Our hearts are heavy for our family’s town of Oklahoma City. My sister and her hubby live less than a mile from the tornado’s devastation in Moore. They are ok and well. They don’t have power, but we all know it could be so much worse, right?

It’s times like these, precisely like these, that we all need to step back and put things in our life into perspective. And be grateful. xoxo

Last week was a happening one…thus the lack of posts here! As I mentioned, my daughter was home last week. It was so nice having her home. Sooo nice.

She is transitioning between college graduation, track season, moving to a house and starting her full time job. Pretty exciting stuff! It was important for her to have lots of “down time”… so we worked that in whenever possible. Pedicures for two were needed–a big time treat for a runner, right? It was!

There was lots of good cooking going on…we wanted to get her lots of ideas for cooking, now that she’s on her own. Fun!

There was also lots of sibling silliness and chill time going on…

Over the weekend, hubby ran his first 7K race, Mud, Sweat and Beers. He set this goal at the beginning of the year…so it was cool to witness. He ran the race with his brother and sister. They all did a great job and we are, of course, so proud of them! They are drenched due to a slip and slide – and sweat, but mostly slip n slide. By the way, that was a really bad idea for a grown man to go on a slip n slide…just sayin’. He is soooo sore now, and he ruined his phone (even though it was in a protector/arm band thingy). Oops.

Allie and her beau, cheered them on. They were great cheerleaders and followed them all around the course. That was pretty great since he has cheered them on for years.

Such a great week! So happy. So full. So grateful for every minute of it.

The little girl in our family graduated from college this weekend! We knew it was inevitable. We saw it coming, got the information months ago, and yet nothing quite compares you for that day…that moment that your first born baby graduates from college. So emotional! We couldn’t be more proud of her.

Before we got to the highlight of the day, a few other things had to happen. The first one being The Drake Relays! Allie ran again this year, which was so exciting!

When you get seats up close, your daughter can see you and smile at ya. We liked that a lot.

She ran the 4×800 and her time was 2:21! Not a personal best for her, but really close to her personal best-so yay!

Here is her relay team. Such talented girls. They do a fantastic job for their school.

We went behind the scenes, and were able to track her down after the race, which was pretty neat. Mostly because I got this million dollar photo of her and her daddy. This look on her face is the culmination of four years of sweat, injuries, traveling, sleeping in strange hotels every weekend, challenging yourself, lifting weights, two a day practices….well, you get it. And there it is…all right there. She did it.

After the relays we met up with family for a picnic in downtown Des Moines at Pappajohns Sculpture Park.

Such a beautiful Spring day. We got lucky.

This whole picnic came together on the fly, but we all enjoyed ourselves anyway. I made Allie’s fav Chicken Tortellini (Grandma Joan’s recipe), sandwiches, goat cheese and mango chutney with crackers. Beth brought huge grapes and wine. I also made Catherine Hepburn Brownies, Blonde Brownies, and Ritzy Rolos.

After the picnic, we were off to commencement. Here’s the photo you only get to take once in your life.  Just my luck, it was blurry!

We got some great shots after though. The fam…

Our crew. My Mom and Sis from Oklahoma City came for the weekend. Aunt Beth came too! Nice looking crew!

Allie and Austin posing for pix…

After graduation we all enjoyed a yummy dinner at downtown, at Gramercy. I forgot to take pix there but it was dark anyway. I did get a pic of Allie and her BFF, Alicia. Cutest and silliest girls!!

On Facebook the other day, folks were asking about her major etc. Allie majored in graphic design and minored in web design. She was the first in her class (design) to get a job.

What’s better than being a college grad? Being an employed college grad. She is working as a graphic designer in Des Moines, where she has been interning the last year. She worked really hard to get where she is. She is as happy as can be. Even though she is in Des Moines, she will always be a Husker at heart.

Well we just spent some time with family in Oklahoma City for my Step Dad’s funeral. Of course it was a long drive, and of course it was even longer because we picked up Allie in the midst of the KU Relays her team was running in. And the kids were crammed in the backseat of our car for 5 hours and then again for  7 hours on the way home. But the trip was one I will never forget. And of course, I wish I was still there.

