Picture this –

Two sweet boys, rolling in their automobiles, following their mama to different locations to take pictures.

Swirving up and down the pavement, giggling away, while their mama instructs them to park in front of their neighbors houses.

Okay – things may have gotten weird here.  But, what can I say!

Our neighbors right now have a few trees and bushes that are breath-taking.  I could not help but try to snap a few pictures of my ever-growing boys! Cars looked as they drove by, questioning my vision probably – but I have to admit, I got a few good ones!

I really need a photography 101 class asap — not just because I’ve always loved taking pictures (hence the blog) – but I find myself caring more about the quality — and wondering what I could be doing to improve it.  Maybe I’ll scrape some free time from the husband — seeing that is what he went to school for 🙂 For now, snapping pictures of my wiggling, non cooperative kids will work for me!

This blog has been packed with family stories + recipes this past few weeks and very little DIY.  That’ll change these next few weeks guys – we’ve been busy redoing bathrooms, painting rooms (again) and starting a kitchen reno in the weeks to follow! I can’t forget to mention that tomorrow is the day we remove the rest of the trees from our backyard – (say a prayer please).  So, we’ll have plenty of awesome things coming your way!

Have a wonderful weekend guys!

This is not a sponsored post – just me wanting to share with you an amazing subscription! 

The anticipation awaiting this Happy Mommy Box was high, and when I found it on my door step and tore the box open, the excitement kept rolling in.  

The Happy Mommy Box is the brilliant idea created by Natalie of The Busy Budgeting Mama + Mandy of House Of Rose  – two beautiful mothers with a powerful message.  Their blogs are packed to inspiration and encouragement.   Happy Mommy Box is a monthly subscription that is filled with presents for yourself + even a goodie for your littles! They sell out quickly – so I recommend going on the waiting list and jump on it when you get the email that they are ready for ordering!

I LOVE each piece I received this month, I’ve rocked the aqua necklace multiple times already! Not pictured is an awesome reusable squeeze pouch for Owen to use that he was thrilled about!

The print “Love Others Well” will quickly find its way into a frame and onto my walls.

An adorable pair of earrings, head wrap band, key chain, chocolate covered pretzels, and a beautiful decal.

I cannot wait to keep this up! It is such a treat to get something in the mail that brings so much joy into your life.  As a mom, we rarely treat ourselves (besides my daily starbucks habit) – I NEVER buy jewelry, ever, so this box was such a perfect addition to my lack of mommy style! Just what I needed!

I cant wait to share this with new mommy’s .. for baby shower presents … or for a mom that I know could use a pick me up! Thank you Natalie and Mandy, really, you girls out did yourself! Any help you ever need I’d hike my tush to Charlotte any day!

We introduced you to our fifth family member a little over a month ago.  Olive Oil has been quite the addition to our family! She has shown us so much love in such little time.  She has the patience of a saint with the kids and their friends who chase her in circles all day long.   I’ve fallen in love with her so much (as have the rest of the fam) that I nearly adopted a second kitten last weekend — Dan was not amused that my cat lady capabilities seem to be growing.

What have we learned so far about being cat owners?

Kitten gas is the worse.  Or at least our cat reserves a tank of stank within her to release in the worst moments.

They are SO self-sufficient.  Put some food out, clean their litter box, they’re good to go.

Keeping their nails trimmed will result in less ripped furniture as well as not finding your cat stuck to screen doors.

What have we learned about this sweet Olive Oil in particular?

She will cuddle with anyone, almost to a fault when it is not welcome.

She likes to bite her momma (me) –

Do not leave bread on the countertop, she will eat through the package and eat the bread.

She loves water – sits and watches the boys take baths and even jumps in once the tub has drained.

She talks a lot.  Right at 5:30 every morning.  We wake up to her nudging our faces with her stinky salmon breath.

She will sit in an open window the entire day.

She purrs like no one is listening.  So loud.

I call her a freak of nature, in the nicest way possible.  She acts like a dog – every visitor has said so.

