{ Virtual Coffee }

Good Morning.
Happy Tuesday and welcome to Tuesday Morning Coffee,  better known as Virtual Coffee around here.
It's early and I am up early, something I have vowed to start doing once the weather got nicer(but damn! it's so hard!) and thought this
morning would be the    p  e  r  f  e  c  t    morning to start this new brand new morning habit of mine.
Hopefully it lasts longer than all of the other times I have attempted it.

So yes, I am out on the porch this morning and I am so happy the days are back of coffee on the porch or the
back patio, this little thing makes me SO happy.
Deep breathing on the patio, staring off into space + smiling at my string of lights last night and coffee drinking on the porch this morning.

Getting to bust out my lights, candles, rugs, quilts... it is just so good.
That hell-on-wheels of a Winter is actually behind us.
{I wasn't entirely convinced, it was that bad and that long!}

So, if we were really meeting for coffee this morning, on my porch or on yours or wherever, we would have to talk about how May is the
craziest month ever... Right?
Like it practically ties with December, or comes in right under for us I guess.
And speaking of May and of pure  C  R  A  Z  I  N  E  S  S...
Including today, we only have 6 days of school left.
Like, SIX.
That seems pretty much absurd to me and pretty freakin' scary too... First and Third grade almost over?
Craziness I tell ya.

////


So, this past Saturday was the last soccer game of the Spring season and possibly because it's such a short season I have to say that I wasn't
quite ready for it to be over, I really wasn't.
And that actually kinda surprised me.... I'm like a soccer mom now you guys, it's weird.
And in case you missed my soccer/baby growing up post, read it here.
So the Bears(Wyatt's team) lost yet another game, something to zero(again) but I was just so proud of him and he
got a medal and honestly I think that's all he cared about.
After the game we stopped somewhere and a man made a comment about how he must've just had a soccer game and asked Wyatt how it
went and he answered "Good!"
Ha! I mean, yeah, besides the whole losing 7-0 or whatever again, it was good.

The rest of our weekend included getting a big tree removed in our backyard, which was very much overdue, car shopping(BOO!)
and hitting the road Sunday for a quick Road Trip to the Third Sunday Market in Bloomington.
I need to do a whole post on the flea market because I took a bunch of pictures and there were so many things I wanted to take home!
The highlight of our day might have been the mini donuts and lemon shake-ups though...
And doesn't this picture just scream Summer?

Lemon shake-ups and Ferris wheels and funnel cakes...
Summer really, really is almost here you guys!
Charlotte already started working on our Summer List after driving past a pool in Bloomington on Sunday that had  a big, fun water slide.
It's going to be a little trickier to fit everything in this Summer since I will be working so I think an
official list is in order pretty soon.

/////

Well I need to finish this coffee up and get moving, I am going on a Field Trip to the Zoo today with the first grade class.
It's an all-day trip and Miss Charlotte is so excited she said she could hardly sleep last night.
Remember those days?
It was the coolest thing ever when you got to miss an entire day of school.

So my cup is almost empty....
Let me know what you are up to these days... What are you drinking this morning and where are you having your coffee?

Hope you all have a great day, thanks for stopping by my little place today.

Tuesday Morning Coffee

Will you just look at that?
That was just Sunday and it was in the upper 70's in St.Louis.... trees and flowers are already blooming there.
B  l  o  o  m  i  n  g.
Today, in Illinois it is supposed to be in the 40's.
On April 15.
I think maybe I'll just become a resident of Missouri.
It' super close.... I could visit a whole lot. Right?
So maybe I shouldn't have said that I thought Winter was officially over in my last post, huh?
Lesson learned.

///////

So I am up before work this morning and ready for an early morning cup of coffee.
Blogging and life and just everything is in a little adjustment period over here because of this whole
working again thing.
It still feels really strange to say "working" and "job".... and it feels even funnier to have to be ready to walk out the door
at 8:30 am when the kids go to school.
You know, the not-so-funny kind of funny.
Not just dressed but hair fixed, make-up and wearing a BRA... and no yoga pants or ratty old t-shirts.
An adjustment,  I tell ya.

So I have a LOT of pictures to share from my girls weekend away this past weekend-- so much fun and I can tell you that I have

not laughed so hard in a long time.

There is nothing better than spending 4 days with 3 of your very oldest girlfriends, that I know for sure.

The weather was absolutely beautiful in St. Louis, and although I missed my little family so much, I 

think we could have found enough to do for a couple more days there.

