this is sounding like a true fairytale right? well, in the spirit of honest and accurate journalism, let me just say that the day didn’t go exactly as planned. for a short time after the ceremony, her sweet and handsome husband, kenneth, wasn’t feeling well at all and there was an unfortunate incident that involved a melting wedding cake. she never seemed frazzled. she hugged her guests and tended to her husband and then with a wink, cut the cake earlier than planned. and that’s when we  knew that we had been wrong. that moment after she stepped into her dress was not kelley at her loveliest. this was.

check back later this weekend for part two!

chris headed out to grab some sushi as requested by big sister.

we set up a picnic in the playroom and dreamed about what the months ahead could look like as we head into our first summer..together.

the plan is to take a picture every time we experience something on our list and glue it to the back of the heart. at the end of the summer i’ll bind the hearts together to make a book.

here is a list of the 45 things that made the hunt summer bucket list cut:

1. watch fireworks  2. go the the beach  3. visit dairy queen  4. go for a nature walk and collect treasures  5. ride our bikes on the greenway

6. take a trip to VA to visit my sister and her family  7. go horseback riding  8. carowinds  9. have a puppet show  10. outdoor family game night

11. visit the pet store  12. paint pottery  13. have a water fight  14. mail a letter  15. go to the library

16. go tubing at the lake  17. learn all 50 states  18. backyard movie night  19. eat watermelon  20. complete our summer workbooks

21. campout in the backyard  22. make homemade ice cream  23. have a sleepover with cousins  24. canoe trip  25. play a joke on someone

26. make our own play dough  27. price’s chicken coop picnic  28. take a night walk with flashlights  29. host a kickball game  30. see an outdoor concert

31. bubbles  32. fly a kite  33. surprise grandma at work  34. go to a cupcake shop   35. family photo shoot

36. do something kind for a stranger  37. make homemade popsicles  38. plant flowers in our neighbors yard  39. make strawberry shortcake  40. go to the playground

41. have a lemonade stand and donate the money  42. make our own pizza night  43. sidewalk chalk  44. paint  45. go swimming

]]> http://www.jenpluschris.com/our-summer-bucket-list/feed/ 13 http://www.jenpluschris.com/meg-kenneth/ http://www.jenpluschris.com/meg-kenneth/#comments Thu, 12 Apr 2012 02:29:21 +0000 jen http://www.jenpluschris.com/?p=12682 he thinks she’s amazing. he told us so.

he think she’s beautiful. he told us so.

he thinks she’s brilliant. he told us so.

he thinks she has great hair. he told us so.

he cannot wait to be her husband. he didn’t have to tell us.

love these two and so excited for their may wedding!

we draped tissue paper bunting in our trees and ate dinner under strung lights. we soaked in every ray of the sun by day and ate marshmallow peeps by the fire at night. we played kickball on our backyard field and made a masterpiece of bunny art with colored chalk in the driveway. we buried our faces in whipped cream in a search for jelly beans and addie hopped her way to victory in the sack race. we popped buttery popcorn and ate it to the laughter of our bunnies as they watched the little rascals in our outdoor movie theater. we breathed in deeply the kind of undeniable hope that can only be found in the resurrection of jesus and the sweetness that comes from being loved like this.

dear big sister,

i love you. i just wanted to start by telling you that because although it’s not an original sentiment, it’s truer than anything else i can think to write. the other day was hard. you didn’t like the breakfast i chose for you or the dress i picked out and the shoes that were your favorites yesterday suddenly hurt your feet. i asked you for a hug and you said no thank you, i asked you to brush your teeth and you said you didn’t want to. then you spit toothpaste down the cabinet door. when i tried to brush your hair as gently as I could, you spun around and yelled that I was hurting you. as I was putting on your jacket, you said that you wished daddy was walking you to school instead of me. i sighed exhausted from our morning and neither of us said a word. we just stared at each other neither one of us willing to break eye contact. you and me, we’re stubborn like that. and that’s when i saw it in your eyes. are you mad at me, i asked? no. sad about something? no. do you know why you are being so mean to me this morning? i already knew the answer but i asked anyway. maybe i was hoping for something different to come out of your mouth. tears filled your eyes until your lids were unable to hold the water in any longer. i miss her, you said and sometimes when i miss her so much, i get mad at you. your little hands covered your face and you collapsed into my lap. your sniffles were quiet but your body shook as i held your perfect, tiny self close to mine. i didn’t know what to say so i didn’t say anything. i just kept kissing the top of your head over and over and rubbing your back. after a while, i whispered that i was sorry you were sad and that it was ok that you were. that i wish i could make it better for you but i just can’t. i reminded you that there is enough room in your heart for both of your mamas, that you never have to pick. we talked about your mom and all of the things you missed about her. yes, I do think that you look alike. she’s beautiful, just like you. the words felt heavy coming out of my mouth even though a little grin pushed through on yours. sometimes it happens that way, one heart breaks at the exact moment another is getting stitched back together. your heart is beautiful to me.

you are the child i ached over, the child i cried over and the child i wanted and waited seven years for. you were worth all of it – just as you are right now in this moment. your olive skin red and blotchy.  your eyes searching mine to see if i might be angry –  i assure you that i’m not. that i’ve actually never loved you more. never been able to see myself so clearly in someones else. never felt more like your mama. your pain uproots me and my heart is forever yours. god knew what he was doing when he gave us to each other. like you, i’m intimately acquainted with the kind of hurt that lingers. the kind that requires you to trust and to just wait. i know that it can’t be brushed to the side or hurried through. forgive me when i try to rush your pain. as long as it takes, i’ll wait. because i’m your mama and loving you is my favorite thing to do.

xoxo.

we had such a good morning filled with paper heart trails that led to special treats, friends over for heart shaped pancakes, pink milk with heart straws and lots of kisses. and then we sent our little lovelies skipping off to school to hand out their valentines.

**sidenote: the lollipop stick on big sister’s valentine was intended to go over the top of the picture so that the bottom of the stick would look like it was in her left hand. but, because of her squatty position the stick made it look like she had a….well, an extra body part. not cool. so, we had to make some adjustments.:)

happy valentine’s day.

big sister turned 6 on january 24th. when she gets home from school she grabs her folder, clears her throat ((literally)) and proceeds to tell the family about the million things ((again, literally)) that filled her day . her hands are dangerously flying in every direction as she informs us about who she sat by at lunch, what her new sight word is and who she chased on the playground. she dramatically gasps during much of her storytelling often clutching her heart. she talks with accents and isn’t afraid to add interpretive dance if she thinks it’s necessary to get her point across. there isn’t a better hugger than her. she embraces you with the full force of her 39 pound body as if she’s never going to see you again. maybe in the back of her mind she still thinks that might be true. i love being the one that gets to remind her that it’s different this time.

we celebrated our little lovelies all month. we ate cake and more cake and donuts and cinnamon rolls drenched in icing. and then we topped it off with some more cake.

you’ll have to give us some grace on the video – it’s a combination of each of their birthday mornings and then of their shared birthday party. i hope it doesn’t feel too disjointed for you.

i wish you could’ve seen their faces as they watched this for the first time.

big sister said, ‘my first birthday party was awesome. can you believe i looked so beautiful in that dress?’

little sister said, ‘i’m so funny in my birthday movie. is there any cake left?’

enjoy, we sure did.

brock agrees and that’s why on november 12th he made her his wife.