fresh picked whimsy

fun times in the city

A few weeks ago, my dad and I planned a day to take the boys to Indy to visit the NCAA Hall of Champions.  Little did we know the fun that awaited us...

The NCAA is headquartered in Indianapolis.  They built the Hall of Champions next door and it's a sort of museum of all NCAA sports.

It was spring break and we were practically the only ones in this place.  This made the interactive areas super fun...

See G & R dive, run, shoot and ski!

Who says white men can't jump?

BOO-YA!

There's a half court old-school gymnasium here, too.  Yup...all to ourselves!

Memory makin' happening here...

So, we step outside the front doors of the HOC and my dad points across the street and says, "hey, let's rent one of those!"

There's a scenic canal that runs through Indianapolis.  We took the surrey with the fringe on top for a ride on the 3+ mile loop around the canal. 

There are fountains, bridges, gardens and murals along the way...

 It was a hoot!  We laughed almost the entire time...just trying not to run anyone over and avoiding taking a swim in the canal.

We also stopped along the canal at the 9/11 Memorial with the pieces of the metal beams from the Towers.  It's a sight to see and touch. 

After we safely returned our bike, we headed over to the City Market for lunch.  This place is so cool...and yummy.

and then because we weren't ready for the fun to end quite yet...we met up with my sister and her kiddos for a little bowling. 

Talk about your fun-packed day!  Thanks for the fun times during our staycation, Indianapolis.  

We ♥ Indy

Katelyn's mom

I remember when i used to volunteer in my children's elementary school, some of the kids had trouble pronouncing our last name, so they would call me Mrs. Katelyn's Mom {or Riley's or Griffin's}. Last weekend i went up to Purdue for Mom's Weekend.  I met lots of new people and introduced myself as Katelyn's mom.  i will always love that title!

Her sorority organized a special casino day for the moms and we had lots of fun playing bingo and chatting with her friends and their mamas.  We got a house tour and lunch, too.

There was a silent auction and i donated some original art to the cause.  I kept sending katie photos as i would finish things the week before...

Her sorority symbol is the squirrel. {not sure why...but at least it's cute}

i posted that pic on instagram and have a had a few requests to make goodies for other sororities.  Sure!  Bring it on...

I'm told this is called "frat benching".  So, yeah...we did that.

 Later, we went out to dinner with Kate's bestie and her mom at a restaurant right on the Wabash River.  It was a gorgeous sunset!

The big fun came later on when i got to have a sleepover in her dorm room!  On our way there, we passed a block party/rave happening outside her dorm...we stopped to take some pictures.

Katie had a big art project to work on, so we got right down to business...we got in our jammies, started Love Actually on her laptop and ordered Insomnia cookies!

 

{seriously cool...they will deliver hot, fresh baked cookies and milk to your dorm room until 3am!  GENIUS!}

I LOVE this girl so much.  We laughed so hard all weekend.  She is so much fun to be with and i cannot believe she will be done with her freshman year in 2 weeks!!!  That was FAST!  Can't wait for her to be home for the summer! 

Thanks for the fun weekend, sweets...i love being your mom and i love you!

Love, Mom

 

it's a sign

Wow.

You guys are keeping me busy!

Everybody loves coming into my studio and seeing the fun places you all have visited!  I've recently made a few fantasy location signs by request...

aren't those cool?  I'm waiting for my first Star Wars sign...anyone?  anyone?  Bueller?

and now, there's a whole new way to love our signs... on your wedding day!

They are totally customized with your wedding colors and names.  Point your guests in the direction of dancing, cocktails, parking or the restrooms.  They're available in the shop!

All this painting meant it was time for a new painting apron.  I ordered this cutie from Meyer Textile Co. via etsy.  It's yella and I lurve it!

 

Here's the thing...

that's it. 

This horrible, cowardly act of hate has once again, brought out the love.  As i watch the devastating images on tv, my broken heart swells with pride and admiration for the outpooring of love and unity of strangers.  We've seen this before...on 9/11, in Oklahoma City, in Columbine, in Aurora, in Newtown... People moving into the danger to help others, strangers comforting one another, offering hope and...

Love.

God bless Boston

 

Feel the love...

Free PDF print from Sarah Jane Studios here

"The good outnumber you, and we always will" by Patton Oswalt, must read here

New York Yankees fans pay tribute to Boston victims, watch video here

 

Easter blessings

I'm so thankful for my Savior, my family and a glorious Easter.  This week was extra special for us because Riley served {he is an altar server} during all of the celebration masses throughout Holy Week.  We are so very proud of him and his deep faith. 

I captured the cross in front of our church on Good Friday with just a little bit of the sunset in the sky.  It was so beautiful!

We celebrated on Easter at my parent's house.  There's always an egg hunt in the backyard, but the threat of rain moved it inside this year.  I love that my teens are still game for the hunt...

My nephew Cole examining his finds...

I love this picture of Mark's parents!

 

and our beautiful moms together...

We all pitch in for a great big brunch.  This was just a bit of it...

These crocuses bloomed in my yard for the first time last week on the day before we had 8 inches of snow.  I thought they would never make it and i thought about cutting them and bringing them inside.  But, i didn't.

Then, three days later, after the spring snow melted, these lovelies re-emerged as beautiful as ever.  It made me think of the hope that was lost on the original Good Friday and the joy that the world experiences every Easter Sunday!  I hope you had a wonderful Easter too, my friends.  I am thankful for you!