Sundays With Sweet People

I'm ashamed to admit that this was my first Sunday back in Sunday School in about 4 weeks. I have no admissible excuse; my only explanation consists of failed attempts to heed the alarm clock, hiccups with coordinating the entire family, and on one occasion, a migraine. I know, I know.... far from valid. I was reminded this morning how much I love my Sunday school class, my church, and especially the people.

Speaking of people, there's a lot going on with any given person or people at the Tower, and today was no exception.

First....

Happy 4th Birthday, Landon!! 

We love this kid. The Babots were one of the first families with whom we connected here at Towerview, and we're blessed to have them as friends. We've had a few awesome play dates with Landon, they're in our small group extension, and naturally we see them at all the church functions and outings. Syd even referred to Landon as her "little brother" [although yes, he's older] for a bit until she decided he was better as a friend :). Happy birthday, to our little buddy - Hope it was an excellent day!! 

shot from mother's day 2012 | landon!
happy birthday!!

Also, 

Happy FORTIETH Anniversary to the Bests!!!

Ironically, by Bests, I mean THE Bests, literally! John & Ellen Best, that is. Ms. Ellen is our nursery director at church, but she's sooo much more than that. She's an amazing person, and John is nothing less than just as awesome. I'm so inspired by their generosity, and by the example they set as a married couple for those of us far less seasoned in the art of being married. This is the kind of example more of us need to follow!

40 years ago today :) 

As if it weren't enough that Jimmy brought and sported a stick mustache [originally for the skit, but it worked throughout the entire service this morning], the funny times with our friends carried out over the course of the day, and eventually into the evening, even after choir practice. The Woods invited us to Arby's for some last minute munchies, and we had some fun with Sydni's kiddie meal "toy." It was a cowboy, but totally resembled someone else we know, if that someone had a boxy head and a permanent plastic-esque glow. :p In my defense, I wasn't the first or only one to notice.... 

cowboy? ... or... joe? haha ;) 

Ahhh, I'm such a sucker for fun times with fun people :).

It's about time to call it a day; I'm due for an early start tomorrow.
Oh, and The Voice starts tomorrow. [*squeaaaaaaal!]
Here we go, work week!

xo | cmd

THREE. YEARS. OLD. [omg!]

I'm having a total bittersweet mama moment......

September 1, 2009:

September 1, 2012:

I don't even have words. I'm trying to come to terms with "that feeling" that all the other moms told me I would have when one day I start realizing that my little one is growing into her own. Granted, she's only three, I still have what are very fresh memories of everything from speed-labor [another story for another day], to nursing, to first teeth, to first and second birthday, first steps, everything else that was in between, and now, to the big 3. It's very hard to believe.

Happy birthday, to the little girl who captivated my heart even when we swore the doctors were wrong and that we would have a boy. I understood there was a reason then that I would have a little girl first, and I am as always amazed by the gift that she is. YES, there are those days when flowery poems about her excellence are about the last thing I want to verse [potty training, temper tantrums, bed-time refusals, bold disobedience and the forever battle of eating vegetables], but in the grand scheme of things I am beyond blessed with a healthy, happy little girl who has changed my life in ways I couldn't have imagined.

But enough of the fruit and flowers.. let's get down to celebrating, yeah??!

DUH.
My parents were able to make the trip in for the long weekend, and so were a part of the birthday bash we threw for Sydni at Vetta Sports here locally. We decided to partner up with another family in our church, whose little boy turns 4 in a couple of weeks, to do a "dual" party of sorts. So it was the Goble family and ours, along with all of Sydni & Jacob's little buddies that invaded Vetta for an hour and made to it with bounce houses, soccer, pizza and of course SUGAR [because honestly what is a kid[[x2]] birthday party without cake and/or cupcakes?!] We had a blast, and so did the mini's.


birthday kiddos!

