these feet

Yesterday I had a moment.



It isn't too often that I find myself in a quiet house with almost nothing going on around me.



The big girls were at school, Kherington was invited over to her big cousin's house, so it was just Crew and I at home. My little Crewie is, well....a handful! At 20 months old, he is busy busy busy and always up to something. So any sort of down-time with him when he is awake is rare. Because he is always. on. the. go. (wink)



We had a little time to kill before his nap, so not really thinking he'd stay there, I pulled him up on my lap, and just sat on the couch with him and hoped he'd watch a little Curious George with me.



We stayed in this exact position for a half hour.



For anyone with an almost 2 year old, you would know that this a LONG time for a toddler of this age! To sit still without moving for 30 minutes? That is very rare for my Crew!


As we sat, I cuddled his warm little body close to me. I snuggled into his clean hair from just getting out of the bath. I watched him cross and uncross his chubby little feet as he watched George on TV.



And I also realized that it wasn't George that he was content with, but ME.



My full attention. My time. My love.



As I held him, I realized how I do not do this often enough. As the youngest of 4, by default, Crew spends much of his being carted around in the car, dropping off and picking up his sisters from school and lessons, running errands with mama. He doesn't get the same down-time at home that his sisters had, especially the older girls.



It made me so guilty and so sad for him. Being a mama is hard. And all I want is for my babies to know how much I love them. And how everything I do is for them. I cuddled him like crazy and felt so very lucky for this quiet, uninterrupted time with my son.



It is so hard to believe that there was a time that this little dude wasn't a part of our family. Because now...we simply couldn't live without him. While we often joke about how much of a handful he is, the truth of the matter is...he has every single person in this family wrapped around his little fingers. We all live for his giggles, his hugs, his slobbery kisses. We all laugh when he does something funny, and we all jump to help him when we think he's been hurt. We love our boy.



How grateful I am for those quiet moments with my son. To hold his warm body and kiss his chubby feet. To not worry about the messes that needed to be cleaned, or the phone calls that needed to be made. To just be in the moment with him and put everything else on hold.



This was a reminder for me as a mother. Not just for Crew, but for all my precious children. To take the time to spend a few quiet moments with each of them. Whenever I can. To just sit and enjoy the moment and put everything else in the world aside and to focus on THEM. It is hard for me to believe that I have already been doing this mothering thing for more than 8 years. And it is starting to hit me how my time with little ones at home will all too quickly come to an end. And it was these little feet that reminded me of all these things yesterday. These chubby feet reminded me to slow down...just a little. To enjoy these moments at home a little bit more. And most importantly, to LOVE more.



'Cause we all need love, right?

crew's 1st birthday!

So it was Crew's first birthday....over a month ago. And I am just getting to blogging about it now!! Aaahhh! But what is new, we all know that I'm not as great at the whole blogging thing as I used to be! I love my blog, though, and I love all the memories and stories I've recorded over the years...so I will still plug away, even if my posts are few and far between!



So back to Crewie...our baby is ONE! This first year with him in our family has absolutely flown by, and of course we had to celebrate him in a big way!! I went with a pirate theme, and he was sooooo stinkin' cute!! He did a perfect job at being the centre of attention....oh, how we love our boy!!



I kept the decorations as simple as possible, it really is amazing what you can find at dollar stores and party stores...it looks like it was a lot more work than it was! (Although, getting my house clean before a party is always a ton of work...I'm a freak and I think my house needs to be spotless when people are coming over...and then it's messy in 2 seconds and nobody cares anyways!! Heehee!)



Anyways...on to the party!! I made this "one" collage that I seen on Pinterest...I love it, and a month later, we still have it displayed in our living room...I loved going through all of Crew's pictures from his first year...I wanted to use them all!!

The pirate cupcakes...

Lookin' too darn cute...

Okay, seriously...WHY is everybody laughing at me???

Opening presents...the girls were right in there!

And, finally...cupcake time.

He went to town on his cupcake, totally wasted NO time and dug right in!!

...and the aftermath.

