sleepyheads

i love sneaking in to my kids rooms and watching them sleep. usually before i head to bed i check on them and make sure they are ok and cover them up with the blankets they've inevitably kicked off. there is something about this nightly experience that feels so motherly to me. i remember reading once that no matter how frustrated and exasperated you can get with your kids during the day, there is something about watching them sleep that melts all of that frustration away. and it's true! after many a frustrating day, watching them sleep peacefully reminds me of their sweetness and helps me forget the whining and disobedience. and lately i can't help but snap a picture of the sweetness...or the funny ways they sleep! 

logan and emma share a room now, but it hasn't been very conducive to sleep (they have way too much fun). so after too many days in a row of them staying awake during nap time and keeping each other awake for hours after we put them to bed (and a lot of yelling from me. that didn't do one bit of good, by the way), they now nap in different rooms and we put logan down at night in our bed and move him back to his bed when we go to sleep. it's not the ideal, but the kids sleep and i don't have to yell. win win!

poor sweaty girl. no ac during the summer is brutal.

i love that little hand he wiggled out

 sleeping on the huge bean bag chair at the taylor's in kansas. surrounded by books, toys and stuffed "friends." a typical scene. 

 moving logan back into his bed. it's sweet to be able to snuggle him while he's sleeping. he is so big now.

the kids got a kick out of seeing pictures of them sleeping!

5th annual things i heart...

• the way dave makes me laugh everyday. it's so fun being married to him!
• vanilla yogurt with frozen berries
• couple prayer with dave each night
• roman raspberry talenti sorbet oh so good!
• our photo slideshow screensaver (how have our kids grown up so fast?! their baby pictures kill me)
• vanicream (the best moisturizer ever)
• it's a 10 miracle leave-in conditioner (it really is miraculous)
• getting my haircut
• watching my kids sleep
• family dance parties
• my wedding ring
• traveling
• my slippers
• a modern day prophet and apostles and their inspired general conference talks. 
• good friends, near and far
• growing from struggles. i don't necessarily heart the struggles part, but i'm grateful they're not for nothing and that we can come through them stronger and closer to the lord. 
• reading with my kids
• deep cleaning/organizing, although you wouldn't know that about me if you saw my house right now
• naps (which is the reason for the lack of organization in my house right now)
• watching logan and emma dance
• holding hands with dave
• how i met your mother (oh please can we finally meet "the mother")
• walk off the earth "gang of rhythm" 
• mighty mango naked juice. it is like a piece of heaven in a glass. 
• piyo
• spending everyday with my kiddos. boy oh boy do i heart being a mom (and a stay-at-home mom)!
• the power of moms. it's such an inspiring spot on the internet.
• the menu exchange with my sisters (each week one of us emails a week of dinner recipes, which means i only have to plan 1 week of dinners, but i have dinners planned for the whole month. score!)
• being taught by the spirit
• foot rubs from dave (the man has skills!)
• groups texts with my (todd) family
• the relief society organization
• blogs
• weekly playgroup. "technically" it's for the kids, but really it's just as much for me. i look forward to seeing my friends each week. 
• the amazing families i get to be part of
• dave's dimples and that he is mine :)
• the way being a mother stretches me and is hopefully refining me and helping me become a better person
• just being together with my little family 
• "once upon a time"
• the temple and eternal families
• feeling this little peanut inside of me kick. it's the coolest feeling!

previous "things i heart" posts

1st annual 2nd annual 3rd annual 4th annual 

emma's many faces

when i was sorting through pictures from our camping trip to the bike races (posted here, here and here), i kept laughing at the funny faces emma was making in so many of the pictures. i couldn't help putting together a little collage of some of the particularly good ones. this girl cracks me up!

happy

things that have made me happy over the last couple of days:

dave and i went to the temple on tuesday night. it was so wonderful to be there with him (the last couple of times we have gone separately). there is something incredible about sitting in the temple, discussing everyday life but having a little more of an eternal perspective. as we walked out of the temple a man walked up to us and said, "i saw the most wonderful thing tonight in the temple session. the two of you and the love you obviously have for one another." it made my day and i was so happy he shared with us. 


the way emma always finds necklaces (think mardi gras beads) and just layers them on! she looks so cute all accessorized!

talking to our stake relief society president about my calling and some of my concerns. she is so wise, inspired and made me feel like i am doing a good job. i am so grateful for those people who make you feel better about yourself and you leave their presence (or hang up the phone) walking a little taller. i want to be one of those people.

blue bell ice cream was on sale for $3.99. their strawberries and homemade vanilla ice cream is heavenly. 


the sounds of my kids laughing together in the other room. i love their belly laughs!



emma's "happy face." if you ask to see it she'll give you a big toothy smile (she has got so many teeth)!


the way logan's shorts and underwear are a little rolled/crazy and his shirt is usually tucked in in some weird spot after he's gone to the bathroom. it makes me laugh. and makes me so proud of my big boy!

