Stay-at-Home {MOM}ents

Field Trip!

2012-02-09T14:24:00.000-06:00

These pictures are being posted rather late, but that's just the way life goes these days, huh? Last month, Gavin was learning about transportation at preschool and took his very first field trip to a small municipal airport. Of course, I had to sign up to chaperone! So, Riley and I joined him and it was so cute.

I followed the school van in my car since I had Riley. It was such a strange feeling to watch them walk out of the building and load onto the van. Such a big boy!

We had tons of fun checking out the corporate plane and a really cool fire truck!

It was a lot of fun to watch the fireman get all dressed in his uniform/equipment. He was really good with all the kids, making them laugh and getting them involved.

I think Gavin was slightly more intrigued by these flags because, according to him, they were just like the World Grand Prix flags on Cars 2!

I was very thankful that I was able to attend the field trip with Gavin. It was a really strange feeling to be assigned a group of kids to be in charge of, bringing back lots of memories of field trips I went on with my own classrooms. I love being his Mommy.

Pinterest Tutorial

2012-02-08T15:57:00.001-06:00

I'm by no means a 'Pinterest Expert.' I don't work for them. They aren't paying me to write this. But, I've been talking about Pinterest a lot, and a lot of friends are asking me about it. Some don't get it. And honestly, I didn't either when I started. But I've learned to love it, and I've gotten so many good ideas, so I told a friend I'd post some Pinterest tips. So, here you go!

First of all, set up your boards. Think about topics you like to get ideas for and make sure you have boards for them. Recipes, fashion tips, craft idea, homeschooling topics, art you love...whatever it is. {But know you can add a new board any time you want.}

Make sure the Pin It button is added to your toolbar. That way, when you're browsing the web and find something you want to remember or come back to, you can click Pin It and add it to the board you want.

Start following people. Find your Facebook friends (or use Twitter) and start following people.

When you sign on to Pinterest, the pins that people you follow will show up on the main feed. You can also search pins of random people by selecting 'Everything' at the top and choosing a category you want to browse. I do this a lot when I want to look for wedding ideas for Megan. If come across someone random that shares similar tastes, start following them!

Want to find something you pinned? In the top right corner, hover over your name and select Boards or Pins (however you want to search for the pin).

Lastly, if you have an iPhone (not sure if there's an app on the Android or not), get the app. I love to scroll through on my phone in the middle of the night when I'm feeding Riley.

Jarrod thinks I spend too much time on Pinterest. But I quickly reminded him that if I didn't have Pinterest, I never would have found Chipotle's cilantro lime rice recipe, which we've made at least once a week since I found it. :)

Just let me know if you have questions.

ETA: You can find my boards by going to www.pinterest.com/mrspate22

Wordless Wednesday

2012-02-08T09:28:00.000-06:00

30 Things

2012-02-07T14:39:00.000-06:00

I decided I wanted to make a list of 30 things I want to do/accomplish while I'm 30. Really, it's just another way for me to make a list and check things off. Because I'm a dork like that. :) But...here is my list, full of both big and small tasks. Let's hope I can do it...

Learn to use my new sewing machine and make something special for both kids
Crochet Riley a hat
Complete C25K - Couch 2 5K
Plant an herb garden (or at least one herb!)
Create a collage in Photoshop Elements
Make from scratch - a pie, a cake, and brownies
Have a Mommy-Son date
Cook a turkey
Collect letters to spell PATE for our kitchen
Get a facial
Take the kids to the beach
Write a letter to myself to open when I'm 40 {cute idea...but I'm scared I'll forget to open it when I'm 40...still going to try!}
Figure out how to make a DVD of my Flip videos
Go to a drive-in movie
Send at least two 'snail mail' letters/cards each month {thanks for the inspiration, Lauren!}
Pay for a stranger's meal in the drive-thru lane
Give up pop for a whole month {just have to figure out a good month to do that...}
Go on a family picnic
Create a survival kit
Attend a baseball game
Organize all our photos - huge task!
Read a 'classic' book
Publish another blog book
Play in the rain with Gavin {and Riley if she's old enough when this occurs}
Start Skyping with friends
Go 'camping' in the backyard
Repurpose something...anything
Send someone flowers
Learn to make bows for Riley
Watch our wedding DVD with Gavin

A Girl and Her Balloons

2012-02-04T06:57:00.000-06:00

Well...not really her balloons, but she sure did enjoy them!

Riley spent a good half hour sitting on the floor playing with these balloons. She was fascinated by the strings, and watching the balloons move up and down.

Just another example of the simplest things that become so much more exciting through the eyes of your child...

It won't be much longer before the birthday balloons are actually hers... Sigh.

Doing Pinterest

2012-02-03T12:09:00.000-06:00

In my resolutions for this year, I talked about wanting to actually DO the things I've found on Pinterest. I can spend hours on that site if I wanted, but it does me no good if I don't actually do some of the things I find. So, I was busy this month!

On top of the numerous recipes we've tried, I also made these:

I found a planner I loved on there, but instead of printing it out repeatedly, I put it in a frame and use a vis-a-vis marker to write on it each week, then erase with a baby wipe!

I love this, but I think I might change the background to gray. I framed each state the kids were born in, with a heart on the city...Kettering for Gavin, Bentonville for Riley.

This is our new 'I love you because...' frame. Again, we use vis-a-vis markers on it. It's a simple way for Jarrod and I to let each other know the little things we appreciate and love about each other. Of course, Jarrod had to write something silly on my birthday, and he let Gavin draw me a picture, too.

And, as silly as it seems now, it took Pinterest to inspire me to put hooks in my closet to hang my scarves. Duh!

If you're not on Pinterest and want an invite, let me know!

30

2012-02-02T15:54:00.000-06:00

It's crazy to me how so many people make a big deal out of turning 30. It just doesn't phase me for some reason. I guess it sounds older to say, but I don't feel like I'm any different today than I was yesterday or the day before. I'm really looking forward to spending my 30s with my wonderful family and seeing what adventures life throws our way.

My birthday was wonderful. Riley was up a lot the night before, so Jarrod made me coffee and biscuits, and brought them in to wake me at 6:30 before he left. That's sleeping in for me these days! Gavin, Riley and I hung out all day. I got surprised with balloons from Tori and Sara, and flowers from Jarrod. I got wonderful cards in the mail from my family, lots of texts, phone calls, and tons of Facebook messages. Jarrod came home from work and we had a nice dinner together...nothing spectacular ~ homemade crunch wrap supremes and cilantro lime rice...Taco Bell and Chipotle all in the convenience of our home!

I'm working on a list of 30 things I want to do this year....I'll share that soon!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-02-01T13:34:00.000-06:00

Our Weekend in Words

2012-01-30T13:57:00.000-06:00

We had a lovely weekend, and I didn't take a single picture. Sometimes it's nice to just enjoy the moment...though of course, I love taking pictures when I can!

Friday night, we ordered pizza for a quick meal, Gavin and Daddy played like crazy boys before bed, and then Jarrod and I cuddled on the couch with some drinks and watched Hangover 2. Though I didn't think the movie was as good as the first, it was really nice to snuggle and watch a WHOLE movie, meaning we didn't fall asleep! Riley slept awful that night, though, so I ended up on the couch with her for much of the night.

Saturday, Gavin had a haircut bright and early, then after nap time, we went over to Adam and Jill's house and had some yummy food and played Dominoes. That was a lot of fun, too.

Sunday, we had brunch at Amy and Chris' house. The food was delicious and it was so cute to see Gavin and Lucas play together. I love that the kids are getting to a point where they actually play together and not just beside each other. They had a lot a fun. Caleb and Riley were super cute, too, sitting on the floor watching each other play with toys. Good times with good friends!

After we left there, we made a quick stop at Walmart to return a couple tings. We also went down the sewing machine aisle, because I was looking at Amy's while we were there and wanted to show Jarrod the one I was looking at online, and he put one in the cart! I'm so excited for my birthday present. He just keeps telling me 'you better use it!' I can't wait to learn how to work it and make some cute things for us.

Since the weather here has been really nice, Gavin spent time helping Daddy before dinner in the yard, and then we grilled pizzas for dinner. It was a really nice weekend. I LOVE our weekends together!

6 Months!

2012-01-27T15:31:00.000-06:00

I can't believe you are 6 months old, Riley! Where did the time go??? This post is going to be picture heavy...they all turned out so.darn.cute.

Riley Savannah is about 16 pounds 3 ounces now, and quickly outgrowing all her 3-6 months clothes. We've recently upgraded to size 3 diapers, and are happy that we've found Luvs, which have worked the best for her with no leaks! She's not nursing as much through the day, and is eating lots of yummy food now. I've really enjoyed making Riley's food; seeing how easy it is makes me wish I had made Gavin's food, too. So far, she's had oatmeal (ok, I didn't make her oatmeal; I just bought Gerber) avocado, green beans, peas, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, bananas, and apples (I cheated and bought natural applesauce...). Tonight we're trying pears! We just tried green beans recently, and they were the first food she didn't really seem to enjoy as much as the others. Some nights she doesn't want to eat much, others she eats two bowls and still wants more. We've also been working on drinking from a cup in hopes that one day, I'll be able to do an evening party and it won't be a big deal for me to be gone. One day...

She's sitting up really well now, and has finally figured out that rolling actually gets her places! She rolls all over the place. Yesterday, she made it from her mat to the pack and play while I was in the kitchen. Some of her favorite toys are her exersaucer, her Fisher Price table, and really anything she can get into her mouth. She's not really babbling much as far as the da da and ba ba sounds go, but she sure knows how to use her vocal cords! She's a screecher! This week, we've also noticed how she is recognizing her name.

