7.31.2013

Peach Pickin'

Early morning, coffee, beautiful rural Oklahoma drive, chats with friends, lots of 'lil cuties, a peach orchard, and a picnic.  Sounds like an awesome day, right? It was. FANTASTIC way to spend our morning.

And who knew that Oklahoma had a peach orchard???  Needless to say this needs to become an annual event for our family.  Thanks, Emily, for inviting us to come along!









All I know is that Emily was rockin' it this morning with two kiddos in a hot orchard.


My peach with a little bruise of her own...











 Pretty good for nine kiddos if you ask me.


A bushel or a peck or a 1/2 peck.  Couldn't ever figure it out...





Had such a wonderful morning with you, my love.  You pick the BEST peaches!


 Those eyes...









Wish I could've spent more time snapping pictures in the little marketplace, but sometimes you just need to sit down and have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.



7.19.2013

Feeling Inspired By...

I heart Pinterest.  I love being able to collect images, tips, recipes, sources, and quotes that inspire me.  I really do think it helps our home, as well as our bellies:) Here are some pins that have inspired me the most lately....



I've been drawn to anything blue and white, anything baby, and images of the sea/coast.  And I'm always scouring Pinterest for home, DIY, and quotes/scripture.

Tried the double chocolate chip muffins.  I made them last week for some friends who just brought home a new baby and I accidentally added twice the amount of butter the recipe called for.  Turns out it's pretty easy to mess up the ounce to cup conversion...  They were still really good, so I can only imagine how tasty and moist they would be without the extra stick of butter!  Yes, I still gave them to my friends, and yes I told them about the butter problem. 

I've been relying on little tutorials for my camera like the one above.  This one in particular helped me understand aperture and to fix a little problem I was having with the darkness of my pictures. I'm very curious about my camera and have been practicing with it quite a bit.  I don't have time to read through the entire manual or sign up for a workshop, so quick little posts like this one are just perfect for me to keep understanding my camera and improving my pictures!

Follow along with me on Pinterest if you like @ http://pinterest.com/kaceyjg/boards/.


7.15.2013

Our Weekend: Nescautunga


1/ Nescautunga.  One of my favorite weekends of the year spend in my hometown and centered around the Nescautunga Golf Tournament.  Always in July, always golf, always relaxation, always family and always lots of food:)  Here you have the boys practicing their swing the night before the start of the tournament.  We mostly spend our time cooking, talking, napping, eating, laughing, drinking, swimming, shopping... add on anything you can think of that sounds wonderful and you've pretty much described it.  The house is packed, it's always windy (that's Northwest Oklahoma for you), and we always have a good time!

2/ Green Thumb.  My mother can seriously grow anything she wants to.  Her flower beds and pots are always glorious!  I know she spends lots of time caring for them, but I'm always amazed at what she can do in the windy, hot, and often dry conditions.  I aspire to create the same sort of beauty in my own yard someday.  What's more welcoming than beautiful flora?

3/ Happy Girl.  Whether it's Taylor's family or mine, Avery is always so happy when all of her family is together.  Her energy level and overall goofiness goes way up, and she plays and runs around so hard that she is exhausted halfway through the first day!  Here she is watching Nana and Aunt Jo put her new slide together.  I'd have to say she was pretty patient for a two-year-old, but she sure did watch them like a hawk until it was done.

4/ Carnage.  If you've been reading this blog long at all you've read my references to our favorite hometown "Mexican food" restaurant.  In true family form, Avery loves it just as much as my sister and I do!  We ate lunch there on Saturday while the boys were still at the golf course and what you see here is the pile of napkins that Avery amassed while eating the "chips and cheese".  It was a "runny cheese day" (which only hometown folk understand), and she finally resorted to sipping the cheese from the styrofoam cup they serve it in.  Biggest mess I've ever seen anyone make.  Ever.  I was proud and a little disgusted at the same time.  I snapped a pic of her making a mess of drinking the cheese, but trust me, you don't want to see it...

5/ Paradise.  Baby Emilia woke me up at 4 am on Saturday morning.  I was pretty peeved at first because as the morning drew on it was clear I wasn't going back to sleep.  I tried, but after Taylor and the boys were up and gone for the golf course, I finally got up a little before 6 am.  Everyone else was sleeping and I had the entire, silent house to myself.  I begrudgingly realized that this was a good thing.  You see, my mom had offered to let me sleep in, and I just couldn't get over the fact that I was missing out on the opportunity.  So, I made myself a cup of coffee, slipped on my mom's sweater, grabbed my camera and a stack of magazines, and headed to the back patio.  As I sat there listening to birds chatter and neighbors mowing in the distance, I felt the breeze and even shivered a little bit (big deal for mid-July in Oklahoma).  I glanced through magazines about gardens and then prayed for my girls.  The sun was still behind the tree-line when I sat down and about thirty minutes later the glorious morning was alive.  I tell you it was beautiful. In that moment I was so thankful that Emilia's kicking made me get up and start my day.  I was thankful because I got some peaceful alone time.  I was thankful because it's probably the best way to enjoy coming home and spend time where I grew up.  I was thankful because I got some clear, restful time in my own head and heart.  I was thankful because I felt blessed and alive.

6/ Practice.  While I was up so early, I took advantage of the good light and snapped a few pics around the back yard.  Still learning my Canon Rebel Taylor's parents got me for Christmas.  My mom has a little succulent garden started, and this one is my favorite. I get some true enjoyment from this camera!

7/ Girl Time.  My Granny lives across the street, which is great because we get to visit every time we come see my parents.  It rained all day on Sunday and we got a little stir-crazy by late afternoon.  When you get stir- crazy in a small town on a Sunday, you really only have about three options: take a drive, get something to eat, or go to Wal-Mart.  Since we had already accomplished number three about four times that day, we all hopped in the car and headed out for ice cream at the local drug store.  Yes they have a good 'ole fashioned fountain, and yes I used to eat a lot of ice cream here in the summer.  Pictured here we have four generations...special.

