Things I Have Learned As A Mommy

I've been thinking a lot over the past almost 8 months of becoming a mommy and what I have learned. I know that as time goes on and more little ones are added the list will grow. For now, here's my list of some of the things I've come to realize:

1. Your gratitude for your own mother becomes greater as you see the sacrifice she put in to raise you. Kids are a lot of work!

2. There's this five letter word that use to be part of my life. S-L-E-E-P. Sleep. But, alas, it seems as if the sandman is focusing his efforts on others. Dream on, you lucky ones!

3. Colds. Babies with colds are cruel and unusual punishments. Not only is it heart breaking, but my little guy would rather sneeze and smear all over his face than have his nosed sucked out. On a positive note, cuddle time hours are extended(:

4. Mommy and baby seem to mold perfectly together. It seems as if all those months in the womb created the perfect body to snuggle with. His little body fits comfortably in my arms, snuggling into my chest. It's a beautiful thing!

5. Baby laughs turn the cloudiest days into the sunniest ones. He always knows when mommy needs a pick me up, too!

6. Babies seem to know when you're already running late. It's always something. A blow out diaper, pulling things out of the diaper bag, spitting up, etc. A word of advice for new mommies: plan to leave ten minutes ahead of schedule. You'll be on time(:

7. Teeth like to pick on your little one. "I think I'm going to make my appearance today! Oh wait...I think I like it down here better. We'll try again in a few days." Mommy cuddles and Tylenol are a must on these days!

8. Baby sign language is a life saver! Enough said.

9. Two words: consignment stores. More than half priced toys and baby gear (thoroughly cleaned of course)! Clothing! Books! Shoes! There aren't many things in life better than finding an article of clothing with the tags still on for $1. This leads me to my next point.

10. NEVER buy baby clothes full priced. Shop clearance, consignment, thrift shops, garage sales. Babies outgrow clothing so quickly. There isn't any point of buying a shirt brand new for $12 when you could buy 6 for that price elsewhere. Most of the time, it's still in great condition!

11. Once Camden turned six months old I learned that a little date with my hunk of a husband was a good thing. It almost feels wrong that my baby isn't by my side, but eating dinner once in a while without a little one yelling for a bite of my food is nice too.

12. Mommy intuition is real! There have been many times over the course of the past 7 1/2 months that I KNEW something wasn't right. Through persistence and educating myself I was right every time except one. So mommies, trust yourself. No one knows your little one better than you.

13. Growing up my mom use to always say "don't say the words 'I will never' because a day will come that it will happen". After an eye roll (or three) I would walk away thinking my mom didn't know me at all. When I say "I will never" I mean it! Right? Wrong! Life is funny sometimes. Mom knows everything.

14. Babies are attracted to anything dangerous and get into everything they're not suppose to. It's a fact of life. 

15. Confession: I love that Camden is more active and we're able to play and laugh. But, I miss it when I can lay him down and go to the bathroom or make lunch knowing he won't move. He's on constant surveillance now.

16. Nothing is sexier than watching your husband play with your baby. Or him getting up in the middle of the night with him. That's really, really sexy too!

17. Being a mommy is emotional. Every feeling will be felt, but none is greater than love and gratitude. There is not a day that goes by that I don't thank my Father in Heaven for this miracle in our lives!

There are probably more that I'm forgetting, but the list will be added to as time goes on. Babies make life so much more fun and interesting! 

It is what it is

First, I want to say I have the best hubs. No, seriously. He's so hardworking and dedicated in every aspect of his life. The older our generation gets, the more I'm seeing how lucky I really am. Oh and did I mention he's a total hottie?(;

This past weekend he was able to attend a seminar from a company called Landmark. Although it was for 12 hours a day, he learned so much. The interesting thing is it's principles taught to us our entire lives. This class just gave the why and how.

He's been teaching me a little bit at a time (I have short term memory problems. But for real. True story). We have committed to each other to implement these into our lives and into our marriage. I must say it has made a big difference.

One of the biggest things we're working on right now is taking things as they really are and what really happened, hence the title. There's no embellishing stories (we're all guilty of it) or looking into the emotion behind it. We're just listening to the words that are said.

The other big thing is basically the saying "there's no crying over spilled milk". What's done is done. You can't change the past. Acceptance needs to be learned. Once that happens we won't be controlled by our emotions anymore. It makes sense if you think about it. Why are we exhausting ourselves reacting the way we do to things if we can't change the past?

