Days 4 &5: Commenting Challenge

As I mentioned earlier this week, I've stayed at my parent's house and have been keeping super busy with my sister and all of our kiddos. We've been shuttling kids to vacation bible school, feeding kids, shopping, playing at the splash park and playground, done some more shopping, fed the kids many more times(it seems someone is always saying "I'm hungry"), stopped by my brother and sister in-law's new house to carry a few boxes, and celebrated my mom's birthday last night at Outback. I am beat and happy to be back home, for a few hours anyway. This weekend we are helping my brother with the big move, celebrating mom's birthday with the whole family, and welcoming my uncle, aunt, and cousin from New Orleans into town tomorrow, and my uncle, aunt, and cousins from Indiana and Japan on Monday. (Living in Central Florida we always have a lot of family and friends visiting!!)

I wanted to get a little caught up on the commenting challenge. So, here goes...
Day 4: What are some of your hobbies?
Reading: My most favorite hobby is reading. I LOVE to read! I used to get in trouble when I was a kid because I never wanted to put my books down. I still have that problem. Now I have to read when the kids are asleep late at night or early in the morning. I read every single day! My hubby bought me a Nook for Christmas and I love it but I also love to read a good solid book too. I also like to reread books I've already read. Some of my favorite authors include: Nicholas Sparks, Diana Palmer, Nora Roberts, Janet Evanovich. My favorites are mysteries and romances. I love it when the stories are romantic and mysterious.
 Shopping: Target is my favorite place to shop.I went yesterday and today. I scored some great deals today!! Who doesn't love Target? TJMaxx is also a favorite. When we move next month I am going to be sad to be away from the one a few minutes from my house.  I also love going to Old Navy and Gap. Of course, I'm usually mostly shopping for my kids at Crazy 8 and Children's Place.
Scrapbooking/Crafting: I wish I made more time for this hobby because it's something I really enjoy. Emma has a beautiful, big scrapbook for her first year. Max has hospital pictures in his baby scrapbook. I wanted to get his done before kindergarten. Maybe first grade is a better goal. I did start doing a Project Life scrapbook with a couple of my friends. We meet once a month to work on them. I decided to start with January and I'm still on the end of January. I'm hoping once we move and I have a craft room I will have an opportunity to work on my pictures and crafting more. Maybe that sewing machine I got for Christmas will be put to good use too!

Today's topic: Tell us about your dream vacation.
There are so many places I would LOVE to visit, it's so hard to choose. The most "exotic" place Damian and I have been is to St. Thomas, USVI and we loved it there. We made some good memories and love a good beach vacation. But, if we could go anywhere I think it would be Scotland and/or Ireland. We're hoping for our 20 yr. anniversary we can take our dream vacation. Some day I hope we can go to Alaska. We want to take the kids on a Disney Cruise too. I went on the Disney Magic with my family when I was in college and I know they are worth every penny but they sure cost a lot of pennies!! We'd also like to visit some historic landmarks across the USA when the kids are a little older.

I've enjoyed reading new blogs and "meeting" other people from all over during this commenting challenge.
Thanks again for stopping by!

Day 3: Commenting Challenge

Thanks to all those who left me sweet comments yesterday. I plan on taking some time today while the kids nap to check out more blogs and of course leave some comments. We are staying at my parent's house this week because of the workshop I had, the kid's vacation bible school, and my mom's birthday tomorrow so I'm using my mom's mac and not my laptop. 

 I have had a great time visiting with my sister and nieces and nephews and my parents but we could do without all the rain from the TD Debby. We've had a lot of indoor playtime and the kids need to get out and run. We're hoping for some sunshine tomorrow! My poor hubby is going to be driving a boat instead of a golf cart around his course. 

Today's topic is all about social media. I think I'm the last person on earth to not own an iphone and have instagram and twitter. I'm not even sure what twitter is all about anyway. Sometimes I feel like a dinosaur with the technology changing so rapidly. I do check in with Facebook and love keeping in touch with my family and friends that are out of town and even those close by who I don't see often. I also love looking at pictures. Like everyone else I'm nosy and like seeing what's going on. :) Of course, Pinterest is on my list of daily fixes. Seriously, how did we ever come up with anything before pinterest??!! I know I used to have A LOT of websites bookmarked in my favorites. Lately, I've been on craig's list looking for a dining room table and other furniture. It's fun to check it out and I've even found a few cute things at a great price. 

