Family Time

It has been awhile since I’ve blogged.  It is not that we haven’t done anything blog worthy, but I realized that I do not do the best job at photographing our adventures.  I always thought I took lots of pictures.  Not as many as my wonderful friend Alayna, but still plenty of pictures.  I also realized that when I do take pictures I get a number of duds.  They just do not do our outings justice.  I am going to work on getting better at picture taking or get better at convincing Aaron to take the pictures!  Now that we got that out of the way, on to this week’s blog post:

This April we were lucky enough to get to spend some quality time with our family.  At the beginning of the month, we participated in the American Heart Walk with Aaron’s parents and my mother.  I mentioned in earlier post how important the Heart Walk is to our families.  My mother is still recovering her heart surgery and Aaron’s parents have also been affected by heart disease.  This race was extra special because it was the first time we got to walk with both families. 

The point of the Heart Walk is to participate in the actual walk.  But my mom thinks it is to get all the freebies at the vendor tables.  I think she was planning on heading to the tables when we got there instead of walking.  She was highly disappointed that they had the vendor area blocked off until after the race started.  It did not help that the walk was behind schedule because they had so many people participating (a good problem to have) and the traffic was backed up to the bypass.  She decided that she was going to stand by the gate looking into the “promise land.”  She reminded us of Mollie when she wants in the house.  We could not stop laughing.

Finally the walk started.  Mom and I did have to turn around part way because she is still having issues with her breathing, but she gets better every week.  She perked up when she noticed that the vendor area was open.  We went through all the booths in 20 minutes and before Aaron and his parents finished the walk.  She walked away with enough snacks for a month. 

Mom even had time to take a picture with the Bimbo bear!

Everyone had a great time raising awareness for a cause that is close to our hearts (pun intented)!


When mom and I traveled to Hot Springs we got to spend time with my sister Kristine, her daughter Gyna and her granddaughter Annie.  We started the evening out with a strange dinner at Chili’s.  It was the 2nd to last weekend for the horse races, a state cheerleading competition and prom for a few schools.  They were very busy!  But it gave us time to talk and take a few pictures while we waited. 

Annie is very shy so it took her a little bit to warm up to us.  She is so adorable and has the sweetest little voice.  She looks just like her momma at that age.

She loved getting to see her Grammy!  She held mom’s hand all night.  Mom loved it!

We ended the evening with Annie opening her Christmas presents.  Yes I know that we are a little late, but we love getting to see the excitement in her face when she opens them.  Annie loves fairies and Barbie.  Mom got her the cutest fairy costume and a carrier for her Barbie outfits and a jewelry box that had Tinkerbell on the top.

I love this picture that I took.  It is 4 generations of our family.  They are such beauties and I am proud to call them family!

A few weeks ago we had a wonderful time hosting my sister Scarlett and her little man Grae.  They arrived on Saturday and we had mom and Stacey over for dinner.   Everyone was smitten with Grae.  He is already such a flirt!

While Scarlett was smitten with Mom’s pedicure and sandals!

The next day we got up nice and early for church and afterwards a nice lunch at Shoguns

After lunch Scarlett and I headed out for a girl's spa day while Aaron and Grae spent some quality boy time together! 

Grae loved hanging out with Uncle Aaron and looking at Mollie out the window!

Before they left for home we got to see something amazing…Grae walking for the first time (with the help of a box)!

I had such a great time spending time with just Scarlett and me.  We have not had the opportunity to do it that much since we both became adults.  I look forward to many more visits from Scarlett and Grae!

Family is so important to Aaron and I so it was such a treat to get to visit with so many during the month of April!

Trip down Memory Lane

It has been a while since I blogged and as I was getting ready to leave for my 2nd trip to the horse races, I was worried that this post would be a repeat of the last.  I realized as soon as we arrived that this was not going to be the case.  There are those places dear to us because they hold special memories.  Hot Springs and Oaklawn are two such places for my mother and I.  It is the town that I was raised in and where my mother and father made a life until his passing in 94'.  Even though we have been back numerous times since relocating to NWA we always focused on making new memories, i.e. spending the night at the Arlington, visiting the bathhouses and exploring new restaurants that weren't around when we lived there. In retrospect, I think we did this because the memories & experiences from our time with dad were still too fresh.  We used to go to the Arlington for brunch at least once a month when dad was still with us.  A few years back mom and I decided go to brunch but it felt like something was missing, it took me a week to get rid of that feeling.

