three years.

my little dame turned three.

so we did what every cowgirl wants. we had a western party.

there were black eyed susans...

there was swedish fish, and licorice. ..

bandanas spread about. ...

there was frog eyed salad, watermelon, rootbeer and ants on a log....

there was bad weather,

and lots of fun.

happy happy birthday to the coolest cowgirl ever.

one year.

birthday girl...in her new birthday dress....

birthday presents...

birthday pom poms....
birthday cakes.....

birthday girl ended up with a 103 degree fever on her birthday night.

i hope she feels better soon.

alot can happen in one year.

you grow from 7.5 lbs....to 18ish.

you learn to smile, laugh, crawl, clap, and hug.

you also learn to pull your sisters hair.

you also learn to love that sister, and cuddle together...and be best friends.

my friend jana wrote these wishes to her little oliver... i thought they were so eloquent, i want to

wish them to both my girls as well... since it is birthday week at our home.

-i hope you always stay sweet and loyal.
-i hope you learn to trust in our Heavenly Father and in his Son Jesus Christ and that you look to them to learn about yourself and how wonderfully amazing you are.
-i hope you develop and cultivate your many talents and that you share them with others
-i hope you feel really grateful for life and all the beauties that surround you.
-i wish for you to be sure of yourself and confident in your ability to learn and grow and that it is o.k. to fail especially when you learn from those failures
-i hope you are optimistic and hopeful and center your life on Christ
-i hope you stay kind and that you treat others and yourself with compassion.
-i really hope you know how much i love you and how happy you make me every day

happy happy birthday joley.

xox

falltime. and cabins, with tiny bathrooms.

do you know what?

the end of august makes me want to visit jackson hole.

i want to stay in a small cabin,

where you have to wear sweaters, because it is chilly,

but not chilly enough for jackets....

where the bathroom smells, well like a cabin bathroom.

you know what i am saying.

i think late august and early september are the best times to go.

early fall.

have i mentioned how much i love the fall?

look at the first photo, the leaves are beginning to turn.

just so beautiful.

first photo via: http://www.sunset.com/

second and third via: http://www.designspongeonline.com/2010/08/sneak-peek-kim-krans.html

birthday parties, foxes, and hope.

have i mentioned how much i love little foxes? i do.

and i think little red riding hood, is fabulous.

oh hello!

this week there is hustle and bustle here at our little pad.

we are getting ready for birthday parties.

and we are getting really really excited.

i just love these dolls.

i am a sucker for fabric dolls like these.

i hope you like them too.

here is a quote i got off of shabby chic blog that i just loved.

i hope you love it too!

"hope is a thing with feathers.

that perches in the soul.

and sings the tunes without the words.

and never stops at all."

a verse from emily dickinson poem

happy happy tuesday!

dolls via:http://theredthreadshop.bigcartel.com/

a story on this monday.

on this monday:

i got a flat tire. major major flat tire.

i pulled over at a gas station, and opened the trunk...

and guess what?

couldn't find any, changing the tire tools.

and my hair looked really bad.

i am having hair problems. (at least that what my momma said.)

really she did...but this is a whole other story.

so i called bdogs.

he came in a jiffy.

he was all dirty from installing fiber cement siding.

a nice lady drove up...

she asked if i would like my girls to sit in her car and

cool off, just in case i didn't have ac.

i told her we did.

she made sure i was alright. dogs looked kind of sketchy....

and i liked her style.

and that she cared to drive over

and ask a crazy haired momma

if she was going to be okay.

thank you nice lady.

and thank you bdogs for changing our flat tires.

photo via: http://www.modernpapergoods.com/catalog

lovely wellies, a lovely farmhouse, and me.

i love these.
i love this farm house.

i love a bright white bathroom...
i really love this hallway...

this morning, while making breakfast, i did not turn on the tv, i did not turn on the radio, and i did not turn on some music. i just listened to my neighbors sprinklers, and enjoyed the morning sounds of summer.

last night i took a hot bath and read a book. bdogs walked in, and he said what the heck, and water had covered the floor. apparantly i left the sink on before i got into the tub, and water was overflowing everywhere. while i just sat there and read a book! i didn't even hear the water, or notice the water everywhere. growing up, while my mom would read a book, she was oblivious to everything. the house could be on fire, and she wouldn't notice. i guess i am my mothers daughter.

for dinner tonight, i think i am going to make fried zuchini, and fresh garden veggies.

i am enjoying summer, but i am dreaming about the upcoming change of season. that means, sweaters, wellies, flannel plaid shirts, my brown boots, the harvest, pumpkins, pretty leaves blowing about.....

photos via: http://www.countryliving.com/homes/renovation-and-remodeling/old-home-renovation-before-and-after-0910

waiting.

lately i have been discouraged with things.

i asked my wise friend her advice, and she sent me this email....i hope she does not get mad at me for sharing this. but the truth is...i want to frame this and put it on my mirror, or merely print it out and put it on my mirror. but my printer is packed away...so i thought i would share it with you, and with me, and how many times i keep going back to read it.

