More and Less: February Edition

Here's a little update on how things have been going with my goals of more and less this month...

MORE....

*Going to bed early. This one continues to be a success! Yay! We are just a few weeks into our sports season and I'm still managing to get in bed *usually* before 10:00. I'm so glad I've made this a priority because I believe sleep and rest (and enough of it!) are super important. Especially during this time in my life when I feel like I'm on "go" constantly. I will say that over Winter Break last week I stayed up later every night because of being out of school, and I know we haven't hit the heart of our sports season yet, sooo, we'll see how my bedtime is effected moving forward. 

*Cleaning during the week. If I'm being completely honest, I've already wanted to scratch this one. I'm just not sure it's for me. #eeesh My cleaning during the week consists of vacuuming regularly and keeping my kitchen clean (dishes washed and put away, counters wiped down, table wiped down, etc). The kitchen isn't always clutter-free, but we keep it clean for the most part. What I can't seem to do during the week (unless we have a party planned or are hosting something soon) is to dust. Or clean a bathroom. Or swifter. Or windex win It just isn't a priority and doesn't happen. I keep telling myself that I need to give it a try before throwing in the towel but then other things come first and it just doesn't happen. Maybe there's hope for March? It's doubtful but I won't scratch it yet. 

*Praying and time with the Lord. I am still feeling progress in this area. My prayer life feels back on track and my quiet times are way more consistent. One thing I want to work on in March is more time in the Word. I've really slacked on my Bible reading and want to do better. 

*Physical Activity. Good report! Good report! Haha. While the first half of the month wasn't very active for me thanks to not feeling so good and at least 1 of the boys not feeling so good either, the second half of the month has been full physical activity. Yay! Our sports season started a couple of weeks ago and since we have 1 boy playing soccer and 2 boys playing baseball, with practices on the same nights, I am forced to go to practice. Ha. (In the past, Terrell has always taken the boys when he could so I could stay home and cook, do things around the house, or be with the kid who didn't have practice.) Terrell is coaching Austin and Layton's team so I'm on soccer practice duty every Monday and Thursday and I've been walking the soccer fields for almost the entire practice every time. Yay for multi-tasking. 😊 Then, over Winter break I walked at practice or on a family walk while the kids rode bikes almost every day. It's even continued into this week. So for now I feel like I'm on a roll and I'm hoping to keep up the momentum. 

*Blogging. I'm keeping up with once or twice a week during school so I'd say that's a success! It's hard to find time for lots of days but I still enjoy it and still appreciate keeping a "record" of our memories. So hopefully I can keep it up!

LESS...

*Time on my phone. I've made some progress this month. I still have a looooong way to go but I'm thankful for baby steps in the right direction. I actually completely put my phone away, out of sight-out of mind, a few times this month between 5:30ish and 8:30ish. But when I started missing phone calls from Garrison's school I decided I might need to keep it within earshot and just exercise some self control about leaving it there and not checking it/looking at it until our "family time" was over or the kids are in the bath, etc. As for progress keeping it put away in the car, I'm doing much better than I was. I'm no longer reading blogs, scrolling FB, or texting every time I'm a passenger. I'm hoping I can do even better in March.

*Sweets. This month was the tale of two halves. During the first half of February I was very intentional and did great avoiding the sweet stuff. Then came Valentine's Day, Layton's birthday party, and sweets and chocolate galore. So. Let's just say my self control wasn't as strong come mid-February. I'm still doing great with sweets control at school though! So that's a victory that I believe has the potential to be long term and dare I say a lifestyle change. Not a huge one, but I'm counting it! Haha!

*Being overwhelmed. So this month is when things got real. Our Spring sports got started, school is starting to catch up with me again (meaning I'm no longer ahead on my lesson plans and I'm starting to feel the looming pressure and time crunch of getting it all done), and I've started anticipating Terrell being out of town for a week... something I've always struggled with, dreaded, and probably not ever handled so great. But this morning I read Isaiah 40:11 and then ended up finishing the whole chapter and felt in awe and amazed and relaxed in Him. It was just what I needed. March will probably test me, but I know my source of strength and I know that even though I can't do it all my own, I don't have to. #Praisehands!! 

That's a wrap. I'm praying a lot moving into March. 😊

Happy Hump Day!

Friday Favorites: Winter Break Edition

We have enjoyed a pretty wonderful Winter Break. School breaks come around just when we need them and we are so thankful!! This break has been one of my favorites. Here's a look at what we've up to...

*Last week baseball season kicked off for these two! Terrell is coaching their team and we are thrilled they can be on the same team this year. Layton is still learning but so excited about playing. And Austin is the older brother-pro. 😊

They were so cute getting ready to leave for their first practice. (I had to miss because Garrison and I were off to soccer... our first season ever of 2 different sports between the kiddos. #yikes)

*On Saturday we celebrated Layton turning 4 with his Superhero party and I found a picture that includes all of us... even Terrell's head! Haha! 

