10 things we've been up to....

1. Sipping cocktails out by our totally cool new pool.
2. Watching storms roll in from the front porch, without getting rained on.
3. Enjoying the company of our great friends, the Webb's that visited last weekend.
4. Watching Shane's love of the water grow with swimming lessons, courtsey of the YMCA.
5. Working out of the Mathews office while Rhonda is on maternity leave--it rocks being so close to home!
6. Sweating our kahuna's off with the hot weather....but loving it!
7. Transporting Shane to and from all of the birthday parties he's been invited to--3 in the past 2 weeks!
8. Watching Shane's first black eye heal from one of said birthday parties....don't get me started!
9. Grilling anything and everything we can....fish, beef kabobs, chicken...all with fresh veggies! YUM-O!
10. Enjoying one another and our new home. Not a doubt in our minds that we aren't exactly where we should be!

Josh & Carrie

This past weekend we traveled to Richmond for Joshua Rogers wedding. It was a fabulous weekend, catching up with old friends, meeting new friends and seeing the Rob's old Richmond gang. We don't see these guys and their families as much as we'd like to, as all of our lives have taken us in a few different directions. We were so delighted to be able to be there to celebrate with Josh and Carrie and it was so obvious through it all how in love they are. Rob was a groomsman, so we attended the rehearsal, then the dinner, held at Selba in Carytown--a fabulous dinner and a great time was had by everyone there. The wedding was Saturday at Willow Oaks Country Club (Rob's old stomping grounds, along with Josh, Christian & Adam). The ceremony was on the patio and it was a beautiful day for it. The reception was also at Willow Oaks and was a fun night filled with great food and wine and dancing. We are so happy to have been included in this special weekend and we wish Josh and Carrie all the love and light the world has to offer!


Rob, Adam Carter, Kenny Jones & Christian Kiniry




Josh & Carrie during the ceremony




Rob, me, Christian & Shelly Dutton Simkin (can you believe that she has 5 kids!?!)





Josh & Carrie's first dance



Memorial Day Weekend!

What a fantastic weekend and way to kick off the summertime :) On Friday night, Rebecca came over and we had a birthday dinner for her--Rob cooked up some DELICIOUS Hawaiian luau chicken kabobs with a big array of veggies and served them over brown rice. It was fabulicious! For dessert, I had made a copy cat recipe of the white chocolate molten lava cakes from Chilis-- one of Becca & my faves. It turned out perfect, then I topped it with a little Short Lane vanilla custard ice cream and it was ridiculous!!

Saturday brought a day of finishing up things around the house--The master bath is now 99.9% complete--I have water in my sinks in there now and I had 2 mirrors, however, by the end of the weekend, I only had 1 mirror....story for another time...Rob worked hard all day on Saturday, then after that, he helped me hang a few more items on the walls. The house is really coming together. After a long day of working, we headed to Bavon to have a lobster dinner with Rob's parents & sister. It was wonderful to relax with a glass of wine and have such a fabulous dinner! I had never had a whole lobster before--only just the tails, so it was a real treat and oh so yummy!

Sunday, Rob's old Richmond friend Christian brought his family on down to visit for the night. After we got there, we all packed up and headed to the beach in Bavon and relaxed and let the kids (and adults) play. We returned to Poplar Grove, got the kids showered and fed and ready for bed. We enjoyed a low country boil that was out of this world. Liz had brought a caramel cake that she made that we all had for dessert and it was possibly one of the best cakes I've ever eaten in my life!!! We drank some wine, caught up on what we all had going on, and even made a few late night calls to some of Rob & Christian's other childhood friends...It was a GREAT time and I hope they don't wait as long to visit again! The kids had so much fun and they were all a joy.

The kids enjoyed some mac & cheese Liz made for dinner

Everyone watching Alvin & the Chipmunks in the bonus room

Hadwin....just too cute!!

 

Christian tried to take Ginny down in the water!



