don't forget about me.

and for me.

when lila wears her headbands.

or I spill my hot tea on my white shirt.

flowers. hot glue. safety pins.

sprucing up spring.

babies. blooms. bows.

elastic headbands. 

(lila wears regular adult size ones, 

her head is in the 95% folks.)

flowers.

(ones here are from this fave craft store)

hot glue gun.

voila.

sweet reality.

oh, the love!

life is so so good.

its a big day.

lilas first hair bow.

more monday.

poison control has been called.

this is not an alarming event in this house mind you.

question:

is Little Bear Fruit Splash Toothpaste,

considered a serving of fruit? 

if so...check off two for today.

tom, everyone is fine. 
but we're out of the kiddos toothpaste.

monday. monday.

tears. timeouts.

need I say more?

gotta go.

racecars.

a love for cars is nothing new for this family.

it runs in our blood.

like sweet tea.

coconut cake.

and pickles.

yes, I said pickles.

the Grand Prixe is in town 

so we went downtown

to see a real racecar.

trent inspected every inch of it.

but he could find no words. 

other than 

"racecars!"

belted out in a goofy voice.

while bending at the hip.

I love that kid.

sweet reality.

life lesson #216:

nothing is sweeter than bunny ears and your very best friend.

baskets. bugs. butterflies.

the baskets are almost done.

today I am working on the tags,

because what basket doesn't need a tag?

glued on some grassy moss.

had trent hunt for some bark in the yard to glue on. 

then added some berries. butterflies. and bugs.

they got trent's stamp of approval.

he just lit up.

and thats what I was after.

sweetly reminded me of the oh so fancy pink basket 

my mom had made for me that had all sorts of 

silk flowers adorning it. 

he's home.

after our longest stint apart.

and three days of cancelled flights.

he's here.

welcome home dad.

you are the glue to this family.

the jelly to my biscuit.

the peanut butter to my pancake.

i love you so.

sarah, this one's for you.

I had a dear friend ask my advice
for a baby gift.

knowing they would get plenty of diapers.
piles of clothes.
and 

hoping to find a creative solution,
one that would help

warm their welcome home from the hospital.

so, this is what I made my mom 

before her surgery in January.
perfect for new parents.
or anyone who eats.

I liked it so much I made one for us.

a three ring binder.

(the kind you can slip stuff down in the covers)

decorated with some leftover scrapbook paper.

and filled with all of our local restaurants

take out menus.

for those nights, 

where your husband gets home,

and you're still in your pajamas.

and he asks 

"hey honey, what's for dinner?"

I say, 

while tossing him this notebook...

"well, whatcha hungry for?"

the good ole days.

we are an entertaining family.

I must say.

the type of people you'd like to just sit back and watch, 

and giggle!

just to kind of see it happen.

to see trent at teeball.

I am not even sure he realizes there are two teams and 

an entire organized sport taking place around him.

or me. 

chasing dust bunnies around our home.

while breastfeeding. 

my hair tossed up in pins and ties.

and my clothes smothered in an assortment of

boogers.

drool.

homemade baby purees.

there's time out.

there's tears.

there's trains. cars. and little mans.

and learning how to finally ride that tricycle.

dirty diapers. 

getting cozy and watching max and ruby.

and the constant sounds of 

a teething babe.

singing. a harmonica.

and reading the same books over.

and over.

and over.

potty training.

bargaining with organic gummy bears.

teaching a little one how to make homemade orange juice.

and that you cant leave a mess on the countertops.

long walks as a family.

naptime.

and a labrador that likes to dig. 

our life is a bit of a mess.

trent has told me so.

but I am quite certain this will be the time

we look back on.

and our hearts will swell.

because right now we are living

 in what we will eventually refer to as 

the good ole days.

cheers.

we needed a place for

the many drinks. mugs. and sippy cups.

the perfect thing...

my mom's silver serving tray.

pretty enough to leave on the counter.

everyone always knows where to find their drink.

and no spills on the floor.

happy friday.

our spring chick.

her skin and sweet breath smells like a fresh pastry.

love her.

a place to land.

keeping our home tidy is important to me.

I want my husband to walk in that door after work

and feel welcome, fresh, and relaxed.

or anyone that comes over for that matter.

that said, it doesn't just happen on its own.

living with two babies, and a softball-construction loving husband, 

(and no garage.)

we can easily accumulate a lot of mess.

I am sure you can relate.

there are a few things we've found make it all the more easier.

welcome.

our entry has a basket on the floor where you lose the shoes.

(I mean really think about where you walked today, 

would you want your babies crawling around on that?)

there is a large silver shell where we can drop things.

keys. mail. wallet. cell phones. 

across from the dinner table we have a little rack.table.thingy.

we keep our daily things here. 

things to be done. not just dropped off.

magazines we want to read. journals. books.

and lastly our daily system.

this is where mail gets organized. 

and keys. sunglasses. and lost and found.

this area has potential to grow with the babies

and that excites me. 

(think book bags, sports equipment, etc.)

I crave blank spaces.

room to grow. 

room to think. 

so toss what you don't love, and find a special spot for what you do.

housewarming pie party.

it took a couple weeks.

one moving truck.

lots of friends.

and family.

two housewarming pie parties.

and we are officially here.

home.

we had all our favorite pies. 

friends wrote their definition of home.

and I made maps to guide guests through the little details of our home.

well, I believe the house is now warm.