mother's day 2016

I can't believe I'm about to say this because usually this word isn't even in the vocabulary of "motherhood" but my Mother's Day was so RELAXING! I have Nic to thank for that of course, he is the best dad. Liam has been sick over the last week and hasn't been sleeping well because of it but Saturday night was an exception and we were both grateful for that. When I woke up I heard giggling coming from our closet. A couple minutes later, Liam came toddling out with a card and a little box in his hand. Nic told me he picked out this card all by himself. He took him to Fredmeyer and he touched just about every Mother's Day card in the whole store before pulling out this one... 

We think it's because it has a teddy bear with felt ears on it and he loves anything that has a texture right now. :) So cute! Nic helped him write that sweet message to me inside too. Inside the box was a rose gold bar necklace with Liam's name engraved on it and I couldn't love it more! 

Both my boys were still slightly under the weather so rather than spreading those germs that nobody wants around church, we stayed home together. In the morning we stayed in our jammies a little longer, took our time getting ready for the day, and baked cookies together for the first time. I poured, Nic stirred, and Liam ate about a thousand mini m&m's. It was a good system we had going. ;) Liam loved the m&m's SO much that he actually started to cry after we dumped them into the cookie dough as if they were gone forever. I tried giving him just a small bite of cookie dough mixed with m&m's but he wanted nothing to do with it. When we gave him a cookie after dinner all to himself, he excavated every last m&m and left the rest of the cookie to be ridden of. haha Kids!

During Liam's nap I got in a wonderful 2 hour nap myself. Normally that would be total bliss but it turned out to be one of those naps that ultimately backfires on you and you were better off not taking one after all. haha Darn it, I hate those! I just felt groggy afterwards and then couldn't fall asleep until 3 A.M. that night. Oops.

After Liam's nap we took a plate of cookies, a day lily, and a special chatbook to grandma's house! We had leftover tacos for dinner (yay for not having to cook!) and Nic cleaned the highchair for me. A chore that seems to be the bane of my existence. haha Why are there so many tiny crevices for food to hide in on a high chair and why does it manage to get into every single one I'll never know.

We ended the day splashing in the water at our wellness complex. Liam had the time of his life and would have waded in up to his chin if I'd let him. haha 

I am beyond blessed to be that little sweetheart's mom. Sometimes he tests my patience, is the messiest child I've ever known, and can throw a mighty tantrum or two but I've never loved any little boy more in the whole world. He makes me see the world through his eyes and turns everything into magic. He fills me with so much joy and makes me laugh. Next to being a wife, there isn't anything I love more in this world than being a mom. And I consider myself the luckiest mom in the world because Liam picked me!! 

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms, grandmas, great-grandmas, friends, soon-to-be momma's, and especially women who want more than anything to be a mom but haven't been blessed with the opportunity yet. You are loved. XO 

a fun date night idea

Nic and I recently inherited pretty much everything from our childhoods. I guess after 5 years of marriage it is time to be FULLY moved out huh?! ;) haha We've gone through most of it by now but I found one of Nic's boxes in the garage last night. It hadn't been touched yet so I thought I'd go through it while he got the sprinkler system fired up for the season. The first thing I pulled out of the box was his 7th grade yearbook and I was immediately transported back to a time when Nic was just a long haired blonde boy with a fierce love for soccer, skiing, and video games that I'd never met yet! I was so intrigued thinking about all of those years of life that these books contained that I wasn't a part of and I suddenly wanted to hear all the stories that make up those years apart and that's when I dreamed up this fun date idea.

I'm sure Nic was mostly humoring me and really just in it for the ice cream and favorite picture of me as a senior dance team captain in a spandex outfit. haha But I think he'd agree that we really did have so much fun looking through them together! As any parent knows, date nights with your spouse when you have kids are very few and far between unless you really get creative and make the time. The last actual date night OUT we've had alone together was back in December so since then we've made date night IN more of a priority. I love having date nights in the middle of the week too because it makes the week more fun, spontaneous, and something to look forward to.

