Blog Challenge Day 6: Something that makes me smile

Blog Challenge Day 6 : Something that makes me smile

Well, Hello out there! I hope everyone is doing well. I've finally found the time to finish this post regarding things that make me smile.  I've uploaded a few of my very favorite things that make me smile...

1. Obviously, my precious daughters make me smile! Ashlyn and Sami are the best thing I have ever done and watching them makes me happy... which makes me smile!

2. Shaun- my sweet husband who puts up with a lot being married to me! He's a great husband and the best father I could want for my two sweet little girls! 

3. My family- My husband, and my 2 little girls I have already mentioned.  However, my family would not be complete without my Daddy, Momma, my sister, Ashlee and her 2 sweet girls- Maggie & Georgia.  I am very blessed with the family God has given to me.

4. If you thought this was not going to be on this list, you must not know me very well and if that is the case: Hi! Nice to meet ya! Thanks for reading my blog.  Oh, and by the way... I LOVE DISNEY WORLD!!!  Honestly, I'm always truly happy at Disney World. (my other "home").  I just love the feeling walking down Main Street USA! I really could go on and on here, so I'll just skip on to the next picture...

5. Christmas! I LOVE Christmas!!! Again, there is nothing like that time of year when so many things seem child like again.  I enjoy watching the old classics on tv, hearing all of the songs and yes, I can listen to them the ENTIRE season; I love watching children act out the Christmas Story in church.  I enjoy bringing down all of my boxes from the attic and turning my house into my own little winter wonderland (without the snow of course!) Now, I love experiencing Christmas as a mom.  I am enjoying passing down family traditions to Ashlyn and creating new traditions for my family.  It's a great time of year & I LOVE it!

I like to think of myself as a pretty happy person so there are obviously LOTS of other things that make me smile; however, I don't have pictures of them.  In college I made a list of 50 things that made me happy up to that point. Maybe one day I'll post that here somewhere, but for now, this will have to do. 

Y'all have a great Friday!!!

~Summer

 

Blog Challenge Day 5 : My Siblings

Blog Challenge Day 5 : My Sibling

Hey there! I told y'all I was going to sit down again and write a little more this week! I've actually been looking forward to telling you about my sibling for a while now! I'm sure most of you know her quite well, but for those of you who don't... I have one little sister, Ashlee.  

To say we were always close and were best friends growing up would be a bit of a stretch.  We fought a LOT! Mom swears I loved her when she was a baby, but I don't really remember that far back.  Here are a few pictures from way back then:

I think this was her 1st trip to the beach.  She was probably about 3-6 months old?

This was her 1st birthday- I guess I still liked her...

My mom was afraid to take us out in public. I wonder why? OK... So, Ashlee fell out of her crib, breaking her arm.  I was tripped while running and smashed my face into a huge glass flower pot (really a tree pot). 

This was us when we lived in Texas. I was 7, she was 3... and apparently afraid of drowning!

 

There are very few pictures of us together from the time I was about 7 or 8 until I was about 16.  Thankfully, once I got older, we started getting along a lot better.  It was sort of sad because we really got close my junior and senior year of high school.  Then, of course, I graduated and left for Troy.  When I graduated from Troy and moved home, she graduated from high school, and moved to Troy.  Then, when she came home, I got married and moved to Augusta.  When I moved home from Augusta, we were both here almost 1 1/2 years before she moved to Nashville.  Now, we're both here and neither of us are planning to go anywhere! It's weird to think we've been "apart" almost longer than we've been together!



OK, about Ashlee... what can I say?  She's one of the funniest people I know.  She's always been witty, but she loves to laugh... and it's contagious, at least to me.  She can be telling me a story, and laughing about it, and before I even know what's so funny, I'm laughing hysterically as well!  She's just a funny and crazy girl all around.  You never actually know what she's going to do.  She can get herself in quite the predicament...

I honestly do not remember the story that goes with this picture, but I'm sure it was a good one! Besides, shouldn't this alone speak 1,000 words?

Ashlee is a great cook! She spent a lot of time in the kitchen with our Daddy growing up, so not only can she cook, she's really confident about her meals!  She can alter a recipe to fit her needs, spice up a bland dish and make sure everything is ready at the same time!

Growing up she LOVED baby dolls.  She probably had 20 dolls in her room! Some were eating, some sleeping, some even sat in the time out chair.  Here is a picture of her with one of her favorite dolls:

I think the doll even had a Teddy Bear???

