A Finnie Minnie Party

Finlee is in love with Minnie Mouse so it only seemed fit to throw her a Minnie Mouse themed birthday party! I handmade her invitations to look like the head of Minnie and added a touch of pink polka-dots and turquoise. We kept her party simple with a small celebration and a few of her closest friends!

Her cake and drink table. Finlee loves Oreos and Capri Suns!

Minnie Mouse cupcakes.

Finlee's Homemade Pinata. I found the tutorial here. Simple and cute!

The party table.

I made all of her friends Minnie/Mickey ears for Finlee's party favors.

Table Decorations.

The birthday girl. She had just woken up from her nap.

Jaelyn at the party.

Happy birthday to you.

Blowing out her candle.

Pinata time.

This girl loves Minnie. She really loves anything pink and girly!

Finlee had such a great birthday party. I love celebrating my girl. Her actual party was the day after her birthday. On her actual birthday we had pizza, cupcakes, and Sonic slushes, Finlee's favorite!

Happy birthday, Finlee Grace!!

Happy Birthday, Finlee Grace!

To my Gracie-girl.

How is it that you are already three-years-old? I can still remember the morning that we left Jaelyn with Grammy and headed off to the hospital so that we could bring you home just a few days later. When I think about it, the feelings of nervousness and anxiety and happiness are still so fresh in my mind. Life definitely changed the day we brought you home and I can honestly say, I don't really remember what life was even like before you. You bring a joy to our family that I couldn't explain even if I tried. You're our little Finner-bug, our ornery-but-oh-so-sweet Finlee Grace.
You resemble me so much that I often wonder and dream of what you'll be when you grow up. Will you be just like me? Will you love being a mommy just as much as I do? If how you play with your baby dolls is any indication of your future, then I know the answer is yes.

You love playing with your sister. I always hear you mimicking what she says. You always go with the flow and do just as she says but you definitely have a mind of your own too. You have learned so many new things in the past year. You talk a lot, in full sentences even. You are almost potty trained. You are getting to be so tall probably because you are such a good eater! You love Jaelyn and Chaseton (Sissy and Chasin). If they are hurt, you are the first to run to their rescue and if you've been mean, you are always the first to say you're sorry. You love giving hugs and telling jokes.

You have a personality that could make anyone feel loved. You are always easy-going, happy, funny, and loving. You are the most carefree of any one I know and you are so fearless. And you are sweet. Always sweet. I pray someday that you'll use your outgoing nature to bless others, to be an example of God's love.

Oh, Finlee-girl. I hope you know how much you are loved. How the past three years of life have been some of the best because you joined our family. We love you.

Happy birthday, baby girl.
Stay sweet always,

Love,
Mommy

Love

I'm working on a small new project for my house and I needed some black and white close-up pictures of my kids. I thought I would share the pictures I chose to use. Simple but sweet. Love my kids and how innocent they look in these pictures! :)

My Kids

I'm so grateful to have been blessed with three amazing, adorable, loving, cute (and so much more!) kids! They are my world!

Xoxo,

Tanna

Funnies

Its time for another round of funny things my girls say! They keep me on my toes. They are growing up so fast and I cannot believe they can both form full sentences already! Finlee has recently started talking so much and Jaelyn never stops talking! :) Here we go!

Matt and I joke that Jaelyn thinks she is 14-years-old. Atleast, she sometimes talks that way. She can be so sassy but sometimes its hard not to laugh at what she says because we are so taken back that she even thought to say it. We were walking at the mall a few days ago and Matt was repeating something Jaelyn had said to him, to me. Right away she piped up and said, "Please stop repeating what I say." Matt asked her "why" and she said, "because its so annoying" just like a teenager would say it. The funny thing is, I didn't hear what she said so Matt had to repeat it to me. This is just proof that they will repeat anything they hear!

Matt took an afternoon off last week to keep the kiddos so that I could have time to myself. While I was away, she told Matt, "release means 'let go' in spanish". She hasn't quite grasped the difference between spanish and a definition. She is constantly asking me how to say certain words in spanish or in sign language (they do sign language in preschool). She thinks its so fun to speak in spanish! Its a good thing Matt is currently taking his second semester of spanish!

I took the girls out to Sonic for lunch yesterday. I don't get to take them out for a treat very often so they were really excited. Jaelyn was eating her french fries when she became really excited and said, "Mom! There's mashed potatoes in my french fry!". She had no idea that french fries were made from potatoes! :)

As we left the mall parking lot, Jaelyn and Finlee spotted a cop driving around. Jaelyn asked why the cop was there and we gave them the "they are just making sure everyone is safe and doing their job" answer. As soon as I finished answering them, Finlee piped up from her seat, "Sissy did it!" Apparently she thought Jaelyn did something worthy of the cop coming to take her away! They had a lot of fun blaming each other the whole way home!

More to come!

Xoxo,

Tanna

Childhood Memories: My Grandma and Grandpa

As a little girl, my grandparents meant the world to me. They still do and always will. I had one set of grandparents that I knew of and they lived a few blocks away in the same town that I grew up in. I spent most of my time at their house. We celebrated all holidays, birthdays, summers, and free-time at their house. When I was home recently over Christmas, so many memories from my childhood came to mind. I wanted to write them down so I never forget because they mean so much to me.