Riley definitely isn't a horrible sleeper, but she also slept better as a newborn and when she was the rock and play in our room. Since moving to her crib, she's been waking every few hours and I've been going into her so that she doesn't wake up Gavin. Last night, she finally rolled over in her crib, so swaddling her legs has to stop...which means last night was not a good night, and she ended up sleeping on my chest on the couch. Brought back a lot of memories from how Gavin and I slept for so many months! I think her being sick this week has added to the downward spiral of her sleep.

Apparently the photo shoot bored her because she started eating her toes and then took her headband off!

We don't really have a routine...everyday is a little different since some days we're home all day and others we're not. The one thing we can count on is that she will fall asleep while nursing after dinner, and then sleep anywhere from 10-45 minutes before she wakes back up for another hour or so. It's her nightly catnap. Baths are still one of her favorite things, and boy does she make a mess! I get soaked during baths because she kicks so much.

I'm still in shock that she's already 6 months old. She's losing the itty bitty baby-ness and turning into a mobile, loud, little girl!

Eagle Sighting

2012-01-26T14:48:00.000-06:00

Today is Riley's half birthday! Can you believe it?!?! But, it's already late afternoon and I have so much to do since I was gone all morning with Gavin's field trip {fun!} so I'm going to edit and post her official 'month-day' pictures tomorrow.

For today, I want to post these pictures that I already edited. Over the weekend, a friend of Jarrod's told him about this place that we could go to see eagles. So, we packed up the car and drove 15 minutes and ended up on this dirt road with cows and barns everywhere you looked. {That's one of the cool things about living here - 15 minutes one direction and you're at a mall with P.F. Chang's; 15 minutes another direction and I feel like I'm completely lost in the middle of nowhere!}

Anyway, as we get to this dirt road, I asked Jarrod if he knew where we were going. He admitted he didn't, and said he thought we'd see other pulled over. I thought he was crazy, and then sure enough, just ahead, we see four cars pulled over and people out with binoculars. The bad part of this excursion is that Gavin was really excited to see them, but he couldn't. They were too far away for him to figure out what he was looking at, and I don't think he really got the whole binocular thing. But, he did get to see them on the computer when we uploaded these pics. Pretty cool! It brought back so many memories of being in Skagway (or maybe it was Ketchikan...now I can't remember) on our honeymoon and kayaking around Eagle Island.

If you're not sure what you're looking at, look for white golf balls in the trees (really their heads).

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-25T12:58:00.000-06:00

Oh, Jarrod...

2012-01-24T15:10:00.000-06:00

I have to write this story down so we can laugh about it again one day... We're laying in bed last night watching Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (gotta love trashy TV with my hubby!) when Jarrod asks me what the traditional anniversary gift is for 5 years. I told him I didn't know and asked why he was wondering. His response: Well, your 30th birthday and our anniversary are coming up, thought maybe I should lump them together for one big gift. I immediately started cracking up and informed my lovely husband that we celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary last April! We got a good laugh out of it for sure!

It did get us talking about what I want for my birthday. I've been saying for a while now that I want a sewing machine, and I think Jarrod finally gets that I'm serious because he asked me this morning if I'd looked into them. I've also told him that I want the Zumba game for our Wii. I tried on some clothes this morning at Target, and can't help but think that nothing looks right on me right now. I'm trying to lose the rest of the baby weight, and I hate spending money on clothes now that will {hopefully} not fit me in the spring/summer. {I'm down 3lbs in 3 weeks...so I consider that 'on a roll!'}

Of course, what I'd love is to be able to see my family for my birthday. Can't wait to see them again! Hurry up, June!

Daddy's Little Girl

2012-01-23T07:50:00.000-06:00

To say I love seeing these two together is an understatement.

Considering Riley won't take a bottle, which leaves all feeding duties on me, and how she's now in a 'mommy phase' and cries when others try to hold her, I'm so thankful that Daddy and his little girl still have a special bond.

I can't wait to watch it blossom as Riley grows. I know he's going to take her fishing, camping, and probably try to get her to go hunting, but I also can't wait to watch him dance around the living room and have tea parties with her dolls.

Daddy loves you so much, Riley-Burger. And Mommy loves how you light up whenever you look at him. You saved your first smiles just for Daddy, and it's obvious he still makes you so happy.

Daddy always said he wanted a little girl, and now he has you!

Annual Client Appreciation Sale

2012-01-20T06:47:00.000-06:00

Thank you for being such amazing clients, hosts, and friends! I appreciate you so much, so in celebration of my 3rd anniversary with Tastefully Simple, we're having a special. Today and tomorrow (Friday and Saturday), any order that you email to me or call into me will qualify for the following special:

Spend $33, and I'll add on a Beer Bread for just 3 CENTS! Spend $53, and pick a dessert of your choice for just 3 CENTS! Spend $73, and you can select any spice for just 3 CENTS! Or spend $93 to select any drink for just 3 CENTS!

Please note, online orders will not be eligible for the special since I cannot edit your order. Also, orders placed for an ongoing catalog or taste-testing party are not eligible. Sorry for any inconvenience.

I hope you know how wonderful you all are! You are the heartbeat of my business, and I thank you for your support. It's a great time to stock up your pantry!

Have a great weekend!

A Day in My Life

2012-01-18T09:31:00.001-06:00

{With 2 kids!}

This is one of my favorite posts to do because I know that someday, I'll love looking back at how we spent our days. I realized recently I hadn't done a post like this since Riley was born, so it was time to do one! Brace yourself...two kids just means more pictures to take during the day. This could get long! Here was our day yesterday.

4:30am - Up with Riley to nurse, put her back to bed

5:00am - Heard Riley again, so I just went to get her and put her in bed with us

5:55am - Got up to start coffee and found Gavin in the bathroom...he's started getting up to go to the potty by himself now, yet another sign he's growing up.

Jarrod's out of the shower, I get in, Riley wakes up

6:25am - Daddy leaves for work. Gavin eats breakfast and I put Riley on her playmat.

7:00am - Mommy's ready!

Gavin plays Angry Birds...

...while I try {unsuccessfully} to get Riley to nurse one more time before we leave.

We brush teeth, I refill my coffee, and we're all in the car and ready to pull out of the driveway at 7:48am. On the drive to school, I talk to my mom for a few minutes.

8:10am Arrive at preschool. Gavin washes his hands and hangs up his coat and backpack.

I talk to his teacher for a few minutes.

8:20am - Riley and I are back in the car {she's all bundled up...it's cold here!}

Time for errands. While Gavin's at school, we go to the bank, to two different friends' houses to pick up crockpots they're letting me borrow for the open house tomorrow, Walgreens, and Walmart.

10:40am - Got back to school. I nursed Riley in the car and replied to a couple emails.

Riley and I went in to get Gavin, and the door wasn't open yet, so I sneaked a picture of him through the window. He was reading in the library.

"Mommy!" My favorite part of preschool...picking up this cute boy.

11:15am - Quick stop in Target because I forgot one thing at Walmart.

11:40am - Home! Time to unload the car.

12:10pm - Lunchtime. Gavin had a PB&J, oranges, yogurt, and milk. My lunch was the oh-so-appetizing combination of the crust off Gavin's sandwiches (I hate to waste it...), leftover meatballs in Bayou Bourbon Glaze, and some orange slices. Riley tried to eat her feet.

While I wait for Gavin to finish lunch, I changed Riley's diaper and soaked some bath toys. I hate bath toys!

Riley played on her playmat for a few minutes. I swear I put her in the middle of the mat.

12:35pm - Family Reading Time. This is something new we started recently. I decided that I wanted Gavin to see us read more, so before we go in for a story and naptime, we have ten minutes of 'family reading time.' We all have a book to "read" until the timer goes off. Gavin looks at pictures, searches for letters, uses his Tag Jr., etc. Riley chews on her books. :)

12:45pm - One of my new favorite times...Stories before nap! Riley is usually awake at this point, and with her sitting now, she loves to read with us. I love their smiles!

1:00pm - Naptime for Gavin. Riley nurses, and is asleep by 1:15.

1:15pm - Tastefully Simple work...enter parties and orders, conference call with my business coach, set up a Freezer Meal workshop for February, and start a new business account for a local realtor.

2:40pm - Look who woke up!

Diaper change for Riley and play time in the Exersaucer while I build Gavin an Angry Bird board and start straightening up the kitchen.

3:15pm - Gavin wakes up! He thought it was hilarious how I was trying to get a picture of the two of us and kept cutting off parts of our heads.

Gavin has a quick snack and watches a show. I finish cleaning up the kitchen.

3:45pm - Nurse Riley and play Words With Friends!

4:00pm - Run the vacuum, then play Angry Birds one more time with Gavin.

4:30pm - Start prepping dinner while Riley happily sits in her bumbo seat watching me.

5:15pm - Dinner is all in the oven!

I quickly clean Gavin's bathtub and do the dishes from dinner prep while Gavin plays trains and Riley sat with her toys and the Boppy...or at least she started out that way!

When Jarrod texted me that he was close by, I got Riley in her high chair and Gavin wanted to hide from Daddy under the table. Riley thought it was the funniest thing ever and just kept watching him and laughing.

6:00pm - Daddy's home! Time for dinner...Riley has homemade peas and butternut squash. We have BBQ meatloaf muffins, parmesan roasted potatoes, honey carrots, and crescent rolls.

Riley and I played a game of "Close Your Eyes" while Gavin magically made his vegetables disappear. It's crazy what will get a kid to eat...

6:25pm - Dishes...Daddy dried, Gavin played cars on the floor.

