32

I turned 32 this month and it was fabulous. I had a pretty regular day at home and later that night a good friend watched our kids while Brian and I went out to dinner and then to some stores to just look around. We picked out a mirror for the house (my gift!) and picked up a few odds and ends at the hardware store and a few more odds and ends at the thrift store. It was great to just walk around together and not be chasing or hauling the kids around. On Sunday we had some friends over for cake and ice cream and I made two cakes, a white strawberry coconut and a chocolate. Sadly, I barely got a taste of the chocolate one because I was so full of the strawberry one. :) I pinned this list on pinterest a while ago called "30 things my kids should know about me", and even though I always feel weird posting things just about myself I think it is a fun list and I'm sure when my kids are grown up they will enjoy reading some of these things. Obviously tackling all 30 in one post would be ridiculous, so I chose 5 of them to write down this year. Happy 32 to me!

1. What are 10 things that make you happy right now:
Spending time with my husband and kids, watching my kids make good choices, having a clean house (or... mostly clean), running in the mornings, being outside, listening to the kids playing together, having conversations with Wesley, eating in the backyard, planning/decorating/fixing up our home and chocolate!

2. List your 5 greatest accomplishments:
1-When Brian finally asked me to marry him
2- Sophie
3- Nora
4- Miles
5- Wesley

3. What's your favorite quality in your spouse:
This is a hard one because he has so many amazing qualities; funny, kind, helpful, unselfish, a great father, patient, encouraging, dedicated, hard worker, honest, genuine, handsome, smart.... I feel like I hit the jackpot when I married Brian. He really is the most amazing man I know, which is why when I first met him at age thirteen I said to myself "I'm going to marry that boy!" But if I had to choose one favorite quality it would have to be his dedication to the gospel that I admire the most. Because I know without that, he wouldn't have a lot of the other qualities that I also admire.

4. List 5 things you would tell your 16 year old self if you could:
1- Don't worry too much, you'll marry Brian eventually!
2- Spend more time with your dad and take more pictures with him
3- Help your mom more
4- Be better at saving your money
5- Start thinking about what you want to do after graduation

5. List 10 random facts about yourself:
1- I am not an adventurous eater. Not exactly picky, but I'm not good at trying different cultures cuisines (well, besides Italian and Mexican). Brian will try anything so he finds this hilarious, especially if we eat with people who have made something for us that he knows I don't want to try!
2- I am an animal lover. I grew up having dogs, cats, hamsters, guineau pigs and gerbils (not all at the same time) No surprise that we now have a dog (and I'm his favorite).
3- I love being pregnant and giving birth. Probably 10 seconds after Wesley was born I said, "I want to do that again!" Looking back I'm sad I didn't try to deliver Nora naturally because, for me, the boys' natural births have been two of the most amazing experiences of my life. Of course, both of the girl's births were equally amazing in regards to the excitement of meeting a sweet new baby, but I can't deny that I loved the two natural birth experiences more than the c-section and epidural births.
4- Unless I'm pregnant I'm always trying to lose weight, lame but true. (Which is probably one reason why I love being pregnant! Haha!)
5- I love watching action movies.  Brian doesn't mind this at all :)
6- I love to swing. When I take the kids to the park I love taking a turn on the swing, if it's not busy. (I'd hate to plow a kid over who walks in front of me! Embarrassing!)
7- I am a "yes" mom. If my kids ask to do something and it fits my requirements (it's not dangerous, doesn't interfere with bedtime and they must play with it/do it longer than it takes to clean it up) -  I usually say yes. Can we bring abandoned duck eggs home from the park to see if they'll hatch? Can we bring a turtle home from the lake? Can we sleep together in the closet? Can we put make-up on to look like zombies? Can we turn the sandbox in to a mud pit? Can we bike to the park?  Can we paint? Build a fort? Bake bread? Yes. Yes. Yes. And yes. This probably explains why when I do say no they often find it hard to accept! 
8- I love any dessert that has peanut butter in it. Mmmmm.
9- I make my bed every single day. Occasionally on Sundays I won't because the mornings are hectic getting the kids ready by myself, and on the perfect Sunday afternoon I get to crawl back in bed after church and read while the kids watch Veggie Tales. That is blissful.
10- I can't go to bed unless the kitchen is clean. Everything else can wait, but if I wake up to a dirty kitchen it just starts my day off on the wrong foot.


6. Name a pet peeve you have: 

1- I think the phrase "OCD" is way overused. If someone tells me they are OCD about having their house clean, my first thought is that we probably can't be friends because then I'd have to make sure my house is super duper clean before they come over or they'll think I'm a slob. :)

Me on my 32nd birthday. Life is good.