Valentine's-y

I wasn't going to bother with Valentine's Day decor this year.

But then, some friends and I decided to host a baby shower for a neighbor. And my house was looking a little bare after clearing away all of the Christmas stuff.

So, I gathered some Valentine's Day remains from last year and added a few new touches.

And then the baby shower was postponed because she had her baby two days before the scheduled shower date. What are the chances? Not that I can really blame her for going into labor early.

At least I am left with some fun Valentine's-y touches that probably wouldn't have been put up otherwise.

A new banner for the fireplace.

I am drawn to aqua for every season lately.

I made a heart wreath last year for the living room. Yes, I have a wreath fetish.

subway art via

To kick off the season of love, my friend hosted a cookie decorating girls' night out. She is the cookie queen and mine didn't turn out even close to the caliber of cookies that she creates, but it was still fun to try. And I can never complain about laughing so hard that I cry with the girls while doing something crafty simultaneously.

A certain almost-two-year-old pulled up a chair and took a bite before I could capture the final product. 

I'm glad that I got lured back in to the Valentine's Day "extras" once again. It's always fun to have a little something to celebrate, especially when it can be enjoyed in a non-stressful way.

Playtime

They fight just as much as they get along. But they are best friends.

How to Use Leftover Packaging Paper

Blake came up with this idea on his own. And I didn't stop him.

We were cooped up for an entire week with colds that the boys could not shake off. I only left the house twice in six days. What can I say? We had to get inventive.

HC in PC

That's an acronym for Hot Chocolate in Park City.

Ok, I know I've been jumping all over the place.

But I think this post will finally wrap up our Christmas and New Years festivities, now that January is almost over.

We had about 48 hours to spend with Troy's family before everyone dispersed to different parts of the country again. We rang in the new year with them and ended the festivities with a trip into Park City.

We were back and forth between our house and the cabin within those 48 hours because of some responsibilities back home, and somehow in the shuffle we did not gather any winter apparel except coats.

So, we collected whatever concoction of hats and mittens that we could find and set out.

We've been to Park City a hundred times, but the quaintness of all the eclectic shops on Main Street with the mountains as a backdrop still gets me every time.

Nash adores his uncle. Have I mentioned that before?

He also adored the gigantic brass bear.

Our nephew is in there :)

Nash was over the moon about our trolley ride up Main Street. He repeated "Ding! Ding! Ding!" approximately 754 times for the next three days.

We ended the day at a quaint bookstore/coffee shop. The gourmet hot chocolate options were divine.

We learned quickly that our loud presence among college students and business partners with laptops was not entirely welcomed. We opted to take the boys outside and enjoy some crisp winter air.

And some caramel hot chocolate. Mmmmmm.

Rhythm and a Train Park

Part of the reason our trip felt like such a whirlwind was because I was working. A lot.

I was enjoying every second of it, but jumping in full force to a new design venture turned out to be incredibly difficult to balance in the midst of the holidays.

I feel like I have a really good rhythm going now. 

I'm getting quicker and learning some shortcuts that condense the work into the hours that the boys are sleeping (for the most part).

I'm actually getting full nights of sleep again.

Balancing work and home responsibilities, I feel, is allowing the time that I spend with Blake and Nash to be more qualitative. I feel so blessed to be able to do something I love from home. I feel like I'm constantly glowing from the sense of accomplishment that I receive, and, in some odd way, I feel motivated to be a better wife and mom in return.

But those few weeks leading up to the new year were just plain insane. I felt so in over my head as I learned new coding techniques and the ropes of the company. And because every spare minute counted towards getting designs ready for the launch of our new site, I had to pick and choose the outings I participated in. 

I decided to forgo the train park night in exchange for a quality date night with Troy. We visited the train park two years ago, and I knew that the experience would be pretty much the same the second time around. Plus, the boys had plenty of adults to share their excitement with. 

However, knowing that there was still a part of of me that wanted to be there, my brother and his girlfriend captured the moments that I missed.

It made me smile as I looked through the pictures, imagining the things that were putting those huge grins on their faces.

Holiday Escape

In the middle of our quick Christmas Break trip, we spent a couple of days at a nearby resort.

We started the escape by leaving Nash happily napping at home with a sitter, and enjoying a special pool day with Blake.

He couldn't have been more thrilled about the ginormous pool, especially since his grandparents' pool was closed due to the lack of heating in the "winter."

After swimming our hearts out, we admired all of the cool features around the resort. 

Blake thought it might be appropriate to strike a triangle pose in front of the enormous Christmas tree.

My parents were awesome enough to take Blake home with them while Troy and I stayed overnight at the resort.

In the midst of all of the swirling holiday stress, it was so nice to have a little 24 hour escape.

And, I got to go out on a date with my handsome husband. We laughed, a lot. Especially at the teenage girls that were sitting next to us at the movie theater and getting completely wrapped up in the wing-dinger of a movie we chose.

Even though we were technically on a vacation trip together, I felt like I never saw Troy except for that little escape. It was much needed and much appreciated.