6:45pm - Nurse Riley while I watch some DVR'd Ellen shows and Gavin and Daddy hang out. {Gavin took this picture of us.}

7:00pm - Riley is asleep on me, Gavin and Daddy are playing Angry Birds {imagine that!}

7:15pm - I try to lay Riley down while Daddy and Gavin go 'hunting' {made Jarrod's night!}...didn't work. That was her nightly cat-nap I guess!

7:30pm - Teeth brushing time and stories in bed. Love these boys!

Gavin decided he wanted to wrestle for a few minutes with Daddy instead of rocking with Mommy. Daddy definitely was Gavin's favorite last night!

7:50pm - Bedtime for Gavin.

8:00pm - Nurse Riley one last time, and she's asleep and in her crib at 8:15. Gavin's still awake so I rub him back for a few minutes.

Jarrod and I straighten up a little, watch the end of an episode of Chopped, and he looks online at some hunting stuff.

9:00pm - We're in bed watching Friends, our nightly routine. :)

9:20pm - We're both asleep! Good night...

10:30pm - Just kidding...Riley's up again. Rock her, nurse for a few minutes, back in her bed...ok, now really good night!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-18T06:52:00.000-06:00

Stay Tuned!

2012-01-17T13:26:00.000-06:00

It's my 3rd Tastefully Simple anniversary!! I can't believe it's been 3 years. What started out as an idea to get a discount has turned into so much more. I love this company, my team, my job! Even though my anniversary is actually next week, we're celebrating with an open house on Thursday, and a special all day Thursday and Friday. Stay tuned for more information about how you can land select products for just 3 cents!!!

Want information about starting your own business? Comment here and I'll get in touch with you to share information about how you can make great money and great friends for as little as $56 to start! We'd love to have you on our team. :)

You know what time it is?

2012-01-16T16:47:00.000-06:00

It's Angry Bird Time! I can't tell you how many times a day we hear that phrase. To say that Gavin is obsessed with Angry Birds is an understatement. At first, I was a little upset that he even learned about it honestly. I'd paid for all these educational, cute apps on my phone, and all he wanted to play was Angry Birds. But, the teacher in me knew I could figure out a way to make it work to our benefit.

Gavin started using his groceries to build boards not long after getting his first Angry Bird from Memaw. He'd stack the cans, ice cream cones, boxes - anything he could, really - just to knock them over with one quick toss of the bird. Soon, his collection grew, and we knew exactly what to ask Santa for...big blocks! Since Christmas, I can't think of a single day that we haven't played Angry Birds, but now we're physically playing, not just on my phone.

We have to build him a board every night after he goes to sleep to surprise him. Then, we build boards. All.Day.Long. Here are some of his boards - all built by him! Some of them he even took the picture, so ignore the cropping, etc.

Last night, he even got creative and took Riley's stacking toy apart to give each bird and pig their own helmet! We were wondering what he was doing behind the couch...

To put another spin on things, I started giving him directions and he had to follow them to build his boards. I'd say, 'Use 3 blue, 4 green, and 6 yellow' and he'd do it. He loved following the directions so much, that made him a little set of cards so he can pick one and make his board.

At this rate, we'll definitely be having an Angry Bird 4th birthday party! He is already asking for his own launcher... Oh boy!

Yesterday...

2012-01-14T07:22:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was just one of those days that I hope I always remember. It was simple. We didn't leave the house; in fact, the kids didn't even get out of their pajamas. I wasn't getting much done, but while Riley was napping, I decided to fold the laundry that was left in the dryer overnight. Out of the blue, Gavin came up to me and said, "Mom, can we go snuggle on the couch?" Yep, that was pretty much all it took; I stopped what I was doing, and we went and snuggled on the couch together, watching Bubble Guppies - just the two of us while the baby slept. I just kept kissing the top of his head and rubbing his back, trying to take in every little detail of him. I know it won't be long before he's too big to lay on the couch with me and won't want to snuggle. I even asked if I could take our picture, but he said, 'No, Mom...just snuggle!' {I sneaked one anyway on my phone!}

Last night, after we'd cleaned up from dinner, I sat down to feed Riley and of course, Gavin wanted to play Angry Birds with Daddy. Jarrod told him he wanted to play something else since they always play Angry Birds these days, and after a little hesitation, Gavin agreed. It was so cute to sit on the couch nursing Riley and watch them play Chutes and Ladders and then Toy Story Operation. Gavin loves when Jarrod gets home from work every night and can't wait to play with him, and it just makes my heart happy to see them together. When Jarrod reminded Gavin that today would be Saturday, he said, 'Yesssss! Daddy gets to stay home from wirk tomorrow!' These kids are so lucky to have a Daddy like him.

I don't know why I'm feeling so sentimental this morning, but I just love our little family!

Morning Stories

2012-01-13T10:55:00.000-06:00

I had some unexpected free time yesterday because a meeting was cancelled during Gavin's preschool time, so I swung by the library to pick up a book and realized they were having Baby Storytime. Perfect timing! Riley was so cute, just looking around at all the other babies, and now I'm hoping to take her at least once or twice a month.

The storytime made me realize that I need to spend more time with Riley and books. We read to Gavin at least twice a day, and she's usually there with us listening, but we don't usually just give her books to play with....bad mommy! So, this morning, we just pulled out some books, and Gavin and Riley read together. So adorable!

Names

2012-01-12T14:10:00.000-06:00

When I finally found my iPhone pics on my computer the other day, I realized I never showed off the letters I made for Riley's room, and I didn't upload the pictures Miss Linda showed us at Gavin's conference of how he wrote his name, and I really want to have those documented here.

I decided to paint letters for Riley's room instead of ordering a decal because I didn't know if we were going to be moving or whatnot. I repainted them twice because I didn't like how they turned out at first, and I LOVE how they turned out!

When we went to Gavin's conference in November, she showed us how much Gavin had improved on writing his name. He doesn't do this for me at home, so it was a total shock. This was late September, and you can see some random letters in there, kind of in a circular pattern. I see an A, I, and a backward G at least! :)

Then in the beginning of November, he wrote his name like this:

Now, I realize the letters aren't in order, but I was still thrilled! (And to translate...that's a lowercase n, i, backward G, A, and a v which looks like a u.

Mommy and Daddy were so proud!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-11T09:45:00.001-06:00

iPhone Pics

2012-01-10T12:59:00.000-06:00

I was looking through my files last night trying to find some saved documents and finally found the folder where all my iPhone pics were uploaded to back in November when I transferred them. I looked forever when I first transferred then and couldn't figure out where they went! Talk about making me feel stupid! Anyway, enjoy this photo dump!

Gavin took a ton of pictures of himself on my phone one day in the car...Love it!

Riley and her boyfriend, Caleb, having a conversation back in November.

Saturday morning cartoons!

Goals

2012-01-06T07:28:00.000-06:00

I've spent a lot of time thinking about this new year and what I want to accomplish, and Jarrod and I have talked about what we want to do for our family. Instead of focusing on the same big goals that we have every year (that we still have!) I decided to focus on small changes that I want to make for myself. And it sounds silly, but I think I can sum most of my goals up in one statement... I want to 'do' Pinterest!

I spend a lot of time on Pinterest, and have found tons of things I love. Crafts to do with the kids, DIY projects for the home, new recipes to try, photography tutorials, books to read, etc. This year, I want to focus on actually doing more of the things I'm finding online and not just pinning them on my boards and talking about them. I'd love to save up some money to buy a sewing machine and teach myself how to sew so that I can do some of the adorable things I've found. That's something I'd really love!

If I could end 2012 with less debt, a better understanding of my camera and editing software, a sewing machine with projects made, and having read more books, I'd be a very happy person! And of course, I want my family to stay happy and healthy. :)

On a business level, my goal is to reach $18,000 in sales this year, add 6 new team members, and promote to Senior Team Manager. All very doable, so let's see how things go!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-04T12:54:00.000-06:00

Another reason you should blog!

2012-01-03T16:47:00.000-06:00

I tell lots of people they should blog. The reasons I blog are pretty well known...it started as a way to keep our families involved in our lives after having Gavin and when we moved away, but it evolved into a way for me to capture our everyday lives and document all the little things we do so that one day we could look back and reminisce. Well, check out these pictures!

Can I just tell you how in love I am? I used Blog2Print and turned my blog into a book! It's something I've wanted to do for a long time, but never did...until Rosi gave me money for Christmas and told me to use it for something I wanted, not the kids. I knew exactly what I wanted. This is just the first year of my blog, and it's 221 pages! Every post, every picture I uploaded, every memory....it's in there! {Well, not every one...I did delete some that weren't related to the family.} And it was so easy! I just selected the dates I wanted to include, unchecked the posts I didn't want in there, and it was done. There are a couple little things, like when the title will end up on one page but the post really starts on the next, that aren't perfect, but it's so much easier than scrapbooking, and I got to include everything! See...don't you want to start a blog now?

And if you're already a blogger and want to make your own book, they emailed me after ordering my book information about their Rewards program, so if you are interested, let me know and I'll send you a link. Then I earn points toward my next purchase, which I will definitely be making soon! I can't wait to order more books.

2012 Awaits...Make it Fabulous!

2012-01-01T18:44:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year! We had a nice NYE celebration, which consisted of dinner at Fred's Hickory Inn with the Famini clan and then dessert at Yum Yos. Always a favorite! As usual, we were in bed WAY before midnight, and thanks to a certain little boy, we were up today around 5:30. Gotta love the early riser in him...he gets that from his daddy!

I haven't made many resolutions yet. I have a lot on my mind that I'm considering, and want to decide what the best goal(s) is/are for me and the family. I decided to go back to look at last year's resolutions and see how we did...

One of my goals for this year was to spend less money at Walmart through couponing, and I really wish I'd done better than I did. This is something that is on my list of ideas for this year again.

