Father’s Day "Camping" Trip

For Father's Day Mark wanted to get away, unplug as much as possible, have some much needed family time and just relax. He found a few cabins on line but most were already booked. And months in advance too! He found an older cabin for rent that was just big enough for us, out in the middle of nowhere and for a decent price too.

A gravel road lead us to the cabin. To be fair, it was pretty much all dirt and gravel roads leading up to the cabin. That was fine by us! Kicking up a little dirt and gravel never bothers us!

Our quaint cabin for the weekend was about 30-40 minutes from our home in Rogers to Garfield, AR. The cabin was pretty secluded in the woods, with one neighbor a little way from us. We had electricity, a/c, water, toilets, showers, direct TV....so we were hardly roughing it.

But we were still tucked in the woods with all the critter and bugs too. Even though we had all of the comforts of home, we did spend most of our time outside. I don't mind this way of "camping" one bit!

Inside the house there was a kitchen with table, family room, 2 bathrooms, 3 bedrooms, a washer and dryer and a wrap around fenced in deck.

Another side of the room, a sleepy Will is all cozy by the fireplace. The fireplace wasn't on! It was too hot outside. 

Above the living room, was the view from the loft (one of the bedrooms). The kids loved the loft because they could look down and spy on us. As most kids would love to do. I'm surprised they weren't throwing this from up there. I know my sisters and I would have been playing some sort of dropping game. 

To get to the loft, the kids had to climb this ladder from the kitchen and squeeze in. It made me a little nervous because the ladder wasn't attached. Plus, you had to be pencil slim to get up though that hole. Needless to say, Mark and I didn't go up. Well, our heads fit through the hole! Ha! Mary Kate lovingly referred to it as the Laura Ingalls bedroom. How cute and smart is she to notice that? Remember how Laura and Mary had to climb a ladder on the show to get to bed? 

The cabin was not just fully furnished with all of the typical spoiled luxuries, but it also had cookware, plates, glasses and silverware, towels, a coffee maker, toilet paper, laundry soap, and even firewood to burn. And best part was, we were able to bring the dogs with us! Duchess hated it there. Duchess has major anxiety and doesn't deal well with change, so she wasn't happy during our stay. Even on anxiety medication, she was still a hot mess. But Stella loved it of course. 

Stella mostly loved going on the boat dock with the family to fish. She probably wanted to snatch the fish to eat herself, that's why she liked it! Ha! Mary Kate would take the dogs everywhere with us if she could. She loves having her pups with her all the time.

The deck was peaceful to spend time on. I read, sipped Natural State Beer from our up and coming brewery & taproom, watched our children explore and thanked God for this time with my family.

We always take our favorite beer with us! I can't wait till we are able to share this with everybody this November when we open in Rogers!

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From the deck, it led us down the boat dock. We don't own a boat and really didn't feel like renting one, so we just fished off of it. But don't let this picture fool you. It wasn't a far or steep walk down to the boat dock. It was super close!

Here's the view from the bottom of where the boat dock is located. See, it's not far at all.

The boat dock was large with a table and chairs. The kids spent a lot of time here! Probably the most time. They really enjoyed fishing and just being on the water.

However, walking the plank to get up to the boat dock was a bit of a balancing act. They could have done better than this. But we rolled with and made it work for us. Nobody fell in and the board didn't break.

The kids did fish, as I mentioned already. But they just did this...Mark put the worm on the hooks, took the fish off the hook and all that jazz. The kids just wanted to reel them in...and I get that, cause that's my preference with fishing too! A Daddy's job is never done!

Here's Mary Kate needing Dad's help reeling in a BIG one! We couldn't wait to see what she caught!

And here she is with the catch of the day!! A branch! It sure did put up a fight too! She was laughing so much at this. We all were laughing!

Then Will caught this guy shortly after. It's no branch and he was glad it wasn't. We asked if he wanted to cook any of the fish and he wasn't interested in doing that. He just liked catching and releasing.

Then Mary Kate was redeemed and caught an actual fish! Look at that face!!! Oh be still my heart, her little face expression is the best!

Pure happiness. She was game for all the fishing but much like her little brother, she didn't want to eat them. Catch and release all day. That's fine, cleaning fish is chore.

