{just one more reason}

....why I need a little girl.

{custom order for a client in Tennessee}

{k.Mac b.blanket in Fresh Blooms fabric collection}

Sigh...

.mac :)

She's 30.

This ole girl turned 30 years old yesterday.

Tan lines still rockin' too

She was bought as a special gift to me by her.

On a special day in my family's history.

And remember this little surprise I had in store for that niece of mine?

Well, the look on her face pretty much sums up how she felt about it...

Not amused or interested in the least.

I had had all my Barbies and babies from when I was a little girl out for her to play with...

Barbie's massive wardrobe

Cheer Bear made by mom.

Barbie horses galore.

Even these ladies came out to play with Mollye...

Nope.

She was completely against it all.

All she wanted to do was this...

Over and over and over and over again.

Oh well.

Heartbroken, this aunt will try and try again.

We WILL like to play with Barbies, Mollye.

We will.

Cause she's still rockin' at 30.

And so is Mollye's Daddy...

Only his tan lines are just a little different.

.mac :)

Save the Date

I think married couples need "Save the Date" cards.

You know, the cards that go out about a year before the wedding to remind potential guests of their approaching ceremony in the coming months?

Well, I think married couples need them.

They need them as a reminder to do just that: SAVE THE DATE.

As in, date night.

Marriage is tough.

Kids make it tougher.

Marriage is meant to last.

With this equation tumbling around in our heads as of late, Kenny and I are making a commitment to keep a better balance of work, kids, & schedules along with the US we started out as.

Across the board, Coach Cobble is raising the bar in our home.

And, can I tell you, that is sooooo attractive!

Thus, last night we saved the date.

P.F. Changs and lotsa talking, flirting, and just being silly together.

The very second we got home it was right back to life as usual, but for a brief 2 hours it was just us. We decided not to hold it just to weekend nights as that limits you even more.

Very cool, I tell you.

Very cool.

Marriage is not trying to pretend you are perfect, but rather finding the perfect moments to just be you together.

Thank you to the man that sleeps to my right for reminding me of this.

.mac :)

p.s. I am just now realizing that we were married in the age BEFORE digital. Wow.

Grainy pictures and scanning in...

Giving & Getting

I am continually amazed at the art of handmade.

I really am.

Tiny touches and delicate details made by one...for one.
Because handmade is just exactly what baby is to me.

{Taking what you feel on the inside for someone and gifting them with something special enough on the outside.}

Handmade takes time, love, and commitment.

So do babies.

.mac :)

pictured above: client custom diaper bag order for baby in North Carolina

bag style: medium tote

k.Mac fabric collection: Cutie Patootie

{looking up}

Unexpected.

The drive by.

Unexpected.

The brief exchange of hellos & howsyoursaturdays

Unexpected.

This most beautful of yard clippings.

Unexpected.

Just exactly what I needed from a friend.

{looking up}

Floppy and feathered.

Frivously full.

Flavorfully fragrant.

Flirtatiously fun.

Forever fragile.

Me and the Peony.

Unexpected.

Ruts run burrows through my bones at times it seems.

And unexpectedly, I am there.

The words of a friend.

Unexpected.

They hugged around my heart.

"I am here for something so much greater than me."

They're hugging still...

Unexpected.

The pull and the prod

The push

The I love you and you can...

My husband

Unexpected.

Keepers.

Neighbors turned so much more.

Unexpected.

The talk over coffee.

The friend with a belly full of little girl.

{McKenzie Grace}

Unexpected.

Unexpected is the Peony.

Forever fragile.

But expected...

Floppy and feathered.

Frivously full.

Flavorfully fragrant.

Flirtatiously fun.

Me and the Peony.

God and His gloriously infinite details in my life.

He's got me...

{looking up}

.mac :)

right by you

Dear Eli and Casey,

It's me, mama.

You're both snuggled in your beds right now snoozing away. Eli with black & white kitty and Mamaw nite-nite. Casey with b (blanket) and your upteen gajillion stuffed animals.

And I long to do right by you.

Long to give you love and freedom.

Listening and laughter.

