"Love is friendship that has caught fire."  -  Ann Landers

Challenge 5 for the #sweet16sparklerssummer is to have fun with your relationship.  Summer love is the best type of love.  I remember a few summer flings, growing up, (I happened to marry one of them!) and they were so exciting, innocent and thrilling.  Bring that feeling back to your marriage this week by planning something fun and spontaneous.

Go park and make out.  Go lay under the stars.  Share a shake.  Go skinny dipping.  Bring back some fun and dare to get a little wild with your date night.  Pass up on dinner and a movie, and do something a bit more adventurous.  Spark your summer!  Spark your relationship!

Some of my favorite childhood memories involve the drive in.  My family would usually go with a few other families, and we would all pack up some blankets, food and games and head to the drive in. There is something magical going to the movies and watching from the car makes it just that much better.

Here are our Top 10 reasons you should hit up the Drive-In this summer.

1.  It's cheaper.  The price to get in is usually a few bucks cheaper than going to the movie theater.
2.  You get TWO movies for the price of one!
3.  The snack stand food is less expensive than at the movie theater.  (I always spend more on food than the actual price of my ticket at the theater.)
4.  At the Drive-In you can bring in your own food.  YUM!
5.  You can sit under the stars.
6.  It's romantic.  If you are without the kids!
7.  It's kid friendly.  You don't have to worry about a screaming baby, or a child who has the wiggles.
8.  You can stay out extra late.  Something about being out later than usual is exciting!
9.  It's an event.  It's something out of the norm and a memory maker.
10.  You can talk.  I know some of you are talkers, and you won't get shhhhh'd at the Drive-In.

Have you been to the drive in lately?  What is your favorite thing about going?

Headed to a 4th of July Parade this weekend?  Keep the kids cool and happy with this fun and easy pail of goodies.  We got everything from the Dollar store, making this a one stop shop project.

We just filled the pail with bubbles, sunglasses, flags and streamers to wave, a water bottle, a squirt bottle, some licorice and Cracker Jacks, a pinwheel and some fresh wipes.  This pail was a life saver last year.  No asking when the parade was going to start, no complaining about needing a snack, and it kept them cool which meant less cranky!

Do you go to the parades?

"Because the greatest part of a road trip isn't arriving at your destination.  It's all the wild stuff that happens along the way."

I bought some fun summer 12x12 scrapbook papers and a package of colorful brads from the craft store, and that's al you need.  We cut each scrapbook paper into 4th's, so then we had 6x6 paper to work with.

I found this pattern from http://www.auntannie.com/FridayFun/Pinwheel/  to make the pinwheels.





Then we just hot glued them to the foam form and VOILLA!!!  You have an adorable summer wreath.

Have you tried making pinwheels yet?  What wreath do you like to use for the month of June?

Some of our Picks by Category:

Heart-Touching / Soul-Stirring Memoirs
Beach Reads
The Icarus Deception: How High Will You Fly? by Seth Godin
Rising Strong by Brene Brown
Books for Young Adults

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken
The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman
Salt to the Sea (novel) by Ruta Sepetys
Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard
Map of Fates by Maggie Hall (novel)
Lady Midnight (book one – Novel) by Cassandra Clare
Wink Poppy Midnight by April Tucholke
The Raven King (book 4 of the raven cycle) by Maggie Stiefvater
The Square Root of Summer by Harriet Hapgood
Highly Illogical Behavior by John Corey Whaley
The Crown’s Game by Evelyn Skye
The Lovely Reckless by Kami Garcia
Heartless by Marissa Meyer
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling (book 8)

We've searched the internet (so you won't have to), to find what the top book recommendations are.  We asked friends and family for their recommendations too.  Below we have compiled a random list of (65) recommended books.  So no matter what your reading pleasure is, you should be able to find a book from our list that sets your soul on fire. 
So let's get started on our "Summer Reading".

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green
The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
The Light Between Oceans
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes
Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson
How to be a Person in the World: Ask Polly’s Guide Through the Paradoxes of Modern Life by Heather Havrilesky
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
A Wife of Noble Character by Yvonne Georgina Puig
Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue
Break In Case of Emergency by Jessica Winter
Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee
Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld
Girls on Fire by Robin Wasserman
Behind Every Good Man by John Bytheway
Modern Lovers by Emma Straub
Neon Green by Margaret Wappler
Here comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn
You will Know Me by Megan Abbott
Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park
The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
Deerskin by Robin McKinley
The White Queen by Philippa Gregory
The Cuckoo’s Calling, by Robert Galbraith
Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn
The Engagements, by J. Courtney Sullivan
The Girls of Atomic City, by Denise Kiernan
Longbourn, by Jo Baker
The Burgess Boys, by Elizabeth Strout
And the Mountains Echoed, by Khaled Hosseini
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
A thousand Splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini
Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn
Love Is a Choice: Making Your Marriage and Family Stronger  by Lynn G. Robbins
The Hopefuls by Jennifer Close
Multiple Choice by Alejandro Zambra
The Muse by Jessie Burton
You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott
Beach Town by Mary Kay Andrews
The Guest Cottage by Nancy Thayer
Some Possible Solutions by Helen Phillips
Rich and Pretty by Rumaan Alam
Marrow Island by Alexis Smith
The Girls by Emma Cline
Sons and Daughters of Ease and Plenty by Ramona Ausubel
Invincible Summer by Alice Adams
We Could Be Beautiful by Swan Huntley
You Are Having a Good Time by Amie Barrodale
The Interestings, by Meg Wolitzer
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
The Fault in our Stars by John Green
The Rosie Project, by Graeme Simsion
Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald, by Therese Anne Fowler
One Summer: America, 1927, by Bill Bryson
And Sons, by David Gilbert
Visitation Street, by Ivy Pochoda
The Lowland, by Jhumpa Lahiri
An Innocent Fashion by R.J. Hernández
Switch on Your Brain: The Key to Peak Happiness, Thinking, and Health by Caroline Leaf

