Be still my heart

Love these kids so much. Parker is growing up and just amazing us every day by his knowledge and his kindness and his humor. 

Austin is also maturing and has been far more social lately, is developing his sense of humor, and poop is referenced in about every third sentence he says. 

And Jackson... be still my heart. He just lights up a room. Aside from being a little bugger at night, he's a delight and very reasonable during the day.

Go Blue!

 These two have a very special bond. Jackson knows he has some awesome brothers!

 Sleeping beauty. Love this bundle. I mentioned this on Instagram, but I wanted to document it here as well. Lots of people ask me if I'm going to go for a girl. My response is always, "I'm not going to have another baby just to have a girl. If we want to have another baby, we'll have another baby. But I am perfectly happy with my team of boys and I look forward to guiding them and teaching them to be the kind of boys mom's want their daughters to marry."

 Sometimes dinner time is just such a circus. Sometimes= all the time.

 Parker brought his snowman project into school... he looked about 10 years old in that moment. So proud of him that he goes to school happily each day, despite the fact that he says school is "boring." Nonetheless, he pays close attention to every word his teacher says and comes home eager to share what he learned. Love to see him learning more words and he's now able to pick them out of the scriptures. He feels very special when he does that.

 This kid...

 Sometimes I pick up our friend Lyla from preschool with Austin. They are just over 3 months apart in age, but she is SIGNIFICANTLY taller than him. When I pick them up, it looks like I'm getting kids from two different grades. (Black jacket and pink jacket).

Life is just good these days. I feel like we've found a rhythm with three kids and I'm able to pursue my interests, make time for reading, and spend one on one time with the kids. When I spend my time doing the things that are most important to me, I feel the most fulfilled at the end of the day. (Though I am enjoying "New Girl" on Netflix).

Happy birthday to my Dad and Chloe

It's my birthday, shout hooray! But it's also my Dad's and Chloe's b'day. How fun is that to share your birthday with two other awesome people? I just wish we could be together to celebrate.

I hope they both have super special birthdays. We love you!

Random pic update

These two... Austin is so sweet to his brother, though I do still have to say, "Don't sit on your brother 2-3 times a day." It's a process. But he always means well. He hasn't sat on his face in a while, so that's progress:) 

 My cutie boy. These ear infections have been so rough on him. Going to the doctor on Thursday to have him re-checked and maybe talk about tubes.

 This little one is 6 months old today. What??? Fastest 6 months ever. He's the best little baby ever and it's crazy to think that 6 months ago we didn't know him. Now he's irreplaceable. At the doctor's visit, he weighed 17 lbs 15 oz (57%) and 28 inches (92%) for height. He's a big guy but healthy and thriving. He loves how everyone gives him so much attention because of his gorgeous eyes!

 So much love...

Travels home

Oh the red eye... it's one thing if you can sleep on a plane. It's another thing if you have kids strewn across your lap and in your arms and there is no chance of prolonged sleep happening. The boys were awesome on our trip home and slept on the plane. It made a for a low maintenance flight. However, since Pete and I didn't get much/any sleep, by the time we hit Newark for our layover, we were exhausted and the boys were just confused. Then we got to Norfolk and I literally couldn't even fathom parenting the rest of the day, but the kids were rested. Thankfully once we got Jackson down for a nap, Pete and I could sleep while the older boys played video games downstairs. It worked, but it was tough. 

This is how Austin felt about it...

 Lots of sleeping going on... I wish there was a stroller to push me in through the airport.

 The boys are so good to each other. We were on a TINY plane from Newark to Norfolk. Given the ear infection/sinus cold situation, that was pretty uncomfortable. I was never so glad to land.

 Within two days of being home, the Christmas money was burning a hole in the boys' pockets so off to Toys R Us. Parker had his heart set on a certain Lego set...or a large crayon.

 This one is going to be a saver:)

 Thanks Grandpa Lieber for the Christmas money!

 We started Austin on some baby food and he usually loves it, though his grimace communicates a different message.

Extraordinary Moms Podcast

Let me introduce you to my newest labor of love, the Extraordinary Moms Podcast. This all came together rather quickly, as I thought of the idea just before Christmas while I was feeding Jackson. There I was in the pitch black thinking about the things that fill me up as a mom and teach me the most. And what it came down to was that I love hearing stories from other women's lives. I love to be a fly on the wall when they talk about their challenges and lessons they've learned. I love to learn how the women I admire do what they do. I love to know better how to help others going through things that I have not. So that's when  I thought, I need to create that space. I will create a podcast that interviews moms with different stories and have them share what they've learned along the way. I want other moms to understand the value of their work. Extraordinary Moms are not always doing the grandest of things... they are the moms who are in the trenches, doing the daily tasks of a mother with great love and intention. The daily choices they make and the way they deal with adversity not only changes them, but it affects the next generation they are raising. It's a powerful calling and we need to cheer each other on.

