what march looked like

this is what my March looked like:

the first weekend of the month I took a solo road trip back to Colorado. 

I realized that it was the first long trip I'd taken by myself in years. 

it was really, really wonderful. 

don't get me wrong, 

I love traveling with my hubby, 

but it was just really great to have all that time to just think and pray and talk on the phone and listen to this book on my kindle. so, so good. 

I drove to ft. collins and stayed the night with kristen. 

we ate breakfast and spent the day walking & shopping in the sunshine.

 

 

glorious. look at that sunshine. 

saturday I drove down to Denver and stayed with the lovely Holmes family. 

their house is one of my favorite places. 

probably because they are one of my absolute favorite families. 

and emily has really awesome style. :)

we ate yummy food and laughed and had great conversation. 

it was goooooood. 

 

i apparently forgot to take ANY pictures though. 

boo. 

monday of that weekend I had a three hour coffee date with taryn. 

she's awesome. 

her and her husband mentored rob and I for over a year. 

it was transformational for us. and we love them dearly. 

on my way out of town, 

I visited Excelsior for a few hours

and was reminded once again why I LOVED working there. 

I miss those people something fierce. 

it was seriously one of the best jobs ever. 

challenging? exhausting? difficult? yes. 

but still. I loved it. 

my weekend trip to Colorado was my early bday present to myself. 

and it was so great. so so great. 

as I drove back to Kansas I felt energized and refreshed. 

I also felt secure and confident, 

knowing that Kansas is "home" for us. and that it is GOOD.

but that I'll always have a place and piece of me in Colorado. 

which, it was really great that I came back feeling refreshed

because march was full of challenges emotionally. 

we JUMPED into the adoption process.

we contracted with our agency--and then I proceeded to freak out for about 24 hours.

we started working on our dossier--and I made a note book to keep my from panicking. 

 

 

we got fingerprinted and sent in all our back ground checks for our home study.

it's been a journey already!

and, you guys, we are only about 6 weeks in. yeesh!

this is what my nightstand looks like most of the time. 

 

and ever evolving mound of books. 

I added these to the piles, as well. 

my mom and brother also came to kansas for a visit. 

rob and I spent a weekend in wichita hanging out with them

and these cuties:

 

 love. love. love.

naked blonde baby.

finger sucking blonde boy. 

cuddles for all. 

so so great. 

for christmas I bought haven this DVD.

bahaha!

I loved this when I was a kid. 

sage, my brother, apparently did not. 

he does not even remember it. 

go to YouTube and type in Wee Sing in Sillyville. Do it. It's worth the laugh. 

and then you will understand why Mackoy was doing this:

"I'm SUPER FROG!"

 

"Have you ever seen a frog, walking a dog?!"

"A frog, walking a DOG?"

we may have sang those ridiculous songs for hours. 

i may or may not have video to prove it :)

I love being an aunt. 

and I can't wait for our kids to play with their cousins.

and giggle and dance and act silly with us. 

I dream of that day. 

 rob went to Cali for a week. 

my mom came to stay with me and we got busy on the basement. 

I spent lots of time with friends. 

I met new friends. 

like this lovely lady who is waiting and praying for her boys to come home from Ethiopia. 

I ran not enough miles in preparation for the half marathon on may 5.gulp.

march was full. 

march was good.

 march has come and gone.

 and here's to hoping that april is jsut as full. 

but maybe not quite as busy. 

maybe?

Happy 30th, friend!

Today is Keppers birthday.

love this girl.
I thank God for her.
she is real. honest. beautiful.
and we have a lot of fun laughing together.

and a bonus is that we also have a lot of fun with her and her bf chad.

We celebrated on Saturday with an
almost surprise party at the Yard House Downtown.
She figured it out a few minutes before we walked in.

dang it!

then we went out dancing at the Cowboy Lounge.
yah! you all know how I love dancing! :)
it was a blast.
we stayed out to a ridiculous hour....


and spent most of the day Sunday recovering. ha!

but it was totally worth it to celebrate her wonderful life.
and get to dance with my hubby.

Happy Birthday, Kristen.
you make 30 look fabulous.
excited to see what adventures and memories the next year will bring!

happy day of birth!

facebook just told me that 8 of my friends have birthdays today.
EIGHT.
October 2nd was apparently a popular day to have children.
New Year's Babies?
maybe.

anyway....

just wanted to give a very special shout-out to a couple of rob and i's favorite people.

happy birthday, gigi!

we love you lots and can't wait to see you in November.

you are beautiful. and have a beautiful little girl.
we glad you're in our lives :)

happy bithday, atty.

thanks for being such a great friend to my hubby.

and to me.
we have a lot of fun with you.
and we miss you.
even if you pick fights with me from time to time :)

come see us already!

hope you both have great birthdays.
we're celebrating you from afar.

two-steppin'

rob bought me cowboy boots for Christmas last year.
and i have been waiting for a chance to use them on the dance floor.

turquoise!
nothin' says cowgirl, like some turquoise accented cowboots!


so in honor of my 27th year of life,
we hit up with Grizzly Rose.

and Kristen & Chad came along, too!

we heel-toed-dosey-dowed with the best of 'em.

here's a fun fact about me:
i really love to dance.
if you know me well at all, you already knew this about me.
but just in case you didn't know, now you do :)

and once I get going,
it is hard to get me to stop.

partner dancing is not only good exercise and really fun,
but it is really great practice for me when it comes to following.
and allowing others to lead.
ah-hem, allowing Rob to lead.

when we first hit the dance floor that night,
it was...well, a little rough.
let's just say he was scuffin' up my new boots!

