Four Day Weekend Begin!

We got a ridiculously early start for not having to be out the door by 7am.

rain rain...

Kyle came by to pick up Tessa early this morning, but not before we'd already done baths, dressing, and some light toy clean-up to get the day moving. I decided to tackle some last minute cleaning before Syd and I packed up for the short trek to the airport. Nana & Pappy are here, safe & sound! We picked them up from Lambert just before 10 and brought the whole party back home. Since then, we've made it to the grocery store, Target, and a couple other pit stops. Mom went straight to the kitchen [shocking, I know] and laid down some of her crazy culinary skill. Yayyyy, parents! Haha...

Oh, and it's been raining off-and-on all day. We've been taking advantage of the short dry pockets throughout the day, retreating back under shelter when the drops start falling again. Since rain has been such a foreign thing around here for the past few months, the only complaint I have for all this precip is that it scheduled itself for the weekend my parents are here. Selfishly said, I know. We've made the best of it though, even if it is a bit damp out there.

playtime with nana & pappy! 

Dad called me out at one point to check out the new mailbox decoration. I think it's a good look - certainly unique, and probably in violation of some sort of law. Just my guess. Haha.

mailbox topper!

It's almost dinner time. Joe gets back tonight, too. Sydni & Jacob's birthday party is tomorrow.

In other words: Weekend, we're a-comin' for ya. :) 

xo | cmd

Little GIRLS Run the World!

.... well, they did today at least.

We were graced with a visitor today - well, two really. Christine stopped by the office on her way to run a few other errands, and she brought little miss Ava with her. That kid is as cute as they come, and she made with it taking over my job for a few minutes. I think she did rather well, and even got a quick interview with me before she did all her documentation, i.e. drawing little face pictures all over my post its. Too cute. I'm pretty excited to get down to Waterloo and take their pictures. :) Soon!!

meet our newest staffing consultant.. haha.. little ava!
she took over my desk.. notice the candy dish has been strategically
relocated ... by her mama. haha.. see if you can spot it. 

card for nancy ♥

Halfway through the day, I was told that I get the day off tomorrow. It was kind of surprising, seeing that tomorrow is Nancy's last day. I almost didn't want to take it [don't worry, I'm not that crazy], but I did because it's a Friday and without working it, I'll have a nice four-day weekend. The downside is that I won't be there for Nancy's last day, and she'll be there running solo with the new girl for her last day. :( The upside we decided was that her new job will still be close by, so we'll be making lunch plans very soon. I'm gonna miss her.... crazy to think she won't be there on Tuesday when the office reopens. I gave her the card today that I found at Target and decided was absolutely perfect for her, for the office, and for all that our jobs have stood for so far. Haha. Ugh. I miss her already! :(

By the time the work day was over, I was gearing up for the evening with more little munchkins. I'd talked to Amy earlier in the week and offered a night of fun for Tessa here with Sydni and a break for Amy & Kyle. Originally, it was going to be just for a few hours since I'd thought I had to be back up and out the door for work in the morning. Instead, I've got two little girls running circles around the living room in their pj's, pretending to be flying mermaids on a school bus. I love it. I know how nice it is every so often to have just one night sans kiddo; I'm so glad we could do that for the Sandvens tonight! We're having a blast tonight.. lol.

tessa & syd - little buddies!

My parents are flying in tomorrow; Syd and I will go pick them up and get the last minute details nailed down for the big party on Saturday :). Exciting :)

Let the weekend begin!

xo | cmd

Lightly Bittersweet :?

Farewell to a bittersweet day.

First, I must wish a far-off birthday wish for an old friend of mine :) This pretty mama just had TWINS just a few months back and she is fabulous. I aspire to be as cute in the event I find myself post-birth of doubles. From the days of Filipino fiestas at UC - I always had a blast with this gal.

Happy Birthday, Lauren! 

lauren! | filipino dance troops @barrio

[I adore birthdays!]

On the more somber side, today was the scheduled 'going-away' dinner for Nancy. She accomplished the task of coercing the dinner plans outside of what's more traditionally done for those of us who move on; we found ourselves at the Edwardsville Wasabi. I hadn't been, but after tonight, I'll be back. In spite of the food allergies from some of our party, we still managed a 6-roll sushi boat, 2 orders of shumai, 4 orders of edamame, 4 orders of potstickers, and 1 round of red bean mochi. Plus drinks. Plus some chicken teryaki. Haha. Hey... if you're gonna eat, go big or go somewhere other than Wasabi :).

nom nom nom....

It's gonna be a bittersweet next 2 days before Nancy heads out the door for the last time and off to her next endeavor. I'm not gonna think about that right now; it compels me to do something wild like forget.... 

....to.....

..... show up to work tomorrow?

No? Darn. Well, I'll save that outlandish idea for another day. :-x. 

Oy. Anyway, it's midweek. Happy Wednesday! 

xo | cmd

Surprised Speechless. Blessed!

