New wall deco…

As I began to search for new ways to brighten up the house – without having to paint a lot – as well as getting my wedding portraits printed, I decided a little small sample-sized amount of paint and some Uppercase Living would do just the trick!

I started with our bedroom. Of all the rooms in the house, this was the room I had done nothing with in terms of deco. I really wanted to paint it, but Ronny wasn’t feeling like moving the solid oak bed that I made in HS. But I did get him to agree to painting the soffit and we wouldn’t have to move furniture! Here is the beginning stages:

(I didn’t get a middle-stage picture) And here is the final outcome!

I also added this above the TV:

At the end of the hallway, I had the cross hanging there, but it was lonely, so I added the Uppercase Living sign, “Christ The Center of our Home”

My favorite new decor is this piece of art (you’ve obviously seen it since it’s been my blog banner for some time). This was taken by my wedding photographer, Suzanne. I ordered a canvas print of this and I love it!

  
I love how I can see the window panes on each side. 

I also love how it looks on this wall. With our cathedral ceilings and this bare wall, this art really stands out. I’m much happier now with my walls. :)

Technorati Tags: Photography By Suzanne,home deco,painting,art

Our 4th…

…had both family, friends and new community time….and relax time!

On Saturday, Ronny and I headed north about 40 miles to Columbus, NE, where my Aunt, Uncle and two cousins live. The one cousin, Caitlin, wasn’t there, because she is here. The other cousin, Megan, you read about earlier in May when she graduated. Here she is doing the “Megan Pose” and showing off her personal mosquito repellent fan!

So we got to relax, spend time with the family and grandparents and experience my Grandpa’s fireworks. Even though it was cloudy and slightly rainy, we still caught a few rays of sun.

 

Grandpa napping….what a funny guy!  Again…funny guy!

When it comes to fireworks, Grandpa is like a little kid again. He makes a special trip to Missoura (yes, Missoura, not Missouri) to get “the good stuff!” He loves getting all his stuff organized, sittin’ in the same little spot, and handing it out to the grandkids to light up.

        

On Sunday, the day was rainy so they postponed the fireworks. But we still had the parade that I got to be the “corn queen” in and throw candy corn! Here is our promo trailer:

Then on Monday night, we got to watch the fireworks with these fun folks!
 

Family visitors!

From Monday through Wednesday we had lovely (and cute!) visitors come to Nebraska to see us!

Ronny’s sister, Marie, and the rest of the Jones fam (hubby, Jeff, and kiddos Blake (6) and Vanessa (2) ) came from El Dorado, KS to visit us for a couple of days as part of their vacation!

On Monday, we went to the Lincoln Children’s Museum. It was quite the hit…even for the grown-ups.

That afternoon we went swimming (fortunately for your eyes, no pictures!). The next day, I went to work, but Ronny and the Jones fam visited a John Deere dealership – Blake loves tractors – went to a tractor museum – did I say that Blake loves tractors? – and then visited the Capitol and my office (when I was at a meeting unfortunately). In the evening, we ate dinner then shot off fireworks!!

We had a lot of fun. Thanks for coming Jones fam!

Innocence

…or not?

Doesn’t he look so innocent?

And so cute!

And curious?!
 

And alert!

And can’t sit still for pictures because of birds!

He is just so innocent, right?!

NOT!!!!

Hank is a bad puppy and got in a lot of trouble.

Georgia Aquarium

Here are many pictures of the world’s largest aquarium, located in Atlanta. We (my parents, sister and I) went there while we were visiting my sister. Read about the rest of our adventure here.

Some freshwater fishy:

Yes, that is an albino alligator!

Not the best picture…but these crabs were called Spider Crabs (b/c of their longer legs) and were huge!! About 3-5 feet from side to side!

The coolest part was visiting the Ocean Voyage section that had a tank that was 6.2 million gallons! I loved the tunnel and seeing the fish and sharks swim over!    

 
Shark!!!

To put into perspective just HOW HUGE this place was…this picture is of a whale shark – the largest shark in the world. And they have 4 of them in this tank! They were brought over to the U.S. in big containers (like what are put on tanker ships) that are 40 feet long…one per container!

A ginormous potato grouper:

Tropical fish:

And one of my favorite pictures because of its vastness: