Easter Catch Up

Family Tradition is to have the....


Easter Egg Hunt at Great Grandma Taylor's House. It was held the Saturday before Easter this year. I worked and missed out on the fun. But, most of the family was there to help my kids celebrate. Thanks to everyone who helped put it all together and make it memorable for the kids.


Blake and Atticus


Looks like Jorja got a lot of help finding her eggs! Thanks Aunt Penny!


Olivia still hunting!



Jorja promptly found her basket Easter morning...


Olivia had a hard time.




We dyed eggs on Easter and had Family dinner. We all had to help Olivia find her basket. But the kids had a great day with all the festivities and The Grandma's spoiling them rotten.

Spring Stuff

The 2nd grades at Olivia's school put on a dance performance for us all the 2nd week of May. It was interesting, educational and you could tell the kids were having lots of fun. Olivia was so proud of her performance and it was great fun to watch her.



Olivia and her 2nd grade teacher Mrs. Noyce.



Jorja didn't enjoy the performance as much as others.


Olivia's class had circles and spheres and you could tell they worked hard on their dance routine.




Mrs. Tina the Dance Teacher.


She had to have her hair curled for her performance!
Josh, Jorja and I had a lovely breakfast out with the Grandma's after the dance informance. It was a lovely morning to celebrate Liv and her hard work in school.


Happy Mothers Day!

These pictures are from Mothers Day. I am the luckiest Mom in the whole world to have these two girls in my life. They make my world go round and I love and adore them. We had a nice Mothers Day dinner that the boys did their best to put together... before we stepped in and took over. The girls colored these super cute pictures and gave me a necklace each that they made in church, so sweet they are! Josh spoiled me rotten with getting me a picnic table for the back yard. I so wanted it! As an added bonus for my birthday Ginger Mom gave me an umbrella to go with it. Now, I just gotta stain my table! As soon as the rain stops and my table can dry out.


I am so lucky to call this lovely lady my mother. I would be lost without her in my life. She supports and loves me endlessly and I'm truly blessed to have such an amazing mother. I love you Mommy! Thank you for all you do and for never giving up on me. You are my Hero!
Love to all the amazing Mothers in my life! You have all touched me and changed me and I will be forever a better person and mother because of you!




We spent the 21st of May celebrating my cousins soon to be new wife Melinda. My Aunt Jo hosted a bridal shower for our newest addition to the Taylor family. It was a nice shin-dig. Then we just hung out afterwords enjoying the family and nice weather.



Liv and Jorja playing at my Aunt Jo's house. We had a great day hanging out with the cousins and extended family after the party.


My Uncle spoiled the kids by putting up the trampoline. It was a big hit and the kids had black feet from having so much fun bouncing.

Jorja was super cute playing catch with my amazing cousin Kay.

Visiting The Grandparents

We headed south on my 29th Birthday to visit my Grandma and Grandpa Marshall. They live in this amazing and wonderful small town of Venice. Venice has a soft spot in my heart. I spent a lot of time here as a child and have a lot of amazing memories. The original Ranch House, as we fondly call it, is my favorite house. I love the feel and the old thick adobe walls. It has the BEST carpet and I am just at peace when we visit. I couldn't think of a better place to be for my Birthday. I had a wonderful Birthday, thank you everyone for making it special and showering me with love. We had a fun family get together and bombarded my grandparents for the weekend. My Daddy, Sherrie and The Blake and Lindz Clan also came down for the weekend. We had a great time being together and visiting with Grandma and Grandpa. Josh was very happy to be able to ride on the Four Wheelers. Daddy took him over to the clay hills for some fun. It was a well rounded trip. We visited, ate way too much thanks to my very thoughtful Grandma and played just as much. There was NOTHING we had to do and I loved every minute of it. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for being such wonderful and thoughtful hosts!

Here are all the pictures... be prepared!


Venice or Bust!


My Grandma Lavonne and Grandpa Clayton Marshall. Love them endlessly!






The girls loved the big tree around the Ranch House!
The slide under the tree house was the biggest hit of all! We had to pull Jorja and Jaye off the thing!







The girls had lots of fun running and playing in between all the pines planted along the south end of the Ranch House. They have gotten so big...the girls and the trees!