Another goal was to pay down some debt, and we did a great job with that in the spring, but unfortunately, we've added to that debt again... With buying plane tickets for Florida and Ohio, among other things, we have a HUGE goal for this year to really tackle our debt and begin a process of changing the way we live and the way we look at our money.

My last goal was to promote to Team Leader with Tastefully Simple and add 12 new team members. I surpassed the first part of that goal...I promoted to Team Leader in July, and then again to Team Manager in December, so I'm extremely proud of that! My 12 team member goal was a high one, and though I didn't reach 12, I'm so happy with the 6 new team members I did add (in addition to the 9 second and third line team member that joined us as well!)

Jarrod is off with us tomorrow again, and I'm hoping to talk about some goals for our family. I know it's going to be a great year. I'm staying positive about the house situation, and looking forward to making lots of memories this year with my fantastic family!

And before I end...a quick 'Happy Birthday' wish to Memaw from all of us!

Goodbye, 2011!

2011-12-31T08:41:00.001-06:00

I can't believe 2011 is over already. This year seemed to go really fast, but I feel like I've said that ever since I graduated college. I know the school years always seemed to fly by when I was teaching, then summers went too quickly, and now with kids of my own, our days are a blur sometimes! It's crazy to me.

This year has had its ups and downs, but of course the highlight of 2011 of watching our family and our hearts grow with the addition of Riley Savannah. Experiencing the blessing of a newborn through the eyes of her big brother has been amazing. Watching Jarrod become the Daddy of two. Seeing parts of me every time I look at our daughter. It's been more than I ever expected. Every parent worries while pregnant with their second, I think, how they'll ever be able to love another child as much as they love their first, but it just happens. From the second Dr. Schmitz placed her on my chest, it was love.

I'm looking forward to a lot of good things in 2012. This week has been a very stressful week dealing with issues with our Ohio house, and I hope 2012 brings answers , and we're able to move on and make the best out of the situation. I know that we're so so lucky to have all we do have, and I have to try my hardest to stay positive and realize it could be much worse.

To end the year, how about two photos of the most adorable kiddos around? The weather here has been gorgeous, so we got to spend some time outside yesterday and I captured a lot of beautiful shots, but these are my favorites. Happy New Year, everyone!

A New Toy

2011-12-30T07:07:00.000-06:00

So, I treated myself (thanks to my Swagbucks gift cards for Amazon) to a new little toy and I was so excited to get it and try it out. It's called a Lightscoop and you can find it at Amazon or at www.lightscoop.com. Basically, it's a device that you use with your flash, so it deflects the light from the flash off the ceiling or wall. That way, you can still use your flash to try to eliminate blur, but it won't be the harsh, bright white that I hate so much.

When it came, I told Gavin I had to try it out, so he was my model...

This was the first shot, with just my pop-up flash.

And then I put my Lightscoop on, and came the shot came out like this....

I was immediately in love! But I will say, it doesn't always work perfectly and sometimes it ends up too dark. I'm not sure if it's because my ceilings are too high, but I'm still playing with it. It was only $25, much much cheaper than a Speedlite, which can be upwards of a couple hundred dollars. Quite a steal, even if it doesn't work 100% of the time in my opinion!

Santa Came!!

2011-12-29T14:36:00.000-06:00

It's amazing how special Christmas morning is through the eyes of your child. Riley didn't get the whole Santa thing, but boy did Gavin! He was so excited and it just made the whole morning magical. Can you blame him when this is what he sees when he wakes up???

He was in shock that he actually got the Mighty Eagle (or seagull, according to Gavin) and Pickle Pop (which is the name Gavin gave that toucan a long time ago...)

It took a little convincing, but he finally was interested in opening other presents, not just making boards for the eagle to knock down.

Riley was wide awake the whole time, and loved watching Gavin unwrap his presents and hers!

I really <3 watching the two of them play together, and seeing Gavin help Riley with her new table was so sweet. We told him how he had one just like it when he was little, and so he took on the role of teacher and showed her all the ways the table worked. Made my heart smile!

Riley got a new bath tub for Christmas and we're really excited about it. She too big for the baby bathtub, so I've been bathing her in the kitchen sink, but since she isn't sitting up on her own and she squirms so much, we're worried she's going to hit her head of something when she's going through her splashing fits. This inflatable duck tub is really cool because she can lean back and relax comfortably and still have enough water in it!

And isn't this outfit just the cutest? I loved this onesie my mom sent for Riley, but since there were these adorable ruffles around her legs, I couldn't put pants on her, so I found these super cute baby legs for her to wear, and I just LOVED how she looked on Christmas day...until she had a poop blowout. Oh what fun!

The weather didn't cooperate at all for a 'white Christmas.' In fact, it was like 58-60 degrees and super sunny, so we spent some time in the afternoon playing outside with Gavin's new soccer goal. We had a lot of fun playing, me and Gavin versus Daddy. :)

We missed all of you in Ohio! Hope everyone had a great Christmas.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-28T14:40:00.000-06:00

Christmas Eve 2011

2011-12-28T07:39:00.000-06:00

Christmas was wonderful this year. Gavin was so into everything, and having our sweet Riley here with us this year just made everything that much better. It started bright and early with our morning wake up call from Gavin. He and Daddy headed out for their Christmas Eve donut date and brought me home some yummy donuts. We spent the morning getting some chores around the house done and baths taken care of, and then Gavin and I (with Riley watching) made a batch of cookies for Santa!

After naps, we made a wonderful dinner - Jarrod grilled bacon-wrapped filet mignon {AMAZING!}, we tried a new stuffing recipe {eh...not my fave}, and we roasted cauliflower {delicious!} Then we Skyped with our families back home and let Gavin open a few more gifts that they had sent here. Gavin got a new soccer goal from my family and a new wall clock for his room from Memaw. I also was able to 'give' my parents a really belated 50th birthday present while we were skyping. When we were home for Thanksgiving, I had us take a family picture and told them they didn't turn out, but really I had it enlarged for them and turned into a 16x20 canvas. I felt bad that I didn't get them much of anything for such a big birthday, so this was my way of making it up to them. Thanks, Megan, for picking it up for me!

After we Skyped, it was time for our family photo. This is a tradition I started during Gavin's second Christmas, when we were in NY and away from our family for the first time at the holidays. I decided that on Christmas Eve, before we opened presents, I'd set the self-timer and get a family photo of us in front of the tree. Most of the time it takes several shots, and this one isn't even my most favorite (Gavin looks a little out of focus to me), but it was the best of the 20 that we took!

Then it was time for the kids to open presents from Jarrod and me. When Gavin was a baby, I read a poem online and it's stuck with me ever since. They get 'something they want, something they need, something to wear, and something to read.' It makes to easy to pick out what we want to give them and what we let Santa bring.

Kisses for Sister after opening the gift she picked out for him - Angry Bird Magnets!

The 'something to wear' gift is always going to be pajamas. I originally wanted them to be Christmas pajamas, but Gavin saw some Muppet pajamas that he really wanted, so I decided to get them for him and found Riley some coordinating ones. His are Kermit the Frog, and hers have Miss Piggy and Kermit on them.

After the kids were asleep, Santa's elves were really busy making cinnamon rolls for the next morning and all the other important things we had to do before bed....wink, wink! It was a long, tiring day, but was filled with wonderful memories.

Need a house?

2011-12-28T05:44:00.002-06:00

Our Dayton home is available to rent! We're hoping to find someone sooner than later, so if you're reading this and know of anyone that might be interested, please let me know!

5 Months Old!

2011-12-27T15:02:00.000-06:00

I have so much to blog about! But first things first...someone turned 5 months old yesterday and I didn't get around to posting her pictures. :)

Riley Savannah is 5 months old. It's amazing how fast time is going. Riley is about 14.5-15 lbs right now and is almost out of her size 2 diapers. (We've tried a few different types of diapers lately because of some blowouts, but I think we're going to try Huggies Little Movers when she gets to size 3.) She's wearing 3-6 month clothes still, with lots of cute headbands, of course! Her vocal cords are getting a workout these days with all her squeals and screams! She's a very loud little lady.

We're really lucky that Riley is a good sleeper. She's in a routine of falling asleep for a catnap around 7 or 8, and then usually down for good around 9:30 and sleeps until about 4am usually. She was doing a great job sleeping in her crib until the past few nights, when she wakes up crying after only a few minutes and ends up in the Rock and Play back in our room.

She's still not taking a bottle, so my Tastefully Simple parties have definitely suffered because of that. I feel like I'm not having as many parties as I could because of the bottle issue, and I'm torn between thinking 'that's ok...she's only a baby once and we won't deal with this forever,' and 'I really need this momentum to keep going!' We'll get there... She's nursing on demand and has recently started having solids in the evening. We started with oatmeal a few weeks ago, and it took her a while to get the hang of it, but she likes it now. I'm making her baby food, and so far she's had avocado and sweet potatoes, and loved them both. I hope she's always a good eater!

These pictures are perfect to show one of her favorite hobbies...sucking on her fingers! She constantly has things in her mouth - her hands, our hands, her blanket, her bib...she's even tried Gavin's fingers, but he didn't think that was too fun. She's not teething yet, just likes to have things in her mouth.

She really loves her Bumbo seat and has recently tried sitting up with the help of her Boppy. She has rolled both ways (more from back to belly) but doesn't do it very often. Gavin is the funniest person in the world according to Riley! Sometimes he doesn't even do anything, but she cracks up. Some of her favorite toys right now include Sophie the Giraffe, her Snowman, and the rattle we have strapped to her high chair. Bathtime continues to be one of her favorite times, and she loves being tickled. :)

Riley, we all love you very much, especially your big brother. He had so much fun opening your presents for Christmas and showing you what you got from Santa. You're big eyes and contagious smile make us all so happy. You make our family feel so much more complete, and we love you more than we could have imagined.