The few times we've been able to accomplish this have been amazing. It's so much emotional freedom. It's helped us become more kind and better. It's helped us keep peace in our marriage. I've learned that as we don't let those negative emotions control us we're more inclined not to be negative towards others. Life is peaceful. Life is beautiful just as it should be.

We still have a long ways to go, but I'm excited for our future. I'm excited for our marriage to become even better than it is. I'm excited to see the relationships we have with people change. I'm most excited to feel and hear that still, small voice more frequently now and to become more like our Savior.

We should always be progressing. Life is too short to be stagnant. There's so many opportunities to do good! Once people start to see it the world will become even more beautiful (:

New Year 2014

This post is a little late, but Happy New Year! With the New Year comes a fresh start that so many of us want and need. Our family has some big changes coming our way and we are so excited!!

In February my car will be paid off. It's been kind of scary putting such large payments down every month, but so worth it! It's a wonderful feeling knowing we'll be done with it and we'll be debt free for a few months while we save for our first house! What a huge step this is for us! Our own home that is officially ours! We would love to be able to stay in our ward boundaries and that's our goal, but we have broadened our search to Maple Valley and Lakeland Hills as well. The Lord will send us where he needs us.

Matthew is also starting a new job as a General Manager at Panda Express. He'll be running his own store, most likely in Covington, which he is so excited for! He has worked so hard for this promotion and we are so proud of him! It'll be such a blessing for our family for him to be on a salary job with full benefits.

He also started school again yesterday. It's all online this time so he's able to work the schedule he needs to. He's busy and sometimes it's difficult, but I know it's only temporary. He strives so hard to be a wonderful husband and father. And let me say, he is the best of the best! I love him and his patience and love. He is so kind, has the priesthood strength of a giant, and keeps us laughing. There is never a dull moment with him!

I think Camden knows he has been blessed with a wonderful daddy. It makes me smile when I see his little face light up when Matthew enters the room. He loves to play and laugh with him. Sometimes, if he hasn't seen his daddy all day, he'll wake up in the middle and pull the bumper of his crib down. I'll see those little eyes peek over and hear his little voice say "da". It melts my heart every single time. I'm excited to watch their relationship as he continues to grow!

Camden will be 7 months old tomorrow. What??? Where did all the time go?! He is quite the rambunctious little boy! He definitely keeps us on our toes, but we wouldn't have it any other way. He's crawling now and talking/using his sign language. He knows the sign for milk and is quickly learning the signs for more, all done, please, and no. He'll say "da", "ma", and "hi" as well as giving those classic opened mouth baby kisses. His favorite things are monkeys, Mickey Mouse (he takes after Nana!), and blocks. And boy, can this kid eat! He loves water and vegetables. He'll take those over fruit every single time. He doesn't like rice cereal, oatmeal, or baby crackers. He always wants to eat off our plate. Sometimes I'm perplexed by him. He doesn't seem to follow the baby " norm" that I'm use to, but it's nice to see a different side.

I'm striving every day to become a better wife and mommy. I'm currently taking piano lessons and learning more skills in the kitchen. It's been so rewarding making as much as I can from scratch and being told how good dinner or a dessert was. It's nice to know exactly what's going into our food and helps us make healthy life style choices. 

I've learned that being an adult and having a baby is a lot harder than many of us think in high school. There are some days I wish I could back in time to those days that I thought were so "rough". Life was so easy! My biggest concern was grades, drama, and boys. Oh, how naive I was! My parents are starting to get apologies and I know there are many more coming as life continues.

It's not all negative, though. There is so much joy and growth, especially with an infant. You become more independent, more responsible, more selfless, and start doing things that "old people do" like realizing going to bed early is good for you, become appalled at our generations actions, and question what people are wearing (and you'll be guilty of wearing and/or liking that style at one point in time). And one absolutely mind blowing thing: time. Yes, that little four letter word starts to fly on by after high school. So when Dad and Mom say "I feel like I blinked and...", listen to them. You'll feel that way too.

We're hoping this new year is wonderful and full of so much joy and blessings. It's what you make out of it. 

Here's a few pictures from Christmas and of Camden. It was so fun with him. He definitely got spoiled, especially by his uncles.

(The blog is also going to be updated regularly. I don't feel like Facebook is as private anymore.)

      Camden and daddy (what a hunk!)

             Thanks, Uncle Jacob!

         Thanks, Uncle Cameron!

               From Papa and Nana

             His new favorite thing

       From Great Grandpa & Grandma

                       Henderson

                   UW for daddy!