Chestertown Tea Party

For about ten years, we have joined our friends on the Eastern Shore for a Memorial Day BBQ, many coming from the famed Chestertown Tea Party. As newlyweds, we were always too busy to set aside the time to go. Two kids and a much busier life later, we made the trek and we won't ever look back. The festival boasts music, puppet shows, craft booths, and food stalls hosted by nearby churches selling everything from funnel cake to crab cakes. Throw in a historical reenactment and the ability to walk around, beer in hand and its a win in my book! We spent the unseasonably cool and windy day supporting local artisans and catching up with old friends. We had so much fun, we hardly noticed the weather.

Sunbun from Evergrain = honey + cinnamon sugar goodness.

I love the sweet little flowers above all bunched together. They were all over the festival.

And a bagpipe drum circle? Amazing!

The muddy Chester river. 

Funnel Cake. The End.

Some things remain undone...

Remember when I started number my Christmas posts and stopped after three? Somewhere along the way I lost steam. Perhaps they will get published eventually. Either way, I remembered that I never shared the pictures of my favorite people in the world. These three ladies have known me for. ev. er. and I love them to pieces. Their husbands are pretty cool too.

For the record, my baggy 80's leggings were also stirrups.

Go big or go home.

Weekend Funnies: DETHIE

Do you have friends that just click? For Mark and I, one case is our friends Faith and Kyle. (I have blogged about them before here, here, and here and probably a few other times too!) Faith and I grew up together, so we are especially lucky that we both like each others husbands, and that they like each other too. But we more than like Faith and Kyle...we love them like family. They are who we call when we have parenting questions, who we discuss family finance ideas with, friends that we can hang out with unshowered and in gym clothes and not worry in the slightest. They also have three kids who give Behr a run for his money. And above all that, boy, oh man, do they make us laugh. A couple times a month, you can catch Mark and I in bed reading each other Faith and Kyle's facebook wall posts from our iPhones. Here are a few examples for you:

But it is Kyle's most recent string of facebook posts that have me in hysterics, so much so I asked if I could share them with all of you! (in case you are wondering about the tree picture Kyle is 6'3" and standing on their coffee table)

Things Kyle learned while taking care of the kids all week (later renamed using the acronym DETHIE) 

#1: You will learn songs you otherwise wish you hadn't, "Red light, red light, put your hands....on the red light."

Thing I learned while taking care of the kids all week #2: when you finally decide to get around to doing something you will inevitably find that you will be incapable of doing it (eg, the post office is out of Christmas stamps and you're forced to buy Pixar cartoon stamps, Happy Incredibles, everybody).

Thing I learned while taking care of the kids all week #3: it takes forever to type "Thing I learned while taking care of the kids all week". Therefore, I'm now calling it DETHIE, short for "Don't ever tell her it's easy."

DETHIE #4: your youngest will never fall asleep at the right time. It will always be right before you enter a construction site, a car wash, a preschool full of screaming children, a 5 minute car ride, 10 mins before you have to put him in a car seat right before a 5 min car ride, 5 mins after an hour and 55 min car ride, or never.

DETHIE #5: you will be forced to back into the house several times to get something you've forgotten after you've already gotten the kids in the car (eg, a bottle, a blanket, Deacon's hat, a snack for Noah, a snack for Grace, a snack for you as you forgot to eat, formula for the bottle you already got, breast pumps -oh wait, you don't need those, this is just the first time you wish you did-, Noah because you thought he was in the car but he's not because he went back inside to get something, the thing Noah forgot to get because four year olds can't find things, a caffeinated beverage because "Lord knows I need it", silence for just a second, the car keys.

DETHIE #6: You will ponder what magic trick your child is about to do as you button 45 buttons on their "straight-jacket" style clothing.

DETHIE #8: you learn to NEVER swim 2.4 miles the week you are home with three under-fives to take care of. No amount of food or sleep will help you recover.

DETHIE #8: Some days will be filled with poop. Poop in the diaper, poop on the clothes, poop on the socks that Deacon kicked into his diaper as you were changing him, poop on the carpet, poop on the wall, poop to wipe off your older ones, poop you've got to go too. And then you realize after so much exposure: poop is a palindrome.

DETHIE #9/10: In your daily distractions you will inevitably duplicate a DETHIE's numerical status.

A Gathering of Friends

Although we live across three cities, a flurry of emails confirmed our excitement! We all returned to where we grew up on the same day, with time to spare. A very unlikely occasion. The timing was perfect. Karlene was down for the weekend, we were up for the weekend, Faith was returning from a week at the beach, and Julie had an open schedule. Gosh, I know I have said it a million times, but I love these girls.

Time with them is refreshing, encouraging, and feels like home. Who would have imaged that four goofy girls from high school would have parted ways, but continue to grow closer over the years? I never could have imagined how important these ladies would be in my life. But God has a wonderful way of bringing people together. Not only have we formed lifelong friendships, but we also have grown our circle as our families have expanded. We love eachother's marriages, the husbands have all become fast friends over the years. And we love eachother's kiddos. It makes me wish we all could be neighbors or at least close enough that we would end up at soccer games and PTA meetings together. But for now, we will enjoy the times we do spend together, even if all we do is sit outback and chat.

