Oh, Sweet Summertime

Summer seems to be flying by this year and I can't wrap my head around the fact that we are halfway through July already. How are we halfway through the year already? How is my little bean already six months? I'm usually one who gets over summer quickly and longs for the cool crisp days of fall but having Amaya here makes me want to freeze time and soak up each and every moment of her ever changing days. It seems like just yesterday she was an itty bitty newborn giving me chest snuggles whenever I pleased and now she is a active baby sitting up by herself and wanting to jump and bounce all over the house.

I just rounded out my 2 week vacation (summer shutdown) from work and as you read this today, I will be sitting in a 5 hour 'safety college' boring myself to death and wishing that I was still soaking up all the summertime fun without having to worry about a 40 hour work week.

There was lots of summer walks...

There was visits to campsites to visit my sister and roast s'mores...

And lastly, company picnics at the amusement park...

Father Time, feel free to slow down at anytime.
I'm not in any rush to end the nights out on the patio or pool days in the warm summer sun.

Hope everyone is having a great summer!!!
Anybody doing anything excited this summer?!?

Little Home: Festive Fall

Halloween is tomorrow!!!!
Can I just ask though, where the hell did October go?!? How is it that the beginning of November is just a short day and half away? Now that Halloween is coming and going, I know I will be gearing up for the holidays and by holidays I mean, Christmas!!! The bah-humbuggers will balk at this statement but with only 8 weeks left till Christmas and the fact that I'm only getting bigger by the day, mama needs to get her shit together now.

I'm not giving Halloween and Thanksgiving the shaft yet though.
I love decorating for the holidays and especially fall with all the pumpkins and mums.
It makes my rather bland porch pop with color and adds some festive fall oomph to our block.

Here's our Little Home: Fall Edition 2013

P.S. Our pretty little pumpkins that me and my neighbor drilled (the H and design one above) sadly met their demise a couple weeks ago when they started rotting. Moldy pumpkins....yeahhhh.....B was not too happy he had to clean up that mess.

Pumpkin Patch 2013

Tis' the season....pumpkins, haybales, and gourds...oh my!
Every year Bryan and I head to the pumpkin patch to grab the above to decorate our front porch. I don't really change my decor up but I have the vision in my head and B knows the essentials that we need. This year he begged for me not to get a corn stalk. I was hesitant at first, but I retreated since we had problems last year with trying to keep it up.

It's usually Bry and I that go but this year after browsing Pinterest, me and my neighbor Deb wanted to get a jump start on it so we could drill some pumpkins that weekend. I don't think B was too sad about missing out on our pumpkin adventure but I assured him there were plenty more fall activities that he would be participating in.

We tried to make the trip quick but I still managed to grab some pictures to document the pumpkin prettiness.

I know everybody is shouting their love of fall from the rooftops, but really it is such a beautiful time of the year. Though the leaves are changing colors and will wisp away to make way for the snow and bitterness of winter, there feels like there is a last bit of seasonal life being tossed through the air.

The warm, rich colors, the homemade comfort foods and the golden hour sunsets.
Be still my heart.

Finding Time For Fall Fun

This is another Fall Bucket List.
Amongst the thousands of others.
This one is for me. Fall shizz I want to do.

Yes ma'am, here I am throwing another into the bunch. I do these almost every year and just like to switch up my design so I can throw it in a frame and check them off. Something about having it printed out and in the 'flesh' makes it feel more real and keeps me more accountable. I wish I could say that I came up with this entirely by myself but I must give all the props to Katie from Loves of Life who created the first I ever saw and who updates her design each year for her readers. Plus, she has quite a few more options on hers too.

But here's mine and I'm pretty excited about it.
We all love us some Fall and I can't wait to get out there and get these crossed off. They all scream tis' the fall effin' season to me.

What are you looking forward to doing this Fall?!?

P.S. Feel free to right click and copy and print if you please, but please just give credit where credits due if you do use or pin it. 

Sayonara Summer

Here it is, the last day of summer.

Though to many it probably ended at the beginning of September when teachers and students alike were shuttled back to school, it didn't quite end over here. Okay, I lie. I may have called it quits on summer over the last week or so when the temperatures have dropped but I felt like I needed to make it 'blog official' by bidding it adieu here.

I think this is the first summer in the last 4 years, that I've let this blog go to the wayside. While other years I would try to post something here and there, this summer, I just let it be and stopped by when I had the urge to. I blame a lot of this on the pregnancy and trying to wrap my mind around this impending bundle of joy that's already taking over our lives but let's be real, summer in blog land kinda gets blah.

I'm not just saying this to justify myself but I've noticed that during the summer months, many blogs seem to take a backseat to all the bbq's, vacations, and just relaxing that everyone is enjoying. Sure, you have the all stars that are still pumping out 5 posts a week but the majority of my reads cool off during the summer months.

It's not to say that we didn't have an awesome summer, it's just that it wasn't completely documented each and every time. And that's okay. I'm learning that it's okay not to live each and every moment of our lives online. Do I still want to share and blog the shizz out our little lives? Yes, of course....but maybe with a little more moderation here and there.