Sometimes, in the midst of all that is day-by-day fuss and frill, I need a reminder of how much my family is loved. No, not [just] by me, my husband, our immediate family, or even some of our local friends... but by some truly unexpected but dear friends of ours.

Joe forwarded me this email today:
[** SPOILER ALERT.. but I figure it's okay since Syd's not reading my blogs yet... or really anything for that matter. Hah..]

speechless. how truly amazing. 

[Hah, Well I guess that answers the powerwheels question I had the other day..]
I don't even have words for that, other than the deepest and sincerest thank you.
Today, especially, to Gerald, Leslie, and the girls - you are truly amazing, and your generosity means the world and then some to us. So insanely sweet and thoughtful of you. Speechless.
We are loved, and we love our friends and family.
We are blessed.

xo | cmd

Dora

Hello, land of toddler-girl-mothers!
& Hello, Dora.

Sydni said something really funny today while we were watching an episode of Dora. Let me set this up for you just a little bit ... :
Swiper was at it with his swiping [which, btw, he's a little punk - taking everyone's stuff.. and then making sure to throw it as far away from its owner.. little turd... haha], and at one point Dora said, "Where DID Swiper put the crown?" On cue, Sydni said aloud, "IIIIII Dooooon't KNOOOOOW!!!"

Okay, it was funnier if you'd been there, but she was so upset by the question that I couldn't help but picture one of those randomly viral photo-edits that cycles around on Facebook and Pinterest for a few weeks. Pretty funny stuff. :)

Speakin' of Dora :

early birthday present :)

^ Nuff said. She's pretty stoked... hopefully this might aide in the whole please-sleep-in-YOUR-bed-tonight,-Sydni thing with which we've been working. Totally worth it to see the sheer elation on her face over some bedsheets. Haha.

We did some digging on the voice behind Dora, because for some reason I just realized that there probably is a human being behind that pint-sized animated adventure-seeker and her talking pet... and backpack .. haha. I found out that Dora has so far been two different gals: the more recent one on the left side.. Cute girls, and since I'm that person that likes to know the names of all the actors/actresses I'm watching at any given point, I feel like a much more evolved Dora viewer. Hahaha. Whatever.

dora... and dora! 

Random, but yeah. Dora is taking over this house one phase at a time... so I figured we'll enjoy it full throttle. That being said, I think it's about time to finish up the latest re-re-re-re-re-re-re-run episode of Dora.. for about the 749217402183092 time before bed. We're a wild bunch here, I know. :)


xo | cmd

Goofy Girls :)

Hey, Sunday!

Today started with nursery rotation downstairs. Luckily for me, I ended up on the rotation with Mo, Tanya, and Michelle. It flew right on by, followed immediately by a meeting with the deacons' wives to lay down some additional details on the new member fellowship later in September. I'm working on the welcome book; it is well-underway and just about finished! :) 

[photog | ria periera]

[photo cred | f.daisy1401

Once the meeting was over, I loaded both Sydni and Emma up and the three of us set off to spend the afternoon together so Becky could conquer the task of moving, unhindered. The girls and I had a blast- played in the backyard, the basement, Sydni's room, the living room, and outside in the cul-de-sac. They got the trikes out and I was instantly reminded of photographs of myself as a kid playing on my own red tricycle. I found a couple pictures that would suffice as substitution for the actual shots of me as a mini [note to self: dig through some of the collection at the padres'.]

I borrowed this shot of an itty bitty chuck taylor; Sydni has the same exact ones. I also was reminded that I need to get the camera out and start doing a better job of photo-documentation. Eerie as it is, I've been slacking bigtime on my photographic endeavors as of late. I have a bunch of places I've noted just in the past couple of weeks that I'd like to shoot while there's still plenty of greenery and the pre-autumn lighting.... Hmmmm.. 

Anyway, the girls wore themselves out running around the house, up and down stairs, and all over the driveway. Becky just stopped by to get Emma and Sydni is already about to pass out. It's been one of those weekends - wonderful but all too short. 

Sigh. 

Tomorrow it's back to the fanciness that is the work week. We'll see how this goes. 

xo | cmd

HBD! : The Greenes & Miss Madison

August is definitely one of the heaviest months for birthdays for my dear friends and family! My dad and cousin, niece, and many of my friends have birthdays throughout the Leo month and I wish I could be everywhere all at once to help them celebrate :)

Today goes out to a little munchkin who I just cannot wait to see again! My cousin Maricor's little bean turns THREE today, and I am oh-so-stinkin'-bummed that I'm not there to party til the cake is gone with her. I sound like an old geezer when I say that it "seems like just yesterday" when my cousin called a still-very-pregnant-me to tell me she was headed into the hospital. Hours later we had pictures of beautiful baby Madison, and were fortunate enough for at the least the first year and a half to have some quality time for her and Sydni to spend together. Not that they'll remember that, but we certainly will :).

HAPPY THIRD BIRTHDAY,
BEAUTIFUL MADISON!!



growin' like a weed!
baby madison | syd & mad shopping ;) | big girl!

