Currently

Feeling grateful for my handsome hubs who held down the fort for all of last weekend with all three kids by himself.  We got home from vacation after 9pm on Friday night and by 8am Saturday morning I was out the door and on my way to a Women's in the Outdoors event to act as a vendor for The Hunting Daddies until after 5:30p.  And then I was gone all day again on Sunday celebrating our cousin's bridal shower and visiting a wedding dress shop in Pittsburgh with my baby sister for her birthday.  Daddy had it all under control, mowed our entire yard (high grass nation after a week away) and all living beings not only survived but thrived.  #luckiest #forreal

Laughing at (and feeling frustrated by) our threenager Gemma Rose.  Perhaps because we aren't on vacation anymore, but she has had a tough week in the tantrum department.  Not only within our own house, but she threw two inconsolable fits at the chiropractor and gymnastics class this week.  Despite all the dramatics (one tantrum this week started because she couldn't get a spaghetti noodle on her fork), she really is very funny.  She earned $1 for 'babysitting' Violet while I was upstairs and she chose her method of entertaining Violet was to draw all over her own arms with markers, giving her full sleeve tattoos for two days.  Then when I was scrubbing them off yesterday, she asked me, "When you were a little girl and you sitted a baby and made one dollar did you color on your arms and then your Mom cleaned them off too?"

Reading Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston and I am absolutely enamored.  I know it's a travesty that I haven't already read this classic yet in my life, but I am now and I'm beside myself with how beautiful it is in both content and writing.  Honestly, easily one of my new favorite books of all time.  It is a book that reminds me of the wonder of being a reader and also a book that resets my goal for the kind of a writer I hope to be someday (both daunting and exhilarating at the same time).  I'm in love.

Baffled at how big my Greyson Rudy has seemed in the past few days.  Sometimes my mind will float to the idea of this fall and him going to Kindergarten and I'll momentarily lose my breath.  He is so kind and patient with all of his girls (his Mom included) and I am so grateful that he is ours.  He is such a big help around here and always willing to spend time with his sisters when they need it. He slept over his grandparents' house the other day and when he called the next day he and Gemma got to talk to each other.  She told him, "Are you coming home?  I miss you, Grey." and he answered, "Okay Gem, I'll be home in a little bit and then we can play babies, okay?"  But his grown-upness is showing too in the way he relentlessly teases Gemma now - it's not just whining over a toy or time; now he understands intentional teasing.

Falling all over the place.  In the past four weeks, I have fallen (to the ground) three different times.  Twice because I rolled my ankle while walking/jogging and once because my knee gave out when I was jogging with Bullet and he bumped into me from behind.  Two of those times (including last night in a gravel parking lot in front of multiple people while holding Gemma!), I ripped up my knees and have huge bruises.  Seriously, I'm officially an old lady. Brandon has concerns.  hahhahhaha

Baking 'Cruffins' for the first time.  I tried my hand at an easy version of them (read: using refrigerated croissant tube) after pinning this legit version. I must report, they were delicious and the kids loved them.  Super easy and yummy breakfast snack:)

Grieving the lost of Violet's snuggle stage.  Yeesh, this girl is so over being immobile.  She's terribly frustrated by not being able to crawl/walk/run and she lets us all know.  She likes to be held, but only if you're standing up and walking around so she can see everything.  She's squirming, grabbing everything, pulling hair, biting our shoulders with her four little teeth, and making a college effort to rock back and forth on all fours.  It's the beginning of the end of a baby land over here and it's horrible for my poor little heart.

Awarding our seventh Studer scholarship at Conemaugh Valley's senior banquet last night to two high school seniors, Kaitlyn and Becca.  Gemma acted as my date since Brandon and Greyson were at a teeball game.  It was especially inspiring to be there this year as there are even more people from the community starting scholarships and spreading support and encouragement to the youth coming out of your district.  For a full hour, we watched various families get up and offer well wishes and monetary gifts to the senior class.  It was amazing and I feel so grateful to be a blue jay.

This week in interesting internet:

I was actually emotional reading Ashley's (of the Big White Farmhouse) account of her first half marathon.  I've never had the courage to run a half marathon, but somehow everything she wrote made me feel like if I ever would, it would feel just like that.  So proud of you, Ashley!!

This beautiful piece about a 6th grade mom writing to a preschool mom.  The line "All of the baby heads on all of the different endless baby days that end up ending after all." had me all sorts of choked up.  Right now, in the thick of the blur, it seems impossibly far away that I won't be bending over because I have to - but even still - I know it is slowly coming.

This song (Sleeping at Last by Light) that my friend Taryn introduced me to this week.  All the feels, all the tears.  #mommahood

Cyber high five to this article boasting that kids don't need a bath everyday.  We are firmly of the group that believes a little dirt and germs never hurt, so this article was a nice read to know we're still doing okay even though our kids aren't spotless all the time.  (does this apply to grown ups too?  because ya'll know I ain't getting a shower every day..or three)