A Peek Inside My Life

It's been awhile since I've done one of these posts but I have been wanting to share all the things we have been doing here! Above is a pic of me on Mother's Day playing around with a filter and you can see little Bella in the back in her car seat.  Here is a peek into what life has been like these days:




MOTHER'S DAY

We had so much fun this Mother's Day. We did an official photo shoot and got to visit the church we got saved at. It was so fun seeing old faces and friends and getting a chance to catch up. I got peach colored roses from my husband and every year my father-in-law buys beautiful bouquets of roses for all the women in the family whether they are a mom or not. Here they are:

I also received chocolate, some gift cards, candles, jewelry, and other odds and ends. An interesting gift that I received was this Instant Pot Blender from my oldest son. I had no idea that they even sold blenders! I am glad that he got me one because I had been looking to replace the one I have now but didn't want to spend an arm and a leg. It is nice that it has 4 settings for heating so you can cook soup in it and so far it has been working like a charm.

We were also excited to see that you could make rice milk out of it. One of our favorite drinks in this home is horchata. Our family like to make smoothies multiple times a day too!


WORKING OUT & SWIMMING

As a family have been working out and going swimming a ton, we are going to a place that is amazing and newly built. It has indoor pools and state of the art equipment. I love it and am trying to work off that winter weight that I gained. Can I get an amen? I know some of you can relate!

I really love their hot tub too!

THE HOME FRONT

We recently remodeled the back part of our basement and moved some of our sons into that room. We also had our roofs replaced on the house and garage. Next thing we are doing very soon is replacing all the siding of our home. I am also planning the garden and hope we get to it at the end of this month. We also need to start quickly planning a date to open the pool.

( the pool last year with some of my son's doing the dead man's float)

HOMESCHOOLING

We are wrapping up school and I am graduating my second oldest son this year. We just took senior pictures and I just received his diploma in the mail. I am also buying all the things for his graduation party that we have planned in June (you can view our graduation party and what we did for my first son here). He is thinking about joining the Marine Reserves and has met with a recruiter. He is also getting ready for college in the fall so we have been doing what we need to get ready for that.


FUN THINGS

Christian prom is right around the corner for us. It is a big deal for my kids and this is going to be such a fun year with a ton of friends and even some cousins attending. I have been buying prom gear and helping the kids plan a photo shoot outdoors with their friends for that day. My oldest daughter does the photography every year indoors at the event so right now she is prepping the background and accessories for it.

What I really love though is that we have been swimming a ton like I mentioned above! The place we go to is very similar to an indoor waterpark. We go several times a week so it feels like summer has already started for us in that way! I love that even when it is rainy or gloom outside that we can rebel against it all, grab our swimsuits and hit the water without waiting for the month of June to swing around.

My sweet little Bella just had her 5th birthday:

One big surprise that we got her this year is this motorized pink car --she LOVES it.  It is an Amazon only product and great for the price!

It has all the bells and whistles--it lights up, honks, AND you can even attach your phone to play music. It is also remote control so a parent can control it and has a fast and slow setting.  She also got her first pink scooter that she begged us for. I will try to share a post about her birthday later.




FAMILY TRIPS

A few weeks ago we went out to the city and took the kids to see the beautiful conservatory and the animals at the zoo. We took a little girl that we watch who is Bella's best friend and had a blast.

The flowers were breathtaking!

We also visited a Science Museum and me and Bella took part in a tornado simulation exhibit.

Here is a quick video from my phone on it moving:

A FAVORITE

One of my favorite finds was recently over at Aldi--these are My Mo Mochi Ice creams and they are a huge hit where I live especially amongst teens! So much so that they are often sold out at the big retailers the first day they get a shipment in. I buy the strawberry for Bella since she is obsessed with all things pink and my fave is the sweet mango. You need to let it sit a little out on the table before eat so that the mochi gets super soft. I love these!

HOSPITALITY

We have been having people over a ton, several days out of the week! It is mostly the kids friends, but I love being able to share our home and food with them so that they will feel comfortable here. We have already done a bonfire too.

MINISTRY


Something new we have been doing is that have connected with some foreign exchange students and they have been a part of our life this past year. It has been a great chance to learn a different culture, make friends who don't know English that well, and learn a new language while trying to share the love of Christ with them.

I hope you liked our pictures!

What have YOU been up to lately?