chi-o sisters became a special, dear, extra important part of my world back in 1998. whoa, that seems like a long time now that i just typed out 1998! damn.
anyway, back to the special awesome memories and adventures of having sisters.
lots of them. all over the country. many different lives but such similar hearts.
my sweet friend miss jen (not sure why we still call each other miss but we do) and her family moved up to monterey this summer. i'm pretty sure i hadn’t seen her in person since undergrad but we had kept in touch about graduation (she was actually one of my pledges), jobs, our guys, moves, babies, mommy-ness, deployments . . .
now in cali, this was my chance to see her and meet her men. her husband went to school with us at UF, but i didn’t know him very well, and now they have three little boys – three awesome little boys about to be 5, 3, & 1. i was so excited about the trip (a quick non-stop flight, just a baby in my lap, and a cozy place to stay once i arrived) but anxious about being away from anabelle for three nights. thankfully chris was in town so they had a fun buddy weekend planned together. it all worked out SO great. jen was a lovely just-like-we-visit-all-the-time host and her men welcomed us right in.
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forgot how easy it is for me to fly with just one little instead of two.
the conversation started before i even got in her van – as we waved like excited silly girls do flagging each other down outside of baggage claim – and just went on & on throughout the visit. my heart was happy, my soul was happy, my momma-wifey-susan-ness was being recharged!
i even left with a sweet list of new products to try & things i just had to to buy that before my trip i didn’t even know i needed. i think that in the two weeks after i got home i got an electric griddle (which i use all the time), a new knife, new editing software (which i still need to find time to learn), and a new cell phone and baby proof case.
ema and josh had some standard baby fun together in between light saber performances from the two bigger boys, joe and hank. emilymae watched closely, interested but cautious.
i had been to monterey a few times before so i wasn’t there to see the sights which made it even cozier to just share and learn and soak up some extra joy at the daniels house. trust me, there’s oodles of joy at home too but sometimes it’s good to mix it up, have a dose of another version for a bit.
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and this, my friends, it team daniels!
real life - perfection.
and what girl doesn’t love getting to see their friend/sister so in love with such a great partner?
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on my last day we drove out to the coast all together (thanks to their swagger wagon filled up with four carseats) with our trader joe’s picnic (one of their first trader joe’s experiences) and enjoyed some of the gorgeous sights and sounds of the pacific ocean.
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beautiful coastal trail with my tiny milk monster.
by the time we finished our lunch the sun had come out and the marine layer burned off. such a great dose of sunshine and fresh ocean air.
even scored a new monogrammed ombre camera strap created by the expert herself!
thanks miss jen. loved getting to see you work and pick directly from your stash. it’s definitely my favorite one so far. (yes, i’ve ordered more than one over the years & they are one of my favorite gifts to give)
quick etsy shop shout out – broward patch
she’s my etsy mentor. she does fabulous work. check it out!
while i’m on the shout out train, let me just add that jen daniels is a crazy awesome photog too! she’s growing her own photog business (while already succeeding in the etsy world and the momma-of-three world) and i am so proud of her making it a priority to nourish her creative and talented self by following her passions. she spoiled me a with a s&e photo shoot that i absolutely LOVE – quite possibly my most favorite photo shoot i’ve been a part of.
jen daniels photography – you might as well check that one out too!
here is one pic for now.
i’ll have to wait and write another post to fit in the pictures and how it all made me feel.
L. O. V. E.
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got my backpack and baby all bundled and ready to head home.
it was a wonderful trip. it did wonderful things for my brain and my heart.
it was wonderful to get back home.
thank you muggy for helping make this a fun break for me.
thank you jen for sharing your time, your ideas, your home, and your heart.
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