Ever had a day that felt like 3 days in one?! Well that was yesterday! I won't bore you with details but lets just say it started with a baby cry at 6am and ended with me in the doctor's office at 8pm for evening hours with Dean. Life is an adventure!

1. I am stuck in the middle of One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp, can't decide if I already got the point or if I need to keep going. It is very flowery writing which sometimes loses me and other times transports me right to the time and place she is speaking of. I also have not had much time to read which probably doesn't help. For those that have read it, should I keep going??

2. If you want to bring me happiness in a cup, just deliver a Grande Skinny Vanilla Latte from Starbucks, it's my favorite right now :) It's warm, sweet, and yummy - all good things!

3. Did you know that credit cards were not prevalent in the US until the 1980's? They are such a part of our everyday lives, that it's hard to imagine them not around. I am not necessarily saying this is a good thing for us to have them. In fact, that's when our debt crisis really started and American families carrying debt became "normal." We are doing our very best as a family to stay out of debt, we are by no means experts but are learning to live within our means. If you want to learn more about great financial strategies, head to Dave Ramsey. He also has a great talk radio show if you want to check it out :) Yes...I like talk radio.

4. My house is a disaster, besides the usual mess, we are dealing with the moving mess. Any tips from you all out there on moving? I feel like it's a monumental task especially with small kids, but we are so thankful for what lies ahead. (We still need a renter so if you know anyone or are looking, please contact me!)

5. Parenting is flat out hard. I am pretty sure no one ever knows what they are getting into when they begin a family. I feel like I ride a daily roller coaster with the kids with emotions, behavior, etc. Not all the books in the world prepare you for when your a 2 year-old is....

stripping down naked while holding poopy diaper in hand
dumping a GALLON of water on your kitchen floor when you are trying to leave the house
disconnecting the car from the car seat while you are driving 60mph
opening the fridge and helping himself
letting himself out the front door
grabbing your keys (while you are putting other child in carseat) & climbing in front seat, putting keys in ignition and starting car
spilling an entire cup of juice all down the stairs and wall because he decided to throw it
running away from you in parking lots
fighting with you about every food you put on his plate

These are just a few things that have happened in the last week! It's exhausting but there are also other things like....

saying "thank you mommy" when I do something for them
singing "jesus loves me" and "frosty the snowman" spontaneously
saying "happy birthday mommy" at random times throughout the day
racing to the mailbox and your 2 yr old saying "I win"
riding the dog and saying "yee-haw'
playing in the leaves & pointing out every pumpkin that we pass

6. We are looking forward to a fun family weekend to pause and enjoy life in the middle of the chaos. Thomas the Train is coming to Lancaster, PA and Grandma is taking us all this weekend! I might be as excited as the kids :) Looking forward to just enjoying family time in the middle of this busy season for us!

7. Breaking Dawn (Part of the Twilight series) comes out this weekend! Going to see it with some girls on Sunday, excited to see how they bring the book to life! Hope they don't check ID's at the door & kick out the old girls :)

8. I turn 30 in less than 3 months...my weight loss goals are slower than I liked but am taking it one day at a time. At least I did make it to the Y to run yesterday during the chaos of the day, lets hope I get there at least a couple more times this week! We shall see!

I was reminded this week of the old saying, "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!" So one bite at a time we will "eat our elephant!" Have a great week friends!

Emily Troutman Photography