This experience was something totally different.  We were finally able to celebrate those wonderful memories of my father from our past.  Growing up, my parents were always going to the races during live season.  I can remember sitting on my father's lap at the kitchen counter while they studied the racing forms the night before.  He taught me to read the odds, notes, and history on the horses.  It was never about the money they were betting, but more about the thrill of picking a winner (or multiple winners)!  Even though it had been 20 years since my mom had been to the races, when we walked in it was like no time had passed since her last visit.  She immediately went into the routine I remember her and my father having when we got to the races:  get your racing form, program, tip sheet, Oaklawn pencil and start studying the first 2 races.

 

We ended up staying for only a few races, but it was so great to see my mom enjoying connecting to all those memories we had at Oaklawn with my father.  We felt like he was there with us and even laughing a little when we lost the first three races including the race where our horse lost his rider!

 



 

Before we left Hot Springs we decided to stop at Weldon's Meat market.  My mom and dad went there every week for steaks.  We finished up at Ambrosia bakery for their famous Italian Cream Cake, braided bread loaf and Lavash.  Both places had the same wonderful customer service and food that I remember from my childhood. 

 

It has been almost 20 years since my dad left us and this trip to Hot Springs was so special to me because for the first time we were able to celebrate my father's memory in the places he enjoyed. 

 

 

Off to the Races

This year for Christmas we decided to give our parents a trip to Hot Springs and a day at the races. I grew up around Oaklawn and even worked there as a teenager selling popcorn and ice cream, but this was the first visit for Aaron and my in-laws. 

 Every time we travel to Hot Springs we always have to stop at Burl's Smokehouse.  It has been there as long as I can remember.  We always get some beef jerky and smoked beef sticks.  Disclaimer:  The beef jerky is not as good as Aaron's, but still pretty good.  What I really love about the place is the antiques and Native American artifacts.  The owner has everything from an old photo booth

to a stuffed deer in hunting gear

 

and even an old Arkansas outhouse (unused)!

 

After our quick pit stop we finally made it to Oaklawn in time for the 2nd race.  Most people know that I love to watch the horses run, study the stats, and pick a winner, but I am very cheap when it comes to the actual betting.  So I was more than happy to give everyone my tips and let them make the bets.  Apparently I should not quit my day job to start predicting horse race because I am the only person who did not pick a winner!

 

We watched the majority of the races from the inside seats where it was nice and warm, but I was able to talk them into going outside for the last race.  While everyone else was placing their bets we were able to grab a spot and take some pictures by the Finish Line

 

 

It was worth being out in the cold to get up and close to the race.  I love when they play the bugle for post time and to watch the horse load up into the starting gate.

 

 

The real exciting of the day is when the announcer yells "AND THEY ARE OFF!"  I learned from my mother that is when you are suppose to start jumping up and down and yelling.  According to her it helps make the horses run faster! 

 

 

We finished the night by hitting the casino.  I left with an additional $10 in my pocket and enjoyed all the free diet cokes I wanted while we were there.  I was in heaven!  Of course we could not leave Hot Springs without a stop at our favorite breakfast location on Sunday morning.

 

 

The funny thing is that I did not go to the Pancake Shop much when I lived in Hot Springs, but I always make sure to go when I visit.  Everyone had the blueberry pancakes and we all shared a ham steak.  You are missing out if you have not had one of their ham steaks.  Just remember they only take cash.  You don't want to have to do dishes to pay your bill!

 

 

We had a great time in Hot Springs hanging with family and making memories that will last a lifetime. 

 



Happy Hearts!

It has been a rough few weeks at the Mohn household. First I came down with type A flu. I was one of those people that went in to the Dr office and informed her that I had bad allergies. Who needs medical school when I have WebMD! After she stuck that large Q-Tip into my nose she very nicely informed me that I did have the flu. So I was homebound and quarantined in the master bedroom. At least I had all my crafting supplies and TV to keep me company. I also got to witness first hand what the dogs do all day in the backyard: run around in circles, stand on top of the dog houses and bark at invisible intruders! No wonder they are exhausted when they come in at night. I was tired just watching them.

The week after I had the flu mom had heart surgery to upgrade her defibrillator. More about that in a little bit. While mom was in the hospital Aaron came down with a sinus infection and ended up being homebound for the week. When it rains it pours!

I did have some time to craft. It is such a relaxing activity for me to do when I am stressed. I made these Valentine's Day cards and envelopes using my Silhouette Cameo. I got the idea from a stamp I used during our wedding and I just loved the pink plaid paper.

