lots and lots of pictures from the weekend.
three of the girls flew to kansas…two from california…one from alabama.
two of the girls drove from oklahoma.
the rest of the girls were local within 30 minutes.
three of us went to the airport to pick them all up…there were even some tears of joy upon meeting in real life.
craig is a super star and took all of our kids to his mom's for the weekend…with the stomach flu.
all the blogger girls stayed at my house.
i have lots of beds….a little known fact apparently.
everyone had their own mattress.
we must be mattress hoarders.
my dining room that turned into a game room decided to become a craft retreat lodge this weekend.
we fit in there so well!
all the sewing machines were on the pool table!
it was like the room was made for it.
on friday night we made our first craft led by julie.
we used this tutorial by little miss momma.
they turned out so cute.
almost everyone chose a different color.
you need to make this!
kimberlee didn't have on lipstick so we had her use her necklace for lipstick.
lots and lots of chit chat while we were crafty.
and i see waffle's paw at the bottom left corner of this picture.
he was by our sides every minute….loving the the attention from the ladies.
there was so much good food.
cindy made breakfast on saturday.
we got to sleep in….a requirement made by me.
don't you hate going places for a "retreat" and then have to be at breakfast by 7:30 am??
there was even a sweet little baby in attendance!
after cindy filled us with crepes with fresh fruit and quiche we loaded into a 15 passenger van to go antiquing.
we debated about decorating the van with bunting……
so fun.
we are any stores DREAM.
a van pulling up with 10 women to shop???
we were met with big smiles.
9 out of 10 ladies left with new found treasures.
cole with his mama picking out all the best doilies.
i took them to my favorite antique store…Bearly Makin It.
so much to choose from.
if you are in kansas….you should go.
heather found silverware for her party planning business.
a total score!
anyone need a milk jug???
loving the sunshine!
all the ladies took turns holding sweet baby cole.
it was our pleasure.
he hardly made a peep the whole weekend.
and everyone had envy of julie's gorgeous hair….it is soooo pretty.
on saturday in kansas we had a really odd extremely warm day.
we were so grateful for it.
can you guess what i bought from all these goodies? ha ha ha
after a sonic happy hour run we made it back to my house for more crafts.
the ruffle pillow tutorial heather taught us with is here.
3 women had never sewn on a machine before.
they ended up being ruffle making rock stars!
they did fantastic.
ashley's machine made the best ruffles…we all waitied for our turn on her machine.
no one knew what the secret was….but it worked….no gathering required.
i love being around people who love technology as much as i do….
threading a needle….
the third craft was embroidery hoop art.
we were given lots of examples that we could make or we could make our own design.
amy's was amazing.
we stayed up crafting and listening to frank sinatra on pandora and eating tiramisu until 2 in the morning.
kimberlee made breakfast on sunday.
there was frosting involved.
YUM.
another great thing about crafty girls weekends….women clean up.
always.
there were cameras everywhere.
and fabric everywhere.
dreamy.
and my brass lamps from the thrift shop. :)
there is a peek at amy jupin's ruffle pillow.
i am in love with the ruffle pillows…i want to make a hundred of them.
and her turquoise flower necklace is also in the picture.
these were all of our hoops together…not all finished but all together.
mine is the one right
here under these
letters.
trying to set up our cameras for a group shot….caught kimberlee being silly.
jana (no blog….yet) and amy jupin.
jess and julie.
ashley and cindy (also no blog….YET).
cindy came with ashley so she didn't have to drive alone and show up to a house full of women she had never met and be trapped with us if she didn't like us…
turns out we LOVED them both!
very much.
heather, cole and me.
amy (my neighbor) and kimberlee (my cleaning partner)
and that was that.
they went home with their suitcases full of new crafts, antiques, julie's messy flowers and full tummies.
and i haven't stopped smiling since.
God gave me blogging.
He gave me a gift that i get to continue opening when i meet new friends from all over.
God is so awesome.
my mind feels full of creativity.
my heart feels full of love and friendship.
my body feels too full of cinnamon rolls and cheesecake.
the retirement center has been missing me.
my bloggy friends left just in time….we are snowed in here and it's FREEZING.
my house has never been this cold.
i am bundled up in a blanket with many layers and hot coffee and i am still frozen.
chasity - i LOVE that annie is watching buster more than the laundry pile…totally cracked me up!!!!!
great photos.
a day in the life…..
jami - You should make the taquitos. That is one of my family’s Top 5. Absolutely love those! And you should definitely make them with the creamy cilantro dressing for dipping.
tam - I hope you had a great weekend! I love seeing snapshots of your life and home. Always so colorful, makes me happy!
