Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Christmas 2014 Recap.

I hope this post finds you well and recovering from all of the Christmas festivities of 2014. I wasn't even sure if I'd get to blog again during this year, but happened upon a few lone minutes to myself and decided it was now or never.

We had a great whirlwind of a Christmas in Louisiana this year. We really didn't even decide if we were going to travel for Christmas until a few weeks prior. I just can only juggle so much and it seems as though as I get older, I become more and more of a procrastinator in making decisions. I was excited to be back in my home state, especially with the warmer weather that they boast. We got to see lots of our favorite people, which is always a favorite.

Our first day down South was spent in NOLA to visit my Uncle Mike and Aunt Rina. We ate a hearty seafood lunch (Tyler ate his first shrimp meal and he was a FAN), and then headed to our family farm (which is really in the middle of the city now, but it's where my Great Grandfather farmed WAY back when) for Uncle Mike to give tractor rides. The boys LOVED it.
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Uncle Mike has been rebuilding the old tractor that my grandfather used to help my great grandfather on the farm. It's a work of love in progress
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Unfortunately, Sunday evening my mom came down with the flu, so most of the week leading up to Christmas was spent with my mom in quarantine and me sanitizing like CRAZY so that none of us got sick (especially Tyler, who had just finished his antibiotics for pneumonia). I'm happy to report that we've all remained flu-free 9 days out, which is a bit of a miracle. Praying that we don't come down with it... seems like it's going around bad this year!

Christmas Day mom escaped quarantine and was able to rejoin the craziness of Christmas with littles. Actually, it wasn't really too crazy and was oh so much fun to watch the boys light up with every gift they opened. Brayden had been a little skeptical of Santa after a child at school had told him he wasn't real (daggers from my eyes)... but woke up Christmas morning and exclaimed "HE is REAL! I heard footsteps and a whisper HO HO HO!" Glad to see the magic will live for another year at least (and if you're wonderinh how I handled B coming home and telling me his friend had said that, I just responded with "what do you think?" While I don't want to prolong the Santa thing by lying to him if he asks me, I also want him to make up that decision on his own instead of me just coming right out and telling him one way or the other).
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trying to take Christmas Eve pictures with these three monkeys was IMPOSSIBLE
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we have a tradition of reading Luke 2 with the boys before we open gifts. The boys were so good at listening this year, and Drew got festive and dressed up like Joseph ;)
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this is by far my favorite Christmas picture. Last year we had a let down on presents as I tried to assume that what I got would fit the bill on Brayden's list. This year? Nailed it.
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Connor got "Ant Ant an Insect chant" from my parents. We had borrowed this book from the library earlier this year and Connor fell in love with it. When Connor opened the book he said "Oh it's my FAVORITE BOOK! It has poop in it!" (there's a dung beetle in the book).

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Tyler had quite the help in opening most of his gifts

My parents hosted my Uncle Mike, Aunt Rina (and her son) along with my Grandmother for Christmas lunch. It was calm and relaxing and perfect in every way. Tyler was a crowd pleaser, as always and the older two boys enjoyed the extra attention.
Christmas is never dull with my Great Uncle Mike. Always keeps us laughing. #MboysChristmas2014
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Uncle Mike bought the boys Army hats for Christmas. Tyler generally won't wear hats for me, but he has been OBSESSED with the Army helmet and wears it all the time. So hilarious!
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he is a mess and a half.
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I totally forgot to get pictures of my parents with the kids or a family picture on Christmas day. In fact, I forgot a lot of things this Christmas; Santa didn't get cookies, I missed the last 4 days of Advent... I had to give myself a lot of grace, as I tend to struggle with wanting to make things, especially traditions, exactly perfect. Thankfully no one seemed to notice the missing pieces, and although I might be lacking pictures, I know that my kids (and Drew and I), really enjoyed all of the memories we made with family, and we were still able to celebrate Jesus, which is all that really matters anyway.