In addition, I have been feeling like I needed something that was mine. I do a lot for other people each day, and I really craved working on a project where I could learn and grow and it was on my terms. I want this year to be one of dreaming big dreams for both myself and for my family. I wanted to see where I could take this podcast, not because it would give ME value, but because working towards a goal is a healthy part of personal development. I have been googling like crazy trying to figure out how to submit a song to Itunes, how to make a website (my brother has been so helpful in this), and how to edit the show. It's been very challenging at times, but with each obstacle I've overcome, I feel a sense of accomplishment. Parker calls it "the broadcast" and he's excited to be on a show at some point.

I have some really amazing friends to interview, but I'm also excited about the opportunity to go beyond my inner circle and talk with other extraordinary moms I find out about. So if you know anyone who you think would be great on the show, hook me up!

To listen, you can go to my website or you can listen on Itunes. Leaving a rating/review is super important for the sake of other people finding the show and of course if you subscribe then you'll never miss an episode (they will go out weekly on Tuesdays). I'm really excited about this and can't wait to see how this affects the community of listeners. The more I talk about motherhood, the more I find myself looking at my own journey and trying to be more intentional about the way I do things, the way I talk to my children, and the way I soak up each season. It's a great thing to focus on in my life, so even though it does take up some time, I feel like it's time well spent. So check out the show. I really hope you enjoy it.

More Books to finish out 2015

I've been keeping up with my book reading goal.

"Shopaholic to the Rescue" by Sophie Kinsella. You caught me. I like trash fiction, even when I'm not lounging on the beach. So sue me. haha. But even I didn't like this one. I got about half way through and then gave up. No real substance and the plot was boring. The Shopaholic ship has sailed.

"Nobody's Cuter than You" by Melanie Shankle. She also wrote "Green Sparkly Earrings" and one other one. This one about her appreciation for her friends was deemed to be her best yet but unfortunately I preferred her first book much better. She goes into a lot of detail about her youth and friendships, which unfortunately, I just didn't care about. It was like reading someone's uninteresting diary. But every now and then she'd throw in some insightful life lesson and it did get me thinking about all the relationships in my life that I'm thankful for, but as a whole, the book didn't do it for me. That being said, she's a funny writer and I would say check out her other work. Plus she has an awesome Southern accent so if you ever listen to her on a podcast you'll thank me:)

"Bittersweet" by Shauna Niequist. This is my first by this author, who I'd heard about for a while. After listening to her on a podcast and her revealing that this was her most vulnerable book, I decided to start here. The theme of this book is change, and how trials and change can be both bitter and sweet. She is open and honest about times of hardship in her own life, with job losses, miscarriages, etc... I appreciate that she doesn't try to seem all knowing about getting through hard stuff. She admits plenty of times when she did things wrong. But the self-reflection and striving to be better aspect is really what kept me engaged. The book is chopped up into essays that are related but can be read on their own, as well. There is one chapter called "Say Something", in which she talks about grief and how when one is going through something hard, it's baffling to know that life is going on all around you. "When something bad happens, people say the wrong things so often. They say weird, hurtful things when they're trying to be nice... But there's something worse than the things people say. It's when people say nothing... I remember exactly who walked the other direction when they saw me at church and who walked toward me (p.117)." This really struck me because this year has been a year of a lot of difficulty for people I care about. And there have been so many times when I am grieving for them in my heart but at a total loss about what to say to their face. But that doesn't mean we should let that fear stop us from acting. I'm thankful that even when I didn't know what to say, I simply put a card in the mail that said, "I don't know what to say, but I care." It's not about the words you say, it's about the saying something. It's about showing up when you know others are peddling backwards with fear and uncertainty. It's about that person knowing that even months after the heart of the trial is over, you haven't forgotten. You still think of them and what they went through, just as they are continuing to do as well. I always try to put myself in someone else's shoes... what would I want someone to do or say if I was diagnosed with cancer? What would help me if my child was sick? What would lift me higher out of my grief if I lost a child? I try to think through those questions and then do. I hope you do too. It doesn't take much, but it does take something.

Visiting the Great Grandparents

We had a nice time visiting with Gran and Grandaddy and Grandpa Lieber. 

Jackson and Gran. 

 Reading buddies. She's passing along her love of reading.

 Cute boys with Great Grandpa Lieber.

 The Word Book... read with every grandchild and great grandchild so far.

 Papa Horsie.

 Crazy wrestlers.