I needed a reality check!

I saw this today.

And it hit me like 10,000 pounds of bricks. 

How many times have I held myself back from true happiness and pure bliss of what my life has become because I wish for things that used to be?

Am I the only one that struggles with this?

Every time a scrap of something from years ago comes knocking on my memory's door, I am so quick to forsake the beautiful things right in front of me for things that I used to find beautiful. 

I have BEAUTIFUL children. (I am very biased, in case you were wondering.)

I have a super hot hubby ;)

Sometimes I need to take a step back, breathe through frustration, and remember that my life is beautiful.

Through the tantrums, the late night feedings, struggling to make time for just Josh and I...I love every single second! 

I'm a mommy, wife, nurse, chef, friend, play date, comedian, and teacher for my family. And it is the most wonderful place that I could ever wish for myself to be in. 

Admittance of a problem

So, they say that when you start on the road to recovery, you need to first admit that you have a problem.

So, here goes...

I'M ADDICTED TO TRYING THE THINGS I FIND ON PINTEREST.

But in my defense, there are much worse things out there that I could be addicted to! 

So, since I haven't updated y'all since MAY, let me give ya a little peak in on what I'm doing all the time!

I'll be somewhat vague since there is a lot of projects that I tried :) 

First of all, new recipes! Which were hits with at least 2/3 of the real food eaters in our house ;)

BANANA PANCAKES! Seriously. Pancakes made out of smashed bananas. Soo yummy.

SPICY CARROTS! It's not a very good picture, but I guess it's the only one we took? Anyways, Josh loves these carrots that have a little heat to 'em!

GREEN BEANS! This one isn't spectacular, but we liked it! Green beans, fresh garlic, and parmesan cheese.

 

BAKED OATMEAL! Okay, so this one came about because during the week, Josh has to get up and be out of the house by 7 for work. And I would love to be "that wife" that gets up to make him breakfast every morning before he leaves, but realistically, I'm not waking up before he has to just to make him breakfast. So! I made these the night before and he could snag what he wanted on his way out the door :)

ROASTED BROCCOLI! This one is our absolute favorite!! Seriously. I love it, Josh loves it, and Landen loves it. Super yummy! (And you have to believe me because up until a couple weeks ago, I hated broccoli. And now I can't get enough!)

That's all the recipes I have pictures for, haha. But! I have a couple other projects that I'm in the middle of!

PAINTING BUG'S SHELVES TO LOOK LIKE BUZZ LIGHTYEAR! I'm not done yet, but here's a progress picture!

BUG'S BIG BOY BED! This one is amazing, and almost done! Bought Bug a loft bed off of Craigslist, and we are painting it Disney Geared Up Grey! Here's a sneak peak!

Can you tell that Landen is going to have a Disney themed room? Haha 

And on top of that, we've moved into our own house! We potty trained Bug! Jerika is off the bottle and on the sippy cup! Josh is working full time! I'm working part time! And we're having fun :) 

Pre-Mother's Day!

Dear Moms (and future moms who don't know the wonderful and horrifying times that they're in for),

Have a good ol' laugh at some ecards I found that are both really funny, but actually true! :)

Just putting this out there...this is life for nursing moms.

Even just trying to sort laundry can be like this.

Suddenly everything needs to be done when you take a pee break...or someone starts crying...or someone gets hurts...or suddenly the kids hate dad. Lol

But sometimes you just need to take a little break.

And I believe that being around sensitive little children all day in turn makes you more sensitive. Because even the smallest (sometimes harmless) comment can send you into a tailspin of self doubt.

And sometimes it feels like your whole day is shot.

And sometimes it takes something very small to make you gain your confidence back.

Speaking of Walmart...

And how about your home life?

And when you and the hubby are finally alone...

So if its been three days since your last shower, you're hiding in the closet so you don't have to share what you're eating, or you've stepped on your last Lego, always remember that to your kids, you are super mom!

You would do anything for those little hell-raisers!

And don't forgot to give yourself some credit!

