Lucky Me.

We had our family pictures taken last week, and I I thought I'd share a favorite with you. I love how this one turned out. I'm so lucky to call my sweet husband and children mine. So, so lucky.

Wish I had time to post more, but know that Em and I are having a ton of fun eating Nutella on pretzels, taking late-night walks in the rain, and crafting. It's been such a good, good week so far!

Lots of pics coming!

XOXO,
Marie

home sweet home

This summer I've been working really hard on keeping things alive in the front yard. It's a pretty huge deal that our grass is green and the flowers are still kickin'. Whether I'm getting my green thumb on or not, I'm just happy to have this home of ours. This might sound weird (I don't know?), but I kind of have an emotional attachment to this place and sometimes when I daydream about us outgrowing it and moving away, I get all teary. I can't imagine the mess I'll be when that day really does come. This is our very first home sweet home and I love it here.

XOXO,
Marie

PS> I think us girlies need to get in more pictures! What do ya say that next week we HAVE to post a picture of ourselves?? :) Afterall, I do need to show you how I dyed my hair jet black on accident. Eeep. Bottom line, I miss your pretty faces.

Date Night--Take 2

Remember that riveting post I wrote about date nights, and how we used to take our kids on dates with us? Well, I'm here to announce some improvements. Guess what we do now? We're in a date night co-op with three other families where we take turns babysitting each other's children for three hours on Friday nights so that the other couples can go on dates. So yeah, last Friday night you would've caught Will and I together, romantically counting 13 heads constantly, playing UNO, kissing boo boos and being really thankful that we don't really have 13 kids because I ain't gonna lie, I think I'd go a little cray cray if this were a full-time situation. Because it is-- it's crazy. And we love it. I mean, seriously people. What's not to love?

...princesses, babies, sisters, running in circles after the boys, popsicles under the tramp, tears here and there, a butterfly net and baseball bat... friends forever. It doesn't get better than this.

XOXO,
Marie

Dirt.

It was really weird. I had a totally free Saturday--the calendar for the day was as blank as it's ever been, and of all things, I filled it right up with gardening (and that's a fancy way of putting it).  I have no idea what's gotten into me, but I'll take it! (And I'm pretty sure the florist family I married into will take it too.)

It all started several weeks ago when my good friend Courtney said she would help me put plants and flowers into the garden bed in our front yard. And I could go on and on about how much she has helped me! But one of the biggest things she's done is map out what plants to get and where to put them. She is so good to me, and I'm so grateful!

So, the first step, she said, was to get better dirt. She said I needed compost and garden soil. Well, being the Craigslister that I am, I found a ton of free horse manure and talked Will into picking it up and wheelbarrowing it back into a pile in the "woods behind our house." Frankly, it's pretty disgusting, but the stench has worn off. That was weeks ago, so it felt good on Saturday to finally till it into my garden bed along with the fancy dirt we got at a landscaping place. Oh, and another good friend gave me a huge rhododendron! So we planted that. And I'm sure this all sounds like cake, but it was hard work, and I'm really proud of the dirt. I can't imagine how thrilled I'll be when we actually have a little flower garden in there. And the kids are jumping right in, too. So much so, that on Saturday I'm confident they were as filthy and ragamuffin as they've ever been. I can't even be sure they didn't eat dirt.

So, everybody, talk to your plants because I hear that they have feelings, and hopefully I'll be able to show you how happy mine are real soon. Or there's always that option where you come see it in person. You know I'm a huge fan of that.

XOXO,
Marie

Doggie Pile

Because today has been on the tougher side, I was especially happy to see Hubs walk through the door this evening. I think the first words out of my mouth were, "I'm exhausted!" Juliette had climbed over bins and boxes and bags to get to the farthest corner of our ridiculously large coat closet to meet up with Liam and Isabella, who were probably hiding from "dinner time." Just as Hubs walked in the door, I was trying to wrestle her flailing body out of there without hurting her because she broke her elbow on Saturday night. She was not a happy camper about having to get out, but our coat closet is a booby trap for babies with broken bones-- plus it was time to eat! Not fun.

Anyway, the poor thing spent the morning laying on the couch, not at all herself, but when she woke up from her second nap this afternoon, she must have felt like a new woman because I could not keep up. She wanted to chase her siblings, walk up and down the stairs, stand on the couch, and generally just put me in a constant panic that she was going to fall on her broken arm. She isn't in her cast yet, so you can call this normally jumpy mama, JUMPY MAMA.

So, yeah. I'm always happy when Hubs comes home, but today I was especially. I know he has long days at work, but he always seems to have energy for us when he gets home, and instantly goes into full daddy/husband mode the second he walks in the door.  I love him for that.

And boy are we all looking forward to when I can sit back and enjoy watching Juliette doggie pile with the rest of them again.

XOXO, Marie

A Kiss for Grandpa

I'm still sifting through pictures from our girl reunion last month! Can you believe it was last month that it happened? Crazy. Seems like yesterday.

Anyway, as many restaurants as there are to choose from in UT, we managed to have lunch at Kneaders twice. Their smoothies were delicious and I am now in love with an artichoke panini number I had there.

After our bellies were nice and full on Saturday, we caught a few hours of super fun shopping! We mainly hit up F21 where Mom spoiled us and bought us each a few love gifts. Next we went to Sephora where we all had fun playing makeup. :)

Last, but not least, we went to a family gathering at my grandparent's house where we got to see so many loved ones! I LOVE that last photo of us giving our sweet grandpa a big grandaughter-ly smooch!

What a wonderful Saturday it was!

XOXO, Marie

Serious Drippage.