BUT, that being said, it is really nice to be back home, on my couch under a quilt since it's so cold out there again(BOO), having
my very own homemade latte in my own cup-- not a Starbucks cup.
That is good.

So this morning it's back to reality and all of my regular duties--

Lunch making, getting myself ready for work, doing my first-grader's hair, packing back packs...
Back to soccer practice tonight, homework checking, spelling word practice, dinner making... REALITY.

It really is so good to get a break from the every day once in a while and believe me, I take advantage whenever I can, and
know I am lucky that my husband is able to handle everything at home without me having to worry about anything at all.

////////

Well coffee time is about over for me....
How was your weekend?
Did you do anything fun?
Have you had a weekend away with friends or by yourself,  or with anyone at all lately/ever?
Where would you go if you could?

I think I am already planning the next weekend away in my mind...
Happy Tuesday!

{Virtual Coffee}

Good morning.
It's an early + hot Tuesday morning and somehow I am still ready for a hot cup of coffee anyway...
Occasionally I will do iced coffee, but for the most part I just need hot coffee, no matter what.
So grab a cup of hot coffee, or cold coffee or water or diet coke or tea... whatever it is you're having this morning and let's talk.

So, it is in fact September 10 and it is supposed to be 99* today... 99... as in, just one degree under 100*.
In September.
How gross is that?
I mean seriously, it's just not right.
Any feelings I had of missing Summer or lovingly reminiscing of those long, hot, Summer days are now long gone.
The kids' school is not all air conditioned and let's be honest, nothing good comes of kids being in a hot, gross building.... so, they get out
an hour early... not sure how much that helps really, but they do.
Blahhh.

If we were really meeting for coffee this morning, I would have to tell you that I started Week In The Life  yesterday... and I am still going.
Dear Day # 2, I will not quit today, I will conquer you.
If you didn't read my post yesterday, you can read more about Ali Edwards' Week In The Life project, here.
I've wanted to do it before but just never did, so this year  I am determined  to finish it.
I think it would be so cool to have a whole bunch of snapshots that document an entire week in our lives, right here and now in 2013.
How awesome would it be to look back at a week in your life in pictures form when you were a kid?
I think it would be so cool... to see not only pictures of me and my family but what a typical day looked like, how we spent our evenings,
favorite toys, books we read, my parent's cars... all of it.
I think that once this week is over I will take all of these pictures and make them into a hardback book online...
I know there are a  million sites to choose from but I'm not sure what the best ones are...
Any suggestions?

Here's just a bit of my day yesterday...

So, if we were really meeting for coffee this morning I would have to tell you about my two phone interviews I have had in the last week.
First, let me say, this whole getting back into the working world is both scary and kinda exciting at the same time.
I'm ready, or I think I am ready to do it,  but at the same time, it's scary.... AND... can I do it?
I mean, I fancy myself pretty damn unorganized now... what will it be like when I am really working out of the home again?
It's weird... but good... and scary... but still kinda good.
Do you know what I mean?
I've decided that even if nothing comes from this job that it was a good thing because it made me update my resume(that had not ben done in TEN years)
and now I feel like I am really ready to get serious about looking.

So, I guess that's about it for me this morning... I have lots and lots of laundry and straightening and cleaning and list making to do...
We are going out of town to stay in these cabins in Indiana this weekend and I have so much to do to get ready for the weekend and I keep telling myself;
I will not procrastinate.
I will nto procrastinate.
I will not procrastinate.

What are you up to today?
Is it starting to feel like Fall yet where you are... or are you dealing with another heat wave like we are?
Ugh.
Bring on the 70* weather and the pumpkin spice lattes!
Ps- I am thinking of making these cookies for the weekend... Salted Caramel + Nutella Stuffed Double Chocolate chip Cookies.
Whatcha think?

{via}

Remember to hashtag your Instagram pix with #havingmycoffeeehere... not just today, but every day!
I love to see where others are having their coffee... on the way to work?
School drop off line?
On the couch?
Happy Tuesday!

{Virtual Coffee} // Where Are You Having Your Coffee?

Good morning!
So it's early Tuesday morning and I have to tell ya, I'm feeling a little worn out from that long, holiday weekend.
We all slept late this morning, I never set an alarm because I have my two little alarm clocks that usually wake me up. Not today.
I'm not sure why we were all so worn out, as yesterday was pretty mellow... but the rest of the weekend was kinda busy I guess.
So... grab a cup of coffee and a seat and let's talk.

