the controlling mom

That is me. Somehow I ended up as a controlling and overprotective mama. Maybe it is having two wild boys that made me this way, maybe I just AM this way naturally. But it doesn't much matter which it is really because this is definitely how I parent. And by now, honestly, I am just accepting who I am.

got a fever of 103

Poor baby got welcomed into 1 with a fever and virus. 

I hope you're having a much healthier start to your week =)

fatherhood

Even though this post is late (since little baby has had a fever since father's day) I want to get to it.

10 reasons why Cody is an amazing dad

(but not limited to)

1. He builds the BEST forts. This is no joke, when he's gone and I'm responsible for making the forts the kids give my sheet and chair mess looks of sympathy instead of ones of awe and amazement. 
2. He loves the Lord and he prays for our babies. He would never pressure a religion on our kids but he will always teach them about our Father and how He provides and loves.
3. He evaluates the seriousness of sickness/cuts/scrapes/bruises better than I do. He doesn't freak out.
4. He always makes sure each child get enough one-on-one attention.
5. He is way more consistent with rules and discipline than I am. If a rule gets broken it will not fly - no matter what. 
6. He is so intelligent but knows all these silly facts at the same time.
7. He plays like he wont get another chance to make these babies laugh and squeal. (he can push our tree swing practically to the moon)
8. He is always available. Even if he is out with the guys he will call and say goodnight to Oliver.
9. He is not afraid to show physical affection. He will kiss on these boys and get all ooey gooey. I don't ever worry about our kids feeling insecure in their daddy's love for them. AND he isn't afraid to show them how much he loves me. 
10. He's bold and strong and he will ALWAYS do what needs to be done in order to protect and provide for our family. I know that he would choose their protection over our own. I know that he would work himself to the bone to make sure they never go wanting. I know that he loves our boys so unconditionally that it sometimes hurts. I know that no matter what happens in this life he will never stop trying to teach our sons character and the value of hard work. 

He loves us and we'll never stop appreciating that love and devotion. 

Happy Father's Day to the best guy for the job

Today is MAJOR errand day because we are gearing up

for this little loves FIRST birthday party tomorrow!

And it's also Father's Day on Sunday! 

And just because.....

Summer days

There is just so much to love about the summer.

stripes.hats.sunshine streaming in through windows.

Happy Birthday Dashel

One year ago today my beautiful love, Dashel, was born.

He made us proud parents for the second time.

He made Oliver a brother.

He made us a family of four.

He made me a better mama.

I can't believe the day is finally here and he is ONE! This year has flown by at rocket speed. I'm looking forward to more wonderful years ahead. 

You can read Dashel's birth story here

Silly

Found this on my computer today. This is us trying to record a serious video message. This was around attempt 5 or so.  I love being silly with my husband. 

back to normal

It is so nice to be back to normal. While Cody was gone (for 5 days) me and the babies had to deal with colds and I got very minimal sleep, and when I did sleep my bed tried to swallow me (the air chamber in the mattress was slowly leaking... I felt like I was in a sinkhole). It just seemed like nothing could go right. I hate that feeling.
But I do love that as soon as he was home everything just seemed right. The babies were grinning from ear to ear (so was I). We took a quick stop by the pool, they were closed for a swim meet but we convinced them to let us swim for a minute and then we grabbed a fresh strawberry slushy from the fruit stand by the pool. Later we went out on a family date for some delicious pasta then returned home to put the kids to bed and have a snuggly night.

Oliver missed his daddy especially much during this trip. He cried for him every night. Poor babe

I am so grateful for my husband. He is such an amazing man. He does so much for us and so willingly. I am glad he got a vacation because he deserved it... but I like it much better when he is home, and so does he.

Memorial Weekend

How was your long weekend? Ours was full of time spent with family and friends. We spent Saturday just the four of us at child's learning center, Discovery Place, we have passes and it is always a fun place to go spend the afternoon when we've got nothing else going on. 

Sunday was loads of fun too. I spent the morning baking cupcakes - and then took them to a birthday party at the park in the evening. It was a typical North Carolina summer evening - hot and humid. But we had a great time celebrating a sweet friend.

Monday we decided that it was the perfect day to swim at the pool. It was SO HOT. I mean, like 98 degrees hot. We loaded up with some of our good friends and headed to the pool at my parents place. It was fantastic fun. We spent 5 hours there and Oliver was not ready to leave but we tempted him with the idea of grilled hot dogs for dinner. 

I let the boys take the kiddos home and me and my girlfriend, Heather, went to the store for our dinner supplies. 

We gorged on hot dogs with veggie chili, roasted corn, grilled baby zucchini,  a hearty radish spinach basil salad (fresh from my garden!) nectarines, chips, and a few ice cold beers for the men. We ended the night with a movie (on out new tv). It was the best long weekend we've had in a long time. So much fun!

Now I'm prepping to spend a long 5 days as a single mama while my hubby heads down to the beach to fulfill his duties as a groomsmen. I'm super bummed that I cannot go down to the wedding, but I'm trying to fill up our week/weekend with lots of fun stuff so that we pass the time fast.... and as long as I can get rid of this horrible head cold that I came down with on Monday night then we should be just fine! 

I hope you had a fantastic weekend too! (I didn't pull out my camera all weekend, I can't believe that I have no pictures to show for such a great time!) 

xoxo!!