We finished our trip to Louisiana with a trip to the local zoo, but those pictures haven't been uploaded yet, so I'll post them later this week. I hope you're soaking up the last few days of 2014 with family and friends, and are able to rest as we enter into a New Year.

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Fortunate (And Not So Fortunate) Events.

I've sat down on the couch the past three nights and said to myself "I need to blog about this..." and then get sucked into the nothingness of Christmastime TV and realize I'm dosing off to sleep at 11pm without blogging.

The struggle is real, y'all.

In all honesty though, the past several days have been a string of unfortunate events that have led me to be grateful for fortunate events (or things). I thought I'd tell you about a few of these events/things.
Double ear infection and being treated for beginnings of pneumonia. Boo for sickies at Christmas time.
Feverish toddlers (not so fortunate). Last Wednesday Tyler was acting crummy but still not having any physical symptoms of a cold other than what I refer to as the "winter time funk", which is a combination of a runny nose and a slight cough. The cough he's had for a while, and on Monday Ty's teachers had made a comment about it starting to sound different, but I shrugged it off because honestly, he basically has a cough all of winter. Anyways. Wednesday evening it became apparent that we were going down for the count when a fever sprung. The next morning the fever was gone, and then in the afternoon sprung again. The same thing happened Friday, but taking into account that the last two times I had gone to the doctor over a fever and a cough we were told "it's just a virus" I thought I'd give one more day of all of the symptoms. By Friday evening I was regretting my decision, when the congestion was clearly not just in his chest (his normal breathing produced a rattly sound, which I knew from previous experiences can be a sign of pneumonia). Saturday morning Ty was diagnosed with not just beginning stages of pneumonia, but also a double ear infection. It was a sad trombone moment for sure.

Urgent care and modern medicine (fortunate things). I left the clinic Saturday morning thankful for urgent care clinics, which are now readily available all over our area. I was also extremely grateful for antibiotics and modern medicine. We truly live in such a blessed time in history.

Changing of the foods (not so fortunate). Concurrent with all of the pneumonia drama, I had switched Toby's food. I am not a rookie pet owner, yet for some reason I can't get my act together when it comes to my dog's food, and sometimes have to convert his foods without a gradual transition. People who are dog owners will read this and know the problem that ensues; for those of you who don't, I will just save you the grotesqueness and say that the smell alone of the problems switching your dogs food brings is enough to make a grown man cry (or in this instance, a grown woman). Last Friday night Drew and I literally tag teamed between rocking a sick baby and hurrying to let a dog out of the house before he crapped on everything (and our couch did not escape the nasty, which was QUITE unfortunate). Mercy. I'm hoping that we're over all of that, and I am swearing to myself and my family that I will do a better job of remembering what kind of food my dog eats.

HOT Christmas toys (not so fortunate). I did most of my Christmas shopping around Black Friday, before things got crazy. And by crazy I mean, people who buy out stores of certain HOT toys and then sell them on ebay for exorbitant amounts of money because they know crazy parents will spend crazy money to buy things that their kids are begging for. Thankfully the only thing left is a semi-spontaneous purchase, but it has been making me crazy trying to chase it down. I can only imagine what it must feel like to have THE ONE THING that your kid wants be on this list and know that you're either picking a Christmas morning meltdown or your wallet being emptied. I feel you, procrastinators. I really do.

Growing kids (fortunate things). If you follow me on social media you'll know that I sort of begrudge my kids growing up. I just hate it (in most respects) and wish they'd stay little FOREVER. But yesterday Brayden about had me in stitches from some of the funny things he was doing and saying and it made me realize that perhaps my little person becoming a big person won't be quite so bad afterall. Especially if he shares my sense of humor (which he does).
Brayden said "mom. Take my picture like this because I am SO handsome like this. Then, send this to Daddy, Poppa D, Gigi, Aunt Megan, Aunt Laura and her husband Uncle Jacob and Uncle Mike. They need to see this."  He lacks no ounce of confidence.  Also: p
(He came to me and said "Take my picture like this, because I look so handsome like this." And then gave me a list of people to text it to. I'm so glad he has so much confidence. :)