*After the party was over and everybody left, Terrell promised the boys he would jump in the pool. Which he did! #crazy But since we wouldn't let the boys get in because FRIGID water, they were satisfied with putting their feet in. (Our backyard is still a big mess but landscaping begins next week! YAY!!)

*On Sunday after church we celebrated my Paw Paw's 92nd birthday with family and a big Sunday lunch. We had a great time getting together for another special birthday! 

*Layton even fell asleep on the couch after lunch. Bless. He was worn out and still getting over being sick. Thankfully he's back to 100% now. #allthepraisehands

*On Monday after our super fun day at Snow Mountain we came home and crashed for a while before getting ready for baseball and soccer practice. Since we had 2 different practices at two different times it worked out for me to take all my boys on dates. 😊 First up was dinner with these 2....

*Then, after swapping out with Terrell and finishing up soccer practice, I got to take this one out! I enjoyed both dates so much. (And, as a side note, Garrison Cade ate his weight in pizza and cheese bread. Gracious. I told Terrell from now on if we have to feed him after a practice we need to hit up a buffet. #wowzer)

*On Tuesday morning after sleeping in a little, going for a walk and bike ride, and showering and getting ready I took the boys to one of their most favorite places... the library! 😊 We brought home half the inventory and they had a great time. Until one, who isn't pictured, ahem, decided he was unhappy with my decision not to read a chapter book aloud that I just read to them last summer.... or sometime in the past. All is well now, but wasn't at the time. Ha.

*Since Tuesday, Garrison has read a record 4 chapter books. #readingmachine #yayforaloveofreading

*Our 2nd morning walk and bike ride in a row! It was a workout keeping up with these 3! 

*We tried out Layton's new PJ Mask game this week and it was a big hit! All 3 boys were fans. 

*A mid-week movie night is my fave! #WinterBreakperks

*The boys got to spend a good part of day with Terrell's parents yesterday and were spoiled rotten. Haha. And tonight they're off to spend the night with my parents. This break has been good to them. 😊

This week has been good for us. We took an iPad break for the week, we've been lazy, we've been playing, we've been staying up a little later and sleeping later too. It's been really nice. And fun! Tonight, Terrell planned a date for us while the boys are off spending the night and this weekend we're looking forward to more downtime and grilling out with family to kick off Spring (at least it feels like Spring is here. 😊) Happy Friday!!

Layton's Birthday & Outing

Layton's birthday was the 12th and last Monday we woke him up, per tradition, with 4 balloons in bed, 2 brothers, and lots of Happy Birthdays!

It was a fun, sweet start to the day. He's still at the age where it's a little confusing understanding the difference between your birthday and the day of your birthday party. So we kept talking to him about it and explaining it and we think he finally understood that on Monday he turned 4! 😊

Another bright and early run to the doughnut palace for our 2nd birthday boy of the month! Layton likes "plain" best of all when it comes to food, so a glazed doughnnut is what he chose. And a fresh, plain, glazed doughnut is my fave too!

 I love how animated he is blowing out candles. 

He took a cookie cake to school to share with his class and chose our supper the night of his bday... tacos! For the 2nd Monday (and birthday celebration) in a row! Haha!

On this past Saturday we celebrated with his long-awaited Superhero party, and on Monday we set off for his birthday outing and "gift" from mama and daddy.

We decided on another trip to Snow Mountain and had such a fun day together! We chose Snow Mountain for 2 reasons. One is because Layton absolutely LOVED our trip last year when we took Garrison for his birthday outing. He loved it so much he wanted our trip during Spring Break to Stone Mountain to include snow and our trip during Fall Break to include snow. He's talked about Snow Mountain off and on for a whole year. So that was the main reason we decided to go back. We also knew it was perfect timing given that our season passes expire at the end of this month. So it was one last chance to visit Stone Mountain and get a discount on Snow Mountain tickets. A win-win. 😊

Loaded up and heading out!

We arrived shortly after 10 when the park opened and it was a little cool, super foggy, and extra drizzly. 

These 3 were so excited. Especially our littlest man. 

This was the scene when we first got in the snow and the snow machine was going. It looked like a Winter day in the Pacific Northwest. (As if I know what that looks like. It's at least what I imagine it looks like.)

We started off on the kiddie tubes and once again this year, Layton was content with just one ride down. Haha!

The big boys went down several times and loved it!

There were very few people there and the boys never had to wait in line. The weather wasn't the best but we still had a ton of fun and enjoyed the low crowds!

Layton and I played in the snow for a while before his big brothers joined us. 

This was probably Layton's favorite part.

Garrison's hair was wet by this point thanks to the drizzle. Thankfully it never actually rained or got any heavier and it eventually stopped altogether.

We played here in the snow until our tube time started.

Here we are getting ready to go down for the first time!! It was SO fun! And faster than last year I believe! 

