Awe of a Child

(Written on 5/27/13)

We were able to spend some time with friends last night grilling out at the Marina and letting the kids run around on the play ground. 

My mother-in-law came to our house right before the kids were heading to bed (so Bryan and I could have a bonfire with the adults). She was asking the kids what we did and, in only the way a two year old can, Charley got really close to her face, his eyes wide with excitement and said, "We got to play on the playground!". I just thought to myself, awe the heart of a child. Such simple things bring such great joy. 

I need to remember to find that kind of joy in the simple things in life.

Thank you Charley Bear for the reminder to look at the world with the heart of a child sometime. 

Love you Little Buddy!!

Jesus in a Stranger

Being a mommy is the greatest job in the entire world. I love being at home with my little ones on a daily bases. However, there are days that it can be exhausting and frustrating. Today (4/24), was one of those days.

All four of us go to BSF on Wednesday mornings. We have to leave the house at 9 am. Now, you working moms probably are rolling your eyes at me thinking 'that's nothing, we leave at 6 or 7 or whatever', props to you! When you don't have a daily routine down for getting three kids up (Who normally sleep until 7:30/8) and out of the house by nine it can be a challenge and most Wednesdays it is. Plus, it's to go somewhere the devil does not want us to go which is very evident most Wednesday mornings.

After running a few errands after, we needed to run to get groceries. Not a ton but a few. I go to Aldi's so it doesn't take long and I know where things are so normally taking all three kids is not a big deal. 

Today, was a totally different story. My bad for going around lunch. Everything put into the cart they wanted to eat, right then and right there. Grant just pointed and cried at everything, Charley wanted to sit in the back of the cart but wanted nothing to touch him and wanted to open everything & Payton thought it was her job to inspect the fruit. It was a nightmare and I was on the verge of breakdown. I was by the butter (if you shop at the 24th street Aldi you know how quickly this trip went south) :) when the headache and blurred vision set in (yes, stress can cause blurred vision, weird as it is),  when a lady came up to me and placed her hand on my shoulder and said, 'You are a great mom. Don't let anyone ever tell you different'. 

Thank you Jesus for sending this stranger at just the right moment.

I can't say the rest of the trip all of a sudden turned into a joyous event but it kept me from having a mental breakdown and gave me the courage to go to Family Fare after to get milk. :)

Favorite Things Party

A while back a friend of mine had a 'Favorite Things' party and I never blogged about it but I HAVE to because it was so much fun. I suggest everyone who has a close group of friends (or even just a group of friends) have one. 

Here is the scoop...Everyone that is invited brings a favorite thing (times 3) that is around $10. It can be anything! A few of the things people brought were hair product, book, jewelery, nail polish, amoung other things.

When we got there we were each given a chance to explain what we brought and why. There were then 3 rounds of picking. My friend drew names for order and after each round all the names were put back in. When your name was drawn you got to go to the 'Favorite Things' table and pick an item. 

At the end of the night everyone took home 3 other 'favorite things'. So I got an awesome book, fantastic body lotion, and one of my favorite hair product which just happened to be someone else's favorite too. :)

It was a lot of fun and I plan on doing it with another group soon. We have even talked about doing another one with the same group. 

They Like to Move It, Move It

Car Seat Cozies

While I was prago with G. I got an email for a 'free' Car Seat Canopy. You know, the kind you get all the time when you are prago because mysteriously the Internet and every baby company knows you are expecting. Anyway, I LOVED this thing. It kept him warm when it was cold, dry when it was rainy, and shaded in the sun. It however, wasn't the cutest thing ever which really was no big deal to me but when a friend of mine found out she was expecting her second baby she asked if she could buy it from me. I told her she could just have it because I basically got it free anyway. But when she found out she was having a girl (the first girl grand baby on her hubbies side after like 7 boys :) I thought, it would just not do.
After a short examination of the cover I decided I could make one, a cute one. Even add some cute flowers and such. So I did. And here is the end product. 

After seeing how cute it turned out my sister and I decided her company, Dani Lane Designs, should start carrying them. 

They should be in their Etsy shop soon so stay tuned. 

Here is a little teaser...

Half Birthdays & Cake Pops

A few weeks ago, actually about a month ago now, Payton got to celebrate her half birthday at school. She is one of the lucky ones who gets to really celebrate her half birthday because she is a summer 'baby'. :) 

This was a big deal. I was the parent helper for the day and she got to wear a birthday crown, which only lasted for a few minutes because she got sick of it but still, it was a crown. I am kicking myself for not getting any pictures of here on the day but we still have the crown so I might have her throw it on and snap a few of her at home. 

Of course we had to bring in a birthday treat so we went to work on making some cake pops. I had never made them before so I got a few pointers from a friend of mine and did a little searching on the internet and here is what we came out with.

Not bad for our first go at it. They tasted wonderful as well, which is clearly more important but I was happy they were cute too. :)

Short Get Away

Bryan and I were blessed enough to get the opportunity to 'get away' for a few days last week. Thanks to my parents who were willing to take our children for four days and to my in-laws who graciously help with some expenses and gave us a place to stay.

My in-laws spent the month of February in Key West staying in a nice two bedroom condo. They opened their doors to us for three nights and four days. It was just a short escape from life but it was just what we needed. 

Also, thanks to my brother for watching our biggest baby, Chester. I think Chester was in heaven. 

Excited to be in FL. Not too excited about the long drive but he did so good. Thata boy! :)

Ready to get there...even though we were only in Miami yet.

The In-laws

My view....awhhh. (the book is 'Unbroken' btw and I highly recommend it)

Good friends we never get to see so why not meet up in Key West. Because Grand Rapids is just too far away! ;)

Southern most point.

Ready for a drink after a long day of traveling.

The crew at the 'Hook & Cook'. You catch the fish, they fry, grill & blacken them. Amazingly good!

Peppers. You can try all the hot sauce you want. For me, that was zero. I stuck to the BBQ and Sweet Sauces. My hubby, on the other hand, was in heaven.

Lunch on the beach

I met a freind, 'Sailor'.