my heart is happy.

there were no tears from this little girl this morning as she crossed the street and got onto the school bus.  after she found a seat, her little face peered through the window and as the bus drove slowly away she waved goodbye with a slight smile.

it made my heart happy.  it was a true moment of my little one's growing independence that i never want to forget.

i'm a lucky girl.

i am such a lucky girl to have the most amazing husband. truly i am.  exactly ten years ago today i married a man who is much more than i ever dreamed of. 

happy 10th anniversary to my compassionate, loving, kind and sweet husband!!

i am so in love with you!! and... thank you for making me one lucky girl!! 

back to school.

 

this morning slade, elle and sia were all up very early getting ready to go off to school for their first day. i loved their excitement for another school year, as they were all beaming with bright smiles. especially sia, who is riding the school bus this year and going to kindergarten at the elementary school.

i truly tried to hold it all together. i tried to smile as much as i could. i tried not to be nervous. yet seeing all of my children leave me this morning, getting on a school bus (with no seat belts) and leaving home for an entire day was not easy. i know they will all do great and they will have a fantastic day. school is wonderful place to be. but truthfully and honestly, i am sad. they are all growing up so quickly and right before my eyes.

during the past few weeks, so many people have asked me, "what are you going to do now that all of your children are in school?" i do know what i am going to do- i will continue being a mom. the mom i always dreamed about as a little girl. the mom who loves her husband and children immensely. the mom who loves being at home taking care of her family. the mom who loves to bake and cook. the mom who doesn't mind cleaning and laundry and actually enjoys organizing drawers and closets. the mom who has a passion for creativity. the mom who enjoys volunteering at school. this is what i've always dreamed about- being a wife and a mother.  this is what i will continue to do, even now that all of my children are in school all day. perhaps, i will be a little more organized and have a few more quiet moments alone, but truly what i am going to do is not going to change.

and so, although i am a little sad today, i was very happy to see all of their smiles and excitement as they started back to school this morning. i truly do look forward to seeing my children grow and flourish and learn throughout yet another year.  happy first day back to school!!

elle turns seven.

  

my sweet elle belle turned seven over the weekend. it still is very hard for me to grasp the idea that she is really seven. how is she growing up so fast?

this year, at her request we celebrated her birthday here at home. in recent years, we have been in new jersey and by the shore. but, she really insisted on being at home this year.

and so, we celebrated on our back deck with some singing and dancing and a simple family dinner. country music is their favorite right now and jeff and i took lots of pleasure in watching them sing and dance and giggle together.

and then, we invited some friends to stop by for cupcakes. also at her request this year- vanilla vanilla cupcakes and cupcakes with an espresso buttercream (one of my very favorites too).

happy, happy birthday my sweet elle belle!! 

 i hope you enjoyed celebrating your birthday here at home!!

to my husband.

happy anniversary to my amazing husband.

can you believe it's been nine years already?
(i am so excited that you are coming back home tonight to me!!)
i love you... XO

heading to a.c.

today i am headed down to atlantic city. my mom has been a bartender in atlantic city for more than 25 years and this year she has decided to retire. tonight her co-workers are celebrating with a party in her honor and i am lucky enough to be in town to attend. my in-laws will be taking care of the kids for the night and i will be back tomorrow!

have i mentioned that my mom is retiring this week, packing up and moving down south with us until she finds a place of her own? although i know it will be a very big adjustment for my mom, we are all very excited and happy and so thankful that she has decided to retire near our family!

last day of school = summer.

i mentioned on friday that school was officially out for the summer. and while slade and elle were attending their very last day, sia and i were painting a banner to welcome them home and to celebrate the occasion.

how do you celebrate the ending of the school year? we also had popsicles waiting for them and celebrated into the evening with homemade pizzas, ice cream sandwiches and gifts from grandma.

although, elle was not very happy as she got off the school bus. she ran towards me with tears in her eyes and began to cry as she wrapped her arms around me. she was already missing her teacher, classmates and school. she had a hard time saying goodbye. it had been such a wonderful year for her and i am so happy for that, however, it absolutely broke my heart to see my little kindergartener so sad on her last day of school. goodbyes are never easy, are they?

however, the sadness didn't last long. as we walked home from the bus stop and she saw the banner hanging on our front door, she began to smile. and today, she is very content being at home, swimming in the pool and enjoying the first days of the summer break.

i think it is going to be a very happy summer!!

