why hello old friend

why have i stayed away so long.
i'm not entirely sure.
life got busy.
real busy.
but, if i'm being honest, i didn't feel like putting energy into this space.
my head (and heart) space was full enough that i didn't want to devote any time to this little old blog.
but there were nights that i'd have thoughts pouring through my brain and i just wanted to will myself the effort to let my fingers grace the keyboard.
but then i'd turn over, lazy, and close my eyes and try to fall back asleep.
i've often felt my best ideas for blog posts come to me in the middle of the night.
and rarely have any of them made it on to here.
but they continue to swim around in my mind and maybe one day they'll emerge!
one day.
today is not that day.
today is just a day to say, "oh hey! hello! i'm still here!!"
again, i'm like a broken record, i've said that many times before.
i don't think i'm actually going to be on here regularly... but i will try to post a little more often than every 6 months.
(6 months!?!? wow!)
a lot has happened in six months!
joy and tribulations... moments of celebration and times of weeping.
and everything in between!
life is exhausting!  but wonderful!
i'm happy to be alive and sing songs to my Saviour!
and i'm thankful that His grace continues to cover me!

and because i can... here's a snippet of life over the past 6 months.  :)

please stop turning into a teenager over night.

palm desert skies.

hiking with nana and papa.

two of us were digging this hike.

we always make time for frozen yogurt!

bathing suits optional in nana and papa's palm desert house (when you're a kid, of course).

i spy a preggo belly!! (that was my then unborn niece in there)

"if they don't win it's a shame!!

for it's one, two, three strikes you're out at the old ball game!"

date night to the opera!!

a good memory that they sometimes do get along.

serving for compassion at my old childhood church home!

kindergarten orientation day.
is she really old enough???

mother's day weekend, nursery trip, church and a special race!

my oldest was the last one of the girls to get her ears pierced.
she waited 'til she was ready.

extraordinary amounts of rain led to some flooding for a day.

leading the bike squad to school!

i wish i could say my devotions have been awesome this summer...
but alas, they've majorly fallen by the wayside.
i'm hoping once we are back into routine come fall that i'll be right back in the word.

someone's flexible!

moving on to middle school next year!!

a new little baby girl cousin in our family!!!

got to get me as much baby snuggles as i can!

goodbye great grandma!
til we meet again!

camping with 6 kids is the bomb (as long as you have lots of caffeine).

that's our life in a nutshell in the past half year.
:)