Summertime Happiness!

Last week had to of been one of the hottest weeks ever this summer. We had just moved into the new house, and because we were in need of a major "time out" from getting situated, (plus the kids have been pestering me to go to the beach since we moved in) we decided to venture out and have some fun in the sun!

As we were walking towards the beach I spotted these beautiful hydrangeas. I actually have a hydrangea bush in the front of my house and it gets me all excited to care for it as it is my favorite flower! 

When we arrived the kids began eyeing out the perfect spot to set our stuff so that Noah can start digging in the sand! He's so proud of his shovels! 

Good thing the water stays cold here, because it felt so good having the waves crashing down my feet on this hot day!

and these two...

They had a blast! 

Noah has become very fond of the ocean. When he was a year old he did not like the water touching his feet at all!

And now he will run towards the waves, and jump in the water.

He has become more bold in the ocean which tells me that I need to get him into some serious swimming lessons.

Chelsea is a major beach bum and will test the waters and go in as far as the ocean will let her which scares me.

She does mind me when I tell her to "watch out for the undertow."

I captured a few shots of her holding  Noah while jumping on the waves.

And times where she would pretend to be a mermaid.

Noah would take breaks in between and play in the sand with his Tonka truck.

He's had this truck since he was a baby and I don't think I'll ever get rid of it! He wouldn't let me anyway! 

After some hardcore splashing in the ocean we ate some yummy tasting food on the boardwalk such as pizza, 

 Our favorite carb French fries,

and the kids favorite...fried Oreos!

Not the healthiest, but if done right it is super delicious!

Five hours went by too quickly, and because I wanted to burn off all the junk food we ate we stayed a little while longer to play on the pirate ship.

It is mandatory to play at the pirate ship park every time we come here!

 I'll tell ya though...chasing a six-year-old on the sand can really give you a workout!

As much as I always want all of us to come as a family at times it's impossible. 

However, I am grateful to have some time spent with just these two so that I can give them my full attention. 

We absolutely love the ocean and we'll definitely be back for more!

Here's hoping everyone had a wonderful weekend!

A Shout Out To The LDS Missionaries.

One thing I failed to mention upon moving were the details of our move. I mean, we're just moving and it's not like I'm going to take numerous photos of boxes, and us packing. That would probably be boring to most readers, but what I wanted to write about is "the help" we received. 

In the beginning of packing boxes and piling all the rubber maid bins against the foyer I thought to myself, "we can do this on our own, just the five of us, we don't need any help, we're pros. We've done this before." Now mind you I was thinking this way because Jon and I have moved so many times before (at least 11 times in 21 years) we figured we can do this, but when it came close to the end of our moving date I was beginning to get a little bit overwhelmed and like 21 Pilots "stressed out" that I knew I had to swallow my pride and ask for help. I knew that I needed at least three extra bodies besides my family to help us out to load up boxes and bins into the truck. I was thinking who could possibly help us out two days prior to our move. If you're wondering about my neighbors helping they would have, but most of the neighbors on our block are senior citizens, and my neighbor next door, whom I love to death, was getting married so my last resort was asking members from our church. 

I began scrolling down the directory to see which brethren would actually come serve on a Saturday morning with two days notice. I thought of a few, and got a couple of responses, but only one brother showed up. No biggie. My gratitude kicked in. Then, as Lexie was sweeping up the kitchen she said, "mom call the elder missionaries." It was as if a light bulb clicked in her head, and I was like, "why didn't I think of that?" Well, it's probably because we haven't had any male missionaries in our church for like five years so the term "out of sight, out of mind" was like that towards the missionaries. 

I immediately gave them a call and asked if they could come help us load. They obliged without any hesitation. They even asked us if we'd like more help. I was like, umm, yes!!!  So we had more missionaries come help us, and I was so relieved. It was like an anvil was lifted off my shoulders! 

I'm so grateful that Lexie received that inspiration of telling me to call the missionaries, and for my part in contacting a few brethren. Even though we only had one brother come I was so grateful!! What a blessing it was to have had five men come and help our family move. 

We got everything loaded in the truck within two hours and it was really quick and easy. Even the missionaries and Brother Szary mentioned how our move was the easiest move ever! They said, "you guys have it down." I attest that to years of moving, and only keeping the things that are the necessities of life which makes our move easier! 

My heart swelled with so much appreciation for their service, and I will forever be grateful to them for helping us out at the last minute. 

I want to give another shout out to the  missionaries from our church because if there is one person(s) you can rely on when it comes to a helping hand, call the missionaries. They are really big on service. We were so fortunate to have had them come, and even though I called them a couple days prior to our move, there was no murmuring or, whining. There was laughter, and a lot of action. 

If you follow me on my Snapchat I snapchatted them while they were moving our washer and dryer from the basement and they had the biggest smiles on their face, and were laughing because they were trying to figure out how to get it through the door. Jon helped them out a bit, but the genuine laughter on their faces showed that they didn't mind the sweat, and found joy in helping us move! They all had a great attitude, and they certainly will be blessed for their service.

It is my hope that as our son grows up, and when his time comes to serve a mission that he will always be willing to serve with his heart, and a good attitude! The way he helps me in the house today makes me believe that he's off to a great start! 

If you're interested in contacting the missionaries from our church to meet with them, and to find out more about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints just log onto LDS.org. 

Have a wonderful weekend!! 

An Evening With The Horne's In NC.

I'd be amiss on my blog if I didn't mention our visit with the Horne family while visiting North Carolina. We have known them the entire time of living in South Jersey. The friendship Darlene and I slowly developed after writing her numerous cards to meet her was so worth the wait. I love this family, and we are so grateful for their friendship, and to have them in our lives. 

