December Photo Challenge

Photo a day...kinda.

Day 1: Your view today
My lil sleeper, she gets her stinkin hands out of her swaddle all the time!

Day 2: Favorite Holiday Movie
Home Alone is hands down my favorite

Day 3: Red
Levi had on a red shirt and was playing with red toys

Day 4: Joyous

Bath Time is always fun!

Day 5: Today's Temperature

Burrrr it's a cold one

Day 6: Shopping

Online before I go to the store, it takes so much to go to any store anytime (didn't get this dress, it didn't come in her size)

Day 7: Bright

The "Brightest" Orange

Day 8: Ornament
We collected Stillwater dirt last year to fill our Oklahoma ornament

Day 9: Something You're Reading
I love to read my dear Shanna's blog, she updated a couple days after this screenshot

Day 10: Wrapping Paper
Pretty, ain't it?!

Day 11: Green
Macy's food this week..peas, this shot makes the spoon look giant!

Day 12: A Beautiful Sight
Our healthy 20lb 6 month old getting a check up

Day 13: Family
Our 2013 Christmas picture

Day 14: Christmas Tree
It's not fancy, but we love it

Day 15: Favorite Holiday Song
Go Tell it on the Mountain, the NeedtoBreathe version is my fav

Day 16: Outside Christmas Lights
We didn't have any and I kept forgetting to get a picture of someone else's

Day 17: Presents
That was before we did most of our shopping

Day 18: Stockings
We have a "family" stocking right now at our house

Day 19: Candy Cane
Macy carried one of these around while we shopped
Day 20: Tree Topper
This angel belongs to my sister Melissa I think, I found it on my mom's deck a few years ago and I just took it : )

Day 21: Peace
I couldn't think of anything for this...other than Macy eating "peas" so just refer to Day 11

Day 22: Tradition
My Great Aunt made most of these stockings, my second cousin has taken them over now. I love our stockings and all the goodies Santa leaves us

Day 23: Scarf
I didn't do this one because I don't wear scarves, I get too hot and I feel like my body isn't the best fit

Day 24: Favorite Part of Christmas Eve
Lanie Noel was born 6 years ago on Christmas Eve and she is definitely my favorite part

Day 25: Morning
I wanted two for this one because it was just a lil more special this year

Day 26: Grateful
I'm so blessed. We went for ice cream, Macy had her version...I tried to get it in the picture, but got caught off guard by her looking at Mike

Day 27: Night Time

Day 28: Words
Some funnnies from my pinterest page

Day 29: Sky View

Day 30: Your Winter Wonderland
Maui for Winter...yes please...a girl can dream

Day 31: Fun
Toast with the Hubby with sparkling grape at 10pm...midnight somewhere right?

Top 3 of 2013

I stole this idea from my friend, Shanna. I love reading her blog and today I'm stealing her idea. Her year in review is SO different from mine and I think that is part of the reason I admire her so much. My list isn't going to be my top 13 because I feel like my last year can be summed up into really a top 3 (that each have many parts of course).

Ok, here goes...
3. My Mister
Many things go into this choice. In the last year he has lost, gained, and overcome in so many ways. First he was forced into making a change as a coach. If you know my Mister you know that he could easily say the top three things in his life are God, Family, and Football. When someone messes with one of those things it hits him hard and he has way more desire to make things right that I can even imagine. This summer my Mister got a position coaching Football at the College level. He didn't have an "in," no one paved his way, he had to work for it and prove that he was the man for the job. I have a love hate relationship with football season, but at the end of the day I'm so proud of him going after his dream and making it work.

Coach

Another accomplishment, this summer he completed his Master's degree. It wasn't easy, like many others he did it while he worked full time. I am so proud that he has such drive.

The Grad

Sis, Momma, and the Mister

Third...you should see this man as a Dad. He isn't perfect, no one is, but he really tries. During football season he had to deal with a hormonal new mom/wife, a new job, a lot of travel time, and a newborn. He did a lot of things wrong, but he also did a lot of things right and I couldn't have made it through without him. My Mister loves his little girl and she loves her Daddy. We've been so blessed to have him home over this Holiday break!

