pretty, happy, funny, real

A quick {pretty, happy, funny, real} post for a Thursday.

 

Pretty:

Norah turned 8 recently.  She had an 1860s afternoon tea party. 

Here, the birthday girl poses with her younger sister.

 

 

 

Happy:

We finally got some snow!  It was really more rain than snow, but there was enough for these 2 to get outside and make snowmen.  None of us have minded the mild winter here in the DC metro area, but in all honesty, we have missed the frequent snowstorms of Wyoming.

 

 

 

Funny:

I drove by this intersection a couple days ago and it made me laugh.  I wonder if it was intentional?  Is there a Tolkien fan in the city planning office? 

If we really have moved to Mordor, I hope Frodo gets here soon. 

No one wants Sauron as a neighbor.

 

She started a pet-walking service. 

Real:

We've moved into our REAL house.  When we left Wyoming at the end of the summer, we chose to rent for a while.  We thought we'd be in the rental for a year, but found a great house sooner than expected and moved in a couple weeks ago.  It's been unsettling moving twice in a short period of time, but we are all enjoying the new house and are thankful to be in it.

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pretty happy funny real (Instagram edition)

Do you Instagram?  I'm new to the whole Instagram experience (and I'm not really sure how to use it yet) but I'm having fun and I thought a p,h,f,r post of Instagram photos from my phone would be fun.

Pretty - Daughter #1 got some new curlers for her hair.  

Happy - Daughter #2 has amazing hair - super-thick and wavy, but no so great for brushing.  It was becoming a chore to keep it looking neat, so we decided to chop it off.  She was so excited and happy after the cut.  It's been almost a week now and she is still thrilled about brushing it herself without tears.

Funny - I LOVE how this Instagram filter gave me - and the girls - a halo!

Real - veggies from the garden - complete with dirt so you know they're authentic.

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pretty, happy, funny, real

I haven't joined the Like Mother Like Daughter p,h,f,r link-up since May!  Surely I can find something for each category on the trusty camera...

Pretty

I love mountains.  From the day we moved here, I've made it a point to remind the girls to look at the natural beauty around us - to keep noticing and not take it for granted.  And now that we are moving, I'm especially trying to soak up all the beauty.  Isn't this just awesome?  It may be a bit much for the heading "pretty", but that's where I'm putting it :)

These babies have been hanging out in our yard a lot lately.  As long as the fence keeps them out of the garden, that's fine with me.

Happy

My parents came to visit a few weeks ago.  That made me happy.  And I could fill this post with photos from their visit, but this one - perhaps - makes me happiest.  All the faces in the photo are happy.  I love my girls.  I love my Dad.  I love that they love him.  I'm so happy to get to see him being Grandpa.  It's just a lot of happiness all around.  Thank you, God, for the gift of family.  Plus, the girls are wearing their crazy yard boots, which makes it even better!

It is a family tradition to attend the Rodeo on July 3rd as the official "kick-off" of our Independence Day celebrations.  Several other families we know go on the same night, so the kids have a section in the bleachers and the adults have a section.  It's a fun-filled evening that makes everyone happy.  I forgot to take a camera that night, but our 12 year old had a camera with her, so I'm using one of her photos.

Rodeo!

Funny

These goats love to climb on things.  What is funny to me is that "Lucy" looks like she got caught doing something she's not supposed to be doing :)

Our middle "cowgirl" riding the mythical creature, the Jackalope.  This thing is housed in a gas station not far from us - it's supposed to be a silly tourist attraction - and the younger girls think it's hysterical.  They may also think it's a real animal :)

Real

Like much of the rest of the country, it is very dry here this summer.  The fact is that summers here are always dry, but we count on the snow-pack in the mountains to melt and run down to the valley, keeping us irrigated.  But the normal amount of snow didn't fall this winter, so things are especially dry.  We haven't been threatened by any large fires, but this grass fire across the road got our attention and reminded us to pray for those suffering from the larger fires in Colorado and Wyoming.

grass fire across the road from our property

pretty, happy, funny, real

It's a rainy and overcast Thursday here at our house; a perfect kind of day to take a few minutes to join Like Mother Like Daughter for a pretty, happy, funny, real post.

Pretty

This picture is about a month old now... It would be lovely if the crab apple blooms would last longer, but we enjoyed them while they were at their peak.  This tree is really close to the house - and it's a big tree - so the view of the blooms filled a couple of large windows in the living room.

