Project 365 {2013} - Day 307

Maryn & Brynna playing at the park together this afternoon.

When I was a girl, I wanted a sister so badly. Seeing my girls being each others best friend feels like a piece of that dream realized and makes my heart so full.

Project 365 {2013} - Day 306

Soooo....this big, ol' bowl may or may not have been completely full this morning. I can't really disclose those details. But I can tell you that deciding to go on a sugar detox the week of Halloween is an exceedingly crappy idea. You know, the whole absence makes the heart (or stomach, or brain, or whatever) grow fonder theory...yeah.

Project 365 {2013} - Day 305

Justin has been feeling not well all day and has been laid up in bed. Tonight he stepped out on the deck and snapped this pic. He said the fresh air and view was the best medicine of the day!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 304

After Trunk or Treat last night, I was feeling pretty low-key (a.k.a. tired) tonight. So I let the girls get themselves ready for Trick or Treating. I joked with Justin that the old me would have obsessively spent hours on Halloween hair and make-up, making sure everything was just right. The new me, well she goes with the flow a little bit more and is content to let the kids work their own versions of magic on themselves! ;) We walked to the cul-de-sac, collecting candy along the way, and hung out with our friends around a bonfire for a little while before heading back home just as the rain was starting to blow in. It was delightfully windy and Fall-ish!!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 303

 I started out the day getting Devy ready for her costume parade at Preschool!

 

It was fun getting to take the day off of work to go spend time with her at her Harvest Party and see her and her school buddies on parade!

 We finished the day getting all the girls dolled up for Trunk or Treat! Brynna loves the go-to witch costume. I should go back and do a count of how many years she has chosen to pull this one out of the Halloween bucket! However, this year she wanted to be a creepy witch instead of a nice one and so she painted her face green! Maryn was a girl pirate, but insisted on a moustache. I told her that didn't make any sense, to which she replied "I know Mom, that's what makes it funny!" I love her quirky sense of humor! Lauryn and Devyn were the ladybug twins! They were so darn cute and loved their costumes!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 302

I must be getting old, un-fun and cantankerous. As a kid I remember squishing pumpkin guts between my hands, taking in that smell of a raw, just-opened pumpkin and scraping the inside walls with all my might. But as I have gotten older, admittedly, I am not a fan of carving pumpkins. Luckily for the girls their Daddy is still a good sport! Tonight, my Little Women scooped our pumpkin's guts, Justin carved a spooky cat face, and my contribution...well, I snapped a blurry pic. Hey, maybe I will do better next year! ;)

Project 365 {2013} - Day 301

 Today on the way home from school Lauryn wanted to get out of the van and run home again. I love her eagerness, so I consented. This time though, Devy, not content to stay in the confines of her carseat, begged to run too. So the side door flew open and we turned them loose at the front of the neighborhood and off they went! Maryn hung out the van window, taking pictures of Devy as she raced behind Lauryn, chugging her little legs all the way home! It's these little moments when I just feel I could not love the little lives I have been given to mother any more than I already do!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 300

Every Sunday on the way home from church Lauryn begs me to let her out of the van at the front of the neighborhood so she can run home. I just love that kid!!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 299

 It's me. I'm here.

It's funny how the slightest change can throw you off schedule. I got behind in uploading my Project 365 photos and then somehow just stopped doing it all together. The old me would have said "That's it, I screwed up. I might as well throw in the towel now since I ruined the whole dang thing."

But life is all about screw ups and how you recover from them. So here I am, dusting myself off and getting back in the saddle. I will try to fill in the missing pieces where I can and when I can. But I know on those days I missed taking a picture were days life was spent being lived.

xoxo

Project 365 {2013} - Day 296

I was peeling a banana for Devyn tonight and started chuckling to myself. I will never be able to look at a banana end and not think of my first CrossFit coach, Karen! It cracks me up every time! She said that she grew up always ripping the end off because she was taught that the banana end is where the bugs live.

