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Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Nest eggs

We had our third "Crafty Club" gathering last night and it was a success! My friend Sarah hosted it this time and she did a great job entertaining, as always. 

The evening was filled with conversation, vodka lemonades and crafting. She picked out a great craft -- little bird-eggs-in-a-nest necklaces that we created from wire and beads. 

Here's the bird nest necklace that I made:



Sarah provided an assortment of beads. We each looked through them and 
picked out the ones we loved.

Using 25 gauge wire, we wrapped and wrapped and wrapped the 
wire to create the nest around the beads. 

Here's a photo of all of our finished necklaces. Everyones turned out uniquely different.

Sarah found the idea for this project on Etsy, so I need to give credit to the woman who makes these and sells them on her Etsy page Poppy & Pine . Here's one of the necklaces she sells. 


I think ours turned out pretty good considering this was our first time making them! I can't wait to wear mine.


Have a peaceful rest of the week everyone :)

Monday, July 29, 2013

Files = smiles

I'm getting closer to finishing organizing my new desk area in the kitchen. I still want to paint the chair a funky color and upholster a new seat. But I have the essentials - a mini chalkboard, mini cork board, mirror, photo of Liam, computer, mail tray and Kleenex :)



The most important thing to me, when looking for a new desk, was getting one that had a file drawer. We already have a filing cabinet in the basement where we file paid bills, tax info, home repair receipts, etc (boorrriinnngggg).

But in the kitchen I wanted to place to file the fun stuff! Fun stuff like craft ideas, party ideas, restaurant menus, etc.

I'm always ripping articles and pictures out of magazines, whether it be books that I want to read, recipes that I want to try, or craft projects I'd like to attempt. And the little ripped out things end up sitting all over the dang house.
Home project ideas...
Craft project idea...
Party and entertaining ideas...
So now I have a place to file the things that make me happy :)
I bought some fun, bright colored hanging files at Target and shabam! Instant organization!




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DAILY SMILES
Things that made me smile last week:

7.22.13
Liam helped me pick out a book to give to his cousin 

7.23.13
Liam and I enjoyed a play date with friends at a park

7.24.13
Matt rode Liam around in a kid-seat on his bike - both of them were laughing :)

7.25.13
I completed the finishing touches on a growth chart for Liam 

7.26.13
I caught up on reading some of my magazines

7.27.13
We celebrated my nephew's birthday in Madison

7.28.13
Liam said the word "octopus" while taking a bath
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And an extra little photo...
 Mike Wizowski cake that my sister-in-law made for my nephew's birthday.
It was her first time using fondant and I think it turned out amazing!!


Thursday, July 25, 2013

Busy bodies

This past weekend was filled with many things.

On Friday night we did a little yard work, had some friends over for pizza and drinks, and then just Matt and I watched a movie once Liam was in bed. The movie we watched was The Host and I actually thought it was pretty good. Has anyone else seen this movie? What did you think of it?

On Saturday we attended the John Michael Kohler Arts Center Midsummer Festival of the Arts. And we purchased a painting from an amazing artist from Milwaukee. It's already hanging above our fireplace and we're in love with it. Matt and I bought it for each other for our anniversary :) Then we went to our friend's daughter's birthday party in the afternoon. Liam had fun bouncing around with the kids. Later in the evening Matt and I went to Stefano's for dinner to celebrate our 6-year wedding anniversary. 

On Sunday we went to Kohler-Andrae State Park for a hike in the dunes and a walk on the beach with Liam. Phew! What a busy weekend.

And on Tuesday and Wednesday Liam and I took a little road trip to my mom's house and Matt's parents' house. Liam had a blast playing with his cousin Rylan at my mom's house :) 

Here are a few photos of all of the above:

The painting we got for our anniversary :) It's a grouping of birch trees by artist Vicki Strobel.

Liam and his friend Cole at Bailey's birthday party.

The champagne we had at Stefano's (thanks mom!).



Walking in the dunes.

Liam and his favorite past time -- playing in his sand/water table.

Liam and Rylan playing in a tent at my mom's house.

Liam's cousin, Rylan.

My cutie.

