Jam-Packed Weekend

We had a jam-packed weekend start to finish! We are worn out on this Monday afternoon but so thankful for all the fun happenings we were able to enjoy the past 2 days. Somehow we managed to fit in a TON and still get everybody where they needed to be on time. It's was a small miracle. Ha. I didn't get many pictures because we were so busy running here and there, but I wanted to hit on the highlights of our good times anyway.

Friday night was pretty wonderful. We went out to eat at our favorite Mexican restaurant as a family of 5 (something we hadn't done in a while), and even though the experience stressed Terrell out (just a tad, bless him), it made me smile. Things were a little crazy and messy and at times too loud for a restaurant, but it was fun. It was a chance to enjoy delicious food that I didn't have to prepare or clean up with my favorite guys in the whole world. It was entertaining and funny and a memory I want to hold on to... craziness and all.

Once we got home and got everybody in pjs, it was movie night. The big boys look forward to picking a movie every single Friday night. Once the movie was over and the kiddos were all in bed, Terrell and I watched one of our shows. That made three of my favorite Friday night traditions enjoyed. =)

Saturday morning came bright and early. I had an early hair appointment but immediately following my appointment we had to leave for Austin's game. And immediately following Austin's game, I had to get the big boys to a birthday party. And immediately following the birthday party was Garrison's game. And immediately following Garrison's game was our date night... that technically started in the afternoon. So. Saturday morning was spent getting ready for all the events of the day. Organizing the boys' baseball stuff, getting a birthday present ready, laying out clothes for the boys, packing a bag for the boys, ready-ing the house for my parents who would be taking care of the boys' bath and bedtime needs, etc. It was craziness.

My hair appointment went well. I went with a brand new super short do! It's taking me some getting used to because it's a pretty drastic change, but so far I'm loving how easy it is. And that was my biggest goal anyway. I am a busy, tired mama who was spending waaay too much time on her hair every morning. Fighting a wave. Fighting the crazy. Taking a sweet forever. So no more of that nonsense. Yay! As it grows I'll determine if I want it a little longer or to change anything just a little or if I want to keep it this short all the time. My hair grows fast so it shouldn't take long to make some final decisions. So far, I'm just excited at how fast I'm able to get ready now. =)

It was pretty much freezing cold at the boys' games. I just watched Austin's game from the car. I didn't want Layton to get out in the wind and frigid air so it worked out nice to cheer from the warmth of the sub. His game was short and sweet and he did great once again.

After Austin's game, we had just enough time to run home, change him out of his uniform and Garrison into his, grab a snack and then head for the birthday party. One of Garrison's best buds from school was celebrating his birthday and it was a party we didn't want to miss. Even though we had to rush around and we couldn't stay for the whole party, my big boys had a ball. I'm really thankful it worked out for us to go.

Meanwhile back at my house, Terrell, Layton, and my parents were eating lunch and Terrell was getting ready to head to the field for Garrison's game. He has to be there early since he's a coach and my mom was able to stay at my house with Layton so he could get in his afternoon nap. Have I mentioned lately how thankful I am to be living here in the hometown? Because I am! Big time!!

I arrived at the field with the big boys shortly after Terrell, and Austin and I watched Garrison's game with Papa and Pops. Even though we were cold, it was fun!

As soon as the game was over we headed home and got our kiddos loaded up to spend the rest of the day with my parents while Terrell and I got ready for our date night!

We had such a good time together. We went shopping, went out to eat and ordered dessert (which we never do so it was a major treat!), had our car washed, and bought groceries. Ha! It may have been an old married couple date, but it was so fun. We talked, we laughed, we enjoyed the quiet, we enjoyed our meal, we enjoyed each other's company and undivided attention. Dating Terrell Selph is one of my favorite things ever. =) Huge thanks to Granna and Papa for making it possible!!

While we were out on our date, the boys were having fun playing at my parents' house. They hung out there and ate supper before coming back to our house for baths and bedtime. Layton even enjoyed his first wagon ride...

Sunday morning we went to church and my boys dressed in their sweater vests for such a chilly Palm Sunday. Sunday afternoon we napped. (Glorious.) And Sunday evening we went our church's Easter musical...Reflections on Redemption. It was so, soo good. I enjoyed every word of every song and every Scripture read. It was amazing.