Timeout (fortunate things). Neither Brayden or Connor were especially traumatized by timeout, so we had to create other methods of discipline to mold our kids. With Tyler though, one time in timeout was enough to send him to his emotional grave. I was so shocked, as I had never had my own child so upset by the isolation of the corner. I find myself biting my lip to hold back my laughter when Tyler does something wrong and I just simple watch as he PUTS HIMSELF in timeout.
I finally have a child who is sensitive to time out. #alltheangelssang

Christmas (fortunate). This Christmas has been so different for me this year. I think it's because I'm getting old (ha!), but I have been so sentimental about everything. The other day as I was driving to Braydens school I got teary eyed listening to Pentatonix's version of Mary Did You Know. I resonate with other boy moms.... I feel like boy moms just "get" each other. We know what it's like to have a bond with a son. And I kept thinking about how Mary must have felt KNOWING that Jesus would die. My heart just can't even handle it. I'm just so incredibly grateful for this season of the welcoming of a tiny infant, a Savior. My hope is that everyone would come to know and feel the great Love that God has for us. It is the most FORTUNATE thing I could ever fathom.

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Tis the Season (for Christmas Traditions).

This will probably come as no surprise, given the more sporadic blogging I've been doing lately, but I haven't been quite organized this holiday season. I feel like the year somehow flew by and here we are at Christmas time to figure out things to do.

Thankfully I'm a sucker for tradition, especially Christmas tradition, so we've been enjoying some of our fun traditions as a family lately, despite the fact that they're not as organized. We've been doing Truth in the Tinsel as our advent of choice. This is probably the first year the boys have actually sat and listened to the bible readings and participated in some of the questions we have for them. It's been fun watching them remember pieces of the story and being able to get excited for knowing about key figures that aren't necessarily talked about in the mainstream Christmas jargon. I've also been doing the cheap chocolate advent calendars from Hobby Lobby with the boys. They look forward to the chocolates every morning (even Tyler has learned to point up to the counter first thing in the morning) and even request I read the verse to them all 3 times (if you don't know what I am talking about: Hob Lob makes these adorable advent calendars with little flaps for every day of December leading to Christmas. The child opens a flap every morning and gets a chocolate, but it also has a bible verse that tells of the birth of Jesus. Most days the verses correlate with what we are also reading in Truth in the Tinsel, so I love it because they get a lot of repetition.

We're doing the Elf again this year, and my boys LOVE IT. Cue all of the controversial gasps. Really, I can't believe that we sit around and debate things like the Elf on the Shelf and Santa (and really, a slew of other topics that I don't have the time or energy to list). I get why people do it and I get why people don't do it. At the end of the day, it's really not a subject to get worked up about in my opinion. Unless the person who does Elf on the Shelf or Santa is also beating their child or neglecting them in some way, then I think we should just leave well enough alone and find areas to be unified in, as motherhood is hard enough as it is. That's all I'm going to say about that. ;)

And quite possibly two of my favorite Christmas traditions are the Christmas train and our annual White Elephant ugly sweater party.
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The boys have looked forward to the Christmas train all year long this year (you can view last years post and get links to all the previous years by clicking HERE). I was SO thankful to get on my favorite car of the train... it was built in the early 1900s and just has an old vintage feel to it... very polar express-y.
The most wonderful time of the year! #MboysChristmas2014
Santa surprised us by coming on a lot earlier than normal. So I was left scrambling for a camera and ended up with my phone to take pictures spur of the moment. Braydens face in this one just about does me in. This is my favorite Christmas ever with him. He was just MIND BLOWN when Santa came onto the train car.
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Tyler was OBSESSED with the people in costumes. There was live music, and he spent most of the time before the train dancing and going from character to character in awe.
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My older boys loved the train sets as usual, but we weren't able to stay near them too long, as Tyler thought the trains were fun to rip off the tracks. We wore our welcome out about a minute before Tyler arrived to the train sets.
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Connor wasn't feeling much himself most of the morning. Turns out that he came down with a fever at some point while we were out and about. Poor buddy.

