My girls

I thought it would be fun to do a post all about my girls since all I really write about is them, haha!

Growing up I was like every other little girl...gonna get married, buy a house and have babies.  I originally wanted 4 until I asked my aunt where her baby came out of, and then I was all for being childless.  When I finally overcame the phobia that babies come out of your va-jayjay (sorry dad), I knew I wanted girls.  No offense to the boys out there.  I just knew that I was meant to be a girl mom.

When Brad and I got married, we discussed how many kids we wanted and it was always 2 or 3.  He comes from a family of 5 and there were only 2 in mine.  I wanted a big family!  Once I got pregnant with Rachel, I was fine with just having 1.  I was SO sick.  I lost 12 pounds in the first trimester.

I convinced myself with all three pregnancies that I was having boys.  I even bought a couple boy things just to prepare myself, it was pathetic, really.  I couldn't even believe it when they said, "It's a girl!!" x3!  I couldn't be more overjoyed to be a girl mom.  Most days I look straight up to heaven and ask what kind of hell he put me in, but I truly wouldn't want it any other way!

Rachel is our firstborn.  She will be 15 in a few weeks.  This girl is the epitome of a first born.  Leader, bossy, organized, bossy, outgoing, and bossy.  And for the record, if she ever sees this picture on here, she will be plotting my slow and painful death.  However, when you proceed to take 50 selfies on your mothers phone, it's game on sista.

She is in her freshmen year of high school and is doing awesome.  She has enjoyed playing volleyball and is quite the player!  We have so enjoyed watching her play, although she can slow down on the injuries list.  Sheesh.  I might need to take AFLAC out just on her.  

She has an awesome group of friends and she LOVES to talk.  Oh my word, if I had to give you one word to describe her, it would be chatty!  I love that she loves to talk, but man, some days when all three of them get talking I look like this:

Except I'd be in the bathtub with a sign on the LOCKED door that says DO NOT DISTURB!

You can imagine what a house full of girls is like...lots of drama.  I know these next four years are going to fly by, so I am reeeeaaalllyy trying to soak it all in and not sweat the small stuff.  Except when the small stuff happens over and over and over and...

Rachel loves babies, her phone and Grey's Anatomy.  And shopping.  Seriously, who's kid is this?  I can't imagine I created such a shopping monster...

Emma Jo is our middle child.  She is 12 going on 45.  It's crazy.  Some days I think she's hitting menopause, those mood swings?  It's like split personalities.  No joke.

Emma is our sensitive, crafty, theatrically musically inclined book worm.  She loves all things Pinterest that she can craft up, has taught herself to play the piano and has always been into fashion. Since she was two, she was always coming up with different outfits to wear.

Emma also has a great group of girls that she hangs with and thankfully none of them like drama.  We are so lucky that all the girls have such great friends!

Emma is the quietest of the three, but I wouldn't really say she's quiet, maybe more laid back.  Sometimes.  Just don't accuse her of leaving hair strands in the bathroom, cuz shit gets real then.

She is my book lover (yes I created this one!!) and I love seeing her excitement over getting a new book.  She is a little more sensitive than the other two and is much more of a thinker.  She loves hanging out with her family and is really becoming quite the awesome babysitter!

And that leaves us with Mousey, number three.  It's funny because we were done at 2, and then we went on vacation and boom!  Along came Alayna.  Alayna is our clown.  The things this kid comes up with is HYSTERICAL!   She's not one to really show her emotions, if she sees that we are sad, the comedian in her comes out full force.

Alayna LOVES school, I'm not sure she has grasped the part where you are actually there for  learning, but she certainly gets an A+ for socializing!  She loves playing legos and usually comes home from school and goes right to the playroom to play!  She just started volleyball this year and even though she is such a peanut, she is really quite good!

It amazes me every.single.day how different these three are!  I love the interactions they have with each other (the good, bad and ugly).  And just so you know, this is a one in a million picture.  They currently hate each other again.  It's fun peeps, super fun.

Linking up with: Andrea

Our Life Lately

It appears that our "life lately" is all I have to talk about, haha!  I really do miss the random food or exercise posts that I used to do ( a looooooong time ago...) but this is about all I have time for.

So, of course, linking up with Erika and adding in another...September Farm! Although this week I am going with the "What's Up Wednesday" theme!

