My Lunch Date

My days are ordinary. 
Clean up, get kiddos ready, run errands, eat lunch, naptime... you know, the usual.
There's nothing grand or fancy about my life when you look on it from the outside.
But I say- Grand is in the eye of the beholder.
Nothing is grander than spending my days with my babies. 
Bread, apple slices, and yogurt melts... Sounds like a fancy lunch to Luke! haha!

Let's see if I can get a smile outta this boy!

A-ha! There it is! 
He is my JOY! Oh how I love being his Momma!

Baby profile shots steal away my heart... that fuzz head... I can't handle it!

Those baby blues... how did we manage to have blue-eyed babies?
Maggie's used to be this blue... they are a hazy blue/yellow/green now... time will tell what happens to Luke's...

Bright eyed and bushy tailed...

This is how my boy eats... always with those toes up on the tray...

I love you son.
Thanks for the fancy lunch date. 
Let's do it again tomorrow.

Dixie Gets a Bath

That look!!! hahaha!
Momma save me!!! 
And yep, we used baby wash--- the book I read (yes, I read a book! haha!) said it works well.

I know you hate this Dixie, but you STINK!

We love our puppy!

Drying time... Dixie liked this part...

As soon as we let her go, she went a hid under the slide. 
In case you're wondering... Do I still like the dog?
Yes I do! 
She's a good puppy and I'm excited to take a Dog Manners 101 class with her! Should be interesting!
And boy she is getting big fast!!! WOOOooooo!

Pool Days

THE POOL! 
We love love love the pool. And quite frankly, I don't know what we'd do without it.
Hahaha- here is Luke with sunscreen smeared all into his hair and giving that "this is amazing!" expression---

Slides are the best.
Must go to the pool with the nice slide!

Maggie has been deathly afraid to get her head under the water this year.
This is until yesterday. Of course.
She finally did it and must have made us watch her 100 times put her head under the water.
It was priceless! She was so so proud of herself.

Water baby...

Water babies make my heart swoon---

Nothing like sunshiny pool days! 
happiness...

Every year I am totally tempted to take pictures of the kiddos bare naked booties and sweet tan lines! 
They are mighty cute and super impressive.
But I refrain. Not appropiate, I know. But so so so so SO cute!
I think I'll take one just for me. ;)

Cookie Monster!

These may be my favorite pictures of all time. 
Like ever.
Of all time.

Mmmmmm.... Momma this tastes good!!!

Get it my MOUTH!!!!

I don't know which is looks tastier- Luke or the cookie!
Definitely Luke.

Yummy in my tummy...

Here come the money shots---
AHHHHHH!!!! 
{sigh}
swoon...

"Hey buddy, you like that cookie?"

First chocolate chip cookie and Luke is a fan!!!

Sheer and utter cuteness.
Like I said- favorite of all time.

Blessed

I would like to preface my thoughts with these words from Elder Uchtdorf:

One of my greatest strengths happens to also be one of my greatest weaknesses. 
That would be my drive and passion for goals.
I am one of those crazy people who HAS to run a marathon. I must! I want to know what it feels like, I want a slap on the butt and that t-shirt after crossing the finish line. 
Do I need to run a marathon to be considered an awesome human being? Certainly not.
But does it make me happy to work hard and accomplish something on my "awesome" list? Of course. Last question- Does running a marathon "matter most"? It makes me cringe a little, but NO... it does not matter most.

Many of you know that I'm extremely passionate about CrossFit. 
I dream about it, think about it, and do it. Constantly.
It's healthy and it's fun. 
I even went to some training and became a certified CrossFit level 1 Trainer and also completed a CrossFit Kids certification.
Go me. haha
It has brought me so much JOY to do these things and also to share them with my children.
But does it matter most?
No. Not at all.

I'm trying hard to find the words because I think every athlete has to find the "balance" when it comes to personal goals and family.
For me, I've recently learned that I've been sacrificing things that "matter most" with things that just don't. 
This is not to say that I've given up on my goals, but that's it time to reevaluate them. Change them. Schedule better times. Put them into perspective. And simplify them for a season.

These goals of mine will always be there- I've got nothing but time to achieve them. Years and years even!
But there are three little people- little blessings- that change and grow faster than I am able to keep track of! These little blessings move and groove all day long. They are learning left and right. And there are moments where I sit back and just stare at them- unable to understand how big they've become.
Where did the time go?

My Maggie! This look is perfect- the expression suits her personality flawlessly. 
She's beautiful, sweet, quirky, and a handful.
Can you see all that in one photo?
I can. 

"Maggie smile!"
And this is what I get... haha...

Oh, there it is!!! That smile.
That lemonade mustache, ice cream sandwich Maggie smile!
Joy and light fill this picture up! It's beaming from her hair, eyes, cheeks, and mouth!
She's perfect.

This girl is growing up so fast. Kindergarten starts in two weeks.
I'm in mourning but also so very excited for her!
She's ready.

Confidence. She's got it in spades.
She knows she's beautiful. She knows she smart. She knows she a daughter of God.
You can see it in her eyes. And I couldn't be prouder.

Those words from Elder Uchtdorf radiate in this picture! 
They feel so good rolling of my tongue-
"Slow down. Focus on the significant. And truly see what matters most."
I think this pictures grabs that statement! Somewhere between Dixie's nose and Rachel's nose... haha!

I've learned something so simple in these past few weeks and it brings me so much peace!
It's simply that the trials of this life are really blessings in disguise. 
Although trials are no fun, I truly believe that they've protected me and put me back on course.
The course of "things that matter most". 

And if you're wondering where Luke is- he was in bed when I shot these tonight! He "matters most" TOO!!! hahaha! But dang it, he needed to go to bed! :) 

Next stop- The Cabin

After the beach we headed to one of my favorite places on earth- My Grandpa's Cabin. 
We cooked smores... if you'd call it that, more like had a ton of fun burning marshmellows! haha!

Wake up call- 5:30am
Wouldn't have it any other way if it means fishing with Grandpa.
Isn't the lake beautiful at sunrise? 
A little piece of downhome, backwoods, Texas swamp heaven.

I caught a few fish- Grandpa took a picture of this one for me!

Lots and lots of gators! I love how you can see Button's ears in this picture! haha!

And back to the cabin for breakfast... I spy two little girls...

My cute little family! Minus sleeping Luke.
I can't believe how much Dixie has grown. I need to do a Dixie/kiddo photo shoot ASAP!

And a few Instagram pictures... 
One of their favorite things to do! Catch perch and crawdads down in the bar-ditch.

I'm so glad that I caught this picture! Maggie just went over to Grandpa Barrow, got real close, and held his hand. 
I love love love love love this picture.
Sometimes pictures aren't about the clarity, aperature, or landscape... 
sometimes they are simply about the moment.
Thanks for the all the wonderful moments Grandma and Grandpa! 
We can't wait to come again!

Let's drive until we hit the water!

Rachel welcomes you to the...

 BEACH!

We made it!!! The ocean!

Rachel was by far the happiest to be at the beach. She loved every minute, got completely wet, and I had to remind her several times not to go too deep!

Maggie didn't care much for getting wet, but loved exploring the beach. She found rocks, shells, and sticks! hehe

I just love this picture of Dixie. Couldn't tell you why, just do.

Dixie wasn't sure what to think of the water. She followed the waves up and down the beach.

Ummmm, cutest baby on the beach award?! I think yes.

Luke loved braving the waves with Daddy!

JOY!

Look at those cute baby toes! Makes my heart feel full. 

Our trip to the beach was a success!