Happy Easter!

The boys have had so much fun the past few days with several Easter Egg Hunts that we had to remind them yesterday that it's not about eggs, or the easter bunny, but about celebrating our Risen Lord and all that He does for us. All the extra stuff associated with this day is fun, but don't let it distract your attention off Jesus :)

At Nolan's school Easter Egg Hunt

Lynn Meadows Egg Hunt with Daddy

Taking a break eating a cookie :)

Getting into the candy

Eggs!! That seems to be William's favorite word of the week!

Looking to see how many eggs they got!

Nolan found the "Golden Egg" at his friend Crosby's Easter party

The Parker's Easter party

Church of the King Egg Hunt

Nolan and Campbell

Easter Morning

William was excited about his Mickey Mouse coloring book

Paint!!! Nolan's favorite :)

Yellow Belt

So proud of Nolan! After his first 3 weeks of Taekwondo, he had his belt testing last Saturday and was promoted to a Yellow Belt. His little awards ceremony and presentation of the new belt was tonight. Nolan's Pa-Paw was there since Eric is out of town for a conference. He was so upset he missed it. These pics are for you babe! Love and miss you! We know you'll be at the next one :)

26 weeks

So this pregnancy is flying by! By far the quickest yet, probably because I have my hands full with my preschooler and toddler....who are 2 very busy boys!! They are getting very excited about the arrival of their baby brother this summer and I'm trying to remain CALM. I still can't wrap my head around the idea of having 3 boys 4 and under. I'm daily praying for the Lord to prepare me for this upcoming year, which I already know will be pretty challenging :) I think July and August will be pretty demanding with the boys being home from school and having a newborn, but hey..."I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength!" I may be a little exhausted and a little spread thin, but I will start to figure out as I go...with the Lord leading my steps everyday.

The nursery is pretty much going to stay the same. I'm going to swap out a few photos, but all the furniture and bedding will remain. We recently reorganized Nolan's room so that he and William can share that bedroom. I still need some wall art, but here's a pic of what it looks like now:

Now, we just need to transition William from the crib...which I know without a doubt he's not ready for! We may try this weekend to convert his crib to the toddler bed and see how it goes. Eric thinks he's ready. I'm curious to see how it goes!

GCCA Mardi Gras Ball

Best ball we've been to so far on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. We had a great time checking out all the carnival costumes and watching the presentation of the court in their elaborate outfits. Eric and I love to dance, and the band at the ball was so good!!! Forgot I was pregnant there for a while until my feet started hurting....joy's of pregnancy, of course! Anyhow, I was glad we went and look forward to going again next year :)

The King and Queen

The Court

Always getting a smooch from my sweet hubby :) 



Meal Planning Monday!

So, we've really fallen off our healthy eating kick! Back to business now! I hate when I allow myself too much starch or sugar. I'm at the half-way mark in my 3rd pregnancy and I'm not about to gain any extra weight caused from poor eating habits or a dessert everyday. It all adds up on the scale and causes me to panic! I've already slowed down on my running, so I've got to take control of my eating to make up for the fewer calories I'm burning through exercise.

This is what I have meal planned for the upcoming week so far:

Dinner:
Monday: Shrimp Cakes with Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans
Tuesday: Flank Steak with Roasted Butternut Squash Cubes and side salad
Wednesday: Taco Salads
Thursday: Meatballs with Crunchy Sweet Potato Chips
Friday: Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Squash, Zucchini, and Carrots
Saturday: Salmon Patties with Deviled Eggs and Steamed Asparagus
Sunday: Crock-pot Chili (I add 1 small roughly chopped onion, red pepper, and orange pepper and use 1 can diced tomatoes, 1 small can tomato sauce, and 3/4 cup water. I also use lean ground turkey, 1 can rinsed kidney beans, and add extra salt, pepper, and chili powder).

Breakfast:
Egg Muffins with Bacon, Onion, Diced cherry tomatoes, and shredded sharp cheddar
Banana Muffins
Coconut Pancakes
Omelets with left-over meats

Lunch:
Tuna Stuffed Avocados
Chicken Salad
Sweet Potato, Bacon, and Egg Salad
Ginger Shrimp Salad and Sweet Potato Hash

Snacks:
Nuts (organic unsalted)
Fruit with slice of cheese
Almond butter with half banana

Get Inspired!

What's on your face?

