Wednesday, August 6, 2014

3 Years-Old

Dear Liam,

You turned 3 a few days ago! Happy 3rd birthday!  I cannot believe you are three!  When I look back on the last three years it feels like a whirlwind of love and awe.  At times it seems that I can barely remember life before you, which is okay because that life feels very insignificant to me.  You certainly gave my life greater meaning and a greater purpose.



Two was quite a year for you as you grew into your own little person.  You are now talking in full sentences and saying the funniest things.  I just love that you now tell me stories and can respond when I ask you about your day. 

You transitioned to a toddler bed when you were around 2 and 1/2 years old.  Your dad and I were worried, but the transition went fairly smoothly.  Although we did have to put a special handle on your door to lock you in your room so you will stay in there at bedtime!  We have a sweet little bedtime ritual, and it's one of my favorite times of the day.  After you get in your jammies and brush your teeth, we read a few books and then you and me, or you and your daddy, or sometimes all three of us snuggle and sing songs.  We always sing the same special songs, Bid You Goodnight, Linger, You Are My Sunshine, and Down To the River to Pray.  I just love that you still like to snuggle and rest your head on my shoulder at bedtime.  I love the way your soft curls feel against my cheek and your little arms wrapped around me.  I treasure those moments because I know they will not last forever. 

You still have your binky but only when it's time to sleep.  Somewhere along the way, last fall, you started needing two binkies to go to sleep!  You suck on one and then use the other to rub your cheek.  Now that you are three, someday soon the binky fairy will come visit you to take the binkies away.

You still go to Leenie's two days a week.  You love to go there and see your friends.  Annie is your best friend but you also like Skyler and Charlie.  It's so fun to see how much you enjoy being around other children.  You also love your friend Cecelia.   The two of you have so much fun when we go and see music.  You had a blast together at the Romp Bluegrass Festival. 



You are really into superheroes these days.  Spiderman is your favorite, but you also really like Iron Man and the Hulk.  You are kind of fascinated by the Hulk but aren't quite sure about him because he looks scary!  You have a superhero Look and Find book that you have spent hours studying.  You really enjoy looking at all of those pictures.  You have recently started doing imaginative play, and you can sometimes be heard talking to Spiderman and the Hulk, which is pretty funny.  You also like the Star Wars characters and love to play with your Darth Tater.  When we go to the library, you always look for the Star Wars books.


You enjoy doing art projects and love to paint.  You usually start out using paint brushes but then end up finger painting.  I think you just like making a mess! You still really enjoy playing music too.  In fact, you love it when your daddy plays guitar with you.

You really enjoy doing puzzles and get great satisfaction when you figure one out all by yourself. You are obsessed with trucks of all kinds and anytime we drive by a construction site, you name all of the trucks that you see.  You got to drive an excavator with daddy in May when we were fixing the sewer line and you thought that was the coolest thing ever!



You love to be outside.  In fact, I try to get you outside every day because you have so much energy.  On days when I don't work, we often go hiking.  You are a pretty good little hiker and love to explore.  One of your favorite things is to throw rocks in the creek.  You could spend hours throwing those rocks!  You also really enjoy the park and love to climb and swing.  In fact, you are fearless when it comes to playground equipment and when we are at home we have to tell you not to climb on the furniture so you resort to climbing on mommy and daddy instead.   



We went swimming a lot this summer.  You are a good little swimmer, especially with your puddle jumpers.  You love it so much that every time we leave the pool, you cry and ask to go back.

One of my favorite things to do is to watch you and your daddy play.  You just love your daddy and watching the two of you is the sweetest thing.  When your dad gets home from work, you yell his name and go running to him.  You can often be heard asking him "Daddy, you want to play with me?"  He is definitely your buddy and you want to be just like him.  If he's doing a project around the house, you are right next to him, mimicking his every move.  You love your tools because they are just like daddy's!



