checking in

Life has been extra busy, filled with extra good things... We had a blast in California, visiting Disneyland, the beach, Sea World, and hitting up a baseball game somewhere in between. I turned 29 on the 25th and was spoiled by my sister who brought me lunch and then shoved me out the door to go shopping while she watched the girls (I know, right?), and by my husband who came home from work early and took me out on a date until late. He also surprised me with a Kindle. I love a good book so I am excited to try it out. As for the girls, they are keeping busy eating their weight in watermelon and wearing in their swimsuits.

But, the extras don't stop there... This weekend is our annual Girl's Weekend my mom puts on, so the girls and I are hitting the road once more! I spent the majority of today cleaning the house and car, and doing laundry after being gone last week, so it is crazy it's already time to pack again. At least this time I will come home to a tidied up house :)

More photos to come... thanks for sticking around while I am out.

Has summer been keeping you extra busy too?

{{p.s. the SALE is still on}}

our ballerina

The Little Miss ended her first year of dance a few weeks ago. She loved it and is already asking me when she can start going again. It was definitely one of the highlights of my week helping her pick out an outfit, putting her curls up in a top knot, and then watching her concentrate as she proudly put on her ballet flats all by herself.

If you follow me on Instagram (stacyhartsew) then you probably saw my weekly ballerina series which I've (mostly) rounded up here. We usually stopped on our way out the door before class and LM would humor me and strike a pose. I'm so happy I took these pictures since, at least to me, they show how much she grew both physically and technically throughout the year. Her first day of class was the picture just below on the right (pink leotard, blue bow) - compare that to the last picture which was taken after her recital almost nine months later and you can really see how much she matured.

We are so proud of our little ballerina! She got up on that big stage in front of everyone and danced every step with a big smile on her face - I may be biased, but I think she was the best one :) We have a natural born performer on our hands and I hope to give her many more opportunities to shine, as long as she wants them.

Year one, check.

lately

Well, the week I said was starting out pretty great quickly took a turn for the worse and in fact was pretty darn miserable. I got realllly sick and Lark apparently decided since mama was down for the count it would be a stellar time to cut four new teeth, including molars - we were just trying to get through each day without too many tears. Although I do have to say, I was SO thankful to have some amazing friends and family step up and get LM out of the house on play dates and park adventures for me. It is so wonderful to have a loving support system to call on.

Once we were all finally feeling back to normal I couldn't bring myself to sit at the computer when I could be outside! Breathing through my nose and swallowing without my throat punching itself! And, somehow two weeks passed since I'd dropped in here...whoops. In order to get myself back into the swing of things, here are some photos of life lately - minus the stint when we were sleeping and crying more than usual, drinking gallons of honey-laced tea, and creating big piles of tissues.

 I suppose we haven't had too bad a start to summer :)

mother's day

I know I am late to the party, but happy Mother's Day to all of you lovely ladies! This was my early morning view and I don't think I could have had a better one. These two girls make me feel so lucky to call myself their mother.

There was no sleeping in or breakfast in bed since Husband was out of town all weekend (I had similar feelings as last year - reading that post again was good for me). But, at the end of the day I felt loved and that is all that matters, after all.




Although, next year I wouldn't mind a good sleeping in...

moon gazing

This weekend was pretty magical. Husband and I got to celebrate our five year anniversary spending two glorious days sans kids, relaxing, talking without being interrupted, and eating so. much. delicious. food. Apparently, we like to celebrate milestones by stuffing our faces guilt-free and I am perfectly okay with it. We did visit the resort gym as well so at least some calories were combated, and I'm sure we also sweat some out in the sauna where it got a little, well, steamy... ha...

