I can bring home the bacon

fry it up in a pan.

And all in my swimsuit.

Sunset in Cambria

I've lost my sheep

Have you seen it?

I'm really inspired by

this project.
"A Guy Named Dave" is trying to whittle down his personal belongings to only 100 items.

100 items doesn't go very far if I start counting each pair of pants, each pair of shoes, each shirt, each piece of jewelry, jacket, hat, pair of sunglasses, belt, swimsuit, sweater, scarf, socks, etc....

It inspires me to pare down, think about what I can live without, and buy less stuff.

So if you see me wearing the same outfit four days a week, you'll know why.

photo by theogeo

The Central Coast

is truly our getaway.

I first spent time there with Matt on our one-year anniversary. It was lovely. I wanted to go back every year. And we have-sometimes more than once a year.

I love the cooler weather, the rocky beaches, the rollings hills and japanese pine trees, the delicious restaurants, and having my sister's family there.

I can't wait to go back!

Oh, and yes, my girl's wearing her leotard to the beach. That's what she wanted to wear. So I thought, "Why not?"

Show Week at Gymnastics

I know, I know...they are WAY TOO cute!

Spending the Day with Old Friends

hanging out in the backyard

eating popscicles

watching movies

climbing on the bunkbeds

and a mini sleepover

This is One Amazing Guy

We are so blessed to call you, "Ours."

On Second Thought...

The girls and I ran to out for about 30 minutes, and THIS is what Gracie was doing while we were gone. She got into the recycle bin and had a doggie shindig/hayday/extravaganza!


When we opened the door, she was standing in the middle of the wreckage... smiling.
Absolutely no remorse.

The nerve.


Of course, I grabbed my camera, because the blogosphere should know about this.


So Gracie is being stripped of her title,

"Everyone's Favorite Dog."

Her new title is,

"A Pretty Good Dog Most of the Time."

P.S. Fruity Pebbles are extremely nutritious.

Gracie The Dog

Everybody's favorite dog. If you need a cuddle she's your girl.

It's so good to be

These are a couple of my friends from college days. They are such amazing girls, and I am so grateful we still keep in touch.
Amy, on the left, is preparing to teach in Afghanistan. Tracy, in the middle, just adopted her second child.
The three of us live within about 1 1/2 hours of eachother, so we get together a few times a year, meeting halfway for dinner or visiting each other's houses.
They know me well, like scary well. There's a lot of history there, lots of up and downs.

It's good to be known like that.

How do you keep in touch with old friends?

Oh Yeah!

sticky sunscreen, hot sun, toes in the pool, melting popscicle
friends

Janet Wood Photography

Our sweet, talented friend Janet came over and did a photo shoot with our family. All I can say is, "WOW!" She got so many great shots of our little family. If you live in the area, I highly recommend her. Highly!

Thanks, Janet, for your wonderful eye and your unfailing patience with our {sometimes} uncooperative little ones.

If you find yourself at the beach unexpectedly on a warm evening like tonight

and the kids think the water looks inviting, but you didn't bring their swimsuits, you might let them put their toes in the cool water.

But they might be having so much fun, and running so fast that they don't realize they are getting wet from head to toe.

Once their clothes are soaked, you might decide they could just splash around in their undies. Because they're only four. And because they can just wear their softly-lined windbreaker to the car.

But then one child might not like the feel of her sandy, wet body next to clothes, and so she'll refuse to wear anything. Anything at all.

So you have to decide what to do, because it's about 1/2 mile to the car, which is parked on the other side of a neighborhood and a busy street with throngs of people walking their dogs, shopping, and eating in restaurants.

Sometimes, parenting is just survival.

My New Project

I am so excited about a new blog I've just started. It's still in the very early stages, but it's all about simple ideas for bringing families together.

It's called flipflops and applesauce. Go check it out, and let me know what you think.

More than willing to be completely cheesy, anytime at all

Little Cutie

There's a lot of sand on this beach, so we'd better get to work.