This is where I was having my coffee Sunday morning, we were at the Cabin and I took a walk down the road with my camera and my coffee
before it got way too hot...
Doesn't that look like a good spot for your morning coffee?
It was, it was really peaceful + quiet.
It made me think that it would be really fun to do a #havingmycoffeehere hashtag so you could see where everyone else was having their
morning coffee, too.
So, that's what I did this morning... although the location this morning isn't super exciting, it's still kinda fun.... if you're on Instagram
(and why wouldn't you be?), you should use that hashtag, too.

There's nothing like escaping from a crowded cabin full of people for a slow walk down a country road all by yourself.

I walked and drank my coffee and took pictures of the wildflowers, the corn, the birds and the long empty road.

It was good.

When that is not your usual daily view,  it's hard not to walk slowly and take it all in; here's just a little bit of my view...

To escape the heat and the crowded cabin, my sister, niece and I drove into town and went to one of my favorite little antique stores.
You guys, this place is packed from top to bottom... you can't even see everything, there's just so much.
There were several things I wanted but didn't think I should spend the money on just then that I am really kicking myself for now...
Wondering if they are still there and daydreaming about going back to get them...
Do you do that, too?

Do you see all of that turquoise in the 2nd picture?
Sigh.
I wanted to buy every last thing on that table... so much good stuff!
And the table itself with the matching chairs.... yes, please.
My niece wants to move to California one day so she is a bit obsessed with all things California, so we had to take a picture with the post card.

::::::::::::::::::::::::

If we were really meeting for coffee this morning I would ask you all about school if you have school-aged children...
It seems like if you didn't start early like we did then you are probably starting today.
Are you ready fro the school year?
Still in denial that Summer is now officially over?
I wasn't really ready for it but then again I think I was kind of craving a new routine and at the same time I am looking forward to new things for myself, too.
It's always just a lot of mixed emotions I think... I feel kind of sad but then again you can't when you have kids that are excited about school and ready to go back.
For that I am so thankful, too.

Well, I am having nothing but computer/connection problems this morning and this took me twice as long as it should have, so I better get moving now.
Hope everyone has a great day!

OH! I almost forgot... I am finally getting around to making a Facebook page for my
Shop + Blog.
Uh.... yeah, I might have started doing it a year ago and never went anywhere with it. Whoops.
BUT, now it's out there, so go like it- or follow it, or whatever if you want to...
You can just click on this link until I get a little icon thing up and running.

I'll be updating it daily with pictures, new stuff in the Shop, blog links, etc.

{Virtual Coffee}

Good morning.
Happy, happy Tuesday to you.
It's a brand new week and a brand new day and if you stopped by here this morning, I am happy to have you.
Really happy.
So grab yourself a cup of coffee, get yourself comfy and let's talk.
But first, check out that little beauty of a mug there.... Oh, I love that mug... and you know I kinda have a thing for coffee mugs, right?
I see it every time I am in Anthropologie and oooh and aaah over it but when we were in St. Louis last weekend for my Birthday
we made a special trip there so I could spend some Birthday money.
Oh, and spend it I did.
And she finally came home with me.

I just read this morning that Starbucks' Pumpkin Spice Lattes are out... Say whaaat?
Don't get me wrong, I do LOVE me a PSL, but since it is expected to be 97* today and school is getting out an hour early
for the next three days due to the heat, I can't really think about a Pumpkin Spice Latte just yet.
Not just yet.

So, if we were really meeting for coffee this morning, I would tell you that I got my Mug Swap package in the mail yesterday and it was awesome.
Do you know about the annual Mug Swap that Kim from A Cuppa Kim does every year?
If not, you should check it out,  lots of fun.
This is the first year I have participated because last year I think I was too late to sign up... both the person I sent my package to, and the person
I received mine from, I did not know previously.
I am  in love  with this awesome crocheted hankie bunting Charlotte is holding below.
It's really long + so pretty and I think I'm going to hang it in my office today!

Let's talk about the weekend... We had a busy +  fun(but not too busy) weekend.
I met a friend out for a drink Friday night, we had a work day at school on Saturday and Saturday evening just Charlotte and I went to
a Hot Air Balloon Festival about thirty minutes away.
That was my favorite part of the weekend. It was AMAZING.
I need to do a separate post on just that, because I think I have 1.5 million pictures of the hot air balloons, but here's just a few because
they make me so happy...
I haven't looked really good through all of these pictures,  but I really hope I got a good enough one with my Nikon to blow up and frame. 

