loveless & rockets.

With the majority of my family being in Tennessee, we travel up north several times a year. And at least one of those trips every year involved a breakfast trip to Loveless Cafe. If you've never been, you need to go. On the outskirts of Nashville, it's the perfect place to spend a lazy Saturday morning. Great food, great atmosphere, shops to browse in... Seriously, it's just good. And while we were eating, Cayden saw a photo on the table of people sticking their faces through the people cut-outs and INSISTED that we stick our faces in them too. He also strongly declared that Sawyer would be the girl. Ha! The photos make me laugh because the boys stuck their whole head through. Good stuff!

And on the way home, the Alabama/Tennessee state line boasts a rocket! We've told the boys countless times that we would stop and check out the rocket, and without fail, they would always be asleep. But this time? The were awake, so we stopped and checked things out. Cayden desperately wanted to get in the rocket, but that wasn't going to happen. It was still cool to walk up to it and look straight up. There's also a small memorial wall for Vietnam warriors; it was really beautiful.

Our trip to Tennessee was short overall, but we lived it up the best we could and had a fun little family trip. Also, in that first photo, you can see what an effort/progression it is to get all of us in a photo. We weren't exactly perfect, but we were perfectly us. And? That first photo of our boys and our two nephews? I love it. So much so that it might be printed and hung up in the house somewhere.

family reunion.

We had our yearly family reunion this past weekend. We meet in the middle of nowhere Tennessee, eat lots of food and the kids run wild. It's pretty awesome actually. It also helps that half of the people that show up actually belong to our immediate family. And since we no longer live in TN, it's always fun to catch up with everyone.

This year though? A mule-driven buggy. Seriously, I think my mouth dropped open when I saw that buggy pulling up the drive. And with cousins in charge of it, we were able to hop on and take a ride! The boys thought it was pretty cool. Jeremy tried to get Sawyer to help "drive," but in true Sawyer fashion, he wasn't having it. At all.

The boys got hot and sweaty, but had a great time. Sawyer passed out three minutes down the road. And Cayden was quiet most of the ride back to the house. I think we'll just have to do it all again next year ;-)

P.S. Sawyer says "CHEESE!" Um, with his whole body. It's ridiculous. And cute.

tri-angle.

New artwork now available featuring triangles with fresh colors. Partially inspired by beautiful quilts that I've seen lately and other parts inspired by Sawyer learning his shapes, these prints are something I've been brewing on for a bit. I love how bright they are. And the coral one ::might:: be going in our master bathroom when it gets its makeover. Dark gray walls with pops of coral? I die. But that's another post for another day (and possibly another year at this rate).

Anyway, head on over to the shop and check out the new prints. They're available in two different sizes and color options.

'tis the season.

For weddings. It seems like everyone we know that isn't currently married, is getting married this fall. And don't get me wrong. I love a good wedding. Looking at the pretty dresses. And then seeing the bride walk down the aisle. It really doesn't matter who it is, I'm gonna get tears in my eyes.

And when Jeremy's cousin, Katie, walked down the aisle Saturday evening, my eyes got so blurry that I couldn't see her properly. Sucker. Right here. Every time. The wedding ceremony was beautiful; the songs were perfect. And a classic black and white wedding? Considering those were the colors I used, well, I kind of loved it. And the reception was full of the awesome too. Photo booth? Check. Great food? Check. Dance floor for our children to have a blast and tire themselves out? Check and check.

soccer evaluations.

We let Cayden play soccer last fall. Well, I wouldn't necessarily call it soccer. There was practice once a week for about eight weeks and then one game at the end of the "season" where three and four year olds ran around kind of chasing a ball. It was equal parts hilarious and adorable.

I was disappointed when we got the email about spring soccer and Cayden wouldn't make the birthday cut-off. So when fall soccer registration emails started going out, you better believe we got our big boy signed up.

Last night was their evaluation. Basically all the coaches come out and watch all the littles and their mad soccer skills. And then somehow the coaches try to disperse all the kids to teams so that one team won't be magically more advanced than another team. Or, you know, you find one of Cayden's old classmates whose dad happens to be helping out and all of a sudden, you're on a team before teams have even been created. Yay! But it's all good because Cayden will at least know one of his teammates and I'm hoping that will keep his four year old self interested in going to practice (twice a week!) and games (once a week!).

Either way, Cayden had a blast last night and I'm thrilled that he enjoyed himself. A side note about his hair: It looks adorable in these photos. And now Cayden's saying that he wants to cut it short again. I'm a little torn. I mean, it IS his hair and he should be able to do what he wants, but wouldn't it look so cute on the soccer field blowing around long? Also, some of these shots... hello, eight year old!