Still here...

Sheesh.  Almost a month since I last posted.  Sorry about that.  Life has been full and to be honest, I hate posting without pictures and seeing as our computer hasn't been letting me upload pictures to blogger lately (still trying to figure out why), I haven't felt motivated to write.

But.... I thought I'd just let you know that we are leaving for Thailand VERY soon!  Our flights have been booked and we're set to leave on October 13th!  Just over 2.5 weeks away!

People have been asking how we're feeling about this.  If I'm completely honest with you, I've never felt so torn in all my life.  We're feeling so ready to get going and are excited to get to Thailand.  But there are also a lot of TOUGH goodbyes that are to come first.  And lots of tough transitions ahead of us.
So... we're excited for departure but also grieving all of the incredible family and friends we're leaving behind.  Its actually kind of hard to put into words.

Anyway, we head into Vancouver tomorrow morning to drop off our visa paperwork at the Thai  consulate.  If you think of it, we'd appreciate your prayers.  We don't have a lot of time left to get this all sorted out so we'd covet your prayers for a speedy visa process with little to no hassle (preferably).

And I promise I'll try to have a more 'aesthetically pleasing' blog post next time around :)

Or should I say $1.25?

What could be more fun than playing at the "Dollar Store?"

That's right.  Nothing.

Callie's hardcore face proves it. ;)

A little taste of heaven...

This post is a few weeks late but I wanted to give a shout out to my dear sweet Gin anyway.  

As a belated birthday gift/going-away gift, my dearest Ginny took me for a day at the spa.  Let's just say there's a reason I entitled this post "a little taste of heaven."  That is exactly what the day was!

She could not have planned a more perfect day.  Ginny arrived at my door with a Caramel Macchiato (my favorite!) and then we made our way to "The Gallery Spa."  Neither of us had ever been there before but we would DEFINITELY recommend it!  Its absolutely GORGEOUS and the treatments were to die for!  

Our spa experience started with the "eucalyptus steam room." I'll admit... we didn't utilize the steam room for very long.  That mist/humidity is IN-tense.  But it was definitely refreshing.

Here's the room we got changed in.  Isn't it pretty!? 

Ready for the steam room sans make-up :)

Refreshed and ready for our treatments.
Just enjoying a quick snack before our massages!

Next up... hour long relaxation massages & facials.  All I can say is AAAAAAAAMAZING.  Seriously the most relaxing hour & a half of my life!  Obviously, I don't have any pictures of that part but it was incredible.  The entire time I was lying there, I couldn't help but think, "I am so undeserving of this!  This is too good to be true!"

Then it was off for our pedicures.  There are about a billion colors to choose from.  In the end, we both chose the same one.  True besties form. :)

I loved this piece of art.
All of the artwork in the spa was done by the owner's husband.
There were some really unique, beautiful pieces!

Enjoying our parrafin wax :)

Opi color "Don't Socratease Me"

After our incredible morning/afternoon at the spa, we made our way down to Bellingham for some shopping.  I had saved my birthday money just for the occasion and was very pleased with the couple of purchases I made.
We finished the day with popcorn and candy from Target and great conversation on the drive home.  All in all, the perfect day.  Thanks again Gin.  You're the bestest :)  Love you SO much.

Poser...

Most of the time, I have to force Callie to have her picture taken and there is rarely a smile to go with it.  But for some reason today, as I was walking around the house taking pictures of furniture that we'll be selling, Callie started pestering me to take her picture.

Over and over she kept saying, "Tate my pitcher Mommy, tate MY pitcher!"  

Alright little Miss cuteness, I'll take your picture.

So she promptly lay down on the floor and gave me this face:

As soon as I had snapped the photo, she started yelling, "MORE!  More pitchers Mommy!"

So we took a few more, just for good measure.

I mean, really... who could resist?

As soon as we had finished taking several pictures, she proclaimed "Dood job Mommy" (translated, Good job Mommy) and left the room.

What a stinker :)

Splish splash...

If I had to pick ONE of Callie's most recent summer highlights, 

it would probably be the new splash park that opened up, just 5 minutes from our house.  

I think we were there 4 out of 5 days last week. :) 

What I love about the splash park is that no matter where you're sitting (on the lush green grass), you can see your child.  Its a great layout for keeping an eye on your kids.

And its just so darn fun :)

Thankfully, we've finally seen some hot, summer weather around these parts lately 

so the splash park has given some sweet relief from the heat.

Apparently the water tastes great too... ;)

What trip to the park is complete without a snack?  

If you can't decide, just take both.

