five on Friday

Five on Friday... is that still a thing? I completely dropped the ball yesterday when it came to this ol' blog. Mia and I got home late Wednesday night from Utah and instead of blogging, I chose sleep. Since vacation is still on my mind, I thought I'd bring back the good ol' 5 on Friday and share five pictures from Utah. I totally dropped the ball (sound familiar? I'm getting lazy.) and hardly took any pictures of our fun with both families :( But I got a few "gems" that wouldn't normally make it to the blog or Instagram, but are definitely worthy of the family scrapbook (if I scrapbooked, that is) for memory's sake :)

"I swingin'!"

Breaking the rules and playing on the pool table with Uncle Trevor. He's mostly a bad example but her excitement over this was too much :) The rest I could've done without... like when he tried to teach her to tell me, "Mommy, I sit my pants" (instead of poop) He thought it was all sweet and innocent- "I'm teaching her to say sit!" Or when he tried to convince her to cry, scream and yell "NO NAP!" when I told her it was nap time. All I gotta say is pay back when their baby is born ;)

My little thrill seeker loved sledding!

She loves taking pictures with her mommy, HA! (Note- she's totally pushing my face away. Can't say I blame her with that expression I pulled, ha ha!)

Bow c/o Her Joyful Studio

We aren't usually cat people, but I have to say that my heart holds so much gratitude for this cat and the patience she has for our little Mia. Mia LOVES "kitty" and chases her around "papa and mramma's" house and picks her up every chance she gets. I just happened to walk outside with my phone at this exact moment... Mia was SO proud to be holding "kitty" and the poor cat patiently waited while I snapped some photos and helped Mia lower the cat to the ground, ha ha.

I can't stop myself from smiling each time I see these pictures, so I hope you enjoyed them as much as I do :) Happy Friday!!

exploring Arizona

So Mia and I have been in Utah for a week now (surprise!) but we made sure to explore our immediate neighborhood in Arizona to cure our cabin fever and take a break from unpacking the first week we moved! It's a little overwhelming being new to the area and I can't wait for this place to feel like home! I'm excited to be living just minutes away from this little slice of heaven, though. Palm trees, lakes (more like ponds) and ducks galore! This makes for a gorgeous view on my runs and Mia is in heaven watching all the ducks! I plan on taking some bread next time I go running here and we'll see how much Mia loves the ducks when they are flocking her for food ;) ha ha! I can't wait to share more about our new state as we explore and learn to call this place home!

Shirt c/o Sally Sarah Designs

healthy(ish) crock pot potato soup

I try so hard to take "appealing" pictures of the food for my recipe posts, I swear!

Let's face it- I need to take a freakin' class to learn how to take picture of food, ha ha! But I think I'm safe when it comes to cooking so you can trust that this recipe is bomb! I love soup season. Love, love, love it! I don't think Arizona has soup season but you better believe I'm still busting out a new soup each week! It is winter in other parts of the country! Anyway, today I want to share a potato soup recipe that is super delish, and pretty healthy, except for the unhealthy part, HA!

Potato Soup

1 small head of cauliflower

5 small russet potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 1/2 cup diced onion

4 cups chicken broth 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup wheat flour

1 1/2 cup half and half

2 cups shredded cheese

bacon

green onions (I never use them actually, but I'm sure they would have made that picture prettier, ha ha!)

Chop up your cauliflower and steam in a steamer (according to your steamer's directions). Once steamed, puree cauliflower as smooth as you like. (I puree mine to the smoothest consistency I can) Combine cauliflower, potatoes, onion, chicken broth, salt and pepper in crock pot. Cook on low for 6-7 hours. 

About 30 minutes before serving, combine flour and half and half in a bowl. Use a whisk to mix well. Pour in crock pot (I like to mash up my potatoes a bit as I stir in the mixture) and turn the heat on high for 30 minutes. 

Last but not least, turn the heat off, add the cheese, stir well then serve! Top with cheese, crumbled bacon and green onions.

Mia loves my white chicken chili I shared not too long ago, but this potato soup is definitely her favorite! She usually asks for, wait for it, not seconds... but a THIRD helping! Every time! Girlfriend loves the soup (or maybe it's the bacon she's after, ha!) Hope you try this and LOVE it!

just some randoms {26}

The shirt is just the icing needed to top this photo off, ha ha!

