1. it’s almost been a month since I posted anything?!

2. we’ve decided we never need to ever leave our back yard again. swim, swing, swim, eat, swim, play in the dirt, and so forth. that’s been our days lately. it’s been rough 😉

3. lyla has potty trained herself.

4. it’s the most amazing thing EVER, and I am soooooooooo proud of her. minus a few accidents during the night (she sneakily removes her diaper after we tuck her in) she has this whole potty thing figured out.

5. her little tooshie in big girl unders is the cutest thing I have ever seen.

6. having big siblings to copy is the most amazing thing ever, and I fully believe that’s why she was so determined to figure it out.

7. having big siblings to copy is the most annoying thing ever. this girl has more sass than any 26 month old on the face of the earth.

8. Lyla better like the pool this year. Last year she did not, and it was very inconvenient.

9. one of my best friends is due to have her baby boy while we’re out of town. i’m praying he comes a few days early, and i’m prepared to help induce labor anyway I can. spicy food? foot massage? a jump on the trampoline?

10. is it the year of baby boys or what? everyone I know is having baby boys and I want to steal each and every one of them.

11. brian’s sister is moving approximately 6 houses away. you have no idea how happy this makes me. seriously, what could be more amazing than having your sister/cousins right down the street?!!!

12. lyla said farewell to her binkies this month. and guess what, it wasn’t the end of the world. we should have done it a LONG time ago, but I imagined one giant week long tantrum. that girl surprised us again.

13. I don’t like to think about kindergarten being around the corner. so I wont.

14. Adalaide never wants her hair pulled back. “noooooooooo! I want long hair. see like this”, she wails. she pulls out every pony tail or clip, and it makes me want to pull my hair out.

15. Lyla only wants to wear pants. “I NO LIKE SHORTS!” she yells and throws the clothing on the floor. I refuse to put her in pants in this heat, so she went to target in a tank top and unders today.

16. our last trip to the grocery store was a nightmare (two different strangers tried to console me, it was that bad). today, I gave the girls a lolly pop while we shopped and I didn’t hear a peep. I did, however, find sticky red stuff all over our purchases, but this is a trade off i’m willing to make.

17. I just started instgram. are you on it? let’s be friends.

18. brian is going to be working on building our sheds/man patio this summer. what is a man patio you ask? well, it involves cushioned chairs, our fire pit, a tv (not happening) and a George Foreman grill that drops down from the shed wall on piano hinges. for cooking bacon, obviously. i can’t even type this without laughing.

19. the man patio is not to be confused with our “dining patio”, which brian recently finished. we debated between a couple different options, and finally decided on using pavers in a herringbone pattern. it is awesome.

20. finley just sprayed herself in the face with the hose. i better go take her a towel. after i’m done laughing.

pretty tomatoes from costco made me really happy

won’t eat them, but counting them sure is fun.

sister love

more sister love

my favorites

waiting for the herb pot

always dancing

got to have my besties kids for a few days. so fun to have a boy in the house!

playing ‘bride’

there is a baby boy under there somewhere. it was really exciting when he woke up.

not sure what this is, but it sure was cute.

mother’s day is a day in which i feel very thankful. thankful for my moms, who i love/appreciate/admire beyond words. and thankful also for the gift of being a mama. all i ever wanted to do was be a mom, and now that i am one i still think it’s the best gig out there.

i know mother’s day isn’t a joyous day for everyone, so i want to give a shout out to all the mom’s who fall somewhere within the wide continuum of mothering (taken from this article).

To those who gave birth this year to their first child—we celebrate with you

To those who lost a child this year – we mourn with you

To those who are in the trenches with little ones every day and wear the badge of food stains – we appreciate you

To those who experienced loss through miscarriage, failed adoptions, or running away—we mourn with you

To those who walk the hard path of infertility, fraught with pokes, prods, tears, and disappointment – we walk with you. Forgive us when we say foolish things. We don’t mean to make this harder than it is.

To those who are foster moms, mentor moms, and spiritual moms – we need you

To those who have warm and close relationships with your children – we celebrate with you

To those who have disappointment, heart ache, and distance with your children – we sit with you

To those who lost their mothers this year – we grieve with you

To those who experienced abuse at the hands of your own mother – we acknowledge your experience

To those who lived through driving tests, medical tests, and the overall testing of motherhood – we are better for having you in our midst

To those who are single and long to be married and mothering your own children – we mourn that life has not turned out the way you longed for it to be

To those who step-parent – we walk with you on these complex paths

To those who envisioned lavishing love on grandchildren -yet that dream is not to be, we grieve with you

To those who will have emptier nests in the upcoming year – we grieve and rejoice with you

To those who placed children up for adoption — we commend you for your selflessness and remember how you hold that child in your heart

And to those who are pregnant with new life, both expected and surprising –we anticipate with you

This Mother’s Day, we walk with you. Mothering is not for the faint of heart and we have real warriors in our midst. We remember you.

i have such fond memories of visiting the botanical gardens by our old house with finley when she was little. so it was really fun to spend a sunny morning at the botanical gardens in bellevue. i never, ever take photos of nature stuff, cause it’s just not my thing. but i couldn’t help myself-such amazing flowers and plants.

when all 3 naps don’t coordinate.