What We're Eating This Week:

I made Kristin's Vegetable Beef Soup on Tuesday, and I was amazing!  I swapped our quinoa for the rice and added sweet potato instead of white.  The girls loved it!

What I'm Reminiscing About:

It's been 6 years since we went to Mexico and I just want to go back!

And what makes it worse is that this lil scheister just got back from Mexico with her bestie!  She had the BEST time and we were so thankful they took her with.

What I'm Loving:

This is my new favorite mocktail...Kevita Mango and Coconut with Peach-Pear LaCroix and fresh lemons and limes.  It is SO SO yummy and refreshing and very good for you since the Kevita is a probiotic drink.  Win win!!

What We've Been Up To:

Rachel had her President's Festival tournament this past weekend but unfortunately couldn't play as she fractured her finger a few weeks ago.  The girls didn't play the best, but they still had fun!  One of the vball moms did the saran wrap game where you wrap up little gifts and then the girls shake dice and when you get doubles you unwrap the ball until someone else gets doubles.  So fun, and so LOUD!

What I'm Dreading:

Absolutely nothing!

What I'm Working On:

I want to try my hand at making some homemade soap.  I recently discovered this blog and seriously cannot wait to try making the vanilla latte exfoliating soap!

What I'm Excited About:

I am having supper with an old friend next Tuesday and I cannot wait!  It's been over 2 years since I have seen her, yikes...

What I'm Watching/Reading:

Seriously, LOVE this show!  I am almost done with Season 2 and I am already sad that the end is in sight...

As far as reading, not a whole lot since I watch this whenever I workout or have spare time with no children around...

What I'm Listening Too:

I love, love, love Pandora.  At work I listen to Alison Krause and Union Station and Nickel Creek stations, and at home I usually listen to the French Cooking station, I love it!

What I'm Wearing:

Skinny jeans that are pretty baggy on me, whoop whoop!  Time to buy some new ones, haha...

What I'm Doing This Weekend:

Rachel and I have to work concessions Saturday morning at the volleyball tournament and then Sunday we have a bridal shower.  But that's all!

What I'm Looking Forward to Next Month:

Well it's actually April, but I have a girls weekend planned and I cannot wait!

What Else is New:

Not a whole lot, which is ok.  However, I will leave you with a shot of this cutie patootie...

Friday Favorites

Time for another Friday Favorites!

It's been a busy week, but this weekend is going to be super chill and I cannot wait!

Last weekend Rachel had a tournament in Pierz, and the girls played pretty well!  They ended up placing 5th overall (out of 15 teams).  Way better than the previous weekend where they came in dead last.  That's our number 16!

Unfortunately Rach will be out for a few weeks as she fractured her finger at this tournament.  I feel so bad for her as she will be missing the biggest 2 day tournament of the season.  Such a bummer.

I really enjoy watching her play.  She is only 14 and is playing on a 17's team.  I know I am biased and I'm not a bragger, but she is one of the best one's on the team!  We are so proud of how far she has come.

I am also proud of how well this kid eats!  We always pack our meals to bring to the tournaments and she is such a healthy eater.  I make a big batch of homemade granola bars which I cut and wrap in plastic wrap, they are so easy and so yummy.  She makes sure that she has plenty of fruit and veggie's to go with whatever she is having.  Makes me proud to see the choices she is making.

Tomorrow morning my sweet Emma Jo leaves for Mexico.  Ugh.  She is going with close family friends of ours and even though I am really excited for her, I will be so glad when she is back!  And I'm pretty sure I am making margaritas for myself in honor of her, just sayin... her and I going to get pedicures tonight, nice bonding time before she leaves.

This morning we celebrated Valentine's Day early since Emma will be gone.  I got them each a couple little things and then made heart shaped pink pancakes for breakfast.  Tonight I will make a big supper and then we'll have lava cakes for dessert.  Emma and I will devour them and Alayna and Rachel and Brad will eat like 2 bites and be done.  "too much chocolate" they say. Whatevs.   

I hope to get a lot of stuff done this weekend...I am on season 2 of Orange is the New Black and am slightly obsessed.  Hopefully I don't get suckered into watching a whole season....

Friday Favorites: Life Lately

Linking up with Erica for another addition of Friday Favorites!

