a good start to the week

hello friends - happy monday to you!

as you've probably noticed, i finally got around to a bit of updating around here

nothing too crazy - just freshened up with a new header + adjusted fonts / colors etc

i guess i was in a catch-up-on-things-that-are-long-overdue kick over the weekend

because not only did i spruce up my little corner of the internet, 

i also caught up on some vacation photos from our last trip to florida

(briefly blogged about here and here, but that was about it)

exactly 3 months ago we were smack-dab in the middle of our fabulous time there

and for some reason, i just flipped through our photos and decided it's high time i shared some

so here's a batch from our last morning there

the water was rough, but we figured it was our last chance to get out in it

to our surprise, the girlies loved it!

and they weren't the only ones

i mean, what's not to love?

their contagious squeals of joy, the sound of the waves crashing, salty air and good company
my heart was full

under the weather + under the boardwalk

well, as you can guess from the title of this post

(or at least from part of it)

we've been under the weather this week,

battling a pretty nasty stomach bug

it started with Daniel on saturday

then by monday i fell victim to it

and today, the girlies seem like they're fighting something 

(hoping it's not the same thing we had, cause that was bad - we'd appreciate any prayers on that front!)

in the midst of all this sickie-chaos / whine-fest / mama-just-wants-her-coffee madness this morning, 

i looked up and thought to myself, 

"how is this week not over yet?!  i don't even think i can make it through today"

then i picked up my 50 promises stack and flipped to the next verse

as i reached out, i half heartedly thought to myself, 

"wouldn't it be ironic if the next verse was just what i needed to read?"

and of course, what do you think happened?

"do not be afraid; for i am with you.  

do not be dismayed; for i am your god.

i will strengthen you, i will help you, i will uphold you 

with the right hand of my righteousness."

my Jesus never fails

i'm so grateful for His help, the reminder of which i needed so badly this morning

and let's be honest, the morning didn't miraculously get better

the kids are still whining,

my head is still pounding,

my coffee is still barely sipped

BUT

i'm leaning on Him for strength to apologize to my kids when i'm short with them

or better yet, before i hit breaking point i am able to stop and say a little prayer

to ask for His help, His strength, His patience, His love, His kindness

***

on a {mostly} unrelated note,

sitting in bed while i was sick

gave me time to finish sorting through my phone pictures from our most recent day at the beach

this batch is mostly from under the boardwalk

there's just something magical about a space that's not always accessible

and just look at the crazy designs from the water's reflection on the wood planks...so cool!

i love it when the tide's out...and i love sharing these beautiful things with my munchkins (and you!)

beach days are the best days

happy friday, friends!

how was your week?

ours was great:

lots of playtime outside

(thanks to the {mostly} gorgeous weather we've been having)

a bit of baking 

(one of the girlies' favorite activities lately)

not that much sleeping

(story of my life - hah!)

and not one, but two beach days

(gotta take advantage of 'em while the weather's agreeable!)

and, as always, i had my handy-dandy phone in hand

to document my little explorers running wild and free...just the way it should be

honestly, guys, the world around us is so beautiful, i can hardly stand it

but i'll quit rambling and let the pictures do the talking

vacation catch-up

hey guys!

our vacation is officially over today:

daniel is back to work, the house is littered with toys

and there are half unpacked bags in every corner

out time on st. george island was full of fun, sand, waves, seafood, late nights, laugher, etc.

oh and perhaps the most exciting part was when my sister in law got engaged!!!

it was such a sweet proposal 

her fiance is a total keeper

he was up half the night collecting shells to write "marry me kate" in the sand

so she could see it on their sunrise walk

plus he passed the twin test...like i said, he's a keeper

we got home halfway through saturday and spent the rest of the day battling jetlag...and napping

sunday wasn't much different

the girlies told me "happy you, mama" (translation:  happy mothers day),

we set up blankets in the living room to cuddle and watch frozen

(it scared one of them, and the other didn't have the attention span for the whole movie

....soooo we're probably shelving that one for a while)

then we napped some more,

skyped with daniel's parents 

(had to wish his mama "happy you" too! ;) )

and did a quick costco run to grab some essentials

(we were down to 2 diapers and almost out of coconut oil...crisis averted!)

after all that, we ran out to the backyard for some playtime before the sun went down

it was a beautiful end to our vacation

and now, on to "real life"