R&R

Dear Ocean,

Thank you for making us feel tiny, humble, inspired, and salty…

all at once.

If you follow me on insta you probably already know that we were away all last week. We spent a full seven days at the Jersey shore, Avalon to be exact, and it was every bit as glorious as I'd hoped it would be. We were fortunate enough to have some seriously beautiful weather, and so therefore, we hit the beach just about every single day. Alec was such a little water bug and it made me so full of joy to see his love for the ocean. Watching him play and run on the beach with his cousins reminded me so much of my own childhood summers. 

Our trip was full of adventure. Lots of morning beach play, outdoor showers, afternoon siestas, and evening ice cream dates. We spent a day in Cape May, checking out all the historic sites. We even made not one, but two, trips to the county zoo. (Which was actually amazing, and FREE. Can't beat that.) We visited Morey's Pier one evening, in Wildwood, and Alec was in awe of all the rides and bustling activity. We beach hopped over to Sea Isle City for a day in the sun with family and friends. Our time away was nothing short of amazing and filled with some much needed R&R. I feel so grateful  to have had this time together with my boys. So many wonderful memories were made that I will cherish for years to come.  

Anyways, get ready for picture overload. And these are just a few of the many photos I captured on the big cam while we were away. 

 Thanks for visiting! I hope your summer has gotten off to a great start as well. Hooray for sunshine and time spent by the sea.

Snapshots

 Post-nap shenanigans. 

Made of awesome.

 An exciting morning at the Philadelphia Zoo.

Porch hangs.

Celebrating Papa's 30th.

The "Ma, I just woke up… and I don't want these on my head" face.

Snow Daze

Today marked Alec's first official snow day! He knows the word 'snow' but had only ever experienced it from the window. This afternoon, we bundled him up, (Next year, we're going to have to invest in some appropriate snow pants and gloves) and trekked out into the backyard. Kiel introduced him to snowballs and sledding, ya know, typical boy stuff. And he and I took a scenic stroll along the line of woods behind our home. Alec was a total skeptic… he didn't have any desire to roll around in that powdery white stuff (And to be honest, neither did I. It's frigid out there!) Either way, it was a fun moment that I am sure to remember and cherish. I so look forward to all of his 'firsts'. It's so amazing to experience life all over again through my little one's eyes. Parenting has it's challenges, but I wouldn't trade any of it for world. 

Snapshots: Our Holiday at Home

The hustle bustle of the holiday season has come to a close and although it saddens me to take down all the Christmas decor, I am sort of excited for the next few slow winter months. Kiel and I hosted back to back holiday parties, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We both have rather large families, so both days we served a full-course sit-down dinner to twenty-some people. Part of me wonders what the heck I was thinking, but fortunately, despite a few minor outbursts on my end, things turned out pretty darn lovely. It was such a cool experience to host Christmas in our new home with everyone we love by our sides. Alec had an absolute ball, and being that we were in our own home, things were much easier for us, especially bedtime (No lugging around bulky pack'n'plays and late-night carseat transfers). And not to mention, our home is baby proof approved so we didn't have to worry about Alec getting into every little thing (Sixteen months is a very adventurous age!). So, despite the chaos, the pros heavily outweighed the cons, and I think we'll just get wild and do it all again next holiday season.

Because of my nursing career, I unfortunately have to work a few holidays a year. I was very grateful to have off Christmas this year, but was super sad to miss smooching my boys at midnight when the ball dropped on New Year's Eve. Kiel and I did manage to FaceTime one another as the countdown dropped to one. We gave each other a cheesy air kiss and said our "I love you's" so not all of NYE was completely lost. Cheers to a wonderful holiday season and to an exciting new year.

Merry Christmas - Love The Drakes

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Cheers to another miraculous season! All is truly merry and bright around here and I thank you all for sharing in our joy.

Snapshots: holiday home edition

 This is how we do Christmas at our home...

Kiel took a few pictures of the outdoor decor the other night. Alec is enamored with all the christmas lights. Lots of "wow's" paired with big bright eyes and smiles. It really is the cutest thing.

Our tree WAS stunning, but lesson learned… maybe don't buy a tree the first weekend of December… or maybe water your tree every now and again. Because our beauty of a Christmas tree is wilting away and will most likely not be making it to New Year's.

Alec inherited his papa's old table and chairs. They are just his size and he loves them so. My brave little climber is making me nervous though. I can't take my eyes off him for one second.

