Pirate Party!!!

Better late than never, right? Eli's birthday was in August, and I am just now getting around to posting his party. I mean, I did have a baby a few weeks after this party, so I guess I'm entitled to be late :)

Anyways, I thought a pirate themed party would be fun, my boys have this Melissa and Doug pirate costume that they love to play in, so that's where I got the idea from.
My plan was to have the party outside, and it was supposed to be a water party (we have a water slide), but rain changed that, so I had to have it inside my house. So that changed things a bit, but it was still fun and the kids did get to run in the wet grass for a little bit :) I like to be creative and crafty, so I love making things myself, and it also saves you money if you can do that too.

 The pirate ship came from Oriental Trading, as did the cupcake stand. We added the twine around the edges though, to make it more "piratey"

 Fruit pirate ship turned out cute. I just used small wooden dowels, and then I cut out the number, letters and "sails" with my Cricut machine. Plates and other small things came from Oriental trading, Target, Party City and Hobby Lobby.

 These glass jars I made from pasta sauce jars. We took the labels off and got all the stickiness off with goo gone. Then we went to Lowes and got some cheap plastic knobs, attached them to the lid (drilled a hole through and screwed it together) and spray painted it with a glossy black. We had "pirates gold', (rolos, reeses pb cups and hershey bars) "cannon balls" (whoppers) and "treasure" (ring pops)

This inflatable chest also came from Oriental Trading, it is meant to be a cooler, but I thought it would be fun to let the kids dig for treasure in it. Huge success :) We put sand and all kinds of little jewelry from the dollar tree in it. I also put some gold pirate coins and fake diamonds in there. The parrot on the ground is inflatable and I found that at the dollar tree also. That turned out to be my son's favorite thing about the party, he carried it around for days afterwards :)

                   This guy was fun, he was about 6 feet tall and made a good photo op :) Also from O.T.

I found these swords, shields and eye patches at Target, we gave them away as favors and the kids loved playing with them during the party.

 I made these food tent cards myself. I took card stock, folded and scored it, then I stained them with coffee, let them dry and then burned the corners with a candle. SO CUTE! I made the X with my Cricut machine and used a Sharpie to make the dotted lines. This card went in front of the ice bowl :)

                                        I'm pretty sure he liked the cupcakes! ( all 3 of them)

The cupcake liners came from Hobby Lobby. I made the toppers myself, again with my Cricut machine. They turned out really cute too. Time consuming, but cute :)

I hand made a Happy Birthday banner also, not sure why we don't have a picture of that, but it was done using my Cricut machine as well. Then I hole punched the letters and strung them through twine and hung it above the door. Some of you reading this may think I'm crazy to go all out for a 3 year olds party, but I just can't help it! I love to decorate and I love to be crafty. I also love to entertain, it just makes me happy :)

Morals

This is my blog, so I am giving my own personal opinion and conviction.

I personally love Victoria's Secret under garments, I have nothing against the products they have, I do however, have a problem with the nationally televised "fashion show" they put on. Let's be real, I mean people definitely don't watch it to see the latest fashions and the newest underwear (cause who cares). People watch it to see the nearly naked, beautifully skinny and 'perfect' women wearing nothing but underwear! Most all of the women have on these costumes or lingerie that you would never wear anyways. How am I supposed to keep my son pure, if this type of thing is shown on our LOCAL channels, during a time he could be watching??? How am I supposed to teach him to keep his mind and heart clean, when this is televised without the blink of an eye? This is the type thing that is ok to us? Or how about the Kmart commercial with the men in their boxers jingling their "bells"?????? Oh. My.Word. Being a parent is challenging enough, but it's this kind of stuff that is making our jobs that much harder.  I feel like I should just move my family to a secluded island with a bubble! Cause it is not getting any better! Where are all the good people, the people with morals and standards? What happened to them? We have GOT to be those people for our boys sake, for the future husbands and leaders we are raising. What kind of man do you want your daughter to marry?  BE that man, be that example. We need to only watch things that are worthy of our attention. We need to teach our kids, that the enemy will use anything and everything he can get his hands on, to tear us down. He will find your weaknesses and use them against you. Be strong, make good choices, because they don't only affect you. Not only is the VS fashion show inappropriate for men, but it is equally as hard for women. We sit there and watch and think, " why don't I look like that when I don't have clothes on?" or "why can't I be that skinny, or tall, or tan, or pretty." Why, why, why, why????  Comparison is the thief of joy- Theodore Roosevelt That is so true, when you look at other people and their lives or their bodies, you start to compare them, and feel bad about yours. You start to be ungrateful for what you do have or about the way God chose to make you (because he did choose it). You look at other peoples "highlight" reels, and compare it to your "bloopers". You are beautiful, you are perfect and created in His image. You are exactly where He wants you in life, and you are fulfilling His purpose for your life. Don't let any airbrushed or computer generated thing, tell you differently. Don't let Hollywood and the media decide what goes and what doesn't. Stand up for yourself, your beliefs and our young and impressionable kids.

