Wordless Wednesday

We got to know this family while in Florida...

i heart faces

This week's theme at iheartfaces.com is pets.

Such a hard subject for me...NOT!  Well. Hard to decide which capture of Max to use, I guess.  (He's just so handsome.)  I settled on this one.  What'cha think???

I so love that he's perched on our vintage kiddie table!

"There's no need for a piece of sculpture in a home that has a cat." 

Wesley Bates

Sunday in my (vacation) city...

We've been to Orlando so many times that it's like a 2nd home,
so here's a typical Sunday for us, morning and evening.  (Pool time between the two!)

The carousel at Downtown Disney...

And, playing at the Orlando Science Center...

Florida Fragments: 2010

We had such an awesome week in Florida...and here are some highlights...

It was hot.  Surprised?

The heat index was over 110 degrees most days.  Of course, that meant we stayed at the pool a lot.  And, thankfully, our resort had quite the pool-assortment!  Sam loved the "lazy river" and Luke sported his goggles 99% of the time.

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We adore Downtown Disney and always plan to visit at least twice.  The restaurants are great (read: good food and kid-friendly) and there are great shops, like the Lego Store, Ghirardelli and the world's largest Disney store.  They also have a carousel and train for the kids.  It's safe to say that Downtown Disney is our most favoratist place in Orlando!

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The day we visited the Magic Kingdom it was a magical-kind-of-HOT.  We got there early and took advantage of short lines, then we headed back to the resort to cool off.  It ended up raining much of the afternoon, so we headed back over for the evening and the temps couldn't have been better!  We stayed until closing, 11PM.  The boys were troopers, but fell asleep as soon as they hit the bed.

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We are members at a local Smithsonian-accredited museum, which means that we can get in free at nearly 300 other museums in the US.  Wouldn't you know there was one right in Orlando.  It's the Orlando Science Center and it's 100% about kids...on 4 floors!  We all had a great time, and look forward to visiting again.

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A dear blog friend of mine, Lisa, lives in Orlando.  I was so looking forward to meeting her and she graciously invited us over for a little BBQ and a swim.  We had such a good time that Neil and I are still talking about it.  The boys loved her home, too, especially the sweet pups!

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We headed over to Cocoa Beach one morning for some sandy fun and a little shopping at Ron Jon.  Unfortunately, Luke wasn't really into the sand and surf.  Sam, on the other hand, would've gladly stayed all day.  (We had to bribe him to leave!)  He did love seeing the boards at Ron Jon...surf and skate.  I love that stuff, too.

And, here's a wee collage of all the fun!  Enjoy...

My Favorite Things Giveaway: Victoria's Secret/Princess

 The random winner is #139.  Congrats, Stef!!

******CONTEST CLOSED******

It's time to give away more of my favorite things, and this time it's all PINK.  Woohoo!

What's better than a girlie giveaway, huh?!?

First -- a Victoria's Secret travel set that includes Energizing body lotion, body wash,

refresher spray and lip butter.

Second -- a pocketed mirror from Bath & Body Works.

Third -- an "on-the-go" antibacterial set from Bath & Body Works, caribbean escape scent.

Fourth -- a Disney Princess Crown antenna topper straight from Disney World.  (If you're like me and have a SUV w/o an antenna, it will also fit on a pencil/straw/stick, etc.)

 Isn't this a great package for the princess in your life???

To enter, just leave me a comment.  If you follow, you can have a second entry, but please

leave a second comment stating such.

I'll pick a random winner on July 6th at 9PM.

Wordless Wednesday

A couple of suckers...

While in Florida...

We dug holes in the sand and filled them with water...

We visited with Lisa and her family.  Luke napped while Sam LOVED on her sweet pups...

And, we all ate really healthy...

i heart faces

Back from Disney and ready to blog again!  And, what better way to get back into the swing of things, than posting a photo.

So here's my entry for this week's theme at iheartfaces.com...a handsome "teen".  In fact, a brand new teen.
Don't ya just love his freckles!?!

i heart faces

This week at iheartfaces.com, the theme is babies!  I had a hard time deciding on just one, but this is what I went with...

Chunky-Monkey-Luke (in the backyard) at 5-months old!