And that was our jam-packed weekend. Full of busyness, full of fun. =)

Reflecting on redemption this week as Holy Week is upon us. I'm so grateful we know the rest of the story!!

Friday Favorites: Soaking it Up

This week has been a regular week full of regular happenings for the Selph fam. Nothing spectacular going on but just the everyday highs and lows (mostly highs), joys and challenges (mostly joys) of raising our babies. Weeks like this one are such a blessing. We're still tired come Friday from the busyness of the week, but mostly we're just grateful. These are the BEST days. They are filled with challenges, laughter, craziness, loudness, and all things little boy but these days that are making up these years of my boys' childhoods are the best. We are living and experiencing the good old days right now. And that's something I want to enjoy, soak up, savor, and appreciate. I was reminded again yesterday how short life is and how fast time flies, and weeks like this one make me slow down and really appreciate this life we're living. It's not always easy, fun, and wonderful but it is always full of blessings. It is always worth it. It is always a privilege. Thank you Lord for my precious family and the life we're experiencing right now.

Here are my faves from our week...

*Opening Ceremonies (and 2 first games!) with my biggest boys. We do it all over again tomorrow in the cold. Brrr!

*Baby cuteness! We've been able to get outside some this week and my littlest love has been oozing cuteness while he enjoys our strolls.

*Terrell's Granny is all done with her rehab and back at home with Terrell's parents now. We are praising God for her recovery and her full of life personality that hasn't changed a bit! We enjoyed a fun visit catching up earlier this week.

*School night books and snuggles on the couch after Layton went to bed. I'm so thankful my big boys still love being read to and still love sitting in our laps. =) Soaking it up big time!

*Sidewalk chalk fun and getting outside after a rainy, yucky day. Sometimes after being cooped up all day you just need to get out and run around and draw some pictures on the driveway.

*Austin and I are wrapping up our theme on the 5 senses. This week Austin completed a taste test and he pretty much loved it. =) After tasting bread, chocolate, cheese, a pickle, a chip, and a skittle blindfolded, we decided to do a "skittle taste test". We both participated and tried to guess the skittle flavor/color based on taste alone. It was a little trickier than I thought. Haha. We also went outside and made a list of everything we could see, hear, smell, and touch. I still have one more little game and then we're calling it a wrap. It's been a fun theme.

*Bingo for Books with my big boys at Garrison's school was lots of fun! We got to see AnAn, won 2 books each, and a had a fun time playing.  Layton and daddy stayed home for some quality, quiet time. =)

*On Sunday our Sunday School teacher encouraged us to get by ourselves somewhere quiet and to read the Word out loud. So you're not only seeing it and reading it, but hearing it. I've been able to do this a few times this week and have loved it. I've read short passages like Deuteronomy chapter 6, the first 9 verses in Joshua, and Hebrews 11. I definitely recommend it. So faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17

*My middle man was my assistant yesterday as we bagged pickles for the PTCO. We bagged 6 jars (although that last jar was mostly just me, haha) while the babies napped. Austin was a great assistant opening bags and holding them for me and counting pickles. My grand total for the day (I bagged during afternoon naptime too) was 162 pickles. And that wasn't even all of them. Hope all the kiddos at the school enjoy their pickles today!

*Favorite read of the week... What Would My Mom Do? This is so good. And true! And funny! And needed to be read by lots of mamas! While I do believe parenting toddlers and preschoolers requires a fair amount of entertaining and planning and structure, I also believe we put waaay too much pressure on ourselves to create "magical childhoods" and that we are in fact guilty of "precious parenting". I'm still in the preschool and toddler/baby stage with two thirds of my kiddos but this summer I'm going to work hard to "pull back as Cruise Director and adopt the 'what would my mom do' approach and see what happens..." This is a must read, mamas! =)

I soaked up lots of of everyday life this week and really savored my blessings. Now we're looking forward to a jam packed weekend...a haircut for me, braving games in the cold, a birthday party, a date night, and Palm Sunday. Happy Friday!!