Commenting Challenge

I am participating in the commenting challenge this week and am excited to "meet" other bloggers and follow some new ones. I'm a day late because I've been at training workshops at my school this week. Hello, Common Core State Standards!!

Welcome! My name is Melissa. I am 34(almost 35) years old and I live in Central Florida with my husband Damian and our adorable children:

Emma was born October 27, 2004 and is a sweet, smart, and compassionate 7 year old.  Max was born August 28, 2007  and is super  excited about starting kindergarten. He is funny, charming, and has the most adorable freckles. I had both of my kids on their due dates which I think is pretty amazing!

Damian and I just celebrated 10 years of marriage on June 15!  I am a first grade teacher and have been for 12 years now. I love my job and also love having the summers off to be with my sweet kids!My hubby is a golf course superintendent and is a hardworking, hands-on daddy. 

I'll be honest, I'm not that great of a blogger. I try to put pics of my kids and some family updates. I want to try even harder because I love looking back at this blog as my online scrapbook. I blog mostly for myself(one of my cousins and a good friend got me started) but I love reading blogs that share recipes, crafts, decorating ideas, and just other mommy blogs who have kids around the same age as mine. Maybe I'll get it together and share more of those other things too. One of the things on my summer to do list is a new blog design. I plan on getting that done in the next couple of weeks.

Thanks for stopping by my little blog.

Four Year Old Friday

Or as Max will tell you(and everyone he meets) 4 1/2 year old

--because that is so much cooler than just 4.

In a little more than two months he will be FIVE!! He's already planning his birthday party...silly boy! I have to admit I have bought a few things already, I just hope I remember where I put them when it's his b-day.

We have had a great week just me and my boy! Emma has been at dance/gymnastics camp this week.(having the time of her life I might add) Tuesday we played legos, read books, played some more, watched some Phineas and Ferb, and played some more. Wednesday we went to our local theater for the kids summer movies and saw Chipwrecked and of course came home and played. Yesterday we met up with our good friends and Max's best bud Brody at the splash park, our first time this summer! We love that place. I'm pretty sure I had just as much fun as Max chatting with my friend Jessi. After we picked up Emma, I dropped the kids off at Damian's golf course and went to Target by myself while they rode around the course with daddy. Yes, it was wonderful. We all had fun! It's been a week of grilling out, swimming, staying up late, sleeping in until after 8, reading books, and just having fun with my family. I really love summer!  Today I have to tackle the mountain that has become my laundry pile and do a little cleaning and packing. Max says he and his big muscles are going to help. We'll see how long that lasts.

Here he is dancing at the splash park...I love this kid!!

Our Anniversary Trip

Damian and I had the best time in Savannah celebrating our 10th anniversary! The weather was absolutely gorgeous with hardly any humidity...that was a welcome change for this Florida girl. I just about melted when we arrived home and stepped out in the sunshine.

 It felt like another honeymoon and although we missed the kids, our time away was wonderful!

This is one of my favorite pictures from the trip. After walking on River Street I noticed this back alley with steep stairs leading to antique stores. I guess it was calling my name! I told D this would be a great place for a pic. He perfected setting the camera up on ledges and captured this one! He even smiled for the camera...he's such a good sport!

 We arrived Wednesday and checked into our hotel and then headed to do a little sightseeing and figure out a plan for the next couple of days.  We ate delicious food, drank some tasty drinks, and enjoyed walking hand in hand being tourists.

 On Thursday we headed to the trolley tour at 9:00 am after having a yummy breakfast at our hotel. Our favorite stop on the tour was The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. It was beyond magnificent! We spent a lot of time looking around and taking it all in.

 We loved the houses and seeing so many different styles.

 We did the ferry tour too and I just about took a nap on the boat. It was relaxing to float on the river and listen to the history of Savannah.

