WILW

My mom was just asking me last night if I had posted anything new on the blog. I've been a little bit of a blog slacker for the past two weeks, so I thought I'd better link up with Jamie today for What I'm Loving Wednesday!

{one}

My last post was all about my trip to GA! It was great! I will forever be thankful Josh and Kyle were stationed together on the Alexandria, so Amanda and I could meet. It's stinky that we live far apart now, but I am thankful for the times we do get to visit one another!

{two}

The day after we returned from Georgia, Brennan had his final physical therapy appointment! Yep, he's all done! He's still not walking on his own, but Ms. Jen felt like she no longer needed to work with him because he had made great improvements while we were there. I know he's capable of doing it; it's just a matter of when he's ready.

{three}

During our weekly physical therapy appointments, we worked a lot on trying to get Brennan to pull himself to standing. It's so crazy to me because I always see my friends posting on Facebook about their seven-month-olds pulling up in their cribs and until this week Brennan had NEVER pulled himself to standing. So far he's only done it a few times and always using the new train table Kyle built for him, but I am so proud that his is making progress there too!

{four}

VBS is happening at church this week! Lots of churches are doing the same Pandamania theme this year. I am leading music each night and it's been a lot of fun. I always have fun when you combine three of my biggest passions: Jesus, kids, and music!

{five}

Brennan has been waking up earlier than usual this week. I know I have nothing to complain about because earlier than usual means around 6:30 and I know plenty of kiddos who wake up earlier than that on a daily basis. Even though he's been waking up early, he wakes up so incredibly happy and I love that! I don't go into his room right away because he's content just rolling around in his crib. When he hears me open his door in the morning, he almost always starts shouting or laughing. As soon as he can see me, he gets a huge smile on his face and starts moving all around in his crib. So thankful for that smile in the morning!

This was taken one afternoon when I went to wake him up from
a  FIVE HOUR NAP! For some reason he's started to sleep in this position.

{six}

I haven't had much time to be "pinning" many new things recently, but I thought I'd share some of my Pinterest inspired creations. I shared a few two weeks ago, but I've got a few new ones to share with you too!

Our new menu board (don't judge our menu this week; I have to be out of the house
by 5:20 to get to VBS.
Inspiration found here.

Love my new storage for my straightener!
Inspiration found here.

Fruit of the Spirit for marriage!
Inspiration found here.

Came home from GA to find these! Thanks, honey!
Inspiration found here.

{seven}

As always I'm loving these two guys! Thanks, Kyle for putting B to bed each night this week, so I can work at VBS. I love you!

We don't have to go to GA to enjoy the beach! We have "beaches"
right here in CT!

This one was taken last summer in Pigeon Forge, TN.

Have a great Wednesday!

WILW

Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July! Here are a few things I am loving this week!

{one}

It's our birthiversary week! My birthday was yesterday, Kyle's birthday is tomorrow, and our 5th anniversary is on Friday! We tend to be pretty low key in our celebrating, but it's a still a fun week for us.

one from the archives - July 4, 2005

{two}

I am loving our friends who help us celebrate our special week. Monday night Val and Kathryn came over to stay with Brennan, so Kyle and I could go see the new Transformers movie. (I really liked it btw). Tonight Amanda is coming over to stay so we can go out to dinner! Thanks, friends!

{three}

A while back Kyle painted our kitchen. When I took all the decorations down, so he could paint, I never put them back up thinking I would like to do something different. I finally got around to it! Previously I had gone with a red color scheme for the kitchen, but now it's blue. It works well because our countertops are blue/gray. Here's a little shot of some of the new/repainted stuff!

{four}

The little menu board in the picture above was a Pinterest inspiration. I don't think mine is as cute as the one I found on Pinterest, but I still like it. I bought a $1 frame at The Dollar Store, but because they didn't have any white ones, the hubs spray painted it white for me. Then I just printed the days of the week onto yellow scrapbook paper I already had. Kyle also helped with another Pinterest idea. He used PBC pipe to make a storage spot for my straightening iron! Find my Pinterest page here!

{five}

We had a nice 4th of July cookout at the Kindel's on Monday. They host a cookout every year and have an exceptional turnout! I didn't take a single picture while we were there, but here's one of the little guy on the 4th!

{six}

Last night I went to Fenway Park to see a Red Sox game! I went with four girlfriends and it was a great way to celebrate my birthday! Boston pulled out a win with a crazy last play!

{seven}

While I was at Fenway, Kyle started staining our deck. It's not finished, but I am already loving it. I am so thankful for a hubby that likes to work on projects like this!

{eight}

I'm loving our two cats. Well, most of the time. The gray one is always sweet, the black and white one has sweet moments.

Elvis

Dino

{nine}

Of course I'm loving these two guys!

What are you loving today? Head over to Jamie's blog to join the party!

WILW

Linking up again with Jamie for What I'm Loving Wednesday!

{one}

Better late than never, I am loving Pinterest! I seriously have to limit my time on there because the minutes turn into hours! You can check out my page here.

