The Blunt, Honest, Kinda Hilarious Truth about Motherhood

So, motherhood brought on a totally new and life changing experience for me. I took everyone's advice and prepared myself the best that I could with all of the stories I was told. BUT, what about the stuff people don't tell you about? Here's what I've learned since becoming a mother {the Blunt, Honest, Kinda hilarious truth!}

1. You will never be able to use the bathroom alone... again. 
2. Showering in peace is a thing of the past. 
3. All doors, drawers, and toilet seats must remained closed. 
4. "Climbing" will have a whole new meaning with a toddler. 
5. Sleeping past 8:00 a.m. no longer exists. 
6. You will also not need an alarm clock anymore. 
7. Peaceful shopping trips will be few and far between. 
8. People will always tell you their opinions on your parenting... whether you ask for them or not. 
9. Always hide your remote & keys- unless you want to hunt for them. 
10. In order to be on time, you must prepare and leave an extra 20 minutes early. 
11. You will have to pull all-nighters... whether you want to or not. 
12. A toddler doesn't care if your pregnant or not... be prepared to still go at warp speed, sick or not. :) 
13. The bathtub is no longer just a tub... it's a play land! 
14. If you have a boy- you are bound to get peed on at least once... if not more. 
15. They will poop their pants...even if you just changed them! 
16. The price of toys doesn't matter... 
17. Sometimes, a cup is more impressive to your child than a $50 toy! 
18. As a mother, you will learn every Fisher Price and Little Tikes song ever invented. 
19. You will learn to recite these songs, word for word, while driving in the car! 
20. Kids have a sixth sense when it comes to technology... they prefer your iPhone over a toy phone... any day! 
21. Your toddler will know more about an iPad than you ever will... 
22. You will learn to speak "jibberish" to the best of your ability... 
23. If you leave it out... be prepared for it to get thrown on the floor, torn up, put in the mouth, or lost. 
24. And FINALLY, be prepared to LOVE more than you could ever imagine possible! It's a crazy ride- but well worth it! :) 

Pictures= Keepsakes!

A few months ago I did a post on our favorite photographer, Amber, owner of You-nique Capture Photography. I wanted to share a few of the photos that she has taken for us over the past year with you all. I'm positive that you'll see why we love her as much as we do when you see these pictures! I must say, I'm a bit obsessed when it comes to pictures- especially of my little man. I think it's a great way to capture Gabe growing up... and they also make great keepsakes. Our house is literally filled with pictures- so much so that I've had to do some rearranging to find hanging space for all of them. What in the world am I going to do when we have 2 kids and all of their pictures!? I'm going to need a bigger house, for sure! One with lots and lots of wall space and hallways to fill! Anywho, here's some of our pictures from Amber! You can visit her webstite by clicking HERE or you can click on the link on the right hand side of the page! :) Enjoy! 

{please respect her hardwork and do NOT copy these pictures! Thanks!}

I LOVE this picture!! 

Seriously, one of my favorites!

This is a collage from all of Gabe's sessions! LOVE it!!

LOVE this pic of Gabe and Daddy! Gotta support Daddy's USMC days!

Adorable!! Seriously, can you beat this? 

Expiring: SOON!

The Rumors are True!!

Here Comes #2! 

We are so excited to start our next journey as a Family! 

Join us as we go through another pregnancy... 

this too shall be interesting! 

As Always, there will never be a dull moment!

{don't you just love Gabe's shirt? It says: Only Child Expiring: Soon!!}

Photo courtesy of Our Favorite Photographer, 

Amber Joiner from 

You-nique Capture Photography!

Click the above link to visit her website!  

Please Do Not Copy! 

Toys, Toys, Toys!

Well, after church today, Gabe and I went on a little shopping date. We enjoyed some lunch at Fazoli's and then hit up Goodwill, Target, and Kays. Boy, was Mommy TIRED after all this running around. I must say, I love my little man, but he really needs to learn how enjoy shopping! haha. 


We started our afternoon off at Fazoli's. This was Mommy & Gabe's first time dining alone- just us. And was I ever in for a surprise! It actually went well, besides the fact that they were all out of highchairs- so I had to use a booster seat for Gabe. Which isn't that big of a deal, except it had no straps to strap him in...which means my little man had free reign to get up and down- whenever he felt like it. And yep, you guessed it, he did just that! haha. Other than that, he was awesome! He enjoyed a few breadsticks, a couple bites of pizza and spaghetti. Mainly, he enjoyed watching all of the people in the restaurant! 

Next, we were off to Goodwill! I was on the hunt for some more books for Christmas and a few toys for Gabe at Goodwill. It seems that everyone is loving Goodwill these days- so I didn't have much luck at finding anything there today. I did manage to find one book and a new pillow for Gabe's room- but that was it. Nothing like my usual shopping trips to the GW! 

