Fatherhood is pretending the present you love most is soap on a rope.

Bill Cosby, Fatherhood

t’s only when you grow up and step back from him―or leave him for your own home―it’s only then that you can measure his greatness and fully appreciate it.

Margaret Truman, in an address to a joint session of Congress (1984)

Your father, Jo. He never loses patience―never doubts or complains―but always hopes, and works and waits so cheerfully that one is ashamed to do otherwise before him.

Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

The older I get, the smarter my father seems to get.

Tim Russert, Big Russ and Me

I’d love to have a beer with you, Dad.

Kelsey Grammer as Frasier Crane on Frasier

One father is more than a hundred schoolmasters.

George Herbert, Jacula Prudentum

To her, the name of father was another name for love.

Fanny Fern, Fresh Leaves

No music is so pleasant to my ears as that word―father.

Lydia Maria Child, Philothea: A Romance

I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father’s protection.

Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents

[He] adopted a role called Being a Father so that his child would have something mythical and infinitely important: a Protector.

Tom Wolfe, The Bonfire of the Vanities

-I agree with Fanny Fern, “the name of father was IS another name for love. My Dad is the most self-less man, and he loves our family unconditionally -always expressing genuine love. He taught us the value of hard, and how important it is to pair that hard work with humility. He’s shown us were faith takes you, and how important it is to have a positive attitude and find strength in the Lord.  He has a tender heart to his girls, and shares his shoulder to lean on. Love you Dad, Happy EARLY Father’s Day!

I like to call myself the family paparazzi, chasing everyone around with my camera in hand. Especially this little one…

and his partner in crime [aka twin sister], meet Miss Lily.

They were rather intrigued at their brothers bull riding skills

and decided to give it a try themselves.

Surprisingly Whit made it up there all by himself, while Lily opted for some time to be held by her favorite cousins.

Whit found it to be lots of fun! For those that do not know, bull riding is one dangerous sport. Whit’s attempt to stay mounted for at least eight seconds while the bull tried to buck him off  is claimed to be ”the most dangerous eight seconds in sports”. AND HE SURVIVED. [I am totally kidding. You know that right? This bull is completely stationary and we are NOT abusing 2 year olds out here.]

Some of us here enjoy the more recreational and proper horseback riding sport.

Or better yet…hula hoop competitions.

remember, it’s all in the HIPS!

Or maybe just being an onlooker?

We have pretty much covered all the bases, so you thought. We also had baseball games,

sandbox time,

football throwing,

lawn mowing,

easter eggs hunts [more of a easter egg "pick-up"...they're not really hidden]

bubble machines,

and even a tooth-pulling session.

Sara was bound and determine for this tooth to COME OUT, and COME OUT TODAY! She so dearly wanted to lose it last night, but her dad assured her that was not a good idea. The easter bunny and the tooth fairy coming on the same night just might not play out very well. He had totally convinced her that they’d have a brawl on their front porch. So she gave it up yesterday, but 24 hours later – post “bunny visit” – the tooth is OUT.

While ALL these fun and games were going on, I decided to check on the hamburgers and hotdogs. We had lots of little tummies to feed, and the smell of grilling out filled the air.

In reality, maybe the real reason we were dying hoping to eat was because we knew what was coming for dessert.

5 gallons of homemade ice cream!!!!!!!!!

The ice cream maker was our new hand crafted, 5 gallon wooden bucket – powered by an old John Deere motor.

When time was up, dinner had been eaten, tummies were still talking, and hands were coming from all directions.

that stuff was PURE heaven……and these two WILL MOST DEFINITELY agree. They walked away HAPPY!

With that, “Happy Easter Bloggers!”

Hope your Sunday was swell like ours. What did you do? I hope it was filled with family, friends, pretty weather, yummy food, chocolate, and a celebration of the resurrection of our LORD and SAVIOR!

we dyed hard boiled eggs the traditional way, but they dye just wasn’t right. the colors were too BRIGHT, and they just were not jiving with our “decor” style in the dining room for easter sunday! so………

we decided to take another route. we blew out way over a dozen eggs, martha stewart describes that process for you here. yes there is a little tool to do this with, but that little tool wasn’t to be found in our house. so we painstakingly removed the insides from the eggs [note: without actually touching our mouths to the eggs as BHG describes here which SCREAMS salmonella]. Once that process was complete and our brains were completely blown out, we painted the eggs.

one coat

after another

and they finally looked like this.

added to the grass table runner [from a cute store in downtown Homewood] under  the “nest” of yellow alstroemeria

the lingering of our headache paid off

and we moved on to the next step…

baking our “easter stamped” cookies

and decorating the tree

Happy Easter!!

Ever since that shopping day I’ve been looking forward to stampin’ out some cookies!!! Look out for a post on how well they actually turn out! Happy Holy Week!!

[via flickr @ +]

You can download the pdf version for personal use only. Click here!

1. Open the pdf file (2 pages)
2. Print a front + back copy of the 5″ square card; use paper you have and cut it to size with an exacto or choose from lots of colorful, cover weight flat card options here
3. add a handwritten note on the back
4. Stuff it in a regular envelope or for an added touch a petal envelope [or better yet, DIY envelope]
5. seal with with a KISS, mwahhhhhhhhh!!

but the fact that you are headed to a snowy white place makes for a joyful smile!

We were just about to jet across the United States to the beautiful, mountainous state of Colorado. When you think that fact that you are going to SNOW cannot get any better, you look out the window and see the most amazing creation!! I think that the view from the window is very reminiscent of an ancient map. There is something so fascinating to me when it comes to seeing aerial views of the world in which we inhabit! Wow, God is pretty darn creative!

