Home.

I am so happy to be here.

Real Men Wear Pink

Remember when men started wearing pink?

There was this huge divide between those who would say incessantly

"REAL MEN WEAR PINK"

and the other half of the divide shared their thoughts that 

"SISSY MEN WEAR PINK".

But actually,

real men do wear pink

and orange

and green

and black

and purple.

Because, who really cares what you wear?

I'm fairly certain that that pink polo does not have the capability to decrease your manhood.

Perhaps I am incorrect.

Do you know what REAL MEN also do?

They love

And they give kisses

And they cry

And they pray

And they even fold the laundry sometimes.

But they love with their eyes

And they love with their laughter

And they love with their arms

And they love with their bum pinching

(as that is actually what is happening in the picture below)

And they love with their kisses

and they're not ashamed of it.

And that's what REAL MEN do...

#tayandbay

Remember these kids from this post?

Remember how when the accident happened, they were on their way to Arizona so that Taylor could meet Bailee's family?

Well, they are finally on their way here right now for a weekend of introductions and a benefit concert in their honor.

I am lucky enough to have been invited to sing in the concert and the rest of the concert is PACKED with incredible talent.

You are going to want to be there.

The concert is on Monday, so get your tickets and we'll see you there!

If you are unable to come but would still like to help them with their mountains of medical bills

you can donate by clicking

here

xoxo,

the Lady

haven-ize

You may have noticed that back in December and January, the Mister and Lady were MIA

(Unless you know us personally, then you know we were alive and well)

The Mister had been interviewing with stations and companies in 

Utah,

San Antonio,

Phoenix,

and 

Denver.

We had no idea when or if he would get an offer from any/all of them.
We spent our days with our fingers crossed and our minds in constant prayer.

By the beginning of the third week in December

we finally had a choice to make between a couple of cities

and we chose

and we moved.

Our moves happen in an instant.

Both times we have moved states, we have had 2 weeks notice.

It makes for some serious pack-up and go skills.
I'd say we are pretty good at packing boxes and a truck by this point.

Something about our homes in NM is that we never had quite enough space to make sure that 

everything had it's place.

There were always piles.

That made me crazy.

Before we moved, we gave away upwards of 9 garbage bags full of stuff.
Mister always says
"the best part about moving is getting rid of stuff."
He is right.

When we moved to Arizona,

I knew that I needed to take the time to make a place for every little thing.
If it didn't have a place, it didn't belong in our home.

Thus my absence from this blog.

I needed that time.

Once everything had it's place,

I went about decorating in a way that made this place our home.
We didn't have any money to buy new decorations, bed spreads, rugs.
All we had money for was a few cans of spray paint.
Luckily, I've talked myself out of caring about the latest crazes in home decor.

I forced myself to destroy my Pinterest project list that always leaves me wanting more than what I have

and we went after creating home from what was left from our purge.

I just really

NEEDED

to make this apartment

OUR HOME.

I worked for a month at creating a haven for my family.

As a current SAHM, I believe it is my job to make a home that my husband and children long to be in.

I wanted so badly to create a place that we wanted to be more than anywhere else.

One day, in the midst of this process, I came across this:

via

and it was reiterated in my mind that this concept was incredibly important.

I wanted a home life that felt A-OK if I got up in the morning,
put on my makeup,
got dressed,
and never left the house.
I wanted that to feel ok because my home was a happy, fun, and peaceful place.

Don't get the wrong idea...lets not all become hermits that never go outside...

My life needed to FEEL good

more than it LOOKED good.

The presentation of a "perfect" life is plaguing many blogs, facebook posts, tweets, and instagram feeds.

Perhaps you are acquainted with someone like this:

You know,

the someone that takes the most glorious pictures,

has the most incredible house,

is a master in the kitchen,

and looks like they just stepped out of a magazine.

Sometimes I wonder if those someone's are as happy on the inside 

as they make themselves to look on the outside.

