first conversations...

some of my favorites...

Some of my very favorite baby faces of Meritt Rose! (I told you this walk down memory lane could possibly get a little overwhelming for those of you that say are not these two's mother.... bear with me! The week will be over soon!:))

keepsakes...

These are some pictures that will be treasured, always! Gigi with her great-grand babies. I am glad for these pictures. I'm glad that I stopped and took the time to capture them. Some moments are fleeting, and sometimes in the moment you don't even realize how important it is to take a picture, right then and there for the sake of preserving a certain moment in time for always.

(the picture of Gigi and Bella was taken when Bella was 2 1/2. That was the last Christmas Gigi was at home with us) (The other is Gigi meeting Meritt for the first time... there was real love in her eyes that day... it was wonderful!)

tea party friends...

Welcome to my walk down memory lane, day two!
These are some favorites of Bella, she was a month or two shy of her 3rd B-day here.
I love her toothy smile. She informed me the other day, she no longer has "that smile"... Her big girl teeth don't look like that. I'm glad her baby girl teeth did!



She and Emma have been friends, from the get go! True Blue friends. I'm glad for that! She takes really good care of her doggy. She almost instinctually knows what Emma needs. She lets her out. Plays outside with her. Makes sure she has fresh food and water. Her favorite, (Emma and Bella) is giving her cookies, cause she loves how happy and excited she gets!



I can't believe how big and old Miss Bella is getting. It's fun to look back at when she was little. Stay tuned for more flash backs, and walks down Memory Lane... I'm going to be doing it all week. I know, you are so elated to see old pictures of my kids... bear with me and enjoy! :)

be still a mama's heart...

So, while trying to "go through" my photos to try and decide what I could finally get rid of/delete.... I have come across a bunch of old pictures of my girls (oh boy bear with me!) So, I've decided that this week here at Bella's little Rose we will have a walk down memory lane. SO, we start with these... Newborn Meritt. I cannot look at these three pictures without literally aching inside. There is something so remarkable and sweet about her when she was new and fresh. :) (I told you that you'd have to bear with me...) I am hopelessly sentimental. ESPECIALLY over my babies... PARTICULARLY my youngest, because, well, I think she's the last. My last hurrah at babies. Matt saw me looking at these, and I looked at him and said, "doesn't it make you want another baby when you look at these..." he said "mmmmm not the way I think it makes you want one." I think that was deer in the headlights husband speak for NO NO NO! Okay, Okay, I guess I'll settle for enjoying the pictures, and remembering my precious moments with my baby Rosie!

what do you want for your kids???

Have you ever sat down and thought deeply about what you want for your kids? Do you want them to be successful?... Popular... Beautiful...Rich...Funny...Loved...Happy? Maybe a combination of all of the above?

For me, I think it comes down to this; I don't care if my kids turn out to be the most successful people on the planet, the richest, the most beautiful, the most adored, most famous, or even the funniest. What I do pray is that my children will grow to be deeply connected to their faith in God, and in doing that, that they will become the happiest most well rounded people they are capable of being.

Inside the walls of your home what do you supply your kids?
What is there to inspire them?
Teach them?
Comfort them?
When they are out of your house and in their own, what will they remember most about growing up?

I often wonder what my kids will remember.
Will they remember the moments we were cuddled in bed together?
The stories that we've read?
The meals that were cooked?
The smell...
the laughter...
the goofy times...
dancing in the kitchen...
eating outside on a summer day?

What is it that will stick in their minds?
Will it be the times I've lost my patience? Or will it be the times I read just one more story, or laid beside them in their beds when they were scared?

As I think of all of these things, I also think about what I want to be around them as they grow... I've decided that for me, these are the important things...

Books... lots and lots of books. (funny ones, inspirational ones, biblical ones, historical ones, vintage ones, modern ones, classic ones, all kinds)

Art... Paper, Chalkboards, easels, paint, crayons, and pencils, charcoal, and canvas... buttons, pom poms, pipe cleaners, and every sort of thing to make them feel creative.

Good Food... Healthy foods, Organic foods, Local foods, Sustainable, We feel good about eating this foods!

Comfort... Coziness, Softness, familiarity, and a sense of belonging. The world can be so harsh, home is where one should be able to be totally at peace!

Faith... I want to be the kind of parents/family that show them how to love the lord. I want to be an example. I want to teach them how to pray, to praise, and how to worship Jesus.

Love... Hugs, kisses, cuddles, and encouragement.

Nature... Walks, exploration, bugs, butterflies, plants, animals, and mother earth. Learning to love God's green earth. Days at the beach, hikes in the mountains, swims in the lake, boating trips, camping trips, planting a garden. Finding a love of getting their hands in the dirt!

Family... Knowing that they ALWAYS have people that have their backs. A never ending, unconditional, love, from people that are their support. I want them to have intimate relationships with their grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. I want them to hear about the great people that are loving them from heaven now. I want them to know their roots, and have pride in their history.


Laughter & Forgiveness... I always want to be able to be able to say that I am sorry to my kids, I want them to know there is nothing they could ever do that I could not forgive. I want their to be many more memories of laughter and of fun than anything else.


Have you ever thought about these things as you were raising your kids? What have you decided are the "important" things to you and your family? What do you want your kids to remember when they look back at their childhood?

It's funny. Before I was a parent, I think I automatically assumed that most of these things happened somehow by some sort of osmosis... I quickly found out they do not. Parenting is hard work. Daily sacrifice. Joy, frustration, and happiness, and every other feeling and emotion in between. But, there is no greater joy on earth. I pray as my kids look back at their childhoods, that they don't remember when I lost my patience, or was quick to anger, but would remember and know that they are and will always be truly loved.

random rants and ramblings...

