fresh picked whimsy

getting there

We always drive.  We actually enjoy the road trip!  This time, it was a little more stressful because of the crazy spring break traffic, which we had never experienced before.  But, it was still fun.  The best part of our road trip was the stop half way there to see my sister, brother-in-law and kids in Georgia. 

It was only one overnight, which was entirely too short, but it was so great to see them! 

We brought Kismet along with us on this trip.  She's simply too old and fraile to board at the vet, so we checked Sunny in for a week and Kismet got to go with us.  Katie said, "she's really checking a lot of things off her bucket list this week!"  Hilarious!

She was a pampered pooch and i think she enjoyed herself.  The kids set her up with a cushy bed in the van. 

She was a little confused about the rental house and it took her a few days to get the feel of her surroundings.  But, for the most part, she did wonderfully. 

Mark does all of the driving...by choice.  And, I don't usually sleep during our drives.  I love looking at and taking pictures of the signs, the other cars, unusual sights, funny things, weird things.  Here's just a few of the things i captured...

this is always a uneasy sight...

we've past these signs for years...what is Rock City? and, will i ever see it?  probs not...

About half way between home and Florida is McDonough, Georgia! 

And, if that weren't cool enough, the next town over is Griffin, Georgia!  Oh yes, he loves driving past all of the signs with his name on them. 

We bought the Hunger Games audio book and loaded it on my iphone and listened to it the whole way there. 

Katie was the only one who had read it and seen the movie.  Then, for the trip home, we uploaded the 2nd Hunger Games book.  We still haven't finished it.  It was very long!  On the last day of break, we took the kids to see the movie.  It was really good.  It's a very sad story and a little bit disturbing, but going to the movies was a fun way to wrap up our break. 

Sunny was so happy to have us home.  We couldn't wait to see that face again!

Feels good to be home. ♥

 

don't you hate it when people make you look at their vacation photos...

{WARNING:  the following blog post will make you want to stop everything you are doing, drop the kiddos off at grandma's, grab your sweetie and head to the islands}  Allow me to gush just one more day about our heavenly getaway.  I don't believe that there is another place on this planet that could top it.  And, i think we must have visited at the absolutely most perfect time of the year.  Because, T & C was deserted.  Most days we had the beach to ourselves....seriously...do you see anyone?...

I told you yesterday that we went with our friends, Anne & Mark.  We were their guests at this amazing resort. 

They spoiled us and treated us and wined and dined us.  We had so much fun with them.  Anne is the author of the book that i illustrated.  In the process of working on the books, we became close friends and our husbands have, too.  We had such a great time with them. 

The seashells in T & C are un-real.  {I am going to run out of awesome adjectives to describe this vacation in this blog post!  Ha!}  Conch shells everywhere.  I posted this picture on my facebook while we were there and my friends didn't believe that we found them on the beach.  But, we did!

See!

We seriously plucked them right out of the water or in the sand.  All of these...

and i filled a whole suitcase with them!  I lovingly and gently wrapped and packed them all up and then the customs lady at the airport very unlovingly unpacked them all!  Grrr!  But, they made it home safely and perfectly!  Success!

We only spied a few of these guys on our beach walks.  He's yellow!  I had to snap his picture for Griffin. 

Of course my Mark had to catch him. 

Mark and Anne chartered a boat for us for a day and it was so cool! 

Captain Shaun was the coolest dude. 

We stopped and toured Iguana Island {thankfully, they live only on their own island in T & C}...

then we stopped and went snorkeling on this sandbar that seemed to go on forever.  We found sand dollars, conch shells and this gorgeous starfish!... the water, oh the water!!!!  It looks like a swimming pool, right?  Nope...it's the ocean.  Crystal clear, warm and the finest powder white sandy bottom.  The sand was the consistency of flour.  I've been to many different beaches in my life and i've never felt anything like this before. 

Then, we went bottom fishing over a reef from our boat.  Our guys really wanted to fish, and Anne and I really just wanted to hang out in the sun while they fished.  But, Captain Shaun encouraged us to fish, too.  And, it was actually fun. 

and a little bit scary, too.  My Mark caught a barracuda!  And, then i caught a spotted morray eel! 

Yeah, Anne and I did some girly screaming when i reeled that puppy in.  But, in our defense, even Cap'n Shaun didn't want to touch it! 

At the end of the day, Shaun and his first mate, Pete cleaned and gutted our fish {mackeral, grouper and snapper} and put them on ice for us.  We brought them home with us and our fellas cooked us up a feast.  I'm not a seafood lover at all.  But, even I ate that fish for dinner and it was yummy!

They LOVED that Turk's Head beer.  They don't export it, so we'll just have to go back to T & C to have it again! :)

My most favorite adventure on this vacation was the snorkeling. 

