I made it!!! Tonight Bryan and I will end our fast and you better believe I'll be celebrating with 100 cans of Vanilla Coke!! I'm pretty surprised that I made it through the whole thing with zero soda. I'm pretty proud of myself. In full disclosure, I hated almost every single day of no soda. Some days I didn't really notice, but some nights we'd go to eat and I would crave a soda. I know that's not healthy, and I sound like a crazy addict but it's the truth. 

In other news, Izzy and I have taken on a new adventure. I've always wanted to be super mom who reads to her kids every single night. Well needless to say I have slacked in that department. Honestly most nights it's a win if we get everyone bathed, fed, and in bed on time without any meltdowns. And now with Elly being here trying to get a few quiet minutes of reading is almost impossible. 

Like I said I am not a fan of reading, but I remember being little and loving books, but somewhere along the way I stopped enjoying reading. In a world filled with technology and print dying I think it's important to teach our kids to slow down and use their imagination while enjoying a good book. I think electronics have their place, and Izzy's learned a lot from the games on her leap pad, but it's our goal for us all to unplug a little. I know Izzy loves "reading" and telling us stories so I'm really putting forth a conscious effort to spend time in books with her, and help grow that so we can stop reading the same ones over and over. 

Yesterday we started reading "The Wizard of Oz." I've always loved the movie but never read the book. Crazy right? We're only 3 chapters in and I'm already surprised by the differences. I do think the version I got is condensed for kids but it's still weird. Dorothy doesn't even wear red slippers, they're silver! Anyways, I thought it would be fun to read a story that's a classic, and when we're done we can watch the movie as a reward. I really hope we can stick with this and read more. I know we won't be able to every single night, but as long as it's semi-regular I'll be happy! 

What about you? Do you all read to your kids or on your own? What are some fun ideas to get your kids to enjoy reading? Sound off in the comments section!

Until next time...

Taylor

Hey everyone, it's been awhile! A lot's been going on in our lives that's made updating the blog hard the past few days. But take heart I will be back to blogging on the reg by this weekend!

So the other day I was at my parents and I asked my mom what my next blog should be about. She didn't have any suggestions but someone did. Can you guess who? Indeed it was Izzy, she has an opinion on just about everything. She suggested I "write about a picture of me and daddy." A lot of Izzy ideas are a little out there but this one was great! 

So this one's for you Boogie....

First of all I have to give credit to Michelle Meisner for this picture, she's incredible! I feel like it perfectly captures the essence of Bryan and Izzy's relationship. They are literally two peas in a pod. Bryan has that perfect balance of the good cop and bad cop that (usually) goes well with Izzy's very goofy/very sensitive personality. I say usually because while he is a great girl daddy he grew up with only brothers and still doesn't fully understand that sometimes girls are emotional and don't feel like joking. But she quickly forgives him and they're back to being best friends in no time. She is very routine oriented while he is more spontaneous which is great because it helps Izzy get out of her comfort zone and helps Bryan to have a little more structure sometimes. I could go on and on about the characteristics that make them such a great pair. But the bottom line is she thinks he hung the moon so there's not much wrong he can do in her book.

One of my favorite things about them is this:

Izzy goes to daycare at Bryan's work so she rides there with him everyday, which I'm convinced is where she truly learns how to be goofy. She also learns some tough lessons in the car such as how she's way too old to be having accidents and that getting sent to the office at school is not okay. But may favorite lesson that she's been learning since day 1 is how and why to pray. Soon after Elly was born she had a tough time adjusting while at school and so Bryan started praying with her on the way to school. Which now, because school and church are the same building, we have to pray anytime we go to the church no matter the reason. Not a bad problem to have.

I always love hearing about the adventures that they have together, and I hope when she's older she's still just as crazy about him. There's nothing more attractive than my man being a great father.

Sorry to brag on Bryan again, but how can you deny this face?

Thanks for reading; see ya soon!

Taylor

You wont see many book reccommendations on here as I am not an avid reader. Reading makes me sleepy, I tend to get bored easily, and in true American fashion, if it's that great I'll just wait for the movie. I did however read The Hunger Games last year and thought they were amazing! So score 1 for this girl. Clearly my taste is very mature. ;)

Anyways, I found this book on Pinterest before Christmas and its quickly become one of my favorite gifts! You can buy it on Amazon for about $12. If you're not a mom, or a fan of pink, there's another version that's just called "One Line A Day" it is exactly the same just blue.

So what is this wonderful book?

It's a 5 year journal. I know, I can't read a book for a week but I'll write in one for five years, ridiculous right? Wrong. At the top of each page is a date (i.e. January 10th) then below it are 5 sections of about 6ish small lines. On each section there's a space to write the year. So each day you turn to the current day's page, fill in the year and write a quick note about what happened that day, a funny thing the kids said, milestones, etc. And when you fill in the new year's space you can go back and read what's happened in the previous ones. Kind of like my memory jar but more compact and detailed.

I started mine on Christmas Eve so it'll be full on December 23rd, 2017. That seems crazy far away!! Izzy will be 9 and Elly will be 5! It should be really fun to see all the things they do until then.

Another great thing about this book is it's really not that big. You could easily put it in your purse or diaper bag. I keep mine on my nightstand and write in it before bed. It literally takes 2 minutes. That's my kind of book!