Whew! Seems like ever since we got home from our trip to the east coast, things have been crazy! I often feel frustrated that I don't have enough time to do everything I want to do, but I've also felt incredibly grateful that I do have enough time to do the things that are the very most important to me, like party with my kiddos.

Liam and Juliette are just days apart, so there's been lots of birthday lovin' this week. And I'm sure I'm biased, but these two videos from our birthday festivities made me laugh.

We like to call the first, taken at Liam's robot party on Saturday, "Serious Drippage."

 

And the second, a little snip from the family party we had for both kids tonight, "How to Open a Bottle..."



Miss you guys,
Marie

10 Loves>>>>> DC.Boston.NY

1. Shopping.  I went shopping in Forever 21 around midnight, and crazy enough, it was even busier then than it was during the day! I didn't buy a thing, though. Weird. I guess I do my best shopping when my sisters can give me feedback on what to buy/what not to buy.

Oh, and that huge "billboard" above the F21 store front is a flat screen TV! Times Square kind of looked like a vertical outdoor ad cinema with all the movies climbing the sky. I didn't know where to look with my eyes being pulled in so many directions. It was all definitely fun to see!

2. The Metro. We took it everywhere! While Hubs was in meetings the first day, I even bucked up and figured it out by myself. For some of you, that might not sound like much, but you sisters know, this is HUGE for me, especially considering I didn't even get lost. And you better believe I showed Hubs the ropes the next day, like I was some expert. (In reality, the people in Boston were so sweet to me. All I had to do was have my map in hand, and people would offer to help me left and right. I love you, Boston.)

Yes, public transportation is a beautiful thing. Minus the part where it's usually too crowded to get a seat, let alone a seat next to your guy.

Oh, and the metro stations in DC were particularly photogenic.

3. Les Fleurs. We got to tour Winston Flower's enormous design center in Boston. It was so fragrant and beautiful, and we got lots of inspiration for our flower shops.

4. American flags. I've never seen so many! Here they are patriotically surrounding the Washington Memorial, but I saw them everywhere, especially in New York. It was awesome.

5. Aurelie. This is a totally washed out picture of us, but I love it just the same. She was one of my best friends in high school and it was fabulous to catch up with my adorable French friend! She spoiled us with a delicious dinner at her new apartment. I also got to meet her husband for the first time, and he is a sweetheart! So happy to see my friend so happy. I want to go back already. Alexandria, Virginia is the cutest place ever.

6. Skyscrapers. I've never taken so many pictures of buildings in my life...gotta say, I much prefer people, but I also gotta say, I enjoyed photographing all the architecture more than I thought I would. I could insert 500 more pictures here of buildings and sites, but I won't.

7. Cherry blossoms! There weren't many out yet, but there happened to be a few trees in bloom around the capitol!

8. Our brother! We walked around DC, got lunch together, and caught up! I love this guy!

9. Arlington National Cemetery. We came here on our very last day; it was our final stop before heading to the airport. We we were super tired and hungry, but I'm so glad we made this detour. It was such a reverent place and you couldn't help but feel really, really grateful.

10. My guy. I got a getaway with my favorite person in the world. Too bad strangers have a hard time maneuvering my monster camera, leaving us with a blurry shot. But hey, sometimes those are the best kind, right?

Alright, well that scratches the surface, anyway! It was a sweet trip!

XOXO, Marie

A Good, Good Day

Having just got home from our trip late last night, there simply wasn't time to go through all my pictures and do our east coast escapade any justice today, so I thought I'd just share a favorite picture I got of our brother Matthew in DC on Saturday! He was sweet enough to accommodate a tiny photoshoot, even though I could tell it wasn't his cup of tea. What can I say? He loves me. :)

And man, it was so good to see him! I hate how growing up often means miles and states and oceans separate you from the ones you love most. It stinks bad. But I'm grateful for the day we spent together. I feel like I have an extra close bond to Matthew, simply because we're just two years apart. Of all seven of us siblings, I have the most childhood memories with him. And I pretty much love him to pieces. Always have, always will. Isn't he handsome??? Seriously, I'm still jealous of those eyes of his!

Anyway, I've been thinking a lot today about how family is everything. Having almost a week alone with just Hubs was pretty dreamy, and yet I could hardly sleep last night because I was so excited to see my little munchkins after nearly a week of being apart. I spent today mostly just playing with the three most amazing kiddos on planet earth, even though Mondays are crAzY, and my to-do list is trying to eat me.  But who cares. Today was a good, good day. Coming home always is.

 XOXO, Marie

A lot! And a lot! And a lot!

Hey guys!

I'm short on time today, so I just thought I'd share a sweet video of me and my Liam from back in September. :) I snuck up on him during his rest time and did a little impromptu recording. My voice sounds creepy in the beginning, haha, but other than that and my 80s-looking hair, I think it's a gem of a movie of me and my little guy.

 

XOXO, Marie

Top 10 of our Baby Bro

Hey, so I want you all to meet our baby bro, Christian! He is a SENIOR this year and I was lucky enough to take some senior pictures of him over Christmas break. I'm sure this is just what he wants, me debuting his pictures on our girly blog, but what can I say? I knew the ladies would want to see! And I did spare him my girly watermark, so that's good, right? 

Which one is your favorite? I absolutely can't pick a fave. He's just too handsome and photogenic.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Anyway, I hope you all had a good weekend. Mine was somewhat terrifying. I was asked to head up a skit at a church party Friday night and something possessed me to write a rap song and then convince the others that it was a good idea for us to get our gangsta on in front of crowd. I still can't believe I did that! Luckily, I had some skilled rappers at my side. :) Betcha wish you could've seen that number, huh? Yeah, sorry. There are no pictures. No videos. Nada. Bwahahaha.

XOXO, Marie