kids, toys, house, life

Free Halloweeen burrito day at Chipotle! We dressed up as "Stars fans"

 Today I found myself with something I haven't had for 76 days....free time... so I'm back at it, and probably for the last time this year. 2013 has been interesting, to say the least. I've grown into my position as mom of two, I've survived another year of working from home, and I've managed to gain a few pounds (had to work hard at that). I've had my fair share of melt downs, we've found ourselves a wonderful church community group, I turned 28, there was a perfect mini-vacation to the beach in Florida, and I've fallen more in love with Mr. Layton, who just happened to graduate with his 3rd degree- a Master's of Theology. Long distance friends were seen, a garden was planted, a new and possibly life-changing goal was made and started, and I'm ending this year 20 weeks pregnant. I'm thankful for my life, my kids, my faith, and the new life growing inside me. I'm thankful for new beginnings, for true friends, for stability, for change, and especially for the God who never changes, who always provides, who never fails.

One of the things I love most about my blog is being able to go back and look through Asher's mile stones as a growing baby and toddler. When Chris and I wonder what his first word was, or debate over when he started walking, I just sift through old blog posts to find out. I have no time for scrapbooking, and journaling is not my thing, so this ol' blog is the perfect place to store those treasured memories.

KIDS:

Poor Hallie. I think I've written maybe 2 posts about her. So here's a lovely little Hallie nutshell.

She's 21 months old now! She walks, runs, poops, laughs, and cries. I guess I should go into more detail. ;) She takes at least one good nap a day, goes to bed at 7:30 and wakes up at 7. Potty training is still in the distant future. She's not a huge talker. She has her go-to words, like "hungry," "yeah," and "no." She's a woman of few words and can get basically anything she wants or needs with yeah or no. She copies everything her big brother does, even jumping from coffee table to couch while doing the splits and a flip in the air on the way down-no fear. She doesn't have a single attachment issue, which has helped since she started going to a sitter regularly for the first time. She is a nurturing soul. Babies are her favorite toy, and she loves to feed them, put them down for naps, and take them for walks in her new baby stroller.

She's a great eater, but her favorite foods are animal crackers, cheese, and grapes. She's allergic to some mystery food(s) I haven't figured out yet. She's been to the ER twice now, once for trouble breathing and once for a crazy allergic reaction. We have an allergist appointment in the works to figure all this cruddy stuff out, and hopefully she'll stop having allergic reactions and horrible diaper rashes.

Breaking my heart in her hospital gown

She's got a stubborn streak, definitely knows what she wants, and plans on getting it at all costs! She's not much for cuddling unless she's sick or tired. She knows her animal sounds, body parts, understands most directions, feeds herself and can help dress herself, but when I compare her to Asher at this age, she's definitely a slower learner, or at least takes her time and lets big brother talk for her. I'm learning first-hand how different children can be, and it's pointless to compare!

One of her favorite things to do is put on shoes. Doesn't matter who the shoes belong to, as long as she can fit her feet into them. We gave her some princess high heel shoes for Christmas and I swear, she hasn't taken them off. Her other favorite thing to do is play. Duh. She's 1! She loves playing kitchen, cars, farm animals, and super heroes with big bro. She mostly loves to play "let's make a huge mess!"

She has the most beautiful blond curls and blue eyes. She's as petite as can be...a testament to the fact that I have skinny (yet tall) children. Next kid I'm fully prepared to nip whatever doctor or nurse tells me to supplement with formula in the bud, since now I'm fully aware that my children are small, healthy, and perfectly fine!

finding her belly button

I love my little girl like nobody's business. You think your second child won't get as much love as your first, but that's just nonsense. There are no words to describe how sweet, loving, and precious she is. Her kisses and hugs slay me. I am oh-so-glad I have a girl to nurture, raise, enjoy, and love. Remind me of this when she's 16, please.