It should have been no surprise that she would love babies as well.  She & I both took care of our younger cousins as we got older, but she LOVED the babies! When we'd be around family with a baby, she was always in their lap wanting to see the baby, hold the baby, just love the baby!  Even now, she loves to work with babies.  She could sit and love on them all day long- and I'm not talking about her babies, or even mine! She loves ANY and ALL babies! She's happiest surrounded by a room full of sweet little ones. 

I couldn't talk about my sister without telling you she is one of the strongest people I know.  I'm not sure if it comes from being a mother or if she's just always had it in her.  She takes her punches and rolls with them... the best way she can.  After learning her oldest daughter was deaf, she just put her "big girl panties" on and did whatever she could for Maggie.   Whether it meant choosing to put her 18 month old through a major surgery, or picking up and moving to Nashville (where she didn't know a single soul), she found the strength & courage to do it. 

Like I said, the older we got, the closer we got.  I'm SO thankful she now lives less than 5 miles from my house! Her daughter, Maggie & my daughter, Ashlyn are best friends and we're pretty sure our babies, Sami & Georgia will be too, especially since they are only 1 month apart!  (I don't think we are giving them much of a choice)

So, there ya go! My little sister, Ashlee- my one and only sibling, my best friend, a great aunt to my girls and the mother of my precious nieces. I'm sure most of you know her, so feel free to leave your own thoughts about her as well in the comment section!



Time...

Hello there. I know it has been quite a while since I've been on here, and I'm not happy about it.  I never thought I'd be able to write more than a couple times a week, but this is just sad! The really bad part is, I've wanted to sit down quite a few times, but I always come up with something "better" to do.  Most of the time, that something better is Ashlyn or Samantha so it's not so bad.  Other times, it's the mess in the house calling my name... making me feel guilty for not using that sweet precious "free" time (even if it's just 5 minutes) to throw another load of clothes in the washer, pick up in the den, sweep my kitchen floor... you get the point.  So, now I'm here... and I have 1 little one asleep and another... uh oh. I may have typed too soon... I think I hear Sami now.  I'm going to go, but I do promise to get on here again at least once this week!
Hope everyone is having a great weekend!
~Summer

I did it... a while ago, but I did it!

Hey y'all! I'm going to skip my next blog challenge topic to tell y'all about what I did! Ok, I guess it's really not that big of a deal and it's been 2 weeks, so the thrill of it is pretty much gone, but oh well... I'm going to share!

Just a few short months ago, this was me...

 

Now, I want you to ignore the belly and the extra weight.  What I want you to focus on is the hair. Yes, that extremely long hair that literally rested on my big baby belly.  *sigh*

Fast Forward to a couple of weeks ago...

I made an appointment to get my hair cut- but I wasn't too sure how short I wanted it. Maybe just a trim, maybe some short layers just around the face, maybe chop it all off!!!  The day of the appointment, I still wasn't sure what I was going to do.  It wasn't until Kelly started to take me back to wash it that I made my decision.  I stopped her & told her I wanted to cut it off first so I could donate it to locks of love.  We put it in a ponytail and a few short snip snip snips later it was gone. Well, it was in my hand, but it was no longer attached to my head! I'd made up my mind before that regardless of what I chose, I would NOT have cutters remorse, and I didn't.  :) I was very happy with the length & style she chose.  I had another appointment that afternoon to get my hair colored with Krista & we were doing a little something different as well. 

Here I am now, after the cut & color change: 

I love it! I feel so much better and honestly, it was really hard for me to even find a picture of me with my hair down.  I always had it up in a pony tail, twisted in a clip or down in a braid.  So there ya go! My cute new "do".   This post was not as exciting as it could have been, but sometimes, that's a good thing!

I'll get back to my topic challenge next post. Night All!

 ~Summer

30 Day Challenge- My Parents

Hey there, Happy Rainy Wednesday to ya!
I have a couple of minutes on a rainy afternoon, so I thought I'd sit down really quickly while my little angel is asleep. I think I need to change my challenge from the 30-day challenge to the 30 topic challenge since I never intended to write everyday.
Oh well... today's topic is my parents.
Paulette & Chuck I'm not really sure what I'm supposed to say about either of them. If you know me, you probably know my parents. We've always been really close, and I'm thankful to be able to still live so close to them now.