On your birthday, we had a special day with just our little family.  Your dad and I took you to the children's garden at the Missouri Botanical Garden for the morning.  You love it there!  We also ate ice cream cake and you opened your presents.  You got a big boy bow and arrow set, so your daddy taught you how to shoot it.  That evening, we ate pizza and then went to see some music at a park with our friends.


Whenever we get in the car, I always turn and look at you and tell you that you are my buddy.  In response, you say, "Mommy, you're my girl!"  The way you say it warms my heart and gives me the biggest smile.

You have started to test us some, and every so often you throw a little tantrum.  When you are mad or upset you stick out your lower lip and get the most pathetic look on your face.  It's heartbreaking but also super cute at the same time.

You really like Dylan, and like to snuggle up to him on the floor.  He's an old dog, but he's very patient with you and enjoys your affection.

This is definitely a magical stage that we are in.  I love watching you and listening to you talk. You are such a sweet little person. You have the sweetest smile, and I just love it when you break into a little grin.

You definitely light up my world in so many miraculous ways.  I am so blessed that I get to be your mommy.




Happy birthday Liam!  I can't wait to see what kind of magic 3 brings!

Saturday, June 14, 2014

Mini-Me


One of my favorite things in the world is watching Liam with his daddy.  He LOVES his daddy.  You can tell that he wants to be just like Andrew, and it is the sweetest thing.  I call him Andrew's "mini-me." When Andrew gets home from a long day at work, Liam yells his name and goes running into his arms.  A frequent phrase in our house is, "Daddy, you want to play with me?"  or "Daddy, you see this?"  

It's darling.  What these two have is so special, and I look forward to seeing how their relationship evolves over the years.

Fixing their chainsaws

Just like Daddy!
All boy


Happy Father's day Andrew!  Thank you for all that you do for us!  Most of all, thank you for being such a wonderful daddy and role model for this little guy.

We love you!

xoxo

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Quiet

I've been pretty quiet in this space.  Our lives have been packed full recently.  I have also been in the midst of a big writing push, and I'm happy to say that I sent a large chunk of my dissertation to my advisor on Friday.  The writing is extremely gratifying but also exhausting, and I'm finding it a struggle to motivate myself to write more on this blog.

That's okay.  I'm in a place of acceptance, and I know that this is just a season, one that will soon pass.  If I'm a bit quiet during this time, it's quite alright.  I can fully return when my final chapter is signed, sealed, and delivered~!

In the meantime, here's a glimpse into our lives lately:
  • We had a lovely Mother's day weekend.  My boys spoiled me a bit with the most wonderful breakfast.  I had told Andrew that all I wanted was to go on a wildflower hike, and we found the most beautiful, tucked away spot.  The flowers were AAAAAMAZING!  My expectations were completely blown away.  I'm still cataloguing them, but we saw at least 15 different kinds.  Below is a collage of some of them.  I'm pretty sure this hike is destined to become a spring tradition!



  • I also got this Shark vacuum for Mother's day, and I'm thrilled.  It's ridiculous how well this thing cleans.  I could not believe what it pulled from my sofa and rugs on the first round.  I had to empty the canister three times, which is scary considering that I'm a clean freak!  It was strangely gross and satisfying at the same time.  I did tons of research and this one had excellent reviews.  Many of the reviews said that it was better than a Dyson.  Dyson's have always intrigued me, but I just can't justify that price.  If I'm going to spend that much $$$ on a vacuum, it should vacuum for me!  

  • In my last posts, I referred to our sewer project.  Well...that project turned into a bit of a nightmare.  Here's a picture of our front yard after stage 1.  Stage 2 then required that we bust open our concrete floor in our basement and dig a trench.  So...we are in the midst of repairing our finished basement.  The whole ordeal was one expensive fiasco, but unfortunately, a necessary one.  I'm actually looking forward to having our basement updated a bit. I'm also hoping that this all pays off when it comes time to sell our house!  Needless to say, we also have some landscaping to do....

