Welcome to my world, people....

I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!

I know....I know....I haven't written in this blog for eight months.  I'm so sorry....I've been a bit busy with two kids under three and all.  A lot of people have asked me to get going again, and so here I am!  I have been wanting to start writing again--really, I have, but I just haven't had the time to sit down.  I had Parker, we moved into a new house, my daughter is at the height of her crazy tornado energy.....

Okay...enough of the excuses.   I promise that I won't leave you again.  Big hugs.

I also know that I will kick myself if I don't keep documenting these stages.  There are way too many crazy things that happen when you have an infant and a toddler at the same time.  Oh, the nuttiness that is my existence.
I have to say, I'm pretty excited about documenting this stage of life. It's funny. It's messy. It's BEAUTIFUL (Life....not me....I'm a hot mess). So, let's get started with some background information again just in case you are new to joining this blog.

Here is a picture of my husband and me from around the time we were married.


Look at that. Look how cute we were. For goodness sakes, it looks like the picture that comes with the frame. I miss being tan. I miss being toned. I miss having the skin on my stomach stretch tightly from one side of my frame to the other and my butt not looking like bread dough after you stick your fingers in it. But hey, I just had my second baby eight months ago. I'm working on it.

So....even though THIS is how I feel.....

THIS is how I look...

I digress.

My husband and I will be married five years this summer. I love him more now than I did then. I still love him even though he is always in much better shape than I am.....even though he can decide that he wants to lose five pounds and do so by walking to the mailbox.....even though he is ALWAYS tan and gets a shade darker every time he walks outside to get something out of the car. He thinks that it is fair because he is losing some hair now. I don't think so. For him to look the same as five years ago, he has to throw on a hat and call it a day. For me to look the same as five years ago, I would require some Botox, liposuction, lots of self tanner, way too many Pilates classes and some duct tape.

You know why I can smile when I say that, though? Because Eric still makes me feel beautiful. After two kids, that's a tough feat, and he somehow is still able to do it at times when I really need it. I know.....awwwwwww. You can't have him. He's mine. Especially when he rocks this look like on Halloween last week.

That's right.  Step in line, ladies.....

Seriously, though....almost five years ago, I left everything and everyone I knew and loved to move states away and start a new life with Eric. I can't imagine doing that with anyone else. He's my rock--my strong, supportive, and nuttier-than-squirrel-poop rock that I love with my whole heart.

How's that for a Hallmark moment?

Okay....on to my children.

This is Ava:

This little girl is 28 pounds of all things hilarious right now. I can pretty much guarantee that many of my blog posts for awhile will be about something ridiculous that she said or did. It's one of the reasons that I'm starting this blog. She is constantly saying things that make me think, Oh, wow....I HAVE to write that down. Just last month, she was laughing hysterically in Wal-mart and loudly proclaimed in the canned foods aisle that it was because she had "so many toots in her bah-wum (bottom)." Yesterday, I was walking down the stairs with my son in my arms, and Ava told me to "Be careful with Parker, mommy. Don't break him into pieces."

Awesome.

I look at her, and I wonder what I did that made me worthy enough for God to entrust this little fiery ball of sunshine to me. I will always be fiercely in love with her.  She made me a mother.

On to my new little man, Parker:
He is the most smush-tastic little being on the planet. He turns eight months old tomorrow, so I don't have any funny "Parker-isms" from him yet, but he is just as impressive. He can sit up. He can sound like a pterodactyl when he squeals. He can fill a diaper with a matter that will curl your nose hairs and hurt your feelings all at the same time. The boy is talented.

In five short years, I went from a single, high school English teacher in Kansas to a married stay-at-home mother of both a daughter and a son in Arizona. Wowzers..... I still shake my head at how much life can change in a blink of an eye.

We even have two dogs: Kona, a nine year old boxer who is definitely ADHD and has occasional bladder control issues, and Gidget, a fifteen year old pomeranian who is almost blind and deaf, only has two teeth left, and can't seem to find the dog door anymore. We love them both so much as well....even when Kona barks and wakes up the kids or when Gidget runs into a wall because--well, that's just what she does now.

I know that this post was a lengthy one, but I figured that I should get the introductions out. I want these blog entries to be our "slice of life" to the outside. Some will be funny; some probably will not. I can say, though, that all will be the honest life-journey moments that we are experiencing at the time we experience them.

Enjoy living with the Lawrences. It's sure to be a wild ride!