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. Proverbs 4:23

The blessed life.

Well now that I have had a chance to settle into my new role of full time stay at home mom, I've had some realizations happen. Everyone has good days and bad, no matter what your title is, each day is different. I have days where I don't think I want to be a stay at home mom any more. Then I also have days where I LOVE being here and homemaking and teaching my children. I just never really know how each day is going to turn out. No matter what though, I do realize that I live an extremely blessed life, I'm talking EXTREMELY blessed...like you may think I'm royalty I have so much favor :) The thing is, so do you. You might just have to choose to see it. I'm not being overly boastful, I'm simply acknowledging the things that the Lord has given me. I don't want Him to take things away from me because He thinks I'm not grateful for the things I DO have.  I don't have everything I want, no, but I do have more than some. You see, I'm not talking about a lavish life, I'm talking about a real life. A life where my husband works way more than any one person should ever have to, so we don't get to see him very often-BUT I'm grateful he has a job, and we are not living paycheck to paycheck. We have 3 beautiful, healthy, energetic boys that I get to clean up after love on everyday. Again, is each day awesome? No. I choose to see the positive in each situation, and  I promise it is there. I have the opportunity to school my kids at home, and despite the challenges, blood, sweat, tears, time outs and tantrums (and that's just from me), it's totally worth it :) Cause if anyone is going to teach my kid how to prepare himself for the real world, it's going to be me (that might be a whole new blog post though).
 But all in all, I wouldn't trade my blessed life, good days or bad, with anyone else, for anything! The hubs and I have been married for 7 years now, and we have definitely seen 'better and worse' but we're still here! How? Because I choose to focus on the good, in him and in everything else too. For that we have been blessed. We made a commitment to God and to each other, and he is my forever...no matter how many times he leaves his underwear on the bathroom floor :)
We also belong to an awesome church where we have met the most amazing people, and I cannot imagine having to go through life with out them. You truly do become who you surround yourself with. I encourage everyone to find positive people that lift you up and don't tear you down. "People learn from each other, just as iron sharpens iron." Proverbs 27:17  Not only do we just go to church, but we are involved, we have relationships, and we serve there. We are being blessed, because we are blessing others. It comes full circle, you will definitely reap what you sow. So be generous, be a giver, be loving and selfless. In every aspect of your life, your work, home anywhere you go, make that your life's motto. You will be blessed for it.

The dreaded Santa question

I originally wanted to title this post, "The day my 5 year old became a man." Because that's how I feel :(