So, cheers to you, super mom!

Mother's Day!

Let me start by saying that I cannot believe that this my third Mother's Day! The time has gone by so fast since Landen was born, that I'm not exactly sure where it all went. I am now a mother to two beautiful children who make me so happy (sometimes angry), full of love (losing my sanity), and proud (sometimes embarrassed of Bug's public tantrums). I've had two years and three months full of wonderful and at times heart wrenching experiences that have made me earn my badge to be a mom. Even through all of that time, it still seems like only yesterday that I was a bright eyed and bushy tailed 18 year old moving away from my mom and dad into the great unknown of Idaho that held my future.

I often think about the day I told my parents that I wanted to move away. And how fast the time went after that. And then suddenly it was moving day! I had been up all night packing last minute things, only gotten two hours of sleep, but the time had come for my mom to escort me to Winnemucca. 

I remember getting to Winnemucca, getting ready to say goodbye, and having a lump in my throat with the sudden realization that I didn't know the next time I would see my mom. I didn't know at the time just exactly how much I would miss her. I didn't know that I would miss talking to her every day or how much I actually valued her opinion. 

This August will be five years since I left home. And during those five years I have grown to love, value, and miss my mom more than ever. No visit is ever long enough and I want her back the minute she is gone. 

I'm grateful for all the small lessons she taught me that have stuck with me all this time. I'm grateful for every phone call she's taken when I'm sobbing and short of breath and you can't understand a word of what I say. I'm grateful for her help through all of my struggles, no matter the size. Through breakups, moving to Idaho, moving to Oregon, and now moving to Idaho again. For walking with me and holding my hand while I was in labor with Landen. For rushing to Baker City the morning I went into labor with Jerika. For helping to plan my wedding while in a completely different state. 

I'm grateful that I've become a mother that she can be proud of.

And now I'm grateful that she can be Nana to my kids!

So thank you mom, for all that you've done and all that you continue to do.

I'll love you forever!

Also! Happy Mother's Day to all of the women out there who continue to be amazing examples of love and compassion to everyone that they come in contact with.  

"Babies are born from the womb. Maternity is born from the soul. There are many ways to mother." -Melanie Notkin

Follow the yellow brick road!

Okay, I'm trying to be very diligent in keeping my blog updated now! Considering that I'm not currently working and need something to fill my free time :)

So! Since moving to Idaho, being on the job hunt, and hanging out with our awesome temporary roommates, we really had no other obligations! My parents offered the idea of us traveling down to Elk Grove to see them, and we jumped on that invite! Because depending on what our job situations would be, we weren't really sure when we would be able to go see them again. So we packed our bags, loaded the kids in the car, and embarked on the 540 mile journey to Elk Grove :)

^^ that sign makes me laugh every time! Haha

Anyways! We made it to EG just in time for dinner and bedtime :)
The following few days held lots of cousin time, photo ops, and exploring!

^^her very first BSU outfit :)

Our very first time to the San Francisco Zoo!! :)

^^We finally experienced Lombard Street!

While we were in California, Josh and I were able to celebrate our first anniversary :) thanks so much to my parents who took care of the kids for the night!
First was dinner! We drove down to a place where we had never been before, called OneSpeed in Sacramento. We weren't sure what to expect, but it ended up being really really good!

We were planning on going to the drive in movies, since Josh and I have both never been. But by the time we pulled up to the theatre, it was so packed that we decided to change our plans.
So we ended up going to The Cheesecake Factory, buying cheesecake and going to eat it in the trunk of our car haha

And then we went to the movies to see Oz!

And quite honestly, even though it was a good movie, we debated leaving early because both were so tired that we couldn't keep our eyes open! Ha the joys of parenthood.
Also for our anniversary we celebrated by using our anniversary glasses, and had the cake ball toppers from our wedding cake :)

Anyways, after a glorious week of vacation (aside from allergies kicking our butts!), it was time to make our way back home. The long long long 540 miles home. :(