It's been a full house in Mia's crib every since Grandma and Grandad C. surprised Mia with a Mickey and Minnie they picked up from Disneyland the weekend we moved to Arizona! One day, Mia fell asleep in the car and stayed asleep when I transferred her to the crib. I noticed Mickey and Minnie were missing since Mia brought them out of bed to play with that morning, but she was already asleep so it was fine, you know? She woke up and started to cry for, "Mouse!" when she discovered they were missing! Ha!

That moment when everything clicks inside that head of hers. "If I smile, I'll get a treat?! Sweet!" Eric gets the credit for picking that sucker out though :)

Mia is still adjusting to our new home. Even though her bedroom is set up the exact same way it was in Utah, she's still a little nervous. She keeps her face covered when she's waiting to fall asleep. I thought this was a sweet photo hugging on to Mickey's... foot :)

A couple weeks ago I walked into Mia's room to get her up for the day... and discovered a naked baby. Great! A couple days later I noticed in the monitor that she was naked again... I went a runnin' but not before she managed to pee all over her pillow. I texted Eric this: "Your darling daughter stripped down again and peed all over her pillow!"

His reply? "No way. Tell her she can't do that anymore." 

No duh, babe.

HA!

2.2

Another month, another update on the fasted growing girl we know (at least, that's how it seems!) Mia experienced a lot of change this last month and she's handled it like a champ! She is such a blessing and our lives are so much happier with Mia in it!

- Mia's vocabulary continues to explode! It blows our minds each day as we have conversations with Mia, and listen to repeat new words by the minute! I'm putting together a list of "Miaisms" that will be fun to share with you all!
- I wasn't great at writing down the new words this month, but I did remember to record a few. She's definitely our child... obsessed with food. She's been learning how to name everything we're eating! She says, "e'cine" (medicine), "'isgus'ing" (disgusting), "owas suice" (orange juice), "pot pie", "dilla" (quesadilla), "ostco" (Costco), "oh my gosh/goodness", "oh toodies" (oh toodles, from Mickey Mouse club house, ha!), "spill", "sticker", "cereal", "izza" (pizza), "'prise" (surprise).
- Since we made the decision to move to Arizona, Eric has been more motivated to start teaching Mia Spanish. She now asks for "agua" and "water" equally. She knows that milk is "leche" and he is trying to teach her to say "te amo" for "I love you" :) Anytime they talk about animals he tells her their English, then Spanish  name. I'm excited for her to learn more Spanish because it's actually helping me learn Spanish!
- This has been going on for awhile now, but Mia is great at remembering names/faces. Family, friends, etc. She asks for new people each day and gets so excited when she sees pictures of them, facetimes or sees them in person!
- We don't really have colors nailed down, at all. She can say the names of all the colors, but can't match the name with the color at all. Everything is "orange".
- Mia can point to everything on her body- cheeks, toes, forehead, etc.
- She moved to a new state! This is obviously old news, but Mia handled our move to Arizona so well! She did regress for a week or so where she babbled on and on in this high pitched baby talk. It was actually really weird for us to see that because for the most part, if she's not saying actual words, she's trying to make her babble sound like real words. I think she's mostly over the baby talk now, ha!
- Poor Mia got her first ever sore throat (that we know about) She also woke up in hives one day, I still have NO idea what she was allergic to. But that was her first time getting hives. 1/2 teaspoon of children's benedryl and it cleared right up!
- Mia mostly wears size 24 month/2t clothes but still fits in most 12 and 18 month clothes. She is currently wearing last summer's clothes (since it's in the 80's in Arizona!) She still wears size 5 shoes.
- I have Mia in size 5 diapers but I'm having the WORST time finding diapers we like in this size. I absolutely love the way the Target diapers fit her, but she's allergic to the elastic band on the back. She pees right through Luvs and Huggies if she's sitting down (example, she can be in a brand new diaper but if she had a lot to drink and I stick her in her car seat? It all just leaks out of the diaper. It's infuriating!) I am going to try Pampers next but I don't know which to try after that, if Pampers doesn't work out? Maybe this is a sign that we need to start potty training, ha ha!

Aside from the diaper mess we are trying to figure out right now, life with Mia couldn't be better! We love our two year old!      