As always, we just love this little guy so much!! I ask myself on a daily basis how I ever lived without him...Happy 1st Birthday, Crew!!! xoxoxox

11 months

Well, somehow our baby boy has managed to get to be 11 months old. 11 months??? Really??? Even though it feels like we've had him forever, I still sometimes feel like was just pregnant. I haven't forgotten the horrors of pregnancy quite yet! (haha)

So instead of me apologizing for being such a crappy blogger, let's just get to some more cute photos of our Crewie. I was looking at the calendar today and realized that Crew is one in just a month, so Gabby and Kherington helped me snap a few quick photos of our boy. He is so funny....and sooooo hard to crack a smile out of as soon as the camera comes out!! He was more interested in the hairbrush that was sitting on the floor than the cool plane and bike that I put in front of him, but we still managed to get some cute ones I think!

Love this boy!!!!!

And yup, he spent most of the time crawling away and towards that hairbrush I was talkin' about.

Stinker!!! (heehee)

happy new year and playing catch-up

Oh, man...I really hate getting so behind on my blog!! The past few weeks have just been so full that I haven't had much time to do any catching up. So I'm here now, ready to do a little catchin' up.

Christmas was busy and wonderful. Crew was adorable on his very first Christmas, and his big sisters couldn't get enough of his cuteness...neither could mommy and daddy! We spent time with both of our family's, and did lots of eating, visiting and playing...it was perfect! The holidays were spent skating, skiing, playing with cousins, going to movies, sleeping in, being lazy, shopping, going out to eat, visiting with freinds and playing some more. Graham spent a day snowboarding in the mountains, and I spent a day shopping all by myself, so we all had our own fun! Most importantly we were so happy to celebrate our Savior's birth as a little family. I love Christmastime so much...it's always a little sad once all the fun and celebrating is over. But we had such a nice break from the daily routine as a family, and we absolutely felt renewed and ready to go for the new year.

Speaking of the new year...Happy 2012!! I always love this time of year to start fresh and reflect on the past year and plan for the upcoming one...I managed to finish my photo-a-day for 2011 and I've been having soooo much fun filling my Project Life album with photos and memories from the past year. I will absolutely share photos of my finished album when I'm all done, I'm still working on all my journaling. But I love it.

And yes, I will definitely be doing my photo-a-day project for 2012!! I've already been taking my daily photos, and I'll let you all know as soon as I have my new blog up and running. Stay tuned for that!! (and just a note...I thought it would be fun to have a list of other photo-a-day blogs in my sidebar for quick access and inspiration...so if you have a 365 blog that you'd like to share with everyone, send me your name and link to your blog!)

Crew is now 8 months old and I have lots of new pictures to share of him...but I'll save that for another post. I also have a fun, pinterest-inspired DIY project to share, so that will be coming soon, too!

Thanks for popping in to my little blog. I know that I've really fallen off the bloggin-train...I used to be dedicated and good and my life has just been turned upside-down by all my kids! Hee hee...in a good way, of course. I try to tell myself that my time will come again when I am more free and able to create and share...until then, I just do what I can do! That's what I love about taking my daily photos...I feel like by sharing our daily life I'm in a way, letting you all know what we're up to. With the new year, I was thinking of goals and resolutions...and to be honest, the one thought that kept coming to me (and is actually quite fitting for me at this point in my life) is letting go. Letting go of ridiculous expectations that I set for myself. Letting go of expectations that I think others have of me. Letting go of the idea that my house needs to be perfect and clean all the time. Letting go of the idea that I can do it all. And instead...just focusing on being here. Being here for my kids. My family. My friends. Myself. I just want to be better at enjoying the moment, and not worrying about all the other things that will inevitably always be there!! So how's that for a resolution?? (heehee)

Okay, so for reals, I will be back soon. Thanks for playing catch-up with me.

the simple things

Another Simple Things Sunday.

I stayed home from church with Crew and Kherington today because they've both been running temperatures and have those yucky coughs that just won't go away. It was early evening when I plopped Crew on the floor next to me while I was folding laundry, and after folding exactly 2 shirts, I had to run and get my camera.

Because I couldn't resist my chubby little dude playing with his toys. His sudden fascination with this yellow spoon. His chubby belly, and perfect squishable cheeks. His hair, which was looking oh, so cool at that moment. The Star Wars onesie and striped socks. The sound of him blabbering that melted my heart.

*sigh*

A simple moment today that I'm so glad I didn't miss.

