Ferris' Birthday Party

My sister threw the most Pinterest-worthy Lego party for my nephews (sixth & fourth) birthdays in October-- seriously, take a look at some of these pictures and tell me that every detail was not thought out!-- the twins loved every minute of it!!!

My grandparents came and there were fun games, cake & even face painting!  

See the "6" & "4" she made for her boys?

"I would walk across Legos for you," said no mom ever. ;)

My three boys (in back)
and my sisters' two boys (in front)

Even the silverware holder was made of Legos!

She turned the water bottles into Lego heads. Brilliant!

Jack & Logan

My Grandpa Jerry, Wyatt & my Grandma Pansy

Minute to Win It :: Game Time!

Grandpa got corralled into the baby bottle drinking game...

Ferris, one of the birthday boys

Jack "mummifying" my mom

Another game-- I got chosen this time!

The goal? Get the Oreo from your forehead to your mouth,
without touching it!

My nephew Isaiah

The birthday boys' dad

My mom's dog Dodger with Jack

My mom's dog Sadie with Ferris & Milo's other Papa (Papa Bruce, or Papa Goose as the kids call him)

Cutest Hulk Ever!

"Happy Birthday To You!"

Make a wish, Milo!

Jack as IronMan
(Roxanne's mother-in-law did the face painting, and it was stellar!)

All the boys eating, and Sadie hoping they'll drop some!

This was Wyatt's first birthday party, and it was very hard!  I am so grateful everyone was so kind to him despite his (mis)behavior!

My sister's adorable family

Happy Birthday Ferrs-the-Hulk

&

Milo-the-Hunk!

~

Gentle

Last year was the first time I'd ever chosen a word for the year, and the word I chose was, "Linger".  I loved having that word guiding me through the days, weeks & months of 2015, so when it came time to choose a word for 2016, I was excited.

I have decided my Word of the Year will be

GENTLE

I am at a point in my life where I am "on" 24/7.  Mostly, my kids need me.  But other demands also weigh on me. (--homeschooling & bill paying, for example)  It's exhausting.  Currently, Logan is acting out to get my attention and deal with Daddy being gone; Jack is struggling with nightmares, which means nightly visits from him; and Wyatt (along with his raw emotions) is always needing to know where I am, and very hesitant to spend any time apart from me.

The weight of these needs gets heavy quick.  

Remembering to be gentle both with my children and with myself is key.

(My Gentle pinterest board holds all my 2016 inspiration)

In addition to choosing a word for the year, I've also chosen three resolutions.

1.  Increase "good parenting" behavior & control myself!

"The sign of great parenting is not the child's behavior.  
The sign of truly great parenting is the parents behavior." 
-Andy Smithson

I plan to do this by:

A) Reading books-

• Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin
• Mindsight by Dr. Daniel Siegal
• Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids by Dr. Laura Markham
• Peaceful Parent, Happy Siblings by Dr. Laura Markham
• Boys Should Be Boys by Dr. Meg Meeker

B) Journaling when I mess up-

One of Gretchen Rubin's Personal Commandments is: "Identify the problem."  I believe that in order to make progress in becoming a better, more patient mom (who doesn't yell!) I need to identify the behaviors or situations that lead to me yelling.  Sure, it will be time consuming, but it's better than laying awake at night going over all the ways I was a terrible mother that day.

"Regret cannot fix yesterday's mistakes.
Worry cannot prevent tomorrow's problems.
Just do the best you can today.
Then do the same tomorrow.
That's really all anyone can ever truly ask of themselves, after all."
-L.R. Knost

C) Monitoring my progress-

I will be keeping track of the days I am successful on my calendar.  At the end of a long day, nothing feels better than putting that sparkly star up there to reward myself for being patient, using kind words & not being harsh with the boys.

2. Give up swearing

I want to be a better example to my boys, and I also think that giving up swearing will help me hold my temper, making me a better mom.

And lastly,
3. Lessen Facebook Time

I've thought about quitting altogether, but I'm not at that point yet.  I would, however, like to be more cognizant of the amount of time I waste on there.

***

Inspired by my resolutions, which I shared openly with the boys (who can be three awesome little accountability partners) Jack came up with a list of his own.  How cute is he?!?

Jack's resolutions:

• Not argue with mom
• Not fight with brothers
• Give a brother what they want
• Not break the rules
• Not go downstairs when you do not tell me
• Not wake up mom
• Let mom sleep in more

(The last two, he tells me, were Wyatt's idea)

I've been inspired by my friends Ashley & Tabitha who have each had 100 Small Things lists going the last few years.  I know better than to make a list like that this year while I'm away from my husband and welcoming a new baby into my life... but I was inspired nonetheless to add some things to my year.

Potential Small Things to Work on:

• Daily gratitude journal
• Sing to kids at bedtime
• Set a goal for # of hours outside
• Learn to sew
• Set up an Alaska Teacher Resource Page on the blog
• Reduce screen time for kids
• Establish some kind of Weekly Blog Update? Or Monday Inspiration...
• Unsubscribe from emails cluttering my inbox
• Leave Facebook for a period of time
• Set and keep a bedtime for myself
• Use daily shower time as my established "Worry Time" for the day
• Read one book a month for 2016

What I learned from 2015:

I am about as happy as I choose to be.