Queen of the zoo

 Headband gifted by Sadie Sky Boutique

We were SO excited once we made the decision to move to Arizona because it opened so many doors for fun and adventures! We are just outside of Phoenix and they have everything here (except for snow, which is okay with me!) Taking Mia to the zoo was at the top of my list when we got here so I planned the funnest date with Courtney and Ryder the day before Valentines! We are obsessed with our friends (Courtney and I met through blogging/Instagram, then we met in person 2 years ago and have been the best of friends ever since! Now we finally live in the same state and have weekly play dates, it's the BEST!) and Mia loved exploring with Ryder.
Mia is obsessed with animals and LOVES when Eric and I make animal sounds with her, so I thought she'd be thrilled to see the animals at the zoo. Imagine our surprise when Mia and Ryder preferred the pictures of animals, over the actual animals, ha ha! Silly kids! Of course we had to take the kids on the carousel ride (that would be Mia's "I'm excited but trying not to act like I'm about to jump out of my skin-excited" face, ha!) and let them run wild through the zoo. Mia was in heaven! You better believe we are going to be proud owners of a zoo pass and we will be visiting on the regular!

my "aha!" moments

Bow c/o Her Joyful Studio Dress c/o Angora Boutique

In the past few months, I've been having these "aha" moments as Mia is teaching me the simple way of life. Or teaching me that "it's the little things". She constantly reminds me how blessed I am. Our hearts are over flowing with love for her each and every day! 

One day I let Mia run around WalMart in her pjs and I kept thinking to myself "Ugh, gross! Germs, dirt! I'm the worst mom ever!" Then I really looked at Mia's face (pure JOY!) and realized- I'm the best mom ever in her eyes! As soon as we got home I peeled off her dirty pjs and threw them in the wash. Such a simple clean up for me to let Mia enjoy such a simple pleasure!

When Eric got laid off I was so upset that we weren't going to be able to get Mia the items that we had picked out for her birthday/Christmas! Then it hit me like a ton of bricks that Mia could care less about "stuff"! She would be perfectly happy with a book that cost no more than $1.
Eric was offered a job just a week and a half later so we still bought her everything on our list, but we never even gave it all to her! Simplify. Mia is teaching us to simplify- and be happy with what we do have! (Although she does ask for a bike every chance she gets, ha ha! Someday, baby girl. Someday.)

When I take Mia on runs I always let her take a snack to keep her happy. I usually pack grapes, a banana or raisins/craisins. The other morning I was strapping Mia into the stroller when she asked for her "nana?!" I was so dang proud! Then I rewarded her with a sucker instead because sometimes, it's okay to let her have junk!

The first few years that Eric and I were married, we often talked about what a relief it was that we didn't have kids. "Thank goodness we don't have kids to add to our bills." You know, stuff like that. Now that we have Mia, we find ourselves saying "Thank goodness we have Mia" on the daily! The most surprising time (to me) that our gratitude for Mia grew in leaps and bounds was when Eric did lose his job a few months ago. I thought we would be stressed to the max because we have a child, but it was just the opposite. Mia is the one that grounded us almost hourly the day we found out the news. Just when I would get so angry and overwhelmed with stress, Mia would walk in the room, flash a huge smile at me and all my worries and stress would melt away. Thank goodness for Mia!! It's obvious that she is just what we need in this season of our life.

30 before 30

I have to admit it- the only reason I make lists is because my dang brain fried once I became a mom. If I don't write it down, I forget it! I don't get any satisfaction out of crossing things off my to-do list. I mean, I really hate lists, they are just a necessity for me now. But I did make a 27 before 27 list and while I didn't accomplish everything on my list, it's fun to look back and see what I did make happen. So I decided to give myself a little time to try and accomplish some fun goals by making a 30 before 30 list. Maybe I'll learn to get a little more satisfaction out of crossing these off my list, ha ha!

