My Big Day

My wedding day was everything I had hoped for and more, and it something that I think about often.  Most brides can't really remember the specifics of their day as it goes by in such a whirlwind of chaos.  Mine went nice and slow, no stress, just family, and lots of amazingly precious moments.  I know this sound crazy but I am a changed person because of that day.  I was shown how much this amazing man loves me, how much my family loves me, and how God's grace and love brought us to that special day.  I felt my dad's presence and his love, as he would have been so happy for me.  I worked very hard at making it a special day, but it was well worth all the effort...it was absolutely perfect.

Alright enough sap...here are some of the moments I speak of.  If you hate pictures of happiness (and a lot of them)...please close your browsers now.

Rich's kids did not attend.  We wished with all of our hearts that they could have been there. We know that we did everything in our power to make that happen and it just didn't.  We missed them, and love them, but it wasn't going to ruin our beautiful day. 

The location was amazing and just gorgeous.

We wrote our own vows and speaking to each other, from the heart, in front of our families was so breathtaking and beautiful.  I pretty much cried through the whole thing. 

It was a beautiful ceremony.

The reception was so much fun, and the food was so good.  Rich and I spent most of the afternoon decorating it and it turned out great.

I had pictures of Rich and I then and now, and a scrapbook of "Our Story".

My theme was family, so I decorated the tables with pictures of our families.  I made the frames and they really turned out great and everyone enjoyed looking at all the pictures.  I must publicly apologize though, my brother Ryan's families frame and photo got left at home...sorry guys!!

It was nice to have those special people as decorations.

The cake was beautiful and delicious...

...and we didn't even smash it into each other's faces. 


But the most important part of the day was sharing it with very special people. 

 My boy...look how handsome he is.

My beautiful Bella.

Rich's family.  His sister Suzi, his brother Mike, sister-in-law Kelly, Shelby, and Johnathan.  It was so nice to have them there.

My brother Greg, sister-in-law Michelle, and JoJo.

My brother Ryan, sister-in-law Stacia, Sami, and Tyler.

 

My sister Kate, brother-in-law Dustin, and Abby.

I love my sweetie pie JoJo.

Red head Abby breaks my heart.

Handsome Tyler.

Adorable Sami-pie.

My fabulous siblings.

My amazing Mom.

My Aunt Sara and Uncle Tom (not pictured) came from Wisconsin...what a nice surprise.

The girls. Michelle, Me, Stacia, and Kate.

We were so glad that Stacia's brother and his family could join us.  Mates, Nikol, Matsey, Cade, and Zane. They were such a great family and we were so lucky to have them there.

Our families are the greatest.  To have Rich's sister, and his brother and family there was so special.  They all welcomed me into their family and I am so greatful.  My sister-in-laws Michelle and Stacia took all the pictures (with help from Nikol and Mates), and I thank them from the bottom of my heart. 

I am so blessed to have the kind of family I have.  They are so loving and generous and have taken Rich in and made him feel a part of this great big family. Sharing this day with them was a dream come true.  I love and miss them so much.

It was a beautiful, perfect, day.  Filled with love, laughter, family, and moments etched on my heart forever.

I am truly blessed.

More Later

- A Ro

My Happy Place

I always believed in the saying "Home is where your Mom is".  My Moms house was always my happy place.  I loved being there and being with my family (my brothers, nieces, and nephews all live withing 25 minutes)  When I first moved to California going there twice a year helped me survive.  California has sorta grown on me now and now that I have Rich, my Moms has turned into ONE of my happy places. So being there last week was so nice.

So I thought I would give you some reasons why my Moms is one of my happy places.

1.  The Indianola balloon festival happens around the time that we are home in August.

This is all from my Mom's front yard.

2. All the wide open spaces.

I love all the wide open spaces.  It is really nice to look out and just see green.

3.  Zona

This is our dog Zona.  She is about 13 years old and is the sweetest dog in the whole world.  She was my Dad's dog and was with him on the night he died.  When my brother found my Dad she was laying right beside him.  My Mom and Step Dad took her in and she has lived here ever sense.  She is a very special dog.