Currently

Currently, things are slow and steady around here. =) March is a slower month for us. It's like our new January. Post holiday and party wind-down and nothing much big happening. It's definitely one of our more mellow and low key months. We've kicked off baseball season and we still have our school night busyness during the week, but there's not several big, important, overwhelming things going on. Which we're really thankful for by the way. It's been nice to relax a little. But, in an effort to keep right on blogging and "journaling" in the midst of the slow, laid back, and regular ole days, I wanted to pause mid-week for a little currently...

*Eating.... Tonight we had one of mine and Terrell's favorite meals. Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches. =) It's a simple crock pot recipe which is perfect for a Wednesday night. Throw frozen or thawed chicken breasts or tenders in the crock pot with 2 tablespoons of butter, a packet of ranch dressing mix, and about a fourth a bottle of Texas Pete Buffalo Wing Sauce. Cook on high for 4 hours and then stir and shred the chicken and make sandwiches on hamburger buns using ranch or blue cheese dressing. We normally have fries or mac and cheese with this but if we're needing something super simple we just have it with chips. It's so easy and so good! (Our kiddos don't eat it because it's too spicy for them so we plan ahead of time for them to have leftovers from the night before or something else simple.)

*Planning... For the short term, Terrell and I are planning a date night for Saturday night. Yay!! We have a pretty full day on Saturday, but once Garrison's game wraps up Saturday afternoon, we're getting ready to head out solo. We have no idea where we're going or what we're doing but we know it involves eating together at a restaurant just the two of us. =)

For the long term, we're supposed to be planning our Spring Break trip. We're going on a little get-away to Gatlinburg with Terrell's parents and we're in charge of how we'll spend our time. Maybe I'll get motivated to plan soon!

*Loving... Watching my boys play baseball, good weather, Zyrtec, my days at home, my job, Layton's attempts at walking, my new ride, doing life in the hometown, my amazing hubby, the sounds of my boys playing together, ice cream, and naptime.

*Not Loving... The cold front that's supposed to come through soon, yawning throughout the day, stressing over things I know deep down I shouldn't be, and those moments when I feel the walls closing in on this rental house.

*Watching... Several of our shows are doing re-runs right now. Boo. So lately we've been watching Survivor, the Hawks, Fixer Upper, and occasionally one of our regular shows (Hawaii Five-O, Blue Bloods, Scorpion) IF they come on.

*Reading... I'm not reading anything right now except my Bible during my quiet time every morning or at some point during naptime. Which is definitely a good thing! But, I do want to get back to reading fiction again. I'm just soooo tired by the time I'm heading to bed (I normally always read in bed before falling asleep) that I haven't read in a long time it feels like. And I miss it. But that's about to change. I just reserved my copies of Liane Moriarty's books at the library. Yay! Based on reviews and my preferences for light, fun, and/or romantic I'm going to love them!

*Trying... I am about to try some Rodan + Fields products. Squeal! Not a whole regimen because we can't afford those shenanigans for my face, but some starter products to see what I think. I'm pretty fair skinned with freckles, plus I have some eye "issues" (mainly dark circles) and have been wanting to be able to do something to improve my complexion. A former Premier "sister" is now a consultant and has sold me on the products. =)

*Hoping... AND praying our house closes next month. We have been on a big, long, not very fun roller coaster trying to sell our house and now, once again, we find ourselves approaching another closing date. It's our prayer that this family is the one. We're praying and hopeful that God will open all doors needed and remove any interference(s) that may arise. We are so thankful that God has a plan and for His provisions during our time of waiting. His faithfulness is true. His grace is sufficient.

*Wanting... Sweets. Ahhh. The sweet tooth is rearing it's ugly head lately. I'm thinking this happened last year around Easter. I just want chocolate something serious. And, I just so happened to purchase a box of Krispy Kreme donuts in the car rider line this week picking Garrison up. The worst! And the best! Gracious. And delicious.