1- Go on a cruise, just Eric and me.
2- Take Mia to Disneyland.
3- Go camping. Preferably in Yellowstone National Park, but anywhere will do :)
4- Be debt free (except for a home if we finally settle long enough to buy one).
5- Learn Spanish.
6- Go to a concert.
7- Stop popping my dang knuckles.
8- Go to New York City.
9- Run a 10k or a relay race.
10- Get at least 1 new stamp on my passport.
11- This is kind of shallow, but I would love to see if I can grow my Instagram account to 10k followers!
12-  Do 50 push ups in a row.
13- Go on a spontaneous weekend trip. No planning before hand- just straight up "let's pack our bags and leave in an hour" kind of spontaneous.
14- Print my blog into books.
15- Learn how to use my camera (It's time to get out of auto shoot!) I would love to take a class but seeing as how I have very little spare time, a one day course would be just as amazing! Just something to get me started.
16- Go on a girls trip with just one friend, or a bunch! But a legit weekend (or a couple week days) away from husbands and kids, just enjoying girl time. Preferably at the beach, but anywhere will do :)
17- Participate in the "Pay it Forward" movement and purchase a meal, a treat, etc for a complete stranger.
18- Go to Lake Powell. Oh how I miss that slice of heaven on earth!
19- Read the Bible, Book of Mormon and D&C- cover to cover.
20- Attend a blogging conference.
21- Swim with a dolphin.
22- See a Broadway show on Broadway.
23- Attend the temple once a month, for 12 months straight.
24- Take ballroom dancing lessons with Eric. We've talked about this for years and Eric is totally on board! I think it would be a fun way to spice up our relationship!
25- Start playing piano again.
26- Try a macaron. I've never had one!
27- Give Mia a sibling. Maybe two. MAYBE.
28- Make a drastic change to my hair.
29- Do the splits. (I did ballet for years when I was young and never once mastered the splits. My body builds muscle, no problem, but flexibility is another story, so this may never happen, ha!)
30- Go BIG with my 30th birthday celebration. Amazing vacation, a big party with friends and family, etc. Just something big :)

Galentines/Valentines 2015

Toddler life... amiright?!

Since Eric had to work on Valentine's Day, I planned a fun little "galentine" date for Mia and I! We went out for pedicures, Mia's first time ever (where they just stuck paper between her toes and painted them, ha ha! But she LOVED it!) Mia won everyone over with how good she was (she sat perfectly still on my lap during my whole pedicure and just took in all the happenings at the salon) and blowing everyone kisses "goodbye", ha ha! We treated ourselves to a cake pop after! While we were totally missing daddy all day, our girl time was pretty perfect! So glad I had our little Valentine to celebrate with!

Eric was so good to us all week! He came home and surprised us with a treat each night (except that Mia totally expects it now! Saturday night she asked, "daddy? treat?" while we waited for him to get home from work. And yesterday morning she asked Eric for her 'prise, ha ha!) Mia got a balloon, tiny bear and lots of candy. He gave me a rose, chocolate and a card that is literally half the size of me, ha! We celebrated Valentine's Day as a family on Sunday and we couldn't wait to give Mia her gift (as if she didn't get enough from Eric already!) We got her How to Train a Dragon 2, because she is obsessed with the first movie! We also got her Just Like Mommy Cosmetics and she is completely obsessed!! I love my Valentines and love celebrating my love for them!

Friday, we're in LOVE

I couldn't help but do a little flashback Friday to our Valentine's babe last year (2014)... it seemed appropriate considering the fact that it IS Valentine's weekend :) Sometimes I think Mia has grown faster than I ever gave her permission for (ha!) and other times I think, "she's still my baby! She hasn't grown too much...." Then I see these photos from one year ago and almost fall off my chair. Goodness, she has grown and changed so much in one short year!

Eric works tomorrow (lame!) so we will be celebrating Valentine's a little later than everyone else... I mean, as much as we celebrate Valentine's Day. Basically we will be giving Mia her gift a little later ;) ha ha! But I do have a fun little "Galentine's" date planned for Mia and I, and I plan on ending the day by stuffing my face full of these homemade oreos. Get in mah belllllllay!
P.S. We aren't ones for celebrating Valentine's by going out on an extravagant, romantic date... in fact, even when Eric isn't working, we avoid going out because hangry + Valentine crowds don't mix ;) But I don't want to downplay Eric's sweet gestures. Even though he's been working like crazy, he has surprised his girls each night with a sweet little somethin' to make Valentine's week extra special for us! We are the luckiest to have him!
P.P.S. I haven't done a discount code in awhile and since I love love, I thought this would be the perfect weekend to offer you all 50% off any ad space! Be sure to enter the code "lovebug" to receive half off the ad of your choice!
We hope you all have the happiest Valentine's Day! Our little love bug loves you all!! :)

I mean, are you kidding me right now?! My heart just exploded!

you've got mail

Good news! Mia and I went to our first play date in our little community in Arizona! Through random coincidences, a girl found me through Instagram, recognized that we were in the same neighborhood, reached out and invited us to the park (on a day where a bunch of other mom's meet up)! I can't even explain how much I love social media!! Ha ha! It was just the outing Mia and I needed and I'm pretty positive we made the first of our friends in the neighborhood! Now before you go freaking out, grandparents... Eric knew all the details, plus I had my trusty, pink pepper spray :) We did our research beforehand to make sure we weren't walking into a group of axe murders and your granddaughter is safe and sound!