 

I think it is fitting to discuss mom's heart surgery and the American Heart Walk on Valentine's Day.  My spunky mother discovered around 3 years ago that she was in heart failure and her heart would stop and start again randomly.  Her grandmother suffered from the same thing and her heart stopped and never started again after she had a minor surgery.  My mother is lucky to live in an age where medical technology was able to give her a defibrillator to prolong her life.  We found out a few weeks ago that her heart was getting weaker and she would need to have another surgery to upgrade her defibrillator.  She had the surgery last Thursday.  There were some minor complications, but thanks to the amazing Doctors at the Walker Heart Clinic she was able to get her new defibrillator which should give her more energy and ability to breathe better.  Until 3 years ago, I had no idea that heart disease ran in my family.  Nor did I realize that:

Heart disease is the No 1 killer in women and more deadly than all forms of cancer. 

An estimated 43 million women in the US are affected by heart disease.

Heart Disease kills approximately one woman every minute

Thank you Stephanie Chism for these stats!

Aaron and I were just starting to date when my mom had her first surgery and while we were discussing it, I found out that heart disease runs in Aaron's family as well.  We wanted to make a difference and we felt the first step was to sign up for the American Heart Walk and help raise funds for the American Heart Association.  The first year we raised $200 to donate and walked in honor of Aaron's family and my mother.

 

Last year my mother decided to participate in the walk.  Together we raised over $500 as a family. Mom was so excited to wear her survivor hat and she especially loved getting all the free goodies at the vendor booths. 

 

 



  Once again it is that time of year to reach out to our friends and family and help us raise money for the American Heart Associate in honor of our loved ones.  If you are interested in helping, you can make a donation at our website http://heartwalk.kintera.org/fayettevillear/mohnfamily

Hope you have a great Valentine's Day!!

Crafty Christmas

A few years ago I decided to give homemade Christmas presents instead of buying them.  I felt that a homemade gift would be more from the heart and the receiver would know how special they are to us.  Also I hated fighting the increased crowds during the holiday season.  When I informed Aaron of my plan his only comment was "Don't become that crazy knitting aunt in the family!"  We all have that family member.  Mine was my paternal grandmother.  I never knew what would be in the box when I opened presents from her like the Barbie with a hand knitted dress I received when I was 18! But then she would give gifts that are so special to me like the handmade quilt with my name on it (which is sitting on my couch right now).  I hope my Crafty Christmas gifts fall in the fun and special category!

This year I created "Warm Wishes" baskets.

 

 

 

I bought some clay pots from Wal-Mart, painted them a glossy red, then wrapped electric tape around the top and cut the belt buckles out of silver scrapbooking paper.

 

 

Inside each one was a mason jar with hot cocoa and homemade marshmallows along with a bag of "coal" or mint chocolate covered homemade marshmallows.

 

 

 

 

I made the cards, labels, and bag toppers using a Silhouette Studio system.  I got it for my birthday and I love it.  It works like a Cricut system, but you use a computer and download images from the Internet to cut.  I even made a Razorback banner with it for Football season.

 

The main part of the baskets were the melted snowman cookies.  The idea was that all the warm wishes melted the snowmen!

 

 

There were two flavors:  almond sugar cookies with gingerbread cake ball heads and chocolate sugar cookies with Andes mint cake ball heads.  The cookies were covered in royal icing with royal icing carrot noses and chocolate limbs and buttons.  They ended up reminding us of Calvin and Hobbes snowmen!

 

I had a blast creating these this year and can not wait to get started on next year's presents!







1st post!

Aaron and I  had such a wonderful 2012 with lots of changes to our lives.  We started off the year as an engaged couple and became husband and wife on March 24th. It is amazing that such an important day that we worked on for months can go by so fast.  We were lucky enough to have family and friends join us in celebration.

This summer we traveled to Hawaii for a belated honeymoon.  It was so beautiful there, I did not want to come home.  After viewing some property listings (and their price), I realized that I would not being staying.  We enjoyed hiking, kayaking, exploring, a luau and amazing food!  I will have to post a more indepth recap later with some of the great pictures Aaron took.

When fall came we were ready to cheer on our Razorbacks.  To say they had a rough year would be an understatement, but we were there every game praying and hoping for a victory.  We are expecting a much better football season this year.  We are Bielievers!  WPS!

 We finished out the year with a move to Bella Vista.  It came as a surprise even to us!  We were just planning on looking around at a few homes and next thing we knew we found the perfect house for us to move into the next phase in our life as a family.

While reflecting on these events, I realized that I had captured them (well majority of them) in pictures, but I did not do a good job of journaling them.  So I decided to start this blog to share our adventures, crafty projects we complete, recipes, and local reviews.  I hope you all enjoy!  And let the adventures begin!