Little Miss E's nursery

Here is little Miss E's nursery before and afters! I had a lot of fun putting her nursery together. I didn't have a ton of extra money to spend on this project so I had to be thrifty. I went through my storage room to find out decorations that I could re-paint and spruce up to use in the room. Also I found her changing table online for $20, including the baskets, a great deal if you ask me!! The changing table was a light honey wood color and pretty dinged up, so I painted it pink and spray painted the baskets. For all of my paint, supplies, decorations etc... I believe the grand total came to around $175. Not to bad!!! It helps that I already had the crib, dresser, and rocking chair. Also the crib bedding was Lex's when she was a baby and is still in perfect condition.

Before:



After:

Your SO Vain...

Yesterday we were at Target (bad, bad idea with 4 kids alone when it is almost dinner time). As we were walking through the store Mac turns to me and says, "mom I am SO vain!" I of course responded with, "you are not vain sweetheart, do you understand what that means?" She then proceeded to tell me that her teacher was reading them a book that day that had the word vain in it and that her teacher told them that an example of someone who is vain is a person who likes to look at them self in the mirror all the time. After her explination Mac says to me, "see mom, I am SOOOO vain, I LOVE to look at myself in the mirror all of the time!!!" Well I sure got a KICK out of this. Mac does quite enjoy talking to herself in the mirror :). What a funny girl. She is beautiful, sweet, and innocent and really doesn't understand vanity at all, and I like it that way!

This made me think...

Life is good!

My 4 year old sure cracks me up! He is quite the little character and has so much charisma for a little guy. Several of the little girls at preschool are in love with him and he knows it! The other day I was in the shower and I had him lay on my bed and watch a movie on my laptop while I was getting ready. When I got out of the shower I found him in NOTHING but plastic grocery bags (and his undies, at least he kept those on)! He had made them into a superman costume. He made holes in the smaller bag and put his legs through and then put the handles of a big bag around his arms as his cape. Pretty smart and funny if you ask me.

J-man is such a fun little boy and I love getting to spend my days with him. Several weeks ago we were down in the basement and I needed to go up stairs to grab something. J said to me, "don't worry mom, I'll protect the baby while your gone". He is such a sweet big brother. He adores his little sis and I really hope it always stays this way!!!

Yesterday my friend Kim came up with her little boys and we went to story time at the library and out to lunch at Chick-fila. It was fun to hang out and catch up. J-man loves playing with his best buddy Grady! Kim and I have been friends for almost ten years. We met in Detroit, Michigan when our hubby's were selling alarms for the same company. It's crazy to think that at the time neither of us had kids(we were both pregnant with our firsts) and now ten years later we each have four kids! She is a great friend and I am so glad we have stayed close over the years.

This morning the girls were ready to go a few minutes early so I sat in the front hallway with them and talked before they had to leave. I need to be better about talking with them. I feel like the house is pure craziness when they get home from school between homework, dinner, piano, baths, etc... I love these sweet girls so much and can't believe how fast they are growing up. This morning we talked about how school was going and about their friends. Lex told me that a girl in her class wont let her play with her, it about broke my heart. I told her to try again today and see how it goes. She did say though that there are lots of other girls she likes to play with. Mac told me that her and her friends are having a dance off at recess today, what funny, cute kids!! I need to organize my time better throughout the day so that things aren't so crazy when they get home. I NEED and WANT to spend more quality time with them, with each of my children!

Twice this week Court has made sure he sits down with J-man and works on letters, numbers, shapes, etc... DANG it is sexy when a man is a good father. He does thousands of other things that make him a good father, but it was just so sweet to see him take the time out of his day to do this with him. He is also GREAT at helping the girls with their homework. He works kind of weird hours sometimes, which at times makes life really interesting, but I am grateful he MAKES the time to do things with his children and help out around the house. The other night he pulled out the Ensign and read the article

"What Happily Married Couples Do"

(click to read) by Douglas Brinley. It was a great article and gave us lots of great ideas on how we can strengthen our marriage. I love Court with all my heart and despite our challenges, I am so grateful we have a FANTASTIC marriage, he is my best friend, love of my life, confidant, and comedian (he is always finding ways to make me laugh). I am so blessed to be married to him!

Skype baby

Courts dad goes to Africa several times a year for work, so we keep in touch with him through skype. Court was talking to his dad the other night and little baby E could not get enough of her grandpa! She loved talking to him and especially loved holding the phone. In the last week she has started grabbing and playing with toys. It is so cute to see her playing with her toys!!

Soda Free!

One of Court and I's New Years resolutions this year is to be soda free for an entire year. We have a bet going to see who can make it the longest! He went six months last year and did great. He lost a lot of weight (with a healthy diet and exercise as well). We aren't big soda drinkers, but we definitely like to swing by the gas station on the weekends for a soda or two! This year we are also trying to eat MUCH healthier. We are trying to make a lifestyle change and not just go "organic" because it is a popular thing to do right now.

I really didn't think cutting out soda would be that hard for me since I have never been a big soda drinker. Well, I tell you what, it has been harder then I thought! On the weekends or when I have had a long day with the kiddos I REALLY want to stop off for a Cherry Coke (my soda of choice:). We've almost made it a month now, just eleven more months to go!!!

Court and I have a BIG bet going between us on this one. If I can make it the whole year (assuming he doesn't) I get $1,000 to go to New York or San Fransisco to take advanced hair cutting/styling classes! If Court can make it the whole year (assuming I don't) then he gets $1,000 towards new golf clubs. Now if we BOTH make it the whole year, we split the $1,000 and each get $500 to save for these things. I am pretty competitive when it comes to going up against my hubby. I REALLY want to beat him. I am pretty sure I want to beat him more then I want soda and more then I want the classes :). He knows this and I think that is making him want to WIN even more as well! Either way, we'll be healthier for this so I see it as a win, win. If we both make it the whole year then that will be even better because we will have learned to go with out something and learned self discipline!

Favorite Quotes...

"Be so happy that when others look at you they will become happy too".

Each time I replace the quote at the top of my blog I like to record the one I have just taken down. I love this quote and how it reminds me to be happy. Life can be so difficult sometimes and being happy isn't always the easiest choice depending on what is going on in your life. I am working really hard to be happy despite what challenges I may be facing. Being happy isn't always my first response to certain circumstances, but I have learned through many life experiences that being happy is a CHOICE. I think it is easy to have thoughts like, "oh when we buy a house, then I will be happy" or "once I am done with school I will be happy". Reaching milestones and accomplishments are definitely something to be happy about, but I have learned that life is a journey, filled with lots of happy, sad, hard, fantastic, challenging experiences and to fully enjoy life we need to find ways to find happiness in all things. Also I TRULY believe that happiness is contagious, just like a bad attitude can spread to others, so can a good one! I want to be so happy that others look at me and want to find happiness to. My life is far from perfect but I can truly say that I am very happy!