4th of July {2018}

Posted in Family by Kendra G.

We kicked off our 4th of July holiday with the Firecracker 5k in our community! Kenley and I signed up the morning of, so there wasn’t much training involved in this 5k. My expectations were low and I knew there would be a significant amount of walking involved. Kenley was excited that her friends were there too!

She did a good job but you can definitely tell the difference from a 5k in January versus a 5k in July. It was hot and humid!

After the 5k, we had some friends over for food, frose, and fireworks!

We had such a fun and eventful day celebrating our independence!

4Jul2017

my {long} weekend in photos

Posted in Random by Kendra G.

12 miles with the girls (and guy) on saturday morning.

being silly at the y.

sweet boys.

of course we decided to go out during the craziest storms on saturday afternoon.

we dropped the kids off in the play area at ikea for the first time. it definitely made the experience more enjoyable! they loved it too!

all patriotic at church on sunday.

post-church park time.

post-church brunch.

sporting their patriotic swimsuits!

sparklers!

4th of july hill workout with these mamas.

we treated ourselves to coffee and donuts afterwards.

playing at the splash pad.

pool party!

the perfect popsicles.

my guy.

little fish.

it’s america day!

***

greg and the kids had a four day weekend, while i had to work on monday. we all had such a fun weekend and a great 4th of july!

how was your weekend?

11Aug2016

4th of July weekend, continued.

Posted in Family, Travel by Kendra G.

I shared last month about our trip to Indiana over 4th of July weekend. Since then, I’ve finally gone through the pictures on my camera, so I wanted to be sure to post those too.

Maggi and Greg hosted the Lower clan for a fantastic brunch on Saturday. It was cooler than normal that weekend, but the kiddos still took advantage of the pool and water balloons. Kenley was so excited to see that Sami had the same swim suit as she did!

Family photos were a must since so many Lowers were in town from four different states!

On Sunday, the Faris crew came over for lunch after the Outrunning Autism 5K and 10K.

It was a great 4th of July weekend with family!

8Jul2016

4th of July weekend in Indiana

Posted in Family, Travel by Kendra G.

We headed up to Indiana on Friday for a long weekend. Greg and I were not convinced that we would actually make our flight on Friday judging by the insanely long lines at the Southwest counter when we arrived, but alas, we did and we landed in Indianapolis excited to get our busy weekend underway. Our first stop was Scotty’s Brewhouse for an early lunch or breakfast in our case. After lunch, we got settled at my parents’ new house before hitting the road.

We took the back roads up to Alexandria, for the last time in a long time, if not forever, to see the old house. We walked the empty halls and I said my goodbyes to the only house I have ever known. I was surprised that I didn’t cry considering I am getting misty eyed just writing about it now. I will forever treasure the great memories I have of that house.

We thoroughly enjoyed the chilly weather and the evening fires while we were there. We also made our way down to the lake to catch the sunset, which was at 9:30pm!

The kids thoroughly enjoyed playing with Arie!

On Saturday morning, we headed over to brunch with the Lower clan. Seven of the ten cousins were in town, so it was a party! The kids all had a great time playing with each other too!

We headed over to the beach club afterwards and the kids got in the water, which was freezing! It was way too cold for us Floridians, but the kids didn’t seem to mind. Kenley loved jumping off the diving board!

Sunday morning, the rain started and we headed out to the Outrunning Autism 5K/10K. The race was super small and I ended up getting 4th in my age group!

Majority of Sunday afternoon consisted of all of us sitting in the garage going through boxes and boxes of old pictures and keepsakes. It was definitely a highlight of the weekend, traveling down memory lane. Kenley also did some sparklers as we watched the rain continue to fall outside.

We woke up to a rainy 4th of July and packed our bags to head home.

We arrived back in Orlando and were greeted by the blazing temperatures which made us instantly miss the nice, cool weather in Indiana. After a quick, long weekend, we hauled our two kids, two car seats, two suitcases, and umbrella stroller back through the airport to our car. Needless to say, we skipped out on the fireworks and all went to bed early Monday night after an amazing long weekend.