Nurturing and safety.

Learning and letting go too.

I am hopeful that you grab on to more than just pieces-parts of the above.

I am so very hopeful.

But human, I am.

Humanly flawed and pre-occupied at times.

Impatiently aggravated at the black & white striped shirt I must wear around you two more often than I like.

You both know I am a color girl.

Did I read enough with you today?

Did I show kindness and strength?

Did joy fill our home or did dissension leave us disgruntled?

I'm a juggler.

Home is work for me too.

High energy.

Task oriented and scattered all in one.

Am I juggling you two with well being?

I am hopeful.

But human, I am.

Have I mentioned I adore you?

Your cuddles.

Your charisma.

Your dreams for life.

I never dreamt I would be so genuinely enthralled to read about differences in the scarab beetle and the stag beetle as I was tonight.

And that's because of you.

And so perhaps to do 'right by you' is a stretch.

A dream I want for reality.

A prayer of possibility and perseverance.

But right by you, I will do my best to be.

Down the hall when you need to come find me and your daddy in the middle of the night.

Beside you when you are just about to try something new.

Ahead of you watching for danger.

Behind you in your passion and dreams.

Believing in you and the wonderful men God has planned for you to be.

Humanly hopeful.

human

hopeful

{your mama is}

Love you boys,

Mama :)

Recycled

Today is our 2nd Monday of recycling pick up.

(Above is a snapshot of our 1st ever visit from the county recycling truck)

This service has just been offered to county residents.

The boys are beside themselves ecstatic about this recycling opportunity.

From the very moment we received the letter in the mail letting us know of this trash pick up addition, Eli has been our family's ring leader in the quest to recycle.

• He double checks trash cans for any slip ups.
• He combs nearby ditches and even sidewalks while we are out for any potential recycling candidates to add to our green bin.
• They both get excited for this every-other-Monday visitor.

After the 1st pick up, he turned to me and said, "Mom, we just saved the Earth a little bit."

Such significance in this simple pick-up passion my boys possess.

Recycling.

Re-thinking.

Reassuring.

Rearranging.

Regaining.

Recomposing.

Replacing.

Re-structuring.

Re-living.

Repurposing.

Reminding.

Double checking and combing is good, I think.

In trash and in life.

Who knew the heart and soul were but a green recycling bin?

Better still, that there can be excitement in it all.

Being better isn't always being new.

Perhaps it's just in the "re" in the "me" of us all.

Once again, thank you, boys.

Your lessons are always so much more meaningful than mine could ever be...

.mac :)

two months and a day

Meet Dad-daddy.

Here he is on his 81st birthday.

March 5, 1929 he was born into this world.

• This man is complex.
• He has more intelligence and determination than most people can shake a stick at.
• He is well versed in so many trades.
• A thinker.
• A doer.
• He built he and my Mom-mommie's house by himself never having built a house before.
• He started and ran a record store business for 30 plus years with my Mom-mommie.
• His name is synonomous with work.
• He struggles with idle time on his hands.
• Perhaps this is why at 81 years old with macular degeneration stealing almost all of his sight, he rarely is still.
• He's a dancer.
• A lover of music.
• A feeler of rhythm.
• He taught me how to dance at about 3 years old as I stood atop his feet while the music glided us across the room.

We have the same golden moss eyes.

I decided to hijack Mollye from daycare on his birthday so that she, the boys, and myself could bring him some birthday cake. I made this cake, of course.

Here's Mollye sitting in a big girl seat scarfing down some cake; that girl can put it away. I kinda actually see a resemblence to Dad-daddy through the eyes in this picture. I've never spotted it before until now.

Eli G. rockin' the "I'm too cool to not give you the silly face" for a picture. The cup he is drinking out of was my cousin Aaron's color-coded tupperware cup at my grandparents home.

Remember the old school tupperware?

Did your family color-code?

The 4 cousins were color-coded at my house, my grandparent's house and my aunt's house.