Birthday fun is far from over, which Sydni doesn't know yet, but she'll come to find out. We get to visit Mamaw in just a few short weeks back in Ohio, and there's a pink powerwheels jeep en route, compliments to the Alexanders. Spoiled [rotten]? Yeah.. but hey, she's only 3 once. :) Many, MANY thanks to all of our friends and family who made an appearance and/or sent a little something for playtime. We love you, and are blessed to have you in our lives.

I'm not even sure where the rest of the day went; we were done with all party festivities by 2:45, but it felt like 6pm by that point and for all I know, all of us came home and crashed for a few hours before dinner. That's the way a birthday should be when you're 3. Haha. We're wild, I know.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SYDNI [& JACOB] !!!

xo | cmd

WELCOME BABY EMILIA!! [VBS Day4]

So as we all went to bed last night with the anticipation of little miss Emilia's arrival, the Babots headed to the hospital where Lara was induced at midnight. The journey started for them while the majority of us were asleep. This morning around 11am, little Emilia made her grand entrance!

I.. Am.. SO.. Excited!

welcome emilia leigh!

WELCOME EMILIA!!!!

[& Congratulations to proud Mama & Daddy Lara & Alex, and of course big brother Landon]

proud mommy, flawless & beautiful, as always :)
gorgeous daughter & mama!

I cannot wait to meet little Emilia, and I will gladly stand in that line to do so. We're continuing prayer for the proud parents, and perhaps even more proud big brother Landon! I pray everything goes well for the next couple of days and that you're home in no time. We are so excited for you. Yiieee, babies! ♥

----

Today, as we all know, is day 4 of VBS. It's been an energetic week so far, and we crossed the halfway point. I took a break from all things VBS to stop by Tracy's house and snag the giant bag o' T-shirts that were ordered for the Towerviewers participating in Relay for Life. I got them all home and separated them into labeled bags for the picking. Since my team co-captain is pictured above doing ridiculous other things like having a baby [sheesh... c'mon ;), heh.. jk!], I made sure to take care of this. It was a bit of work, but an oddly-refreshing breather from the cardio that is VBS music ;) Hah. Fun stuff.


relay for life | bellville il | july 20-21, 2012!

It's been a whilrwind week so far! We are so blessed :)

The almost-Friday is just around the corner!

xo | cmd

Mother's Day 2012

The number one thing on my mind this morning:

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!!

the mamas of my family
niece cynthia | sister heidi | mama | me :)

I know that in my immediate family alone, there are four mothers. We each have our own style, our own tastes, and of course, our own daughters. These three women are three of the most incredible ladies I've ever known. They are among the ranks of mothers who constantly surpass the expectations of being mothers, and for that I admire them.

.. But they don't stand alone. For every mother, every where, I'm celebrating your victories today: both big and small! :) The world moves because of you. Thank you to my mom, my mother-in-law and all the other moms who are the example we need to follow. ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

=====================

We started church off this morning with an incredibly fun performance of the Mom Song, sung by Robin & Rachel. Great job, ladies!

rachel & robin : the mom song! :)

Once church was out, we made a quick pitstop at the store and grabbed some last minute grub before heading over to base to the Babots. We joined Alex & Lara, along with the Gobles & all the little ones, and also Lara's friend Brooke, for a grillout. We filled the afternoon with eating and playing outside. Jason showed up towards the end, right before Lara got the slip-n-slide out for the kiddos. 

Here's how that went.....

tom. jason. alex. joe.

landon & jason | getting air!

kids tying each other up ;)

she's getting so darn big! :|

alex setting up the slip-n-slide

three little ones in a row
jacob. sydni. landon

i. love. this.
syd & jacob

water!

"mama, i'm cold. brrrrrrr!"

"daddy: march!

slugger :)

paparazzi ;)
brooke. lara. cori

what a beautiful day :)

time to go: that is one tuckered-out little lady ♥

 Happy Mother's Day, everyone :)

xo | cmd

Sweet Days, Sweet People

With Joe still abroad on his ventures in Spain, Sydni and I made another go at flying solo to church. It was a pretty contained morning, since I was on nursery rotation and thus spent the morning downstairs and outside with Mo and the kids. Good stuff. I love love love those munchkins!