After brunch on Saturday (and a stop at the bakery we happened to pass by) we picked up the girls from my mom's house and found out LM woke up not feeling well that morning. She slept most of the day and with Lark still napping it was actually a nice way to ease back into parental responsibilities again. After resting all day, however, LM was wide awake later that night (and thankfully feeling much better). Her wakeful state turned out to be perfect timing for some late night super moon gazing, so we gathered up a pile of warm blankets, drove up to a grassy area at the top of our street, and watched the biggest, prettiest moon we'd ever seen gradually inch over the dark mountain silhouette and into the night sky.

"Mommy, look! I can see all the different countries on the moon!"

We stayed until LM got sleepy and requested her bed, then we said goodnight to the moon...

I only had my iphone so by no means do these pictures capture the true breathtaking beauty of the moon that night, but I am happy to have captured a little bit of the magic. And, to have shared it with two of my favorite people.

five years

This Friday is husband and I's five year anniversary. I know he doesn't make appearances here very often, but that has no bearing on how much I love and appreciate him and the life we have built together. Looking back to the beginning, I smile as I see two smitten college kids going to dance parties or concerts every weekend, long boarding down quiet streets at dusk, and making plans months in advance knowing we would still be together. Now, we are the parents of two beautiful little girls, on the verge of being homeowners, and juggling much more responsibility in life, and I am still smiling. In this short space we have loved and learned to love and had our love grow, and I certainly feel like one lucky girl.

Especially, because he is whisking me away to start the weekend early.

Have a good one my friends!

(photo by Bri at Collected Photography)

a house

Hello. I know I have been gone from this space more lately and I thought it was time to explain why... I mentioned we might have good house news soon, and well, we do! Except, it's not completely finalized yet so I have been hesitant to spill the beans. Without going into too much detail, our offer was accepted on a 1950's ranch house and we are currently trying to get all of the details settled...and, boy, are there a lot of them! So, life has been a bit more hectic and stressful than usual, but also a whole lot of exciting. We will need to do quite a bit of fixing up to get the house back to its original beautiful state, but we are ready for the challenge and feel blessed to have close relations who are experts in the field to help guide us.

So, that is what my head has been wrapped around all day and night. House dreams, turning into house plans...

More details to come once we have the keys in our hands.
Crossing fingers a million times over.

bijou market

The only reason I am sad I will be out of town this weekend (because I really do need a vacation) is I will miss the Bijou Market. If you live in Utah you should stop by and see all of the great handmade and vintage vendors. I will only be a little jealous of the awesome items you will most likely need to bring home.

If you go, let me know how is was and who was your favorite!

Happy Weekend friends!

wonder

(waiting for the rain to fall)

We are heading out of town early for the weekend. I meant to take pictures of my latest sewing project to share with you before we left, but laundry, errands, and rain clouds rolling in put my plans on hold. Next week.

Instead, I would like to share some of my recent thoughts and feelings... During this trip, Husband and I will be away from both girls overnight for the first time since Lark was born (just one night). I am a little nervous, but also proud and excited to have reached a point where leaving Lark for a short time is possible. I am still nursing her morning and night, but she has slowly dropped her day feedings over the last few weeks. This year of nursing went by so incredibly fast I am not sure I am ready for it to end. I am hoping to be able to continue nursing her for a while after this trip, but knowing her weaning is most likely imminent is filling me with bittersweet emotion.

As for my oldest, she is growing up so fast I feel like I need to hug her every five seconds to hold onto her and make her stay little forever (and I pretty much do). The other night I looked at a family picture we took exactly one year ago today when LM was 2 1/2 and Lark was 2 months old. My eyes unexpectedly filled with tears as I realized I will never get to hold that sweet and spunky 2 1/2 year old again. After a good cry followed by laughing through my tears while reminiscing about baby LM with Husband, I snuck into the girls room and sat on the floor and covered her sweet sleeping face in kisses. I thought my heart would burst.

This mama business is keeping my emotions on the brink lately, in the best possible way. I never could have imagined how wonderful motherhood would be. I think this week I reached a new level of wonder.     

mom's best hot products party

Last week I met up with my friend Bri at the Mom's Best H.O.T. Products party, a fun blogger event put on to promote a new site where you can nominate and vote for H.O.T. products for moms and kids. It was such a nice evening chatting with some lovely ladies and discovering new-to-me products and brands.