Jana - Completely unrelated BUT I spy parenting with love and logic on your nightstand. I love that book. Still working on employing the program 100% of the time…not sure if that will ever happen 😉
Lori - LOVE Our Best Bites! I’ve made both and I vote the Chicken Fingers 🙂 SO delicous!
Daniele Valois - I think your photos have gotten better in the past couple of weeks. It seems the focal point is more deliberately placed, and the depth is really nice. I also love this last photo, and the crayons. The hoodie is adorable!
Kristin S - I’ve said it before but your random posts are my favorite and these photos are stunning! Stunning snapshots of every day life.
I must say your bathroom counter might be my favorite. Why? Because it looks like mine. I have a grand illusion that everyone in the world has clean counter tops except me. Thanks for helping me with reality this morning.
Valerie @ Chateau A La Mode - Glad to hear you feel better. Love your pictures of real life with the Whatever Family. Happy weekend!
crystal beutler - So glad you are feeling better!!! Love all the pictures — your house just makes me happy to look at. I love the one of Waffle. And that hoodie — stinkin’ cute!!! Can’t wait until your shop opens — it will make me happy just to go there and visit all the colors. 🙂
Glad someone else has a drawer with a red blowdryer hanging out of it, and products all over the counter. I feel right at home looking at that. 🙂
Hey, would you believe I found a service camp for teens. Sounds really cool. However, the aged limit is 15. Missed it by that much. Dang.
Dina - Does your mug say “morning” or “warning”?
I need one that says the latter:-)
LOVE all your pics…pretty sure we’re related…necklaces, ribbons, quilts, crayons….come on! Oh..and Sonic happy hour — the best! I went today and the kid who took my order first introduced himself as Bruce Wayne then asked me if I’d like to make it a route 44 for just $.10 more…God Bless Sonic:-)
Kimberlee J. - Okay, I might be crafting a hoodie because I’ll never beat the other 450 people who said they loved it.
Tal will enjoy it next Fall, right? I better get started. That’s how long it will take me…just to find fabric I will commit to.
I’m glad you’re feeling better.
Two in bed is better than being alone. 🙂
Sharla - LOVE Annie’s outfit – that hoodie is too cute!
beki - Happy, Happy Friday! And now I’m off to check out those recipes 🙂
Lynn - Where can I find that mug? Anyone? I’m nuts over it!
Shauna - I want one of those hoodies!!!! Love your happy pictures.
Kimberly Dial - I love your posts. They never fail to make me smile. Thank you.
Kimberly Dial - I love your posts. They never fail to make me smile. Thank you.
becky - ah. thank you for being SO. REAL. it makes me feel like i can maybe hang in there as a new-er mommy. 🙂 it’s just. so. exhausting some times. to be intentional. and loving….. and patient. 🙂 and not just drop them in my hubby’s arms when he gets home & say ‘see ya!’ love reading your sincere & authentic words. thank you for what you do. i know it takes a big chunk of time, and we appreciate it out here in blog world! 🙂 happy weekend.
Mallory - Oh Mama those Walmart pizzas are YUMMY! 🙂 Can I come over for dinner?!
Leah - I am SO making those taquitos tonight. Thanks for the new recipes.
betsy - Oh, Waffle! SUCH a rough life 🙂
I want to bring him here to play with my Minnie. They’d have fun. I’m sure of it!
Janine - Oh my goodness! Can I come over and cuddle with Waffle? I only live a few thousand miles away! Have a great weekend!
jaz - WooooOOOOoooo! Did someone get a new macro lens??? Gorgeous shots!! Lovely depth of field!!
(Absolutely GORGEOUS Rainbow jumper!)
Deputy's Wife - Update on me stealing your idea to make the chicken taquitos tonight: I totally missed the part in the recipe where it says to warm up the tortillas before you roll, otherwise your taquitos will crack. Yup… mine are a big cracked mess on my stove. I am still baking them though, I think they are edible, just a little ugly. HA!
Ugly Taquitos anyone???
shauna reed - Can you tell I’m typing in my phone? Gotta love predictive text. I like to keep ya guessing.
shauna reed - Dude. You should make the people bid for your sweatshirt. Would that be mean? Or fun?