talking about life with my oldest niece lexi as i drove her home the other night. she is such a beautiful and grounded girl with such a wonderful understanding about what is really important in life (please, please don't let that change as you grow). i am really trying to savor those moments since she and her family are moving to utah in about a month (it hurts my heart even to think about it, so i don't).

watching logan sleep. it never gets old and any frustration i might have felt with him melts away as i watch him peacefully sleep. 

watching emma do her side-step walk. she is a full on walker now (yea!) and i love watching her cruise around our house.

reading books that remind me of great women who do great things, even if to "the world" they seem simple and ordinary. i'm so grateful to be a member of the relief society and for the legacy of women who have gone before me and done remarkable things. i have been filled with such gratitude as i have been reading daughters in our kingdom (seriously, it's amazing). i have also been so uplifted by this sweet book (and i love that i can just read a little "secret" here and there when i have a moment)!

mid-march

spring finally arrived this past week and we have been soaking it up (which is good because it looks like it is going to get chilly again. boo!). i am so done with winter and we welcomed spring by spending days at the park, playing in the backyard, opening the curtains and windows and letting the sunshine stream in and driving with the windows down and the radio turned up (or more often than not, primary songs pumped up). the sunshine (and warmth) is good for my soul!

with the arrival of spring i have been on a spring cleaning rampage. perhaps there are many of you that don't know this about me, but i love to deep clean and organize things. it makes me giddy (ask dave, he thinks it's a little crazy how excited and happy it makes me). i have taken garbage bags of clothes and stuff to the goodwill. i have gone through closets, drawers and cupboards and even though there is more to do, it feels so good! i told dave i felt like i was nesting without the pregnancy part (the mention of nesting elicited a look of panic. ha!).

i finished the second season of downton abbey about a couple of weeks ago and loved it! like so many i got totally sucked in and wish i didn't have to wait so long until the next season. and by the way, can they please add more episodes to the season? 7 just doesn't cut it for me.

i got 2 new colors of nail polish that i love, just in time for the warmer weather and open toe shoes! i painted my toe nails at playgroup a few weeks ago. the first and last time i do that. what was i thinking?! i swear, as soon as i pulled out that bottle of nail polish it was like a magnet, attracting little people to me.

i got some new yummy smelling body wash and the smell of it (black orchid and velvet hibiscus) makes my shower time seem more luxurious!

i got a new crock pot because the pot in my last one totally cracked. i still used it for awhile (with crock pot liners, so so worth the money), but finally i broke down and bought a new one. the timer feature is different than my last one and totally awesome! yes, i get excited about things like crock pots. what can i say?!

i love spring flowers! they are my favorites. if i could have fresh tulips in my house all spring long i would love it.

my friend megan alerted me to skinny jeans at forever 21 for $10.50! score! that is totally within my budget. i think i need to get a couple more pairs!

denver finally got an H&M at the end of last year and i still haven't gone. what the?!

it's amazing how quickly i can get in and out of costco when i go in the evening, without my kids and when there are no samples out. but i almost don't know if it is worth it without the samples!

the other night when i was driving 3 out of the 6 pre-sets in my car were playing the same rihanna song. wow denver, mix it up a little!

apparently i am a really loud typer/typist (what is it?). dave tells me it all the time (and just told me again).

logan and dave were just watching a video on you tube and when it finished logan said, "that wasn't a very good one. not yours, we need to watch one of my elmo ones." the boy knows what he wants!

i really want a mini van. make fun of me all you want, but i can't wait to get one someday. i keep daydreaming about cruising around in one.

a peek into our lives lately

sometimes i just have a lot of random pictures of us hanging out. so here's what you get, a post full of them covering the end of february and first half of march!

 

under the kitchen chairs, a favorite hang out spot for the kids

 

 emma loves to look out our back doors
(and who know where her other sock was)

 

 the kids have been going on adventures lately (usually under the kitchen table) complete with "adventure hats" and a flashlight. oh how i love them!

emma's face kills me in the picture below. pure joy! i think i need to crop this picture just with her in it. 

 the loves of my life

yoga mat picnics. logan thinks it's the greatest place to eat his lunch. i always hope i don't find a piece of cheese stuck to my foot during my next pilates class.

at the end of february logan went with dave to his work to watch a certification and competition for chefs. they found logan a extra small chef's hat and coat that he sported. isn't he just the cutest?! dave's boss dubbed him the CLC, certified little chef! he'll even put it on at home sometimes when he helps us cook. 

 

cuties!

 dave and logan went on a father-son outing and logan scored a new train. 

 we visited grandma lorrie for her 88th birthday!

 i was sitting at the computer and looked down to see that logan had pulled emma onto his lap. they sure love each other.

 another emma face that just kills me! she is such a happy, smiley girl!

 logan wasn't feeling great this day and apparently needed to rest in the swing. 

 logan helping his dad replace our headlight. he thought it was cool that he got to help dave.

 this girl loves to eat!