See, he has tried a couple times before, but he would fall once and quit.  He just knew he couldn’t do it.  After he fell a couple years ago, he swore he would NEVER try again.  We actually were beginning to believe that because he had not mentioned it once. 

Then the other night, I found him sitting outside on the driveway alone.  Just thinking.  I went outside to inquire if everything was ok.  After a little further nagging probing, he finally opened up that he thought he was ready to try and ride again.  I was sooooo excited.  Every other attempt was pretty much because we MADE him try.  This was all his idea. 

I ran inside and got Eric.  I didn’t bring my camera out.  I didn’t want him feeling self-conscious or more nervous than he already was.  I also wanted to give him my undivided attention in order to encourage and cheer him on. 

It only took a few minutes and he was riding on his own.    He was glowing… just grinning from ear to ear.  He had conquered what has probably been his biggest fear to date.  The tears were just streaming down my face.  So proud.  So happy for him.  I knew that this was a HUGE moment. 

I ran inside and grabbed Kendall and Logan so that they could share in this momentous occasion too. 

Needless to say, he wants to ride all the time now.  I am more than happy to oblige.  And he doesn’t mind pictures now either.  As a matter of fact, he wants me to document all of it. 

As you can imagine, I have taken quite a few images now.    I will hopefully share more on here soon.  I just don’t have time to go through all of them yet.  I had to share this story though because my heart is still filled with so much joy over it! 

Sometimes we teach our kids lessons, and sometimes they teach them to us.  This day… he taught me. NEVER GIVE UP!

As for what has been happening around here…

1.  We have enjoyed a couple long three day weekends.  It has been LOVELY. We just hung out at home (for the most part) and relaxed quite a bit.  I am actually starting to really be a homebody.  Did I just say that??!!! 

2.  I have been on a wild chase for GOOD vanilla extract since I was educated by Amanda.  I have looked at all the stores around here and only found plain old pure vanilla.  Then today when I ran into Marshall’s guess what I found…

Two bottles to be exact.  Yay!!  I also read online that this Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla is the Queen of all vanillas when it comes to baking.  Now I can’t wait to get in the kitchen and whip something up to test it out!  Anyone used it before?  Could you REALLY tell a difference?

3.  We recently ordered a new sectional for our family room.  It was delivered this morning.  The boys jumped on it as soon as they got home from school.  They are breaking it in nicely.

Even doing homework together on it. 

It is exactly what I wanted.  It’s just that we went from furniture too small to something large that completely fills the space. It goes on… and on… and on.   I LOVE that there is more than enough room for all of us to spread out (friends too) and hang out AT THE SAME TIME in the family room now.  Woohoo!  Maybe I am wishful thinking that the small furniture is what kept the kids from hanging with us… but I am going to think that and hope this is the answer!   

4.  We had a MAJOR milestone reached yesterday.  MAJOR.  Another blog post coming with details of that one. 

5.  I totally slacked on my daily pics the past couple weeks.  I am sad about it too.    I WILL DO BETTER. 

6.  My husband came in and told me to go buy some things for the rooms we are redecorating.  Swoon!!! 

7.  I have been liking the Project Life idea, but when I tried to work on a page for myself I just didn’t like the look.  I think I have figured out a variation that will work for me.    I need to figure out a way to document our memories.  Especially since Noah has mentioned he really misses my scrapbooks.  Stay tuned. 

8.  I apologize for not posting a lot lately.  I have been pretty stressed dealing with some school/teacher issues.  Trying to decide whether a call to the principal is in order.  I am NOT one to complain about anything, but this has been a VERY DIFFICULT year.  I am actually counting down with the kids until summer!! 

What’s been going on with you??

Here are a few lately…

70.  Noah making so many great friends here.  He is always on the phone with someone.

71.  A good hair day.  Even when it is wasted on a day where I don’t leave the house and Eric is out of town.

72.  My boys getting along and talking and laughing together.

73.  An extra day to the weekend to just hang out and relax a little.

74.  Finally finding a Domino’s pizza that I can stand to eat.  (It’s my family’s favorite pizza place for delivery.)

75.  Eric helping me furniture shop and then agreeing with me which one is best for our family even though it was a lot higher than what we had planned to spend. 