Happy

We have a "sun room" just off our kitchen.  I put that in quotes because it's not a typical sun room and we're not sure what to call it.  We've been told that the room started out as a true greenhouse, but later a roof and walls were added.  It's still sun room/greenhouse-like because it has a dirt floor with a rock path down the middle and huge windows lining the walls.  When we moved in, the room was a wreck.  The walls and ceiling had never been fully finished, the windows weren't trimmed, and it was used more for storage than anything else.  It was obvious that the room had potential, though.  We've been working on it, but it's not quite complete.  However, I did find some wonderful hanging baskets for the room.  I like white flowers, and these are especially nice because they hang down nearly to the floor.  It's making me happy that this room is "getting there" and looking better with each small project.

How about one more entry for happy?  These 2 are so happy with the nice weather.  Nearly every day when they finish school, they pack up their Bitty Twins and head outside for picnics, tent-building, etc.

Funny

This was given to me on Mother's Day by my 7 year old.  I love it!  She got some things dead-on.  Others not so much, but it's given us all a good laugh.  I suppose you'd have to know me pretty well for this to have the full impact, but I assure you that I'm not a dancer in any sense of the word and that I'm not particularly fond of goats.  Yes, we own 2 dairy goats, but that doesn't qualify me as "likes goats", does it?  The part about collecting eggs is funny too.  I certainly enjoy eating and baking with the eggs our chickens lay, but the collecting duty falls to the girls, not me.  I think I'm mostly touched that she thinks  my eyes are pretty and that I'm smart; what more could a Mom hope for?

Real

The girls and I went to our dentist's office for cleanings/checkups today.  Good news: no cavities.  Bad news: 2 orthodontia referrals.

New toothbrushes are such a treat.

pretty, happy, funny, real

I am determined to join the {pretty, happy, funny, real} linkup today with the wonderful bloggers at Like Mother Like Daughter.  It's been weeks since I got my act together on a Thursday, so today's pictures will be from the past month or so.  Without further ado:

pretty

Easter Sunday!  Pretty girls on a beautiful day.

Another snow scene.  I'm positive I've used pictures of snow as pretty before.  And most people would not think of snow - in April - as pretty.  Nonetheless, this is what we awoke to on Monday or Tuesday of this week.  It was gorgeous.  Oh, and it was gone before noon.  That's just how it happens in these parts during the Spring - rain comes in the form of snow.

Taken through our bedroom window - it would have been better if I'd gone outside, but that would have been cold.

happy

Lately I've been getting our produce from a co-op called Bountiful Baskets.  I think they operate pretty much only in the West, but check their website for more info.  It's a great deal.  I've been so happy with the quality, variety and price.  This was the bounty from a recent Saturday morning pickup.

fresh & yummy fruits and veggies

We have an awesome mechanic.  That in itself is enough to be happy about.  But get this: whenever one of our friends goes to our awesome mechanic, he sends us a thank you gift for the referral.  In the past it's been coffee coupons, but most recently it was cookies and little stampers for the girls.

funny

We bought collars and leashes for the goats.  The girls "walk" them daily!  Goats on leashes qualify as funny, right?

This woodpile is like a jungle gym for goats!

Real

I think we've mentioned here before that Mark travels a fair bit for work.  One of his habits is to pick up a little something for the girls while he's away.  On a recent trip, he brought tea bags home for them.  They were thrilled!  Most people might not be terribly impressed by a tea bag, but these were in the shape of a pyramid and had a fake leaf on the end of the string.  I just love it when they are so happy with the simplest of treats.  A good reminder that something doesn't have to be huge to be a REAL treat.

Sister Joseph Andrew, vocation director for the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, was "in the neighborhood" a couple weeks ago.  She talked to a group of girls from our parish about her community and life as a Sister.  It was wonderful.  If you don't know much about this community, look them up!  They're the Sisters who were on Oprah a couple years ago (not that the Oprah show is an endorsement in any way, but their appearance there gave a wide audience an insight into their life and work).  They were founded in 1997 with 4 sisters and have grown to over 100 Sisters.  The average age of the Sisters is 28 and they come from all across this country as well as Canada, Europe and Asia.  Sister Joseph Andrew was so fun and engaging and REAL!  The girls loved her.  I enjoyed her talk so much.  I also enjoyed hearing the questions the girls asked.  I'm thrilled my 12 year old got to meet a REAL Sister and hear about her very REAL life.

Can you find Sister in the back?  We should have put her in the front!