My Mom

My mom was pretty much a stay at home mom who was always there when we needed her. Whether it was for cookies at snack time, a ride to the mall (or dance, or gymnastics, or the ice rink...), or a shoulder to cry on, she was always there. I remember the first time she left all of us to go down to Florida to visit her friends, the house pretty much fell apart. My poor Daddy didn't know how to do any of the things she did, the WAY she did it. Ashlee & I were awful & he wasn't used to dealing with us all day like that. We all survived though!
My mom was always supportive of me- regardless of what it was. She allowed me to make mistakes and was still there to pick up the pieces when I needed it. She indulged me in all of my many obsessions and even supported a few of them by driving me all over the south east to see a certain boy band when I was twelve.

My Daddy

My daddy worked a bunch when I was growing up. He still works a bunch! We traveled around a lot when I was very little for his jobs, but regardless of where we were living, he made sure we had our little weekend adventures. Sometimes, he’d say, “Hey, I’m going for a ride, wanna go?” I’d ask where he was going and he’d respond, “down the road”. He usually meant it too… just down the road to see where it would take him.
He’s adventurous like that. He’s also a great cook! I wish I’d spent a little more time in the kitchen with him growing up. I must have inherited some of those cooking talents, since I’ve only thrown away 2 dishes I’ve made- and I cook quite a bit. (Not as much lately with Samantha, but you get the point).
He always reminded me a bit of Indiana Jones. Like I said, he was always up for an adventure, and he HATES snakes! Especially after being bitten by one in 2004!
So that’s it- my parents - still married after 40 years! (Unless you ask my mom, then it’s only been like… 30...) So, kudos to them! I know I’m lucky and blessed to have them both in my life and living so close! 　

Birthday Wishes

Hi friends,

I'm taking a quick break from my 30 day challenge to say a few words about turning another year older...
For as long as I can remember I have LOVED celebrating my birthday! I've always had a party or at least had friends over to celebrate with me.  Heck, I've even thrown myself a surprise party or two! However, the past couple of years I've come to realize it's not so much the party, the cake or even the cards & gifts I enjoy so much.  It's just being with all of my family and friends. I love having the "excuse" to take time out of my day to sit and chat with someone who took time out of their day to call to tell me they were thinking of me & they loved me on my special day.  Thinking back on yesterday I'm so amazed and feel almost a bit overwhelmed at how blessed I really am! Everyone made me feel so special by calling, sending a card or simply posting a "Happy Birthday" on facebook. 
I guess adding another candle on the cake is worth it to be reminded once a year how special we all are to each other!

Thanks again... and know I really do love each and every one of you!
~Summer

I'll leave you with a couple of the pictures from my dinner with my family.  (Maggie was the party planner who brought the hats)

My cousin Heather & I in our party hats

Ashlyn with my cousin April

 Me - the birthday girl with Maggie- the party planner



30 Day Challenge Day 3: My First Love

Hello All,

My Day 3 Post is supposed to be about my first love??? How is that supposed to be manageable without offending/upsetting Shaun?  Oh well, here goes...

They say you never completely forget or get over your first love.  I guess that's true because as I sit down to write about him, it still tugs at my heart strings. It's hard to consider him my first love... I guess a piece of me still loves him and probably always will.  Surely if there's enough love in my heart for Shaun and my 2 precious daughters, there has to be a little room left over for him... after all, he was there first.

I'm not sure if my earliest memories of him are real or if they've been distorted over time. He still seems somewhat perfect- of course he wasn't... I mean- who is? Anyway, Let's get on with it...
It seems like I knew him my whole life.  He wasn't always a "constant".  He'd sort of come and go- in and out of my life as he or I pleased.  I knew it was really was love when I turned 16 and all I wanted was to see him.  By college, I was sure I'd outgrown him... but I constantly found myself drawn to him.  I'd find ways to be "close" to him without actually being able to see him.  After graduating from college I went to see him again... the first time in a while and I was immediately addicted to him again.   It became harder and harder for me to stay away from him after that trip. I came up with all sorts of excuses to go see him, so I did and as often as I could.  It was still not a constant though.  As happy as I was when I was with him, leaving was unbearable.  I would not be satisfied until I knew when I could see him again.  Buy why him???
I guess he always made me feel so happy.  Just thinking about him could bring a smile to my face. He made me laugh.  He had a great group of friends.  He was generally a "good" guy. Even though our time was always short, he was always happy to see me and never made me feel guilty about coming to see him or leaving.   I still see him sometimes... Shaun doesn't mind too much.  He's a great guy like that.  Anyway... I guess that's all I can say about him.  Some of you may know who I'm talking about and some of you don't.  For those of you who don't know him, he's still a great guy & maybe one day you'll get a chance to know him as well.   I'll leave you with a picture of us one of the last times I saw him...
~Summer