Friday Fragments

Final packing day!!

 

We leave for Orlando bright and early tomorrow morning.  (About a 7-hour drive.)  Needless to say, we're all super excited. I can't wait to see Luke's face at The Magic Kingdom and Rainforest Cafe!

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Have you ever heard of CSN Stores?  They sell everything.  Everything.

I was blessed to do business with them a while back and now they've offered me a great product review.  When I was trying to pick an item to review, I first thought of headboards b/c I want one for Luke's room.  But...then I thought it would be nice to get some new lighting for our master bathroom.  Oh, and then I started looking at their shoes.  (They sell EVERYTHING.)  In the end, tho, I went in a completely different direction.

Stay tuned to see the clever item I picked!  It's really cool.

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I'm a very-much-creative-type, and recently came up with this piece of "art" for my niece.  She is 23 and just bought her first house.  (Woohoo!)  So, I took a photo of her cat, Bob, that I shot in her garage one day...nothing special....

and turned it into a poster for her new home..

I have to say, I LOVE IT.  And, it's inspiring more creativity.  As a matter of fact, I'm thinking of doing an Etsy store where you can email me a photo and I'll turn into printable art!  What do you think?
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Luke is obsessed with Lego now.  Thankfully Sam has a ton and is always willing to share.  It's so much fun to watch him sit and build, especially since he had amazing hand-eye coordination.  He constantly build little guns and "trains". I can't wait for him to visit the giant Lego store at Downtown Disney.  He will freak out when sees all those lego-men parts!

Wordless Wednesday

This year's lily garden...

Water fun!

This week, the paper mama has a water theme.

I had such a difficult time deciding on just one photo.  In the end, tho...I so love the colors of this Sam-capture and it was taken almost exactly 1-year ago.  Plus, it was taken in Pensacola, which is now feeling the effects of the oil-spill-crisis.  Oh...and water-play so totally rocks with my boys!

A few fragments...

I've been a bit slack with my fragments since school let out.  Can't imagine why!  Teehee.

And, now we are preparing for our vacation.  We'll soon be leaving for a week in Orlando.  We LOVE Disney.  Sam has already met Mickey 4 times in his short life, and we can't wait to introduce Luke.  Lots of good pics coming, I'm sure.

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We've had some crazy storms lately.  Not crazy for GA, but crazy compared to the last few years.  Lots of lightening.  I don't care for lightening.

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The crazy storms have meant a surge of beaver and turtles in our neighborhood.  Some of the turtles are huge, too.  We love turtles!

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Sam informed me today that he wants to eat Steak & Shake everyday of his life.  I told him that would mean A LOT of fries.  Really good fries, albeit.  Really.  Good.

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Did you follow Yaya?  She recently met Alex and has some great pictures.  Makes me super happy!

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And, finally...

I received another sweet award from Mommy Wemmick.  This time it's the Sunshine Award.  And, I have to share 5 things that bring me sunshine.

1. Hearing my kids laugh together. (Ages 6 and 2)
2. Drinking ice-cold Coke from glass bottles.
3. Taking photos...lots of photos.
4. Knowing that in October my parents will celebrate their 50th anniversary!  
50 YEARS!!
5. Knowing that I want to celebrate my 50th anniversary with Neil.
6. Receiving comments on this blog.

Wordless Wednesday

My Favorite Things Giveaway: 1

The winner is #34.  Congrats Rocio!!!



This summer I'm having 3 giveaways (one each month) in honor of my favorite things.  The first, which will end on June 9th, features jewelry from one of my favorite boutiques in Acworth, GA.  Yes.  Acworth.

Never heard of it!?  Well, it's an amazing little city with fine restaurants and shops.  I love, love, love Acworth!

I chose my first giveaway from a great little boutique, Divas & Dames...

This gorgeous necklace-and-earring-set will go with everything.  I should know.  I have it!  (And, it looks especially great with brown.)

Want one of your very own???

Just leave me a comment telling me about your favorite "little city" and you'll be entered.  If you follow my blog you can have a 2nd entry, but please leave an additional comment telling me that you follow.

I will choose a random winner on June 9th.  Hope it's you!