Thanks for visiting!

pretty, happy, funny, real

~ capturing the context of everyday life ~

{pretty}

We had some friends over for dinner recently.  In addition to a lovely bottle of wine, they brought this {pretty} plant.  I love it!  It also reminded me how wonderful it is to take small gifts to people when you can; I'm sure my friend thought this plant was no big deal, but I'm thrilled with it and it's been a great addition to my kitchen sink area.

Officially: oxalis.  In our house: shamrocks :)

{happy}

Last week I talked about a trip to my hometown for my Dad's 75th birthday - and I lamented that I forgot to take any pictures.  Well, my wonderful sister-in-law came to the rescue and so I have some of her pictures to share.

daughter #3 with her uncle (my baby brother) who also happens to be her godfather

daughter #2 with Grandma (my Mom)

As part of the birthday celebration, one of my brothers gathered photos from throughout my Dad's life - in addition to video segments from all of the family - and put it all together into a wonderful video.  So, before the party started, we gathered to watch the video with my Dad.

My Dad and Mom have been married 48 years.  They have 5 children, 2 sons-in-law, 3 daughters-in-law, and 12 grandchildren (and counting! another will be born in a few weeks)  This shows part of the gang watching the video.

Cousins hanging out toward the end of the party.

With my Dad at his party - It was great fun.  All manner of relatives, neighbors and old friends came to celebrate with my Dad, who has always been "a favorite" with those who know him.

{funny}

Cousins being silly.
That's daughter #2 in the middle, with my sister's son on the left and my brother's daughter on the right.

{real}

In many parts of the country, Spring has arrived.  I'm not sure we can say that yet... It is getting warmer, but we had a fairly big snow last week that melted into a muddy mess because of the warmer temperatures.  This will be our 3rd Spring here and we're learning that instead of "April showers bring May flowers" we get something more like "March and April snows bring mud."

Our driveway over the weekend.  It's much better now - the sun's been out all week!

Remember to visit LMLD for more {pretty, happy, funny, real}

pretty, happy, funny, real

It's Thursday again!  We're joining the link-up with Like Mother Like Daughter for {pretty, happy, funny, real}.

To be honest right from the start, this is not a complete {p,h,f,r} post.  We have a {funny} contribution, which is enough, don't you think?

We've been traveling again, which throws a kink in the works of our family.  The time period before, during, and after a trip seems to pass in some sort of haze of non-normalcy.  So, though there were certainly instances of prettiness, happiness, and realness in the last week or so, we don't have photos.  And a post with photos is WAY more fun than a post without.  On some trips the camera is constantly in my hands, but this time, the camera never made it out of its case. Oops.

{funny}

This trip was a visit with my parents and siblings to celebrate my Dad's 75th birthday.  One morning at breakfast my Dad asked me how things are coming along at our house.  Before I could answer, our 7 year old daughter said,

"It's just one damn project after another."

I think my heart stopped and I know my parents were in shock.  My mind was quickly racing. Why on earth would she say that?  Where did she hear something like that?  Even in private, neither Mark or I had said anything remotely similar.  Then I saw it.  My Dad's coffee mug.

My parents have quite an assortment of mugs, collected from people, places, and events over the last 48 years.  My guess is that this one was a "gag gift" for my Dad from a co-worker. Well, our 7 year old is an enthusiastic reader and is known for reading everything she sees out loud.  On this particular morning, her timing was perfect.  Once I saw the mug sitting there, I quickly assured her grandparents that she had innocently read the mug and hadn't intended to answer my Dad's question.  Further, she really had no idea what she had said.  It really was funny once we realized what had happened.

pretty, happy, funny, real

{pretty, happy, funny, real}

Last week we were able to spend some time with grandparents (Mark's parents) in Florida.  

Lots of pretty and lots of happy!

{pretty}

sunset out the back door

Before dinner on the last night of the trip - everyone put on pretty dresses.

A morning walk on the beach looking for shells.  She gets prettier every day.

{happy}

{funny}

A brief interruption of the Florida trip for some St. Valentine's Day funnies...

Both sets of grandparents sent Valentines to the girls - our oldest got the exact same card from both grandparents. 

The girls spent a lot of time on Sunday making up "roses are red...." poems and sharing them with each other.
They brought a few out for Mark and me to see.  Perhaps we shouldn't admit to such an immature sense of humor, but we both laughed out loud at this one.

{real}

An episode of I Love Lucy is as entertaining on vacation as it is at home.

Sunset photos on the beach are great... as long as one's back is to the sun :)

Thanks to the ladies at Like Mother Like Daughter for hosting my favorite blog link-up every Thursday.  Visit their blog for more {pretty, happy, funny, real}.