My two oldest had special mother's day themed events at their schools last week. I loved getting to spend quality time with each of them. Their teachers did an amazing job and I left feeling so loved. I love looking back at their artwork over the years so I am posting this for my future self. Mommy Spa & Mom Facts My son had a pamper mom day spa in his classroom. He gave me a massage, applied my makeup, and painted my nails. It was super sweet. I loved seeing how focused he was on applying my makeup and enjoyed watching all his classmates do the same. My oldest answered the following questions and fill in the blanks for his teacher and these were presented to me last week at his classrooms mother's day event. How old is your mom? My guess is she is her 60's What color is her hair? My hair What's her favorite drink and snack? Water and pizza My mom deserves a hug. What's her favorite thing to do with you? Play What does she like to do for fun? Go … [Read more...]
Our Adoption Story
Josh and I had the privilege this January to become licensed foster parents. This year has grown me in more ways then I can say. I have learned so much and I am so thankful for the amazing opportunity to be part of another child's life. This week our family adopted the sweet little person we have been loving and caring for over the last six months. Adopting our foster son has been an amazing and yet bittersweet experience. I have never felt such a deep loss for another person before. I think about and pray for our son's biological parents, I pray for the future conversations we will have with our son regarding his adoption, and I pray for our family to be a safe and secure place for him to learn and know what love is, how much we love him, but more importantly how much God loves him. We had the most amazing people from the Arizona Department of Child Safety advocating for our child. Words cannot fully express how honored our family has been to walk along side these individuals … [Read more...]
Our After School Routine
Our oldest started kindergarten this year. Gulp. I don't think I have fully come to terms with that yet. How does time fly so quickly? Because I love reading about other families routines I thought I would share what has been working for us this last month in regards to our kindergarteners after school routine. As soon as we get home school clothes go into the hamper and afternoon showers, baths, or swimming happens for the kids. I figure this is one of the best ways to minimize shared germs as much as possible. We don't have a swimming pool at home but have had great luck with this inflatable pool and this at home spray pad. We are trying to keep all the kids immune systems boosted to prevent as much sickness as possible because it seems once one person becomes sick it isn't long before we are all down for count. In addition to this the kids also take SmartyPants vitamins and a probiotic daily. Once the heat starts to dissipate I would like to add in 15-30 minutes of … [Read more...]
Cleaning My House Just Got Easier (eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S Review)
There are chores around the house that I genuinely don't mind doing, like vacuuming. I love seeing all the gunk that our vacuum picks up but at the same time it also slightly disgusting. It is this weird mix of horrified amazement and with all the kids in our home needs frequent vacuuming. I had been looking into purchasing a Robot Vacuum for a least a year and finally decided to bite the bullet two months ago and make the purchase. I researched several options and narrowed it down between two options: eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S and iRobot Roomba 690. It was so hard deciding between the two but several factors ultimately led me to pick the eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11. The eufy is super quiet and for me this was essential because I wanted to use it at night after the kids are sleeping. The slim design easily would fit underneath cribs, beds, dressers and other furniture in our home that our Dyson vacuum doesn't reach. It looked easy to setup, clean, and I liked that it worked well … [Read more...]
How My Husband Encourages Me
I am so thankful to have a husband who encourages me and who has my back and truly wants the best for me and our kids. This year we will reach 11 years of marriage. There have been many ways Josh has encouraged me during this time. You can read more about how we met and what the last 11 years have looked like HERE. Josh has been doing something for over a year now that has brought real encouragement to me and I would like to share what that is and why it is encouraging and motivating me. He Spends Time In The Word Josh made a commitment 18 months ago to read the entire Bible and he recently finished. This was his first time reading it through in its entirety and I am so proud of him. This will be my third year of reading through the Bible and somedays it is challenging for me to want to read my Bible. But seeing my husband reading and us being able to talk about what we are each individually learning has been amazing. My husband spending time in the Word has been a huge … [Read more...]
Muffins with Mom 2018
Yesterday the kids and I celebrated muffins with mom at preschool. The teachers and staff at their school are amazing and make each event feel so special. I just adored everything and seeing my littles so excited to give me their presents was precious. I am still in slight denial that tomorrow is our oldest's last day of preschool and he will be off to to elementary school in August. Seriously how does this happen so quickly? My kids nailed their questionaries and picture drawings of me even down to my favorite lululemon shirt. Being a mom is amazing. I am so thankful for extra special days to celebrate and enjoy time with my kids. Funny story, I had it on my calendar that muffins with mom was actually last week so we arrived early to preschool only to discover the parking lot empty. That morning we had an impromptu donuts with mom at the grocery store down the road instead. The glitch on my calendar allowed for more quality time with my older two and for that reason I don't … [Read more...]
