Around the house

Hayley is great with analogies. She volunteered to give us our FHE lesson and used this box as her 'boat' which had a hole in it (sin) but she was saved by a life jacket (the Savior).

I have brilliant children.

(I took this picture because she was teaching with some serious passion. Can you see it in her eyes?)

Tia held him in this position and sang to him for at least 10 minutes. I kept checking on him thinking for sure he'd be struggling to get away (sometimes Tia can be a little overwhelming), but he just laid there all content.

And this is my family winding down at the end of the day...Ty the center of it all, as usual.

I don't have many crafts/domestic type things to brag about on my blog. But lookee, I tried something from pinterest and it actually worked.

Cake baked in a jar!

You're actually supposed to use wide-mouthed jars so you can just slip the cake out and what-not.

I didn't have any, so I made it in a jar that is impossible to get the cake out of.

I delivered it to a friend for her birthday, so....not my problem. ;)

More soon!

Something odd happened today...

Hayley told me that for her spring music concert in May she would like to wear a skirt.

A skirt, people.

If that isn't blog worthy, I don't know what is.

Friends

For most of our married lives, J and I have lived far far away from family (far away as in like across the entire country.) We miss them always, and dream of a day where we will all be close together again...throwing parties for the holidays, bbq's in the summers, and playing games late into the night, just because we can.

As a result of there being so much distance between us, J and I have really learned to depend on each other, and to really value the good friends we have made over the years and in all the places we have been.

It is these friendships that have been on my mind lately..

I am so grateful for the friends who I haven't seen in years, but that still care to keep in contact..to share the news of their families, and who still have an interest in what is going on in our lives.

For the friends who are aware of my many flaws but love me still.

For those who forgive me when I forget important dates...(like birthdays)

I'm grateful for the friends that know me enough to know that I will hardly ever answer my phone...(because usually it's at the very bottom of my purse....on vibrate...or just lost), and will therefore email or facebook me their msg's instead.

For those who have traveled a really long way just to come visit :)

I love our camping buddies, our game night families...my tennis competitors and my walking/crafting/thrift shopping/idea swapping partners.

I love the friends you can invite over to hang with you while you fold your laundry, and they're like "I'll be there in 5 minutes."

I'm grateful for the friends that have inspired me to want to be better...to want to know more...

The friend that you can text and be like "I'm at the store, what did I come here for again?"

and they text back and say "baggies." That's the one you know will always have your back ;)

The friends that are as excited as you are when something great happens in your life.

The friends that pick up something for you at the goodwill because it made them think of you...

Those that make you smile or crack UP when you just think about them....that bring apples to the movie theater because they know that is your snack of choice...those that you can walk into their house and know exactly where to find the measuring cups, the kitchen shears, and the PAM. Those that no longer clean their house for you. That's the measure of a true friend.

I'm so thankful for those that are encouraging and uplifting, and that don't judge you when you have a few bad days...in a row. Or weeks.

That make you feel like your pregnancy mustache isn't noticeable, your acne isn't that bad, and it's ok that you haven't washed your hair in 3 days.

The ones you can open your heart to, talk about anything with, and you know they GET you.

Each friend is unique, and has added to my life in such a different and significant way.

Love to the Amigas everywhere! (I feel like I need to do a fist pump with that) But seriously sending my love to you for real.

I feel like the luckiest lady ever.

Happy Valentines Day sleepy head.

This card was sent from my Grandma Grether. Every year since I can remember we have received valentines cards from her with a $2 bill inside. This is Ty's very first source of income. ;) Thanks for the sweet cards GG.

And these were the cards I made for my favorite people in the world, because my love for them is so big. The cards were standing up on the chairs when everyone came out for breakfast. When Ty saw them, he was a little scared, and buried his face in J's chest. ahaha. My boy, already afraid of love.

My girls after a long day of partying and valentine exhanging. I swear they got as much candy that day as they did on HallowEEN.

This is Ty's new favorite 'play thing'. Why don't kids ever like to play with the things they are suppOSED to play with?

If you get too close to him he likes to stab you with it.

We're still teaching him how to be soft.

I don't know, Pooping ? Or maybe just reeeeally confused.

And the cuties.

I love my 4 Valentines.

They are my whole world.

Just a quick story,

Yesterday we were driving to an open house in Newark, a city about 25 minutes South of us. While en route Tia asked, "Are we in New York city?"

"Nope," I said, "We are in Wilmington."

"But are we in Delaware?"

"Yep." I said

"Mom, can you please say 'Delaware' after you say the city, so I know what state we are in?"

Later on, she asked where we were again, and I said we are almost to Newark.

"Mo-ommmmmm," she said, sounding very annoyed, AND on the verge of tears. "You forgot to say DELAWARE, after the city!"

Hahaha.