8/ Penelope.  This is my sister's dog.  There are a lot of wonderful dogs out there, but you've probably never met one as different/cool as Penny.  Not only does she look entirely unique, her personality is something I've never really come across before.  She is half Boston Terrier, half French Bulldog and was a total impulse purchase on my sister's part.  Every time I've ever been in public with this gal, almost everyone we encounter has a ton of questions about her!  Her many talents include jumping shoulder-height to my sister's fiancĂ©, running as about as fast as any dog I've ever seen, playing fetch for as long as you possibly let her, destroying children's toys, and loving.  She is also very fun to photograph.  By the end of the weekend I had more pictures of her than Avery!  Oops.

9/ Daddy's bike.  This is Taylor on dad's bike.  I had to include it because it was hilarious!  My parents have a huge yard and he drove for a while around trying to pop wheelies.  Avery loved it.  I guess it entertained me, too!  These are the types of things we do when we go home... jealous?



Linked up today with Annapolis & Company

7.08.2013

Snapshots: June 2013


{1}  Thrifting. The hunting and gathering continues for things around the house.  I've been exceptionally lucky lately with random stops at some of my favorite places.  .99 frames and blue and whites for under $2 make me extremely happy:)  Also looking for brass accents for Avery and Emilia's rooms!  Now that our weekend extravaganzas are over, I'm hoping to score even better at garage sales. I just love the hunt, and I especially love a good bargain!

{2}  Family.  Got to spend time with my family at a friend's wedding.  For the first time since Taylor and I were married, my hometown and some of our OSU crowd collided for the celebration.  It. Was. So. Much. Fun.  I danced the night away and was extremely sore the next day.  Even though I took my shoes off, my body made it clear that 26 weeks and dancing DO NOT mix.  We'll consider it my last hurrah until Emilia comes:)

{3}  Summer Nights.  Snapped this pic of the little one at Utica 5th Night Concert Series.  We love summer nights.  Concerts, walks, eating outside, playing in the yard...  This summer especially has been special.  It feels like Avery is growing up before our very eyes.  I guess that is part of being a parent.  You turn around and your kids are older, taller, smarter.  Something about summer brings this out even more.  I'm cherishing the moments that we play and talk.  Mostly I cherish the moments watching her dance, learn, play, run free.  She has no idea the joy those moments bring me and probably isn't even aware I'm watching.  She definitely has no idea that every night before we go to sleep, her daddy and I recount everything she said and everything she did that day.  Gosh, I love her.

{4}  Daddy.  We celebrated the best daddy in the world!  Avery and I are so lucky to have Taylor.  I couldn't ask for a better father for my children.  We took him to lunch at one of our favorite spots and ate outside.  She adores him and I wouldn't have it any other way.  He makes everything more fun and lately we've noticed that it makes her really happy when we are all three together.  Makes me happy, too, bunny.  Me too.

{5}  26 Weeks.  While this pregnancy is taking a bit more of a toll than the last one, I'm very thankful for a healthy one filled with energy.  I loved being pregnant with Avery and Emilia has been no different.  I love her movements.  I love thinking about her, imagining her, and praying for her.  We try to talk to Avery about her baby sister-  sometimes she is receptive and sometimes she is not;)  One of the most wonderful things in my life is being a sister and I pray that my girls know and experience that same gift.  We're so excited to introduce them in a few short months!

{6}  Blooms.  The hydrangeas in the back yard are still going strong.  Freshly picked ones last for at least two weeks!  They literally brighten my day.  I have them sprinkled throughout the house, but my favorite is the arrangement I keep on the dining room table.  Sadly, the demand is taking over the supply...

{7}  Play.  Avery enjoyed the pool last year but she doesn't remember it.  I've had a blast with her at the pool this summer!  Every morning she wakes up saying something to the effect of, "I swim in pool like a fishy!"  Pictured here are some neighborhood buds.  We've had a blast getting to know our neighbors this spring and summer.  Some are veterans in the neighborhood, while others are new like us.  Good neighbors are a huge blessing and we look forward to growing in the new relationships we've formed here.

{8}  Five Years.  We celebrated five years of marriage at the end of the month! Can't hardly believe it.  We ate a really nice dinner at a new restaurant downtown and then went to Utica to sit outside for dessert. It was fun to recount the last five years, but mostly we talked about all that we are anticipating in the coming few months.   I sure do love life with him.  We ended the night with a West Wing marathon.  Yes, you read that right.  We are currently HOOKED on The West Wing and are still in Season 1 on Netflix.  I've never been more excited for 154 episodes in my life!  The only pic we have to commemorate our anniversary this year is a selfie we took in a store front window... I guess that's better than nothing!

{9}  Surprise!  We hosted a girl's weekend and surprise baby shower in Tulsa to finish out our incredibly busy and fun month.  Some of my very best friends of life from college came for the weekend (pictured: Becky, Emily, Laura, Kailey, me).  We spent the weekend eating, talking, watching YouTube videos, strolling at Utica, and just enjoying being together.  Not much has changed:)  The highlight of the weekend was the surprise baby shower Emily hosted at her house for Laura.  Friends and family were already at the house waiting when we pulled up and she was so surprised.  It was a blast to celebrate Laura and Baby Caroline.We planned it months ago when we decided on a weekend for our girl's trip and I just can't believe we pulled it off without a hitch!  I've spent the last week being even more thankful to have these friends in my life than I was before.  Special shout-out to Taylor for being the primary care taker of Avery while us girls played all weekend:)