After GW- we headed to Target! I love Target! We were getting Gabe some new toys with his gift cards from his birthday. My little man was soooo good in this store. I bought him some popcorn when we first walked in- which kept him pretty happy throughout our time there. Once we found a toy he liked- I knew we were set to have a nice shopping trip there. We left with a couple new toys, a book, and some black pants for my little man. Oh & of course the popcorn! 

Finally, we were off to Kays! This is where my little man started to get a little mad. He fell asleep during the 2 minute car ride around the mall to Kays. I got his stroller out- thinking that he would stay asleep while we were in there. BOY WAS I EVER WRONG! haha. He popped right up as soon as I laid him down. So, I gathered all of our gear and headed inside.... hoping that he would stay calm! What I didn't anticipate was them being really busy. So, we had to wait for about 10 minutes. You might say that nothing can really happen in 10 minutes- but let me just tell you--- that's wrong! Here's what can happen in 10 minutes:: Gabe crawled out of his stroller and took off walking as fast as he could. Mommy chased him and caught him! Gabe took off again. Mommy went after him again and again and again and again. Do you get the picture? haha. Can you imagine just how tired Mommy was!? Of course everyone in the store thought he was the cutest little boy ever. And I won't lie- he is pretty stinkin' adorable. But man, he really needs to learn to stay by Mommy when shopping! 

Anyway, I want to mention these toys that I just absolutely LOVE. It's the B.Toys Brand at Target. I just love the look of their toys- and find them very well made and intriguing- especially to Gabe. Here's a few of the toys that are on my wishlist for Gabe this year: 

Ok- so this is super expensive and def not worth the price since he probably wouldn't play with it that much. But still, it's super cute. I'd go for something  just like this- only cheaper! :)) 

What child doesn't love making music? 

Again...can't beat making music!!

I actually bought him this for Christmas!! shhh....it's a secret! :)) 

Every child needs a Dr. Kit! 

Through the lens of my iPhone!

Here's a look at our life in pics for the past month! Enjoy! :))

Impeccable Timing

It's amazing how God's timing is perfect. He knows exactly when to remove certain things in life in order to provide us with a better future.  I must say, now my family can have some actual peace in our lives. For the past year or so- it's been a battle- with people continually talking badly about our marriage and me as a mother. We've had to bite our tongues more than once and fake a smile a million times- just trying to do the right thing. I've listened to people say that I'm a bad mother and wife and that they believed the could raise MY son better than I. I've also been threatened with rights that don't even exist in the state of Illinois. Hmmmm, interesting, huh?  haha.  I've also had the oh so great opportunity of listening to someone tell me that I need counseling- only because our views, opinions, and way of life are different. It wasn't always easy being a bigger person- and I'm ashamed to admit that sometimes my temper got the best of me. However, with a lot of prayer.... I hoped and prayed that one day things would get better and we as a family could go on with our lives in peace. It's amazing how God knows exactly the right time to take things away and put them in your life. I'm at a point where I don't need stress in my life in order to keep my blood pressure down. God knew that- and he removed the point of stress for me. Now, I can live in peace and not have to constantly worry about when the next ball will drop. I'm so thankful for that. And I'm thankful that my family will now be able to live our lives how we want and not try to please anyone. I'm thankful that this all ended before Gabe was old enough to remember anything- and now he can live a full life surrounded by the people who truly love him.  I'm thankful that now, finally, Jesse and I don't have to worry about stabs at our marriage or at our parenting. We are now living the good, peaceful life we deserve!

I Pray for You

Pray For You

Jaron & The Long Road to Love

I haven't been to church since I don't remember when

Things were going great '˜til they fell apart again

So I listened to the preacher as he told me what to do

He said you cant go hating others who have done wrong to you.

Sometimes we get angry, but we must not condemn.

Let the good Lord do His job and you just pray for them.

I pray your brakes go out running down a hill

I pray a flowerpot falls from a window sill and knocks you in the 

head like I'd like to

I pray your birthday comes and nobody calls

I pray you're flying high when your engine stalls

I pray all your dreams never come true

Just know wherever you are honey, I pray for you

I'm really glad I found my way to church

'Cause I'm already feeling better and I thank God for his words.

Yeah I'm going take the high road,

And do what the preacher told me to do,

You keep messing up and I'll keep praying for you.

I pray your tire blows out at 110.

I pray you pass out drunk with your best friend and wake up with 

his and her tattoos.

I pray your brakes go out running down a hill.

I pray a flowerpot falls from a window sill and knocks you in the 

head like I'd like to.

I pray your birthday comes and nobody calls

I pray you're flying high when your engine stalls

I pray all your dreams never come true

Just know wherever you are, near or far, in your house or in your 

car,

wherever you are honey, I pray for you.

I pray for you