Cubbies

Tonight I tagged along with Tristen's AWANA class...how incredibly fun :)

He and his friend, Caleb :)

Then we headed to a bowling alley to hang out with our youth group...Tristen bowled for the first time and LOVED it. He wasn't quite as thrilled about laser tag but we'll try again when he's older! Fun stuff...I love seeing my kids learning and growing :)

A dress doesn't stop her



My grandma has told me stories of how much my mom loved to play with her brothers when she was little. My grandma would put her in pretty dresses and give her strollers to play with and my mom would fill the strollers with rocks and run with her brothers...I'm guessing getting her dress dirty in the process :) (hopefully I got that right, Mom!)

I followed in her footsteps and tried to keep up with my older brother....

and now we're on generation 3 :)

Aubrey loves dresses but took off running after church on Sunday.

Within minutes, her dress had dirt on it, her tights were filled with leaves and she was patting her face with dirt :)

It was a hilarious sight and reminded me instantly of the picture in my head I have of my mom doing the same thing! :) 

A pretty dress won't stop her from climbing trees with her brother!

 

Connor looking dapper in his church clothes

 

We can't get enough of this sunshine and warm weather!

Bike Ride

First Bike Ride as a family of 5 (as the sun was setting and it was 65 degrees I might add) 

We live 2 miles from a state biking trail that is just gorgeous! I can't wait to explore it more!

First week of March

Last week was a fantastic week....it was cold and we were stuck inside but we made the most of it-especially since the promise of spring is now HERE with amazing weather lined up for the week. We can finally explore the outdoors and go on hikes!

 

We were all about Dr. Seuss last week...

 Tristen's favorite book is Wacky Wednesday....we've read that book too many times to count! So, we reenacted Wacky Wednesday and taped shoes on the wall :)

This weekend was supposed to be a special ending to our good week. We went on a road trip to spend time with Aaron's grandma (we haven't seen her in a few years!) and Friday was SO fun. She brought out an album and told us all about life growing up. I loved every second of it! 

Connor was able to meet his great-grandma

 

The second that Saturday hit (like, almost exactly midnight!), everything changed about our great weekend away when Tristen got the stomach flu and we were up all night in the hotel holding a bucket under his chin.

Oh.goodness...we were tired the next day and made our Saturday short and sweet

(Tristen was SO sick here!)

We made the almost 6 hour trip home with a very sick child and it was pretty traumatic (like, we don't want to leave the house ever again!! Ahh!) but, it was still worth it to see Aaron's grandma-it was a special Friday with her and we're hoping Tristen is completely better by tomorrow!

PIcture to Chalkboard Calendar

I've always been a frugal gal but it intensified after I got married. Our first year of marriage was VERY tight financially....and it's so fun to look back on that year fondly :) We were gifted many jars of salsa and for a while that's all I ate for supper because it saved money! Ha! It really took my frugality to the next level.

Even though my husband has a good job as an RN now, our next "adventure" is completely paying off student debt....we paid off our debt from our first college experience (Yay Northwestern!) but now it's the stuff we had to borrow to go to school the 2nd time around. I want to go back to my frugal self again so we can pay those student loans off as fast as possible.

My house needs some decorating though, sooooo, decorating on a budget?....requires a little creativity and a whole lots of hours on Pinterest :)

I wanted to do a chalkboard calendar because we're always asking each other what we have going on and needed a calendar up! I found this awesome picture for $2 at a thrift store.

The picture and gold frame weren't really my style so I made it into this....

All for right around $3.50 if you count the amount of chalkboard paint I had to use...and I have more paint for another project. I painted chalkboard paint right over the glass surface and then I sanded the frame, painted it, and then sanded it again to give it a roughed up look. Yay for being frugal...but still having a decorated house :) And, yay, for Pinterest....I mean, seriously, it is giving me so many ideas of how to DIY right now!

Now onto the next frugal project! And paying off student debt fast!



Photo Challenge: Day 28

Family:

Have you ever done one of those, "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?" questions? I have and it's fun to look back on what you thought you would be doing.

This was us 5 years ago.....

Our "family" looks so small compared to now....

Amazing what all can change in 5 years!

 

It was so fun to look for different words through the month of February. I just might do it again! :) And now.....spring and warm weather can come!!



February Photo Challenge: Day 27

A Loving Memory:

Little kids are busy. Little kids are noisy. But, my goodness, little kids know how to love. They will love, they will forgive, they will be excited about new and different things-instead of having a bad attitude about change :) They've definitely taught me a lot about love!

 

Even though I was exhausted when I took this picture, I knew I wanted to remember the love in my kids when they met and bonded with their newest little brother. It was so special and I'm grateful for this picture that shows that love. They still love their little brother!