*Needing... Rest, my big boys to get along and use kind words and keep hands to themselves, my baby boy to be careful and not get hurt as he's trying new things, our house to sell, time alone in the Word and in prayer, a little more exercise, quality family time, quality couple time, and a more laid back approach and attitude to just about everything. =)

Opening Day

Opening Day of baseball season came for us bright and early Saturday morning and didn't wrap up until after 2:00 Saturday afternoon. It was a super full day but so much fun! We loved watching our big boys play in their first games and are calling the kick off to our season a huge success. =)

Before leaving the house Saturday morning for opening ceremonies. (Yes, Austin's uniform swallows him whole...we're planning to switch pants with a teammate who has a smaller size. And yes, they're wearing Braves hats...we didn't receive our team hats until we arrived at the fields. Ha.)

While I would have loved to have taken pictures of Opening Ceremonies, it just wasn't meant to be. It was super crowded, my kids went separate directions with their teams on opposite sides of the field, I was strolling Layton around trying to keep him content while also watching my big boys, Terrell was on the field with the teams and coaches... basically, it turned out to be impossible. But the ceremonies went great. I am so thankful we are back home! We are soo excited about our first baseball season here.

Immediately following the ceremonies, Austin was up. His first wee-ball game ever.

 My middle man before the game. He was the most adorable little baseball player ever. =)

Austin's team was in the field first...

Ready for his first at-bat!

Oh my the cuteness!!

My biggest boy really wanted to be involved, and since wee-ball is super laid back, we let him help out as 3rd base coach. Even for the opposing team. Haha. 

In wee-ball every player gets to bat so our little baseball player had some time on his hands waiting his turn. Which is sort of boring and a bummer....

But can also be really fun! 

Austin had a great first game! They played 2 innings and he had 2 great hits and ran the bases well and did a good job paying attention and going after balls in the field. Wee-ball may be a little unorganized and crazy, but it is tons of fun for the kiddos (and parents!) and teaches the very basics of baseball. A win-win for sure. We're looking forward to the rest of the season lots!

Layton was present at Austin's game as well... high maintenance but present. Haha. Thank goodness we had back-up in the form of grandparents and AnAn!  

After Austin's game wrapped up, we loaded up the fam and headed home for our lunch break. We ate leftovers and attempted a little rest time but weren't home for long before it was time to head back out for game #2.

Garrison had a really great game too! And I must say, I am smitten over my baseball players big time!

Tee-ball is way more organized and structured (and Garrison has been playing organized and structured since he was a newly turned 4 year old in our previous county/league), so it's been great for him to have a strong background and to see him having fun and getting better and better. Terrell is the assistant coach for Garrison's team so that's been huge perk. Terrell is great with the kids and I think Garrison has not only enjoyed having daddy coach but he's also really blossomed as a player having Terrell as his coach. We are just loving this season for both of our big boys so far. =)

Garrison is playing 2nd base this year and doing pretty amazing if I do say so myself. 

First at-bat! 

Last year was all coach pitched for Garrison so this year he's had to learn to hit off a tee again. Something we haven't practiced consistently at home since he was 3. (That's how hard core our previous league was.) It's been an adjustment but he seems to have it down! 

 Our team won big and played some good defense. Including my #5!

It was a fun Opening Day for all of us! Even Layton managed to enjoy himself during Garrison's game. Bringing drinks and snacks is a newly discovered must for every future game! 

We loved watching our boys play one of their favorite sports, we loved having family come support our babies for their very 1st games, we loved sharing the fun with other friends/parents, and we loved experiencing it all right here in our hometown. Opening Day love is real... and in the books. Next up, the rest of the season. =)

Friday Favorites: Good Things & Allergies

This week has been filled with lots of good things... plus allergies. Spring is definitely in the air and the majority of our household has been under attack. Thankfully my allergies are under control now and hopefully Austin's and Layton's will be soon too. So other than me and the kiddos being slightly attacked by allergies, we've had a pretty good week around here. We enjoyed an extra day with Garrison, St. Patrick's Day fun, a lighter load in the evenings, and a few things "new". Here are my favorites from our week...

*We loved having Garrison home with us on Monday! It was so nice to have that extra time with my biggest boy and for him and Austin to enjoy another whole day together. They are just best buds. It was a really fun day for us. Since it was a teacher work day, Baby A was here and I think he loved having the extra entertainment too. =)

(Tuesday morning as Terrell was getting ready to take Garrison to school, Austin went up to Garrison and gave him a hug and said, I'll miss you Garrison. Cue the tears! I was already feeling a little blue about him having to go back and how I'd miss having him home and then Austin just totally melted me with his sweet hug and sincere words! It was precious.)