We were provided with a delicious dinner from Marley's and yummy cupcakes from The Sweet Tooth Fairy for dessert. Both places I had heard were good, but had never tried before - I am happy to say now I can recommend them myself as well! I don't generally crave cupcakes, but I think I need to stop by The Sweet Tooth Fairy for a coconut creame cupcake real soon.

We were asked to look over some items nominated as H.O.T. products and provide feedback. It was nice knowing all of these products had been recommended by other moms, and I could see why - they were beautifully designed as well as functional.

The Beco baby carrier looked well made and I know LM would love wearing the one made for kids. I think everyone was smitten with this mixing bowl/measuring cup/colander/mesh strainer nesting set from Joseph Joseph. I mean, it has it all and it is a total eye catcher with those colors! I flipped through the catalog and spied more than one product I wouldn't mind gracing my kitchen.

I came home with a Zipfy Mini Luge and it has already become a big hit! LM couldn't wait to try it out so we tied a jump rope to the handle and with a little pull it zips down the grass quite well. We can't wait to see how it performs in the snow!

There were so many awesome products, you can check them all out and vote for your favorites at Mom's Best H.O.T. Products until April 7th. Thanks for the lovely night!

(All photos excepting the last by Bri)

on the hunt...

(just a pretty house that is not for sale)

We started house hunting last month. Which is so exciting, but I am quickly learning is also exhausting and completely frustrating. The hunt has consumed my thoughts, quite a bit of my free time, and my emotions have already been highest of high hopes and lowest of low letdowns. 

I am slowly starting to come down from the initial high and realize I need to relax. Trust that our home is out there and we will find it. We are lucky to be so blessed in our current situation and don't need to feel rushed. It will happen in time, I just don't know when that time will be.

Oh life, there you go throwing in a lesson on patience once again.

You'd think I would have learned that one by now...

lark's 1st birthday!

We threw Lark's first birthday party on St. Patrick's Day (even though her actual birthday was last week) with a 'Gold At the End of the Rainbow' theme. It was so nice and we really appreciate all of our family coming out to celebrate this little cutie's life with us. She really is a lucky girl to be loved by so many wonderful people!

For the decor, I cut out 'Lucky Birthday Girl!' from gold sparkle paper using this font and simply taped it to the wall, then made a rainbow with balloons. The utensils and straws were held in gold glitter dipped mason jars I made that morning, and chocolate gold coins were strewn about the cake. 

We kept the menu light with pasta salad, french country bread, and green grapes. I took a chance on the pasta trying out a recipe I had never made before and it was a hit! I would definitely make it again for a large crowd since it was so easy (although I would love to tweak the dressing a bit and use fresh herbs instead of a ranch dressing packet).

When it came time to blow out the candle, we had to hold Lark back because she kept trying to grab the flame, completely opposite of her older sister who shied away from the candle when she turned one. It is so fun to start noticing these little differences in personality between them - lately, Lark is really starting to show us that she is her own little person!

As has become tradition, Husband made her birthday cake from scratch and it was definitely the highlight of the party! He used this recipe using all natural dyes and the colors turned out so vibrant and beautiful. LM was so excited for the cake to be cut saying it was magical - I think she was right. 

Lark, on the other hand looked at the cake admiringly for a moment, then signed 'All done!' and attempted to shove it off the edge of her highchair. That makes two for two kids in this family not interested in eating any birthday cake at their first party. Oh well, at least I caught the plate before it fell.

At the end, we gave all of her cousins party favors consisting of watercolors and chocolate gold coins. My sister gave me this idea and I thought it was so clever - some gold at the end of the rainbow to take home! 

(These pictures are a mish-mash from my camera, my iphone, and my SIL Heather. Thank you Heather for saving me when my camera battery died!)