Because Connor came down with a fever, only one of us got to attend our annual ugly sweater party with our friends. It was a super bummer that Drew couldn't come, but I do have to say that, husband or not, I can still rock a jumper like a rockstar ;)
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Who says you can't rock the jumper/turtlekneck combo in your 30s???? #uglysweatergoesuglyjumper #MboysChristmas2014
My fellow jumper wearing friends. I about peed my pants anytime we'd start talking. It was just too funny. I highly recommend wearing a jumper to a party. It's sure to bring some laughter. Also, please note how my jumper was a bit ahead of the curve... front pocket large enough for a smart phone. BOOM.

We still have a few more traditions to complete before wrapping up the first semester of Kinder (someone hold me... how can it already be halfway over???!!!) and jumping right into the thick of winter. I hope you've been able to enjoy your own holiday traditions and spend time with your family and friends more than usual as we reflect on the birth of Jesus. This truly is the most wonderful time of the year!

Monday, December 1, 2014

Things I've Learned During Thanksgiving Break.

This weekend has been unseasonably warm, which our family was super excited about. We celebrated by spending most of our time outdoors. Of course, with it being Arkansas, our warm front is followed by a pretty strong cold front, complete with freezing rain. {cue sad trombone noise}. I thought I'd share some of the things I learned during Thanksgiving break.
  • Having one kid in school really does lighten the load of three kids. Sure, our weeks are filled with car line and school drop off and such, but only having two kids at home lessens the bickering and fighting. In some ways, I was glad to have days where we could just stay in our pjs with nothing on the agenda. But, I found that no agenda often meant more crazy, which I am not a fan of. 
  • I am egregiously unprepared when it comes to writing down what I need for Thanksgiving dinner. I made 3 trips to Walmart in a 2 day period. 
  • Hosting Thanksgiving is a lot easier when your house is not flooded. Thankful that we had no thawing out of turkey flooding incidents like last year. 
  • Creating the Thanksgiving meal takes planning, and there is a calm before the storm, ala 10 minutes before everything is finished. It's like you're sitting there thinking "man, I got this grown up thing." and then BAM. Everything needs stirred and finished and broiled and, HOLY CRAP I JUST BURNED THE MARSHMALLOWS BECAUSE THE STUFFING NEEDED TO BE FLUFFED. 
  • I can survive Black Friday. I have never participated in Black Friday until this year. Partly because ALL THE CRAZIES. And partly because I just haven't seen the need to do it. But when Brayden started making his Christmas list and I realized it paired nicely with all of the toy sales at Walmart for Black Friday, I knew I was having to dive in full force. I actually did really well, had no anxiety attacks (I did almost start crying when people were shoving my buggy out of the way to get to the next thing) and will probably do it again if it means I can get everything my kid wants for 50% off (or more). (I also have realized that people get REALLY excited about sheets and DVD sales).
  • The Hogs play with my heart. After having two weeks of back to back shut outs of ranked teams, the Hogs totally deflated on me. Friday was a sad day for sure.
  • this may be my favorite Christmas yet. Christmas is about 482717 times better when you have kids. This year both Brayden and Connor are both SUPER into everything. Christmas music, Christmas tree decorations, our Elf on the Shelf, Santa, etc. It's awesome. I just love being able to celebrate with them and create memories. 
  • family time is becoming more fun. We went adventuring as a family and it actually didn't feel like a chore to get everyone out of the house and rounded up to go to the park. I hope this is a sign of things to come... because I am a fan.
We went adventuring in the woods together and actually got a pic of all 5 of us. Yay for warm weather and family!