I really hope they are

but in many cases, I doubt it.

This move and opportunity to establish a home I can be proud of
(and not because of it's decor)
has caused me to focus more on the people and relationships I develop in my home rather than the
million DIY projects or fancy outfits.

Because of these changes, the Mister and Lady relationship has improved.
The Parents and Daughter relationships have improved
and most importantly, our relationship with God has improved...

all because of established order.

I feel very blessed to feel very happy.
That month of haven-izing was more than worth it.

Our home is a safe haven.

It might not look so fancy on the outside,

but it's a good, good spot on the inside.

And for the Mister and Lady and Little Lady,

that is what is most important.

I hope you'll find ways to "haven-ize" your home too.
Let me know if I can help.

the patio

We have relocated our lives to the patio.

We love it out here.

We eat out here.

I feed the baby out here.

We do our nails out here. 

We read out here.

At some point very soon i will be sleeping out here.

Mark my words

then come and join me.

Do you have a favorite space?

Where?

Today's tears

Today started just like every other day

except today, I can't stop crying.

Sissy and I woke up at 5:55 just like always

to fill her little belly.

As I peered down through the darkness at her wild bedhead,

I got teary.

Then we laid back down as she finished off her sweet slumbers.

At 8:00 we got up to fix breakfast and lunch for the Mister

and send him on his way.

We packed his bag and kissed him out the door.

We then ran around to the patio so we could wave at him as he went around the house to the parking lot.

As I watched him, I was overwhelmed with the beauty of the blue sky, green grass, and my sweet partner heading off to work to make money so we can survive.

The fact that he goes to work five days a week solely to make money that I spend is quite unbelievable to me.

So, I got teary again.

Sissy and I got ready for our morning walk and I gathered the birthday cards I had been meaning to send.

As we walked to the post office and placed the birthday cards in the big blue slot

I remembered how much I miss our family and how I hate that we have to send birthday cards rather than celebrate around a table with cake and ice cream.

It made me a little teary too.

Then we walked to Walgreens for a loaf of bread.

Earlier this week I had exhausted our grocery budget and had, somehow, forgotten to buy bread.

I had put all the cash I had in the house in my pocket before our walk.

$2.50

The cheapest bread available was $2.39.

It was perfect.

As I was counting out my coins to give to the cashier

the Senior Living bus pulled up to the front door.

A little lady, nearly bent in half from the effects of a long life

caught the eye of Celine.

Celine clapped for her as she crossed the threshold into the Walgreens store.

The woman beamed and came right over and chatted with my little one.

Celine did her best to chat right back

ooh-ing, ahh-ing, and screaching out of excitement.

As we left, the little woman said

"Little girl, you made my day."

So, I walked home in tears overwhelmed with gratitude for this little girl that brings joy to so many.

As we got closer to home we stopped at the pool to cool our feet.

Celine kicked and jumped nearly soaking us both.

She kept glancing up to my eyes to make sure I was paying attention and drinking in the glorious morning.

I am so grateful that she reminds me to pay attention.

This teary morning has reminded me that 

every day is filled with such beautiful moments that are worth celebrating

and even crying about.

I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes from the Prophet of the Mormon Church.

"Don't save anything for a special occasion.  

Every day of your life is a special occasion."

-Thomas S. Monson-

Tonight, we are going to celebrate the Mister.

He deserves being celebrated for all that he does to make a happy life for his girls.

We will be having one of his favorite meals,

dancing in the kitchen,

and probably watching a documentary

(as those are his favorite).

I'll probably cry as I give my dinner speech about how grateful we are for him

and what he does for us.

Uh-oh.

Now the baby is crying.

Maybe she's overwhelmed with gratitude too.

Or maybe she just wants to let me know that she's awoken from her nap and that Mommy had better hop to it.

Probably that.

Have a happy day everyone

and an even happier weekend.

I hope you will find something to celebrate

and possibly cry about.

xo