Blog Challege #3: What are you afraid of

What am I afraid of...well a better question would be what am I NOT afraid of. 

One of the biggest things that I personally struggle with is work/life balance...as I am finishing up work right now at 11:40 p.m. on a Wednesday night.  Oh the irony. I just returned back to work from maternity leave, so perhaps this is why I am constantly thinking about it. 

Prior to children, I worked a lot.  When I say a lot, no exaggeration probably well over 55-60 plus hours a week.  I told myself that once I had children I would scale back. Has it happened?  I would love to say yes, but unfortunately no. And sad to say, there are weeks that I now work more.

So, what am I afraid of?  Missing out on special moments with my husband and children.  Priorities change and shift as you transition through life.  I am determined to find that balance.  I know I am meant to be a working mother, but I know I could do better about shutting off the computer once I get home.

My family is my world and finding balance is key.

Mother's Day

Cheers to a great Mother's Day!

I can honestly say, I am still so surprised that I have two little girls.  What a blessing! 
 

Evie & Nora

Last week at work was chaotic for both Aaron & I, so the weekend could not arrive fast enough.  Our house was a hot mess, our yard desperately needed work, and we had homework/work to catch up on. Saturday was devoted to myself running errands with my two ladies as Aaron ticked items off of the housework to-do list.  My little girls were well-behaved (thank goodness).  Aaron is still stunned at how confident I am with just  taking the two girls with me to go shopping, etc.  He breaks out in hives and has an anxiety attack just thinking about it.  We went to Hobby Lobby, Buybuy Baby, The Vitamin Shoppe, & Trader Joes within 3 hours, along with grabbing some lunch. When we came home Ev & I painted bird houses for Nana Kari & Gran.  Later that day, Gran & Grandpa Don stopped by to hang out.

Sunday was great.  The girls and I slept in until 9:55 a.m.  What a treat! That is the first time we have all slept in that late.  They must have known it was Mother's Day.  :)  And yes, my 3 month old is a rock star sleeper right now. I say "right now" because I know the 4 month wake is fast approaching.  Aaron surprised us with Big Apple Bagel...and Evie ate all of her's and half of mine. As a mom, I have realized I never really get a full meal anymore.  I am always parting ways with my food to Evie or Aaron...or Stan....and probably soon Nora.  We spent the afternoon at Papa Dan's & Nana Kari's house with family.  That evening we went on a nice walk and to the park.  It was a great day with my husband and kiddo's.

This day used to be one of the most dreaded holiday's for myself.  Many virtual hugs to those that may continue to struggle with this holiday due to a variety of different circumstances.

Blog Challenge #2: Your favorite quote

 

I love quotes, and I love to make up my own quotes...& words....& random phrases. During specific times in my life, I have heavily relied on quotes to get me through the day. 

 

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The years of 2008-2010 and also in 2012, were personally very challenging for me.  My husband and I were experiencing infertility issues with trying to get pregnant with #1 and again with #2. It stunk, big time. Here are particular quotes that helped me through this time.

 

Not only does this particular quote speak to me when I struggle with infertility, it also speaks to me while I am interacting with others on a daily basis.  It reminds me to take a step back and try not to judge others so quickly.

 

How true is this quote? 

 

Our babies are our miracles.  Seriously.  We were just about to throw in the towel with trying to get pregnant with both of them, and BAAAAAM!  Our prayers were answered and miracles happened.  Did you know my doc's name is Dr. Mericle???  :)

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Here are my mom/kiddo quotes.

This cracks me up. Silence with a toddler, especially our animated, sassy Evie, is non-existent.

Let's go with the toddler theme here.  I often reflect how I handle situations with Evie and immediately feel like I failed.  Perhaps I was too hard on her, lost my cool, and so on.  Reflecting back to the situation helps me identify what I can do when it happens again, but let's face it...my little girl still (luckily) adores me.

 

 

I am not a perfect momma at all.  I do and say things that I immediately regret, or I don't do and say things that I should have made sure to say from a positive reinforcement perspective.  The good news is that I have two amazing little girls.  A toddler that is sweet and respectful...and sassy.  Did I mention sassy?  :)  And a 3 month old baby that is sleeping through the night and rarely cries. Well, maybe she is just low-key but I hope that I am doing something right here.

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Here are my work-related quotes that I enjoy.

I manage a team of 8 and honestly can say I have the best team in the world. A healthy team dynamic creates happiness and fosters success. 

It's important to remember in my line of work, that it might be the 1,000th time we are asked that question, but our clients first time.  We often judge before truly understanding their personal story.

 

This is a quote that is up in my office. 

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Daily life reminders...

 

Love my random facts!

 

Blog Challenge #1: 20 Facts about you

I am a week late starting my blog challenge. Whoops!  It's crazy how fast the weeks go by with work and the kiddos. So, here we go...

