Friday morning, Patrick, Miles and I are leaving on a (small, prop) plane to meet his family in the Bahamas. We all went in 2006, and this time Miles gets to come!
Tomorrow I'm going to being posting some of my best packing tips, since I'll be right in the middle of packing. While I'm not an expert, we do travel a lot. In fact, Patrick spent 200 nights in a hotel in 2007, and between the two of us we've hit most of the continental US plus 7 foreign countries.
If you have any pearls of wisdom in that category, get ready to share them tomorrow in the comments!
Yay for March coming in like a lion! The weather is beginning to feel like Spring and we have fun things happening this month. Here's a look at the first week:
{Sunday: On my way home from Fayetteville, I stopped at Babies R Us and found these sandals for Miles. They will be so perfect for the Bahamas in a few weeks and they were only $5. Whoohoo.}
{Monday: I got this little cutie in the mail today. I'm trying to branch out and wear more accessories.}
{Tuesday: Miles wants to do everything himself lately. I like this little cup with a lid so he can carry around his snack, but he does still manage to get crackers out and drop them everywhere!}
{Wednesday: Holy Moley, what a mess. The contents of my purse: my wallet, Halls Breezers package, CPR mouth shield, mints, stale cheerios, a Christmas ornament and it's batteries, two lip glosses, two bottles of Ibuprofen, hand cream, keys, several pens, the book Wicked, two playbills from the musical Wicked (that we saw in November), Baby Tylenol, one glove, hand sanitizer, many receipts, and a pacifier. Oh my.}
{Thursday: It was such a nice afternoon that we took a little walk down to our neighbor's house to visit the goats. As you can see from his face, Miles is still not so sure about them. Lee and Jayne were trying to talk him into petting it, but he wasn't having any of it.}
{Friday: Patrick came home with a gift for me today! He read this recently and told me it MUST go on my list. Smart boy knows I love presents and books.}
{Saturday: Our friends, Jon and Jamie Grief, came to see us this afternoon and deliver some Girl Scout cookies. We went and ate at Pizza Hut and the two littlest boys had fun playing while we ate.}
Oh, and if you're wondering how I put the days of the week on my pictures watch this quick video.
So the title of this post should probably be "February Book" instead of "Books" since I only finished one! And actually I've been reading it since early January. So kudos to me. Ahem.
I read this book based on my brother's recommendation, and I really enjoyed it. To be honest with you, it took me awhile to really get into Pillars and I'm not sure why. I'm a huge fan of historical fiction, but it just took me awhile to really settle into it.
This is an epic tale of the building of a cathedral set in England during the Middle Ages. It is a long book, and like I said, it took a bit for me to become invested in the characters, but once I did I was desperate to know how it would end.
There are several parallel stories unfolding over many years. There is a little bit of everything weaved in: love, betrayal, war, politics, and religion. I think it's a book that both men and women would enjoy.
One thing that bugged me throughout the book was the author's use of very modern language through characters living in the Middle Ages. It seemed odd to me to use so much modern slang, but perhaps there is a deep purpose for it that I'm just not seeing? It wasn't a deal breaker for me, but it was distracting.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good historical tale.
I'm hoping to read a few more from my list in March. Do you have any in your queue?
*Just to be clear, the book link above is to my Amazon store. I will probably make half a cent if you decide to purchase it there. :)
Before I share my March goals, let me update you on how I did with my goals for February: terrible.
I did keep up with my picture taking for my Project Life and we did really well with our budget, but everything else? I pretty much forgot about it. So now you know I'm not Super Woman. ('Cause I know you really thought that before. ahem.)
But that's the beautiful thing about setting goals each month. I get to start over! So here goes:
March Goals:
1) Organize paperwork in the office. Really, this time.
2) Read 3 books from my list. I need to make up for only reading 1/2 a book in February.
3) Decrease my soda intake, increase water.
4) Finish decorating the kitchen.
What about you? Any goals for this month?
*You'll notice I don't have any exercise/weight goals for this month. We're going on vacation in a week and it's a little late to get skinny for that so I'll just get back on that in April. :)
This was a fun week for us! Patrick had some more training in Wichita so he was in and out, and Miles and I went to Arkansas for the weekend. We like being on the go.
Also, I've had a few questions about how I added the day of the week stamps to my pictures, so at the bottom of this post is a video tutorial showing exactly how to do it.
{Sunday: We cut up our credit cards tonight ala Dave Ramsey. Feels good to have those suckers paid off!}
{Monday: If you look closely at his top lip, it's swollen in the middle. Poor Bubba tripped at school today and busted his lip. It didn't seem to phase him much.}
{Tuesday: I'd been getting grief about Miles' long hair again so we went for a haircut today. It's a little uneven because he would NOT sit still! I think he looks like such a big boy now.}
{Wednesday: I foolishly tried to get a shot of Patrick, Miles and Macey today. Getting a toddler and a dog to look at the camera at the same time just wasn't going to happen! This is the best of all the shots.}
{Thursday: I spent the afternoon packing for my trip to Fayetteville, AR. Miles and I met three of my best college friends for the weekend!}
*So, I totally spaced and only took ONE picture from the entire weekend, and that was on Saturday. We spent Friday evening eating brownies and chatting until 1:3o in the morning! I'll just add a bigger journal card instead of a picture. *
{Saturday: Lunchtime at the mall! This is Miles and my friend, Lesley's little girl, Hannah. So sweet to see them together.}
About the Brushes:
First, I have to thank Jessica for the idea! You can purchase and download these brushes HERE.
How To Load and Use Days of the Week Brushes:
I decided to make the following video because:
1) I discovered a new program at a workshop on Friday that I was dying to try.
2) It's really easy, but it's not self-explanatory. So I wanted to save you some time!
Please keep in mind that I am NOT a photoshop expert, but this works for me. If you want to give me some tips then go right ahead! :)
*Also, please note that at one point in the video I say something like "On the left is your tools." And as much as that pains me, I'm not re-doing the video. I'm tired. ha!
