Owen is 3!

Owen turned 3 this month! My how the years fly. I asked Owen what kind of birthday party he would like to have, seeing that it's the first year he'd actually have an opinion. I assumed his first response would have something to do with Lighting McQueen. But no, he wanted a motorcycle birthday party! I'm not quite sure where that idea came from seeing he doesn't even own a single toy motorcycle. My suspicion is that it's because his Uncle Elias has been working on his motorcycles in my parents garage which Owen has enjoyed watching. So, motorcycle birthday party it was. 

Apple Marshmallow mouths...they have nothing to do with motorcycles but they were a hit!

 We had quite the gaggle of children over to help us break in our newly purchased used-monstrosity of a play set. As has been the trend since Owen's birth, we had gorgeous weather, and the kids and parents played to their hearts content outside. I hope every birthday party in the future is that easy!

Owen is in such a fun stage of life. He has a quick little mind. He is very sweet and is continually telling us how much he loves us. Often he will stretch his arms as wide as he can and say "Mama, I love you this much!" When he is sick or sad he loves to cuddle. I've noticed that if we leave on a date or he spends the night at one of his Grandparents house he will often ask to snuggle with one of us in the morning, like his little love tank needs filling. He loves repetitive tasks (scooping and dumping, rolling balls down a ramp, lining all his matchbox cars up in a line) and has a wonderful ability to do the same thing over and over for an extended period of time when his little mind is captivated. He is quite athletic which I know Josh is excited about for the future. He loves to sing and one of his new favorite games is where we hum a tune and he guesses what the song is. The best part is that he wants to try as well but usually just ends up humming the same song we just sang to him.

I asked him a few questions when he turned 3:
Who is your best friend?: Jude & Levi
 What is your favorite number?: 5
What is your favorite sport to play?: Soccer
Who is your favorite Uncle?: Uncle Jo-Jo
What is your favorite color?: Brown
What is your favorite food?: Chocolate chips
What is your favorite song?: "Bless the Lord Oh My Soul" (10,000 reasons)

 

His own garden tools!

Wk 18: Noise

 

I love this picture because it's horrible. Not a single child is looking in the right direction and the Mama's are just barely corralling them into some semblance of formation to even snap a photo. I've come to realize that I've hit that stage in our family life where outings are more work than fun for the mother, at times. There are multiple things to think of and prepare for, more people than there are hands, and almost assuredly some sort of meal that needs to come along with us or will need to be planned for upon our return. It's exhausting. It's noisy.

But then I look at sweet friendships forming, memories being made, and little minds filled with wonder as each adventure is presented and I'm reminded that it's worth it. My job will never change. I will always be the one who needs to think of every item that each adventure necessitates, who will be hungry when, or what awaits us after the adventure is over. But they won't always be so little and they won't always be so noisy.

Wk 17: To Sleep or Not to Sleep

Sometimes you just have to skip nap time because the weather looks like this:

 

I mean, Come On! It doesn't get much better than this in Seattle. On this particular day I simply had to let the sun dictate our day. Rather than go to the Y to work out I pushed my two boys up some seriously monstrous hills around our house. While I was on said walk, Owen asked if we could go to the beach. I hesitated for a moment then realized that I simply couldn't let napping get in the way of seizing this sun-filled day. So I walked/jogged the boys home, buckled them into their car seats, ran frantically around to gather all the necessary beach items and was off to Edmonds beach in record time.

It was truly glorious. There was some whining from my tired little Jesse-bug but it was worth it!

Wk 16: Relax

Relax...and let your kids splash in puddles fully clothed.

One thing I love about my Mom is that she she knew how to let us be kids while growing up. Maybe it's because she was out numbered, maybe it's because she had 4 boys, but mostly I think it's because she learned how to let go and relax. I mean I went through an entire stage of life where I don't think I let her brush my hair. My brother Joseph walked around for an entire summer with a huge wet spot in the front of his pants simply because he decided he didn't want to be potty trained anymore.

SO...now that I am a mama of two boys, I've decided that I want my perspective to be less about controlling how they look and what they do (within reason of course) and more about letting them be their true little boy-selves. I want them to know how to get dirty, to love exploring the world around them, to fully be in this wonderful stage of life. I want to foster their adventerous, God-given, boy qualities not squander it. I sure hope my children can look back at me as their mommy and delight in how I let them be kids.

Relax...and pretend to be growly bears.

Relax...and practice your walking skills sans clothing.

Relax...and play a game of hot lava.

Wk 15: Firsts

I kind of already did this post for Jesse's recap of his 1st year of life, so really, I'm just posting this for myself so that when I look back at the end of the year to make these blog posts and photo project into a book I'll remember.

First time tasting cake, first sugar coma, first time climbing into something...I love the 1st year of life!

 

Wk 14: What Home Means to Me...

It may be corny and cliche but it's true: wherever this man and my kids are, I am home. The older I get, the less it really matters where I am but who I am with. As I think about it, being loved like this, being truly known or belonging to another, is like the tiniest glimpse of what heaven is going to be like. I believe that no human relationship can truly satisfy the calling upon our soul for the eternal or for relationship with God. But, I do believe that God gives us glimpses of what His heart is for us, something physical we can touch, hold onto and experience when our faith is weak and our finite minds incapable of fully understanding. I am so grateful for my slice of heaven here on earth with my handsome husband and my beautiful kids, it's not perfect but it is good.