Come on Spring!

Can you tell I am catching up on the blog?! I'd like to say life is crazy busy, but I feel like I always say that. And the truth of the matter is, I think life is going to be like this for a while. And I am totally okay with that....I like to be busy. Just want to make sure I keep the blog as updated as I can (even if our poor 2nd child for the most part ONLY has iPhone photos...at least he has some right?!)

 We are so ready for spring!!! We have had our share of sickness over the past few months and I am ready for some warmer weather. A few weeks ago, when it was still pretty chilly, but the sun was out, we played outside for a while after school. I have learned that with boys, unless it is a monsoon, they want to be outside. So I just have to put on my coat and suck it up :) Bentley was enjoying some outdoor play time as well!

John is so fun and can think of creative ways to spend time outdoors. We recently bought an elliptical and he has been saving the huge box in the garage for a day like this one. He pulled it out and Alex knew what its purpose was so he just sat down on it right in the driveway :) Anytime we have a big box, John cuts off a big rectangle and the boys take turns sliding down our hill. They love it and get the giggles so bad!!

Peek A Boo!

Disney Live

We took Will to see Disney Live just after he turned one. When I got the email from Ticketmaster that another Disney show was coming to town, we bought tickets so we could take Alex for his first experience. It did not disappoint. The show was cute and just long enough, but not too long for the boys to get antsy. The light up spinners certainly helped! John and I will never forget when we brought Will. He was so young and we figured we could get away without any souvenirs....we were totally wrong! His face was priceless the first time he saw a light up spinner and Alex reacted the exact same way!

It was hysterical! We are planning a Disney trip in October and this little taste of Disney made us even more ready to go!

Parenthood

I'm pretty sure that when I thought about becoming a mom, my mind wandered to baby names, nursery decor, gear, gadgets, play dates, fun places we would go, family photos, smocked outfits......you get my drift. All things that didn't really matter, or prepare you for what was to come.

Now that we are in full swing parenthood, I have had weak moments where I have thought things like "I didn't sign up for this..." For the sleepless nights, the INSANE daycare bill, the hard decisions, the constant second guessing, the constant state of putting things away, the talking back....

After all, wasn't it just supposed to be all fun??

I recently read a post on my friend's blog that said all the same things I have been thinking. She talked about how this mothering stuff is tricky and can leave you feeling unprepared.

That we really have to be intentional and deliberate in our parenting. This to me seems like such a daunting task. We only have these babies under our wing for so long and one day they will fly and make decisions on their own largely from how we raised them.

These little years are so important. Their hearts are tender and impressionable and they are hanging on our every word.

 We have to be on our "A-game" all the time. And at the same time, we can't take ourselves too seriously. These children are blessings from above and they are His more than they are mine.

I know all of these things. And believing this, also means that I believe God will prepare me for each phase. I have to accept that it doesn't mean I will be the perfect parent. It just means that hopefully, with a lot of grace, I will be the perfect parent for Will and Alex.

I just finished reading "Loving the Little Years" for the 2nd time. It is such a great read and I highly recommend it if you are a mom of little ones. The subtitle is "Mothering in the trenches." :) Sounds about right.

These years are tough...and some of the most important ones. I've heard it said before and you probably have too---the days are long, but the years are short.

Superheroes Unite!

