Weekend break

I hope everyone is having a fantastic week.

I hope you are able to accomplish all that you are working towards this week.

I am going to take a tiny break from posting.

Getting some things wrapped up that I will share with you early next week.

It will be fun to share it with you.

So until then, enjoy this up and coming weekend.

Finish up what you need... and relax.

Enjoy your family and friends.

Get some "me" time in.

Have a night out...

or stay in and chill.

Create.

Re-create.

Recreate.

Visualize.

Energize.

Breathe.

Soak it all in.

See you soon.

Courtney

Friendship

This mommy and daddy are tired today.

Even though we went to bed early, we woke up feeling like we needed a few more hours of rest.

We have been working hard (especially my honey) and working out hard.

I decided to take the day off the weights and running and just have a nice relaxing yoga class.

Oooh it felt so good.

It was a free stretch day. Do what makes your body feel best.

I found that the side bends were hitting the spot so I got in lots of those.

The discussion once again was nice and quiet... hitting on lots of important points.

We talked some about friendship. You know...

the deep, long suffering, never ending, super bonds that hold you up through thick and thin. The ones that are always there no matter how far apart or how long apart you may be.

The friendships that always feel like you are going in the same direction even if your life is completely different.

The friendships that no matter how much life tries to tear you apart...

you always end up back together and stronger, tighter, happier than ever.

I'm grateful for those individual bricks that produce such a friendship.

Bricks of love, support, understanding, cherishing and gratitude.

Every moment is opportunity to carefully lay a brick, only in the end to find you have a strong structure with solid walls and a sturdy foundation.

The more work into it, the stronger it is.

The winds can blow, the rain can pour and the lightning can strike,

but in these walls of friendship, we are untouched.

Knowing where we stand and who we stand with.

So hats off to not only those amazing friendships,

but hats off to those who take the time and effort to properly build them.

Hats off to you!!!

Courtney

Easter weekend

Just some pics from this past weekend.

A gorgeous shot of Ashley and her family.

Little Ben was so good for the camera.

I said to him, "Let's go run around!" Then he literally ran around and around and around yelling, "Daddy! Come run a round with me!!!"

These two sweeties enjoyed a little egg hunt that was set up by their big sister.

We haven't done the dressing up for Easter yet.

Maybe next year.

A little goodie from the health food store. I sat in the car and had a nice visit with my mother-in-law while eating it. It was a nice little break for me.

Ashley gave me a makeover. (Yes I've got some Irish in me.) (Can't undo the underline here.) The sun had gone down so the lighting was poor. No final pics. She plans on doing more looks on me so we'll get some next time. (Ashley is a professional makeup artist... and she's good!)

Gorgeous red, spring blooms.

I'm looking forward to this week. My husband and I are working on some things that will be fun to share with you early next week. We are getting things done one step at a time and can't wait to see where it all goes.

I hope this is a good week for you.

Thanks for checking in!

Courtney

Yesterday was a fun day with Frank and my kids.

We spent the day together starting off with Frank trashing my "can" on the weights and then taking me for a 3 mile run, at which the moment we hit the hill, my legs got shaky and all but collapsed from the weight session and we ended up walking the last two miles. I blame it on him, but the walk was real nice. The sun came out just for that time and we held hands and visited all the way home. It's not everyday that we get a moment like that so I was just fine to trade in the running for hand holding and hearing my honey's thoughts.

After getting things in order, Frank took us to a movie and dinner. "How to Train a Dragon" was a cute movie that kept the kids on the edge of their seats (except Luke who was too busy cuddling with my hair). Dinner, (where was my camera for the scallops wrapped in bacon and shrimp covered in Peach-Bourbon BBQ all on a bed of onion rings??!!), was delish and we managed to get through it without disturbing the peace. Since this is a "once in a blue moon" moment for us, we took full advantage and enjoyed our time together.

Today, my classes were giving me a taste of what's to come. I enjoyed my first class where I introduced a couple more poses and we added some sun salutations. My second class was my MS student and along with almost a full hour of stretching, we did some balancing work. She worked hard which gave me a peace of mind that we were accomplishing something good. I look forward to the changes she will be making and to what she will overcome through this.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. For some it will be a special celebration with family and for others, I hope it will be special no matter what!

