The Grant Gang Adventures: April 2013

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Kelly's 30th Birthday

I had a super fun 30th birthday celebration the Saturday before my birthday. Matthew and my two dear friends threw a lil party at a local coffee, tea and wine bar. We had live music, wine tasting, a "how well do you know Kelly" game, decor, great company and pictures from throughout my life. Matthew contacted friends from all different seasons of my life to collect pictures and even three or four well wishes from friends. It was a wonderful evening reminiscing as well as getting to know some of my new friends here in Nebraska better. It was one of the best evenings out we have had in a long time. It is rare for this many people with young kids to find sitters all at the same time; that in and of itself was exciting enough!

To close out the evening.....my friend who will remain nameless, had the jazz singer doing the live music wish me happy birthday. Embarrassed does not even describe it, however everyone present got a VERY good laugh, as did I, so it was worth it!

Thank you Matthew, Kelley and Jennifer for making this a memorable evening. The care, detail, thought and love that went into the evening was overwhelming. Yall know how to make a girl feel special----and how to party :)

Kelley, me, and Jennifer

Mexican Chocolate Cupcakes and Caramel Macchiato Cupcakes with Chai Tea Frosting--Homemade! YUMMERS!!!!!!

Pom Poms

Set up

Cupcake Display

My Favorite Flowers!

More deliciousness

At home the next day, Matthew had a few tricks up his sleeve. The kids came running in with gift bags and inside were several new clothing itmes Matthew picked out for me. They were all perfect size and beautiful. Since having two kids, buying clothes has not been as fun--but I am pretty much back to pre-addison WEIGHT (not size, two ten lb babies will change your shape!) so it was nice to have a few clothes to celebrate that and being 30. Matthew ALWAYS picks the best clothes for me!!!! Here we are below celebrating the special day with the kiddos; excuse my appearance I had just finished running 3.25 miles!

I am blessed.

Monday, April 22, 2013

30 Is....

...having the confidence that my salvation rests in trusting Christ alone as my savior and nothing else.
...spending everyday with a wonderful, loving, self sacrificing husband.
...being married to my best friend.
...having the privilege of being a mother and carrying my two babies.
...getting countless drippy drooly kisses and hugs from one loving 17 month old.
...hearing "I love you mommy" from an independent three year old.
...reading the same books 12 times a day.
...having encouraging friends all over the country who always seem to put a smile on my face with every text, email, drop in, phone call, face time and facebook post.
...having parents who loved me enough to be my parents, not my friends.
...having in laws who have always, always, always made me feel like I was part of their family all along.
...having grandparents to my children eager to love on my babies.
...having the honor of stay at home with my babies (even though it may not be glamorous).
...being healthy and having a healthy family.
...closing on our first home soon.
...a church family both here and still in D.C. where we feel encouraged, challenged and loved.
...a big brother who is AMAZING with my kids.
...friends who I may not talk to for months but we always pick up where we left off when we connect.
...living in a city that is family friendly, WITH NO COMMUTE!
...snuggling with my Piper-Doodle-Bug.
...singing Veggie Tales at the top of my lungs in the car.
...having a husband who is always eager to lend a hand and give me breaks when I need them (and when I don't know I need them).
...having food to eat.
...trying to be the best mommy I can be so that I raise my children to love others and love God.
...drinking a lot of coffee, not because the kids keep me up at night but because kids are precious but for some unknown reason, tiring!
...praying and knowing I am heard.
...loving to cook and blog about it.
...laughing as much as possible.
...ignoring wrinkles.
...celebrating the successes, however small.
...loving this life I was blessed with.

I know some of these are funny, but the point is...I am blessed. My life is so full and I am thankful. Thank you for being a part of it!!!!

A Royal Ball

At long last...the 3rd Birthday pictures are up!!! Below are some of my favorites and at the end is a slideshow!

The planning and dreaming for this party started in January and I started making things a month and a half before the party. I do everything homemade so it takes time making things after the kids are in bed...but I am thankful for all the help I had. I hope Addison and all her friends (and their families) had as much fund as we did planning and executing this party.

I Love You my Little Joy. I love you!!!

The Invitation

Our family, Pre Party

Set Up

As each child arrived the fairy god mother waved her wand and transformed each child's attire to be fit for a royal ball. The princesses had tutus and bracelets and the princes had capes...they all had wands to make their own magic! This was part of the party favors.

The Menu:

Prince's Pate

Carriage Wheel Sandwiches

Royal Fruit Salad

Gus Gus Cheese

Princess Pizza Bites

Midnight Cupcakes

Glass Slipper Cookies to take home

No prince or princess is complete without a crown...here the children decorate a crown!

And there was lots of dancing at the ball!!!!

Thank you to everyone who made the party possible and helped in countless ways!!!! This royal ball was special in so many ways. Thank you to everyone who attended, took pictures, help kids decorate crowns, danced...and helped us enjoy life!!