Merry Christmas Eve!

2011-12-24T07:09:00.000-06:00

I love the magic of the season when there are kids involved. Gavin is so excited to get his visit from Santa tonight! And I have a feeling Santa is going to be very nice to him and his sister. Gavin and Daddy just left for their traditional Christmas Eve donut breakfast date, and since our baby girl sleeps in longer than his brother, I'm enjoying a few minutes of quiet, coffee, and blogging! Doesn't get much better than that!

Merry Christmas to all our friends and family, near and far. You all mean so much to us, and those that aren't in the NWA area, we miss you tons. We hope Santa and his elves are nice to you all and bring you lots of goodies to open tomorrow morning.

I haven't had a chance to play with them and work on my editing, but I really want to share some adorable pictures of our sweet baby girl. When Gavin was a baby, I took some pictures of him in the dark with Christmas lights, and I couldn't wait to try it again with Riley. It was a little different this time around, because Gavin was sitting up when I did his, and she isn't. But thanks to a little pillow and her boppy, I was able to get some shots that I love!

May your holiday weekend be Merry and Bright!

Girls' Night Out

2011-12-23T10:00:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, I was thrilled to enjoy an evening out with some great ladies for an ornament exchange. It was tons of fun, but of course, my 'little lady' had to accompany me. Before we left, Gavin snapped a picture of the two of us.

Oh, Christmas Tree!

2011-12-23T07:53:00.000-06:00

This year, Gavin and I made a chain to count down to Christmas. The chain itself proved to be a good way to cover a lot of tasks/skills.

First of all, I cut the strips, and Gavin helped me put them into a color pattern. Then, I wrote the date and an activity on each one, mixed them up, and he helped me put them back in order by number. So, we tackled patterns and number order in one easy craft!

Then, each morning we'd remove a link and do the activity for that day to countdown to Christmas. Some of the activities that were on our chain were make hot cocoa, drive around to see lights, try a candy cane, pick out a present for your sister, make paper snowflakes, write a letter to Santa, etc. One of the links asked Gavin to take pictures of our Christmas tree. He loves using my camera, so I thought he'd like this one!

Slightly blurry, and I couldn't get him to turn the camera to try to get a full shot, but I still love them!

Going down Memory Lane

2011-12-22T14:33:00.000-06:00

I love how cooking and baking certain things in my kitchen brings back so many memories of family and friends that I love so much. This year, when I started my tradition of making buckeyes for the holidays, I couldn't help but stroll down Memory Lane.

I started making buckeyes with my mom and sister a long time ago. My mom made them every year to give as holiday gifts, and when we were old enough, Megan and I loved helping her. When I went away to college, Angie, Heidi, and Lauren joined in my tradition and we all made buckeyes together every year when we did our gift exchange. After college was over and we all went our separate ways, I can remember making buckeyes alone in Centerville, and crying because I missed my friends so much. It wasn't long, though, until I had made some new, amazing friends and made buckeyes (and more memories!) with Lindsay and Sara. And when we moved to New York, I introduced buckeye making to Danielle and Shara during a playdate with all our boys. Last year, Jarrod joined me in my buckeye making extravaganza, and this year, my favorite little helper, Gavin joined in. Call me crazy, but the whole time I was making buckeyes this year, I was thinking about all those lovely ladies that have made the delectable desserts with me in the past and how the tradition started so long ago with my mom in 'Dixie's Diner.' One day, I'll be in the kitchen making them with my own daughter...and I can't wait!

So, how do you make these wonderful things? Well, here you go!

Start with two sticks of softened butter.

Add 2 cups of peanut butter.

Then, add 6 cups of powdered sugar and 2 tsp. vanilla.

Get your hands dirty and start mixing! Really...your hands are best for this part.

You'll eventually end up with a ball of peanut butter mixture like this....

Start taking chunks of the peanut butter mixture and roll it between your hands to make small balls. I place mine on a nonstick baking sheet.

This is what Gavin's plate of rolled buckeyes looked like! :)

Place the buckeyes in the refrigerator to get cold.

In the meantime, melt 12 oz. of chocolate chips and about 1/2-3/4 bar of paraffin wax (I use Gulf Wax - it's near the canning supplies at the grocery store) in a double boiler.

When the chocolate has melted and the peanut butter balls are chilled, use a toothpick to dip the buckeyes in the chocolate about 2/3 of the way up. You'll end up with a small section of peanut butter left to be seen. Transfer them back to the baking sheet, pinch the hole to close it up, and then chill again.

I realized as I was posting this that I didn't get pictures of the dipping process or the final product. I did get this one of Gavin trying to dip his...

And if you want to see what the buckeyes will look like, just check this old blog post: Buckeyes

Enjoy!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-21T14:35:00.000-06:00

Christmas Program

2011-12-20T14:20:00.000-06:00

Have I mentioned how much I love Jarrod's job here? Really, I love how flexible the people he works with are and how he's very rarely traveling. Knowing that he'd be able to leave work to come to Gavin's Christmas program was great...we both loved being there!

Ok, back to the Christmas program... Gavin had his first Christmas program for his preschool class this past week. And it was adorable! Gavin played a King in the Christmas story, and then they performed some songs they'd been practicing, had a birthday cake for Baby Jesus, did a pinata and had a gift exchange. Lots of pictures below... {And how is it that after 3 years of blogging I just now figured out that I can add a caption to the photos!?!?}

How sweet is that face?

Time to get dressed! Thank goodness for my Ergo...Riley just goes along for the ride.

The King and Queen

Oooh, what's this play about???

Lovin' his new bag from Miss Linda

Waiting patiently, listening to directions about the pinata!


Thanks to a little help from Myka's dad, the pinata finally broke and the kids all got to grab a goodie bag. :)

We had a great time at the program, and it just makes me even more thankful not only for Jarrod's job here, like I mentioned earlier, but for my job as a stay-at-home mommy. I love memories like these!

Edited shots

2011-12-19T13:18:00.000-06:00

Instead of what I should be doing, I just played around some more with Photoshop. Love these shots from the Christmas card photo shoot I set up for the kids. What do you think about the editing? I'm looking for constructive criticism!

Christmas Shoot!

2011-12-16T14:06:00.000-06:00

I was so excited to get some Christmas card photos taken of the kids. Mimi sent Riley a super cute Christmas onesie, and thanks to Pinterest, I know I wanted some pictures of her with ornaments. Gavin, on the other hand, wasn't as easy. He won't sit still for me to take the photos I want. But, since most people have received their cards by now, here are our three top pics!

Still planning to edit some of the others to post....

Trying to learn...

2011-12-15T14:26:00.000-06:00

My wonderful husband bought me Photoshop Elements when I first mentioned to him that I wanted it...almost 4 years ago! And, I'm still completely intimidated and overwhelmed by it. I have no idea what I'm doing with it. All the actions, layers, filters... I'm clueless. I even bought a book and decided I'd work my way through it, but after just a couple chapters I felt like I was never going to be able to edit my pictures without needing to use the book every.single.time. and I gave up on it. But, I'm motivated... Jarrod mentioned recently how I never use the software, and I realize it was a complete waste of our money if I don't learn it. So, I have to just jump in with both feet. Here's my first attempt...

This pic was taken in Ohio, and I LOVE it!

After playing around for a little while, this is what I ended up with...

I love how it turned out, but I still have SO much to learn. It's a HUGE goal of mine for 2012.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-14T12:24:00.000-06:00

A Few of Our Favorite Things!

2011-12-12T15:49:00.000-06:00

Since this blog is my way of journaling about our lives, I thought it would be neat to start posting periodically a list of our favorite things. This way, when we look back through our blog books over the years, we can see what we were really enjoying at different points of our lives.

Jarrod

*Anything hunting related - shows, catalogs, actually going hunting!

*Going on car rides on the weekends to explore new areas

*Weekend breakfasts with the family - gotta love bacon!

Jen

*Ellen - I love watching the episodes I DVR; her show always makes me happy

*Pinterest - if you aren't on Pinterest, you should be!

*Rocking with Gavin before bed - after spending most of the day balancing both kids, that few minutes of just snuggling with Gavin is so special.

*Peppermint mocha creamer - I wish it was available year round!

Gavin

*Angry Birds - enough said!

*Trains - always a good option for a 3 year old...

*PB&J sandwiches - if I let him, he'd probably eat 3 for lunch.

*Black olives - I just read him the list I had for him, and he told me to add black olives!

Riley

*Sophie the Giraffe - a crazy expensive teether that she just LOVES!

*Listening to Gavin snort like a pig - cracks her up every time.

*Taking baths - she loves water right now.

Massage School

2011-12-12T10:50:00.000-06:00

I realized this morning that I forgot to include pictures of Gavin's massage training he got in Cincinnati. I always look forward to visits with my sister because she gives AMAZING massages. Well, this time, Gavin wanted in on the action, so he got a little lesson from Aunt Meggie.

And I'm happy to report that he still uses some of the techniques learned to give me massages at home! Lucky Mama!

Right now...

2011-12-09T22:04:00.000-06:00

I saw this on another blog, and thought I'd copy it...

Right now, I am:
Watching - Brides of Beverly Hills
Eating - nothing...
Drinking - water
Wearing - PJ pants and a hoodie
Avoiding - cleaning the bathroom
Feeling - excited about my team meeting tomorrow morning
Missing - Jarrod; he's been hunting for the last three days
Thankful - for two sleeping children
Needing - a good night's sleep! I don't sleep well when Jarrod's gone.
Thinking - of all the things I should be doing instead of blogging
Loving - the lights of the Christmas tree...I love this time of year!

