Fishy Kisses

and Birthday Wishes! ♥

My baby boy is {turning} two years old! We had a birthday party for him yesterday {saturday}. It was a blast! We just invited family and Preston's friend from across the street {Hannah}. But, Hannah wasn't able to make it and she was surely missed!

A rundown of events:

Mom: Preston, who's having a birthday?

Preston: Me

Mom: Preston, what are we going to do for your birthday?

Preston: Ish. Pa. Oat. (We are going fishing with Papaw on his boat)

Mom: Preston, how old are you?

Preston: (while holding up his thumb and pointer finger) TWO!

Mom: Preston, what kind of cake are you going to have?

Preston: ISH!

The boys were able to go out on the boat with their Papaw first thing in the morning. We had been talking it up for weeks to Preston. Let's just say he was {uber} excited!

So, while the boys went and played, I stayed home and cleaned and cleaned and cleaned and decorated. Hummm...what's wrong with this picture?

It was so much fun decorating for the party. With a fish theme, it was extremely easy! :)

* Color scheme: different shades of blue and orange
* Fish bowls with goldfish crackers, gummy worms, and swedish fish
* Fish birthday cake {made by my mother in law}
* Blue kool-aid
* Aquarium Jell-o desserts
*Fish cut-outs on the glass door
*Underwater toy creatures
*A crepe-paper aquarium
* For dinner? We had a fish fry with hushpuppies and coleslaw! :)




HAPPY BIRTHDAY PRESTON! I ♥ YOU!

lazy sunday afternoon?

if you can't possibly find anything to do this afternoon {or evening} go and check this out {it is well worth your time {but only if you are as excited about new moon as i am}!

now, go...read it! what are you waiting for?

Memorial Day ♥♥

{My dad. I am so proud to be his daughter. I miss him terribly}


♥♥♥♥

{Grandpa Eddie. Where Ben gets his good looks from!}

3 years of {tradition}

This was 3rd year that we have gone to the Pungo Strawberry Festival. We normally go on Friday night, because up until this year only a handful of people know that the carnival is open. {The events are on Saturday and Sunday} This year it was packed! I am beginning to realize that in my old age I get a little anxious around large crowds. {Especially ones when the temperature is hot and there is a lot of sweaty bodies and people smoking and loud music and the smell of fried greasy food!} But, the boys had a BLAST riding on the rides.

Here is a picture of Parker 2 years ago:


Here is Parker and Preston last year:


And now, all three of my children this year:

it's a {jungle} out there!

I wish I could say that I am the one that has planted/watered/weeded/fertilized/and shown love to our garden. But, that would make me a {liar}!
My husband has done such a wonderful job in allowing us to be one step closer to being self-reliant. {I still rely on him, though. So does that just make him self-reliant?}

Remember last year's garden? This year we have added more pea plants, broccoli, and zucchini.

It really does look like a jungle! :)

{The broccoli is almost finished up. We will use the last of it for our Memorial Day cook-out! Can I just say that fresh broccoli from the garden is WAY better than store bought. }

{The corn and green beans}

{sugar snap peas. Parker's already taste-tested a few. They passed}

{This little guy is getting big! Soon, it will be on my tomato sandwich}

my {first} born

sometimes. i have. to just. breath. and have. patience. because. if not. i might. just. go. CRAZY!!

i ♥ my boys!

a {belated} thank you! ♥

A couple of weeks ago, Matt took pictures of the boys down at the beach. I have yet to thank him for the awesome pictures that he took. Matt, you are amazing. Thank you for being so patient with my boys, {I know they are a handful} and also for capturing these moments.
{I will treasure them always}

**He did take a lot more pictures than this..but I don't want to use them all up on one blog post! More to come shortly!

few and {far} between!

