did you say, homeschool?

since the last time i've posted, our little man arrived! and my, what a dreamboat he is. his little smiles and big coo's make my heart explode. but that's not what i'm here to write about today. i do plan on sharing his birth story soon.

somethings that i have noticed in the short time of being a stay at home mom is that it requires a certain kind of selflessness, gift, and calling. you are a work in progress, always learning, growing, and changing. i think about what i thought it would be like. picture it- diaper bags loaded, littles in tow, A running around in her bathing suit and saltwater sandals at the park, me nursing lucca under a nice tree that provided the perfect amount of shade-not a drop of sweat... yeah right, florida. ::glass shatters::

when i was a sleep deprived mess, these ^^^ were the kind of non sensical thoughts that would run rampant in that good ol' brain of mine. my days couldn't look more different. i have to drag myself and the kiddos out of the house (twice a week is a our version of a raging social life). lucky to make it out without a temper tantrum thrown and a feeding schedule gone out the window. but i must say, i have never learned so much about myself and even my daughter than in these moments. for the past couple weeks i've been finding myself searching for more. cause if this life is going to be crazy, we may as well make it intentional and work on ourselves! i started doing some a ton of research on maria montessori and her amazing teaching method. i love the idea of my toddler learning through practical everyday activities that let her become more independent by giving her meaningful work to do – especially individualized work that’s freely chosen and uses child-size tools and activities that engage her attention. 

the few things we've started doing around the house like A opening her own snack, picking flowers, puzzles, and scooping out her own yogurt, have given her such satisfaction and i'm learning right along with her. in the couple of days we've spent trying to implement this lifestyle change, basically, i've fallen in love with my daughter all over again. she truly loves to learn. in turn, i've fallen in love with being a mom again, like i'm finding my groove in all of this, ya know? you often see parents pushing their kids in a direction they don't always want to go in, trying to relive their own childhood. my situation is so different from that. i don't remember much of my childhood so when i think about how blessed i am to take care of my two little ones, i see the world in a whole new light and want to make sure they make the best out of every situation. looking at the world through their eyes and soaking it all in has given me a new appreciation for our daily surroundings and i want to take full advantage and learn right along with them. this week we will be cleaning up and preparing the environment for montessori at home. this new journey will be an exciting one. not without its ups and downs, of course... she is a two year old after all... but exciting nonetheless.  

we took a few snapshots from our time outside sitting under a nice tree that provided the perfect amount of shade. go figure.

 these two couldn't be or look anymore different^^

here are the links to where i've been spending most of my time learning on what steps to take for montessori homeschooling.

books- montessori from the start and teaching montessori in the home

online links- at home set up and general information and resources

two.

it sure has been a while since my last post and oh so much has changed. and while i'd love to say this is me coming back full swing, iiiiiiit's porbably not. there's a baby coming in 25 days, ya'll! 

i did want to write a little about my favorite moment of twenty-thirteen so far. 

A turned two. TWO! i still can't believe it. my once spikey haired, suspiciously light skinned and most favorite little girl is now so grown up. knowing how to count to ten in english **leaving out the number seven** and in portuguese **leaving out the number four**.  i sure don't understand why. she's also managed to memorize at least two words from almost every page of every book she owns. holy moly, what an accomplishment. in my mind she's a genius but if that stuff's hereditary then i'm way off. i'm so excited for what's to come and to see her blossom as a big sister. also, very happy that this next one is a boy. no competition! i can have a favorite of each! that'll fly right?? it better... i hope.

for now i leave you with my favorite photo from her little birthday get together. i mean. every time i look at it my heart explodes.

mid day pregnancy blues with a side of cheering up

not totally sure if there is such a thing and prepartum blues but if so, i think i had it for about 6 hours yesterday. i called husband about 5 times. apparently my need to cry incessantly spares no mercy at the fact that he actually has to work at his job. thankfully, the second i started basting myself with makeup (that's just how it goes when i'm pregnant in the winter) and put on some pants on... good grief, i spent the whole day in a robe and no pants!! well, then, things started to turn around. i took A to church with me to go through our christmas service rehearsal and 'carol of the bells' has got to be her new favorite jam. even though she heard it 3 times, she still clapped and cheered as if we were front row and center at a trans siberian orchestra concert. every. time. 

she was so easy going, we decided to risk going out to a restaurant past 8:00 pm.. i know! i'm looking forward to today seeing as it will be the first saturday we have spent together without being out of town in over a year! yay for family time :) happy christmas weekend to you and yours. 

here's a couples pics from the random-ness lately  

 run, don't walk to the gap for this stick on polish!

oh, hey december!

my heart is still heavy with the events of yesterday. and though it's necessary to take some time and pray for little lives lost and hurting and broken families, i also take this time to realize how blessed we are. great home, marriage, healthy kids, and i vow to enjoy every minute of it until my least breath!