Shirt c/o Sally Sarah Designs (and yes, those are snow boots. In 80 degree weather.)

Another reason I love social media? Because even though we are in a new area and don't have any friends close by, we know we have friends from all over the country supporting us during this change! It's a bonus when my sweet blog friends invite us to participate in a fun Valentine exchange! I kind of dropped the ball and didn't realize I was supposed to send all of the kids a Valentine, so some kids will just get a really late surprise in the mail ;) Moving is not good on the brain! Anyway, Vanessa sent us the cutest goods that could not have come at a more perfect time! Mia loved ripping into our Valentines, ha ha! I received the CUTEST Kate Spade notebook that is the perfect size to have in my bag at all times! I'm so excited to carry that around and write down lists, blog ideas, etc. Basically anything I think of because I totally forget if I don't write it down (that's a new thing since getting pregnant with Mia. My brain is seriously fried!) and Mia loved playing with her sticky hand! Thank you SO much, Vanessa! Your gifts totally brightened our day! Check out what we got Jess and Sadie- and the rest of the girls in the exchange- Karra | Ashley | Erin | Tawnya | Erinn | Vanessa!

f u n k

Last week (and this week, if we're being honest) was rough for little Mia. She handled the actual move like a champ, but after being in our new home for a day or two, Mia started having a hard time. We had a good routine in Utah and we just turned her world upside down... the icing on the top was getting sick at the same time :( We set up her room first thing, decorations and everything, so that she could have her familiar space and know it's her safe place. Maybe it's helped? She's kept her exact sleeping schedule! But there's no doubt that she was still in a funk and having hard time. So one day last week, instead of turning on a show for her while I unpacked (which she never complained about, ha ha) I pulled out all of her little Valentine stuff I could find. We spent the afternoon reading sweet Valentine books, playing with window clings and just focusing on Mia. It was just what she needed! Since then, I've made sure to take a chunk out of our day to do "Mia things" and just focus on her. Forget the boxes, cleaning and decorating, forget the shopping, forget exercising, forget everything but Mia and what she needs to cheer her up that day!
I can't wait for this place to feel like home and I know that finding a new routine will help so much, but that will take us a little bit of time. So until then, thank heavens for the little things that are helping us each day!
Linking up with Jess.

'twas meant to be!

 Goodness, this quote is perfect for so many aspects of life!

So I've talked a lot about our move to Arizona for Eric's new job... but I never shared how it all came about. It's kind of a roller coaster of a story and I still have a hard time believing everything worked out the way it did! It's kind of a long story but I'll do my best to condense it because it really is fun to hear :)