6Jul2015

my [long] weekend in photos

Posted in Random by Kendra G.

tutus and bike rides.

thursday, greg did some serious work on the driveway. it looks so much better!

we decided to head to sea world on friday morning. i was worried that it would be busy since it was a holiday, but it ended up being quite the opposite. at times we felt like we had the whole place to ourselves and were able to do some of the rides more than once.

saturday morning, heather and i ran the watermelon 5k in winter park! it was a fun run, but we were pretty pleased with our time.

sporting their red, white, and blue!

festive food.

ready to party!

the cutest party guest…sweet kennedy.

fireworks before bedtime.

our firecracker.

sunday swimming.

greg and i had a date night for our anniversary. we did a wine tasting and asked to sit in the bar so we could watch the women’s soccer game. by the time we sat down for dinner, it was already 4-0! we enjoyed the rest of the game over some good food and wine, as well as complimentary blanc de blanc!

***

we had a great long weekend and spent some much needed time with my parents. it’s going to be hard getting back in the swing of things once they leave.

how was your weekend?

6Jul2014

my {long} weekend in photos

Posted in Random by Kendra G.

meemaw and grandpa arrived early friday morning and we got right to work on puzzles.

we made surprise cupcakes for a 4th of july cookout.
the surprise was the sprinkles on the inside of the cupcakes, super easy and fun!

splashing!

nap time for crosby and a beer for mommy.

crosby’s first mohawk!

it’s not the 4th of july without watermelon.

all dressed up for dinner!

our shopping buddy on saturday.

greg and i celebrated our six year anniversary with a progressive date night.
our first stop was trader joe’s, which just opened last weekend.

after an appetizer and drinks at hillstone (our usual go-to restaurant),
we had dinner at b&b junction. burgers and a flight of beer.

celebratory selfie.

drinks.

since we had a coupon for free cupcakes, we couldn’t pass them up.
i couldn’t eat one until they next day… and it was just as delicious.

we beat the storm and headed to a new splash pad this afternoon.
it was super fun until the storm caught up with us.

***

we had a great long weekend with my parents celebrating the 4th of july!
greg and i had a great time celebrating our anniversary.
back to the real world tomorrow.

how was your long weekend?

4Jul2013

4th of July circa 2008

Posted in The Story of Us by Kendra G.

To celebrate our five year wedding anniversary tomorrow,
I thought it would be fun to take a look back, five years ago.

During the wedding planning process, we originally avoided 4th of July weekend since it was a holiday,
but we finally decided that having it that weekend was absolutely perfect.
Everyone had a three day weekend already and some turned it into a longer weekend.
We also thought it would be fun to have fireworks each year we celebrated.

We welcomed guests throughout the day on the 4th and got to catch up with so many people.
Our rehearsal was held at our venue mid afternoon, followed by our rehearsal dinner.
Some would say it was nontraditional, as we enjoyed the evening at
Victory Field, home of the Indianapolis Indians (Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates).
We chose Victory Field for a number of reasons.
If you know us at all, you know that we both love sports, especially baseball for Greg.
The Indianapolis Indians always host the 4th of July game against the Louisville Bats,
so we know first hand that it’s a great evening filled with tradition, plus a great view of the downtown fireworks.
The field was just a few blocks from our wedding venue and where all the guests were staying,
so no one had to mess with driving to or from the game, especially great for out-of-towners.
Most importantly, this is the very place that Greg and I met just two summers prior.
There is no doubt Victory Field will always hold a special place in our heart.

We hosted our guests on the Third Base Terrace, located on suite level.
Everyone enjoyed great seats for the game, yummy ballpark food, and the best view for downtown Indy.
If you know Indiana weather at all, you’d think that it would be hot and humid in July,
but to our surprise, it was very chilly… freezing I would say.
I distinctly remember people buying sweatshirts because we were not prepared for the cold.

There was a small window following the end of the game and before the start of the fireworks
where there were some on-field promotions. Four members of our bridal party got to participate
in dizzy bat on the field. Let me tell you, it is still funny to think about to this day.
Michael, Maggi, Joe, and Jeff definitely provided entertainment to a sold out crowd.