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DAILY SMILES
Things that made me smile last week:

7.15.13
Liam splashed around in the pool in our yard

7.16.13
We took a family walk along the bluff

7.17.13
I found two old photographs online of our home! Something I've been looking for for a long time.

7.18.13
We had an impromptu dinner outside with our neighbors (fresh caught salmon & local veggies)

7.19.13
We trimmed some bushes on the side of our house

7.20.13
Liam played with friends at a birthday party and loved it

7.21.13
Matt and I celebrated our 6-year wedding anniversary :)

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Late bloomers

Mid-summer flowers are in full bloom in our yard. As you know, I'm obsessed with photographing them. Here are a few of the beauties that are brightening our yard right now...












Hydrangeas in our front yard are very plentiful. I guess the pain-in-the-ass pruning this Spring paid off!

And what's a blog post without a cute photo of Liam...
Here he is, watching my niece play softball on Monday night :)

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Relaxation vacation


We just got home from a 9-day vacation at our cabin. We traveled "up north" after enjoying the 4th of July at home and just returned this past Sunday. The first four days were spent with my family (my mom, my brother Nate/his wife/their kids, my brother Jason/his kids, and my aunt & two cousins) and then the rest of the time it was just Matt, Liam and I.

After nine days of pontoon boat riding, stand-up paddle boarding, four-wheeler riding, swimming, bag tossing, exploring, laughing, campfire enjoying, fishing, marshmallow roasting, mosquito slapping and chipmunk catching (the chipmunk incident is an interesting story) we didn't want to come home!! I thought that we'd be ready to get back to our home, especially because the weather was HOT and we don't have air conditioning at the cabin...but I seriously could have stayed for another week. It was just so dang relaxing.

Liam learned a ton of new things during this trip. He discovered that he loves playing in the lake, he loves going for rides on the four-wheeler, he loves throwing rocks and balls into the water, and even enjoyed poking fish in the eyeballs :) Poor fish.

As always, I took a gazillion photos on my Nikon and on my iPhone. I can't post all of them, so I had to pick just a few. Enjoy!


  Liam had to keep busy the whole time - even if it was just coloring at the kitchen table...


 One of his "stinker" faces...


 Enjoying playing in the lake...



Playing in the mud. It's what boys do.




 Digging for rocks in the water...




 Rylan (my nephew) and Bella (my niece)


In the lake AGAIN...




 My mom and Caroline (my niece)


 Matt and Tim (my nephew) fishing at dusk




 Matt testing out a stand up paddle board...




 Our lake's annual pontoon boat parade theme was safari...


We did a little decorating.
Trees and leaves = cheap decor!





 Liam enjoying a picnic lunch before our hike at Copper Falls State Park


At the trail head




Liam was almost asleep in the backpack in this photo :)


 The falls were so, so beautiful



 We stopped at the Wisconsin Concrete Park on our way from Copper Falls back to the cabin.
Here are some animals made from concrete and glass.


Matt's cousin Jenna and her fiance Danny visited for a couple of nights


And now we're back home....and back to reality.

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DAILY SMILES
Things that made me smile during the last two weeks:

7.1.13
I caught up on some chick flicks that I had DVR'd :)

7.2.13
We asked Liam what a cow says and he answered with a cute little "mooooo"

7.3.13
I talked to a friend I hadn't talked to in a while

7.4.13
Matt and I escaped to the beach to watch fireworks together :)

7.5.13
Enjoyed a campfire with lake neighbors that we haven't seen in a while

7.6.13
Liam and his cousins splashed around in the lake together

7.7.13
It would have been my mom & dad's 40th wedding anniversary today. It's sad that they can't share it together, but it made me smile because of the love they had for each other :)

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7.8.13
We took a sunset pontoon boat ride around the lake

7.9.13
Liam touched a fish for the first time and giggled

7.10.13
We took a road trip to Copper Falls and the weather was perfect

7.11.13
The loons were making their calls & it echoed across the lake

7.12.13
Matt saw a shooting star over the lake (I was bummed that I missed it, but glad he saw it)

7.13.14
We shot guns with Matt's cousin and her boyfriend, and I must say, it was pretty fun

7.14.13
It was nice to come home to two purring cats that missed us dearly



Have a peaceful week :)