365 Photos in 365 Days: Week 34

 

We finally renewed our zoo membership... which meant we could put the matching shirts we got with Anni's sweet little friend to good use, finally!  Anni randomly lost her voice during the day, which was quite strange and oddly quiet.  The next day a cold showed up, so I guess that was our warning sign.

Sweet little footprints.  It's hard to believe these days will one day seem so long ago.

 

Our apples are growing... and are almost ready!  I'm already mourning the possibility that our trees may not survive the fire blight epidemic, but, by golly, we're going to enjoy them this year!  In fact, I better start chopping now or I may never get through them all!

My little helper.  She looooooves to sweep, stir, and wipe.  Now if I could only train her to scrub my grout.  (Seriously, I'm obsessed with how yucky it looks and the fact that I can't find enough time to get down and do it.)



I photographed the open air Mass for FOCUS last Sunday.  I had never been on campus in Boulder... it's quite a stunning view!

We've had a week filled with rain... and I love it!  Maybe it's being an introvert, but I love the cozy feeling of a rainy day.

Annnnd, I just realized I doubled up on 236, buuut it's Friday and it already took me several days to get this done, so we'll go with imperfect and start with 240 next week. Happy Week, friends!

Tiny Saints: A Review

Today, I get to share something super sweet, tiny, and fun with you: Tiny Saints! The day we got our little charms in the mail, we immediately put them to good use, figuring out what fun places we could clip them.  All four of us got them: a St. Maximillian Kolbe for Daniel (his confirmation Saint), a St. Joan of Arc for me (my confirmation Saint), a St. Anthony of Padua for Anni (her patron Saint), and a St. Therese of Lisieux for Colette (no St. Colette as of yet, but middle name patron Saints are great, too!)

First of all, aren't they adorable?!  I love the sweet detail, especially the little rose. Colette's went straight onto her favorite purse and has stayed there.  She has proven that the clasp is nice and sturdy, and can withstand many kisses (seriously, many kisses... every time she carries the purse).    

Anni's St. Anthony started on her pocket. Her favorite part is always, "Look, Mom! He's holding baby Jesus!"

Because pants get changed every day (hopefully...), the charm got moved to her favorite purse.  Luckily, it's super easy to move when she wants it somewhere else.

Now, my husband is a pretty low-frills kind of guy, so we went with something he could see often, but wouldn't get in his way.  St. Maximillian got keys duty.

I will say, that while my girls love their Tiny Saints, they may love the little folded card that comes with them even more. Both have been carrying them around as phones, in fact, Colette practices her "Hewwo?" every time she picks one up.  Bonus toy, parents!

Now my little St. Joan of Arc took a little bit of thought.  I don't use my purse much, so putting it on there wasn't too exciting.  She made a stop at the pile of clean dishes I need to put away... 

Why?  Well, it's a lot harder to walk by without doing anything about them when a Saint who went into battle and was martyred before she entered her 20s is staring you down.

In the end; though, she ended up on something I carry with me all the time: my camera bag!  A little extra intercession as I go about my work.

The great thing about these is because of their wee size, they are great for stocking stuffers (I know, I know, but St. Nicholas Day and Christmas come faster every year) or just slipping into a birthday card for something extra.

Plus, something for the little ones to kiss... who doesn't love toddler kisses?

You can find them on their website here: http://shoptinysaints.com/.  Have fun browsing!  I'm pulling for a St. Colette or St. Elizabeth of Hungary next.

Disclaimer: I was provided with four Tiny Saints in exchange for this review.  However, all thoughts on them are my own. 

365 Photos in 365 Days: Week 33

Quotables #3

"Will I ever be 3 again?"
"Nope."
"Why?"
"Because next you'll be. 5, then 6, then 7, then 8!"
"And then we die?"
"No, Anni."

"Anni has a hair appointment at 11"
"Will I get a shot in my hair??"

"She's an eczema girl and she gives me eczema."

"Why is it wind-ing a lot?"

"I just want 20 pieces of pizza. I'm 20 hungry."

"But I love songs because they make me think of oatmeal! And I want to think of oatmeal!"

"She's so big, she has underwear, and she makes me so happy. I haven't had her in forever!  I just have this boot! I miss her so much... I got her when I was four years old."

"Anni, what kind of sport do the Broncos play?"
"A team sport!"

"We've got a football just like the Rockies!"

The Life of a Lazy Mama

We all know parenthood is hard.  What I've also come to realize is that we make it harder on ourselves.  Rather than trying to be better than the previous version of ourselves, we worry about one-upping every other mother around.

For example: I am a lazy mama.  I know this about myself.  If I don't put real effort into it, I can become an unmoving pile of mom on the couch, only shifting enough to keep the littles going.  So I can't compare my rather small goals of: "just keeping moving", "do what you can", and "feed the children" to my much more organized and with-it counterparts.  It would drive me insane to heap guilt upon myself because I'm not scrubbing the house clean every day.  Sure, guilt can be a good motivator, but wallowing?

Wallowing helps no one.

In fact, if you're me, wallowing turns into giving into the lazy temptation to give up because "I'll never be as good as..."

I've had to recognize that just as in all other areas of life, in motherhood, too, I have my areas of strength and weakness.  Despite the fact that my natural state is above-mentioned couch puddle, I do try very hard to avoid that constant state of being.  I use that knowledge of my weaknesses to be proactive.  For example, I won't get a smartphone, not because I think they are evil or that others shouldn't have them, but because I know I would be one to struggle with burying my face in it half the day... and tempting myself with one more thing just isn't a good idea.  And while my natural state is a homebody, I work hard to be a "yes" mama when I can.  Yes, we can go play with your scooter.  Yes, we should definitely go to the library.  Yes, of course you can go on a walk with me.  I've found my own little trick to get myself going for these things.  If I tell Anni and Colette to get their shoes on... we're in it to finish, they make absolutely sure of that (and who can resist a 17 month old wriggling onto your lap for shoe help?) On the plus side of all of this, I think I am good at documenting these babies' childhoods and I think we do a good job passing our faith on. I'm going to live those strengths up without shame. It's also okay to admit we are good at things, fellow parents. 

When it comes to housekeeping, things go in cycles.  Sometimes, I do feel like I'm pretty on top of things, but I would hesitate to say that my house is ever 100% clean and organized (because bathtubs and toilets always need to be scrubbed, and there may or may not be boxes that still need to be unpacked from our move a year ago in my office...) I keep plugging, trying to ignore the fact that I don't always scrub the bathrooms on Mondays, the bedrooms on Tuesdays, etc.  I try to focus on the fact that I have learned an incredible amount since getting married on the care and keeping of a home, and can only hope I will learn doubly that in the years to come.  I want our home to be welcoming, tidy, and cozy... but I have to accept that I may not always be capable of managing all of those adjectives in every corner of the house at one time.

I suppose all I'm trying to say is: be kind to yourself. Keep fighting the good fight, but give yourself a break when you fail.