Friday, November 22, 2013

one... two... THREE

Miles turns 3 today! He's a total 3 year old. He's definitely out of the toddler stage and well into being a little boy. I tried to show him videos of himself as a 1 day old baby and he kept referring to himself as "he" and "the baby." So, besides him not understanding the concept of time yet, he's super into how old he is and a birthday with cake, ice cream, and presents. You can read his full birth story here is that tickles your fancy.

-3 days old-

Oh, Miles. There's so much to say about him and his three years of life. I can say it's gone so fast, he's such a bright boy, he's got a fantastic sense of humor, and I love him with my whole being, and it'd all be true but  he's so much more than that.


-1st birthday-

There is so much more to all of that. All you parents know what I'm talking about. The day-to-day life has so many bits and pieces that when you add them up and look at the bigger picture you can see how things work out, the growth, the real struggles, and the real accomplishments. I learned so much in the past three years than I could have ever imagined I would just three years and one day ago. And it's all because of him.


-2 years old-

Thank you God for entrusting us with our sweet, energetic Miles. Thank you Miles for helping us grow as parents every. single. day.


-three!-

We love you so much Miles. Happy birthday!

Monday, November 18, 2013

Crafty Town

I took a little trip via Martha Stuart Highway to Craft Town this weekend. My Pinterest inspiration peaked and I couldn't contain the hot glue gun and paint. I guess it started when we took a quick trip to Lowe's to pick up a surge protector for the treadmill (Patrick was doing more worth while things this weekend like fixing treadmills and cheering for the Packers).

I ALWAYS walk by the paint clearance section when I got to Lowes. They have gallon cans of paint for $5. It's usually ugly colors, matte colors, or stain. This time was different. I found a really beautiful brown, the kind of brown that if you add white to it it'll go to a lighter warm grey color-- I only know this because I did it. So, I slathered on some color as an accent wall in the powder room and stood back... oh no, does this look like someone smeared poop on the bathroom wall? And then it dried. And I breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe it was the paint fumes in a small space (why didn't I have the fan on?) but after a while I liked it. Like, a lot. What else can I paint....



And guess what? I really did add some white to the brown and painted the wall behind the bench and am completely in love with the color. The downside is that once the paint is gone that's it. It's technically a custom color made by yours truly so good luck to future-me when I need to do touch up work.

No joke, that's the same brown with a ton of white added in.
I made that pillowcase for the pillow and that wreath too.



I tore up some old books to create some Pinterest wreaths that I'm sure everyone has in their house by now if they have a craft board on that website. But hey, it adds cheap, and stinking cute, decor to our rather bare walls. Adding a little color is a truly amazing transformation. The hallway and bathroom feel much cozier. And a couple more things on the wall make the house feel that more homey.


The boys weren't too excited about the crafting and let me know by coloring on the couch and pooping in 5 pairs of underwear, but dang it, our house looks awesome! Just kidding, kind of. We did give the boys attention. Patrick wrestled with them a lot and I played with them and the Duplo blocks and made a farm and a pretty sweet garage for their cars. We threw some food their way a few times too. Come on, I couldn't ignore them all day for crafts. They need attention too and for all of us to feel good we need interaction with one another.


The culprit


We were all blessed with patience this weekend especially after those accidents. I've noticed for every minute of "selfish time" I take I must give them the same amount of time to Miles and Grant through playing. Sometimes it's not equal and they tend to be more patient with me than I am of them. Sometimes half the day is doing chores and running errands and as a 3 year old (this Friday!) it can't be very fun to be strapped in a cart at Winco or watch me fold clothes. But these are moments and tasks to be learned from. Everything comes in due time. Fun is greater after some hard work and chores are accomplished. Sometimes fun is spontaneous and sometimes it must come after a period of waiting. It's just like Advent and Christmas. We must wait and prepare during Advent as we await for Jesus and all the fun and excitement on Christmas.

I'm excited to start learning more and teach the boys about Advent. It's so easy for children to grasp Christmas but Advent seems to end up as a moment at church where a candle is lit on the wreath. That's how I remembered it as a child, and even now at times. It is so much more than that and as I read The Year and Our Children I'll test out some crafts and decorate the house with the boys. A house feels so much cozier with little ones' artwork and crafts displayed everywhere. Everyone gets to add their touch and what a transformation it is!

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Baking Machine

Miles always wants to help me bake. If it's not obvious that I'm making dinner he asks if I'm making brownies. I must make brownies more than I think. This morning I humored him and let him help. Thanks to some recipe inspiration from Auntie Cheri we made Banana Oatmeal Muffins. They're really good!! It's just like making banana bread but you throw in some oatmeal too. I only had the quick oats and it still worked out great.



No mess, too! The boys played "together" while the muffins baked. Look at Grant's serious face!


And when they were done cooling? Bums were in chairs at the table faster than it takes a room to be tornado'd with toys.

























And a little icing for the muffins: From the Mouth of Miles

Miles has been super into potty talk all of the sudden. He thinks adding the word "poop" after any other word is hilarious. For example, while in a tickle/wrestle match he called me ice poop, pickle poop, and said "lick my poop." He also thinks it's really funny to just call me a pickle. 

I have no idea where he gets this. Although I tell him to cool it down a bit on the potty talk, I actually kind of like it because I get to see more of his personality. I'm discovering his type of humor is like mine. I showed him funny cat videos yesterday and he was dying laughing. And that makes me very excited to get to share in the goofy type of humor that makes watching cats do dumb things really funny.