Annabelle, Shane & Caroline had a blast at the beach!

After the Kiniry Clan left on Monday, Rob decided it wasn't going to be a boating day, so he headed outside to hook up his ice machine and Shane & I just chilled around the house for most of the day--it was really hot and humid, so we went outside a few times, but for short periods of time. I thought I'd get the house cleaned, but our visitors were such good guests that the house looked exactly the same as it did before they got there :) So, other than washing some sheets and towels, I didn't have many chores for the day.

I love weekends like this--the perfect blend of family, friends and alone time. It was great and I look forward to a summer filled with days and weekends like this one! So, last night, I woke up thirsty and went to the kitchen to get some tea, I glanced over at Darcy in her crate and this is how she was sleeping....ha!



A big weekend!

So, this past weekend was a big one...Friday night, we enjoyed some steaks cooked on the charcoal with Marty & Nancy--lots of food, lots of wine and lots of laughs! Saturday was mine & Rob's 11th wedding anniversary--So, the three of us headed over to Williamsburg for some shopping and dinner. Shane has discovered that Outback Steakhouse is now one of his favorite places to eat. It was such a great day spent with the two most favorite people in my life. It's hard to believe that I've been married for 11 years. I feel like I should be 22 years old but I'm an old married lady that is someones mom :) I'm lucky that I married my best friend and that after 11 years, I can still say with full confidence that he is truly my best friend. :)

On Sunday, we made a somewhat unexpected trip to Richmond and this is what we came home with:

Meet Darcy Norris--she's a 2 year old black lab that needed a good home, so we've given her just that. I knew that we'd get a dog after we moved to Poplar Grove; I just didn't expect it to happen this quickly. I am glad that it did--she is a sweetheart and is so totally in love with Rob (something I can relate to). Shane is excited about her and I'm excited that he now has a little friend to play outside with. She's been with us for 2 days now and she is such a joy. I know there's many family memories that will have her right in the middle of them in the years to come!

Sunday also brought the groundbreaking for the detached garage at the new house....How did I know that would get started before my house was 100% complete?! I guess that's what you get when you've been with someone for 16 years---you kinda know what's gonna happen before it really happens...There's just a few more things left in the house to be done and I'm sure I'll nag enough that they'll be completed soon--

Along with the digging of the footing came Shane's new found love for dirt....haha!

By the way...Nice outfit, dude....

Mother's Day

What a great day I had yesterday! I'm so lucky to be surrounded by friends and family that care so much about me. My fabulous hubby surprised me on Friday night with my Mothers Day/Anniversary gift.

  

I was so surprised and excited! We spent Friday night, hanging out on the deck sitting on our new furniture. Saturday was spent getting ready for lunch that was at my house on Sunday. Shane & I also headed over to Gloucester for Rappahannock Concrete's 50th anniversary celebration. They had a great turn out and a beautiful day for their celebration.

Sunday was a super fantastic day! My family came over for lunch, where we dined on london broil, white cheddar tarragon potatoes, marinated asparagus and strawberry spinach salad. Paulette made coconut cake and homemade ice cream since we were also celebrating Nancy's birthday. It was a great day!

My Little David Beckham.....

I totally LOVE this pictures. It sums up everything about soccer this year. Of course, we've had the weeks that Shane didn't want to go and didn't want to ever play again, but most of the time--he really enjoyed it. And I have really enjoyed watching him grow and play. All the kids on the team are so much better than they were when they first started. I love to see Shane right up in the middle of things! :)

A New Place to Call Home...

