4th of July Bash part 1

I have so many pictures I want to share, but obviously, will need to split it up over a few days....

We got to the property early Friday morning -- and spent all day Friday & Saturday working on the cabin.  One Saturday, Mike's uncle & his family came down to the property to stay with us & play a bit!  Since we don't have a shower yet, the girls took a motel room (for the shower & pool) while the guys hunkered down in the cabin (at least there was A/C!).

Our girls were pretty much raised w/ these kids.  Brian & Gerri have 5 kids, with one more they're adopting.  Katie & their second kid, Price, are 4 months apart ... they also looked so much alike when they were little.  Between the two of them, one was always taller than the other, so every time we see them, the first thing they do is measure their height.  Katie's been in the lead for a few years, but I'm sure Price is going to beat her in the height department in a few years. Also, they were the best of friends -- inseparable!  Maddie & their 4th kid, Leah, are also close in age.  They are 3 months apart.  Altogether, they get along great --

The other Nelson clan brought their 4 wheelers, since there's tons of land around for them to go 4 wheeling.  A lake is right down the road, and we took the kids twice to go swimming and to watch the fireworks.  Not to mention the girls all staying up late and reminiscing about favorite memories of growing up together.  Made for some pretty hysterical nights!  It's the "If I laugh more -- I'm gonna pee my pants" kind of laughs!

Here is Maddie & Leah -- their version of a mud bath at the lake:

They brought their puppy Jersey down with them as well -- Maddie woke up to the puppy sleeping on her pillow. Needless to say, she wasn't very excited about that. Takes after her dad....

One day after eating at this fantastic Italian restaurant by the lake, the kids were watching the water. We decided to hang around the water instead of going back to the cabin to wait for the fireworks.

Tried to capture the beautiful rays ... can never do it justice on camera!

Here is Katie & Price ...

They decided to get into the water and play after eating ...

Finally the time came for the fireworks!!

Here is Hannah & Jersey .. so cute!

This was the only shot worth showing ... that I attempted to take of the fireworks. Was on manual -- but tons of trees in the way!

Part 2 coming soon!

Facts about Amy ... you may not have known

I hear all the time from my friends "wow!  I never knew that about you!"  ... so, why not turn it into a blog post?

1)  I love cherries as a fruit ... but I hate... HATE anything flavored cherries.  i.e. cherry slush (gag), cherry fruit snacks (gag, gag), cherry Twizzlers ... you get the point? 

2)  I've been using the same set of dishes since I've been married -- which is going on 14 1/2 years so far!!  LOVE this pattern == Filigree by Pfaltzgraff.

(image taken from Pfaltzgraff)

3)  I have been privileged to have traveled to wonderful places outside of the USA.  I've been to China, Hong Kong, Nova Scotia (in Canada), Bahamas, Puerto Vallarta, Turkey, Greece, Santorini, Crete, Instanbul (and a few other islands around that area... we took a Mediterranean cruise)  -- all before my 18th birthday.  However, a few years later after taking this cruise in the Mediterranean Sea, the cruise ship sank off the coast of Africa.  But, I haven't been to Hawaii yet.  :(

4)  I can't stand snakes -- but I will watch all the documentaries on snakes.  Mike constantly scares me as soon as the snake jumps for the camera.  Rotten guy....

5)  Because of my fear of snakes, when I walk anywhere that we're really in the outdoors, I refuse to look hard in the wilderness for fear I might see a snake.  Yesterday on our walk, Maddie pointed out a lot of things simply because she looks.  I fear looking....

6)  I take all these wonderful pictures of my family over the years, and never print any of them out.  Ever.  Sad....

7)  I can't stand tomatoes.  But, I love salsa & spaghetti sauce! 

8)  Speaking of food -- I don't really like to cook, but I'm told I'm really good at it!  It's not my favorite thing to do, but if my family has to eat, then I guess I have to cook == so might as well be good at it!

9)  This next one is a no brainer... I love Target.  Just walking in the doors of this store makes me happy.

10)  I've been stopped multiple times for speeding in my life == but I have never gotten a speeding ticket -- just warnings.  BUT!!... I did get a ticket for getting in an accident!  However, in my defense, I will say that rain and an oil patch was involved as well.....

11)  I love all those Storage shows on cable.  Storage Wars, Storage Hunters....  makes me want to go bid on someone's storage unit to see what I can find!  Pawn shop shows are addictive to me as well!

