i'm here. you're there.

perfectly said.
i am still missing my husband tremendously.

{image via yellowheartart}

have you seen this yet?

of course... i seriously want to make this. how very cool and fun! my kids will absolutely love this art project. i first saw it here.

{image via whatever}

new jersey love.

after spending almost a month vacationing in new jersey, we arrived back at home last night. as always, we hated to say goodbye to the family, people and things we love in new jersey. yet, after a 14-hour car ride, we were all very, very happy to be back at home. and so, i will be spending the next few days, unpacking and settling back in.

p.s. i am loving the watercolor paintings of state love found at poppy and pinecone. i think the new jersey state love perfectly represents my love for new jersey. which state would you choose?

{print available from poppyandpinecone.}

today, i am happy, happy.

i am very happy today. jeff arrived (and surprised our children) very, very early this morning to spend a week with us while we are vacationing this summer in new jersey! the five of us are together again for a whole week and today i am happy, happy!!

{print via farouche}

a day to remember.

we spent today with some of our closest friends coming together for an impromptu barbecue. one of the highlights of my day was standing around the kitchen with every child and adult. hand in hand we took a moment of silence to remember all of the reasons we celebrate memorial day.

i hope you found some peace in today and found some time to remember too.

{image found here via mosdurf}

new day.

{print available at hellohalo}

i'm very happy it's a new day.

the sound of tornado sirens raced through my head all night long. even when they weren't going off i felt like i still heard them. the warnings make me so nervous. thankfully though, my girls slept peacefully. they didn't even realize i had carried them down into the basement to take cover. they slept through it all. slade woke up and was my sidekick on the couch all night. i didn't even mind that he was awake, i was just happy to have him by my side. we had the television on and watched the radar as one storm after another hit north and south of us. luckily and very thankfully, we were missed.

i was happy to see the sun shining and to hear the birds chirping this morning. yet, there is an after the storm stillness in the air and i'm still feeling a little shaken, especially seeing the devastating path of destruction left. storms, tornadoes and sirens are not my favorite. i'm very, very happy it's a new day.

lost.

i'm sorry that i have been out of touch for the past couple of days. i've been feeling a bit quiet. feeling a little lost in my heart. it usually happens this way after jeff leaves. it takes me a day or two and i find my way again. our lives move on.

today, this sense of lost has made me think a lot about japan and the devastation there. suddenly i am not feeling so lost anymore. and i cannot even imagine their feelings of extreme loss.

i don't know why this has been on my mind so much today. i thought about it a lot as i slowly moved around the house cleaning bedrooms and putting laundry away. i thought about how happy and thankful i am for our home. how i love making beds pretty and neatly placing clothes in drawers, while thinking about what i'll be making for dinner. how in a few hours, my children will get off the bus and i'll see their smiling faces as they run towards me and tell me something about their happy day. how we will go to sleep tonight in warm beds after praying, saying "i love you's" and good night to daddy. so many thoughts of how wonderfully fortunate we really are.

so, although my heart may be feeling a bit lost these days. i cannot imagine experiencing such devastation and the sense of loss as so many people in japan are feeling today.

{illustration by nanlawson}
{all proceeds go to japanese relief efforts}

how it works.

this morning a cup of jo posted a beautiful newspaper blackout poem. after browsing through the work of austin kleon, i had to share my favorite- "how it works". just seemed fitting for me, for us.

amazing... poetry made by taking a sharpie marker and blacking out a newspaper article only leaving a few choice words. this one came from a story about hedge fund investing and i think it's kind of sweet.

{image via 20x200}

flying by + studio mela.

lately, my days have been flying right by. just being a stay at home mom has kept me rather busy. it's no wonder when i saw this new print from studio mela it seemed so, so fitting for today. i have been a fan of these sweet and happy prints for some time. i love the simple and positive messages, many of which my husband and i try to instill in our children and live by. the believe it print hangs in our little elle belle's bedroom.


check out some of my older posts featuring art from studio mela:
give good.
just a reminder.
happy. wonderful weekend & homecoming.
and, always remember.

{all images via studio mela}

believing it's true.

hoping. praying. today is the day. roads are plowed. the airport opens. and planes will travel. believing my husband will come home today for a much anticipated visit. we can hardly wait!

print by freshwordsmarket available here

100 again.

happy 100 days of school!

it is customary at the elementary school for kindergartners to create an artful project displaying 100. slade celebrated 100 days last year with this sweet idea. it now proudly hangs in our toy room.

this year, elle celebrates the first 100 days of school with her love for pasta. she painted a bowl with a heart and added 100 pieces of ziti rigati.

.

just thinking.

wouldn't this be fun!! hmmm...

image available here

back on schedule.

it feels good to back on schedule. yesterday, the kids returned to school after being off for an unexpected ten days. i fully expected them to come home cranky and tired, yet they were full of excitement talking about their day. happily this morning they were up and ready for yet another day at school. yay!! so, i am home today, getting back on track after enjoying time off with my kids.

aren't these vintage calendar cards by janesays adorable?? they are the perfect size to just clip anywhere.

give good.

today, i am loving this.



(print by dazeychic. found here.)

silence at home.

rainy, gloomy and gray. i think it's the perfect day for silence and staying at home. it's very rare that i have these quiet moments alone. i do look forward to them every now and then. moments to think, to reflect and time to organize my thoughts. and then gratefully, i can welcome back all the noise and chatter that usually permeates through our home. it wouldn't be our home without it and i am so thankful for the busyness that usually surrounds me. but for now, there is silence here at home and i am enjoying these brief moments alone.

print available here.

happy monday.

wow! a week's gone by.... i'm sorry, i haven't been paying attention. i've been so busy over here. school activities. baseball games. a sick little boy. birthday party planning. and visitors coming. i've hardly taken any time just to sit down.

i'm here now. it's a happy monday! and glad i'm back!!

p.s. - my sweet elle sketched this picture for me last week. she told me it was our happy home!

inspiring.

found it here.

be inspired.

this poster is a reminder to embrace the freshness of today.
be happy. be positive.


(via theloveshop)

children inspire design giveaway.

children inspire design continues with a year of giving. these posters and wall cards from their global child collection is the giveaway for august. and if you are the winner, you get to pick your language (english, spanish, italian, german, french or swedish), how cool is that? it would be french for me since my little elle belle wants to go to paris with her mom someday.

simply click here to enter or follow their blog. wouldn't it be nice to win some global compassion?

always remember.

no matter what!
just needed this little reminder today.
(smile)


print available here