Extended Family Pictures

 This post needs to come with a WARNING!  It is picture heavy for sure!  

While my brother's family was in town last week, I asked my sister-in-law if she would be willing to take pictures of all of us!  She agreed and we did our best to get as many pictures in as possible in an hour (there are some that won't be named that don't have a ton of patience and they aren't members of my immediate family, eh-hem....dad)!

Couldn't be happier with how they turned out!  Don't think we have ever done pictures with all of us together ever, so it was a nice treat to give my parents.

 I mean, how cute are my parents?!  Love you mom and dad.

 The four of us.  I remember being little and having these done, but never as an older child.  Do you get family pictures done every year?  If not, you should.  The one below is my favorite of the four of us.  Think it pretty much shows exactly who we are.  Thank you Rae for capturing it.

I really love my little brother.  This trip out here for them made me realize how much I really miss him.  He and his family will be going overseas for the next three years (he works for Raytheon) and while I know it is what is best for his family, I am selfish in that I want he and his family to move next door to me.  Wishful thinking, but if I had it my way, I would live next door to every single family member, mine and Chad's.  I am lucky to be blessed with such wonderful family.

I really do wish you guys the best of luck!  What an experience y'all are going to have over in Saudi Arabia.  

And a few favorites of my family! Love them.

Was a hot and sweaty shoot, but couldn't be happier with the way these turned!

Love you BIG family.

InstaFriday - We ARE Family!!!

Another week has flown by, this one couldn't have been better!  Having family in town is the best!  Are you on Instagram?  I am jenni_roseland if you would like to follow and see our week before Friday's post!

 Kids got haircuts in preparation for all of the family coming into town this past week (plus, I may have scheduled a photo shoot while all of us were together)!  The hubs cut up the habanero peppers in preparation for our Summer Supper Club.  Jerk Chicken in the making (look for that post soon, I swear, all of the pictures are ready to go)!

 I painted the inside of mason jars and put flowers inside them for a little supper club table decor.  Hung between the windows were pictures of supper club pasts, the guest got to take home their pictures when the night ended!  Saturday marked two years (eight meals) of trying new foods together (and like I said above, a post about what we ate is coming soon)!

Sunday was really the day I was waiting for!  After church and painting Lola's toes in nice festive fourth of July colors, we headed up to my parents place to spend the day together - my brother and his family flew in from North Carolina and obviously, my parents were in town!  It was so nice to all be together!  As you can see, we pretty much swam the whole day.  Before my dad made us all dinner, my mom and I started off my July challenge (walking 45 miles in July) by going at the hottest part of the day!  While it was very pretty, it was hooooooottttt!

 Monday I had to go back to the dentist, more fillings and a mouth mold (worst thing ever)!  Ugh.  I grind my teeth, so a Night Guard was neccesary!  Headed back to my parents after I was done to join the kids in the pool, again!  Kyan fell asleep on the new raft they got and during a swim break, Lola was picking out the juiciest watermelon of them all to eat!  Walked around both lakes with my mom and Erin this time!  Was beautiful!

 Tuesday I picked up Fletchers remains and the Animal Hospital made us a very sweet heart with his paw prints.  They didn't have to do it and it wasn't something they made me pay for, just something they did.  Something so small, but it meant so much.  I had plans to meet up with my mom, sis-in-law, and friend to watch Magic Mike.  It was magical alright, but not really what I expected is really the only way I can put it!?  The cousins watched the firework show together!  The two little were not BIG fans at all! 

My favorite part of Tuesday was family picture day!  Here is just a sneak peek at one (really they were pictures of all of us together, but each of our families happened to get in a little one on one time and this was my favorite of ours)!

 Wednesday we had a BIG 4th of July party at the house and when I took a look at the clouds in the morning, I was worried we might be rained out all day!  It did pour for about an hour (and the kids played in it for sure) but we had to have a plan B for the cooking - so instead of making a bazillion hotdogs on the grill, we made them on the stove!  We swam and paused for an ice cream break and then ate some more!  Food, friends, family = fun for everyone!  Our fourth was a hit!  The boys played a new game called Torpedo in the pool (kinda like Marco Polo, but quieter) and it was hilarious!

 My favorite picture of them!!!  

