Happy Birthday to Jade!

Your birthday shout out is on our blog so I won't duplicate that here. I so wish I had a scanner so I could put something really embarrassing here - little kid pictures are always embarrassing.  I don't really know why, us moms think they are the best. I had this picture from after the Feb. Dune trip, and love that we had all had so much fun.  It was taken outside of Chili's (where else?) on your way home and I love that you all look so happy. I hope you have a great day, hope the boys and Jeff give you big kisses and make your birthday fun. Love you all.

Granny and Grumpy

It's over....

So, my summer break is coming to it's end!! I go back to work on the 24th!! I guess all good things must come to an end! Oh well....it's okay.

Since I know all of you are wondering about all the happenings in our life, let me tell ya...

We closed on our house and moved out, Thanks to all the help from our amazing friends & family! We are now living with Jeff's parents!! :) yes, this outta be good! haha! Not because we don't absolutely love his parents, but living with anyone is hard, add three kiddos and wait for the fun! (Anyone who has ever moved in with family knows exactly what I mean!) We are, however, definately excited about some key points:
1. No house payment!! :):)
2. Built in babysitter! :):)

Other than that, life is kinda boring. I go back to work next week, the kids start school in 2 weeks, and...oh yeah....we have to find somewhere to live! But, we are all healthy and relatively happy, so, I can't complain. Hope all is well with all of you.

My sweet middle child!

About 2 months ago, right around the 1 year anniversary of my Nana's passing, something occured to me...I was still in the grieving process, but hadn't made it past the "denial" stage. Not really anyway. It occured to me that I tried my hardest not to talk about her, not to go to her house, etc. Not that I came to this realization on my own. I got there with the help of my 5 year old. One day we're just sitting there, when out of the blue Ryker turns to me and asks,
"Mom, is your gramma Nana?"
I said "yes."
He said, "She died, huh?"
I replied, "yes."
He takes my hand with his little hand and said, "do you miss her?"
I said, "yes."
He said, "does it make you sad?"
I said "yes."
He said, "oh!"

Since this conversation, about every 3 or 4 days he will, out of the blue, turn to me and say, "Mom, do you miss your Nana?" To which I simply reply "yes." And that is the whole conversation. I guess he just has to check every few days, to be sure! Sweet little Ryker!

So, I have forced myself past the denial and am in a reflective place these days. There is soooo very much I miss about her. I think about her often and am in constant amazement at what a legacy she left behind.

Some things that she left with me...

her love for all holidays (any excuse to have a party)
her love of cooking & baking
her love for her family
her laugh
her smile
her constant planning (she always had some scheme going on)
her endless files of recipes
her patience for teaching us all to make cookies and cakes
her beauty, inside and out!


Thanks Nan! I love you!