Family Pictures

We got Family Pictures taken back in November. They turned out really great, and now I've got the energy and desire to share them. Sometimes, being pregnant is hard. Wonderful, but hard. I add in a new full time job/joy, on top of everything else, and things fall to the wayside. But enjoy a few of our favorites of our family.

The Friendly Hero showcased his "smiles". These faces all appear with a request for a smile. The Peaceful Hero was solemn, through out the whole shoot. The only time we came close to a smile, when we were bribing them with fruit snacks. He gave one real smile when we let him run up and down a hill. I am at the awkward stage where my maternity shirts drown me, and the regular shirts don't button up--but I still look good. The Bug Hero is just good looking. We had fun, and we love our talented photographer: http://photobyheidi.blogspot.com/

Mustache Party

My younger sisters are awesome. (And my older sister--she is where we get most of our awesomeness from.) But my younger sisters started mustache parties. I think they're awesome--because I can still come--just borrow a mustache from a sister, and I join in on the fun.

Gratitude

1. I am grateful for my tutoring skills. I am tutoring four children right now and it's full. But I love it. I love seeing them understand and I love explaining new concepts to them. Three that I work with are homeschooled so I get to be the teacher. It's so wonderful to see them grow and see their personalities. Also--it's wonderful to move at their own rate. I taught one kid in one day, something that took me a week to teach in school. Can I say AWESOME?! I love it!

2. I am grateful for my washing machine. I have a utility crush on my washing machine. It's got a sanitary cycle and so I can do cloth diapers, it's got a gentle cycle so I don't have to wash anything by hand. I'm kind of in love with it. If it ever dies, we're going to have to replace it.

3. I'm so glad I get to stay home. As I have been working a lot tutoring, I'm so grateful I can pick as much and as little work as I want. I like using my talents, but I love devoting my talents to my children. I know this is tender for people, but I am so grateful we could make a choice about me staying at home and I'm so grateful that I chose to. It makes all the difference.

4. I'm really glad that Daddy came home today. Friendly Hero and Peaceful Hero were screaming for about 20 minutes as I made dinner and couldn't stand it that I wasn't giving them love and attention. I am grateful that Dad came home and that he helps out. He is the highlight of the day.

5. I am grateful for this picture. I love that Peaceful Hero is looking at the camera as all the rest of us look forward. It's very tender for me. I love that kid so much!

Thanksgiving

I've spent a lot of time the past few weeks debating on if I want to post things I'm grateful for each day. Yesterday was awful, mostly due to my own attitude and I decided then that I would post things every day that I am grateful for, so I notice them and pay attention to them. If you don't want to read about my gratitude, then don't. I'm doing this for me.

1. I am grateful that it is warm right now. We spent two hours outside playing at the playground and it was wonderful to play and enjoy the sunshine while it lasts.

2. My Give Thanks Calender is back. I spent a long time making it last year and it feels great to have it out and on my wall again. I'm excited to do little things each day to show our gratitude.

3. We are grateful for our toys. We gave some Duplos away to our friends because we play with real Legos at our house. Our friends spent an hour playing with them today. I'm grateful we could share the love and joy around.

4. I'm grateful we are in school. I really am appreciating this time of our lives. (It's good because we're in the middle of it.) I have some friends who are on the end and they can see the end and they are getting antsy. (I probably will too in four years.) I am realizing that right now is awesome. We have two beautiful boys and we have friends that surround us and no one has money to flaunt. We don't try to keep up with anyone or feel like we need to because everyone knows that we are poor grad students raising a family. I am grateful that we are in a position where we make do with little. Because we only need little.

5. I am grateful for Family Pictures. We had family pictures taken a weekend ago, and we got them today. They are amazing! (You'll see them a lot in the next few days.) I love how our dear friend captured our personalities and took awesome pictures!

Family Pictures Part 2

Yay! Here are our awesome family pictures taken by a very talented friend! So I uploading them in the order that I wanted them in and forgot to do reverse order. So our family pictures are all at the end.

Baby Hero with Parents:Baby Hero by Himself:
Check out this smile!
Family Pictures:

Baby Hero spent the majority of the time pointing at the camera. We have lots of pictures of his hand showing us the camera. He was fascinated by the black lens.



Pretty much, we're adorable!