{this moment}

I found the prompt for this post on one of my favorite blogs (Little Miss Momma) and thought I'd give it a go!

{this moment} – A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

inspired by SouleMama  

Give Thanks Friday

I'm pretty sure that last week is going down in the books as one of the best weeks of my life -- no joke! It was such a fun and fulfilling week full of good music, family time, and birthday fun. Without further ado, here are 5 things I'm most thankful for! As always, if you're needing to put things into perspective or are looking for a little end of the week pick-me-up, I encourage you to sit down and jot down your biggest blessings from the week--we all have so much to be thankful for!

1.) As I mentioned on Tuesday, we attended the Garth Brooks concert last weekend and got to see my Aunt Judy and Cousin Angie (who came out from Kansas for the show)! It was such a fun day and reminded me again of just how blessed I am to have such a wonderful family! 

2.) Goober had his 15 month well check on Monday and all is well (besides having to get poked and prodded for shots..)! I'm thankful for such a happy, healthy little guy and for the QT we had before his appointment (lunch and park play)! 

3.) Staying on the topic of Jackson, I'm just flat out thankful for such a sweet little boy! Whenever I pick him up now, he pats me on the back and puts his head on my shoulder. Heart. Melt. 

4.) I'm thankful for my hubby who made my birthday extra special by taking us out to a hibachi grill last night and booking us in a Parisian cooking class on Saturday.. Love that man! 

5.) Last but certainly not least, I'm so thankful for all the good people in my life. Birthday's are always a time of reflection for me and I couldn't help but think of all of the good people I know and have encountered over the last quarter of a century! Thank you to everyone who called, texted, sent cards, FB'd, etc., yesterday -- you don't know just how much that means to me. 

Have a blessed Palm Sunday weekend, all! Can you believe that next weekend is Easter? 

Thoughts on Turning 25

Tomorrow is my birthday and I turn a quarter of a century old..

..I know that isn't very old at all but it feels like it to me.

I'm in my mid-twenties now! Where has the time gone?!

The other day, I started thinking about my life and how it is basically the exact opposite of anything I'd ever expected.

If you'd asked me 10 years ago what I'd be doing at 25, my answer would be simple: I'd be a single working girl living in a loft (above a coffee shop) in some trendy city -- since I wouldn't be tied down and would have all kinds of money from my well paying job, I'd go see the world with friends and settle down sometime in my 30s.

That was it. That was the plan. Thank God for unanswered prayers!

Here I am at 25 -- I'm a happily married mother (and homeowner) living in the suburbs with a cat and work from home job.

You wanna know something?

I wouldn't change it for the world.

I absolutely love my life and thank God every day for giving it to me.

I'm married to my soul mate (as corny as it sounds, it's true!), have a healthy little boy, roof over my head, education, and sometimes even get to travel -- it doesn't get any better than this!

This last quarter century has been amazing and I want to thank everyone who has been part of it. I really do have the best family and friends in the world and can't thank you all enough for making this life so special.

Here's to the next 25!

Yep; I'll take this over any other job any day! 

Party On, Garth!

On Saturday, Brandon and I had the opportunity to attend the Garth Brooks/Trisha Yearwood concert at the Pepsi Center and had the best time! Since I really only listen to 90s Alternative, I was worried about being the bump on a log attendee who didn't know any of the songs -- but it turns out that he wrote and performed basically every popular country song from the 1990s so I was able to sing along to most everything.. and when I couldn't sing, I danced!

It was so much fun!

 

My Aunt Nancy's awesome boss is actually friends with Garth (how cool is that?) and gave us our tickets-- the seats were fabulous and our entire group was up and moving the entire show! Side note: My aunt & uncle have actually gone to a party at Garth & Trisha's house in Nashville.. let the epic-ness of that sink in for just a minute.. 

My "little" Fedora wearing brother on the light rail ride to Pepsi.. this was his first concert! 

 

 

The fam -- my Aunt Judy and Cousin Angie came out from Kansas for the show! 

On the walk back to our car -- what a perfect night! 

It was such a fun and memorable day and I highly encourage everyone to attend a Garth concert -- he puts on an incredible show! 