Today also goes out to my beautiful friend Whitney back in Ohio [and coincidentally her older sister Meg, too! 4 years apart.. but still funny]. As it goes with all of my darling gal pals from back home, she is dearly missed by me and I look forward to seeing her again sometime hopefully soon!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WHITNEY!!!
[[and Meg, too!!]]

loves loves loves.... whit!

^ Oh, and just in case you're wondering, that center picture is in fact a floorset at Pac Sun, during our run there as managers.. Pac Sun After Hours, if you will... when those stupid face hoodies were first shipped to us - we decided Manny the Mannequin was looking a bit lonely so we took a picture for his ... Myspace, because it was like 2007 and that was the fad then.. I think. Haha. Goodness I miss her. Haha.

As for me - well, today's been packed to the brim with absolutely nothing except chores. Riveting, right? Well... yenno.. I'm a wild one these days. It's gonna be an early night, too. Man. I'm outta control.

xo | cmd

Itty Bitty Koinonia

mo & evan

It's been a long week. Joe's still out of town and the majority of our small group had other unavoidable obligations. That left us with a small but enthusiastic gang of the Prescotts, the Gobles, Becky, myself, and the little kids. 

We had a great time, as always; it's no secret that large or small, this group is incredible and I love having this time with them on Koinonia nights. Evan had a great time too, and he and Mo and their matching shirts had a bunch of fun all night. 

We missed all of our regulars who couldn't attend tonight, but hopefully we'll see you very soon! Thanks again, Tom, for providing the lesson for us tonight. It's been a wild week and this was the perfect way to unwind: friends, fellowship, food, and funny kids :) 

See you tomorrow, folks :)

xo | cmd

Weeknight Slumber Party? Don't Tell Mom!

Go figure. Haha.

Mo and I decided a few days back that we'd have a girls night sometime this week. That came to fruition tonight, complete with us doing dinner and watching The Hunger Games. This particular dear friend of mine shares the same affinity I do for knowing the names of everyone I'm watching in a movie [can't explain it], I found this shot of some of the headliners for the movie. I love shots like this, not because I necessarily love the movie that much, but because it's so reminiscent for me of times with family and friends back home.

Except obviously we were never tossed unwillingly into a gamer-controlled arena with instructions to kill each other. Still find the tones and colors rather endearing, and of course the aesthetics of good casting.

Jimmy stopped by for a few; now that Mo and I are here left to our own devices, we're undoubtedly going to bury ourselves in finishing this movie and then scouring Pinterest for the latest and perhaps over-zealous ideas for everything related to cute babies. For example....

Haha. I was directed not to encourage Mo as far as mermaids go, but who can help feeling cute overload looking at this one. I'm gathering some fun ideas for their maternity and baby shoot, too. I've got some time, but I'll keep you posted :)

I have to work in the morning. Not quite sure why we opted for a Thursday night slumber party, but whatever. Haha. Tomorrow's Koinonia, too. Can't wait.

Almost the weekend! :)

xo | cmd

Almost Three.. What To Buy?!

There was a time when buying presents for people was substantially less-complicated by the convenience of being able to ask the intended giftee what he/she needed or wanted... and getting a general idea.

And then....... I had a kid :).
It's really the same concept; the difference with Sydni though is that if you ask her what she wants for her birthday, she'll make darn sure it's something for which you'll need a loan, zookeeper, time machine or spaceship. So far my inquiries have earned the following:

movie theatre. giraffe. dinosaur. orrrrrrrrrr .... the moon.
those are my options... hmm.

So, as much as I would love to oblige the wants of my children, I feel like it's the perfect time to decline in the interest of ... well.. her. While I don't think she'll actually feel jilted by not getting a movie theater or a triceratops wrapped up with a bow, I think we've found some amiable solutions [I think....]

Powerwheels, anyone?
I never had one when I was a kid, but it seemed as though all the neighbors and cousins did. Now that I think about it, was probably one of the justifications my parents used in not buying us one. The only question now is: which one? [aka, #firstworldbirthdayproblems]

#1 - Barbie. Hello, pink. It's definitely not my favorite color, and I'm not necessarily an advocate for all things Barbie, but she'd have a blast with this thing and that's fine with me.

barbie.

#2 - Dora. I really like this one! Ven conmigo! (: This might be the one.. not entirely sure just yet.

#3 - Truck. This represents the true hillibilly in me. It's clearly more boyish than the other two, but that makes it the more neutral choice in the event it sticks around for a little while for the next kiddos and/or neighbor-kids. Just entertaining myself with this one, I guess.... haha.

I'll keep ya posted on how this goes .. once Joe gets back, we'll get the birthday presents ironed out. One more day before the weekend!

xo | cmd

Birthday Twins [Moll&Care] & Beads Galore!

It would be one thing to have ONE friend as cute as Molly or Carrie, but it just so happens that there are TWO of the, equally friggin' adorable gals to whom I would like to wish the happiest of happy birthdays!