This family has sure come along way with all they endured when their only son Seth became diagnosed with Crohn's disease, and throughout their years of tears, and frustration was strength, and endurance. 

Especially Seth. He was the true trooper! 

And today, he is a healthy, and handsome, looking young man.

He became Noah's best friend on this day especially after giving him all of his transformers!! It was like Christmas for Noah, and he will always remember Seth for his generosity. I think these two long for a brother, and it warmed my heart to have seen them together. 

I love the family bond that they have for each other. You can see the adoration their twin daughters have for their father, and the appreciation their kids have for them. I love how well they all keep it together as a family. No matter what they have gone through, and how much they miss their friends back in jersey I can see how much they love living in North Carolina. 

There were even times on our visit where I became a tad bit jealous. As much as I love living in the east there are moments where I miss everything that comes with the south. The southern hospitality, the food (love those CookOut burgers), and the hugs. And the Horne's were the perfect example of all those things. The south has truly rubbed off on them even more!

Love that Darlene is big on hugs now because when I first met her she was a bit of a non-hugger (at least she was with me!) A beautiful soul she is in every aspect. The dinner she made on our last day was exquisite, and to have celebrated the twins birthday on Father's day out of all days was so fun! Lexie was especially happy to have seen them again. 

Visiting with the Horne's before going back to Jersey was indeed the perfect ending of our North Carolina trip, and we will definitely be back for more visits. 

Our Fourth of July in Kirtland, Ohio.

Our Fourth of July this year was very different. We didn't go to any parades, or watch fireworks. We didn't BBQ, go to the beach, or drive to D.C. to remember those who fought and continue to fight for our freedoms.

Instead, in the midst of all the moving we've done these past few days, and settling in our new home we drove six hours to Kirtland, Ohio where we dropped off our 16 year old daughter to attend EFY (especially for youth church program).

And we didn't mind. 

We have had this trip paid and planned for her since January, and have been looking forward to it for the past six months. Thing is we didn't know we were going to move in July. It all worked out, and we are so happy to somewhat be settled in and to have arrived safely to Kirtland. 

We have definitely turned into church history geeks, and took advantage of the church history sites. 

One being the Kirtland temple.

Although it's not a "working" temple or part of the LDS church, it stands as a memorial and monument of the saints devoted faith in giving up their worldly possessions to be able to help build this beautiful building.

And it's ancient! It was established in 1834, and everything inside the temple is unique in its features, and is like no other temple built today.

Because it's the Fourth of July we had the lovely Katherine who was dressed in 19th century garb as our tour guide to tell us more about the history, and we were grateful for her presentation. I was really into her perception of what her knowledge is in regards to the temple so I didn't capture any photos. I figured it would be okay to take a couple of shots since it's not "dedicated" or no longer part of our church.

It is absolutely gorgeous inside and can picture hundreds of saints gathering inside to worship.

After the tour we walked along the grounds where it's surrounded by a beautiful garden of various flowers.

And read the signs on the grounds...

We then headed on over to the LDS visitors center where we had church missionaries tell us accurate information about the history of the saints in Kirtland. 

I loved walking around the grounds of the visitors center, and to learn more about the sites. One being the Whitney store. I can imagine it thriving back in the day. 

It truly was a beautiful day to take a tour, and although I'm beginning to feel tiresome from the move and driving, learning more about this wonderful church I belong to was so worth the six hour drive! 

So yeah...this fourth of July was perfect. 

Hope everyone had a safe holiday and that we will always count our blessings for living in the home of the brave, and to remember those fir allowing us to do so! ! 

Blessings At The Raleigh North Carolina Temple.

One of my favorite things I love to do while on vacation is that if there's a temple close by I would like to try to attend.

There was a moment when I thought we weren't going to attend the temple while we were in North Carolina recently especially when there's no visitors center or a big sister to watch Chelsea and Noah. Since Lexie was on a trek our plans for that day was to just stop by and walk along the grounds of the temple while capturing all of it's beauty. 

And what a small, cute temple it is! With beautiful flowers on the ground! 

I forgot how small it was, and walking on the grounds brought back so many memories of when I lived here. We spent most of the afternoon there, and before we knew it the next session was about to commence.

I was itching to go, and Jon was like, "I'd like to go too, but who's going to watch the kids?" 

We'll, luckily the church building was open and because it was so hot outside we went in, and relaxed while the kids went into one of the rooms to play the piano. 

That's when I had an idea. 

I didn't see the harm in leaving the kids alone at the church, and with Chelsea being six months away from her 12th birthday felt comfortable to have her watch her brother while we attended the temple.

Then a blessing came. 

We saw elder missionaries, and a few cub scouts walking into the church. There seemed to be some sort of activity going on which made me feel even more secure of leaving our children alone in the church building for a couple of hours. 

Jon and I felt so impressed to just do it, and gave the kids kisses, and hugs, and a "please be on your best behavior" talk upon leaving. 

And we are so glad we felt that prompting to just go, and had a wonderful time at the temple. 

Attending the temple on that day was something I really needed especially with all that was going on in our life with the move, and all. Entering inside always increases my gratitude for life, and my family. It truly makes me love my family even more! I only wish Sierra and Lexie were with us to take a photo together like  we did years ago (except Noah wasn't born.) 

Circa, 2008

It's amazing how much Heavenly Father knows our desires, and because it had been months since Jon's been to the temple knew this was an opportunity to attend, and to not let it pass us by. The man above was definitely looking out for us on this day!

So grateful to have the church and its members be our babysitter, and to have made time while on a mini vacay to attend the House of the Lord. 

Here's hoping for many more temple trips in the future, and that everyone has a fun, and safe Fourth of July weekend!