We moved here for family and I'm trying to take advantage of it! My sister Shelby lives an hour away from us but I made my first trek (alone) down to Bloomington from Indianapolis this week. I was a little nervous to drive for over an hour with him in the back seat. I hate not having instant access, but at least I finally got my rear view mirror fixed so I can see him. It went well...he slept the whole way there and back! Success but long drives aren't my favorite thing. Either way, we made it down to make some Christmas cookies with my parents, sister and her family. We have a weird family with weird work schedules so it just worked out for us to all be available on a Monday morning. The kids are fascinated by Jacob -- "he's so tiny" … [Read more...]
First November Weekend in Indiana
So far, moving back to Indiana has been what I imagined -- which is good! We are getting familiar with our surroundings but already, it's been great to see my family several times. My sister Lindsey lives in Indianapolis, about 25 minutes from me, so I have seen her and the kiddos several times already! Their house is right on the pathway of the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon so...being the marathon runners & lovers that we all are -- it was obvious they would set up a water station, blast some tunes and hand out PBR as well. Amazingly, we gave away ALL the beer to half-marathoners at mile 9 pretty quickly! It was so nice to be able to just get up and drive over to her house like that. I've been able to help with the kids a … [Read more...]
A Happy Halloween in 2015
You know I had to get this shirt (thanks Ashley for tipping me off that these are a thing!). So cute! And it works best on people who have a decent bump, which I am rocking these days :) Four days into living in Indiana and it was Halloween time, something I was looking forward to because of 4 adorable kiddos at the most PERFECT Halloween age: 5, 3, 2, almost 1. Plus, my Aunt Julie was in town so it was definitely a family affair. I remember past Halloweens looking back at photos of my nieces and nephews and being sad I couldn't be there. Well, this is exaclty why we moved to Indiana -- so we don't have to miss those fun experiences. And Indianapolis Halloween is no joke. These people go ALL out like I've never seen before. The … [Read more...]
10 Things I Learned From the Most Successful Woman I’ve Ever Known
She wasn't a CEO -- or a political leader. She never made a six-figure paycheck or secured a patent. But if you measure success by the joy you've obtained, the people you've loved and the children and grandchildren you've helped raise, she was the most successful woman I've ever met. These are are just a few of the life lessons I learned from my Grandma, Carole Allen: 1. Never criticize other people. I never once in my entire life heard my grandma criticize another human being. She never uttered a word of gossip or negativity -- at least not in front of me. She always found the one good, sweet thing in others -- even the most upsetting or irritating people. There was always hope in her words for them, grace in her voice. It's my goal … [Read more...]
