I believe that being a mother is one of the most important callings.
It is a calling from God.
We work with God to raise these kids.
I love being a mother. It is hard work, but I wouldn’t trade it.
I pray that you are treated like a queen today; because you deserve it.
A little spiritual enlightenment on motherhood found here.
I am…
loving: My new scentsy. It is the edison warmer, and my favorite scent is weathered leather. I know, I’m weird. I love the smell of shoe stores. Leather smells so good.
reading: Our church magazine full of talks from our recent general conference. General Conference happens twice a year. It’s a time to listen to our leaders share their wisdom. I anxiously wait for the printed version of this to come out so I can read and re-read the words spoken at that meeting. They give me so much insight. This is one of my favorites.
waiting for: it to warm up so I can finish putting flowers in my pots. I have ordered begonia’s and it is still just a little cold for those gentle flowers. See those empty pots on my porch, they are waiting for their pretty pink begonias.
excited about: my new lens. It is perfect for taking pictures at my Jex’s Baseball games.
It also has a macro feature. It has me swooning over these up-close and personal photos.
trying to: Be more deliberate with our new token system.
working on: Being a better friend
enjoying: Junior mints. Not sure what it is, but I am loving them lately. I justify it because they are made with dark chocolate and dark chocolate is better for you. No, not justifiable?
using: Pink lipstick; so fun for spring.
wearing: Sandals, and gold goes with everything.
planning for: My upcoming neck surgery. Ugh!! I’m finally going for it. I will blog about it all soon.
needing: A nap. You too?
learning: To trust God. He knows what is best for me. I have faith in that.
listening to: God’s words. These scriptures have brought me so much comfort over the last few days.
Helaman 5: 47-48
47 Peace, peace be unto you, because of your faith in my Well Beloved, who was from the foundation of the world.
48 And now, when they heard this they cast up their eyes as if to behold from whence the voice came; and behold, they saw the heavens open; and angels came down out of heaven and ministered unto them.
John 14:27
27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
doing: Lots of Chauffeuring my kids to and fro.
dreaming of: Being pain free; no more pain in my arm and neck. I just might blog more if that was the case.
singing: Blessings by Laura Story. This song has brought me so much peace.
wishing: My kids would stop growing. Tessa lost her first tooth, and I wanted to cry all night. How is my baby loosing teeth?
praying: To know what God would have me do each day.
What are you currently doing?
A while back, I decided to write about each of our children. I wanted to remember them better right now, at this stage of life, and record all the reasons I love. I love each child I’ve been blessed with, but I love them all for different reasons.
I wrote about Tess, not so long ago. Now it is Isaac’s turn.
Isaac is number 3. He is the baby that made me feel like a real mom.
I didn’t feel like I was playing house anymore. I was really a mom of 3 kids. I kind-of, sort-of, knew what I was doing now; and he helped me feel peace. I was less stressed and felt so comfortable in my role as a mom.
Isaac is the middle child. Sometimes it is hard being in the middle. I often worry that he is being forgotten about. I worry that he gets lost in shuffle. As a mom, I am working so hard to not let that happen. I even remind the older kids that I need their help making a place for Isaac. Isaac is worth making a place for.
He has the most adorable smirky smile. He gets this smile anytime we tease him, by asking him about girls at school. I love seeing him smirk.
When Isaac was a toddler, Jonathan used to lay by him at night and whisper to him, “Isaac, you are my special boy.” Anytime he feels sad or lost, I always remind him that he is a special boy. Not only to his earthly father, but also to his Heavenly Father.(and to me of course)
Isaac loves to touch everything in sight. If it’s there, he must touch it. It has gotten him in trouble on many occasions, and has caused some complicated consequences. He is learning and growing as he understands the power of choices and the result of consequences. He is learning to tame his impulsiveness. I love that he is trying so hard.
Isaac loves to recount stories. Any story he watches on television or reads in a book, he wants to retell to me. He doesn’t leave out any details, and he wants you to listen to the whole thing. He has such a good memory. He also loves to recount funny moments from movies. He will say, “mom, remember when…”, and then he goes on and on about how funny it was. He makes me laugh.
Isaac loves to growl. Remember when I talked about him smirking about girls we tease him about? Well, he will also include a growl with that. Like Grrrr… you are teasing me. He started growling when he was just 9 months old. He would growl and growl, and was so excited about using his voice. When he was about 3, we would walk down the hall at the kids school, and he would lean over and growl at the kids walking down the hall in the opposite direction. It always made us laugh. You never knew who he would growl at. Now, he mostly just growls at us, but that growl has become endearing.