Meghan: yellow

Adam: orange

Aaron: green

Bryan: brown and blue (at whichever house had blue tupperware)

Casey Mac in the cake aftermath. It seems Mom-mommie and Dad-daddy had some blue tupperware.
Here's the bear piddling with a little ole school Monkeys in a Barrel action. I love watching the boys and Mollye play with the toys that were at my grandparent's home when we were little.

(The rock wall you see there...my Dad-daddy completely made that on his own. Master tradesman, I tell you.)
The Face playing with one of my brother's and cousin's tractors from back in the day.
And this would be the only shot I was able to capture of the three great-grandchildren with Dad-daddy.

Geez, Casey.

That's all I have to say.

Mollye and Dad-daddy.
It seems Casey went into recovery mode afterall. Alas, an 81 year old had a lapse in eye contact.

Geez, Dad-daddy.

Geez, Mollye and Dad-daddy.

Eli, thankyouverymuch.

And this last picture is such a precious keeper.
This is Mollye playing with (my mom) her grandmother's Shirley Temple doll from when she was a little girl.

Mollye playing with Mollye's doll.

I can only imagine what mom would do with these 3 rugrats if she were here.

I can only imagine...

My Dad-daddy is so many things wonderful and good.

Driven.

Creative.

Honest.

Wise.

Innovative.

It was on this day, two months and a day ago, I wanted to make sure to take time out of my life to celebrate his even if it was for just a bit.

81 years old.

Kinda a dream of mine...

.mac :)

{youth}

Ginormous splashes

Sucker slides and super slips

Sprouting friendships

Oblivious to the time.

Ignorant of the hour.

Focused only on together.

They share in one another's laughter.

And the day is perfect.

Fellowship at its best.

Where the word forever is faraway and foreign.

Where now is always next on the to-do list.

4 boys free

freckledly flippant

happily of heart.

Youth is magical.

A trip

Lunches packed.

2 friends meet.

Together.

Joy unfolds.

Kettle corn crunches.

Water wars.

Log flooms and flying elephants.

Youth swells with pride.

Lemon twisty cup tilts too.

Upside down mama tummys

Turn right side up grins on little boys.

Kellie and Meghan

{mamas}

college suite mates first

friends long ago

friends longer still...

Kelie: "Come on, Meg. Don't be a mamaw. Ride this Mystery Mine Roller Coaster with me! You can do it."

Meghan: "But Kellie, why? Why would I want to do it. I have no reason to. I puke on a dime. Do you really think that looks like fun to me?"

Kellie: "Do it now while you can. For the rush and carfree feeling. While you you are young. Before you know it, you will have missed this chance. Youth will pass you by."

And so with afro puffs and blue toenail polish, this 34 year old mama rode.

Eyes closed the ENTIRE time.

Screaming at the top of my lungs.

I rode.

Thank you, Kellie.

Thank you for helping me find just a little more magic.

{youth}

Shipwrecked

Naps

No.

I think not.

Too much to do.

Too much to not.

Website,

Sewing,

Grocery lists.

Kids need milk.

You get the jist.

I fumble and flop.

I'm drowsy.

Unwound.

Eyes close.

Rest comes.

My ship's run a'ground.

2 hours later,

Anchors up.

Eyes refreshed.

Cover cuddling complete.

Kids need milk.

I'm back on my feet.

.mac :)

Technicolor

I'm chartreuse.

And everything canary.

My dreams broadcast in tangerine and peony pink.

Technicolor is my only channel.

The knob clicks.

On and Off.

On and Off.

Click-clack.

I have no remote.

Smeared slurpy pinks pop.

Like gum smacking.

Like bubbles blowing big.

Orchid and Iris play lead on occasion.

Rich and observant.

Open and optimistic, their lines are revealed.

Emmys are won.

And eggplant is just too comfy close to Hershey brown, no?

Sometimes yes.

In fabrics and on feet.

Brillliantly blessed blue royale is definitive.

Strikingly, she airs with no commericals.

On buttons

In blouses.

In the eyes of my home.

All but me.

And so green I shall be.

A muddled mix of golden and moss.

Click-clack.

On and off.

I have no remote.

Oh, but chartreuse I am.

.mac :)