Randomness

2011-12-08T21:37:00.000-06:00

Just a few random pictures left from the trip...

We had a great time visiting for the week, and can't wait for our next time that we all get to be together. We love you guys!

So proud!

2011-12-08T07:43:00.000-06:00

Taking a moment away from the Ohio pictures, because I'm so dang excited and proud! When I started my Tastefully Simple journey almost 3 years ago, I never expected to love it as much as I do. The friendships I've made through the years are so special, even though I've never met many of them in person. I am blown away by the support everyone offers one another. Last October, I sponsored my first team member and moved into a leadership position. My team, Simply Ambitious, has taken off! In the past 13 months, we've grown from a team of one to a team of 16! In July, I promoted to Team Leader, and it was made official yesterday that I've again promoted, this time to Team Manager. I'm so proud of all the ladies on my team and I'm so excited to watch us keep growing and growing and growing! Shine, ladies! You all deserve it. :)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-07T07:09:00.000-06:00

Gingerbread Fun

2011-12-06T14:26:00.000-06:00

We decided to start a new tradition while we were visiting. The night before Thanksgiving, we order in Chinese food, which is super fun and delicious. Now, this year, we added in making a gingerbread house after eating the Chinese food. Gavin had a blast!

I was pretty impressed with how it turned out, and I think we all agreed that the gorgeous example on the box cannot possibly be made from the kit! It must have been painted on. Lol.

Riley and Beepa!

2011-12-05T13:49:00.000-06:00

Who knows if Riley will come up with a new name for him, but right now, my dad is Beepa. It's what Gavin started calling him when he learned how to talk, and it stuck. My dad was so excited to meet Riley...and I think she felt the same. :)

Riley - let me tell you a little bit about your grandpa. When you hug him, he'll tickle your side, so be prepared. He likes to make jokes, but sometimes he's not as funny as he thinks. If he's watching a movie, you might have to jump up and down to get his attention... But, he's pretty wonderful. He'll always help you out, no matter what. And you'll always know how much he loves you, because he's great about making sure all the important people in his life know that. We all love him bunches, and you will, too! :)

Lots of Riley Time!

2011-12-05T07:42:00.000-06:00

The best part of going back to Ohio this year was that so many people got to meet Riley for the first time. She didn't get much time to just lay around on the floor, practice her tummy time, or anything like that because everyone was so excited to love on her as much as they could!

Christmas in November!

2011-12-02T08:02:00.000-06:00

After the zoo trip, we headed to Pomodori's for some pizza and then went back to Mimi and Beepa's house to open presents. It was a whirlwind. I don't know who got what for the kids because Gavin was opening most of them before I could even see what the tag said. We were, once again, really spoiled from our family. Here are just a few pictures...

Some of the wonderful gifts we all received ~ Legos, tons of cute clothes, great books, a family organization binder, a Chi, hunting gear, a very special Willow Tree figurine, and money for my blog book. Of course, there's MUCH more, but too much to list! We love you all very much. Thanks for the great night!

There is one more present I want to write about so I never forget it. I got a bottle of honey for Christmas from the sweetest little boy I know. The most sentimental gift of the night, perhaps. The day after we arrived, my sister had a craft show that she was working. While I got Riley to take a nap and wrapped presents, my mom, Rosi and Briana took Gavin to the show to surprise Aunt Meggie. As they walked by a table, my mom said Gavin immediately went over to it and said, "My mom loooves honey!" Mom asked if he wanted to get it for me, and of course, he said yes, so she bought it and they wrapped it up for me. It almost made me cry to see this sweet little gift that my perfect little boy picked out just for me. I love him and his big heart so much!

We're going to the zoo, zoo, zoo!

2011-12-01T14:21:00.000-06:00

Time to get started on our trip back to Ohio. So let's set the scene... It's our first time flying with both kids. Paying for three tickets was already crazy enough, so we tried to limit the bags we had to check. We arrived at the airport with a large suitcase, two duffel bags, a smaller rolling suitcase, my Vera bag that was doubling as my purse/diaper bag/camera case, Gavin's carseat in a carseat case, Riley in the Moby wrap, and her carseat with the snap-n-go stroller. Exhausted yet? We were quite the scene.

Of course everyone was thrilled to see us, and we were just as happy to be there. After visiting for a little bit, it was time to get the kids in bed. Gavin slept in my parents' room, Riley slept with us in my sister's room, which was also my old room. It was kind of funny to lay in the bed and look around the room, remembering what it looked like when I lived there. Her walls are a lime green and this bright blue color, and it made me think back to when my choice of color for the room was BRIGHT yellow. Why do young girls have such bad taste? :)

We spent the next day hitting up the zoo! Jarrod and I love the Cincinnati Zoo, and it was great to take the kids. We had a fantastic time with all our family there - my family and Jarrod's!

Gav with his aunt and uncle in front of the gorgeous zoo tree!

I missed this guy!

Just like her brother, Riley slept through her first trip to the zoo!

Gavin learned something really cool from Beepa...let's shake the bamboo plants! Just as we saw two zookeepers walking toward us and I told Gavin to stop (hoping they wouldn't notice), my dad goes right over to it again and starts shaking it like crazy! Such a great role model. :)

I love these boys so much!

Checking out an exhibit with Uncle Travis

Before we get to our trip...

2011-11-30T14:26:00.000-06:00

I hate blogging out of order, just as I hated scrapbooking out of order. As I went to start uploading pics from the trip, I realized there are a lot of things from early November I didn't post! So...I need to photo dump some things. It will make me feel better to get caught up. :)

First of all - we went to First Fridays at the square for their Holiday Toyland. Holy madness! I think everyone that lives in our town was there. But, we wanted to take Gavin because there were special guests - Mater, Lightning McQueen and Holly Shiftwell (maybe...I can't really remember now who the third one was) were there! We didn't tell him where we were going, and I loved capturing his reaction on camera.

How fun! Unfortunately, he wasn't as excited as we'd hoped...once he saw them, the excitement was over and I couldn't get him to stand for any cute pictures. Oh well...

Then we had the birthday party of our best buddy, Lucas! A pajama party with homemade pizzas and a movie...how cool is that???

And this little cutie just bigger and more adorable this month...

And lastly....Gavin had his Thanksgiving Pow Wow at school the day before we headed to Ohio. We were invited to pick him up a few minutes early so we could take pictures of the event. He was so darn cute!

Now I feel caught up! :)

4 Months Old!

2011-11-28T12:14:00.000-06:00

We're back! What a wonderful week we had while visiting Ohio. Now, it's time to get back into our normal routine, get caught up on the blog, etc. But, before I post about our trip and the Thanksgiving holiday, someone is 4 months old!

The day after we returned home, Riley celebrated her four month birthday. These monthly pictures are already getting difficult to take because of her moving so much...I can only imagine what they'll look like when she's 9, 10, 11 months old!

I think she went through a major growth spurt this past weekend. She was sleeping like crazy! Maybe it was just her way of recuperating after our busy week. :) I weighed her on her birthday and she was a whopping 13lbs 13 oz, when just a couple weeks ago she was only 12lbs 2 oz. Her clothes are all mostly 3-6 months now, and we're in size 2 diapers now after many blowouts in the remaining size 1s. We're finishing up the Huggies Pure and Naturals and the Huggies Little Snugglers that we have, and I might try Target brand diapers now. Her skin seems to be getting drier every day, so we're a little concerned she's going to end up with eczema like Jarrod. I'm curious to see what the pediatrician has to say about it.

Since our trip home and seeing how she slept in the pack and play, we decided to transition her to her crib. It's weird not having her in our room, and I think Jarrod and I both miss it. {I think she's going to be babied a little more than Gavin since she'll probably be our last.} The first night in her crib, she did great. Woke up once, and that was just for a quick feed. Last night, however, was another story! After the fourth time waking, I put her back in her Rest and Play Sleeper to finish the night so I could sleep more than a couple hours.

She's eating every 2-5 hours...whenever she decides she's hungry, I feed her. We're still not on a real schedule, but now that we're over the busiest of the holiday season (at least for us!) I think I'm going to try to work our way into a better napping/eating schedule. The bottle situation is probably worse than it was before. Thankfully I have some very understanding and accommodating hosts who are letting Riley tag along at my parties. I can't help but keep my fingers crossed that we can get into a good evening routine soon with some solids and maybe a sippy cup that will make it easier for me to not be around.

While we were in Ohio, Riley found her feet and is definitely grasping toys better. Her hands are always in her mouth, too. She loves watching her big brother, and is now laughing out loud at him, many times for no apparent reason. Car rides are getting a little better...most of the time we can calm her down with the white noise app on my phone, but even then, there are times that nothing helps and she just cries and cries.

She is still one of the smiliest babies I've ever seen. It seems like 99% of the time, if you just look at her, she smiles! I hope she stays that happy. :) We had to visit the pediatrician a couple of weeks ago for her first fever, and you could tell she didn't feel well because she wasn't smiling.

We love you, Riley girl!

Thankful Thursday

2011-11-17T13:21:00.000-06:00

Today, I'm thankful for...

...Miss Linda, and all she's done for Gavin at preschool over the past few months. Our parent-teacher conference this morning was wonderful!
...having 9 straight days with my husband! I love when he's on vacation.
...getting to spend a week with my family! I can't wait to see you all.

One more week until Turkey Day! What are you thankful for???

Behind...