When he was born, I was completely smitten with him. Those long eyelashes and big blue eyes won my heart. He still has my heart, and I am still smitten with him. I just thing he is so adorable. Every mom thinks that right? He makes my heart sing, each time I see him.
Isaac has always been a very good big brother to Tessa. He protects her in such a loving older brother kinda way. He loves to read to her each night, and always wants to sleep in her room.
Isaac’s emotions run deep. If he is happy, he is oh so happy. If he is sad, he is oh so sad. It’s a hard thing when he is sad. It can almost break your heart.
Here is an example of one of my favorite Isaac stories. All about his emotions and a very important balloon. Click on the picture to take you there:
Isaac is very athletic in a very innocent way. He has natural abilities that make him very good at everything he tries. When I mean innocent way, he isn’t cocky about it. He doesn’t even realize how natural he is at athleticism.
Isaac is the king of Lego sets. He could build Lego sets from a very early age, and it still amazing at them. When he grows up, he wants to be a professional Lego set designer.
Isaac always gets 100% on his math tests. He loves math and is very good at it. He is also the first in his class to finish all of his math timings. He is very proud of this and tells me every day how far he has come. I am grateful that school is important to him. He is also a very good reader, and is starting to enjoy more chapter books.
Isaac was not a morning person. I was so worried when he started first grade that I was never going to be able to get him out of bed. He used to growl and kick whenever I went to tell him it was time to wake up. So this year when he started first grade, we decided that we would set a goal. I wanted him to be able to learn how to get up on his own. I also mentioned that by showering first, it would help his mind and body wake up. He agreed to the goal, and so we got him an alarm and set it. It wakes him up, and he hops right out of bed to jump in the shower. The funny thing is now he doesn’t need the alarm. His body just wakes up about that time ready to go. I am grateful for his example of setting a goal to change, and actually achieving that goal. Now, I need to learn how to get up in the morning and not be a bear. Ugh!! Mornings are hard for me.
Isaac loves to help in the kitchen. Whenever I am cooking, he always asks if there is something he can do. His favorite thing to do is cut strawberries. I am always thankful for the help.
Isaac is also my best cleaner. He always follows through with his chores, and gets them done. His room is always clean, his bed is always made, and my favorite; his shoes are always straightened.
I am thankful for Isaac. He is a special boy with special abilities that everyone in our home can learn from. Isaac is turning 8 this summer. In our church, you are baptized at the age of 8. I am so excited for him to take this next step, and become an official member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I also know that the gift of the Holy Ghost will help this impulsive boy so much. It’s nice to know that the Holy Ghost can help us all make good choices.
I am proud of Isaac and the boy he is growing up to be.
I thank God for sending me this sweet blue-eyed boy.
Life around here has gotten out of control for me. We have so much going on right now. When that happens, I feel lost. I feel lost because I love being here on my blog writing and recording. It is always in the back of my mind to find time to get here. I tell myself every. single. day., “I’m going to blog today.” Ugh!! The day gets away from me, and then when night time rolls around, I try; but my brain has shut down. I kinda need my brain to write.
What happened to me? I used to be able to make time to blog, and scrapbook, and write. Now, when I do have the time, my brain doesn’t work.
I’ll tell you what happened. My kids are growing up. I’m am in the busiest season of my life.
I used to think that having 4 kids under the age of 7 was a busy time, but I was wrong.
Life then was about staying home and taking care of them.
Life now is about getting in the car and running them here and there.
Life now is about interruptions. Stopping what I am doing and taking someone somewhere.
To be honest, I have sat down to blog here so many times. I get started and I get interrupted. I know, you are saying, but the little kids interrupt to. They did. They would interrupt me to help them with something in our house, and then I could come back to what I was doing. Now, my interruptions involve me leaving the house, and then for some reason I can’t make it back here to blog. Ugh!!
I feel like I post about this a lot. Can you tell it bothers me?
So with that being said, I have over thirty-five 365 pictures to share here.
I have thought to myself, I should just give up and let it go.
Then I thought, “No way, I am going to complete my goal.”
So here it is:
My lengthy 365 post. Which btw, I have typed up already and lost due to an interruption. Ugh!! Can I say that again? Ugh!!
I feel like Charlie Brown. Isn’t that the sound he would utter when life got him down?
I’m not going to give up. When I’m here I’m happy, so I have to find a way. Even if it isn’t as frequent as I would like.
So here is our life through my 365 project:
March 17, 2015
St. Patricks Day dinner: green eggs, green grapes, green crepes and rainbow sprinkles.
March 18, 2015
Tessa does her chores.
March 19, 2015
It’s been so warm that signs of spring have already arrived.
