It's been awhile since I've blown up my blog with some Brooke pix. She and I have been loving this warmer weather!! We stopped by her buddy Blake's house last week and she adored his little red truck.
She is so silly. I have been trying to organize things and this giant old brown bear was her Daddy's and she loves it.
I try to let her figure out feeding herself, and it is rather cringe-worthy as the mess is quite a bit…
But it's good for us.
So serious!
Sunday snuggles
Stuck in the chair.
Playing with that old bear again.
Again, serious face.
Picking dandelions.
Her curls!! I love them.
I forget she is still so small, and the world oh, so big.
She loves her milk! #sadiephotobomb
Sleepy bear.
Sassy and stylish. That's my big girl.
Memorial Day 2014
She is 16 1/2 months. 26 pounds…and really dang tall!! She is over 100% for her height and in the 90th% for her weight. Most 2T fits, but some 3T are needed. Her feet are a size 6 and she still keeps growing!
She eating everything and anything. When we go out to eat, we rarely get anything off the kids menu; she just eats what we eat. We try to keep her on a clean eating spree with minimal cookies or treats, but she certainly enjoys them.
She LOVES her doggies, to play outside, and the hot dog dance.
Brooke is rather comical and so I find it odd that most of my photos are of her serious face, as she is usually goofing around. I will admit I have been somewhat lazy with picture taking, only because I find that enjoying the moments with her are far more fun.
I cannot believe what a character she already is; it's crazy to think of where she will be this time next year.
Mamas. Whether you are a working mom or a stay at home mom, do yourself a favor, grab your best girlfriend and go see this movie.
Based on the title alone, as soon as I heard about it, I texted my friend Alison [mom of twins] and said, "I wanna go see this movie!" She said she did as well, and on a Tuesday night, {almost two weeks after said text} we made that happen.
Based on the preview and the ratings, I didn't expect much…but I cannot tell you how HAPPY we were we got out to go see it.
Yes, it's super cheesy and anyone who hasn't had a child may not appreciate all of the subtle, or not so subtle humor. It was a tad heavy on the religion side and it was PG so no swearing or inappropriate language…and honestly? That was fine.
We were laughing within a few moments of the opening scene and all the way til the end. There were some far fetched ideas, but overall, it was just what us mamas needed.
I had to laugh because upon entering the theater, one would expect that it would be rather desolate on a Tuesday night. I mean really; who goes to the movies on a Tuesday? Ok, moms do. PLUS, they were $3 tickets ha score!!
We had to wait in line and I noticed there were tons of women in line for popcorn, but I didn't think much of it…until we walked into our theater and I realized they were pretty much all here to see this movie.
Not one male.
Moms from all walks of life; the PTSA type, who sternly marched off to go tell someone the projector wasn't working properly. The frazzled hair in a messy ponytail and constantly checking her cell phone, mom. The preppy cardigan, short 'mom haircut' and white purse mom. Moms with their moms, so technically grandmas. Rows and rows of moms.
Oh yeah, and us. Two thirty-something moms who left their hubbies in charge, while donning sweatshirt and tee, jeans, and flip-flops.
The energy in the theater was pretty full of estrogen; but all of us had that thing in common:
MOM.
The movie was certainly a comedy; parts of my life played well right out on film, as to which I literally laughed out loud {especially at her hubby playing video games} and the amount that we could relate to these moments was undeniably, hysterical.
However, this movie got a bit deeper than all the funny, stressed out parts of life we often don't know what to do with, but laugh. It hit a part that I think EVERY mother needs to be reminded of…
So if you don't want me to ruin it for you, stop reading. If you don't care, then continue on…
*****
It was the part where the leading actress broke down crying and started saying how she wasn't enough. She wasn't enough for her friends, her husband, her children, her parents…and BAM. I felt that. I know every woman in that theater did too. We as women exhaust ourselves, trying to be PERFECT. We just want to make everyone happy and do everything right and be the best…and that is SO exhausting. But the reality is, we are enough for all of those people. Who we aren't enough for, is ourselves.