Sorry for my slack blogging lately, we've been busy...moving into our new home! The moving truck came last Thursday at 8am and by noon all of our belongings were at 126 Poplar Grove Lane. Oh so very exciting, yet, so overwhelming! In my little naive mind, I thought the boxes would be gone in a day or two--boy was I wrong--we're one week in and there's still boxes everywhere--not to mention the items that are still in Bavon. I haven't even hung anything on the walls yet. I have high hopes for this weekend though. Tonight, I will head to Bavon with the help of my right arm, Rebecca :) We're going to get the rest of the items out of there and clean. When we get back to Poplar Grove, we're going to contact paper my closet shelves and put together my new ladder shelf. Tomorrow, I will work on unpacking the remaining boxes--my reward for that will be a little girls night at my house on Saturday night. Rob will return from his camping trip on Sunday and he promised to hang some of my stuff on the walls--so hopefully, come Monday it will look more like my home. We are all oh so happy there--Shane has slept in his room every night since we've been there--no arguments come bed time, he just goes right in there and goes on to sleep. I hope to post some pics soon--the master bathroom still isn't all the way complete--it's lacking wall paint and vanities.

Before the movers:

After the movers left:

Egg Hunting!

This year, Salem had their children's Easter party/egg hunt on Palm Sunday. A great idea, I must say. The party was FABULOUS! Perfectly planned and executed. Good Job Rhonda! :) All the activities just flowed and the cupcakes the kids had were adorable. Shane had a blast! After the party, we had worship service, where Shane sang with children's choir, who sang with the adult choir. They all did a really good job. I loved seeing the kids come down the aisle with their palms. Shane had perfected this little wrist rotation for waving his palm. We also had communion--Shane told me he wanted to participate, so I allowed him to come up with me and told him what this was all about. I guess the talk of the body and the blood was too much for him--once the grape juice soaked piece of bread was in his hand; he refused to eat it....So back to our seats we went....It was a nice morning spent with my family.

Wacky Wednesday!

Today is Wacky Wednesday at Kingston Parish....this is how my kid left for school this morning---two different socks, two different shoes, PJ pants and a tie dye shirt...

Here's a little sneak peek of what's going on at Poplar Grove....kitchen cabinets were delivered yesterday and will be set today---Rob picked up the bathroom tile this week too--I am in love with all of it and can't wait to see it come together!

Bathroom Tile

This is stamped inside all of our kitchen drawers. Crafted by H.I.S. Inc for The Norris Family :)

A very productive weekend....

We got so much done this weekend and had a great time doing it! On Saturday, Shane started outdoor soccer again. They didn't play a game, just went over some drills---this is the first time since we started playing soccer that he didn't have an orange jersey....I quite like this new unique design on his jersey, but he doesn't get why it's not orange, his favorite color. HA! After soccer, he wanted to go home with my Mama & Daddy--so Rob & I went to Richmond alone. We went to Capitol Marble & Granite to pick out a slab of granite for the bathroom vanity. Then we went to The Original Mattress Factory and picked up a new full sized mattress for Shane's new bed. After that we hit up Panera Bread for a delicious lunch, complete with bagels to have for breakfast on Sunday morning. Then I got a surprise stop at HomeGoods--where I found mirrors for the master bathroom! WOO HOO! After HomeGoods, we went to Costco and picked up the new TV for our new living room. Loaded to the gills, we headed home and decided to stop by Saude Creek Vineyards to pick up a few bottles of wine....what a beautiful place!! It was VERY tempting to stick around for a tasting and just soak up the scenery there, but we just purchased our wine and headed on back to Mathews. Mama had made fried chicken for dinner, just for Rob, so when we picked up Shane, we stayed for dinner. Once we got home, Rob & I watched The Help....what a fabulous fabulous movie! Although, I will not want to eat any chocolate pie anytime soon. Ha! The words, "you is important", won't seem to leave my mind after watching that movie...Sunday, Rob headed back to Poplar Grove to work since he missed out on any work on Saturday. He completed Shane's swing set, minus the swings since they didn't get packaged up with everything else. Rob called and hopefully they will arrive this week. I know that Shane will definitely get a few years enjoyment from that play set. I just did some chores around the house--I stopped long enough to take Shane to see his play set and clean the kitchen floor at the new house---we're still holding out hope that the base cabinets will be put in this week. Now, it's back to the grind. That always seems a little easier when you've had a good weekend!

