carsyn’s dad, doug, and i have known each other since high school. a few years ago, he and his wife moved into a house just down the street from ours, and they have since had two darling kiddos. they recently asked me to take some photos of sweet carsyn, who has gorgeous blue eyes and porcelain skin. here are a few highlights…
well, nothing like a week off of blogging, right? i feel like sometimes i just need a little break, and i suppose i was being a little lazy last week. since i didn’t do it last monday, here’s a recap of our past two weekends…
{new entry lighting}
{baby balancing}
memorial day weekend, we headed to the cabin. first stop on saturday, this totally great, albeit dumpy, fabric shop in springfield. they have an unbelievable number of fabrics, and they are dirt cheap.
{one small corner}
meanwhile, this was happening at the bass pro shop.
obviously, between hole-in-the-wall fabric shops, toddlers on atv’s and hanging in the river, we like to keep it classy.
back in kc, we went for ice cream, and this sequence happened more times than i can count. 
{rare quiet time with the short guy}
{and tomatoes growing in our very own backyard}
if you can’t tell, i’ve become quite the fan of instagram. if you fancy, follow me @carabrooner.
i was flipping through a house beautiful at the gym the other day (because that seems to be the only time i can actually look at a magazine), and something caught my eye. on a feature about made-in-america wallpaper, one of the featured companies is right here in kansas city. it’s porter teleo - their work is beautiful and all hand done.
once i started looking through their installations, i found that i recognized some of the photos from various magazines. maybe you will too. these images are all from their facebook page.
this sweet family is kind of on the same timeline as mine. their daughter, kendley, was born just a day after beckett (same hospital too, but we didn’t know the other was there), and their son, miles, was born on the exact day as my nephew, emmett.
you might remember miles’ tiny feet from this post. i finally finished editing his session, and i think we got some great stuff. i’ll let you judge for yourself.
while miles was off with ‘craft services’, i got to play with kendley. what a doll!
she even busted out her own camera!
we had a full weekend…
we kicked it off with a school carnival, and back at home, a visit with great friends. when we went to check on beckett at the end of the night, we found this.
{sleeping like a log}
a few funny things here: 1) sure, it’s completely light in there. isn’t that what you do for your kids? actually, he can reach the light switch from his crib, and turned it on. no wonder it took him so long to fall asleep that night. 2) the poor kid’s legs are through the crib slats. 3) yes, that’s his entire room in his crib. he must have 3 blankets, a tiger and ernie. i mean, who could think about sleep without this stuff!?! 4) also, yep, it’s a onesie over pants. we forgot to snap it first, and we were much to lazy to fix it.
b has developed a shoe addiction. he is my child! he wants shoes (his, mine, or jared’s) on…and off….and on….and off. now you know what we did all weekend.
{big shoes to fill – his ol’ dad is quite the guy}
a special breakfast on mother’s day. not only did i get to sleep in, but the boys went out and hunted pastries and coffee and whipped up some eggs too.
our little buddy has turned into quite the climber. i think his future in gymnastics could be bright.
we finished off the weekend with a family gathering with both sides at our house for lunch (unfortunately, i forgot to bust out the camera -so unlike me) - and some playtime in the backyard, just the three of us. let spinfest 2012 commence!
{my herbs are getting bigger by the day}
happy happy mothers’ day to my dear sweet mother. it never ceases to amaze me how much this woman will do for me – from watching b-man on a moment’s notice to schlepping me around town when my car is in the shop, she will stop at nothing to make my life easier, and i am forever grateful. she is an amazing role model – watching her take challenges in stride, helping others, and continuing to push herself makes me want to strive for the same things. she gives of herself though no one may be watching. she doesn’t need the encouragement; to do the good deed is enough.
she always has a wise word to offer. ”to whom much is given, much is expected” and “this too shall pass” are a few favorites that have really stuck with me. in my younger days, i only viewed them as lectures (she’s a great lecture-giver :)), but i’ve come to rely upon her encouraging and wise words. frankly, i think she could talk anyone ‘off the ledge’.
she is special, she is lovely, and above all else, she is mom. i love you.
“slightly more than half of everything i am is thanks to you”. to find out what i mean, check this out. your nursing background will appreciate it.
{in a favorite spot – the front porch of the cabin}
beckett and i went to our MOPs meeting this morning (find a group near you here), and when i picked him up, they handed me this.
{oh, be still my beating heart}
it’s his little finger prints! this is his first piece of artwork that i haven’t been involved in. i know it probably seems like no big deal, but it made me pretty darn happy to get this today. it’s something i will most definitely have forever and ever.
we had a few trying days this week – we were without a car for a few days (our 5 year old car was getting a new air conditioner – thanks for the crappy a/c volkswagen) and stuck at home, which doesn’t suit us too well, and b reacted with copious amounts of whining. oh boy, it had me a little frustrated. i really shouldn’t complain about something so dumb, but i learned that we both really like getting out of the house – we need it. we’ve been back to our regular groove the past two days, and we’re both much happier campers.
so a super high and a (sort of) low for the week. and that is how parenting is, but i have to say there are a hundred highs for every low.
have a great weekend. go hug yo mama.
i am forever tearing pages out of magazines – outfits i’d like to replicate, home interiors that i love, and recipes that i’d like to try. for years, i’ve just stuck those ripped pages of recipes into another little cookbook or stuffed them into a cabinet, and i finally decided that i had to get them organized. i made a trip to visit martha at staples, and she solved my dilemma. how i love her tips – i aspire to her level of organization! i am a total nerd and love office supply stores. they’re my grown-up version of back-to-school shopping. am i the only one who loved getting brand new pencils and trapper keepers in the fall?
anyhow, here’s what you need:
get your dvr going and catch up on your smutty shows (bethenny ever after anyone??) while you get busy stuffing pages into your sheet protectors. put your like recipes together into categories – i did main courses, sides, appetizers, desserts, and breakfast/brunch. you could break it down even further if you like – seafood, chicken, and beef dishes within your main course section. i didn’t want to get that technical. throw all your pages in the notebook, using the dividers to mark each section, and voila! you’ve got yourself a little book of your favorite dishes.
what a whirlwind of a weekend! we had a house full of friends (just the way i like it) from thursday to sunday and nonstop activities, all centered around a beautiful wedding of a sweet friend from college. here’s what went down.
{first stop – oklahoma joe’s – for the best kc barbeque}
the next morning b woke up with a 103 degree fever. it quickly slid downward, and he had no fever by bedtime, but we never figured out the root cause. poor guy. while wonder-daddy, jared, and b held down the fort at home, our houseguests and i went to a friends house for a little bbq and celebrated a little birthday while we were there.
{brookside art fair with recovering kiddo in 90 degree weather – not a match}
the wedding reception was at the nelson atkins art museum, and it was lovely – unfortunately, i didn’t take very many pictures.
{friends entering through the modern wing}
{the bride’s vail – lonesome at the coat check. it was 90 degrees.}
we were off to brock’s 1st birthday party on sunday afternoon, where all the kids donned dinosaur party hats…for at least 5 seconds each.
{the short guy with his beloved cars}
i know i’ve been bad at this blogging gig lately. it’s been a crazy few weeks, but i hope to be back to regularly scheduled programing next week. a few random thoughts for today.
we picked up a couple new chairs on our trip to ikea this past weekend, and beckett’s coloring perch got a sweet little upgrade. i love the shapes of these chairs and that he can climb in and out of them on his own – though he still prefers the chairs at the kitchen table.
my mom has a green thumb, as evidenced here…
and here…
and a sneakity peek into what i got into tonight. more to come on this little nugget soon.
