Snowmageddon.

I chuckle when I hear people call a foot of snow a "snowmageddon", but that's partly due to growing up in Iowa and getting big 'ole snowstorms like this more frequently than not.

But in Kansas City, it's a big 'ole deal.  We haven't gotten a foot of snow at one time since 1919, and more often than not, the snow misses us and all we get is ice.

I'd rather get a big 'ole snowstorm any day instead of 1-2" at a time, and yesterday my wish came true!  To top it off, Tyler's work was closed for the day (amazing!) so once the snow stopped falling temporarily, we went outside to shovel and play.

Shoveling felt pretty impossible at this point, but we wanted to get a path cleared out before the ice came in, in case Tyler's company was open today (which it was).

Jax was pretty excited to be able to play out by the mailbox and "in" the street... he's never allowed out there or even remotely close to the street, but considering there was NO traffic, I was pretty ok with it.  :)

Sorry for the overload of Jaxon&Charlie pictures... Cohen was still pretty happy hanging by the front door this entire time. 

I promised I helped him shovel (after my battery died)... it was my workout for the day! 

Ha!  Pretty much sums it all up.

My camera battery died, so out came the iPhone...

 

Cohen finally came out to play so Tyler helped them dig out a tunnel while I was shoveling.  An hour later they both threw a big giant melt down when it was time to come inside.

Schools and a lot of businesses are still closed today, and since Tyler is gone and the windchill is 8*, we will probably be hanging inside for the remainder of the day.

And yet another "major" storm is coming Monday... I think the groundhog was wrong this year.

Jaxon turns 4!

In the past, I've gone all out for birthdays and really enjoy doing so.  However, recently Tyler and I have decided to do "big" parties every-other birthday, and the off year we'll keep it simple and fun.

Leading up to the party I had major Mama guilt that I was not planning a big extravagant event (for whatever silly reason), but now that it's all said and done I can confidently say this was one of my favorite parties yet.  I spent that day just soaking up my big boy and hanging with family instead of running around like a crazy lady and cooking, and an hour before the party I started setting stuff up and sent Tyler to get the pizza.  So much less stress!

We had my family, Tyler's family, and Jaxon's best friend Benton (and his Mama) at the party, so 17 people total.  Perfect!

The invite, designed by my amazing best friend...

From his birthday morning... opening 1 gift from Tyler and I. 

Later in the day we were ready to party!

Cake made by one of my besties Andrea 

The party was very low-key... we ate some yummy pizza, and the kids played Angry Birds themed games and coloring sheets.

 And then, a child's favorite part of any birthday... presents :)

And cake.  It was soooo yummy, and this is coming from a non-cake lover! 

My nephew turned 8 the following week, so we sang to him as well :) 

All in all, a simple yet perfect party indeed!

Happy 4th Birthday, Jaxon Daniel. 

My funny Valentine(s).

Keeping up with my tradition of buying Valentines shirts after they go on clearance, and taking some much needed updated pictures of the boys...

Poor guy has NO personality... can't you tell?  :)

Usually Cohen is the better picture-taker, but I was able to catch quite a bit of ... ahem... personality from Jaxon yesterday.  I love it.

(see last years pictures here)

Our teens had a fundraiser at church last night, 3 hours of childcare for $15 for both boys.  We debated for a while what to do and joked that dropping them off and just coming back home for a quiet evening sounded pretty amazing.

We ended up celebrating Valentines in true Kansas City form... Oklahoma Joe's BBQ.  Add trying this restaurant to your bucket list right now... so yum!!

Tyler had some go-carts planned for afterwards, but we changed our mind after seeing the outrageous prices, so then he suggested Target + Starbucks... I wasn't in the mood for either.  I know, really weird.  I told him I didn't care what we did at that point, so he chose Best Buy.

BBQ + Best Buy, Valentines 2013.

From the bottom of my heart, I really didn't care.  It's always good to enjoy some one-on-one time with my Man.  Conversations that aren't fueled by "take a bite and then you can get down", "get your feet off the table", and "STOP teasing your brother".

I love his dimples.

He left about an hour ago to go to Colorado for the weekend.  One of his good buddies from college (that he lived with for a long time) is getting married, and it originally started as a family vacation, but he wasn't able to get as much time off from work as we wanted.  I wasn't about to drive 8 hours with the boys (plus hotel cost, meals, etc) just to spend 1 day there.  Someone tell me you would have made the same decision so I can stop feeling guilty about not going.

Have a happy weekend!  And pray for my sanity, if you think of it.  :)

Hello... weeks later.

Hey there.

Remember when I used to blog multiple times a week?

Yeah, me too.  Life happens.

I feel this overwhelming pressure to blog but with the chaos that abounds in our home right now, I don't know where to begin.  I start to wonder how much I should share, and how much we should just keep to ourselves, so I figured I'll just start writing and see what happens.

:)

I'm afraid instagram has started to replace my blog, which is sad since I know years from now I will regret that.  I love looking through old posts, so many of them are ridiculous and I was such a dork (and probably always will be), but that was life then.  And this is life now... and I still want to document it.

So here we go, what's been happening in our neck of the woods?

Of course, day to day life with the boys... there's never a dull moment!
We've enjoyed a few beautiful "park days"... and then the next day it snows.  Crazy Kansas.
A few lazy days here and there as well.
Playdates with friends!
The flu hit Jaxon, and Praise the good Lord the rest of us have avoided it... knockonwood.
I celebrated my 27th birthday with friends, flowers, and a World Market + dinner date.  Perfection.

Cohen "graduated" from speech therapy... hooray!
Family night is always my favorite.
Coffee with my sweet husband is, too.
Family came to town to celebrate Jaxon's 4th birthday.
Had dinner with my BFF ... so much laughter!  I am so grateful for 15 years of friendship.

These boys are my life, can you tell?  :)
I love how I feel after a great workout.
I also love Erin Condren and her cute iPhone cases.
I don't love still not sleeping through the night.  I can't wait for Jaxon's 4 year old wellness appointment to talk to our pediatrician and pick her brain.

I feel so behind on the blog world that I have literally been avoiding my computer.  But then I see my amazingly cute new computer chair, and have a seat.  Try and tackle the 200+ unread blog posts in Google Reader.

So much cuteness inside World Market.  I'd describe it as a mix between Pottery Barn and Anthro, but way more reasonable prices.  Ahh, to win the lottery... :)

To close out the most random post in history, here's a glimpse at what's going on with us.

We are in prayer about a couple major decisions, and really would ask that you join us as well, if you think about it.  We've really been seeking the Lord the last few weeks and just as we felt an answer and one door open, a second door opened as well.  We've been struggling with which one is the "right" door and of course trying to decide which is best for our family.

I find so much peace knowing the Lord has our best interests at heart.  I believe He will continue to open and close doors, guiding us where He wants us to be permanently.  I also believe He will use us to advance His kingdom no matter which door we choose.

We just need prayer, and lots of it.  At times I start really freaking out about it, and almost feel like I'm having panic attacks.  Then I take a breather and realize it's because I'm not fully trusting, instead I am trying to figure it out on my own.  Never once have we ever walked alone - He is faithful.

You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You.

Isaiah 26:3

After sharing our situation with one of my best friends, her reply was "I feel like amazing things are on the horizon for you guys, I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store in the next couple months."

I am clinging to that hope and join her in the excitement of seeing whats to come for our family.

In other news, I can't believe we have a four year old.  Angry Birds birthday party coming to the blog soon.

So much craziness in one post, but hopefully we'll be back to regular scheduled programming soon.  Thanks for hanging in there with me.