10 years...

My oldest turned 10 today.... a decade old. It seems like a big one. Not just because of the fact I now have a child in double digits, but because I have been a mom for a decade now!! What the what?! How did that happen?
Everyone has been posting their 10 year now and then photos. It got me to thinking about who I was 10 years ago. What I would want to tell her now, what I want to remember about her... because let’s face it, I’ve changed since 10 years ago, haven’t we all?! And if you haven’t, why haven’t you?! What’s holding you back from growing, learning and changing? Change isn’t bad, and the fact that I am not quite the same as the woman I was 10 years ago, shouldn’t be a bad thing, motherhood has not  made me “forget who I am”, motherhood has awoken me to who I need to be becoming.
So here are some things I feel like I would tell 2009 me.

    1.  Motherhood makes you understand God and the gospel, in a way you never understood it before. This one could be a entire blog entry in its self. In simple terms, I shamefully admit that i didn’t realize how much of a sinner I was until I became a mom. I know that’s so so weird right. But I think it took seeing a being that I created, and the love I felt for that little baby boy, to really understand how much God loves me, and why he desires my heart so deeply. And then realizing the pain he felt sending his child to pay for my sins,
   2.  Newborn stage is the easiest. For me anyways. I know many parents would disagree. But there is nothing like them staring up at you and nothing but love is in their eyes! They will always love you, but growing pains are real and sometimes the disconnect does come.
   3.  You will miss all the stages , but with the  growing  comes new amazing stages also.
   4.  Mistakes will be made, mainly by you.
   5.  You relationship with them is more important to their success in school. Basically, let them be little. Don’t rush them to read, just read to them. Don’t rush math, just play games with them. It will all happen, and so much learning is being done through the simple act of playing. Don’t feel pressure to get them on track education wise, society doesn’t always know best.
   6.  You’re going to have lots of great adventures. Maybe not like traveling the globe, but wonderful, simple things. Ocean, mountains, forests and hills, you cover them all, with your loud, sometimes complaining children, right beside you:)
   7.  Forgive yourself. It’s so hard to do sometimes, but don’t keep a record of your sins. Ask forgiveness and try to move on. You are not your mistakes.
   8.  Laugh more, smile more. The to do list is going to bog you down, but smile and laugh with your children. It’s good for the soul. It’s good for your kids to see you laugh :)
   9. Don’t brush your marriage aside. I feel like people tell you this all the time. I think everything has a season, and when your deep into the little years, it’s easy for this to happen. Make time to connect and to talk. Dates won’t always happen, that’s ok. You guys are a team. Work together , but in your marriage and in parenting. Neither will thrive if one is neglected. They go hand in hand.
  10.Don’t stop. Don’t stop caring. Don’t stop learning. Don’t stop trying. Especially , and most importantly, don’t stop looking to Jesus to be your strength.

I am sure I can elaborate on all of these, but it’s taken me 4 days to write just this out 😂  Within the last 10 minutes of writing this I have helped my boys sew their stuffed animals, stoped Edison from making another mess, and put the girls hair in buns.

The next 10 years are going to bring new life lessons... and my oldest will be 20 🤯 So yea, gonna go listen to my own advice now. Have a great Wednesday everyone! 

Holding babies

Hello world, I hope you all are enjoying a relaxing Thursday evening. My kids actually were all asleep by 8:20! This has not happened in a LONG time!! Maybe they have been in bed, not not asleep! It felt totally bizarre! They need some extra sleep, so I am hopeful this will help.  In all my free time tonight, eating some guacamole and watching a cheesy Christmas movie, I was looking through photos on my phone. Let me tell you, there are a lot, an almost embarrassing amount 😬
Well, so many of my favorite pictures, especially lately, are of my kiddos holding Evelyn.
It got me thinking, do you let your “babies” hold your baby?! Owen is almost 10, and I swear he thinks Evelyn is his, he just loves to take care of her and spends most of his time holding her.  Before she was even born, he was asking if he could hold her while he slept, he just wanted to be close to her constantly. Obviously I am not gonna let my 10 year old co-sleep with his newborn sister, but we do give him small amounts of that special time. Tonight as I held another child at bedtime, he snuggled his sweet Evelyn and she fell asleep on his chest, and he was holding her hand, while supporting her completely. The thought of him being a father holding his own babies to sleep, is not really a road I want to go down yet, but he for sure has the makings of an excellent father 😭😭

Anyways! Do you get nervous when your other kids hold the baby? I am usually pretty relaxed with it. If I know they won’t want to hold the baby long, I will just sit with them, and help support them hold the baby. Posey usually doesn’t last long, she is still a little thing herself and her arms get tired. Thanks to Shane reminding me that once Evelyn is a bit bigger, in a short time from now, the kids won’t be physically able to hold her! 😭 Their time is limited, just like mine and Shane’s. It’s a precious thing. So I have been trying to take photos of them holding her or even a video.
Edison loves to hold his Evelyn😍 He will continually ask to hold “his baby”.  Being 2 though, he is not often or for more then 2 seconds left along in the same room as her. You will thank us for this Evelyn 😂


I love how the kids know how great having a baby is, at the ages of 2,4,6,8 and 9, they know in their hearts how special babies are and how you must cherish the time. Some gems they have said to me this week about our Evelyn are:
- “momma, you have the cutest baby ever”
- “why is Evelyn even cuter than Posey and Ellanore as babies ?!”
- “Evelyn looks bigger today”
- “ I just love her so much!”
- “momma Evelyn is holding my fingers “

And most of these moments have been while holding her
🥰

Let me just end by saying, let your kids hold their siblings. In any capacity you’re ok with, and they can manage. I love that now Owen is old enough and confident enough, to even gently “dance” or “bounce” with Evelyn to help calm her when fuzzy, or that the boys are capable of playing video games, read or even color, while she is in their arms. Today Owen was drawing and then talking about his drawing to a curious Edison and a good friend, it’s just second nature🥰
I will always  love seeing the girls hold her close, like she is their real life baby doll. Edison giving sloppy kisses and gentle pats on her back, while I hold him holding her, will always be a tender memory.
It’s not always easy or convenient, but I love that my kids want to and enjoy, holding their baby :)
Goodnight all , sweet sweet dreams!