I loved it. The chill. The skyscrapers. The art. The beautiful coats and scarves. The ocean like lake. And of course, the pizza.
Tim had work meetings in Chicago, so I taught online while he did whatever he did! We played every night. At least half of our dinners included deep dish pizza! And while we loved Geno's East and Jordano's, we made it official that Zachary's in good ol' California is still da best!
Have you been to Chicago? Do you love it? I hear it's a lot hotter in the summer and crazy cold in the winter. I'm pretty sure September was an awesome month for our travels.
So many fun birthdays this week! I love celebrating people.
The most adorable 2-year-old living in Roseburg ever turns 2 exactly today! Happy Birthday, Paige! We love you so. Keep your sparkle and joy, little one!
My one and only 28-year-old baby brother turned, well, 28 yesterday! Geez...when did he get so old? :) Really, I feel like we were just sitting on the living room floor, well past bedtime, playing "house" with the micro machines (that was the compromise -- and the secret to staying up late). There's nothing else in the world quite like the memories with family! Love you, Andy! Hope you had a spectacular day yesterday!
To my sweet nephew, Sawyer. I love how daring and funny you are! Already at just one year we have a glimpse into the darling (thrill-seeking) personality that God has blessed you with. We love being your aunt, uncle, and cousin. We are stoked to have you visit with us next month! Happy birthday, little (big) guy. Blakely's been working on a birthday message for you. Yesterday she made a cake for you and your daddy. On your actual birthday, she had baby talk wishes for you! All good things, we're sure! ;) Check it out.
Have the happiest of birthdays, Paige, Sawyer, and Andy!! We're sending you lots of love and aloha!
Are you like me? Do you try to deep clean your whole house, empty the dishwasher, put away the last load of laundry, and leave yourself a treat (for later) in the fridge--all on the day you leave town?
p.s. -- I blame (and truthfully, thank) my mother for this type A habit that this type B girl could never shake. ;)
I love to leave just like that. There's nothing better than knowing the freshness and peacefulness that awaits me when I step off the plane to come home.
Unfortunately, that was not my reality this time! Work and life were slammed up until the end and we left our little hale a wreck. I pushed it all out of my mind until the moment my garage door lifted. Yikes! It was the middle of the afternoon and our bodies told us it was crash time (NY is six hours later than we are here in Hawaii).
I painfully started the clean up/un pack process for maybe 10 minutes before Tim bossed me to stop and sit. Tim doesn't offer many directives, so when he does, I usually oblige... ;). Best decision ever. Blakely napped and we sat. Literally.
The next day, we jammed out our house work and slid back into our jobs/life. Now, a few days later, I've carved out quiet time to sip my Tazo Orange Spice Tea and catch up on my blogs!
Dear friends have had babies (welcome Halle Kate and Quinn Lily)
My nephew turned one (happy birthday, Sawyer)
Olivia is growing and changing (thanks for the blog updates, Luciena)
My dear Yasi just blogged my sweet girl on her photography blog today: ykvision.com
It's fun to play catch up and bask in such lovely photos!
We were in NY and Chicago for the last two weeks. We left B with her grandparents (all four of them). It was a blessed trip all the way around. I'll admit, it was killer to be away from my little one, but everyone won!
I'll share more soon. For now, here's a fun photo of me and my taller love on the ledge at Sears Tower.
Creamy cheese cake is my late lunch of choice today. Mostly because I can. Every once in awhile I feel the urge to rebel. Nothing big. But, something. Today, it's cheese cake for lunch!
I haven't been to my blog in soooo long. I've missed this slice of cyber-space. Aloha!
I'm grateful for the technology that invites me to keep in touch with you all, my loved ones, via this blog. But, I'm always thrilled when we get to be face-to-face rather than face-to-computer.
My dear friend Amber just journeyed back to her home in Okinawa, but what fun it was to have her and her ohana in such close space! And, right now, Tim and I are blessed to have a couple more Washingtonians with us currently (hence, the little--to none--blogging I've been doing lately... :)).
Amber... we loved our time with you!
My Hawaii Girls... I love each of you!
Last night I was blessed to listen to the dynamic speaker and Christian Success Coach, Dr. Dave Martin. He walked on stage joking about the discomfort of his skinny jeans and the description of himself being a cross between Joel Osteen and Larry the Cable Guy. Dr. Dave Martin was refreshing and hysterical from the start.
If you have the chance, check him out at davemartin.org; you'll love him.
Some of his specific lines are still reverberating within me today. I wanted to share.
He encouraged us to, "stop making a living and start making a life."
He cheered us on with. "the rest of your life is the best of your life."
He reminded us that the bible says, "this is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it."
Cleverly, and intentionally, the scripture doesn't read that yesterday was the day and hopefully I rejoiced. It also doesn't say that tomorrow is the day and I will plan to rejoice. No, clearly--today is the day! The current. The present. The now.
What's done is done and we don't have any guarantees for tomorrow. We can't let Satan rob us of our joy. Today is our day! Be glad! I know I am!
And, if you want, check out this clip (below) I found of Dr. Dave Martin on YouTube. It's not from last night, but it's a brief three minutes of inspiration and humor!
Aloha! I'll be back soon. I still want to share the goofiness and intensity from Tandemonium 2011.
Yup. Today is my dad's day! Not only is it his once-a-year celebration, but today marks 60 years exactly.
AND--get this--this past summer marked 3 special milestones.
My dear grandpa turned 90
my dad turned 60
and I turned 30.
30-60-90 Fun, right? And we were all together in California last month to celebrate!
Now, since my mom threw my dad a surprise ice-cream sundae open house tonight, I figured Blakely and I should partake from a distance. ;) And that we did.
She may have eaten most of her ice cream off the grass--with her hands, but hey, at least she can hang onto that spoon. It's all about the show. :)
Dad--on a sappier note,
For my entire 30 years, you have modeled what it means to be the same person in all circumstances. Your integrity, patience, and joy has not wavered. Thank you for loving God in such a tangible way. You've passed that on to all of us kids and we now get to pass it along to your grandkids.
Our hearts are full of love! Happy Russ Blake day! xoxo
