Ella Taylor, T H I R T E E N

Celebrating T H I R T E E N !

Birthday breakfast request: crepes

Opening gifts

A fun day at the beach - also GRANDMA is here!

She was also here the day Ella was born.

Birthday dinner at Sear's Landing

After dinner we headed back to the beach house. Kids had a fun evening playing with the neighborhood gang. They played volleyball, "killer" and any other creative game they could come up with. In between games, the kids came up to the porch and had homemade ice cream cookie sandwiches rolled in sprinkles, Ella's yummy creation.

Happy 13th Birthday, ELLA TAYLOR!

My Employees Champions Trip 2025 to Clearwater, FL

 

Once again this year, Jake & I were invited on the My Employees Champions Trip. What a gift these yearly trips are; although Jake works very hard all year to earn his invitation on to the trip. We were counting and reminiscing that this is the NINTH trip we have been on with My Employees.

MEXICO: 2017, 2018, 2019

2020 Jake opted to not attend the fall trip to Boone, NC 

Hilton Head, SC 2021

Jekyll Island, GA 2022

Asheville, NC 2022

MEXICO 2023, 2024

Clearwater, FL 2025

This year the trip was to Clearwater, FL. We flew in to Tampa on Sunday, May 18. Enjoyed our 6 days at the Sandpearl Resort in Clearwater, FL and then flew home on Friday, May 23.

I was able to visit a Burn Boot Camp in Largo, FL on Monday morning. 

Just a short 10 minute drive from the resort.

Clear Sky Cafe was our favorite breakfast spot.

We enjoyed the beach every morning and the pool in the afternoon.

We love a good Poke Bowl.

Tuesday morning Jake found Parlor Doughnuts.

A 1 mile bike ride from the resort.

Tuesday night the whole group attended the Tampa Bay Rays baseball game vs the Houston Astros. Tampa Bay tied it up in the 8th inning and won it with a walk off base hit.

Wednesday morning Jake went golfing with the guys. That evening we ate dinner at Bavaro's, a yummy brick oven pizza place. It was very fun to basically walk everywhere that week. 

Thursday evening we had a group dinner at Island Way Grille. The food was absolutely incredible.

So proud of Jake and his hard work ethic. His job has drastically changed since he was initially hired. In fact, next month, he celebrates 10 years at My Employees. We are very thankful for his company's generosity and the time away we enjoy on these trips.

And while we were enjoying our time away; the kids were having a blast with friends.

A BIG thanks to Jacob & Georgia and Adrian!

Last Day of School 2025

Last day of School 2024-2025

 

Athletic Awards

Tonight we had our Athletic Awards. So proud of these two! They played all 3 sports: volleyball, basketball and soccer. They are 2 of the 6 tri-athletes in the entire school. Lily received the MVP for JV basketball. She was completely surprised; it was very sweet. Proud of all their hard work and perseverance in these sports seasons.

 

50th Anniversary Trip + Girls Weekend

 

This past weekend my Mom and sisters all got together to celebrate what would have been my parent's 50th wedding anniversary (May 31, 1975). Emily & I flew in to Des Moines, Iowa. Lindsay and my Mom drove down from Minneapolis. Emily even provided matching jammies for our weekend!

We visited my 92 year old grandparents in Newton, Iowa. They have been married 73 years. What a gift that they still have each other! We enjoyed conversation and dinner with them Thursday afternoon into evening. We also saw them again on Friday morning. 

We drove on to Pella, Iowa mid-morning on Friday. Tulip Time was just last week.

Had to take this picture for my kids.

The famous Jaarsma Bakery - it did not disappoint.

We also toured the Tuttle Cabin - this was very interesting.

After Pella, we headed to Ankeny to meet Aunt Ronda for lunch at Main Street Cafe. It was a wonderful but quick visit. We then drove on to Albert Lea, Minnesota to our hotel. This got us a few more hours down the road. Saturday morning we got up and headed to Stillwater, MN. 

Lunch at the Freight House

Exploring Stillwater

Saturday night we stayed at The Outing Lodge. This was so fun and rather memorable. 

No trip to Stillwater is complete without a stop at Nelson's Ice Cream. My Dad loved ice cream and we always stopped at Nelson's (Stillwater and St Paul) when nearby. The "kids" cup is like 5-6 scoops of ice cream - absolutely ridiculous.

We made it to breakfast on Sunday morning at The Outing Lodge - a hilarious story that I just can't include on here.  It was a lovely brunch. I really enjoyed the conversations and catching up we did over the weekend. It was a gift to all be together!

After Stillwater, we headed back towards the cities. We stopped in St. Paul to walk around, see some sites and enjoy lunch at Cossetta's. We then went to visit my Dad's niche and on to see Lindsay's family. Later Sunday evening I was able to meet up with Jen, Jess & Bekah. That was so fun! Unfortunately, I forgot to get a photo. Monday morning I flew back to NC.

Love these ladies!

Soccer

The girls had their last soccer game this evening. Lily & Ella were both of the JV team. They were a young team and did a lot of growing this season. Proud of all their hard work!

Ella with some of her 7th grade besties!

 

Mother's Day 2025

Today, we celebrated Mother's Day early. (I will be out of town next Sunday so today was Mother's Day at our house.) We had acai bowls for breakfast. After church we headed out for brunch at Amanecer. I am really enjoying this season of life. The kids are so fun to hang out with, play sports  or games with, have conversations with - all the things. I want to soak it all up! I am so grateful to be the MOM to these four, what a gift.