{two}

I got my first ever spray tan yesterday! My friend, Amanda, has a friend with a mobile spray tan business and hosted a spray tan party at her house! It was set up in her garage and we let the kids play while the mommas took turns getting their tan on. I've always been a tanner; even though I know it's not good for me. Now that I'm a momma, I find it a lot harder to find time to just be laying out, so this was a perfect (and healthy) solution!

{three}

I always watch "The Bachelorette" on Monday nights. This past Monday was extra special because Val and Kathryn came over to watch too. To make it a little more interesting, we played a drinking game while watching it. These were our rules which we adapted slightly from another group of Kathryn's friends.

• Any time you hear the word "amazing" take a drink
• Any time she kisses someone take a drink
• Any time a helicopter makes an appearance take a drink 
• If a guy picks Ashley up, take 2 drinks
• Any time you hear the word "journey" finish your drink
• Any time you hear the word "Bentley" take a drink

We added the last rule because we knew Bentley was making an appearance last night. There was no helicopter in last night's episode, but they did say "journey" three times. We ended up not following that rule because it was just too much to keep up with and Val and Kathryn needed to drive home afterwards.

{four}

Brennan got his 2nd haircut! I think he looks so handsome!

{five}

On Sunday, we had an outdoor church service. Our church is blessed to have a large outdoor area (in a separate location from our church) with a lot of land and a big pavilion. We will have several Sunday morning services up there this summer. It's always fun to be outside knowing the surrounding residents can hear us worshiping! 

{six}

I had a mommy day on Saturday! Those don't happen very often, so I was very thankful to get one. Saturday morning I went to church for our Secret Sister reveal. For the past six months, we have been giving notes of encouragement and small gifts to our Secret Sister, but mostly importantly we have been praying for them. It was a neat way to get to know some more of the wonderful ladies in our church.

{seven}

My mommy day continued into the afternoon. While Brennan was napping I went out shopping. I have a birthday coming up and treated myself to some new clothes at TJ Maxx. I find TJ Maxx very hit or miss for finding things, but this was definitely a hit. I came home with 2 pairs of capris, 2 dresses, and a shirt. I'm sure I could've found more, but I thought I better stop there!

{eight}

That still wasn't the end of my mommy day! Saturday night after I gave Brennan his bath, I headed off to a girls-only game night with girls from church. It was a lot of fun. We played "The Game of Things", which is pretty hilarious. We also played "Last Word" and "Scattagories". 

{nine}

I'm loving this guy, who made my mommy day possible! 

{ten}

And I'm loving this guy who brings me so much joy each day!

What are YOU loving today?

WILW

Hope you're having a wonderful Wednesday! I'm linking up with Jamie again for What I'm Loving Wednesday!

{one}

I'm loving that I got a haircut. I've been wanting to get it chopped again for awhile now, but it's hard to do when you have a baby. I'm not picky at all about my hairstylist, so when Kyle ended up coming home from work earlier on Friday, I just ran over to Cost Cutters and got a $15 haircut. Just a little bob. Same as always, but it makes me happy.

{two}

Kyle has been having some easy days at work and coming home early. It's always a nice surprise, although yesterday he caught me napping. Ooops! I guess I am loving naps too!

{three}

It's officially summer! I am loving our weather lately. Highs in the mid-upper 70s. Pretty amazing!

Fun in the water hose!

{four}

Since the weather has been nice, we've been able to hit up our local Splash Pad a few times. It's hard for me to get pictures of Brennan enjoying it because I have to be right in there with him helping him walk. He has NO fear. He LOVES the water. I did manage to snap this picture of him starting to dry off and enjoying some fruit snacks.

{five}

The most exciting news for the week is that my non-crawling, non-walking sixteen-month-old took his first three steps on Monday. We were at his weekly physical therapy appointment and at the very end, Ms. Jen wanted to see if he would walk to me. Sure enough he stood up from sitting on her lap and walked the short distance to me. No steps since then, but it's exciting (and scary) knowing he'll be a walker before too much longer!

Poor quality, but I just love this one. He looks like a big boy!

{six}

I do not have a green thumb. AT ALL. All of our landscaping has been done by the hubby. I love pretty flowers, but just don't like the upkeep. However, a local greenhouse was a having a 50% sale this past weekend and I decided I wanted to go check out their hanging plants. They have HUGE plants there! They're expensive, but for half-off, I thought it might be worth it. We went to check it out (there's amazing ice cream there too!) and ended up buying two plants. Let's see how long I can keep them alive!

{seven}

I am not much of a reader. Growing up I loved reading. I still love reading, I just don't make time to do it. As a kid and teenager, I loved fiction books. The only books I find myself reading now are marriage and parenting books. Before Brennan was born, I read Babywise. I became a fan from the beginning and have been reading books in that series since. I just bought Toddlerwise this week and I am excited to start reading it. I also bought Love and Logic Magic for Early Childhood. I am looking forward to reading both books and to discussing them with Kyle, so we can be on the same page about discipline and other parenting issues.

