Texas State Fair 2016

We packed up Charlie and Gracyn this morning and took them to the fair while Logan was in school. We wanted to bring Logan with us but we waited too long and had to go during the week instead of the weekend. Next year I think we will take him out of school one day to go because even on a Thursday the place was PACKED.

 This picture cracks me up because I took it right as the ride started and it jolted him backwards.

September 2016

We had so much family come and stay with us this month, It was awesome! Of course we took them to some of our favorite places, including the Heard Natural Science Museum. I love that place! 

Anyways, here is a little overview of our month! 

Cranky Kids, Baths, and Target, Oh My!

I took the kids (2 out of 3) to Target solo for the second time since having Gracyn. This time went MUCH smoother than the first. I did speed my way through the store to avoid any toddler melt downs, but it also kept me from buying all of the cute fall decorations. 

Seriously, it's all so stinking cute. 

I had planned on doing a lot more today but sometimes cranky kids have their own ideas. I think having a successful Target trip solo with two toddlers still counts as winning. 

Also, after styling Charlies hair today it's not as bad as I initially thought. It still needs to be fixed but I don't think I will be judged when I bring him out in public. 

Right? Maybe?!

   

Time For a Haircut

To botch or not to botch, that is the question...

House Tour

We spent the day organizing and cleaning out a good chuck of the house! I made sure to get a fun little house tour video in so that I can remember what it looked like before we started all of our projects. The video doesn't include the kids rooms or Andrew's office/guest room. Those rooms are storing the bulk of our boxes that still need to be unpacked. I will make sure to get a before picture of those rooms before I do a fun little video of the process of decorating them.

We are planning on tackling our living room and kitchen area first. In the kitchen we are going to add new back-splash tile (subway, of course) and new lighting. The living room will be getting wainscoting (all the way to the front door), a chalkboard somewhere, and lots of fun things hanging on the wall and over the fireplace. I will, of course, be showing you everything once we finish it! 

Now for the before tour! 

You may be asking yourself, "Did she start a YouTube channel?!" The answer is, yes, yes I did. I love this here blog but i'm not the greatest writer, so I think the videos will be a good way for me to document our life. Since the whole point of this is to create memories for our family. 

It should be noted that I am not loving my YouTube debut. But it's there, should you choose to watch it. I plan on doing much less talking in future videos. Like maybe none, we shall see. 

     

Gracyn's First Birthday

I always have plans to throw an elaborate birthday party for my kids. Not one time has that ever happened.

We do always have a great time though and Gracyn's first birthday was no exception. We kept it simple and ate donuts and let the kids play in the kiddie pool in the backyard. 

Some of my favorite birthday memories were made with just a few close friends and family not doing anything fancy. I smile thinking about our kids having those same kind of memories. 

Happy first birthday to our one and only baby girl. This year flew by at lightning speed but it has been so fun watching you grow. 

Updated: I FINALLY figured out how to add this stinkin' video on here. Whew....

I made this after taking a Skillshare class on how to take fancy videos using your iphone. Not the offical title, of course. I am looking forward perfecting this skill and making many more videos for our family to treasure forever. 

Spring Vibes

Just a few snaps from this weekend. It was full of beautiful weather and time spent outdoors, but apparently I got zero outdoor pictures. Whoops. It happened, promise. 

I bought her this hat before she was born and have been impatiently waiting for this spring so she can wear it. It has not been a disappointment. 

This boy, such a nut. I love these pictures so much. It is so hard to get a good picture of him these days. 

Just a little slime time. Logan won a barrel of slime at the arcade for his birthday, the boys have a love hate relationship with it. 

To Pack Or To Pinterest, That Is The Question

Six weeks left until we move, that's it. I should be running around the house packing everything in sight. Instead, I sit around looking at Pinterest and dream about decorating our soon to be home. The struggle.

Here are just a few of my favorites as of late. 

I am loving the pantry in this house. Ours isn't going to be nearly as fancy 

but I really like the combination of white, glass jars, and baskets.

Our cabinets are going to be darker but this kitchen is beautiful. I am a big fan of open shelving.

I am digging this bed frame for when we upgrade to a king. Hallelujah.  

 This couch. In all of the colors.  

Hey There World, We're The Shrums

This blog has been a place for me to randomly share my thoughts, mostly as a creative outlet. I have always wanted be more organized with this space but it wasn't until recently that I fully realized my vision for what I wanted it to be: A place for me to journal about our life as a family and to connect with other moms. I guess I always knew the basic vision but for some reason I just couldn't get my act together. I had a difficult time narrowing down my ideas and deciding how I wanted to run a blog. It took some time (years really) but I am ready for this little blog to be what I have always dreamed of. 

