Where We Are Today

This little blog has turned into such a great scrapbook for my life. When I started "blogging" years ago I really had no idea what I was doing. Let's be honest, I still don't. I've never blogged for "readers" or "followers" ... like to know it and linking to make money has never been my jam. Quality photos are a luxury around here, not a necessity. Formatting, spelling, grammar errors - yep they're all still here. And honestly, I'm a-ok with that. Because the more I blog, and the more I link back to passed memories, the more I am so thankful I'm doing it. For myself, and my family ... I love having both the photo to look at and my interpreation of what and why it took place.

I've been quiet around here the last month or so, because there has been SO much happening so fast. Life is legit a whirlwind and I'm just trying to keep up - one day at a time. I've got posts from Halloween I have yet to hit publish on (and hope to do so before Christmas rolls around), I've got some big updates on the house I'd love to share, I'm hoping to bring everyone up to speed on all things medical soon, and sprinkle in a lot of the in between life stuff too. And I'm so thankful I have this little space to remind me of all the things I have to be thankful for. All of the memories I've shared with everyone I love so dearly. And all of the blessings The Good Lord has bestowed upon my life.

So, while I work to put together some blogs about the past month or so, today I thought I'd check in and do a quick - Where We Are Today - at this time in our life. Beyond the pictures, and beyond the silly stories or the what we did this weekend - but really - where are we, as a family, in our lives. Because if it's a scrapbook, an update of what's happening behind the scenes deserves to be noted too.

Lainey // The littlest of the clan, and arguably the happiest, is all about family, friends and Mickey Mouse. You can find her waking up with the best bed head in the morning - throwing all of her blankets out of the crib with the toddler rail - excitedly squealing for someone to come and get her (or often being way to big of a little girl and walking all the way downstairs herself and crawling into our bed to wake us up), so she can put her paci back in the bowl and start her day. She heads downstairs for snuggles and always requests Mickey be turned on the TV. Within 15 minutes, she's made her way to the kitchen and is demanding breakfast or a snack. And then she plays, or joins along in the routine (preschool on Tuesdays and Thursdays) and everything in between until her 1.5 hour midday nap after lunch. Post nap she's ready for another snack and is back to playing with her babies ... putting them to bed and "changing" their diapers. If a door is open she's running outside, and if there is a pile of dirt she dives right in (literally). You have to watch her around anything that COULD be edible (read the fine print - just because it isn't edible, doesn't mean it CAN'T be) because if it can fit in your mouth Lainey will certainly attempt to eat it. She follows her brother around for a good remainder of the day and keeps the whole family laughing until it's time for bed. Food, fashion (ha!), all the fake makeup sessions and Mickey Mouse keep her going and as long as she's got her family and friends she's pretty content.

Bennett // Ahhh the smart one in the family. This little man is a 40 year old trapped inside a 4 year old's body and he's a force to be reckoned with. This mister starts his day with a mix of needing to be coaxed out of bed with promise of something sweet for breakfast, and/or on his own ready to take on the world if he went to bed early enough the night before. Pending which side of the bed he wakes up on, he's either ready to chat and watch some morning cartoons or you better stay out of his way - there typically is no in between for him. He's off to school Tuesday through Friday - although getting him to share many details about his day can be a bit of a challenge. But, his reports from his teachers/friends/and other mama's let us know he's totally killing it. When his little sister naps he can't wait to get his hands on an iPad for his quiet time and would play it all day if we would let him. He loves to recite movie quotes and has a memory sharp as a tack. On the weekends you can catch him playing midfield on some sports team, and looking for his buddies to wrestle with. He has the best stories, loves to incorporate some form of potty talk (preferably poop) into any conversation and you can always count on him to keep his sister out of harms way. He also told the entire family last week he intended to marry his mommy - so his heartthrob status is currently through the roof. He prefers a smaller circle than his sister, but if you're in it - you are IN IT and that's exactly where we all want to be!

Katie // I'm currently the one multi-tasking my way through life. I'm at that phase where my foot is halfway in one door, while halfway walking out of another. Three days out of the week I'm momming so hard -- the taxi cab to and from school, the meal maker, the boo-boo kisser, the story listerner, and the referree. The other two days I'm juggling between finding much needed "me" time and putting on my working girl hat. Please note however, my mornings ALWAYS begin with my husband making me coffee - and no matter how many years I plan to check-in like this, that will always remain the same - I am still NOT a morning person.  I frequent meetings for various family business things and I'm taking the photography hobby a little more seriously. I drink coffee atleast once a day (most days twice and occasionally three) and enjoy a glass of Pinot Noir on some evenings. I go through weird phases of being completely normal and fine and then sheer panic about my health. My Aunt constantly reassures me, I'm building a lot of character through this journey - so maybe one day I'll figure out what the purpose of that "character" is - but for now I'll continue to take it moment by moment.  My extroverted-self wanting all the friends all the time heart (ahem, my Lainey-ism) is slowly converting to more of a Bennett circle as I'm coming to the point in my life were friendships mean so much more than surface level - and I am so thankful for the friendships and relationships I have that continue to lift me up and bring me true fulfillment.  I'm working hard on my relationship with the Big Man Upstairs and learning that all of those other things I "need", I really don't. Life is slowly falling more into place, the kiddos are getting a little more self-reliant and I'm starting to see glimpses of my pre-mom self shining through :)