January has been an awesome month!  We literally had every.single.weekend open!  I seriously don't thing this has happened for a few years.  Not kidding.  We spent every weekend at home just hanging out and I loved it.  This was me pretty much all weekend, haha!  And being that we are on this diet which means no alcohol, we were typically in bed by 10 and up at 5 to watch a movie.  I really enjoyed that!

Speaking of the Fast Metabolism Diet, Brad and I are on our last few days and I'm happy to say that I am down 7 pounds and Brad is down 14.  I feel great and plan on continuing with my healthy eating.

We have been super busy during the week... Mondays Alayna has dance and Rachel has volleyball, Tuesdays Emma has piano, Wednesdays Rachel has volleyball and Thursdays Alayna has volleyball.  Whew!  No wonder I have enjoyed our quiet weekends!

Speaking of volleyball, mousey is LOVING it!  And besides the fact that she is so tiny could perfectly fit in a volleyball bag, that girl can serve!!  

Oh, and Rachel was practicing setting with a head of lettuce...never a dull moment in this house I tell ya!

Last weekend my sister and nephew came down to spend the weekend, and ohhhhhh how we loved snuggling him!!  He is 4 months old and such a sweet babe.

Pure love!

Jasmine (our chocolate lab) has been up to her usual shenanigans...

And let me tell you the bodily functions she left behind almost got her kicked out of the house, ugh.

Tonight we are heading uptown for a fundraiser.  Brian Klinefelter was a St. Joe cop who was shot and killed 20 years ago today.  He was a very good friend of Brad's brother and I will never ever forget that night.  It will be so fun to see everyone and hang out.

Sunday Rachel has her first tournament, and I am so ready to get back into watching volleyball!

Happy Friday!

Friday Favorites

Happy January and HAPPY FRIDAY!!!

Linking up for the first time in 2016 with Andrea.

This has been a bit of a crazy week, just getting back into the groove of things after the holidays isn't so fun.

1.

First off, Brad and I decided to jump on the weight loss bandwagon this year.  Insert eye roll...haha.  I know it's so cliche, but we were in need of some serious detoxing.  Brad's sister and her husband have been doing the Fast Metabolism Diet and have had amazing results.  

I bought the book last week and got to meal planning and prepping over the weekend.

The basic premises is that there are 3 phases each week.  The first phase you eat high glycemic, moderate protein, lowfat.  Phase 2 is high protein, high veggie, low carb and low fat.  Phase 3 is high healthy fats, moderate carbs, lowfat.  

The first couple days before starting was the worst, lol!  It was just trying to figure out how you are going to eat, once everything was planned, it was pretty easy.  The hardest part was the no caffeine, sugar or alcohol.  Ugh.  It's 28 days, not the end of the world.

Today is day 5 for me and I have lost 4 pounds.  I don't have much to lose, it was more for me to get back on my healthy eating and cutting back the sugar and alcohol.  The holidays kill me with that!  I feel REALLY good, lots of energy, sleep well and just overall feel amazing!

Brad is doing it too and I'm so proud with how he's stuck to the plan with being out of town a couple days.  Now I will say that we aren't following it to a T, we've made a few modifications.  You eat ALL THE TIME, and I never feel hungry.  The worst part is just all the prep work, which thankfully I'm used to doing already, just a bit more.  

The girls have enjoyed the recipes too which has been nice!

2.

Since we can't have alcohol, I've been drinking a lot of this at night, gives me something to look forward to, and I love tea!  Right now I am drinking Pau D' Arco which is supposed to be a cleansing tea.

3.

I am also drinking lots of this, kombucha.  Kombucha is a probiotic drink that is so, so good for your gut.  It's low in calories and is fizzy, like pop which I love.  Getting over Diet Coke may just kill me....lol.

4.

I am very much looking forward to having a quiet weekend.  Unfortunately the sickies have hit our house and Emma and Alayna both have strep throat.  Ugh.  So this weekend is all about laying low and hanging out.  We've been running all week so that is definitely a favorite!

5.

Rachel started volleyball this week (and Alayna was supposed to start last night but had a 103 temp:() and I seriously cannot wait for tournaments to start!  Some of our funnest weekends are tourney weekends!

So there's a bit of what's going on in our house this first week in January!!

