so be it

we live really close to a walmart. I take trey and claire there probably a couple times a week, to get some groceries, craft supplies, or to just go play with some new toys. people are always so nice, helping me get a cart, holding doors, and adoring my children. today was a little different. I left walmart in tears. today people were not so nice. maybe these people were having a bad day, and I'm usually pretty good at just chalking it up to that, but today I felt the mama bear claws starting to come out. and I was just glad my babies are both little enough to not understand. so when I found this quote on good old pinterest it made me smile, and I wanted to go back to walmart and yell "so be it!"

birthday boy

tomorrow is Brock's birthday!
now that I have children of my own, I can't seem to say birthday without thinking a little more about the word...birth.
the days that my children were born are the two most sacred days of my life. so much excitement and praying and tears and happiness.
I can only imagine the joy of my mother in law when she gave birth to her only son 25 years ago!

thank you Lawnee for having that baby boy.
his is now a grown man, and he blesses my life and our children's every day. he is kind and gentle. he is soft spoken and loving. he is hard working and he makes the best out of every situation. wonderful traits I think he learned from his mother.
thank you for teaching him the gospel and for being an unwavering example of faith. thank you for teaching him he can accomplish great things and overcome any obstacle. thank you for teaching him how to laugh at yourself and to not take things too seriously. thank you for showing him how to love your family with all your heart.

Lawnee once said to me, "thank you for loving my boy" I didn't fully appreciate those words until I had a boy of my own, and now I want to say, thank you for letting me love him. I try to take care of him like I know you would, and love him like I know you do. because I do love him. very, very much.

happy birthday Brock

february 15

valentines day was great- a playgroup party with my babies, lots of snuggles and a little bit of chocolate...but today, today was even better! when I heard the front door opening and trey yelling "dadda!" I got reallllly excited- brock is d.o.n.e. midterms and we are ready to have some family time over the reading week break! brock came inside picked up claire, who was racing her way over to him, and said "let's order a pizza!" I wasn't kidding, we are serious about partying :)

****
Now we have put the children to bed, and picked up the toys. the snow is blowing outside and we have the rest of the evening to stare into each others eyes...or eat some ice cream...maybe both

those cheeks

my whole life i've heard, "i just wanna pinch your cheeks!"

i inherited my momma's high cheekbones, and it looks like i've passed them on :)

i'm learning

tuesday morning.

the past 7 days have been a doozy..and I don't mean that in a bad way, just a very crazy, busy, exhausting, sort of doozy.

but i learned a lot, like i do every week, and everyday.

the two little people that i spend my days with teach me what selfless love really looks like, and what finding joy in sacrifice really feels like.

my handsome husband teaches me the importance of finding the reasons to laugh, no matter what's happening, and that the house never needs to be cleaned so badly that there isn't time to dance in the kitchen.

the ladies i serve with in primary with show me, faith and patience, and hard work.

and those sweet faces i see in primary- humility.

from my runs i'm reminded the world is such a beautiful place, and strangers are often just friends you haven't met yet.

and from me- i'll never be able to do all i want {or think i should do} but i can always do what's most important.

photo by trey wilde :)

in and out

it's a strange realization when your baby has been "out" for as long as they were "in". claire is now 9 months old, and the things she does that are starting to hint at toddlerhood are occurring much too often. she is standing all day long! and starting to transfer between the coffee table and couch. she follows trey- everywhere! it is so sweet to watch them play together, trey is so nice to her and gets excited when she wakes up. she has warmed up to eating solids and pretty much likes everything, except bananas, gags every time, just like her momma :) she now has 6 teeth, and trey makes sure we brush hers too when he's getting his brushed, actually her toothbrush is her favorite toy, that and trey's cars. she's a pretty content little gal, happy to explore the house and try to pull everything down in her reach, once in a while she wants to be carried around, i love it, and at 16 lbs I really can't complain.

I never want these baby days to end. I love having little lips to kiss and squishy cheeks to wipe yogurt from. I love having little bodies to hold and snuggle. i love having a crawling baby tugging at my pant leg. Most of our days are the same- eat, play, sleep, change, play, sleep, eat... but I know all too quickly these times will be in the past, and will hold some of the sweetest memories.