Shane // Ahh so much I could say about him from my eyes (all the heart eyes), but this is about him, so I'll move on. Shane is working his tail off in the beer biz. He's all things beer, all the time and he's feeling really fulfilled in his professional life. He's up early and home for dinner (most of the time) and his kiddos absolutely cannot wait to give him the world's biggest hug the moment he walks in the door. He's healthy and fulfilled, but life has been hard on him the last couple of  years. All of those closest to him have walked some pretty serious trials and tribulations, and he's had to remain super strong for everyone else. He's a walking Jana Kramer song lyric of being a boy and becoming a man - and while that sounds super cliche it's also super true. He's gone from a hot-headed boy to a cool and steady handed man, and it suits him really well. He's got most of it all together ... but if you ask him to pack the kiddos a lunch you might have a melt down on your hands. When he's not hustling beer, he's being super dad and giving the best advice about "being tough" while coaching Mr. B in flag football, or getting even further wrapped around Lainey's finger. You can find him playing the tripping game most nights with the kiddos in the basement and he's the fearless nightly leader of bath and bedtime. If there's one thing he knows better than beer, it's the written text from cover to cover of "Goodnight Moon, Where the Wild Things Are, and The Kissing Hand". He's the world's biggest optimist with lofty business dreams and a fierce love for his people. And we simply couldn't love him more.

As we head into a week of Thanksgiving - I'm so thankful. Thankful for our family and the three people I get to call mine <3 What an honor and a blessing.

Resurrecting the Swing Set

If we were meeting for lunch, or chatting over a cup of coffee today and we were to discuss the topic of marital disputes ... I would be OVERJOYED to tell you a six month battle in our home has finally be put to rest. That's right ... a SIX MONTH BATTLE ... all about a stinking' swing set!

Now, before I start pointing fingers and tell you how it's all (ahem, obviously) Shane's fault ... I should mention a few things. We purchased this swing set for Bennett about two year's ago for his birthday. All of the family members chipped in, and it was the perfect addition to our new yard in Nashville, TN.

However, when purchasing said swingset - I had no idea we'd be moving to Louisville so quickly - nor did I know the company I purchased it from was super southern based and the northern most city they service was Nashville, TN. So, fast forward to our big move back to to Louisville, KY and couple that with unpacking and realizing we cannot find any of the screws to put the swingset together and we've got ourselves a real mess.

Long story short - Shane moved hell and high water to hunt down all of the random screws (who knew there were special stores for that kind of thing?) and the process of gathering all of the pieces - along with finding someone who would put the swings back together (because other companies wouldn't service someone else's product) and do it with safety in mind so our kids won't hurt themselves proved to be a real challenge.

So, we were faced with two options - and annoying amount of time in between - and one perfectly divided martial dispute. Side A) this is taking way too much time, money and everything else and I simply can't talk about it anymore - let's just get rid of it and buy a new one (Katie)... and Side B) ABSOLUTELY not, that thing is basically brand new, and we can make this work (Shane).
The conversation went round and round and lasted entirely too long -- so last week I put my foot down. Either the swing set is up and ready to play by this weekend ... or I'm purchasing a new one. And would you look at that ... Hubs found a way to make it happen!!

We picked up Bennett from school and told the kiddos to head to the backyard ...
You may notice Lainey's sandals (ahem, Bennett's sandals) because she is refusing to wear anything else but his shoes. And I'm picking my battles.  And believe it or not ... that face right there tell me the sixth month battle was worth every minute.

 They were so surprised and so excited!

 "The bumpy slide! I've missed you old friend!"

 And this little bit can't get enough of the swings.

 We're so glad to have a swing set grace our back yard again. Thanks daddy for all of your hard work!

Five on Friday: Seven Straight Mondays

Do you ever have weeks that feel like 7 straight Mondays? It's been one of those weeks for me. It has been jam packed with events for both me and hubs - which has had us all crazy - topped with I had a touch of the stomach bug for the better part of Sunday-Tuesday. So, to be honest I'm not really sad to say goodbye to this week and move on to the next. A week of Mondays for me, a day when GoGo doesn't answer Lainey's FaceTime call for her :)

However - before the week of said Mondays - we did have some really great things to add to our Five on Friday. 

