not much to say or share today, i just wanted to post some photos i took this week.

have i ever mentioned how much i {we} love him? 😉

happy friday!

xxo

s

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

i recently read a blog post by my sweet friend elise. in the post she spoke very honestly about not identifying with the term “military wife”. that she was more than that…that that didn’t define or shape who she was. i thought she was so brave to admit that. and i felt like that as well when i was new to the whole army world.

 

i didn’t think i had a lot in common with the wives. their seemed to be lots of gossip. a bit of negativity. i didn’t like that.

 

i’ve learned since that that small cross-section was in no way indicative of army wives as a whole.

 

just like any group of ANY women…there are some i don’t identify with. some i don’t like being around.

 

but i opened myself up. starting attending coffees. events. and i found the most AMAZING women in the world.

 

women that i would be friends with whether or not we had the “army wife” label.

 

friends i would cry with.hold hands with in fear as we watched our husbands on the news. friends i could (and can) call any hour, any day, any occasion. and they are there. no questions asked.

 

we are one big family. we hold one another’s babies as if they are our own. gently chide one another’s children.

 

we grip each other’s hands when we are in labor and our husbands aren’t there. commisserate over emotions,fears,ridiculous tricare issues.

 

we can pack up our home with our eyes blindfolded. we know how to be both mommy and daddy, how to do things for ourselves, we don’t rely on anyone else.

 

i am an army wife.

 

i know my husband’s social security number better than i know my own. i know WAY too many acronyms. i know well the smell of dusty uniforms and stinky PTs.

 

this is too big of a part of who i am now to say that it doesn’t define me. it IS me. it has shaped who i am. what i believe. my perspective. my heart.

 

the army has taught me to be independent. to be patient. to think positively. to have more pride than i ever imagined. to figure out how to solve my own problems instead of depending on others the moment something small goes wrong.

to be fair, it’s also taught me that i DON’T ever want to be a mopey complainer. that i don’t want to be a gossip. that i want to support my husband and build him up, but never wear his rank as if it is mine.

it may or may not have also made me the type of person that rolls their eyes to the heavens when women like alexis (on the real housewives of beverly hills- yes i admit i watch bravo reality tv) cry because THEY HAVE TO GO TO ONE DINNER WITHOUT THEIR HUSBANDS.

 

REALLY???

i knew nothing about the military before J. absolutely nothing.

i had no perspective. no idea what the world could be like. what  military wives go through. it was kind of silly how naive i was.

i was pretty selfish. i can admit that.

i look at what i’ve learned the last 8 years, and it seems like a lifetime ago that my biggest concerns were what someone thought of me, or where to go shopping, or if gossip i’d heard was true.

a lifetime.

 

i  never ever would have thought i’d have four children and a husband who is always gone,even when he is home. i never would have imagined i’d be strong enough for that. i probably would have said “how do you even DO that?”.

 

you do it. that’s all there is to it.

 

i am a mother, a wife, a child of God. a daughter, a sister, a friend, a scrapbooker. and i am an army wife.

it’s a calling that seems like a burden some days. but MOST days it’s a gift.

a gift that i NEVER could have imagined for myself. but now i see it has made me who i am.

xxo

Dear Steph,

Hope you don’t mind that I broke into your blog…but I wanted to put some light internet stalking to good use.

Happy Mother’s Day sweetheart. I’m completely in awe of the mother and wife you’ve become.  I honestly have no idea how you do it.

Your compassion and generosity shine through in our little girls, and I am so proud of them and you.

Thank you for everything you do.  You never put yourself first and have sacrificed so much for our family.  Through the late nights, training exercises, and deployments you selflessly take care of our little girls better than I could ever imagine, and without complaint.  I could never thank you enough.

Thank you for being such a wonderful mother and wife.  I love you sweetheart.  Happy Mother’s Day.

