Weekly ten in pictures

1.  Grant is taking Smart Start soccer again.  He admitted that last year he didn't listen to the coach so we figured it would be good for him to repeat it since there really isn't much else he can do at this age.  His favorite part is hitting the ball with his head.

2.  Farmers Market season has begun!  We were so excited to take a stroll through the market the other day and see all the fresh veggies and fruit.This means summer is definitely on its way!

3.  Grant dressed himself the other day and refused to change when I asked him if he really wanted to wear that.  Some battles are just not worth fighting so he went out for a full day of errands in these lovely knee socks.  Ashton's look conveys his feeling of Grant's outfit choice!

4.  This picture was taken 30+ years ago.  Jenny has been a BFF since I was 2 living in Georgia.  We did everything together- including dressing alike for the first day of kindergarten.   

Jenny's daddy passed away at the beginning of May so my mom and I took a weekend trip to Atlanta to say goodbye to him.  She lives in the house she grew up in which is right around the corner from my old house.  Even though we were there for a funeral, we had a wonderful time sharing memories of our childhood and snapping pics of us 30 years later. Our friendship has been through a lot and we haven't seen each other for 8 years, but you would never know it.  That is what a good friend is all about.

 6.  I had such a great time away reconnecting, but it was so good to come home to my boys.  Grant hugged me for 10 minutes straight.  I think he missed me:)

 

 7.  The day after I got back from Atlanta was Grant's last day of preschool.  I had mixed emotions about this day.  I was so ready to be done considering Grant still cried every day I dropped him off.  The stress of that situation was making me loose my hair!  However, realizing that another year went by was sad to me.  It seems like just yesterday he was standing in front of that sign. 

First day of school

Last day of school.

8.  I told Grant if he didn't cry the last three days of school I would take him to his favorite restaurant on the lake for lunch after his last day.  I am not against bribery at all!  Unfortunately, it didn't work.  He was however, very good for daddy when he was single parenting over the weekend so I settled for lunch at Jimmy Johns instead.  He asked me if we could take a selfie together.  Is he 4 or 14?

9.  Ashton has been coming home from day care in dresses lately.  i think it is funny, but Jason is horrified by it.  I especially like this look with the leotard and tattoo. 

10.  Blessing of the week:  this one is old, but since I am sharing pics from my phone it will do.  My Mothers Day breakfast.  I told Jason all I wanted for the day was for him to make me crepes with strawberries for breakfast.  I think he has been hiding his cooking talents from me because these were delicious!  It was so fun to be spoiled by my boys.  Of course my other babies are never far from my mind on that day.   But as time has gone on, I have learned to live in the moment and not dwell on what should have been.

Tulip Time

It is hard to believe that Tulip Time has come and gone already.  Life seems to be flying by quicker than I can keep track!  It was a gorgeous week here for the festivities.  The majority of the tulips showed up about a week after the festival, but that didn't stop me from dressing my little dutch boys up and parading them through the park:)

 Ashton got to try out his dutch dancing with his day care giver.  He loved it!

 Oh.My.Word.  I can't get over how handsome these two are.  They just melt my heart.

Typical silly faces.

Being so cute sure is exhausting!

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weekly ten

1.  Last week was Media week in my 7 Bible study.  That meant no facebook, no blogger, no instagram, limited email, texts, and internet.  And the biggest; no tv! The point was to get back to the importance of communicating face to face and paying attention to our family instead of our phones and the tv.   It was yet another eye opening experience for me as I discovered how often I turn to media during the day. As we are rounding the last few months of house building, there are so many decisions to be made and I realized that Pinterest has influenced most of those decisions.  It was hard to live without it for a week.  I  felt lonely not checking into my FB all the time. And I realized that I am so accustomed to getting online, that I totally forgot how to pick up the phone and call my friends!   Honestly though, I have been done for a few days now and still have not checked my Facebook page.  (they keep sending me emails reminding me to come back which I think is hilarious!)  That was the only positive that came out of it for me- I felt free of the comparison and competition that I have been feeling the last few years and I am pretty sure it is because I was comparing myself to everyone on FB that appeared to be living better lives than myself.  I hope to make it a month with no FB and then see if I feel like going back.  If I do, it will be very limited.

2.   This week we are focusing on waste.  I didn't think it would be hard since I already recycle, buy thrift and we even use bath water to water plants.  However, I did not realize how many lights I leave on after I leave the room- opps:)

3.  Best way ever to keep two boys completely still for 20 minutes.... put them in front of a garage where they are pouring cement!

4.  Grant and Ashton attended their first roller skating party.  It was hilarious!  They both loved it and cried to leave.  They both wore beginner skates that made it very easy to learn and stay upright.  Ashton couldn't quite get the rolling motion down so he chose to run in his instead. 

