Young at heart...

I showed this picture to my girls the other day and asked them who it was and they immediately knew it was my mom (their mamaw.) she has not changed much. Yes, it's been close to 60 years (since this photo) and she's a billion years wiser. But her countenance is still the same. And it's beautiful...

He knows...

"It's a wonderful life." Pretty much the best Christmas movie ever made. I love this line from that movie. "Ask dad he knows" because let's face it...he just does! I also love this candid picture of my dad because you just plain cannot argue with a face like that. He just knows...and what a comfort it is that he does.

Handy as heck husband...

My dishwasher quit today and I had a mini meltdown because I can't live without a dishwasher. I texted Chris and said I wanted to cry because I simply CANNOT survive without a dishwasher. So what did he do? After work he climbed on in and did something to it...I have no clue what...he could have been making out with the dishes for all I care. Whatever he did worked like a charm. He became my true hero of the day. What would I do without a man in my life!?!! (Take that...feminists.)

Fire...

It's a hard thing to watch. The place you call home on fire. Is our house on fire? No. Is our home on fire? Yes.

We've lived here for 15 and a half years and the beauty that surrounds us is breathtaking. Seeing so much of it go up in flames is not an easy pill to swallow. But more than that...my heart goes out to all the families who have had to evacuate their homes. 

It really is a testament that God can give, but he can also take. And he doesn't do it to punish us, but sometimes hard things happen so we can grow. That's how much he loves us.

We pray this ends soon and the beauty of this area can one day be restored. 

Pure imagination...

What is it about a child's imagination that is the coolest thing in the whole universe? Because, well, it's authentic. They believe in the things they create and they aren't hard on themselves like we as adults are. They are so much more forgiving of imperfection.

Grace made these homemade shoes out of bubble wrap and some shiny paper. Put her signature brand on them (GC) and couldn't be a happier girl.

It reminds me of my favorite movie (willy wonka and the chocolate factory) I love the line from the song "pure imagination" that goes "come with me and you'll be in a world of pure imagination living there you'll be free if you truly wish to be." 

Grace wished it and she got it...

Paddle time...

I still officially have two weeks left of play time before I have to go back to work. I've loved having so many days of one on one with Austin. Knowing he will be leaving on a mission in a year and a half has made me appreciate every minute I have with him. He is such a blast to hang out with...

All good things must end...

It's happened. Summer has officially come to an end for us. After Labor Day it just feels time to think about fall and Halloween and stuff like that. And I'm actually really excited about this.

We ended our summer with one last boating day. There are fires burning near us and the air wasn't that ideal but we made the best of it. We also took a few minutes to pray for the people affected by a huge fire 20 miles from us. I couldn't help but feel gratitude today that my family was safe and my heart goes out to those that could potentially lose their homes.

We ended the day with pizza, salad and soda.

A great way to end our summer...