Happy Halloween 2013

Halloween 2013

Dragon Ninja, Butterfly and an Astronaut.

And for the Grandmas....

Halloween 2012

Halloween 2011

Halloween 2010

Halloween 2009

5 Things

1. We had a nasty strain of Strep Throat take down each one of our kiddos this past week. First it was Owen then 48 hours later it was Jack then 5 hours later it was Adelyn. Each of them just wanted to snuggle and sleep for two days which I was totally fine with. Although it is not fun to have sick munchkins, it is nice to slow down life for a bit and fill our days with movies, Play-doh and books...minus the episode of "clean up in the main aisle near the men's department" at Target. I could have done without that..ewe.

2.  I have this cooking in the crock pot for dinner. So very fall of me..smells delish!


3. And these....I need to make stat!


4. Jack informed me last night the he will be calling me "Mom" from now on because that is what big kids say, only little kids and babies say, "Mommy". I may have shed a small tear upon hearing that.

For documentation purposes, he lost his first tooth at the beginning of September. His second tooth will be lost shortly! He tells everyone and I mean everyone (grocery store clerk, waitress, random person on a walk by our house, etc) about his missing tooth. It's a big deal, ya'll!

5. Seeing that it is just about Christmas as Target and Kohls and Michaels and everywhere, I thought I would let you know that these are the two best (aka most played with) presents Santa has ever brought our kids...

 1. Magna-Tiles

2. Kidoozie Deluxe Build-A-Road

Yep, still going strong now for almost 12 months! Seriously..they are played with almost every.single.day.

My Fall Mantel

 Just last week, I finally spruced up my mantel for Fall. I used this mantel as my inspiration and I followed this tutorial to make my peacock and gold wreath. As for everything else, either I had it laying around or it was purchased at Pier 1 or Home Goods. As you can see, I'm really digg'n gold lately. I love it! I am now trying to find ways to use it all over my house, my wardrobe and maybe even Addy's wardrobe. Anyway, the "Happy Fall" banner, I found at Target in the scrapbooking/crafting aisle. It is actually a Happy Halloween kit that I changed up after I spotted that was just what a blogger had done here. So brilliant! 

The combination of Gold, Silver, Green, Black and White = "Ohhh....Ahhhh!"

We also did a little weekend project called Planking the Mantel. I love it so! We desperately needed to do something to break up the builder beige. It's everywhere!! And I think it was a good first step...now, what else can we plank?

Happy Fall!

Friday Things

1. I may have lost cool yesterday morning. The fighting between two I-won't-name-names- brothers had reached an all time high and I couldn't take it one more second. I'm still processing how I handled it because there may have been a small amount of yelling on my part, which of course, I feel horrible about now. My other healthy-awesome mom tactics were no longer working. I did read this today and it made me feel a little better. Please..someone..anyone...tell me that you have these moments.

 I do love these little munchkins!

 2. We invested in the Nutribullet last weekend after a raving recommendation from Pat's sister that it is the "greatest item she has ever purchased at Target". Well, I find awesome goodies at Target with every visit, which is practically everyday. My collection of ballet flats could attest to that! So, I was slightly skeptical plus we have a cheapest version out there juicer already. Well my friends, she was right! The Nutribullet is ah-mazing! All of us, including the kids, have really gotten into making juices and smoothies almost everyday. This Nurtibullet Fun Pinterest page has helped us be creative. Goodbye Juicer and your loud, messy, have to buy bulk produce at Costco ways...Hello Nurtibullet.

3. I haven't been one to wear a lot of animal prints. I have this and these which I actually love wearing, but anything more (aka bigger...aka covers one half of my body) scares me. Only because I'm never sure if I'm wearing animal print right or if I'm a correct age to even be wearing it. Well, I found this super cute leopard printed sweatshirt from the Loft at their 40% off sale two weeks ago and I decided to give it a chance. I'm in love. I have it on right now and I may have worn it yesterday as well. Psst..they are having a 40% sale today and tomorrow. I may have just gone to buy this..in a couple colors.

4.  Jack and I have read two great chapter books recently. The first was Three Tales of My Father's Dragon , which was a great story of adventure and perfect for his age. The second, The One and Only Ivan, was a wonderful story filled with heart and lessons that made us laugh and cry (that was me..cried big tears that Jack wiped away for me). It may have been a bit big for Jack, but we talked a lot about each chapter as we read. What next? After a field trip to Gibbs Farm this past Monday, I decided it is time for Little House on the Prairie and I got the Boxcar Children next in line.

