Monday Confessions

If I am honest, it's been a challenging day. Nothing has necessarily been different than a normal Monday but I am challenging my own heart attitudes today. I am really not as nice as I like to think I am (and if you don't even think I am nice, I totally understand!). Life has sort of worn me down lately. I won't bore you with all the details but often the propsect of waking up on Monday morning, facing a week with my 3 kids knowing I am their primary caregiver for most of it...doesn't get me started off in a good mood. It's an honest struggle. I was thinking about not even posting on the blog today for fear of being discouraging, but I am just being real. 

What did I do though? I read some good honest truth both from the Bible and about motherhood. (If you need a good read, Desperate Mom is where it's at!) 

1. What stuck out to me this morning was this, Proverbs 14:1 "The wise woman builds her house, but the foolish tears it down with her own hands."

Striking...I both have the power to build up my home or tear it down. This morning's ugly attitude had potential to tear down so I needed to get it in check! What helped? Obviously the scripture, but also some more thoughts from the book. 

2. Yesterday we had the awesome opportunity to participate in the 10th Annual Buddy walk that is put on my the Down Syndrome Association of DE. Our lives became directly connected with the DS gang last year through many streams of events but mostly a couple of good friends gave birth to babies with DS. It has truly opened my eyes and altered my perspective but I will share those thoughts another time. Here's to team X-Men, for Maddex and Knox, for being the biggest team out there! It was a great first year effort for them and ALL the people involved. I am excited about what the fundraising can do for the furture of all these sweet kiddos!  

Here's the boys and their families! Knox's Daddy isn't pictured because he is deployed and serving the US! I have to say, these are two awesome women in this picture too that I am glad to call friends! 

3. This brings me to another thought, if you know someone who is affected by Down Syndrome and want to read a great book written by a mother of a child with DS, Bloom is the best. The author, Kelle Hampton, is a beautiful writer and is very open and raw with her first encounters with her daughter. This book came to me at a time last year when I needed to read it! It peeled back the curtain on mothers with a special needs child for me and gave me new eyes to see them, to love them. Honestly, I think it's a great read for any mother. She explores motherhood, faith, and all sorts of things that kept me turning the pages. I literally gave up everything and read it in an afternoon last year! Btw (can I text abbreviate on my blog?!), I have fallen in love with following her on instagram and seeing her little Nella in photos!

4. I have been exploring recipes and my kids have not appreciated it. Although, my husband has enjoyed it! I tried to tell my kids the other night "not all mommies like to cook or try to cook new things." Their appreciate was about as excited as I am to take the trash out. I did try this for Sunday night dinner and although mine didn't look pretty, it tasted great! Braided Spaghetti Bread is delish! I found the bread dough right at my local Acme too, fyi!

5. I confess, I am glad the long weekend is ahead for more family time! I have some birthday planning to do for my little man who turns two. We are truly keeping it simple with a very small family party but I am still going to try to do a few cute things! 

Have a great week friends!

Monday Confessions, Mother's Day edition

Whew, what a weekend! We went on a "mini-vacation," as the kids were calling it, for the weekend to Lancaster, PA. We just needed a big dose of family time. We have definitely been burning the candle on both ends for a while. My semester just ended and Mother's Day weekend seemed like a good time to get away! 

1. First a shout out to my mom, not only is she an awesome mom, she helped us get the hotel because she's a traveler extraordinaire. Her generosity definitely touched us!

2. If you have young kids, the Willow Valley Doubletree is where it's at! We had a two bedroom hotel room, which fit us perfectly. The indoor water playground had my kids going nuts. In fact, the woke us up at 5:30am saturday wanting to know if it was time to go back to the pool yet! 

3. I had recently purchased discount tickets to Dutch Wonderland through our preschool and boy am I glad I did! Dutch Wonderland became the other fun part of our weekend that made the kids so happy. 

Here's the hubs and kiddos before our "preview night" (You can go it after 3 to check out the park until closing and come back for the full next day!)

4. If you missed this embarassment, enjoy your free laugh! For the record, heights don't scare me but getting soaked on a 60 degree breezy day does apparently strike fear into my heart! We laughed so hard seeing this picture we had to purchase it for posterity. Good times...