It started out like a normal dinner. We were eating pizza and talking, and everything was fine. As I was cleaning up the plates and cups from the kids table, it happened. I heard the question that I was not anticipating for at least another 5 years. I wasn't even preparing a speech for it yet, and I at least assumed my husband would be there addressing this with me. But no, there I stood, alone in the kitchen when all of a sudden, out of NO where I hear, "is Santa real?" come out of my 5 year old's mouth. WHAT???!!!!!! I could not believe my ears!!!!!!!!! I looked up at him, and calmly said, "what?" wanting to see how serious he was about that question. He looked at me with serious eyes, and repeated his question. Me, with a slight smirk on my face, racing through my brain to figure out the right answer for him. It wasn't coming, I was drawing a complete blank, and I was now trying to think of someone I could call to help me figure this out. Meanwhile, my sweet and innocent, first born child, is staring at me, waiting on an answer. I panicked....totally unprepared for this! I asked him why he was asking this all of a sudden, he said  he just needed to know if all of it was real or not. Now a battle was taking place in my brain, of course I wanted to tell him the truth, especially since he just flat out asked me. On the other hand, I wanted him to still believe, because I think it is a major part of a kids childhood, and I didn't want that to be ruined for him, let alone all of his friends that he could possibly ruin it for! I finally decided what to do.....I told him the truth.....there was no Santa. I reminded him the real reason we celebrate Christmas, is to remember the birth of Jesus. We give each other presents to celebrate his birthday. But that wasn't enough for my-smarter than he should be-5 year old. He kept on asking, "but who is Santa?" Since I was making this up as I went, I was struggling for answers, and then it dawned on me, St Nicholas WAS a real person, and he is what Santa is modeled after. So I explained that to my son, and started to see it sinking in now. I also said that mom's and dad's give the presents also. Then he wanted to know who made all the toys, so naturally, I said Target :) To which he replied, "but if he goes during the day, people will know he's Santa!" :) He was asking all the right questions, "how does he carry that big bag of toys," and "who eats the cookies," and so forth. He was asking all these grown up questions that I had no idea were in his tiny brain! My sweet and loving baby, was now practically a grown up! I mean what's next, "the talk"???!!!!! Goodness! At the beginning of this conversation, I new it was something that was going to be memorable, so I got my phone and recorded the whole thing :) (to which I won't bore you with the 7 minute video)  Looking back at it, I just don't know how to feel, it's such a cute video, but sad at the same time. I just can't believe he knows the truth already...at least we won't have to deal with that stupid elf on the shelf this year :) Long story short, I again told him the real reason we celebrate anything in December, is to celebrate our Saviors birth. The true reason for the season, is a little baby born all those years ago, who would eventually change the world. So this coming Christmas season will be a little different for us, but I am so glad I get to share truth with my boy, I'm so glad that now, he can focus on what really matters and what life is all about.

Vera Bradley fail

So, Vera Bradley sent me a coupon in the mail for my birthday. It was a good coupon too, 40% off any item. I love Vera, but a coupon makes it even sweeter! I also love a good deal, and I try to get the best deal wherever I go. So, I'm shopping the the VB website, I notice that for that day,(it seems they have different online sales every day) if you buy one sale item, you get another sale item at 50% off, PLUS I can use my 40% off coupon on top of that! So I'm super pumped, I start looking through all the sale items, they have some pretty good choices. I have this weird obsession with luggage/bags, I LOVE them, I don't travel near as often as I wish I did, but every time we go some where, I always *think* I need to buy more luggage...so most of the time I do :) But in my defense, I always look for good deals and buy things on sale or with a coupon. ANYWAYS, so I'm looking at all the luggage on the Vera website, I finally pick out what kind of bag I want, now to pick (only) one of the fabulous prints they have. Now I start to look for the other item I can get half off. Of course all my luggage has to match (totally weird about that also), but with sale patterns, they don't always have every pattern in every style. SO, I find a couple bags and a make up bag that all match with the pattern I like, I have it in my "cart". NOTE: While I am shopping, I am continually adding and subtracting things from my "cart", by doing this, it is giving me all the discounts I will get, and I can find the best deal this way. I can't even tell you how long (too long) I spent looking at this site and every possible scenario of things. I FINALLY make a decision on what I want, I go to my "cart", I notice that all of a sudden it is not giving me the BOGO 50% deal, and that is messing with my total price, and my birthday coupon. I'm like, what in the world is going on?? I try several other scenarios and bags, to see if it was only on certain priced items, and nothing is changing. After thinking about what the problem could be, I realize that is is 11:20 my time (central time)....the VB website is obviously NOT on central time, and wherever they are it must be after midnight, meaning that the deal had EXPIRED!!!!!!!! Oh my word!!!! I had spent all that time deciding and pricing...all for nothing! All I could do was laugh really, just my luck :)   I guess I didn't need that duffle bag anyways....who am I kidding, I wonder what deal they have going on today.... :)

Love is..