 Thursday morning I woke up and headed to Last Chance with Meghan!  Been forever and a day since I have been there and the first time I have went with a professional Last Chance shopper!  I was hoping that I could score a pair of TOMS, and with Meghan's help and from a stranger in line, I found two pairs that fit!  Truth is I don't have the eye for shopping there, but hopefully I will be able to figure it out with future trips!  I got a pair of wedges and a sparkly silver pair of TOMS, a gold pair of Sperry's, two pairs of Havaianas, 3 short sleeve shirts and 3 tank tops, all for under a hundred bucks!  Saw Brave with the kids before heading back out to my parents house, where I walked around the lakes again with my mom!  Grandpa was busy being the favorite again!  He is so good with the kids, no wonder they all love him!

Life in phone pictures, how it goes these days!

Linking up with Jeannett, over at Life Rearranged again this week!

InstaFriday - Unexpected Loss

Ok, so Friday's are usually my favorite day - I have been neglecting my blog don't I know it, but Friday is the one day that I always come back and reflect on our week (thanks to my iphone and instagram, you can follow me at jenni_roseland if you want to) and it is always so much fun to look back and see what we have been busy doing.  

I can honestly say, we really had a great week up until last night.  You know real life got in the way, well death actually (no, it isn't all roses around here, but I don't tend to blog about that stuff, just the good stuff, the stories that my kids and their kids are going to want to read about someday).   Last night our dog Fletcher passed away very unexpectedly.  We had just been given a report by the vet a week ago (see the pictures below) that he was one healthy, just very old dog!  So when I went outside to call my dad and saw Fletcher just lying there, barely able to breath, I knew it wasn't going to be long before he passed.  My mom talked to me the whole way to the animal hospital, but it was too late when I got there, he died in my car on the way over.  I knew it and was able to say goodbye before I brought him inside the hospital.  I really did think Fletcher was going to live forever.  The kids are very sad and we told a lot of Fletcher stories last night.  They also talked about how he is with Delilah now and they are buddies once again.  He really will be missed BIG.

That being said, here was the rest of our week:

 I tried another crock pot recipe, Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches!  They were a hit once again (even though the bread I bought was way to big)!  I did a little 4th of July decorating and hung my favorite decoration up, my paint chip banner!  It fills the frame perfectly  And like I said earlier, we took Fletcher to the vet last week and he was given a great bill of health!  I am so glad we took him though, I got that sweet picture of him with the kids and also of just him.  Kyan has a picture collage in his room and one of the pictures is of our late dog Delilah, so he asked if he could add Fletcher's picture to it.  And no, those toes aren't Lola's.  Kyan thought it would be cool to have his painted black, however, as soon as I finished, he started scraping them off!

 Took my walk early Saturday morning and it was hottttt!  I decided that I like my evening walks better.  Also, my knee has been killing lately.  Two knee surgeries in high school and I will never be right I swear.  I have never been a runner, but I long to run.  I like my walks, don't get me wrong and I have loved every second of this challenge, but I want to run and it just doesn't happen for me.  Any runners out there with tips?  Or other ACL surgery patients that put something on their knee while walking/running.  I got my planner in from Much Ado About You and I LOVE it!  If you are a paper planner, you need to check out her shop!  Went to my nephew's birthday party and I showcased how I do cards, with paint chips.  They are my answer for everything!  And night swims, they are the kids favorite!  When I asked them to pose, this is what happened all on their own!  Love them.

Cleaned the pool Sunday trying to get it ready for two parties coming up this next week!  New boots found by my parents at an antique store!  Yippee, that means they will be nice and worn in already for me, keeping fingers crossed they fit!  Went on my walk with crazy hair!

 Went on the hunt for tile that matched existing tile and struck out big time the first trip out.  Way too light.  I got pretty dang close round two!  Lola has been dying to do her "painting project" as she calls it, so we busted it out and she went to town (I did too, it was fun).  She is still working on it!  Hoping to put it in their playroom when she is all done!  Made chicken salad sandwiches for dinner!  Yum.  I wanted to make tuna, but we were out and only had canned chicken, so I improvised!  Added green apples, red onions and mayo to the canned chicken.  Topped it with sprout and raddishes!  So delicious!  Lola even loved it!  I made her a special version the next day, onion free!  Excited that she has moved on to bigger and better things than just peanut butter sandwiches!

