happy camper

How cool are legos? Katy had some birthday money from Grandma and Grandpa Beardshall she decided to spend on this beaut. How cute is that?

She made me laugh so hard when we went to the toys section and she informed me that she just wasn't really into all "this stuff" meaning pretty much everything on the girl isles. She decided that since she is so good at legos, they would be a good investment with her birthday money.

Like I mentioned before I am trying to take a more creative approach to gift giving this year. I feel like all too often I buy "fad toys" that end up breaking and my kids loosing interest in them. I want to try to invest in more classic toys that I know will stand (or at least I'm hoping) the test of time.

We have Katy a kids sewing machine, a sewing book (let's sew together), and a huge box of most everything she will need to get going on some projects. She, of course, opened the book up and declared she was going to make a robot doll fist thing....but I had to remind her that we need to learn how to use her sewing machine first! Let's start with the basics here. Her enthusiasm about the whole thing is adorable and I figure if worse comes to worse at least (hopefully) she will have a basic knowledge of sewing that will be somewhat useful for her in the future.

She also received (thank you to grandparents and loved ones) TONS of art supplies (which will always be a winning gift in Katy's book) and clothing. She is lucky she has so many people that love her so.

around here

This was my view for most of the second half of my day. Katy endlessly creating and drawing, Will turning up the charm for the camera (even though I'm trying to be sneaky and take a candid shot).

I spent the night downtown with my mom and sisters for our annual girls trip getaway (something we have done for my mom the last 7 years). We usually give it to her for Christmas and go in the spring. Truth be told, we already went on a getaway earlier this year, but with upcoming babies we decided the best thing to do would be to go early.

It's always nice to take some time out for yourself. Steve is a great husband in letting me do this every year, and happily reported that the kids (for the most part) were really well behaved while I was gone.

My mom, sisters and I had a lot of time to talk and catch up. My little sister is due next spring with her first and was conveying her fears of becoming a mom and having that responsibility. It's crazy when you have your own kids how you just figure it out...perhaps because there is no other way than to just dive right in (what other option do you have anyway?).

Pregnancy for me is hard in a sense that I feel a bit out of control with my emotions. I am usually a very level headed easy going (at least in my mind *wink*) kind of person. I seem to loose my patients with the littlest of things when I have a bun in the oven. I have yelled more that I would like to admit, with this pregnancy, at my kids (insert sad face). The thing is, at the end of the night they always willingly throw their arms around my neck, kiss my face and tell me they love me. Which of course melts my heart and makes me want to try even that much harder the next day to just be better.

Being away from my family doesn't make me appreciate them more, I don't need to leave them for that. Being aways from my family just makes me realize how blessed I am to get to deal with the occasional (sometimes not so occasional it feels like) fight between siblings, that Will is a kid with so much energy it seems to be bursting out of him 24 hours a day (which can be really exhausting), that Katy is the very most sweetest sibling anyone could ask for (she teaches me so much every day), and that Steve is pretty much the grandest thing to be invented since sliced bread!

I am grateful for everyday moments, around here, that I get to spend with my family. They are some of the very best people I know.

On a side note our painted leaf project was another success this year. Will even got in on the action with us.

cheers to 6 years

I can't believe this sweet girl of mine is 6 years old. When most people find out they are going to become a mom, while ecstatic, worry about raising a kid. For some reason I was not worried in the slightest about becoming a mom (as much as I was trying to figure out how I was going to get through labor!). Katy is a dream come true in the kid department. She made the transition into becoming a mother quite smooth. 

She even let Will open her presents.

would you like some cheese with that?

This picture kills me on a number of levels. I'm seriously at a loss where my kids got the "cheese" face from. Oh and they actually say "cheese" too. Will is demonstrating this as seen above.

He has been having a particularly rough go of things this week. I feel like he is not trying to be bad, but also that he knows better. I know, I know he's only 2 but I think he uses that cute face to his advantage. When I saw him taking selfies with my Instax camera again (wasting a lot of film) I got mad at him and made him sit in his room (seriously the third time this week he had some how MacGyvered my camera from the shelf). When I went to have a "Full House Moment" with him, he kept saying sorry and he gave me a big hug and kiss....which turned into lots and lots of kisses all over my face. And of course I totally melted and he had me wrapped around his finger again. This kid is going to be trouble for this sucker of a mom. Dad wasn't as moved with him when he found a pen in the back seat of his brand new truck and decided to have an art show all over the seats! Your on your own for that one buddy.

good bye mr. tooth

September 2, 2014
First Lost Tooth

As you can tell this girl was a wee bit excited about her first lost tooth. It was loose for several days, actually. I tied a piece of floss around it and she walked around all day tugging on it ever so gently. I finally convinced her, through my many years of having teeth, that I could just get it in one quick tug. That tooth went flying...we were lucky to find it. Katy and Will erupted into cheers and screams. Lucky for her the tooth fairy had a 2 dollar bills on hand. She was one happy camper when she woke up in the morning. Just another reason she is growing up too fast.