the boys' room~

We've had a few fun projects in the works over the past few months, but in the midst of summer fun i haven't had a chance to post them. The boys' room has been kind of a thorn in my side, but has finally come together. So nice to check another project off the list!

So I actually painted this room last fall~ i know, crazy. We had just bought the boys some new furniture in order to squeeze the two of them into this smallish room. I found this pale chartreuse color, and went to town painting the entire room...

The second I finished, i was not diggin' it. I kept asking Nic if it looked like a baby yellow? Anyways, it wasn't long after that I caught my new vision...

which required some painting of the ceiling~

Oh, and the boys had some how busted their light fixture~ boys;)

Me in my fabulous paint clothes... i know, hot.

Okay, so you are getting the idea. Lots of {baby} yellow all over the walls, that completely clashed with the beige ceilings... bleh! So I went to work~ again.

Horizontal stripes~ can't get enough of the stripes!

aah, looking better already...

i love this part:)

My inspiration for their room all started with this orbit mobile from CB2.

It was love at first sight, and perfect for the boys.

Then came the fun part.

Putting it all back together~

We replaced their broken light fixture with this kulla ceiling lamp from Ikea~

I found this great 'numbers' fabric {ikea} and made a couple of throw pillows~

Kaden read the whole collection of Diary of a Wimpy Kid books over the summer. The boy loves to read. His beloved globe, and wooden snake from scout camp. And Parker's 3 from his birthday party:)

It feels simple and bright.

Much better.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend,

I am kinda enjoying this cooler weather!

~xo

We heart blankie's~

...and that is an understatement.

Mimi made each of the kiddos a baby blanket when they were born. It is a sweet little tradition that started back with Kaden and his 'blue' blankie. And what would we do without our blankie's? They are a source of comfort. They go everywhere with us, which means they end up looking... well, a little sad. Rylie's has been on the 'list of things to do' since this post, when i gave Kaden's a little love. Yes, I realize that was a year and a half ago... what?

Rylie loves the 'bumps' on her blankie, but that was all that was left of it:) So we dug into the scraps from her nursery fabric, and found a yard of this sweet pink floral...

As always, Ry was a huge help~

The finished product, and a happy sis~a~boo...

While we were at it, Parke's monkey blankie needed a little TLC as well. Before i ever met Parke, I picked this sock monkey fabric out for him. Little did I know just how fitting it would turn out to be:) Have I ever mentioned how unbelievably destructive that little boy is? Well. I will tell you, he takes pleasure in seeing things being destroyed. I have no idea how someone so sweet, can be so naughty? His blankie had a tiny little snag, and you better believe he didn't waste any time ripping it until it was a huge gaping hole! Deep breath's...

No worries, we had him patched up in no time...

and he was pretty darn happy about it!

Oh, I love those kiddos.

And they love their blankie's.

Thank goodness for sewing machines, is all i have to say!

~xo

Back to School

Ah, there is something that i love about fresh crayon's.

School definitely snuck up on me this year,

and our back to school week was a little bitter~sweet.

Kade was a little nervous/grumpy, and wasn't being very cooperative in the picture department. Alas, we were still able to snap some of the little man~

Walking to school~ that's the spirit Kade! Man i love this boy.

My big 2nd grader, back at school... I don't think we were quite ready to say goodbye.

I kept saying, "Do it for the chicken patty buddy!"

He looked pretty adorable sitting at his little desk though...

And then it was Rylie's turn~

you wouldn't believe how excited she was.

I loaded up the wagon with a couple of angels, and headed over to the school... what will i do when i can't just throw everyone in the wagon?!

We met up with some of Rylie's friends along the way.

{Olivia, Ry, Whitney, and Kendal}

Rylie workin' hard on her assignments. I love the way she writes her name, and is quite a perfectionist when it comes to her coloring:)

Parke found a really awesome fireman hat... oh, and one for me (but i was a poor sport, and chose not to wear it around the school~ i know. so rude.)

And then they were off on a safari tour around their new school. The bug loved it~

The kids were just a little bit excited to see Kade when he got home;)

Parke had his back to school night, and pretty much loved it with all his heart...

Here he is on his first day of preschool...

I seriously can't get enough of this one~ something about him. Is it his sweetness? or the fact that he is my babiest? or is it those precious dimples? Whatever it is, he's got us all wrapped around his little finger.