WOW.
Truth, right? How many times do you beat yourself up for not having "the perfect dinner on the table when hubs gets home," or "The well behaved child in the grocery store," or "the bright lush green grass without dandelions and freshly mowed this spring," or perhaps, "the trendiest clothes with the most expensive bag". It all means nothing if you're not happy inside.
They kept coming back to this live streaming of an eagle with her nest/egg/baby bird. The symbol or even metaphor I suppose, was so simple and so effective; the eagle was enough. Being a momma eagle to her little bird is all she knows; there are no tricks, no competition, nothing. She was just doing all that she knew what to do, and she did it well.
So mommas, I'm here to say, be the eagle. Just be the best you, you can be. Isn't that what we will {or do} teach our children? Why do we forget to tell ourselves that?
A few weeks ago, I felt like I was spinning and going crazy. I couldn't figure out what end was up and I just kept saying out loud, "Something has to give." And so I did. I stopped beating myself up and started just being a mom. Just loving my little girl and giving her all that I could, day in and day out, on top of being a wife, daughter, sibling, friend, and taking care of myself. I realized yet again, life is what you make of it. Sometimes we need to listen to our inner voices, the universe, God, whatever. And stop trying so hard, and just start being.
You are enough.
Our crazy fast paced, face booking, twittering, instagramming, selfie state of our world is spinning so fast. Learn to stop, breathe and just be.
No matter how put together or perfect you think another momma is, she could very well be trying to handle a chipmunk situation, with a BB gun, while neighbors look on, a little frighten, while kiddos bathe in a tub.
:)
For real though, not to get all super cheesy, but just know we are all in this together. I know that my mom did the best she could, and my husband's mom did the best she could, and I will do the same. We live, we learn, and we should really always be helping one another out. But first, you must help yourself. They even used the oxygen mask theory in the movie, which both my husband and mom have told me before. You are of no use to anyone, if you're not taking good care of you first.
So those are my thoughts on that. It's good to get off Pinterest and Instagram once in awhile. We only see snippets of real life and they are all glamour and great [usually]. Life is beautiful, but it's messy. Full of poopy diapers, muddy paw prints running through a freshly mopped floor, and overgrown eyebrows.
Such an amazing dinner; it was so well decorated too. We both ordered the Filet Mignon---he had fois grois and I had these AMAZING French mushrooms. I still think about them.
Perfect ending to a perfect vacation.
Friday we got up and enjoyed the last bit of the beach…
Before we went to the airport we had a quick local lunch of conch something or other at this cute little pier.
We flew into JFK Friday evening and were home in the ROC by 9:30. We certainly enjoyed every moment of our mini romantical couples only vacation; and I can't wait to do it again!
I've truly enjoyed being home and the day to day tasks are much easier, when I have these beautiful memories to look back on. We are already looking at a few newer local French restaurants to checkout this weekend, we just loved it so much!
There isn't a whole lot more convince than rolling out of bed and putting on a bikini. We simply exhausted ourselves at the beach the day before, and figured the best thing to do again, would be to beach it. It was a tough choice, lay out for a bit then eat? Or eat first then lay out…#vacayproblems
We laid out here for the day (that's the outdoor like restaurant we ended up eating dinner at this night!)
Joe was fascinated with this shark he saw, so he would look for it all of the time!
#beachselfies
I need to frame this one.
I tell ya, it was pretty rough, but somehow I managed to get through the day!
Hubs caught me on camera…a little drunk in love style…
Then I saw him.
The infinity pool was beautiful but we didn't go in it. Next time! We can't wait to bring Brooke. We face timed with her on the beach haha!
If you like Pina Coladas!?
Here we go again with the pre-dinner, waiting for my hubby selflies… I felt super cute in my summer clothes, I just couldn't help it!
Cause I'm all artsty like that.
Can we go back now? I miss you St. Martin!! And I must say, working out 2x a day, eating the right foods and supplementing properly, SURE made me feel and look my best. Crazy!
