Maya's 1st Haircut

Yes, Maya is 3 1/2 years old, but she just had her first official haircut! I did trim some random long strands of hair in the back around Christmas time, but this was her first time going to the salon. Even with that, you can't really tell the difference... she's really lacking in the hair department! But she's adorable anyway and to be honest I'm not so sure I'm ready to cut the curls off in the back yet :)


The before picture! She is SO excited to finally be getting a haircut just like her big sisters! Even if the lady would've just pretended to cut her hair it would've been worth it for how happy it made her :)

The after picture! Yep, not much difference. Maybe a little cleaner, that's about all! Still my adorable Maya.

Twins' Baby Shower

My very sweet sister-in-laws threw a baby shower for me and the twins at the beginning of June. It was so nice to have family get together to celebrate these two little peanuts! We are so blessed to have family and friends that are excited for us!

All ready for the baby shower with my three favorite girls!

28 weeks pregnant!

Me and my mom :) I love this picture. Probably one of the best ever taken of us together!

Me, Alissa, Shelly and baby Jayla. Such sweet friends :)

Me, Shelly and Meghan... my two sister-in-laws that were so thoughtful in throwing us this wonderful shower! Thank you!

Poppy & Peepie's 60th Birthdays

I've been digging through old pictures and finding everything I didn't blog about for months and found this adorable picture of my parents with their granddaughters. So sweet! This was a fun weekend we had celebrating both of my parents' 60th birthdays! Looks like they are going to have to find some more room on their laps since they will have double that amount of grandchildren at the next birthday party :)

Maryn Softball 2012

If you've already read my blog post about Makenna and softball this summer, we had the opposite experience with Maryn and softball. She was so uninterested that we actually had the "threaten" her to pay attention or else she wouldn't go any more. This was her first year playing and we actually thought given her interest in soccer and her natural athletic ability that softball would be a good fit for her. We were wrong. Very wrong. The pace is much too slow for Maryn and she spent most of the season singing, dancing and twirling her hair in the outfield.... Loud enough for everyone watching the game to hear and get a good laugh out of it. The coach had to yell at her to stand up in the field numerous times. I don't know that she ever once ran after hitting the ball without being told to. She was more interested in making friends when baserunning than actually running bases. She wore her glove on the wrong hand for at least the first 3 games (despite being corrected constantly) and even once threw her ball and glove both at first base after she stopped a ball. When a kid tells you that their favorite part of a sport is the snack at the end you know it's not their thing. But that's okay... she tried it and we now know. Once again, this mommy had it all wrong. Never predict what your kids are going to like or be good at because they will shock you each and every time. I think next summer we are trying a faster paced sport with Maryn, possibly tennis :)


Making friends while paying 3rd base

Maryn at bat - yes, our daughter INSISTED on wearing a pink, ruffled skirt to softball. Did this pregnant mom have the energy to fight with her? Absolutely not. I had to laugh when we got there and 3 other girls on her teams were wearing skirts that day as well :)

Trying to hit the ball

Maryn at bat

Not quite sure what she was doing in this picture... fitting since that seemed to be the entire season.

Running to 1st base

Trying to keep her helmet on :)

Makenna Softball 2012

Another season of softball is complete. Whew. That was a difficult, hot one for this pregnant mama! Makenna LOVED softball and she shocked us all by somehow improving drastically over the winter with no practice. Josh and I still aren't sure how that one happened, but it was fun to see. Out of all the games they'd played this season (which is a lot) she only had two at-bats where she didn't get a hit! She moved up a level this year (3rd-5th graders) and we thought she would be lagging behind in fielding experience but once again she proved us wrong. It was fun to spend some of our summer evenings relaxing at the ballpark enjoying a good softball game! I kind of forgot what it was like! Most importantly, Makenna had a blast and we had a blast watching her have fun! Good season Makenna!


My Kenna in the dugout.

Serious in the field.

Makenna at bat

Smiling while running bases :)

Maya Gracie enjoying a ring pop at Makenna's game. I'm sure this child despises softball by now after the large number of practices and games she was drug to this summer. At least Makenna's games had concessions!

33 Weeks Pregnant

I read somewhere that twin pregnancies shift from the "uncomfortable" category to "miserable" somewhere between 32-34 weeks of pregnancy. They were spot on for me... my shift occurred right at 33 weeks. I always like to put on my brave face and tell everyone that "I'm fine"... but this is hard. I've been through three pregnancies and I've never felt like this. I've had a 9 lb 3 oz baby, a kiddo that sat on a nerve that caused me extreme pain in my hip/leg for a month and another kiddo that made me vomit so much that I lost 12 pounds. Nothing compares to this. Thank God I have worked into this because I'm afraid I would be much wimpier about all of this with no prior experience.

The good news is that the babies are thriving! We've now had 2 non-stress tests both of which showed the two of them are just happy as clams in there :) Our last ultrasound at 31 weeks 5 days showed that we have some very big babies... the boy is 5 lb 4 oz and the girl is 3 lb 15 oz. A fairly large discrepancy, but even with the girl being so much smaller she is still over the 50% for weight at that gestational age so they are not worried. Note I said "they" are not worried... I am absolutely terrified at the thought of giving birth to 16 pounds of baby, which is now proving to be a real possibility. Don't get me wrong, I'm thankful they are growing so well, but can someone please tell me how this is all going to work out since my c-section isn't scheduled until August 20th? That little boy will be 9 pounds on his own by then! Both babies are head down, with the girl in Baby A position, meaning she will come first most likely. Her brother is pretty much sitting on her head thus not allowing much movement from her. Both babies have hair that is visible on the ultrasound :)

Symptoms: Swelling, swelling and more swelling. In my feet and hands mostly. Acid reflux and heartburn. Pelvic pressure. Seeing spots occasionally. Dizzy. Back pain. Run out of breath easily. Difficulty sleeping. Go to the bathroom frequently (and a plethora of other bathroom related issues you don't want to hear about). Pains in my ribs. Difficulty walking. Carpal tunnel. Basically, I just hurt all over. End of story.

Here is a pretty picture of my swollen feet... I'm pretty sure I no longer have any shoes that fit.

My belly at 33 weeks. I measured 42 weeks pregnant just 3 days before this picture was taken.

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 :)