Happy Friday!

Christmas 2015

Another amazing Christmas is down in the books, and I'm not gonna lie, this momma is TIIIIRED!!

I love every part of Christmas, but it's so funny how as soon as it's over, you wanna sleep for about 480 hours straight....

Christmas Eve is always spent with Brad's family, the last couple years it's been at his sister's house which is so nice!  We go over there around 2 and everyone brings appetizers and you just snack all day long.  I love this picture of Grandma and Grandpa with all of the grandkids and great grandkids!

We stayed until about 6:30 and then headed home (the long 2 minute drive!) to do our celebrating.

We of course had to do a family selfie!

We open presents, snack a bit and then watch Christmas Vacation for the last time, it's always a sad moment when it's the last viewing...One of the funniest moments was when Brad pulled out his backpack that he got from his work and Emma said, "well of all the cheap ways to make a buck..." and we all dies.  If you haven't seen Christmas Vacation, you won't get it, so funny! 

After the movie the girls head to bed.  They always sleep in Rachel's room and watch a movie, and Brad and I get everything ready for Christmas morning.  Typically I make cinnamon rolls, but this year I ordered caramel rolls from our local diner and had Brad pick them up Christmas Eve.  They were unbaked and ready to rise, I wish I had a picture of how huge they were!

The girls actually slept in for the first time ever, and we woke them up around 7.  Everyone was thrilled with what Santa brought and it was a nice relaxing morning.

I love this picture because these two argue more than love...

We went to church at 9:30 and then to the farm for the day.  It was SO relaxing and we enjoyed lots of yummy eats and card playing.

Saturday we woke up to a snow storm which was wonderful and we had no plans which was even better!  We of course got some snow boarding and snowman making in.

Saturday night Rachel and I decided to make a big fancy meal, Beef Bourguignon.  I loved having her be my sous chef, and the meal was outstanding!

Definitely something we will make again! 

Sunday brought Christmas with my mom, her husband and my Step brother and brothers families.  It was a ton of fun!  We (ok they) played charades, and Tenzies and we ate lots of yummy food.  It was so nice to have all of us together again!  It was the perfect ending to a busy week.

I have so much to be thankful for, just last year things felt hopeless and many times I asked, "why us?"  The last few months have brought so much happiness to my family and I am just so thankful to God for answering prayers.  It was a lesson in patience for me.

I hope each of you has an amazing New Years Eve and I pray that 2016 brings you much happiness and joy!!!

Merry Christmas Eve Eve!!

I cannot believe that Christmas Eve is tomorrow!  The girls are off on Christmas break now, so I have a long list of FUN stuff for them to do...Just kidding, they will be cleaning, doing laundry and wrapping my presents, haha!  Ahh the benefits of having older children...

It has been insanely busy around here.  Rachel has had drivers ed 3 nights a week from 6-9 which means that Brad and I do rock paper scissors to see who has to pick her up.  8:30 is my typical bedtime, just sayin...

So here's a hodgepodge of what we've been up to...

Emma had an orchestra concert last Thursday, they did so well, love listening to them!

There has been lots of movie watching by the fire...

And this crazy cat who stared up into the tree for about a half hour.  (never mind the empty chip dip can, mmkay?)

I was convinced a squirrel was going to pop out, like in Christmas Vacation.

We made a gingerbread house, and so far Jasmine (the dog) has only nibbled a tiny little corner!  It's a Christmas miracle...

Sunday we made Christmas cookies...Grandma Omi's molasses cookies, cutouts and twix cookies.

Sunday afternoon Emma had a little Christmas piano recital at her teachers house.  I was SO proud of her, she has learned so much since starting this summer!

Sunday night we drove around and looked at Christmas lights.  This was probably my favorite part of Christmas this year.  We made hot chocolate, got in our jammies and drove around town while watching "Christmas Vacation".  I think it's almost funnier listening to it than watching it, haha!

We also finished up our gifts.  Emma made a "snow survival kit" for her secret santa, Alayna made a reindeer ornament and they made some candy and cookie jars for bus drivers.

I will say that I feel like we didn't "do" as much as we typically do (crafts and such), but we were together the whole time and got lots of movie/fun time in!

I pray that each of you has a most magical Christmas and are able to spend it with the ones you love.

Merry Christmas!