Hannah's 4th Birthday at HOME!

We had the BEST trip home for Hannahs birthday. As hard as it was not going home for Christmas, I think this was the perfect time to go home. We had a blast with everyone and celebrated Hannah for a week straight!!
So lets see, we flew in on Wednesday night and the kids have gotten SO good at traveling. I am so lucky. We have our routine and they are used to flying by now! THANKFULLY most of the flights I do alone, the plane isnt full so we get a row to ourselves. And this time, the flight was only half full so the whole row in front of us was empty. Which is music to my ears because the kids feet go crazy and always end up kicking someones seat. They both slept for a little bit and it was a quick flight. Well...3 hours and 20 minutes is quick to me! Hannah LOVES flying. Dont get me wrong, we all get antsy at the end but she does a great job. And she is so funny about the seatbelt sign. She is like the seatbelt monitor. If the seatbelt sign comes on, she makes sure we all put it on. Its pretty funny! And since it was just the three of us, I had to go to the bathroom so I whispered to Hannah to keep an eye on Owen while I ran to the bathroom real fast. I obviously couldnt bring them with me because those bathrooms are so small. So she "watched" him for me and when I came back she had put blankets on both of their laps and they were reading. It was adorable. She really is an amazing big sis.

 Im sure the people in the airport look at me like Im crazy! They run and play to get as much energy out as possible :)

 This is what he does if I ask him if he wants cheese- ha ha!

The first two days there were pretty relaxed. We had an eye appointment for Hannah, got some things ready for her party and just relaxed in the COLD KY weather. Ohmygosh was it cold. And we got snow! Im not going to lie, I dont miss the cold. Its been nice having 60's in January! Jeremy flew in on Friday afternoon after his conference. We were glad to have him on "vacation" with us :)
Saturday we had family pictures taken. Last year we had pictures taken around the same time so I thought it would be fun to do it exactly a year later and see the changes! I cant wait to see them. We took Hannah to build a bear that evening for a Birthday Build A Bear. She chose a golden retriever dog and named her Ruby :) She had so much fun and this dog goes everywhere with us! Im not going to lie, I thought it would be forgotten about but she loves it.
We got things ready for her party and just enjoyed the company!

Sunday was the big party! We had the party at Louisville Gymnastics which was so fun. It was GREAT seeing friends and family and watching the kids play. It was the most relaxed party we've had. They did everything and entertained the kids with all kinds of activities. This might be a tradition!

 For the favors we did water bottles with all the kids initials on them and Flipz pretzels! The tags said, "Thanks for coming to FLIP with me!"

 The party was so nice and simple and EASY. We wanted to enjoy company rather than worry about the details so it was wonderful!

 Hannah's friend Victoria from Evergreen. These girls started in the nursery together!!

She had a great time. But the one who had the most fun...Owen! That kid literally ran from one side of the gym to the other for an hour! It was hilarious. It was short but VERY sweet. Not long enough with friends but was so worth it.

After the party we went to dinner with Jeremys family which was wonderful. Low key, relaxed, fun and just what we needed to catch up and enjoy eachothers company. We miss them so much.

Monday was her real birthday! We woke up and had sprinkle pancakes! Then Jeremy and I took her to see Frozen. It was probably the most crowded movie Ive ever been to, and we were in the front row but it was so fun to get to do that!

 Happy 4th Birthday HANNAH!!

That night we went to dinner for her birthday and took cake and ice cream to my grandparents house. It was a busy but great day! She was celebrated for a week and loved every minute of it :)

 Playing on Bumpah's scooter...they love that thing!

 SO Sweet!

Tuesday was our flight home :( Its never easy for me. Dont think it will be easy. Just so many emotions. But we had fun hanging out and we were kinda trapped because of the snow! My mom took the day off but actually had a snow day anyways! The flight home was pretty easy too. The kids slept for 2+ hours and did awesome. They make me so proud. So many people comment on how they didnt even realize kids were on the plane!

 Overall, this trip was awesome. SO Many laughs. SO many new memories and SO much quality time. We have some fun things coming up so that helps...oh and the 70 degree temperatures! Soon we'll be going to California for a little trip away, then my mom comes for a week! Then my Auntie Carol will be in for a visit and then we head to the BEACH! Im so excited for all of it. The beach trip will be my biggest trip alone with the kids. Im really nervous about the flights because from LV to South Carolina its not a quick trip. But going to be so worth it. I found some great flight prices and Owen is still free until May so I wanted to get in one more trip!!