2011-11-15T15:02:00.000-06:00

I hate how behind I feel on this blog. Blogging {almost} daily was always so important to me, and still is. But, as is the par for the course at the holidays, I'm swamped! Trying to get everything tied up here, Christmas shopping done, and packing a family of four for a flight {while trying to fit as much as possible in carry-ons so we're not spending a butt load on luggage!} has overtaken my life this week. Finding a kennel for Shirley, scheduling parent-teacher conference {how is that even possible?!?!?}, squeezing in a much needed playdate for Gavin, welcoming a new member to my Tastefully Simple team....whew! Christmas decorations are up...all the gifts are bought, with the exception of a couple that we need to get in Cincy...my last party before the trip is tonight...and then tomorrow I can finally focus on laundry and finishing packing. There probably won't be much blogging going on while we're gone... But I will be playing catch-up the week after Thanksgiving for sure!

Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon When You Take the North "Poll"

2011-11-11T07:40:00.000-06:00

Melissa & Doug want you to tell them which of their educational toys you think is the best! Just click on the image below to place your vote in the North "Poll!" You'll Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon** to use at MelissaAndDoug.com just for voting!

Thankful Thursday

2011-11-10T12:33:00.000-06:00

Just a hodgepodge of gratitude...

*I'm thankful for the good sleeper that is Riley.
*I'm thankful for Words with Friends and playing against my dad. :)
*I'm thankful for my morning phone call with my mom.
*I'm thankful for my pre-lit Christmas tree, which makes putting it up so much easier than our old one.
*I'm thankful for Adam and Tony, for being so helpful and agreeing to drive Jarrod to and from work on preschool days so I can keep the car.
*I'm thankful for Miss Linda and Miss Libby for being so wonderful with Gavin at preschool.
*I'm thankful for naptime, which it now is... And today, Mommy is napping, too. Goodnight.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-09T07:30:00.000-06:00

Superman and his Ladybug!

2011-11-08T15:03:00.000-06:00

Halloween didn't go exactly as we'd planned thanks to a low fever for the little one and some tummy troubles to the big one, but we still had fun walking around the neighborhood and trick-or-treating last week! Our kids sure are adorable. :)

All Shook Up

2011-11-07T11:24:00.000-06:00

Things sure have been crazy here the past year, and from what long-time residents tell us, it's not the norm. We've had record snowfall, record rainfall, record heat...not to mention the crazy week of storms and tornado threats. Well, let's add earthquakes to the list!

There have been reports of minor earthquakes on a few occasions since moving here, but we never felt anything. Saturday night, Jarrod went to the UofA football game, and the kids and I were at a birthday party. I got them home and in bed, then snuggled up in bed for some TV while waiting for Jarrod to get home. He walked in around 10:45 or so and went into the closet to put some pajamas on. While he was in there, I noticed something. Things started to shake...at first I thought it was wind, but it continued for about 30-40 seconds. I jumped up out of bed, and Jarrod came out of the closet. I remember saying, 'What was that???' Jarrod asked if I thought it was wind, which was my first thought, too. But, I told him it was too long and thought it was an earthquake! It stopped, and we both climbed into bed and switched it to the news. It wasn't talking about any earthquakes, so I grabbed my phone to check the 'real' news source...Facebook! Sure enough - the first 9 status updates were all from local friends - "Did anyone else feel that earthquake?" "My house just shook!" "What was that?!?!" etc. And, soon enough, the news started reporting on the earthquake afterall. It appears that a 5.6 magnitude earthquake occurred near Oklahoma City and was felt in many different states. How crazy is that!

Jack-o-lantern Fun!

2011-11-05T21:55:00.000-05:00

Perhaps my favorite part of Halloween is the pumpkin carving. It brings back so many memories...sitting on the kitchen floor with table clothes and trash bags to contain the mess, carving with my parents and sister. For some reason, I can remember one particular Halloween with our puppy Bandit there, sticking his head in the pumpkins. {I have no clue why that one sticks in my head considering the short time we actually had that dog.}

My most favorite part of carving the pumpkins is digging out the guts....Jarrod thinks I'm crazy because it completely grosses him out, but I can't wait to stick my hand in there and grab the seeds. Last year, Gavin begged for the Cars templates he saw at the store and we used the Mater stencil to carve a pretty cool pumpkin. This year, we used another from the set, and with the help of a battery operated knife, we carved King! It didn't turn out quite as well as Mater last year, but it was still fun. We donated our other pumpkin to the preschool and Gavin's class decorated that one, so we only carved the one pumpkin this year.

Gavin loved watching us get started, but quickly grew bored and kept asking if we were finished yet. Riley was a perfect angel and sat in her bouncer watching the whole time. I can't wait until the kids are old enough to carve with me. I love creating these fun family memories together!

Just venting...

2011-11-04T15:03:00.000-05:00

I just want to complain for a minute...so forgive me. I wish my skin would STOP breaking out. I wish buying shoes wasn't so difficult for me {and I hope Riley doesn't end up with the same wide feet as me.} And I wish we could hit the lottery. That's all.

Thankful Thursday

2011-11-03T12:40:00.000-05:00

It's that day of the week again...and today I'm feeling so thankful for my Tastefully Simple business and family. Honestly, when I started this business almost three years ago, I didn't know what to expect, but I didn't think it would become what it has. This week, the team I'm on promoted to a Senior Team Mentor team...the TOP in the company. We're one of only 29 STMTs in the company, so it's a HUGE accomplishment. And for the many wonderful, inspirational leaders on this team, I'm thankful. In particular, Jen A. and Annisa M., who have been a very important part of my journey and motivate me each and everyday to continue to work this business. It was just about a year ago that I stepped over to the leadership side of the company, and Simply Ambitious now has 14 lovely ladies! I'm so thankful for my team, my hosts and clients, the fantastic friendships I've created, and my monthly paycheck! I've set my goals high, and I am confident that Tastefully Simple is going to continue to help our family financially and provide me the opportunity to continue to stay home with my loves. Tastefully Simple...thank you!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-02T09:05:00.000-05:00

The Littlest Pumpkin

2011-11-01T10:26:00.000-05:00

As promised, some adorable pics of the little sister at her brother's Halloween party. To say she's the cutest is an understatement. ;)

Halloween Party!

2011-10-31T15:27:00.000-05:00

We were all so excited for Gavin's Halloween party at school last week. Gavin talked about it for days, and I was thrilled that Jarrod had the day off and could go, too. Attending school events like this is one of the best parts of being able to stay home with my kiddos. I am so looking forward to many more!

Riley, as usual, looked adorable for the party, but I'm going to save those pics for another day. Let's just focus on Gavin today.

His teacher was a giant baby, and the kids loved it!

It was super cute to see him get in front of the class and tell about his costume. Watching all the kids do this was super cute, in fact.

The preschool doesn't have a huge religious tone to it, but they do say prayer before snack. How adorable does he look here? And he's sitting next to his 'other Rylee.'

After eating that yummy cookie, it was time to play some games! So, we went upstairs to a bigger room and Miss Linda gave all the kids a big pumpkin bag for them to put their treats in. The first game was a bean bag toss. Gavin loved it!

Just as I suspected, he wouldn't even try the second game...the kids 'bobbed' for marshmallows that were hanging from a dowel rod. He hates marshmallows. He did, however, really enjoy trying to spray the candle out of the jack-o-lantern!

And I have no clue what he's doing here, but we thought the pic was pretty funny.

It was a great party day! Gavin still talks about it and it was four days ago. :) More pics of the other pumpkin tomorrow!

Thankful Thursday

2011-10-27T08:14:00.000-05:00

Lots to be thankful for!

I'm thankful that Jarrod has today and tomorrow off. I love having long weekends together, and it's especially nice since that means he's able to go to Gavin's Halloween party at preschool with me. I'm thankful for Jackie, for surprising me with some spending money that I was instructed to spend only on me. Those that know me know that I very rarely spend money on myself. So, being able to do a little shopping without the guilt was very nice. I'm thankful for my nighttime ritual with Gavin...rocking in the rocking chair! It all started when I was nearing the end of my pregnancy, and we blamed it on all the changes that were about to come. Now, I'm so glad that we still spend our nights in the rocking chair. It's five minutes or so of just me and him...and it's so special. I cherish it!

What are you thankful for???

3 Months Old!

2011-10-26T21:14:00.001-05:00

It is still so hard to believe that Riley is already 3 months old!

She has been keeping us busy! Just in the past week or so, Riley has started 'talking' to Jarrod a ton - only Jarrod, just like when she started smiling. On Sunday, she rolled for the first time, from back to belly! She still gets stuck sometimes and needs us to help her get her arm out, but she does try to roll just about every time we lay her down now. This morning, I got some little laughs out of her, too. So stinkin' cute!

The last time I weighed her here at home earlier this week, Riley was 11lbs 12oz. She's still wearing mostly 0-3 clothes, and is still in size 1 diapers, though I don't think we'll be in size 1s for much longer. She nurses on demand, and still will not take a bottle! It's been the most stressful part of having Riley so far. But, I know, just like with Gavin, that it won't last forever, and soon enough we'll be starting cereal, solids, and sippy cups. So, for now, I think we'll have to deal with the bottle situation. We are very lucky with her sleep, however. She's NOTHING like her brother was in the sleep department and {sorry, Amy!} is sleeping through the night most of the time. We just started transitioning her to her crib for naps this week, and surprisingly she's done well. Right now, her crib mattress is elevated, and I'm hoping to slowly lower it so she's used to sleeping flat by the time we go to Ohio for Thanksgiving.

Riley is quite the drooler! She constantly has her tongue out is blowing bubbles. Her taggie blanket is one of her favorite things, and I'm constantly having to move it from her face while she's sleeping. She loves to have it touch her chin. Though she definitely looks like me, I think she's going to have her Daddy's skin. We're starting to notice more and more dry patches on her so we've laid off the soaps and lotions and are treating it with some ointment right now.

