{iPhone Rewind} :: September

Date Night Box #2: Mochi! We made mochi ice cream and enjoyed some fun conversation. The dessert was not enjoyable, but the company sure was!

"Look, Mommy! I have twins in my belly!" Haha

I love Bible story time before bed :)

I got to enjoy a Panera lunch on the patio...all by myself :)

Our little builder :)

Pigtails {with mismatched bows}, 2 skinned knees, and a book:)

Learning about magnifying glasses!

National Teddy Bear Day! Complete with a teddy bear picnic, Teddy Grahams, and some teddy bear books.

Grandma sent new crayons and coloring books!

Aiden hit his 800-book milestone!

Time to clip nails!

Painting with spaghetti

Fall is here! Bring out all the pumpkins and fall-scented candles :)

Maddie: what are these, Mommy?

Me: Oh, those are temporary tattoos. You put them on your arm.

Maddie: look, Mommy!

Working on some math for Preschool :)

We got to see our sweet friend Grace! She was in the trenches with us at Redeemer Church, and she has been such an amazing prayer warrior and encouragement to us ever since. She was in town visiting family, and we were so excited to steal some time with her!

Grace was so sweet to bring me these beautiful flowers!

He came running up the stairs, so excited to bring me the flower he had picked for me!

We learned about magnets in science!

Aiden learns with us too...but usually ends up doing things like putting socks on his hands haha

Our little band! Learning about instruments in preschool :)

Dinner prep and conversation with my girl

I am taking full advantage of the pumpkin season! :)

Spring Bucket List :: Go to a Farmers' Market

Today we checked out the McKinney Farmer's Market. Even though we lived in McKinney when we were first married, we actually never made it over there...so it was far past time to check it out!

We actually ended up running into some old Redeemer friends, so I didn't get very many pictures, because we were too busy catching up! But I am definitely ok with that. Their kiddos are SO grown up {and we have kiddos now haha}, so it was fun to see them and walk around the market as families. Some other Redeemer friends actually set up their produce at the Farmer's Market every week, so it was fun to see them and support their farm :)

While it ended up not being as kid-friendly as I had envisioned {just from a kid's interest standpoint}, Eli and Maddie still enjoyed seeing the goats, chickens, and ponies. And they definitely enjoyed the peaches, blackberries, and celery we brought home!

Redeemer Reunion

This past weekend, we got to see our Redeemer Church family for a little reunion. It has been 4 years since we were last together, but the Lord has been good to preserve many relationships. It is such a sweet thing when you can come together after 4 years and pick up as though hardly any time has passed.

We enjoyed catching up and learning about what the Lord had done in each family's life since Redeemer closed. And we are so thankful that they are all plugged into new church families, growing in their faith and walk with Jesus. We were missing a few families, and we were sad not to see them this time around. But it was a sweet time to celebrate the Lord's goodness to all of us.

We miss these people so much and are sad that we don't get to be in intentional community with them on a regular basis. But we are so thankful to be back in the area, closer to these sweet families, with the ability to see them more often. Praise God for this community of believers!

High Five for Friday!

{one} Last weekend, we decided to brave a family outing in order to get out of the house. We were all feeling a little bit of cabin fever, so we decided to walk around Third Monday Trade Days in McKinney. It took us a long time to get out of the house, and we didn't stay super long...but we made it, and it was good to get some fresh air :)

Eli and Maddie LOVED the row of puppies. They got so excited at each new breed haha. I wore Aiden in my Solly baby wrap, we enjoyed a snow cone, and then headed home to escape the heat. Overall, it was a fairly successful outing! :)

{two} My friend Austen has always done a lot of creative things. She has a background in entertainment, and her newest venture is being on the show Relative Race with her daddy. I haven't seem her in a few years, so it was fun to watch her on the show! I'm excited for her and her dad to connect with more relatives, and will definitely be cheering them on. Dread the Red!

{three} And speaking of creative friends...my friend Jill is getting ready to release her second book! The Long Walk is the sequel to her original book The Bridge. I need to re-read her first book so I can refresh my mind on the story, but I am so excited for her to release this new one; I know it has been a labor of love. It releases October 16th!

{four} This week has been a little crazy. I had some complications from delivery and ended up back in the hospital. The Lord was gracious to provide protection and healing, and thankfully, we are already home. It was a pretty scary experience, and I am processing through a lot of emotions. I hope to blog about it at some point. But for now, I am just thankful to be home with my family, thankful for all the family and friends who stepped in during the emergency, and thankful to Jesus for His watch care over my life.

{five} This weekend, we are headed to a reunion with our precious Redeemer family, and I am so excited! It has been so long since we have all been together, and we are looking forward to catching up, hearing about all God has done in each other's lives over the past few years. 

{iPhone Rewind} :: August

The freezer meal prep continued! It has definitely been doable and efficient...but I will say that knocking it out in a day or two {with help!} is definitely preferable to cooking longer every day :)

All toddlers eat food off the floor, right??  Sigh. 

Bath time fun :)

Fun water play date with these cuties!

It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt...we had our first legitimate tumble and poor baby girl's face met the concrete. She was ok; it didn't seem to bother her much, it just looked pretty bad for a little bit.

She can be such a Mama Pup...when the babies are up from nap, she will not stop giving me the death stare until I go get them haha.

Getting Eli and Maddie's outfits ready for when they meet their little brother! :)

She's one tough little cookie :)

When Daddy joins you on a Target run, you leave with new toys and fedora hats...naturally :)

Charley Claire celebrated her 1st birthday with a super cute Milk and Cookies party!

Love my silly boys :)

When you just. can't. even.

No, thank YOU Target. You made life so much easier for this largely preggo mama towing 2 toddlers around!

Eli discovered BBQ sauce :)

He likes to give me a hard time about matching outfits...but he indulged my crazy a little and surprised me with these ADORABLE t-shirts for our first photos as a family of 5!

We had the special privilege of attending the baptism of one of our former Redeemer members. We had baptized her mom Dannie when we were meeting, so it was so special to celebrate Kylee's baptism!

Some days call for 2 hats :)

The price I pay to grab a quick shower while the twins are awake :)

We had a lot of rough days this month...we are definitely learning to assert independence.

Working hard to finish Aiden's nursery quilt!

This is pretty much what my bump looked like for most of my third trimester...Aiden found a spot he loved, and he stayed there. And my belly was lopsided :)

Those curls!!

I felt pretty big toward the end...but when I did a 38 week twin bump vs. singleton bump comparison, I was reminded of just how big I had been with Eli and Maddie :)

This boy LOVES his dog...and gives her LOTS of hugs :)

Some days are just hard...  #reallife #toddlers

I am super excited about my new journaling Bible! I got an amazing deal on it {$9!} and I am looking forward to start using it!

Eli and Maddie have started spontaneously giving each other hugs, and it's just about the cutest thing EVER!