GO RAMS GO!

This weekend, we went to the Saturday session of the CAA tournament. A great fun filled day with 4 basketball games with some of the CAA's best teams. VCU played the 6pm game. It was a great game and they walked away the winner--which put them in yesterday's game, which they won and will play for the championship tonight. I have grown to love the game of basketball--I love watching it, whether it be college or the big boys at NBA. I also in very much in love with the VCU tuba player and band leader---both are so entertaining and bring the game up a few notches for me :)

In between the sessions on Saturday, Rob took me to Buz & Ned's for some barbecue. Might I say, it was quite delish...although, my hubby cooks up some mean BBQ. He thinks that theirs is better than his, but I beg to differ. Their sauce is great, all he needs is a bottle of that, and he's got them beat! :)

The New Love of my Life....

Ok, so Shane and Rob are the REAL TRUE loves of my life, but there's something I must confess....there's another....

It's my Rainbow vacuum cleaner...and I am in love. It doesn't talk back to me, it doesn't ask me where it left its shoes, it's my source of instant gratification. It floats behind me like a graceful ice skater, never tipping, never leaving my side...no more tangled or bent hoses, no more losing suction....no sir, my Rainbow could suck the the white off rice...So, me and my new BFF, Rainbow, headed to 126 Poplar Grove last night. She got the workout of her life! But, just as I knew she would, she pulled through and got the job done. So, here's the new living room, nice freshly vacuumed hardwood floors:

Also last night, Rob hung my new dining room light. I am totally loving it!

House Update!

Things have been moving right along at 126 Poplar Grove. The living room has been painted--I LOVE IT! Here's the before:

Here's the after : Hopefully this week, we'll get all that paper off the floor and get the room cleaned up and I will post a totally done pic. Things with the kitchen are progressing along, we should be seeing some base cabinets sometime soon. The tile for the bathroom has been ordered this week, so that will be here in about 2 weeks. The swing set hasn't progressed, much to Shane's sadness, anymore since the last post...This past weekend, Rob worked hard on getting the living room painting done, but he also painted the shutters. Here's the before: Here's the after: The guest bathroom was another project that I love the results of. I painted the vanity and LOVE how that turned out. I replaced the hardware on the cabinet doors with some fancy little starfish and seahorses. The vanity top was also replaced. Rob pulled up the tile that was there and replaced it since it appeared it had not been properly installed. He did a magnificent job. Love the way this turned out--we still need to install the white tile above the shower, that's why we didn't paint that part of the wall. Here's the before:

Here's the after:

Sandpiper & Swing Sets

Another weekend is gone--this one was a good one. Friday after work, I picked Shane up and we met up with Rob and went to dinner at Sandpiper Reef. It was really good! It's the first time we'd taken Shane there and he loved it. It was nice to sit down with my family with no TV, no phones and have a nice meal together. After we got home, Rob & I watched Breaking Dawn Part 1...I was so mad when it ended--I cannot believe they stopped the movie at that point and will now make me wait until November to feed my Twilight habit...Saturday morning, Shane had soccer. Rob, my Daddy, and Chris (he works with Rob) met up at the new house and started building Shane's new swing set. Apparently, building one of these things is much more complicated than erecting the Golden Gate Bridge....Six hours and a few hot dogs and beers later, the swing set is still not complete, but they got a good start on it.

After the swing set building session, Rob & Shane took DD over to Tappahannock to Minter's Golf Carts to help him pick out a new cart for Bavon....of course, Rob & Shane came home with a new one too---may I introduce, The Incredible Snake....

Shane picked it out because it has purple eyes and purple is my favorite color, so he thought I'd love it...

Things at the new house are moving along. The base cabinets in the kitchen should be ready in a couple of weeks. The sheet rock in the master bath is done, now waiting on tile for that room. Rob painted in the living this past week, LOVE THAT! I'll try to post some pics from the house this week.