He got distracted by a little "tato" bug on the way into school...

Miss Katie showin' him the way~ oh, he did so good...

Me, on the other hand... did not. I went home, and sat. Alone. I had informed everyone all week that when this moment came i would indeed do a little dance. After all, it had been 8 years coming. But when the time came, there was no dance. I was stunned. Unsure of what to do with myself. I wandered aimlessly through the mall... it was so uneventful. Usually there is someone missing in a clothing rack, or begging for a gumball, or massive amounts of time wasted on the germ-infested space shuttle that they insist on every.single.time. When Nic texted me and asked where i was, my response was, "headed to the store, a-lone." Translation: come. get. me. We met up at Target, and found ourselves at the deli buying sliced turkey... just for the record it was really good:) But as I was paying for said turkey a sweet little mother came up behind me in the checkout line. Her cart was full with a baby carrier, a toddler, diapers, formula, baby food, all that good stuff. She was dropping items, and doing her best to keep her little's happy. She seemed a little frazzled, and all i wanted to do was put my arm around her and tell her to just enjoy this. Because it will be gone before she knows it. And her babies will all be in school. And she will be alone. at the grocery store. missing her kids. and those moments of utter chaos she thought would never end. Lucky for me it was only 2 and a half hours that i suffered, and then it was time to go gather our crazy brood...

and let me tell you, I've never been so happy to see them!

I think their daddy felt the same way. All in all everyone is extremely happy, the kids all have amazing teachers, and it will be a great year.

And maybe my dance is still coming, eh?

And the harvest has officially begun~ i am lovin' all of the fresh produce! I found this recipe on Pinterest {i'm a bit obsessed}, and am telling you~ if you love squash and corn, you will adore this soup, and it is quite healthful too!

Yellow Summer Squash and Corn Soup

Recipe here.

{image via pinterest}

So welcome fall, and a chill in the air.

And change, that means we are growing in the right direction.

I am so proud of our kiddos.

~xo

The last hoo~raw!

With the return of school, soccer, football, yada yada, {craziness} starting back up, we figured we had better take advantage of a free weekend and get away to, where else? Bear Lake. It was just our little family, quiet, easy, and besides a scene straight out of Arachnophobia on the boat, it was perfect. Once all of the {what seemed to be taranchula's} were taken care of (thanks hon) and the screaming subsided, it was nothin' but jammin' out to some of our favorite tunes, dancing on the swim deck, and pulling each other on the surfboard. It was beautiful. Then we couldn't resist dinner at my favorite, Cafe Sabor. I had to throw this picture in because, well, you just had to be there. I asked a dude (learned my lesson, always.ask.a.chick;) if he would be so kind as to take a picture of our fam, and this is what we got. Sorry Ry-bug, we still love you girl.

Gramy, if you are reading this, please close your eyes right now and scroll down a bit;) thanks~love ya! It was wrestle~mania for these crazy boys... very dramatic.

Parker air~born. The dude is crazy...

I love 'em straight out of bed... and oh, how i love to kiss those lips~

Then with nothing on the agenda, we headed up to Bloomington lake for a little hiking action.

My big 2nd grader... still can't get over it.

Our little lady loves loves to pick flowers, and there were plenty of wild flowers up there to choose from. It was absolutely gorgeous!

Sometimes we just need our big daddy...

When we got up to the big lake it was so peaceful and serene.

Pretty much took my breath away...

We found a quiet little spot to eat our lunch, and chat. This girl loves her daddy~

And then Nic couldn't resist the rope swing. You have to look kinda close to see him~

Needless to say, he loved it, and wanted more.

The babiest one, exploring sans shoes...

Oh! There he goes again...

This is him mid-air {obviously, ha} he somehow maneuvred himself around, and into a dive.

It was pretty sweet, i have to admit.

silly kiddos~

That water is straight glacier run-off, and very chilly!

My little cameo~ Nic insisted:)

One of the little lakes we passed as we were hiking out~

Some smooching on the trail~

These two are best buddies.

And when our adventure was done, we packed up and headed for home. Lined all of the little's up for a spiffy new haircut, a tub, and an 8:30 bedtime. You know, school night. And they lay in their beds anticipating a big day ahead. Rylie's first day of kindergarten at the 'big school', and Kade's beloved chicken sandwich. Oh, how he missed them over the summer;)

Life is so good.

~xo