Love, that 4 letter word that can mean so many things to so many different people. Like I love junk food, LOVE it! Doughnuts, cake, chocolate, ice cream....I could go on and on. I also love my husband and family, but in a total different sense of the word. The love I want to talk about is the lovey dovey love between a man and a woman. You know, the googly eyed kind? I often (maybe more than I should) joke with my husband about the way he treated me when we were dating, it's so different now than it was then. Why though? After 7 years of marriage we still love each other very much, so what has changed? I have even talked about this with several of my friends, who all have the same question, why can't we be in the -new and exciting, googly eyed, dating love- all the time?

"Love never gives up, cares more for others than for self. Love doesn't want what it doesn't have. Love doesn't strut, doesn't have a swelled head, doesn't force itself on others, isn't always "me first," doesn't fly off the handle, doesn't keep score of the sins of others, doesn't revel when others grovel, takes pleasure in the flowering of the truth, puts up with anything, trusts God always, always looks for the best, never looks back, but keeps going to the end. Love never dies." 1 Corinthians 13
No where in that verse, does it say, love never changes, because it does. Love is constant, but can be shone differently.  

My hubs and I dated for 6 months before we got engaged, then 9 months later we were married. While we were dating, he brought me flowers EVERY month on the anniversary of the day he first asked me out. Anytime I would mention that I wanted something or liked something, he would immediately buy it for me. He took me on dates all the time. He held my hand or had his arm around me constantly. Now, 7 years later, I get flowers on the typical holidays, our anniversary and some times valentines day. He rarely buys me spontaneous things, we don't go on dates much and are not the cuddly couple we once were. I rarely get the "hey just thinking about you" texts any more either. Does that mean we love each other less? Absolutely not, our love has just changed, with our lives changing. We now have busy jobs and a family that keeps us on the go. Now he shows me he loves me in other ways. Like going to work for our family, he works long and hard too. He wrestles and plays with the boys. He brings me the birthday cake milkshake from Zaxby's (cause we all now that's the true sign of love). After so much change though, some things are still the same. I still look at him just the way I did on our wedding day, with the same amount, if not more, of love. Cause now, we have true love, I don't love him because he's "perfect in each and every way," no we are past that. I love him because I choose to.  When I'm driving down the road, and he pops in my mind, I can't help but smile. Our marriage has not been perfect, we've had our ups and downs just like everyone else, but all that aside, he is still my other half, and I would choose him again. I said till death do us part, and I intend to keep it that way, no matter how many valleys we have to go through. I choose to love him, and I choose to get thru the bad and continue on to the better places. Our love has changed, and sometimes when I see people at church that (you can tell) are in an early stage of love, it makes me miss what we had years ago, but we have come so far in our relationship, that I don't need that type of love. Now I need a deeper love, a lasting and forever-I'm in it for the long haul- love. That my friends, is what I have :) Not a perfect marriage and life, but I have the man God designed for me. He isn't perfect, but I love him just like Christ loves me, when I'm not perfect. It's not always easy, but it's definitely always worth it.                Chelsea

