January 21

Somebody is in love with money. We started allowance this fall (which blissfully eliminated the begging for everything at the store), and now someone collects coins constantly wherever he can find or pilfer them (with permission, of course). Now learning to count all those coins...everyday...sometimes more than once. :)

January 20

Grandpa stopped by and helped Josiah with his tennis homework. Yep, I said tennis homework. Who would have thought?

January 19

So fun to watch these two play together like old friends. 

Bonus pix:

Typical morning: Jim not quite awake, and Josiah thrilled to have Dad up.

Group hug!

January 18

Racehorse and trash talk. 

These two are amazing! They took the boys while Jill and I made an Albertville run. We came home to the boys in bed and these two at the table. Ended the night with our feet up, a glass of wine, and chatting late into the night. Again...seriously...why haven't we visited before???

January 17

Family road trip! On our way to see our friends Joe, Jill, & Eli in Sartell. They have lived there for like 2 years and we are just visiting now? What's wrong with us?!

January 16

Latest mommy sewing project = fabric ABCs. Super simple. Curves are a pain to sew around. Josiah thinks they are the greatest things ever! Can't wait to practice spelling and reading with him!

January 15

Enjoying a blizzard before the actual blizzard with my feet up and a little Harry on Idol. Snow day tomorrow!

January 14

Someone likes my Skinvigorate!

January 13

The insanity of iPhoto as your cataloguing tool. Looking at the sheer number of self-sorted folders gives me a headache. Good grief...must.finish.organizing.before.editing...gonna be a long haul on this one...and I'm dying to start using my new Photoshop Elements and book making!

January 12

Grateful for two things today: much warmer weather than a week ago & Ryland being back from the Bahamas. Two little boys were very happy to be together and spent about 2 hours playing outside in the front yard and sledding at Edgewood.

January 11

First tennis lesson today! Miraculously no one whacked anyone else with their racquet, despite there being 7 children on a very narrow court. 

January 10

So all my Facebook friends know this was actually from Saturday, but when I was at Jenna's on Friday night for Mom's Crafty Night Out I totally chatted away and forgot to take a pix. Oops! Here's me modeling the scarf I made!

January 9

Headed to Northport tonight where Josiah ran the show. Last summer we rode our bikes to the library every week, and he just realized we haven't been there in months. He checked out 3 books & 2 movies, and then walked down to Hornbachers where he bought 3 doughnuts (for himself, Jim, and I...isn't he sweet!), a hot chocolate at Caribou, and the marshmallow treat on a stick that's in his hand. 

January 8

Oh, the Places You'll Go! Jim and Josiah's favorite book to read together at bedtime...so many "dangerous" things going on in the pictures. :)

January 7

True confession: I totally forgot to take a picture today. Oops! First day back at work after a long weekend and only 2 1/2 hours with my sweetie after work. Here's a picture from Monday when we were home for the day due to the extremely cold weather. Of course that meant we stayed in our jammies for quite a while, and after packing his backpack full of his friends (aka: stuffed animals) for his yearly checkup (and kindergarten shots...eek!) Josiah settled in at the table to work in his Candy Land/Chutes and Ladders Big Book. 

January 6

Had a little fun with Photo Booth on mom's Mac. Might've put this on Dad's computer... :)

January 5

Snuggled in all warm and cozy with our Snoopy (from Great Grandpa DeKrey). Sleep tight!

January 4

Sporting our new Bison gear from Grandpa Blake & Grandma Kathy for the championship game in Frisco! The team was stomping Towson so badly that we tossed aside our pom pom momentarily to play one of our 5+ daily rounds of checkers. 

Luv this pix!!!

January 3

Pirates vs. Ninja Turtles

January 2

Eating tacos while discussing a few items from Josiah's "Our Family Dinner Questions" jar from daycare.

January 1

Boys wrestling (yes, Cooper is in on it too, just don't ask what his version of "wrestling" means).

a fresh start

New year, new blog. Life is rushing past us at a sometimes glorious, sometimes unsettling speed, and as I consider beginning a new year, a fresh chapter in our lives, I don't want to lose sight of everyday moments. Pinterest (of course, what else?) brought me to The Creative Mama's post on how she captures her family in one photo a day. This idea totally struck a chord in my heart, especially as I've spent the last few days of 2013 mulling over the past year. As I begin the daunting task of sorting several years' worth of family pix on my computer this project just makes sense. I love it's simplicity. So...here goes nothing...

...along with a photo of a quote displayed over my desk. While I love quotes as much as the next person, I don't typically display them in my home. This one, however, instantly brought tears to my eyes last summer as I came across it somewhere in downtown Park Rapids...those of you who know me well will understand.