4. Lady

This is Lady, Andrew's dog.  She is one sweet dog, but will fight to the death to save the other dogs from varmits who like to cause trouble. 

5.  Vegas

This is our only indoor dog Vegas.  He is a Jack Russell Terrier and has such an...interesting personality.  He will hop up on your lap and let you pet him and then all of the sudden turn on you and start growling.  He is fine with the other dogs and runs with them as long as they are outside, but as soon as the wander inside he goes nuts.  If he is in a bad mood he will come into the room and lay on his bed facing the wall with his back to everyone in the room.  He is a little...CRAZY!! and oh so much fun.  We love Vegas.

6.  Wallpaper pictures.

My brothers and sister have taken a picture like this every Christmas since I can remember.  We call it the "Wallpaper picture"  My Mom gets teased for having this wallpaper in her dining room, but I think it fits her home perfectly.  I hate these pictures because no matter where I stand I always look dwarfed by my sibs.  Oldest + Shortest = Not fair.

7.  Things remain the same.

My Mom has had this hanging in her shower since my kids were little.  I am pretty sure no one uses it any more, and who can blame them since it is pretty old.  But the fact that it is there every time I shower there it hangs to remind me of times gone by.
 
8.  Constant reminders of how much she loves her kids and grandkids.

Andrew made this for her a very long time ago, but yet it sits on her shelf in the den.  Her house is full of pictures of all of us in various points in our lives.  It reminds us whenever we go there how much she loves all of us.

9.  The Cows.

Mom's house is right next to a farm that has cows.  When it gets cold or when it is about to storm they all come over to our side for shelter.  I just love watching them and watching Vegas bark at them.

10.  Home

Most of all it is a place where our kids will grow up loving to go to, just to be with family.  No matter where we all live "Home is where your Mom is"

More Later

- A Ro

Did You Miss Me? Project 365 Week 33 and 34

Well, as you can see sometimes well intentions go by the wayside.  I had planned to blog a little while I was gone, but with internet a little funky in the middle of Iowa it was next to impossible.

I have TONS to tell you and TONS of pictures to show you, but I think I need to start small and get these Project 365's done.

But to give you a little sneak peek:

• saw all my freaking adorable nieces and nephews
• had a great time at my "happy place"
• saw a hot air balloon insurgence
• watched as my son got his foot stitched up
• had the most amazing and beautiful wedding
• caught up with my family
• and flew home on Friday the 13th

See, you might just want to check in over the next couple of days...

Week 33
Sunday:

For the first time I have no picture.  I did lots of things in preparation for our trip, and even got delayed from coming home from errands due to brush fire, but alas, no pictures.

Monday:

Leavin' On a Jet Plane

We left for Iowa today.  This plane flew over us as we were getting on the shuttle.  WOW!!

Tuesday:

A Cake Pop Birthday

Today was Bella's 10th birthday.  We had a little party and I made a cake pop cake.

Wednesday:

He Ain't Heavy He's My Brother

We went to see Rich's brother and his family today.  It was nice to see them all and play with the kids.  I even got a new hair due from his daughter...I'll save that for another blog.

Thursday:

A Room With a View

We got to our condo in Missouri today.  This is our view from the balcony.  I loved our condo and this porch was a great place to start and end the day.

Friday:

A Very Special Trip

We went to see Rich's dads grave today.  Rich lost his mother when he was very young and his dad died when he was 16.  It was very nice to go there and see this headstone.  I wished I could have met him.  He helped raise an amazing man.

Saturday:

A Very Special Day

Our day was amazing.  The view was breathtaking, and our ceremony was so beautiful.  We wrote our own vows and the things he said to me really showed me how much this wonderful man loves me. 

Week 34

Sunday:

Oh My Goodness

My little red headed sweetheart was there too.  She is the cutest thing.  She is at that age where she wants her mama all the time, but I still got a little time with her.  My other niece and nephews were also there looking cute as ever.  I will post other pictures soon!!

Monday:

Puppies at Nana's

The dogs are so much fun at Nana's.  Lady and Zona love Bella and Andrew and are just the sweetest things around. 

