The Stud

Two years ago today, my doctor looked at me and said, "Your uterus looks tired." Really, doc? I assumed after birthing 27 pounds of babies in a four year time period my insides would look brand spanking new. Reckon not.

The stud is 2 today. I am so in love with him.

He is as tiny as a mouse and strong as an ox at the same time. He doesn't talk but he's crazy loud.

He's so handsome it's almost not fair. His blonde curls, big blue eyes, and deep dimples make me be not a very strict mommy.

He loves to run in circles, kick and throw balls, and climb things like monkey bars and closets. Yesterday, he successfully climbed 7 feet to retrieve our hidden cookie stash, licked each and every cookie, then ran to me to tell on himself.

He is an outdoorsman, a comedian, a snuggler, and a best friend to his big brother.

He loves his thumb, string cheese, markers, carpet cleaner, rubber bands, fine china, and fingernail polish. He's also a huge fan of opening refrigerator doors, slamming drawers, and running bath water.

I love his smile. I love his laugh. I love the way he calls Daddy "daaaeeeyy" and the way he calls me "daaaeeeyy". Hmmm. I also love that speech therapy will begin soon.

Connor Man,

You are ridiculous. You make me laugh all day. You are the perfect finale to our little family. Thank you for staying small so I can still pretend you're a baby. Very considerate of you, little buddy. I love that you look like Daddy spit you out. You are even left-handed just like him! You exhaust me. In a good way. God gave us you and that was really smart of Him. You are remarkably and wonderfully made. I can't wait to see what year three has to hold.

I love you loads and loads.

Mommy

Happy Friday!

from my first grader.

The letter I gave Landon's teacher today...

Dear Miss Werntz,

Today is the day! You have worked hard all summer to prepare for your new class of learners for the year. And it’s finally here.

For some children, yours will be the first hug they’ve received in weeks. Yours will be the only smile they get all day. You will be the sole book reader. The only constant in their ever-changing, unpredictable little life.

For others, you will be a continuation of the loving they have received their entire life. Your hug will be there when their parents long to be. Your books will love on them when they are missing their favorite books from home.

For my child, your hug will be what welcomes him into a new learning opportunity. Your read alouds will nurture his heart. Your smile will comfort him. And your laughter will remind him that he is a funny little treasure. When he feels self-conscious about his glasses, your comforting words will remind him that he is super cool. J

Please know that I am praying for you and your new little family today. Praying that you will love on one another, grow together, and experience true community. Praying that my little man will make a difference in this world alongside his classmates.

Thank you for committing yourself to the hardest job in the world. It’s going to be a great year!

Sincerely,

Christy Trevett

Cleaning Games

I recently learned that not everyone plays games while they clean. Weird. I have to play games or I'll be not full of joy. Here are some of my faves. I made them up and named them all by myself. I know that will shock you when you read the intense rules and creative titles.

Game #1- Seven Minutes

The Rules: Set your kitchen timer for 7 minutes. Clean/organize one room until the timer beeps. Then set your timer again and move to a different room. Do this over and over again, repeating rooms if necessary, until you're tired or until your one-year-old points to his diaper and says "eh" and you almost pass out from the smell. Why 7 minutes? Because that was my volleyball number in high school, of course. Duh.

Game #2- Five-Five-Five

The Rules: Starting in a room of your choice, pick up/clean/organize/throw away 5 things. Then go to a different room and do the same thing. Over and over again until you're tired or until a neighbor rings the doorbell and asks you to spend a billion dollars on a candy bar for his lacrosse team.

Game #3- Category Clean

The Rules: Say a category out loud in a fun voice and go pick up everything that belongs in that category. For example, yell "Clothes!!!!!" and put away all the clothes in your house that are currently in the wrong spot. Other possible categories are "Toys!" or "Books!" or "Half-empty Coffee Cups!"

Game #4- Color Clean

The Rules: Put away everything that's black. Now put away everything's that's brown. Now put away everything that's white. Now put away everything that's pink. Catching on? It's a very intellectual game. Most of my games are.

Happy Cleaning/Organizing/Straightening!

What games do you play?

Baptism

Our handsome six-year-old was baptized on July 31st. He told Pastor Mike, "I want to do Jesus things."

Happy Friday!

Happy Friday!

Happy Birthday to me.

I can't stop laughing. I'm officially the world's worst photographer. I didn't take any pictures on my birthday so I was trying to take a picture of myself this morning giving a thumbs up to how awesome my birthday was but I couldn't angle the camera to show any of my face. How do people do that? I tried everything. Also, I've never noticed how crooked my lamp shades are.
I'm 32. My birthday started off with waking up to a card on my pillow from my precious husband complete with a receipt for a Cricut. (That's a machine that cuts out letters and shapes in all different sizes. I'm going to use it to scrapbook but I think seamstresses use it to cut stuff out of fabric.) Michael's didn't have any stock but I'm expecting a phone call any day now so I can bring in my raincheck and exchange it for the real thing!

My birthday morning continued with fresh baked cookies from Kari, a sweet note from Susan, an adorable shirt from Bethany, lunch with Stacey, and some more yummy cookies! During lunch, Nathan called and told me to go home, put the kids down for naps, take a quick nap myself, then be dressed and ready at 3pm. At 3pm, he walked in the door (really early from work) and gave me that beautiful necklace. All 3 kiddos names in order. I am in love with it. Then, he gave me MapQuest directions on a piece of paper and told me to hit the road while he stayed home with the kids.

I followed the directions and landed at Elante Day Spa. He had scheduled an appointment for me to have an hour long massage! Ridiculous. I told the girl, "It's my birthday. I want peace and quiet." She didn't speak to me the entire hour except to whisper "roll over" and "you're done." It was awesome.

Next, Nathan called and told me to go shopping. So I shopped. By myself. Bliss. He called back a while later and told me to meet him at Miyabi at 6pm. My favorite. When I got there, he was there along with my parents and grandparents! They had surprised me and driven from Spartanburg! Nathan had dropped the kiddos off my at his parents' house so we could enjoy complete sentences with one another. I also danced a ton while the guy with the drum played really loud.

My parents gave me clothes and a new bracelet with special charms. My in-laws celebrated my birthday with me the following weekend with delicious spaghetti and money to go shopping!

Definitely a super fun birthday.
These are my herbs Heather gave me for my birthday. Rosemary, basil, and oregano. Still alive! Hooray for me!