I miss 'em.. it's been way too long since I last saw either one of them, but either way, girls, have the best birthday yet!! [Super shout out, because they're adopted, too. That adoption thing really pays off ;) haha.. ]

Happy Birthday, Molly & Carrie!

moll & care | cute friends.
happy birthday, girlies!

circa 2009..ish? | toooold ya it's been too long.. :(

Gotta love birthdays, yeah? Yeah :).

----

You know what ELSE I love?! My pastor and his wife. I also love amazing dinners and a few hours of playing with boxes and boxes.. and boxes of BEADS. Ms. Debbie had asked me on Sunday if I wanted to come by this week for dinner since Joe is out of town, more purposefully to help her sort through some boxes of beads that had come from Jarod and Ms. Ellen during the cleaning process. By some, I mean almost a matching equivelant of my current inventory. Beads, everywhere was where we started in an effort to sort and consolidate. I gave her some pointers on simple wire working, explained the various tools, and even fixed one of her plaque bracelets that had broken. Sydni kept herself busy in the play room, and when it was all said and done, I toted home an incredible variety of new beads, fixtures, pins, etc. I'm like a little kd when it comes to this... lol. I'm in heaven ;)

almost half of what i now own... whoa.

Craft party, anyone?!?! I need to go to bed before I pass the point at which I won't be able to function in about 8 hours or so. Plus, I'm starting on the mini's birthday shopping tomorrow. She'll be three, all too quickly. Any suggestions?

xo | cmd

Here We Go, AGAIN....

DagGONNIT!! This has got to stop.


boooo :(. i don't like that empty chair....



My counter-coworker and co-staffing consultant, Nancy, tendered her 2-week resignation today. I knew it was coming and was completely prepared for it last week even, but that's not the point. The point is, there were, at one point, FIVE of us: Meagan, Christine, Nancy, Courtney and myself. Meagan moved to Missouri [which, by the way, kudos for transferring to that Express office :)..]. Courtney, well.. that's another story for another day.. about which I will only say that it was unfairly handled and executed. Christine left exactly one week ago today, and two weeks from now I will bid adieu to Nancy. She, aside from the owners, is the only one here who's been hanging around here longer than me, by about 2ish months. I am literally the last man standing.

I am not a happy camper as work is concerned. I would call this a valley, for sure. A week ago today, Christine parted ways with us; consequently, Nancy and I ended up going rounds with upper management for a large portion of the day until we all fizzled into what I could only describe as still-disagreement, just sans dissension. What a place to be, eh. Haha. In the defense of the office though, it seems to have been on a mild upswing, but with Nancy now heading off to pursue another avenue, I can only brace myself and say my little prayers that we will all sustain, maintain, and, in some cases, restrain... for the next couple of weeks. :) I know, I know - first world problems of an employed person... I'll stop. I really do count it a blessing to have a job in a nation littered with job-hunters, so make no mistake that I am grateful for that. It's just taxing sometimes. Not impossible, just taxing :).

Aaaaaaaaanyway,
My mood [and my entire day, really] was lightened substantially when I received an unexpected invite to the Gobles' for dinner. I don't really think Jackie had expected it either, which made it that much more fun. I gathered up Sydni and stopped at the house to change and we were off to the Gobles for the evening. In that little whispering way - well, in this case, not so much of a whisper, more of a bold proclamation dressed up as pulled chicken and salad ;) - I was reminded of the simple daily graces I am so often afforded but unfortunately don't always appreciate like I should. My pastor had joked on Sunday that God probably has a good laugh many times at the way we overreact to frivelous speedbumps in our lives before sending us a post-it reminder that He is still in control and that all.... is... OKAY.

So thank you, Lord, for THIS day, for yesterday, and for the ones to come. Thank you for the trials - large and small, and thank you for the courage and endurance to see them through. :)

The week is still young; I'm bent on making the most of it! With a visit to Miss Debbie tomorrow for some bead working [yiieeee!!], a slumber party with Mo on Thursday, and Koinonia on Friday? I thiiiiiink that's a pretty good lineup so far ;)

xo | cmd

Quotes From A Pastor

"Each of us needs a friend who loves us but is not impressed by us." - Pastor Ron | 8.19.12

In other words, each of us impeccably needs that confidante friend who cares for and loves us, but is willing to tell us the truth, based on grounded scriptural fact. We need that accountability of recognition when we fall, when we are succeeding, but especially in hearing those grinding life truths we don't necessarily want to hear.



"mama, close your ONE eye!" .. "okay.."
♥



Powerful stuff. That was one of the bullet points my pastor touched on this morning in a lesson focused on outlining the guidelines we should utilize in deciphering whether or not our decisions are God-based or emotionally-calculated. This was one of those revealing lessons that hit me pretty hard and made me squirm a little in my seat as I sat listening. Believe it or not, I count that as a blessing, for I truly believe it's an indication that God's chosen to use that message to speak directly to the core of... well, me. Thanks, a million times over, for the excellent delivery, Pastor Ron!