And because outtakes make the world a better place, here we go:

Karlene either said some hilarious, or disgustingly gross based on the looks on Mark and Kyle's faces.

The story of friendship

For about six years I have carried these two photo strips with me. They have been in my agenda, tucked behind the front cover. Annually I transfer them from my old calendar to my new one. If there was a fire I would want to save them. You see, these two girls are very special. They are two of my dearest friends. I have hundreds of pictures with them, but these photo strips stand out. This day is special.

I can't remember what year it was, but I am pretty sure that none of us were dating the men we are married to now. We didn't talk about boys that day.

The one on the right, was a year older. We looked up to her in highschool as a star athlete on our team. She drove us around. She brought us to early morning young life bible study, called campaigners. We often lacked self-esteem, while she exuded confidence. She helped us find out own confidence.

Out of the blue, she called us up and invited us to the beach, before we were best friends. The forecast was rainy, but she knew how to make the best of it. We walked the boardwalk and visited every shop brave enough to be open. We took ridiculous pictures wearing crazy hats and our brightly colored rain slickers. We spent time in the arcade where we took these photos. I don't know why I am the keeper. Perhaps we got three sets. Either way, I am glad to have them. These photos tell a story

of investing in others.

of loving like Christ.

of sisterhood.

of the foundations of friendship.

of a friendship that will last for an eternity.


I took the photo strips out of my agenda today to scan them. And then I tucked them neatly in my desk at home. But I will always carry them with me in some form or another.


I look forward to being 80 with these two, driving to Ocean City out of the blue, and having our husbands, kids and grandkids laugh at how corny we are. We wouldn't have it any other way.

A Blogger Weekend

by train, plane, bus, and car we arrived

with a view of the city skyline

and a house comfortable enough to call home

elizabeth and everett, bridget and parker, candis and westley, & molly

we took the city by storm

and talked and talked and talked

hearing voices

seeing expressions

our blogs came to life

friendships deepened

and we laughed

for hours

my little man 

and his fabulous faces

p.s. wearing the swagg seen here

available for purchase here

we did as bloggers do

great food

super fab clothes

adorable babies

and pinkberry

westley making the most adorable expression

that water bottle was his

and his pumpkin hat was pretty cool too

behr with his bear ear hat and hand-me-down moccasins

thanks to birthday buddy Ayla and mom Anna for the hat!

from left to right candis and westley, bridget and parker, behr and me, molly, elizabeth and everett, and natalie.

I feel so blessed to be able to spend a weekend with such an incredible group of ladies and babies.

Overwhelming gratitude has filled my heart. You are each so strong, such an inspiration.

I will never forget this past weekend.  Let's do it again, shall we?

behr has no clue what a hipster he is

thanks to auntie molly for the specs

can't tell who likes them more, momma or behr

A Visit from Sara and Sam

Last week, we had a lovely visit from Boston.  Our friends Sara and Sam came to play in DC and enjoy the beautiful weather.  As you can see, Behr and Sam became fast friends.  You never would know they are four months apart.  

Behr was fascinated by everything Sam would do.

Sam is kindly teaching Behr he doesn't need his paci...or he is trying to steal it.  

I was so excited to learn how to make an animated gif.  Huge thanks to Lauren over at With Two Cats for sharing this with me (and all of her readers).  Now you get a wonderful view of the thin svelte Washington Monument and my lumpy curvy post-pardum body.  Good thing Behr is cute!

doing the tourist thing

We were able to enjoy the park in the evening after much needed naps.  This little gem is only a few blocks from our house.  We cannot wait until Behr is old enough to appreciate it more.  Clearly Sara and I had fun with the burst feature on her camera.

After the park, we took one more stroll around the Capitol.  It is so close, how could we not?  Passing these beauties is one of my favorite parts of living in DC and walking to work.  The evening sun casts a warm glow, making it my favorite time of day to go sight seeing.

Supreme Court

Back of the US Capitol
{random DC factoid: the back is photographed more frequently than the front because the back over looks the Mall}

Overlooking the Mall from the steps of the Capitol

Alumni Weekend: Part 3

Well...this part was actually in BOSTON with my GIRLS!  But it was still part of Alumni Weekend...

1. Went to church at The Vineyard with Karlene and Mike

2. House shopping with Karlene and Mike

3. Lunch at The Fireplace in Brookline.  The pickles were awesome, seriously!

4. Football watching and birthday celebrating at The Harp.

5. Wedding planning at Paper Source

7. Visiting Katie Macs a-p-t!  Woot Woot!  Hung out for a bit...talked baby stuff and doctor stuff...and received this totally stellar picture:

Shannon :: Katie :: Julie :: Karlene

We are BRIDESMAIDS in Karlene's Wedding!!!  

(hopefully with these EXACT same dresses!)

8. Yelling, Screaming, Jumping...things girls do when they are asked to be bridesmaids...

9. Dinner at Upper Crust.  Mmm...so good!

10. Mad hunt for Hot Chocolate (pregnancy craving) before hitting the hay at Kar's house.

All in all, it was a FANTASTIC weekend!  I love visiting the people we love in Boston!