Our evenings were spent around the fire pit making s'mores, talking life, telling stories and making up stories. I referred to Will as our little man of the woods because he was all over the place. I'm surprised he wasn't covered head to toe in ticks with all of the exploring he did. 

On our last night, Matt, came up to see us and celebrate Father's Day with his Dad. He even spent the night too! Mark is such an amazing Dad with a big heart. Matt is a lot like Mark and it makes me proud that he makes time for his Dad. Between very long hours at his job and a girlfriend, Matt does what he can to be there for his family. Him being there for these moments is the best gift he could ever give to any of us. Especially to his Dad.

This Dad's kids are growing up so fast and these small moments are so important. One day our kids will marry and have families of their own. The few moments we get as just US, are few and far between now. As for Ryan, we don't see or hear much from him. He doesn't call or come over to see his only living bio-parent, me or any of his siblings and it's very sad. We get a text for our birthdays and holidays.  And that's all we get. But in the end, he's the one missing out. Matt makes up for a lot of what Ryan fails to do. And again, it means a lot to all of us that Matt gives us his time. I only wish Ryan would do the same.  Especially for his Dad at least. Maybe one day. Maybe. 

I love being married to Mark. He's my world. He's handsome, smart, funny, talented, sweet, kind, giving and more than I deserve. It was important that this Father's Day was special to him. We all did our best to spoil him, love him and let him know how blessed we are to have him. I'm so amazed that God choose me to do life with this man. So blessed to have been able to have babies with him and build a life with him. He's the Dad I always hoped my kids would have.

Mark has done an amazing job being a Dad. Children never realize just how much their Dad's do and sacrifice for their families. I know I didn't as a kid either. But as we grow up and have families of our own, then we are able to see what our Dad's have done for us and just how much they love us. 

I hope everyone had a great Father's Day and let their Dad's know they are loved. I hope nobody takes this time with their Dad's for granted. Time is not promised. Love your husband's, love your Dad's and teach your children to do the same. Dad's matter more than they are given credit for. 

Valentine’s Day 2019

Ah, love. I love LOVE. I love seeing people happy, watching relationships evolve, seeing families grow and knowing God loves me. But Valentine’s Day has always been my least favorite holiday because of how it can make others feel. And trust me when I say, my heart goes out to others who are felt unloved and alone during this holiday. I have been there! When I was single I always tried to make the best of it. I’d buy myself some chocolates, wine, rent a movie. Yes, yes, I tried to make the best of this miserable holiday. I knew I was worthy of being loved, so I just continued to pray for God to bring me someone and, in the meantime, I embraced being single as much as I could. And now that I am married with my forever Valentine and love of my life, Valentine’s doesn't even seem to be about us. It's of course, more about the kids. And we are okay with that, because Valentine's is over rated as it is...love should  be celebrated everyday! And so here it is, Valentine’s Day 2019, with the kiddos:)

My little cupids, ready for their school Valentine's Day party.

That morning, instead of giving the kids candy (like we need more of that in the house, because let's face it, I'll eat it before they do) Mark & I gifted them toys. Cause they just don’t have enough of those either...Mary Kate received some Hatchimals & a Fox Enchantimal. Will loves STEM toys, so he received a Discovery set. Ryan and Matthew both received gift cards to Dominos pizza.

My sweet girl is too sweet for candy!

Digging for treasures...

But he's my greatest treasure!

I don't usually decorate a whole lot for Valentine's Day. There are lots of pretty Valentine's decorations out there, but I keep it simple...because we're all still recovering from Christmas decorating! I found some super cute signs at Hobby Lobby for our entertainment center, that I just loved! And with Hobby Lobby and their amazing sales, I was able to get these for just a few bucks each.

The Grateful sign comes from Kirkland's and the two at the end are from Hobby Lobby.

I always decorate our mantle for every holiday and all I did was add this heart wreath on top of the boxwood wreath. I think I bought the heart wreath at Wal-Mart for under $5 (I've had it forever!) and the love banner comes from Hobby Lobby...again:)

My "lovely" mantle.

