Me and My Boys...

I meant to share this photo yesterday; it is a shot taken of me with my boys on our porch before leaving for the wedding. I am so blessed an I am trying to treasure each of these simple moments. It seems I sometimes forget how wonder filled just today is!

Wedding Bells are Ringing...

This past Saturday we attended the sweetest wedding. Before I launch into the details of this particular wedding I need to preface it by saying this sweet, bride wore white once before (20+ years ago!) as one of my flower girls! Her Mother, my 1st cousin, was my Matron of Honor.

Circa: 1988

Don't they look precious together? I wonder if, in this picture, this Mama thought about the day when her sweet baby girl would put on another white dress and make her way down the aisle to meet her own groom?


Flash forward 20+ years and this little flower girl has planned her own wedding. She and her handsome groom decided on an outside venue that has much family significance, as they married outside the Clubhouse, by the lake that her Great-Grandfather/Grandmother founded (my grandparents). My parents and the Bride's Grandmother still live there.

What a pretty walk she has! I love the pomaders lining the aisle.

The Groom getting "before" instructions from the Minister?

Weren't these two Ring Bearers adorable?

A fresh faced flower girl contemplating that walk down the aisle.

Oh, my...she has really grown up since that little, tiny, three year old in a white dress, dropping flower petals down my aisle.

Lovely.


The couple performed a Salt Covenant during the ceremony. It was a beautiful symbol.

Love....







Love....

all you need is love.

The Father of the Bride, Mother of the Bride (who was my Matron of Honor) and Grandmother of the Bride (my feisty Aunt!!!).

I love this shot of the Bride's younger sister. It had to be a bit bitter-sweet for her. She gained a brother all the while seeing her sister begin a new family of her own.

The reception was held in the barn at the couple's new home and I loved these simple but elegant table centerpieces!










Gosh, I love weddings!!!!

For more information on the Salt Covenant see: http://www.marriagesaltcovenant.com/

Senior Pictures, sneak preview!

We went this week to have DD's Senior Photos done and the wonderful Photographer shared a sneak preview with us (maybe she could tell we were about to pop with excitement and didn't know how we would ever manage to wait until the preview session next month!!!). The photographer, Lynn Brown (of Lynn Brown Photography www.lynnbrownphotography.com ) was wonderful and was so patient and fun to work with. Please check out her website and her blog! She does fantastic wedding and family photography, as well!

I just want to know where my BABY went???

DD loves her a little retail therapy!

www.lynnbrownphotography.com

Saturday Date with DH!

Tomorrow my DH and I are going on a date! We are going to go tour one of the Southern Living Idea homes. This particular Idea Home is located in Dahlonega, GA in a gorgeous neighborhood called Achasta. http://www.southernliving.com/marketplace/achasta-newsroom-00400000045162/

I love walking through and seeing all the current trends in design and construction (remember, I used to be an Interior Designer in a previous life!). When we tour homes like this I get inspired to improve our home and that is why I like to go. It took a long time for my DH to understand this, as he felt looking meant I wanted newer, bigger, better (translated in man speak to mean more $$$). Thankfully, he can now go and appreciate that these are fantastic platforms for improving and updating our own living space even if that living space isn't a Southern Living Idea House. If you are in the vicinity of North Georgia this would make a great road trip! Here is a link to some photos: http://www.achasta.com/media_room/photos/southernliving

P.S., my little surprise is almost ready to announce!

Early Morning Adventure!

This morning found me dragging my 2 boys + friend out of bed at about 5:30 AM. That is early for a summer morning around here! It was worth the sleepy eyes because we went to the 1st morning of the Annual Helen Atlantic Hot Air Balloon Race. Unfortunately, due to weather, the actual race start had to be delayed but we still got to see several balloons inflated and a couple taking off.

http://www.helenballoon.com/

DS1, Friend & DS2 watch as a balloon begins to inflate.

I don't think I ever fully appreciated how big these balloons actually are!

We were extra proud that Clemson was well represented!Go Tigers!!!

Up, up and away...

Oh, and the best part? This was early morning FREE fun!

DS2 loved getting to climb inside and check out a real balloon basket.

A (late) Prom post...

This post is a couple of weeks late! The Prom was a couple of weeks ago and I wanted to share some of the fun photos of DD and her buddies.

DH and DD, what would be a dance be if Daddy didn't see you off?
DD and her besties!

Every season, I keep getting these reminders of how grown up she is getting.

DD and her Bestest.

Love this shot.

Shoes! We love the shoes!

silly girls!

Southern Belles, to be sure!

Ready for the Prom!

See ya, Mamacita!

School is out!

I have been MIA lately because I have been busy with the kiddos and all their end of the year activities and, of course, baseball! DS2 finished up his baseball season last Saturday with the team winning the game and then having a really fun end of the season party, complete with water balloons!


After the party we decided to have a little adventure and headed to Yellow Branch Falls. It was the perfect kick off to summer! We walked the 1.5 mile trail back into the falls and boy, was it worth it!

DS1 leads the way.

The flowers were so gorgeous and I probably spent an annoying amount of time taking photos on the way to the falls.

Just lovely!

My photo snapping caused theboys to have to stop and wait on the Slow-Poe (as DS2 has been known to label me!).

As we made our final turn and headed down to the falls we saw a cool blanket of mist rising. It was almost spooky.

So worth the walk.

Me!

I think if it hadn't been so late in the day, I could have sat there for hours.

My favorite shot of the day!

It was the perfect start to our summer vacation. It was especially nice that DH could go with us since we tend to find adventures while he is at work. He actually got to be part of the fun rather than just hear about it!