Mothers Prayer!

This morning as I was on the computer browsing, I came across a poem called "mothers prayer". It was so simple, sweet, and true!!

Mother's Prayer

Dear Lord, it's such a hectic day, With little time to stop and pray, For life's been anything but calm, Since you called on me to be a mom. Running errands, matching socks, Building dreams with building blocks. Cooking, cleaning, and finding shoes, And other stuff that children lose. Fitting lids on bottled bugs, Wiping tears and giving hugs. A stack of last week's mail to read, So where's the quiet time I need? Yet when I steal a minute Lord, Just at the sink or ironing board, To ask the blessings of your grace, I see then in my small one's face, That you have blessed me all the while, As I stop to kiss that precious smile. ...Author Unknown This poem completely describes my life. Although crazy, hectic, and sometimes stressful....I wouldn't change anything and love that I have been Blessed with three amazing, loving kids who make me smile.

Mommy's Little Artists!

This year, the kids have started bringing home more and more crafts, pictures, art work, etc. Each time Nathan would bring home a new picture from school, or Lindsey would color a picture at church, I never knew what to do with it. I felt guilty throwing it away, yet....lets be honest, who really wants a stack of 100's of pictures, hehe! Josh and I decided to get a big bulletin board and hang it upstairs in our loft. That way, the kids could see it each day, I would be able to enjoy it, and nothing gets pitched. As the board gets more and more full, I have the kids tell me what they want taken down, what they want to keep, etc. So far, its been quite "themed" due to projects they do for Halloween/Fall etc.

I get the joy of enjoying their artwork each day and every time I look at it, I remember how much I love my little artists'. Priceless artwork that makes me one proud mama!!!

Carving pumpkins!!

Last night, Josh, Nathan, Lindsey, and I carved pumpkins. The kids actually really enjoyed it and Nathan helped design his pumpkin. He drew a smiley face, I carved it. It was quite cute and he loved it!! I ended up cooking some pumpkin seeds because although Josh and I dont like them, the kids wanted to try them. Surprisingly, the kids LOVED them....I put them in a bowl and next thing I know, they were gone. It was really cute and they called the seeds "chips" haha!! Josh carved two pumpkins, I did one big one, and then helped the kids with theirs. During the carving, we made cookies as well, yum yum!! All in all, it was a ton of fun and a great way to end our fun weekend!!!

Adventures at the park!

Yesterday, the weather was GORGEOUS!!! It was around 70 and sunny, blue skies, and no clouds!!!! The kids and I loaded up and headed to the neighborhood park with our neighbor and her kids!! We let the kids play, and then eat some lunch. It was tons of fun for both the kids, and us moms (we need mama social time too)!! After the park and naps, we headed back outside for the remainder of the afternoon, I was on a mission to be outside as much as possible since we are getting ready to head into gloomy, dark, rainy season!!! All in all, it was a wonderful day and the kids were all worn out by the evening!!

Pumpkin Farm fun!

Yesterday, Grammy, Pop Pop, Michael (my cousin), Olivia (his wife), Nixon (their son), and us went to the pumpkin farm. It was so much fun and we all had a GREAT time. We started off by braving the corn maze, never knew how "scary" those could be when you realize how lost you really can get in there. Next, we took a small break for some yummy homemade donuts. Then we all headed to the field to pick out pumpkins/go on the hayride....and then of course, we ended with the kids going on a tractor train and playing in the kid area with bubbles. It was a ton of fun and great way to wear the kids out!! Have I mentioned how much I love Fall and the pumpkin farm?? LOVE LOVE LOVE it!!!

Halloween is creeping up on us.......

So, as many of you already know, Halloween is a holiday in the Hayes family that cannot be missed!! Josh especially gets all excited for the day and decorates the house, wears a scary costume, enjoys scaring innocent children as they go to grab candy, etc. This weekend will be the "decorating party" for the house, but to get us in the Halloween spirit, we put the kids in their Halloween shirts! They look so cute and get so excited for their holiday shirt. Last year, Nathan had spiders on his and loved it, once Halloween is over, it turns into a pj shirt, hehe!! Anyhow, below are pics of their Halloween shirts for this year.....too cute!!! I love these little goblins!!!

