this night was pretty close to perfect.
not sure how it could have been better even.
our friends had a party at their home in the country on the 3rd of july.
it poured rain from 2 – 5 PM (everyone was nervous) & then cleared up to the best evening we'd had in weeks.
the first thing my kids want to do when they get here is fish.
always.
within a couple minutes they were pulling out fish!
the problem with fishing……taking OUT the hook.
no one in our family can or wants to do it.
thankfully we have our friend joel.
a REAL fisherman.
he said "i have been doing this all my life. i'm from minnesota"
i said "yeah….we're from newton"
my mom helped annie catch this little sunfish.
as soon as i saw it i had a childhood flashback of catching those with my grandpa in his boat dock with i was
annie's age….oooooold memory…..thirty years old.
joel took some video with his phone for me….pay no attention to the finger on the lens for a bit.
sean was the only one brave enough to hold the fish in his hands.
talby wanted nothing to do with touching her fish.
they all caught a lot that day.
joel was stuck helping us for quite a while.
after the fishing….i washed my hands and i found the best part of the party!
a brand new teeny tiny baby to hold.
i held him and held him and held him.
annie wanted a turn holding him too.
we studied his itty bitty adorable little toes.
his big brother was peeking at who was holding his baby.
he came in for a kiss right after.
oh annie's face! she LOVES babies like i do…..it runs deep!
even lauren took a turn…..how could anyone resist?
swimming in the pond…..pushing each other off the dock……
the food was yummy.
the company was familar and cozy….many had known me all my life.
the scenery was stunning.
as soon as it was dark they had a fireworks show over the pond.
it was so gorgeous.
like we were in a movie or something.
the boys watched the fireworks from the dock!
it was one of those days that you can't help but be grateful and happy to be living this life.
Melanie Daryl - Hihi! Such a cute baby! Oh well, how many fish did they catch? And was there ever a time they got scared of holding ’em? Your childhood is not complete without catching fishes. Sadly, I haven’t tried that one ‘coz I grew up in the ‘dolls era.’ Hahaha!
Kelly - I love hearing your voice talking to your kiddos on video. You have such an encouraging mother voice. Kelly
DanaD@BoysMyJoys - I’m so curious/nosey…
was there no block party this year for the 4th?
Your block parties always make me wish I lived in that sort of neighborhood!
They look like so much fun!
jessica hines - Hi Meg, I have followed your blog for a while ever since I saw it as one of my friend’s faveorites. Great ideas, beautiful photos! Love it! Hope you get the chance to check out my etsy shop.. http://www.etsy.com/shop/jlhart123…the second letter is a lowercase L even though it looks like a one..haha
Peta - You look super cute, Meg! Summer has ‘freshened you’ somehow if that sounds as nice as it’s meant to??? I am jealous of your summer. It’s winter here. My water bottle was frozen in my car this morning ….
Sharla - Just watched the video – am I hearing “Knee Deep” in the water by Zac Brown?!?!
sonja - Cute baby, cute video, cute dress, cute you! Love it all–great shots. Thanks for sharing.
Amy Slavik@ Little For A Little While - I’m from MN and have NEVER baited my own hook or unhooked my own fish! I wish I was brave and could do it, especially to show my girl it was no big deal, but I just can’t do it!!! That’s what the daddy is for! I love seeing summer through your eyes, looks like you have so much fun!
alicia @ la famille - love days like that 🙂 great pics!
shauna - what a good day.
thank you LORD for those….
and my favorite photo is of course the one where joel is helping and the light is shining over his shoulder…so perfect!
ps you know everyone loves seeing you on video right? make me look forward to september!
Courtney Hohimer - I LOVE your dress! You look super cute and awesome!
ashley jensen - Ooh this makes me miss fishing. My family are big time fishermen (and women)! I have hooked many worms, and unhooked many fish. For some reason I was never trusted with a filet knife to actually gut one but I have watched countless times and could do it with my eyes closed. I just KNOW I could.
connie - Meg,
You look amazing in these pictures the last few days!!
amy b. - love all these photos!! What a fabulous place! And it reminded me that we have yet to go fishing this summer-it’s so fun with the kids-who am I kidding, I love it too!
Kompankansas - Great post, great photos Meg. Hope all is well.
Melissa Irvin - What an awesome time! We also celebrated on the 3rd and I slept as much as I could on the 4th!
happygirl - It did look like a PERFECT day. I’m glad you captured so much of it and wrote about it. Bookmarked. I day to return to when you’re having a “not so perfect” day. 🙂
Shauna Howington - I love that your son calls you Mother. That’s what my middle child has always called me. Btw, I would love to know what kind of lens you’re using. Great photos!
Valerie @ Chateau A La Mode - Awwww, love times like that. Love people I’ve known forever, there’s a certain bond for sure.
Katie - Beautiful photographs! You’ve got the eye. Big time.
Meredith Salmon - That looks like a great time. My kids love fishing. We are surf fishermen though. My Dad has always surf fished. I love it. Also, love the dress, where did you get it???
Liz Stockham Schmidt - Love the pictures! What kind of camera did you use?
karen - so nice. your pics are so nice to look at meg!
Sabrina - yeah… if you’re from Minnesota and you can’t take a fish off the hook there may be something wrong with you. 🙂
Love your dress!
Lisa - I love days that are pretty close to perfect! Sometimes they feel too far and few between. Love the pictures and video too .
Gemma @ Musings of a gem - Really nice post, I can imagine what it was like!
I love perfect days…they will stay in your memory forever : )
Gemma x
Brianna - Meg…where is your dress from?? LOVE IT!
Cindy - Beautiful post, Meg. My girlies loved the fishing video! They kept asking me how Scott was holding that fish (because they couldn’t see the line). Guess I need to take them fishing more often! My hubby won’t even help with fishing…it’s always up to me to put the worms on and touch the fish! He says he doesn’t enjoy fishing…me neither really, but I’ll do it for my kiddos! Loved your dress by the way!
julia - okay, ya’ll know you were simming in the the SAME pond that had those fish. I really, really, really love buying things at the grocery store.
Jenna - I’m so jealous of your kids! My hubs and I have been fishing so many times since we started dating and I still have not caught one! I’ve caught seaweed, a bush, the dock and a tree, but never a fish 🙂 Bravo to them!
Jenna
tara - love those days.
beautiful shots capturing the perfection of your time with friends and family!
Robyn Farmer - Yeah for Lauren being in a picture! I always love seeing her, she’s a stunning beauty.
Dawn - Love the pictures. It looked like a lot of fun. =)
Sharla - Sounds like a perfect night.
Beth - Lovely! Love how you said “Joel was stuck with us”. We took my hubby fishing once for Father’s day. I thought it was such a good idea . . but he ended up not fishing himself and just helping the kids the whole time (while I sat and read my book). More like Mother’s day actually 🙂 Annie is so sweet with the baby!!!