ASHER:

This kid is about to turn 4. He's taller than most 5 year olds. He can count to 100 and can add single digits. He's starting to read, and he's still lactose intolerant. He has quite the goofy personality and knows how to make us belly-laugh. He's affectionate and sensitive, and he loves his sister like crazy. His loves to color, play pirates and super heroes, and is totally not afraid to pick up bugs for mommy and throw them in the trash. His favorite shows are Jake and the Neverland Pirates, Super Why, and Daniel Tiger. PS, whoever created that show deserves a solid gold medal. Thanks to Daniel, he loves to brush his teeth, do bedtime routine, and an odd assortment of all sorts of toddler stuff. He has most of his books memorized, and sometimes when I'm feeling lazy, instead of reading his bedtime book I'll just  ask him to tell me the story. I may even dare to close my eyes and pretend to listen. *Insert evil laugh here*

He soaks up knowledge like a sponge, and we have a blast doing puzzles, reading books, taking "field trips," and playing our hearts out dawn till dusk. He's learned how to play quietly by himself, and he's improving his cleaning up skills. He'd play outside all day if I let him. He adores his gigi, pawpaw, gramma and granpa. I am ever so grateful for their presence in his life. It truly takes a village to raise a child, and I couldn't ask for a better village. I could fill a book with all the funny things he says. Out of the mouths of babes Asher. He holds a very special place in my heart. My first born, my Asher boy. He better never leave me for another woman. (Just kidding....)

TOYS:

Seeing as how we just had Christmas, and my house looks like a Christmas bomb exploded, I thought this a fitting topic for my last post of the year. On this subject, I have little to nothing to say. Instead, I have questions. Do you confine your toys to one room, or let them have full reign over your house? Do you store toys in your kids' bedrooms, or adhere to a strict "no-toy policy" for bedrooms?

my attempt at keeping a clean and orderly play room. it lasted 45 minutes

We bought our house with the intention of making the front "formal dining/living" into a casual family room/playroom. So, we have comfy couches, cute rug, and toy shelves and baskets. Not quite a play room, not quite a living room. I like it, but I'm debating turning my office into a play room. Debating, because I really don't like the idea of giving TOYS a whole room of their own in our already-shrinking house. Ideas are welcome!

HOUSE:

I'm still a work in progress when it comes to feeling settled in our home. I've done my best with budget and time to make our house a home. I've simmered down on Pinterest, because it tends to highlight all the things my house DOESN'T have, rather than help me feel satisfied with what we do have. 

I'm always working on a project, though, and right now, it's re-doing the family/play room. We have about 10,000 books that the hubby will never get rid of, so we need some bigger, nicer, sturdier bookshelves to house our mini library. The current bookshelves buckled under the massive weight of all those commentaries. We are currently contemplating pipe and wood DIY shelves, white built-ins, or just splurging on some already made bookshelves. Decisions, decisions.

LIFE:

Well, it was all groovy and grand until I read THIS article a few minutes ago! Ummm.... thanks for bursting my already fragile bubble! I'm choosing to channel my inner "engine that could" and THINK I CAN! I've already lost 80% of my sanity, freedom, and memory, so really, what's adding one more to the mix? My whole life I wanted a big family, lots of noise (I guess I was dumb my whole life), an open and friendly house with the kids' friends always coming and going, hustling and bustling holidays, etc etc etc... what I didn't think about was the actual ability to survive the reality of all that. Well, reality is here, it's not going away, so with much prayer, help from family and friends, and the most wonderful husband in the world, we're gonna get through these next 18 years and do our best to not lose the remaining 20% of our very beings!

My goals for 2014:

| Make more time for date nights, starting, like, now! We have 5 more months before the big 3, and finding someone to watch all 3 might prove a little more difficult.

| Exercise more. The kids crave being outside, and I crave being active. Put that double stroller to good use and enjoy this crazy Texas weather.

| Start and finish the tile backsplash in our kitchen.

| Read more books. Starting with If Aristotle's Kid Had an iPod, a book I've started at least 15 times and have really enjoyed.

| Keep working at my life-changing goal. If I can keep at it and finish, I'll be able to get rid of the biggest stressor in my life!

| Survive being a mom of 3, with some sort of style and grace!

| Save more money! We've been 100% dedicated to getting out of debt (done!) and staying out of debt (besides our house). Now it's time to move on in Dave Ramsey's financial peace plan!

~ I wish all of you the best end of 2013 and the most blessed 2014. Thanks for reading. ~