And that's about all I learned. Or at least all I can remember. Yesterday we started advent, welcomed our Elf, Bonner, back to our home and broke out matching Christmas Jammies. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, y'all!
Matching Christmas jammies (and a reindog) make me smile. #MboysChristmas2014

Thursday, November 20, 2014

Tyler Paul {18 Months}

Well, I'm not really sure how we got here, but somehow it's time for me to document that my BABY turned 18 months old. Say it aint so! Truthfully, I have a love/hate relationship with 18 months. On the one hand, the 12 month teething saga usually is turning down (Praise Jesus and Hallelujah!), but on the other, I feel like 18 months is the very quick goodbye to a lot of things baby. Suddenly the baby is enamored with the big boy things like cars and trucks and trains and super heroes, is walking (and running and climbing!) everywhere, and can communicate more fluidly with the big people in his life. I relish the fact that Brayden and Connor still call Tyler "our baby." I feel so validated in my feelings of still having a baby, even if he is less baby and more toddler with every new day that passes.

Here are some things that are fun at this stage with Tyler:
  • He is FEARLESS. This can be not so fun on those moments where I see his life flash before my eyes, but by my third boy I've learned to roll with the punches a little better and embrace this wild and crazy.
  • He is social. He loves to say hi to people wherever we are. But if they say hi back, he'll typically play the shy card and hide behind my shoulder.
  • He LOVES school. He knows when his school days are typically, and will stand at the garage door pointing at the knob and say "go, 'choo'? Till I open the door.
  • He loves to watch football on tv and will run in circles in the living room shouting "go go go! Touchdown!"
  • His vocabulary has really blossomed over the past month. He's begun saying a few sentences (have a good day, see you later and love you are his three favorites). He calls Brayden and Connor "bubba", though he does try to pronounce their names too. 
  • He loves to eat and is like clock work on WHEN he likes to eat. If he does not get his food at 11am and 5pm sharp, he's likely to sit at the table and cry about the poor service. 
  • He now says "cheese" whenever he sees a camera. I have trained him well.
  • He wears size 24 month and some 2T stuff. Most of his pants are 18-24 month size. He wears size 5 shoes and size 6 diapers.
  • He can call the Hogs on command. 
  • He has 12 teeth and several more breaking thru.
  • He takes one 2 hour nap every day. He'd probably take a longer one, but I have to wake him up to go and pick up Brayden each day. Sundays he typically will take at least a 3-4 hour nap. 
  • We'll get his official weight and height measurements on Friday. Last time he was weighed he was about 26.5 pounds. I have no idea how tall he is. 
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Tyler Paul--

People always comment about me having three boys. But here's the deal: I'm so glad that I have three boys, and more importantly, I'm glad that God chose you as my third. You are an absolutely joy, and the smiles and laughter that you bring to everyone you meet makes me so proud to be your momma. You are wild and crazy and quite possibly the biggest dare devil I've raised yet... and I love you for it. You have helped me learn to be even more laid back than I thought possible, and to enjoy the crazy that having boys brings to a household. We all love you so much and are so grateful for the gift of your life. I can't wait to see what these next few years will bring as you learn and grow and become the great young man that I know you will become... I love you little man!

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Connor Andrew {4 Years Old}

In general, I begrudge my children growing up. Except for the fourth birthday. The fourth birthday, much like the 6 month birthday, is a landmark of sorts for me as a parent. It marks the exit of the dreaded third year, the year that leaves many children (and parents) to wail and gnash teeth, trying to figure out collectively how we'll all get along for the next several decades of life without ending someones existence. Terrible twos? No. Terrible threes? YES. (I realize I am being a bit melodramatic here, but if you are a parent of littles, then you will understand what I mean when I say that the third year is like walking in a long, hot valley without but a drip of water for reprieve. It's rough in every sense of the word rough).