• My grandparents have lived in the same house since before I can remember. My grandma has shown me places they use to live but I always remember them living in the house they live now. I always remember feeling special when I got to sit at the "bar" for supper in their tall bar chairs. Now, I get to see the joy on my girls' face when they get to sit there. My grandma also still has the high chair that all of her grandkids sat in when they were babies. Now all of the great-grandkids are sitting in it!
• My grandparents have always had a special cabinet where they keep Little Debbie cookies and other treats. I always remember going to the cabinet for a Strawberry Shortbread cake (my favorite)! To this day, they still have their "special" cabinet and there's always something yummy inside.
• My grandpa use to eat popcorn with extra melted butter all over it. It seems like he ate it every night I was there. He also ate Butter Pecan ice cream all the time too!
• My grandpa use to go golfing everyday. I can still remember the way he would smell everytime he came back from the golf course. A mix of grass, sweat, and outdoors. I remember getting so excited when he would bring his golf cart home and he would let us drive it up and down the street. And when he would bring home his extra lemon-lime gatorade in his white and green cooler. I never really liked lemon-lime Gatorade but when he brought home his extra and let me drink it, it was the best Gatorade I had ever tasted.
• Until a few years ago, my grandparents had the same Christmas tree that they would use every year. It was pokey and it looked like it had fake snow on it. They have since bought a new one but my grandma said the tree is mine to keep. I remember setting it up every year. I spent every Christmas at my grandparents house and that tree holds so many special Christmas memories for me.
• My grandma worked in the church nursery and she always took me with her to help. I loved working in the nursery with her every Sunday that she worked. I'm pretty sure that's where I acquired my love for babies. :)
• My grandparents would always take us to Texas with them when they went to see my aunt and cousins. I remember crying because I didn't want to leave home and after getting there, crying because I didn't want to leave. On the way there, we would always stop in Liberal for Long John Silvers.
• I remember how every time I would stay home sick from school, my dad would let me go to my grandma's house for the day because he had to work. She was the best nurse ever. A few months ago, I happened to be there when I was sick and guess what? She's still the best nurse ever.
• My grandpa was a school bus driver after he retired from the post office. I lived in town but I would occasionally hop on his bus and ride his route with him. He would sometimes stop at DQ and buy all of the kids on his bus a Dilly Bar. He would even drive the bus for some of my field trips and we would share a lunch. He was always sure to pack butterscotch pudding, our favorite. I still don't think he knows how much it meant to me that he would drive the bus for my field trips. Some of my most favorite grade-school memories are showing my grandpa off to my class and sharing lunch out of that bright teal lunch box.
• My grandma makes breakfast every morning. She usually makes bacon and eggs but when I stayed there as a kid, she would make me Mickey Mouse pancakes. They were always in the shape of Mickey and the she would make the eyes, nose, and mouth out of chocolate (usually M&Ms). She makes them for my girls now.
• One of my grandpa's favorite drinks is cream soda. He always has it when I'm there and every time I drink it, it reminds me of him. My friend, Allison, mentioned the other day that she always remembered we were allowed to drink cream soda for breakfast at my grandma and grandpa's house.
• My grandma is the best cook I know. She worked for the school district kitchen for awhile. There are so many foods that I love that she makes. I would be here all day if I tried to name them all but some of my favorites are her noodles, pumpkin rolls, and bierocks. My grandma taught me how to bake and cook.
• My grandma is also very creative. She loves to sew and craft. I always say that I get my "crafti-ness" from her. She taught me how to sew. I remember always wanting my grandma to teach me different things like sewing, embroidery, or crocheting. She would have so much patience and I would either get frustrated or give up. I'd give a million dollars to go back and have her teach me everything again.
• Summertime at my grandparents house was like winning the lottery. My cousins would come, we'd eat crispitos or Taco Grande every day for lunch, and we'd swim from open to close. We watched the Goonies and La Bamba and made couch cushion forts. We'd fight and laugh and then cry when every one had to go home. Summertime at my grandparents house is probably my most beloved, favorite memory from my childhood. We could spend every day and night there without a care in the world.

There are so many more memories that I'd love to share but for now, I have to take care of my kids. My grandparents mean the world to me and I am so blessed to have them in my life. Thank you for the beautiful memories. I love you and only wish you still lived a few blocks away.

Six Months!

Chaseton, you are six months old today!

January 7th, 2012

Five Months

And here you are at six months:

You weigh 16 lbs., 9.25 oz. and you are 26 inches long! You wear cloth diapers and size 3 disposable diapers and 6-9 month clothing. We have loved getting to switch to a different wardrobe!

Here's what you're up to:

• You are sitting like a pro! You love to sit up, look around, and play on your blanket.

• You are teething and love to chew on anything and everything.

• You giggle and smile so much! You are a very happy baby!
• I can take you anywhere. You use to hate your carseat but now you are so content.
• You celebrated your first Christmas and New Years this past month!
• You are such a loved little boy! Everyone always says how cute and precious you are.
• You got your first pair of Nike's recently. They are orange and adorable.
• You are so sweet and love to cuddle. You melt my heart every day!
• We love you!

Xoxo,
Tanna