:)

the simple things

I haven't shared a "simple things" photo in a while, so just poppin' in with this picture that I took of my husband and Crew after church this afternoon.

My boys.

So cute in their cardigans and khakis and always making eachother laugh.

My husband loves having a little buddy.

almost Halloween...

Just some snapshots of my little Crewie from earlier this week.

I can't believe he is 5 and a half months old. You are pregnant for so long and then these babies grow up and change so darn quickly!

He is such a good little baby, and as with any new addition you have in your family, we honestly couldn't imagine life without him! He's been sick for a while now with a cold, and then he woke up this morning with a puffy eye, so I think we'll be heading to the doctor's soon...of course this is all happening right before Halloween when we have a crazy weekend ahead of us!

Life has been so busy. So much to blog about, and then week after week just passes me by. Aaaaahhh! I DO have a fun and simple home decor project (thank you, Pinterest!) that I want to share soon, and of course I'll be back with Halloween pictures of the kiddos.

Until then, have a Happy Halloween!!!!

(Gabby's little "pumpkin rock" that she made in Kindergarten)

Tal:)

the simple things

A simple thing from this past week that made me smile....my little dude lookin' pretty darn cute in his sweet little jeans and sweatshirt. Not only am I enjoying the fall weather, but I sure do love dressing my little man up every morning! The girls and I just "oooo" and "aaaahhhh" over him constantly...in Kherington's words, "Cwew is sooooo coot!"

xoxox

the simple things

A "simple things" photo from this past week....my little man catchin' some zzz's on his blankie. I love his little baby chubbies, I could just eat him!

T xo

3 months old

Well, my little dude is already 3 months old...time is a-flyin', let me tell ya! I snapped a few pictures after his bath this morning, he's always so happy in the mornings!

His sisters still fight over him.

We're always wanting to kiss and cuddle him.

He has the cutest little laugh and smiles.

He's pretty much in charge around here. 'Nuff said.

Tal xo

2 months old

For reals??? 2 months old already? (he's actually even a tad older than that, but who's counting?) It really isn't fair. While I am looking forward to sleeping through the night at some point, I am not looking forward to this little babe of mine growing up. (wink) The big girls were out on a playdate this morning and after banishing Kherington to the top bunk, I managed to take a few quick pictures of my sweet Crew.

(I bought this cute owl hat here.)

I can't believe how quickly time is flying by and how big my little man is getting! He is just too sweet for words.

xo

crew's baby announcements

One thing I've always loved doing is baby announcements. These were Crew's. Simple and fun. I also did up a coordinating little thank-you card for all those people who were sweet enough to give us gifts. We've been so spoiled! The announcement is 5x7" and the thank you card is 4x6" and I just wrote personal messages on the back. I had them printed at Costco and loved how they turned out! (the cute baby definately helps...heehee.) I still have a handful that need to be mailed...that is on my to-do list for next week!

For now, we are off to pick up Payton from her last day of school. Whoo-hoo! Here's to SUMMER!!!

T:)

life with crew

A few (well, a bunch) of snapshots from our first month with Crew. I can't believe how quickly time has flown since he got here...it really isn't fair. Pregnant fro 9 whole months, and then bam, your baby is 6 weeks old already. Sheesh! Anyone who has been there, though, knows how busy life with a newborn is. Never a dull moment, that's for sure!

A few things about Crew in his first month:

he is super cute. (duh)

he loooves to eat. (he's the best eater of all my babies!)

because of all that eating he's a little porker...he's already 9 pounds!

the girls love love love him...I always have lots of help.

he loves to be held...he always prefers to be held rather than being in his swing or crib.

he's spoiled. (heehee)

kherington calls him "Baby Coo".

he eats at least once during the night.

his daddy loves him like crazy...they will be partners in crime, for sure!

he has 18 cousins.

he sleeps in a laundry basket at night beside my bed.

he has the loudest cry. for reals. (if you've heard it, you know what I'm talkin' about.)

he's probably my most demanding baby...he keeps me busy!

he melts our hearts over and over again.

xoxo

We are so lucky to have this little guy! Everyone thought it was crazy that we were having a boy, but ever since he was born, he's just fit into our little family perfectly. Love you, Baby Coo!!

xoxo