5. The kids favorite ride other than the log flume was the "mini-whip" where they got whipped around in a circle. I think it was invented by parents who needed a good laugh. When the boys rode together, they could not stop laughing when the squished into each other around the corners. Loved it!

6. We saw an absolutely gorgeous scene as sun was setting Saturday evening... This is just my phone shot. I took pictures with my 'real' camera too but just haven't had time for them yet. 

7. Today alone we have already gotten an oil change, gone to Safeway for groceries, went to play at the park, went through the car wash and vacuum...then came home to continue the 5 loads of laundry I have been working on. I looked like a troll all morning in sweats with no earrings but it was TOTALLY a trade off. I didn't look good but darn if I didn't kick butt and take names in the productivity department. Kids were cooperative and willing to be good for bribes like mini-donuts and a trip to the park :)

8. My knee is still on the mend..missing my insanity exercises!

9. I shared a quote last night that is on my heart today "There is no way to be a perfect mother, but a million ways to be a good one" - Jillian Churchill. I love that sentiment. It's true, not a one of us can be perfect but we can be good. Motherhood has rocked my world in many ways but it's refining me into an entirely different (and i hope better) person. 

10. SO THANKFUL for all the moms in my life! I already mentioned my lovely mother but I am also blessed with a great Mother in Law too! She is so generous to me and loves on my kids like no other. I am also beyond thankful for my grandmothers that I still have to spend time with and learn from. Ain't nothing like a mama!!!

Have a great Monday friends!

Monday Confessions

Another week is upon us! We have been up for a while already but just got this Monday party started with a little dance party to Mandisa's Good Morning.  It's a really great way to start a day if I am honest! I was laughing with my kids and listening to Mandisa's encouraging words, not to mention Toby Mac's little rap. Dean loves to day "Top 'o the mornin' to ya 'Disa." I really can't believe we are kicking off our second week in May! So here goes confessions...

1. I hurt my knee late last week and it's been killing me. Remember that 3 mile run I was all hyped about? Well it hasn't happened again since. I tried to run friday night and "pushed through the knee pain" like an idiot. I could barely do the steps by Saturday so I need to do a little resting of the knee and low impact exercise this week to get back on track. Getting sidelined isn't fun but sometimes we need rest to bring healing!

2. I caught the Blind Side on TV last night and it gets me every time! I love the story of a family opening up their lives to an unsuspecting soul and how God weaves it all together. I know Sandra Bullock won an Oscar for her rendition of Leigh Ann Tuohy but someone had to give the raw material! Who shouldn't love a fiercly loving and protective mama that isn't afraid to stand up for what is right either with her snooty friends or the boys in the projects?!

3. Mother's day is next Sunday and I am totally stumped for gifts! I am usually a planner and not so last minute. I have a couple ideas up my sleeve so we shall see what we come up with!

4. I started reading a really good book towards the end of last week, Prodigal God,  by Timothy Keller. I have to read it in small doses because it's so convicting! He breaks down the story of the Prodigal Son from the perspective of both sons and who Jesus was really talking to when he told this story. I am sure it will be a book I read over and over!

5. My kiddos are done preschool in just two short weeks and I am starting a list of summer fun that we can have. Do you have any great ideas for day trips or fun things to do around the house? I would love to hear them! Anything preschool appropriate we are up for!

6. Even as I am writing this I have been called to the upstairs potty to go wipe a bottom and Dean's voice a few minutes later just yelled down "Mom, Maxwell smells like poo." That's mom life for you :) Keeping it real...

7. Can you believe this guy is 2 later this month? It's crazy to me!! I really don't remember him ever being that small!

8. Tonight is my last class of the semester! Teachers get just as excited as students this time of year. It was a great bunch of students to work with this semester and I will be sad to see them go. I am thankful though that summer is on it's way!

9. Our kids don't know yet but we are going away this upcoming weekend!! Who's excited?!! ME! We are going to Lancaster, Pa for a weekend away as a family. I really cannot wait! Our hotel even has an indoor kids water park area....counting down til Friday....

Have a great week friends!!

To the mom who thinks she can't take time for herself...

To the mom who is so busy working trying to keep up with all the needs in her home that she never takes time for herself, I grant you permission. I am saying this because I too made this mistake for a while. I always thought that neglecting myself was just part of taking care of everyone else. What I have learned through the last four years of motherhood is that taking decent care of me is the BEST way to take care of everyone else!