Ella would live one-shot those babies. Maybe i’ll try my hand at one…xoxo
Enjoy snuggle time this morning. Lucky.
Christine Ishmael - Glad your feeling better…I may make it to the post office this weekend to mail your “thank you”, it’s on my list…my hubby and I bought those twin “Good Morning” mugs…LOVE them! Have a fabulous weekend!
Liz Prince - do you know how much i adore reading you each morning?! u always inspire me and put a smile on my face. sweatshirt is adorable…. i wish you made it in my size 🙂
happy weekend!
erin - i’ve made the chicken taquitos are they are soooo good!! have a great weekend, and thanks for always making the ordinary look so beautiful!
Gretchen - Meg,
Thanks for the links to some good recipes — feeling at a loss today on what to make for dinner (soooo not a cook and don’t enjoy it a lot) and the pulledchicken seemed easy enough and something my husband and daughter would both like! So, literally, it’s in my crockpot right now! Thing is …. there is SO MUCH sauce, it looks NOTHING like the pics. See why I don’t like cooking? It never turns out like the pics! 😉 (And yep, I definitely checked my measurements b/4 I assembled — that’s how not confident I am.) Why oh why so soupy? Was yours?
And now for the non-cooking questions … 😉
I see I’m not the only one wanting to know how you store/display your necklaces … so can you spill? Perhaps a pic or two? I’ve got mine in two places and one is totally hidden away and seems like a waste (they are so happy to look at) and the other is a fun dish I have, but they’re all in a jumbled pile. Not so happy.) So spill, sistah!
And last question — seriously, how about some more hoodies? What kind of size range do you go up to? My daughter’s an 8. Ahem. Ahem. Would LOVE one for the spring as her go-to hoodie.
How’s THAT for a first-time commenter (I think) and a long-time reader (I know!)
-Gretchen
erlfisher - My nightstand looks exactly like yours…carmex…coffee…too many books…except my alarm clock is black instead of white. Love that Waffle. And I vote for the taquitos, too!
Marie - ok that sonic drink just made me jealous. I used to live 2 minutes from one and now the closest one is almost an hour away. 🙁 My favorite, was their Vanilla Dr. Pepper. Just sayin’. Oh how I miss it. That’s all, glad you got to enjoy yours!
RLG - I’m curious: how many hours per week would you say you spend cleaning the house? I’m desperately trying to get a handle on how much time I spend cleaning, or thinking about cleaning.
I think I’m going insane. xoxo
Laura Phelps - Friday mornings are ROUGH over here
not sure why
we always over sleep
rush, rush, rush
hate it
need to go to bed earlier I think
BUT..
happy for YOUR morning
woo hoo to that
and we have had a sick in hiding week too…
hope for more sunshine this weekend!
love you
Sarah - Thank you thank you thank you.
I am in such a recipe rut.
Flower Patch Farmgirl - Well, I just bookmarked the taquitos, so you have MY vote…
april - Wow love your necklace collection!!! And walmart pizza is the best…and uper easy to pick up! Love the pics…whats up with all the cooking lately lady? Can you ship some to cali? hahahah
Tess - i love that mug. i bought it a month ago and i swear coffee is more delicious from it.
Andrea - OMGeeeee those taquitos are so good, one of our favorites. Have.a great weekend.
se7en - A feast of Photographs!!! O frabjous day!!! You just made mine – love it!!!
Timalee - Today I feel exactly the way Waffle looks, can’t wait for the sun to come back out here!
Lisa - What adorable clothes! So cute, and will look quite adorable on my own little spunky almost 4 year old. Enjoy your weekend. 🙂
Jen Brandt - Great post! I love your pictures. Thanks for the new recipe ideas. Jealous that you get to sleep in with you hubby as mine is away for 4 1/2 months of training for the Army. 🙁 But! Happy for you! 🙂 Have a great weekend. Love your blog!
shelley - your pictures make me want to sing !! I just all the beauty you capture !
kate - l.o.v.e. that hoodie! so darn cute! my daughter would love it. and you can’t go wrong with anything from Our Best Bites, but i can say that those taquitos are amazing! we love them around here.
Carolyn - We had the OBB chicken taquitos a few nights ago. They were SO GOOD. Dipped them in guacamole and sour cream–yummy! Definitely put those on your “to make” list if you don’t have them tonight. And thanks for the other recipes!
