[Build up.]

outside playing.

When things seem so chaotic I can't think straight, I have to pull up pictures like this, when all 3 of them are getting along good & are playing all on their own. It's moments like this, that I remember that it is all worth it. That I am on the right path & hopefully so are they. I do love being a mom, it is for sure the hardest thing I have ever done, but so so worth it.

[a moment.]

A moment to pause & remember something that has happened this week in our lives.

(I got this idea from soulemama's blog.)

currents. 2.7.12.

Music: Mumford & Sons radio on Pandora.

Making: jewelry. lots of custom pieces for people. + mixed media wall hangings.

Big moments: Rudd is potty trained! Finally not going through diapers at extremly fast rates.

Trouble maker: Ollie is into EVERYTHING.

My life: pure chaos + moments of quite (when I wake up before the kids).

Work outs: Mountain biking as much as possible in this insanly good winter we are having.

Goals: get on top of my projects, this requires a list & some free time, yikes!

 

weekends. trains.

Rudd has a slight obsession with trains. Choo choos, as he calls them. He calls them by name. He lines them all up & loves watching them go around & around the house. First thing when he wakes up he asked about them & tries to take them to bed every night. He doesn't usually let his brothers get too involved in what he is doing, but yesterday he was ok with letting them all play together. This was awesome. I love watching all 3 of them play together & figure things out together. It really does make this "being a parent" thing really really worth it! & sometimes I need reminders like this to help me appreciate the small things in life do matter, which is something I forget most of the the time.

[a moment.]

A moment to pause & remember something that has happened this week in our lives.

(I got this idea from soulemama's blog.)

Jewelry making: the process.

I think one of my favorite parts of making jewelry is actually the tools that I get to use. I am a tool lover. I have always liked them ever since I was little. I am what you would probably call a tool horder. I love finding that perfect tool for every need. It just makes me happy. The tools in the pictures above have been collected & used for making jewelry for the past 15 years & my plan is to make them last for the next 50 years. Each tool has a purpose & this process of making jewelry couldn't be done without each & every one of them.

Lego obsession.

I saw this idea on pinterest a while back & knew that I wanted to do it for sure for our lego guys, as we seem to keep accumulating them. So this past week we went through all our lego guys & picked out the mini figure series ones & other 'special' ones to put in the type box. I love how it turned out & how it gives each guy his own special space. Dax knows these are the special guys & he loves to look at them. We are also crazy about collecting the mini figure series guys. Series 6 has just come out. Dax & I love taking our special trips to the store to try to get new guys in the series. It can't denied, I do love legos probably as much as Dax & my other boys do.

The struggle to find balance.

I have been thinking a lot about balance the past few days. It is something I always seem to come back to. It must be when I am feeling the most out of balance. My whole routine seems off. My little family seems to be struggling with this. Or maybe it's just because I am the one that makes the decisions all day while David is at work & I am home with 3 little boys. I think I need to make some adjustments to how I go about my everyday. So I decided to make a list of how I spend my days:

This is my typical everyday. Right now. It doesn't seem too crazy. Now, my plan is to write down in real time what happens everyday, for at least a few days to see how the lists are the same & what is different about them.

I think my expectations are too high for getting 'stuff' done when I have such small kids, but at the same time, I should have time to do the simple things, like getting the laundry done...

I am also going to try to wake up before the boys do. To see if I get a jump start on my day, if it will help me feel like more has gotten accomplished. This is going to be super hard for me, I like to sleep. But I think it might make feel better over all.

6am isnt that early, right?

My goal is to work toward finding a better balance of what I want & what my kids want/need from me. I know this is going to continue to be hard, but I have to figure some sort of system or I might literally go INSANE.

At the same time I am trying to EMBRACE THE CHAOS that seems to be my every single day.

 

[a moment.]

A moment to pause & remember something that has happened this week in our lives.

(I got this idea from soulemama's blog.)

It has to be done.

I am potty training this little cutie this week. He looks pretty innocent here, but he sure can be a pain also. We are about to start on day 3 of this whole potty training experience & I guess I can say it has been going pretty good. The book I read, 3 day potty training, makes it really seem simple & their is a clear way to get your child going in 3 days or less. We will see if it proves right with Rudd, he can be a bit stubborn. I did this same method with Dax & he was trained in 1 day. I am trying not to compare Rudd to Dax, but 2 days down & we are still going strong. I may be needing a serious break by the end of the week, but for now, it is 1 day at a time. Hoping today is the magic, he gets it, kind of day.

Man, he is cute!