Hello!!

We have been doing our best to stay as busy as we possibly can! 😉 I feel like I don’t ever sit until about 7:30 at night (which, coincidentally, is also the same time as the boys’ bedtimes) and my brain is usually fried by then so this blog has definitely taken the hit. Hate that. Trying to do better!

We have had a busy week!

We got home on Tuesday night right before dinner from Tulsa. Wednesday, both kids woke up sick and Kody had to have surgery on his leg. He had a small mass removed from the back of his leg – we are praying that it was nothing serious and that he doesn’t have another one show up again! Poor dog is having to recover with a four year old and a crawler – you can pray for him. 😉 Thankfully, the kids got better pretty quick and Kody seems to be doing pretty good!

In Tulsa at the awesome children’s museum, we bought a little dinosaur egg that “hatched” in water over the next few days. Guys. This is the best $5 I’ve ever spent. Nathan has been borderline OBSESSED with this egg. And honestly, it is really cool. We have about half a dino out of the egg now and it’s just been so fun to watch. 😉

Parker’s favorite thing to do lately is to crawl into a room and then close the door behind him and just sit there and wait for us to open it back up. He’s such a little ham. This kid just cracks me up.

And speaking of goofy boys, I’m going to write this down because I hear this every night and it just makes me laugh. We usually have Nathan bless the food at dinner and he always prays some version of this: “Dear Jesus, thank you for this food. Please bless Mama, Parker and Dad. And please bless Nathan, which is me praying. Amen.”

Friday morning, we woke up to snow and they canceled school, so Jon got to stay home. It was SO nice – especially after our split vacations to have just some fun snow time together. We got more snow than either of my boys has seen in their lives. 😉 We’ve been playing in it all weekend.

Saturday, Nathan came running into my room and starting yelling, “MOM MOM MOM!! Look outside my window!! There are HUGE ICE BOLTS out there!” Ha!! Icicles will forever be known as “ice bolts” at my house now. 😉

And Friday night, we had SO MUCH FUN at Bryant and Nicole’s gender reveal party!! It was seriously the cutest party ever. I am so so so so overwhelmingly excited for my sweet NEPHEW to be joining this family in July!! Cannot wait to meet that precious little one!!

T-ball practices start this week, soccer games start this weekend and I am ready for warm weather and some good times outside playing. 🙂

What are you guys up to??

This last weekend, my cousin got married in Oklahoma on the same day that Jon’s grandfather turned 80 and they had a little family reunion in California.

So, after weeks of debating what we should do, we ended up just splitting up. Which actually worked out well because Jon ended up not getting very much time off and was only able to be in California for about 36 hours all together – a trip that would have just been tough on the boys (though we MISSED everyone – especially Jon – very much!!) and it gave him lots of visiting time that is just hard to have when you are also trying to work around kids and their naps and bedtimes and needs and energy levels. 😉

The boys and I left Thursday afternoon and flew to Dallas with my parents and sister, where we stayed the night with my aunt and uncle, Julie and Clay who live in Wylie. Nathan was in heaven. HEAVEN. They have a big, grassy property with dogs and chickens and a pond and tons of “awesome toys” (i.e. army guys and G.I. Joe and knights in shining armor) and Nathan was just pretty much ready to move in. Especially after Uncle Clay (who morphed into “Grandpa Clay” by the end of the week) took him out every day to get the eggs from the chickens. Which was just incredibly amazing, apparently. 😉

Here’s Nathan after a successful egg hunt. 😉 I think he wore his camo vest every time he went out there. We spent Thursday night visiting with more aunts and uncles and cousins in town. So wonderful to see everyone!

Friday we all piled everything up and drove to Tulsa, which is about four hours away, to go to my cousin Kari’s wedding. After dinner that night, Aunt Julie rented out a couple of lanes at a bowling alley for everyone. The little cousins all played and it was so funny to see their reactions.

Here’s how one child reacted to a good bowl:

And here’s how the other one did:

He’s just so mellow and unreactive. Ha! 😉

 Saturday morning dawned way too early for my boys so we got up and semi-dressed and we went down to the hotel lobby for breakfast and then just wasted time around the hotel so that my sister could sleep a little more since we were sharing a room with her. We ate, we watched cartoons, we took the elevator up and down and eventually found a little meeting room that wasn’t being used where they could crawl around and play. Little stinkers. 😉

 After everyone got up and moving, me, the boys, my cousin Christi and her boys and my cousin’s wife, Aryn, and her two kids went to hands down the COOLEST children’s museum that we’ve ever been to. It was totally made for exactly my sons. Ha! It had a gigantic play structure and a good sized dinosaur exhibit. There were tunnels through the whole play structure and a huge slide made out of six layers of packing tape. So fun!! Nathan could have stayed there all day.