One day Eric came home from work (just a couple weeks after starting his new job in Utah after his old company closed their doors) saying he received a phone call from Arizona. He'd never heard of the company and had no idea how he got their number. After he googled the company (and realized it was legit) he called them back the next day. He was invited down to interview but Eric asked for a phone interview on the spot "so that we don't waste each others time" ha ha. He wanted to discuss his expectations and the company's expectations before traveling all that way. Eric was totally (brutally) honest with his expectations and the man replied with "you are exactly what I've been looking for!" I mean, Eric's resume is impressive for his age, and I'm not biased or anything ;)
After agreeing to go down for an interview, Eric received a call a couple days later from the HR girl where they offered to fly him down... what?! We've never had a company offer to pay our way to interview! And what does Eric say? "Naw, I'll just drive!" Oh brother! The interview was set for Friday at noon. We were going to go down and make a weekend out of it, but decided at the last minute that he would go down and back in the same day because we had family coming into town for the weekend.
We assumed that Arizona was an hour behind Utah time, so if he left at 4:30am that would get him there with 45-60 minutes to spare. Eric got up at 4:00am and left around 4:20. Just after passing St. George, Utah you cross the Arizona state border for a few minutes, before entering Nevada. When he crossed into Arizona, Eric checked the time on his phone... and noticed THE TIME DIDN'T CHANGE! He called and told me the news and we were both totally kicking ourselves for not double checking time zones, HA! So now instead of having an hour to spare, there was no room for mistakes or Eric would miss his interview! (I also wanted to kick him for not accepting the flight, ha ha!) Of course the stress of time mixed with early morning Las Vegas traffic caused Eric to accidentally take the wrong exit, which made it even harder to back track through Vegas to get to the correct one. Mistake #1.
Eric made up time when he could but he had to stop for gas. Of course the credit card machine was broken at his pump, so he had to pre pay. He guessed too low so he had to stop for gas later down the road. Mistake #2.
At 11:40 he let me know he was 8 miles away from his destination. Hallelujah! Those were some stressful hours watching each minute tick by!
Around 12:20 Eric called me and I knew something was wrong. There was no way they had him travel hundreds of miles for a 20 minute interview. He told me that the HR girl (who was located in Colorado) had given him the "old" address, so he had been sitting at the wrong location! Luckily, this wasn't our fault! But the office manager informed him that they were going to have to reschedule because he would be so late, and it was a crazy day at work. WHAT? Eric informed her that he would absolutely not be able to reschedule considering he'd just driven hundreds of miles to be there. She made the connection of who he was and said that they would definitely make it work and gave him the address. But when he called me, he was driving on a dirt road that was so muddy he couldn't stop, or he would get stuck. Did I mention he was in the middle of nowhere and totally lost? (Still wanting to kick him for not flying down!) After being shut down when I asked why he didn't ask for directions (men!) I gave him a quick lesson on Siri (maps) on his brand new iPhone and we hung up. Mistake # 3. The stress was back, man! Eric called me back at 1:30pm letting me know he finally arrived. In case you forgot... his interview was at noon. He was an hour and a half late!
I just knew there was no way he was getting this job! What a waste of a day and a waste of my emotions, ha ha! I had totally convinced myself that this wasn't going to work out, too many obstacles! But Eric called me after his meeting feeling totally confident that he would be happy there, knowing he had landed the job even though we had to wait for an official offer via email.
Even after hearing how sure Eric was that it worked out, I was still totally shocked when Eric received his official offer and seeing all the incentives they gave Eric to pick up his family and move. They really did want him! Thank heavens everything else fell into place for our move so smoothly... my nerves wouldn't have been able to handle any more obstacles, ha ha!

In case you're wondering, we moved here at the craziest time for work so Eric is working a ton, but he is happy! So I'm happy! I'm anxiously awaiting things to calm down so that we can go explore and play and really soak up the fun Arizona has to offer though :)

currently

A million empty boxes is the perfect setting for hide and seek!

Loving: these stupid yogurts! Eric introduced them to me and of course I totally thought they were a waste of money and definitely not the healthiest (I make our own greek yogurt concoctions so I hate buying stuff like this when I could make it myself, and make it healthier) but then I tried one. And now I find myself cracking one open each night after Mia goes to bed. I guess this is cheaper and healthier than ice cream... maybe? ha ha!

Reading/Watching: lots of sweet Valentine books to Mia! I love love :)
Tangled, How to Train a Dragon and Frozen have been playing on repeat for the last week or so. I actually hate how much TV Mia's been watching (especially since she demands it now and throws major fits if I tell her no) but between trying to unpack while entertaining a sick little girl... shows just seemed like a good idea to give her down time. There will be lots more playing and outings once she's feeling better, and a lot less shows :)

Trying to: finish putting this house together. I'm pretty proud of how much I've unpacked already! The boxes that are left are the ones full of random crap that I'm avoiding... ha ha! I'll probably just stick them in storage! I still have lots to hang on the walls! Since this is a rental, we are just making stuff work instead of buying new furniture/decor to fill the space. But I'll definitely have to share pictures on the blog since I'm doing my best to make this "home" as long as we are renting!

Wishing: that my sick little family would get feeling better! I was so excited to move to warmer weather to hopefully avoid the sickness that comes with the cold... but I got sick the week of moving, Mia came down with a fever the day we moved to Arizona- turns out she caught my sore throat and passed it on to Eric. Yesterday marked 1 week and 1 day of Mia being sick, and spots in Eric's throat so off to Urgent Care we went! Poor Mia still had a sore throat so she and Eric were put on an antibiotic. Did I mention that our new insurance hasn't kicked in? That was one expensive sick day... but obviously worth every penny if it gets them better! #imissinsurance Oh, and I've picked up some type of head cold... awesome!