{eight}

I am loving the Silhouette! Well I am loving the thought of owning one! I want need one of these machines! My birthday is coming up. Hint, hint!!!

{nine}

Of course I am loving these handsome guys!

What are YOU loving today? Head over to Jamie's blog and link up!

WILW

Happy Wednesday. I missed last week, but I am happy to be linking up with Jamie again for What I'm Loving Wednesday!

{one}

I had lovely dinner last Thursday night with some amazing girls from church. Kyle had duty, so the girls decided to go eat at Olive Garden. Brennan was the only boy! It was a great meal and Brennan was super well-behaved.

(via)

{two}

One Friday each month, some ladies from our church get together for game night. That happened this past Friday. As always it was a good time. We try to play at least one new game each month and this month's new one was The Game of Things. It was hilarious! I can't wait to play that game again with some of my other friends!

{three}

Saturday morning was overcast, but we knew we wanted to get out of the house, so we went to the aquarium. B and I go a lot, but this was only the second time Kyle has gotten to join us. Kyle got to watch the sea lion show for the first time. It wasn't nearly as good as the first time I saw it. Several of the sea lions were not in the mood to participate, which made for a pretty funny show.

{four}

On Sunday one of the songs the praise team sang was "Be Unto Your Name". LOVE IT! In fact, I like our praise team singing it a lot better than the version below.

{five}

I am loving days when B takes a four hour nap! He is doing so well with only one nap/day! I wish I could say I get tons of stuff done while he naps, but I typically spend a lot of time on the computer.

{six}

On Monday Brennan and I ran a couple of errands including a stop by Michaels. All I wanted from Michaels was an over the door wreath hanger (I broke my previous one). I was a little bummed because usually when I go to Michaels, I make sure I print off a 40% coupon from their website. Since this visit wasn't exactly planned, I didn't have a coupon with me. The wreath hanger was only $4.99, so it certainly wasn't breaking the bank. While in the checkout line, the woman in front of me attempted to use her 40% coupon, but was informed everything she bought was already on clearance, so she couldn't use the coupon. She was nice enough to turn around and offer it to me. I saved $2.00 on my wreath hanger! I love saving money and love nice people! Plus now I am finally able to hang my balloon wreath on the door!

{seven}

We had a Vacation Bible School meeting at church Monday night. Kyle, Brennan, and I were out of town last year during VBS, so I am very happy to be volunteering there again. I have such wonderful memories of VBS growing up. I will be leading the kids during singing this year!

{eight}

My friend Val and I have birthdays close to each other in July. We are going to buy each other tattoos! I said something to Val a few weeks ago about wanting a small tattoo on my wrist. She said she really wants one too, so I thought: Why not get wrist tattoos for our birthdays?!?! I think we are both going to get a Bible scripture; just the address. Right now I am leaning towards 1 Thessalonians 5:17 (Pray without ceasing), but I'm not 100% sure yet. Oh and Val, it's on the blog, so this IS happening! No backing out!

{nine}

I am loving So You Think You Can Dance! I am excited for the Top 20 to start performing tonight!

{ten}

After getting a little behind, I am now caught back up on my scripture memorization. My goal was to learn two verses each month, so right now I have learned 11! 

{ten}

I might be loving quite a few things today, but I can't leave out these two guys!

What are YOU loving today?

WILW

It's Wednesday and I'm linking up with Jamie again for What I'm Loving Wednesday!

{one}

I'm loving the sea lion show B and I saw at the aquarium last Saturday. We've been to the aquarium many times, but this way our first time watching the sea lion show. It was so fun! Just a little 20 minute mini-Sea World-like show, but I really enjoyed it!

{two}

I'm loving our friend little P-man who celebrated his 2nd birthday on Saturday!

{three}

I'm loving that on Sunday we went to see some family in Southington, CT. We got to visit with my aunt, uncle, and cousins! It was great to have a cookout and celebrate Memorial Day weekend! We took our camera, but didn't take a single pic while we were there. :(

{four}

I'm loving it was a four-day weekend! Kyle had to work on Saturday, but was off Friday and Monday. Monday we celebrated by heading to Chick-fil-a. This is no small feat for us. The nearest Chick-fil-a is over 1.5 hours away in Burlington, Mass. It was well worth the drive to eat some good food and hang out with great friends!

{five}

I'm loving our visit to the Roger Williams Zoo yesterday!

{six}

I'm loving that Brennan is working hard on his gross motor skills. We had his 2nd PT visit today and he has made some small improvements. We practiced a little more once we got home:

He can now pull to standing from sitting on my lap (but not
from flat on the floor). I used to phone to help motivate him!

Here he is supposed to bend over and pick up the toy saw, but
it was too low for him still.

So, I raised it up a little and also added a hairbrush to see if he
could grab it.

SUCCESS!

Seriously cute!!!

{seven}

I'm loving my little matchy-matchy boys!

I hope you're loving some great things today too!