A night in the woods......

If you know our family at all or have followed this blog for any amount of time you know we LOVE the outdoors......& one of those outdoor activities is camping! We started tent camping as a family when the girls were about 2 & 4 {would have started sooner but we had a scare with a bear when Emery was tee-tiny & Kayden was 2 so we shied away from it for a couple years}. There are SO many things we love about tent camping but our 2 favorites are: 1) we all 4 get to snuggle side by side for the night. 2) we go to sleep to the sound of bugs making music with the occasional hooting owl! We did purchase a camper 2 years ago & LOVE it also because it allows us to camp no matter the weather but ultimately tenting it is our FAV! 

We checked out this place as we've never been & really enjoyed it!

Another plus of tent camping.....dinner is SIMPLE!

 Veggie dog vs. Meat dog

 Whittling.....

 Mandolin picking.....

We had some left over fireworks & Jon decided camping would be the best time to use them up....... 

  ......if not in their hands then the FIRE! 

 A MUST 

 {view up}

 Morning hammock time

 The girls had fun trying to make smoke rings!

 Nature finds.....

After packing camp up we made our way to the little lake & rented canoes for an hour.......

  Jon bought a slackline early spring & we've pulled it out only a few times.....definitely a fun for any age activity! & talk about some core work!!

 The woods NEVER EVER fail us.....we always leave calmer happier people!

A weekend for memory making in Michigan.....

It's hard to sit down at the computer & blog about the last few months that we squeezed in as many memories as we could with my uncle {who I've mentioned multiple times on this blog as always being the dad figure in my life}. He passed away just a few weeks ago from Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer.....a very rare & aggressive cancer. He fought HARD to the very end. So our hearts are grieving beyond any grief I've faced in my life thus far. But I want to remember every.single.moment. we had with him in the last few months of his life.....& so even if I sit here crying through each post I know down the road these blogs will be sweeter than ever as the memories become more & more distant. We decided in late January to take a long weekend & head north to see him, Uncle Rolly is what we call him. We always have the best time at his house but this weekend was much more treasured. We didn't do anything out of the ordinary......but that's the beauty in our time with them.....it's like you're at home.

Adults gather in the kitchen for food making...... 

{my mom & uncle....these 2 have a special bond}

 while the kids play until their called to eat......

 & we ALWAYS have crepes one morning....it's a German thing & it's his specialty! 

We soaked in some Michigan snow since it's a rarity in the south.....

& the evenings find us gathered in some sort of circle visiting....this night found us digging through old pictures via slide show

{our slide show-er sporting his finest braided wig!}

{me circa 1979ish}

{my great-grandpa's {opa} upholstery shop}

& the next morning found us back in the same spot for the same things.....adults visiting & meal prepping.....

& the kids playing until they're called to eat.....

& not matter the season always enjoying this view off their kitchen......

followed by some jumping at an indoor trampoline park {my aunt Nancy is the best at always providing a special kid outing}....

 for several hours of jumping......

but lets be clear it wasn't just the kids who had fun..... 

& again the evenings found us gathered in a circle talking & laughing & eating & drinking

  followed by the Superbowl

 & some snuggling...... 

 with one of THE greatest most treasured men in my life

 It was a normal weekend.......filled with memories & good food & lots of talking & lots of laughing & relaxing & fun & crying when good-byes were said......because I've always cried when leaving home {through out my college years & up until my mom moved to TN} & he has always been "home" to me.

Kayden's 9th Birthday

Oh for the love of always catching up.......so here we go again! Kayden's Birthday was 12/20/12 which we celebrated on the 16th of December! We try hard to keep her birthday as far away from anything Christmas as possible {now I'm laughing as I see 3 Christmas trees behind her!!} & so some years it's been a no brainer as to what she wants to do while other years a bit more thought has to be put into the planning! This year we struggled a bit......movie, bowling, skating, etc just didn't seem appealing to her.....or me for that matter! 

I stumbled upon this place called Homespun.....{never heard of it prior to Kayden's party but we instantly fell in LOVE the minute we walked in}.....they specialize in wedding/reception planning but parties/crafting are also a specialty! So I hesitantly called {unsure if kid parties were on the menu!} inquiring about a birthday party for a 9 year old girl & I got the best response!! They sent me ideas of crafts for her to choose from, the price was affordable, no decorations needed.....we were IN!!

The place oozes our style......

My girl.....she has her own style & I LOVE watching her grow....THAT SMILE & THOSE EYES!!! Melt my heart!!

I decided on a momma-made-cake this year & she couldn't have been anymore excited! Fed into a few minutes worth of guilt for never having done this before! But that quickly passed with a reminder from my mother.....she'll have many more celebrations to come! She chose the cake & frosting flavors & paper.....momma did the rest! 

 Who doesn't love a fancy straw......

  ......with a fizzy Izze drink?

 There were piles & piles of strips of fabric that the girls chose from.......

 They set to work on braiding 2 different sections.....

& while they were busy braiding......

  I was able to peruse their precious space!!

 These 2.....what's not to say about THESE 2!!! 

 Super cute home-made tent screaming for pictures.....none better than the girl being celebrated!!

 & then there's this chick whom we proudly claim but isn't always interested in participating in her cousins choice of celebrations BUT wouldn't miss the party if her life depended on it!!

 & the only guy there who I KNOW secretly LOVES being surrounded by a bunch of girls....

 The end result of their crafting was the CUTEST braided fabric headband with a fabric flower!! She insisted on wearing her hat so she just added the headband to it!

  I pray ALL your wishes come true.....

I KNOW!!!! I KNOW!!!

 By the time we left there was not a morsel left on the cake plate.....happy momma since it was her 1st go at it! 

 Present opening time!

 All girls together

 Kayden & one of her little best friends! 

 ALL MINE!!