let's just enjoy this moment, shall we?

oh you guys... i'm treading water.  i'm balancing a million things, none of which are bad.  mom duties, photographer duties, church duties, wife duties, part-time worker duties, self-duties, housekeeper duties... you get the idea.  probably because most of you are doing the same thing.  we take on a lot because we know we can & then we feel like {as a good friend of mine put it} you're just one step away from not getting up out of bed in the morning.  it's not depression, it's exhaustion.  and it's a situation i've chosen to be in because there is so. much. i. want. to. do.  sure, a couple extra hours in the day might help... but would it?  because i'm pretty sure i'd find a way to fill that too.

i guess what i'm saying is that i am feeling the need to slow down.  i'm getting tired, i'm feeling pregnant & i'm starting to freak out a little at what's ahead.  two kids.  but then i look at everything i'm juggling & there isn't a single thing i'd choose to take off the table.  so then whattyado?

i've definitely cut back on the blogging... maybe you've noticed, maybe you haven't.  i feel like lately it's pregnancy update, week in iPhotos, token post of another subject, rinse, repeat.  and it'll probably continue to be like that as i'm insistent on continuing to document this pregnancy & our lives in the meantime.

but right now?  right at this moment?  i just want to slow down & take a breath.  i want to enjoy some of the good things in my life, some of the quiet moments & some of the things that make life worth living.  this is what it's all about.  this is how my little family spent my third mother's day as a mom.  it was just me & my two guys + the one in my belly, at the park.  it was a gorgeous day, parker was happy & the lighting was perfect for picture taking.  so i took lots.

i love my crazy, exhausting, sometimes-overwhelming life.  i am blessed with so much & am so grateful for all the opportunities that come my way, even if sometimes i think it's gonna kill me.  i'm so grateful for sam & parker & for this little boy we get to meet in less than three months.

and sometimes i just need to step back from it all, look at the big picture, take a deep breath... and remember that.

{ps:  wanna see what our mother's day looked like last year?  click here.  spoiler alert:  i had a much flatter stomach & better hair.  just sayin.}

my birthday in {mostly} pictures.

wow.

i had an overwhelmingly wonderful day yesterday.  here's a big ol' thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday via blog, facebook, text, phone call, or in person.  i felt the love & i'm still feeling all warm & fuzzy.  it's nice to know people care, ya know?  and now i know.  so thanks for that!

the whole weekend was dang near perfect.  sam's sister jodi & her husband jason came up from portland saturday night to kick off the celebrations.  there was good food, a movie & lots of fro-yo.  then sunday was all about the bbq, a whole heckuvalotta cake & a walk to the park.  that was one of my only requests... to get outside & enjoy our amazing weather & play in the park.

here are the highlights.

{did i mention the day included lots of cake?  i wasn't joking.}

{we played some around the world & apparently parker's tactic was to distract the competition by flashing them.  it worked... i was totally thrown off my game.}

{so i may be a year older, but i still got some killer moves.  be jealous.}

{parker loves his auntie.  loves her.  there was a pretty good amount of giggle snorts outta him while they were playing & it pretty much killed me.  deeeeeaad.}

i couldn't have asked for a better day!

but now it's time to shift gears & get ready for another day of celebrating because today is in-between-birthdays-day.  tomorrow is SAM's birthday!  i have a few tricks up my sleeve for the big day & just might even go for round two on the cake.  can you ever have too much birthday cake?  no, no you can't.

and lastly, a bloggity sidenote:  how do ya'll like the new blog design?  i've been wanting to switch things up for a lonnnng time but was having a hard time saying goodbye to the old header.  i'm really loving the simplicity & cleanness of this one though... i think it's much more me.  hope you guys like it!

i'm now accepting your vote clicks as belated birthday presents!

just another day at safeco.

i've already talked about how safeco field is my happy place, yeah?  now add in eighty degree weather, a mariner's win, a super happy & excited p-ray, & some of my favorite in-laws?  and you pretty much have a perfect day.

that was our day last saturday.

and parker got super excited once he realized where we were.  when we walked into safeco he immediately started dancing & kicking his legs & clapping.  not joking.  let me tell ya my friends, we were a couple of proud parents that day.

