Houseboating on Lake Powell

Houseboating on Lake Powell was unforgettable!! And all thanks to our friend/new-found distant relative Steve Smoot :) He was so generous to let us all stay on his beautiful house boat, and was such a great host!!

We were right on the water...which was surprisingly warm! (or cool as opposed to the frigid that I was prepared for) Some of the highlights were:

being in our swimsuits all day,

taking naps with our little boy,

kayaking in the bright sun,

sleeping under the stars every night,

Brooks playing with his little buddies Samson, Aven, and baby Rayce,

going down the water slide off the back of the houseboat,

eating AMAZING food (example: fresh fish tacos) and way too much of it all week,

jet skiing (my first time!),

Alla's 23rd birthday celebration!,

boating/tubing/wake boarding/wake surfing,

cliff jumping,

the girls shaving our legs by the water's edge,

painting pretty toes,

learning to paddle board,

and best of all...enjoying time with great family and friends!!

Most of these photos we took with Adam's iphone :) And a few are from our sister in-law's stellar camera, thanks Becca!

(yes those are my legs dangling at the top of this picture...HA! Funnest tube ride ever!)

I took all these fun photos for the sake of printing this blog into a book :)

But I also got lots of fun video that I put together with music and I'm excited to share it tomorrow!

a little real life dancin'

Brooks has really started to shake his groove thang any time he hears music...and I LOVE IT! He bounces up and down, shakes his hips, bobs his head, and stomps his left foot...

hi-larious to say the least!

Last night we had a little dance party to a favorite song of mine...it included a tiny tantrum, some snuggles, dance-dance-dancin', running around, and lots of laughs :)

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Florence + The Machine's "Dog Days Are Over" music video is pretty stellar.

It has the most unusual dancing and costumes...I love it. Adam thinks it's the weirdest thing he's ever seen. Opposites attract ;) Check it out here.

#1 Dad

Happy [belated] Father's Day to our main man Adam!!!

He is the man of my dreams...the dreams of having a family with a

God loving,

devoted,

involved,

intimate,

forgiving,

funny,

encouraging

father.

I couldn't ask for a better dad for Brooks and our future children :)

I woke up a bit early to make him breakfast...vanilla french toast, scrambled eggs, oatmeal topped with fresh blueberries, and pineapple-orange juice.

And of course, that sweet daddy-o shared with his little boy :)

And at church in Young Women's one of the leaders brought some sweet treats and darling tags to make creative little gifts for everyone's dads :)

I chose the SUGAR DADDY sucker...beyond being the sugar daddy of our family and working so hard to provide for us monetarily, Adam works so hard to provide for Brooks and I on an emotional level. He expresses his love in word and in deed...how blessed we are to have him in our lives :)

Dear Adam,

You're sleeping right now, so I figured I'd squeeze in writing you a letter on this sweet Father's Day :)

We got back from Lake Powell late last night...thank you (and Eli) for driving us safely home :) It was a vacation that'll go down in history for sure!!! Aside from the fantastic houseboat, cool water and hot sun, paddle boarding, eating great food, and sleeping under the stars...my favorite part was watching you interact with our beautiful little boy. (hence the photos in this post...it was hard to just pick a few!)

You are SUCH a great father to Brooks. Little B and I are both so blessed to have you in our lives! Thank you for your tenderness with him...yet I can't get enough of seeing you two wrestle or have tickle-fests, you make him laugh like no one else. I love you forever sweetheart!

Happy Father's Day!!

You foreva lova,

Haley

THE FIVE...and we're off!

I want to start out by saying how awesome all of you are who were up for the fun challenge of Paying It Forward. You guys rock :) I want to make something for all of you! But I have a feeling I'll be doing this challenge again :)

I've been excited to see who random.org would pick for me to pay it forward to!

drum roll please...

# 29 - Katrina

# 13 - Gee

# 26 - Eva Marie

# 23 - Kiki

# 3 - Christine

You five will be getting a package in the mail with something(s) handmade by yours truly :) I'll be needing your addresses...so send them my way: haley.kjar{at}gmail.com

And then you'll do the same for 5 others! Oh I can't wait to start working on my hand crafted goodness for you guys! :)

And on a kind of random note...while working on my little family's silhouettes the other day, I was thinking about Stephanie Nielson (it was she who inspired me to do them). Let me tell you, she is a prime example of paying it forward. To put it lightly, Stephanie has been through some hard things...and yet she still puts all she has into being the best wife and mother she can be. She knows her life has been blessed by God, and she wants to show her gratitude by serving everyone around her.

Many of you may have seen the beautiful video below, of Stephanie sharing a bit about her new life...I've watched it numerous times, and each time something new sticks out to me and I'm inspired to appreciate life and give back a little more :)

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Oh, and we're off!!!

Tomorrow we're heading down to Lake Powell...house boating all week with family and friends.

You want to know my favorite part?? I get Adam and Brooks gets Daddy all to ourselves for 8 straight days...no work, no cell phones, no computers. Yessssssss :) We're SO EXCITED!

These two pictures are from 2 years ago when we went to Powell...gorgeous isn't it? I was 5 months pregnant with Brooks at the time...so this go around we're thrilled to have him with us!

{DIY} Our Silhouettes on Canvas

I've wanted to make our silhouettes for quite some time, and was inspired by how easy Stephanie Nielson's tutorial was (which I can't seem to find! wish I had pinterest back then), but her yearly silhouettes are fabulous. My method is very similar to the spring silhouettes I made and shared over at The Idea Room! A very versatile concept :)

Here's how I created ours :)

STEP 1:

Take a profile photo of each person. (use a light background)

STEP 2:

Gather supplies...

- printed photos -

{ make sure they're mirror images of how you want your silhouettes to be }

{ I just printed them from my computer on regular paper }

- canvas (I used 11''x14'') -

- heavy cardstock/scrapbook paper -

{ I used white, but I just realized you could use black and skip all the painting steps! }

- Mod Podge (glue) -

- black acrylic paint -

- sharp scissors -

- 2 paint brushes -

{ one for the paint & one for the mod podge }

STEP 3:

With paint brush #1 quickly spread a thin layer of Mod Podge onto the back of the pictures. Then press onto the card stock/scrapbook paper.

STEP 4:

Cut out silhouette (this is my favorite part:) BE SURE to get all the details!...hairs, eyelashes...and be careful with trimming and cutting too far into the face/head, it's like a wig: you can always cut a little more, but you can't make it grow back if you've gone too far.

STEP 5:

Use tape to secure photo to a painting surface (in my case, cardboard) so that you won't have to touch it and smudge the paint.

STEP 6:

Use paint brush #2 and paint! Be sure to do TWO LIGHT LAYERS (let the 1st one dry)...otherwise it will bubble like the 3rd photo (I re-did that one, only took a few minutes:)...and make sure the paint strokes are all vertical. Let fully dry.

STEP 7:

Put a book under your canvas (if it's framed and hollow in the back) so that you have a hard surface to press the painted silhouette onto.

STEP 8:

Use paint brush #1 and quickly spread Mod Podge onto the back of the painted silhouette.

STEP 9:

Center/place silhouette on canvas, press and smooth with hands.

Ta-daa! Display your beautiful silhouettes and enjoy!

I wasn't sure if they'd really look like us, but they do :) and we love them!

This is definitely going to be a new tradition...

SUMMER SILHOUETTES :)

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I'm sharing my project over at:

Whipperberry

Go see what other projects, ideas, and recipes people have been working on!