Well Excuuuuuuuuuse me. I didn't REALIZE it was so IMPORTANT to tell you every 10 MINutes that we are STILL in the same state that we were in 10 minutes ago!

Sometimes I just need a mental break.

All smiles

9 months old

Unlike many other moms, I don't really keep track of my baby's monthly stats. I have no idea how much this kid weighs anymore. I don't know how tall he is. I don't know the day he started crawling for the first time, or the day his first, second, third or fourth tooth popped in.

And to be honest, I don't really care.

All I know is that he has brought more joy to our family than the 4 of us know what to do with,

and I thank my Father in Heaven every day for sending such a sweet little miracle into our home.

Had to add a few shots of his tongue sticking out. I've noticed he does this when he's focused and/or exploring.

When J comes home for lunch,

we sit and chat while he eats. He tells me about the latest drama at work...we laugh..he talks about the latest news....about jobs around the country that were posted that day, and "how would I like to live in ____________ (insert state)?" I nod my head and raise my eyebrows when appropriate....say "mhmmmm" and "I KNOW, right?" whenever there's a pause in his story, but really I'm just admiring how good looking he is, and wondering how I scored such a sweet deal in marriage. On this particular day I thought he looked especially dashing in this shirt, so I said, "Go ahead and keep talking," as I went and grabbed the camera.

And shot pictures of him while he ate.

"What are you doing?" he asks

Taking pictures of you. Duh.

Ok psycho.

And then he keeps on talking/eating

(Note that he ALWAYS leaves his sandwich crust on the plate)

Since the most exciting thing in MY life is whether or not I got a shower that day....I don't have a lot to add to the conversation. Sometimes I'll have awesome Goodwill finds to show him.

But rarely does he find them as awesome as I do.

For instance, here is a conversation we had just yesterday.

"Babe, look what I found at the G-dub today. Checkitout, you make ICE CREAM in a T-SHIRT. Family Home Evening Activity Tonight."

J: Blank Stare "How OLD is that mix?"

I look on the box for a date. I find it. 2003, which meant the mix was almost 10 years old.

"I'm not telling," I say, feeling like an idiot.

"Yeah, Goodwill had the last laugh on that one." He said.

Whatever. Moving on to the next item.

Still in it's wrapping, Apples to Apples, BIBLE edition.

More Family Night Fun!

J bursts out laughing.

It's a perfect Sunday activity, I say.

"How much was that?" He asked

"Like 2 dollars," I say.

Really it was 3, but I always round down by at least a dollar when I'm revealing my Goodwill purchases to him....for obvious reasons.

He then made another smart remark about us being the only people EVER to own this game.

I didn't appreciate his sarcasm.

And then there was this beauty. A friend of mine posted this on her blog as a book that her daughter LOVED from the library.

It just so happens that this little girl is having a birthday 'used book' party this month for her 1st birthday, so when I found it, I immediately thought of her.

I didn't realize however, that it had someone else's teeth marks on the front cover.

When I showed THIS find to J, he told me to stop wasting his money.

I have lost G-dub and all other shopping privileges until further notice.

I love to work out.

I love to sweat. I like to feel my heart pumping hard, and my legs on fire, and I love the soreness that comes the following day.
But this mama has a workout dilemma.
She has a baby boy, who wakes before the crack of dawn...who only sleeps for short bouts during the day and who requires her constant attention when he's awake....leaving her very little time alone to do her thang.

I have had to adjust accordingly.
Ty is now an essential part of each workout.

Allow me to take you through my routine.

1 jog up and back down 'the hill' (this is how my friends and I refer to it. It has also been called the hill of horror) with Ty in the stroller.

10 times up and down the High School bleachers with Ty in the front pack. (I'm nearing death at number 7.) Ty laughs the whole time.

20 calf raises with Ty on front pack at the bottom step of the bleachers. Ty is crying by this point. So am I.

20 Ty Curls (for the biceps)

The Ty benchpress (20)

30 Ty squats. He's pulling the limp fish in this picture goshdarnhim.

However many pushups I can do before I feel like I'm going to pass out, which believe me, isn't much. Every time I go down, I give him a kiss, or make a funny face.

30 sit-ups

Continuing on with 20 kicks over Ty's head.

10 '180 degree jump turn squats' (I have no idea what these are really called) which is TORTure, but a delightful little game of peek-a-boo at the same time.

And 30 zumba style hip rotations with Ty in my arms. Trust me, you don't want to see a picture of this.

Sweat, pounding heart, legs on fire, day-after soreness,

and quality time with the kiddo.

Five birds with one stone.

(Ladies, my place tomorrow, bring your babies, lots of fun ;)

My bundles of joy

Needed to distract the little boy somehow, so we gave him an Atlas to read.

Ate the Atlas...on to the flashlight.

Done with the flashlight, on to the spoon.

And there he is, all neggid and looking sharp as can be after his first haircut.