12)  I could eat pineapple all day long.  Even if it gave me sores in my mouth from eating them all day -- they are the best fruit on earth, I think. 

13)  Lemonberry slush at Sonic's is one of my favorite slushes of all time.   Yummmm!  Hello Happy Hour!

14)  My favorite ice cream of all time is chocolate ice cream w/ peanut butter in it.  Anything with those two ingredients is my favorite:  Reese's PB Cups (swoon!)....

15)  I had meningitis when I was 3 years old.  I have a 70% hearing loss in my left ear, and used to have a 90% loss in my right ear == but now it's probably down to nothing in that ear.  Because of my hearing impairment, I have an accent.  I get asked all the time "Are you from Boston?  New York?  England?" ... just last year, I had someone asked if I was from Australia.  Ha ha ha!  Sometimes... I go along w/ the fun and just reply "yes!!"  Why not?  Makes life more interesting!!

Building a mother in laws quarters part 5

Mike went up a few times in June and got some more work done.  I have yet to blog about it -- but on one of the trips up there, he dug a big hole and placed a 1000 gallon septic tank in the ground. 

During that same weekend, Mike rolled his ankle pretty badly -- so was limited in what he could do (putting on the roof was out of the question).  So, he found a local roofer who did it very reasonably, and we now have a roof!  (probably cheaper to have someone else do it than pay the cost of medical expenses if he falls off the roof -- which his luck hasn't been all that great the last few times going up there.. falling down the stairs, rolling his ankle... ugh!).

We also were waiting very not patiently for the water to be hooked up to our lot.  We had to pay big mucho $$ for it to be bored (is that the right word?) under the road and hooked up to our lot.  But, we have water now!!!

This last 4th of July weekend we went back up on Thursday night and left Monday night, so he was able to get some work in (hobbling some on a sore and still swollen ankle).  We (and yes, I did help this time!!) applied Tyvek to the outside of the house.  Tyvek keeps the moisture off of the wood, and is a barrier between the siding that we will eventually place on the cabin and the sheathing (plywood).  Once we got the Tyvek on, Mike placed the two windows and doors in the house.  (for the record, I had to have Mike spell out Tyvek... what an odd word)

Now, I can't remember for the life of me the next process that needs to be done, but I know it starts with an S .... but we still have to close off the area between the roof and the wall.  SO, to keep the cool air inside, Mike added insulation in those areas so the cool air will stay inside for the time being.

Since it was in the 100+ degree weather, he placed a temporary window unit to start cooling the cabin down, at least until we can get the bigger unit in (which we did that next night..).

Mike's aunt & uncle & their 6 kids came to play during that time -- and his uncle helped him with putting the toilet in as well as the hotel type of air conditioner in the wall -- two sets of hands are faster than one set of hands!. 

Excuse the really bad unfocused pictures.... Mike had to wrap Tyvek around the bathroom so we can do our business in private... and I didn't have much room to take a picture.  PLUS, I was on manual -- which tells you I'm still not 100% there yet!

But!  We have a TOILET!!!  ::cue Hallelujah chorus::

Stay tuned for more pictures of our adventures w/ the other Nelson clan that weekend...

We are alive!... just relaxing....

We have been gone to the property (pictures to come soon!) ... Katie is gone to YW Girls Camp for the week.. and Maddie & I are just chilling and relaxing, like Smokey is in the picture. :) Will be back to blogging in the next day or so!  Stay tuned!........

The 7th anniversary of my 29th birthday!

Ahhh... it was a great birthday!

I went to work, and a coworker brought me a HUGE cinnamon roll from the bakery across the street (I'm talking the size of a dinner plate). I promptly shared it w/ another friend! Another friend brought me a huge chocolate gourmet cupcake plus a bag full of chocolate candies that are a few of my favorites! Another friend made brownies (my favorite!) to share w/ the entire group at work! 

My dear friend Liza bought me a huge balloon bouquet -- my first ever!  Who would've thought that I'd get giddy over balloons?!  I did!!

Liza & I are slowly discovering Vera Bradley -- and she bought me the newest lunchbox!  LOVE it!!  Can't wait to take my lunch next week!

My dear friend Leisa has been making these delicious four layer cakes for years -- and I absolutely LOVE her cakes.  This is the 3rd year she's made me a cake for my birthday!  Love this woman!

