Sunday, July 8, 2007

Question of the week: What was your most memorable summer vacation?

Annette of pickles*and*co writes:

Thinking back, it's really hard for me to narrow down my families' experiences to just ONE most memorial summer vacation. Life for us is a series of events that my family tends to treat as adventures. :) I LOVE summer. We complain about the heat and the bugs, and we mom's sometimes even say (gasp) that we just "can't wait" for the kids to go back to school. But we miss it when it's over. If you count the summers that you have to enjoy with your kids, there really aren't that many...assuming that they DO eventually fly the coop.

I have a few summer vacations that stand out in my mind but I'll choose this one. The summer that I was pregnant with Paityn, and Cassidy was 3 1/2-yrs-old, we took a camping trip across the southern part of Oklahoma and the southwest corner of Arkansas. Probably tent camping is not a good recommendation for a pregnant woman, but despite the aches and pains, we had THE BEST time!!! We fished, we hiked, we skipped rocks, we huddled up together in the rain hoping our tent didn't float away, we made Smores, and we watched raccoons come up under our chairs to steal our marshmallows. Camp food is THE best...or maybe that was just the desperately hungry pregnant woman in me, but I swear....that week we had the best food I'd ever had in my LIFE!!!! Most of all though, we made a great memory. :)

Shortly thereafter, Paityn came along, and we've had many memorable vacations since. We take them when we can get them. Sometimes they're only a long-weekend when we can catch one here and there, sometimes, when we're fortunate enough, they're longer...sometimes they're with our extended family, and sometimes it's just the four of us. Sometimes they're in a tent, sometimes they're in a comfortable hotel in the downtown of a major city, but wherever they are and however long they last, we try to make a new memory for the memory bank as often as we can.

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Friday, June 22, 2007

recipe for summer



These first two weeks of summer have been abnormally hectic for my family, but starting this weekend, we're settling into the relaxed rhythm of sun and play.

On the agenda for next week:

gather fireflies
fill the wading pool
play flashlight tag
dig in the sand

It's taken a while to really sink in with me that my kids don't need flashy or expensive--they just need time with me, with their daddy. That's the makings of a happy summer. :)

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Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Here's.........PICKLES!!!!!!! :)

Looks like it's time to introduce myself. I'm Annette of pickles*and*co. I'm also a work-at-home mom with 2 girls. Things are ABOUT TO GET CRAZY 'round here!!!! Today was their last day of school. My oldest is a "teenager"...all of 13!!!! Apparently that 13 is a pretty amazing number. So we'll be "hangin'" this summer. Anyone have any good survival tips??? lol

I can't say enough about this great new group!!!!!!! The talent is AMAZING, but best of all, they're just all-around wonderful girls!!!! I'm so happy to be a part of such a great group of friends!!!!

More normal??....I don't know about that!!! Here are a few "interesting" things about myself....stuff I'm sure you're dying to know:

- My high school aptitude test showed that I should be a refrigerator repairman....repairWOMAN!!! (ummmmm....I think I prefer sewing)

- My kids have NO IDEA where I hide my chocolate!!!!!!

- I once tried to talk my way out of a speeding ticket when I was pregnant....told him I was trying to get to a ladies' room. (that doesn't work....not even if you mention that the other cars were going faster)


Nic...I have to admit, I'm a little envious. I have NEVER been able to do the splits!!!! I do love rhubarb pie though. :)

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My turn!

Just popping in to say hi and introduce myself. I'm Nicole of Sweet Tea Boutique, and I'm a work-at-home mama of four kids, although some days they run around really fast and seem like 17.

Like Kris, I'm practically turning cartwheels over here--I feel so lucky to be with my favorite gals in this new group. Their talent is mind-boggling (that's such a fun word, isn't it? Boggling...) and I'm thrilled to be here. One of these days their ingenuity is bound to rub off on me! LOL

And since this is an introduction, we'll end with three random facts about me:

1. My name came from being an almost-Christmas baby. If I'd been a boy, I'd be Nicholas.

2. I used to be able to do the splits (in college). That particular skill never came in handy, so I've since stopped being able to.

3. My fave fruit is nectarines, with their warm, sticky juice....mmmmm. Or rhubarb, if it's baked in a pie with tons of sugar. Or anything cloaked in chocolate, really. Yum!

Thanks for stopping by to get to know us! (If I scared you off, come back tomorrow, there'll be someone more normal posting.)





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Sunday, June 3, 2007

What's new?? Have you not heard the NEWZ?

If you are here, then you've definitely heard. There is a new boutique group on eBay called the NEWZ. I'm blown away by the talent this group of girls have! We were members of H2h but after reaching a fork into the road, we decided it was time to take a right and make NEWZ! so.. here we are, happy as can be :)

School is already out for the Summer here in Anderson SC. I had totally forgotten how quickly kids can get bored! Heck, when I was little and complained of being sooooooooo bored, I was told to go outside and find something to do. When it was Supper time, my Mother would ring a cowbell and I could hear it a mile away! Wow how times have changed.

Oh.. by the way.. I'm Kris, eBay ID: HartwellDesigns (formerly AntiquesAndBoutiques), when you get a chance, please go take a peek at my new website (www.hartwelldesigns.com).









I still have many products to load but let me emphasize, school is out and I have a 7 year old girl that is sooooooooo bored after 5 minutes of playing alone. I hope to get her in a Summer routine that works out for both of us soon.

Thanks for dropping by! You'll fall in love with everyone in our NEWZ GROUP.

Kris