Every holiday, Mark's parents also send the kids a fun box full of goodies. The kids received a craft, candy and one of my Mother-In-Law's beautiful homemade cards. The kids are always so excited to receive special gifts but they especially love receiving gifts from their Nana and Papa in Wyoming.

This craft was a little hard and time consuming but my perfectionist daughter, kept going until it was built.

Cards made by Nana

Will's little robot man that he built!

When we went to Tulsa for Mark's birthday, we ate at a restaurant that gave Wikki Stix instead of crayons for kids to play with. The kids loved them so much, I knew I had to have some for Valentines! I found a Valentine themed Wikki Stix and paired them custom labels. They were a hit with their classmates and teachers. 

Click here to order Wikki Stix
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To order custom labels, click here

Easy Peasy Valentine's Gifts for friends

The kids' class Valentine's Parties were filled with lots of treats, crafts and games. They had a great time, as always, celebrating with their classmates and friends. I used to be a room-Mom for my kids' preschool classes and Mary Kate's kindergarten class. It was exhausting...so when I see all the work these room Moms put into these parties, my heart fills with love and appreciation for all they do. I've been there Mamas and we are truly thankful for all that you do!

The classes don't do boxes, but bags instead.

And we are soooooo grateful for that! Boxes are a pain:)

One of the many crafting stations the room Moms and teachers do for the parties.

Sweet friends and silly grown-ups!

Best Principal and Vice Principal! They are all about making the kids feel special and we love them for that!

Oh and don't think that Mark and I forgot about each other during Valentine's Day. Oh no, we could never do that. He is the love of my life, remember?!! He's the reason we have this incredible marriage and why we have 4 beautiful children. He is my whole world and I couldn't imagine my life without him. I'm beyond blessed to be loved by my husband of 10 years. 

He spoils me way too much. My gorgeous watch from my Love.

My hard to buy for husband, who has everything, was given his favorite beer and pretzels. He also bought some records for
himself (plus he's getting his own brewery too;)

Well, that's it...our little Valentine's Day. I hope everyone had a good and even a great Valentine's Day. And please remember it's more important that you love yourself first. Trust God's timing, pray for the man that He has planned for you. Don't give God a list, He's not a wish maker....love will come in all sorts of forms but first and foremost, it's how we love ourselves and our Lord that matters most. You are worthy of love and I pray each of you find love.

Snow Day Memories

Yesterday we finally got enough snow for the kids to actually play in! I am sick with a nasty sinus and respiratory thing that snuck up on me early Saturday morning. I feel miserable! So I pretty much stayed inside catching up my IG stories & trying everything to get better. But that didn’t stop me from enjoying watching the kids play from the comfort of my cozy couch! We haven’t gotten a good snow around here in quit sometime, so it was a nice surprise to wake up to this little winter wonderland.

As soon as Mary Kathryn & Will woke up they couldn’t wait to go outside and play. I grew up in Iowa till I was 8 years old {the age Mary Kate is right now} & we never knew what it was like to not have snow. As a matter of fact we used to get snow here a lot in Northwest Arkansas when I was a kid & then it just kinda stopped. So it was nice to get a little something for the kids to enjoy. 

Will played the most outside and made a snow sculpture that looked a lot like a certain male appendage. I can’t help but laugh & post it because in his eyes it looks like a squirrel. But as grown ups, we always see something much differently from kids (dirty minds, ha!)

And of course our dog, Duchess, saw his sculpture as a bone for her to eat. You can’t make this stuff up, people. I swear I coughed/laughed so much-welcome to my crazy family, y’all!

Later in the day Mark took the kids sledding over to the high school where there is a hill just big enough for them & my peace of mind. Since we don’t get much snow here I don’t have snow boots for the kids. Rain boots, we got em! Snow boots, not so much. So the kids trekked back & forth in their tennis shoes since we only had a little bit of snow on the ground. 

And what’s better than taking a ride on their Mom’s old childhood sled? Yep, this sled has been with me since I lived in Iowa. And it’s so wonderful to see my kids enjoying it too. It may not see the same snow as it once did, but it still sees the same smiles when it’s pulled through any amount of snow. Hope you all enjoyed your snow day as I much as I did, even though it was from the couch, 

watching my kids enjoy life simple pleasures is truly what childhood memories are made of.