Before I go, I have to share one last picture from earlier in the day on Saturday. We all went to lunch at Homegrown Tap & Dough on Old South Gaylord and Jax was eating up all of the attention.. thank you again to my parents for watching our little munchkin boy when we went to the show! 

It's such a shame that he never gets any attention.. 

Jackson's 15 Month Update

My little Fun Size Brandon turned 15 months old yesterday and we're celebrating today with MMR vaccines (poor baby..) and lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant! This has been such a fun month for Jax and I couldn't be more amazed with how smart, sweet, and funny he is. He truly is blessing and I pray over him every night after he falls asleep and thank God for giving us our precious boy. 

Here's what we've been up to this month:

Weight: 19 lbs 7.5 oz.

Length: 30.5 inches

Nicknames: Jax, Bubs, Jax Lee San, Goober

Wearing: 12 & 18 month clothes (18 month shirts fit pretty well but the pants are still way too long); Size 3 diapers

Sleep: Pretty much the same as last month -- he'll sleep 3-4 hour stretches before waking us up to be reassured and nursed. We usually bring him into bed with us at around 6 and he'll sleep another couple of hours. He only nurses now before nap and bed so we're definitely making progress but I can't see him giving that up anytime soon.

Jax likes: Bella, climbing on anything & everything, commercials, Pixar movies, playing outside, when there are other kids to chase around at the park, helping mommy & daddy, putting things away, Elmo, MOPS, snacks, dancing, opening & closing things, hide & seek, Costco, sweets, going on walks, singing songs with mommy, dipping his food, and reading.

Jax dislikes: Having clothes pulled over his head, when he can't get something to work right away, being told "no", having to leave the park, being in the car for too long, laying down for diaper changes

Food: It seems like he's getting to be a little less picky (emphasis on little) but he's now flat out refusing chicken which doesn't fly in our home (mamma likes her chicken)! Favorites are Greek yogurt, crackers of any kind, peanut butter, Belvita biscuits, cheese, green & black beans, veggie burgers, red meats, fish, mac & cheese, and sugar of any kind. 

Teeth: 4 on top; 4 on bottom

Happenings: Dinner w/some of the Wernsman clan; staying with Uncle Joey & Great Aunt Brigette when mommy & daddy went to a play; starting to decorate his "big boy" room; staying with Grammy & Grandpa when mommy & daddy went to KC for a night (train show and dinner with Great Aunt Nancy & Uncle Rolf); 6th haircut; lots of park, library, & MOPS play dates; Aunt Jen's baby shower; 2nd St. Patrick's Day; starting to prep the garden for spring; and lunch with some of the Kasten clan. 

St. Patrick's Day 2014 & 2015

~Jackson is seriously the smartest toddler ever (says the completely unbiased mother) and can go find things you ask for and bring them to you, "copies" people (ex: I'll say "Jax, Jax, Jax!" and he'll reply with "Ba Ba Ba!" -- so basically he'll "say" something the number of times you say it), holds up one finger when you ask how old he is, and loves to talk (I = Hi; Lela = Bella; Mama & Dada; Mo Mo = Elmo.. I'm not too sure what the other things he says mean, ha). He's still not quite walking but I can tell it's coming -- he's an old pro at grabbing onto things and walking but he seems to prefer crawling because he can get from Point A to Point B even faster (Brandon's sister said our nephew was the same way and wouldn't walk without holding onto something until he was around Jax's age)!

~Jax is all about helping with everything now (pictured is him "helping" me push his stroller home from the park) -- he hands me the clean silverware out of the dishwasher, dusts/wipes off things, and helps me load the dryer. Mundane chores now take 10x as long to do but my heart also grows 10x its normal size when I see the look of pride in my helpful toddlers eyes!

~This kid is so stinking sweet and will pat you on the back while you're holding him, is always giving hugs & kisses, and will fold his hands to pray before meals and at church! His sweetness makes up for all the times he's a huge stinker and pulls the cats tail after we tell him not to..

~ ^^ALL BOY! If it involves getting messy in any way (or scaring his mommy half-to-death by doing something daring), he's in! I wouldn't have it any other way :)

Give Thanks Friday

I'm sad to see another great week come to a close! 

