happy 2015!

we rang in 2015 with something a little different this year-- a progressive dinner with 2 of our favorite families! we kicked off our night with appetizers at james & kim's house! i was too busy scarfing down meatballs, so i only snapped a quick group picture. but gosh, i love this picture. and gosh, i love these people!!!


we progressed on to our house for the main course-- chili-- and a little karaoke! maybe next year, we'll document the actual eating part! haha!


kath and hallie got the party started!!! somebody's excited to ring in the new year!


ben and james pulled out the oh-so-popular karaoke song from the hobbit...


and here we are serenading our "sweet caroline"!


drew looks like he was beatboxing-- maybe he was?? i guess kim didn't like that song too much! ha!


our last stop was ben & kath's house for dessert and a bonfire! major props to the guys for not giving up on some very stubborn wood. after some major problem solving involving a blower at some point, we had a fire! this video is for the 2 males that might possible be reading. brian is convinced that you will think this is great.


brian captured this shot of a man and his dog. so contemplative. (i think he's contemplating a refill after all that fire-starting frustration.)


matt organized a frisbee tournament, including brackets and everything. :) when a sweet 12 yr old boy stands there smiling with clipboard in hand, you play... even when you are awful at throwing a frisbee! i was sure kim and i would quickly lose and be out of the tournament (which meant relaxing by the fire!), but i underestimated her ability to win the game with one perfect toss into the minuscule target. i was as awful as i said i would be!!! but thanks to kim, we ended up in the championship round against ethan and brian, the frisbee expert. and thanks to the frisbee expert, we lost. i hate losing! but s'mores were ready, so that softened the blow. :)

after s'mores, we broke out the sparklers. it's not new years without sparklers!!





amelia is our "sparkler girl"! when the thrill of running around with fire on a stick had grown old for everyone else, she was still happily twirling to and fro with her momentary stick of fire. this girl's joy just makes my heart full!


as we worked out the details of creating the "2015" in the first picture, it was agreed upon that the "5" would be the most challenging to get right. it was at that moment that i volunteered to be the "1"!! i think i did a pretty awesome 1 if i do say so myself. ;)

the concept of sparkler art was new to our friends, so while amelia was using up all the sparklers, ben pulled out his flashlight and started on a new project... not sure what to call it... sparkler profiling!? it was a race to get the whole outline before the camera clicked!




i didn't really think they were listening when i said, "do the dog!"


oh, ben-- i want to take you seriously, i really do. but it's virtually impossible!


it was a lovely night with these lovely ladies and their families!


aaaand the outtake...


here's to many more laughs in 2015!

happy 4th!

we were thrilled that this 4th of july weekend arrived with much better weather than last year! our tradition is for the big kids to sleep over with karina at nana & pappy's house on the 3rd so that they can walk down the street to the parade on the morning of the 4th.

(parade pictures courtesy of aunt kristie...)


yeah, there was no getting amelia to look at the camera.

parade= candy, candy, candy, oh and flavor-pops!





the kids are usually all patriotically hyped up on sugar by the time we arrive... with more sugar! (and some fruit and veggies to balance things out.)


i experimented and made some patriotic birthday cake popcorn. white chocolate, cake mix, sprinkles, and popcorn. how can you go wrong?


i also went a little pinterest happy and thought these red, white, and blue rice krispie treats would be fun. and then i caught some cuties who thought the same thing!



we cooked out but ate in cause it's (blazing hot) florida!!

everything tastes better on a flag plate!!


isn't that right, amelia?! (yessssss, she looked at the camera!)


the guys found a spot out of the sun for a little cornhole...


and before we knew it, we were loading up for the fireworks! uncle jeff got us the major hookup this year. he and kristie have some friends who live on the water, right next to where the fireworks are set up. we were excited to have front row seats!!! uncle safety slowly drove the kids in the back of the truck (with 2 moms in back, too) while pappy safety stressed out for the entire 3 block ride as we drove behind them. :) it was incredibly entertaining!!


oh look! more candy!


moon! moon moon moon moon moon moooooooon!


love these cousin twins :)


we hurried to get a family picture before it got too too dark. so blessed to live in america and to be free to raise our children with a biblical worldview. we cannot take this for granted today!


this is the point on 4th of july when i no longer have camera privileges. brian gets in his zone setting up the tripod and getting the camera on juuuuust the right settings for fireworks pics. meanwhile, the kids are continuing to run and squeal and make memories that will never be documented because i don't have my camera plastered to my face!!!! and he always tells me, "as soon as i get a few good ones, i'll give the camera back to you." mmmmhmmm....

the sun went down...


and the lights came out! we usually do this with sparklers but tried light sticks this year. the kids were standing in just the right spot where The Fireworks Camera could snap this one.


here are "a few good ones" that brian snapped. i guess i'll stop complaining now. 'cause these are pretty cool.







little miss hallie did not care for the fireworks at first. she spend the first half of the show shaking in my lap like a dog during a thunderstorm. she buried her head in my face and refused to watch them as she said, "no!" over and over. then she suddenly just turned around, relaxed, and enjoyed the rest of the show! and she spent the rest of the night saying, "boom, boom!" i was so glad she ended up liking them.


this is us pretending to watch fireworks, since i couldn't take something like this during the show. haha. yes, i realize this is ridiculous.


nana and pappy are totally humoring me here-- that is one bright flash in the dark!!


after the fireworks show, we went back to nana & pappy's for the encore... pop-its! my kiddos love these things.


sibling fun. also known as the one where hallie eats a pop it.


caroline figured out that if you throw a bunch down, it makes a pretty loud noise. thus began the dumping of the pop-its!


and that was our 4th of july! i pray my children will one day truly understand the significance of our independence day celebration. they do know the history behind it, and we strive to stress the blessings surrounding the beginning of our great nation. but i am sure as children, in their minds, this holiday is about fireworks and candy and sleepovers at nanas. many men and women sacrificed their comforts for my children to innocently dance in the dark, waving sticks of every color. many soldiers gave up their lives so that the only "boom boom" that causes my toddler to shake is the noise of a celebratory explosion in the sky. as we celebrate america and all that our founders stood for, we praise God and ask Him to revive our land.