10 Year Anniversary

Ten years ago today I married my best friend and the love of my life. To say we have been blessed is an understatement. I'm a dreamer and had all kinds of dreams for our life together, but never could I have imagined God blessing us this richly... Three healthy, beautiful, sweet little girls that have brought us joy that we never even knew was possible. Two more little ones coming in August that we already love beyond measure. An amazing career at TrueNorth that allows us to provide for our family, give to others and have some leftover.

But mostly, I'm blessed that this is the man that I get to love and be married to for the rest of my life. To know without a doubt that he loves me more than life itself and thinks I am the most amazing woman in the world is something that every woman should have in their lives. He is constantly giving of himself and going above and beyond for our family. These last few months have tough and have proven just how much he really meant it when he said our vows 10 years ago. Since being pregnant with twins has left me either sick (1st trimester) or unable to do most activities, he basically picks up the slack of everything. Not only does he work more than a full time job, he does most of the childcare and household duties. I honestly can't remember the last time I unloaded the dishwasher, vacuumed or scrubbed floors. He does laundry. Gives kids baths and puts them to bed. Goes grocery shopping at 6:00 am so we have food for the day. Gets home early to take the kids to their activities and then ends up staying up past midnight to finish his work even though he has to be up again at 5:00 am the next day. He cooks. He scrubs bathrooms. And then even has time to rub my neck and back at the end of the day and keep my water bottle full while I try to rest on the couch. And then realize that we have to clean more twice as much as everyone else because our house is on the market and we have showings. He pretty much has had to do everything over the last few months. But the most amazing part of it all... he does it ALL without complaining or expecting anything in return. He loves me and the kids so much that he lovingly serves us in this way. He wants no accolades or recognition, he just loves being a father and husband and wants to do everything he can for us. He is one of the most selfless servants I have ever witnessed. He is the exact example of what Christ had in mind when he set up the beautiful union of marriage.

So thank you darling.... for being my best friend and loving me unconditionally. For the best 10 years of my life. I know the next year may be a challenge but I know I can do it as long as I have you by my side and God in my life. I love you more than you will ever know.

Pinterest Projects

So I admit it. I'm a Pinterest geek. I think it is a great resource. It is especially helpful for me in finding activities to do with the kids since I stay at home with them and also it has been a huge help in designing our new home. Here are a few of my latest Pinterest projects...

Makenna's dinosaur costume for her school music program

Valentines

A pencil vase with flowers, a darling homemade card (also off Pinterest) and an Orange Leaf giftcard for teacher's thank you gifts

I also made my mom a pretty cute Mother's Day gift from a Pinterest idea but failed to take a picture of it. Oh well. More to come :)

25 Weeks Pregnant

Here are two pictures of me last week at 25 weeks pregnant with twins!

I feel huge and am constantly getting asked "When are you due?" I then love the shocked look on people's faces when I tell them August :) Yes, I know I look like I'm due in 3 weeks! Right now I am so thankful because I am actually feeling pretty good. I get tired very quickly and my body (or should I say the twins) are very good at telling me when I need to slow down. But for the most part I can still get through my day... except for anything that requires me to bend over. I just pick stuff up off the floor with my toes now. Or leave it for Josh :)

Pregnancy Symptoms right now: LOTS of baby movement and hiccups (the babies even seem to "play" or "fight" with each other and go back and forth), I pee constantly, still have shooting pains down my left leg/hip that does not allow me to lift that leg or put much weight on it, swollen hands and feet (no more wedding ring :( ).


And just for a little fun comparison... here is a picture of me 12 days before I gave birth to Maya. Keep in mind she was a 9 lb 3 oz baby! I'm not quite this big yet, but I am very, very close. This is going to get very interesting!

Mykaela

If you hang around our family very long, you will most likely get confused by another "M" name that gets mentioned quite often - Mykaela. Mykaela is our neighbor and baby-sitter. But she isn't just any regular old neighbor and baby-sitter she is seriously the best! Our girls love and adore her and Mykaela says the feeling is mutual. I never have to worry about our girls when they're with Mykaela... she does everything as I ask and even better. I always come home to some awesome game they made up or a craft Mykaela concocted with them. She is not a boring baby-sitter that sits on the couch. She actually told me that she gets sad when it's time to put the girls to bed because then it gets boring after that. Outside of babysitting, Mykaela is at our house on a regular basis just hanging out. We've gotten so used to having her around, missing Mykaela is going to be the hardest part of moving this summer. We're thankful she has a car though and it's only one mile away... that way we can still have impromptu sprinkler parties and hour long chat sessions sitting in the driveway!

So a few weeks ago Mykaela went to prom. We were there with camera in hand... we wouldn't miss it! The girls almost got shy around her because she looked so different... we're used to her in basketball shorts, t-shirt and a ponytail! Maya kept saying she looked like a princess! She looked great and I just had to include the sweetest picture of Mykaela with our girls.

Getting So Big!

I had to share these pictures because this is exactly how I'll remember Maya Gracie at age 3! This was an evening this past week when Daddy and sisters were at soccer practice so it was rather quiet in the house. We spent time baking pumpkin bread, colored, did some puzzles and then she resorted to sitting in the corner and cutting one piece of white paper into miniscule shreds :) Oh the things that entertain 3 year olds!

SO pretty! Love that she has curls in the back now!

Maya's cheesy grin! Goes along great with her snort when she laughs :)

Dying Easter Eggs

I was behind on EVERYTHING for Easter this year. I think we dyed eggs 2 days before. Goodies were purchased on Saturday night at 9:00. Never really planned a big meal for the day. Ugh. BUT, we still had a wonderful day celebrating the true meaning for the holiday... the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Here are some pictures of us coloring Easter eggs this year. I absolutely despise the egg kits with dye. Dye gets everywhere and it stains. And if the eggs don't dry properly the dye gets all over everything when you hide them. So this year I found a splendid idea on Pinterest... when the eggs are still slightly warm from boiling them, take crayons (washable) and draw on them. The wax melts onto the crayon and makes very vibrant designs. The girls loved it and had a lot of fun! I think we found a new Budke tradition!

Easter 2012

We celebrated Easter at home this year! It was a very laidback, relaxing day for all of us, which is exactly what we needed in the midst of our crazy, stress-filled lives. The girls enjoyed finding their baskets and eggs in the morning, we went to church and spent the afternoon playing together as a family. It was wonderful! Happy Easter from my three little munchkins! So excited to find their baskets!

Time to start digging through the baskets!

My girls all pretty and ready for church!

Mommy and her girls (and the two little peanuts in my belly that you can't see very well in this picture!)

Dino-Stars

The second grade at Echo Hill put on "Dino-Stars" for this year's music program. So cute! Makenna was Speaker 17 and did a great job! She was very articulate and expressive, not to mention that all of her dance moves rocked :) All the kids were instructed to dress like dinosaurs. I had clear instructions from my 7 year old that she wanted to be a purple and pink dinosaur. Oh boy. It was a challenge for this sewing/craft-challenged mom, but I think the final product was awfully cute and dinosaur-y! My Dino-Star Makenna!

Showing off her costume! I like the claws the best!

Rocking her dance moves up on stage!

Another view of the back of the costume with all the spikes!

Saying her lines on stage!