mondays.

It has been over two years since I switched from full-time elementary school teacher to full-time stay-at-home mama, but not a day goes by that I don't think about it.  I appreciate every single second of being home with her all the more.

I loved my job as a teacher.
I wanted to be a teacher.

I needed to be a mother.
I dreamed of it for as long as I can remember.

I am so grateful for every minute I have at home with her.
I feel so fortunate and blessed.

My Mondays sure do look different though.
Instead of heading back into the work week drag of a Monday with meetings and e-mails, we are easing into our day with chocolate chip pancakes. Why not?  They aren't just for Sundays anymore. :)

and we walk around while eating bananas.
because for some reason when she eats them in her chair she only takes 3 bites but if she walks around with it she finishes the whole thing.

we show off our fake dramatic face just to be silly.

and then we giggle and laugh at ourself for being so silly.

we watch an episode or two of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

and because I have the time, there are usually one or two projects in the works at any given time. 
at this time, I am actually in the middle of about six. :)

we head outside and find our first flowers have bloomed!  so exciting!

 

we run up and down the steps and sidewalk for half an hour because we can.

and then we journey off for a long walk and wagon ride.

 and a stop at the park to hop into our favorite swings.

throw in some coloring.

always a dance party.

Mondays.
They sure have changed.

After she wakes from her long cozy nap, it will be back outside for sidewalk chalk and playing catch with a volleyball (one of her absolute favorite things to do these days).  Followed by dinner, and then daddy will be home. :)

Naptime for mommy is:  dishes, a lunch break :) while catching up on a DVR'd show, then straightening up, blogging and working on any craft or project in the works. 

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And for anyone following along with Todd's volleyball team this spring, this past weekend they won their third tournament championship this season!!  3 for 3 on tournaments and they are 17-3 for the season so far.  It's been such a great season!! 
Will keep you updated.

it doesn't get much better than this.



I guess this post bounces right off the last one.
The simple moments are my favorites.
We make the simple moments feel completely special.
A Sunday morning where we can be together,
so special.

The little things make me one happy mama.

 

 

P.S.  We had a few family pics taken too. 

simple and sweet.

The simplest things are often the sweetest.

We embrace and soak in every little simple moment.
We try not to be in a hurry to move onto the next moment.

The simple moments, the ordinary days... wiping noses, sweet cuddles in soft jammies, baking cookies, sharing an ice cream cone, reading books for hours...
and taking wagon rides.

as many as she wants.

because we aren't in a hurry.
because these little smiles, these little moments of pure happiness...
these we want to remember.

everything else can wait.

our love story: chapter two.

To read Our Love Story: Chapter One CLICK HERE :).

 

 

And I would see him again.

 

Just a few weeks later...

 

I was working another volleyball game, playing with my hair, eating some food, chatting away as per usual.  When in the corner of my eye I see someone walk out of the locker room.

A quick peek, and my assumptions (or hopes) were confirmed.

It was him.

 

He was talking to a teacher I knew, he glanced my way, and quickly our eyes met.

He was wearing a blue tee, black athletic pants, and a baseball cap.

He continued to talk and then he walked away.

To my fortune, the teacher he was talking to came to say hi and sat down next to me for a little bit.
We talked the normal chat, but I knew this was my in to casually question about this guy. 
Since my last time seeing him, I had learned his name and discovered that he was a coach and a p.e. teacher.
As Steve and I were talking, I asked about his hearing.
And I learned that he was in fact Deaf.

And my mind raced with a dozen questions.
Does he understand me when I'm talking?
How is his speech so good?
What would it be like if we were to date?
How do I talk to him?
Do I speak louder? 
What do I do so that I won't offend him?

relax Lisa, don't get ahead of yourself, you may not even talk to him again.

But I did in fact talk to him again.
About thirty minutes later actually.