Lots of eucalyptus and berry arrangements to spruce up the table for Christmas Eve supper. And lots of booze to make the holiday extra joyful.

The table is set. It is my year to host and the total head count is twenty five. Here's hoping we can pull this off so they let me host again in the future.

Ten pounds of potatoes for Christmas dinner. It's a true labor of love, yet I couldn't be happier to do it. The holiday just wouldn't be the same without Grandmom's make-ahead baked mashers.

Did you know that fake poinsettias are not just a decoration… they are also the perfect toy for a sixteen month old babe. Al has been carting this thing around for days and tears flow when I force him to part with his little flower. 

Time is flying by and this crazy month of December feels like a complete whirlwind. How is it Christmas already? I am thrilled, yet sort of depressed to think that all this will all be here and gone so quickly. I don't know about you, but the Christmas season is my absolute favorite time of the year. I, for one, love gift giving. I truly love it. I love decorating my home and baking cookies. I LOVE spending quality time with family and close friends. I love watching Christmas movies and crying at Apple's amazing collection of holiday commercials. And this year has been especially great because I get to experience all the joys of Christmas through my child's eyes. There really is nothing cooler than that. 

How Could I Forget?

As I sit here, during Alec's nap time, and make lists and lists of presents to buy for family and friends for Christmas, I started to realize that I have totally bypassed another very special holiday all together! Maybe it's because I have to work Thanksgiving this year, or maybe it's because I want to stay ahead of the rest to avoid mall crowds at the end of December… but either way I have decided to pump the breaks just a tad and refocus my energy on next week's holiday of thanks. 

As I reflect back on this passing year, I become overwhelmed with joy just thinking of all the amazing things that I am so very thankful for. It has been one of the best, and most challenging, years of my life. As many of you readers probably know, our son, Alec, has a very serious heart condition. He was diagnosed in utero at just nineteen weeks. Last November, only two months after his arrival, Alec had major open heart surgery. It was the absolute scariest time of my life. Nothing will ever be as difficult as the moment I walked my boy to the operating room doors. We held him, and kissed him, and then as he rolled away, Kiel and I held each other as tears rolled down our faces. I swear the stress of that moment alone has taken years off my life...BUT with great faith in our medical team and God, the support of our family and friends, and Alec's amazing strength, we got through it. Our babe has thrived like we never imagined, and with that I am eternally grateful. Not only has he gotten stronger, but so has my marriage and the bond we share with our supportive family and friends.

'Thankful' doesn't really begin to describe how I feel about this passing year. It's hard to believe that so much has changed in just a little over 12 months. We are now parents to a beautiful, strong boy. We settled into a new home, which we could never have done without the help of my parents and grandfather. We celebrated our boy's first birthday, which was an amazing milestone after all he's been through. My sister-in-law set us up with a 'Go Fund Me' account and with the generous donations from family and friends we were able to pay off all of Alec's medical bills and create a savings account for future procedure/surgery costs. A close girlfriend of mine organized a heart walk team in honor of Alec and an amazing group of family, friends, and co-workers walked to support the cause in 2014 and 2015. 

They say it takes a village to raise a child and I swear I don't know where I'd be without my incredible village of supporters out there. So so so many truly awesome things happened over this past year or so and I am grateful beyond words. I feel so incredibly loved which is really all you need in this world. I only hope that this upcoming year is just as fabulous as the last. Thank you for reading. xo -L

image courtesy of nestofposies.com

Snapshots

My little ham, sharing sweet smiles during dinner one evening.

A close friend of mine asked me to bake her a cake, and not just any cake! She is pregnant with her second little one and I could not be more excited for her and her growing family. The morning of her second trimester screen, she and her husband opted not to find out the sex of the baby. Instead, the ultrasound tech sent them home with a sealed envelope and she immediately dropped it off to me. I obviously opened it as soon as she exited and jumped around the kitchen when I saw what was inside… it was GIRL! (which is super exciting because they have a two year old son already.) Needless to say, I baked them a little pink cake and iced that bad boy up. My friend and her beautiful little family cut into the cake later than night and her little boy announced the sex of the baby on video. It was seriously the sweetest thing, it filled my eyes with tears to see their joy. Congrats friend! It was such a pleasure to be included in the big surprise!

The master bedroom is coming along.. slowly but surely.

Our backyard friends. Alec loves to stare out the window each evening and look the deer. 

Sea Witch Festival Family Selfie.