[borrowed]
... but it's so true!



After church, it was off to McAllisters with the Gobles, Prescotts, Babots, and Lara's parents. I wish I'd captured the scene that was Jacob and Sydni sharing their very own table for two, complete with food, drink, and crayons. Quite the grown up time for the two of them as they sat and babbled over games they were playing on individual smart phones. It was so cute... and totally worth it if nothing else than to observe the reactions of passersby as they did the double-take at two toddlers seemingly dining alone. It really doesn't take much to entertain me these days.

We managed to squeeze in a mini nap in the afternoon before it was right back to church for the evening service and choir practice. It's been a good night :)

Actually, it's been a pretty good day, immersed with good people, and of course good food. Life's good. :)

Oh! And Joe gets home tomorrow! It'll be late, yeah, but he'll be here. Praying for travel mercies....

[Meanwhile, it's back to the workhorse tomorrow!]

xo | cmd

Pint Size Rock Band

We started off the day with church; I was in the nursery for the morning, but still managed to spend some of the service upstairs with Joe & JB. After church, we headed back to the house and stayed there for just a bit before JB packed up and headed back to Cincinnati.

Joe, Syd, and I settled in at the Babots for lunch and a few rounds of our favorite couples card game, kemps. Landon and Sydni fished out some of Landon’s toys, and serenaded us with some toddler show tunes. It was… lovely J. 



http://www.40ditw.com/



Sunday evening service today was our introductory lesson into Rick Warren’s 40 Days in the Word study. This is a study that dissects scripture and teaching in an intensely literal, repetitious way. It’s quite practical in that it allows for a natural sense of deeper interpretation of each individual word, which ultimately leads to easier memorization. Pretty basic concept. Pretty cool results. 



casserole!
[thx rob & meagan!]



Meagan & Rob surprised us by dropping to bring us a chicken casserole at the church before we left. By the time choir practice was over, we were more than ready to head home and do some serious work on that little casserole. [Delicious. Thank you, thank you to the Greers!]

*Whew! What a day. See ya tomorrow, y’all.

G’Nite!

xo | cmd

Now THAT Is A Saturday

WHAT A DAY! {phew!}

So today was one of those days that seems like it should be a culmination of all the good stuff the regular week didn't tangibly produce. To put it simply, today rocked. I won't waste any time explaining why [[in an order dictated by chronology, not necessarily by scaled awesomess ;) ]]

my mama ♥

1. [This one's actually #1 in chronological and awesome order, fyi.] First off, my mom celebrated another year young today. Happy, HAPPY birthday to a woman whose life has been dedicated to the success of her family [pets, included], and to taking aggressive advantage of every moment and opportunity this life will offer. I look up to her in so many ways, from the first time she acted on her heart's intuition to adopt, to faithfully tolerating me at my worst. Her love has never shaken, and the quality of life I try my best to display is paled in comparison to the energy and sheer joy she exudes to those around her. I love you, Mom. Thank you, times the world over and then some, for all that you are, all that you do, and all that you will continue to do for your family.

daddy's girl @ the dino exhibit :)

2. St. Louis Science Center! Joe was gone when I woke up this morning, out with Alex galavanting all over St. Louis; he called me mid-morning to inform me that Lara and Landon would be by within the hour to pick up Sydni and I, and the four of us were scheduled to meet him and Alex at the Science Center in St. Louis, to which we hadn't been. We obliged, and within two hours were touring through the displays and indoor attractions that comprise the Science Center. Landon was so excited to show Sydni the 'real, live dinosaur' that inhabited the ground floor, complete with animatronics, realistic textures, and sound. Despite our hesitations, Sydni surprised us all by not fleeing from it, but rather demanding she touch the 'dinahorse' on its eye. Don't ask; I'm really not sure myself. Anyway, she loved it, and enjoyed everything else about the place, too. Good call, guys. I'm checking the Science Center off my list of newbie to-do things of St. Louis!



