"Authentic" is the new "hot mess"

I would like to put up a lovely blog post about Christmas, or the wonderful going away parties we had, or Ava's new haircut, or even our move that's in process...but I can't. Because our hard drive got smoked. We've had it for a YEAR. It's a good thing I don't believe in luck, because in general I don't seem to have a whole lot of it. Don't get me wrong, I'm beyond blessed. I have beautiful children and an awesome husband, some of the best friends created, and a dog who is above average on the awesome scale. But in terms of like, fires, floods, losing all my pictures from my children's life TWICE, computer hard drives, dropping phones in water, etc....well that's where my luck seems to fail.

Several sweet friends wrote me cards and the common thread was people saying I was "authentic". Why do people like people like ME? People whose house is a mess and kids are unkempt and who only shower every few days. Here is what I came up with: If you're the opposite type, I make you feel really good about yourself, and if you are more like me-it's just always nice to know there is someone else in the world who is worse than you are. :)

So-thanks to my friends for embracing my "authenticity". Also, please pray I can get some of my pictures back. More on Christmas, hair, and moving soon. Hopefully. Wish me luck!

I'm a snob and December Celebrations.

I am a total snob. Not about material stuff, but when it comes to recipes, I'm a snob. After some experimenting, I feel that I have found some of the best recipes for hot fudge, chicken and rice, Texas Sheet Cake, chocolate chip cookies, you get the idea. I'm very open to new recipes-and always hope that maybe I will find a new best, but until then...I'm staying true to my collection. I realize I mostly probably like what I grew up with and nobody likely agrees with me, but my mouth and I are happy.


The cookies below are a new addition to my repertoire. My friend Abby dubbed them PMS Cookies after she made them. They have caramel inside and salt on top. What else do you need. Yum. Yum. Yum. Here is the recipe. I may be a snob but I am morally opposed to secret recipes. Good food is meant to be shared.


I had a helper, and of course I let her eat the batter because...
she comes by it honestly. My Mom was awesome. :) (so was my hair!)

We had a chance to go out and celebrate Grandma Betsy's 87th Birthday! We are so blessed to have such a sweet woman and Godly great grandmother for our kids! And ourselves!
The fabulous group shot. My photography still needs a lot of work.
Grandma and Grandpa
I was double booked that night so left and went to my MOPS Leadership Christmas party...these women have been SUCH a blessing to me.
My amazing friend Steph. As helpful and generous as they come.
My partner (Mark doesn't prefer that term :)) on steering. She is totally the better half. Sadly, Keri and I were at Taylor at the same time and were never friends. It makes me so sad, but thankful we found each other!
Michelle-one of my first MOPS friends three years ago. And still one of the funniest, most enjoyable people to be around.
Ingrid...we share Swedish descent, but also little girls the exact same age. She became my pen pal when Kaiya was in the hospital and we have been great friends ever since!
Angel, Michelle, and Kim. Precious women I am so fortunate to call friends! More on them soon. :)
December is flying, perhaps because I'm dreading the end of it. But so thankful for the fun that's filling it!

Preschool Program

This week was Ava's last day of preschool here. Thankfully it was also her Christmas program so I could focus on cuteness instead of sadness. :)

Breakfast of champions before she left.

All suited up.
She was so cute. Really excited to see us. :) There's her friend Paige in the foreground. Less excited to see us.

The boy in the brown sweater made me laugh out loud! Bless his heart!
Unfortunately the program conflicted with my last MOPS...so I just blew in for 2o minutes and back out again. So glad I didn't miss it though!
Paige, Will, and Ava perusing the snack table.
Paige and Ava with their sweet teacher. (I'm pretty sure this was the only time the girls were allowed to be that close together. :) I think she pegged them, and promptly split them up!)

So thankful for the things Ava learned, both how to write the letter A and about Jesus. We feel very blessed that she was able to go to school there for a semester.

Watch out Project Runway

I've got some fashionistas of my own who most definitely make it work.

Can you see the shoes here?

Here's a better view of them with a different user. :)
Snow White getaway.

The great thing about summer dresses is the ability to just throw a turtleneck and pink pants underneath. Versatility-the key to fashion.
She asked for this photograph to be taken so she could point out her "bead purse".
Nothing says Fashion Week like jeggings, Elmo, and a tutu. My friend Meredith always says Kaiya is the next Vera Wang and I think she might be right. :)
Sippy cups=the ultimate accessory.
And finally, the hair and makeup.
Absolutely
Perfect.
I have definitely fallen off the fashion train of late. I'm barely getting by over here in Mom sweaters and jeans...so I'm very thankful to have a generation of up and comings.

Stand Up Routine

Reese is 9 months old. I always put up a post about that I feel like at 9 months babies quit being babies. And I still think that. And it stinks.

This girl has been trying to ditch the baby title for quite some time now. She was legit crawling at 5 1/2 months, and has been standing all on her own since right before she was 8 months. Kind of annoying. My Mom says I should push her down. Tempting.

We went for her 9 month appt. this week. She weighs 20 pounds, and that's all I remember. :) She's in the 75th % for height and weight...so she has evened out a little bit from her early on tall-ness.

She is happy and good natured, but definitely seems like she will have a more intense personality like Ava. And she PINCHES! It is some kind of comfort thing I guess, but anytime you are holding her and she can find an inch of skin she immediately starts pinching. It hurts. I have scratches ALL over my body! But it's a small price to pay for the little bundle of happiness.

We love you Reesey!

Friends and Family Plan

Last weekend was our third annual Christmas get together with our buddies from the East. And West. It's been so much fun to spend time with our friends who really have turned into family. In fact, we had to designate a "cry room" for the weekend in anticipation of our departure.

The weekend started out with Ava whipping us up some sugar cookie dough. A vast improvement over her techniques from a few years ago!

The Borowicz's have a tradition of hiding a pickle on the Christmas tree. A dollar goes to any person who finds it...but pride AND a dollar go to the person who finds it first. Way to go Mark.
Out to dinner minus the cherubs.


It's hard NOT to sing along to Brian Adams.
But the real action came a few songs later. That's my man. Sweet Home Alabama had the crowd going wild.

Sisters. Better than any Christmas gift.
But there WERE Christmas gifts. Including: a candy necklace. Remember those things? Gross.
Isla Bonita!
New outfits from Aunt Megan and candy you can wear. Pretty much all you need to be happy.
A birthday party swimming excursion was part of this year's Christmas celebration.
Ava liked the cake.
Kaiya, evidently, LOVED it. I can't stop laughing at this picture.
We did our annual photo shoot...here's the behind the scenes.


When all else fails: goldfish.

Then our dinner. Indescribably yummy.
And the gift exchange. Mark painted his second piece of art. This was Dave's favorite stop on our Florida trip last month. Mark is definitely a man of many talents!
Mark's riding buddy, Greg, got them twin bike jerseys. (You can't tell that's a bike jersey?!)
Christina got the girls all matching pajamas. We got some GREAT shots of them all together. This was the best one.
This was how we felt all weekend. Stuffed. (yeah, it's a theme.)
Our final products.
Please contact Dave Borowicz for an equally awesome photo of your friends and family.