Snips and snails and puppy dog tails

Every time I am out in public with my 2 boys, people always ask me (seeing that I am obviously pregnant) "is it a girl this time?" I always respond with, "no" and smile. You would be surprised with some of the responses I get. Most people have this look of disappointment on their face, and then they say, "I'm sorry". This one woman started laughing so hard, she could hardly take my food order. I mean, am I the first woman in history to have 3 boys??? I don't get it. Maybe it's because sometimes I don't have "total" control over my kids when we are out and about (yes sometimes I am THAT mom, you know the one I'm talking about), so people are thinking, wow she doesn't need any more kids, she can't control the ones she has! What's wrong with having all boys?
Do I want a girl? Sure, but it's just not meant to be (for now maybe), and I am totally ok with 3 boys....right? I mean I DO get tired of cleaning up all the pee and mess that comes with boys. I get tired of breaking up all the brawls that can and will occur anywhere...like your friends baby shower...in the middle of the present opening circle...it happened. Boys are VERY different than girls, even from the beginning as babies. I will look at some of my friends daughters, they are so cute and neat, they will just sit quietly and read a book...then there are my boys, who will loudly declare in a crowded doctors office, "I HAVE TO GO POO POO!!!!" or cry and throw a massive tantrum, because they haven't eaten in 20 minutes. I love my boys with every ounce of love I have, no doubt. Do I get overwhelmed, almost daily? Yes. Is it hard staying so busy with them? Yes Would I change it? Never. My life is so full, I don't know what I ever did without kids. My husband and I have truly discussed that, "what did we do before kids?" You have this void in your life, before you have kids, you don't always know it's there, and then other times you do. I don't think we knew ours was there..until after we had our first son, and all was well and perfect in our lives. We were full and in love with life, still are.
I said all that to say this, again, what's wrong with having all boys? I personally believe boys are harder children than girls are, but in the teenage years girls will become more difficult to raise. PERSONALLY, now I may have a total different outlook when my boys get older! I get the honor of raising up godly men, and I think we can all agree that we need more of them in this crazy world. I get the blessing of watching them treat their future wives, with the respect that I taught them. I get to teach them about life and the importance of being a gentlemen and having manners. I have the opportunity to make them great. That to me, is a big responsibility. Sometimes I feel like I fail at that daily, I feel like I yell too much or didn't spend enough quality time with them, but as I lay them down at night, they are so loving and genuine and they say to me "I love you" with these huge smiles, and I get these huge hugs...that lets me know, I'm doing something right. As I was making some birthday decorations for my almost 3 year old, I asked him if he liked them, he said yes, and then he said "I'm so proud of you". I could have cried, because that meant, in all the chaos and all the tears (from us both) I was getting through to him. All I can do is trust in the Lord to lead me and guide me on this parenting journey, cause He knows I would NOT be able to do it with out him!!! I am currently reading 2 books that are really helping me understand males, not only my children, but my husband as well.  Wild at heart- By John Elderdge and Shepherding a child's heart- by Tedd Tripp They are both great reads, but if you have boys, I would definitely recommend Wild at heart.
                                                 Chelsea

Life as I know it right now.

My first post as an official "blogger"!!!!!! I am so excited to finally do this! Keeping a blog is something I have been thinking about for awhile now, and more recently it has been on my mind, so I just did it :) I am starting so many new things in life, I figure this will be a good way to keep track of everything.
1) We are starting our first year as homeschoolers next month. We will be doing kindergarten and a small amount of things with the (almost) 3 year old. I am so excited to start this, I feel like it's just something our family should do right now. I have completely lost faith in our society, and I want to be in control of my children and the things they learn so..here we go!

2) My precious baby will be 3 in August!! Can't believe it, he is such a joy to have in our lives, he definitely has his own personality and way of doing life. There never really is a dull moment at our house! I am planning a (hopefully) amazing birthday party for him. Since it's in the summer, we will just have a party at our home, we bought a big inflatable water slide that the kids will have a blast on. Can't wait to post pictures of it :)

3) We are expecting baby (boy) number 3 the first of September. I am so in love with him already, I just cannot wait to hold him and stare into his precious face :)

So, with all that being said, we are going to have a very hectic next couple of months!! I'm sure part of this has to do with my pregnant hormones, but I have just been feeling so overwhelmed with life lately. I am such a type A person, I like to be organized and in control, and sometimes, you just can't be. I have really been praying for peace and help in this situation. I just keep remembering these two verses,  "When I am overwhelmed, you alone know the way I should turn". Psalm 142:3
"Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me." John 14:1
I love that He cares so much about me, He is there to comfort little ole me, in my tiny struggles of day to day life. I love that He cares enough for me to listen every time I call His name. I can't wait to see what the Lord is going to do in my life next!
                                                                                       Chelsea