Excited for: a snowy weekend getaway this month! I'm super crushed that Eric won't be able to get away from work to come, but I'm excited for Mia to play in the snow (if there is snow?! Utah has been SO warm these past couple of weeks!) and spend time with family! She begs to wear her snow boots almost every day in Arizona, ha ha, so I'm excited for her to get some actual use out of them in the snow!

shades city

 Sunglasses c/o Firmoo.com (Yes, they are crooked, but she is too cool- I had to share!)

Can I just take a moment and share how glorious this 80 degree weather is in February?! EIGHTY degrees! We moved 6 days ago from a cold, rainy (which later turned to snow) Utah to a sunny, warm Arizona! There is a downside to this gorgeous weather though... bugs. Everywhere! Bees, fly's, etc... ugh! But I'll take living with the bugs over the snow, any day!
Thank heavens Firmoo.com had my back and I came to the sunny state prepared with a cute (and necessary) pair of sunglasses! I personally don't need a subscription but I love that Firmoo.com has got you covered whether you need a subscription or not! My only problem is keeping my sunglasses away from Mia... she loves them as much as I do!

insta-life

This sassy thang loves getting her haircut! She is my favorite client by far ;)

Little momma Mia brings her baby with every time we go outside! She is the cutest!

"While tucking Mia into bed tonight I told her, like I do each night, "I love you so much!" As I was closing her door I heard her soft, tiny voice reply, "I luh 'ou much" My momma heart exploded ! Oh how I love my little ragamuffin!" I had to record the first time Mia replied with an "I love you" without us asking her to repeat it!

 One super crappy, blurry selfie from our last date night in Utah! I hope we can find babysitters in Arizona asap... until then? The Redbox will be our best friend, ha ha!

Clearly my daughter was more concerned with her sucker than she was with smiling at the camera, bahaha! The hardest part of leaving Utah was saying goodbye to sweet friends and family!

Another one from my weekend in Vegas with the salon girls. 

Last family picture in Utah! Does it look like we packed a Uhaul and spent the rest of the day cleaning, or what?! Sheesh!

Eric's been busy at work and I've been busy at home (unpacking, bleh!) so we haven't had the chance to venture out and explore our new area/Phoenix... but when we do, you know I'll be posting on Instagram! Follow along @courtbrink to see what we're up to (or if you can't get enough of Mia on the blog, since that seems to be all I post about lately, HA!)

me + SIX kids

So, obviously we moved over the weekend.... but I haven't shared what we were doing the week leading up to moving! I'm not sure who had the harder week- me or Eric?
After spending the previous weekend visiting his family, Eric came home and packed up the whole house. Yep, the whole house! I think I packed one box, ha. He's a keeper ;)
After spending the previous weekend in Vegas, I stayed about an hour from home (while Eric packed up the whole house) babysitting 5 boys for the week. I do this every year and love it! It's been so fun to watch the boys grow, and it's even funner to watch them fall in love with Mia! They were so great about playing with her and she was completely obsessed with "the boys!" They taught her to wrestle (and beat them over the head with a plastic bat, great!!) and played football. Mia is obsessed with football now :) The crappy part is that I was sick all week, I didn't get much sleep, and I was trying to get everything in order for the move by phone and email. But I'm glad we had that week because Mia loved it! Friday morning I sent the boys to school, packed Mia and I up, drove an hour home, dropped Mia off with a friend then loaded the Uhaul with Eric. It was a crazy week/weekend!

Letsbehonest here.... Eric totally had the hardest job, ha ha! He is super husband and I appreciate him more than he'll ever know! Now if only I could line up a babysitting job just in time for our next move ;)

picture perfect {pt 3}

Mommy and Daddy were hugging and Mia wanted to join, ha ha!

Bow c/o Her Joyful Studio Dress c/o Angora Boutique

I know, I know!! Stop with the family pictures, already! I just love them so much, I can't help sharing! Mia is such a little ham and I love that her personality totally shines through in these photos! Love my little family!

Family pictures Part 1

Family pictures Part 2