***

throughout the month of december, we've gotten a christmas tree, decorated her, named her carly, told A not to touch her at least a thousand times, attended many christmas and birthday parties (with more to come), and just tried to slow down and soak it all in. 2013 is going to bring many.. MANY changes around here. the end of the year is always bittersweet. if i could whine and pout and get my way, the holiday season would never end. but i guess that's why we look forward to it so much.

^^ there's a bit of carly and a little snippet from our chrsitmas card pictures^^

golly. look at that beard! what a stud. i have a rule that he can't shave it. no way jo-sé.

 the tightest hug a thirty-pounder could push out. brb. melting.

merry christmas {right around the corner} ya'll!

**side note: the fact that it gets dark so early means we can never take pictures with enough natural light. hence our reddish toned skin. so let out a sigh of relief, my friends. you don't need your eyes checked, the time just needs to change back asap.

a post about my favorite little

this kid. 

she's the coolest member of our family. the filling to my oreo, the glitter to my polish, the cheese to my mac, and the joy that fills such a huge part of my heart! i've learned so much in the 23 months of being her mom. 

-i've learned that i will never look as good in my accessories as she does {why do i bother?!?}.

-there's a place in her heart for jake from 'jake and the neverland pirates' i could never take.

-same goes for elmo.

-no amount of nutella is ever enough .

-i can see little pieces of her character and personality that, i swear, are giving me glimpses into the future.

-her favorite words and sentences are: awight!, e you pants? (where are your pants?<-- is this not a normal question in your household?), boom! (for when she fist bumps you), amella (annabella), we daddy? (where's daddy)- to where she responds to her own question by saying either, "work, home," or "potty", and "sa-moo-moo" which apparently means watch-me-dance-with-my-butt-to-the-side.

-no kid on the planet can love their daddy as much as she loves hers.

-she's well aware of how lazy her parents are when it comes to diaper changes. she literally does her business and looks at one of us and says, "not it!". shoot. surely she should do her time in diaper changing before wanting to call 'not it'!

-her prayers.. i'll give you and idea of what they look like: "jesus, mumbles mumbles, rambling and more rambling. AMEN!"- i'm pretty sure that's the stuff gold is made of.

in the crazy and in the precious, i love being your mom, A. 

love, your non feeler/sentimental mama turned gushy slob and a half.

tips for taking great family photos

while wandering around blog land this week, i came across this post on onegoodthingbyjillee.com for tips on how to take great family photos. what i love about this is that it's just how i like mine- casual and kinda candid and all over cute!

read more here!

orlando part II

going to mickey's very merry christmas party is probably one of my favorite traditions and that's counting the fact that the last three times we've gone i have been either, pregnant, with an 11 month old, and this time pregnant again with an almost 2 yr old. i guess this means i really like that place. come on.

^^ i could eat them. but i wont. but i could.^^

a couple things i've learned over the past couple years about venturing into theme park land both pregnant and with a toddler.

do:

• stick to the routine.  even though you're on "vaca time", your child has no clue what that means
• if every bit of the scheduled routine crumbles, don't kill your husband (no joke there. you'll want to)
• dish out a couple bucks of that "one" souvenir. which in our case was a $10 blinking balloon. it popped the very next day but was worth every penny while it lasted
• if you typically let your little one play with your phone, try limit that as much as possible two day before. {when A would get cranky and we'd hand her one of our phones to play with, it didn't work it's usual magic}
• soak it all in

don't:

• think you're the only person in the park spending special time and creating memories with your family. everyone else is there for the exact same reason. i tried my absolute best to be as positive and nice as possible to any and all people that didn't know how to conduct themselves with proper manners at the park.
• go hungry. theme park food is crazy expensive and typically crazy gross.
• stress out
• rent the park stroller, take your own. those things are like, 40 bucks!

most if this is common sense but it still took me three years to learn and it also gets different every time. another thing that really stuck out to me was me was just how much i love husband. the way he cared for A, making sure she was having a good time, being proactive about taking her on the rides she could go on, and literally checking on her every two minutes to make sure she wasn't cold. it made my heart melt!

see you next year, mickey's very merry christmas party! -with two kids in tow... jesus help me.