My Reality

You know how sometimes it seems a piece of writing was written just for you?

Like somebody crawled inside your head and saw what you were thinking and then wrote something that seemed to be written just for you?

That happened to me on Tuesday.

I was making my usual blog rounds when I stopped over at Heir to Blair and read this post. I was in a funk that morning about some things in my life and reading what Blair wrote really put things into perspective for me. We tend so often to dwell on what we wish we could have or always want more of something that we aren't really living what our reality is. After reading the post I make a promise to myself that I was going to start embracing and living my reality immediately.

Little did I know that  later that day accepting my reality would take on a whole new meaning.

Tuesday night, while I was feeding Drake dinner, our world as we currently knew it changed in an instant. My husband came home from work and told me that he had been laid off.

LAID OFF

My reality changed all in a matter of seconds.

My reality now is that I'm faced with having to go back to work full-time. My reality now is that we are those people that nobody wants to be. My reality now is what I never thought would happen to us happened.

This is now my reality

But my reality is also having a husband who is working like crazy to find a new job and little boy who still can make us laugh and smile. My reality is knowing I have friends who really care and want to help in any way they can. My reality is knowing our families are here for whatever we need.

I have Ben and Drake and Skinner. I have awesome friends. We have great families. We have prayers that we know will be answered.  We are healthy. We have a house over our head and food on the table. We are truly blessed in every sense of the word.

This is also my reality.

And you know what?

From where I'm sitting, I think my new reality is going to turn out just fine.

Crush

You see this handsome little boy here?

He has a crush! 

It started at a young age. Drake was just a couple weeks old when he meet Laila.

 

As they grew older their friendship blossomed.

 

Drake and Laila even went on dates to the zoo.

Of course not every moment was happy.

But this weekend we think Drake developed his first crush.

He tried to hold her hand and loved looking at her pretty dress.

He even went as far as sharing his favorite toys and books, that told Momma and Daddy this is the real thing!

Pretty cute couple don't you think?!?

Our State Fair is the Best State Fair

I'm  no expert on State Fairs, but word on the street is that Iowa might just give any state a run for their money when it comes to fairs. Every year during a 10 day period in August around 1 MILLION people go through the gates to attend the greatest fair in the world. I have probably been to the fair about 25 times in my life and look forward to it every summer. Growing up going to the fair was a family tradition. When I was in college the fair was the place to party.  Oh and the concerts are always sure to impress. I have seen Kenny Chesney, Clay Aiken and Keith Urban all take the stage at the Grandstand. But this year, I got to experience the State Fair through the eyes of child again as Drake experienced his first ever Iowa State Fair.

Probably one of the greatest things about the fair is the food. Food that is fried and on a stick to be specific. I indulged in a corn dog, fried cheese curds and a fresh squeezed lemonade during out trip.

The next best thing to the food is the people. People watching does not get any better than at the fair. Fanny packs, mullets and cut off shirts are in no shortage here.

We even let Drake indulge in a little fair food of his own with a nice big hot dog.

The other thing that is huge at the fair are the endless supply of HUGE animals. Here Drake is posing with the giant bull. Let me just say that this picture does not do the bull justice.

We even got a little trashy for the night and branded our child with a Iowa Hawkeye tattoo. GO HAWKS!

Did you know that there is a college in Iowa named Drake University? (and no, Drake is not named after it)We could not pass up the chance for our Drake to pose with the Drake sign. We also thought that 1 tattoo was not nearly enough and got him a Drake tattoo as well!

This probably seems really weird to anybody who does not live in Iowa but every year they make a cow out of butter. People line up to see it and it is probably the most anticipated attraction at the fair every year.

But you see a cow made out of butter is not good enough for us Iowans. Nope we go one step further and do a different butter theme every year. This year the theme was Dr. Seuss.

Drake had his first experience touching a cow. He kept pointing at it and saying "dog" over and over again. Looks like we need to work on animals!

