An entire decade of goodness 🥰 Here’s a peek at her last year 💜
This year has changed Laela in such a big way 😍 She was lovely before, and she is just even better now, as if that’s even possible! It has held much positive change and growth in her!!
If there was ever a year in early childhood where a kid reinvented themselves, for Laela, that is her tenth year on earth!!
Laela got glasses, a haircut, and a new theatrical attitude! Being in the Frozen Jr production woke up a special part of her heart. Perhaps it was frozen before 😏 but she has become more playful, imaginative, and boisterous! She sings and dances and is just all around more animated!
She is VERY easy to love 😍
If she is already this incredible, I cannot imagine what the future years hold for her!! I am incredibly grateful and honoured to be her mom and to have her as my daughter 💜 Thank you, Lord, for the gift that is Laela Hazel!!
Yesterday definitely started bumpy, but it still turned out! We can definitely handle some bumps around here! They were little in the grand scheme of all we had to do. All is well. Here’s a shorty photo play by play.
First, I made eggs. I don’t think I have ever straight up dropped an egg on the floor. Ever. For a brief moment, I wished I had a dog to come eat it. But alas, I do not, and I cleaned it up myself, haha!
I made lists for the kids to pack for their LAST week of camp this season, and I made a typo. Except I wasn’t typing so it was MUCH funnier 😅 At least to me.
Lol! Shorst. Just one pair.
I took a break from organizing for camp, among other things, and I got the littles into the van. And yes, I did leave that hunk in my hair, thank you for noticing.
I took Laela to an eye appointment, which turned out to be a GREAT success! She is DONE patching!!! 🥳 She was beside herself with excitement!! Then our eye doctor did a super quick, casual check of our morsels eyes. We’ll be back for more of that in a few months. Babies are hard with that stuff 💜
Aaaaafter that appointment, we drove elsewhere, and when I took my phone off the magnetic holder, it tore off a chunk of my case. So that was a bummer. Come ooooon, warranty replacement!
Kids came home, and I put everyone to work, because I’m a monster like that. Conveniently, aforementioned Laela LOVES cleaning bathrooms, and requested to clean all the toilets, tubs, and sinks. Ill allow it.
It was actually quite a long day. A FULL day is maybe a better description. I don’t remember the last time I just made a giant pot of macaroni for supper, but yesterday was one of those days. Conveniently, everyone went to bed happy and well 💜 Sometimes I like to blind Dekker with my flash in the dead of night. Don’t worry, he likes it.
Its really nice to end the day on a happy note like this 💜
Today is huge also. Maybe even more so. #huger But the morsel and I will get it done! 💪
Behold 🙌 a handful of small fun things from the last couple of days!
Laela read everyone the new Dog Man at the table. It was SO cute, and kept everyone occupied while I was finishing up supper.
I don’t know if you’ve seen the recipes online, but I’ve been seeing the same thing over and over again – spaghetti and meat sauce, and also alfredo! And it was a creamy delicious win! Absolutely worth a try!
Brady got me a Zaks zipper hoodie, and it had THUMBS!!! My favorite thing!!!
Yesterday, I hit up Value Village while I had some time to kill in the city, and I found a couple of things that hit the important marks for me – camp, Christmas, and some future goals I carry!
Today holds a handful of things for me, but it won’t be a crazy one. First – getting the kids to school. Then coffee with Cher. An appointment in the afternoon. And some prep and house stuff into the evening. We have some big days on their way!! Plus, BUY OUR HOUSE!! Whats the holdup, guys???
Remember last week, I told you guys the girls had started ballet? Remember how I posted some super cute pictures of Waverly, with a promise to post some of Laela when she was back from her trip? Well. I’m making good on that today, as Laela is back in action, and had her cute little ballet outfit on for the first time yesterday!
The back is just as cute as the front, if thats even possible.
When asked for a ballet pose, this is the ghetto look I got 😅
Laela is just SUCH a delight 💜 I love her so much.
And I’m super stoked that she’s in ballet, of all cute things!!!
Brady and I took the kids for groceries yesterday morning. It was the biggest shop we’ve done in a long time. A two cart kind of shop at Costco. Rowan was an awesome sport and pushed a cart that got pretty heavy by the end of things, but he didn’t complain even once! We hit Walmart next and got the rest of our stuff pretty seamlessly. Lots and lots and LOTS of groceries. However, it became clear that the upcoming winter is already staring at me. I gave into it just a little.
And by “a little” I definitely don’t mean it cost a little. Oof. Winter gear is SO expensive! Good thing the younger ones have hand me downs!
We got home and unpacked and settled, and started some supper prep. Not long after that, a couple of deeply anticipated children pulled up across the street! Of course no homecoming snuggle pictures because the morsel is a SECRET morsel 😅 You’ll just have to take my word for it. Reception was warm 💜
And by warm, I mean I made them try on their new gear almost immediately.
They are both thoroughly pleased with what they got. Yay Costco!!