All that being said, I guess a more formal introduction of our family is in order. Hey there, I'm Courtney! I am a 26 year old mom of three little ones. I love crafting and have about a million ideas floating around in my head at all times. I have an etsy shop (currently on vacation) I will link that to the blog soon. I sell headbands and have big dreams of what my shop could one day become. I love photography, with my kids being my favorite subject, of course. I am married to a great guy named Andrew who I am happy to call my best friend, a true partner in crime (without the crime). We started dating at the end of eighth grade (so crazy) and tied the knot in our sophomore year of college. People thought we were crazy (so young) but we had been dating for six years at that point and we knew that if we weren't sick of each other yet it was a safe bet we could spend the rest of our lives together. It was the easiest and best decision I have ever made. Fast forward six more years and we now have three kids who we love to pieces. 

Logan is our oldest and he just had his fifth birthday last weekend. If you are paying attention to the timeline, yes, he was a surprise baby. I found out I was pregnant just four short months after we got married. We were excited but it also changed our plans big time and that was scary, but I will talk about that in another post, back to our boy. His favorite thing to play with is a hanger (like the kind you hang clothing on) and I still can't figure out why, it's hilarious. He's got a great imagination and it so fun to see him use it. He is such an amazing big brother, he always tries to include his siblings in what he is doing and is so forgiving when they mess up. 

Charlie is our middle guy, he is a determined and stubborn two year old. He loves being the center of attention and making his siblings laugh. His favorite thing to play with is whatever somebody else is playing with, such a trouble maker. He is impossibly cute and the snuggliest of all our babies. 

Gracyn is the baby and Logan has lovingly nicknamed her "little cutie". She is nine months old and has recently figured out the joy of crawling. Her favorite thing to do is (unknowingly) annoy Charlie by following him wherever he goes. She still doesn't sleep all night and she will let you know when she doesn't like something with the most wretched screech in all the land. I love seeing her personality come out a little at a time and I really look forward to figuring out more about her. She's pretty awesome. 

So, that's a little bit about us. We are just your normal, everyday family. We are far from perfect but we strive to be better everyday. I look forward to sharing our adventures with you guys! 

  

New Years Resolutions, Too Late?

Yes, I realize it's February. I apologize.

I just wanted to share them here and recommit to completing them, or at least trying my best!

1) Move to Texas (not so much a resolution but I know I can complete it so on the list it goes!) 

2) Sell 20 items (I recently started an etsy and am hoping this is an easy goal to reach. 1 down 19 to go.) 

3) Only go on Facebook on Saturdays (I have cut back on the book but I still have withdrawals. All the more reason to cut back more!) 

4) Blog more (I love this space!) 

5) Get organized (with everything)

6) Stick to a chore chart (because I hate cleaning but love lists)

7) Play more games with the kids (they love board games! It may be a huge pain with a toddler and a baby but we are really craving more variety in our day) 

8) Go outside more ( Again the kids love it and it's not like I don't like it, it just takes FOREVER to get everyone ready. It's a bad excuse, so I'm going to make more of an effort.) 

9) Daily bible reading (I have actually been doing okay at this one but have skipped some days)

10) Eat healthy and Workout (yeah...moving stress has me eating all sorts of bad things. I am vowing right now, after our groceries get delivered tomorrow, I will eat healthier!) 

Did you make resolutions this year? How are you doing with them? I would love to hear about it! 

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A House Elf Would Be Nice

Cleaning and having a dirty house are two things that I despise. 

It's unfortunate, I know. 

I feel like I am constantly bouncing between cleaning so that I stop feeling sorry for myself (I hate living in a dump, why can't I have a house elf) and refusing to clean so I can do "more important things"  (reading Goodnight Moon for the millionth time).

It's been a real struggle for me to find my rhythm. I have always hated cleaning but with each baby we add it gets more difficult to figure out a good schedule. I feel like if I do all the important things I will never have time to do anything for myself (to regain my sanity). I know that this is temporary. As our kids get older I can see that it gets easier to get into a good schedule. For now I will try my best everyday until the day where I no longer feel like I am drowning in to do lists. 

Now I better stop procrastinating and start another load of laundry. 

Even A Homebody Has Limits

We have been sick. ALL MONTH.

I mean, I'm a homebody but being stuck at home for going on three weeks is seriously getting to me! Last night we snuck off to the park and pretended we weren't sick just to get out of the house. 

Luckily, we were the only ones there, so I don't feel too guilty about it. 

I am so over blowing my nose, coughing, and sleeping even less than normal getting up with a sick baby. So over it. 

On the flip side, we are in the process of getting a house! So I guess I can't complain too much. Hopefully we will know this week! It's new construction that has already been started and will be finished in April sometime. I can hardly wait to own a house again! 

Time to DECORATE!

 Almost. 

Our rental is nice and is the perfect size for our family. The yellow walls though....those are super depressing. Which is why the majority of pictures I take these days are black and white.

See, hideous. 

I would update you on my weight loss but that hasn't really happened yet. 

Next time! 

(You can see my last post for an unflattering before picture.)