A Trip to Where the Grass is Greener

     As I begin this post, it is with great optimism that we continue on with the rest of our trip unscathed. Mind you that we are only halfway through, and I wanted to begin while the details were fresh in my mind. 

     On Thursday afternoon, we began our first trip of the year! We set off to Portland to see my cousin get married, visit with my mom and youngest brother, and visit our dear friends in Eugene. 

     We had an incredibly long drive on Thursday, which got more difficult the closer we got to our destination. The rain got heavier, the night got darker, and our patience wore thinner. We arrived at our hotel near midnight, and got unpacked. We were all understandably exhausted, and after our initial hellos, willingly went to bed. 

     Friday was the day of the wedding! It was a beautifully overcast day, and did end up raining a bit.

^^ Landen, a boy after my own heart, loved the rain. He found any excuse to leave the umbrella and stand out in the thick of it.

     After seeing the Bride and Groom, taking some family pictures, and visiting with everyone, we left back to the hotel to get some lunch and take a nap. Jerika perfectly embodies just how tired we were all feeling at the time.

     The reception was beautiful! It was a fun night seeing so much family and dancing the night away.

     Saturday was a new day! After getting some more rest, we woke up to a bright and sunny day. Saturday was my parent's 29th wedding anniversary!! So congratulations to them :) We were lucky enough to spend so much time with my mom during our visit. One of the best parts of the day was visiting the Rhododendron Gardens in Portland (a very favorite spot of mine!) to feed the ducks and squirrels. My hubs and kiddos had never been there, so it was fun! 

     Sadly, we parted ways on Sunday with my mom and brother. But we did get to meet up with our besties Ritz and Kenzi at the Portland Zoo! 

     We all loved it! The kids had fun running around, looking at the animals, and just being outside. 

     Our Monday with the girls consisted of sight seeing around Eugene! Josh of course had to go see Autzen Stadium.

     We took the kiddos to a park called Skinner Butte, which they LOVED. And then hiked a tiny trail next to it.

     We ended up driving to the top of Skinner Butte to check out the view of Eugene!

     We then went downtown and checked out Voodoo Doughnuts for the first time!!

     It was tough to say goodbye, but we sure loved seeing everyone that we did during this trip! 

     And after a long, long, long car ride...

     We finally made it home. <3

A Legitimate Complaint

Seriously?
Every time that I remember that I have a blog, I want to kick myself in the pants for not keeping up with it.
Maybe putting Post-Its up everywhere I look will help remind me?
Perhaps a tattoo on the top of my hand?
A reminder on our phone every day?
lol, idk. But I will try to be more diligent in writing, because I LOVE writing.


      I've had a concern weighing heavily on my mind lately. Something that I've discussed with Josh. Something I've complained to mommy friends about. And I'm sure I've even gone to my mother for advice. But I have yet to find a solution for this problem that recurs daily.

     This problem is bedtime.

     Bedtime, or as it's known in our home, "The Period Of Time When The Children Get Up And Play And Sometimes Cry And Avoid Sleeping At All Costs For At Least Three Hours", is a nightly battle that we seldom win. There is sweat. There are tears. And sometimes there is blood (from us pulling our hair out). And of course we know that as soon as we shut their doors and turn to walk away, they have sinister grins on their tiny cherub faces as they plot their next move.

     Ask me how many bedtime stories we've read. Ask me how many times I've sang "Let It Go". Ask me how many times potty breaks were needed but then they needed water, a kiss and hug, they forgot their toy at Grandma's House, and now they want to know what plastic is made of. To quote Cady Heron*, "The limit does not exist". Because it truly doesn't.

I've gone as far as Googling a generic answer on how to combat this. Here's what helpful tips the "parental experts" of the internet had to share:

1. Make sure their bedtime is early enough. 

2. Keep your child's bedtime consistent.

3. Let your child wind down. 
      
4. Patience and Persistence.

5. Use soft lights 30 minutes prior to bedtime.

Grant me a moment to share my thoughts on these suggestions. I couldn't keep scrolling through links after that last one. I just had to stop, because:

1. What parent isn't like "Dear Children, I love you. But it's been a long day. Please go to bed so I can enjoy 30 minutes of peace before I fall asleep on the couch pretending to stay caught up on my favorite show" ?

2. Aside from attending special events, like a wedding or something, I don't know of a parent that isn't counting down the final few minutes before bedtime. Bedtime will never pass by unnoticed in our house, so consistency is not a problem.

3. I don't know if the person who suggested this has ever had a child between ages 2-4, but this is basically impossible. From the moment my kids wake up in the morning until the moment they pass out mid-activity at night, they are on-the-go. 

4. Patience and Persistence is a solid piece of advice. Kudos to whoever wrote this.

5. Maybe it's just my cheap-mom practicality, but I will not have separate lights in order to calm my children for bed. The rest of my "persistent bedtime routine" for my kids should clue them in on the fact that it's bedtime before me going out to buy soft lights ever should.

     If I didn't actually enjoying sleeping so much, I would just let our little rascals join us in bed every day so the snuggling never stops :). Unfortunately, children don't understand the blessing that a solid night's sleep is to a parent. So let the battles continue!


*Cady Heron is the main character from Mean Girls. This was obviously a great quote that applies to many a situation. So if you don't get it, please do yourself a favor and rent that movie stat.

   

Marriage is really, really hard.

I would like to open this post with a disclaimer: I'm boutsta get all sappy about my hubs.

Josh and I have been married for 3 years. I know to a lot of people, that's such a short amount of time. And I cannot wait until we've got 10, 20, 30 years of marriage under our belts and are able to reminisce when other young wives turn to mush when talking about their husbands. 

But right now, in our very stage of life, 3 years has come and gone so fast, but has also felt like a lifetime. In three years, we've lived in two states, 4 different houses, had a second child, changed jobs, found new hobbies and interests, and have made lifelong friends. There's been a lot of change, and a lot of great times when we look back on our day and ask how we got so lucky.

But no marriage would be complete without it's share of difficulty. Without going into detail, I'll just throw out a blanket statement saying that marriage is really, really hard. There are lots of times when we don't see eye to eye. There are times when arguments happen because of something tiny. And there are times when we are just flat out frustrated with whatever struggle we are facing. 

But what I want to do most is praise Josh and the man that he is, because even in my lowest of times, when I feel like giving in to whatever hard time is before us, Josh holds me together. Josh is my rock that refuses to crumble. (Others might call that stubborn, lol). I'm grateful for all of the things that he is and isn't, and the things that make up for my shortcomings. For making me laugh when I only want to be upset. I'm grateful for the life that we've built together.

So, my love, happy anniversary. Happy day remembering when I walked down that aisle to you, with tears in both of our eyes and we promised forever. This marriage has been the hardest and most rewarding work I've ever done. Somehow another year has come and gone, and I can't imagine having spent it with anyone else. I love you!