Spring Break

oh happy day

this year, for my birthday (in November) i would like a Churro party. everyone make sure my husband knows.

totally off topic.

so, it's officially Spring Break! my babies are home from school, no one is rushing us out the door in the morning (me), no homework, the sun is out and shining, and Easter is quickly approaching... which means we get to get ready for fun crafts!

but what i'm really trying to say is, as much as all that is true and fun, it means more work for mom, right? (RIGHT?!) the kids have expectations of being entertained day and night, they think we have endless amounts of money to go on fun excursions to Boomer's and John's Incredible Pizza. Easter is coming, which means i have to come up with crafts.... and that means my house gets messy and my OCD flairs up. on top of it all, i still have to cook and clean. and i don't get to sleep in because i don't have teenagers yet.

someone invite me over for a margarita.

#kiddingnotkidding
#yesijusthashtagedonmyblog

here's to a fun, family-filled, spring break! i really am excited about it.

love,
tara

back to school

whew. this was a crazy week. 

i've been so busy the last two weeks. we were doing projects around the house while my husband was on vacation last week, and getting the kids ready for school. then school started and we are trying to get back on routine and figure out how all this driving... and packing lunches... and being out of the house before 8a.m. stuff works. 

i have a lot of little projects to catch you guys up on and i can't wait to share them, but first i want to share about my babies leaving me. haha! drama. if you are my friend on facebook or instagram, you've seen all these pictures and know a little about whats going on at home, but i want to document it here too.

Big A started first grade Monday. he was so nervous Sunday and even woke up in the middle of the night thinking he was going to throw up. the next morning he woke up and had decided that he wasn't nervous anymore, he was excited! the morning went smoothly and the first day was great. 

first day picture tradition

Big A's desk at school

then... Tuesday after school came and Big A announced that he decided he hated school and he and a friend in class were plotting their escape. i informed him that they have adults supervising and patrolling the school and he would get sent to the principle's office if he did try anything and he got a really serious look on his face! 

Wednesday he came home and said he wanted to cry at his desk, but didn't.

Thursday he came home and said he DID cry at his desk because he wanted me. 

and Friday... oh Friday my heart broke to a million pieces. my husband has Friday's off and we were all walking him to class when he stopped and just started losing it. he started crying really hard and didn't want to go to class. my friend, who is a teacher and his best friend's mom, started encouraging him and telling him Friday's were fun and the best day of the week. he pulled it together enough to walk the rest of the way to the door, then he lost it again. his teacher came out and said we could go and she would take care of it. she asked him to go to the bathroom and wash his face, then come back to class. he saw that we were walking away, then he started screaming and shouting for us, calling out our names. that's when i lost it. 

i hated leaving my baby there. i didn't want him to think that i didn't care. i wanted to rescue him and tell him he never had to go back. but i knew i had to let him work it out. 

i was on my way to a prayer group for the school, teachers, and our kids, but my husband stayed around the corner out of sight and said that he cried for about 40 minutes while his teacher tried to calm him down. i finally got a call from her that she had him sit with her at her desk for about an hour after he calmed down and then he just decided he was ok and had a great rest of the day. 

when we picked him up he had a great big smile and said his day was much better. we celebrated him making it through the first week of school by coming home to balloons, noisemakers, silly glasses, and streamers that my sweet husband at put out everywhere. we had a water balloon fight, family movie night, and a sleep over in our room. 

______________________________________

 little a started preschool on Tuesday for the first time. she had quite the opposite reaction then Big A. she was so anxious before her class started and when it was time to go she had her backpack on and said, "bye mom! i love and i'll miss you, have a great day!" before we were even in the car! 

she went straight in, with no tears.

jumping right in!

and when i picked her up she had a great big smile on her face and said she made a new friend. 

i'm sure there will be a year or two when she has a tough time. and i'm sure when they're all grown up we'll look back and share these stories with them. but right now i'm exhausted and clinging to the Lord. when the week started my verse was, "i do not ask you to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. they are not of the world, even as i am not of the world. sanctify them in truth, Your word is truth. as you sent me into the world, i also have sent them into the world. for their sakes i sanctify myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth." John 17:15

and as my week ends my verse is, "do not fear, for i am with you; do not anxiously look about for i am your God. i will strengthen you, surely i will help you, surely i will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10. 

i am resting in these words from the Lord. he is my rock and i can't make it through without him. 