20 Facts about you

1. I am a perfectionist.  To a fault.  Maybe particular is a better word.
2. I love NYC. Obsessed would be the better word.  I would love to be a real estate agent to see all of the amazing properties.
3. Ice cream is my best friend.  We have a love/hate relationship at the moment due to Nora's sensitivity to dairy.
4. Real Housewives addiction is real.  Anything reality is actually my cup of tea.
5. Scared to death to swim in the ocean.  Maybe I watched too much Jaws growing up.
6. Speaking of scared to death, tornado's and storms freak me out.
7. My girls are my world.  If I have the opportunity to grab happy hour with friends or grab a cupcake/playdate with my little ones...I would choose my girls.
8. Not a risk-taker.  I wish I had more of a daring side but I will always play it safe.
9. I research, research, research things to a fault. 
10. Dr. Google is my best friend and also my worst enemy.  He sometimes makes me a bit edgy with scary medical diagnosis until my doc puts me in check.
11. I am a big believer in alternative medicines.
12. Germ-a-phobe here!  This has flared up most recently with a newborn.  Why does every stranger want to grab her little hands that she always puts in her mouth?!? 
13. I am known to have over a 1,000 pictures on my IPhone...of my kids.  :)
14. Decorating my home is my past-time.  Just recently completed Nora's room.
15. I have the best daycare in the world.  We couldn't be more blessed. Michele, Denise, and Nana Kari take such great care of my girls. It makes leaving them during the week so much more bearable.
16. I am a work-a-holic.  This is not a fun one to write.  I need to find more balance.
17. Shopping is another hobby.  Evie always asks when we are going to Target.  Ha!  Nana Kari is guilty of this one too!  Ev always asks if she can shop with her too.
18. I live for vacations.  In-state or out-of-state.
19. My husband is my role-model.  His strength, persistence, patience, and work ethic is amazing.
20. Stan is still my other man! The poor pup has had so many changes over the past couple of years with the kiddo's arriving.

That was tough! I probably could think of more interesting facts, but I am too tired.  Maybe this post will be continued at a later date with more fun facts to highlight.

Proud Wifey!

This deserves a post of its own.  Aaron was just offered the Activities Director position for Forest Lake High School.  I was waiting to share the news with everyone, so that Aaron could get the word out but he is so humble and taking too long! Now press releases have gone out, so I am excited to share the news! Here is a link to one of the articles: The Forest Lake Times Article

That man deserves this promotion. He has worked his tail off over the past couple of years balancing work, coaching, summer hockey camp, completing his admin licensure, and of course raising his family.  He never complains and has the best attitude.  He is a natural fit for this role, and I couldn't be more proud of him!

Congrats Hubby!

Blog Challenge!

It takes 28 days to make a habit take place, correct?  If so, a blog challenge is a good thing to practice right now.  Thanks for the idea, Kristi!  She is currently on Day 12 of her blog challenge and I love reading it!

*Disclosure...I may have to skip a day here and there.  :)  BUT---I will complete the challenge.

Start Date: April 28, 2014

Day 1: 20 Facts about you
Day 2: Your favorite quote
Day 3: What are you afraid of
Day 4: 10 songs you love right now
Day 5: Your 5 senses right now
Day 6: What's in your handbag
Day 7: What are your worst habits
Day 8: What's your best physical feature
Day 9: List 15 of your favorite things
Day 10: What's inside your fridge
Day 11: If you won the lottery....
Day 12: Timeline of your day
Day 13: What's at the top of your bucket list
Day 14: The meaning behind your blog name
Day 15: What do you collect
Day 16: Your 10 favorite foods
Day 17: The best thing to happen this year
Day 18: A difficult time in your life
Day 19: Your dream job
Day 20: Your 5 favorite blogs
Day 21: An old photo of you
Day 22: Post your favorite recipe
Day 23: What are you looking forward to
Day 24: Where have you traveled
Day 25: What's in your makeup bag
Day 26: 3 Personality traits you are proud of
Day 27: Piercings and Tattoos?
Day 28: First celebrity crush
Day 29: What makes you feel better, always
Day 30: Weird quirks
Day 31: Why do you blog

Let the blog challenge begin!

Easter Fun!

It is mid-night and I am up grading, so I thought I needed to take a break (aka procrastinate) and do a quick update.

Easter was a wonderful family day.  Holidays are a blast now with a 2 1/2 year old.  Evie gets so darn excited and even laid out carrots for the Easter Bunny with her daddy the night before.  What wasn't cute was her waking up at 2 am wondering if the Bunny came.

If you know my Ev, she does not like to wear dresses.  Well Nana Kari bought her the cutest dress, but we almost didn't get it on her.  When we were getting her dressed in the morning we first put on white tights.  She was bewildered and asked us, "What is this? Pants with socks on them?!?"  Brilliant...my dear daughter.  Why yes, they are pants with socks on them. 

She put on her dress and she looked adorable.  Aaron and I at the same time just said, "Evie, you look so beautiful!"  Well, she didn't want to hear it.  She exclaimed in a raised little girls voice, "You guyzzzz, I NOT beautiful.  I Evie Mae Forsythe (sounds more like four-fife)!"  It was hilarious.  I wish we had it on video.

The good news was Nora & Ev were excellent at church.  Nora just zoned out on the ceiling fans and fell asleep.  Evie was singing along.  The children had the opportunity to go to the front of the church with the Pastor.  Aaron attempted to bring up Evie, but she said, "No!  No way!"  Ha.  We tried.

Here are some pictures from our day!