*St. Patrick's Day with my guys in green. They enjoyed Lucky Charms for breakfast, got to wear green, and got to taste all the colors of the rainbow (skittles) as part of their snack. Check, check, check. =)

*Austin and I decided to paint a rainbow for our school time Tuesday morning in honor of the holiday. We also added some cotton ball clouds for good measure.

*I've officially switched out Layton's clothes. Yay! (I left a few long sleeve items just in case we need them coming up plus threw in some things he should be able to wear as temperatures cool off later this Fall.) This is always a BIG task for us... shopping for new clothes, going through our bins of hand-me-downs, clearing out what's been outgrown, washing a big load of new and used clothes, and re-organizing the closet and drawers in his room. Mission accomplished! One boy down, two boys to go!

*My littlest love has become super high maintenance during meal prep. As soon as I start preparing a meal in the kitchen he is right up under me begging for food or hanging on to my leg or just getting into things he shouldn't... while begging for food. He is a bottomless pit for real. So this week I decided I had to resort to the baby swing again. Ha! Sometimes you just have to do what you've got to do. He wasn't too happy with me either... at first. However, things took a turn for the better as soon as Austin decided he would turn on the swing's music and push him rather quickly. Then, baby boy just chillaxed. Haha!

*Garrison Cade, the artist. =) He amazes me with his drawings and love of coloring and art. His pictures are so good and so special!

*This week Austin and I focused on the sense of touch. I rounded up all the brown paper sacks I had in the back of the pantry and made grab bags of different objects for Austin to feel of with his eyes closed. I asked him questions about soft or hard, smooth or rough, small or large and encouraged him to make a guess. Sometimes he'd guess (mainly if he was feeling confident) and sometimes the suspense was too much and he just couldn't wait to see what was inside. Haha.

*After our first "game", we sorted the items softest to hardest. Then, we divided the bags up and Austin filled his bags and I filled my bags and we played again... but this time with me participating in the game. Superhero's legs sticking out of the top of a couple of his bags were a bit of a giveaway but we had fun and decided to play several times. =)

*We had a special kind of superhero fighting bad guys at our house this week... An Optimus Prime, Captain America, Robin (As in Batman and Robin) combo. It was pretty awesome.

*Our sweet baby boy is starting to take some steps on his own!! It's been so amazing to watch! Nothing beats watching a baby take those very first steps. It's just priceless. So far he's only taking a step or two or three at a time but we are cheering and celebrating like he's finished a marathon. =) Yesterday I captured him taking a few and it was the best thing ever!

Favorite not-pictured moment: Visiting Granna at work yesterday! Since I had the day off yesterday I was determined to get out of the house... and since Terrell has taken over lots of our errands (so thankful for him!), I didn't have a real reason to get out. So I made one up. =) Austin and Layton loved their special treat!

This weekend is all about baseball for the Selph household. Opening ceremonies, and two 1st games are coming up tomorrow! We're excited to watch our big boys play and are looking forward to our extra family time. Happy Friday!!

Adventures & Fun from the Weekend

We had a really great weekend full of adventures and fun. =) It was pretty wonderful all the way around. I would even say there's a good chance the 5 of us all enjoyed it equally. And that's a big deal!

Friday night I went out with my 2 best mama friends for a delicious dinner and fun time catching up with lots of conversation, laughter, and advice. I love them so... their honesty, their understanding, their listening ears, their support, their friendship. We had a great night together. Meanwhile all my boys had a guys night with Pops. Terrell's dad offered to take them out to eat so they were all treated to a pretty fun night too. 

Saturday morning we were up and at 'em early for haircuts for the big boys and then a trip to Six Flags! The whole family had SO MUCH FUN! Yay for family outing success!! Even though the weather started off cool and dreary, the sun finally came out and the temperatures turned out perfect. It wasn't crowded, we didn't have to wait in long lines, we had plenty of room to maneuver our stroller, we enjoyed pleasant temps, and we never got rained on. Everything about our outing went great. 

