Archive | family

Eden & Charlie are married!

September 17, 2013 at 4:48 pm

Many of you have probably seen on Facebook or Instagram, but my sister-in-law Eden got married on Sunday! They were wed in a beautiful outdoor ceremony on Charlie’s family’s land on the Chesapeake Bay, complete with a Scottish bagpiper, the best ice cream on the Eastern Shore, delicious homemade cakes, Celtic line dancing, and wildflowers everywhere. The weather was perfect — mid-70s and sunny — and the whole day felt peaceful, joyous, and new.

I kept choking up every time I looked at Eden during the ceremony. She had waited for this day, dreamed of this day, and now… beautiful reality! Charlie and Eden had so carefully chosen every piece of the wedding, and it intricately reflected their shared faith, community, artistry, and dreams.

Of course, for Elliott and me, now weddings are a whole different ball game with two littles. I felt a little scattered the whole time because of Gil; I was constantly holding him, passing him off to someone else, keeping an eye on him wherever he was, trying to get him to nap, checking on him while he was napping, feeding him, holding him… and so on and so forth. Lena, meanwhile, felt completely at home and ran around the entire property by herself, skipping from one group of friends to another. She was so happy. I think she drank her weight in “yemonade,” too!

Now the family — minus the honeymooners — have moved to Chincoteague, Virginia. Elliott’s family has vacationed here for 20 years, but this is my first visit. We’re savoring the quiet days and time together, mixing board games and building blocks together now, as we drink in this beautiful view. Happy Tuesday, everyone!

6 :: in family, Virginia, wedding, weekend

favorite photos from Crete

September 6, 2013 at 2:53 pm

Although being a part of the military has its downsides (like deployments and dying for your country and other things that shall not be named today), there are a lot of military-only benefits… like commissaries and USAA and free space-available plane flights and chances to live and travel all over the world.

This trip to Crete was one of those military-only benefits where Elliott had to go for work and get a hotel room anyway, and so the kids and I tagged along on his plane flight* and stayed in his ~~hotel room~~ rented apartment and spent 10 days on the beach. Perks of the job…! It was a wonderful time for us as a family and I’m so glad we did it. We’ll be savoring these end-of-summer memories and photos for a long time.

(*Or fly 18 hours ahead of him and leave 8 hours after him… it’s all good as long as there’s a flight…)

My apologies if some of you already saw these on Instagram, but either way… here are our favorite photos from our week in Greece!

Elliott found this loggerhead turtle carcass on a run along the beach and took us all back the next day to see it. Lena was duly impressed and eager to examine it. Future scientist?

One of the two beautiful beaches on either side of our apartment.

Cuties!

Lena on our first day at the beach (before Elliott joined us the next day)
& the first jar of baby food I have purchased in my life… and it’s all Greek to me!

We read a lot of books that week while Elliott was at work, including this wonderful one called You Can Do Anything, Daddyby Michael Rex. Our friends (who were also vacationing as a family while the husband worked with Elliott) loaned it to us.

Morning kisses
& off-roading it as she helps me push the stroller on our daily walks to the local “super”market.

Another morning, another walk along the beach.

She found a little pool just her size!
& a Greek orthodox chapel.

This little guy is getting ready to crawl! Fave position: planking while admiring his toes (and resting on his head).

“So sunny, Daddy.”

Lena trying some grilled sardines (and accidentally biting off the head)
& my babies and me.

Sunset beach walk before a dinner date… one of two that we got to take thanks to our friends watching our sleeping babes! Thank you, David and Rachel!

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I’d love to hear what you and your family did for Labor Day weekend! Any other beach-goers here?

9 :: in Army, family, holidays, travel

happy Labor Day!

September 2, 2013 at 2:05 pm

Happy Labor Day from someone who knows that a mama never rests from her labors!

Our Labor Day plan is very simple: enjoying one final day in Crete as we soak up the summer sun, Mediterranean sea, Greek food, and time together. For me, ultimately that’s what any vacation is about: time with friends or family! If you’d like a peek into our vacation here, I’ve shared photos and videos through Instagram.

What are you up to this Labor Day?

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P.S. Can’t wait to share an amazing giveaway with you tomorrow! Get ready for a shopping spree!

4 :: in family, holiday, holidays, travel

blackberry picking in Sicily!

August 5, 2013 at 1:12 pm

So this happened yesterday: buckets of blackberries, all harvested by our little family… and all from the side of the road!

I’ve been wanting to go berry picking with Lena for a long time, but I never got my act together while we were in the States. Back here in Sicily, I have never seen a pick-your-own berry farm.. and somehow I doubt that they exist here.

But who needs a berry farm? Elliott spotted brambles laden with blackberries when he was out on a bike ride with his soldiers this week. On Sunday afternoon he suggested we go back to glean and gather. We’ve enjoyed scavenging for blackberries on walks and hikes every summer we’ve been here, and the prospect of unlimited berries sounded too good to be true for Lena and me. We found a couple of buckets, loaded up the car, and drove through the sleepy summer afternoon to a quiet back road in the valley.

Note: we dressed completely inappropriately! Blackberry bushes are covered in thorns (“brambles”) and we got scratched up badly, especially poor Gil’s defenseless toes. (My bad.) Next time… pants and close-toed shoes for everyone!

We quoted one of our favorite books — Blueberries for Sal — over and over while picking. “Now Sal, run along and pick your own berries.” Kuplink, kuplunk, kuplank! “Sal picked three more berries… and then ate all of them.” (So did Lena.)

^ Determination!

… and fortification.

Our buckets are full!

I think she ate almost an entire bucket’s worth of blackberries…

What were you up to this weekend? Did you have fruit-picking adventures of any kind?

8 :: in family, hiking, Sicily

a day in D.C. with Uncle David

July 19, 2013 at 10:32 am

Hello from Sicily again! Lena, Gil, and I flew home on Tuesday and oh-my-goodness I am glad that is over. I was so nervous about flying with both kids by myself for the first time. Praise God, though, it went really well, and we all survived and even had fun. (The fact that I never cried is kind of amazing, therefore making it a success in my book.) I credit the dollar bin at Target, the prayers of many friends and family, and God’s good grace. It’s so good to be home… and back with Elliott/Daddy after four weeks apart!

On our last Saturday in Virginia, the kids, my cousin KT, and I drove into the city to see my brother-in-law David. He lives in an awesome neighborhood just sound of Capitol Hill called the Navy Yard. Elliott and I went there for a date night before Elliott returned to Sicily, and I decided I had to bring the kids back at some point… because of all the fountains! It’s basically a water park down there, thanks to some amazing recent additions to the neighborhood. Things like “splash pads” and wading pools in the middle of a well-planned and beautiful city make me so excited to move back next year!

^ We started off our adventures with lunch at a food truck festival. When in D.C…

^ My cousin KT currently lives in Muskogee, Oklahoma, because of her husband’s job. She’s headed to law school next year… and they hope to come to D.C. for that! I hope she comes too. :-)