{Goodbye and Hello}s

 hello to starting last year's FAMILYphoto album.

i picked this for the cover.

i'm crazy sick over how much of a baby my girl looks in this picture.

i guess becoming a BIG sister has made her grow up quick this past year.

 hello sunshine.

could she be any cuter.

this picture is sadly a little misleading for my baby's disposition lately.

she is teething and pretty unhappy.

her onsie should say hello throbbing gums that make me scream and then make my mommy scream.

too long for a onsie, you say?

goodbye best friend.

ok...not really goodbye.

this is my bestie.  we photo together. talk lots. commiserate together over disobedience and poop.

she's the real deal and has been for over 7 years.

but over that 7 years we've lived apart before.

i know distance is no match for our friendship, but i'm still sad she's not a 10 min. drive away.

 

goodbye awesome {easy for mommies to talk} playdates

these are my bestie's and my brood.

they are my kids best friends (besides their cousins) and we loved getting together to play.

the six of them play so well together.

we used to let them run rampant in Jess's playroom as we sat on the couch chatting away.

brilliance.

but atlas, our play dates will now involve a 2 hr. drive.

but they'll still be brilliant. 

 hello family from out of town.

this is my cousins baby holding my baby.

she's growing up to be a gorgeous gorgeous girl.

i cannot get over how BIG she is. 

 goodbye family from out of town.

this is my moma, cousin- Jessica, me and my sis.

we soo much enjoyed our time with them last week.

i just hate to see them go.

a BIG HELLO and PRAISE would be for God's answer to our prayers.

Scott got a teaching job!!!

He loved his high school position last year, but it was two counties away (1 hr. drive).

He's been searching from the first job posting in May with no avail.

Everyone has been praying.

Low and behold he lands a middle school position in my hometown one county away (30 min.).

Hooray! 

It's awesome to be cheering for the Cougars again and I know my honey will rock 7th grade!

Feeling the Drive....

Do you feel it? Or is it just me? The Olympics have made me feel full of energy (ok...not as much energy as some of them), and determined to really live. Haha...so I guess, I feel inspired. Seriously, whenever I get done watching a section of the swimming awards ceremony, the girls gymnastics floor exercies, or the exciting suprise of the Women's 100 M....I get this incredible surge of energy.

Last night that surge came a little too late! I got done watching the Olympics around eleven, and then had all sorts of things running through my mind. I tucked my hubby in and said that I wasn't ready to go to bed yet....I had things to ACCOMPLISH! I organized and worked on my craft/scrapbooking/art space! It's a great area with lots of room, but right now it has been the dumping pile. There is lots of stuff to scrap, projects to be finished, and tons of gift wrapping materials from all our wonderful wedding gifts. So after that I finished a painting project for my friend at work. It was a cold beverage tin for barb-b-ques and such! It turned out pretty cute if I say so myself. After that I was pretty tired, but still had tons of ideas and things to put on a to-do list! THANK YOU Lord for using something like the Olympics to boost my determination!

This weekend seemed to be full of getting things accomplished...lots of yard work, putting away wedding gifts, still unpacking Scott's stuff, and laundry. And I'm really enjoying cooking meals for Scott, and I think he enjoys them too! I made cheesy, Mexican rice and Taquitos one night. Last night I simply made creamy tomatoe soup and Hawaiian roll sandwiches with mustard/poppyseed sauce! Soo Yummy! Other fav. moments of the weekend were the pool party, putting together our huge hammock, and riding our bikes to church Sunday morning!

Thankful for an amazing weekend and can't wait to see what else the Olympics motivates me to do. What about you guys? Do you find a drive of energy from our Olympian champions? Does their massive bodies, strong determination, and hard work motivate you?

Here is a pic from the pool party of me and my hubby!!!

Pie Dough -INGREDIENTS:
4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 3/4 cups cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 egg (extra large)
DIRECTIONS
Combine the flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Whisk the vinegar, egg, and 1/2 cup of ice water together and mix into the flour mixture with your hands until just combined. Transfer to a clean work surface, and gently press to form a dough. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts. Shape each into a ball, flatten slightly to form a disk, and wrap in plastic. Chill for at least 1 hour.