If we were really meeting for coffee this morning, I know someone would have to bring up the whole Miley Cyrus thing... right?
Don't lie. you saw it.
And even if you don't watch the VMA's(like me), you youtubed it, right?
I have one word... or two words; the tongue.
WHAT is with sticking out her tongue like a child?
I don't get it. Seriously, do not get it.
And I won't even discuss the clothes, the teddy bears and the rest of the disgusting behavior...
I just really can't get past her sticking her tongue out like that. Ugh.
Did you watch? Thoughts? Is it too soon to talk about it?

A few more pictures from our weekend before I get moving today...

Sunday morning Eric + Miss Charlotte Rose made homemade blueberry pancakes. Yum.
There's nothing like a big family breakfast on the weekends.

Well, I'm off to try and get a whole lot done around here so maybe we can go swimming after school... early dismissal today,
so I had better hurry up, huh?
Hope everyone has a great day!
Want to join in and add your own Coffee Post?
Just link up below and we'll come visit you, too... the link is open for a week.

Virtual Coffee :: The Back To School Edition

Good morning.
Good morning and Happy Last Day of Summer Vacation to us!
Tomorrow is the big day for us, somehow... I mean how on earth is it time for school to start again already? Didn't Summer just start?
So, grab a cup of coffee and make yourself comfortable... there's lots to talk about.

We are in full Back To School mode around here....

I am happy to report that this year I am starting off the year without that kinda sick feeling I did last year... and that is a very good thing.
I was just thinking last night, you know, while I laid there and couldn't fall asleep forever, that it's so funny and interesting how your feelings
change from school year to school year.
Last year we were changing to a new school and my baby was starting Kindergarten, that was a rough year-- a rough transition for me anyway,
not the kids. But it was a really great school year for all of us.

I can just see myself when the Middle School years arrive and changing schools later and High School, switching classes, class schedules,
driver's ed ... sigh.
It's so hard letting them go, but at the same time it's so cool to see what they learn, to watch them grow and see them as little people away
from you. Do you know what that means... does that make sense?
This parenting business just ain't so easy, that's for sure.

*Oh- and by the way, look how yummy my coffee looks this morning.

So,  the school supplies have been bought and labeled, first day of school outfits have been picked and I even shopped ahead of time for things
to pack in their lunches this week. How awesome am I, anyway?
I pinned some good lunch ideas here, fyi.
I can't say I was ready for Summer to end, because really the kids weren't even driving me all that crazy, but still there is a bit of excitement about
the beginning of a brand new school year, don't ya think?
And speaking of brand new school years... am I the only one that kind of loves buying fresh school supplies?
Crayons, pencils, markers, colored pencils, notebooks... it's a bit of a guilty pleasure for me.

So tonight we will be having our little Back To School Dinner after our Open House.
I think this will be the third year we have done this, I let the kids pick the menu and we have a family dinner together, complete with candles
and sparkling apple cider in wine glasses.
It's a fun tradition and the kids look forward to it, I think I might look forward to the decorating part of it the most-- I know it's not the actual
cooking part anyway.

So, if you have kids in school tell me what you think about the beginning of the new school year...
Have you been counting down the days?
Dreading it?
Are your kids excited?
If you don't work, how will you spend your kid's first day back to school?

I'm not too worried about being too bored once I am home by myself again.
Of course I have enough projects on my imaginary To-Do List in my head to keep me busy for a year, plus helping out at school and... GASP....
looking for a part-time job.
Yep, I think I'll be plenty busy and I had better start knocking out projects until I do find said job...
Well, I think that's it for me today, there's still lots and lots to do today... the day before school starts is a very busy one for a procrastinator like me.

Hope everyone has a great day... I'm listening to this(again) because someway, somehow I'm not sick of it yet and I think my crush on Jimmy Fallon
may have just tripled for sure.

Go ahead and watch it, it's the clean version, I promise.


::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Link up your own Virtual Coffee post below... we'd love to come have coffee with you, too!

{Virtual Coffee}

Good Morning and Happy Tuesday.

It is early Tuesday morning and I am on the front porch having my coffee.
I planned to walk early this morning, but instead I am under a blanket, candles lit, listening to Pearl Jam on my laptop.
Life is good.

I am hoping, fingers crossed, to have a little bit of time out here myself before anyone wakes up... 

you know that's really not gonna happen, right?

Well, I certainly do... but a girl can dream.

So, if we were really having Coffee this morning...

We would have to talk about this beautiful Summer weather, my Summer Bucket List,
 our last 2 weeks of Summer vacation... and our quick little day-trip away yesterday.

let's start with the weather--

We have had some beautiful 70* and 80* un-Summer weather
the last week or so, with cool evenings that feel like late Summer, almost early Fall weather.
It has been awesome but I am really hoping for some good swimming weather still, too.

