• Relationships: What Type of Friend Am I?

    Lily - Red & Orange Flower - Mother's Day Gift

    Sometimes we are lucky enough to meet a person who stands out among all other people as being extremely special who knows what we are thinking about.  Who is happy for us at all times.  Who is always there to talk.  Who cares about us selflessly.  Who is always truthful with us.  Sometimes we are lucky enough to meet someone who is extremely wonderful and for me that person is you my dear friend.  – Susan Polis Schutz

    We’ve all heard the saying that “friends are worth their weight in gold”.  Absolutely!  I agree friends are priceless and a great blessing in our lives.  There are people who have a multitude of friends while others have a handful of really close friends.

    If you had only a few seconds to think of your list of friends.  Who would stand out?  Who would come to your mind first?  We can easily point out who those true blue and deep friends are pretty quickly.

    Are you this type of friend to others?  Who have we taken the time to invest in lately?  Do we stand out?  Are we the person our friends call on when they are excited and want to celebrate or when they hit a rough patch?

  • CONGRATULATIONS Brina & Karlie! 5th Grade Graduation Ceremony!

    Proud of our girls!

    We are so proud of our girls!  They did it!  Both girls successfully completed all of their elementary school classes.  It is hard to believe that they are now heading into middle school.  They went to Crosswell for 7 years!  Thankful for all the great teachers and administration that invested all their time and energy into our girls.  They have grown and learned a lot of about life, friends, and increased their knowledge.

    Congratulations Brina & Karlie!

    Today was a big celebration for all they have accomplished in their schooling.  It came with a lot of emotions for me as their Mom.  I was thrilled and happy while at the same time sad knowing that my babies are growing up very quickly.  I want to hold onto and treasure these precious moments because these past few years have gone by way too fast.

      Brina getting her diploma from Mr. Holliday!

    We look forward to seeing them continue to grow.  They are sweet girls who have grown up so much.  It will be neat to see them transition into Middle School.  Love our girls!

      Karlie getting her diploma from Mr. Holliday!

    My girls are not babies anymore!

  • Erik & Laurel’s Wedding!

    'Three beautiful ladies - inside and out!'

    Three beautiful ladies – Renelle, Laurel, & Aunt Mary Ann

    I was able to attend my cousin Laurel Mura‘s wedding while in Colorado! She was beautiful bride, the wedding was well organized, lots of fun, and amazing! It was great to see a lot of family over the weekend too! Wishing her and Erik an awesome life together! Lots of love!

    'Uncle Rick giving Laurel away at the wedding!'
    Laurel & her Dad (Uncle Rick)
    'The kiss! :)'
    The Kiss!
    'Congratulations @[32508013:2048:Laurel Mura] and Erik! We are so happy for both of you! Welcome to the family E! :)'
    Congratulations!  Newly married couple!
    'Beautiful wedding!'
    Happy for my cousin and wish her the very best!

  • Happy Halloween!

    'Brina made the owl and Karlie designed the scary face pumpkin!'
    We gave the girls a choice about what Halloween activities they wanted to do this year. They chose to stay home, play games, spend time together, carve pumpkins, make a special meal, and more fun instead of going out trick & treating! We had a lot of fun together! Thankful for our girls and sweet time together!
    'BBQ Mustard flavored pumpkin seeds - Jake's favorite this year!'
    Baked and seasoned pumpkin seeds!
    'Karlie working on her pumpkin!'
    Karlie’s scary pumpkin!
    'Caramel coated pumpkin seeds were our other flavor creation this year!'
    Caramel flavored pumpkin seeds!
    'Brina concentrating on carving extra cute hearts on the side of her pumpkin'
    Brina creating her owl pumpkin

  • Travel & Vacation: Exploring Cozumel, Mexico

    'Good morning sunshine!'

    Beautiful ocean sunrise in Mexico!

    Exploring Cozumel, Mexico! We had a blast sight seeing, meeting people, shopping, and going Snorkeling at 3 different reefs during our day in Mexico. We even got to talk with the girls for a tiny bit because we got cell phone service while walking through the area!

    'We had a little stow away on the balcony. The bird stayed there for over a day. Whenever we came out on the balcony it would just hop around our of our way. Guess it thought we weren't too much of a threat.'
    This little guy caught a ride on our balcony and stayed there for several hours.
    'Port security worker telling us about the bird he is holding. I even got to pet it, super cool!'
    Talking with one of the security guards about the bird he was holding.
    'Chatting'
    Ready to go on our snorkeling adventure.
    'My man all ready for our adventure!'
    I get to check out Mexico with this hot guy!

    The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family, ways we relax, and tips on how to make trips more enjoyable.  Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away.  Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories.  It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine.  Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn.  You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!