Pinewood Derby!

Christian got to experience his first Pinewood Derby for cub scouts a couple weeks ago!

He has been working really hard on his derby car with Jim on the weekends.


The derby car starts off as a rectangle block of wood. Jim and Christian spent a Saturday morning at a fellow cub scout's house to use his wood cutting tools to shape it like a car!
Then Christian sanded it by hand.

Christian painted few coats of "Dodge Hemi orange" on the car. Then he put the number stickers on and I helped paint the flag on top. Jim helped Christian with the wheels. This was a few weekend afternoons of work!
The General Lee was ready for the big race!

Christian was so proud of his car!

The Friday night before, Jim and Christian went to the Pinewood Derby check-in for the weigh in!
Christian got his Pit Pass for the race!

Ready to go!

Welcome to the Pinewood Derby!

Each car gets to race four times. Christian's car did great!
But no first place trophies this year. ;)

I love how they displayed each cub scout's name on the screen when they raced!

Christian cheered on all the cars! He was so excited!

Christian had a great time with his Pack 525!

Don't Wanna Miss a Thing

When I had Christian, I was a stay at home mom for two years--then returned to work full time. I worked for two years then had Andrew. I stayed at home almost another two years---then returned back to work at the trade desk again, but only part time. So here we are at around the 18 month mark of working part time and I realized, I want to be a stay at home mom again. ;)

But this time feels different.

I have been on the trade desk about a decade (off and on). I absolutely love my ARVEST1 family. They are a big reason I like my job so much. :)


But recently, I just wanted to be home with Andrew and focus on my family full time.

Time flies. My boys are growing up so quickly.

The different between working because you HAVE to and
working because you WANT to is HUGE.
I am blessed that our family has the flexibility for me to not have to work.
So last month, I decided to be a full time stay at home mom again...
and I have never been more happy!!!
There were several other factors that worked into my decision (my part time income verses cost of childcare, commute, etc.) I started feeling like making this change back in December. I truly put it in God's hands to show me His will for what he wanted me to do. I sat back and waited for Him. I prayed for God to show me a sign or speak to me. And one day, He did. :)

Even though it has only been a couple weeks, I have absolutely no regrets about my decision and I am loving spending more time with Andrew!
Andrew has reached the age where he is really growing up is becoming such a fun little boy.
No more diapers. No more sippy cups. I missed a lot of this stage with Christian so I am really enjoying every moment!
He is so much fun and such a snuggle bug. He LOVES to snuggle.
So for at least another two years (or more) , I am going to snuggle my boy.

Million Dollar Quartet!

Jim and I had such a fun date night last month! We had tickets to the WAC to see Million Dollar Quartet. It was an AWESOME show! We truly felt like we saw Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins in concert. The entertainers were spot on with their looks and singing ability. I highly recommend seeing this show if you ever get the chance!

Wine Opener!

Last month, we celebrated Dara's birthday with tickets to the Wine Opener at the Embassy Suites! It was a fundraiser event benefiting CFF, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The event had food from lots of area restaurants, wine tasting and a silent auction.

Susan, Dara, Jennifer and I had our picture featured in a local online news article about the event!

We had a great time at the Wine Opener and also had a slumber party at the Embassy that night. We stayed up late talking and enjoyed a relaxing breakfast the next morning.
Happy birthday Dara!

Valentine's Day!

So yes, it is March and I am just now updating the blog about Valentines Day. We have been really busy! Plus, I have lost my camera. Yep. I could not find it for a couple weeks, then I found it and thought "I am going to put it in a safe place where it won't get lost". Then guess what???

Well, I lost it again. Seriously. If I don't find it by Spring Break, I am just going to WMT and get another easy to use point and click camera.
So I have been using my phone for all my picture taking needs. ;)

This Valentines Day, Jim and I celebrated the weekend before by going out to eat at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. We also spent the evening strolling through Barnes and Noble while sipping coffee. It was so fun because it reminded me of our early days of dating. We would do that alot. Except now, there are these things called "Blue Ray movies" and "Nooks" all over the store. HaHa!

On actual Valentine's Day, I decided to make Jim's favorite dinner---pork chops. Except I stuffed them with blue cheese for added flavor and they were so good!


Jim came home from work and surprised me with flowers! What a guy!


We had some goodies to give the boys after dinner too!


The boys loved the candy and their new puppies!

Christian named his "Flash" and Andrew named his dog "Cow" (it was black and white-haha!)
We had a fun filled Valentine's Day!