A Birthday// Antelope Island

Well, I turned 27 on Monday.  I'm hoping the reason I still feel like I'm 19 after all these years simply means I'm young at heart. I've been reflecting over this past year and I can honestly say I have no complaints, except perhaps that I'm still rocking the same hairstyle since about 7th grade. Some things never change, but this year I plan on making lots of changes (probably not my hair), but I'm hoping those things reveal themselves over time because I'm not feeling a long blog post tonight!

Today we spent the day at Antelope Island, walked a few trails, had a picnic and enjoyed being together. It was so nice to get out of the valley and see something different for awhile. It had been YEARS since I've been to this place and it was so much better then I remember, a pleasant surprise. I'm blessed, and happy, and progressing with the people I love most by my side. Happy Birthday to me ;)

Real Talk// Happy Things

"When do you relax, breathe, and enjoy your life the most?". Someone I follow on FB and Instragram posted this question and it really made me think. The last few weeks have been a little chaotic for me. In between bouts of being sick with Violet, family things, and seasonal depression enjoying life has been something I've really had to manage and really think about. But there are several things that always lift my spirit no matter how bad the blues get.

1. Inspiring talks from LDS leaders. I read one today called "Living The Abundant Life" by President Thomas S. Monson. It's from the January 2012 Ensign (a publication put out by the LDS church). Some of the things it focuses on are having a positive attitude, believing in yourself and facing challenges with courage. Real talk, I needed the encouragement today. Okay okay, I need a pick me up MOST days.

2. Pillow talk with Cristian. I'm not sure how pillow talk goes for others out there, but it doesn't really matter what Cristian and I talk about it, it's more the togetherness that really soothes my soul. We laugh, and reminisce, and dream about the future and I just love it.

3. Nap time with Violet. She is a ball of happy energy and has me going, going, going all day long. She's growing up so quickly and testing boundaries, and learning her limitations, and trying to assert whatever independence a 2 year old can have. Nap time is when she snuggles up under my arm, rests her head on my shoulder with her arm wrapped around my neck and slips quietly back into my baby. Her heavy breathing, and drooling onto my shirt are 2 of my most favorite things ever. I love watching her wake up. She's a little heater, so she perspires while she sleeps and wakes up with beautiful little ringlets surrounding her face. I am savoring those moments while we still have them daily. I know one day nap time will be a thing of the past.

4. Being outside. I mean is there anything better to really clear your head then spending time in the woods, up in the mountain, in a grassy field, or walking along a beach. Just being somewhere bigger then myself, for some reason, really brings me comfort and helps me but things into a better perspective.

5. Exercising. Exercise is a great stress reliever, but it's also a stress in itself. I must say though, my endurance has been building up and there are moments while I'm running and I capture a taste of how my old body used to feel on a long jog. It's exciting. I can feel pre-pregnant Chelsea slowly resurfacing and it feels so good. Weights has also been making a HUGE difference. I don't know why lifting weights and doing circuit training with kettle bells and dumb bells makes me feel like superwoman, but I'm really enjoying it.

6. Creating. Especially something new. Terrariums this last week have been so much fun, and it's also something I can enjoy with Violet. It's nice having more plants in the house. I don't know, our home feels brighter, cleaner, and anything that makes the inside of our home, feel like outside, is tops in my book. I also started a Vision Board, and it's been a really great motivator and reminder for all the things I'm trying to improve on in life.

7. Traveling. I wish this one was easier to accomplish with my family right now. Being in a different place other then I'm used to humbles me, and again with the perspective thing. I have a hard time going out of my comfort zone in day to day situations, but travel is something I am more then willing to just THROW myself into. Give me a plane ticket and I'll go anywhere, risks and all, and I'll thrive.

8. Writing. What a great way to get the things stirring around in your mind, out. I always feel better after a nice long journal entry.

9.  Painting my nails. This one is weird. Cristian bought me nail tools for Christmas last year and I am so surprised by how much fun I've been having trying out different designs. I've never really been into doing my nails. But I've found it to be really therapeutic for me, and I find myself wanting to do something different with my nails every couple of days. And I guess this ties in with my "creating" point.

10. Eating dinner with my family. Getting together at the end of the day with my favorite people is the best, add a yummy healthy dinner and not much can make me happier then that. Family dinners were something I always had growing up, but not something Cristian was used to when we were married. I'm glad it's become one of his favorite things to. We sit down, electronics off, and eat and talk about the day. 

These are the times when I relax, breathe, and enjoy my life the most.

A Short Story By Me// "The Mix-Up"

The first few times I beat the rap.. The attacks came within fingerbreadths of contact, and pulsed in erratic waves. Each clumsy motion afforded me a warning gust of wind, making a few wallops easy to evade. This was difficult for me to believe; being pendulous was sure to pose as a disadvantage at some point.

 I was right.

As the cheering began to crescendo I was clipped hard on the right side, but thankfully I didn't suspect anything of breaking. The slug sent me spinning, and squaring with my foe was nearly impossible. I was approaching balance when I took another hit to back.

This one hurt.

 I felt the small of my back begin to give way and more dizziness ensued. The chanting was still climbing in volume and I think I finally began to realize the severity of my situation. At some point, if I couldn't figure a way to get out of this riot, I was going to die. And they would be happy.  This is what they ultimately wanted. I could feel it.

As soon as these thoughts dispersed and I attempted to zero in on my assailant I took the final hit. I felt my head cave and then burst apart by the impact. As I fell to the ground my final sensation was of my brain, broken wide open and all the hidden and undiscovered places inside exposed and scattered across the ground.

Losing my mind this way was a peak of experiences.
I suppose it was bound to happen however

After all, he had a bat, and I was only a piñata.

