Flourish + Fun

Seeing as we live literally 2 blocks from the Santa Monica beach, this Summer we've planned on having a lot of beach days, especially because of little Em. Yesterday we decided to celebrate Memorial Day and head to the sand to enjoy skimboarding, the gorgeous day and some fun in the sun. It didn't quite go as planned. Little Em is super freaked out by sand, oh and a bit concerned about those loud things called waves. I tried to comfort her, and at first it seemed to work. But as soon as her feet touched the sand, she completely lost it. Not just once. BUT Multiple times. Crocodile tears, streaming.  It was so sad. Hopefully our little lady will learn to love the beach. Here's hoping!

On this Memorial Day, we're thankful for the freedom we have and for those who have fought across the years and oceans to preserve it. We haven't always been on the right side of conflict, nor have we always made the best decisions as a country in the wars we've waged, but the men and women who have given their lives as a consequence deserve our eternal respect and gratitude. Today, we remember George Ahlgren, Sr. a young man who died before his time when his plane crashed on his way to active duty in Korea, just after Christmas leave, on December 30, 1951. An olympic gold medalist, husband and father, he left behind a gorgeous wife (my Grandma, see the previous post), a young daughter (my Aunt Diane), and a baby on the way (my Dad). Lynn Sullivan and George Ahlgren – Cal Berkeley students, circa 1947 Olympic Gold medal-winning rowing team (tall one, in the middle) – London 1948 George's final resting place – Golden Gate National Cemetery in San Bruno, Califor...

So, Lisa's always in the bloglight with her posts about us, our family, and cute/interesting decorating and fashion ideas. This morning, I thought I'd butt in renegade tattoo style and insert a blog post of my own about a really cool curated online inspiration board I like to check out every now and again. Created by world-famous design studio Duffy & Partners, it's a fun/random collection of things that inspire them (and believe me, they're some inspired folks): :::: FRESH IDEAS :::: Just keep scrolling to the right and enjoy… happy clicking!

We stopped by Gran & Big John's place to drop off bite sized chocolates, say hello, give hugs, and have little Em try out the family rocking chair {passed down to us from her great grandfather!} We enjoyed catching up with them, watching Em squirm around their place, and rock in the chair. She actually did pretty well rocking back and forth, especially considering that she is only 9 months old and has no idea what a rocking chair is.  My favorite part of the afternoon {besides catching up} was looking through Gran's old baby photos. It was pretty wild to see how many similarities that Emma and her have. 

Emma is on fire right now, she seems to be growing at a rapid rate {did I mention she's in the 20-25th percentile now!}, smiling more than ever, and living it up, as Richard likes to say. She has two bottom teeth, she loves clapping, and makes clicking noises. She is moving around, trying to stand while holding mommy or daddy's hand, eating baby food melts, and trying to drink from a big girl cup {key word: trying}. Woohoo, we are over 9 months old and loving it! Watch me crawl, well, not really crawling, but doing an Emma version of it Do the Emma face Watch me pull up on my stool, rocking a gifted Norwegian onesie We love giraffe Sophie {this was taken a day before Em chucked Sophie to the curb, quite literally on one of our walks, we have yet to find her since, so sad. Bye bye favorite toy} Lovely little lady, sitting up all by herself.

I thought the best way to tell you about cousin Devon's Awesome-Super Fun-Wild-Dance Party-Wedding, would be to show you. Get ready, family photo overload below.  Doodles and I ready to enter the dance party amazingness. Embracing the fun party that awaits us My beautiful sisters and darling little Cass  Katie's littlest, Cody endured the whole party, partially in his infant car carrier, but still it was amazing. Total trooper. What's your pick, chocolate or vanilla? Daddy and Kyle ready to chow down on some enchiladas, carne asada, and guac at our Billy Idol themed table! Cody, Nik, Mom and I taking turns with the little man Woop-Woop, out on our own, Em was being babysat by Uncle Chris The beautiful bride and her adoring fan The beautiful bride and her stunning parents, Aunt Ellie and Uncle Doug Cousins! Auntie D, Cousin Nikki and I Daddy and I Katie and her oldest, Cass Devon smushed the cupcake right into her beloved's face, lucky Jack :) ...

We had such a fun family weekend, jam-packed with family, wedding activities and eating breakfasts, I'm not certain I can do JUST one post on it… So, I've decided to sprinkle posts throughout the week to do it some justice. We went to a couple breakfast spots this weekend, both of which were great {if we didn't hit up your recommendation on this trip I promise we'll try to get to it on our next one}! My favorite was Bette's Oceanview Diner . Maybe it was our Saturday morning Peet's Coffee that we had as we waited for our table, the super funky diner decor, the perfect 68 degree weather, the wacky hostess... or maybe it was this: Banana Rum Soufflé Pancakes! Yes, I think that was it. Believe it or not, I am not a huge pancake fan, but when I saw soufflé pancakes on the menu, I had to try them. And I was correct in thinking that this is the perfect breakfast choice. Yummy! OH. And we had a nice time hanging out in the diner too. Deciding what to get, ...

Cousin Devon is getting married tomorrow in the Bay area, so we are headed up North today. We are so thrilled for her, she just glows when she talks about Jack and their relationship. It's so cute. Weddings are such a special occasion, such a magical day. Especially when it's someone close to you, or your own. I can still remember the giddy feeling, nervous energy, and overall peace of my own "big" day. Every time I attend a wedding it takes me back to our special day 5+ years ago and it feels like just yesterday we were tying the knot. Photo memory, our "big" day. Congratulations Devon, we can't wait to celebrate with you tomorrow! {photos coming next week...}

Woohoo! We have finally uploaded the top {over 200} photos from our lovely family vacation to France . Here's a quick preview for you {scroll down, link at the bottom to view all the photos} Emma's first baguette in Paris, she loved it. Paris, the Seine River, oh la la! Brasserie. Parisian couple behind us, hilarious. la Tour Eiffel in the Springtime. Perfect. Our little village, Saint Martin de Bromes, darling isn't it? Our village received the award from us for "Most Photogenic Town" Cute couple, Noni and Bew. Gorges du Verdon {the Grand Canyon of France} Sweet Em! Daddy and Em at our villa. Les Baux {fortress city on a hill} family photo Afternoon on the grass in our village CLICK HERE to see the photos. Enjoy! :)