Due to haircuts, a long drive, and stopping for lunch at CFA we didn't arrive til about 1:00. But right away Garrison and daddy rode a roller coaster (The Mine Train) together. Austin, Layton, and I watched from the bridge and snapped this picture of them. They're on the 3rd row. Garrison loved it and was soo excited about it. Even though we're pretty sure he probably would've gone for bigger, better roller coasters if we'd had the time, we spent most of our day in the kiddie section and that turned out to be a blast for everybody. =) 

When we initially planned our trip we were nervous about Austin for 2 reasons... 1, we didn't know if he'd be tall enough to ride everything he wanted. 2, we didn't know if he'd want to ride much of anything at all. Ha! Thankfully there was no reason to be nervous about either one! He barely measured 36 inches tall (Woohoo!) and he wanted to ride pretty much everything Garrison did. He chose not to ride the mini ferris wheel but every other kiddie ride he braved even if he was a little scared. We were super proud. =)

Austin's in the backseat of the plane pushing his button to make it go higher. =)

Terrell and I took turns riding the rides with the big boys and strolling Layton around. Our littlest man did really good tagging along. He was a content and curious observer most of the day. He did demand to be strolled if we stayed still for too long and he did get tired at certain times but we were very thankful for how well he did and how much he was able to enjoy the trip too.

The big trucks were a big hit. And much faster than we were expecting!

Layton got to enjoy a couple of rides too. He loved the carousel. He was so excited to be able to ride!

Such a big boy. =)

He even got to ride twice. Once while his big brothers and daddy drove around the old fashioned cars and once with his big brothers and daddy on board. He was the cutest thing ever. =)

This was aboard the hot air balloons... a favorite for sure!

The whole family decided to wait in our longest line of the day to go to the monster mansion/monster plantation. The main reason we wanted to ride it was because it was something we could all experience together. Buuuut, in the end, literally, it turned out a little too scary and therefore we won't be visiting that ride again anytime soon. The first half of it went great. Everything was pleasant and happy and fun. I said phrases like, Look how funny, guys! Oh what a cute monster! Watch out for the water fountain! This is so silly! Then came the 2nd half. It was dark, scary, and creepy. I said things like Wow! They are trying to scare us but this is just pretend! Oh that looks kind of like a dinosaur, right guys?! Remember this is just pretend! We're almost all done! Ugh. It was not something my littles (Austin and Layton) enjoyed at all. But we survived it with just a few shed tears and don't think anybody's scarred.  

Before leaving, the big boys and I rode the new kid friendly roller coaster. The closer we got in line the more nervous I became of how to manage if Austin decided to bolt at the last minute or if Garrison panicked over riding by himself, but thankfully everything went really well! Terrell snapped these pictures of us and we're in the next to last car. Garrison is sitting in front of us in number 7 and Austin and I are in number 8. I considered this a full-blown roller coaster. Haha. So Austin wasn't thrilled with it by the end but he did great! He was very stoic and brave. He thought about crying after we got off but when I mentioned that I thought the ride was as fast as Superman, I think he was pretty proud of himself. =) 

We also let the boys ride the swings again and Garrison requested another ride on the Mine Train (this time with mama... hello headache, ha) before we got on the road for home. It was a late night for our kiddos but they went straight to bed and slept late Sunday morning. We had the best time and can't wait to go back for more adventure, fun, and memories!

Sunday after church we enjoyed naps and lots of time outside. I love this action shot of Austin blocking Garrison's shot on goal. I can't believe I captured it. My little athletes love playing together. =)

Our littlest man enjoyed strolling around and watching his big brothers. Life for Layton was spent from the stroller this weekend. Of course being offered sips of his drink by Austin was a definite perk. =)

The big boys even climbed the "bouncy tree" Sunday afternoon. 

It was a super fun and full of adventure weekend! The whole fam enjoyed it to the fullest. And, Garrison had the day off on Monday so that made our weekend a little longer and extra special! Today we're getting back in the swing of things with a pretty low key day and laid back evening at home. Yay for no place to be tonight!! Happy Tuesday and Happy St. Patrick's Day!