"What exactly is a perp? I just need to know in case I need to use it in a sentence. Advice. Is this. I really kind of think that all life is some kind of waiting. Like around here it's waiting for the next deadline just to come and go. Like I know I should eat healthy and all that jazz, but I just tell myself that if I can just make through the deadline then I can start eating healthy. The problem is that there is always another deadline just around the corner. Or just waiting for a paycheck that you don't know if it is coming or not. Or just waiting for the next month's day of cramps. Or anything. I think it's one of the biggest challenges of this life. But you are doing the hardest kind of waiting. Like rivaling the last two weeks of pregnancy hardest kind of waiting. But I know that it would be even harder if you and Bryan weren't on the same team. I always tell Joe that. That it's us two versus the world. Because sometimes it feels like that. But at least I have him. And you have Bryan. What do you think about soulmates?"

isn't it lovely?

it just makes me happy to have such good friends.

photo via: http://opomme.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2010-04-09T16:11:00%2B02:00&max-results=20

dutch ovens. and celebrations.

this weekend we celebrated bdogs birthday.

i made a birthday banner.

we had dutch oven food.

we had a roast, with potatos and carrots.

then we had peach cobbler to die for.

it was fabulous.

then today we went to cabelas. and cal ranch.

bdogs got two new dutch ovens for his birthday.

my friend celebrated her 10th anniversary.

and it is my sisters birthday on 8/9/10.

and all i think i have drinken today is coke a colas.

and now i will top it off with some. leftover peach cobbler.

im happy.

photos via: http://www.daviddanielsphotography.com/blog/tag/food-photography/

pink and lovely. and lately.

home.

lately,

i don't want to go anywhere.

i want to stay home.

make cookies. eat cookies.

and watch my favorite 'sitcoms.'

and maybe do some laundry.

or work on a project or two.

or dream about it.

lazy summer days.

but i don't know if i should be this lazy.....

photo except last:http://www.designspongeonline.com/2010/05/sneak-peek-kirsten-voortman.html

photo via:http://www.sfgirlbybay.com/

my girls.

this girl is a daddy's girl. major.

she is shy. .

she loves to enjoy things, and enjoys them most by sharing them with others.

she loves her cousins and friends.

she loves to laugh..and stay up late. ...

she is always up for a good time, no matter what time it is.

she loves to talk on the phone...

she loves popcorn, triangles, popsicles and elmo.

she loves to get her fingernails painted....

and stay in her pajamas all day long.

she loves her littles sister, and loves to play with her.

this little girl used to be a momma girl, and now is a grammas girl. :(

she loves to eat. she will eat anything. she manages to get it everywhere.

she loves to drink, and will drink until she barfs. sippy cups are her world.

she loves playing with her sister, and pulling her sisters hair.

and she loves to jump in her crib.

instead of staying in her pajamas all day, she goes through like five outfits. in an hour.

and she loves to get into everything.

she too loves to laugh, and is quite social for a young lass her age.

she also wants everything her sister has....

i hope i remember all these little things about these little girls,

i love these little dames.

things that are so august: mason jars, and quilts, and corn on the cob stands.

i love mason jars. and i love this idea....

i love butcher block islands, wood floors and open shelves, and art.

i love cool rugs, and fabric banners....

and i love quilts....

i love these ideas to hang them, and show them off....

quilts, mason jars, fruit and veggie stands:

i love august.

happy happy thursday!

mason jar how too: http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/sf/diy/how-to-turn-a-mason-jar-into-a-soap-dispenser-109086

all photos via: http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/main?page=2

the month i became a mother.

this is birthday month for my family. minus me.

this is the month i became a momma. to both daughters.

everyone says: enjoy it, because it will fly by as a twinkling.

this is true.

how do i have a three year old, and a one year old?

i am reading the mother in me, and i am only in the beginning, but this quote stuck out to me:

i turned around and my children were grown-and i wished that i had been more available, more loving, more wise, more spiritual....i wish i had found more time for the park or playground, i wish i had rolled on the fresh cut grass with them, or let them set up their tents in the living room more often...i wish they'd seen me laugh and pray and cry more. i wish id borne my testimony to them more. i wish-i wish-i wish-but i cannot go back. we can never go back.

i am grateful for wise words.

i need to loosen up. and right now i need to go eat a handi snack with my almost 3 year old. and before i know it she will be 35. and i will probably have dentures, and eating handi snacks will be a triumph.

i am grateful for birthday months. and little girls. and motherhood.