May goals

Last month (April) I started writing down and setting a few small goals that I wanted to accomplish in that month.

I wanted to start setting goals because:

1) I'm not the greatest goal setter (never have been)

2) I wanted to really challenge myself and feel good to actually set a goal and accomplish it

3) It's something outside my comfort zone and I need to get out of that zone and do something different a lot more :)

Last month my goals where:

*find a new routine & rhythm (Ian had just left after being home for nearly 3 1/2 months)

*make plans for each weekend

*finish stairs (primer and paint)

*walk 6 days/week (goal 60 miles)

*start 10K running program

*keep up with Project Life

*make summer plans & reservations

*schedule me time each week

The end result:

The goals in bold where ones I accomplished!

I didn't end up walking 6 days a week, but I did exercise as often as I could. April ended up a little crazy with us deciding to take our little ones out of their public school, visiting a new school numerous times, filling out paperwork for new school, Carson starting the new school and Makayla being homeschooled until next year and a whole lotta other everyday life stuff!

Keeping up with Project Life....well it was my intention, but honestly it's so overwhelming. I feel like EVERYONE is doing Project Life right now (which is great!) but I'm feeling discouraged and totally uninspired by the project (just voicing my honesty). I still have it, it's still here on my desk, but I'd rather be living life during this time and enjoying every little slice of it than in my office editing photos and worrying about it.

Summer plans....it's in the process. Not a lot of plans (which I don't like). We are patiently waiting to hear where Ian will be working during the summer months before planning anything.

Overall I am really happy with what goals I did set for myself and what I was able to accomplish. I won't beat myself up for the ones I didn't accomplish. Just moving forward and accepting what I can do instead of what I can't/didn't do.

My May GOALS are:

*continue training for a 10K

*sign up for a 10K! (gulp!!)

*workout 5 days a week

*finish side table project

*pick out exterior paint colors for the house

*declutter toys (donate/sell unwanted ones)

*create something each week

I think these goals are totally obtainable, and considering we are 1/2 through May already it should be easy!

Happy Mother's Day!

I am truly, truly blessed.

Being a mother is the most beautiful, fulfilling, hardest and amazing job ever. 

So thankful today that I have been given this role.

Thinking of all you mamas (and mamas-to-be) out there....hope your day is a lovely one!

What's on your......

I love lists like this and was inspired by Ali's blog  and thought I would do my own!

But first, a photo of my little family from our Cali trip last month // taken at Newport Pier

So what's on my......

VANITY //  it's my bathroom counter and I just have my perfumes and sometimes jewelry that I recently wore. Hand soap, lotion, cotton balls, Q-Tips. 

PERENNIAL TO TO LIST // declutter! Simplify. Reduce. Get rid of toys kids have outgrown. 

REFRIGERATOR SHELVES // berries, distilled water, coconut & almond yogurts, hummus.

ITINERARY // still in the works, but we have an Arizona trip coming up and I'll be going to South Carolina and we'll be (hopefully) glamping this summer in a tent trailer :)

FANTASY ITINERARY // Bahamas, France, Italy, Thailand, BALI!

PLAYLIST // I have a little of everything. The A Team, The Band Perry, Bruno Mars, Gotye, Jason Mraz, The Lumineers, Mumford & Sons, Pink, The Script, Sugarland, Taio Cruz just to name a few. 

NIGHTSTAND // a few books, glass of water, IHome

IPHONE // US Bank, Hotels.com, PicTapGo, Sleep Cycle (trying to get better sleep), Zappos

TOP 5 LIST // (1) Get healthy & reduce blood sugar levels (been dealing with high fasting blood sugars levels for a year now), (2) take a collage class or two, (3) take a local art class, (4) see Yellowstone & Redwoods this summer with the family (5) be more present with my kids and less time on my phone/online.

WORKOUT PLAN // I typically workout (run) 4-5 days a week right after the kids go to school. I want to start yoga again.

BUCKET LST // see BALI! Yellowstone, Redwoods and just travel more. See places I haven't seen. 

BLOGROLL // I need new blogs to follow and new inspiration...have any recommendations? Love fashion, health, fitness and crafts other than Project Life.

WALLS IN YOUR HOUSE // a couple years ago when we moved back into our house I started repainting some walls in our house and really love the light greys and white colors I've chosen. We don't get a ton of light and it really helps brighten the rooms during the long winter months here :) I need to start hanging photos now. 