Maddie wrote me a very cute letter -- can you read it?  Isn't it cute?

Katie ... this is funny.... Katie found me a gift on Amazon.  She said "I'm going to buy it".  I thought "whatever... she's not going to get far".  Well, she texts me at work and says "I found your gift on Amazon, and I'm going to order it."  I didn't respond.  Then, a few minutes later she texts again "Wait!  How am I supposed to order this?  I don't have a credit card!!"  So, I asked her what it was (to make sure it was worth spending money on in the first place for shipping) -- and when she forwarded me the link, I totally agreed with her choice.  I love Willow Tree!!  I have the nativity set and 3 other figurines.  I've given my girls Willow Tree figurines as well.  We love them!  However, I told her that we needed to check out the local stores first, b/c they would be the same price without shipping.  That night, we found the one she wanted to give me, and I LOVE IT!!

When Vera Bradley was having a sale a few weeks ago on bags for $17.99 -- I snatched one (or two) up.  I guess this is my birthday gift to myself?  I dunno... but my mom wanted to see what it looks like.  So, here ya go Mom!  Katie is using the other one, and she's babysitting right now and has it with her...

Since Mike was out of town, I celebrated my birthday by going to the movies w/ Liza and our girls -- then a quick trip to Longhorn Cafe for some yummy burgers and a final trip of the night to my happy place!  Target!  It was overall a wonderful day!  I'm so blessed with so many wonderful friends!

Sidenote:

These two pictures of a quilt... I found at a garage sale today for $5.00 ... I was thinking of using them for photo shoots for families sitting on a blanket.  It is unbelievably soft -- good deal?  Is it cute enough for a photo shoot?

The funny moments in my life

Lately we've had a string of funny moments that occur.. and I HAVE to document them!  Unfortunately, I run this in my head when I'm driving of things I need to blog about, and since I added another year to my age yesterday, I'm blanking on all of them but one...

My girls have an adopted Mom whose name is Katie.  Katie is awesome.  Katie is an amazing baker ... sewing gal ... and has swooped by to get my girls when they are on break and I have to work.  She has baking days for them, and this summer she's been picking them up weekly for a trip to Sea World to go swimming.

Well, Katie has two little girls.  They have a special kind of "robe" that is terry and is basically a swimming suit cover up.  From what I gather from Madison, it looks like a bathrobe.  One day when my Katie was at volleyball camp, Maddie went to Sea World with Katie.  When I arrived after work to pick her up, she had her heavy flannel bathrobe on.  I go "what the crap?  Why do you have your bathrobe?"  Well, putting two and two together, she thought Katie's girls robe were bathrobes, so she takes her heavy bathrobe to Sea World instead of her towel.  Katie thought "man, she must be hot in that thing!"

Maddie admitted that she was dying of heat .. and sweating like a pig!  Thankfully, a friend had an extra terry "robe" that is a swimsuit cover up, so we're ready for the next Sea World excursion!!!

While we're on the subject of Madison, last week I had a conversation with her in the car.

I asked her the names of the roads we were on -- the names & phone numbers, addresses, etc of her family.  Then, I went into "what is your grandma's name?"  My mom's name is Debbie.  I asked her "what is her maiden name?"  She said "Deb" -- I said "no, a maiden name is the name a woman has before she is married."  She said "oh, uh... Debbie."  So, I gave her the answer.  By the time we got to MY grandma's name (which is Polly) -- she worked hard to figure out what Grandma Polly's maiden name was.

Her answer?  "uh....Polly Wanna Cracker?"  oh, I love my Maddie!

More funnies to come when I remember them... (trying not to show my age!)

introducing ....Photos by Amy Nelson

I'm so ecstatic...

I have a photography website!!

EEKS!!  I'm officially stepping out?!  Maybe?  So nervous!!

My dear friend Becky (who I grew up with as a teenager ... and have to admit that I thought for sure was going to marry my brother one day) designs websites.  Well, she designed mine!  She said "tell me what you want!"  I had no clue.  So, I passed a few photography websites to her, and said "just give me anything!  I'll be happy with anything!"  I gave her the colors I wanted (let me tell you, I probably drove her batty b/c I said "I like yellow.... maybe  yellow and red?  No..yellow and blue? Yellow and grey?  Nah.... let me get back to you, but I want yellow." 