pretty little altima

 3. Since Lara and I drove separately from our husbands, we parked in separate lots and therefore had to drive down to meet them. We turned a corner and spotted them walking down the hill towards Alex's truck. It wouldn't have been a big deal, except for the fact that I spotted a shiny white Nissan settled right behind Alex's pickup; I knew at that instant that my husband had bought us a new car. See, a few days back, Ole' Trusty [our Honda] finally gave up the ghost and is likely finished beyond reasonably-priced repair. That left us with one car, and therefore in need of another set of wheels. We pulled up alongside and I hopped out, confirmed by the dealer tag still on the back plate, that this was our newest addition. It is beautiful. :) Thank you, to my wonderfully secretive husband, and to Alex & Lara, for not spilling the beans on this one. Haha.



nikon!

4. Back in July, I had taken that big fancy roadtrip out to Phoenix with Kalyn and Sam and had consequently wound up with a busted D90. I dropped that off with the folks at CreveCoeur at the beginning of September, and that long-awaited day of retrieving it in repaired form was finally here! Well, they actually called me on Christmas Eve, but I was just now getting around to it. Woops. Thanks to the U.S. Postal service's negligent handling, and then to the glorious reprieve of advice from Miss Diana Owens, my camera experienced its first [and hopefully only] major accident and patch-up. Anywho- it's home, it's functioning, and I am now back on the photographic prowl. Beware :p.

still a fan.

5. Football!!! [Poor, poor Tebow, I know...] While the games themselves may have ended a bit sour [depending on which side you're on], the good news was, we had some great friends over to share the evening with us, and even do a little manual labor [i.e. Jimmy, Adam, and Joe attempting to drive the Honda up the street and eventually having to tow it back to the driveway, haha]. Oh, and for the record, I'm still a fan of Tebow. True story.

And that is why.... today was awesome. :)
This is a good platform for Sunday, yeah?

xo | cmd

Fellowship, Mexican Style

If you don't know by now, I love our church and the family it holds. I love our pastor and his family; I love the dynamic of our congregation, and I love the relationships we've already begun forging in the short 7 months we've been here. I have to confess that this is the closest I've ever been to the heart of a church, and I attribute that to the fact that the heart of the church is so genuinely broad and willing to embrace on impact, and unconditionally.

Today was another one of those weekly gatherings with said church family; the message was on point, and our fellowship made its way from the pews to a nearby Mexican restaurant. It wasn't anything extraordinarily spectacular; it wasn't a celebration of anyone's birthday; it wasn't for any special announcements. It was however, another small event that served not only some delicious food, but some casual conversation, funny stories, and hearty laughs. It was a chance for fellowship, and even in its simple, impromptu form, we took full advantage of it.

the motherload of enchiladas

Oh, and for the record, I can't for the life of me remember what the restaurant itself is called, but this sucker came out steaming on its plate and settled right in front of Joe. I have no idea how he finished it off, but I definitely give him kudos for that. We thought we'd photo-document this for the sake of remembering the accomplishment, but also in case we would need to explain to a doctor later on what it was that knocked him out. :)

Luckily, we're still stomachache free, at the end of the day.

Meagan and Rob made their way over after lunch to finally see our new digs, and experience the hybrid indoor cornhole set up in our basement. Once they left, it was naptime for the rest of the afternoon, and that puts us here now.

What a great weekend. :) We are truly, truly blessed.

xo | cmd  

I'm a Fan of Days Off

Today was one of those coveted days during which I found myself doing many things, but NOT at work. Amen!  :)


iphone 4 | evo 3d



We took our time getting moving, and when we finally did, our first stop was the Sprint store for some new phones. Thank you, annually-expiring contract. Please know, I do absolutely consider myself blessed to have a phone that works, but here's the part where I have to admit I like to have a little fun. I'm all about simplicity in most aspects of my life, but hey, if I'm going to make something complicated, why not carry it around with me all day long, too? Anyway, it was time to upgrade from the his-and-hers Palm Pre's. Joe had his heart set on the iPhone 4, and after a bit of playing around on the display models, said yes to the HTC Evo 4g. Since the Evo was on back-order through our Sprint store, Joe came home with a new phone; I won't get mine until later this week. Oh poor Cori. Jk. I went to Google both of these and found a picture of them sitting side by side. I hadn't seen them like that before; my phone is a brick. Haha.