Will started telling me around Halloween that he wanted a Spider-Man birthday party. I know it seems silly that I usually start planning his birthday around this time, but with it being right after Christmas, I usually like to get it out of the way before I have to start ordering Christmas cards, etc. I wanted to give him what he wanted, but I also felt like Spider-Man was a little limited....especially for the girl friends in our life. So we started talking superheroes and Will was pumped. All he ever asks for when we talk about what kind of party he wants is a bounce house. January is an incredibly difficult time of year to swing a bounce house. Our weather has been CRAZY lately, and of course, had I planned to have a bounce house in our yard this year, it would have worked out perfect since the high this past Saturday was 72. However, I also know that if I had indeed scheduled it to be delivered, we would have probably woken up to snow! You just can't count on the weather in January. We decided to have his party at Pump It Up in Trussville. I may not ever have another party at my house ever again :) It was SO EASY!! You basically just show up with your cake and party favor and credit card and you are good to go! It didn't allow for me to be as creative as I normally like or to really embrace a real "theme" with food, etc. But Will was in heaven and it was just what he wanted!! He had the best time with all of his friends!! We had his party early (9:15) so we told everyone it was a pajama party and to wear their favorite Superhero pajamas and come to jump with us (On a side note, Will much preferred Alex's Spider-Man pjs with webs over his Superman ones. But they did not have his size in the Superman ones so we really had to talk them up :) ). The kids were adorable and WORN OUT by the time it was over! I highly recommend Pump It Up if you are looking for a party place in Birmingham. There are 2 different inflatable rooms. Your party guests (no outside guests are allowed in) spend 45 minutes in each room and then go to the party room for food and cake! The best part was they clean up for you! You just load up your car and leave. Here is Will's party in pictures...

Thank you sweet friends and family who came out to celebrate with our precious four year old!

Interview with Will: Age 4

AT FOUR...
Favorite Color: Blue and Orange
Favorite Toy: Hot wheels cars and big Spider-man that talks
Favorite Fruit: Strawberries
Favorite TV Show: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
Favorite Movie: The Great Mouse Detective
Favorite thing to eat for Lunch: Peanut butter and jelly
Favorite thing to wear: Spider-man shirt
Favorite game: Superheroes
Favorite snack: Goldfish
Favorite Animal: Gorillas
Favorite Song: Jingle Bells
Favorite Book: Fergus (Good Boy, Fergus by David Shannon)
Best Friend: Oliver, Zay Zay, and Gabe
Favorite Thing to Do Outside: Play with my foxtail and run
Favorite Drink: Chocolate Milk
Favorite Holiday: Christmas
Favorite Thing to Take to Bed: Froggy
Favorite thing to eat for breakfast: Chocolate Muffins
Favorite thing to eat for dinner on your birthday: Chicken Nuggets
What do you want to be when you grow up: A daddy

Just had to share a quick story to go with the last question....this morning I was loving on Will and squeezing him tight telling him he couldn't be four and that I didn't want him to get bigger. He said "YES, mom, I HAVE to!!" I asked Will what he was going to do when he got big and he said without a moment of pause, "have a little kid." We have NO idea where this came from and have never heard him say it before. So tonight, as I asked these questions, and got to the last one, I was convinced he was either going to say an Auburn football player or Spider-Man. Without pause, very similar to this morning, he just replied "A daddy!" The only thing I can think of is that he has a pretty awesome daddy and he must think that being a parent is the best job of all. And it is...HANDS DOWN!!

Christmas Morning

We had a pretty excited little boy Christmas Eve. Alex didn't really know what was up, but Will totally understood this year about Santa. We put our cookies out and Will was almost hurrying us up to get him in bed instead of most other nights when we are rushing him :)

It appears our two sweet boys sure were good this year!

Even Bentley was on the nice list!

Santa outdid himself this year and brought the boys a really big present. So big it couldn't fit in the house. So Santa left a note complete with a treasure map that Will had to follow in order to find his gift! It was so funny because Will didn't notice the note at first. We just let him play with his toys and were hoping he might not notice it until Alex was up. It actually worked out better so we could enjoy this "hunt" with Will. The treasure map had him hop around the dining room table, go to the Christmas tree and sing Jingle Bells, then go to his room and put on his coat and shoes (he was confused about this...), then go to Mommy and Daddy's room and get their coats and shoes, and then head outside. He gasped so loud when he saw what was out there.

We couldn't stay out long because it was WET and COLD. 

Shortly after, Alex woke up and was so excited to see that Santa had left him a stash.

The ball pit was by far his favorite gift. I kind of felt like Santa struck out with Alex this year. He loved the ball pit, but everything else he just kind of threw to the side and wanted to play with Will's stuff :) Probably story of our life from now on....

 After breakfast, now that it was daylight :), we headed back out with Alex in tow to jump. Y'all, it is SO fun!! John and I are enjoying the trampoline as much as Will and Alex!!