Snippets//What Winter Looks Like

The other day out at my parents house, my mom (or someone) dug this out of some box. My grandmother made these fox hats, long long before "What Does The Fox Say?" became famous. Violet's been loving this little thing, and I'm still baffled it's still around. I remember wearing these and playing pretend when I was little. It's so fun to see her enjoy some of the things I enjoyed when I was younger. And I mean, come on, have you ever seen a more precious little fox? Didn't think so.

 



Look at that upper body strength! Right? We work out together in the morning. And when I say "we" I mean I do some strength circuit training with weights while Vi tries to mimic my moves and frequently comes up with her own. That is a nice inclined plank though, and in her princess jammies no less!

 



I keep mentioning this, and thinking about it, and talking about it, and dreaming about it but we really need to find a house with a yard so we can have all the animals! We're lucky there are 3 in the family we can consistently spend time with. Tahoe, Jack and Piper are so good with her and I'm pretty sure all the birds, rats, lizards, snakes, fish, hermit crabs and cats from PetSmart recognize this little animal lover. In this photo she is dropping bits of dog food in the water dish and Piper is enjoying munching on the soggy nibbies.

 



Terrariums. I think these are a thing in our house now. I've been wanting to put one together for a really long time and finally started looking into the basics. Thank you Pinterest. The other day I just really needed something creative to do, so we drove around and acquired all the materials: Rocks, activated charcoal (which you can find at the pet store believe it or not), potting soil, we picked up some moss, tried looking for some ferns but most places had just barely put in orders for ferns, and some colored sand. We also ended up getting a cute little sheep as per request from Violet. Violet really enjoyed this, and I would recommend it to anyone with or without kids. So easy, and the end result is so beautiful and fun.

 



We enjoyed it so much we put together another one and got a little bit more creative with accessories and found some really cool glassy crystal rocks, and used some blooming cacti. We'll probably do more, and I'll keep researching plants and maybe come up with a sweet landscape terrarium, or an underwater one. The possibilities are endless but it's nice to have found something I really enjoy doing, will add some character to our home, and keeps Violet excited and happy as well.

 



I just think this one is so beautiful, it deserved another photo.

 



This is our favorite solution (as of recently) to late night cravings over here as Cristian and I are still being consistent with creating healthier eating habits. Cucumber, grape tomatoes, salt, pepper, cottage cheese. The other day we did a similar one which was equally healthy and delicious. Cucumber, grape tomatoes, avacado, salt, pepper, and feta cheese. YUM.

 



This photo is out of order, but obviously it's Violet helping me with terrariums. She really is the best little helper, and was so patient with me while we rode around all day trying to find the materials to build these. I'm a lucky mom and wife I tell you!

She is growing, growing, growing. She's doing things I didn't even know she could do. Things I haven't taught her and it's truly amazing to watch. She put together a puzzle a few weeks ago by herself, perfectly, and I was shocked. Then I bought these magnets and every day she sorts them differently. She knows the letters, and sorts all the colors into perfectly straight lines. I'll glance at the fridge from time to time and it's always something clever and different. She had 4 perfect squares the other day, each one a different solid color, and as you can see she is putting them into squares here. She does this with other things too, things always in perfect lines or squares, and for the most part color coordinated. She had the letters and the numbers separated yesterday and it just blows my mind. Smartie pants alert!

This has become a favorite past time out at Grandma and Pa's house, juicing oranges! What more could a little girl want! And it's delicious. I'm all about delicious. Bah, we're in love with her.

 

 

Noteworthy quotes from Violet (I think I'll make this a thing):

 

"Daddy, get out of my griiiiiilllll!"

"Mama, I need more blurp on my toobrush" ("Blurp" is toothpaste, I don't know why)

"Hey Violet, guess what?" "What daddy?" "CHICKEN BUTT!" "No daddy! That's not funny!"

"Mama?" "Yes babe?" "I should eat the cookies huh mama!?"

"I have a booooootay"...."Yes, yes you do child" "I got it from Daddy" "Yes, that's true too"

 

 

Till next time :)

 

 





Sunday

I didn't know I liked _______ before I was married and caring for my own family:

1. blueberries
2. brusells sprouts
3. baked green beans
4. spaghetti squash
5. sweet potatoes

I didn't know I DIDN'T like _______ before I was married and caring for my own family:

1. kale. I hate kale. It is so gross and the texture makes me want to die.
2. cereal. with the exception of oatmeal. I would much rather have some kind of smoothie, fruit with yogurt, eggs, porridge. I would even prefer a salad to cereal for breakfast.
3. store bought bread. I started making bread and there is just no turning back now.
4. quinoa. I just don't get it, I will continue to check out other types of grain-like things but quinoa..you are NOT for me.
5. mangos. mangos are disgusting.


Tonight while Violet was in the tub, Cristian and I were sitting down on the bathroom floor just talking. He said we should go back and forth and name 5 things we really love about each other and Violet. I don't know why this idea came to his head, but I think we needed to have this little moment as a family. Some big things have happened to my little family these last couple of weeks that have been stressful, painful, and difficult to maneuver through. I won't go into any detail here, but both Cristian and I have been getting little to no sleep and the stress over how to handle this current trial we are going through has been overwhelming. I think we've both been walking around in a tense-filled daze just trying to figure out how to handle things by ourselves and as best friends and husband and wife.

So we did this little exercise and held each other a little closer and a little longer.
I'm so grateful for Cristian. That I can tell him anything and everything, that he's such a hard worker, that he cares for and loves Violet and myself so much. The last couple weeks he's been my rock ( he always is, but this called for another step up), and I hope I've been able to step up things for him also.

This was needed.
And I love him and Violet so much.
Happy Sunday!