 After touring the historic district all day, we went back to our hotel and got ready for a night on the town. It was another fun time!(I didn't bring my camera that night)

The next day(our actual anniversary day) we headed to Tybee Island, we were pleased to find that it was just a short drive away. After climbing up the steps in the lighthouse and touring the museum, we headed to the beach for a few hours. I was so glad we brought our beach chairs, umbrella, and cooler. Those few hours on the beach were just perfect!

After lunch on Tybee Island we headed back to our hotel for naps. Then we headed out for dinner at one of our very favorite places--Ruth's Chris Steakhouse--the first one we went to was on our honeymoon so we knew we had to make a reservation when we saw the sign on our first night in Savannah. When we normally go on vacation we only eat at local restaurants but we made an exception for one of our very favorite special occasion restaurants. Let me tell you...it did not disappoint. That steak melts in your mouth!



We had an amazing time and cannot wait to visit Savannah again.

Today we were back to life, back to reality! I had jury duty and the kids spent the day with Damian's parents. Tomorrow Emma is excited about gymnastics camp and I'm excited about spending the day with my little guy!

Father's Day

Father's Day this year has been pretty laid back and relaxing if you call going to church and then out to eat with 10 kids, 10 and under relaxing...ha ha! Actually it has been a really nice day! We started out by going to church with my entire family. We pretty much take up too rows of pews these days. Then we headed to a new family favorite keke's breakfast cafe. It was delicious as always and the kids were very well behaved and devoured their food.  We then went to my brother's new house- which they closed on this past Thursday-to open gifts and get a house tour. It's beautiful and fits their family perfectly!

We headed home so Damian could get in a little nap. I probably should've been doing our vacation laundry but that can wait since I'm home all summer and will have plenty of time. Instead I've been catching up on blog reading, relaxing, and hanging out with the kids. We are getting ready to head to my in-laws for dinner and a father's day celebration with them.

Tomorrow I have jury duty...I was really hoping my number wouldn't be on the list. But, it was! Emma is the most bummed because she can't go to gymnastics camp until Tuesday.

I have some fun pics from Savannah to share soon. Damian and I had the best time! We enjoyed the tours, good food, and just being together.

10 years

**This post was supposed to go up on Friday...better late than never I guess.**

Our wedding day:

June 15, 2002

Happy 10 year Anniversary to the love of my life! Here's to the rest of our lives together! 

Looking Back...

**I had scheduled this to post while we were gone last week but apparently it didn't work!**

This week is all about celebrating 10 years of wedded bliss with my handsome husband! I know it's often said that "it feels like yesterday we got married." But that is oh so true. It amazes me how quickly the last 10 years have come and gone.

I remember the day we met like it was yesterday. I also remember the first time we said I love you to one another. I can honestly say that after 10 years, two kids, and many memories-happy, sad, and everything in between...I love him even more today than I did way back then.

We are both so excited to get away this week for our anniversary celebration!

Here are just a few pictures of us throughout the years:

I look forward to spending the rest of my life with Damian by my side! I am blessed beyond belief to be his wife and the mother of his children

Emma's Recital

Emma's did another fantastic job at her ballet recital on Saturday.

 Here are some pics of the big day!

Ready to leave...looking way to big in makeup and her ballerina bun.

 All dressed up and ready to go!

 with her friends Sally and Sierra

 Beginning pose...

I didn't get any pics throughout because I video taped with my camera.

 She just loves watching it!

 final pose...gorgeous

 Trying to get this picture was a bit rough. She was running down the ramp and tripped and fell. She banged up her knee and tore a hole in those expensive tights. She's still limping on it a little but she tends to have a flair for the dramatic.

She loved her pretty flowers. She had two more bouquets at home that I didn't get her pic with, she also has a ballet trophy!

  Aunt Brooke, Aunt Cindy, and Aunt Christine

cousins Allie, Hannah, Rachel, and Elizabeth

all came to cheer her on

 so did Papaw and Gram (my parents)

 We are very proud parents!!

We are a little sad to say goodbye to her dance studio and her teacher Mrs. Anita, but excited about our upcoming move this summer. She will have the opportunity to take dance classes with her cousins and couldn't be happier.