His Long, Hard Day is Long Forgotten...

Future Soccer Star

If Daddy has it his way...

*adorable pink Adidas track suit courtesy of Mimi & Papa :)

Side Effects

Well, here is one of the positive side effects of Pinterest. You find great ideas (mostly "why didn't I think of that" ones) and get inspired. I have seen many menu planners in frames on Pinterest where you just print out the menu, place it in a frame and use a dry-erase marker to use it over and over. Genius. However, I needed a place for the recipe cards I would be using for the upcoming week instead of just laying them on the counter top, or worse, having to dig for them in the midst of meltdown time right before dinner. Easy solution...hot glue a clothespin to the back and voila! hidden storage of those cards right at your fingertips to use for each meal. And I had every single piece of this project on hand, so free! No excuses to prepare meals. I guess that is the negative side effect.



...and another positive side effect was digging in storage for this unused frame to find it displaying a picture of Blake at about 9 months old. Guaranteed smiles :)

Dependents

During a simple, everyday moment it hits you. I am responsible for these three little lives. Then, you look at the picture you have taken and see your children growing up right before you. Blake sitting tall eating like an adult...Dane doing the same talking to his baby sister...what? a baby sister? I have three children? And she is already six months old. Time is flying and I have to remember to take it all in, even these simple moments. It is just unreal, or should I say surreal...

A Congratulations is in Order...

How does this guy do it? A physical therapist, an orthopaedic surgeon, an amazing father and husband, a wonderful son and brother...he does tons of projects around the house, he plays on a soccer league, he cleans bathrooms (voluntarily. yes, be jealous.), he cooks, he is super supportive of all the crazy ideas I dream up on a daily basis. I could go on forever. It seems Super Man lives in our house!

Well, today he added another exciting accomplishment to his list! Matt is now a board member of the Greenville County Down Syndrome Family Alliance. He was nominated for this position by someone in the community, and will be joining other important community figures on this board. I am so excited to see what things he will learn through this, what wonderful things he will bring to the alliance, and who we will meet through this experience. I know good things are ahead for Blake, our family and Greenville!

So, join me in saying...

WAY TO GO, MATT!

AN HONOR WELL-DESERVED!

Half-Way...

Blair is 6 months old today! I can't believe we are half-way to one year...

Pile Migration

I have coined a new phrase (well, it probably already exists) that many of my local friends can relate to right now as we are all coming up on the time to *try* to sell our homes. "Pile Migration" is the phrase, and the action that is currently happening at our house multiple times a day. I am going through every nook and cranny purging things in order to stage the house to put it on the market. All of the nooks and crannies look fantastic. The large areas (e.g., countertop, table top, etc.) look unlike themselves as they are covered with stuff thanks to "Pile Migration." I just keep moving the stuff from point A to point B and back to point A again. Perhaps Goodwill would enjoy a U-Haul drop-off instead of just a few things in the trunk...

Nice Ride

Santa surprised the boys with bicycles this year! Aside from a few helmet shopping incidents (don't ask) they hopped on and quickly learned how to ride and maneuver their new set of wheels. Keep in mind this was in a flat parking lot with no cars, but you have to learn somewhere! Matt and I had a blast running along side them (with Blair in tow, of course). It was one of those milestone moments that made us realize how quickly our children are growing up.