The {idea} of having a date night once a week sounds really good. Unfortunately, it's hard to even make it out on a date every 3 months! The last date we went on was for my birthday. That was what, in February?
We did luck out this past week. Ben got his mom to babysit for us, and we went out for an early mother's day date! We went to Outback. {Pretty much the only place we ever eat at, besides Jason's Deli!} I love love love their steaks. For dessert went over to the Skinny Dip for some frozen yogurt! Yummo!
This is what we looked like 3 months ago, getting ready to head out on our date:


And this is us last Friday:

{I still can't believe how much hair I had cut off!}

Humm...I think I've changed just a little bit! Maybe I need to get out more!

So, how do you guys manage to squeeze in quality time away from your children?


On another note, this little cutie had a dr.'s appointment this morning. I went and picked Pam up, headed over to Mt. Trashmore, dropped her and the boys off, then walked to Paisley's appointment. It is SUCH a beautiful day today!
Other than being told that Paisley is "absolutely perfect" {as if I didn't know that already!}, we found that that she is:

17 lbs 4 oz
and
26 1/4 inches long

which means that she is in the
75 % for weight
and
50 % for height

I think she is perfect {but it's also nice to hear the Dr. say that too!}

Happy Mother's Day!

4 years ago, the day before Mother's Day, I was in a frenzy to find my mother-in-law a Mother's Day present.
Backtrack:
About a week prior, I was shopping w/my husband and father-in-law for Mother's Day gifts, and we were at Williams Sonoma. Benji picked out a set of bowls and said that Donna had been wanting them for years, but she thought they were too expensive to buy. So, this year was going to be the year that he was going to buy that set of bowls for her. After looking around the store a bit, he decided against it, that he would buy her a new Kitchen Aid instead. So, I decided to get the bowls for her. Perfect. It was something that she wanted, and something that she would use!
So, the day before Mother's Day, Iwas just getting off work at 5pm, and I was checking my voice-mail. I had a message from Benji saying that Donna was baking a cake that morning, and using the same bowls that I had just bought. He had forgotton that he bought them for her the year before! So, now I was in a pickle. What do I do about a gift? I went to the mall, searching. Nothing. The mall was crowded. I didn't know what to get. I was starting to get a headache. So, I drove home empty handed. In tears, I ask Ben what we should get for his mother. He suggests that maybe we could take a pregnancy test, because I was a couple days late. If we were pregnant, then that could be our gift! :)
So, the next morning, I woke up (very nervous), and peed on the tiny little strip. Right away, I saw one line (not two) and figured I wasn't prego. I went back to bed, disappointed. Thinking about the direction that the line was going (up and down vs. side to side) I realized I was indeed pregnant!
I remember sitting in Sacrament meeting and being the only one to know that I was going to be a Mom. :)
Here's a picture of my first Mother's Day:


And now, my Mother. She is such an amazing person. I am in awe of her strength, her testimony, and her unconditional love. There have been many times these past couple of years (especially on my way home from an exhausting day at church) that I think about my Mom and how she managed to raise 10 children. How did she attend church every Sunday? It would have been so easy for her just to stay home. :) But she didn't. She continued to go. And because of that, I too, have that desire to raise my children in the Church. I am so proud of her for choosing to serve a mission. She is such a wonderful example to me and my children. I am so lucky to have her as my Mom!
I look forward to seeing her in just a few more weeks! :) I miss her so much. I can't wait for her to meet Paisley. (And I'll have some updated pictures of her. These ones are from when Preston was born!)




The boys wanted to tell you something, Mom!



I have also been very blessed to have such a wonderful Mother-in-law. She is such an amazing person. She blesses our little family in so many ways. She, too, is an example of faith and strength to me. She, also, raised such a wonderful son! :)

I love you, Mom and Donna. Thank you for all that you do for me. I love you both so much. Happy Mother's Day!




*A note about the bowls. I kept them. It was a set of 3 bowls. The last one just broke about a week ago. It breaks my heart because those were the reason why I found out I was pregnant.
**And, since Donna had gotton a new Kitchen Aid, she gave me her old one, and I have loved it ever since!

I just thought

that these pictures were adorable. Don't you agree?
Enjoy! ♥

guess {who}?

Pop quiz:

Which one of my children is teething?

(a) Parker
(b) Preston

(c) Paisley



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