 One: The Louisville Zoo

Last year for Christmas Shane's Aunt and Uncle gifted us with an annual membership to the zoo and it's such a great thing to have. We have a pretty decent little zoo here in Louisville, and it's great to pop in for a few hours (especially in the cooler temps) and spend the afternoon. We picked up B from school last Friday and headed straight to play with the animals for the afternoon. And ride the carousel of course.

Talk to the Gorillas.

 And eat all the dippin' dots.

 Watch the bears swim.

 And hit up the carousel one more time before we left.

 Two: Soccer

Bennett had his first soccer game last weekend and it was so fun to see him play. He's officially played basketball and baseball, but this was his first soccer team and HE LOVED IT. It's truly the first sport he was super excited about, talked about a lot, and keeps asking when his next game is (t's tomorrow). We've got him in a flag football league that starts this fall too - and Shane is the QB - can't wait to report how that one goes!

 His biggest fan made sure to have a front row seat on the sidelines.

 He scored a GOAL too!

Three: Anniversary 

This past Sunday Shane and I celebrated 11 years together and 6 years married :) after Bennett's soccer game we loaded up the car and headed to Cincinnati for a celebratory weekend. We have a home there in Dayton, KY, so we dropped the littles at the house with supervision - and headed straight to West Chester for a full adult day to celebrate 6 fabulous years together!

First stop - Starbucks. Second stop: Ballard Design / Grand Iron Road / Frontgate Outlet Shopping! Yay adulthood! (thanks wind for giving me that supermodel hair flip - HA!)

 Third stop: IKEA - complete with Swedish meatballs, because IKEA duh.

Fourth stop: Top Golf!! Ya'll SO FUNNNN. They're only in select places, but if you have a chance to go to one - GO! It was a blast (and I'm not even a golfer really) and I totally recommend it! (sorry for so many annoying selfies and italic side comments today) It's kind of like bowling, but with golf and really yummy food and drinks and just all around good fun.

Four: The Bengals

We woke up Sunday ready to cheer on our favorite team, and popped some bubbly to celebrate the Anniversary and have some WHODEY in our life at the first game of the season. 

 Then we headed to tailgate with all of our peoples.

 Playing catch and eating snacks - we're good at all of the above!

 I love these pictures - my dad and his brother cheering for the hall of famers at half time. They grew up in this city with these guys as their players -- and it's neat to watch them remain loyal to a team that sometimes makes it hard to be a fan :)

Five: This week's Shenanigans 

My parent's are in Seattle and I'm jealous. Hubs and I were supposed to go there for our anniversary last year, but due to all of my health business we had to put it on hold. Hopefully one day we'll get a chance to finally make our way out there. 

And for a traditional Friday confession ~ My dear husband of 6 years still does terribly horrible things that make me cringe. Like leaving dirty crinkled up socks on an end table in our home. WHYYYYY?!?!!?

 Lainey is still silly cute and keeps us laughing - ALWAYS.

 And Irma has brought us a good amount of rainy and cloudy days and we are slaying the lazy movie game. But, I'm ready for some sunshine ... and a Friday after a long week of Mondays.

 Have a great weekend gang!

What's Up Wednesday ~ August 2017 Edition

Hey gang! It's September!! Did ya know that? I sure didn't, until my mother in law sent me an email trying to find a date to celebrate my birthday and I was all "uhm wait, does that mean it's September already?!" Like what in the actual heck. How did that happen so quickly?!

I'm back today to share another round of What's Up Wednesday -- the bloggers that host the linkup moved it to this week due to a Hurricane Harvey donation drive ... and I'm not complaining because I certainly didn't have it all together last Wednesday to make a post. Moreover, I obviously haven't had to together since March which was the last time I participated. Sheesh. But anywhoodles, we catch up and answer these questions ....

What We're Eating This Week: Gosh, I'm really trying hard to get back to routine. Cooking meals, less summer snacking, getting the kids on a "normal" schedule now that we're back to school, but I'm not gonna lie I'm having a hard time sticking to it. We've gotten into this awful pattern of eating out (thanks to the move, the renovation, and summer) so I'm trying to cut back on that as much as possible. We actually sat down at the dinner table last night for the first time in weeks (our quick and easy dinners we always eat at the island), said grace, talked about the highs and lows of our day, the whole to do. And honestly it was really refreshing. The kids are back to school so they have things they want to share, and it's just good QT with the fam. We're also working really hard to develop little man's palate (and it is SUCH a battle). So we've made a deal that when we sit down to dinner as a family he's required to try one new item. Last night's requirement (we actually snuck in two) corn and mashed potatoes. He didn't LOVE the corn but tolerated it - which I count as a win - and he legit gagged when he ate mashed potatoes. His sweet sister that had been loving them all dinner then proceeded to follow suit (for attention) and it ended in the entire family laughing until we couldn't breathe. Ha! Seriously though - mama's of the world - HELPPPPP. Give me ideas for dinner, lunch, snacks, all the things to get my kiddo to eat. #HopelessMama

What I'm reminiscing about: Some recent fun date nights with my hubs. We've had a lot of fun events lined up lately and it's been good to spend some time together. We've hit up concerts, nights out with friends, simple wine nights in the kitchen, a neighborhood party, some fun drinks before dinner, etc. Nothing over the top, but fun nonetheless.