Love,

J

the sassafras blog hop is still open below!

i’m sitting here all alone, j’s at a social event, the girls are OUT, and i’m recovering from the party today. looking through the photos, i’ve decided that they bring me so much joy…i want to blog them TONIGHT instead of waiting until next week. 🙂

hope you all don’t mind!

harper decided she wanted a “flowers” theme and i came up with the idea of doing a “may flowers” party.

i had fun working on this party for a few weeks. most of the supplies are things i already had.

i thought i’d share what all i did. if you have any questions, please ask in the comments below. i LOVE to share ideas!

lanterns from oriental trading embellished wiht doilies,slice cut flowers,and jbs buttons.

party hats from the party store. decorated with slice cut flowers and 5s and jbs buttons

garland made from fishing line, silk gerbera daisies and daffodils and crepe paper (for the leaves)

 

i decorated the chandelier over the table with pom poms left over from harper’s party last year, fringed crepe paper, paper chains (made with patterned paper in my stash), 5s cut with the slice, and various garlands i had around the house.

an overview of the table. that’s her invitation to the left.

 

cookies and cupcakes from back in the day bakery. i made the cupcake toppers using SC notions, girls paperie embellishments, and toothpicks.

sprite in the bottle, with a flower embellished paper straw to drink out of. straws from shop sweet lulu

i put the cupcakes in a three tier basket in flower cupcake wrappers. i added some faux grass to the basket as well (yes, i really stuck with the flower theme..HA!)

marshmallows dipped in candy and flower sprinkles, another overview of the table

i filled watering cans (from the dollar spot at target) with bouquets and embellished the cans with doilies, slice cut flowers and 5s, and jbs buttons.

flower pinata…sadie was SCARY with that stick!

cute little ones dressed in florals

 

gifts from mama and daddy

 

window decorations made using dollar store flower doilies and slice cut flowers

favor boxes. these are from michaels. i topped them with doilies, gerbera daisies, twine, and tags cut with my slice. i stamped “❤ h” with studio calico stamps.

in the boxes:

flower socks from target dollar spot

flower shaped pot of lip gloss from michael’s dollar spot

tiny flower pot with planted marigold or daisy seeds inside- target dollar spot

flower ponytail holder

2 flower hairclips

 

the pinata goodie bags. these are from shop sweet lulu. i topped them with doilies (also from shop sweet lulu) and 5s cut with my slice (do you sense that i got lots of use out of my slice???)

how CUTE are these flower pots i found at michaels? they matched our theme and colors PERFECTLY!

living room…a pretty sweet dance party took place here. HA!

entry area…martha stewart pom poms, photo banner, favors,etc.

 

i think this banner is one of my favorite things from the party. i found it at the party store, in the fiesta section. it’s made of plastic. i added fabric flowers (thanks ginny!) and photos of h to it to make it a bit more special.

the mantel…lots of h’s and layouts of my sweet girl. i kept the ice cream cone wrapper banner there too.

i had the idea to set up a “party photo booth” outside. i bought a few yards of floral fabric and hung it on the porch.

i set up a basket of accessories for the girls (HUGE sunglasses, beads, mustaches, leis, and a bunch of flower petal headbands and hats) and let them dress up and pose together.

h took a photo with each guest…so fun! we are going to print the photos and send them with our thank you cards.

the birthday girl and her gifts and the look on her face that made ALL the work SO worthwhile.

shirt by amy tangerine

it was hard work. it was. but also REALLY REALLY fun. and best of all? after the party was over tonight, harper crawled in my lap, put her little hands on both sides of my face and said

“thank you for making my birthday so special, mama”.

and i melted. i would do this every day of my life for her.

i love my girl.

xoxo

s

here’s our lately, in photos and a few words:

me and my girls today after sadie’s mother’s day tea. it’s a self timer shot, which means we took 323849283 photos and NO ONE is looking in all of them, and all of them are blurry, but i L❤VE this one anyway. and i love that we found the perfect spot to take photos when j is gone.

miss h on the eve of her birthday. i love her big eyes and the excitement in them.

 

overjoyed at being five.

SOAKING up the daddy time:

 

bike riding,

guitar playing

 

\ 

lizard catching…LOVE h’s face here. she is so me.

 

bday party decorating

 

being entertained by sadie being sadie.

*NOTE* this lipstick is one i bought for the 80’s party last spring. i don’t wear flourescent fuschia on a regular basis. HA!

that’s our now. hope your now is beautiful and blessed.

xxo