My whole life I've been blessed with great skin, never have really had a bad experience with breakouts. I can only remember having a bad reaction to some products used in my first facial that were too strong for my skin. Other than that, I've never really invested a lot of time or money into facial cleansers, moisturizers or make-up. I've splurged time to time on a few things I really like, but skincare has never been on the top of my list...until now!

Recently I've experienced horrible breakouts for the first time in my life due to pregnancy hormones. I've also experienced increased oiliness throughout my t-zone and very dry cheeks. Right before my birthday a few weeks ago, I threw my hands up in aggravation and decided I needed some new facial cleansing products and make-up. After a little bit of research, I quickly found that the brand Philosophy had received amazing reviews on all of their products. One trip to Ulta and 3 weeks later, my skin looks clear and smooth. Here's what I purchased:

A one-step facial cleanser that melts away the make-up from my face. This product is great for my combination skin and I use it every night.

I have never used an exfoliating wash that did not dry out my skin. This one, however, is gentle enough to use everyday, and has cleaned out all of my pores. Love this stuff!

This is my favorite moisturizer ever!! It's light weight, non-greasy and oil-free, deeply hydrating, and makes my face feel so smooth. I love how my face feels after applying. I use this twice daily. 

This on the spot sulfur treatment targets my blemishes and helps to quickly clear my skin and prevent future breakouts.

Don't really need to spend too much attention on the eye area yet, but at 31 I've noticed a few fine lines. This is perfect and fights against the 7 signs of aging.

After cleansing my face in the morning, and applying my mineral foundation, I dab this stuff on my cheekbones for a soft dewy look. I apply a tiny amount with my fingertip and it drys fast leaving a sheer glow without the sparkles!

I've used Lorac blush for a really long time, but since my cheeks have been so dry, a friend recommended using a cream blush. Never crossed my mind to purchase. This Convertible Color blush by Stila adds a natural sheer tint that is non-greasy and can be used on my lips as well. I purchased this in Camellia and I've been very happy.

I purchased this mascara a few months ago after a close friend said she found the perfect mascera. Mac Haute & Naughty Lash has this dual-wiper system that refines the lashes for a clean defined look, while the other loads the lashes for greater impact...great for night.

Wanted to share a few of my favorites! Hope you enjoyed! I know this stuff is working because a woman from my bible study said I looked 21, not 31. Now my secret is out :)

18 months

I feel like I haven't blogged about William in a while. Not only is he 18 months old, but we're starting to break him of his "boppy" (paci) this week. He is so smart and so sweet, it's really hard disciplining or taking things away from him. I think like anything else, he'll quickly get over his love affair of the "boppy" and we can all move forward! I just purchased him a matching twin bed and mattress to Nolan's for when they start sharing a room here shortly. I can't imagine taking him out of the crib in the next few months, so if he's not ready by the time baby #3 arrives, I'm going to borrow a crib from a friend! I'm definitely not going to rush/push it because he is so scheduled and such a great sleeper. I have always been able to just lay him down, and he falls asleep without crying. Such an easy baby. I really don't want to mess up a good thing, especially since William is so active and busy all the time, I could totally see him getting out of the bed consistently. Same reason I'm hesitant to convert the crib to a toddler bed. He will get out in a heartbeat...without a doubt!

William weighed in at 26 pounds at his 18 month check-up and was 33 inches long. He finally made it to the 60th percentile :) He's ahead on a lot of milestones, but still has trouble feeding himself with a fork/spoon. He makes a terrible mess in the high chair, so I often just let him feed himself with his hands. For now he's still my baby and I'm so lucky to be his mommy :)

Flag Football

So we decided to sign Nolan up for 3 year old flag football with the Ocean Springs YMCA. He's definitely still a little young for this....but it's fun for the kids to run around chasing each other for their flags. Nolan did great his first game until he had the ball and his flags were pulled. He was done after that! Last game they got new flags and Nolan smashed his finger in the clip right before the game started, and cried on the sideline saying he wanted to go home :( Tonight we have practice and we really hope he just has fun and enjoys the time with his friends. Expectations are pretty low considering he's only 3, but at least this can prepare him for future team sports.

Christmas 2010

What a procrastinator I've been! It's mid-January and I'm just updating my blog with Christmas pictures! We hardly took any pictures this year and Eric video taped the whole thing Christmas morning...which we later watched and realized the whole thing was in night vision! Oh, well! the kids had a blast...especially in their new truck!

The kids loved their soccer goal from Nonna & Pa-Paw

Nolan loved his guitar from Nommie & PapPa Mike

Our pretty tree Christmas morn

All about Thomas again this year