What I'm loving: THIS WEATHER! Fall is in full swing here in the Bluegrass and I couldn't be happier. The cooler evenings make our neighborhood walks a breeze ~ I'm rocking my jeans and not the slightest bit uncomfortable ~ I'm wearing sweatshirts like it's my job. There have been some gloomy days but the kids are loving stomping in puddles in their rain boots and I'm loving snuggling up after school in a big ole' blanket with them. Ahhh, all of the greatness. Fall is the best. Ever. Ever. Ever. 

What we've been up to: Mostly just end of summer, back to school business and some Labor Day fun. We went to the Kentucky state fair and ate all the food and rode all the rides. 

We had a viewing party for the Solar Eclipse:

And just some fun back to routine days. 

What I'm dreading: Honestly, I'm already dreading November. We went to Nashville last week for the my 3 month check-ups - but got off easy this round because we didn't have any scans. They did take one mole from my chest, but that's pretty much par for the course these days. November is going to be a HUGE visit (PET scan, CT scan, MRI of the abdomen, MRI of the brain, blood work, derm visit) THE WORKS. And there are a couple of really subtle spots they've been watching for a long time and we think this visit will kind of determine a decision one way or another (if they've changed). Sooo ... while it's still a while away - I'm dreading it. But here's a look from last week - my teammate came with me and we had good reports :) 

What I'm working on: The house ... STILL. We're actually doing the landscape right now and they should be wrapping up this week - YAY! The landscape was gorgeous in it's day I'm certain, but it was A LOT and looked like a LOT of work - so I wanted to bring it back down and make it a bit simpler. More grass, less landscape beds, etc. So we're almost there. Furthermore I'm finally feeling the itch to decorate this home (sort of ). I'm honestly still kind of maxed out from the renovation, so I simply have just avoided all things decor focused (which is usually my favorite part). But, last Friday I had a little itch to decorate a wall, so I climbed Shane's shoulders (really though) and finished a gallery wall. :) yay! I hope to share some photos soon.

What I'm excited about: This weekend! It's our anniversary and the Bengals opening home game of the season - and let's be honest football season in general. I live for a good tailgate, fun watch party with all the dips, all of it. Mister Bennett's first soccer game of the season is this weekend too! So much fun packed into a couple of short days! The boys are excited it's football season too - they headed to Indy last weekend to watch their Cards bring home the W over Purdue. 

What I'm watching/reading: Game of Thrones. I did it. I jumped on the band wagon. And I'm binging it. I'll be honest, it's not as great as I was hoping. I really really like it and I'm going to keep watching - but for all of the hype I am a teensy tiny bit disappointed. However - I'm super into the Mother of the Dragons! Haha! I think she's so great.

What I'm listening to: I'm listening to China Rich Girlfriend on audible and Trolls. Will my kids EVER not want to listen to Trolls? Shane came home last week and couldn't stop talking about the new T. Swift song and I'm looking at him going - Taylor Swift has a new song? HA! 

What I'm wearing: MY FALL CLOTHES. No more needs to be said. And blankets! We love snuggling under good blanket!

Mister Bennett is wearing cowboys gear and any and all other costumes because he totally loves dressing up and getting into character right now. 

Lainey is wearing nail polish  and loves to show it off to just about anyone that will look at her "fingah" and she also rocks perfectly tousled tendril curls everyday fresh out of the bathtub #hairenvy

What I'm doing this weekend: Like I said, soccer, football, anniversary celebration, Cincinnati - all great things. Trying to decide where we should make reservations Saturday. 

What I'm looking forward to next month: Ahh September, I've got a birthday coming up, our anniversary, Bennett's soccer begins, I've got some fun family sessions on the books, and I'm hoping to score some tickets to a few shows in town! I'm also going to start thinking about this little lady's count down to two celebration. We've got a while, but I've got some ideas swirling and I'm excited to host her little party. I think second birthday's are so fun because they start to really understand it's all about them. 

What else is new: That's about it really. Back to school mainly and starting into our new groove. This little guy has also grown out of nearly all of this clothes so we went last week and got his some new threads. 

And that's about it gang! Hopefully I'll see ya back here at the end of next month - same time, same place, K?