Sunday, April 14, 2013

An Interview with Addison

A friend of mine did some of these interview questions with her daughter and posted them; I stole the idea! I did add a few questions though :)

Favorite Fruit? Oranges
Snack? Cookies
Food? Hot dogs
Animal? Lion
Outfit? Dora shirt
TV Show? Jasmine
Place to go? Chipotle
Game? Barbie
Color? Yellow
Toy? Pink bear
Book? Happy birthday princess
Song? Shake your sillies out
To do at school? Have a snack
Best friend? Alexis R
Favorite thing to do with Mommy and Daddy? Knock me down
What are you going to be when you grow up? Doctor
Who's going to be your husband? Cameron R
What is your husband going to look like? Prince. Red hair. Yellow eyes. Short.
Husbands job? Senator
What kind of car will you drive? Daddy's car
Where are you going to live? 4511
What do you want for Christmas? Books

Friday, April 12, 2013

Copy Cat Caleb

I wish the camera didn't make him act different but the first bit where he copies his doll is how he walks around the house with that thing. I love his sweet lil face. This boy has me wrapped around his finger and I know it :)

At the end he is trying to back it up into my lap---his new thing. Enjoy.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Monday, April 8, 2013

Happy 3rd Birthday, Addison Joy!

Happy Third Birthday to my precious little girl!

Stats: I will post those after she and Caleb have their joint well checks in a few weeks.

Words to Describe Addison Lately:

Caring
Sassy
Talkative
Thoughtful
Funny
Rule Following
Tender Hearted
Perfectionist
Intelligent
Giving

Pictures are below from throughout the year--I will do a separate post for videos I hope later.

Humor: Addison has quite the adept sense of humor. She cracks jokes that I have no idea how she knew they would be funny. She loves to make me laugh; when she thinks I am down she knows exactly what to say to make me smile.

Learning: Addison is anxious to read; I often hear "Mommy when can I know how to read". I am trying to teach her as often as I can but the reality of mothering two this close together and yet very different personalities is quite challenging. I need to clean less and teach more. I have little patience so teaching a toddler (well two) is hard for me...especially when I am also disciplining and running the household too. I know my weaknesses!

Potty: She has been potty trained since September with few issues since the three day potty training weekend. We have not even thought about night time training; we are not ready for her to be up at night/early morning needing to go potty....yet.

School: She still attends Mother's Day Out two days a week and loves it. Next year she has to change schools so she can be in a preschool setting--just a little more focused on school readiness and to hopefully challenge her.

Bed: She has been in her toddler bed for about a month now. I am glad we waited so long. It was the right choice. She only got out once and all she did was stand by the bed and jump back in. I caught her and she was devastated she disobeyed.

Eating: Addison is a generally good eater. She does not like monotony though, which is hard because I love leftover night! She is always a good sport about trying new things and eating things even when it is no her favorite. She often talks to much and we have to remind her it is time to eat...not talk. I admit that a lot of the success here is personality; her younger brother is quite different.

Sibling Time: Caleb and Addison play pretty well together and she wants Caleb to go everywhere with her. She loves Caleb but that means she loves to aggravate him too. I find that they play best together when I am not actively playing with them or watching over them. So far, they are very close. yay!

Separation Anxiety: Addison has made great strides in this area over the last year, specifically the last six months. I have a little part time job to get me out of the house and this has "forced" her to rely on someone else on a CONSISTENT basis. I think this has made the biggest difference. She does not cry and have a melt down when i drop her off in childcare settings MOST of the time now. I am so thankful because Caleb cries every time almost the whole time. It does not matter how many child care settings they are exposed to and how early I think my kids will just always be a lil clingy and stranger anxiety ridden. Maybe it is because I stay at home?

My Little Love: I wish you knew the depth of my love for you. I wish you knew how hard it is to discipline you because all I want is to see you smile. However, I have to discipline you. I am your mommy not your friend. I admire your resiliency; you bounce back from disappointment quickly. I love your determination to read. Your tender heart makes me strive to be more patience and tender myself. I hope that you can extend me grace when I am not the best mother; I fail too my love.

I will never forget hearing your Daddy proclaim that you were a girl on April 1, 2010 at 9:16 pm. I was in love with you from that moment and I will always love you. Always. Never doubt that. Never. I am so thankful you are my first born--you are, and always have been, so patience and forgiving with me. You are my little guinea pig. Your Daddy and I are so proud of you; you are so smart and such a loving big sister. Today I was vacuuming and Caleb fell into the wall for no reason and you ran over to him, helped him up and comforted him. He stopped crying because you took care of him; "that's goodness. The fruit of the spirit is goodness". I thank God for the sweet and wonderful little girl you have become. You are truly our BLESSING, you always have been and always will be. My dearest, please hear me when I tell you that you are a JOY, a BLESSING and we love you more everyday. Nothing will ever change how we feel. Nothing.