Tuesday:

Happy Birthday Andrew

What could a boy who hates his picture taken and avoids all attention want for his birthday?  A singing group of waiters and waitresses!!  YES is all I can say about this.  My kids were born exactly a week apart and with my wedding in the middle it was a hard year for birthdays.  But we had fun and enjoyed their special days.

Wednesday:

Ice Cream You Scream

In the small town of Indianola Iowa a college student decided to open an ice cream stand as his summer job.  He works all night and early into the day to make his homemade ice cream and then sells it in the evening.  He works the stand and makes the ice cream.  It was so good!!

Thursday:

The Rest of the Gang

Here are my niece Sami and my nephew JoJo and my adopt-a-nephew Zane hanging in the sand box.  I love the fact that Sami is all dressed up in her Tinkerbell costume being a pretty princess AND digging in the sand box.  Just like my Bella did.

Friday:

 

Awww

 

Andrew sat next to this five year old on the way home.  He was SO cute.  He had never ridden on an airplane before and it was very cool to experience that with him.  Andrew was so patient answering all of his questions and just taking care of him.  It was such a cute thing.

Saturday:

 

 

Let the Fun Begin

Unpacking and getting back into routine...'nuff said.

The blessings of this weeks are very obvious.  I cannot begin to tell you how happy and lucky I am.  God is good!!

More Later

- A Ro

Project 365 Week 31

Well once again I am posting this a day late.  I uploaded all the pictures yesterday, but then got busy packing and dealing with LA traffic when there is a fire.  I'm telling you a 20 minute trip to the mall took an hour and a half to get home...I know, it gave me a chance to work on my patience!!

Anyway, here is my week in pictures...enjoy.

Sunday:

My Kids Crack Me Up

This is our outing to Kohls.  My son sometimes just makes me laugh.  He decided he needed a cart to push around Kohls even though we were getting him ONE new pair of shoes.  Well he pushed that cart around the store and had a blast. As you can see from this picture, Bella wanted it, and in his usual fashion Andrew tried to avoid the camera. 

Monday:

Stuff and Fluff

Today at camp we stuffed animals.  Each camper got to pick an animal and stuff it.  Each animal came with a backpack and a camp t-shirt.  Staff got to make one if there was extra.  I made this for Rich's daughter, but I would bet money that she doesn't want it judging by the way she is treating us now that she is home.  So very sad.  Bella made a frog that she named Senor Frog, and if you are Phineas and Ferb fans you will know that the word frog is not pronounced in the usual way. 


Tuesday:

Flowers For Me

Within the group of my friends we have three birthdays in a row.  Wendy's birthday was today so we all three got treated to lunch and these beautiful flowers.  I love sunflowers.

 Wednesday:

Happy Birthday To Me

Today is my actual Birthday!!  My CIT's got together and made me this card.  The presented it to me at our camp opening.  It nearly brought tears to my eyes.  The kind words and love that comes from these teenagers overwhelms me sometimes.  It also remind me of Rich's daughter and how hard it is for her to admit to her mother that she feels the same way as her new friends.  It is so sad.

Thursday:

FORE!!

We had mini golf on campus today.  These are three of our counselors who dressed up for the occasion.  I love young people who love life and have fun in everything they do.  Their campers are very lucky to have them as counselors!!

 Friday:

End of Camp

Today was the last day of camp and this is the spirit flag that I gave out each day.  The camp groups won this flag if they were particularly spirited that day.  They each drew their mascot on the flag when they won it.  They had so much fun with it and I just love how the flag turned out.

Saturday:

Mamarazzi

We went to get fro yo tonight.  As we were walking home I snapped this picture of Bella, but the flash was so bright and I was pretty close this is the face I got.  It reminds me of all those celebs that get "caught" by the paparazzi.  She is so cute!!


Well there you have it.  It was a busy but very fun week.  Today I am getting on an airplane and leaving for Iowa and then headed to Missouri on Thursday to get married.  My brother-in-law teased me yesterday that I was getting cold feet.  I have never been more ready and more excited and more sure of anything in my life.  He is the man I was meant to be with and I have waited a long time for this happy beginning.  My feet are very warm!!

Have a great week and I hope to post soon.


More Later

- A Ro