LIQUOR SHELF //  We actually don't drink much at all, but probably have a small bar's supply....a little bit of everything. Lots of wines too. 

LAST CREDIT CARD STATEMENT // we don't do credit cards, just cash or debt. Last debit transactions include: hotels.com, Massage Envy, Newport Market, iTunes

SCREENSAVER // I'm a photos girl, so I love having photos of my family up. Right now it's random photos from our trip to Kauai.

TV EVERY NIGHT // not a big TV watching family. Wednesday nights are our family TV night. We love watching The Middle, Modern Family, Storage Wars, Duck Dynasty, that finding big foot show. 

favorite things // april edition

Welcome to my first ever favorite things edition!

I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorite things each month and maybe you can share your favorite things too!

I decided to keep my favorite things based on health, beauty and home....some of the things I've been really focusing and trying to nurture this year.

1 // Newton Running Gravity shoes. I love, love, love these. I had been wearing Nike Free Runs for two years, then earlier this year bought Merrill Bare Access Arc 2 (which I love), but I've been suffering from Plantar Facsiitis and decided to try the Newton's after reading the reviews. They are priced more than I usually spend on my running shoes, but honestly they are THE BEST!

2 // The Capri Blue Candle in-a- jar from Anthropologie have been my favorite candles to burn in the home. The scent is mild, romantic and pleasing the the senses. Of course, who wouldn't want their home to sell like the store?

3 & 4 // These tees from The Printed Palette. Love this one and this one. I actually don't own them, but they are on my wish list :)

5 // Organic Coconut Palm sugar. I've been dealing with high fasting blood sugars for a year now and totally addicted to Coffeemate creamer. This past week I ditched the Coffeemate and switched to cream and this sugar for my morning coffee. Not bad!

6 // This year I've also ditched chemical laden facial cleansers (along with sunscreens last year) and started using organic coconut oil to cleanse my face everyday. We live in a very dry climate and by using this I have not experienced the normal dry winter skin I usually experience every winter. My face and body LOVE it! I whipped up a batch of homemade goodness that included:

organic coconut oil (big tub found at Costco) - approx 2 cups

organic shea butter - approx 1/4 cup

a few drops of my favorite essential oil (I think I used lemon this last time)

Whip up in an electric mixer until it resembles whipped cream. Scoop into your favorite mason or glass jar. Use on face and body!

So there you have it...my first edition! I hope you enjoyed it and if you have a favorite thing you would like to share, I would love to hear about it!

Happy Friday friends!!

xo

spring break 2013 >>> in iPhone photos

Our family headed to Southern Cali for our spring break this year.....

the last time Makayla & Carson had been to Disneyland they were 2 & 3 years old, so we thought it was about time they experienced Disney again :)

(our traditional in the car family shot...heading out of town!)

(made it to Cali in good time and welcomed the warm sun setting)

Since the kids are older, we thought it would be fun to visit Universal Studios and do the "Hollywood" thing.

Can not tell you how much fun we had!!

The first part of our trip we stayed in the Hollywood area and went to Universal Studios, Venice Beach, Santa Monica and did the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

We even dined with a couple stars.....

Tim Allen and Eric McCormack

and enjoyed Pinkberry Yogurt with Shay Mitchell

So you can stay the kids definitely got some star sightings in :)

Totally fun!!

Of course on our must see list was to find the Hollywood sign and get a photo of it.....

It sure doesn't look like we are tourist does it? HA!!

As good as we were able to get.

We visited Ian's aunt & uncle who live in the LA area and had dinner with them. 

The second part of our trip we stay in Anaheim, but before we drove there we played around at Newport & Balboa Beach and took the ferry over to Balboa Island where we walked around and dreamed of owning a cute little cottage there :)

Then it was 3 days of Disney mania!

 This was our second run at Tower of Terror and it's just Carson, Malia & I....Makayla flipped out right before we got on for the second time and Ian sat out with her. So much fun!

The kids totally surprised me and didn't ask for anything....except PopCone (popcorn). But we did take a break so they could shop for a souvenir. Makayla pick out a Minnie Mouse that she quickly fell in love with. 

Love them  :)

My girl Malia.

After Disney, we left for Ojai, CA were we stayed just one night and wished so badly we would have booked two nights...it felt good to just relax after our whirlwind week of adventures! Ojai is such a beautiful place full of citrus orchards and completely laid back....so different from the rest of LA/Orange County area.