Sunday we had a swimming party to go to so the kids did swim although it was pretty chilly, but they didn't really complain,
 because they're kids-- plus there was an awesome water slide they loved.

I guess I am a fair-weather swimmer, I want it to be HOT if I am getting in the water.

Oh, how I do love seeing towels drying on the fence though...

 just feels like Summer. 

If we were really having coffee this morning on my porch this morning, on the swing
 and in the chairs, under blankets...
We'd have to talk about our Summer Lists, or lack there of...
I talked about my plans to make one for the family here ... and then never did and made one for myself instead,
here is the one I started in June ::

1. See a sunrise
2. Visit the Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum
3. Go on a day-long solo photography excursion
4. Make a pie from scratch
5. Get my bicycle serviced and start riding it(and by "serviced" I really mean Eric will do it)
6. Plan a fun, surprise date night
7. See some live music... somewhere, anywhere
8. Lay out by the pool and drink a wine cooler in the middle of the day, just because
9. Have my hand-drawn art printed and listed in my shop
10. Start reading a Classic(Ernest Hemingway's A Moveable Feast is on my list)
11. See a sunset in the country
12. Watch a movie on my Summer Movie List(Jaws, Grease or Bull Durham...)
13. Start the Couch To 5K(again)
::::::::::::::::

So I am making some progress  but there are also a few more things I want to do that
 I have even added yet... I feel like we are running out of time and I am trying not to panic.
School starts 2 weeks from tomorrow... SAY WHAT?
How in the hell did that happen, anyway?
But enough of that for now, I'm still in denial.
::::::::::::::

Eric off all this week so yesterday we took a quick little day trip(just about 40 mins away) and went to a Museum, lunch at Smashburger,
we visited Lincoln's Tomb and then couldn't leave town before we spent an hour at Barnes & Noble so the kids could start working on their Birthday lists.
It was a good day.

{ Charlotte rubbing President Lincoln's nose for good luck }

So that's about it for me this morning... no big plans for today, I have a whole lot of housework
and some major laundry folding + putting away to catch up on.
How about you?
What are you up to today??

Happy Tuesday...  Hope you have a great day!
Join in for coffee today by leaving a comment or linking up below.

{Virtual Coffee}

Good Morning + Happy Tuesday.
I am so happy you are here this morning.
Grab a cup of coffee and make yourself comfortable... we've got  LOTS to talk about!

I planned to get on here this morning and talk your ear off about seeing Pearl Jam at Wrigley Field in Chicago on Saturday.
I still haven't quite gotten over the excitement of seeing them but still don't think I'm quite ready to even talk about that whole crazy + awesome
experience yet... I think that is going to need a post all it's own.

So, tell me what you're drinking, how you're doing and what's going on with you right now.
So grab a set on the front porch with me, I'll even let you have the swing, which is my favorite spot.

So, if we were really meeting for coffee this morning, I would have to tell you that my quick trip to Chicago was a good one.
It was good but so, so hot.
I think with the humidity it was around 100*... we were so gross and sweaty all weekend long.
But I love going to the city, 100* or not,  it was a lot of fun.

I took the train up and met my friends there, I love taking the train because it is easy, not stressful and
with my whole traveling anxiety craziness, it is just the least stressful way for me to get there.
The trip only takes about 2 1/2 hours, which I have to confess is 2 1/2 hours all to myself, to listen to music, read or just chill and I love it.
I will never pass up a few hours of quiet time to myself, I need that so much, it keeps my sanity.

::::::::::::::::::
In other news, I am determined to make the best out of our (just over) 3 weeks left of Summer Vacation... it's coming way too fast
but that's not gonna change,  so we need to make the best of it.
And I don't mean trying to cram in all kinds of unrealistic plans that aren't gonna happen... but just really think about what we want to do still,
and enjoy the last few weeks before school starts.

Our plans for the rest of the week include (hopefully) lots of swimming and fun with friends and cousins.
Do you have anything FUN planned for this week?
Any trips you are hoping to squeeze in before the end of Summer?

Sorry I'm so late and a little lame for coffee today...
I've got a lot on my mind and can't even concentrate on finishing this post.
Tomorrow morning my dad is having eye surgery bright and early out of town... I am worried about it as it is the 3rd time for this same
surgery and we are just praying that it works and he will have some vision in that eye again.

Thanks for stopping by here today!