 

I love Memorial Day Weekend.  It's the official kick off to summer fun.  But more importantly it's a day to remember what was lost to enjoy our freedom.

We usually start our day at the cemetery, bringing flowers to our daughter, Aria's grave.  (Her story here.)  I LOVE the cemetery she is buried at.  Before her, we would drive by this hilly cemetery and I always commented on how beautiful it was.  Now it's even more beautiful to me because a part of my heart is there, between the fourth and fifth tree.

I like to add a little bit of seasonal decor to my home, to help my family feel festive.  Sometimes I go all out, like on Halloween and Christmas.  But for occasions like Memorial Day, I just like to add subtle touches.  I'll get out my red cake stand, I'll display a few flags, I have a few fun patriotic pieces, but nothing too over bearing.

This year, I designed this "Land of the free because of the brave" printable to add to our gallery wall.
Adding something as simple as a printable to your decor can help you embrace the season.

I know you want this framed for your home too, so I created a free 8x10 that you can download for yourself.  You're Welcome!

I went from excited to devastated within just an hours time.  I was just starting my third trimester, getting another ultrasound done, and we were told that my baby no longer had a heart beat.

Knowing that I would be delivering my gone baby (I don't like the word dead) I anticipated it to be the worst moment of my life.

But honestly, the actual birth of my daughter was the single most sacred, beautiful experience I have ever had.

May 19th, 2011 Aria Dawson was silently born.

I can still hear the silence.  I know that sounds crazy, but silence does have a sound.  It's like a fuzzy foggy sound.  It sort of rumbles.  It kind of rings.  And when life is too hard to deal with, you focus on the silence.  It gets loud.  Really loud.  I can still hear it.

I was admitted to the Labor and Delivery ward, and was in labor for 10 hours.  My Doctors and Nurses kept checking on me, but we had not idea when I would actually deliver her.

I knew it was happening.  I woke up my husband and said, "The baby is coming!"  He went to page the Doctor, but I didn't want him too.

I delivered Aria with just me and my husband in the room.  I just had this feeling that I wanted to do it, ........just us.  It was beautiful.  At the exact moment my heart broke, I was also filled with so much love.  I loved my husband.  I loved my daughter.  And I knew that my Heavenly Father loved me.
That room was so quiet and reverent at that moment.  She was born into peace, love and adoration.

She was beautiful.  She looked just like my other daughter.  Long legs, bald head, long eyelashes.
She was perfect.

We got to spend a few hours with her.  Dress her.  We had pictures taken with her.  My husband gave her a name and a blessing.  I sang to her.  "You are my sunshine."

I promised her that I would be a good Mom to her brothers and sister.  I promised her I would never forget her, and I promised her that I would LIVE my life.  I would choose joy.  I would be happy, for her.

It took me a LONG time to get here.  I was lost for so long.

But I kept trying.  I knew I needed to do something with my life to honor her.  I've changed since becoming her mother.  How could this experience not change a person?  I wanted it to be for good.  I needed her existence to have importance and beauty to it.

All she EVER knew of this life was the love she felt inside the womb.  All she knew was that I loved her.  All she knew was that her brothers liked to talk to her, and her sister liked to sing to her.  All she knew was her Daddy's voice telling her how in love he was.  All she knew was good.

They say "Time heals all wounds."  It doesn't.   My heart is still broken.

It took time for me to figure out how to be happy again.  I needed time to figure out how to live joyfully and what I wanted out of this experience.  I needed time to figure out how to live my authentic life and to live a life of love and celebration, for Aria.

I decided I wanted to help other women find joy in their lives too.  It's easy to lose that spark.  Life is hard, and we all have our own unique trials to face that take our breath away.  Heartbreaking, painful almost impossible trials to overcome.  But I want others to know, that you can live a life of joy again.
You can find blessings from any trial.  You can find a new purpose in life after things have fallen apart.

Trials can become blessings, if we look for the beauty in them.

So today is her birthday!  She would be five!  In honor of Aria, I want to celebrate life!  I want to go for a walk and notice nature!  I want to give hugs to my friends and tell them how special they are to me.  I want to hold my kids and tell them I love them.  I want to kiss my hubby.  I want dance in my kitchen and sing into the vacuum.  I want to smile and help out a stranger.  I want to be the good in this world that Aria knew.

She knew good.  She knew love.  I want to be that good and love for others too.

The key to making this gathering succuseful is to put extra attention into every detail.  You are celebrating the love between friends.  The bond between mother and daughter.