We find her in the strangest of places all of the time — the latest find was within the wreath we took down to paint our front door (for the 3rd time) –

The boys called it her nest –

Overall, we are SO glad we chose to adopt her.

Goodbye mice hello Olive Oil!

October 15 – National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day.

It isn’t strange at all to think that it has been nearly a year since I miscarried.

I wrote about it here which was one of the most difficult moments to open up about our experience.  I guess I was afraid more or less about being judged.  Miscarrying at 7 weeks is early, so was I entitled to feel that large of an impact of loss like I did? After publishing that post, those who contacted me through comments and email touched my heart and brought tears to my eyes.  I no longer felt alone.

There are so many women that I know personally that have walked through the difficult journey of losing a pregnancy or an infant.  It is one that I had hoped to grow stronger from – but I have realized this past year that I tried far to hard early on to put that moment in the past.  I found myself randomly driving, thinking about that day .. or the excitement that built up the weeks prior to the miscarriage.   The tears would start flowing, and I found it hard to stop.

We wanted so badly to bring another child into our family – and during the first month or so after the miscarriage I felt compelled to try again – with high hopes, a better ending.  Then the fear set it.  With each month passing I found myself growing more and more fearful of the idea.  I started to develop awful anxiety.  Which was not a surprise to me, seeing being anxious was always a part of who I was.  But, this anxiety was different.  I felt like my life was on pause.  I miscarried – a few short weeks later Owen was sick in the hospital – fast forward a few months later to Brody’s diagnosis with IBD and weeks and weeks of being in and out of the hospital.  We bought our “dream home” – and in over our heads in renovations.  Everything was piling on and I felt suspended.

I never really talked about the miscarriage to anyone.  If it were brought up, I would say silly things like “When it’s meant to be it’ll happen” … just to stop the conversation.   There was not a way to convey to people how I was really feeling  – I felt overwhelmed with everything happening in our personal lives.  Our boys were sick – moving to a new city – piling on extra things to do on my list in between taking care of the kids.  I quickly found myself in a huge rut.  I have always been a girl who said yes to everything – making my to do list bigger than me, it did not take long until that list took me under.

I found myself pulling back from friends, and social situations.  I started to develop REALLY awful anxiety attacks that would come and go at the strangest of times.   I shut down, I did not want to talk about how I was feeling, I definitely put on an act.  Until almost two months ago when I woke up at 4:00am to my heart feeling like it was jumping out of my chest.  Trying to relax and go back to sleep – I could not quiet shake the feeling.  By 7:00 I found myself collapsed on the living room floor and unable to catch my breath.  My hands and legs went completely tingly and numb.  They cramped up so tight –  Dan immediately called 911 – and as soon as the paramedics came they knew it was a massive panic attack.

I, of course, was mortified.

 I was so embarrassed that my body took full control and it got THAT bad.

 It took it getting to that point until I realized just how much things I went through within this past year really took its toll on me.  No, my miscarriage did not destroy me.  But not dealing with it correctly definitely wore on me over the months to come.  I have always wanted to large family … for my kids to have lots of siblings.  Seeing friends and family get pregnant did not make me sad at all – I was actually super excited for them – and wanted that for myself as well.  But then the thought of losing another pregnancy took over.  I could not quiet swap it out to positive thinking.

 I know right, it’s not like I lost back to back pregnancies.

I guess I just felt like it was my body telling me to stop trying.  So I felt defeated.

Since my attack I have come leaps and bounds with my anxiety.  I am really proud of myself that I have much greater understanding of why and how I am feeling.  That I do not need to be embarrassed or ashamed, or feel that I have to validate my feelings.  More importantly I wanted to share this story with you guys because learning that I was not alone and understand that what I am feeling is OK and normal has helped me cope so much better.

Our miscarriage will never be forgotten.

For those who are trying to start a family of their own, keep trying.

For those who have lost a pregnancy or an infant, I pray for you all.

It is not an easy path to walk.

 I hope we all can be a little more open-minded about what others have experienced and are going through.

Light a candle tonight, to remember.