Then I realized I have a book and I ADORE the colors used on the book cover.  It just meshed so wonderfully!

 (taken from Amazon)

So, I forwarded the picture of the book to Becky, and away she went.  

Then came the hard part of finding a domain name that wasn't taken.  I thought of something like cutesy like "Chocolate Daisy" -- but I really wanted to stamp my name on the photos I took.  All my first picks were taken ... Prudential owned my own NAME -- WHY?!!  What do they need it for?!  But, I decided to keep it simple -- it's not "portraits" b/c frankly, I'm still learning and to me, portraits is a word that describes the really really expensive photography that I just am not into yet.  I prefer casual ... and fun. 

So ...after buying the domain, and after a few minor tweaks .... she showed me my website, and I was in LOVE!!

Becky is heading out on the road to web designing ... she's been doing this since 2004, but has recently decided to start offering her services!!  If you're interested in having a website created, or anything else, check out her website  Little Sis Web Design -- it's FULL of options -- want to create just a family website for your family?  She can do it!  Need something from scratch but don't know what to do?  Becky can do it!  (Heck, I didn't really know what I wanted -- but since she knew me and remembered how I am, she totally designed it in a way that truly resembles ME!!!).

Check out our websites!!  What do you think?!

 

Families are full of love & nuts

So while at Kasey's wedding, I snapped some pictures of my family members. Gave us something to do....

this is my brother Mike & his wife Rachel

Here they are with their oldest son Joshua...

I think I was telling him there was a dinosaur in my camera, and can he see it?

My mom took my camera away from me and snapped a few shots of my sister in law Rachel & me... 

we got a little crazy for a second. 

This is my momma...

We had a small modeling session...

My parents.....

Me & my parents.....

(I didn't realize my boobs were so big)

This is my uncle & his wife Karen... and my parents.  My camera settings blew out the light big time, and so I had to change it to black and white.  See how normal and peaceful they are? 

They said something to each other and they all went crazy.

The photographer (me) had nothing to do with this....

but nonetheless, I love the picture!

My uncle & his wife Karen

my beautiful grandma

my dad and grandma

and one more final crazy picture for the road!

THE Wedding

Kasey's wedding was set in Weston, Missouri --- at a beautiful placed called "The Big Red Barn".  It was the perfect site for a very comfortable wedding. Outdoor wedding, wind blowing not gently (goodbye good hair day), greenery everywhere, peace & quiet.. it was perfect.

This is my beautiful grandma & Kasey's older brother Zack... 

This is Zack walking the mother of the bride (aka my aunt) down the aisle

 

They had a TON of flower girls.... I think total was 6?  maybe 7?  They were all nieces of the groom, so naturally they all need to be in the wedding so none are left out. :)  It was a very cute addition, I must say!

I love this picture of Nate's best man (they had problems w/ the wind and setting the paper down) ...  I love the colors they picked (kind of a lime green, forgot the actual name of the color), the ties, the suits... it all!

Since Zack & Kasey lost their dad before Thanksgiving last year, and our grandpa on Thanksgiving, her brother gave her away -- sadly, out of all the pictures I took of them walking down, none of them show her smiling or looking up  :)  I think she was a tad bit nervous...

Here is the kiss that sealed the deal!

While her photographer was snapping some pictures of the others, I grabbed Kasey and propped her in the corner and shot a few pictures...

This is the picture w/ all the aunts & uncles on our side of the family.  Only ones missing are me & my brother and his family.... so we were mostly complete except for my little family being there!

Kasey did her cake just like I did .... enlisted our wonderful grandma and had her make a cake out of styrofoam and decorate it (for the record, my mom helped w/ my cake, and my aunt helped w/ Kasey's cake).  For my wedding, we had four different kinds of sheet cakes to choose from, and Kasey had cupcakes.

Everything on the table was white food .... I believe it was a little hard trying to come up with white desserts!

This was their first dance...

Kasey is a phenomenal singer .... when it was time for the mom's to dance with their child (traditionally the father/daughter dance), Kasey grabbed her mom and they all danced to "Momma's Song" by Carrie Underwood.  My grandma joined in...

The decorations were wonderfully done.  I have a hard time trying to pin exactly what the style was, but it was perfect...  Beautiful in every way.

Stay tuned for my final round of Wedding Pictures ......

silly (and not so silly) pictures of my CRAZY family!!