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.

.

time to celebrate!!

can you believe it's been a year?
exactly a year ago today i started this little blog of mine.

i have loved sharing with you some of who i am, some of the thoughts in my mind, details of my days and things that make me really happy and other things that i find inspiring. i hope you have enjoyed this first year and will continue to follow a place called joy!!

it's time to celebrate.... it's been a happy one year!

p.s. here is the very first post i wrote.

image via LoveNandA

reminiscence.

happy anniversary to my sweet husband.
i love you... XO

back to school.

today marks the beginning of a brand new school year.

with tanned smiley faces, two of my three children got on the bus this morning and went off to school. slade was a genuine big brother and held elle's hand as she got on the bus for the very first time. she was so excited- a little nervous but such a big girl. i stood there with tears in my eyes holding onto my little sia and waved as the bus pull away. so happy for my little ones and the year that's ahead of them. the fun. the learning. the friends they will meet. and the many ways they will grow and thrive. yet i am sad. they are growing right before my eyes. they are becoming so independent. so big. they aren't so little any more. it's hard for a me as a mom. it's hard for me to just let go and send them off to school. it was hard to watch that bus pull away. no car seats. no seat belts. just like that, they are gone.

however, i know it won't be long. it won't be long before we are back at the bus stop this afternoon. with sia and jeff by my side, we will be waiting to see those same smiling faces as they come off that same bus. and, i'll be so anxious to ask all those questions a mother wants to know about their first day and their time away from home. for me as a mom, it will get easier i know.

elle smiling so big as she is headed to the bus stop

slade and elle, hand in hand, getting on the bus together

10 years ago today.

i knew my life had changed forever 10 years ago today. i met the most wonderful guy on the dance floor at my best friend's wedding. wow! as strange as it may seem, i knew that night, i had met the man i would spend the rest of my life with. i knew it. i believe in fate. i believe we were meant to be. and so thankful 10 years ago today our paths crossed marking only the beginning of our forever.

i love you so much jeffrey. and, couldn't imagine a single day of my life without you.

print available at whimsy studios

sending off to kindergarten.

They are growing up so quickly. Today was Elle's Sending Off Ceremony. She is going off to Kindergarten. Her preschool days are over and she will be riding the big yellow bus next year and spending all day away from home. I can hardly believe it. It seems like it was just the other day I was undecided whether I even wanted to send her to preschool and now those days are gone.

I am so very proud of my little Elle Belle and can't want to see all the places she'll go.

love + comfort + siblings

I hope your weekend was happy. I'm not sure where mine went. It seems to have gone by so quickly. It seems like it was just Friday afternoon and we were leaving the dentist office. It marked yet another milestone in the lives of my young children. Sia went to the dentist for the very first time. Luckily her brother and sister had appointments too.

The hygienist came out to the waiting area and called Sia's name. She looked at me, then Slade and he grabbed her hand and walked her back into the office. Ahhh... the love of siblings. The hygienist smiled and winked and then the door closed. I sat there and couldn't believe my baby was actually going to sit in that dentist chair like a big girl and without her mommy. I tried. Seriously tried hard to hold back the tears. It truly couldn't be that my baby was now old enough to visit the dentist. I was so choked up.

Thankfully, another hygienist came out to let me know that Sia was doing great but she was a little teary-eyed, however, she told me now Elle was holding her hand and wiping any tears. Ahhh... the comfort of siblings. I felt so much better and knew it was best that I remained in the waiting area. She would have really cried if she saw me. And, thankfully she had Elle by her side.

And then, before I knew it, out they came. Sia and Elle had gigantic smiles with new toothbrushes, prizes and stickers in hand. She did it. Sia's first dentist appointment was complete (and without mommy by her side). I was so proud of her and proud of Slade and Elle for the comfort they gave to their little sister. Slade came out next with the same statement of accomplishment on his face. He too was smiling big.

I checked out and left the dentist office feeling like such a proud mom. Not only was my little girl such a big girl today, but I was tremendously thankful for siblings. I am so blessed to have three children to love and to watch grow together. I am truly thankful for the love and comfort my children give one another, not only today but always.

Sia is not so happy as our wonderful pediatric dentist commemorates the event with a photograph. Elle steps in to help hold a giant toothbrush for the photograph since Sia absolutely refused to.

And afterwards in the car, Sia is very happy showing her pearly whites as she drinks her well-deserved milkshake.