Our Summer Through Instagram

I can't believe summer is just about over.  Only a few more days and my little guy is off to first grade.  First Grade!  Summer seemed to slip by so quickly.  In a blink of an eye our summer began and ended.  I can't complain though, aside from the problems I had with this lovely space of mine, we had a great summer.  Filled with warm days full of activities, vacations and lazy days around the house.   And so with that, here I share with you our summer through Instagram. (you can follow me at lisarenata)

 

 

 

This summer we:
- relaxed on the hammock and  enjoyed our new pool when ever home.
- celebrated the little ones birthdays with a pirates and mermaids theme pool party.  Lots of prepping and making went into it.  It was fun.  (A future post to come.)
- spent the fourth of July at grandpa's farm, exploring, learning and moving slowly.
- enjoyed the fruits of our edible garden, which sadly didn't do so well this year. But the chiles did and they keep on coming.  
-  picnicked outdoors as often as possible.
- ran around between piano lessons, swimming lessons and baseball practice/games. 
- ate out more than I though possible. 
- enjoyed ice cream...a lot!
- celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary by the two of us escaping to a local lovely island and watched my first eastern sunrise on the beach.  It was breathtaking and romantic.
- got new hair cuts.  She insisted on having her hair short just like mami, so I obliged.  She looks beautiful.
- discovered local bistros and coffee shops.
- spent a week with a friend and her kids in the lovely Massanutten Resort up in mountains.  Two mamas and four kids sure makes for an adventurous vacation.  We survived (and so did the kids.)
- drove through our first safari ever.  It was so much fun!
- enjoyed lazy days indoors.
- squeezes some sewing and crafting here and there.
- visited the lovely city of Indianapolis for the first time.  Fell in love with it.  Very clean and artsy.
- took the kids to their first baseball game.  
- found little "me" moments when ever I could.

Yes, a lovely summer indeed.

How was yours?

weekend travelers

 

This past weekend we had a somewhat unexpected traveling to do.  We love to travel.  This time around though, the traveling was not for fun, but a sad occasion.  Non the less we enjoyed our trip up North.  It is always wonderful to meet up with family.

I have to say I am grateful my little ones are pretty good travelers.  They enjoy it as much as the hubby and I do.  They are always ready for a trip.  And who wouldn't be.  Have you ever traveled through West Virginia's Mountains?  Or Pennsylvania's countryside?  Gorgeous, even in late winter/early spring.  And talk about all those cute quaint little towns all the way up to Pittsburgh.  We always say we need to take more time to stop at some of those antique shops.  We never do.  I can just imagine the treasures I could find.  Some day we will.

For now, we are getting back to our schedule, fighting a bit of colds and getting ready for a little (or shall I say, big boy) b-day coming up soon.  

Happy Tuesday!

saying goodbye; moving forward

Saying goodbye is never easy, especially when it comes to my parents and sisters.  Ah  yes, how I will miss them these upcoming days, weeks, months, until we meet again.  I did, however, enjoy every single moment with them.  The laughs, the memories.  Every.single.moment.  It had been too long since we got to spend Christmas with my side of the family and even though I see them at least once a year, for one reason or another we had not been able to do so.  This year we did and how grateful I am for that.  For the new traditions this introduced my children to (like the Posadas) and the new memories they (and I and hubby) have now created with my family.  I am happy and I am sad all together.  But the happiness of all those beautiful memories created always wins over the sadness of having to say goodbye.  Until we meet again.

 San Antonio is beautiful. 

photo of our silliness (my sisters and I) taken with my iPhone by the shop clerk.

We walked through Riverwalk, met with some old friends, visited a quaint little German town called Gruene, where we had a family photoshoot (yey!) and visited local shops.  All with the company of my loved ones.  Bliss.

all the cousins having fun during the photo shoot in Gruene.

Moving forward.

A new year is here and now it is time to move forward.  To think of my goals for the future, to write them down and to start accomplishing them one step at a time. 

Some of those are:
* to continue living a simpler life.
* re-organizing my craft room. (With the recent addition of a serger, I surely need to do this.)
* set a schedule (as much as I hate them) for homeschooling my sweet nena.
* go on date nights regularly with my handsome hubby.
* clean out and donate, giveaway, and/or toss things that I do not need (that includes fabric. Ouch!  That one hurts.)
* organize time for blogging, crafting, and listing on my shop.
* finish reading The Happiness Project. (I highly recommend it.)
* make time for "ME!"
* finish unfinished crafting projects.
* go to sleep earlier, wake earlier (that will totally help me with the schedule setting.)
* exercise!
* start training for a 5k in the spring.
* start once again, using a journal to keep all my ideas, thoughts and goals organized.
* take more nature walks with my family.

This are just some of my goals for this year.  I have many.  How about you?

All photos I took with my new iPhone using Instagram.  I am totally in love with this app! (For sneak peeks follow my user name lisarenata.)