now she's six.

my little elle belle turns six years old today!!!
happy birthday to my sweet little girl...
mommy loves you so, so much!!

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}

gone fishing.

today, my children took a break from the pool and went fishing with their poppop. i think my girls have found a new hobby, at least a new one while we are here visiting this summer! from what i hear, they caught a total of eleven fish during their afternoon down by river with poppop and loved every minute of it!

happy friday.

hope you are having a happy friday. i have spent most of the day packing. i really do not like to pack, let alone times four. however, we finally are all packed and the kids and i (and my mom) are heading out very early in the morning for a long drive north up to new jersey. ever since slade was born, we've been spending part of our summers there with the family that we love. i will still be posting while we are away, but until i get unpacked and settled, here are some things i've seen that you might enjoy too. have a great weekend!

try this to patch your jeans
an adorable cookies + milk party
i can't stop staring at these bouncy balls
balloon banner DIY
a really neat way to wrap flowers
a site dedicated to artful pancakes- i'm amazed!
and love this summer list

{image found here}

morning bubbles.

what a happy way to start the day...

my girls decided the perfect thing to do first thing this morning was to blow bubbles in their pajamas on our back deck. they are loving the washable colored bubbles by crayola.

red wine sangria.

the other night i made a pitcher of red wine sangria. it's been so hot and humid lately and i was craving something refreshing to drink after a day at the pool. a good friend of mine stopped by that evening and luckily, i already had a pitcher on hand to share. i love it served over crushed ice and with a straw to sip. here is the sangria recipe i use. i came across it more than 10 years ago in real simple magazine and have been using it ever since. it is so easy to make and so, so refreshing on a hot summer day.

{image via insiders passport}

happy june.

it's the first day of june and already very hot here!

happily i am packing the kids up and we headed out to the pool for the entire day! it's suppose to reach a high of 97 degrees here!!

hope you have a happy first day of june too!

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!!

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}

the weekend + some things.

today it's officially the last day of school! i can hardly believe how quickly the year went by. the end always brings a sense of sadness to me as my babies are growing right before my eyes. yet, i am anxious for the care-free days of summer and spending lots of time together without a daily schedule to follow. and it begins, this weekend!!

so, this memorial day weekend marks the beginning of summer for us and a reason to celebrate! i'm hoping the weather is warm and sunny. i'd like to spend some time at the pool, grilling meals outdoors and eating lots of frozen treats!! do you have any special memorial day weekend plans?

whatever your plans... happy memorial day weekend!! here are some things i have seen i thought you might enjoy too-

an awesome beer bash for the guys
and a sweet milk and cookie party for kids
i'm in love with chalk lettering
and chalkboard state maps
happy i bought these for summer
very clever postcard birthday poster
would you go for the neon ombre look?
treats we might enjoy this weekend

hope your weekend is happy!!

{image via shopdirtsa}

sponge balls.

last thursday, sia celebrated her last day of preschool before taking a break for the summer. as she said goodbye to all of her sweet little classmates, she gave each of her friends a sponge ball to have fun with during the summer.

i made the sponge balls using the tutorial found here. after making enough for the entire class, i packaged each of them in cellophane bags and added a tag instructing the children to "make a splash and have a ball this summer!"

finding balance.

during the past couple of weeks, i feel as if i have somehow lost my sense of balance. so many balls have been thrown at me and i graciously have been trying to catch them all. i have hardly taken the time to do some of the things that i enjoy and inspire me. the things that give me balance and give me a sense of self.

when i started this blog, i did so to focus on the simple things that bring happiness to my world each day. the things that make me smile. things that bring me a great sense of gratification. inspiration. happiness. joy. i intended on focusing on all of those things each day. yet somehow, among the busyness of being a stay-at-home mom, i haven't found or made the time lately to even sit down and write a thing or two. i have dropped that ball. i haven't made time for me.

and so, as school is coming to an end this week, i finding my balance again. remembering me, making the time to do the things i enjoy and focusing on the simple joys of each day.

cinco de mayo.

if i were having a cinco de mayo party (and i really wish i were) i would totally make the ruffled streamers that dana of made created. i think they would be so fun and colorful and the perfect decoration for a cinco de mayo fiesta.

do you have any special plans to celebrate today? our only plans include making beef and shrimp tacos for dinner and, i bought some colorful bolis ice sticks for the kids to enjoy afterwards!

happy cinco de mayo!!

all images via {made}

gratitude (for teachers).

this week we are celebrating teacher appreciation at our elementary school. yesterday, all of the children were asked to bring their teachers a single flower to signify gratitude for all that they do. i thought it would be fun for the teachers to collect their flowers in these cork vases. and so, i made one for each of them.

the supplies.. an empty espresso coffee can, cork place mats purchased at ikea, my very favorite tool- an x-acto knife, colorful yarn, a ruler, hot glue gun and a sweet note.


after measuring the can, i cut the cork place mat into a strip big enough to wrap around the entire can. with hot glue, i glued the cork into place around the can. lastly, i simply wrapped and tied colorful yarn around the can and pinned on a note of gratitude. it was so simple and perfect for a teacher's desk.

(the vases would be fabulous pencil holders for a teacher too!)

giant paper flowers.

happy monday! how was your weekend? the weather was absolutely beautiful as i had hoped and we enjoyed spending lots of time outdoors. just before our weekend began, i spent last friday afternoon decorating the elementary school in honor of teacher appreciation week.

i had seen these do-it-yourself paper flowers by brittany a few weeks ago and was inspired to make my own. you can find the complete tutorial here. i used smaller paper than suggested, but they were still fabulously big and the hallways looked happy and bright adorned with giant pink, orange and purple flowers.