Twinkies

One of the latest things he has done for our family...he traded in his truck for a car. That is sacrifice! My Mister is definitely a "truck guy" but we needed something more fuel efficient and more fitting to our little family. Now, don't let him fool you, he loves his new car. It is very nice, new, and has lots of fancy amenities. It's so tough to have to drive that car...

The Dart

2. Our Home
In March we bought a house and spent the next few months trying to get it ready to bring home a baby. We had to remove layers and layers of wallpaper, then redo with layers of mud, and finish with layers of paint. If you had any part in this you know I'm not exaggerating. We redid walls in 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, a kitchen, and part of the living room. Whew, we needed and appreciated all the help we had! We got new appliances, they delivered the day after Macy was born. To be initiated into owning a home our air conditioning went out when she was only a couple weeks old, we had a power outage not long after, and on Christmas Eve we got a new hot water heater. We were not really ready to buy a house, we didn't really want to have to do so much work on the house, BUT we had to decide which was more important to us that or the location. Location won because we bought the house next door to my mom and two away from Grandma. And as it turns out I really love this house even though the work it has taken hasn't been my favorite. I have really enjoyed the smaller projects that have come with making a home, some call these "Pinterest projects." I like to just call them projects because I also like to think some came without inspiration of Pinterest.

Layers of wall paper

Our Home

Working hard

1. Macy Abigail
Wow. You thought number 3 and 2 were long...wait til you get to read about number 1. My greatest accomplishment so far...being a stay at home mom, giving birth, and this lil lady we call Mace face. So much goes into Macy being number 1. The obvious, Macy. She is an amazing girl. She is so full of attitude already. She has so many different looks. She suffers from RBF (I saw this on Pinterest, it is "resting bitch face") and she got it from her Momma. We can't help it. Our resting face is a bit pouty and we look like there is something wrong with us. For the rest of her life she'll be asked "what's wrong?" and hopefully she'll learn to respond gracefully. You know what makes RBF ok? It's that it makes your smile even better! Macy doesn't give away smiles to just anyone for just anything. I love that about her! She is a good eater, she is a chunk and not every outfit fits her thighs. She likes routine, she is very intuitive, and she loves her Momma. That last thing is probably my favorite! Macy likes to ride in the cart at the store, look around, and take in everything around her. I could go on and on with details about my lil Macy.

Bath time smiles

Riding in the cart

First smile for the camera

What else goes into number 1, giving birth. A month or so before I had Macy the lady at the Kwik Shop told me, "Don't be a hero, get an epidural. Honey, you're already growing a human!" I didn't know how true this was until I was in labor. I was induced, which I've heard makes labor harder. I don't know if this is true, I just know the pain I felt. I hate that society can make you feel guilty for whatever you choose, especially when it comes to parenting. Do I feel like less of a woman for getting an epidural? Yeah kinda, but I also know that I got to enjoy the second part of labor. I got to happily, with no pain, welcome my lil baby into the world and that makes me ok with it. I'd love to encourage every woman to be happy and confident with your choices; same or different as the rest of the world, just do you!

June 6th

Third part of number 1, being a stay at home mom. Wowzers, this was harder than I ever could have imagined. It is hard. Going to work and leaving your baby with someone else, hard. Every choice you have as a parent, hard. You are making decisions for another human, hard! I struggle with "what everyone else thinks" in many aspects of my life, hard.

So, there are my 2013 highlights, here's to 2014 to bring many more good times and Shanna it just might be the best year EVER (love you girl)!  

And if you're still reading...a few highlights from New Year celebrations of the past...When I was a junior in high school I set my ring tone to "Auld Lang Syne" on my cell phone and thought I was sooo cool and frankly, at the time, that was cool! I spent a few NYE celebrations in the 90s at the Marriott here in Wichita with my cousin and friend being crazy young kids while my parents celebrated downstairs in style. Last year on NYE we announced to some great friends that we were pregnant and this year we wanted to be home so we could stick to the bedtime routine we've been working on with our lil blessing. Lastly, remember in 1999 when people thought that 2000 was going to bring the end of the world...

