29 on the 29th!

Yep, I turned 29 today! Happy Birthday to me! M asked me if it was my "dirty 30" this morning.....thank you Auntie Kara for teaching her that one. Ha.

It will be more like a birthday weekend because we aren't doing much celebrating today due to J's crazy work schedule. But, I did wake up to this on my kitchen table this morning!

Some of my favorite things.......a Kohl's gift card (which I plan to use for new running shoes), Twizzlers (I really prefer Red Vines but this will do), a Bonzai Tree (I am starting to love having plants around), and a really pretty wall hanging that I already hung in my living room. He is soooo sweet! My kids sung Happy Birthday to me while eating breakfast before work. I feel pretty lucky.

It's been a quiet day, especially because I work remotely from home. But tomorrow we plan to venture over to Corvallis for a nice dinner with friends and some ice cream. Then a BBQ at my mom's on sunday with more ice cream (ice cream cake to be exact). Sounds like fun if you ask me!

Have a fabulous weekend!

Meet our new furry friend!

It's Monday "Blah day" folks. No one likes Mondays, myself included. But, I'm really trying to push through the day with a smile on my face.

I hope you all had a great weekend! Ours was pretty mellow, but wonderful at the same time. J and I have been discussing getting another dog and finally took the plunge! I guess you could say it was his Father's Day gift. We didn't want a puppy. I'm not big on really hate training puppies. I loathe potty training them and going through the mess of it all. Instead we wanted to adopt a young dog but one that was already fixed, house trained, and up-to-date on shots. We lucked out and found this pretty girl, Lily! She is a 13 month old, American bulldog and Boxer mix. They actually call these half-breeds Bulloxers! Isn't she adorable? I had a Boxer while growing up and she was the best dog so my hope is that Lily will be too.

So far she seems like a great fit in our home. She is a gentle dog but has lots of energy. We already have a 7 year old golden retriever, Jake. He needed a playmate and she will certainly keep him on his toes. He tends to get lazy! She needs some training but nothing major. Just small things that we need to work on. J and the kiddos are stoked to have another dog around. I hope that she can be my jogging buddy in the near future. :)

We celebrated Father's Day on Saturday night with J's favorites: lasagna and chicken wings (nice combo, right?) and some delish turtle brownies. Sunday morning we joined my mom, step-dad, step-sister and her kiddos for brunch. Gotta love biscuits and gravy, bacon, fruit, strawberry pie, and mimosas!

I definitely indulged way too much this weekend. All that food tasted great but man did I overdo it! Time to cut back and work out extra hard this week.

  

Back from vacation...

Hello friends!!! Long time, no chat. I have officially been back from vacation since Monday evening but have been swamped with work and household chores that I haven't had time for my little ol' blog. I am making time today to enlighten you all on how my vacation went. Basically, it was fantastic! More than fantastic actually. I was able to see more family in just over a week than I have seen in years. I was able to squeeze in time with a few good friends as well, which was way overdue. I will forewarn you now, this post contains tons of pictures!

We hit the road right after work the Friday before Easter, grabbed a bite to eat and drove. A VERY LONG DRIVE. We had decided to play it by ear and were debating on getting a hotel room around midnight, but changed our minds and drove straight through. Yes, we're a tad crazy. Just in case you were wondering. J and I switched off driving every few hours while the kiddos snoozed through the night. Problem is I don't sleep in cars. It's so uncomfortable. Needless to say we only got a few hours of sleep total but it was worth it. We arrived in Temecula, CA around 7:30am that Saturday after being on the road for almost 15 hours. Of course we needed naps but for the most part we were good to go. We stayed with my brother-in-law and his family for about 4 1/2 days, celebrated Easter there, and visited my sister-in-law as well.

We spent part of day playing at the beach with some AMAZING weather! Oh how I miss my days in San Diego.

Hanging at the Oceanside Pier

M with our new niece...isn't she a doll?

L and his aunt

We also were able to stop in to say hello some of our old Navy friends. Both of which were some of our closest friends when we lived in SD and they still are.

J's old buddy from the USS McClusky

One of my favorite people :)

We left the following Wednesday and headed over to Blythe, CA (my hometown). We were able to stay with my Aunt and her family which was awesome. She has 5 big tortoises that my kids wanted to feed every 10 minutes. Not kidding, they asked constantly. It was a blast for them. Thursday was spent playing at the park and visiting my favorite cousin and her new baby boy. He is so stinkin' adorable.

My cousin and I

That night we had a bonfire with family and played some fabulous games. I must buy Catch Phrase ASAP because it's seriously the best game. We laughed so hard! I met some fabulous friends and family friends for lunch on Friday at my favorite Mexican restaurant and spent some time with my dad, stepmom and little brother that night. Saturday was spent visiting with my dad and preparing for the big shindig that night.

My brother entertaining the kids

My grandparents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary and the party was a huge success. At least 150 friends and family members attended! It's pretty amazing to celebrate that many years of marriage these days and they are such an inspiration.

My aunt and I

All the grandkids (minus my little brother) with the guests of honor

Me and the hubster

Sunday was spent celebrating my great grandpa's 90th and my grandma's 80th birthdays. Tons of family stuck around for the birthday party allowing for more visiting time.