 See that sunscreen?  Yeah, that will last about a week at my house.  Love it when she is sleeping.  So peaceful.  Updated the bathroom towels, slowly but surely my house will look nice.

 Wednesday the kids woke up and did chores.  No arguing, no fighting.  Just teamwork!  It was awesome!  Then we headed to Target, Kyan had a gift card burning a hole in his pocket and he wanted a new Skylander guy!  It was over his price range, but I told him I would help him out, since he did such an awesome job with the chores!  Hoping that it would help in the chore department later on!  Lola got new goggles and a hula hoop, which really is shared between the both of them!  I need to get Kyan his own!  They both love it!  Had to go to the dentist to get a few fillings after Target, for me, not my kids!  They were very excited to go with me though, they love my dentist, he plays movies for them!  Good thing too, I need to go back and next week for more!  Ugh.  After the dentist and having half of my face numb, I took Chad's car to the dealership for service.  That was awesome, being able to talk out of half my mouth.  I forgot to eat breakfast and my appointment was at eleven, so I figured I would eat after...forgetting that I would be numb and not able to eat for hours afterwards.  So while at the dealership, I used the good half of my face to eat those funyuns!  Favorite chip, hands down!  What is yours?  Took everything out of one room and spread it all over the rest of my house.  Picked up the tile from Home Depot, those aren't pizza boxes (I wish)!  They were so heavy and it took almost 30 minutes to get help, but there was no way I could lift twelve 80lb boxes on my own!

Bright and early the tile man came and got busy!  He worked up until about 6:30 last night, right about the time our world was rocked.  During the day, Fletcher needed to be kenneled, so he would get in the way and before Lola took her nap, she could hula hoop or read a book, she chose to read to Fletcher.  This picture melts my heart.  She sat there for about 15 minutes reading to him the story of Jesus' birth.  Since we stayed home all day, I was able to get several projects done!  We were supposed to go see a movie with friends in the late afternoon, but we weren't able to make it.  The kids understood and instead watched "Big Miracle" together!  They really are the best.  Hoping to catch the movie "Brave" soon!

Linking up with Jeannett this week.  Thank goodness for my iPhone and life's little captures! Those little moments are so BIG to me.

Looking forward to seeing my family very soon.

InstaFriday - Today is a Special Day!

First things first.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my beautiful mama today!  

We really BIG love you and can't wait to see you at the end of the month!

Now, onto our week...

 Try as I might to set the calendar on my phone, I just need to see it on paper.  Enter Much Ado About You!  Emmy and her crew have the cutest planners around town and the LOU will be mine soon!  Can't wait to get it in the mail sometime this week!  Kyan was illin' on Friday.  Throat felt funny, white as a ghost in the face, legs were weak, thought he was going to puke.  Poor boy.  I rushed him to the doctor thinking he had strep (he always has strep, I swear), but turns out, he just needed to eat.  That dang expander in his mouth was hard getting used to.  He finally has it down, but didn't really eat for two days and of course his body was acting crazy!  By lunchtime, he was a whole new kid!  He is eating food quite nicely now, we are just getting used to the slurping sound 'round these parts!  Lola wanted to go with me on one of my walks, so I pushed her in her stroller that was too small for her and the miles we took on!  But, she was so much fun to have tag along and sang to the ipod or talked to me the entire time!

 Before we walked though, we were able to eat a yummy dinner!  Tex-Mex Chicken Tacos, Cilantro-Lime Rice (that tastes exactly like Chipotle) and Watermelon!  So delicious and another crock pot success!  Quick question for my birthday mama...why did we never cook using one of these growing up (but I still love you)?!

 Saturday I was crock pot cookin' again!  This time around it was Brown Sugar & Balsamic Vinegar Glazed Pork Loin, Baked Hasselback Potatoes, and Asparagus.  Kyan loved this and gobbled it up!  He even asked if we could have it again, you know it is really good when that happens!  While the crock pot was doin' its thing, Lola and I went to get manicures and pedicures!  Not before she ran around the house being SpideyGirl of course!