I felt caught up to speed after the service, even in lieu of my passing on Sunday school to nurse a migraine [agghh], and felt decently coherent by the time we made last minute lunch plans for Dos Gorditos. As with these lunch arrangements, they so often bloom into a whole party, which is exactly what we had. Robin Werner brought a new couple from the base and their adorable little girl, and we had our usual great time doing that fellowship thing that comes so naturally to us. (:

Back at home, Sydni and I committed to a nap before getting up and seeing Joe off for another week-ish of his travelling for work. I had originally made plans for volleyball, but since I'm still feeling a bit lofty in the head, I'm passing for the evening to hang here with the munchkin. It's gonna be an early night; I'm totally fine with that.

Tomorrow's a new week!

xo | cmd

Snips of a Saturday

I've not yet become gutsy enough to go through with as drastic a change as I did a couple years back. the last time I donated my hair, I gave 14 inches of my mane and was left with the expected short hair - only problem was that I wasn' t thrilled in the least with the execution by the stylist versus what I'd requested. It was a cute bob look, but certainly not my style. I was going to be much more conservative this time around, if nothing else than to at least test out the stylist.

I had the recommendation from Cathie for her current stylist, and while Cathie keeps her hair much shorter than mine, it always looks great, especially right after a visit to the salon. I thought I'd give it a whirl. 

6 inches.. see ya later :)

hunger games!

I love it, so far, even though it is exactly as conservative as I thought it would be. I'm still conflicted a bit on whether or not I really even want short hair at this point, so this for the time being at least gives me the liberty of options while dropping those dead split ends. Pretty silly when the stylist holds up a measured 6-inch chunk of hair she's just snipped, when in looking at it now, it still seems long. Haha. I'm satisfied, and I will definitely be making a trip back to see the gal who did this when I'm due up for a snip again. Not a bad way to start the day! 

my doodlebug ♥

I made a stop off at Target after the 8:30AM hair appointment to grab some groceries, and ended up also walking out with a copy of The Hunger Games. Don't judge me, haha. I am completely excited for Mo coming by to watch this with me. 

Back home, it didn't take long for us to decide we would head right back out the door for some breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Sydni loves this place especially for its artistic provisions; I don't know why it is, but she spends more time coloring and doodling when we're here than any other restaurant it seems. Today she even bragged about her left-handedness. Great. haha. 

Back at home, Sydni and I went down for a short snooze while the boys took off for a run; Eric's got an Ironman coming up next weekend, for which he's been training since about this time last year. Pretty impressive, I'd say. It's too bad we won't be able to go and watch him race, but there's no doubt he'll do an awesome job and have some good stories from it all.

The boys headed off to drop Eric at the airport a few minutes ago; I hear Sydni starting to wake up in her room, so I .. am.. outta here :)

xo | cmd

Salad & A Movie

Well I just feel like quite the DIY-er today, after having finished off the fourth of four in my first round of jarred lunches. I will never know why I'd not gone this route sooner, but after catching drift of a very similiar idea from Jess, I scaled back what she had displayed as more of a gift-esque presented version of the jar salad into something I could do for lunch every day.

yum. :)

Funny enough, I set out with the final picture as my goal; I was met with my first hurdle when I realized that good old Target didn't carry the "regular sized" mason jars; the tall, slender ones I automatically think of when I think of mason jars. Instead, I found two smaller sizes and one impractically huge size in the canning section of Target kitchenwares. I picked up one set of each of the two smaller sizes: 1 pint and 1/2 pint. They come in sets of 4, and run less than $6 per set. After comparing them to some salsa jars, I quickly realized that they were the of the same capacity and would be plenty big enough for what I needed.

Correct! I toted them home and filled each with some greens, carrots, hard boiled eggs, chick peas, and parmesan cheese. My advice at this point: do NOT add dressing until you are ready to eat it. Anyhow, they turned out nice and pretty; I was still a little leary about how they'd hold up for 4-5 days in the fridge, fearful I might crack open the last one and be faced with soggy lettuce, mushy garbonzo beans, etc. Happy to report, that was not the case! :) It's Friday, and the salad I'd assembled on Sunday of this week was just as fresh as it was when I put it in the jar. Add some dressing, do a little shaking [whoa, flashback to high school caf salads in the plastic containers? haha..], and presto! Delish. Inexpensive, quick, and I would say highly-recommended. Yums :)

the campaign

Oh, and Eric's still in town! We had dinner with the Prescotts at the house last night, and tonight, since Dawne is hosting another sleepover for Sydni, we were kiddo-free for the evening. In efforts to take full advantage of that, we immediately sprung plans for dinner and a movie. Dinner was the locally-acclaimed Lotawata Creek, and movie was, by unanimous vote, The Campaign. As it so unfortunately goes sometimes with movies like this, there were definitely some funny moments, but in hindsight I could've waited to Redbox this one. Oh well. The company was great and that's all that mattered. :) Eric heads out tomorrow afternoon, and we'll wrap up the evening with some long-overdue catching up on chores and such. Can't wait.. Womp womp womp....

