Friends + St. Davids

This is one of my favorite pictures from my trip to Wales.  I have many more to post but thought I'd give ya a sneak peek with this one.  These are my BFFs and I standing in front of St. David's cathedral in Wales.  Don't we look cool getting ready for a stranger to take our picture...?

Why, of course we do!

I had a wonderful trip.  I'll post more pics when I can tear myself away from minivan driving and timeout assignments.  (Special thanks to my husband for taking over those duties for a week so I could go on a super cool girl trip!)

Wales

This is the Welsh flag (thanks, Google Images).  

I'm off on a little trip there with my dearest of friends this week.  

Wahoo!

I am still pinching myself that I have this opportunity.  Not many mamas with three young children have a husband who takes off work for a week so that his wife can take an overseas jaunt with her friends.  And, yes, I'm aware that I have a truly amazing husband. =)

Of course, I will miss my babies but I am super excited about spending some time with my friends this week.  One lives in London, one in Oklahoma, and one in Dallas/Fort Worth.  We are all meeting in London and road tripping to Wales.  Can't wait for the adventure that's in store this week!  These ladies have been a constant source of encouragement in my life.  We attended seminary together in Fort Worth and have spent many years walking through life together.  Such an amazing blessing...friends!

Stay tuned for photos of the English countryside and the Welsh Coast!

T-Ball

Look at my little man in his t-ball uniform.  

He even struck a baseball pose.  

Love. this. little. man.

5 Years.

Yesterday was my five year anniversary.

We celebrated by hanging out with our little boy crew. 

 It has been my tradition to post a wedding photo, but that isn't as easy this year due to a little situation I recently explained on our family blog....making my wedding photos not readily available to me.  This year, I'm breaking tradition and posting new photos of our babies.  Oh man, it's been a productive five years!  Here's to another 55...or more!

And they are OFF...

 

"Bye, Mommy.  We are off to school."

Wow, where does the time go?!

4 Going on 14

When Mommy gets out the camera, the 4-year-old already has the facial expressions of a teenager.

Awesome.

Ladies' Man

Whew, Mommy isn't ready for this! =)

The Ringbearer

This past weekend, our dear former nanny got married and Alex was the ring bearer.  Of course, I am biased but I think he's the cutest little man.  I encouraged him to say "poop diaper, poopie pants, and poopy poop poop" in order to get such genuine smiles and laughter.  That seems to do it every time!  Ah, little boys! =)

The Men in My Life.

This Father's Day, I feel so lucky to be surrounded by these men.

Love, Love, Love spending my days with them! 

Master Bedroom Makeover

 Since moving into our new house in September, I have been quite overwhelmed with the amount of "projects" to be completed.  Most every room needed new furniture, things on the wall, etc.  No small task for a very busy Mama!  Thankfully, though, I finally made it around to my master bedroom.  It was bland and much in need of a new touch.  I am very pleased with the makeover I did on a small budget....

BEFORE...way too dark.  Dark furniture, dark linens and only one lamp. (we have had that lamp since our condo in Des Moines where there was only space for one nightstand and one lamp)  Not exactly the look I wanted to keep long term....because Mommy needs a lamp too.  Maybe someday I will have lots of energy for reading before bed, ya know?

I really wanted a new bed, new linens, hardwood floors, crown molding, and a new paint color.  But those things were not in the budget. =)  And, yes, I'm aware that I sound like a big brat with that laundry list of wants.  What can I say, people...?  This is what HGTV has done to us!

I decided that an upholstered headboard was the way to go, but I was not excited about the options I could find in stores and on Amazon.  They all looked cheap and uninteresting to me.  But I found this awesome blog post on how to make your own headboard.  The directions were so easy and I didn't need a lot of tools/supplies.  I love how it turned out!  I chose a lovely linen fabric - my choice was expensive, but you could find WAY cheaper options - and it was still cheaper than the cheapest option on Amazon.

 

Then I decided that I needed something to go above my lovely new headboard.  I already had this (fave) wedding photo in a great frame, so I decided to do a photo collage above it.

 

I decided to enlist a friend - a photographer with a great eye for decorating - in my task.  I knew I wanted black and white photos but wasn't sure about the arrangement and framing details.  She sent me this great tool to help with the task:  

(click to enlarge)

And here we have the finished product.  A lovely arrangement of favorite family photos to complete my master bedroom look.  I also had room in my budget for new lamps and all new linens for the bed.  I got everything at my local Homegoods (a Ross or TJ Maxx type store).

I am so happy with my new room!  I took the time to blog about it because it seems that everyone has a small budget for decorating these days.  Maybe you could redo your master too...for less than you'd think.

And just in case you can't see the photos in the collage that well, here they are.  They are some of my favorites so I am proud to share them all over again on the blog.  It is so great to be able to see these favorite family moments everyday.

Three cheers for decorating on a dime!

Found this little set up in the yard this morning.  All I can say is glad they weren't attempting it from the top.  Ah, being a mommy of little boys is such an adventure!

Happy Easter.

We are in mini cupcake heaven at our house. =)

Hope you enjoy a little piece of heaven at your house this Easter.
It didn't come cheap, you know.
We are grateful for a Savior who paid it all for us.
Easter Blessings!

Happy Birthday, Baby Benjamin!


One year ago today, Baby Ben joined our family. Hard to believe that he's already reached the one year old milestone. Benjamin is the happiest baby we have ever had. Nothing against the other two because they had their own standout qualities, but the Happiest Baby title goes to Ben. He is a good sleeper, a good eater, and all around quite content to sit and play. He loves to laugh at his brothers and they love to make him laugh. He loves to snuggle with his blankie. He also loves to play hide and seek and crawl all over the house. He's a super sweet one! Happy Birthday, Baby Boy #3!

Happy Birthday, Cowboy Henry.

Hard to believe that it's been exactly two years since this little man entered our family. (He almost came in the car on the way to the hospital! See his birth story from March 2010 here.) He is such a little charmer. Playful, sweet, and all boy. He loves his brothers fiercely and can already scale the rock wall at the playground. He's a foodie, a jokester, and a real smart cookie. I love that it's my job in life to be his Mama! Your mama loves you super mucho, Henry Hubs. Can't wait to party with you later today!

Cutest. Little. Valentine. Ever.

Just like his big brother, Henry loves a good puddle...Oh, how I love being a mommy of boys!

Merry Christmas!

A Christmas photo shoot story in pictures...

These brothers truly love each other.

Big brother Alex is 3.5 years

Middle Brother, Henry, is 21 months.

Baby Ben, is 9 months.

Henry loves to give Ben sweet kisses.

Alex is interested in nature.

Henry is determined to ride something with wheels.

These boys simply cannot resist mud. They found it a mere 2 minutes into the photo shoot.

The end result - super muddy hands...a little boy's ideal Christmas photo. =)

What an evolution of photos we get each year of our boys. This year the entire photo shoot lasted about 3 minutes. Such fun, though! Glad we get to capture them in action and get a few to put on the Christmas card.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Why, Hello Fall!

Guess it's better late than never. I've learned that Fall in Houston is late...as in, Christmas almost came first kind of late. But at least it comes.

This year the colors are amazing. We are enjoying being outside and savoring the beauty all around us. My boys love to play in the leaves and we are enjoying bike rides on the trail with leaves falling all around us. It is making for a colorful holiday season this year. Many people enjoy a blanket of white this time of year, but we have been blessed with a blanket of red, yellow, and orange. It makes quite the Christmas decor!

My big boys.

Fall:

Look, a tiny hint of Christmas: