What we are up to these days...

Well... we are WIDE open and running folks! Let's see..Matt has been out of town this entire week for a work trip out in Lake Tahoe. I feel like we just got back from our cruise, then it was Mark's bachelor party a few weekends ago. Not sure why Farm Bureau packs all the agent trips into spring and early summer! Talk about worn out mama...  I've been kicking it here with the wild boys and had tons of help from family and our amazing nanny Megan. Although, we have cut Megan back to 2 days a week;( Trying to save a little bit of money and it really is getting a touch more manageable, so I thought! My sister is about to pop out her 2nd baby(Bailey) any minute, she's 3cm dilated! Mark is getting married in July and  did I mention that we are in the middle of custom building a house? This will be an entire another post of the craziness but I'm picking out cabinets, granite, tile, appliances and hardwood floors in the next month! I just wish there weren't so many options. I do well with like 2 or 3- choose your favorite.  Not exactly how all of this is working. But we are super pumped about the house and the doors and windows just went up.

Kid updates!  

Matthew weighing in at 34.5 lbs- hasn't gained a lb. in an entire year. Just grown taller! 

He just got bit by a mosquito under his eye and is totally allergic to them, so swollen he can hardly see.

Still obsessed with music and has probably about a 20 song playlist that he knows several verses too- he likes to mix it up.  Currently jamming to, Mumford and Sons, Journey, Phillip Phillips and Johnny Cash! You should him sing Folsom Prison blues- probably not appropriate for a 2 year old- leave that one with daddy. He got to hang out in Mommy's bed a lot this week! 

Wyatt- almost 18 months old, 25 lbs and getting such a fun personality! He is independent here at the house, sits and plays with toys, like to put blocks into a bucket and then dump them out. The only thing that gets Wyatt in trouble is he is SUCH a climber! How did I get dealt 3 climbers?! At least 10 times today I have to pull him off of the train table. Looks at those lips! We had just left the beach so his hair was crazy. Goes by Wyatt, Wy Wy or Wyrone(dad's nickname), brother or dude!

And last but not least, Greyson! Almost 18 months old, 25 lbs and so sweet! He really laughs alot, when he isn't teething. Him and Matthew seem to get into little sharing bouts and fits way more than Wyatt does. He loves to play hide and seek. He loves to hit a ball, Goes by GG, G-bo, Grey Grey

Enough for today- gotta go get them up from naps!

Vacation recap...

I knew it before I went and should have listened to my gut.. but I knew time with my sweet husband and time to refresh was a MUST. Everyone asked, how was your trip, I reply... "good but TOO LONG" 8 days is a long time to leave 3 kids, especially when they are this young. We just didn't have an option to shorten it and when we hit day 5.. it was like.. GET US OFF THE BOAT! We did have a nice trip, compliments to Farm Bureau, but I don't think you will see us on a cruise ship again.  Poor Matthew is having terrible anxiety since we returned, which of course is making me feel so guilty. I know I shouldn't but the sweet boy will not go to bed by himself anymore, much less walk into a room by himself without saying I'm scared.  So for the last 7 days, I have had to lay down with him every single nap and nighttime. We have tried every trick and 'special treat' offer but nothing has worked to keep him in his room to go to sleep with this lights off. Ugh.  Praying it will get better. And lesson learned for us... 3 or 4 days vacation might be ok but 8 was too long:( On a happy note, here are a few pics from our favorite part of the trip- our stop at Half Moon Cay, Bahamas!

Challenges of a stay at home mom

I'm just going to share a few thoughts about how hard it is to stay at home with the kids. Not to compare it to working mom's.. but for the mere fact of how it has changed me and how I go about my day to day job as a mom of 3 wild boys!
   I always dreamed of staying at home with my kids, just like my mom did.  I guess when you are raised like that, it just seems the thing to do! So with Matthew, I started on what I thought would be a easy journey- ha! Boy, did God have something in store for me, life changing, and character building perhaps. Matthew was colicky for the first 6 months. Easy, umm, not so much. My poor body decided to fall apart on me after having a baby. Between strep throat, mastitis and mono- I had to stop breast feeding which at the time seemed devastating!  Oh and then I got pregnant with TWINS! People remind me all the time, God never gives you more than you can handle. He doesn't but it sure is HARD! The sweet moments with the boys are what keep me going and I really do feel so blessed that we have survived this sick winter season.
    I really could write for hours about how the last 2 years have completely rocked our world but I really just wanted to write about how God is using these INCREDIBLY hard times to mold me into a better person. Each day is different and really each phase has had it's ups and downs. Something that I have learned that has truly gotten me through the tough times is to except help when anyone offers, ask for help if I need it and reach out to other moms going through the same thing. Because I will admit, it gets so lonely when you deal with babies day in and day out and all you hear is wah wah wah!   You start to wonder if it all matters and if you are doing a good job, but a dear friend reminds me weekly that God has chosen me for this specific purpose and that I am so strong!

 

 
We are currently in a climbing stage and 'let's fall so hard that it scares mom to death" stage so if you will pray that God protects my boys and my stress levels, it's appreciated.  How did I get dealt 3 climbers and wild ones, seriously? I had to remove like 10 things from our house today because they are climbing everything! If you see me, please remind me that the Lord has a grand plan- and I'm going to survive!