76.  Eric laying on the couch reading his magazines so Kendall will read her book for school.

77.  A warm cozy fire on a cold day.  I will miss those this summer.

78.  A tall son who could reach the strings to some balloons I wanted that were up on the ceiling at the store.

79.  Making time to do dinner preparations earlier in the day.

80.  Everyone participating in “heart attach” and enjoying it too!

81.  Friends who I can vent to about school issues that are stressing me out. (Thanks Jennifer!)

82.  A morning where everything runs smoothly and everyone gets to school on time.

83.  Spending the day with my mom.  I treasure every one.

84.  My house.  I really enjoy spending time here.  I am actually becoming quite the homebody these days. 

85.  My new yoga pants.  OH. SO. COMFORTABLE.

86.  Eric emptying the dishwasher everyday.  Every little bit is a huge help around here.

87.  Having someone who handles our rental property for us. 

88.  Eric going to his favorite place (shooting range) and making it all about me and the kids.  He’s so much better at putting his wants aside for us than I am.

89.  Noah putting his arm around me at the range.  My heart melted.

90.  The good place that my relationship is with Logan right now.  (Hopefully I didn’t just jinx it!) 

91.  Noah conquering one of his biggest fears.

92.  My mom coming over and helping with a house project.  She’s awesome!

93.  The sweet little note that Eric left me on the mirror one morning.

94.  Eric taking the boys to school on a crazy morning.  It helped A LOT.

95.  A dry and warm afternoon for Noah to practice his new bike skills.

96.  The sweet email from Eric that made me cry. 

97.  Our new sectional that allows ALL of us to sit TOGETHER comfortably in the living room! 

Have a great Thursday!!!

Have you tried these yet?  YUMMY!  I am going to have to pick up a couple more boxes when I go back to the store.  They are so great for those sweet cravings!  I like the yogurt covered pretzels too! 

Oh, and the Lean Cuisine Ravioli is really good too. I bought quite a few Lean Cuisine today at the grocery so I will let you know how they are.  I am a pretty picky eater so this should be interesting. 

I LOVE Key Lime Pie so when I saw these at Target the other day I had to pick them up.  I have to say I did not like them.  They were overly tart and there was no sweetness to them.  I know they are diet so obviously there isn’t going to be a lot of sugar, but I need them for my sweet fix and they didn’t cut it at all.  I make a lower calorie key lime dessert that is MUCH better.  Anyway, just thought I’d let you know my thoughts on that one!

My obsession for breakfast right now is Raisin Bran.  I LOVE that stuff.  I did buy some of the Special K Cinnamon Pecan yesterday.  Wish me luck.  I tried the Vanilla Almond one last week and it wasn’t bad, but I found myself mixing it with Frosted Flakes.  Kind of defeats the purpose.   

I don’t mind cutting back on a diet, but I refuse to suffer!  ha! ha! 

Yesterday I stayed in my calorie allowance but I made bad food decisions.  I ended up with two meals of a fast food item.  NOT healthy.  Apparently, not all calories are equal in how your body uses them either. 

Noah just kept asking me how I got them in that shape.  It’s called “kitchen scissors”… LOL! 

I actually got one of my gifts a few days earlier – my FAVORITE flowers…

A little box of chocolates came with them too.  Noah tore into it right away and stole all the dark chocolate ones (he’s the only one in the house who will eat it).  These arrived on one of the days that Eric was out of town on a trip.  It was sooooo sweet and I LOVE them!  The colors were just so beautiful. 

I especially loved the card though. 

I would have just been fine with just a handwritten note, but I do love getting them.  Flowers just brighten up a house, don’t you agree?  Thank you honey!

Back to Valentines Day… Eric came home from work with a bouquet of flowers and handed them to his little valentine. 

She asked who they were for and he told her they were just for her.  She couldn’t get over that.  She kept saying, “no, these are for mom, aren’t they?”  She was soooooo excited and had the BIGGEST smile on her face when she realized they truly were ALL HERS! 

After that, the kids all got to open their Valentine goodie bags from us.  I think Noah might have been a little disappointed.  He kept asking all afternoon when they got to “open their gifts.”  I think he was expecting it to be like a birthday.  It wasn’t.  We got them all just a few candy things and a pair of pajamas/boxers/etc. 

One of the things I just love about the men in this house is that they ALL love very deeply.  That is such an amazing quality in a boy/man.  Logan and his girlfriend have been together for over a year now.  He has ALWAYS showered her with special gifts. Definitely not cheap gifts either.  Paid for with his OWN money. For Valentines Day he got her a vase of beautiful pink tulips (which I forgot to take a picture of) and a charm bracelet. 

I don’t think we have taken a family picture since Christmas, so I made everyone pose for one. 

Even snagged one of the two boys together.  Love it! 

Of course, it quickly turned to this…  They were just playing around though.  Noah didn’t really punch Logan. 

Look at how much taller Logan is getting than me!!!  I think he has one more good growth spurt left.  His body has GOT to grow into his size 13 feet! 

The one Valentine picture I didn’t take… is one of me and my sweetheart!!  How sad is that??