He’s “sliding like a penguin”. 😉

Me and my littlest. 🙂 I hauled him through the short and steep tunnels and he just laughed the entire time. It was so cute. So we had to do it several more times.

Cousins! Getting a good picture of a bunch of little kids proved to be basically impossible this weekend. 😉

 Me and my littles sliding on the big slide. 🙂

Someone was all worn out at lunch time. Poor baby. 😉

We went back to the hotel and both of the boys took fantastic naps. So fantastic that I had to wake them up for the wedding which just meant a certain big boy was a huge grouch until he finally woke all the way up when we were in the car on the way to the church.

All dressed up!

My beautiful cousin Kari and her new husband Jordan!! Such a gorgeous, God-honoring ceremony. It was perfect.

Trying yet again for a decent picture. Hadley Kate and Everett are missing from the picture and the rest weren’t too happy to be forced there. 😉 Mission failed.

Nathan spent 50% of the time at the reception dancing with Hadley Kate and 50% of the time dancing with Carsen. And he got a gigantic blister on his toe, so we had to go barefoot the rest of the evening.

Us and the beautiful bride!! Love, LOVE this girl so much!!

We got back super late to the hotel and the boys were asleep in record time. 😉 They were worn out!! The next morning, we had a brunch at my Aunt Jill’s house and we all hung out there before heading back to Dallas.

Nathan and his bestest buddy Carsen and sweet Hadley Kate. Beautiful girls. We just adore them.

Time to drive back! This drive did not go so smoothly. Parker screamed for a majority of it and it took two hours longer than the drive up because the weather was SO bad. It made for a looong afternoon. And because of the weather, we got stuck in Dallas an extra day and had to change our flights to Tuesday. It was good – we spent the majority of Monday sitting by the fire at Aunt Julie’s house and Nathan was overjoyed that we got to stay an extra day at the best house ever. 😉

Heading home!! We were so thankful to come home and see Daddy!!

And speaking of Jon, he had a great, great time as well! I love this picture of him and his grandfather – such an unspeakable honor to be a part of this wonderful legacy of faith he has given his family! Happy birthday, Grandpa H! 🙂

I have a to-do list about three miles long today and hardly any time to do it in but there were a few things that I wanted to share!!

1. Double Shot is finally finally up on Kindle!! It should be up on Nook shortly – so if you’re a Nook reader, check back in a day or two! 🙂 So thankful to have both the entire Laurie and Maya series up on ebooks again!!

2. Bake Me a Match is consuming a lot of my writing time – and my writing time has become pretty tight with the two boys, so I’m having to maximize what little time I have!! I sometimes think fondly on the days when I would have the entire day to write, clean and workout – now I’m lucky if one of those things happens!! BUT, I wouldn’t trade my messy, unshowered and basically unproductive life for anything right now. 😉

3. I could really use a few chocolate chip cookies right now. And possibly a maid. Just saying.

4. We went on a family bike ride this last weekend. So funny. Parker pretty much just put up with it – he was not nearly has excited as Nathan was when he got to ride in the little seat. Nathan thought our family ride was awesome, though, so I’m sure we’ll be doing another one soon. 😉

Have a great Wednesday!!

And so begins my month of mourning. 😉 How is my baby so big?? Already??

Parker is just such a sweetheart. He’s SO funny – this month, if it was possible, he got even LOUDER, even sillier and even more weird. 😉 I’m not sure what’s in the water in this house, but we grow them big, loud and crazy over here!

He is eating everything, all the time, always and forever amen. That kid can put away food. We are already trying to figure out how much money we need to be setting aside to feed these boys when they are 15. 😉 Needless to say, mealtimes are Parker’s favorite time of the day. He’s still nursing four times a day and eating three good meals and at least two snacks now. He loves bananas, sweet potatoes, chicken nuggets and he mostly loves squeeze packs more than almost anything in the world. 😉 He’s learned how to drink out of a straw this month and now, the child has discovered sweet iced tea. Sweet tea brings the biggest smile to his face ever! Ha!

He’s fast. He has absolutely zero interest in walking but he can zip around here crazy fast! Nathan and I have to run to catch up with him! He’s also started climbing. If he can get that knee up on it, he’s up there. The stairs, the bunk bed, Nathan’s chair… you name it, he’s climbing it.

He loves anything that has to do with his big brother. Anything. Anything. This has been the source of a lot of joy, fun, frustration and chaos in our house this month since Parker can now pretty much get anywhere he wants to get. 😉

He has become a full-fledged fan of the pacifier and rarely doesn’t have one with him. I think it’s really cute. 😉

Parker loves, loves when he and Nathan are playing together. They have just had so much fun recently playing with cars and superheroes and Parker’s Little People toys. For the most part, they play really well together. So fun to see!!