I had to drink a margarita after this....

  • Andrew and I celebrated our 4th anniversary last week.  We've made it a tradition to stick to the traditional wedding gifts, which keeps it interesting.  This year's gift was flowers and fruit.  Andrew gave me this most beautiful bouquet of fragrant flowers.  It smells divine!  He also surprised me with this glass pane with pressed flowers in it! I was having a hard time getting a good picture of it because of the glare, but it's just beautiful!   I made him a batch of chocolate covered fruit :-)




  • Our Memorial Day turned into a bit of a bust because our little guy was sick with some kind of virus.  The poor thing.  I swear there isn't anything worse than seeing your child not feeling well.  On the upside, we got lots of rest and our basement is nearing completion.  
  • I'm loving these warm days that I get to spend with this little guy.  We have been maximizing our time outside and loving every minute of it!

xoxo

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Easter

My Easter post is coming a little late, but that's how I roll these days!  

We spent the weekend at my mom and dad's house.   It was the best weather we've had all spring so we spent much of it outside.

This was Liam's first year really hunting Easter eggs, and he was pretty excited about it. 

I just love how my boys have matching sleepy faces in this picture.    


My parents got Liam these Superman pajamas, which he thinks are so cool.  They have a little cape that attaches with velcro.  When he wears them, he pretends to fly, and let me tell you, I don't think it gets much better than watching your two year-old son pretend to fly!  Pure awesome.

Here he is ready to go on the hunt.


He was pretty proud of himself each time he found one.


See the cape?  You can also see that the Easter Bunny kept his hiding pretty simple this year. 


After he hunted for his eggs, he got to come inside and open his presents.  He had picked out this excavator at the store, and we wrote the Easter Bunny a letter telling him about it.  Liam was really excited when he opened it. 



I feel so very blessed to get to experience the world alongside this little guy.  He brings us so. much. joy.  And truly makes every holiday so much sweeter!


xoxo

Monday, April 14, 2014

Grateful Monday

It's been awhile since I've done a grateful Monday post, but this week, I really need it.

I'm hoping that this post will help me keep perspective as we deal with having to replace our sewer line.  This is a majorly expensive project, and it's gotten me frazzled.  I just keep telling myself that it will all be okay.  Once it's fixed, we won't have to worry about it anymore.  And when it comes time to sell this house, it will, hopefully, pay off!

I really just hope and pray that they don't find anymore problems once they dig a massive trench in my front yard.  Fingers crossed. 

So today, here are five things that I'm grateful for:

  • Our health.  Whenever I start to feel overwhelmed or down about life's problems, I always remind myself that we are all healthy.  And that is priceless.  I would deal with this sewer problem any day over a health issue.  Hands down.  
  • Our home.  While I'm not exactly loving our 110 year-old house at the moment, I need to remind myself that we are blessed to even have a home.  And a pretty darn cute one at that!
  • My parents.  They are making an impromptu trip to come see us tomorrow so my dad can be here for this project.  He's got a lot of experience in this area, and we are so blessed to have his expertise and help.
  • My husband.  I tend to be a nervous nelly, and he is always an optimist.  He's always so patient and compassionate and knows exactly how to calm me down.  I just love him.
  • Spring.  Though today is cold, we had a beautiful weekend.  And one benefit of having to dig up our landscaping is that I had no choice but to cut my hyacinths.  I've got bunches of them scattered about, and now, my house smells divine.

Here's to counting blessings and staying positive!

Have a wonderful week!

xoxo

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Girls' Backpacking Trip

Last April, I wrote about a weekend away at a cabin with some of my girlfriends.  We enjoyed ourselves so much that we decided to make it an annual event.

And since we all love the outdoors, we decided to make this year's weekend a light backpacking trip.  

We gathered at my friend Beth's beautiful home on Friday night and enjoyed some delicious food and cocktails. I invited my sister-in-law to join us, and I'm so happy she came along.  She fits in seamlessly with this group of women.  I just adore her. 