Bringing in 2013

Last Pic of the Year
(we toasted with the sparking grape
 the Hospital gave us when Macy was born)

November Photo Challenge

So, my niece Kianna posted this on her Instagram and I really liked the idea. I knew I wouldn't be able to post each day, so I decided to turn it into a blog post. For the most part I did take each picture (or find each picture) daily, but of course some days I didn't get to it.

Day 1: selfie
Well, how could I take this pic w/o Macy?
Day 2: fav song
"Amen" by Chris August and "I Choose You" by Sara Bareilles
Day 3: lockscreen
My blue-eyed baby

Day 4: MCM (Man Crush Monday)
My Hubby, not thrilled to be photographed
Day 5: bestfriends
Kristal and Alex at my wedding : ) Still my besties!
Day 6: fav movie
Shag, a great 80s movie most people haven't heard of!
Day 7: pet
Bullet!

Day 8: fav shoes
Old and ugly, but they are my favorite
Day 9: birthday eyes
I switched so I could do birthday on my birthday
Day 10: mirror picture
Good thing I don't have to do these pics on my own
Day 11: something I want
I really wanted some ice cream cake!

Day 12: baby picture
Not the best picture, but the pic I could find
Day 13: WCW (Woman Crush Wednesday)
My niece Lanie
Day 14: throwback
Mike and I out on the strip, I had come from a "white trash" date party
This was early on in the dating game for us
Day 15: B&W selfie
Why not take a selfie when I had just woke up and still looked a hot mess?

Day 16: quote
Scripture makes for great quotes
Day 17: sky
Beautiful day!
Day 18: fav Disney character
Belle <3
Day 19: meaning of your name
Light...makes sense my goal is to "be the sunshine" (which is really hard for me and that is why it is my goal)!

Day 20: lips/lip balm
Yeah I'm fancy, I use intense moisture lip balm
Day 21: siblings
An old picture, but it works
Day 22: ootd
"outfit of the day" I had to google this one : )
We were matching, orange tops and black sweatpants (it was a Friday of course)
Day 23: lyrics
One of my ultimate fav songs

Day 24: perfume
I've been wearing "princess" for years and I still love it!
Day 25: birthday
Celebrating with...an ice cream cake! I got what I wanted ; )
Day 26: old picture
Pigtails, a homemade sweatshirt, and my Punky Brewster high-tops
Day 27: fav color
Orange, of course!

Day 28: family
My sisters, niece, nephew, and Mace piled on the couch at Thanksgiving
Day 29: nature
A picture I took in Seattle a few years ago, I didn't really go out on this day because I wasn't feeling good so I found one I had already taken
Day 30: funny picture
Macy watching football, she had her head cocked all the way around to see the game

Well, I had fun with this! Like I said, I didn't stick to doing it daily, but I did better than I had thought I would. I found one for December that I'm going to do as well. Until next time...

Well it's been 3 months...

My intentions are great. I even have some "unpublished" posts in the last 3 months, but as far as keeping up with my blog...yeah not so much. I can't even keep up with the dishes or the laundry or whatever task used to be easy (like showering, haha). I do have a calendar that I write something down for Macy each day, I've done pretty good, but that is an easy one-liner.

At Bible School (that is what we call Bible Study to get our giggles) we talked about what would be our book title for our life, my sister said, or if you had a blog what would it be called? Well I have that answer. "Living to be Me." When I picked that title I wanted something clever and unforgettable, but I'm not that whitty or fantastic, I'm just me. I am not like everyone else. So, the title became "Living to be Me." What does that mean? That I am simply doing me. Not you, or so and so, or Ms. Perfect, but me. I have a hard time with that because I struggle with comparison on an hourly basis, but I'm doing my best.

Did you know that when you become a mom everyone gives you advice, everyone has an answer for your baby? Because clearly all kids are the same. Moms are the same. And to make this world work every family needs to operate the same. Wait. Yeah, not so much.