 Again, while dinner was cooking away, the kids enjoyed bowling at a friends birthday party!

 Sunday we celebrated Father's Day the best way we knew how, out by the pool!  But first daddy had to get his workout in, you know, bench pressing the kids after they gave him his present!  We enjoyed dinner over at Rae Lynn's house with the rest of the family to celebrate all of the boys!  And just in case you were wondering what we are eating for our summer supper club, you can get a sneak peek up there in the corner!  It is going to be yummy!

 Lola has been money this summer taking naps, I just think I need to get her maybe one more stuffed animal to sleep with, don't you?!  While walking Monday night, I saw a beautiful sunset over the White Tank Mountains!  Then I came home to those two in the middle!  Bwah!  Lola was giving Kyan a back massage using a Hello Kitty pencil she got from a birthday goody bag!  So thankful my kids get along like they do!

 Tuesday I woke up the kids at the butt-crack of dawn to go visit Grandpa and Grandma Shipe over in the east valley.  They have treasures over there and a hunting we did go!  I came home with that cabinet in the corner and a love seat that is out of this world (although Chad might beg to differ)!  I joined in on Lola's nap, we were wiped after our super early morning out and about!  We make a special spot on the couch and take naps there most days!  I walked by myself and figured out a way to keep my water cold, although carrying that big old pink bottle is heavy at the beginning, it is worth it at the end when I have something to drink that isn't 80 degrees!  I need to invest in a camelback, as I am going to continue to walk this summer in 110 degree (give or take a few degrees) heat!

 While I swore I wasn't going to do turquoise, I ended up with that very shade (although it is much lighter than I usually go).  Krylon's Ocean Breeze just tugged at all of my heart strings and felt like the right one.  Wednesday was a day for spraying and spraying and spraying!  I think I got 5 good layers on the piece of furniture and a ton on my feet (never fails) and up my nose (TMI, but all of my nose hairs and boogers were Ocean Breeze that day)!  I cleaned up alright though and snapped a picture with my hubby, love him.  He actually smiled too, on the first try, no silly faces!  Shocker!

As if I wasn't taking on a big enough project with the refinishing of the furniture, I made a new wreath for my door, in preparation for summer supper club coming up next weekend, A Paper Umbrella Wreath!  I saw it on pinterest and knew I had to make it for the party, as it went perfectly with our Caribbean theme!  If I am being perfectly honest though, I was avoiding sanding that sucker down and needed a quick distraction.  After an house I was done with the wreath (Lola helped me) and got down to business.

 While the furniture looked good a solid Ocean Breeze, I knew it was going in the kids play room and it was going to get dinged up over the years, so I had to help that process along.  I sanded it by hand and you'll have to either follow me on instagram to see how it turns out (jenni_roseland) or stay tuned until next Friday, where I am sure I will have it revealed, final touches are going to happen today!  I took a challenge to run/jog/walk/crawl (ok, not really crawl) 40 miles in June and I made it last night!  Way earlier than expected!  I am going to do a post on the challenge by itself, as it was a lot more for me than just reaching that number (although it was so exciting last night)!  Looking forward to seeing how many miles over I can get before the end of the month!  To celebrate, took my girl to a new yogurt place (Yogurtini) that opened down the street.  She ate yogurt, while I ate subway!  I did try a few bites of the yogurt and it was delicious!  We will be going back there for sure!

Happy Weekend Y'all!  

Linking up with Jeannett, because she has the coolest party in town!

One more week until I see my long, lost brother!  I miss you Joel!

My Baby Daddy

He sure is a good one (and strong too)!!!  

The kids got a kick out of him when he benched pressed them this morning!!!

Lots and lots of giggling going on today!

 Kids were excited to give him his present (to be used by the pool) and picture (to put up his desk at work)!

 A closer look at daddy facts (what was in the picture frame they gave him)!  They weren't sure about some of the answers, but when it came time for the question about what daddy likes to do for fun, they were for sure!!!
*In case you were wondering, I made the daddy facts using the picmonkey program.  So easy.

 

We spent the afternoon by the pool, just hanging out as a family.  It was the perfect kinda day!  One of the kids' favorite thing to do with Chad is to snorkel around the water with him.

Happy Father's Day to my baby daddy.  Love you.