Courtney

Favorites From Yesterday

The weather is freezing and there's no snow to play in.

Bradey's tooth fairy money was burning a hole in his pocket.

So we decided to go out... and stay in.

Here are a few of my favorites from the day.

Two sweet girls playing chess. I couldn't help but capture it.

It was a brilliant scene with all the cool game boxes in the background.

They happily allowed me to take a pic and smiled when I told them, "I like your look."

I could see that they have fun putting together their low-key feminine gothic image,

and I also enjoyed the fact that they look so different & cute hanging out together.

The one with jet black hair and a couple purple streaks in it.

The other with a natural reddish hair and a black flower pinned in it.

Their backpacks were equally cool.

Puzzle boxes!

There was a store of puzzles.

Every box had a great picture on it, but the crayons were my fave.

Why? I'm not sure. Maybe because of the rainbow of colors. Maybe the thought of crayons that large seemed appealing... or maybe it was just because these crayons, for a lifetime, have represented a child's creativity... a child's identity. Many times my own creativity and identity.

Those were times when no one had their opinions on what color we choose to color a dog. No one told us how to fill in the color and typically we were praised for what a good job we did.

I love that freedom to create and express without worry or shame.

Yay for the beauty in those little crayons!

This little piggy didn't go to market...

and he didn't stay home...

he didn't have roast beef...

nor did he have none.

This little piggy didn't even go "wee wee wee all the way home".

No.

THIS little piggy rolled around laughing hysterically and eventually drove us all nuts!

Bradey loved holding it because it would roll in his hands.

This little pig had a grown man's laugh.

I'm so glad Bradey didn't have a desire to buy him, however...

he was kinda cute.

I came across this journal several months ago.

I, personally, think it's beautiful.

I thought about all the great things I could write about, that in my eyes, have been romantic over the years with my husband. The neat things he does for me and our family.

His way of showing me his love.

I have enough journals for now, so this will have to wait. Hopefully when I'm ready, it will still be around.

Now for the monkeys!

These guys are one of my faves because of the memories.

I had a best friend in my very early childhood who had a couple of these.

We played with them a lot so now every time I see one, it reminds me of her.

I love the new colors that they've given them, although I will always love the original look.

They had all sizes so I couldn't help but take a bunch of pics.

Hanging in a bunch...

The hot tubbing look...

Chilling in a box...

So cute!!!

Needless to say, Bradey never did find anything to spend his tooth fairy money on.

However, we stayed warm and had a lot of fun.

I hope you enjoy your day!

Courtney

The Kiddos

A little look at the past few years with my beauties.

Homeschooling days.

Puppet Play.

Hours and hours of outside play.

I've been lucky to be home with them the past 5 years.

My best buddies!

They play together & they work together.

They are learning to support each other and care for one another...

and like any family, they have their tough moments...

but hopefully, as they grow, they will have a deep value for each other,

that will be bigger than anything that could possibly separate them.

Carli, Bradey & Luke... My little treasures.

I love you kiddos!!!

Courtney

What wolf?

This morning's class is one in which there is always a discussion going on throughout the yoga poses. It seems to be a therapeutic, and a much needed part of the class.

The subject that naturally fell on the table was... the need for a strong sense of discernment with who is proper in their dealings with others, and who is, well... taking advantage.

Being sensitive to the red flags was the idea.

Sadly enough, there are many who can sense a tender heart and, sometimes unintentionally, don't have second thoughts about using that to get gain.

We discussed how prevalent it is today and how we are seeing more and more cases where the red flags went unnoticed until it was too late.

There was a good point made, that it doesn't matter what nationality, what color, what social class, what religion or what a person's self claims are... it's everywhere.

The point of this is merely to say... think about it. If you haven't given it much thought before, just at least know that there is a wise place for being aware of red flags.

Paranoid? No.

Aware? Yes.

Food for thought.

Courtney