{pain leads to transformation}

"practice is the hardest part of learning and training is the essence of transformation"

ann voskamp

::one thousand gifts::

::photo::

the coach leaned over her and pulled so hard that felt pain from one hundred yards away.
stretching.
followed by pain.
leads to transformation.
eventually... the perfect form of a gymnast.
long and lean and beautiful for all to see.
only learned through painful practice.

can i hope for this?
transformation?
a thankful heart?
one day might i have perfect form?
maybe.
first...i must practice.

::top {10} ways i spend time with my children::

as you may know i work outside the home.
so the time i have to spend with my precious babies is limited to say the least. but we make the most of every single moment. with that said, here are the

{top ten ways i spend time with my children}::

1. we have breakfast together every morning.
i try really hard each day to put away my to-do list and have everything ready so that we can all three sit down to breakfast with no distractions. we talk about our dreams, our plans for the day, our bible verse and anything else that may come to mind.

2. the welcome home party.
my nanny and husband are awesome. so whoever is with the kids when i arrive home preps them for my arrival. as soon as i walk in the door i am greeted with hugs and squeals of joy! we hug and giggle and they tell me about their day.

3. family dinner.
we attempt to have family dinner time every week night. we sit down as a family. we talk about things we are thankful for. we talk about our day. we giggle and sometimes play {i spy}. i want my children to grow up with family dinner as a priority. something to look forward to.

4. bath time.
i take care of baths while my sweet hubs cleans the kitchen after dinner. teamwork! i love giving the kids baths becuase it's another opportunity for me to engage with them. watch them play and giggle. i get to see them use their imagination with their little duck families. i get to see them discover what happens when you throw your hands down really hard into the water. and yes, i usually walk away wet. but i wouldn't trade that time for the world.

5. family play time.
from bath time to bed time is usually time for us to play as a family. this is often daddy being a dinosaur and eisley and durgin running to safety, a.k.a. mommy. we wrestle and run and giggle and squeal. oh and we hug...a lot!

6. bed time.
i get special time with each of my children at bed time. i rock durgin while we snuggle and sing. he goes to bed first. then onto the coopster. we read a book, then snuggle and tell knock-knock jokes and usually finish up by finding pictures on the ceiling. then she's off to sleep.

7. crafts.
eisley and i do lot's of crafts. almost daily we do something creative to display throughout our home. i always ask her about her artwork. compliment her color schemes and make a big deal out of her ability to illustrate our family so perfectly.

8. books.
we read tons of books around here. every chance we get someone is hopping in my lab with a book. we read so much that eisley has several books that she can "read" verbatum. that always blows my mind.

9. outside play.
it's been a long and gloomy winter here. but recently the sun has been peeking through the clouds and we have been able to get outside more. i love to go in eisleys playhouse and watch her whip up a batch of chocolate cookies or pine cone cake. durgin is a mad man on the sliding board and will just walk right off of anything that doesn't touch the ground. this child knows no fear and he's about to give his mama a heart attack!

10. weekends.
i long for the weekends. sleeping in on saturdays. family breakfast. then time to play play play. we suck every single ounce of time out of the weekends for investing in our children. making them feel loved and special. finding out whats on the menu for the week:  dinosaurs, princesses, babies, you name it and we pretend it!

how are you spending time with your children?
i'd love some more ideas!