Yes, his shirt says "will trade sister for candy"....so true as he totally would :  )

Its a goblin on his shirt, so cute, unfortunately, he doesnt quite know that when mommy aims camera at you, you must pose.....he is still in training!!

So cute!!!! :  )

Our little American Idol.....

So, Lindsey now loves to sing. Luckily, we listen to Veggie Tales in the car, so she goes around singing those songs, but she also picked up on a few of my "mommy music" and it is kind of cute. One of the chorus' in a song I listen to is her favorite. Hopefully you guys know the song, if not, just listening to her sing the song is quite cute anyways haha!!!

Enjoy and happy Monday!!!

Princess Party

Last night, we all celebrated Lindseys birthday. She had so much fun and really enjoyed her "princess" theme!! She got all kinds of great gifts and showed us all how much she truly is a girly girl. She had to dress up in all her princess clothes, shoes, and purse....and then play "mommy" with all her new baby doll equipment!! After playtime, we all ate some yummy princess cake, and then of course, went back to playing!! All in all, she had a wonderful birthday celebration, got some awesome gifts, and had tons of fun!!!! I cant believe she is already three, growing up so fast!!! Thanks Pop Pop and Grammy for helping us celebrate and making her celebration special!!!

Happy 3rd Birthday Lindsey!!!

So, today is the day my little sweetie turns 3!!! I cannot believe how big she is getting and how fast time really is flying by!! I remember the day she was born like it was yesterday, even down to the weather, etc.!! She came out and when the nurse brought her in to us, I remember her saying "so you are the mom of the screamer". I had no idea what the nurse was referring to, until Lindsey started crying....or should I say...screaming!! Wow!!! Ever since that moment, Lindsey has definitely made her presence known, and I love her for that!! Never a quiet, dull moment with her!! Happy birthday to my little princess!!!!

The day she was born!!!

Lindsey at one!!

Lindsey at two!!!

Lindsey at three!!

Scrub a dub dub

So, last night I had a dentist appt. Josh watched the kids, fed them, and bathed them.....what a great daddy!!! When I got home, I went upstairs to find all three kids lined up in the tub having a great time. It was SO CUTE!!! We have had two at a time, but never three, so seeing them all in there was quite comical. I took a few pics, only one is suitable to publish.....its turned out kind of red, but you can get the idea of how adorable they were in there!!! Good job daddy....looks like mommy needs to get out more so you can have fun with the three little ones, hehe!!!!

Nathans first field trip!

This morning, Grammy, Nathan, Lindsey, Caleb, and I all went along with Nathan's school to a local pumpkin farm. Although it was raining, we all had a good time. Lindsey and Nathan had so much fun petting the animals, jumping on hay piles, going down tube slides, playing in corn, picking out a pumpkin, and going for a tractor hay ride. They were able to pick out a pumpkin and bring it home. It was neat being able to watch Nathan interact with his classmates and it was hilarious watching Lindsey, our social butterfly, jumping right in with all the students and playing with them!!

It was a perfect way to start our Monday!!!

I wanted to take more pics but between the rain, three kids, kids everywhere, etc....I didnt have much opportunity. Sorry!!

First fire of the season!!!

So, this weekend has been quite relaxing and fun! After working in the yard yesterday and running errands, my mom came over. We all went out to Red Robin for dinner (which was SO much fun) and when we got home, the kids went to bed. Us adults went outside and had a fire in the firepit and then roasted s'mores. It was the first fire of the season, so of course s'mores cannot be left out!! It was a wonderful evening and quite relaxing!!!

We are now looking forward to many more fires as the season of Fall starts!!! Woo hoo!!!!