I am having on of those days... feeling a little sorry for myself I guess. I felt a bit yucky yesterday, today yucky has turned to terrible. Woke up with a 100+ fever. Throat is swollen, head is pounding, body aching. My kids have finally given me all of their illnesses. Feeling like there is no sympathy to be found. Why is it when your the mama, no body takes care of you??? You're still supposed to do it all?

Meritt is taking pretty good care of me though. She's my little buddy. For the most part people think she is a huge handful... but she is so sweet. I love her. So far this morning, she has been happy go lucky as long as she can be my shadow. We got everyone else off to school and work this morning then came home and took a hot bath (she's decided she always needs to be my bath buddy), next we made three packets of organic oatmeal and shared (one bowl - two spoons), now we are all cuddled up in Mama's bed wrapped up in our softies, watching Max and Ruby. I of course am doing important things on the computer like blogging!

For some weird reason, I am looking forward to school being over. I mean really looking forward to it. Most moms dread it, I am longing for it. I am ready, to have both my girls, a bit more of a free schedule, without quite as much routine. I am longing for long, warm, sunny days, filled with berry picking, playing outside, gardening, and lazy afternoons. This rain is awful.

On the note of all this rain we've been having... my basement has now flooded from the back door not being able to hold out all the rain 4 times. It's getting way old. So, is the down pours, flash floods, and wind storms. The weather man said this morning our weather this week has been more like December than May.... you think??? Getting OLD, OLD I tell you OLD! December has come and gone, now we want MAY.

Do you want to hear how my week started? Ahhh yes Monday. Monday, I woke up to Meritt having a 101 fever. (Yes, naively I thought I was done with sick kids) So, nothing got done except for loving my girl. Later that afternoon... while I was trying to get the dishes done, and the sky was dumping out our first flash flood of the week... I hear a huge bang from the basement. Then, Bella screaming out for me. I went running. Meritt was running through the laundry room and slipped on the concrete floor, due to basement flood #1. She must have hit her head hard cause it close to knocked her out. Tried to call Matt, nothing. Tried to call my mom, nothing. Hmmm, what should I do? This isn't emergency room qualifications, but she conked it pretty good. So, I call the Dr.'s office, just to see. Of course they want to see her ASAP. SO, we get bundled up, go out into the POURING rain, get to the Dr. just about in time for her to seem much better. Of course. Mild concussion he said, and sent us home, that will be $$$... thanks! I knew that! Oh, well better safe than sorry, right!

So to sum it up, that's pretty much how my week has rolled. Glad it's Friday. Really glad. I am hoping to take a nap, and get rid of my icky's! Thanks for letting me grumble!

to whom it may concern...

Just thought I would let anyone out there that wants to know that we decided to ditch our landline phone. So, if you need to get ahold of us you will need to contact our cell phones. If you need those numbers drop me an email or a comment, and I will get it to you!

it's the little things...

...about summer that I look forward to the most!




What are you looking forward to the most about summer???

the nitty gritty of it...

So, for the second year in a row my kids were sick on Mother's Day... boo whoo.

Last year I had wide eyed anticipation on how "my day" would go. It turned out nothing as I had anticipated. In fact it was awful. I spent most of the day in an urgent care with a very sick daughter, and an annoyed husband. Both of those things led me to a Mother's Day melt down.

So, this year... I anticipated nothing.
I had no expectations of the day.
And... clearly stated my desires of the day to my husband so there was no... 'can't you read my mind by now' kind of moments.

The other thing was, I didn't really go into it thinking of it as "my day". It was my mom's. I had hoped to spend some her and me time, but she had her heart set on working in her yard. So, I did what I should have done the year before, and put my sick kids to nap, and laid down and read a really great book.

Yes, there were a few moments of absolute melt down from my kids during the day. There were tears, and quarrels, and grumpy moments. But, in the end... I wore my sweats all day, ate Burgerville for lunch, laid in the sunshine, read a great book, had dinner with my mama, and just enjoyed the day. Which, I am pretty sure is what this wild ride of life is all about. Just calming down, expecting nothing, and being grateful for the little things that bring us joy.

Don't get me wrong, and don't let me mislead you with a falsely painted picture. I had my moments, I said to my girls "can't just one day just be about me". But, I think I'm starting to realize something almost 7 years into motherhood... the moment that pregnancy test said positive, nothing was about me anymore, and that's okay!

happy...

Things I love about today...

bare feet
iced tea
plenty of sunshine
open windows
nothing I "have to do"
playing outside
a little nap with my cat
time with people I love
reading my book
playing with my kids
cafe yumm for dinner

The first offically warm Saturday of Spring... oh my it's such a GOOD thing!
Happy Saturday!!!

surrender

Surrender means to yield ownership, to relinquish control over what we consider ours: our property, our time, our "rights." When we surrender to God, we are simply acknowledging that what we "own" actually belongs to Him. He is the giver of all good things. We are responsible to care for what God has given us, as stewards of His property, but by surrendering to God, we admit that He is ultimately in control of everything, including our present circumstances. Surrendering to God helps us to let go of whatever has been holding us back from God's best for our lives. By surrendering to God, we let go of whatever has kept us from wanting God's ways first. (source)




All week, the word at the tip of my tongue and at the top of my mind has been surrender. For what ever reason this is really hard for me. It's a lesson in progress... day by day. Hoping today I am able to listen, and obey, and surrender...

let the sun shine down...

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