Happy weekend!!

xo | cmd

Happy Birthday, KIM!!

From Illinois back to Ohio.... oh dear KIMBERLY...

!!!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY !!!!!!

love you darling friend!!!!!

kim's bday 2010 .. because it was 5:00 somewhere..
.. yeah, we found that somewhere :)

Ohhhhhh man, oh man. I can't even tell ya how much I adore this girl and all that she is. There were a couple summers in particular that found us more often than not having the times of our lives and throwing caution to the wind [no, not in a dangerous way, but more in that youthful sense], untethered by the responsibilities of the grown up lives we both are now pursuing. That's the generous way to put it, haha. She's definitely one of those guaranteed spur-of-the-moment good times girls, with a huge heart, even bigger personality, and somehow fitting all of that awesome into her tiny little self. Happy birthday, Kimberlyyyyy - I love you dearly, and can't wait to see you again soon, friend!
---------------
Tonight's agenda: dinner with Eric, Joe, & the Prescotts, and then some good old relaxing. (: That's my kind of night!


To the rest of you - Happy ALMOST Friday!!

xo | cmd

Irony.

To read, or not to read???

hrm...

I haven't read it yet... Question is... should I? I'm almost a little worried, since it was written by Express.. haha. Just kidding. I found this in the small stack of hand-me-downs left behind on my desk when Christine left earlier in the week. I'm hanging on to it, just in case I feel the need one day to crack it open and absorb whatever magic it holds.. haha.

Eric is here!
I got home from work tonight to find him and Joe, already hard at work on their little project together. I let them to it and attempted to do some damage of my own to the unfinished project demanding my attention at this point. The New Member Booklet project for Towerview has been my baby for the last month or so; I'm slowly chipping away at it as I get the input from the right people. I'm hoping to have this done soon.. and I'll gladly share that with you all when it's finished. Say a little prayer for me; this is for distribution to the entire congregation; I need to get it right! :)

Happy midweek, friends!

xo | cmd

Colors of Today :)

Today was quite the colorful day. After all of the ruckus from yesterday, it was a nice change of pace [and a welcomed surprise] to see some bright pops of orange and yellow, complete with the simple but elegant grass decorations which I'm totally hacking.... :) Plus, Nancy brought in some itty bitty onesie kimonos that she still has as part of her online shop inventory. It kiiiind of made me want to have a small human again to wiggle into this thing for the sake of pure cute overload. We shall see....

flowers from diana (:

baby kimonos. cuteness.over.load.

Work ended in its usual fashion; I headed straight for Fairview Heights to grab Sydni and stop at Target before our evening dwell at the Relay for Life Wrap-Up Celebration potluck. It was wonderful to see some of those familiar faces again, but more importantly a great night of recognition for the ACS and Team Towerview!! We officially get to trade in our Silver Level fundraising sign for Gold Level, because we have, at this point, surpassed the $5000 mark. NOT a bad way to kick off our first year of participation in Relay! (:

relay for life wrap-up!

Oh, and we [Team Towerview] earned the award for the Heaviest RFL Fundraiser [aka, the TIRE!] for this year. Christine decorated it with the shot of Mo, Becky and me "sleeping" in and on it during relay. Pretty funny stuff - very thoughtful!! 

Joe's back in town. That means Eric will be here tomorrow through the weekend. Never a dull moment in the Dills' house! 

xo | cmd

Mega.. Monday.. Meltdown.

Monday doesn't have a track record of being my favorite day of the week. That being said, today was like the highlighted version of chaos in motion.

reasons i miss her.. already.. lol.

We lost another one today. I mean that to say that the Express crew is yet another man short after Christine tendered her resignation today. It's been a long time coming, and honestly, I admire her for sticking in there as long as she did. Major kudos for all her hard work. It was bittersweet to watch her go, but we're all in agreement that there are bigger, brighter opportunities awaiting her gracing, and I definitely hope they're ready. Best of luck in your next move, Christine.. I definitely hope to see you very very soon [as in.. we're scheduling a shoot, soon soon soon, yeah? Yeah :)..].

Now, I called it mega Monday meltdown because the early morning resignation business boiled quickly into an honest rant session during which myself and a coworker let loose, upon managements' beckoning, on the list of reasons life as we know it between 8am and 5pm has morphed into something more closely resembling a chore than the realization of anyone's real passion. *sigh. It might be a stretch to think we made a dent in the bubble, but I'm goin' that way..... anyway. Chyeah. Keep ya posted.

meltdown .. kiiiiiinda what i felt like today.

Phewwwwwwww.

Softball tonight was a chillier experience than Sydni and I had anticipated, spotted by poor little Easton taking a spill and taking a bleacher corner through the front of his gums. Ouchy... He's a little trooper though! I was reminded of those moments as a mom during which panic must be traded for the cool, calm and collected fixer-of-boo-boos. Thanks for the reminder, Robin :)

Well it has beeeeeen a day. I rounded it off with the first day of week 2 of INSANITY. Nothin' like rounding out one of those Mondays with some cardio resistance. Yep...

