taking stock

^^whats a blog post without photo's??^^

Making : plans for the upcoming season
Cooking : kale. breakfast, lunch and dinner. i manage to put it in everything. {which reminds me of the brian regan cranberry joke!}

Drinking : at home starbucks coffee in my reusable starbucks grande cup. because, you don't have to twist my arm for .10 cents off future drinks.<- that's a deal, right?

Reading: god of the underdogs written by my pastor, matthew keller and dad is fat by jim gaffigan **insert laughing with tears emoji**

Wanting: a new camera
Looking: forward to a drop in the weather

Playing: in puddles

Wasting: too much time on pinterest

Fixing: up the house. lord knows this project will never end.

Deciding: what to do for our anniversary

Wishing: i had more time/patience in a day

Enjoying: lucca's perfect posture when sitting and stealing sisters toys

Waiting: the last hour before rodrigo gets home is the worst

Liking: the freedom i have of a potty trained child

Wondering: how many diet dr. peppers i drink in a month

Loving: the god of the underdogs series at church right now.

Learning: photography

Considering: making my way down to the farmers market

Watching: the new girl

Hoping: to make a 2014 goal and stick to it. {fun fact. i have never, ever made a new years resolution}

Marveling: at how big my little girl has gotten. blows my mind.

Needing: to start folding laundry

Smelling: the cinnamon brooms at the grocery store

Wearing: no pants. what's new? relaaax i have a robe on. i like to channel my 80 year old man on lazy days.

Noticing: freckles. 

Knowing: all the words to peter pan

Thinking: i wish we had a local apple orchard

Feeling: a little drained

Admiring: single moms.

Buying: a birthday gift

Getting: rid of all of my old nail polish

Giggling: a whole lot with friends lately and loving it

Feeling: the need to simplify 

Terrible/terrific Twos

well, gee, that really sets you up for success, huh?

don't get me wrong. i'm pretty much in the middle of this loverly milestone and i can't tell you how many days i spend thinking that things couldn't be any more terrible. then this funny little thing happens, when that spunky little 2yr old in your life says or does the most terribly terrific thing, that all wrong doings are erased and all you can think is, "this is my person! that i created! how did i get so lucky?!" and it's like a back-and-forth game that you can't escape. i can't even say i look forward to three because obviously every age has it's challenges. 

so, i find myself here. taking it day by day. we're currently in the all-i-want-is-daddy month which followed the very wet month of potty training. it's comical, really, just how ugly certain days can be but i'm writing this pointless {really} post to remind myself to focus as much as possible on the terrific rather than the terrible.

^^^ the obsession is real ^^^

205

205.

that's the number of days that i have been a stay-at-home mom. let me tell you, they were the best of times, they were the worst of times. i'd like to think that there are three categories of SAHM's.

the ones who love it. this is it. it's your gifting and calling. your very heartbeat. and {of course} not without its challenges but you're there everyday. pancakes, play dates, and nap times, you're rocking it out. you wouldn't trade one tantrum/dirty diaper/sloppy kiss/snuggle for anything in this world.

the ones who regret it. i don't think anyone is really out there regretting spending time with their kids but perhaps a couple times a week, during a certain time of day, maybe when the babes are being particularly cranky you find yourself thinking the grass is greener on the other side. remembering the good ol' days as a woman with a career and a purpose. painting the picture of the past better than what it was.

the ones that take it day by day. everything in its own season and you know that this is your season. children are a product of their environment and you're working hard everyday to make sure you are creating the best environment for their little minds to grow and develop. motherhood is every range of emotion every minute of the day and some days are harder/easier than others. 

i can easily see myself in these three categories at least once by the time monday has m o r p h e d into friday. one thing i know is that if i want to maintain any sanity in this season of my life is that i need to continue to surround myself with life giving friends, stay plugged in my church/community, and keep in constant communication with my husband. pressure from today's society will come from every direction and without a strong foundation it's easy to think your worth will be found in a career or something else but it isn't. it comes from God and his plan is bigger and better that ours. it's perfect. 

something i don't think any mom can deny is how amazing those little leg grabbing, crumb dropping, alphabet singing, cuties can be. no matter how you spend your time with them.

tea time

one of my favorite things about having a little girl is a partner for tea parties for a lifetime! my sweet friend irina planned a tea party at her house last week for a few of us mamas and our little girls. little did we know that mother natures fury would strike southwest florida and in the midst of almost a weeks worth of non-stop rain, we were hit with a tornado warning. **you can watch what our church staff and summer staff did to survive the storm HERE. hilarious. 

we decided not to cancel and i'm so glad because the number of consecutive days i had spent in the house with two kids was insane. no one should ever stay home more than three days. ever. i mean, it's just the kind of stuff to make you go bananas. A insisted on leaving the house pants-less (she's really into being nearly naked these days) and with her flips flops but i had to step in and teach her that's not proper tea attire. so, i, with my tea time-iest dress, and she, with her puffy skirt, braved the rain.  we were so excited to go but it seemed like by the time we got there she remembered she was a two year old. and the terribleness of said two year old's age made its appearance. 

after many, "no, annabella. you have to share.", "be patient. the tea is not ready, yet.", and "you may not eat someone else's banana." type conversations with her, we finally got all the girls to sit for a total of 6 minutes and sipped our delicious teas.