That is a skunk on his head..he was pumped!

5. I have Iowa Girl Eats Chipolte Turkey Chili with Apples simmering as I type. It smells delicious! I also made her Pulled Pork Taquitos with Chipolte-Ranch Dipping Sauce (Crockpot for the win!) last weekend..awesome! Even my kids loved them (Two helpings for the win!).

6. And while I'm on food...I crave a couple meatless dinners every week. The past two Mondays, we have deemed Meatless Monday and I have made the exact same meal because it is soooo darn good that I could probably eat it everyday...for lunch and dinner.

I put Dave's Gourmet Butternut Squash pasta sauce (Super Target) over gnocchi with a bunch of roasted vegetables (onion, sweet peppers, asparagus, etc) and Parmesan cheese. It is ah-mazing! I need to figure out a way to replicate it here in my own kitchen because it is a smidge expensive to be having for lunch and dinner everyday.

7. This girlie would eat only dill pickles, cheese, eggs, popcorn and avocados if it were up to her. She stands at the fridge, begging me to open it for "peekles and cados".

8. Here's a little sneak peak at the bookshelf/future dollhouse we repurposed for Addy.

 

9. I'm scheming to create a desk space like this for Jack and Owen. So Cool!

 source

10. My brother sent me this clip last week. It made me laugh..I hope it makes you laugh too! Cause it's a funny one!

TGIF

I call this a "Look Back".

I thought I would take a look back at the first and last days of school pictures. I cannot believe how fast these years have gone by! As I pulled up all these photos, all I could think about was the quote, "The days are long, but the years are short." 

Being a stay-at-home mom, there are days that sometimes do seem long and hard and frustrating, but then there are those other days that are rewarding and bring pure joy and happiness. As my kids get older, I feel as though we have more good days than the hard ones. I had a really hard time with Jack starting first grade this year. I was so sad and emotional about the whole thing while he was beyond excited and happy about it. He's getting so big and he's yearning for a little more freedom and independence. While this momma bird needs to let him go out and fly his wings, I still want to wrap my wings around him and keep him small a little longer. 

And Owen..how is he in his last year of preschool? How? I can't even imagine him being in Kindergarten next year. I will be a mess about that for sure. He loves preschool and wants to go everyday. He is making new friends and having new experiences that are special just for him. He so needed his own space to just be Owen and not Jack's little brother. 

Now for Adelyn..wasn't she just my newborn baby? She is working her way to full-blown toddler status. She is talking like crazy and wanting to try/eat everything she sees us her brothers doing/eating. Slow down girlie ;)

 Before I start the full-on ugly cry, I will end it with this...

Savor the little moments for they are what life is really about. 

I think this video explains that well!

Jack 1st Year of Preschool

Jack's Last Day of Preschool

Jack's First Day of Pre-K.

Jack's Last and Final Day of Pre-K. 

Jack's First Day of Kindergarten and Owen's First Day of Preschool.

 Jack's First Day of 1st Grade and Owen's First Day of Pre-K.

And one more....

Adelyn at 17 months old!

It's a hot one.

It's been hot here this week so we have been hitting the beach or pool everyday. I love to go in the afternoon because that is when the kids (my non-napper boys) are squirley and they need to burn off that extra energy before dinner. We have fun swimming and building sand castles for a couple hours. Then we head home for showers, jammies and dinner. Everyone (including me) just seems more at ease, relaxed and ready to wind down the day. Oh and Addy, she loves the water and sand. She crawls into the water until it is up to her face and I have to pull her back to shore. She then goes right back out for more. After the long winter we had, I am loving these nights swimming as a family.

A good place to start...

is a Miss Adelyn recap of months 10-13.
(because I have had this in progress for about 3 months)

This is going to be a major picture overload, so I hope you like pictures of cute baby girl!

10 months old

 

11 Months

 

12 Months

13 Months
Addy had her 1 year professional pictures taken just as she was turning 13 months old. We had to reschedule this session about 3 times due to the longest winter ever/rain/cold/yuck. When the day finally came for these pictures, it turned out to be an absolutely beautiful day and Addy was totally into having her picture taken. Win-Win. These pictures were taken by Chris and Kristy of Journey Photography and I think they did a fabulous job!

Addy had no idea what to do with this massive cupcake. She kept trying to tip the glass plate over until I scooped a little of the frosting onto my finger for her to taste. Then she realized the yumminess she had right in front of her and she didn't hold back.

 

 

Adelyn's 1st Year

Now I need to run and get a tissue.
How did this happen so unbelievably fast?