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Monday, July 11, 2011

Fresh Air…

We went to my parent’s mountain home over the weekend and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Let’s look at that picture a little closer…
AnnaKate LOVES her dog and her TT (grandmother).

They have some amazing blueberry bushes so we spent some time picking. I think about 3 gallons was harvested! (Not a lot of help from the wee one…she either ate them, spilled them or picked the green ones!)

Even Beau helped…sort of…

A great storm rolled in…

After the storm…

AnnaKate helped Billy with some projects. She loves to help.

Beau just being cute…

AnnaKate through the outdoor shower was pretty cool.

Check out the view over the top of the shower…

We did lots of relaxing and…

….playing….

and nature watching.

AnnaKate also slept in the big girl bed instead of the pack and play! Wow…

Saturday night my mom treated us to a great summer meal…Billy helped with the grilling.

Tomato Pie, Fried squash, Fresh corn and grilled sausage

Oh…and for dessert…delicious peach and blueberry cobbler.

What a weekend!

Friday, July 1, 2011

Sous Chef

AnnaKate loves to cook and be in the kitchen. She was such a big help while I was making Billy’s birthday dinner.

First, she helped wash the potatoes.

She helped put the potatoes in the pot.

The next item on the menu was homemade chocolate eclairs. AnnaKate helped to make the dough and the filling by putting the ingredients in the mixer.

Here are the eclairs before we put them in the oven.

Here they are all nice and golden brown.

All filled and iced…yum! Billy said he thought they were better than the bakery’s.

My sous chef…

Billy’s birthday dinner…

Iceberg Wedge with Blue Cheese and Bacon

Steak au Poivre
Marinated Mushrooms and Onions
Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes
Creamed Spinach

Chocolate Eclairs

Happy Birthday Billy! We love you.

Monday, June 27, 2011

Beach Blast!

We just got back from a fabulous week at the beach. We all had a blast getting away from our routines.

We are fortunate enough to stay in a family friend’s wonderful home. One of my favorite parts is being with family and having lazy days. We all really missed Kinney and Wilma this year. But he was not up to make the trip.

Here is my mom and her dear friend shagging and entertaining AnnaKate.

We spent hours on the beach playing. Billy got very serious with castle and tunnel building. AnnaKate was very serious about tearing it all down.

Some days she even took her short 15 minute nap on the beach.

But mostly this is what she wanted to do. It wore us out each day. She could ride the waves constantly!

Riding the waves!

Our family friend had her great nephews over to play and AnnaKate thought it was super to have playmates.

A mermaid!

Family time is the best!

I hope you are having a relaxing summer!

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Favorites and Firsts…

Favorites…

My birthday was this week and I had the best time with friends and got so many beautiful things. Here are a few…
I have wanted these measuring bowls from Anthropologie for the longest time. My sweet mom gave them to me. I love having them sit on the counter and using them every time I cook.

My wonderful sister-in-law gave me this neat bag. It has a velcro closure and of course a great monogram. You can use it for shampoo or a ton of other things but right now it is in my pool bag to keep my cell phone and other things dry. So nifty…

This gift just takes the cake. My dear friend, Jessica, and I love Lisa Leonard for a variety of reasons. On Jessica’s birthday I sent her a pair of Lisa’s earrings and for my birthday, I received this. It is truly a special gift.

I really am a novice photographer but thanks to my dad, I have the best gear. I got an awesome 18-105mm lens. Paparazzi style pictures will be coming soon!

Firsts…

AnnaKate got her first pair of riding pants. Aren’t they so cute?!

They must have been what she needed because she actually stood on the horse last week and rode around the ring. I did not get a picture because I was assisting but this will give you a hint of what it looked like. WOW!