One particular form of self neglect can come with exercise. I am here today to try to encourage even one mom out there who feels like she just can't. I have been in that place and it stinks. You are so exhausted that even thinking of exercising wears you out! What I have learned through the different cycles of my mom life though, is that I am ALWAYS better off when I am excercising regularly. Diet is sort of a dirty word in our house so I will avoid that discussion but food makes a difference too!

I ran 3 miles last night for the first time in maybe years and it felt so good to accomplish that. It helps that I have been doing all different exercise videos for the last few months trying to get back in shape. I haven't lost much weight in the last few months but my body has changed so much. I can actually do push ups too! (This is huge for me). Running 3 miles with a friend last night reminded me that my body is strong and meant to be used. It also gave me way more empowerment than sitting on the couch. I felt accomplished, and saw a little glimpse of the "former me" who ran and exercised regularly before kids. So wherever you are on this journey...start with a brisk walk today or if you are farther along, push yourself to go longer! 

To encourage you...

This is me a few months after having Max at around 175 lbs if I had to guess... (if you think it's not that bad, it's because that size 14 dress covers A LOT gracefully :)

And some of you might remember this recent shot at Easter, at 150 lbs (the weight I was pre-kids) and feeling much healthier and stronger. Please excuse our pasty whiteness, I definitely am in need of a tan :)

My Colorado Experience

Many of you that keep up with me or the blog know that this past week I traveled to Colorado, but some may not know the reason. When my dad passed away almost 2 years ago, he had repeatedly made it clear that he wanted his final resting place for his ashes in Colorado. Although it might seem strange for someone who spent the majority of his life on the East coast, CO was most definitely his favorite place. He had lived there for some years as a young adult and literally fell in love with it, but eventually duty called and he returned to DE to join the family business. Eventhough Delaware was his address, his heart was always in Colorado. He wanted his final resting spot up on a mountain in view of Rabbit Ears Pass just outside of Steamboat Springs, right along the continental divide. It's funny though, I had only ever been there once as a kid. You know how life gets in the way and it's never convenient or there's never enough money for a trip, etc. I wish I had experienced more of it with him! 

Here's what I realized through this journey, along with my brother and some of dad's best friends...this was his final gift to us. We had set the date for April 17, which would've been dad's 60th birthday this year. While some might think we were going to great lengths to honor someone who had already passed on, this trip really was about us. I cannot tell you what a gift it was to spend a few days (sans kids) with my brother and my dad's buddies. It was such a gift to see and experience his favorite place in a huge snow storm no less! Lets just say though that this was not an adventure for the faint at heart!

I had to laugh though because I am an amateur skiier at best and my bro might have even less experience than me...I know, we put dad to shame but he couldn't stand "Pennsylvania foothills" after skiing the rockies. I can now see why! Anyhow, I digress. The thing is though, you can't exatly get up a snow filled moutain without skis! We had our first adventure with cross country skiis in 18 degrees, at 10000 feet and the whole thing took us all about 4 hours on the mountain because of our novice. Thankfully DJ & his wife Marie are both skilled and patient :)

Here's us heading up...

David and DJ, two of dad's best friends. DJ & dad met when they were just 13! 

This was Rabbit Ears Pass the day before the snow, you can see the "rabbit ears" up on the mountain top. (iphone pic, sorry not the greatest)

 

Our little moose sighting!!

Good Morning Steamboat...

The "Eagles Nest"...where we stayed 

Heading to town on an adventure... Ok, it was really just for coffee and souvenirs but everything felt like adventure on this trip!

DJ made dad's famous beer batter pancakes for breakfast!

My brother and I

Beautiful scene near town...

And here's when we finally made it up the mountain...

I will save some of the more personal images for ourselves but I did read a little something and we all said a few words. Here's what I read, "Into the freedom of wind and sunshine, we let you go. Into the dance of the stars and planets, we let you go. Into the wind's breath and the hands of the star maker, we let you go. We love you, we miss you, we want to you be happy. Go safely, go dancing, go running home." It fit the scene and the person, if you knew my dad at all. I am so thankful for this experience. It gave me a great sense of peace knowing we fufilled dad's wishes!