We shared our favorite vanilla frozen yogurt with reece's peanut butter cups and giggled for a couple hours together comparing pictures from each school year. With Nic's shaggy bowl hair cut and my braces and beloved puka shell necklace phase, we'd have made quite a pair wouldn't we?! haha     

Reading the notes from friends was probably my favorite part!! You definitely have to be prepared for a few sappy love notes or novels in our cases from ex-boyfriends and girlfriends between the pages. haha Oh young love. At the time, it consumes you! If you have a strong relationship with your spouse though, those love notes are more sweet than anything. Then you run into a few hilarious comments or a bromance or two in Nic's case ...

So HOT HOT HOT! HAHA He is still best friends with this person today so it was funny texting him pictures of what he said to him and his wife and having a comical group chat throughout the evening.

I won't share all of them because trust me, you don't need to see that (haha!) but I wanted to share a picture of Nic and I as high school seniors. When I searched for his picture though, I was so sad he didn't have one at all in his senior year book. No senior pictures taken, WHAT?! I'm looking at you Susan and Rick! haha So I had to go with the next best thing, junior year ... 

sorry for the poor photo quality, a picture of a picture

Aw look at those little babies! They could have been high school sweethearts. ;) haha We are three years apart so these aren't from the same year. It is so funny how in high school, a junior dating a freshman would have been a big deal but three years apart in college is totally nothing. We did have a few laughs about our age difference last night and how 6th grade was still in elementary school for him but became part of "middle school" by the time I was in 6th grade so I had one extra yearbook than him. Nic wanted to kill me sharing this picture I might add. He said at this point in high school he didn't really care hence the soccer sweatshirt for picture day and that he truly hit his prime good looks when he got to college. haha That side smile though!

So if you're in the market for a fun date night idea when you're trapped at home after the kiddos go to bed, yearbooks! Trust me, it provides some good laughs and hours of entertainment! What's your favorite date night idea in?! Please share in the comments, I'm all ears! XO

what a momma really wants for Mother's Day

Motherhood is a wonderfully beautiful thing. It is also a hot mess most of the time. It is the most joy you will ever feel in your lifetime mixed right up there with the most pain you will feel. It will give you your best laugh and your biggest cry. It will make you more "you" than you will ever be anywhere else while also completely stripping you of yourself at the same time. It is every polar opposite under the sun. I read this post the other day by Bridget Hunt about "motherhood ruining you" for these very same reasons I mentioned above and I found myself nodding a million times over. It was as if she took the emotions right from my very own heart about how I feel about being Liam's mom. But my favorite favorite part of her whole post was the very end where she said, "I hope this is what heaven is like" because if there is one thing I hope and believe heaven is... it is family. And it is forever. 

With it being Mother's Day on Sunday, I've spent the better part of this week reflecting on last Mother's Day...

Can you believe how little he was just a year ago!!! He went on his very first swing ride that day like such a big boy. Not to mention he was wearing my very favorite sweatshirt with the bear ears that I wish so much still fit him instead of being tucked away in his closet for the next baby. 

And the Mother's Day before that...

Liam was only a 15 week bump then. I hadn't even felt him move yet but I had heard the pitter patter of his little heart beat for the first time and was completely changed that day. It is still one of the BEST sounds in the whole world! 

Reflecting on both days has made me realize more than anything what a momma really wants for Mother's Day and that is for her children to slow down. To stay little. Motherhood is filled with milestone after milestone and while I clapped in complete joy when he learned to roll over for the first time...

And was his biggest cheerleader smiling from ear to ear when he took those very first few steps on his own...

The milestones keep passing by and while I savor and enjoy ever.single.perfect.second of those memories, they are all too fleeting and before I know it, he doesn't need me to help him roll back over when he cries during tummy time anymore, and he is okay to let go of my fingers and independently take those steps on his own. This song says it best and let me warn you, before you watch it, grab a tissue! Just trust me, you'll thank me later.