If you don't have kids to write funny stories about I'd still get one! How fun would it be to write about things going on with you and your spouse, school life, or all the events leading up to getting meeting "the one" someday. It truly is a book for everyone... even guys.

So that's my first unofficial plug for a product... I think they should pay me for such a rave review. Don't you?

I hope you're all having a great week. It's almost the weekend which means more thunder basketball!!

Taylor

So how funny is that video? I'm sure most of you have seen it by now, but I just discovered it yesterday. I'm really surprised Bryan didn't think of this first. It looks just like something he would do! I've gotta say we are some lucky girls to have such a fun guy. 

Today's blog is all about my man! Prepare to feel nauseous. 

This morning Bryan let me sleep in while he and Izzy played and cleaned the house. I woke up to a nearly spotless house and breakfast being made. Now there was a little bit of an ulterior motive behind all of it, but I'll take it! Bryan had some goofy thing going on for his Call of Duty video game today, and he wanted to play for a lot longer than normal. I was completely aware of this but I was so happy to have a clean house I let him get away with it. It resulted in a fun day of taking pictures of the girls (which I'll post later in my upcoming photography section) while daddy got to play his game. 

Now this is not out of the norm for Bryan. He spoils us rotten on a regular basis. He cooks dinner most of the time. NOTE: I can and do in fact cook, Bryan just really enjoys it and likes to do it more often. On top of that he typically helps with laundry, dishes, and cleaning up. He knows my love language is acts of service, so when I've had a stressful day he helps make it better by doing something nice around the house for me or bringing home a movie and having a mini date night.  

I'm so happy to be married to a man that is the perfect teammate. We really do work well together and it's a team effort to keep our family going. I know some people think a wife should be doing most of the housework but neither Bryan nor I feel like keeping the house in order is a one man job. We have certain things that only one of us will do, for instance Bryan is responsible for taking the trash out and I'm responsible for the deep cleaning. That idea may not work well for everyone, but in our experience when both parties are responsible it's easier to get things accomplished and no one is mad at the other person for it not being done. 

I also have to brag on Bryan's dad skills. I tell him all the time that he is the perfect dad for girls. He is willing to play dress up, barbies, whatever is asked of him. He is way too cute with Elly; she had him wrapped around her finger shortly after she arrived. 

So here's to you "B Ket," thanks for being such a wonderful dad, husband, and leader for our family. I hope the girls can find a man just like you someday.... when they're 30! 

What about you? Do you have an awesome man in your life? If you do, leave me a comment and brag on them!

Taylor

Alright ladies let's be honest for a minute. How many of us have a family that looks like this on a regular basis? 
Anyone?
Bueller...
Bueller....
That's what I thought, no mom is this put together on a regular basis. No disrespect to my favorite Kardashian, but it's a mold that's impossible to live up to. I mean props to her and every other celeb mom for having an overabundance of legit mom swag (or "MomJo" as Giuliana Rancic calls it.) Let's take a look at what MOST moms look/feel like on an average day. 

Does this look more familiar? Now maybe we're not really about to burn the house down daily but it sure does feel like it sometimes. I mean this lady is even more put together than me, look at that dress and fixed hair! I'm currently sitting in Bryan's shirt, some sweats, slippers, wet hair, no make up.... a textbook example of a hot mess! Prior to being pregnant again it was much easier to look cute on the average day. Izzy has been old enough for awhile now to help get herself ready and occupy herself for a few minutes so mom can straighten her hair, what a treat! 

Now I'm lucky to have a shower, eat, and brush my teeth by noon. I wouldn't expect makeup on this face unless I'm leaving the house for more than 10 minutes. I know as Elly gets older this will not be the case but I'm sure some moms out there feel the need to always look great, have a clean house, and dinner on the table every day. Rest assured friends that is not a requirement for being a great mom. I know we feel 10 times better about ourselves when we take the time to get dolled up or have a cute new shirt on, but take a minute and embrace the real mom swag. Spit up on your favorite shirt, having to wear your hair in a ponytail because your kids won't quit pulling on it, things sagging that didn't used to, sweats being an acceptable fashion choice, stretch marks all over, etc. 

These things may not be what you dreamt motherhood would be like, but the reality is a true mom is not measured by the number of successful pinterest projects you've done, having a spotless house with coordinating decorations for each holiday season, the number of baked goodies you make each day, or always looking your best at the drop of a hat.

I treasure these moments of spit up on my clothes because it means my little one is still small enough to be held and need her mommy, I try not to worry about stretch marks because they are reminder of the two healthy girls I was blessed with, I know my house will never be clean because my big girl loves to play with every toy she has and doesn't always put them back. I try to remember to soak up the sweet moments of a 4 year old praying before bed or a gummy baby smile. 

This is not to say that I am a great mom because I spend SO much time relishing in every little thing my children do. The truth is I do get frustrated, I would rather dad give baths some nights, and I would really enjoy some peace and quiet at times. But that's okay! Ladies don't fall into the trap of feeling like a less than great mom because you don't meet the standards of Hollywood. All you need to do is love, protect, and invest in your children. We will mess up, we will forget something, and we might even feel like this: 

So go enjoy your kids and sport that mom swag!

Taylor