What I learned in 2013 & what I want in 2014!

2013 was a big, different year for us. And as one year comes to an end, another one begins. Its fun and can be emotional to look back on all the ups and downs of one year. It makes you appreciate everything and think about what you want to do and accomplish in the upcoming year. I dont mind getting older. It gives us another year to become a better version of ourselves!

This year I learned (well, I actually already knew) that my little family of 4 is everything. After we moved to Las Vegas ALL we had was eachother. There were some trying days, there were some really hard days but we are closer than ever. Most days the only people we see are eachother and we have grown very close from this time out here alone.

Ive learned that being able to stay at home has been a gift. I dont miss answering to anyone but my kids ha ha. I love mornings that we get to stay in our pj's til noon. I love that I have gained so much patience because well...I had to. If you had asked me a year ago if I could have been a stay at home mom, I would have said no. But now I can take two kids to walmart, the bank and the DMV and not bat an eye! I never would have attempted that alone in KY :)

Ive learned that taking care of myself and really focusing on my health and happiness makes everything better. As moms we take care of everyone else. I finally got the motivation I needed to take care of myself and now I feel better than I have in a long time. I couldnt imagine not taking care of myself because of how much it has improved so many things for me. I feel better physically, I feel so much better mentally and I just know that I want to be healthier and happier for everyone around me. It has really changed me and Im THANKFUL for that.

Ive learned that making a huge move and leaving everything you know can show you alot of things. How strong you really are, how strong your relationships are and makes you appreciate EVERYTHING about what you have. Its made Jeremy and I stronger in lots of ways. At the end of everyday while we are all 4 sitting in our bed winding the kids down I just stare at all of them and smile. Because they have all made me so much better and they truly are my whole entire world and as ready as I am for bedtime, I could just sit there with them for hours and squeeze all of them :)

I have to say, I did learn things, it was just more of an emphasis on things I already knew. Like how much I love family, friends, and grateful I am for our health, Jeremys job and how HARD that guy works for us. I NEVER want to take that stuff for granted. With all this crazy social media, we hear SO many awful, heartbreaking stories that my heart can just break for people I will never meet.

So 2014 I dont have big goals, I dont have these huge plans or big places I want to go, I just truly want to make everyday count.

I NEVER want to take my family for granted. Cliche- I know but there are days I joke about running away because the kids have been CRAZY but its a joke and I think all moms get to that point at some point. But I want to see the beauty DURING all the crazy, keep calm, and be more patient.

I really want to make more of a point to put the phones, ipads, computers, etc DOWN. We just depend on these things so much that they take over our lives. My goal is to BE PRESENT. Put the social media away and focus on the kids that wont be little for long. We are all guilty of it, but not one thing that someone posts on Facebook is as important as what my kids are telling me, showing me or what they need. I sound like a terrible parent but I swear I dont sit on those things all day long, I just want to focus more on letting that stuff go and just putting it up!

I want to find more things, or one thing that I am truly passionate about for myself. Maybe its not just one thing, I dont have any special talents or something I excel at, but I want to really start being more creative, crafty, just anything other than dishes and laundry :)

I want to make more time for Jeremy and I. We get lost in the shuffle, the laundry, the dishes, being tired, not having babysitters. But I want to really make us stronger than we already are. Watch more movies, have date nights at home, just anything that gets us out of the "mom/dad" role for more than an hour! ha ha!

I do want to see more and do more. We cant go on big fancy trips but I do want to make the most of what is around us. We are out west all alone so we should be taking advantage of the places we can go! Traveling and tips are priceless. Its the stuff that you really remember. I want the kids to remember the fun places we get to see. When we lived in California we always "vacationed" in California and those are trips I remember. They weren't Caribbean trips but they were family vacations Ill never forget!

I want to have more fun, laugh more, be more relaxed, and worry less. I could be a little more patient too :) I just want to enjoy this opportunity and life we've been given. There is SO MUCH to be thankful for and we get caught up in the negative that we forget the beautiful things all around us.


So here's to a beautiful 2014!!