Stunning View!


Hanging out on the front porch!


Love the old Ranch House!




The river was super full! Just starting to go over it's banks in places. We needed to pull a big log out of the rivers. Of course we got the tractor out to do it! The girls LOVED being up on the tractor with Grandpa Rod helping drive.




Josh was very happy to be on this four wheeler, I promise!







Down at the river checking out the water levels and seeing what needs to be done.


The water was hitting the bridge when we were there, I hear it's over the bridge now. Crazy stuff! Normally the water is about 6-8 feet down from the bridge.


Love seeing my girls enjoying this slice of heaven. It was fun to be in the middle of the fields enjoying the country life. Goodness I dream of being a small town girl one day!
Thanks Everyone for making it such a wonderful weekend! It's always great to be together and I look forward to next time!

Six Confessions

My Amazing friend Kim gave me this idea and I liked it. She is always so insightful and I love that she pushes the boundaries of her world. She always did make me brave. So... here is me being brave and insightful into my own world.

#1- I have never felt good enough to be loved. Why would anyone love me, I barely tolerate myself! I hope to live up to my own expectations of myself one day. I'm constantly trying to be okay with myself and I am not sure I ever will. So... if I can't love myself. How could anyone else love me? My husband somehow survives this roller-coaster of chaos and still stands by me.

#2- I want to live a simple life. Truly. As simple as I can make it. It's my goal in life to have a very humble abode, cabin like if possible, in the middle of nowhere. Life in NOT simple now and probably it will be a life long search for the simple life I want. I want to enjoy the little things. A good book, paint if I want, and enjoying the nature around me. Hopefully with the love of my life beside me and our kids coming to visit our little sanctuary.

#3- I consider myself spiritual but not religious. The older I get and more experiences I have. The less I want to do with the religion I have claimed in my life. I am going to keep it simple from here on out. I believe in a higher power and that from this point of view we cannot see the big picture and I'm going to put my faith in God that he knows what he is doing in the end. I respect everyone's choice in this matter and my biggest struggle in life will be to practice that respect with my children as they make their spiritual choices. I do not want to force anything on them. Love, peace and positive energy... this is what I believe in. Those three things have touched my soul deeper than any church or religion will ever do.

#4- I am very scared to let my children grow up. I don't want them to be like me and scared of everything. How do you teach your children that? My fears control my actions and I don't know how to teach them to be brave. I always wanted to be a mother, but now I am so scared I'm failing at this job.

#5- I haven't picked up a brush to oil paint in ten years. I miss it madly! How do I find the artist in me again? How do I start over? I'm afraid to try. See... stupid fears!

#6-Some of my most rash decisions have been some of my best. When I let me head think too hard I get scared and destroy/loose what I need. Things/people in my life were meant to be and I will always keep that in perspective. It's humbling and amazing! But, some things/people in my life have hurt my heart so bad that I am currently having a hard time remembering how to listen to my heart and not just my head. The thoughts in my head will make me crazy at this rate. I need to find the balance in life that heals my heart so that I can listen to it again. Some of my best decisions have also been the hardest... and I didn't even think that I didn't want what I chose. I just knew in my heart that I did and I jumped whole heatedly. I need to trust that more. I need to listen to my heart and trust what I feel.

Ok... those were big ones. How about six small confessions now!

1- I hate my bra. One day I nope to NEVER wear it again. But, socially I need one for now.

2-I am constantly day dreaming of good sleep. Damn I love a good nights rest snuggled up with my cozy blankets!

3-I am fascinated with Cheese. I would love to learn more about cheese and where I can get some good goat cheese around here.

4-I am a beast in the mornings and I'm truly sorry for my family having to put up with my grumpy butt. I am trying to be better...I just shouldn't open my mouth for an hour after waking. Some days are way worse than others. I am sorry family!

5-I can't wait to plant some seeds next week to get our garden started for Spring! Who would have ever thought of it... I like to garden! I would have laughed in your face growing up if you would have told me I would like yard work and gardening one day. Crazy stuff!

6-I ate a 1/4th of Olivia's left over Roast Beef sandwich from Arby's when I was very pregnant with Jorja. It was pretty good at the time. I have thought it smelled good since, but not good enough to eat.