As soon as we got to the exit off the expressway, I started crying. I had a big reality check about how my Step Dad’s sweet smile and wrap around hugs won’t be waiting at the door to greet us. And how my Mom must be lost in that house now….and is she ready for the funeral, and is she … at the stop light I had to dry my eyes and tell myself to suck it up. I certainly didn’t want greet her all teary eyed and blubbering. I can’t even count the number of times I cried this past weekend. It doesn’t matter, it was all part of the deal. Part of the grief and the healing. I sure wasn’t the only one.

Dale’s  funeral service was beautiful.The most beautiful funeral I’ve ever been to.  My sister and I have been helping her get it just the way she wanted it. It was sad…incredibly…but it was also a special tribute to a wonderful man! There were meaningful hand picked songs sprinkled through out the service. Songs she has had picked out and waiting just for this day.

The whole family walked in to the chapel and placed a long stem rose in a vase to honor him, while Conway Twitty’s The Rose played. I have always loved that song…and now I love it even more.

She had a young singer come and sing Why Me Lord.  It was so touching and inspirational. I’ve loved that song since I first heard it in the 70′s. If you know it…well you know what I’m talking about.

I’ve always thought Dale looked like Clint Black. He did. Something about those sweet and genuine cowboy eyes. I’m sure you can imagine what the whole room did when they played A Bad Goodbye.

There were so many stories about him during the service and the whole weekend really. Stories I’m glad I got to hear, and our kids too. They just don’t make men like him anymore.

I like to think that during the rough parts of the weekend, my family carried each other. I know there were times they did for me anyway. Maybe it was a silly gesture or joke from my son that lightened the mood. Or a friend of my mom saying just the right thing at just the right time.

The weather in Oklahoma City was perfect. Highs in the 70s. It was nice to see Spring somewhere! My Mom had perky pansies in her front yard…and there was green everything everywhere. I can’t wait for it to feel like Spring here! We might get snow tomorrow?!  Maybe she will bring some of that good weather up here next weekend when she comes up for Allie’s graduation!?

Well friends, I’ve got some sad news to share. My Step Dad, Dale, lost his ten + year battle with lymphoma and leukemia. He passed away earlier this week.

As I have shared his struggles now and then on my blog so as you know it’s been a long road for him. The past few months especially. So even though he isn’t with our family here anymore, his troubles, struggles and pains are now a memory. He is in the arms of our Savior. He is whole once again. And that, my friends, is a very good thing.

My Mom loves this photo of them from a few years ago. I do, too. He is looking down on her and smiling. I like that.

Friday we road tripped to Des Moines for The Alt Magazine reveal. A couple years ago her voice danced over the phone line as she told me about this magazine. I asked her if she wanted to be a part of it her senior year, and she replied “Yes… if I get asked!!”

(Grandview University)

(Rasmussen Center, Art and Design, Grandview University)

Senior honor students are selective chosen by professors to participate in this year long venue of making a magazine together. Journalism majors, communication majors, photography majors and of course graphic design majors (of course!) come collaborate to put this magazine together.

So she DID get asked to be on the staff, and has worked with her team these past two semesters to put this together. Fast forward to now…

We thoroughly enjoyed seeing downtown Des Moines, before the reveal began. Isn’t the State Capitol Bldg. pretty?  The East Village is such a happening hot spot. Loved the energy there. She will actually be working there in a few months, after graduation. Did I tell you that? So exciting!

We had a quick sip and munch before the reveal. I highly recommend Gramercy Tap . Spot on trend menu, staff and environment.

We met several of Allie’s professors. I’ve heard lots about them for 3 years now, so I was so glad  to meet some of them. I’m a big fan of Mary’s work…

(Mary Jones and Allie)

We got to catch up with some of her roomies and besties at The Reveal. Such cute girls!

They unveiled the magazine cover at 8:00 p.m. sharp!

(Morgan, Allie and Austin)

Check out the models from the magazine, and cover. Pretty cool!

Such a wonderful night, and I’m so glad we got to be a part of it! She graduates in a couple weeks! This is such a busy month!

You can see their magazine online: here!

So Easter was nice here, hope it was for you, too! We had family here for dinner, and I missed the photo opportunities. Like I usually do. But I did manage to take a couple earlier in the day. I always get a photo of the kiddos on Easter. Even though they are getting older now, they still challenge me when I bring out the camera. I’m out numbered so what can I do? Plus they are all taller than me.

