Mom... I'm bored!

They are the words a mother dreads to hear the most. Well at least this mom does! School starts in less than 2 weeks and my daughter uttered the words I dread most, "Mom, I'm bored!" I made it through the entire summer entertaining this little person and ran out of steam just short of the new school year...so what did I do? I told her to play dress up with the dog! I was definitely bad to the bone! So without further delay, here's your impromptu doggie fashion show.....walking down our catwalk today is "Max" in his casual hiphop outfit....yo dog!

Next, we have Max modelling our sneak peek fall look "smashing pumpkins"...he does look rather smashing, doesn't he?

Here we have princess attire with it's very own teeny tiny tiara - don't ask me how she got his ears through there...

And yes, the ever popular "up" do for that special evening out.....and there you have it!

What a good doggie you are Max!

My Daughter's New Desk Set

Well, after weeks of cleaning through numerous stuffed drawers, shelves and closets I'm happy to say that my daughter's room is completely cleared out and we're awaiting the arrival of these goodies....goodbye infant changing table set, hello pre-teen desk set! Here's a beautiful wall mural that will be above her desk...

A desk set that's cute and functional....

The must have cute lamp (and yes, she asked for the phone too, but I couldn't quite make that step)

A brown polka dotted chair to make studying that much more fun...

a personalized trash can...

...and of course a couple of frogs to keep you focused on homework! These guys she bought herself by doing chores and walking dogs in the neighborhood:) Looks like she'll be spending more time in her room after all this!

Random Thoughts on a Summer Day

Today was spent looking for a new desk for my daughter before school starts....

...making baked wontons from scratch with her (recipe to come)...

...all while our dog Max stood guard outside.....have a great day!

Sunflowers from Italy

My husband recently went to Tuscany on business and sent me these gorgeous snapshots from the Italian countryside....my favorite flower is the sunflower!

Walking down the streets of Sienna....

A beautiful Tuscan sunrise...

And olive orchards nearby.....next time I told him he's gonna have to take me with him!

Summer in Montana

This summer we went back to Montana after having such a fun time last Christmas! We wanted to see what was under the snow and we were pleasantly surprised!

We stayed at Gaynor's Ranch and Resort...it was an awesome place to stay!

We were welcomed by the house posse (Tank, Hemie, and Sam)

...and my daughter spent most mornings taking care of 40 horses on the property....

She especially loved fly fishing at Glacier National Park with dad! We didn't want to come back to California after that!

Vacation Bible School Crocodile Dock!

All last week our church was a buzz with this year's Vacation Bible School theme called "Crocodile Dock". Last year we had 200 kids sign up and this year we had 257! There were so many kids in the sanctuary we had to remove all the pews so everyone had a place to sing, dance, and sit down! When the opening 20 minutes was over, each grade level rotated to various stations including a Bible memory verse station, snack/sing/dance station, craft station, game station and Bible story station. All in all it was a great success and such an inspiration to see so many young smiling faces worshipping at once:)

Sea Glass Vases

Life has been like a wave of craziness the past month with school ending, dance recitals and year end celebrations....I always feel like the last month before school lets out is like jumping off a diving board into the deep end of a swimming pool....you can only hold your breath for so long....I'm happy to say I survived it all!

Anyway, before all this craziness set in I took a moment to purchase these darling blue vases from Pottery Barn on sale:) Originally $40 for the largest, I bought these at just $9 each! I love clearance shopping when I find something marvelous on sale! I hope this little post finds everyone happy and healthy.....enjoy the start of summer!