_______________________________________

another tradition we started last year was a first day of school party and this week we included our life group in on it. it was just our regular meeting time and i just made a little cake. nothing big, but still making note of the special day. 

i used a paleo carrot cake recipe from elana's pantry and i also used her creamy cream cheese frosting to top it with! it was so yummy!

so what about you guys? do you have any first day/week of school struggles or triumphs you want to share? what about traditions? i would love to hear your stories!

xoxo,

tara

Anniversary + Family Pictures

oh man, yesterday my husband and i celebrate 9 years of marriage! woot woot. 9 is such a big number but it went by super fast. i feel pretty privileged to have been chosen by this man and to have been blessed with the kids we have and to be living this life with these people. 

and to top it off my sweet and talented friend, Jackie Wonders, who so lovingly shares her gift of photography with us, just sent me all our family photos she captured for us while we were down in San Diego this summer. i think these are my favorite! 

so, get ready. cause i'm gonna show you all my favorites. which is pretty much all of them. 

you're welcome. 

i just love them so much. i can't stop looking at them. 

Dominic, you are such a good man. you love me more than i could ever ask for or expect and serve me selflessly even when it is not returned. you are patient with me and know how to lead me when i'm feeling lost. but most importantly, you are a Godly man that loves and serves the Lord with all your heart, and that overflows onto us. i cherish all the good and bad we have gone through and look forward to many more years along your side. 

cheers to nine years! 

tara

p.s. jackie, you are amazing. i can't thank you enough. you are a pivotal tool in helping us document and capture the years that are most easily forgotten. there aren't words that would be enough to describe my appreciation, but hopefully my walls covered in your work is a glimpse! i love you sweet friend. 

what we wore wednesday

hey everyone! happy hump day. (sidenote: i get why they call Wednesday "hump day".. because it's the middle of the week, also known as the hump... but it always makes me think of humping. am i alone in this? i don't think so.)

so for this extra special hump day Wednesday post i'll be sharing what my daughter and i wore to her birthday party at The Victoria Rose Tea House in Clovis. we had such a fun time being girly. i let her put very light make up on, and we picked out some special accessories to wear. this is the best part about having a daughter. 

little a is wearing a sweet girly dress from TJMaxx that was gifted from my parents, silver ballet flats from Nordstrom's Rack, and all accessories were a gift from her Nana! i am wearing a hand-me-down dress from H&M, nude heels from Bandolino, and my accessories are from Express from a super long time ago. i think we are in the perfect tea party apparel. 

whilst taking Thelma & Louise style portraits, we were photo bombed by Big A. 

good one buddy, good one. 

the birthday girl with her sweet little friends. 

we had a blast. 

now go give hump day some real meaning and hump your husband tonight. i can almost guarantee that it will make his day. 

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/o9_w6ZhvRJ8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

tara

birthday girl gets a new outfit!

today is my baby girl's birthday! and to make her feel extra special i decided (yesterday... typical) to make her a new outfit. 

i used a tutorial from one of my favorite sewing blogs, Make It and Love It. i love the step by step, easy to read instructions and photos she provides. it makes it easy for me to follow along, especially since i wouldn't consider myself an advanced sewer. i've really learned a lot from making things off her site. for this one i used her "little girl romper" tute. i also really love that she has a lot of boy stuff on there. 

{via}

i've had my eye on this super cute romper i found on pinterest for a while, and i happened to have a similar red polka dot fabric laying around.

i love how it turned out. the only changes i made to the original tutorial is that instead of making the chest area pleated, i added eyelet ruffles. i also added cuffs on the shorts with coordinating tiny polka dot fabric and a matching headband. 

she loves it too. i had it hanging up and when she came down stairs for the first time this morning she saw it right away and said, "thank you for my beautiful outfit mommy!". 

love her. 