What the heck?! I had never heard that in my entire life! She used it as an analogy to teach us that no matter how deeply ingrained something is in us, like how bugs live in banana ends, doesn't mean it is true. We may be stronger than we think, even if we have always been told the contrary, either by ourselves or others. I know I should probably see banana ends as some profound lesson, but I really just envision Karen spazzing out about gross bugs! Haha, I love that lady!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 285

We had such a fun in-gym competition this morning between the morning classes and the evening classes! It's amazing the bond that is forged with the people that you sweat with. You see each other at your strongest and see each other at your weakest. You celebrate each others successes and rally through failures. They see the real, totally unfiltered you. And they love you anyways. I am so, so grateful for my gym family. I just love them all so dang much and know if it wasn't for all their love, confidence and support of me, I probably would have bailed a long time ago in my CrossFit journey.

Project 365 {2013} - Day 282

The girl I sit next to at work, Lisa, is Catholic. My friend Mormon friend Tracy Ensign, who knows Lisa, got this rosary at the Vatican and asked me to give it to her. One of the many things I love about living in the South is that there are so many faiths represented here. We recently had a new missionary from Utah bear his testimony in church. He said in Utah there are either Mormons or anti-Mormons and very little else in between. Being mostly raised in the South that was such a new concept for me that I had never really thought about. I love and have a firm belief in my faith and am happy to share with anyone who inquires about it. But I do also love being able to benefit from being surrounded by other wonderful people of all different beliefs that help me to see the world from new perspectives.

Project 365 {2013} - Day 279

We are all missing our families, but are also sad to leave this view and time behind. We sat out on the patio this morning and ate a delicious breakfast Jackie made us. Let me just tell you, that woman can make a feast out of anything! She took all our random leftovers in the fridge and worked some serious magic! I wish I could just have her live at my house!

 We were mostly quiet as we ate, taking it in as we watched a dolphin swim it's way up the coast near the shoreline and watching a little family play in the sand near the waters edge. This weekend has been absolutely rejuvenating. I feel like I will be a better wife and mother when I go home because I took this time for myself. I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to be here this weekend with such a wonderful group of women!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 278

Sarah, Jaime & Laura

Vacation doesn't just mean sitting around eating bonbons! (Although, I have eaten my share of Laura's caramel crack!) I was itching to get a morning beach WOD (workout of the day) in with my sweat sistahs too!! I just love these ladies and am so grateful for their friendship!!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 277

Sara, Jackie, Jaime, Laura & Sarah at Panama City Beach, FL

I love, love, love these ladies!! We have been having so much fun just hanging out, being carefree, talking, eating, relaxing and not worrying about a dang thing! It has been divine!!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 276

Late last night my friends Jackie, Sara, Laura, Jaime and I all arrived in Panama City Beach, Florida for a long Girl's Weekend. Jackie has a family friend with a condo right on the beach and so we all, thanks to our families for covering our behinds while we were gone, sneaked away for some relaxation! My life is so crazy and busy. I rarely feel like I have the chance to slow down. So being here, being still, taking life in, taking care of myself and enjoying views like this are breathing life back in to my weary soul! So grateful!!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 271

Lulu woke up early all on her own this morning because she wanted to make her Momma breakfast in bed! I swear I have the best kids in the world!! I just love that Little Woman!!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 270

Justin, Devy and I had to sneak in a walk and soak up some of this beautiful sunshine before the big girls got home from school. I think Devy liked flying solo with Mom and Dad!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 269

View from our walk tonight! Beautiful!

I got my first regular babysitting job when I was ten. I think it was a good opportunity to start learning independence and responsibility. One of the best parts of Maryn being ten years old now is that Justin and I can leave her in charge of her sisters while we sneak out for an evening walk around the neighborhood. She does such a great job and we are so grateful to her for it!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 266

Since our washing machine broke yesterday the girls have been held hostage with me while we catch up on some laundry this afternoon. In a family of six there is never any shortage of dirty laundry. This explains the excited "We've been stuck at the laundromat for three hours" faces. My life never has a dull moment I tell you, it seems like it's always something! But at least the sun is shining, it could be a lot worse!