T & C is surrounded by coral reef and there was this awesome spot called Coral Gardens where you just walk right off the beach and into the reef.  You can't swim over the reef because it's shallow and you would hurt yourself, and it's fragile and protected. 

So, you swim around the perimeter of it and it's like being inside a tropical aquarium.  We were in about 25-30 feet of water at the deepest point, but it was so clear and warm.  I brought a disposable underwater camera with me and am a little disappointed by the quality of the pictures, but still, you get an idea of what it was like. 

Rainbow colored fish everywhere!  We saw a huge sea turtle and swam just a few feet away from barracuda {eek!}.  It was surreal to have all of these amazing fish swim around you.  Such a fun experience to share with friends!

why, hello fishy...

Best of all...our vacay was a big fat L♥ve fest.  It was truly a second honeymoon.  5 days home now and we're still mushy gushy.  To be able to focus only on us as a couple for a whole week was such a gift.  I love this man so much.  We are blessed.

L♥ve fest for them, too :)...

every night was date night!  how fun is that!?  We rented a car and the Marks {they are both Mark Joseph...that was tricky!} took turns navigating the island from the left lane!  Yikes!  i can still hear Anne saying over and over again "on the left", "on the left"!  It just felt wrong!

T & C does fine dining very well.  We indulged at some amazing restaurants and once again, had them mostly to ourselves. 

We dined by candlelight, starlight and ocean breezes, enjoyed fine wines and mouth watering food and never ran out of things to talk and laugh about. 

Turks & Caicos is a chain of 40 islands located east of Cuba and south of the Bahamas.  Only 7 of them are inhabited by people.  We stayed on Providenciales.  Thank you, Vanna...i mean, Anne...

Before we left for home, Anne and I stopped at the local elementary school and public library and donated a few of our books.  The people of T & C are so warm and friendly and the folks at both the school and library were overjoyed with our donations.  Warm, fuzzy feelings for sure. 

So, there you have it.  Heaven on earth. 

I was almost reluctant to blog about it because it felt like a well kept secret place.  But, since we're friends, i will share it with you. 

everyone should get to experience this place.  i hope one day to bring our kids here.  thank you, Anne & Mark for sharing this paradise with us.  We love you guys! ♥ 

 

it's in the air...

fall is coming.  No doubt about it.  We went from 100 degrees to the 50's & 60's in a matter of days.  Summer is preparing for her long hibernation and signs of autumn are everywhere...like in the pool...

 
I do love the change of seasons.  Fall is a really beautiful time of year.  I love Halloween, the colors of the leaves changing, bonfires, pumpkins, wrapping up in a warm sweater, and football. Oh, football....how you have become so important to me, now that my Riley is playing. 

 
We are LOVING our hometown friday night lights...seeing our son down there on the field with his teammates.  We are so proud! 

 
I made my first pot of chili of the season this week and it was so yummy!  The kids have already requested homemade chicken noodle soup and broccoli cheddar soup for dinner soon. 

Griffin brought home the first cold of the season during the first week of school!  It quickly spread through the family and we all made it through thanks to Vicks Vapo Rub and Sudafed. 

 
I put my sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, runny nose and stuffy head to bed early each night last week, hunkered down under the covers and read this "chick flick" book.  Have you read it yet?

 
I thought it was great.  I was seriously casting the movie in my head as i read it.  Jen Garner & Scarlet Johansson?  Or Liv Tyler & Gwynneth Paltrow?  Not sure if it is destined for Hollywood, but it would be an awesome movie!

this weekend, i'm planning on getting my first of many of these...

pumpkin spice latte...mmmm....my very favorite!  Of course, i will be a good girl and get the skinny ps latte...more on that next week!  Go ahead and splurge a little this weekend, then plan on getting back on track with me next week!   In the meantime...have a great weekend!  ♥

Magic

 
Said good-bye to some old friends this weekend.  If you haven't seen it yet, you really really need to.  It was AWESOME.  We laughed, we cried, we cheered...everything we hoped it would be.

 
We began reading these books when Katie was just beginning school.  We read them aloud, in the family room all together and i still remember the wide eyed looks of wonder that Katie and Riley would have.  It was simply magical.  And although there was a lot of darkness throughout the series, i still think it was wonderfully imaginative creation and i'm so happy it was a part of my children's childhood.

You must read Katie's blog post all about going to the midnight premier with her friends...all dressed up...so much fun!

 
 
 Which brings me to another magical thing...a new blogging friend of mine, Amy, of One Day at a Time and her sweet family are adopting Davis from Russia...and she is having a HUGE giveaway on her blog to help raise the funds they need to bring Davis home.  There are TONS of goodies to be won including an iPad2, gorgeous stuff from etsy and 3, yes that's right, 3 prints from me!  Click on over there today to help them bring Davis home and to grab a chance to win some lovely stuff!  Giveaway runs through this Thursday, July 21st.  Thank you so much, friends!

whatcha reading?

