Weekend Getaway

This past weekend, we packed up Saturday morning and hit the road. All week, I kept telling Joe...I just wanna get out of our little bubble, even if it's just for the night. We made it happen, and we didn't break the bank. Every where I was looking for lodging had a 2 night minimum and would easily run us about $500 just to stay somewhere. Um, hello...remember, we're both teachers. SO, I finally came across this place.

Before you bust out laughing, it was quite pleasant. Joe said it kept reminding him of The Shack {the book}. There was a master bedroom and a pull out sofa for the kids. That's all we needed. Did I mention that this place was on 10 acres with 2 ponds? It was, and it's run by the sweetest lady Ms. Carol. Whom Trey took to in about 10.2 seconds. He hopped out of our car, and accompanied her into the house, and down the road, and back again...then, proceeded to beg us to go back to Ms. Carol's house almost all of Saturday afternoon. Here is pouting when we made him come back from her house. The boy never meets a stranger...

Here are a few pictures of what we did....

A little fishing...{don't worry that there weren't any fish in there}

A little 'driving'...we didn't have the keys

A little 'exploring'

Inside the house was the coolest antique stove...it served us well for dinner

I also had it set in my head that I would take pictures of my kids for once.

We didn't even do Christmas pictures this year...shame. 

Any how, we got a few.

This is Emery's usual...

"Oh, mom has her camera out...I'll look anywhere but at her"

My two loves.

Getting so BIG!

Trey and his cheesy smile...

I also got SUPER pumped because we kept seeing

patches and patches of these...

Do you know what they are?! 

Maybe you should click here and see if you can figure it out! :)

Wildflowers!

Hey Y'all! Super pumped about the wildflowers that we are bound to have this year. With all of the recent rain, surely we will have some fabulous flowers. Thought I'd share the newest mini session coming your way. Head on over to Facebook to be a follower, or check out the blog too!

{click on the image to view larger}

Product of the Week: Bags!

Well, it only took me two weeks, but I'm back! Linking up again for Tiffanie's Product of the Week.





I thought I'd focus on the bags I like to carry...whether it be my 'black hole, dump everything, pseudo diaper bag' or my camera bag...I kind of consider myself a bag 'snob'. I won't buy a purse just to buy a purse. The snob part is in my blood I think, it started when I was 12 and Dooney & Bourke hit the scene. I went to a school that was considered 'snobby'. My mom tried to give me a 'knock off'. Um, not happening...us 12 year olds knew those things forward and backwards and how to tell the difference. It was not one of my finer moments. Pretty sure there was some door slamming/screaming involved in that fit, and the purse went back. No, I didn't get a 'real' one for a LONG time...my mom didn't fall for my antics! :)

MOVING on. I have carried the same purse for 5 years. Yes, you read that right. Several years ago, Joe and I were strolling thru the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo booth's when I had an out of body experience. I walked into the Two Bar West booth. Y'all, it was surreal. Any way, it took me a year or two to convince Joe to drop half of our car payment on a purse...but I did it! I tell him that the average woman buys a new purse every season, so for the amount of time I carry this bag, I've saved him $! :) The beautiful thing about the majority of their bags is that you can switch out the straps, which I've done a couple of times with this particular bag. They have since switched to the Nutcracker Market, instead of the rodeo...and then they only go to the National Finals Rodeo to sell...yep, two shows all year. You can't really order online, some small town boutiques carry them, but your best bet is at the Nutcracker. I will be at the Nutcracker, come heck or high water, next year to retire this bag. They also make saddle bags/luggage, which we also have. {yes, it's an obsession and I'm okay admitting that} Here is an up close pic of my bag/strap...

Moving on. When it came time to ditch my standard camera bag...I seriously looked at a way to make one of their bags work for me. Hasn't happened yet, but I'm considering sending them an e-mail. Enter Porteen Gear. My love for distressed leather could carry on in my camera bag! You can design your own, and they are fabulous. They even have an Etsy shop with some ready to ship bags. I will be upgrading my bag shortly, to get the larger bag. If you just tote around your DSLR with one lens or so...their regular bag will work for you. I sometimes need my DLSR, 3 lenses, and a flash...hence the need for a larger bag! :) Here is Joe carrying my bag {or his murse}...and my reflector...he has no shame. :)