I wanted Rob to lead, but I didn't think he really knew what he was doing.
which he didn't.
but he wasn't going to learn unless I let him figure it out.

he called me on it.
which I love. (honest, I do. I love that he calls me on my crap.)

allowing him to learn to lead meant I had to
be okay with mistakes,
and looking silly at times.
it meant i had to trust him.
and let go of my idea of what it "should be like."

this is difficult for me.
i'm being very honest here.

and now you have a better picture of our marriage!
:)

I love you, Rob.
Will you please lead me around the dance floor for the next 50+ years?
I would love to celebrate all the rest of my birthdays dancing with you.

Mack turns ONE!

Mackoy Matthew turned 1 year on December 15th.

Unfortunately we didn't get to celebrate with him on his *actual* day.
So we threw him a little party while we were home for Christmas.


here he is opening his gift from us the day we got there.
i wanted him to wear his *1* Shirt when enjoying his cake.



yep.
he is definitely a Hemmert.
he wasted no time digging into the chocolate and sugar!

he is such a sweet boy.
I had a blast crawling around the floor with him.
snuggling with him before bed.
and listening to his laugh.

can't wait to see what year #2 brings!!


well, we know ONE thing that year 2 will bring....
another member of this beautiful family! :) :)

grandma

today marks 80 years of life for one incredible, strong, beautiful woman:
my grandmother.


Things I admire about Grandma Marge:
she tells it like it is.
she has opinions and isn't afraid to share them.
she carries herself with so much grace.
she is an amazing cook.
she makes the best eggs in the world.
she raised six children and supported her husband even through difficult times.
she still works out. every day.
she has endured heartache and loss with incredible grace and humility.
she still loves to learn new things and travels often.
she is committed to God and her family.
she gives great hugs.
she is beyond generous.
she loves well.
she has great taste in clothes, jewelry and decor.

i feel like I could go on and on about Grandma Marge.
I just love her. :)

the truth is, I am blessed to have TWO grandmothers that I really admire.
beyond that, I have two grandmothers that I really KNOW.
who have been invested in my life over the years.
who get to know me and let me know them.
i come from really strong, beautiful women.
so watch out. :)

Because there are so many of us in the family,
and we are spread out all over,
we celebrated Grandma's birthday in July.
here are some of my favorite pictures from that event.














it was a really great time. I hadn't seen some of my cousins in a loooong time.
Grandma, you have created such an incredible legacy over the past eight decades.

I love you.

the ranch

my sweet friend, kristen, had a birthday a few weeks back
and she invited some of her dear friends
(I feel so blessed to be included in that category)
to go to her parents' ranch to celebrate.


Kep and I met at Orientation for Seminary.
In many ways, it was divine intervention that we sat at the same table.
and I can honestly say that my life was SO much better for having her friendship over the past three (almost) years.

we are different in many ways and yet at the core,
we are very, very similar.
Kristen is a constant. I am always amazed at how she maintains so many friendships with so many people. And they are genuine, deep, meaningful friendships.
She makes people feel loved and appreciated.
She cares deeply for others, listens intently, prays fervently.
I admire her in many ways and am thankful that I get to call her friend
and sister in Christ.

not to mention, she took me to her parents' ranch.
which was like something out of my dreams.
seriously.
i dream about this:

and this:

with horses in that barn, galloping in those corrals.
(i'm not making this up, people. I really do dream of that)

I mean, who wouldn't dream of this:

a sunset over the mountains. now that is just good for the soul.

they even had cows. very pregnant cows.

I may not dream of THAT so much,
but they do take me back to my childhood,
which I love. and miss sometimes.
Dad bringing new born calves in from the snowstorm to keep them from freezing to death.
Sage and I rubbing them with towels to warm them up.
oh, the memories.

i loved my weekend with Kristen and friends at the ranch.
beautiful views. beautiful women. cozy fire. great food.
and lots of laughter and sharing.

bliss.

Kristen,
sorry this is a little belated, but I want you to know
how incredibly grateful I am for your friendship,
for who you are, and all that you bring to my life.
and for taking me to your parents' ranch :)
you rock.

love you, girl.
-E

another (very special) birthday

we have dated best friends. twice.
the second time has worked out WONDERFUL for the both of us.
(we learned some valuable lessons the first time around. but....nah, let's not dampen this special day! :) )

all of our life experiences of the past 6 years have brought us closer together
and now....we're both married. to best friends!

which works out great when you're scheming to get together :)


now we not only share dreams, laughs and long conversations...
but we share an anniversary!


we laugh A LOT.
and we cry some, too.
she is someone i can talk to about anything and everything.
i think that sometimes our husbands wish we keep some things to ourselves.
sara jo is the one i talk to about marriage (and all that comes along with marriage) Jesus, school, work, dreams, heartaches...all of it....

it is such a beautiful thing
and by "it" I mean her. us. our friendship.
beautiful.

sara josephine, you have been by my side (literally!) through some of my best moments and some of my worst....and you've loved me all the same.


our friendship has grown throughout the years
and i can't wait to see what all God has for our friendship in the future.

i celebrate you! today and always!
praise the Lord that you were born.
can't imagine life any other way :)

Happy Birthday, my friend! I love you!