The Neighborhood Camping Adventure!!!

So my neighbor had this idea for all the kids to have an overnight camping sleepover in their back yard.  It sounded fun, so we quickly made some plan, which we were sure to emphasize it would be the men sleeping with the kids in the tent in the back yard.  LOL!

Well we set the date for Saturday night and watched the weather forecast all week.  It rained for several hours Saturday morning into the afternoon, so we decided to postpone until the ground wasn't so soggy.  BUT we did decide to go ahead and grill out together since we had all the food bought already.

Taylor tried to sneak a beef jerky snack for her own.  LOL!

Hope also made her snow cones for the kids and was selling her most recent rainbow band creations.

Well, as the afternoon went on we decided the upper level of the yard was dry enough to put the tent up, so the camp out was back on!!!!!

Just as the guys were finishing up, this dark cloud developed right over our neighborhood.  We stuck it out and it ended up just barely sprinkling.  Whew! Party on!

We did sparklers!

And of course, what camping adventure would be complete without almost EVERY kid (poor Hope didn't have one of her own) with an electronic device.  LOL!  They sure were roughing it!

Several left the tent early in the evening, but over half of them made it all night!  They asked this morning when the next one was going to be.  Maybe we will finish up summer with another campout.  

Since I last posted Hope also finished up third grade.  Here is the bus gang on the last day of school.

Hope and I also planted flowers out front and created our fairy garden.  I need to add some more ground cover so the dirt doesn't splatter all over when it rains.

I missed several other things along the way that I will try and come back and chronicle here...like dance recital.  I was so tired from being a back stage mom that I think I wanted to black out the memory from my mind.  LOL!  Just kidding, it wasn't that bad, so I will share here next time (unless something really exciting happens between now and then).

Anyway, here are some fun graduation themed cards to share with you tonight!  Congrats to all the graduates!

Until next time...

Darla

#MetzgerBliss

Oh it was such a beautiful wedding.  So many fun times and great memories.

My niece Abbey Kent got married yesterday to the love of her life, Randy Metzger.  You could just see the love between them and know this is a marriage that will last forever, through good times and bad, etc.  Randy, welcome to the family.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the ceremony to the reception...

Here is the groom grabbing a snack during pictures and holding the bride's bouquet.  LOL!

A lot of the ideas throughout the wedding came from Pinterest!  I love the idea they had for the guest book.  Instead of a regular book, they printed a large photo and attached it to foam board and cut into puzzle sized squares for everyone to sign.  Each had a number on the back so you could add it to where it was to go on the picture (using magnets).  Very cool.

I thought the signs for the ring bearers were ADORABLE!  Oh and I have to mention the flower girls were so CUTE too, down to their tulle/tutu dresses and gem studded healed shoes.

Kevin (the father of the bride) told me after the ceremony about his conversation before going down the aisle...

Abbey-Dad this is the moment I have been waiting for all my life.

Kevin-Abbey...I can't talk about this right now.

He was about to walk his baby down the aisle.  So sweet.

Abbey and Randy just before saying "I do".

I was helping Hope with the bird seed baskets until Annie and Ally came out of the church.

And here comes the happy couple.

Well, I guess this picture will need a little back story...We are doing the alligator, which is done to "Takin Care of Business".  The first time I remember doing this dance was at Jody's wedding (the bride's sister), so we felt like we had to keep the tradition going.  It was a LOT of fun with all of us out there, but I must admit I have bruises and floor burns on my elbows and knees.  It was crazy fun and would do it all over again.  LOL!

SISTERS!

As soon as I heard what their wedding colors were going to be, I knew what paper scraps I wanted to use for the card we would give them.

Here is that card and several others using the same papers.  

Have a great Memorial Day.  Prayers and thanks to all those who have/are/will serve our country.

Darla

Happy Mother's Day to all!

Oh Mother's Day...this has always been a day full of mixed emotions.  Being a mother is the greatest gift I was ever given, but I have always have a hard time forgetting the struggles and the MANY sad Mother's Day's of years past when my arms were empty.  While I celebrate the blessings that I have now, today I pray for those struggling, praying, begging, etc. to be moms.  I have walked in your shoes and know that I pray for your arms to no longer be empty.

I am very thankful for so many things this Mother's Day!  Joe went up to visit his mom this weekend, but came home early this morning.  On his drive home, a very serious car accident happened right in front of him.  Luckily he was very aware of the situation and was able to pull off to the side of the road and get other traffic stopped along the interstate and helped the man in the vehicle until EMT's could arrive.  He was pretty shook up by the time he got home.

So we went to church and during the first 10  minutes of the service a young man just two rows in front of us passed out and fell over the row in front of him.  It was very scary seeing it all happen in slow motion and not being able to help in any way.  Luckily there were many medical professionals close by and he walked out of the church himself, but was pretty shook up.  I pray he is ok.

So Joe needed a nice quiet day as much as I did after those two events.  :)  Our day was pretty quiet, but not sure it will be tonight as there is a prediction of some violent storms across the state.  Hang on it could get bumpy.

NOW I have to brag on having some pretty awesome neighbors.  Scarlett was kind enough to share some of THESE gems with us today.

We also grilled up our first set of steaks from our fresh beef we just got.  Oh MY!  I don't think I have MMMMMMM'ed that much in a long time while eating.  Both the steaks and the Morels were SO GOOD.  There are no words to describe how they tasted.

Luckily Scarlet and I spent the afternoon drinking champaign in the hot tub and another neighbor Dusti joined us in conversation too.  It was a great way to spend my Mother's Day afternoon.  Thanks Ladies!  I am so glad we moved into such a great neighborhood!

Hope and I decided to plant flowers last night and got a few things in our fairy gardens too, but have a few more plants to get to finish them up.

We had a great time yesterday at the Farmer's Market and then simple bridal shower for my niece Abbey Kent.  I am looking forward to the wedding in a few weeks. 

Here is the card I made for her shower gift...

The colors are Tiffany blue, so when I found these glitter letters in a similar color I knew I had to use it for a card for her shower.  :)

Since it has been a while since I last posted here is one other bit of news I want to share.  Joe completed his first 5K race.  Hope was excited for him to WIN the race because we were going to be rich when he got the $5,000 (because you know 5K means $5,000, right).  She cracked me up when she told me that, so I tried to let her down easy that he wasn't going to win any money for running the race.  Poor girl.  Still proud of Joe for completing the race!

Well, I better wrap things up and get a few things wrapped so I can get a short nap in before the storms start up tonight.  Stay safe out there...

This year for Mother's Day I decided to make a box and fill it with greeting cards for each of the mom's to use throughout the year and that way I can just keep making cards to fill it up. 

Both boxes are similar, but just a little different of what I used on the outside.  This first one was for Joe's mom Karen.  She likes blue, so I added a blue flower to the outside of the box.

This is the one I gave to my mom.  I love crowns, so I added a crown to the front of her box.

So to honor all the mom's out there, here are a few Mother's Day cards to share...

This was the card we gave to Joe's mom.  She likes birds, so I always try and make something with a bird on it for her birthday and mother's day if I can.  :)

And this is the card I gave to my mom.  Love you!  I hope you had a great day and glad you didn't blow away this afternoon in the storm by your house.  :)

Have a great rest of your night!

Darla