Starting Summer With a Road Trip!

Well, mini road trip anyway :) After getting the Jeep we had to try it out. So, on Memorial Day Sunday after breakfast we loaded up the kids and headed out the door with a map and no plan! It felt like the freedom I felt as a child during the summer with 100 acres of woods in the backyard and all day to play.

We put on a few hundred miles just driving this way and that, through farmlands and little towns. It was overcast, but the cloudy day added to that mellow lazy day feel. The type of day where you pop in a great cd and feel like you could just drive all day, so that's just what we did. :) We just drove!









When we were little, Dad always told us the big white thing was the Jolly Green Giant's golf ball, Daniel and I figured it was a weather station. That's not what we told Diana and Ellie though. ;)









There were so many people proudly displaying American flags!




Off the beaten path... a little bit :)


I love my hubby :)





Little one nibbling on lunch


Diana loved getting out to run!




Yummy lunch picnic!







Cool old buildings :)



Small town festivals...









Coffee break at Alterra :)





Hubby got a red eye coffee with a triple shot of espresso! Me, a latte :)






Coffee was the perfect end to a perfect day to a chilly summer day. The whole weekend was great and the best possible start to summer, I can't wait for the rest of the year!

Good Bye 2 Doors, Hello... Family Jeep! Carmax, I Love You!

So... it's done. My Jeep is gone! It now belongs to Carmax! I have very bittersweet feelings about this. My Jeep was my baby (other than my real babies of course... and my camera, lol :) And I did meet my hubby because of my Jeep... but.... it hasn't been working out well for me lately, it being a two door Jeep and all. The whole climbing in and out through the back seat wrestling the kids in and out and having NO room for groceries has been getting old. So, after much hassle trying to sell it ourselves.. off to Carmax we went!

We went there the other day and met with a really sweet woman named Alexis (who had great hair! :) and she was super duper friendly and explained the whole process, which was really simple. They gave us a quote and asked what we thought. Daniel and I briefly talked about it before going, but didn't want to make any decision until we had time to thoroughly talk it through and pray about it. We said that we would need time to think about it. I was kinda nervous when we said we didn't want to take it, because salespeople, particularly car sales people, seem to have a way of making you feel really bad, like you wasted their time. She was not like that at all! She was just as awesome and nice when we said "bye!" as when we said "Hi!" :)

So, we got home, looked some stuff over and I found my dream vehicle online! Well, several of my dream vehicles, lol :) We also saw that CarMax really did offer us a great offer on my Jeep, so we decided to sell my Jeep to carmax!

So, off to carmax we went! That is, after a very long day that included me wasting an hour doing my hair 50 times before settling on a side pony :P Diana also has learned how to say "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy! a million times in a row until I answer her, so I heard that constantly today too. Anyway......so we went to CarMax to sell my Jeep.

I was kinda apprehensive about it all. When I bought my Jeep I just about signed my life away, the process took forever and I didn't understand really all the I signed (that's nice to admit online.. right??? lol. Don't worry, my dad was there for me :) I was young :) So, I went in there to the front desk and asked the two ladies up there what I needed to do (they both had great hair.. come to think of it, everyone there had great hair, lol :) They were sooooo sweet! They were super friendly and told me everything I had to do. Felicia was the main girl who helped me with all the paper work. She was the best. The whole experience was great (the even had a play area for the kiddies!) and I suggest anyone who wants to sell their car (or buy!) to go to CarMax, the one on Metro Blvd in Milwaukee if you get the chance ;)

Now we just have to decide on what to buy! I didn't think it mattered much to me, as long as it has four doors, I told Daniel I would be happy. But.........lol...... there are so many Jeeps out there! Now we just need to find the one perfect for us. I can't wait to go out with the kids in a FOUR DOOR Jeep. How sweet will that be? I should buy myself some awesome sunglasses, so I will look good driving the new Jeep. Sunglasses make me feel cool, lol. So lame.....It's late... so good night all!

All Things Pretty, Spring and Vintage!

The last few days have finally started to feel like spring! The weather is slowly starting to get warmer, the sun shines soft and bright through the trees in the morning and there are bright little green buds on the plants. Ahh! So poetic and inspiring. Speaking of poetic and inspiring, all things vintage come to mind. I have been so inspired by anything pretty and floral lately. That is what this post is entirely about, all things pretty, spring and vintage!

My new favorite hair clip! This was made by my friend Becky, owner of Dancing Daisy Boutique.( http://www.etsy.com/shop/DancingDaisyBoutique ) She has so many beautiful designs and colors, I chose this one because of the soft muted green. My girls each have several bows from her also, check out her etsy shop, she constantly is putting up new and adorable creations!



This is my beautiful sister Mandy. She popped in the other day to watch the babies and I fell in love with her bright and happy perfect pink dress. Adorableness! I'm on the hunt this spring to find modest and pretty vintage dresses and vintage inspired dresses. This is just that! Of course, beautiful clothes can be expensive. Imagine my surprise when she said this was a local thrift store find of about $6.00!






This is the dress I picked up at Target the other day on clearance for $13.00. I love the style of Target dresses, but often they are far shorter than I am comfortable wearing. Usually up way past my knees. Then there is the other extreme of maxi dresses. Maxi dresses look so great and elegant on tall people, but drown my 5'3" frame. So this one fits perfect!



Here is photo from my husband's and my room..... the one in my dreams anyway :) I like the soft peaceful neutral colors and the lightly painted wood armor. Can you imagine not being able to relax in this room?! I love this... I just need to find a few good thrift store finds... then convince Daniel that we need to move to an ocean front home.





I don't normally like colored kitchens, but this one is just so delightful! The light slate gray/blue is soft and peaceful without being boring and the pastel canary yellow is light enough where it's not an "in your face" color. I like the mix of the vintage porcelain sink and the stainless steel dishwasher. A marriage of great style and modern convenience!




There it is, my latest finds of pretty, spring and vintage!