Thoughts

I don't do personal posts very often, but I have a lot on my mind lately. Here are some random thoughts, that I just needed to get out.

~Owning and running ones own practice is a lot of hard work and stress.

~Paying off student loan debt stinks as does housework! I love the reward at the end though! :)

~Gossip hurts!

~Living in a small town has its perks and it's downsides.

~Babies are EXHAUSTING but oh so cuddly and lovable!!!!!

~Days are long, but years are short.

~Being a mother is emotionally, spiritually, and physically draining. I have been forgetting to take time to refill these things.

~2 year olds talk a lot (most of which I cant understand) and have a lot of meltdowns! ;)

~Vacuuming keeps me sane (the sound and motion is therapeutic, plus it drowns out baby crying or toddler whining)! :)

~Yes,I have my hands full, but that's the way I like it. I would probably be bored otherwise! ;)

~We have a most gracious and loving Heavenly Father who loves us and knows each one of us personally! Never forget that!

 

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Fall is in the air

I am loving the cooler weather we've had lately and it has put me in the decorating mood. Along with the cooler weather we have been enjoying the boys soccer games and doing more outdoor activities. I very rarely get any pictures of these said "outdoor activities" because I usually have the baby strapped to me and honestly it's just too much effort to pull out the camera. But while the baby is taking a nap I really enjoy decorating things at the house and taking pics.

Front door cuteness! Even though NOBODY comes down my road! Lol :)

The boys are on different soccer teams but ended up with the same color jerseys.

MIss Lou on the train at the zoo. She was SO EXCITED to ride on the train!!! I don't think I have ever seen her smile so big!

Lathen is growing like a weed and has turned into the most smiley baby! His smiles make my day!

My Halloween chalkboard. I have had so much fun changing the chalkboard for the seasons. The kids keep asking to draw on it and I have been telling them no. It has become "moms" chalkboard and they know they had better not touch (they have a kids chalkboard in the playroom, but mine must seem bigger and better)!! Lol ;)

 

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Spray paint DIY

Lately, I've been so busy being a mom of 4 (soccer, cub scouts, piano, gymnastics, church, nursing a hungry 3 month old, homework, studying for tests, dinner, grocery shopping, housework, and all the in-betweens) that I've been neglecting blogging, picture taking, and DIY crafting. Which are all the things I love and keep me sane. But, last week I decided to throw a going away party for a neighbor, which forced me to make time to craft some DIY decorations. I decided I wanted to make a large chalkboard to write a message on for the main focal point of the decorations (I didn't get any pictures of the party, because I was so busy). Anyway, that's when the spray paint fun began! Blaine found a fabulous shade of aqua spray paint (Rustoleum Seaside in gloss) at Home Depot and I started spray painting anything that wasn't bolted down! LOL :) Not really, but I had some beat up bar stools and an old paper towel holder that were just dying for some new paint. I love taking old things and changing them to make them look different!

DIY magnetic board/chalkboard

First, Blaine cut a piece of crown molding to the correct angles and nailed them together to form a frame. Then I caulked the seams and spray painted the frame. Next, I took a piece of sheet metal (they cut if for Blaine at Home Depot) and spray painted it with chalkboard paint(several coats with sanding in between). Last, I glued the sheet metal to the back of the frame. This happened over several days since I had to let it dry in between coats of paint.

TA-DA! I drew a cute design that went with the theme of the going away party. It was the perfect focal point for the party! I really like it in my living room also! I have changed the design for Halloween. I will post a Halloween post later. Who knew I would have so much fun drawing on a chalkboard?!

Here are the spray paints and glue I used in case you were wondering.

By the way this is what happens when you are painting and the two year old is tending herself! I have no clue why she is wearing a bib and colored in tiger stripes. She kept telling me something about the cartoon Daniel Tiger. Who knows?! Lol ;) She wasn't happy about me taking her picture.

After finishing the chalkboard I had the itch to paint something else. I finally decided my old bar stools needed a makeover. A little bit of primer and a couple coats of paint later transformed my old barstools into aqua beauties!

And last but not least I spray painted an old paper towel holder for my kitchen. Bright and cheery for a pop of color!

So now go get your spray paint on and transform something old into something beautiful!!!!! It's cheap and a lot of fun!