5.  We are busy with last minute house decisions that seem to zap up all my time as you can tell by my lack of posts lately.  We are so anxious to get into our house already but still have at least a month or two until it is done.  This whole process has reminded me that I am not a patient person at all.  I had to pull out some of my old devotions from my infertility days to remind myself how to be patient.

6.  I think Ashton is finally potty trained.  Of course by saying this, he will probably have an accident today just to prove me wrong!  It has been a long haul but I am so proud of my big boy- he has done amazing considering how crazy our lives have been lately.  And I am happy to move into a new house and not worry about potty accidents all over my new carpet.

7.  Our last day at library time until summer- shark week. 

9. Ashton is such an old soul that I occasionally forget he is only two years old.   Lately though he has made it hard to forget.  The Terrific Two's have definitely begun for us.  "I can do it myself" is a phrase heard every three minutes.  It takes us 20 minutes to drive out of the driveway because he has to climb in the car, close the door and buckle himself in all by himself.  Did I mention before that I have no patience???  He is also experiencing the frustration of twos- he is happy one second then pitching a tantrum on the floor the next second.  Despite all these frustrating moments, I really do love two year olds.  They find so much fun in everything they do and it is such a great reminder for me to stop and have some fun sometimes.

10.  Blessing of the week:  My Seven Bible Study really has been a great experience and has opened my eyes to the life I was living and the life I want to live and teach my boys to live.  I am so thankful for the ladies that are walking down this road with me and the experiences that we are sharing together. 

Mother's Day

 

Happy Mother's Day to everyone lucky enough to be called mom. 

If  you are a mother to an angel in heaven, may peace fill your hearts today.

And if you are longing to one day be called mommy, may you find strength for your journey.

Thinking of you all today and praying for God to give you the desires of your heart. 

weekly ten

1. Mud. Everywhere.  I must get used to having mud everywhere.  Thinking I need an outdoor shower so I can wash my kids down before they come inside.

2.  Last week I noticed Grant asked me to turn up the volume on things a few more times than normal.  I asked him if his ears hurt and if he could hear and he said yes.  Monday he threw a fit to go to a church meeting and claimed his ear hurt.  I was skeptical since he has claimed illness before and then admitted he didn't tell the truth- he was fine.  I dialed up the dr and lo and behold the poor kid had a double ear infection.  Crazy how those things come up and surprise you.

3. I love the Scholastic books from school!  I am pretty sure I get more excited about new books than the boys do!

4.  Just a sampling of the donations heading for Africa's Child this week.  For my 7 Bible Study, we are purging 7 things from our lives each day.  I am a classic hoarder so this was a difficult project for me.  I purged way more items than I needed to get rid of, but it felt so good so I kept going.  Hoping to decrease the amount of boxes that get moved while also changing the way I look at stuff.  Up until now, I was consumed with wanting more and more and keeping up with family and friends when they got more and more.  Now, I am re-thinking the way I look at stuff.  Wearing new clothes and having fun shoes is not going to change who I am as a person so why do I feel that I constantly need new ones every season?  Not saying that I can't ever get anything new, but do I really need 10 pairs of jeans or will 5 do just fine?  I am learning that I have so much excess stuff and the desire to always want more and keep up with the Jones' is so against everything I claim to believe in.  So why do I do it?  Change is hard, but I know it is desperately needed in my life right now.

*just imagine a picture of a couple overflowing boxes of treasures being donated.  Technical difficulties :)*


5.  Have you told your moms that you love them today?  A friend of mine lost her mother unexpectedly and instead of sending flowers and cards, she requested everyone call their moms and tell them that they love them.  Quote from her eulogy...  So, you see, it's impossible for me to have regrets. I don't regret that I didn't call her one last time, or that we hadn't had lunch lately. Because everything that needed to be said has been said long ago. But I still told her all the time how much I loved her.  

What are you waiting for.... go do it right now.

6.  Ashton's new saying... "I guess".  Example.... "I just peed in my pants, I guess."  So funny to hear such a grown up saying to come out of my little guys mouth.

7. Anyone else have a child that still cries at preschool drop off a month before the school year ends?????   I had a breakdown at work the other day after dealing with Grant's 20 minute  fit as I dropped him off.  He loves school but apparently he told his teacher he doesn't like to leave his momma.  Ironic since he has no qualms about running into the babysitters house any other day with no tears.  I am at my wits end and am really tired of all the other moms giving me the "your kid is still crying???" look.  Any advice?

8.  The last month or so I have taken the boys to library time in our new town.  It has been such a blessing- Ms Ingrid is awesome and we have made so many new friends. 

9.  Grant and I decided it would be fun to write a book.  So, he drew a picture of an egg and then told me what to write around it- so funny.

