Insta Friday

New to Insta Friday?

Share your cell phone pics from the week…take a bunch of grainy pictures that aren’t blog able on their own, but together make a fun post!

Any cell phone pictures work, I just happen to have an iPhone and use the Instagram app!

Here are my pictures from Instagram this past Father’s Day week…

       Happy Father’s Day, 2011.

First lemonade stand of the summer.

Which quickly turned into a fundraiser for our neighbor’s daughter who is battling lung cancer.

Sophie’s first haircut ever.

Mia got the “posh” cut.

 

I inhaled this Rollo McFlurry in less than five minutes.

My girls created a frog hotel.

I tried not to barf.

Mia had her second visit with her immunologist and had to have more blood work done.
She’s so brave and getting quite accustomed to the procedure being that it’s her eleventh time to do so.
She told me how she was able to watch this time and not count to fifty. 

I used my flat iron for the first time in weeks and actually put on makeup.
Call the cops.
Margs with friends on a random Thursday is just what the doctor ordered for this Momma who’s been caring for sickies for the past few weeks. 

Now it’s your turn crazy kids!
Show me what you did last week and link up here!

two new ‘dos

A big milestone at Haus of Girls last night…
Sophie’s FIRST haircut…. ever.
She’s five.  So this is a crazy big deal.

After the stress induced hair loss of 2008, we let it grow for almost three years.

January 2008.  I was pregnant with Gracie.  Sophie had all her hair.
I went into the hospital in April and didn’t return home until May causing this reaction in Sophie…

Major hair loss. So sad!!!
Thank God she loved her sister so much, otherwise who knows if her hair would have ever grown back from all the stress. Ha!

 

The before shot.  Five years old and three  years of growing her blonde locks out.

  

Her favorite part of the Elle Salon and Spa experience!
(Don’t mind her bleeding knee! She wiped out big time hustling down to their lemonade stand right before we headed to the Salon.  And of course we were out of Band-Aids!)

My sweet friend Elli cutting away.

After = Adorable!

Guess who else jumped up in the chair?  

Just call her mini Posh.

After weeks of contemplating, I am so happy she decided to go for it.

Her first ever “above the shoulder neck showing” haircut.  Love!

Thank you Elli for such a fun night filled with memories and cute new hair!

*PS If you are local and looking for a new salon to call home, visit Ellie at Elle Salon and Spa!
Tell her Marta sent you!
Elli is amazing and the customer service is incredible! 
Can you say hand massage?

Also, check out these photos to see how adorable it is inside!
The girls and I love how it’s an old house transformed into the coolest salon in town. 
They have spray tanning, a massage therapist, stylists and even a nail technician!
Next up for Haus of Girls?  Pedicures!

Insta Friday

Our week, plus a few days, via Instagram:





We sat down with the girls and made a list of some things we want to do this summer.





This sick creature is a cicada and the past few weeks they took over the trees behind our house, as well as the entire Midwest. Loud and creepy. When I say they were everywhere, I mean it. One landed on Gracie's nose at Mia's softball game and her scream was so loud that the game paused for a moment. They have all died off for the most part, and their eggs will hatch and they will reappear in 13 years. Gross.

















My awesome neighbors brought over a freshly brewed latte one night when I was home alone thanks to Vacation Bible School. Can you say bliss?










The next night, on one of our "one kid only walks" while the two big girls were at VBS, we ran into Gracie's cow pals in the cul-de-sac down from ours.












Last weekend we headed to my sister Haley's house to celebrate her daughter Ella and son Tyler's birthdays!
Ernie, Oscar, Elmo, Big Bird and Cookie Monster stopped by the sensational Sesame Street celebration!










I had to "cheers" Erin, my fellow Stella Artois lover from Haley's house!









The view in Haley's backyard. Jealous?
I sure am.
My backyard = Cicadas overload.
Her backyard = A hotel resort somewhere exotic.








Hotel I tell ya.


































The "disease" I have had for weeks spread to Sophie this week. A cough and a super high fever.
This is what 103.7 looks like.











Mia had a car wash with dad.








And did some holla hoopin' during her break.








A full moon in action above our lit up little town.









Now go link up your beautiful and ordinary moments, as well, at
Life Rearranged

lyrics to live by

As you know by now, this Haus of Girls love music.
Every aspect.... the melodies, the instruments and especially the lyrics.
The girls and I recently fell in love with Shania Twain's new song that isn't even released yet, and sing it daily.

The lyrics are so inspiring and uplifting and I feel that if I were ever to write a song for my girls, it would most likely include several of these phrases.

Phrases such as:

You got what it takes you can win,
Today is your day to begin.
Don’t give up here, don’t you quit.
The moment is now, this is it

Today is your day
And everything’s goin’ your way
Today is your day
And nothing can stand in your way

Just take one step at a time
Oh I promise that you will be fine

When somebody throws sticks and stones,
All they can break are your bones.

Life's gonna kick you around,
Then kick you again when your down.
But don't ya let that get you down...
Because today is your day!



Enjoy!

gracie’s three!

 

It seems like yesterday I was lying in a hospital bed for the longest seventeen days of my life.
Trying to keep you in my belly until it was safe for you to come out. 
I went in for a routine thirty-one week checkup in April (1 cm dilated and 80% effaced) and wasn’t able to come back home until the next month. 
No walking.
No moving.
No going outside. 

When I finally was able to come home in May,  I felt so incredibly thankful to be able to live life normally again without feeling scared that you wouldn’t be ok.   I had made it through seventeen days of worrying and fear, and one night of actually going into labor resulting in having to have some creepy shot that completely stops all contractions. 

 

One of the last photos of me before you made your arrival on May 28th, 2008.
Large and in charge.

 

A few minutes after you arrived, after a few pushes, a few minutes after midnight. 

So happy you were finally safe in my arms.

Two very excited and proud big sisters that never wanted to let you go.

And now look how big you’ve grown.

 

 

Proudly showing your new age while eating your yummy birthday lunch at the lake.

 

  Nana even brought more Sunshine cookies to help us celebrate!

 

Happy Birthday to our funny, silly, sassy girl, Gracie!

Dance Recital 2011

My girls had their dance recital this past weekend.  It was such a fun and special weekend of glitz and glamour!  Make-up, wavy/curly hair, fancy lime green and pink costumes, ruffles and zebra. 
Seriously, what could be better?

My favorite pose of the day!

Sophie looking so pretty.

Mia posing like a pro.

   

Ready to twirl on stage!    

   

A sister shot just before walking in.

 

Mia and her best friend at dance, Ella.  They are too cute together!

Sophie’s adorable class ready to dance their “Limbo” routine.

 

Go Sophie!

The girls posing with our neighbor’s sweet little girl, Lily, in their aprons (that my sister Haley made them!) for their “Pizza Dance.”

Thank you to my sister Maggie and her fiancé Austin for coming to support our girls!

And a fun shot with Mimo and Grandpa.

Our little family, and a not so little hole in Mia’s tights.

 

After day two of the recital, a fun trip to Red Robin with Nana and Papa!

Thank you Nana and Papa for coming to watch Mia and Sophie on the big stage and for their fun books!

This is one of  my new favorite photos by the way.
Adorable. 

It’s after their performance on Sunday.  Mia’s already changed into her uniform, because a weekend wouldn’t be complete without a 6 pm recital on Saturday followed by Applebee’s with Mimo and Grandpa getting home around 10:30 pm, then another show on Sunday at 2 pm followed by Red Robin with Nana and Papa, then heading off to Mia’s 6 pm softball game!
An on-the-go and exhausting weekend?  Yes.
But so worth the chaos for all the fun.