Crazy Love Gamble-Style

I've got a lot of pictures and such to catch up on, but for now I'd just like to say I'm so happy to be back with this guy.  A week away from each other is just too long!!  He is my heart and belongs walking beside me.   Happy to be home.  : )

 So far we have really been enjoying our Spring Break!   We've been at the beach since Sunday and we've had lots of wonderful friends come join us.  First round was Ashlie, Jack, Hannah & Ryan.    All day Norah had been begging to go camping, it was bugging me, why can't she just be content with the fun we were having??  Turns out, by "camping" she meant go make s'mores!  So funny!  We had such a great time with the Elstads!!  The weather was crazy stormy, but that was just one more part of the fun! Here's a little video of how crazy windy it was on the beach, it was awesome!!  Next our friends Valerie, Jasmine & Haley all came to play.    Sister love!  Twister!  We kept getting little breaks in the weather which was so great since it was supposed to rain the entire week.   After our friends headed home I decided to take my kiddo...

Can someone please explain to her the problem with this outfit?   Bless her heart.   Oh well, she's rocking it, right??? 

The girls love to paint, and in an effort to have them do more projects, I have to say yes to them when they ask... : )  I even saved the bottom part of some bok choy so they could use it as a stamp to make flowers with.  Fun! This little video cracks me up.  I love Norah's imagination right now, it is so fun to listen to all the ideas she comes up with.  Here she was telling me about how the tooth fairy comes and takes your teeth out.  Although she changed it when I asked her to repeat it....  There, she fixed it, no one will ever know...  Silly faces!!  Such funny little girls!!

I just came across this  list of my resolutions written in January of 2013 , let's see where we are at with all this. First up was to keep up with: Hot Yoga. Running. Eating Healthy. Check. Check. Check. At that point I was 3 lbs from my goal weight, which was 125, I am 120 now. (Yay!) Here are the things I wanted to work on: Being stronger.   I have to say I am way stronger now.  My focus has shifted to more weights and strength training.  I still have a long ways to go to get my problem areas happier but these things take time... Gaining a healthier body image. I think I am doing MUCH better in this area, still have a ways to go, but there has been definite progress.  I am learning to love myself more and forgive myself for my flaws more.  Self love is such an important thing!  Repairing an unhealthy body is one thing, rewiring an unhealthy brain is a whole other.  I am very grateful for this body, it is strong ...

Norah has been so funny lately.  And even though this movie is oh so pathetically sad, I can't help but laugh.  She is so dramatic! The reason she was upset this time was that she thought I should go to the store that very moment to buy her mangoes, apparently she believes grandma would be more accommodating to her needs. The other day she was sitting on the couch I had just vacuumed, eating a muffin.  I looked over at her and she is just surrounded by crumbs (She often can eat them without making a mess at all) I say to her "Norah!! I just cleaned the whole house, I just vacuumed these couches!  Look at the mess you have made!!"  She looks to her left, then to her right, then says "Mom, I think you are going to need to vacuum this one again." hahahaha

 This is the girls Saturday morning, all ready for their date with daddy.   It was supposed to be just Norah and John, their first daddy/daughter date, as Ava has had many.  Every time John talked to Norah about it she would get all excited about going, and then she would say "Can we bring Ava too?"  He explained to her that it was a special thing for just the two of them and she said "That's great, but I want Ava to come with us."  Her hair is so long!  Ava pretty much thought this was the best news ever.  She loved the idea that Norah couldn't stand to go have fun without her.  Happier together, love them so much.

 We had a really fun day celebrating John's birthday. When John was on the phone with Grandma Barby and Grandpa Bob they asked the kids how old John had turned, Norah said 4 and Ava guessed 61.  hahaha Tiffani's phone takes great photos!  This is mid Cards Against Humanity, such a funny, yet so very WRONG game.  We had Erik, Tiffani & Colton over for dinner.  We had turkey burgers with creamy feta & garic chili slaw along side roasted broccoli with a curry peanut sauce.  Yum! The kids dinner was slightly less gourmet, cauliflower mac & cheese with peas, carrots and apples.    They all look pretty happy, that's what counts right?  I love the way Norah is looking at John in this picture. At one point the girls and I had been discussing what "we" had gotten John for his present.  John was in the garage at the time as I told them, stressing how it was a secret and we can't tell him.  ...