To say that Drake was terrified of the State Fair Queen would be an understatement. You see, I was not really wanting to be in this picture but Drake took one look at her crown and just lost it. As you can see he still has not gotten over the sharp object sticking out of head.

To end our trip at the fair I had to get a Dole Whip. Have you ever had a Dole Whip? They are the best.thing.ever. Pineapple flavored soft serve ice cream that is just so so good. It is our tradition to eat one as we walk out of the fairgrounds.

 I think I can say proudly that our state fair is the best state fair...at least to me!

Rethinking Blogging

Over the last year I have poured so much of myself, time, energy and talent into this blog. In return the blog has given me great friends, helped me learn so much about being a mom and opened some pretty amazing  doors for me. Sassy Silly Spunky Momma has been a true blessing and joy to me.

That being said, the blog is not going in the direction I want it to go. It has started to take up much of my free time and taken time from other activities I used to enjoy. To make matters worse sometimes I feel like I'm doing a post just do a post instead of really concentrating on the content. Things need to change. I've been thinking a lot about the direction I want to take the blog and I've come up with a few ideas.

Most weeks I have a post everyday except Saturday. I've discovered I can't continue at that pace and still put out good content. I'm going to be cutting back to around 3-4 posts a week. I want to do more "real" writing. I want to tell stories using pictures, really explain my feelings using words and connect with my readers on a different level. All my favorite posts from the past are the posts where I really pour my heart out and am my true authentic self. I am recommitting to that standard  from now on.

I have all my reviews/giveaways on the back burner during the month of August to concentrate on Drake gives back. Starting next month I'm going to really limit my giveaways and reviews to no more than 2 a month. In addition, I will only review a product that is something I think I would love and you, my readers, would love. I don't want my blog to become all about giveaways instead of my writing. I have been turning companies down and will continue to do so. If you are a blogger who would be interested in doing reviews /giveaways please e-mail me your contact information and I will pass it along to interested companies.

Finally,  I want you to know that if I'm not commenting as much that I am still reading your blog. I do a lot of blog reading on my phone with Google Reader whenever I have a free second. Unless I'm totally missing something (please tell me if I am) I have no idea how to comment from there.

Basically the whole idea behind cutting back on blogging is cutting back on time in front of the computer and spending that time in other productive ways. I need to declutter my life and that means taking more walks, deep cleaning my house, making healthy dinners, cuddle with my husband, play with my dog, have a few more minutes of quality time with my baby everyday and rediscover old hobbies.

This isn't good-bye, just a "fall cleansing" of sorts. I will see you around and hopefully you will leave here a little more inspired from now on.

So please excuse me. I have a pile of reading calling my name.

Let Me Introduce...

You all remember Baby Drake with the long shaggy hair, right?!?

 Drake has undergone a bit of  makeover and Baby Drake was replaced by Toddler Drake.

It is my pleasure to introduce Toddler Drake with a little edgier haircut!!

We really did it this time! Ben got our his clippers and went to town on our shaggy little dude. As much as I would love Drake to have "surfer" hair it is just way to thick and would weigh him down. So we decided the next best thing is "rocker" hair. 

Drake's hair is about as long now as it was when he was born making it the perfect length for some awesome spikes! I think we did a pretty good job and ended up with a super handsome little boy!

Things on My Mind

Blog
State Fair
WordPress
Small Towns
Time Management
Fall
Football
AMAZING giveaway
Drake Gives Back


Much more on these to come soon!

No Way

There is no way this sweet boy has stared to bite...

              and screams at the top of his lungs at supper when we don't give him what he wants to eat...

                        and throws himself down on the floor in an all out fit when we don't pick him up....

         and looks at something he is not suppose to touch and shakes his head no and touches it anyways...

He would never do anything like that!

No Way

I think the phrase "don't judge a book by the cover" might be the perfect way to  Mr. Drake