Mid Week Randoms - with a business surprise!!

• Yesterday we registered Will and Luke for school. It starts on Monday and I have bittersweet emotions about them starting. On one hand I am so looking forward to a routine and bedtime to start much earlier but on the other hand summer has been so much fun and easy! I hate to see it end. I also hate to see them going somewhere for hours and days on end BUT it will be good for all!

• Westin has a cough and cold. Summertime colds are NO FUN especially in a spunky, independent, honory, strong willed 15 month old. He is a little firecracker and is much worse when he's not feeling the best.

• A few weeks ago I went to an It Works wrap party with a bunch of childhood friends. It was a lot of fun and with my belly in need of some help I got my belly wrapped. I slept in the wrap over night which was painless and when I woke up I couldn't believe the results I had over night. I was very skeptical at first but when I saw my stretch marks are virtually gone and my waist was down a few inches I couldn't believe it! So, I signed up as a distributor for It Works and so far I can't believe the opportunity it has given me!! Check out my website and let me know if you have any questions!! https://wrappinwithkatie.myitworks.com

• I have a family friend that went to be with the Lord today, she was 88 years old. I ask for your prayers for my family members who were very close to her. She was such a sweet lady and old age just caught up to her. She didn't get sick, she was just ready to go home. This part of life is unfair, selfishly because I do know she is in a better place but her presence here on earth will be greatly missed!

Happy Wednesday to all! I pray you are all having a blessed day!!

Simplicity...

This little cabin and barn off to the side is a picture I took from our trip to Gatlinburg (Cade's Cove). I took this picture while I was in the car with Westin. J, Will and Luke ran up to his house and barn, as if it was our new home. As I sat in the car, I started to cry. I thought about the people who once called this place home. I wonder if they loved and appreciated it more than I did as I sat in the car. Did they wish they had more, like so often we do these days? Or were they completely happy with this land and shelter. I would hope they lived their lives here with pride, I hope they knew just how beautiful this home naturally is... If I could snap my fingers, this is EXACTLY how I would raise my family. Of course a little bit more space would help along with a few modern day amenities but this is what I want. It is what I want for my children and their children. Living a simple life is what I want.

 

Life has been so busy lately. Sometimes all I want to do is just stop everything and begin to appreciate the simple things in life. You know, the things we often take for granted. J and I both are such simple people I often wonder why God has us in such a busy world. It bothers us, all we want are simple things out of life. We really want what we already have but we need to scale back to really enjoy a simplicity. We have such a great marriage and 3 healthy children. What more could one person want? Well now we want some land and we are looking for it... we are trying to simply do what the Lord calls us all to do. Love one another, pray daily, be kind, exercise regularly, eat healthy / simple meals and trust in the Lord more to give us the desires of our hearts.

 

I truly believe that if I want this cabin and barn off to the side kind of life, it is something we must work for and pray about.

 

I hope you all are having a blessed week! 

15 months!

 

I can't tell you where the time has gone but this little buddy is 15 months old now! I haven't done a updated post for him since 12 months so I figured now is the time.

 

Weight: 22 lbs 7 oz

Height: 32.5 inches tall

 

His check up went really well at the doctor. He still takes a paci, bottle (morning and night) and eats #3 baby foods. The doctor said we need to try to start weaning him from the bottle and paci, this my friends I already knew. See, with Will and Luke by 12 months they were off of all of this.... with #3 it is completely different. He's my baby and he will have his bottle a little bit longer, I'm honestly not ready for that to go away yet. AND, his paci well I haven't even thought about when we are taking that away yet. :) Our pediatrician understood and said he would keep him mouth shut about Westin, lol... All rules are thrown out the window with this little fella.

 

He is by far the funniest baby we have ever seen. We always thought Will was hilarious, then Luke came along and we said he was the funniest. Well, Westin tops the cake as by far the funniest 15m old ever! Everything he does is hilarious and so, so smart!