Jenny B. - So glad you’re feeling better! That rainbow hoodie is ADORABLE. Wish I had a little girl to put one on. 🙂 I’ve been stalking your Etsy shop all week – so afraid you would open it while I was at work, and I would miss it! ha! 🙂 Oh, and your bathroom counter looks all too familiar. And I love that your lamp shade is crooked. Yup. I do. Have a great day!
Kim - Love that Sonic Happy Hour makes a frequent occurrence as one of the best parts of your day – anytime I get to sonic its the best part of my day…just wish they were a bit closer. It’s the little things.
And that might be my favorite picture of waffle EVER. I think he was so happy to have you on his level. 🙂 So sweet.
Britanie - The baked chicken tacquitos are the best, you HAVE to make them, you will definitely not regret it! I love the hoodie, my 6 year old would never take it off! I’m a long time lurker, first time commenter, just want to let you know that I feel my day is incomplete until I check in.
Gemma - Yay for the weekend!!!! I’m looking forward to seeing your cushions : )
Wish I could have some chocolate chip cookies RIGHT NOW !!!
GEMMA X
steph - i totally made julie’s baked ziti last weekend!!!
ha ha ha ha!
i love looking for easy and yummy recipes via blogs too.
so wonderful!
i think i’m gonna have to make those pulled chicken sandwiches this weekend.
maybe a good meal to eat after church on sunday?
glad to read you’re feeling better.
feeling sick as a mom just seems unfair, huh?
who the heck is supposed to take care of you?!
hoodie… ADORBS!!!!!!!
i NEED one for one of my daughters at least! ha!
amy d - i nearly had a heart attack when i heard the basketball outside this morning…thinking i had slept til when school gets out!!!!
i woke up thinking, holy moly how could i have possibly slept through the whole day!!! …then i looked at the clock and fell back in bed and was out cold. 🙂
love mr waffle’s picture.
SueWis - Somebody likes silver and gray. Surprising first choices from the new box. 🙂
Heather L. - I want a hoodie. STAT! So cute!
Heather - I know your daughter has been compared to Ramona Cleary before, but it’s worth saying again. Her little outfit is absolutely precious!
ashley jensen - Oh my goodness…I so want the rainbow hoodie for my daughter! Too stinkin cute!
Deputy's Wife - I vote for the chicken taquitos tonight. Actually, after I read the recipe, I am going to the store to pick up tortillas to make them!
Vera - TGIF indeed! So glad you’re feeling better!!
karen - i love this post! colour me happy Meg!
looking forward to your etsy shop!! I hope you are selling those cute rainbow tee’s!
Holly - so glad you are feeling better! I am planning to get out of my pjs before noon as well. Of course I promised Brian I would have lunch with him at school so I think he might get embarressed if I showed up in my polka dot pj pants! Ha! Love the picture of Waffle!
keely - Definitely try the chicken taquitos- they’re soooo good and easy and we love them in our house! Though these are good, too: http://atimetoeat.blogspot.com/2009/08/baked-beef-and-bean-taquitos.html
🙂
happygirl - How can you make a picture of your bathroom vanity looks so pretty. When I look at mine, I would NEVER think of photographing it. You have a wonderful eye, mrs. LOVE the pile of laundry? on the table in front of the tv. That’s where I keep mine. Hooray!!! It’s Friday.
asnipofgoodness - The Lord has been teaching me a lot about imperfection lately, it’s a process, not being perfect, being vulnerable, and letting people see the real me, not putting on airs, being real…….and you are, real I mean, and I really like that. Thank you for being part of the process.:)
Trish - what do you use to hang all your necklaces? i am currently searching for old frames to use for my jewelry, but just don’t have time to go thrifting right now.
Beth - Your little Annie always looks so cute in all the colors! Can’t wait to see those hoodies, too. Glad you’re feeling better!
Tanya @ Life in 3D - Your pics make me happy 🙂
Sonia - I. Want. Annies. Hoodie. Love the rainbows!! And glad you’re feeling betta!!
deborah@applesinwonderland - good mornings are no joke. doesn’t everyone have a favorite mug–even though we all have cupboards full of them (the unloved ones). loving your funky-spunky girl in the new hoodie. not to rub it in, but pajamas off at 7am. alright, so i’m wearing yoga pants with no chance of any yoga-y action today. whatev. have a wonderful weekend!!!!
Penny - Oh Waffle, be still my heart. I love him!
Ali - Two things to say: What did we do before the wonderful invention of Day Quil? LOVE that sweatshirt! I’m going to be stalking your etsy page to try to snag one.