Amalya, happy birthday sweet girl! you are growing up so fast. it really does seem like you were just a toddler, running around and jabbering words only we could understand. but now your favorite thing to do is "chat" at the table with us and carry on long discussions about your favorite things. you have so much personality, you are so animated and add drama and flair to every dance or song you sing. i see you changing, and understanding the struggles in your heart more. i see you working hard to obey and learning how to ask for things with words and not being so quick to throw a fit. i'm so proud of you for that! i prayed for you and you are a gift to our family, the perfect fit. God did not make a mistake on you, and i hope that as you grow you will learn that beauty comes from within, not from your outward appearance. i pray that God would capture your heart, even now, so that you will spend all the days of your life giving him the glory. i pray He will reveal His will for you to us and to you early on so you will never wander, and that you will use your gifts to bring him honor. 

you are so dearly loved, sweet girl. what a joy it is to be your mommy. 

xoxo,

mommy

what we wore

you're about to get some randomness. don't mind me. 

i am so tired lately. my routine is off and it's really starting to affect my day-to-day functioning. i have my coffee every morning, and as soon as it's done i wonder if i can have another. then again in the afternoon! i think it has to do with the fact that 3 days a week i'm waking up earlier than normal to do crossfit (at 5:30am!). 

i usually wake up between 6-6:30am, and take my showers at night, but on the days i work out i am waking up at 5am and showering after my work out. my body is out of rhythm! do any of you work out early some days? what do you do to keep your routine in check? should i just wake up at 5am everyday so i can feel normal again? that does not sound awesome, but i'm over being sleepy ALL THE TIME. 

{WHAT I WORE}

shirt gifted / jeans chor from Marshall's / sandals TJMaxx / what i did nothing exciting.. just a walk around the block so the kids could ride their vehicles

i am really starting to like my natural hair. this is the third time in a row i've styled it this way after washing it. i only wash it every 7 days, so i've been wearing it like this for a while. straight out of the shower i just comb it with a wide tooth comb, blow dry my roots with my head upside down, and while my ends are still moist i add a mixture of leave in conditioner and coconut oil. then i let it air dry. soooooooo EASY!

sidenote: my sweet boy is having bully trouble, and it's breaking my heart! there's a boy in his gymnastics class that has been punching him repeatedly while they wait for their turn to work on a skill.  we've only been to two classes, but it's already pretty concerning. we want to make sure we're teaching Big A how to respond in a biblical way, while protecting his confidence and tender heart. 

{Big A}

sunnies target dollar bin / shirt target / shorts hand-me-downs / shoes children's place gifted / what he did demonstrated his sweet scooter skills while "jumping" off the "ramp" he found (raised sidewalk crack)

he has his next gymnastics class tomorrow night, so we're praying over how to coach him for when it happens again. if you think about it, will you join us in prayer? thanks.

{little a}

dress old navy / jellies old navy / what she did figured out that she can ride super speed on her bike

i love these shoes, i wish i has some in my size.

little a is getting so big. she'll be 4 this summer. most of the time she seems 3 going on 4, in every shape and form... but sometimes, like in this picture, i still see glimpses of her from when she was a baby. (must be the cheeks) i miss that. i miss my babies. they're growing up too fast. 

i'm not sure that i'm ready for these guys to be dealing with hard concepts like bullies, and being physically capable of riding their bikes faster than i can run... but these are the things that we are being handed right now, and it is making my heart ache. 

i just want to make sure i'm capturing their innocence, and holding it closely to my heart. i want to never forget these stages, or the ones they've grown out of. 

second sidenote: holding your coffee in one hand and your camera in the other hand is not the wisest choice while your children are riding their bikes, because when they fall it's really awkward running with your hands that full... 

just saying. 

tara