Blueberry Fun

Tie dye for Dad

I must admit I have not been that great about the cliche' Father's Day gifts. A hand made shirt, a tie, a coffee mug. But I think this year we hit the nail on the head. A group of moms and kids from our church got together shortly before the big day and made fantastic tie dye shirts for our Daddy's. Aubrey's and even Leah's came out quite cool. However Daddy and Pappy had ones that basically made them look like giant targets. Oh well, maybe we will redeem ourselves next year. I am hoping that Matt will have a whole closet of these by the time the kids are done doing these kinds of things. That would be awesome!

Hibernia Camping

Matt and I share a love for the outdoors that we are hoping to pass on to our girls. We love hikes in the woods, food on a campfire and the opportunity just get away from it all. We tried even when the girls were really young to find time to take them camping. Right now we have opted for car camping... a little less adventurous then a 4 day hike in the woods. But just perfect for two little girl. Aubrey and Leah love being outside, what kid doesn't. Hibernia Campground is the best place to camp. It is so close to our house that we can head home "just in case". We can always run out of camp if we forgot anything too. They provide all the firewood and we have now been there so often that we know which campsite is THE BEST. (We are not telling you what it is.) Right now the girls love to run around barefoot, grass between their toes and find leaves and bugs... hoping to grow up girls that continue to do the same thing.

Eventually soon I would love to graduate to a couple of mile hike with the girls in tow, but for now, this is good. The food, the fire and time as a family.

Strawberry Festival

These amazing shots are courtesy of my amazing husband.
Matt O'Malley

Going to the Strawberry Festival is a bit of an experience. Mostly a reminder that we are not going to let our teenage girls leave the house. We have gone for the past couple of years to taste the food (I mean what are festivals really about, but french fries, funnel cake and other yummy treats.) The girls both got to ride a ride. Aubrey went with Daddy on the Superman ride. Can't believe my little girl is that big. Daddy was wonderful and took the girls on whatever (of the 3 rides that we felt like paying for) they wanted... and Mommy got to keep her feet firmly planted on the ground, which is more and more appealing as I get older. Seriously.... who wants to be spun around in circles. Oh, my children who are spinning each other around in a desk chair as I type this.

Aubrey's Creation

You can store all the artwork in her keep forever box, here's my way to keep memories that are a little more 3 dimensional. Can't I just keep her this size forever? This is the product of a quiet day at home. We should have them more often.