Have you read this book yet?

 
Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo

I read it one afternoon on the beach.  It's a quick read.  Mark read it the next day...

 
and Katie read it the following day.  It was so good.  I want everyone i love to read this book.  I want the world to read this book.  If you haven't read it yet, get it.  I promise...you will love it and will tell everyone you know about it. 

Now, what are you reading???  I'm looking for suggestions.  I'm not a big murder mystery or suspense gal.  I like the fluff and i'm not afraid to admit it.  I want a good summer sitting by the pool book.  Maybe a good romance with a little bit a hubba hubba.  Or something uplifting.  Funny.  Just nothing heavy.  Last summer i read The Help and LOVED it.  I'm counting the days until the movie comes out in August.  If you haven't read it, you should before seeing the movie.  It's SOOOOOOO good!!!

 
Let me know if there's something you've read that you think i'll love.  Thanks!

Mommy Day

i hope you had a wonderful mother's day.  i sure did.  It came 2 days early when i got my copy of Matthew Mead's Summer magazine in the mail.  It is just so beautiful.  You can still order yours here.  It's not available in stores!

 
My actual Mom's Day started with breakfast in bed, surrounded by all 3 of my babies, 2 doggies and my baby daddy.  They continued our little tradition of getting kolaches from The Kolache Factory.  Never had a kolache?  You're missing out!

 
They are like the lightest, fluffiest dinner rolls filled with your favorite dish.  My favorite is the egg and cheese.  But, they seriously come in every flavor and food combo.  Yum!

 
A little birdie had told Mark that i had this necklace from Beth Quinn Designs on my wish list.  So happy he speaks birdie.  I adore it and him, too!  Thanks, love!

 
Katie found this lovely ring for me at Charming Charlie and baked me lemon squares.  That girl totally knows me. 

 
My kids know i am crazy about homemade anything and they never fail to make me happy. 

 
We spent the majority of the day out at the soccer fields for back to back games watching our two goalies kickin' it...

 
 
Then we headed over the high school where our teenagers both had work hanging in the annual art show.  There are some seriously talented artists there.  Sad to think that the majority of them will not pursue art in college. 

 
 
 
so so proud of them!

You saw yesterday our basketball adventures at my parent's house and we cruised over to Mark's parent's, too so we could give Mark's mom her gift and a squeeze, too! 

 

So thankful for our Moms and to be able to celebrate this day with them, too.

 

{me, Mom, Susan and Kim at Wicked in December}

The best part of Mother's day was that the five of us were together ALL day and evening.  That doesn't happen as often as i would like anymore.  It gets more challenging as they get older.  Everyone begins to move in different directions, which is the natural progression of things, i suppose.  Mark and I are doing our very best to try to keep precious family time a priority.  We have big plans for a fun family summer!  Thank you to my sweet family for making my Mom's Day fun and for making me feel special and loved.  I love you all so much! 

Work in progress...

It's really on it's way, friends.  The author, and my dear friend, Anne Paluszny and i have had to put the book on hold a few times for various reasons...mostly due to family committments. 

 

But, it's moving full speed ahead now and looks to be published this summer.  We are so excited.  I didn't think i could love another book as much as i love our first book in the series, Getting to the Heart of Complimenting; but i do!  We cannot wait for you to see and read Getting to the Heart of Respect! 

 I will be giving you little sneak peeks over the coming months, but to celebrate the progress we've made, we are going to give away 3 copies of Getting to the Heart of Complimenting.  All you have to do is like us on our facebook page here.  That is where we will be keeping you up to date on the book release and launch.  On Monday, March 21st, we will randomly draw 3 winners from all of the people who are following us on facebook.  Those 3 will each receive one autographed copy of the book. 

 

Now, it's time to get back to the drawing board...literally!  Have a happy day, friends!

All in the family...

 
{a sweet little family tree illustration that from a client project that never came to fruition}

Katie got this very cool gift from her grandparents this Christmas...

 
we've just loaded it and started a subscription to www.ancestry.com.  We have no clue what we are doing or how to use it yet.  But, Mark's Uncle Bob has been working on the family tree extensively for several years now and we can't wait to see it and do our best to add to it.  It's so fascinating!  Katie is sure that we will find some long lost cousins in Ireland and Italy who will be happy to host her and her friends when they visit someday!

My Uncle Tom Cautela; my grandmother's only surviving sibling, came to visit when my grandfather died last month.  We were talking about the family tree then.  I took good notes and he helped me to navigate back a few generations.  Our conversation lead to talk about his father, my great grandfather, Giuseppe Cautela. {pictured here with my great grandmother, Concetta DiTerlizzi Cautela}

 

He was a writer and wrote a book titled Moon Harvest, which was published in 1925. 