Ian & I enjoyed fresh Pixie margaritas from Agave Maria's and oh my goodness were they GOOD!

And the ending trip photo....last hour or so in the car. The natives started getting crazy at this point!

Oh my...did we have a blast!!

 Such a great family vacation. So many memories we made. Tons of laughter and screaming :)

Lots of great food we enjoyed. 

Now I can't wait to put together a photo book with all my images from all our cameras/devices!

photo bombed & the start of year 3

In early March we took the little kids to Portland for the weekend to do their spring/summer clothes shopping. 

The weather was SO perfect that weekend....blue skies and warmer temps in Portland!!

After we got checked into our hotel room, we decided to take the kids to a park to wear off a bit of their energy :)

We are also trying to be better at taking more photos of each other with the kids and of us together while Ian is home.

These two are always so silly and goofy and trying to get a decent photo without them picking their noses or making the loudest farting noises was a little tricky!

Then we asked Makayla to take a few photos of Ian and I together. 

Well......

Carson just couldn't stand it that we have a serious photo moment.......

and photo bombed nearly every shot. 

i love it.

It totally tells the story of what life is like right now with the kids :)

Flash forward one month:

Ian left this past Wednesday to head back to North Dakota to begin year 3.

For the past month I've been thinking about how I want this 3rd year to feel and what I want it to look like. 

This is what I KNOW (from past experience):

-it's hard. No way around it. 

-planning & keeping busy is key.

-I HATE being alone (I'm very much a team player and love to be around others).

-my kids are so, so awesome.

-there will be days I'm totally overwhelmed.

-having schedules and things organized helps tremendously.

-I simply can not do it alone. I need help. Juggling 3 kids, their activities, appointments, dinners, schools, homework, etc is almost impossible and exhausting when I've done it all alone. 

-scheduling "me" time is critical to being a good mom & wife.

-I need good friends.

-stress isn't good for your health

-exercising is a great stress reliever :)

-that I have one AMAZING husband who loves us so much, who is making sacrifices in order for us to have a brighter future.

Things are/will be very much different this year:

I'm giving myself daily pep talks....that might sound weird or funny, but for me I really need that. (I was way too hard on myself the last 2 years).

I'm doing very, very limited photography sessions this spring (mostly clients from the wait list from last fall). 

We have a lot of help.

My parents live around the corner from us now and it's just so awesome!!

I'm trying to make the weeks that Ian's gone the best ever for the kids and I. Making sure we have some new, fun adventures planned almost every weekend.

My goal is to continue to make the kids feel loved and encouraged every single day and to give them as much of my attention as possible. 

Staying positive and uplifting is a major goal this year. 

So here's to year 3.....

it's going to be the best one yet!

xo,

jessica

the weekend | in iPhone photos

Hello Monday!

We had such a great weekend at home mixed with some downtime and some fun time.

Love those weekends.

Friday night the little kids had their school carnival...

 this game and the cake walk where the two favorite games. We didn't last long (the kids got bored quickly), so then we took them out to dinner to Flatbread where I snapped a photo of Ian taking my photo.

We are dorks.

Saturday night was DATE NIGHT and we had decided to go to a local dinner house that was hosting a Comedy Night.

We got there early and snagged a front row table and ordered drinks and apps.

(seriously good food and a pretty funny lineup of comedians)
I can't wait to do this type of date night again......
good, good times. 

Sunday.......

Last week we started a project -  the stair makeover project.

Big thanks to my brother, Joe, and my dad for tackling this project that I've been dreaming of doing for

years!

On Sunday the carpet got ripped out (good thing because I had been avoiding vacuuming those suckers all week and it was getting pretty bad!)

At this point I was getting a little freaked out and realized there's no turning back!! :)

But I have a vision and I'm just praying it turns out just like that vision!

And after at 2pm when I decided to reheat some leftover coffee and drink a second cup and the cup getting snagged on the microwave door and dumping 

e  v  e  r  y  w  h  e  r  e

all over the kitchen, Ian decided he better get us (me) out of the house for a little hike up Pilot Butte.

btw: I laughed about it and the awful mess and took it as a sign that I shouldn't drink coffee so late in the day :)

And after a quick stop at Costco and Whole Foods afterwards, we headed home and made vegan fajitas (TO DIE FOR!!)  and watched America's Funniest Videos.

So thankful and grateful for this time together with my little family....

all 5 of us together.

We are getting down to the final weeks of Ian being home (he leaves in a month!)

Preparing for Adventure #3