father's day

My Jason doesn't get the spotlight on this blog very often but he should because he is our rock and he is amazing.  So Father's Day is fun for us all because it is an excuse to spoil this guy and remind him of how much we love him.  

We got him four gifts, one from each kid but they actually had nothing to do with picking them out this time around.  I had fun spoiling him for once.  They each decorated their packages in such a special way.  Avery got to give him her gift the night before since it was a tie that I thought he might want to wear to church the next morning.

Mia's even had a story for each picture which was extra special and sweet.  I wish I had recorded her explaining it all to me.

Violet got really into decorating hers and there was barely a spot uncolored when she finished.

Tyson's people always make us smile.

The kids seem to think he is a superhero.  I do too.

We had a few minutes before time to leave for church so we let him go ahead and open his gifts.  I think he felt the love.  We did end up being late but that was okay.

We stopped by our photo spot on the way home for the annual Father's Day photo of him and the kids.  These are always my favorite. The five loves of my life.  My people.

And then for fun, I had to compare the past few photos of Daddy and his babies.  

I am just so incredibly thankful for the man that he is and for the fact that we get to go through this journey of life together.  He is a faithful, wise, hardworking, and selfless man that adores his wife and kids.  We are beyond blessed to have him lead our family. 

nashville with my man

About once a year Jason and I get away for 1-3 nights usually for our anniversary but it had been almost 2 years so we decided Spring would be the perfect time.  We headed to Nashville again and it was amazing.  I am just sure I say that every time we get away but it is definitely true each time!  

We just love to be together.  It's kind of why we got married.  So anytime that we can be free from distractions and able to look into each other's eyes while we speak and focus on each other is a special treat.  

A road trip with my man, good music, sunshine, blue skies, and a sweet tea is perfection for me.  The road trip is all part of the fun.  In fact, the drive there went so fast we wished it would have been further away because we were having too much fun!  

I love my man.

Nashville was further along with the beautiful colors and flowers of Spring so we had pink petals greeting us by the curb at the hotel.

On the first night, we ate at our favorite...Puckett's Grocery in historic Franklin.  We walked around after dinner and experienced this guy's fun music.  He had a great voice and a style all his own.  We thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment and the weather could not have been more beautiful.

We went downtown Nashville one day and I was so excited to experience Antique Archaeology because I love the show American Pickers.

It is inside the coolest old building.  I want to live in this building.

The inside was super cool and had all kinds of eye candy.

I had to pretend sing at these microphones that were labeled as part of Mike's personal collection.  I know I look ridiculous but it was fun so I don't mind.

Honestly, the store was not as exciting as I dreamed it would be.  It was small, everything was super expensive, and it consisted mostly of shirts and other paraphernalia.  Oh, well.  We had fun anyway and I got some fun photos.

We love this burger place in Franklin called Burger Up.  Their menus and even napkins are so fun.

Even Burger Up's patio is cool with all kinds of different reclaimed wood.  And my date was hot so that was cool too.

We went to a really cool park one morning and climbed some beautiful stone steps and saw a sign for a 2.5 mile hike so we went for it.  So fun and the scenery was incredible.  After the hike, we laid a blanket on the grass and relaxed for quite awhile.  We both agreed our time at that park was the best part.

I got to take my time getting ready each day while he exercised, explored, or just chilled in the hotel with me.  We had no agenda which allowed us to experience total freedom.  As parents of four young kids, freedom is a thing of the past so we were soaking it up.

The last morning we visited a park close to our hotel and took a walk, sat and talked, played on the playground, and had a little sidewalk chalk fun with a piece someone had left behind.

We are so thankful for these times together and are so blessed that Grandma & PaPa are willing to care for the kids while we're gone.  Avery called this getaway our "long date" which made me laugh.  They always have so much fun that they barely know we're gone.  It's a win for everyone.

We come back refreshed and ready to tackle life in all it's beautiful messy glory for the most part. However, the one problem is that coming back to reality can be a bit painful the first few days.  It is so very worth it though and our new sweet memories carry us through the crazy.  

violet + daddy

Violet currently wins the contest for "Daddy's Biggest Fan".  It melts my heart over and over again to see them together.  I love watching Jason with all of our kids but specifically watching him with our tiniest is like magic to me.  There is a mutual adoration between the two of them that you can't miss.  

I dreamed of having little girls someday with a man that would love and cherish them like a Daddy should.  Jason takes it even a step further.  He is such a wonderful mix of stern disciplinarian and sensitive mushy "wrapped around their finger" kind of Daddy.

I am so excited to watch his relationship with our girls grow through the years.  I hope they will realize how blessed they are to have a God-fearing Daddy who is faithful to their Mommy and who would stop at nothing to love, care for, and protect them.

Look out future boyfriends of our three girls...their Daddy is a very hard act to follow.

jason turned 33

Jason turned 33 on March 9th and we had a low key celebration with our little family at home the night before.  

A birthday is not complete without balloons so Tyson helped me blow up some red ones to hang around the house.  We used one as a gift tag on his present.  We wrote our names on it and Tyson asked me to write "balloon made by" in front of his name just so Daddy would be sure to know it was him that actually blew it up.  

In addition to balloons, our family birthdays are not complete without a banner on the mantel.  I borrowed a boy one from Tyson's room and clipped some old and new pics of Jason onto it.

We already had the gift bag and found the monkey napkins and plates on clearance for under $1 at Target.  Score.  Jason doesn't have a special love for monkeys or anything but the kids were excited about them, they were cute, and I couldn't argue the cost.

Jason prefers chocolate chip cookies instead of cake so this is what he gets every year.