 
I knew this, but was never able to read it because it was out of publication.  What i didn't know was that in 2007, the book was republished for a symposium about literature written by Italian American immigrants, that was being hosted by an Italian university.  My Uncle Tom was invited to write an introduction for the book and was also invited to go to Italy for the event.  He asked if i would like a copy of the book and sent it to me over the holidays. 

 

I've only just begun to read it {he wrote it in English, which was a monumental feat given that, according to my father, he had a minimal education and his native tongue was Italian}.  The book is printed in English on the left and Italian on the right. 

 
Moon Harvest is a love story! And now, it's a treasured legacy for our family...just as i hope one day, my children's children's children will love my book.  I'm so happy to have it in my hands.  After receiving it, i decided i would do a little research to find out more about the symposium if i could.  I began by googling his name and the book title and was shocked to find pages and pages of references to him and the book.  It seems there are many academic papers written about the Europeon American immigrant experience and few books written by actual immigrants.  I also found out there was a book published about the history of Coney Island in New York.  In it, my great grandfather is quoted! 

 

 
Amazing!  I ♥ the internet!  Turns out, my dad found out about this a few years ago and bought the book.  So cool!  I strongly encourage you to ask the older generations in your family for information about the generations who came before them.  Chances are they will be a wealth of information for you.  I can't wait to find out more about my family and Mark's family through this new software and ancestry.com!  I hope this will be a fun and educational family project.  Will let you know! 

Summer lovin'

FINALLY!!!!  Summer banner is up...late...story of my life.  Better late than never.  To go along with it, here are some snapshots of summer life around here...

we are not big campers...the backyard is the farthest we've ever pitched this tent.  We usually just set it up in the playroom when we're looking for a camping adventure.  But, last week was nice and cool...perfect for sleeping under the stars (5 feet from the back door)...

 
We put a lot of time and sweat and $ into our landscaping this summer.  I am giving it all i've got.  My thumb is far from green, but we have been enjoying the basil from our own garden this summer.  I'm so proud of my little basil plant...

 
 
BEST PESTO EVER:

Combine in a food processor into a thick smooth paste:  2 cups fresh basil leaves, 1/4 cup grated Romano cheese, 1/2 cup olive oil, 3 T pine nuts, 3 minced garlic cloves

For crostinis:  Thinly slice crusty bagutte and brush pieces with olive oil.  Lightly toast under broiler and top with a smear of cream cheese and then a dollop of pesto.  YUM!  This dish gets rave reviews everywhere i take it.  So easy!

Amazing Indiana sunset after a summer storm...

 
We found these AWESOME lights at Big Lots, of all places.  I've always wanted lights like these over the pool, but everywhere i looked, they were big bucks. 

 
BL had them for $10 for a string of 40 {40 ft!}.  We just LOVE them.  When they're all lit up at night, it feels like you're on a cruise ship!

 
happy, itchy dog...

 
k taught her brothers and cousins how to make bracelets.  Now, i find string taped to every table in the house!

 
mmmmmm...

 
Toy Story 3....i could cry again right now just thinking about it.  sniff sniff

 
have you read this yet?  I'm 3/4 of the way through and i cannot put it down!!!!!

 
how i see it...

 
I am happy to report that I made a $105 donation to the National Wildlife Federation from sales of my Save the Gulf with Love print.  It's still available in the shop.  Thanks so much to all who have purchase one already.  I will keep you updated on our total!!!!

A compliment for you...

 
Blogging for me is my diary...it's very personal and also vulnerable.  You are all so kind with your sweet comments and it means so much to me that you even stop by.  Thank you, friends...those who comment and those that lurk.  I ♥ you all. 

As a thank you, i am giving away a copy of the children's picture book that i illustrated, Getting to the Heart of Complimenting.  Simply leave a comment for me and you will be entered to win.  The giveaway will close at midnight on Sunday and i will announce the winner on Monday.  My friend and author of the book, Anne Paluszny, and I are working fast and furiously to publish the next book in this series...Getting to the Heart of Respect.  Yes, i know...we can all really use that one!

 
  
I LOVE this print from Marc Johns.  It's sold, but wanted to share it with you anyway.  Really, wouldn't this be fantastic?  I'd take a compliment over telephone hold music anyday. 

 
I stumbled on to this website that i think is sooooo cool.  Need a pick me up?  Pop over to ComplimentBot 4000 and receive a compliment.  Want another one?  Just click your refresh button and get another one.  Genius!  Why, thank you, ComplimentBot 4000!

How cool is this?  Go here to download one for free so you can post it on the bulletin board at your school or office.

 
  

I know I've talked about The Purdue Compliment Guys before here on FPW.  They are so cool, they are worthy of mentioning again.  Check them out in action here.

 Now, go and make someone's day by paying them a compliment today.  Small acts of kindness like that make the world a better place.  Oh, and one more thing...  

GO PURDUE!!!