snow fun

We have had quite the wintery week here in middle Tennessee! We had snow on Wednesday & all weekend! I was sitting at dinner with friends on Thursday night when we got the call that school was cancelled on Friday due to the winter storm heading our way. Well, we woke up on Friday and there was nothing but a little sleet. The kids were disappointed. Ben called me after he got to work and said the roads were slick & around 8:30 the snow started to really fall. It fell really hard, really fast. Luckily Ben left work after a couple hours and although he got stuck a few times, he made it home for a long snowed-in weekend.

By Saturday morning we had about 6 inches! I have never seen that much snow in Nashville. It was beautiful and looked like a winter wonderland. It has melted some today, but we still have plenty to play in!

Cheney was not a big fan of the cold wind in her face but she loved the snow! She looked SO cute in her fluffy snowsuit. She has never looked so chubby!

 

Grayson was definitely our biggest fan of the snow! He loved it! We tried going sledding but the hill behind our house isn't steep enough. He did make a snowman and helped Ben shovel all the snow off our trampoline!

Griffin prefers a warm house over the cold snow. He doesn't like his hands getting cold but he did love eating our snow cream we made!

 

 

We had a fun weekend of playing outside, lounging in pajamas inside, & looking at the beautiful snow. It is so cold & messy, but it really is so pretty.  Now that we have had our big snow fun, I think spring weather can come! 

the bittersweet part of the last baby

I'm so ready for the next chapter of our lives. I promise I am. This stage of life is so fleeting & sweet, but three kids who are pretty self sufficient sounds glorious.

and then I rock her. My sweet, wild, spicy, curious, always moving baby girl. It's almost like time stands still in that rocker.  It truly is the only time she lets me snuggle her & we might just be rocking her to sleep until she goes to college.  She is the sweetest little toddler baby. I say all the time that I wish I could freeze her just like this. Keep her as a 17 month old just a little while longer.

 

We've been in this baby stage for so long now that I sometimes forget that it won't always be like this.  I won't always have tiny little fingers clawing at me while I cook dinner. I won't always hear a sweet little voice yelling, "mama!!! mama!!!" One day I will even get to take a shower without having a child in the bathroom at the same time as me. (at least I hope that part is true)

 

These kids are growing up so fast & I feel like the last year literally FLEW. Our last baby won't be a baby much longer and it's a weird, happy, heartbreaking place to be.

 

I've got Psalm 126:3 written on our kitchen chalkboard right now & it seems to perfectly describe how I am feeling about life right now: "The Lord has done great things for us and we are filled with joy." 

 

So. much. joy.  There's just something about that last baby. 

The New House Tour: a room for our boys

When we moved in to our house, the boys were not sharing a bedroom. You might remember that we had tried that once before when Griffin was a few months older than Cheney is now. It was a disaster. We nixed that whole idea and came to terms with the fact that they would never share and we would never have a true guest room again.

 

Well, about a week after we moved into this house, they decided they wanted to be roommates again! The guest room still looks like it could be Grayson's room because I am sure they won't share forever, but for the time being it has been great! Here is a peek at their shared space.

 

It was hard to arrange their room because the closet has 2 huge doors on the opposite wall. They have just enough space now to open their window & some floor space to play. We've even gotten rid of Griff's rail since these were taken & it makes bed making SO much easier. Not that bed making happens on a regular basis or anything. Just being honest!

All I need to add on Grayson's side is a place to hang his artwork.

 

I love their little wall of pictures and art. I really need to add this to Cheney's room!

 

 I am also still in love with these beds built by my father-in-law. They are perfect! The room sharing thing can drive us crazy (especially when Griffin wakes his brother up at the crack of dawn) but the fun memories they are making is priceless.  I sure do love these brothers!

 

I am so glad that their room is basically finished. We will replace all the upstairs carpet eventually and Grayson has been begging for a fan in their since we moved in. I guess we will replace the ugly brass light fixture eventually! I'm just happy that they now love sharing a room!



Menu Monday

I'm going to be honest. Last week we had a fully planned menu. Last week we had take out WAY too many times. I will blame the sick stage 5 clinger on that! Sorry, Cheney.  This week will be better!

 

via

 

Monday: Chicken and Potato Chowder (we haven't had this yet, but this is one of my favorite food blogs. She has great recipes!)

 

Tuesday: Crockpot Salsa Chicken tacos (1 big jar of salsa, 2 chicken breasts, cook on low for 6 hours, & shred. So easy!)

via

 

Wednesday: Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole

 

Thursday: out

 

Friday: French Bread Pizzas

 

Saturday: Grilled chicken/apple sausage & baked sweet potatoes

Five on Friday

IT'S FRIDAY. Hallelujah!!! This week has not been the greatest & I am excited for a weekend with very little plans! I am really, really working hard to get my blog back in business. I finally cleaned off our desk in the office (we had not really been able to SEE the desk since we moved. in April. oops.) and I have my own little nook to write! So, here's my Five on Friday! Well, four, because I can't think of five;)

1. The only reason this week wasn't the greatest was because Cheney was sick again. We have become frequent visitors at the pediatrician lately. I wish they would let me have a punch card or something. You know, one free visit for every 10 we have? She woke up super early Tuesday morning with a 104 degree temp...that is crazy high for our kids & it freaked me out a little. I didn't go to work that day & took her to the doctor. We saw a different one in our practice & after he checked out her chart, he said, "let me guess...she's a daycare baby!" Nope. No she is not. Just catches ALL THE VIRUSES. Luckily she is acting almost back to normal today. yay!

