I'm a Big Girl Now!

We spent the weekend up in the woods...one of my favorite places.  I wish the weather would cooperate so we could explore the mountains and go on hikes and just be outside.  Eden loves to be outside and any chance we get (rain or shine) we are out finding something to do.

We haven't been to the cabin much this year, mostly because the weather has been horrible, but we made it up this weekend to spend it with Les' dad and to just get in some relaxation.  And what the cabin if it didn't involve some hard core 5mph 4-wheeling?

Daddy and PaPa were at Eden's beckon call.  With a little "peeessee" and a big fat kiss they were off down the lane with big smiles and waves to go around!

Father's day was pretty low key for us.  Les got a sweet pair of much  needed shorts from Eden and was given his favorite breakfast from his mom.  French toast on texas toast bread, bacon, potatoes and lots of syrup.  We spend the day with family all cozied up in the cabin watching it pour buckets outside and then we headed home to a clean house (for once in our lives) and ended our day with a family walk to feed all the horses around our house some carrots.

We've got some big news around our house that Eden is VERY excited about....

No longer can I really call her my baby (even though I think I always will).  She is a big girl now and she's lovin every minute of it.  For a while now, Eden has been refusing to go to bed in her crib.  She always wants to sleep in "mommy bed" and so I thought if we converted her bed into a toddler bed she would want to sleep in there....SUCCESS!  She is super stoked about her new big bed.  She wants to do everything there.  She wants to watch movies on her big bed, she insists on eating dinner in her big bed (which luckily, didn't happen) and she was so excited to go to sleep in her big bed.  Of course we had to lay down some ground rules...Eden is not to leave her big bed.  If she needs something she needs to yell for mommy or daddy.  She is also not allowed to get out of her bed when she wakes up.  If she wants out she must yell for mommy or daddy to come get her.  We'll have to see how well this works.

It's crazy for me to look at her and see how big she's getting.  Every time we see our friends or family, they all tell me that can't believe how big she is...and although I hate to admit it...she is big.  The "hold you" has turned to "hold me mommy".  The two or three words to get what she wants has turned into full blown sentences.  Her favorites are "What ya doin' Mommy?"  or "Where did my binkie go?" or my favorite "I no do that!"

She loves to sing in the car on her way to day care.  We always make it through our ABC's, Rock-A-Bye Baby and Twinkle twinkle Little Star.  She even tries to sings song on the radio.  It cracks me up.  She just sit in the back seat singing to herself and grooving to the music.  I can't wait for school to be over so that I can soak up every little piece of her.  10 more working days...80 more hours and Mommy World here I come!

When the Weather Is Warm...

When the weather is warm...we play!  Warm weather makes me happy.  It gives me purpose to go outside...to do...to enjoy...and to soak it up.

We spend Saturday day enjoying the weather.  We started the day off running errands and after a quick afternoon nap for all we headed to Eden's favorite place for Family night...we went to see the fishies.

Eden thinks shes runs this joint.  As soon as we walked in the door, she kicked off her shoes and went full speed to her favorite spot...the frog.  It was Les' first time at the Aquarium so Eden took it upon herself to show her daddy all the important higlights

We couldn't forget the Penguins (Eden's favorite) and we had to touch each and every display the place had to offer.  It was nice to be out as a family and watch how excited Eden was to show her daddy all she knew and remembered.

We spend the rest of the afternoon helping daddy outside.  I don't know what it is about the hose but if it's on Eden is right there to help.

Usually I'm not one for yard work...I tell Les I have delicate hands (whatever that means...but it works so I go with it), however, I am very excited about my garden.  I almost didn't plant one this year because I'm anal and wanted it to be perfect. Ground tilled, concrete curbing around it, divided sections for each of the plants (please see Marcia's beautiful garden to get my drift)..but it didn't happen and Les convinced me to just make do with what I have and I'm so glad I did.  Look!  I have plants!

That's spinach, snap peas and red onions and I couldn't be more stoked.  I'm so excited that I can just walk into my backyard and grab some spinach for my protein shake and I'm good to go.  I should have planted a garden LONG ago.  I always hear talks about this "self reliance" stuff and I think I'm just now getting the hang out it...

I made myself a goal for June.  I wanted to do something physical each day.  It didn't have to be hard (although that might do this pudge some good) it just needed to be something.  I used to run every single day for at least 3 miles and now I can barely run 1 mile without having to stop and take a break, and sitting on my butt for the past 9 months for 6 hours a day has done this body no good.  So I've been doing it.  I've been hitting the pavement each and every night...Sometimes it's alone and I get some really good sweat going but sometimes it's with my trusty navigator pointing the way...

I look forward to these nightly walks.  Where Eden tells me which way to go and what she sees and what to look for.  Mostly we are looking for horses and goats.  Sometimes we see cows which she corrects me are horses or we see sheep which she says are goats but it's just me and her and I love it. It's our Mamma & Eden time and we both look forward to it.  Right around 7 o' clock she comes to me and says "time for stroller mamma" and so I grab a blankie, binkie, bottle and baby and head out the door.

Most of the time she doesn't make it home awake, but that' okay with me.  I love the quite time to think as I walk.  Clear my head and sort my day so I can come home and settle in.  It's my time to watch her chest rise and fall and know that she slip into to slumber with a smile on her face.  It makes me happy to be her mamma and reminds me why I'm doing everything I am.

Today after a wonderful sacrament meeting where a sister missionary talked after just returning home from Chile, we spent the day outside enjoying the weather and watching daddy carefully on the roof fix the swamp cooler.

 We splashed in puddles and ate sand but it was perfect, quite and exactly how I wanted to spend my day.