Anywhoooo..



accidental matching with mo :)
p.s. - nice photobomb, jimmy!



Sydni begged me to take a nap with her once we got home, so I of course obliged without protest. When I woke up, Joe informed me that some of our friends would soon be en route for an evening of football and hanging out. I mean, fall asleep for one second in this house....... :) Just kidding. About an hour or so later, the Babots & the Prescotts rolled in, and we spent the rest of the evening watching football, discussing weird names for children, goofing off with the kids, and laughing hysterically at some of the stupid things we've said and done. Good stuff. This is just one of the bazillion reasons I thank my Lord every night for Towerview. Aaaamen.

We figured out that Joe's new space phone has a camera on both sides, so once the guests were gone, we finished off the night with a mini family photo shoot. I'll start the week off right with a little preview of all that ;)

xo | cmd

Ode to the Sandwich: Blues City Deli

Hello, adorable new discovery!

blues city deli | st. louis, mo



sandwiches, galore!

A close friend of the Babots is in town for a weekend visit, so Alex and Joe coordinated for us all a little lunch outing across the river. We opted to travel off the grid of mainstream eateries and into what is for us an uncharted portion of St. Louis, and found ourselves at the Blues City Deli. It's a cute flapper-esque corner dive neatly situated into a neighborhood of quaint little brick townhouse apartments. It came as a recommendation from Alex, so we trusted his judgment on the menu, and I'm glad we did. I can't even now remember what it was that I ordered, but I do know that it was a sandwich, it was positively delicious, and if I have the opportunity to re-visit the experience in the near future, I will. Lest I forget to include that Landon and Sydni had quite the giggly time challenging the shadows of themselves on the wall, it did add to the lunch-hour entertainment.

Aside from our over-the-river-and-through-the-traffic mini excursion, it was a fairly average Saturday. Tomorrow's going to be one of those nonstop Sundays: church, Alex's birthday lunch, Easton's birthday party, and the children's play at church.

I suppose we'll call it an early night, then!

xo | cmd

Dinner Play Dates [Dills.Babot.Page]

Dills, Babot, & Page.

Sounds like a law firm, yeah? Not so much.

Anyway, the Babots were so kind to invite Sydni and I over for a dinner playdate tonight along with the Pages. Not long after we strolled in the door, the Pages pulled in, and it went from Landon's castle to a mini playground of four kids playing to their hearts' content.

Halfway through the evening, Carlee and Loralye emerged dressed in two of Landon's halloween costumes: Batman and Spiderman. Sydni and Landon followed suit with a fireman's hat and cowboy hat, respectively. Lara managed to get a few shots of that action, which may follow a bit later depending on how quickly I remember to get them up here.

Also, an update on Joe:
They've held their third round of cuts for the AF team, and he is still in the running! Praying constantly for him to stay there through the end. We'll see!

Dinner. Friends. Kids. Fellowship.

I'm one heck of a blessed girl.

It's the weeeeeeekend!

xo | cmd

Happy Birthday, Landon!

Happy 3rd birthday, Landon!

Today, we headed over to the Vetta building down the street from us to celebrate Landon's 3rd birthday. He loves Cars [the movie], so the entire event was designed around that theme. Lara did an excellent job planning all of it, the kids had an excellent time in the 10 bounce houses, and the adults had an excellent time drilling soccer balls into the back of the net. All around, everybody won. :)



Lara's probably one of the most talented cake bakers I've actually met. She did this little number to share with everyone, and I think we were all clearly impressed.

The kids in attendance even received a CD with some cute musical numbers from various movies. [Sydni showcased her dancing skills all around the living room to this soundtrack once we got home.]

Kudos again, to Lara & Alex for putting together such a great birthday party! Landon certainly wasn't the only one to have a blast today!

xo | cmd