G'Nite :)

xo | cmd

Happy Birthday, Dad!



my dad. ♥

She spins and she sways
To whatever song plays
Without a care in the world
And I'm sitting here wearing
The weight of the world on my shoulders

It's been a long day
And there's still work to do
She's pulling at me
Saying "Dad, I need you

There's a ball at the castle
And I've been invited
And I need to practice my dancing
Oh, please, Daddy, please?"

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't want to miss even one song
'Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone...

She says he's a nice guy and I'd be impressed
She wants to know if I approve of the dress
She says, "Dad, the prom is just one week away
And I need to practice my dancing
Oh, please, Daddy, please?"

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't want to miss even one song
'Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone, she will be gone

Well, she came home today with a ring on her hand
Just glowing and telling us all they had planned
She says, "Dad, the wedding's still six months away
But I need to practice my dancing
Oh, please, Daddy, please?"

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't want to miss even one song
'Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone
- "Cinderella" by Steven Curtis Chapman
^That was the song to which I danced with my father at my wedding. I love it because it is my dad and me, and reminds me just how quickly my childhood flew by. Moreso it reminds me of the fact that my father is a remarkable man with a heart of gold and fierce passion to love his family and his friends. I love him so dearly and hope that today is the best birthday yet. Happy birthday, dad! ♥

----
Our pastor is back from vacation, and made with it to bring us a solid message on the parallel between olympian dedication to running the race and our plight to prevail in our own race of life. Very inspiring. Following closely behind the service was lunch at Applebee's with Becky, the kids, and Becky's mom before she headed back out of town. Jimmy, Mo, Jarod, and Julie made for great company, and we had some inevitable moments of laughing fits before we parted ways and I headed home to rest up before volleyball.

Volleyball proved to be more food than play at first; we were celebrating all of the August birthdays and Irene's farewell as she returns to college in a week or so. The perk behind having a barbeque before volleyball: getting home two hours earlier than I would have on a typical vball night when we make our stop at BDubbs after play is over. The weather was beautiful, the friends were awesome, and for a break in the INSANITY routine, it wasn't bad at all.

Not too shabby for a Sunday. Let's see what Monday has in store :)

xo | cmd

Birthdays! : Maricor | William

Dear Cousin,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!



I love this girl to pieces. Cousins, best friends - it doesn't get much crazier than the antics we've been through together growing up into this adulthood thing.. haha. There's nothing quite like having someone 2 months older than you with whom you can share both the beautiful and the broken moments of life and all that comes with it. There are very few people in this world on which I have no doubt I could cast any and all of my problems without judgment, disownment, or otherwise crushing response. Family is family, like it or not, but I definitely love her. She's a friend, a wife, a mother, sister, daughter, and cousin. Happy birthday to my always beautiful, always there, cousin.

^^ Playing on the BMW [cousin, Jeremy's!], some fun memories in Columbus, and of course, a shot with the cousins [minus Andrea & Jamie], Ate Caridel, Kuya Eddie, myself and Maricor at my wedding :) ^

In the spirit of birthdays, today was William's birthday party, held at the church, so I went along to help take care of the photography. Between cake, cupcakes, presents, water balloons and bubbles, the kids had a blast, and the adults were awarded with exhausted kids to take home and relax.... which is exactly what we did afterwards.

Happy Birthday, William!! :)

See you.. at the Tower tomorrow!

xo | cmd

Koinonia :)

Koinonia night, as always, was a huge succes. Tonight was something of a unique night, in that Joe was still gone in Reno for work. The Page family joined our group for the evening, as well, since the members of their extension had regretfully opted out for other obligations. It was awesome having them; we so rarely see the other families of the original large group if we're  not at one of those gatherings. I felt like we'd exhausted the typical food themes, so we went with a more simple menu of "finger foods."

I think this may've been the best buffet we've had yet! :) I think the highlight of the spread was the batch of whoopie pies that Cathie baked. Apparently, this is a Maine thing, because not only had I never heard of them before, I'd certainly not ever tried one. Yes, yes I will be asking her for that recipe ;)

Oh, and that little couch debacle we'd had a few weeks back? Well, leave it to Jarod and Jimmy to engineer an almost embarrassingly-quick remedy to that whole transferring of couches from room to room. Solution? Remove the door from the guest room and haul that sucker in. Really? Haha. I'm almost glad Joe wasn't here to witness this, since it was a pretty polar contrast to the hassle he and Jimmy had faced in the original attempt to store the Prescotts' couch in our basement..... or guestroom.... or the living room. Haha. This ended tonight with the loveseat in the guestroom; Jarod and Jimmy snapped a couple shots of their success. 

Pretty funny stuff. I love these people. I wish every Friday was Koinonia Friday :) 

xo | cmd

IT'S A GIRL!!!!!!!