Thank-you City of Chilliwack for adding this wonderful feature to Garrison Crossing!

We anticipate many, MANY more days spent at this fabulous park. 

Today marks six...

... wonderful years together and I wouldn't trade them for anything.  

So much has happened over these last 6 years.  So much more to come.  

And I'm so thankful its with you, Jon. 

I love you hun.  Happy Anniversary.

Long weekend adventures...

Would you agree with me that long weekends just never seem long enough?

We spent our long weekend in Jon's old stomping grounds-- Prince George.  His mom's side of the family has a reunion every 2 years and this year his Aunt Charlotte hosted it at Vivian Lake, just outside of PG.  Unfortunately, the weather was mostly rainy & cold (apart from some sun on Sunday), but it was still nice to have time at the lake and catch up with family members we haven't seen in a couple of years.

We were pretty excited to take Callie for a canoe ride...

... too bad she didn't reciprocate the feelings. 

So she stayed back with Auntie Naomi instead. ;)

On Saturday, the family had a "hat contest."

The goal was to have the most creative hat.

I thought Calvin looked pretty cute in his...

Callie, busy decorating her hat...

Sara and her weekend side-kick, Liliana...

Aunt Lori...

The hostess of the mostest, Aunt Charlotte...

I'll admit, we weren't that creative.  

We just looked the for the most "retired-in-Florida" style hats we could find.

Pretty spiffy, hey!? ;)

Endless hours of bubble fun...

Who knew bubbles could be so. much. fun!?

The whole gang, enjoying time around the campfire...

Picturesque lake...

More bubble adventures...

Hats for the competition.

Adult's hats...

... and the kids' hats...

Bath time fun...

The loooong ride home.

"Are we there yet?"

Callie was pretty excited to get home to her books.

For the record... all of these books were neatly stacked in her bookshelf when we put her to bed.

This was the state of her room when we checked on her an hour later... :)

So, despite some crummy weather, I'd say it was an all in all good weekend.

Busyness & birthdays...

I'm not exactly sure why I thought we'd have a relaxing, quiet summer.  I should know better than that by now.  As usual, we've been incredibly busy.  The nice thing is that even though it hasn't been that "quiet," we've had lots of fun stuff to do.  Things like....

Playing with the cousins at Gramma & Grampa's farm...

Enjoying a bit of sunny weather with Auntie Ginny & Uncle Steve &

the rest of the Massie family...

Swinging...

Feeding the chickens at "Auntie" Carole & "Uncle" Bob's house...

A delightful garden party at a dear friend's place...

Me & aforementioned dear friend, Rachel...

Wrap-up BBQ with our Life Group from church...

Celebrating Daddy's 29th birthday...

And then, celebrating Callie's 2nd birthday, 3 times over! :)

---------------------------------------------

Birthday Celebration #1

Callie's 'actual' birthday (June 30th)

High tea at Appledoorn's with Auntie Vivie & Elijah...

.... and Grammy!

"Its my party and I'll pout if I want to..."

All 5 of us enjoying our afternoon tea...

"I'll take that one Nammy."

-----------------------------------------------

Birthday Celebration #2

A morning at "Go Bananas" with 

Konrad, Ava, Calvin, Liliana, Auntie Naomi & Gramma Esau...

"So fun, Mommy!"

Opening gifts with her cousins...

And what 2nd birthday is complete without a Dora & Diego cake?

The picture doesn't capture just how excited she was about this :)

"Mmmmm.... cake!"

-------------------------------------------

Birthday Celebration #3

Family BBQ & cupcakes at Grammy & Grampa Glen's...

"Wait Momma... 

I need a quick water break before I can blow out my candles!"

And... more cake,

although she was far more interested in the M&M's on top than the cupcake itself :)

Eli, on the other hand, LOVED the cupcakes ;) 

More presents...

"Let me just see if this one will fit.

Yup, its a keeper!" 

Books, books and MORE books!

Trying to find Uncle Craig & Auntie Jen's gift...

There it is!  My very first children's Bible!

The whole fam...

So lucky to have Uncle Craig & Auntie Jen there to celebrate!

Uncle Steve & Auntie Ginny...

Birthday coloring with Auntie Gin...

Daddy & Mommy with the birthday girl...

As you can see, this little girl is deeply loved.  We're so thankful for our families and friends who love & cherish her.  It was definitely a very special birthday for this little girl.

So there you have it.... a ridiculously long post about our very busy summer, so far.  I'll try to update more frequently, but let's be honest... I can't make any promises ;)  Thanks to those who still actually read this :)