2. Well, I kind of got a maid for Christmas. Except not really. I actually got a robot that cleans my floors for Christmas and it is just as awesome!! My parents got me a Roomba and it is the greatest invention ever. I always had to sweep at least once every day since we have shedding dogs and messy children.  It was usually the first thing I did every morning. I haven't had to sweep the first floor our house since!!!!! (well, aside from kid crumbs after meals) It's amazing. If you have dogs, GET THIS.

 

3. Speaking of Christmas, Cheney girl got some pretend makeup that she loves. She plays with it every day and loves doing all of our makeup. Daddy included:) I decided she needed another set to keep in our master bathroom because she is always in there when I get ready. I remember seeing a DIY thing on Pinterest and gave it a whirl!

 

Here is her new makeup! I had 2 things of eyeshadow and blush that were basically empty. I just scraped the rest of it out, rinsed it, and then poured in some cheap nail polish. Voila! Fake makeup! It took a full day to dry and get the horrible smell out. Cheney loves it! Now she can do makeup when she's upstairs and downstairs...such a girly girl!

 

4. We have entered into the dreaded winter months. The months that feel so dark, cold, & dreary. Winter is HARD with little boys. Grayson and Griffin have so much energy but it has been so cold lately! They have rediscovered our Wii lately and think Just Dance is so fun. It's the old version from 5-6 years ago but they LOVE dancing to it. It is a really funny energy burner before bed. Plus watching G get really into it is funny!



The things I don't want to forget

This is, essentially, the baby book for all my kids. Thank goodness for the internet! Here are some things I don't want to forget:

 

-how Cheney LOVES getting kisses from the dogs. Hudson and Ellie happily oblige but she is still working on Jack. She walks up to them with her mouth open wide & they know that she wants a kiss. Ha! Sister girl loves her dogs!

 

-the difference in sibling relationships at this age. Grayson is more of Cheney's protector and caretaker. He always makes sure she is safe and has things that she needs. He is loving to her and wants to hug on her all day long, but she screams. She longs for personal space. Griffin is her silly playmate and she thinks he is hilarious. I'm pretty sure she thinks they are the same age (poor tiny Griff) because she gets MAD when he tries to help her do anything.

-Cheney will cry and cry each morning until I go to her room. As soon as I turn the light on she sits down, turns her music on, and wants to just stay in her crib for about 10 minutes. I will ask over & over if she wants to go downstairs but she adamantly shakes her head no. Funny girl!

 

-Griffin can memorize any song after hearing it once. I think he will be the musical kid. He can carry a tune and it just seems to come naturally to him. We love listening to him sing in the car!

-Grayson causes all the drama getting dressed in the morning. It makes me laugh (when it isn't making me pull my hair out). I try and help but I can't get it right. He is particular about which things go together and which tall Nike socks he wants to wear! Such a mini teenage boy.

-Cheney loves her snowboots and picking out multiple bows. They rarely match her outfit, but I am just thrilled that she wants one!!

 

-Griffin says "mank you" instead of "thank you" and I refuse to ever correct him. It's my favorite. Especially during prayers. "Mank you God for my family. Mank you God for my friends."

 

-Cheney has started playing with my hair while I read her stories at naptime and bedtime. It's pretty much the sweetest thing ever.

 

-When Ben walks through the door he always gets the BEST Cheney greeting. She squeals, dances, and is genuinely so happy to see her daddy.

 

-Grayson is all of a sudden obsessed with magic tricks. He hides things all the time and shows me his "tricks" and "how magic he is." It is so random!


Menu Monday

Are you impressed? I'M BACK!

 

Before I share our menu for this week, I wanted to share my newest obsession when it comes to grocery shopping: ALDI. I remember as a newlywed in Franklin I walked in to Aldi and left a very confused customer. I was unaware that I needed a quarter for shopping carts. I was unaware that they didn't provide you with bags. You can buy them or bring your own. I was not expecting it to look like a warehouse. I bought some groceries and didn't return for 6 years.  One of my MOPS mamas who has 4 kids told me earlier in the fall that she could buy groceries for her entire family at Aldi for less than $100/week. That seriously grabbed my attention. We were spending roughly $140/week at Publix for our family & to be honest, our kids don't eat much. So, this fall I started switching up my grocery routine. I always shop on Sundays and I start off at Aldi & end at Publix. I am able to get probably 90% of our groceries at Aldi each week and I spend about $60.  The only things I have to buy at Publix are deli items, bananas, & Cheney's milk. I've been impressed with most of their own brand items & have quickly learned the things I can't buy there. If you haven't tried to do your shopping there, you should! Just make sure you bring your own bags & you have a quarter handy:)

 

Now, on to the good stuff!

 

via

 

Monday: Mustard Herb Crusted chicken, baked potatoes, & honey glazed carrots
 

via

 

Tuesday: Chicken Zucchini Casserole (this is one of our new favorites!)
 

via

 

Wednesday: Taco Bubble Up

 

Thursday: Girls night out!

 

Friday: make your own pizza night! (we use tortillas as crust and they are perfect if you love thin crust like us!)

via

 

Saturday: Baked Chicken Parmesan & spaghetti with marinara.