After a few times down in the tube Layton decided he wanted to go back and play in the snow. He wasn't a huge fan of the thrill this year. Haha. So we split up and Terrell continued tubing with the bigs while Layton and I went back to the play area.

He played and played and had such a good time but eventually got tired and actually asked me to take him somewhere to lay down. Bless his heart. He'd been battling an ear infection (and strep!) so I got worried that maybe he wasn't feeling so good but I think he was just worn out. He made other requests we wanted to make happen so we traded off again. 

I rode the tube with the big boys while Terrell took Layton to see the 4-D Ice Age show. Since we had our season passes we were able to do anything Stone Mountain offered while we were there and it worked out perfect for us. The big boys and I had a blast tubing. Every ride was so fast and fun!! And because it wasn't very crowded we had very short waits. YAY.

Layton getting ready to go see the movie with daddy. 😊

Once Garrison and Austin got pretty tired, we met up with Terrell and Layton just as the movie was finishing up and Layton had one last request before we called it a day.... he wanted to do the Sky Ride and ride to the top of the mountain. Since the boys were worn out we just moved our car instead of making the walk and rode the gondola thing up the mountain. We had almost zero visibility, which was a little crazy, but Layton loved it. Once we got outside at the top of the mountain we realized it was colder, wetter, and more foggy. Haha! We could hardly see a thing! We took this selfie and it looks like we're in the clouds because you can't see a single thing around us. It was cool and strange at the same time. 😊

Once we made it down (a ride that Layton loved and I sort of held my breath on because our gondola was LOADED with people), we were ready for snacks and to head home. Three out of five Selphs fell asleep and it was a perfect, peaceful ride. 😊

We had a ball celebrating with our baby boy and he even thanked us while we were there. It was so sweet. We loved this President's Day and the start to our Winter Break! Birthday outings are our favorite!!

Layton's 4th Birthday Party

Layton's birthday party turned out a little different than we expected and planned but I think our birthday boy really enjoyed everything! He wasn't feeling his best but seemed to love his party and was ecstatic with his presents!! 😊 

This party was Layton's first "friend party" when he requested to invite some of his little buddies. But as it turned out, the handful of friends we invited were either going out of town or sick. So that was sort of disappointing. But it honestly turned out okay given that he started with ear infection symptoms on Thursday and had a low grade temperature off and on leading up to his party. We decided to go ahead with the party given that it would be a small family party and our birthday boy had been counting down and so looking forward to his big day. It was the right decision and a super fun day for our littlest man. And he had 2 little friends who were able to come after all. 

My bestie Megan designed his invitation for us and it turned out adorable!! The picture we used is from Halloween and was just perfect! This was definitely one of my favorites.... and Megan has done every single birthday party invitation for all of my boys so I have LOTS of favorites, and this one was near the top. 😊

The best family picture we got before the party has Terrell's head cut off. Haha. #ohwell #Iloveitthesame

The cake table was my favorite. I saved the DIY skyline I made for Garrison's superhero party 3 years ago just in case we had another one in the future and it worked perfect!!

Layton was thrilled. When he woke up Saturday morning and saw the buildings he said Mama, I saw Batman's house! He loved every detail and was so excited. 

His cake turned out amazing and exactly like he wanted. 

We have a VERY talented cake lady!

Love this excited, happy smile on our birthday boy!

I was so last minute with this party I didn't even recognize myself. I didn't get the favors until Friday night. So I had to go with what I could find... Superhero cups with a few goodies. 

And since I grabbed the last 4 superhero cups in the store, we gave our nieces Star Wars cups since they're fans of Star Wars. This past couple of weeks have been so busy that party prep literally didn't happen until Friday night and Saturday. I have never been so last minute in my life. Gracious. #sogladweactuallypulleditoff

We used all the superhero figures in the house and Layton was so impressed seeing everything Saturday morning. Yay! 😊 I love the way my boys love the details of their party décor. 

Batman himself. 😊 He was so excited.

We decided to have Chick fil a "cater" this party. Since we knew we'd be feeding mostly grown-ups we wanted something besides pizza. Haha. We had nuggets, fruit, wraps, and chips. It was delish and something different. 

These 2 sweet girls dined together and were adorable.

After everyone ate and the kids had a chance to play we let Layton open his presents. His face was priceless with each one. He was overcome with joy at all of his new things!

It was so fun watching him open his presents. His excitement was contagious. 

After presents we opened all of the toys and let the kids play before moving on to cake and ice cream. 

Piper was pretty proud of the singing of Happy Birthday too. 😊

He was so funny blowing out his candle. I loved watching him. 😊

Success!!

We ate cake and ice cream and the kids played with all of the new toys and had so much fun. Layton didn't start feeling a little bad until the very end of the party. Thankfully he was able to enjoy almost every second of his birthday and had the best time. We are definitely thankful we could make it happen!!

Another fun party in the books! Today we're off to celebrate again!! #birthdayoutingsrock

Happy President's Day!