{what's your life verse?}

grace & peace

::tutu's, minnie mouse, chic-fil-a {OH MY!}::

"the greatest gift i ever had came from god and i call him dad" 

-anonymous   

i grabbed a sweater and matching leggings out of her closet.
when i turned around she was bent over rumaging though her {dress up clothes} looking for the perfect accessory.
her first pick was a silky red skirt.
but her outfit was pink so that wouldn't work.
next the frilly pink tutu she received for christmas.
yep that's the one.
she wiggled her tiny little tale into the tutu and....yep. perfect.
she was ready for her date.
her {daddy-date}.

she went out of her room to meet her handsome escort for the evening. they greeted one another, then he gave her the most beautiful bouquet of daisies and carnations. small and dainty just like our little princess. next he gave her a special minnie mouse for the occasion.

now this girl will go crazy for a minnie mouse....daddy knows her love language.

off they went.
chic-fil-a for fine dining.
pinkalicious ice-cream.
to top it all off....the {plaaaaaay areaaaaaa}!!!

he loves her.
he cares for her.
he shows her every day.
she will never have to search for love.
she knows what it looks like.
hopefully she will never settle for anything less than what her daddy has shown her.

{how to keep*love love love* alive : : WINNER}

{photo}

what a fun week of

{how to keep *love love love* alive}

advice!!

the winner of the awesome wall art by lindsay at paint me a picture is :::

grace graffiti said...

to keep the *love love love* alive you've got to learn your spouse's love language and speak it every day.

love the blog posts this week and love lindsay's work!

bygracegraffiti {at} gmail {dot} com

***congratulations grace graffiti :: check your email***

as for the rest of you....

thanks for reading this week

and

happy valentines day! hope your day is filled with reminders of how much you are loved by those around you and by Him.

{how to keep *love love love* alive...part 5}

so this week i am investigating the subject of how to keep, not just {love} alive, but *love love love* alive.


i believe there is {love} then there is that butterflies in your tummy, tingles in your toes, cannot contain yourself kind of *love love love*. so that's the one i'm after.


that's the one i hold tight to and i have some lovely advice from amber of the run amuck on how to do just that.


how long have you been married?

11 years.

how do you keep the *love love love* alive?

"the secret of our stayed love is our littleness."

amber wrote a lovely post over at {in}courage about how to keep the *love love love* alive....take a minute and click on over. you won't be sorry.


***
great advice amber!
{keep it small. intimate. cozy.}

stay tuned for a super awesome how to keep *love love love* alive give away TODAY!!!
 

{how to keep *love love love* alive...part 4}

{photo}

so this week i am investigating the subject of how to keep, not just {love} alive, but *love love love* alive.


i believe there is {love} then there is that butterflies in your tummy, tingles in your toes, cannot contain yourself kind of *love love love*. so that's the one i'm after.
that's the one i hold tight to and i have some lovely advice from alison of aPearantly sew on how to do just that.

how long have you been married?

6 years.

how to do you keep the *love love love* alive?

Date night, just the two of us. A chance to sit & look at each other and talk to each other about our day/week. During one recent date night Scott said it felt like back when we were dating. Lots of laughing & PDA (well, lots for me!). I loved that he said that :)


We also take an occasional overnight trip. It's a great way for us to reconnect and relax.


One thing that's one of my favorites...
On the weekends, after the boys have gone to bed, Scott & I lay in our bed and watch movies and drink coffee. It's nothing grand, but I love it!


***
{movies + coffee = happiness}
great advice alison!


stay tuned for tomorrows how to keep *love love love* alive guest and give away!!!!!

{how to keep *love love love* alive :: part 3}

so this week i am investigating the subject of how to keep, not just {love} alive, but *love love love* alive.

i believe there is {love} then there is that butterflies in your tummy, tingles in your toes, cannot contain yourself kind of *love love love*.
so that's the one i'm after.
that's the one i hold tight to and i have some lovely advice from kim of yellow songbird on how to do just that.

how long have you been married?

we've been married 2.5 years.

how do you keep *love love love* alive?

we make date night a priority every single week. we feel that we need to build a strong foundation before we have children & use our "just the two of us time" to the fullest.


***
super advice sweet kimmie!
make those date nights friends!!
stay tuned for tomorrows
how to keep *love love love* alive!