Papa and Nana with their great grandkids

Dad and his girls

blowing out their candles :)

I'm sure you recognize these two! My sister, Kara and cousin Casey.

Sunday afternoon after the party we said our goodbyes and hit the road to head back to Oregon. It was bittersweet because of course I didn't want to leave but was so ready to get home. We drove about 6 hours that night, slept in a hotel (a dumpy one at that), and drove 11 hours on Monday. I went back to work Tuesday and it's been a crazy busy week since!

I'm going to try to post a few things over the next week but the movers come to pack us up next Wednesday and we are officially moving in one week so it's pretty chaotic around here. If you don't hear from me, that's why!

Til next time folks!

Packing

This week has been a bit of an overkill in our house. Maybe not overkill per se. Just busy and a little overwhelming. Tomorrow after work we hit the road for a trip to Cali. I am ecstatic. We get to see so many family members in about 8 days. Our first stop is Temecula, CA to stay with my bro-in-law and his family. They had a new baby in February and are moving to NY this summer so the timing was right to visit before they make that big move out East. Plus my sis-in-law lives in San Diego too! Being that we lived in San Diego for so long, we have some friends in the area that we hope to say hello to as well. Mid-week we head on over to Blythe, CA (my hometown). I have not been back to Blythe in about 3 1/2 years. Crazy, I know. Living in Illinois for a few years and moving to Oregon has made it difficult and traveling with a family of 4 is pretty darn expensive these days. Which is why we are driving and not flying for this trip. Granted, gas prices are sky high. But, 4 plane tickets would have been insane. Not looking forward to the drive with the kiddos, but we will grit our teeth and it will be worth it when we're there :) I have tons of family living in Blythe and nearby that we will get to see and some of them have never met L and haven't seen M or J in over 3 years. Super excited! My grandparents are celebrating 50 years of marriage this month (amazing, right?). There will be a big party and family reunion of sorts, which is the main reason for this trip. It's going to be a busy but very rewarding and relaxing vacation for us.

Timing, however, has not really been on our side. We are moving. At the end of this month to be exact! Vacation is right smack in the middle of it. But, timing is never perfect, right? Right. Anywho, the past few days have been crazy. We finally found a rental and got that squared away. Thank goodness we don't have to pack up our house! The relocation company is moving everything for us. Woot, woot! I did not want to hunt down boxes and pack yet again for another move. I attempted to start packing for our vacation last weekend. Didn't happen. Too much laundry to do, got a flat tire that needed repairing (and has since needed repairing again and will be completely replaced today), and J had tons of homework. So, I have been slowly packing since yesterday and need to finish tonight. I am not a fan of packing. I overpack. Really overpack. I mean, how the heck can you decide exactly what you want to wear every day? I have a hard time with this. I usually bring way too many tops and shoes. J makes fun of me and begs me to put some back. I can't bring myself to do it. Even though I know some of what I bring will not be worn. I even packed too much for my kids. I may need to go through their bag again tonight to downsize. It's out of hand I tell ya! Let's hope I can work through the madness tonight and get it all done. I need this vacation.

I will most likely be MIA from the Blogosphere for the next 8-10 days. Sniff, sniff. But, I will try to pop in with a vacation update at some point. No guarantees. I will have the trusty camera with me and expect a big vacation recap when I get back with tons of pictures. Yay!

Happy Thursday ya'll! Have a fabulous day!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is St. Patty's Day, the day we all wear green and pinch those that choose not to participate (at least that's what we used to do when we were younger). More importantly, today is my mom's birthday! How cool is it to have your birthday on the day celebrated with green beer?! I think it's pretty awesome.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

Me, Mom, my brother, and my sister at the dunes in Florence, OR

Happy Birthday to the best mom in the world! Mom, you are not only a wonderful mother and grandmother, but you are my friend, a best friend. We have a special relationship that I will always cherish. And I will be forever thankful that God gave me a mother like you :) I love you.

Even though we don't get to celebrate with my mom today, we hope she has a fabulous day and we are excited to celebrate with her tomorrow!

Have a happy and safe St. Patty's day peeps!

XOXO,
Ashley

So Blessed...

Yesterday was one of those days where all I wanted to do was sit on the couch and do nothing but watch TV and not think about anything. Unfortunately, work got in the way of that thought....darn it! My mind was full of worries and thoughts that were bogging me down. Sometimes I feel like I would give anything to clear my head and not think about anything, remove all distractions and focus only on the important things in life. Thankfully, my kids make me realize on a daily basis that I think too much and that they are more important than any worry in the world. When I get home from work and am greeted by my two smiling rugrats wild and crazy munchkins, my day matters so much more that wanting to sit on my couch and wallow in my life full of stress. They melt my heart. Every day. In every way. They are my little blessings and I couldn't ask for anything better.

My point behind all this? That I am BLESSED beyond words. This is something I have to remind myself daily because life can get so overwhelming that you start to forget how many blessings you really do have. I am the #1 culprit. And I need to be more thankful to GOD for giving me what I have.