Ok friends. Time for coffee and seeing what I can pump out before my meeting this morning! Happy Monday, guys!! ☀️
I need to focus on things other than the fact that my house hasn’t sold yet 😅 Trust me, I know it was basically just listed, but you hear those crazy stories about people’s houses selling the day they’re listed, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t hoping for such a story to be our own.
Alas, it is not, and we have to wait like everyone else!
My brain and body have done a LOT of waiting in the past couple of years specifically, and while I’m basically proficient in the act of waiting, I’m not fond of it. Neither is my anxiety. Neither is my stomach acid. If you’ve followed long enough, you get it. But waiting sucks for everybody, not just me.
Brady had to work yesterday. Work Saturdays are hard in general for me, and for the kids, and this one was especially challenging because it’s freshly into the listing process and both Brady and I are on pins and needles waiting for people to want to see our house. So, I opted for distraction, and I baked.
First, I made a recipe my sister gave me for a giant batch of pumpkin bran muffins.
I made these a little while ago and they were a hit, so I made them again yesterday. I even used my reeeaaal pureed pumpkin that I made! Oh and white chocolate chips! Woop woop!
The brown sugar did win one battle, but in response, I cooked it, so…
And because I was on a pumpkin kick, I went for some pumpkin bread as well.
I didn’t love this one as much, because it takes forever to bake through and there is still a gooey spot at the top. But! Live and learn. Everyone will still eat it. The banana bread from the day before turned out better. Ah well.
The goal of these items may not appeal to everyone, so please don’t judge the amount of garbage, but…
…the whole point was to have these things for breakfasts and lunches, where kids can grab whatever and I don’t have to think about it or fight them to eat. Ideally, they’d be for lunches, so they’d defrost on their own. My breakfast goals are not yet met, so these will likely double for a while while I sort out some other ideas.
And then I got twitchy once that was done, so I made one more batch of baking. One that is more about treats than about being a meal…
I make really yummy homemade oreos with cream cheese filling, but this time I made them be LEMON. And in my humble opinion, they are WAY better this way!! YUM!
So. This was the end result of a day of being distracted from the lack of sale of my house:
The freezer has some nice baking in it now for the week ahead, and maybe even longer!!
Perhaps tomorrow I’ll chop up some veggie packs for the kids too. I always feel good when I have those suckers made. Oh, and granola bars. Now that groceries have been purchased (like the biggest shop we’ve done in months) I have no excuse not to bake or cook yummy things!
So yesterday was FUN, telling everyone about the house going on the market. All the shares across social media meant a lot to us 💜 Thank you, friends. The more that ad gets passed around, the higher the likelihood this place will actually sell! I have fears that it won’t, and everything will fall through. But fear gets us nowhere, so I’m working actively to lay that fear down where it belongs and walk away from it.
Please don’t stop sharing it, though 💜
So if it was unclear, the house hasn’t sold yet 😅 Lame, I know.
While we wait, we will listen to music, play lego, bake, visit, work, and whatever else passes time well without making a gigantic mess that can’t be cleaned up in 20 minutes or less, just in case.
Did you notice the shiny new thing in our front yard?? 🤩
Our house is officially ON THE MARKET!!!! After spending the last couple of weeks positively crushing everything that needs to be crushed, it is ready to be viewed by any and all the people.
My goodness. The house will never look like this again, hahaha!
Ideally, the people who see this listing might want to buy it 😂 Or know someone who might 🤷🏼♀️ But if not, you’re still invited to take a peek, and maaaaaybe even share the listing far and wide!
In fact, please do 💜 We are eager to sell. We have an offer accepted on another home, contingent on the sale of our current home. There is a time limit on it and everything, and while we LOVE this beautiful home we had built for us seven years ago, we would very much like to live at this other home that will suit us MUCH better. A big bungalow with a finished yard, concrete driveway, and a functioning wood shop in the basement 😳 It was undeniably made for us! In terms of paraplegia, family size, and foster care, the house we have offered on will work so beautifully.
Please share the link if you feel so inclined. Or pray. Or tell your friends. Or all of the above. This house has served us SO well. It is a BEAUTIFUL home, and we will be sad to see it go.
The mornings are entirely different without Dekker and Laela. Every child has their own room this way, and they all sleep longer. Most days, I wake at least one of them up from a dead sleep. Sometimes all three of them.
Everyone breakfasts at the island these days, because 🤷🏼♀️ there’s room. Getting everyone ready is quicker and easier. I LOVE the big kids, and I am really excited to have them back, but this dynamic is fun, too.
The three of them headed off to school today, and I headed out with the morsel this afternoon for an appointment. A pumpkin appointment…
…and then a real appointment. Thank you, Jocelyn, for sharing a pumpkin with us!! I’m SO jazzed to puree another one and get some more in my freezer! The last batch of pumpkin muffins I made went over beautifully!
We made it home in time to walk the kids from school and show them the shiny new thing in the front yard! 😍 We can talk about that tomorrow…