Founded on the Rock

Luke 6:48 "He is like a man building a house, who dug and went deep, and laid a foundation on the rock. When a flood arose, the stream broke against that house, and could not shake it, because it was founded on the rock." Before they begin building our house tomorrow, I wanted to go to the lot with the entire family and bury a cross beneath where the house will stand. (And uncle Mark who was in town and helped us dig:) We pray that as we move into this new house, that we will be reminded by this cross that we are to lead our boys to God. Our actions, our words and our day to day living should be founded on the "rock".  We buried it where we thought the front door would be and my hope is that each time someone enters our house, they will be encouraged in the walk with God. Matt and I are so blessed to be coming up on 8 years of marriage. We have shared so many good times and tough times over the last decade. We know the Lord is the only answer and we pray that we continue to live that way. Today would have been my dad's 60th birthday too. Can't believe it's been almost 17 years since I have seen him.. and I pray today that he is singing and celebrating with Jesus. He would have been one proud granddaddy... to four little boys and one little girl on the way(not me, my sister)!  We miss you dad and know you are watching from above:) Here's to the new house and all the memories to be made... thank you Lord for the opportunity!

Growing so fast!

Every parent will tell you, "they grow up so fast. I remember when mine were that little..." But really, where does time go? My little bitty twins are getting so big, walking and talking! 

                                    Greyson a few steps ahead on the walking! Wyatt is not be far behind:)

                                           Greyson- playing in 70 degree February weather!

                                                             Wyatt loves the wagon!

We can do more than just "survive"!!

      Our church encourages us to pick One Word for the year. It's a brilliant idea for those like ourselves who have a million things going on. One Word is perfect for me- it's simple but genius! So over the years I have chosen words like Embrace(2010), Focus(2011), Persevere(2012) and it's truly amazing to look back and see how God used those words to mold me and change into the woman he is calling me to be.
      So as January 2013 rolled around and I knew I would have to pick a word- I started to brainstorm. My first thought was "Survive"...haha... I'm not kidding.  It's probably because the first moments I get to sit down are at 8pm and my body is so tired and worn down and most nights I think, "we survived another day " But God began to do amazing things in me this week. I hit a low point last weekend and started to realize that I had become run-down, negative, anxious, critical, you name it, all things I would never want to be. I knew I was the only one who could do something about it, so I started to brainstorm with Matt about small things I could do that would help me get through the day with a better attitude and more energy!  He began to encourage me to start filling my self with more positive things, scripture, devotionals, speakers and pod-cast, positive friends, etc. So after a week of trying to do a few of those things a new word popped into my head and it won't leave. So I trust that it's God telling me to settle on it. It's "Worship".  I found this definition and loved it, "To worship God is to realize the purpose for which is created us." Not exactly sure what that looks like,  but I heard God telling me that we can do more than just survive, that we can worship Him.  That in the tough moments, we need to worship Him. That in the busy moments, we need to be still and worship Him. That in the great moments, we need to worship Him for every blessing. So here's a prayer that I can do what God has intended for me to do this year! I encourage you to pick a word and see how it changes you! Would love to chat about it  if you do:)

Tis' the season...

As I sit here in the settling dust of a post-Christmas day with 3 small children, my mind is full of thoughts.  I think of the YouTube clip of the 5yr old boy who had just gone to the dentist, "Is this real life?"  I laugh as we bustle through breakfast and presents and family and colds and thoughtless Christmas movie quotes run through my head.  I rest in the solitude of Clark Griswold's "It's all part of the experience" as he responds to the news of his daughters eyes beings frozen after searching the frosted wilderness for the perfect tree.  It's hard to imagine 5, 10, 15 years down the road when the innocence is gone and our traditions change as the boys grow up.  That's why I choose to embrace these moments and experiences as we walk through this life we've been blessed with.  I think back to 4 years ago when we were in the middle of fertility treatments and trying desperately to have a family of our own.  Do we really have 3 kids just 4 years later and the fertility doctor told us that a natural conception wasn't "looking good"?!?!  That thought leads me to God's faithfulness amidst our distrust and disobedience.  Imagining the God of the universe coming to us in the form of a helpless child so many years ago is just I unfathomable.

This Christmas I am thankful for my faith, my God - the unshakable rock that provides us with peace in the middle of an uncertain world.  I am thankful for my wife, Liz and the commitment she makes of raising our boys as well as the love and support she shows to me.  I am thankful for my boys - Matthew, Wyatt and Greyson.  They teach me to love more and more every day and they teach me the art of patience.  I am thankful for my parents, Mary Grey and Derrick.  I think about the Christmas traditions they established of enjoying family and celebrating faith.  As a parent now,  I laugh at the countless hours spent on finding the perfect gift and making every holiday extra special.  I am thankful for my brother as he steps into establishing his own family and traditions.  I look back on all of the Christmases we spent as children getting so excited about what waited under the tree.  I am thankful for my godparents, Doug and Susu.  There's not a Christmas I can remember when they weren't an integral part  of our experience and I am forever grateful for their involvement in our lives.  There are a number of additional names that come to my mind - great friends and examples that have shaped and molded me up to this point.  Folks that have shared the ups and down, the highs and the lows.  If you're reading this and thinking , "I wonder if that's me?"  That's a yes!

I wish everyone reading a very Merry Christmas and the best 2013 that up can imagine.