Our summer was filled with pregnancy updates and announcements, road trips, remodeling the house, dates with my MIL and Mama, parades, girls weekend (the wine was from before I knew I was pregnant), beaches, and much more. It was exhausting and I'd be lying if I said I didn't sleep a majority of this summer away. True story. It was what I needed though and now we're gearing up for my most favorite time of year.

FALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!

I know everyone has already shouted their love for fall and their favorite things about it and oh-em-gee pumpkin spice latte's are back (yuckkk...go ahead and stone me now) but I still love it regardless and look forward to officially celebrating it tomorrow.

Bring on the hayrides, apple pickin', pumpkin carvin' trick or treatin', bakin' and anything spiced scented that my heart can hold. This little lady is ready for it all.

What are you looking forward to this fall?!?

Blooms + Liberty Bells

There is sunshine and fresh flowers all around and I'm happy to announce that Spring seems to have officially hit Pennsylvania. Thank the sweet baby Jesus. Though we might have a few cold mornings still, this weekend is shaping up to be quite beautiful.

The forecast is predicting sunshine and 60's and that may not seem like much to some *coughCaliTexascough* but here in PA we are whipping out flip flops and flats to strut the streets.

Today Bry and I are heading down to Philly to act like tourists and do some sightseeing.
For all my years living in Pennsylvania, I've never been there except for driving through to Atlantic City and going to the King of Prussia for The Cheesecake Factory.

Those obviously didn't count so I'm excited to spend this beautiful Saturday exploring a new city.
Have you ever been to Philadelphia?!?
What do we need to see? Eat? Visit?

Sweet Walks With My Mama Mia

Once the weather starts warming up, me and Ms. Mia have standing dates on the weekend for our weekly walks by the lake. I've shared this lake and my love for it plenty of times, and Mia and I headed out to see if we could find any Spring blooms to capture.

Sadly, there weren't any pretty flowers to get pictures of but after the winter mess we've dealt with, I was happy to see any type of greenery and sunshine. I look forward to these walks and I think even more than me, Mia does.

She loves running around and smelling and peeing on everything. She is in all her glory and can you blame her. Plus she's super exhausted when she gets home and that is a plus for this furmama! :)

Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend!

Goals Of Spring & Housewarming

This weekend my sister Mon was finally able to show off the house that her and my BIL have been waiting so long for. They bought their new house in October of last year but sadly during one of their renovations of the house there was a accident that caught their kitchen on fire. It luckily put it self out before it engulfed the whole house but there was extensive damage throughout the house. So for the last couple of months they've been staying with her SIL and this past week they finally got everything unpacked and ready to welcome guests.

It was beautiful weekend and I think they were happy to be surrounded by friends and family. I took my camera along for good measure but only caught a couple of shots before the sangria kicked in and the camera went night night.

Despite it being a little chilly Saturday, the sunlight and company made me feel all types of spring-sh. 

Conversations on the patio. Sangria in my hand. Sun shining. Horse shoes being thrown. 

It was a good atmosphere and brought me back to all the thing I want to accomplish this Spring. 

House:                                             Health:

- Paint the Master bedroom                                            - Continue going to Zumba 2x/ a week 

- Paint the Guest Bedroom                                              - Pack lunch every day for work

- Paint the 2nd Floor Hallway                                          - Drink atleast 8 glasses a water a day                                       

- Buy new throw pillows for the sectional                         - Take Mia for a long walk atleast 4x/ a week 

- Refinish TV Console Table                                            - Start using portion control during dinners 

- Pull weeds/ Put grass seed down                                   - Incorporate more fruits and vegetables into diet

- Sweep and decorate front porch                                    - Start a food journal 

- Hang pictures in the dining room.                                    - No soda or junk food at work

Relationships:                                 Blog:

- Put phone down more when relaxing with B                    - Go through and relabel posts

- Have Mom & Me dates atleast once a month          - Clean up post areas

- Go yard sale-ing with Tara atleast 5x                              - Swap with more blog friends

- Call and visit Nan more                                                  - Put together FAQS page 

- Schedule play dates with my nephews and nieces            - Make a vlog

- Have more date days with B                                           - Have a giveaway (old school style) 

- Do something 'special' for each person in my life              - Organize Bloglovin' groups

- Start a memories journal                                                 - Have fun!!!

I think that's about it. Kinda looks like much as I look at it now but while I'm on this productivity kick I miswell roll with it and try to get shizz done. Good time management will be my friend as I try to accomplish these. Wish me luck.

Do you have any Spring Goals?!?

Peace At The Lake

I mentioned before but whenever I need silence and solitude, I grab my camera and head to the nearby lake to clear my head. Besides getting some fresh air and exercise for me and Mia, I like looking around and try to capture some of the beauty of each season.

Here's a look at what winter looks like in my little slice of heaven...

It's a quiet and simple little lake and since there are no campers for the winter, I let Mia off her leash to let off some extra energy. I don't know why but I love it there. I feel peaceful there. And I need that.

Here's what it looks like other times of the year:

Lake- Fall

Lake - Summer