We landed safely at the Eagle Airport. Greeted by crisp air. Bright blue skies. Chilly temperatures.

Couldn’t be better.

Welcome to the beautiful village of Bachelor Gulch…

*forbes

*the ski channel

and we were lovin’ every single minute of the trip this far, especially the girls (and guys) we were with.

We met every morning for breakfast at spago. I was pretty fond of the steel-cut oatmeal and fresh berries. I do not get it, but you just cannot find fresh (tasty) berries like that back home? This is where I met Wolfgang Puck. Yes, I was fond of the food, but the interior was fascinating! Not one detail was overlooked. You can imagine after 5 days dining at breakfast here I pretty much “eyed” every little nook and cranny.

Design Side Note: The warm environment crafted by esteemed New York-based hospitality designer Tony Chi. Most designers design and that’s it. They create a beautiful space and their job is done. What makes Tony great is simply that he cares about more than just design and he has the intuition to back it up. He understands that design without functionality is hollow and functionality without people who care to utilize it defeats the purpose. He doesn’t merely deliver aesthetics, he delivers an experience.” He really does deliver an experience, pretty amazing designer in my book. The 4,400 square foot restaurant captures the essence of the surrounding mountain landscape. A mix of both the rustic elements of the Colorado Rockies and modern materials mediate between the sophistication of the restaurant and the log+stone cabin feel of the resort. My favorite part by far was the clear and wooden glass tower displays housing the glassware for the restaurant. It was a sketch that went down in my “to remember design ideas”. And my second favorite part was the the bar. The bar top was an etched silver, resembling the branches and outdoor characteristics of the ski terrain. BEAUTIFUL!! Now, the fanciness of spago it splendid, but you cannot go wrong with the Nachos Grande: Pico de Gallo, Black Beans, Crema, Cotija, Guacamole, with Chicken or Beef from the Buffalo Bar. Somehow this plate of nachos feeds 8 people, and some are STILL left on the plate. It’s crazy, wish I had a picture!

After breakfast, the long dreaded buckling of the boots. Honestly by the time you have loaded on the layers of ski clothes and buckled the boots you have already burned of the calories of breakfast. It is tiring. We haven’t even started skiing yet.

Andrea would agree, hot hands are my life saver. Cold fingers and toes make me wanna call it a day!

slight resemblance to two bank robbers? a.k.a. my brother and mom.

Yeap the snow was plentiful and the skies were always sunny…leaving a need for rejuvenation. I am not talking spa and R&R, but something better.

At 3:15 everyday the BELL RANG, and we came a running. That meant hot cookies and hot chocolate.

THEY ALL GOT DEVOURED!!!!!!! Not one little crumb or morsel left!

We kind of took of the back corner of the lobby for the rest of the day. It became like our very own living room. own tv. beautiful view. big couch. lots of chairs. wi-fi. and we were waited on…spoiled, but enjoyed!

we even colored the back of the kids menu and doggie Bachelor, the resort pet. In our illustration he skies.

the nights were snowy and cold.

we stayed by warm blazing fires or BUNDLED up. check out the guy we do not know giving Stacy bunny ears in the picture…

dinners were great. warm evenings inside. laughs and happy conversation. great food and wine. entertaining waiters. and SUPER fantastic interiors too!!

from the three of us sisters HAPPY NEW YEAR!

i’ve been making custom luggage tags for our upcoming holiday travels. i custom made the tags in adobe:illustrator. i found the clear laminating pouches and loops at office depot, they are available online too, here. the directions call for a special laminating heating device to actually seal the two sides together. i do not have one of those that is for sure, and they are super expensive. i just used a warm iron, covered the top of the tags with a thin towel, and held the iron firmly over the top for about 10 seconds. it worked perfectly. no bumps or bubbles in the laminating. 

on a fancier note, i am headed to a holiday ball tonight in tuscaloosa. yay for a FUN reason to play “dress up!” i am really excited, especially because i get to see a dear friend that i lived with sophomore year of college. we have not seen each other in a few months, and she leaves for istanbul (yes IN turkey) the 2nd week of january. i am kind of embarrassed to say that I do not think I have even ever been to tuscaloosa. yeap, an auburn girl is coming to town! 

be back with pictures soon! have a happy weekend!

and the “little girls” show was this morning! This is one of the precious little angels that never ceases to steal my heart along with…

the entire room backstage  jammed packed with hundreds of 3, 4, and 5 year olds!! Nothing is cuter than a bunch of  ballerinas at 10 in the morning.

They were wide open…little angels.

bobby pins flying. tears for mommy. where is “MY” tutu. nervousness. excitement. smiles.

Well in the end, the show was super! It unfolded seamlessly, if that is even possible with all of the performers under the age of 5? Hearing all of the Christmas music, and watching these little gals boogie, turn, and jump to the sounds of Christmas cheer definitely got me in the sprit.

When we got back home, we decided to make cookie cutter Christmas sugar cookies!! And lots of em’…

crosses. deer. christmas trees. gingerbread men.

now it’s time to decorate. kisses!

mom=garden club party at our house

sister=studying for exams

brother=work

sister-in-law=preparing for her dance studio’s Christmas performance this weekend

me=hosting a Christmas party at my house tonight

dad=well, I haven’t talked to him in a few days, but I am pretty sure he is busting butt trying to ship all of these…

And remember: Jesus is the reason for the season!! Yeap, that’s right, even amongst a busy schedule!!