Circumstances in my life may change (being pregnant, not being pregnant; living with Josh, not living with Josh) and those may appear to have a huge impact on my happiness, but the truth is that if I let them, things that are significantly much smaller (ie running out of hot water, the boys fighting all the time, bad cell phone service) can make me just as unhappy as the big things.  It's on me to keep perspective through it all, and to choose to find happiness wherever life takes me.

"The primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation 

but your thoughts about it."

-Eckhart Tolle

And from Ann Voskamp's Instagram,
I answered these questions for fun for the new year:

Embrace-- the chaos.  Breathe anyway.
Engage-- inner peace.  Be the eye of the storm.
Be-- selfless.  Say yes!
Believe-- God will see us through.
Break-- swearing habit.
Daily-- love & hug my kids.
Do-- nothing sometimes.
Let go-- of social media.
Learn-- to sew.
Live-- in the moment.
Give-- love to ALL  my children, especially the twins who are growing up before my eyes.
Grow-- a baby!

***

Do you have new year resolutions?
What are they?
How will you keep motivated?

And what lessons did 2015 teach you?

Carly's Oh-So-Sweet Baby Shower

 As time continued passing since my miscarriages, and my pregnancy with Carly progressed, I went from feeling sad, confused and achy about those losses to feeling positive, optimistic and hopeful about the future.  I found many pins on Pinterest (a great place to be inspired) that matched my improved outlook:

This one might be my very favorite, considering Cinderella is, hands down, my favorite fairy tale.

 

These two spoke to me because I believe them.  

I believe that God would not put me through something without a purpose. 

I believe God has good plans for my life.

And I believe that the rainbow coming after the storm that was last year,

is totally going to have been worth the tears.

Sunday afternoon at my parents house, 

surrounded by all my friends & loved ones, 

we celebrated just that.

 A beautiful rainbow theme filled every corner of the shower.

From the fruit tray...

 to the clothes line...

 to the diaper cake...

 I wish I had taken more pictures-- there were so many people (whom I love so much!) at the shower.  And they spoiled me so very thoroughly. 

 Honestly, I felt like I was opening presents for hours!

Here is where I make a little confession-- I've had trouble believing that #4 will really be a little girl.  I guess it feels too good to be true.  So I have bought three (count 'em three) things for her. Two outfits and one blanket. That's it.

So opening outfit after outfit for sweet little Carly was very exciting.  Everything is so precious for baby girls-- little ribbons, bits of lace and sparkles everywhere!!!

One of the most fun gifts I got was a tiny Ergo (baby wearing backpack) for Carly to wear her dolls in when she gets bigger. It is an exact replica of the Ergo I have. It made me so excited about having a little girl.

My sister printed wish cards and reading through them today was so much fun.  Everyone at the shower filled out their hopes for sweet little Carly, and they have such big dreams for her.  It makes the future seem limitless.

This fur shrug from my aunt is one of my most treasured gifts-- it's fit for a princess and made me very excited for all the dress up (and not the Captain America variety) in my future! 

There was one gift that made me cry-- 

this beautiful hand made blanket from my mom and sister.  

My mom has made a baby blanket for each of my baby's.  My first pregnancy, I was not going to find out what I was having, so we chose sage greens for the baby blanket.  Then at my 20 week ultrasound, we found out it was twins and decided that was enough surprise for one pregnancy, and asked what sex they were.  When we discovered two boys were headed our way, we made a coordinating baby blue blanket to go with the green one.

Then when I was pregnant with Wyatt I went wild and chose super colorful polka dots & stripes, as well as frogs for the baby blanket.  And instead of flannel, which I had done on the twins' baby blankets, I did the entire back in minky.

This pregnancy, I just never had the strength to want to face Fabric Depot and all.the.choices of fabric.  So I put off going, figuring eventually I would have to.  Then my mom surprised me with this blanket that she and my sister pieced together, basing the colors off the one blanket I bought from IvieBaby the night I found out it was a girl.

Those tiny quilts, sewn with love by my very own mom, always remind me of the hospital, so seeing Carly's was a very real reminder that soon I'll have a baby to wrap in that blanket, just like I have before.

After two losses and the ensuing heart break, imagining a baby in that blanket at the end of January feels like a dream come true.

The shower truly was a labor of love, and no detail was left unattended.  I am so grateful for my mom and sister who know me so well and love me so much.  We're all three elated to welcome a little girl into our family of boys (my mom has only grandsons-- six of them!!!) and their excitement is starting to rub away some of my disbelief.

My sister teased me that at the hospital, when Carly's finally in my arms, I'm going to have a moment and shout, "It's a girl! It really is a girl!"  Ha! I think she's probably right!

Me & my baby girl at 33 Weeks

I am getting really anxious to meet this little one
and see her sweet face.
She's already a dream come true.

***