Okay, so I haven't been sharing in much detail the chronicles of the Prego Prescotts. [<<catchy, eh?]


natalie marie prescott
i .. can't ... wait to meet her!

Anyway, so my dear friend Mo and her husband Jimmy, with whom we've grown very close since moving here, are expecting their first little one! It's been a grueling couple of weeks of contemplating what the gender of the next Prescott baby would be. Most had their realistic bets on a boy, since the Prescott family has a strong track record of men.

Until Now!

[It was so hard for me to refrain from blabbing about this until they made their public announcement.. so I am just beside myself excited for them.... lol]

Congratulations, my dear friends!!! I am so excited to meet little Natalie, and spoil that little girl rotten. Heaven knows we had a batallion of people who indulged Sydni months before she made her grand entrance into the world, so now it's my turn.. hehe. Plus, I LOVE babies as it is [I've been patiently waiting to get my hands on little Emilia Babot.. she's so stinkin' cute, too..]. 

Baby fever? I'm not sure. Haha. I think I'll do some more living vicariously through my other prego friends. 

Yay, babies!

Tomorrow = Koinonia. Happy  ALMOST Friday!

xo | cmd

Doodles, Birthdays, & Sunglasses 8-)

Click Me. 

I had fun with that today.

There's a whole bunch of these fun lil' Olympic-themed guys. Haha
Yeeesh. Haha.

*****
Do ya one better though on the daily highlights:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JUSTIN!!!

russia & china! haha.. happy birthday!!

^^ Happy birthday, friend!! This is one of Joe's best friends from back home, and he's a riot. Hope today is the best birthday yet - we hope to see you soon, JB!! 

****

swag! LOL... 

Oh, and here's a silly thing from today that made us laugh at the office: Each of us staffing consultants have that handful of "favorite associates," the ones who will snag last minute assignments, grueling labor work, odd hours, and fill-ins. They're reliable, work with great urgency and ethic, and are predictable, in a good way. Today, I landed an interview for a long term position for one of my best associates, and he showed up with a token of gratitude [no fear, this wasn't a bribe, and it was clearly in a non-creepy context]. He lived in Hong Kong for quite some time, and had some knock off numbers - you can't tell by looking at them, and they're not typically in my range of style, but I thought it was pretty thoughtful.. and a reminder of the fact that my job is in fact affecting people's lives :). Pretty funny. 

P.S. - I'm on a whopping day 3 of INSANITY.
Slowly but surely... and sweaty, too. (: 

Happy midweek! 

xo | cmd

Friends On Tuesday

Nancy came back from Spain today! Welcome back from Spain, Nanc.. It's been a roooodeo here. So glad to have her back. That being said, it's been somewhat of a flurry of events from last week to now, and it doesn't look to be dissipating any time soon.. I have to admit, today was one of those days in which I left work feeling completely defeated, even in spite of leaving an hour early [to compensate for not taking a lunch]. Go figure.

I carried that irritating defeat home with me and channeled that into day TWO of INSANITY. In hindsight, it's probably a good thing I had some pent up emotion to use as fuel for that, because this thing's no joke, folks. Haha. I made it through day 2 though, and I'm still standing. I have high hopes :).

What I really didn't expect was be sought out in conversation by two different, unrelated girls I've known for years now, who've both been integral parts of my life at various stages, and both of whom I hold so dear still to my heart.

jen | circa 2008

Jen || Welp, it's been a long, winding, hill-infested road since I met her in in middle school. I was in 7th grade, she was in 6th, and we were quite the dramatically 1990's lookin' things.. I love everything about it. We've been through many of those angsty adolescent things that girls so typically go through feeling alone.. I was fortunate enough to see some of those things through with Jen, and her with me.. and from that stemmed a friendship that's lasted from then, until now, and I'm hoping for years to come. We've had roles in each others' weddings, shared in the joy and strains of new parenthood, but more importantly the transforming power of the GRACE of God that works so evidently in the real life struggles we seem to face individually but on parallel timing. Love. Her. to Pieces. 

arley | circa 2010

Arley || There's something to be said about a girl who helps you survive parts of your high school career without feeling like you're completely lost. Not just that, but someone who looks out for you after that when it comes to certain things, places and people about which you might've forgotten from being away for so long. I know without doubt that if and when I make it back to the good old Vern that I can find Arley, her adorable kiddos, and the rest of our friends from over the years ready to catch up, hang out, and kick back. She's always been the level-headed one in the midst of sticky situations, and for that I am oh-so-stinkin'-grateful. Hah. It also goes without saying that I need to arrange a high priority to reflect making a trip home.. SOON. Thanks lady, for everything (:

Anyway, I am anticipating something of a grueling 8-5 throughout the rest of this week at least, but I am so thankful for the refreshing conversation I had tonight, and for the timing it so precisely carried. I needed to slow down for a moment, and just breathe. I even feel pretty amped for day 3 of INSANITY tomorrow. We'll see if that particular resolve lasts past noon tomorrow ;). Just kiddin'.

Okay, week. Bring your best....

xo | cmd