 

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House Tour

I have always taken pictures of each house we have lived in for the kids (and me) to remember it by. It is always fun to look back and show the kids their old rooms and such. Plus, I thought it would be an easy way to show the home owners a view of their rental house since they live in Utah. And seriously, sometimes it's just plain rewarding to clean a house from top to bottom and then take pictures to look back on whenever your house is a total disaster! :) Here's to happy, clean house memories!

Living Room

Those freshly vacuumed carpet lines make me SO happy!!! ;)

I really need to update pictures. Poor Lathen is not in a single one.

Kitchen

The kitchen is kinda plain, but I LOVE the chevron table runner my mother-in-law quilted for me!

Play Room

The play room is my favorite room in our rental house. It is so nice to be able to keep all of the toys and video games in one room out of view of the living room.

Ahhh, so clean and organized.

Just looking at this picture makes me all relaxed when in real life the playroom is a hot MESS!!!!

Homework/Reading/Art/Quiet Room

This room is the boys favorite room, since its where they play Legos, draw, and read.

Boy's Room

Kid's Bathroom

I love my towel hook!! For the first time ever each child has their own towel and they stay off the floor!! YEA!!

Lucy's room

Front Porch

My view from my front porch. I told you I lived in the middle of nowhere! :) It is very pretty and peaceful in the middle of nowhere, but I long for just a few neighbors (the deer, raccoons and turkeys do not count) and a paved road! LOL!

I did not take pics of our bedroom and bathroom because I never got around to painting or decorating those rooms. Plus, our bedroom is still the dumping ground for the last few unpacked boxes. UGH!!! And yes, we still have unpacked boxes a year after we have moved. BOO!! ;(

 

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Visitors

We don't get many visitors since moving to the middle of nowhere MS! :) But every now and then we get a few friends who don't mind getting off the beaten trail (technically its a dirt road) to visit us. LOL :) The kids love hanging out with cousins and I throughly enjoy my adult chat time! Thanks Nathan and Jill for coming to visit. Y'all are welcome anytime!

All the cousins having a picnic lunch.

Fun times, trying to get a group shot with everyone looking.

The girls! Lucy and Presley.

Cooper showing Drew how to build Legos. It's fun to watch Cooper as the oldest cousin teaching the younger ones.

The boys. Carter, Drew, and Cooper.

 

 

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Real life and my not so perfect kiddos

I've never had professional pictures of our family taken. I know one day I will look back and think why in the world did I never get professional pictures taken? I guess it's because I am always scared I will pay a lot of money and my kids will act total nuts and it will turn into a huge fiasco. So instead of hiring someone to get decent pictures I always try to take them myself. That way if my kids act crazy there will be no money lost. So here you go one of my crazy photo taking sessions, I can NEVER get all 4 kids to look or smile at the same time. I think when Lathen gets a few months older I really just need to bite the bullet and get some professional family pictures taken. Oh well, here are a few of my not so perfect pictures of the kids to keep you going until then! LOL :)

 

This was the best one of the bunch. I still couldn't get Carter to smile without looking like he was miserable. Lucy did start smiling but only when I bribed her with candy.

My sweet, smiling Coop with a disgruntled baby.

I love this picture! Carter got distracted with a worm and Lucy ran away just as I started snapping. ;)

I really like these two pics of the older kids but Lathen is looking down and Lucy wouldn't sit to save her life.

 

I love how, no matter what the other kids are doing, Cooper is smiling in every one. He has always been my perfect smile child. Everyone was well rewarded for their efforts (despite the outcome) with several pieces of candy! :) I LOVE my Kiddos, crazy smiles and all!

By the way, the part of the picture that you can't see is me laying on the ground in my skirt from church, (because if I had taken the time to change clothes, the kids would have stripped out of their nice clothes also) wildly waving a sucker around with one hand while making Donald Duck noises and snapping pictures with the other hand hoping for a good one!

 

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2 months

What?! Lathen is 2 months already. His 2 month b-day honestly came and went before I realized the date. Little man (his nickname) has chunked up to 11lbs, started smiling and cooing, and holds his head up pretty well. I adore his little face and can't get enough baby loving!!!!!

Funny faces!!

Holding his head up to look around.

From smiley to so serious.

Smiling and cooing

 

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