Avery worked really hard that afternoon to provide the entertainment for the party.

She created a monkey birthday memory game for us to play.  It was quite cute, I must say.

And then he was 33.  We celebrated his actual day by going on a day date and out to dinner with his parents that night.

I am crazy thankful for this man and the past 13 years we have spent getting to know each other.  He is the reason I am halfway sane most days and a true gift from God.

happy birthday to jason

Jason's birthday was yesterday and we have been celebrating all week. On Monday, we stocked the fridge with his favorite treats - Totino's frozen pizza and bottled Cokes.  I ironed some of his new work clothes (his birthday presents).  I don't iron so this was a big deal.  I have made good dinners each night so far including his birthday request of brats and fries.  Yesterday, Avery and I whipped up some homemade chocolate chip cookies for him.  I was crazy excited because they weren't flat for once.  They actually came out fluffy and cute.  Yea.    

Avery got all dressed up for her prince Daddy.  She put on one of her "ball gowns" and her "royal necklace", combed her hair, put a bow in it, and even applied pink lipsmacker to her sweet little lips.  

He got a candle on top of his "cookie cake" and the big kids helped him blow it out after a beautiful rendition of the Happy Birthday song.

And he even got a back rub last night.

Love that man.

happy birthday, my love!

The big man of the house celebrated his 30th birthday yesterday. We started the celebration on Monday and we will continue it through this weekend because why not? I have always thought birthdays should last longer than 1 day, don't you?

I love my man. He is amazing. He is a dream come true. Our kids are so blessed. He is a total hands-on natural Daddy. I love him for that. I love him for a million things. I am so thankful for every birthday we celebrate together. I hope we celebrate our 90th + birthdays together!

So, in order to make this birthday a little extra special, I spent a lot of time in the kitchen because my man loves food.

Monday night started with baked buffalo chicken fingers and roasted potatoes with sweet tea to drink, of course. He loves anything buffalo and I don't so it was a surprise for him. I searched recipes online, combined a few and there you have it. They were a huge hit...

He does not get super excited about cake but he does love homemade chocolate chip cookies so that is what he got. Avery helped with every bit of these, especially licking the spoons and beater...

Next up for Monday night was a snack. My sweet and thoughtful friend, Alyssa had brought a black bean and corn salsa to our life group last week and gave everyone the recipe. Jason loves salsa with beans so he got some...

Then there was the birthday breakfast up next. He actually requested this hash brown, egg, ham, & cheese breakfast casserole so that is what he got...

On Tuesday night, I made his current favorite dish, sausage and pepper pasta. These are the leftovers that he took for his lunch today...

Then to top it all off, Avery spent a lot of time outside on Monday and Tuesday making Daddy some "birthday soup". The ingredients consisted of sand, snow, and leaves. Yum. Yum.

I don't know what's for dinner tonight but we gotta keep the streak going. We'll see what I come up with. I feel so domestic. It's been fun.

(p.s. all of these recipes are super easy. if you want any of them, just let me know.)

what do you dream about?

My husband, Jason is starting something neat on his blog. It is called Share Your Dream. He wants to inspire people to chase their dreams and make the most of the lives we have been given. Here is an excerpt from Tri The Dream...

"Writing your dreams down is powerful not only for yourself, but for others as well. If you really want to go for it…write it down; put it out there."

"No dream is off limits at Tri The Dream, it does not have to be an athletic pursuit. It is about the thoughts, the sacrifice, the belief, and the gumption to do something about it that are just as inspiring as the dream itself."

So please visit Tri The Dream to read the post and find out how to submit and share your dream. You'll be so glad you did.

Oh, and while you are there be sure to enter the giveaway to win a $25 gift certificate to Running Warehouse.

{p.s. There will also be a little giveaway here tomorrow. Stay tuned.}

the wife of a runner...

That's me...the wife of a runner. I love it. Distance runners (& most runners in general) are some of the most dedicated, down to earth, hardworking, faithful, persistent, and passionate people alive. My man is no exception. He simply LOVES to run. It keeps him going. It makes him happy. It gives him time to think and dream. He is a dreamer and he dreams BIG. I love this about him.

See him in the middle of this picture with the green hat and blue jacket? I would love to know what he was thinking about at that very moment...

People have asked me how he has time to train for marathons with a full time job, wife, and 2 kids. He gets up WAY before any of the rest of us do to get his workouts in. We hardly ever know he is gone because he doesn't like to miss family time. That is a good man. I love him with all of my heart. I am incredibly blessed to have him and I can't wait to see where his dreams take him. I will be right by his side through it all...

You should pay a visit to his new site and give him some comment love. His writing will make you want to be a runner and most importantly will inspire you to chase your own dreams.

photo date

When we went to Indiana, Jason's parents surprised us with a night out. I was so excited! They fed the kids and everything while we went out to dinner on them. We walked around "the square" and it turned into a photo date. We took a bunch of pictures around town and of each other. It was so much fun. Here are just a few of our favorites...

This is where we ate dinner...

Lesson learned - on our next walking photo date, I will wear much more comfortable shoes...

Jason remembers going to see movies at this theater...

A used train track...

I love the antique stores in town. This one keeps a bunch of stuff out front even after they close so we had some fun with that...

They have the cutest library...

I loved this display of pumpkins outside of "Rough Edges", an antique store in town...

This has got to be the coolest building in Scottsburg. I just loved the brick, the paint colors, the huge doors and windows, and the cool light fixtures...

I had to take a little ride on the old red bike...

This was one of the most fun dates we have had and it didn't cost us a penny. Thanks, Mom & Dad Judd! You are the best!