Ain't Life Beautiful?

One of my college besties got married last weekend in possibly the most beautiful part of this great state I've ever seen. It was at a golf resort off a gravel road in Nowheresville, Iowa, complete with a lake, cabins, outdoor shelter and ATV trails. In lieu of a formal dance-style reception, the bride and groom opted for a bonfire and hayrack ride under the bright autumn stars. It was so serene.

The leaves have just started to turn and their wedding colors complimented the landscape perfectly. I was especially excited for this wedding because Kara told me several times that it was inspired by Charlie and I's wedding, right down to the pastor and our wine box ceremony.

She was right -- it was great and just my style. Also, if I do say so myself, I captured some great pictures! I think in my next life I may be a photographer. The one photo I missed that I wish I could have captured was Nora sleeping by the fire at the end of the night.

Congrats Kara and Jayden!

(Click photos to enlarge)

Duck, Duck,

and more ducks.

Saturday, N and I set out to find some ducks to feed. Since the river was flooding, it was hard to find a place we could get close enough because all the roads were closed leading to the riverside parks.

We wound up at Vanderveer and boy did they have ducks.










We had everything from ducks, to birds, to fish coming by to eat our bread. And we met another Nora! She was two months younger than Bear.

After that we went over to the park. A big storm had torn through the city the night before and we found a neat tree that came down.

Wordless Wednesday: My 21-Month-Old

Craft day at John Deere Pavilion

On Saturday, we went to check out the baby chicks at JD Pavilion with some of our friends from tumbling class.

Nora got to:

Climb on tractors


Milk (OK water) a cow


Make a chick like the live ones we saw


And be silly


I think it wore her out

Say Hello to Davenport's New Resident Examiner

I've been on a mission to take on some freelance work to get back to what I love about writing. It seems the less writing I do, the grouchier I become -- writing is my outlet and without it I tend to retain emotion. It doesn't seem to matter what I write about, its just the simple act of doing it that provides a tension outlet for me, kind of like yoga.

My goals for this job are to get a jump start on building content for my portfolio, honing my writing skills and hopefully getting my name out there -- oh and did I mention it pays? Not much, rest assured I will not be jumping ship on my day job anytime soon, but being paid to write feels so much more meaningful and professional than blogging for free. It is important for you, all of my loyal readers, to note that it is a sliding pay scale based on the number of articles I submit and the feedback they receive (i.e. leave comments), how many followers I have, and the number of unique page views my articles receive so visit often!

Without further ado, I give you the Davenport Attachment Parenting Examiner.

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday: At the Mall

Kara came to visit from Wisconsin. Forgetful me scheduled an oil change for my car during her visit and we ended up spending 2 hours at the mall waiting for my car to get done. Luckily, Kara is a good friend and she didn't seem to mind too much -- plus her and Nora had a good time, I think!

Hello Spring

So nice to finally be able to go outside! Here's what we've been up to.





We had to change N's pants three times yesterday...but she had fun and it was worth it!

A Winter Farewell

At a whopping 40 degrees, I decided to take N out for her first sledding adventure...in the front yard. Now, before you criticize, I'm fully aware we look under dressed given the current temperature, but man did it feel WONDERFUL! I could have sworn it was 60 and it was only after I began typing this entry that I realized it was actually significantly cooler than I had thought. Without further ado, I give you our winter farewell in photo-story form.

Another Funfilled Winter Saturday

Weekends drone on when it's just the Bear and I, especially cooped up in this tiny house.

Yesterday, we kept busy first with a trip to Babies-R-Us where N tried out a tricycle, knocked lots of toys off the shelf as Mama followed behind picking up her mess, and met some new friends who loved picking her up and pushing her in a wagon.

Next, we headed to the pet store. N enjoyed all of the animals but there was one puppy she loved the most. He adored her, and they were super cute together.

After she told the puppy bye and blew him kisses, we drove to the river to find some ducks. At a scorching 40 degrees, we lasted about 15 minutes outside throwing crackers (and trying to stop N from eating the ones on the ground) before concluding the ducks must not be hungry :)

By the time we were done, Bear was tuckered.


Hopefully that takes care of our craving for adventure -- the weather forecast predicts we'll be staying in for a couple days.