Riley is most definitely one of the smiliest (is that a word???) babies I've ever seen. Sure...she has her meltdowns and cranky periods, but she's so easy to make smile. We love it! She especially loves to watch her brother. They're going to be so close...I can already tell!

We love you, Riley girl! You make us all so happy!

Growing so fast!

2011-10-26T14:17:00.001-05:00

Boy, Riley sure is growing fast! She's 3 months old today! I need to do her 3 month pictures and update, and I will soon. For now, I just wanted to share this picture. Remember those adorable shots of me wearing her in the Moby when she was just an itty bitty baby? She's not so itty bitty anymore!

Weekend Recap

2011-10-24T07:54:00.000-05:00

We had another great weekend as a family. I seriously love Jarrod's job here and how we get to spend every weekend together. Of course, the weekends go way too fast...so I'm really looking forward to this weekend, when Jarrod has four days off.

Friday night, I worked an event at a country club, and Jarrod came with me to help me get set up. Once everything was under control, he brought Gavin home, and Riley stayed with me at the event. Rebecca, a consultant on my team, brought us home at the end of the night.

Saturday morning we got up and looked at a few houses with our realtor. The whole process just confuses me more every time we look because I like so many things about so many different houses. Who knows what we'll do? Once the kids were asleep for a nap, Jarrod headed out for a few hours of hunting and I got time to veg on the couch and relax.

Sunday morning was our usual Sunday...breakfast together, chores around the house, read the paper, etc. While I was getting ready for the day, I told Gavin to let me know if Riley started crying (she was playing on her playmat in the living room). He came running in while I was blow drying my hair and said, "Riley just rolled off the mat!" I came in to find her almost completely on her belly! Her little arm was stuck under her, but apparently, we have a roller!

We went to Walmart, then had a 'picnic in the car' (as Gavin called it) and ran a few more errands. One stop was Kohl's, where I got to spend some money on me, thanks to my mother-in-law, Jackie. :) We stopped and talked to the realtor again, and then came home for dinner together. Of course, the night ended like it has been ending every night for the last several weeks...me rocking Gavin in the rocking chair. I love that part of our bedtime routine now.

It may not seem like a special weekend, but it was...I cherish every minute that the four of us get to spend together. I love these guys!

Pics to come later...I have a lot on my camera I have to upload. :)

Thankful Thursday

2011-10-20T14:58:00.000-05:00

What I'm thankful for at this very moment...

For friends, like Emily and Amy, for offering suggestions of what else we can try with Riley and her bottle situation.

For my mom, for ordering us yet another bottle to try.

For Annisa, a member of my Tastefully Simple family, for sending us a bottle to try that worked for her little ones.

For my husband, for going with me tomorrow to set up for and work an event for Tastefully Simple.

For Rebecca, a wonderful member of my Tastefully Simple team, for coming to work the event with me tomorrow, too.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-19T07:26:00.000-05:00

A Baby and her Bottle

2011-10-18T12:11:00.000-05:00

{Or lack thereof, I suppose...} Most of you know that Riley hasn't successfully taken a bottle for us on a regular basis since birth. There are days that after a looong struggle we can get her to take it, but it's more likely that she will not take it than she will. So, of course...trying to get her to eat while I'm at a party has been a struggle. We've tried four different bottles, different nipples, different temperatures of the milk, holding her in different positions, walking while feeding her, rocking while feeding her, sound machine on, in complete silence... Nothing is a foolproof way to get her to take a bottle.

So, my super sweet and resourceful friend, Amy, stepped in. As a pediatric nurse practitioner, she offered to come over and try some tricks with Riley. The one I was most hopeful about was 'finger feeding' her, using a feeding tube that she'd suck on while sucking on our finger. But, what Amy found (and Amy, I know you're reading this, so feel free to correct me if I explain this wrong...) is that Riley doesn't have some of the typical reflexes that babies have. She doesn't have that strong sucking reflex anymore, and instead of meeting whatever is touching her lip with her tongue like most babies, she retracts her tongue. So, when something does enter her mouth, be it a pacifier, a finger, a nipple from a bottle, she doesn't like it and cries and sometimes gags. It seems that she's taught herself how to nurse like this (rather effectively considering how she's gaining weight).

So, what do we do? Well, we have one more type of bottle we're going to try. It's called an Adiri bottle, and it's meant to mimic the breast more. Because of the shape of it, the actual nipple part is much shorter than most of the bottles, so we're hoping that might mean she's more likely to drink from it. If that doesn't work, Amy showed us how we can cup feed Riley using a medicine cup or shot glass. It's a tedious process, but she did drink some milk that way, so at least Jarrod would be able to get some milk in her belly if she's absolutely starving.

I'm hoping to have some good updates over the next couple of weeks. Fingers crossed for us, please! :)

Someone is 30....

2011-10-15T15:11:00.000-05:00

Last weekend, we celebrated Jarrod's 30th birthday...something he was most definitely NOT looking forward to. To make the weekend a little more traumatic, he also sold him truck that weekend. But, we were still able to have a fun weekend with some visitors, Mitch and Becky, and some good family fun. We went to dinner at Red Lobster (just for Gavin because he wanted crab legs!) and then came home to have graham cupcakes and key lime frosting. Yum!

As part of his present, I filled a jar with 30 things I love about him... Here are just a few.

*I love the way he kisses Riley goodbye even if she's still asleep before he goes to work.

*I love listening to him and Gavin talk to each other over the monitor.

*I love how we spend our Sunday mornings together, drinking coffee and making breakfast, watching the Today show and going through the paper.

*I love how much he loves cooking and the nights when we get to cook dinner together.

The list goes on...

We love you, Daddy!

Operation Baby Weight - Update

2011-10-14T14:47:00.000-05:00

....And the update is that it's not working. Granted, I haven't been as good as I thought I would be, but I haven't been any worse. Nonetheless, I'm pretty sure I've gained weight, not lost it. SO, I haven't stepped on the scale and have no desire to. I need to get with it soon!

Thankful Thursday

2011-10-13T13:35:00.000-05:00

It's time for Thankful Thursday...

I'm thankful the garage sale and prep work for Rhea Lana are over and I can finally get caught up on the house. I'm thankful for coffee and yummy creamers, in particular Cinnabon and Peppermint Mocha. I'm thankful for the forecast...patchy frost expected next week which means allergy season is almost over! I'm thankful I found my wedding rings this week. Spending much of Monday in tears looking for them was quite scary and I never want to have that panic feeling again. I'm thankful for this blog, because if I don't record things here, I know I'll forget them.

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-12T15:23:00.000-05:00

Last year, we hit up the local pumpkin patch and corn maze with our new friends, Amy, Chris, and Lucas. We've since decided that it's going to be a yearly thing as long as we're all still living here! :) So, before you look at the pics from this year, take a peek back at what the kiddos looked like last year.

2010 Pumpkin Patch Visit

Some of my favorites from 2010...

So, a couple weekends ago, we headed there again, this time with our new 'pumpkins' in tow. It was a beautiful day, but it felt a bit more like summer than fall! Quite warm... We let the boys ride the 'Cow Train' while us mamas and babies stayed back, and then did the petting zoo, the corn maze, and the pumpkin patch. It was a great fall day, and I look forward to doing it again next year!

Their new addition, Caleb, all ready for the season!

The perfect pumpkins!

Babies!!!

It's kinda hard to see, but in the picture below, there's a goat all the way at the top.  Everyone started cheering loudly when he started his way up the ramp to the top!  It was kind of funny to watch him come back down.  

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-12T09:05:00.000-05:00

After-Shot Lovin'

2011-10-11T13:19:00.000-05:00

Remember those pics from the day of Riley's shots that I promised you? Well, I'm finally getting to them. Life has been so hectic the past week or so! So, the day she got her shots she was very sleepy, as was to be expected, and she did end up with a fever, but it wasn't anything that some lovin' from her mama and big brother couldn't fix!

Thankful Thursday

2011-10-06T10:39:00.000-05:00

It's getting to be the time of the year where we start talking about Thanksgiving, and the time of the year I like to focus on all my family has to be thankful for. So, through Thanksgiving, I'll be posting Thanful Thursdays...if you're a fellow blogger, you should do the same! :)

Of course, the most obvious thing to start out with this year is how thankful I am that I had an easy, uneventful pregnancy and an amazing natural delivery that resulted in our sweet Riley. What a fantastic addition she is to our family. And I think it's quite fitting that it was last year on Thanksgiving that we found out we'd be welcoming another baby into our family, and now this year at Thanksgiving many in our family will meet her for the first time. I can't wait to make the trip back to Ohio to see everyone again and introduce Riley to our {crazy} relatives!

I'm so thankful that Gavin adores his baby sister so much, and that the start of preschool went so well for him. I love seeing him walk into his classroom everyday without any tears and really love picking him up and seeing the smile on his face. His personality continues to develop and he's changing and growing everyday. He's been making up songs lately, which is just too cute, and the jokes he makes up, no matter how ridiculous they are, crack us up. Jarrod and I just love him so much.

And, I'm so thankful for my husband, who happens to turn 30 this weekend!!! I never could have imagined back in junior high when we first met that we'd be on this amazing journey together all these years later, with five years of marriage under our belts, two perfect babies, and living all these miles from home. Crazy how life surprises us, huh? Thank you, Jarrod, for working so hard (and making sacrifices like giving up your truck!) to support our family and allow me to be a stay at home mommy to those little munchkins. I love you.

One more for today - because it wouldn't be right to not express my gratitude for our wonderful families (despite how crazy they may be) on this first Thankful Thursday. I know it's difficult to be so far away from Gavin and Riley, and I am just so thankful that you all continue to support us and love us. We're so excited to see you all next month.

What are you thankful for today?

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-05T09:43:00.000-05:00