happy 3, dear anna

Today, my sweet Anna, you are 3. 

3 years ago, this very day, you arrived into this world, and my life was forever changed.

In a year, you have grown leaps and bounds. 

Your vocabulary is enough to knock off anyone's socks. People often think you are 5 by the way that you speak. Am I in trouble? ;)

You won't have your doctor's appointment until next week, but I imagine that you are right on track, and then some.

You are mine and you are wonderful ~Rene and Jeremy

On our car ride to daycare, I asked you a few questions about life as you know it. Here is what you had to say:

Mommy: What's your favorite color?

Anna: Pink 

Mommy: What's your favorite thing to do?

Anna: Go to the park

Mommy: What do you like about Kieran?

Anna: That he goes to school (Hmm...somebody's ready for preschool herself!)

Mommy: What do you like best about Tatum?

Anna: That I get to play with her (Yay for sisters!)

Mommy: What's your favorite food?

Anna: Nuggets (Yuck, I hope that changes!)

Mommy: Who's your favorite princess?

Anna: Sleeping Beauty (Good answer...her Sleeping Beauty party is on Saturday!)

When your Auntie gave me a baby shower for you, she had everyone write a letter to you, each person had a different age until 18! Here is what my friend Donna wrote to you:

Dear Anna,

Happy 3rd birthday to a most anticipated and loved little girl.

By now you may have beautiful red hair, like your mom, or very blonde hair, like your brother. I wonder if your brother's hair will still be that blonde...? Just know that we love you and can't wait to celebrate all of your special birthdays! Did you know that your mom used to take care of Madeline when she was a baby? It gave her great practice to be the best mom to you and Kieran. 

xxxooo

Love, 

Donna 

Sweet girl, you have strawberry-blonde hair and a personality of a social butterfly. You are a light in our lives. You are a beautiful daughter and sister. 

Much Love,

Mommy

wordless wednesday

happy (belated) easter

During church, she mouthed my words, sang and quietly ate her cereal, clapping at the end. 

"He's real, Mommy, he's real!" This little girl threw her arms around the Easter bunny in a crowd full of other kids when church was over. Utter adoration. 

This one informed me that the Easter bunny at school wasn't real because he saw his zipper, to which I replied that the Easter bunny has many helpers.

He had no problem hunting for eggs, but did ask fairly loudly just before the priests final blessing if Jesus was over. I hope CCD goes over a bit better.

This one was such a trooper and was such a good baby...

even when I put her in this steel tub.

We enjoyed Easter brunch at Aunt Jessica and Uncle Richard's restaurant...

and goofed around while we waited for our french toast.

What would Easter be without these?

Or Peeps?

The kids tired out Buster...

and this is what you call a tired husband who doesn't affiliate himself with the Catholic church or any organized religion, but is so wonderful that he sacrificed a round of golf to be with his family.

Let me tell you, this is big people...BIG.

(Note: Erik would not be happy that I posted this picture, but then, he doesn't read my blog anyway ;) Love you, honey!)

Boompa and Grandma-Great (Erik's grandparents) were able to see Kieran and Anna again, and meet Tatum for the first time!

I never seem to manage getting pictures with everyone, so we don't have any with Grandma & Papa and a few other relatives who were visiting!

Behold, our best attempt at a family photo:

We had a great Easter, and hope you did too!

5 months

Sweet, Sweet, Tatum, 

Yesterday you turned 5 months old.

At 5 months you:

are 15 lbs 3 oz (60%ile)

25 inches (50%ile)

are content to lay on your back and play with all of your toys

sleep through the night...most of the time

smile constantly

laugh, and laugh, and laugh

wake up talking and have a real story to tell.

Sweet girl,

you are so very loved

from the fuzzy peach hairs on the top of your head

to your beautiful blues

to your cute button nose

to your squishy little legs

to your tiny little toes.

I find myself wondering, as I do every month, where the time went.

And then I remember,

it went...

loving you.

i'm so glad i did

See the children run as the sun goes down

As you lie in fields of gold

~Sting

There's those moments, the ones that you have when you think, "I should...", but you don't. As I've gotten older, I've decided that I have far too many "I should haves", and not enough "Glad I did".  I'd been driving back and forth downtown to bring the kids to my mom's preschool to play. Each time we drove past, I kept thinking to myself how beautiful it would be to stop and capture a brief moment of time with the kids in the mustard fields. Soon, the mustard will be gone as it's late in the season and will be cut down to make way for the hundreds who will watch the fireworks under the night sky.

We'd gone to dinner and on the drive home, the same nagging in my head that I'd heard throughout the week had beckoned me once again.

We pulled into the driveway and my dad went inside, while the rest of us were still in the car. I asked Kieran if I could take a few pictures in the mustard fields, to which he replied, "No, you can go to that by yourself". The preschool teacher in my mother quickly responded by asking Kieran if he'd like to "spy" in the mustard fields. Bingo! It worked like magic.

They would hide,

pop up,

and run away.

Kieran soared like a bird...

...and Anna ran as much as she could before trudging through ankle deep mud.

It didn't matter though. What's a little mud when you can soak up the sun,

when you can take in the wonder of the Earth,

when you can just

 be free!

Oh, to take the moments that are meant to be ours...

and hold them close to our hearts.

Oh, to take the moments and live them,

the way they were meant to be.

They cannot be lost if they were never even taken. 

That nagging voice, I listened.

I'm so glad I did.

party time

We just celebrated our son, Kieran's 5th birthday at the end of last month.

At the end of this month, we'll celebrate Anna's 3rd birthday. 

Seeming as though I am on the never-ending party train, I thought I'd celebrate with anyone out there who reads my humble little blog. 

I'm Kristin,

and this is not the greatest picture of me, but I'm too lazy to get one off of my other computer.

I started my blog in August of 2009 as a way to preserve the memories that I have made and have yet to make with my family and friends.  I've always had a passion for writing and though I don't claim to be an accomplished writer, I've had a pen in one hand and a journal in the other since I was about 8 years old.

Exhibit A:

I'm a part-time middle school counselor, a wife of almost 8 years to  

 Erik (who is partially responsible for the title of my blog (ala Neil Diamond) even though he doesn't know it), 

and a full-time mom to 

Kieran (look just "a little" like his daddy?), who just turned 5,

Anna,

age 2 years 11 months (and newly potty trained, praise the Lord!),

Tatum, almost 5 months old and

our newest addition to the family,

and a sweet rabbit, Dreyfuss, who I've had since before we married. 

My family is everything to me. They make life so incredibly sweet. I cherish every moment I've been granted by God, even when I think I'm at my wits end.

It's all so worth it, so very, very worth it.

I love:

photography (and am constantly reading & practicing-and need to learn A TON),

wine (zinfandel to be exact...and it would be a "sin" if I didn't since I was born and raised in the wine country)

bundt cakes & stationery (I'll never let the art of the written letter die!)

and a cold glass

of Diet Pepsi on ice.

This is my "Beautiful Noise"

It's got rhythm to spare

Made of joy and strife

Like a symphony played

It's a beautiful noise

by the passing parade

And it's a sound that I love

It's the music of life.

~Neil Diamond

Cheers to the little things in life, to the big things that matter the most to me, and cheers to you!

Thanks for spending your party time with me :)