He entered the gym and slowly made his way over to the scorers table.
He sat down right next to me this time.
Todd:  How's it goin'?
Me:  Good, how are you?
Totally cheesy, but the sly little smile on his face made it all the more amusing.
We exchanged simple pleasantries.  It was a gorgeous and sunny fall day.
It was sweet, it was simple.
I found myself a little more shy than usual in this situation, because I was trying to figure out how to best communicate with him, how he was understanding me, trying to adapt along the way to converse better.
We discussed work, the game we were watching and music.
It was only for a few minutes.

But I did discover this.
He gave his full attention to me in those few minutes.
I had never felt more heard or listened to in my life.
He was quiet, thoughtful, responsive to each word.
And I realized with each glance at my lips how much he relied on lip-reading in our conversation.
But it was more than that, he was genuinely wanting to soak in every word I said.
In an instant he made me feel special, beautiful...without ever saying those words.

I smiled a lot.
His eyes had a whole story to tell.
I wanted to hear it, but...
After just a few short minutes he was up and had to leave.
We smiled,
and said goodbye.

What we didn't know was that this goodbye would be for a while.

It would be a year before we would see each other again.

 

pinterest worthy.

If you are like me and spring rejuvenates you and motivates you then you are also probably looking for new ideas and things to try out.  Pinterest is the place many of us go to right away isn't it?

Our family spring checklist calls for trying out at least 5 new dinner recipes and 2 new dessert recipes (so far I have checked off 2 new dinner recipes and 1 dessert recipe - all yummy so far).  If you share this need for looking for new recipes check out a few that we have tried, enjoyed and found to be successful.  We pin away ideas and recipes all the time, but it's nice to actually know something that is great and worthy of trying out.

Recipes we have tried and loved:
Cheesy Sausage Tortellini
Avocado Chicken Salad
Crock Pot Chicken and Dumplings
Cheesy Chicken Bacon Avocado Quesadillas
Simple and Easy Cinnamon Sticky Buns

& Sweet Desserts that were super yummy:
Chocolate Chunk Fudgy Peanut Butter Swirl Cookies  (just tried these on Easter weekend - yum)
Brown Butter Snickerdoodle Cookies  (tried these at Christmas and they were a delicious puffy
                                                                           snickerdoodle cookie)
Chocolate Chip Lava Cookies  (used my own chocolate chip cookies recipe and followed the 
                                              instruction to make them into gooey melty Lava Cookies - soooo good!)

A few other random things I use regularly:
A Meal Planning sheet - I print out two and use these every time I'm planning out grocery trips.
Cleaning our Microfiber Furniture.
Felt Flower Tutorial

really, I could go on here with things I have found to be useful ideas for us and for crafting too.

But maybe if you are looking for a new recipe to try, one of those listed above will sound perfect for a spring day. :)

Speaking of food and eating, this little girl is doing some major growing.

or at least her eating habits are growing. :)
She has never been a huge eater.  Not a picky eater, just a light eater.
For the longest time, she would really eat great for one meal and not much the other two and have one snack.
Lately, she eats at least 2 good full meals most days and 3 snacks.  Yeah, 3 snacks, a morning, an afternoon and lately one before bedtime.  She sits down for 3 regular meals a day, but usually one of them she doesn't eat too much (and it's different everyday which one it will be).
A good little eater she is these days.
And fortunately for us, she is not a whiner (even though that picture above seems to tell otherwise).  She doesn't whine at all, and she doesn't ask for food at times that don't make sense. 

Quinn has always been a BIG fan of the Crockpot Chicken & Dumplings recipe listed above, ever since she was about 10 months old.

welcome spring.

We had a very mild December through February, but March was definitely all lion and no lamb.
So we are glad to have the warmth and sunshine of spring here.
Neighbors are outside, everyone's working in their yards, going for walks, making trips to the park. 
I love spring and fall for this reason. 
In winter, everyone is snuggled inside their homes, and in the hot days of summer everyone is cooling off in their air conditioning (I much prefer a mild summer). 

We loved our spring weekend this past weekend.
Hours of playing outside.
Yardwork, cleaning out the garage, grilling out and just enjoying a gorgeous day. 

Sidewalk chalk has made it's first appearance this year.

 

Happy Spring!