We are now halfway through Lent and that much closer to Easter.. that being said, I think I will get out some of my Easter decor this weekend and work on Jackson's basket! I'm looking forward to when Jax is a little bit older and can fully appreciate the true meaning of Easter but I have to admit that I'm also excited to do all the kitschy Easter Bunny, candy, and egg hunt activities this year -- I love being a mom!!  

On that note, it's time to look back at this week and give thanks for all of our blessings. If you're needing to put things into perspective or are looking for a little end of the week pick-me-up, I encourage you to sit down and jot down your biggest blessings from the week--we all have so much to be thankful for!

1.) I got to see my BFF last Sunday and help throw her baby shower! I'm so glad that I get to do life with her (but wish she lived closer -- hurry up and move back to CO, you 3!!).

Jen & Annie -- Circa 2005 & 2015

2.) We had several days of fabulous weather this week and spent lots of time outside playing, going on walks, and working in the backyard -- I just love my sweet little sidekick! 

3.) Speaking of my little sidekick, I managed to get over 30 minutes of toddler free crafting in at MOPS yesterday -- that's right, folks; my little mamma's boy actually played in the daycare room for an entire half hour before having to be brought back in to me! It was so nice getting to sip my coffee, talk to other moms, and craft for a few minutes (and I'm hoping we're making progress in the whole "you don't have to be with mom every second of every day" department). 

It's supposed to be a lamb. Hmm, maybe I shouldn't craft after all.. 

4.) We had our friends Logan & Tracy over for dinner and games on St. Paddy's Day night -- it was so much fun! I'm thankful for fun friends who don't mind including our toddler in our get togethers. 

Jax never seems to mind when we all get together (P.S. I'm glad he can't read yet.. holy raunchiness, Card Against Humanity!).

5.) I'm so excited to get together with family tomorrow! We're going to lunch at my all-time favorite restaurant and then headed to the Garth Brooks concert tomorrow night -- pictures coming Monday! 

What are you most thankful for this week?

Winnie the Pooh Baby Shower

When we were visiting Brandon's parents in Tennessee last Labor Day weekend, I received a phone call from my best friend with the greatest news ever -- she and her husband were expecting their first child! After excusing myself to the front yard to talk to her on the phone/scream and jump up and down, I went back inside to do the only logical thing: create a secret Pinterest board and begin planning the baby shower that I'd been dreaming of throwing her.

I'd pin a few generic baby shower ideas here and there but couldn't come up with a specific theme -- then one day, Jen told me she planned to decorate the nursery in vintage Winnie the Pooh and right then I knew our theme. Fast forward a few months and the grandmas-to-be and I began scheming and planning.

Here are some of the things we came up with for our vintage Winnie the Pooh baby shower:

After weeks of emailing back and forth, the 5 hostesses crafted a perfectly Pooh Bear menu featuring Tigger Tails, Owls Outstanding Treats, Roo's (Cinnamon) Rolls, and the most decadent white chocolate hunny mouse desserts served inside chocolate bowls. 

Jennifer's crafty mother-in-law put together the adorable name cards.

Guests were asked to sign a Winnie the Pooh picture (guest) book and self address an envelope upon arrival. Most of the decor (stuffed animals, books, pictures, toys, etc.) was thrifted and thoroughly washed -- I'm going to miss hunting for Winnie the Pooh treasures on my weekly trips to Mile High Thrift Store! 

Jen's incredibly talented step-mom put together this Burt's Bees diaper cake -- isn't it just perfect for a Winnie the Pooh party?

I saw this idea on my friend Ruthie's blog and have been dying to do it ever since! We asked each guest to write down some words of advice or an inside joke for Jen that I could have it turned into a keepsake book. I love all the advice and how cute the book turned out! 

Jen's mom and her friend decorated these incredible party favors for the guests -- beautifully painted (and each one different) wine glasses. 

^^More Hundred Acre Wonderfulness from Jen's mom's friend

We ate (and ate and ate), played a fun "Price is Right" game, prayed over Jennifer & Baby Oliver, and showered our guest of honor with lots of love and gifts -- it was such a fun day and I'm so thankful for my co-hostesses who all worked so hard to pull off this memorable day.

 

 

 

We can't wait to meet your little hunny, Jen & Ryan! 