 

 

 

 

He is in LOVE with his Daddy. Everything Daddy does is wonderful and that my friends, melts my heart! He LOVES to help clean, you hand him a rag and he will get to scrubbing. Either the floor, table, high chair... whatever his little mind thinks needs cleaning. Last week he spilled some milk on the kitchen floor, I grabbed the cleaner and paper towels to clean it up. I'm down on my hands and knees cleaning it and I thought he was standing behind me. Nope, he was right behind me with a clean rag he grabbed out of the cabinet and was scrubbing away at the kitchen floor. It was the most precious thing I've ever seen. His little arms are no bigger than my foot and they just love to clean!

 

Being outside is his favorite time of the day. The mosquito's love him so that has been less and less these days. He does have bad spots of eczema, I hate that he has them but we are treating it with steroids so I hope that helps it go away soon! Any help with eczema would be appreciated, he's our first baby with it! :(

 

Westin, buddy you are the sweetest, funniest, kindest, most cheerful, strong willed little boy I've ever known. You are such a bright light in all of our lives, we love you so much!!!

 

Happy 15 month birthday my little man!

 

Love,

Mommy, Daddy, Will & Luke

4th of July plans.... EERRR

 

Our plans for the 4th this year was to go to Georgia to visit my family. My Dad's side of the family has a family reunion every year on the fourth, at our family lake house. Usually it is typically a come if you can type thing. Most of my family live in Georgia so everyone is always able to make it. Well, since we don't live in GA it is always a chore to get down there. When we do get there it is always so much fun!

 

Last Monday, we noticed the horrible weather forecast for this past weekend in Georgia. The closer it got to Wednesday (which was the day we planned to leave) the sooner we realized it was not a good weekend to go. I was afraid it would make my family upset if we didn't come because of rain but everything we had planned was outside. It would be no fun watching fireworks inside or better yet the firework show getting cancelled. (which it did get cancelled) Plus with my Mom's side of the family we planned a pool party and it just would not of worked out. Needless to say, looking back we are so thankful we decided to stay home. I sure miss my family every single day but we are planning another trip in a few weekends to go see everyone! It still has not stopped raining and rivers are flooding, it is a huge mess and I'm so glad we didn't bring our big clan down there to be right in the middle of it!

 

Since we did decide to stay home it was planning in full force for our weekend. I sure wasn't going to sit back and do nothing! Wednesday night we went to see some fireworks with friends.

 

Will and Luke with their buddies Jackson and Juliana. These kiddos have become great friends to our family. I'm not sure what I would do without their parents, sweet family!

 

Me and their beautiful Momma, Tiffany. Love this girl, we are sisters from another mother!

 

 

This was Westin all afternoon on Wednesday. Daddy decided to stay home with him and let us go watch the fireworks. (thank you babe!) Westin would of been miserable, he is getting his teeth all at one time and he is a miserable little soul. Poor fella!!! :(

 

 

Wednesday night one of the only things that made Westin happy was being outside with his Daddy. Daddy was cutting the grass and he followed him around the entire yard. This was him for 30 minutes straight. Daddy stopped sometimes to pick him up and love on him, then they would keep on going... talk about melting my heart!! This boy loves his Daddy more than anyone else on this earth and that my friends, melts my heart!!!

 

On July 4th we went to my brother and sister in law's to cook out for lunch. It was SO much fun and I always enjoy getting together with J's family. They are all just like my family and there are a lot of them so it's always loud and fun! :)

 

I just love my little boys so much! They are always my little firecrackers!

 

And for our Pop Pop (my Dad) we had to get some fireworks for that night to shoot off at the house. So glad Daddy is around to deal with that, fireworks terrify me.... especially my off springs wanting to light them.... My heart is never fully prepared to be a Mom of all boys!

 

 

I hope you all had a wonderful July 4th weekend!! Now on to the real world.... ugh!