We woke up on Saturday and packed up. 


And then we hit the trail. We did a small section of the River to River trail in the Bald Knob Wilderness in the Shawnee National Forest. It was perfect.  The wildflowers were starting to bloom, and we couldn't have asked for better weather.




Between the 7 of us, there were some excellent map reading skills. 



We had a fun water crossing and then set up camp along the creek.


We built a raging fire and settled in for the night.





And we ate the most delicious camp meal I've ever had!  



We stayed up late into the night gathered around the fire.  And then spent much of the next day lounging at our campsite.  We didn't actually start hiking the next day until 2:30.  We definitely would have stayed another night if we could!




I just adore these women. Spending time with them is good for my soul, and I always come away a better person. I am so grateful to be blessed with these soul sisters.  And with my hectic schedule recently, it was really nice to get away and spend some quiet time in the woods. 



And have I mentioned my SIL?  She's the best.  I'm so grateful to have her in my life.  


I'm already looking forward to our next trip.  I'm thinking that maybe our girls' weekend needs to happen more than once a year!

xoxo

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Lately

Life has been full lately. 

Last week was my spring break so Liam and I spent a few days visiting with my parents. We came home and then I packed my bags and headed to Pittsburgh to present at the NARST conference.  I do enjoy going to conferences, but at this point, I'm kind of tired of travelling. I have no plans to get on a plane anytime soon and that is fine by me!

Here is a little random peak into life around here lately.
  • I finally have a pretty solid outline for my dissertation so I'm in full writing mode.  Now I just need to find some precious time to put my nose to the grind.  My goal is to be finished with a draft by Labor day (I can't believe I'm actually telling that to the world....it kind of makes me want to hyperventilate....) 
  • We are busy planning our summer concert season. (Yes... I did just talk about needing to find time to write my dissertation and now I'm talking about going to concerts.  It's all about balance right?!)  We have tickets to see Ray LaMontagne and the John Butler Trio, two of my very favorite musicians!  We also have tickets to this festival, which will likely be the highlight of the summer.  

We are considering this festival, but I need to see how my writing goes before I commit.  Hopefully this can be a reward for finishing a couple chapters!


  • Here's Liam with his little buddy Cecelia. After the longest winter ever, we are seriously enjoying being able to play outside again.  

  • Speaking of my little guy, he is keeping me on my toes these days and starting to challenge me a bit.  But he's also talking up a storm and just being all around awesome.  Here he is playing his "big boy" guitar with his new guitar strap.  This kid just can't get enough music.  About two days ago, he started making up little tunes along with words.  It kind of melts my heart.....



  • Speaking of the longest winter ever...this winter wrecked havoc on my skin.  I've never had dry skin like I had this year.  In a moment of desperation, I tried this oil and it was like a miracle.  It's now one of my skincare essentials.  I never in my life thought I would be putting oil on my face but this stuff is uh-mazing!  My skin has never looked better.  I use it morning and night.  It is pricey, but a little goes a long way.  I might actually go so far as to say that this is the best skin care product I've ever used.  For real. 




  • I'm SO ready for it to warm up so I can start wearing warm weather clothes. Anyone else totally over your winter wardrobe?! I'm ready for sundresses, skirts, and sandals.  I recently discovered the store Altar'd State and it's totally up my alley.  It's very similar to Anthropologie but not as expensive.  I picked up this shirt on sale, and I love it.



  •  At the end of last year, we were hit with a couple of costly car repairs.  So at the start of the year, we revisited our budget and started using a cash system (I plan to write a post about this).  I have been so impressed by the changes that have resulted in our spending and how much more intentional we are with our money.  I'm completely sold on this approach!  
  •  I'm gearing up for a weekend away with some of my girlfriends.  We are heading out on a girls' backpacking trip.  I can't wait to spend some quality with my soul sisters and also be in the woods for a couple of days!  Fun stuff!
xoxo