Another one of those God-given blessings is my love of Photography. I have mentioned before that I have a passion for Photography. That passion stemmed from my love of storytelling, of wanting to capture memories and be able to re-tell them through photos. As much and I love taking photos, lately I haven't been taking enough of them around my house. M turned 5 on Christmas Eve and I still hadn't taken her yearly pics (that is until last weekend)! I know, shame on me. I did the same thing last year. Being a Christmas Eve baby can make it more difficult. I usually aim for January so that the holidays are over but then the weather tends to rear it's ugly head and I end up waiting until early spring. But, luckily the weather permitted last weekend and we got outside for a photo opp. I feel pretty happy with the results. I wanted to share just a couple with you lovely readers :) I am in no way what I would consider a professional at this point. It's something I have thrown around for awhile and toyed with the idea of aiming for that, but I am really not sure yet. As of right now I love taking photos and creating something I can cherish. Maybe someday it will turn into something more but for now "it is what it is." I think this is my life motto. I say it all the time.

M is quite the diva! She loves everything girly (dresses, sparkles, jewelry, you name it). She is so dramatic and loves to be my little model. And I devour every bit of it....she is too much fun!

I had to snap a couple of both kiddos while I was at it :) Can't resist that sibling love (although right now they are in that stage where they scream at each other and fight about every tiny, miniscule thing that it makes me want to run far away and hide in a corner on some occasions. Haha!). They really are the best part of me.

So, what do you think??? Are they the cutest or what?

XOXO,
Ashley

Me and Mine

Before I dive into the super fun parts of blogging (sharing recipes, link-ups, etc), I thought it would be fun to tell you all a little more about myself and introduce you to my family. I actually have a crazy big ginormous family and I'm really close to so many of them, but today I will just highlight the immediate family members.

First, meet my gorgeous husband J. He is originally from Michigan and we met in San Diego when he joined the Navy and I was in college. Funny story (that I won't dive into today): we actually were not so fond of each other when we first met! We have been married for almost 7 years and I can't imagine my life with anyone else. We have had our ups and downs like most couples do but we have pulled through them and only grown stronger. He the funniest person I know, a crazy-talented artist and loves playing his guitar. And I can't forget to mention that he adores our children and is an awesome father :)

Digging out of our house in Illinois last winter!

Next up, meet my two kiddos, M and L. M is 5 years old and is our little DIVA! She is the most talkative, energetic and dramatic little girl, but we love every minute of it. She has us laughing all time with her funny faces, silly voices and dance moves (which are awesome!). Of course, she can be quite the handful when dealing with all that drama and sometimes it makes me a bit nutty. But she is my little girl and I wouldn't change her personality for anything. L is such a boy! He will be 3 years old this summer and is our block-building, Buzz Lightyear-loving, little monkey. He is our cuddler....he loves to give hugs and kisses! These two kids are the light of my life.

Now, on to my mom and stepdad. I feel so blessed to be as close as I am to my mom. We talk about anything and everything and are always there to pick each other up when we're down in the dumps. She is so supportive of everything I do and is the best Yaya to her grandkids :) Of course she spoils them like a Yaya is supposed to and they adore her. My mom and stepdad were married a couple years ago in Lake Tahoe (J married them) on a yacht.....awesome, I know! My stepdad and I have a great relationship and I am thankful for him everyday. The two of them are Harley-riding fools :) They're even in a motorcycle club!

My younger sister was already slightly introduced in my first post because she was a big inspiration for this blog. She started blogging early this year and I got hooked and found myself wanting to read her posts first thing each morning! I was going to call her K, but due to the fact that her name is already out there on her fabulous blog I won't be hiding her name. You can get acquainted with Kara here. She is not only my sister, but my best friend. We are about as close as you can get and I love spending time with her. We are so different in so many ways yet we understand each other better than most. She is the toughest, most hard-working, and wittiest person I know and I am so lucky to have her as my sister :)

Kara and I at her bridal shower

My dad, stepmom, and youngest brother live in Arizona. My dad is a firefighter and is probably the most laid-back, stress-free person I know. He is always giving me great advice and guidance, and basically always tells me "stop stressing so much kid!" And he is so right. I have an awesome relationship with my dad and our personalities are so much alike (minus the stress-free part of course). My stepmom is a nurse and she is one of the most kind-hearted people I know. And she is an amazing cook!  My brother, C is in high school (yes, I am 14 years older than him) and he is such a great kid. He loves playing baseball and golfs with my dad too. I miss them all the time but hope that I will get to spend more time with them now that we are living much closer.

The oldest of my brothers (still 9 years younger than me), is K. He is currently enlisted in the Army as an Infantryman and is stationed in Colorado. I have always had a great relationship with K, even after I left for college and we didn't get to see each other too often. I'm thankful that I was able to spend a few days with him last summer. I am so extremely proud of him and what he has accomplished! I know that he will do well in the Army and the experience that he gains will be immeasurable. I miss him all the time and hope he knows that he is always in my heart and prayers.

 So that pretty much sums up my immediate family members for ya'll! Hopefully someday I can introduce more of my family that I love so dearly. I will leave you with one final pic of my little family of 4 :)

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO,
Ashley