photos of a wonderful week

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[1] country mornings = old barns + queen anne's lace

[2] karalyn grace! meeting katie's pretty little lady.

[3] sparkling dew drops in the peach orchard.

[4] trees full of ripe & ripening peaches =

[5] yum. this is what summer tastes like.

[6] take a last look at this house color!

[7] emily helps with the scraping

[8] dad & jayne power washing in the lift.

[9] gorgeous sunset on the way to manda's

[10] cute kitchen all set up for milk & cookie party!

[11] manda's adorable mini chalk boards

[12] happily obeying the chalk board instructions!

[13] photo stolen from marla. so blessed to have such awesome cousins!

family.

farm.

bonfires.

laughing.

catching up with family/friends.

peaches.

corn on the cob.

austrian meals.

little bannister kiddos.

so, so much love.

i love western ny.

numbered list of awesome 5

1. Afternoons spent sewing & puppy watching: the soft whir of the needle, the sporadic twitching of puppy paws, the sigh Zooey emits when she flops to the ground...

2. Homemade salsa via Brown Eyed Baker. Yum! The recipe is super easy and tastes amazing. My next step will be making salsa that I can ... can. In other words, I would like to make salsa that I am able to can. Whatever. You get it, right?

3. Homemade Peanut Butter Pretzel Balls. Or, in my case - Peanut Butter Pretzel Globs.

Oh my. Oh my goodness. Doug, I am so sorry, but these are AMAZING. I had to change the font size. That's how good they are. The peanut butter. The chocolate. The salty crunch. It's the kind of treat where, after you eat one, you keep thinking about how amazing it tastes and the thought of that delectableness keeps interrupting your thoughts throughout the afternoon. Not ringing a bell? That's just my gluttony speaking? I dare you to give these bad boys a try.

Momentary interruption while I mop the drool from my keyboard...

4. Making jewelry again. It's been awhile! Pictured below: Katy's birthday gift.

6. Sara spending not one, but TWO nights! That means long walks (with a pit stop at Coldstone, of course [banana&pb ice cream w/ pb cups and fudge]), non-stop conversation, a lot of laughter, and oh-so-much fun.

7. Thinking about opening an Etsy shop? Maybe? For stuff like this?

8. Going home this weekend! Getting to hang out with my family & maybe help with some painting??

9. Getting to meet Katie & Ryan's daughter, Karalyn Grace!

10. This pup. Currently passed out on the floor because our time at the dog park was soooo exhausting.

Alright, off to eat more pb pretzel globs pack for New York!

**Edit!

11. This video!

Tim Keller: True & Better (The REMIX) from Grant Jenkins on Vimeo.

why orphans?

Exodus 22:22 * Deuteronomy 10:18 * Deuteronomy 24:17-21

Deuteronomy 27:19 * Psalm 10:14 * Psalm 68:5 * Psalm 82:3

Psalm 146:9 * Isaiah 1:17 * Jeremiah 22:3 * Zechariah 7:10

Malachi 3:5 * James 1:27

John 14:8

video: Why Orphans? from World Orphans

Find out how you can help.

real life conversations, pt. 13

I won't disclose which person in our marriage said this:*

"I wonder what would happen if you ran urine through a Brita filter."

*Hint: It wasn't me.

babysitting brady

My friend Maria just got a new puppy, and luckily for me, Brady sometimes needs a babysitter. However... Zooey has remained a bit... skeptical about the newest kid on the block. The quality of the following pictures is awful, but the expressions on Zooey's face are still abundantly and hilariously clear.

Not impressed.

Zooey eventually flopped on the floor and tried to act casual... without much success.

In the meantime, I tried to sneak a few more pictures of Brady while Zooey wasn't looking.

By the end of their time together, Zooey had just sort of accepted that Brady was present and tried to ignore him. But guess what, Zoo? Good news - Brady's coming over again tomorrow!