SO... we're glad to be exiting that phase again (and please, don't get me wrong. Threes do have their sweet moments. But let's call a spade a spade and say that if someone told me that my kid would stay three forever, I think there'd be tears. Just saying.). Over the past several months I have seen glimpses of the four/five year old phase in Connor and I have been encouraged to press on. And in all truthfulness, I don't think there is a more sensitive soul than our Connor Andrew. His ability to empathize with people and to tap into his emotions is something I've not seen in many young boys. He is soft and affectionate and will make anyone feel like a million bucks (my friend Katie said it best when she said that if she was having a horrible day, Connor would be the first one she'd want to see. He's sure to light up even the darkest of rooms.)

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As we've neared age four, Connor has blossomed in his ability to be truly funny. He is a goofball of goofballs and will do some of the craziest things for a laugh. As much as I LOVE LOVE LOVE the baby stage, having my boys get to be a little older where they truly appreciate whit and sarcasm... it gives me hope for these older years with them. I love being able to laugh with them and joke with them. Connor is no exception.

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I love that Connor marches to the beat of his own drum. He's determined to not live in the shadow of his brothers and I love him for that. He loves sports, but is content being quiet with action figures and hotwheels too. He loves to read, and he absolutely loves TV more than any of my boys. His imagination is vivid, and he dreams things that I never even knew a 4 year old could dream (just today he told me that his preschool teacher was an astronaut when she was younger, and that she has taken Connor on her spaceship to see outerspace.)

Connor Andrew--

Four years ago when you came into this world, you were placed in the arms of a momma who wasn't quite sure she'd be able to handle two babies under two. Yet, even with all of my insecurities, I knew that I couldn't not love that sweet chubby newborn with spikey black hair that I laid eyes on that early morning in November. Yes, it's true. You have stolen my heart every day of your existence, and are a constant reminder to me that sometimes the plans we think we have ourselves are not near as good as the ones that God has for us. Connor, thank you for being a gentle soul, for loving so well and so big, and for teaching everyone to find joy in the smallest things of life. You are an incredible little boy and I am so very proud to call you my son. Happy Birthday, sweet boy!

Monday, November 10, 2014

Easy Vegetable Soup

I'm just going to go ahead and admit that I have been a bit begrudging towards the change in seasons. I've never been one to truly hate winter, but after last winter where I was stuck inside with 3 boys for what seemed like an eternity, I have learned that summer (and the outside) is my best friend as a boy mom.

With that little truth nugget out of the way, I would also like to tell you one of my saving graces in the fall/winter months: soups. They are relatively easy to make, and super easy to double and put away in the freezer for another meal later on. There's always a silver lining, isn't there? ;) A few days ago I posted a picture of my vegetable beef stew on social media and had so many people ask about it that I thought I'd post it here. This is the easiest soup I make, makes a TON and is family friendly, which is always nice to know that you won't have to deal with dinner drama.
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2.5lbs ground beef, browned & drained (season with 2 Tablespoons of Canadian Steak seasoning while browning)
6 stalks celery, chopped
6 whole, large carrots, chopped
1 yellow onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
10 size B red potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2lb bag of frozen mixed veggies
2 cups frozen lima beans
2 cans Italian seasoned diced tomatoes
1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes
32oz tomato juice
2-3 Tablespoons beef base, dissolved in 2 cups water
3 bay leaves
1 Tablespoon dried basil
1 Tablespoon dried oregano
dash of cayenne pepper
Tony Chaceres, to taste
Seasoned salt, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a large stock pot (I use a Betty Crocker brand stock pot that is unmarked for size, but I think it's 10-12quarts). Once all of the above ingredients are in the pot, add enough water for it there to be about half an inch to one inch of liquid over the ingredients. I prefer my soups (and food in general) to be pretty salty, so I use 1 teaspoon of seasoned salt (like Lowry's), and then about a teaspoon of Tony Chaceres (which is a cajun seasoning). This soup definitely has a little kick to it from Tony Chaceres and the cayenne, but we tend to prefer things to bit spicier (I blame my Louisiana roots). Bring the soup to a boil, and then let it simmer, covered, for about 2 hours. This makes A LOT of soup, so it works well for large groups, or if you're wanting it for just your family, it's great to serve for dinner and then freeze the leftovers for one of those winter days where you don't feel like cooking. We love to garnish the soup with shredded cheese (mozzarella is pictured), but this is completely optional. Happy soup making!