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Disclaimer:: This is a post containing affiliate links.  The Thome Home earns commission from the items purchased through these links.  We stand behind the products we chose to share with you all.  We are receiving our first box from Little Passports to review.  Thank you Little Passports for partnering with us + thank you to our readers for your support! 

Remember the days when you were excited to get a note slipped to you in class?

Fast forward a few years later and receiving the nicest thank you note in the mail – or a sweet postcard from a loved one.

 Fast forward to today.

 When greetings and thank you’s come in the form of a vibrate or ring on your phone.

When snail mail has dwindled down to wedding invites, and baby showers.  These days it’s not uncommon to get a birthday invite through an email.  Not to say anything is wrong with that, because convenience really is key now-a-days.

I just want my kids to understand that the easy way does not measure up to being the thoughtful way.

How do I instill this into my kids?

Well – I’ve started by showing them the excitement in receiving mail.

We have used a few subscriptions in the past – and still do – and the kids just love seeing what mom and dad have coming in the mail.  So, when I came across Little Passports , not only was I angry I did not come up with this idea first – I was thrilled to see how affordable and amazing of a product this would be for my boys!

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Little Passports  is a darling concept of two friends Sam + Sofia that travel the world or the USA and send back “explorer kits” to your little ones! There are two options, the World Edition and USA Edition (you can pick one or both) each box is filled with things to teach your kids about that country or state that Sam + Sofia visited.  What could be better than your child being able to learn about the world right in their own home? To broaden their knowledge of different cultures and learn fun facts!

With the holidays right around the corner,  Little Passports would be a great gift to give – whether it be for your grandchildren, nieces or nephews or your own little ones.  Even for a birthday party gift – giving a child something to look forward to after all of the birthday present hype goes away! Personally, I think this is the perfect surprise to give to my boys at any time of year.  Nothing beats quiet time when they are completely engaged in a new project!  The gift that keeps giving month after month!

I look forward to the boys opening up their first box and diving into a totally educational experience.  Helping to make learning fun for them and receiving a new country or state to learn about each month will keep the excitement rolling!

I am completely smitten with this concept and cannot wait for our boys to go on their first adventure!

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After 3 long days of Brody being under the weather we had to shake things up and take a trip to the zoo! We haven’t been ALL year – which is so unlike us.  We use to frequent the zoo 2x a week – the kids love it, and Dan and I get a good workout in with all of the walking.

This past summer though we were sucked into the fixer upper vortex and heading to the zoo took the back burner.

 This visit was a surprise and made the kids so happy –  We LOVE the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo!!

Brody + Owen are obsesed with their zoo maps.  First thing they grab when they walk into the entrance, and they look at them the entire time.

Brody kept saying to us “People are going to think I play for the browns (giggles) but I’m just wearing their hat!” He thought it was hysterical!

The lions are always fascinating and terrifying at the same time.  Regardless of the barrier I am always convinced they’ll smell their snacks and leap over the threshold.  Seriously folks – I cringe the entire time as the boys Ooh and Ahh.

Flock of flamingos.   Say that one 5x fast.

Everytime the boys run in a public place (acceptable or unacceptable) they say “Mom – we’re exercising!” Figuring Mom can’t say no to that!

How sweet are giraffes? There are two new babies at the Cleveland Zoo, we were not lucky enough to catch a glimpse – always a good reason to come back soon!

The colors of fall are intoxicating.  If I knew how to keep plants alive for longer then 5 days I would have my entire house and yard covered in them.  I’m working on my green thumb — with each passing plant.

It was the perfect day to visit the zoo.  You would have thought it was closed it was that quiet – which made it feel like it was all ours.

Ooh that face.  Words cannot describe what a good boy Owen has been lately.  He has always been our “tester” – pushing the limits, throwing temper tantrums and making a scene.  But something clicked this past summer and we could not be more proud of what a big boy he has become.  We enjoy his fiesty side though – so teaching him simple boundaries seems to work for us lately.

And this kid – pretty certain he turned 8 instead of turning 5 this year.  He is LOVING kindergarten.  Becoming a crazed sunday football fan just like his daddy and cracking us up with his older then his age mentality.