The gift of a meal...

We were recently given two meals through Hello Fresh as a thank you for Kit doing a BBQ for a party.  We have never gotten any thing like this and the kids were SO EXCITED about it!

 We were able to choose the meals that we wanted and Kit chose these two recipes:

We really enjoyed not only cooking together, but also getting to eat these tasty meals as a family.

 Having these little helpers made the  meal time prep even more special!❤︎

And so it begins...

Soccer started this last weekend.  Kit had so much fun coaching the Pink Fluffy Unicorns.  They did so well and Eden defended like such a champ!

 Papa came to their games and they loved having his there!

 Ryder did SO well at his game.  He was made the team captain and led the team so well!  He had his team's first goal of the game.  They had a great time and I am so proud of who this kid is and his character that is displayed every time he steps on any court or field.

 We are excited for this is season and all that it holds!❤︎

Kit making my DIY dreams come true...

Years ago I found this little side table at a local store that was going out of business for about 12 dollars.  

It's worked fine but one of the legs is a tiny bit shorter so I have had to rig it up to not topple over.  Again, for 12 bucks, it worked great.

I had an idea to use wood that had been left by our previous owner in our garage rafters to make a new side table.  Kit took what I had envisioned and made it even better than I could have imagined.

 We reinforced the base so that we had a spot to nail gun the boards to:

Then we measured and cut and nailed the boards into place.

(This is the point in the story where Kit decided to try to teach me how to measure things up to 3/8 or 1/16 and read the tiny lines to be exact.  Lets just say there is a reason I am not the one who is best at helping my kids with their math homework...)

Then, he pulled out a beautiful piece of walnut from a project he had done last Christmas.

 We didn't want nail holes so we used wood glue/liquid nails and then put lots of weight to let it set.

Then he sanded and did two coats of polyeurethane:

This is where Kit sits to spend time in scripture, he sits here to read to the kids and talk about their day and the space has become such a special spot for our family.

Kit Rae, thank you for helping make this even better than I could have imagined.

fashion according to Eden

Eden REALLY wants her ears pierced and we have told her that we will do it when she is 8, when she can be in charge of making sure they don't get infected and don't close up.  So she has been getting creative.  She follows the motto of work with what you got...
Where is be part of crafting string and hair clips:

Or electrical tabe:

Here she expanded her collection to a choker and bracelet:

This little girl is the absolute best!❤︎

15 years...

I was reminded that this last June marked 15 years of being a nurse at St Jude.  

I came in as a newly wed, new grad, trying to figure so many things out... Oncology is what opened the door for my nursing career.  I worked for three years with our pain resource team and palliative care team in the hospital and in preparation for discharge.  I was so thankful for those years.  I don't want to forget those days.

Fast forward to now.  

Postpartum is my heart beat.  I have noticed that there are similarities to oncology.  The beginning and end of life are both so sacred.  The environment that is created is for not only the patient but for the support family and friends.  Both are days that are marked by incredible emotion and afterward, people's lives are changed and families are never the same.  God has given me the  blessing to have witnessed both on multiple occasions.  I love being a nurse and though the job continues to change and evolve, I love that the heart, mission, and calling behind it hasn't. 

simple moments...

This last labor day, we didn't have any big agenda or plan other than to be together.  It's funny how the simplest moments can be the sweetest... 

Making meals together, playing basketball or time at the park, watching a movie (the kids saw "The Princess Bride" for the first time and LOVED it), going to our pool, taking a hike, getting morning treats, working on a project together... Next weekend our soccer games start and Saturdays will fill up.  But this weekend was ours and it was SO good!