(This post is linked up on Lamberts Lately: Create It Thursday)

Sunday, November 9, 2014

Birthdays & Fall Pictures

We have had a slam-packed weekend. November always has a way of sneaking up on me, but this year seemed quicker than before. That sneaky November.

One thing about November is that it inevitably is filled with lots of parties, be it holiday or birthday. Since most fall parties have to work around the Razorbacks schedule (we live in the South, y'all), and this weekend was a bye weekend for the Hogs, we were filled to the top.

Starting with Connor's fourth birthday party. He actually doesn't turn four for another two weeks. But if you read the previous paragraph, then you understand. Because I'm an awesome mom, this is how Connors party went down: basically I realized two weeks ago that his party needed to be this weekend, so I whipped out the handy gmail and typed up an awesome email asking 6-7 buddies of Connor's to come over for a small party. Please, go ahead and pin this post because this is what awesome birthday parties are made of: forgetfulness and email invitations (and I'm not even talking about the highly sophisticated evites.).

I asked Connor for his help in planning. Hind site is always 20/20, and in this instance I'm afraid to tell you that I would have been better off planning alone. Connors tastes are quite eclectic; for his pinata, he chose Ninja Turtles (Because he is, of course, a ninja). Then he wanted Captain America cupcakes. I figured this was an easy catch. IT WASN'T. Who knew that Captain America does not work alone, and only with his Avenger friends when it comes to cake decorations. I figured this would be ok. And this is where I was SO WRONG. I happened to take a picture of the cake I ordered, and excitedly showed Connor while we were waiting in car line for Brayden, two days before his party. Connor, however, was not amused. I was stunned. Words like "this is NOT what I wanted for my party" and the ever popular "you ruined my birthday" were involved. So there I was, stuck in car line with an emotional almost 4 year old, and failed attempt at Avengers and the sad realization I would need to go to Walmart with all 3 of my boys in tow to exchange party decor and cancel the cupcake order. Connor ended up deciding he wanted Batman decor and treat bags, and then after a close race between the Duck Dynasty cupcakes and Carrot Cake, carrot cake won out. CARROT CAKE. Lord have mercy. I was deathly afraid by this point that he'd somehow change his mind at 10am on Friday morning and we'd be stuck with whatever the bakery had on hand, but thankfully not a mind was changed and we ended up with a carrot cake from Sams, much to the delight of all the adults at the party. It should also be noted that if there was ever a theme with this child, it is that I am (obviously) not in control. From the time I was surprised to find I was pregnant, to the time that we had the great cupcake drama of 2014.
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the beloved carrot cake of 2014.
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we've thrown parties big and small, and I have to say that the small ones win in my book by a long shot. I hate having to tell my kids to narrow down their guest lists (they want to invite ALL THE PEOPLE), but it just works out better all the way around.
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Ninja Turtle pinata for the win
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Connors Granddad and Papaw got to come to the party... He was so happy to see both of them!

We had two other birthday parties to attend this weekend in addition to our own. Unfortunately I have no pictures to prove it. I wish I had had my boys reaction on camera when I told them that they would be ice skating AND meeting Ana and Elsa today. MIND BLOWN. I asked Brayden if he would hug them and he said "NO! Because then you would fall in love, and you have to be a grown up to be in love!" (I like the way you think, son. Let's see if this holds in about 7 years). I asked Connor if he'd hug them and he said "yeah, sure!"

Also, after watching the weather forecast and realizing that today was quite possibly the last warm day staring me in the face until next March, we decided to get to church early this morning and snap some pics of the boys. I'm so glad I did because I managed to snap this and I about squeal every time I look at it. Y'all, say what you will, but being a mom of 3 boys is just about the best thing that has happened to me in life. I love all three of them so much. Hope everyone has an awesome week!
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