Quote of the Day

Came across a quote today while "pinning" my afternoon away (lol):

"There is no one perfect way to be a good mother....Each mother has different challenges, different skills and abilities, and certainly different children....What matters is that a mother loves her children deeply and, in keeping with the devotion she has for God and her husband, prioritizes them above all else."

-Elder M. Russell Ballard

You know-sometimes you need a little reassurance that you are doing an ok job with this whole "mom" thing :) I am grateful to have parents & a husband to be that support system in my life. I realize that not everyone does though. I am blessed with parents that share those uplifting feelings with me (and with Mike as well-my parents have told him many times, sent him cards or emails, etc. expressing their gratitude for the kind of Dad he is to our munchkins-and he really IS!)
When I have my struggles with parenting and feel like my brain is fried-I know I can pick up the phone and share my concerns &/or heartache with my mom & she gets it. She doesn't judge me or my parenting-she doesn't make me feel like SHE could or DID do it better. Most importantly, she doesn't judge my kids! No labels or stigmas. Sometimes she just asks me "will the battle be worth it?"  She knows my babies so well, and has tips I can try that match their personalities-being aware that what works for one, doesn't always work for the other. And thankfully-more often than not her ideas work. YAY!
Kathleen and Dad are just as supportive-sharing their confidence in our parenting efforts. And just that reassurance-like a pat on the back from time to time, is all you need to push your shoulder to the wheel and carry on! ;) Thank you guys.
I am NOT the perfect Mom-nor do I claim to be. I'm just me. What you see is what you get. But I do want my kids growing up knowing that I had their best interest at heart & that I love them BOTH more than they could ever fathom. There are many nights, when all is calm and kids are in bed sleeping soundly, that I find myself thinking about them in the next room. Then come the tears-just thinking how grateful I am for those little love bugs-it's overwhelming I guess....my cup runneth over ;)

Birthday Organization :)

These are on order for the kids' birthdays! Can't wait to get toys off the floor & into these :) Thank you Grandma & Papa!

And I must not be the only one enamored by these puppies-they are backordered until MARCH! Grrrr. lol

Winter Fun with Friends

We haven't seen Ryssa and Ayden in what seems like FOREVER-Em & B were having withdrawals, so we decided a family day/sleepover was in order!
The Schnebly's met us out at Suncadia and we spent the afternoon watching the kiddos skate their hearts out. Courtney bought them Hot Cocoa at halftime-yum! We practically had to drag Ayden out of the rink when it was time to go.

Then it was back home for pizza, and more playing. The boys crashed around 10pm-their eyes were pretty much red and swollen from being so exhausted. ha ha ha.

I went in to check on the girls & there were American Girl Dolls & accessories all over the place, as well as a little "beauty salon" going on.....they had decided they wanted to sleep on the trampoline and had constructed quite the blanket fort for it. Around 11pm I finally stopped hearing the girls gabbing and could only hear what was left of the movie Annie in the background :)

Em was so excited that Ryssa got a Kanani for christmas too and brought her over to play :)

A late night did NOT stop them from waking up at 7:30am for more playtime though-gesh. Bryce & Ay even made the girls chocolate chip pancakes & hot chocolate for breakfast (a menu they planned themselves - sweet little fellas :)

Well HELLO there Mr. Winter!

Countdown!

Just in case you were wondering.....there are

10 TEN

more sleeps until my house is filled with Allison's!

Which means:

lots of smiles

 lots of hugs

 lots of laughter

lots of puppy lovin'

 late nights...

...a house full of family

life doesn't get much better than that. 

Can't wait!

12 Days of Christmas-Love my Poobee

This year Mike took a different approach to gifts for me for xmas. He decided on celebrating over 12 days instead of 1. Who am I to complain about that! ;) Though these aren't ALL the things he gave me, they are the ones I remembered to photograph (in case this NEVER happens again. lol)

1 dozen roses-they were GORGEOUS!

He made me this kiddie stool-I've wanted one for years. He looked up a pattern for a Restoration Hardware knockoff. LOVE LOVE LOVE. This is how I found it-under the tree one afternoon. It looks even better now that he stained it & put my babies footprints on it! I fall more in love with it everyday-seriously-it is my most FAVORITE ever. No contest.

He helped me make a growth chart for the kids one day....love.

Another day I found (in the tree) a gift certificate to a local pub-with THE WORLDS BEST food! Hands down. Sooooo scrumptious. :) Hey-don't judge me-I grew up on pub food (though British pub food is WAY better :)

Then he took me on a date one day to an antique mall in Yakima. It was SUPER cold out that day, but I loved it. I even found our "prancer's collar" at one of the shops! :) There was a large vintage tin milk jug at one of the shops & I am still kicking myself for not getting it. Boooooo. :)

A couple of the other days I remember:

-The first morning I woke up to my favorite beverage from D&M and I knew this whole thing was off to a fantastic start! he he he

-another morning I woke up to find a box of my favorite chocolates on the dresser (even though Peyton and Brinkley got to them before I had a chance-the thought was nice, and my butt didn't need those attached to it anyhow :)

-one day during xmas break we even took a special trip to Issaquah to go antiquing. SO fun! There was a glorious wooden ladder that I wanted SUPER bad but of course it had an "amazing" price tag attached :(

It was a great christmas season-I don't give a HOOT who thinks we are sappy, or mushy or cheesy. This December-we were in our own little world & life was sweet.

Sharin' some love on Pinterest

Our First EXPO event-at CWU