The egg tooted and then it pooped.  (every good story from a 4 year old boy must start out this way, right?)  And then it went to breakfast.  After breakfast the egg went to play.  It went outside for a bike ride.  Then it went to the theater to see a movie.  And then the egg was tired so he went home to take a nap.  After dinner he went for another bike ride and then finally went to sleep for the night.  The End.


10.  Blessing of the week: pizza night with the fam.  Last Friday the four of us headed downtown for pizza and ice cream.  Seems like a normal night out, but with the busyness of the house and Jason starting his summer job, we haven't had many meals together lately. It was just nice to slow down for a couple hours and enjoy each others company.

prayers

Today Jason's cousin will have a memorial service for her precious baby girl, Myla.  I know you understand the pain of this day and the pain to follow.  You know the prayers she needs that she can't quite come to say herself right now.  Please join me in lifting her up in prayer.

weekly ten

1.  My excuse for being a bad blogger lately.... I was kidnaped by this masked crusader.

2.  Jason and I were blessed to have a kid free weekend last weekend.  Unfortunately we didn't have anything super romantic planned unless you call house shopping romantic.  Nothing like waking up at 8 am on your first day to sleep in in over 6 months!  We spent the entire weekend ordering appliances, furniture, browsing granite slabs, picking out fireplace stone, checking out wood floor options, planning our electric in our basement and Jason even snuck in a little plumbing.

3.  All of that shopping may sound like fun to you, but I have decided that I am the worst decision maker ever, so shopping has started to become painful for me!  I am a review reader and a second guesser.  Appliances were a nightmare and I am still waking up at 4 am wondering if our furniture is going to be ok.  Note to self:  never ever tell people what you are planning on buying.  They all have opinions and they are usually never the same as yours:)

4.  On Saturday night, we were able to get out to our local hibachi for a fun date night.  We ended up sitting around the hibachi with a bunch of people we knew so it was a ton of fun.  We closed out the night with Snickers martinis and lava cake at our favorite local restaurant.  On Sunday night, I woke up not feeling well and found myself running to the bathroom.  I threw up a few times and was feeling horrible.  I couldn't believe I got the stomach flu again this year.  I was so worried because I had been around pretty much all of our family on Sunday.  My day care provider generously offered to watch the boys for me so I could rest in the afternoon since her kids all had the flu already.  I always say the worst part of being a stay at home mom is when you are sick and can't even take care of yourself much less two active boys.

5.  On Wednesday I discovered that I was not the only one that ate at the hibachi that got sick.  Apparently I was lucky enough to get food poisoning along with about 200 others that ate there that weekend.  Thanks Wild Chef  for that fun experience.....

6.  My boys are loving the warmer temps.  They have been out playing in the woods at our new house and riding around their quad.  I just can't wait to get out there where we actually have room to play.  Although I think I may need to get GPS chips installed on them because they disappear into those woods and I seriously can not find them.

7.  This past weekend Jason's cousin gave birth to her precious daughter at 20 weeks.  I haven't heard all the details, but I know her water broke.  The news brought me back to the moment my water broke.  All those horrible memories that I have been able to put away for a while came flooding back.  My heart is breaking for her and her family.  And, I am just kinda irritated at God for taking another of our precious babies.  Please keep her in your prayers as you know how horrible those first few days and weeks are. 

8.  This week  in my 7 Bible Study, I had to wear the same 7 clothes for an entire week.  It was a lot harder than I thought it would be.  I assumed the laundry involved would be less, but I found that I was always washing clothes so I would have something to wear the next day.  There were times I put wet jeans on and a few hours that I wore only my cami because I spilled something on my only dry shirt.  It was very eye opening to me and I will never ever stand in my closet and say I have nothing to wear.  BTW- people don't notice you half as much as you think they do- not a single person mentioned that I wore the same outfit to work, church and playdates.

9.  We were finally able to get out our spring jackets to wear to church this weekend!  I just can't get over how adorable these two are....

10.  Blessing of the week:  A date with Ashton.  I had to run to World Market on Saturday so Jason took Grant to go plumb the house and I took Ashton shopping.  A while back I stopped taking them shopping with me due to the screams that ensued when I refused to purchase every toy they saw.  I was anxious to see Ashton in action all by himself because since the screams are usually coming from the naughty 4 year old.  He was amazing.  I did my pre-engagement with him before we went in and told him he could touch but not take.  He would touch a toy and then put it right back on the shelf.  I even dared take him to Five Below which is wall to wall toys and he didn't shed a tear at all when we left empty handed.  What a blessing it was to have a positive shopping experience with a child in tow.  This makes me long for next year when Grant is in school and Ashton and I get to spend three mornings a week together- just us. 

                                                          He definitely made me laugh!  :)