 ^^pretty bummed i never got a group shot of all the girls but then again the success rate of that photo would have been like a 4%^^

 ^^traded her tea for a juice box.. surprise surrrrrprise^^

 ^^look at those crumbs. like a true lady^^

^^despite this super challenging stage in life, i love this little girl to the tips of my toes^^

here's to many more {successful} tea parties :)

3 months

how is it possible that three months have gone by since this little boy came into our lives? three whole months? it's just like they say. felt like just yesterday/feels like he's always been with us. we have been planning on heading outside and trying to fly our kites and just lounge for a while now. and today was just the perfect day to. . . not do that. you know when a day is so great and you just don't want it to end? well, that was not today. i should have known better considering there was a 60% chance of rain and it still hadn't rained that we would feel like one of those swamp people but i couldn't refuse the opportunity to be stubborn and think everything was going to work out in my favor.

^tangent!

back to the matter at hand. THREE MONTHS OLD! that's gotta be some sort of milestone. i actually mentioned to husband yesterday that lucca "made it" and it seemed as though i had stumped him. he had no clue what i meant and come to think of it, neither did i. but it feels like a milestone to me anyway. like he's reached a stage where we won't break him. but seriously, since entering this world mr. lucca nash has brought such joy to our family. he makes me want to be better and i've never known such a tiny little being to smile as much as he does. {seen in these vine app videos, here, here, and here.} it's such an honor to be this little boys mama and watching him grow is such a blessing. i keep thinking the next time i tell someone how easy he is it'll be the time i jinx myself but it hasn't happened yet! ::knock on wood:: 

 ^^i mean^^

 ^^aside from smiling, this is his preferred expression^^

 ^^matching messy hair^^

^^and i'm a puddle on the floor^^

we're ready for you, summer

with memorial day just having passed and the weather reaching it swampiest so far, the moreira's are officially ready for summer! that means, parks, pools, kites, and bubbles galore! (just to mention a few) and an upcoming trip to disney! i'm squealing with excitement. except we recently watched jim gaffigan's standup, mr. universe, and the disney skit. . . i about died. annabella has also been having a blast. how can she be in the funnest (<- that's a word?) stage of her life and also the most defiant? she seems to think she knows best. the answer to everything is, no. 

"hey, annabella, do you want to wear your red or yellow shoes?". . . "no."

"hey, annabella, where did you put your teacup?". . . "no."

"hey, annabella, baby lucca is too little for you to ride him like a horse.". . . "no."

thrilling stuff, i know. she's also been cracking us up lately. instead of sleeping with teddy bears, her choice toys to snuggle with are two iphone cases i'm not using. she sleeps with them in hand and that's where they are when she wakes up. she's also started calling all her toys 'dude'. and my personal favorite- her giggles have never sounded so sweet. i love my little girl. though not so little anymore.

^^^

looking at these photos from the park last week makes me want to live outdoors. we have to get better about going later in the day after daddy comes home. A is allergic to sunscreen and if we go any earlier, it's like the sun makes it a point to cook her sweet little cheeks to  medium rare. ouch. i also chose the absolute WRONG outfit. the dress and hat i had worn all day was fine until the wind decided to hit with full force the second we hit the playground. so in between chasing my hat and keeping from flashing football players in the field, i was able to snap a few shots.

^^ just a coupla cute bums^^

 ^^ don't let that sweet smile fool ya. she's super bossy at the playground^^

 ^^ luckily this one was so big, it was like she had it all to herself^^

^^earlier that day just after i ate his cheeks for lunch // happiest baby on the planet. i swear.^^

a day at the park

this past saturday we packed our bags, strapped in the kids, and headed to the park. it's so easy to live in paradise and take it for granted. let me tell you it was a good one. when i think about the past couple of years with A i can count on one hand how many times we've been to the park. so, before the weather threatens to melt us all like snowmen in mexico, i'm going to try and make it as often as i can. plus the fact that A was initially terrified of the swing made me realize homegirl needs to get out more often.

the weather was nice and breezy and the sounds of kids giggling on the playground could lift anyones spirits. we have a little play date coming up this weekend and i'm so excited about it! when you spend most of you're time with no adults, you tend to carry on many one sided conversations in your mind and every chance i get i try to think about how i can be the best mom i can be. truly there is no one answer but i've learned that getting on my kids level really helps us understand each other and opens up a whole new way for us to bond. i just love having these little kiddos to love on, play with, and watch grow. makes for one sappy mama.

 ^^ this little one is allergic so sunscreen. naturally, ice cream is the next best remedy for sun.

sidenote** mother's day is this sunday and i'm sort of super excited about it. all you out there with your moms around, don't let them wash a single dish! ;)