda spinning…I think I’ve earned a blog pass for the night. :)

We’ll coffee-date tomorrow. G’nite!

Sig

Filed Under: just life, travel

Last Day

March 12, 2012 by · 4 Comments

It’s our last day in Spain…early tomorrow morning we head to Paris for a day before coming home on Wednesday.

We’ve had a great time here…sunshine, sand, the (really, really cold) Mediterranean, bread :), exploring, good coffee, adventures to African countries, camel riding, wandering, dreaming, talking, just being together.

It’s been exactly what we needed.

We were talking today about how we’re ready to come home, though, which could be a first for me on a vacation. Ever. I do love the beach. :) But we miss our girl, we love our home and friends and church…and we’re ready for normal again…if that’s what we are. 😉

Tomorrow is a quick stop in Paris, long enough to see the Eiffel Tower, eat some French food (probably BREAD if Tobin leaves the choice up to me!), spend the night, and head home.

We’ve been so blessed to have this time together…and saying goodbye to Spain is a little sad, but it’s been so good that it’s hard to be too sad.

Signing off from España…love you all. :)

Sig

Filed Under: adventures, blessings, Tobin, travel
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