Here are some pictures of Maddox's 3rd birthday party. He had 6 friends come and we had such a fun time! We did it at our church because our house a little small for a wild kid gathering.







He's got his gifts packed and ready to go. He hated having to wait for us to clean up!


I can't believe he's already 3! It has been 3 VERY fun years!

A couple of new videos - sorry about the lag in content, but its good stuff - worth the wait!

This is a short video of Maddox and Juliette's favorite past time. I just wish it was as simple as that...



Each time they get to one side of the house they have to have me come and turn them around. Juliette never wants the game to end.


I have to say that I love that they are playing together, it's very sweet.

It's a new year and I've been thinking a lot. Maybe way more than I ought...but, those thoughts are there none-the-less.

I want this year to be FULL! Full of fun, family, adventure, creativity and happiness.

I become to discouraged when I think of all the money we don't have. But, I'm trying very hard this year to thankful for what we do have and to enjoy life with all of that fullness.

When I talk about full, I don't mean busier. I want to enjoy my kids A LOT. They are growing up so quickly (Maddox is going to be 3! *gasp*) and I want to enjoy them the very most.

So, what does this mean for me?
1. It means getting organized. Very very organized and working on a daily moment by moment basis to keep it tidy and organized. We've been in this house for a year now and it has everything that we need and I love it. It's just taken me a year to figure out what works and doesn't in the space that we have.

2. It means running less errands during our week days (Monday-Thursday). When I run too many errands, I spend money I shouldn't on things I don't need. So, I'll menu plan and grocery shop once a week on Kyle's day off so I can stay focused and remember everything that I need in that one trip. On our week days home, I plan to take the kids out of the house on fun walking trips (who cares if we get a little wet!). I'd like to walk to the library and go on nature walks to look at all of the beautiful nature that we have around us.

3. It means spending quality time with Maddox and Juliette. I want to start teaching Maddox his alphabet and numbers and I want to read 3 good books (not little board books) to them every day.

4. I want to create more. I love having my Etsy shop and I would love to expand it to include other things than just kids hats.

That is where my thoughts have been and I'm sure that they will include many more things over the next few weeks.

I'm happy to say that my early hour awaking is a habit! I only slept in until 8 one day and that felt like such a treat :-) The disappointing part is is that Maddox has woken up around the same time as me 4 days in a row. Maybe I need to start getting up earlier. *gasp* I'm not ready for that!

The toys have even mostly been put away at the end of each day, too!

Hm..now it's time to incorporate something else. The next thing I'm going to tackle is after breakfast completely cleaning the kitchen. I tend to leave it half done because the kids need to be dressed and played with, etc. So, here's to completely cleaning up the kitchen after breakfast, including sweeping the floors and spot mopping! The same will go for after dinner. I don't just want the dishes done, I want everything wiped down and "company ready"!

Here it goes!

7am doesn't seem to be coming quite so quickly and difficult any more. I'm actually starting to wake up on my own about then, so it's getting easier every day! I didn't let myself sleep in on Friday or Saturday! I will in a few weeks, but for now, I'm going to push through.

I've started drinking tea again. Nom, nom, nom :-) It makes my heart happy. I just need to remember to drink decaf or herbal after 6pm! We drank some with dinner at around 7pm the other night and neither of us could fall asleep. Oops. I need to go stock up on some new flavors for the winter. Does anybody recommend any?

I don't remember the last time I had such a full schedule, but I'm really thriving in it. Keeps me motivated knowing that I have places I need to be at certain times. I'm doing the Beth Moore Daniel study on Tues. at 10am with a wonderful group of women of all ages. I'm leading a small group with some high school girls one day a week, every other week I have play group at the church 2 mornings a month and that's a blast (the kids are actually playing SO well together this year because they're a bit older) and then one morning a month I have a Women's Ministry team meeting. A bonus is is that most of what I do have some great friends participating, so I get to see them 2-3 days a week!

Alright, off to shower before the kids wake up!