March 20, 2015
Tess fell asleep in the car, and only made it to the couch once she came inside; poor tired baby. (part of being the baby is running around with mom to all the places we go)
March 21, 2015
Dad plays basketball with the boys. I’d say he’s still got it.
March 22, 2015
I love seeing this Arkansas Razorback on the back of Jonathan’s truck. We will always be southern folk.
March 23, 2015
It’s strawberry season, time for strawberry jam.
March 24, 2015
Bringing a little spring indoors.
March 25, 2015
This birds nest in our tree makes me smile. (I do not however, like the trail of bird doo-doo they are leaving on my driveway.)
March 26, 2015
Lemonade+mug+straw=happiness.
March 27, 2015
It was cold enough today to turn this on.
March 28, 2015
We spent our spring break in Utah this year checking out some of the great places SLC has to offer. This day, we went to This is the Place park. What a neat place.
March 29, 2015
We spent this beautiful Sunday checking out Temple Square in SLC. (taken by some random stranger who offered to take our picture; one of those random acts of kindness.) I do have to say it was a little scary for me to hand my camera over.
March 30, 2015
Because I am such a loser, I forgot to take pictures during the rest of our spring break. So I will share a few more from Temple Square and This is the Place park. This is the kiddos at the temple in their Sunday best.
March 31, 2015
This is the kids in front of the monument of Brigham Young and the pioneers at This is the Place park. Those are the words Brigham Young uttered when he and the pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley, “This is the Place.”
April 1, 2015
Stella Grace taking photos at Temple Square.
April 2, 2015
Stella took this photo of me taking pictures at Temple Square.
April 3, 2015
We made it back home, and Stella is enjoying dinner. This girl is such a good eater. I love it because she always loves what I fix. It’s nice to have a child that clears their plate.
April 4, 2015
It’s Easter Weekend and my sister Kristin and her family came for a visit. We did lots of fun Easter things. Here they are dying eggs.
April 5, 2015
Forgot to take a photo once again, so here is another Easter weekend pic. This is a shot from our egg hunt.
April 6, 2015
Kristin and her kids are still here for a few days. It’s fun to spend time with them, and see how cute and funny Hank is.
April 7, 2015
Jex earns some scout awards at a court of honor. I can never take pictures of him receiving the awards, because he is always pinning awards on me. So I tried to grab this one of him hugging his dad, but they hugged a little too fast. Jonathan is one of Jex’s scout leaders.
April 8, 2015
Tessa makes her bed. She is so good to do this each and every day. Teaching kids to get in the habit of things really does work when you start early. This is a great example of that. She has been making her bed since she was 2.
April 9, 2015
Another one of Hank, not taken today, once again I forgot. Even though I fail on some days, I am going to keep trying. Isn’t he adorable?
April 10, 2015
Stella makes school lunches.
April 11, 2015
Jex is really into art. It has been fun to see his creative side come out.
April 12, 2015
Today, we got to spend the day seeing this little cutie be blessed. Cade is my sister Lindsay’s baby, and I am absolutely in love with him. I wanted to bring him home, but his older sister wouldn’t let me.
April 13, 2015
Ike and Tess play tic tac toe.
April 14, 2015
Stella does flips on the trampoline.
April 15, 2015
Really? Snow? It’s April.
April 16, 2015
My baby looses her first tooth. She was not happy about this picture because the sun was in her eyes. I am not happy about her loosing teeth. She is my baby, and it’s not fair that she is growing up.
April 17, 2015
Tessa loves to play babies. Including pretending she is having one.
April 18, 2015
I am in love with ranunculus flowers. Right now, they are brightening up my kitchen.
April 19, 2015
We love having friends for dinner. The kids love it too, because they have lots of playmates.
April 20, 2015
Stella planned a beautiful Family Home Evening with some help from her dad. It was geared toward Isaac because he will be baptized this year. She taught him all about the Holy Ghost and how he helps us. In our church, you are baptized at 8. Then after the baptism, you are given the gift of the Holy Ghost which is a constant companion to help you make good choices, and stay away from harm. The Holy Ghost has also brought me so much peace during hard times. I am so happy for Isaac. Thank you Stella for the beautiful lesson.
April 21, 2015
I got to do a senior photo shoot today. I don’t really take pictures much anymore, but love when I can do it for someone special in our life. This is Maddie. Her mom is Jonathan’s nurse. It is nice having some time to develop a talent I enjoy.
April 22, 2015
Stella captured a picture of me making dinner. Thank heavens for Stella or it would look like I don’t exist in this family.
April 23, 2015
Spring baseball is in full swing.(no pun intended)
Thanks for checking out my crazy amount of photos. More to come soon.
I hope.
