La Costa Brava

Before we moved from Orlando,
I snapped some pictures of our apartment

for the tenants who were moving in.

Though not the best in quality, I love 

looking at these pictures and remembering 

the wonderful times we had here.

Kitchen & Dining Room

(Corbett's ready for dinner!)

Living Room

(can you spot Piper?)

Half Bath & Laundry Room

Guest Bedroom & Corbett's Room

Master Bathroom and Shower

Master Bedroom

Favorite things about this apartment:

- This is where we brought both of our babies home from the hospital

- Having a lake in our backyard

- Having a swimming pool (with a view of a lake) in our backyard

- The closets were HUGE

- The walls were concrete so we never heard our neighbors

- The rafters on the ceiling

- Waking up to the sound of birds chirping

- Two sinks in the bathroom!

- Hosting many friends and family who came to visit

- The ubiquitous little lizards

- Living so close to our friends Josh and Bradie Britt

- The marble countertop with 'party lights'

Least favorite things about this apartment:

- Cockroach sightings

- The uncanny amount of times our light bulbs went out

- The sound of the shower waking Corbett up

- The constant yard maintenance during Corbett's naps

- No designated parking spot

- No recycling

- The management 

Sailor Dress

The last time I was in Utah,

I went through a box of my baby things

and found this dress that my mom

made for me when I was 18 months old.

I couldn't resist recreating the 

picture with Piper, 32 years later. 

It was tough work getting this 

wiggle worm to stay seated for the photo. 

Thankfully, we got ONE good shot 

(which, in the end, is all I needed).

Love that girl and love that grin!

Father's Day 2015

Today I interviewed Corbett about his dad.

The results are both both accurate and amusing:

My dad's name is Jake.

He is  5  years old.

My dad likes to wear T-shirts.

He loves to eat macaroni & cheese.

He is smart because he knows about Corbett and pictures.

He works hard at Duke Hospital.

Daddy always tells me that I need to go to bed!

It makes my daddy happy when I give him a big hug and a kiss.

I really love it when my dad goes on a choo-choo train.

If I could give my dad anything, it would be a popsicle.

My favorite thing to do with my dad is dice.

I love my dad because he loves me.

Our celebrations entailed 

delivering candy to Jake at work and 

letting Corbett ride his bike through the hospital halls.

Happy Father's Day to our handsome, helpful,

hard working and fun loving daddy! 

Outer Space Birthday Bash

Corbett specifically wanted a

rocket ship cake for his birthday,

so I threw him a little space

themed party with some friends.

THE INVITATION

THE DECORATIONS

THE ACTIVITIES

First we decorated "Moon Rock Bags"

Then we learned about Rocket Ships

And played "Saturn Ring Toss"

Followed by Stomp Rockets

(definitely a crowd favorite)

Finally, the kids went on 

a moon rock hunt

Inside were Starbursts 

and glow in the dark stars

THE FOOD

Star shaped PB&J sandwiches

Star shaped cheese 

Rocket ship fruit kebabs 

THE CAKE

(notice the strategically placed candles)

THE PHOTOGRAPHER &

THE BIRTHDAY BOY

Originally the party was supposed 

to just be a play date with cake, 

but the perfectionist in me took over 

and it turned in to a bit more...

Still, I had fun doing it and I think 

Corbett had a great time as well.

Interview with a 3 Year Old

Corbett, Age 3

1. What is your favorite color? Green and purple

2. What is your favorite toy? A choo choo train

3. What is your favorite fruit? Grapes

4. What is your favorite tv show? Super Why

5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Quesadilla

6. What is your favorite outfit? Super Why shirt

7. What is your favorite game? Matching games

8. What is your favorite snack? Vanilla yogurt and bananas

9. What is your favorite animal? Lion and Zebra

10. What is your favorite song? Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Old MacDonald

11. What is your favorite book? Beauty and the Beast

12. Who is your best friend? Stevie and Dylan (Dickman)

13. What is your favorite cereal? Cinnamon Toast Crunch

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Go swimming

15. What is your favorite drink? Water and apple juice

16. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Mr. Monkey

18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Bananas

19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Chick Fil A

20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A worker man, an astronaut and a fireman

Anything else you want to say about your life? “That I love my life.”

Corbett is 3!

Corbett's 3rd birthday was a
long time coming. A few weeks ago he 

woke up from his nap and said, 

"Momma? Am I still 2?"

"Yes," I replied.

"But why I still 2?"

Needless to say, he was very 

excited when May 21st rolled around 

and he became "this many":

Per Corbett's request, we went to 

Defy Gravity in the morning 

and had a blast jumping on 

trampolines and into foam pits.

We were supposed to go 

swimming after Corbett's nap 

but it started to rain, so instead we 

went to Toys R Us so he could ride 

the bikes and cars on display 

(a favorite pastime).

We had dinner at Corbett's
favorite eatery, Chick Fil A

(pronounced "Chick-a-lay").

Finally, we came
home for cake and presents.
Corbett's big gift this year was a
green balance bike, which we

put together and rode that night.

It was a busy day and

we went to a lot of places, just

like Corbett loves to do.

Jake and I are so amazed by

Corbett and what a good boy he is.

He loves to learn and has an 

amazing memory.

He is so funny and makes us

laugh every day.

He is a helpful big brother

and so sweet to Piper.

He has a lot of love for his

family and friends.

He knows what he wants and

how to achieve it.

He has so many interests:

music, construction, fire trucks,

outer space, trains, airplanes,

helicopters, school buses,

swimming and more!

He has changed our lives

for the better and I love spending 

 almost all of my time with him.

Happy Birthday sweet boy!

Piper's 1 Year Photos

Piper recently had a 1 year 

photo shoot (same as Corbett), and 

I just love how these pictures capture 

her sweet and playful personality.

Here are my favorites:

She was a little shy at first, but 

by the end was really hamming it up. 

We love this cutie girl!

(pictures courtesy of Portrait Innovations)