{how to keep *love love love* alive :: part 2}

{photo}

so this week i am investigating the subject of how to keep, not just {love} alive, but *love love love* alive.

i believe there is {love} then there is that butterflies in your tummy, tingles in your toes, cannot contain yourself kind of *love love love*.
so that's the one i'm after.
that's the one i hold tight to and i have some lovely advice from april of funky vintage kitchen on how to do just that.

how long have you been married?

we have been married 16 years!

how do you keep *love love love* alive?

Two kids later...one with special needs, we make sure to keep the love love love alive by making time to talk, taking time to touch {a tight hug + sweet kiss every day} and getting a weekend away once a year!


***

another day of great advice!
{a tight hug + sweet kiss every day}
words to live by. words. to. live. by.


p.s. april has her own little *love story* going on over at the funky vintage kitchen...check out
{Dear Dave + April: A Tuesday Love Series...Our Story}

thanks april!!

stay tuned for tomorrows
how to keep *love love love* alive!


p.s.s. did i mention there is a going to be a give away this week?? you don't want to miss it!!!!

{how to keep *love love love* alive}

it's right around the corner.
it's waiting for us.
you know what i'm talking about.
that totally media hyped holiday that was really created just to sell flowers, cards and candy.

{valentine's day}

i don't care if this holiday is totally fabricated.
i love excuses to celebrate this amazing thing called {LOVE}
who's with me????

so this week i will be posting each day a little snippet of advice from some awesome girls in the blog world on how to keep *love love love* alive.

can i get a hip hip {HOORAY}??!!

stay tuned for....

*how to keep the love LOVE love alive*

{good-bye old friend}

she's loved *him* four long years.
we call him {taggie}.
he's purple and soft.
i don't know why i refer to him in the masculine sense but he is a big part of our life.
taggie was a gift from mimi when eisley was just weeks old.

embroidered with her name and the following:
"sugar and spice and everything nice"
taggie has traveled far and wide with this little family.

we never leave home without it.
i mean like never....ever...ever.
we make sure it is in a secure location at all times.
i feel like the secret service protecting him, keeping my eye on him at all times, my mind always concerned with his well-being.

it's not {taggie} that is the problem.
it's the habit this little treasure triggers.
two fingers, turned upside down, backwards...sucking.
she has done it as far back as i can remember.
and now...well now she is four years old and because we do not want her to have crooked teeth or battle this habit in school, taggie must go.

we have talked about it for months.
"when you turn four taggie will go far away because big kids do not suck their fingers."
she's been on board.
she tells those that she encounters the same thing.
"when i'm four i'm not going to suck my fingers any more."

the dreaded night arrived.
before bed she gave taggie a sweet hug and told him good-bye.
she was so brave.
she went to bed with no tears.
then she realized how hard it was going to be.
four years with the same nighttime companion...that's a tough thing to give up cold turkey.

i held her while she cried and said "it's too hard mommy!"
i assured her that even though it is incredibly hard...she can do it.

she did it.
she pushed through.
i knew she would.
my brave sweet girl has just taught mommy another lesson i did not know i needed.

{ahhh....the weekends}

:: i love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach ::

elizabeth barrett browning

{happy saturday friends}

{i heart blissdom::better late than never right?}

i have totally been procrastinating with my {blissdom recap}.
i've spent this entire week thinking over all that i heard and experienced. it's kind of hard to put into words.

when someone asked me where i was going, i said i'm going to a {blogging conference}. her response was,"oh you mean for the poetry and stuff you write?"
i giggled a little under my breath and said "yes."
(note:: i've never written poetry on my blog and only once in my journal)

blissdom 2011: think big. be bold. create your bliss.

i had the privilege of meeting tons of other moms/bloggers/crafters/writers. i was a little intimidated by their talent and success in this world. but also encouraged and inspired by their love for what they do and for others.

so i'll just tell you about a few of my favorites.