I’m sure many of you have the same troubles when you pull out the camera. If you are lucky you get a decent photo. That’d be the decent one up there. And if you are like me you get lots and lots like this one…

When my oldest son was young, I would say smile. And he would and then I’d say “show some teeth!”. And I’d get that smile you see above. Even though it was years ago, we still laugh about it now. Silly kids.

Oh and this is kinda cool…

That’s my nephew Brian and his son, Dane. Brian is holding a painting I did last Fall. Everyone agrees it looks like Brian. It does! He is now the proud owner of that canvas. Dane looks like his Dad, Brian….and they both look like the painting. Don’t you think?

We had a great weekend here…and I’ve got the photos to prove it. Wanna see? Okay, let’s start at the beginning. Friday night I walked through the doors of Artist’s League and saw my artwork on display…just in time for their Gallery style Faux Show. That was pretty exciting! Everything looked so great. Locals…go see!

We met up with some cool cats (a/k/a family) later that night. It was so nice to get out and mingle after the long and busy week! Here is my niece and nephew. We don’t see them often enough.

Haven’t seen my sister in law in a few months either! Here she is with my hubby (they are the babies of their family).

And the BEST part, even tho I love all those guys, the BEST part was having Allie home for the weekend! We haven’t seen much of her this year!

We had a nice weekend together with her! It’s so hard to believe she will be graduating from college next month. What? Yes, it’s true! We got about 8 inches of snow yesterday, and her trip back to school was delayed. Bummer….not! So we got to spend more time together.

I made the yummiest dinner last night. This Buffalo Chicken Casserole. The instructions seemed odd to me, but I followed along anyway and it turned out to be great. I’ll definitely make it again. The guys at the table insisted I make it again. This isn’t the best photo, but trust me…really good! I recommend it if you like buffalo wings, etc. I reduced the tablespoons of hot sauce from 8 to 5. It was perfect for our tastes.

Buffalo Chicken Casserole

Here’s a photo of brother shoveling Allie’s car out of the 8″ of snow this afternoon. Turns out brothers are pretty handy. So thankful for him!

And yes, I was inside warm and dry…snapping photos and watching intently from the front door.

We got dumped on! 8 inches of snow here. I got a couple of photos of the boys on their snow removal duty to share. You know, to put you in the mood. This guy doesn’t mind the snow…always has a smile.

This guy on the other hand…

Well, he didn’t get the memo about wearing those heavy duty gloves (I got him during the last snow storm) and neglected to turn the snow blower blower thingy the other direction…not at himself. So he is pretty snow covered! Poor guy. Brrrr.

By the way I took those photos inside with a zoom lens…not catching me out in that stuff.

We have another snow day today. But in my head, I’m telling myself that Spring is on it’s way. It is. Just a couple more weeks, right? I’ve started adding bits of Spring around the house–craving it so badly. That includes Mr. Bun-Bun here. He is excited for The Painted Bunny Online Workshop! So am I!

Check out the details: here!

We did something out of the ordinary over the weekend. Something I never in a million years would have seen coming. My hubby and I went to Canvas and Cabernet for a date night! A post anniversary date night. Our anniversary was about a month ago, and we are always so tired from all of the Christmas festivities, we never seem to do much to celebrate it. Sigh. Hubby surprised me this year though!

In case you aren’t familiar with these types of places, you basically paint what the instructor presents and are free to sip on wine from their bar while you paint. Something about the wine — taking away all your inhibitions maybe?! It certainly makes for a fun night, that’s for sure. Several of these types of venues have popped up in other cities, so I was delighted to see that one opened here in our town.

I’ve know this man a LONG time. A really long time. I have never seen his artsy side. Probably because it was undiscovered! Never existed! But on this night, he gave his all.

We had such a nice evening! Here are our almost finished canvases. Horrible light on all of these pix. Sorry.

Here is a final shot of our canvases.

It was totally out of both of our comfort zones, and so much fun. I wouldn’t normally paint something like these posies, and he wouldn’t normally paint anything at all. So it was a win win! The wine wasn’t bad either.