i think it's safe to say parker loves everything about mariner's games.  well, almost.  he may or may not have freaked a little when it was time to get our group picture with the mariner moose.  but i can't blame him... the dude's a little creepy.  maybe it's the ginormous eyes?  or the tight white short shorts?  whatever it is, parker's on to him.

can ya spare a couple clicks today? it'd probably be pretty awesome if ya did.

summer, really?

i told you.  summer in the pac-northwest starts on july fifth.  and hooray, it happened!  oh my gosh.  these are the days i live for.

it's been in the eighties the last few days.  repeat after me... eighty degrees!!  that is hot here, friends.  this is "get-out-your-sprinklers-it's-too-hot-to-cook-let's-hang-out-in-the-park-&wrestle-in-the-shade" kinda weather.  so we did.

and when i said it was too hot to cook?  i meant that we skipped dinner & went out to frozen yogurt, instead.  because it's summer.  and i'm pretty sure in the summer frozen yogurt has no calories.  especially when it's flavored like cake batter & loaded with cookie dough, raspberries, oreos, & peanut butter cups.

yeah, that happened.

how about making a couple votes happen?  i'd love you for it.  i really do.

steppin' out for a family bike ride.

we finally put parker's birthday present to use yesterday.  we got him a bike trailer & it's only taken us two months to get out for a ride {i blame weather & being out of town... definitely NOT laziness}.

we went on a little 15 mile ride & it was pretty much perfect.  parker dug the trailer & the weather was gorgeous.  we rode to a random town out in the boonies, bought some cookies from a shady cookie store & rode back.

nothing like buying treats during a work out to completely undo your workout... am i right?

here are the highlights {all pics taken with my iPhone}.

yup.  sam definitely wears basketball shorts over his bike shorts.  guess he's not worried about all that extra wind resistance.

p-ray just hanging out in the trailer... "oh hey mom.  what's up?"  : : : wave : : :

linking up with "steppin' out saturday" at harper's happenings.  you should too!

so yeah... a little unconventional with the outfit.  but hey, it's what i wore today.

sidenote:  i freakin' love my bike.  this was the first ride i've gone on since before i found out i was pregnant & i'm pretty excited about it.  before i found out i was pregnant i was training for a triathlon & was riding 50-60 miles a week.  as soon as i knew i was bakin' a baby i gave it up.  i was afraid of falling {which happens occasionally since my cycling shoes clip into the pedals} & it wasn't worth the risk.

wanna know why i didn't ride last summer?  i'll be honest.  i had just had a baby & i wasn't going anywhere near my spandex-filled-cycling-wardrobe.  trust me, that was a good choice.

this summer?  i'm still not looking quite the same in spandex, but i think i'll explore the love affair with my bike nonetheless.

this is the part where we ate cookies.  chocolate with chocolate frosting for sam, peanut butter with chocolate frosting for me.  parker even got a couple bites, but only because he signed "please." {third picture}

how can you say no to that??  you can't.

i was kinda blown away the whole time about how gorgeous the day was & how picturesque our surroundings were.  i may or may not have insisted on stopping here to "moo" at the cows.  it just seemed right.

and there it is.  our first of many bike rides with parker's very own bike trailer.  it was a total success.  see?  that kid's face is just screaming "let's go again"... right?

if you could see my face it would be saying "click twice to vote."  i swear it would.

ducks + goats + pigs.

happy june, friends!  another month has come & gone.  i'm hoping june brings more sunshine & higher temperatures to the pnw.  no breath holding here though.

we took parker to a local cider mill on saturday.  it's one of our favorite saturday-afternoon destinations.  some people go there for the fresh produce, some go for the fresh made donuts, some go for the amazing apple cider.  our little family?  we go for the animals.  and well, all the other stuff too.  but mostly the animals.

i kinda wanted to steal one of those mini goats & take him home in my pocket.  i think he & parker would be best friends.  

and lastly, june sponsors are up!  take a gander at our new sponsors & do some revisiting of the old ones.  we have all kinds of awesome discounts & giveaways coming up to ring in the all-too-exciting month of june {seriously... what happens in june?} so get excited.  get very excited.

i get very excited with every single vote. not joking.