February

February was warm. Lyla drags Emma and Regan outback every chance she gets and they come up with these elaborate games to play. She never knows what's going on but she is happy to do whatever they tell her to...who doesn't love that in a little sister?

Then there was Valentine's Day.
We celebrated with spaghetti and cupcakes...

We attempted a hike...& ended up with cute pictures and a walk along the base of the mountain.

30 Looms

My birthdays seem to get better every year.
Though the girls felt sorry for me that I had to spend my day at home and then teach piano I enjoyed it. I took a took a nap when Lyla did and then Brady brought home flowers and a pizza.
Emma apologized for no cake and I said I didn't want a cake...more shock. So we went for ice cream later.

It's the last year of my 20's... on one hand I feel a little nauseous at the thought of 3-0 and on the other I look forward to 30. I feel comfortable with me and where I am headed. I liked my 20s but I feel like my 30s is where I will enjoy all the work of the last 10 years. I plan to transition graciously...that's the plan.

Flag day 2

The second night we were there the girls were excited to see snow falling for the first time in their lives. We were glad to see a couple inches the next morning. We found "this huge hill" to go sledding on and they loved it. Lyla was in heaven...she looked like a pink marshmallow in her snow gear. The huge hill was high enough that they were satisfied but short enough that they could go up and down a million times without any help from us. And after what it took to get them all bundled up we were glad to live in sunny Gilbert!
{Thanks for the trip P&L!!}

Flagstaff for Five day 1

We loved our present from Brady's parent's...a weekend getaway to Flagstaff. Laugh if you want, but yes- we drove intentionally to the snow. Lyla joined us this year and we were a little nervous that we wouldn't have any because it got so warm in the weeks prior.
Our first day there we took a walk around the pond and found a few patches. So the girls were insisting on snow boots. See?...there are a few patches...

Fall for a Day

After the holidays passed we had about a week of fall. In December we had a few leaves fall from the trees but in January we got a small taste of the real thing. They had Brady get out the leaf-blower to make sure they got ALL the leaves they possibly could. This was Lyla's first experience with a leaf-blower and she is still scared to go in the garage! Not a fan of "Daddy's vacuum".

Looking Back ( a lot)

(^file this one under: things I do for my kids^)

I just haven't felt like blogging when I have had the time.
That's all.
So here I am catching up.
***
We took a post-Christmas vacation to San Diego.
Lyla wasn't a fan of a long car ride but once we got there we had so much fun at Sea World, Coronado island and all over town.

Break

Emma wanted to craft and Regan wanted to bake during the week off so they tied a fabric wreath, made "waffle" necklace charms, baked an oatmeal cake and made key lime pie.

When they weren't creating and baking they were playing with Lyla- she knows what they both like to play so she knows to go to Emma to read books and to Regan to play with dolls. They are so easy to please and fun to have at home...made me excited for summer!

It Had to Go

This face is a little more common due to the recent changes at our house.

After it fell on a restaurant floor and she picked it up and put it in her mouth (and I threw up in my mouth a little) I thought that was probably my cue to take Lyla's doe-doe (what she calls her pacifier) away. I mean it doesn't even keep her quiet in church, she screams with it in her mouth.
But the naps...the long glorious naps! I risk losing them if I get rid of it.
I was having an internal momflict (conflict for a mom).
A week later at the chiropractor's office he asked Lyla if he could have it...thinking she wouldn't let him, but with little hesitation she GAVE it to him. He put it in his pocket and the light went off in my head...this is my chance to NOT be responsible for taking it away.
Nap that day was a 2 hour cry-fest with 30 minutes of sleep at the end,but she did it! In the midst of my guilt I gave her a big toy that I was saving for her bday...and all was well in the world again.
See the cloudy eyes and red cheeks? ...it's a good thing I had a new toy stashed away so she wasn't quite so mad at me after nap time.

field trip

Emma and I don't get much alone time these days so I was looking forward to joining her on a class field trip. It's always fun to watch her be silly with her friends.
Although it was a great day with Emma I couldn't help think about the germs. ALL the germs. I love teachers that can do what they do but I almost gagged when I got on the bus...just the thought of...Ew. I still can't think about all the things they touch, the coughs, sneezes...don't get me wrong they really are such cute kids. And it was nice to see that Emma was kind and has sweet friends.
Not gonna lie- I took a shower as soon as I got home.

Noteworthy

Lyla made it through all three hours of church today... 
Not one fit on the floor.
Not one tear on her cheek.
Not one walk in the hallway.
It was bliss.

That was big enough news to make me want to blog after 3 months.
And maybe even motivate me to catch up...