1. ruthanne of the eclectic whatnot :: a.k.a. "the snorter"

let me tell you people she is genuine. to the core. friendly and funny to boot. she makes adorable, soft, touchy-feely, camera straps. i totally want one...even though she's a nikon girl {wink}. she even let me take a picture with her fancy-shmancy camera.

2. jessica of allora handmade

before blissdom i had talked with jessica via email a couple of times. while listening to matt kearney {yep he was there, live...like 20 feet from me. i'd never heard of him but he was really good} little miss jessica herself comes right up to me to say hi. she's a doll guys and a tiny little thing too. she's super sincere and completely endearing.

3. april of funky vintage kitchen


another doll that is simply beautiful and funny and stylish. ummm...yeh i totally want her wardrobe. oh and p.s. she has like NO wrinkles...none. nada. zip. {yes i hate her too}.

4. amber of the run amuck 

amber is delightful. she is the mom to three boys and carrying #4. wow! she is passionate in her demeanor and her writing. and she has the cutest hair cut ever! wish i could pull it off but those of you who know me....you know why i can't {wink}.

5. alison of aPearantly sew

i could not do this post without mentioning my sweet friend and roommate for blissdom, alison. of course i knew her before blissdom. we go waaaay back. pre-baby even....if such a thing exists:) she is super talented. a self-taught crafter/sewer (i know that i should probably say seamstress but i just like the word *sewer* mmmkay?). she loves the crafting world and all things lovely and has a great eye creating beautiful things.

there were lot's of sessions and speakers at this conference. but my two favorites are these guys:

scott stratten of unmarketing is hilarious. his keynote speach had me laughing until i was crying. my favorite funny quote of his
{"do you know who i think i am??!!"}
and for serious
{"people do business with people they like."}

brene brown of ordinary courage is totally inspiring. she encouraged us to ask ourselves {who do i want to be?} and followed up with {"believe in your own worthiness."}

i came home
{thinking big}
{trying to be more bold}
{with the creative juices flowing}
and even if you weren't at blissdom...i encourage you to do the same!

it kind of all reminds me of that episode of friends where phoebe and rachel go running in the park. phoebe just lets it all loose and enjoys the moment. i want to be more like phoebe. how about you?

{things i love thursday}

{photo}

he says it with devious enthusiasm every time
"want some oreo's?"

i immediately want to say no....my waistline begs me to say no.
but my heart....well it says "yes!"

yes i want this moment with him.
snuggled into our bed.
milk in hand and a bag of oreo's between us.
sometimes no words are spoken.
just dip, hold, bite...repeat.
we are close.
we are on the same page.
we are savoring our moments together.

[savor:: to give oneself to the enjoyment of]

what are you savoring today?

{wasn't it just yesterday}

wasn't it just yesterday that i laid you in the bassinet by my bed and woke up a million times an hour just to make sure you were breathing?

wasn't it just yesterday that we heard that belly laugh for the first time?

wasn't it just yesterday that you were in your high chair learning to use a spoon?

wasn't it just yesterday that you learned to crawl....backwards?

wasn't it just yesterday that you took your first steps using mommies balance ball wearing the cutest pink foot-jammies?

wasn't it just yesterday that you said *mama* for the first time? now you use words like *actually* and *realize* in proper context.

wasn't it just yesterday that i guided you up and down the kiddie slide? now you go up and down the big-kid slide no sweat.

wasn't it just yesterday that you learned to hold a crayon? now you draw vivid pictures that grace our refrigerator every day.

wasn't it just yesterday that you were drinking from a bottle? now you request a big-kid cup with no lid.

wasn't it just yesterday that you were asking for gum? and i was saying *you can have gum when you are four* because that seemed so far away.

wasn't it just yesterday that your curls barely reached your shoulders? now we are talking about your first *big girl* hair cut.

wasn't it just yesterday???

and today...today you are FOUR.

a wonderful, beautiful, wouldn't trade this moment for the world FOUR.
{happy happy birthday sweet girl}
mommy loves you more than you will ever know.