My baby cries, she eats, and she sleeps. Not like your baby or the ideal baby. It took me about 3 months to realize I love Macy because she isn't like everyone else, the same reason I love Mike and that I generally like myself. She also does so much more! She giggles, she pays attention to everything, she likes to play games, she likes riding in the shopping cart, she has a "poop face," she has chunky thighs, she loves baths and getting her hair done every morning , I could go on and on

I was texting a friend today about if my infant should watch tv. I plan to leave her in front of the tv all day, while I sit back, relax, drink wine, and browse Pinterest. Hah! Yeah that is what a stay at home mom does, didn't you know? Anyway I digress...tv. Macy loves to be engaged, her lil hangy down toys work for about 10 minutes or her bouncey chair for another 10. Yep, they are great! So, in order to help her with tummy time, (did you know Macy is 5 months and not rolling over? I fail as a mom is what society tells me and Macy is way behind...yeah yeah, leave me alone society, she'll roll when she is good and ready) I thought 15 minutes of a show that is music and colors would be good. I don't know if it is right, but hey like I told my friend...she is already screwed, she has had immunizations and she isn't breast fed! Did you know she sleeps in our bed sometimes? I hold her while she naps and I even let her pick when or where to nap sometiems. She takes a passie, that I keep attached to her (because frankly I'm too lazy to pick it up every time it drops). What else are we doing wrong?

Today I have the philosophy that society kinda sucks (could you tell?). I just want every mom to know just do the best you can do. I need that reminder on a minute to minute basis. Figure out what is best for your family, trust in the Lord, pray always, and enjoy it! That is my advice to me in a few minutes when I've given up on it all.

Thank you for reading and have a nice day. I plan to come back soon.

Macy's Mom

Yesterday I got the privilege of meeting Jack. Jack just made his debut on Tuesday and is already a stud! While I was at the hospital meeting Jack I got to see his Grandparents meet him for the first time. This is the first time that Shari and Mike are grandparents, they were so sweet. Thanks Dunham’s (and Webb’s) for letting me share in your joy! Shari said to Bryan, “I don’t think I can call you Bryan anymore, you are Jack’s dad now.”

Macy and Jack

For the first time I really thought about it, I’m Macy’s mom. How cool, I get to be Macy’s mom the rest of my life! I’m honored to carry such a title. Someone’s “mom” is a pretty awesome role, BUT guess what? I get to be Macy’s mom. Macy already has an amazing personality; she is feisty, sassy, sweet, strong, and bashful. I love every quality she possesses.

One of my favorite things about my sweet 2 month old is that she is shy in public, but “own’s it” in the privacy of her own home (much like both of her parents). Those of you that know Macy…she likes to play opossum. She already pretends to be asleep so others won’t try to hold her or talk to her. When she is at home though, especially if it is just the three of us, she has such an outgoing personality. Macy is the center of attention, not only because she is a cute little baby, but because she makes sure you know she is there. It makes me laugh because I can already see what kind of young woman she is going to be. Another favorite thing about her personality, she kinda yells when she talks. Most babies are cooing and finding their voice around 2 months. Making sweet little gaga’s and goo’s. Macy does that, but if you don’t talk back, she kinda starts to yell at you. If you don’t know her you think she is getting upset or that she’ll start crying soon, nope wrong. She just kinda already has that "listen to me" attitude.

Today I’m feeling so blessed to be Macy’s mom. I love that I’m able to be with her all day and get to know her and see her change!

The Man of my Dreams

There is something about seeing the man you love, love your child. Wow, I can't even explain how sexy it is to see my husband love our daughter! We've been so blessed that Mike is off each summer and that Macy was born at the beginning of June, only God can do that kind of planning. Mike is a natural, he does great with Macy and even better putting up with me and my hormonal craziness. He is super supportive and so patient, he is everything I struggle with (another thing only God can orchestrate).

First chance to hold and love on her.

 

Macy / Mike

  

Lots of love!

Cleaning Calendar

Since we've moved and really started to get settled in I've been struggling with how to become better at cleaning/keeping a tidy house. Now, with a newborn this task is even more difficult. We have a lot of stuff that just lays around. I wouldn't say our house is dirty, just cluttered. Don't get me wrong we have some dust, dishes don't always get washed right away, and I could get the floors cleaner, but I don't really think we are dirty. Today I've worked on a "Cleaning Calendar." Putting this together is a task that used to take me 30 minutes and now takes me about 12 hours, another thing that I'm getting used to!