Jen's Little Hunny (Baby Shower)

On Sunday, I had the great pleasure of co-hosting my very best friend's baby shower in our home! 

The mamma-to-be and I have been best friends since 7th grade and have done everything together--we've lived together, spent countless all-nighters on the phone, stood by each others side when we said "I Do", and now we're grown up and starting families of our own. This girl is like a sister to me and I thank God every day for bringing us together during Mr. Packer's Physical Science class (after my family had just moved to a new town and I didn't know a soul).

I'll be posting again tomorrow with all of the shower details but just had to share a few pictures in the meantime. The shower turned out to be a huge success (and we managed to fit 25 people into our small-ish house--score!) and I think that everyone who attended had a wonderful time. The theme of the shower couldn't have been anymore Tigger-iffic and I can't wait to tell you all about it tomorrow!

But until then, can you guess the theme?

Oh bother.. I think you may have guessed correctly. Oh well.

TTFN (Ta Ta For Now)!

Give Thanks Friday

Do you ever have one of those weeks where the days just don't seem right and you keep questioning if it really is the day of the week that the calendar claims? That basically sums up my week. Every day has seemed like Thursday to me.. Weird. 

Anyway it's Friday which means it's time to reflect and give thanks! If you're needing to put things into perspective or are looking for a little end of the week pick-me-up, I encourage you to sit down and jot down your biggest blessings from the week--we all have so much to be thankful for!

1.) As mentioned on Tuesday, Brandon and I spent last weekend in KC visiting old friends and celebrating the wedding of Heather and Aaron! It was so good to see so many friends and to get away for a night--I'm grateful that we had the opportunity to do so!

Power & Light selfie

Selfie stick selfie

2.) Motherhood has turned me into a terrible flyer. I used to joke that I'd get onto a plane with a negative outlook so that if the plane crashed, I wouldn't be surprised and if we landed safely, it'd be a good day. Anyway, now anytime we fly and hit a little turbulence, I feel the urge to cry and scream about how we can't crash because we have a child at home who needs his parents.. Dramatic much? With that being said, I'm extremely thankful for the safe travels we've experienced the past few months.

3.) I'm thankful for quality time together with my little guy.. I can't wait until Jax gets a little bit older and we can go on more mother/son dates to the movies, museum, etc.

4.) The weather has been AMAZING the last few days and I just can't get enough! Yesterday, Jackson and I spent a couple hours outside pulling weeds, picking up trash, and playing--it was exactly what my soul needed! C'mon Springtime! 

5.) I get to see my very best friend in the whole entire world on Sunday and help co-host her baby shower!!! I'm so stinking excited and can't wait to share pictures next week!!

Jen & me at my baby shower in October 2013

What are you most thankful for this week?

Baby's 6th Haircut

A baby's 6th haircut is totally worth documenting.. right??

My little 14-month-old had his SIXTH haircut on Tuesday morning! This kid has some seriously crazy hair (and I couldn't be more envious.. I wish my hair would grow that quickly) and the ladies at the kiddie haircut place couldn't believe he'd been in so many times before.

As you may remember, Jackson had his first haircut by my uncle (who also did my first haircut and most of our family's first cuts) when he was about 5 1/2 months old. Ever since then, he's been getting a regular haircut every 2 months or so. You'd think he'd be a pro by now and wouldn't cry while sitting at the chair but, alas.. hopefully he's better for the 7th!

After the cut, we went to play at the park outside of the hair place..

..and then we went to have a burger and shake (he wasn't interested in the burger and went straight for the shake.. judging by those cheeks and chins, the last thing he needed was some ice cream :D)

In case you live in the Denver area and are looking for a kid friendly hair place, I highly recommend Pigtails & Crewcuts in Westminster! I'd made the mistake of taking Jackson to a regular hair place a few times and I could tell they weren't too comfortable dealing with a squirmy, crying baby.. The gals at Pigtails & Crewcuts NAIL IT every single time and couldn't be sweeter with Jackson! They even have snacks, a treasure chest, and toy room for the kids to play in before and after their appointment.

I like the girls at Pigtails & Crewcuts so much that I even had them trim my hair for me on Tuesday! She did such an awesome job that I didn't even complain about not being offered animal cracker.. Ha!