Parker can say Mama, Dada,  and “Nennon”. He says the same word every time when he sees Kody but it doesn’t sound anything like Kody. Ha! He’s very good at asking for more and waves his hands like crazy when he’s all done eating (or starts throwing food. But you know, whatever gets the message across). He can wave, blow kisses, wrestle, laugh and squeal at a pitch that sends the neighbor dogs into full on 101 Dalmatian bark chains. 😉

He’s also this month developed a little bit of a temper…. oy. Not ready for these days already! If he doesn’t want to do something and you are holding him, he’ll go all boneless to try and slide out of your hands. If you aren’t holding him, he’s now laid down on the floor and started throwing a big fit several times. At this point, it’s more amusing than anything and if I just walk away and ignore him, he snaps right out of it. But oh goodness. I’m eating all the chocolate I can right now just to stockpile emotionally for what is coming. 😉

Parker is goofy, silly, quite the dancer, loves to make music, loves to snuggle (LOVES to snuggle!), is the best at destroying at room in .006 seconds, has the sweetest hugs, the bestest cheeks for kissing, loves to be tickled, loves to be kissed and is still 100% okay with being held all day long. 😉 He’s the absolute perfect little brother for Nathan and is so precious to us that we don’t even have the words. We are so blessed by him!

Happy 11 months, my sweet boy!!

One of the blogs I read is doing this “What’s up Wednesday” and it looks like fun so I thought I’d join in. 🙂 Please chime in by answering the questions yourself and leaving them in the comments!! I’d love to hear from you! 🙂

What we are eating this week:
Jon is still doing his Whole30 (SO proud of him!!) and I’m officially off (I say this after finishing a cupcake just now). 😉 So we basically eat our regular meals during the day and then I make a Whole30 compliant dinner. Tonight we are having chicken apple sausage and sweet potatoes. And the odds are good that I will be having another cupcake after the boys go to bed. 😉 Just an FYI, but I LOVE to bake. Love it.

What I’m reminiscing about:

My little Parker Bear is about to be one next month and I’m desperately clinging to his babyhood. I ran across a few pictures of him tiny and it just made my heart tight. I can’t believe he’s already almost one! And also, can you believe how much Nathan grew up in the last year??! He looks like such a baby in these pictures too!




What I’m looking forward to:

SUMMER. This was us last summer and oh friends. I am SO ready for summer and warm days and playing outside!! My poor house is pretty much shuddering from these crazy boys being cooped up in here for so long. It is time to be outside at the park! I used to LOVE winter with such a passion until I had kids – now I am all about being outside and not having to constantly be taking coats on and off and dealing with sickness and bundling up to even walk to the mailbox. Nope. Time for summer. We can even bypass spring. I’m just ready for days running through the sprinklers. 😉

What I’m loving:

Homemade cupcakes. Our new “letters of the day”. A little boy who makes me a box of pipe cleaner and wooden bead rings. A tiny boy who stinks so good. Nap time. 😉

What we’ve been up to:
Getting over colds and attempting to stay on top of the house stuff while also making deadlines. The boys have been really, really, really good at destroying the house lately. It’s been busy. 😉

What I’m dreading:
Figuring out Nathan’s future school situation. Hi, wasn’t he just born? How are we already dealing with school??

What I’m working on:

Bake Me a Match!! Can’t wait to share the next installment this summer! 🙂

What I’m excited about:

My brother Bryant and my sister-in-law Nicole FINALLY announced this publicly and I have been dying to share it – I get a little niece or nephew this summer!! I cannot wait to meet that precious baby!!

What I am watching:

Jon and I have been watching a mix of Parks and Recreation, Friends and Leverage lately. During the day if I have a few minutes though, I’m really loving that they have been putting some Food Network shows on Netflix like Cupcake Wars. 😉

So what’s up with YOU?? 🙂

We stayed so busy this last weekend that Parker and I just felt obligated to wake up sick Sunday morning just so we could all have a day at home watching Cupcake Wars. 😉

On Friday night, we went to Menchies for free frozen yogurt and the boys had the best time. It was SO crowded and so much fun. Especially since we had a little Frozen sing-along on the way there and back. Nathan was in heaven. 😉

 This little pajama-clad boy is just one of my favorites. Take note of the destruction my house is in. It pretty much looks like this all day every day unless it is nap time or bedtime.

Saturday was the start to the day that Jon has been waiting for since the moment the ultrasound tech said the words “it’s a boy” – we registered Nathan for Little League. 😉 He’s going to be playing t-ball this spring and he is SO excited. So is Jon. 😉 Ha! They were so cute checking out the big kids practicing. Nathan can’t wait. We spent the evening at Gammy and Pops’ house and had a wonderful time!!

And then Sunday morning, Parker and I woke up on the sniffly side and by the mid-morning, we were both pretty yucky feeling. So, we spent the day lounging around watching Netflix and I’m pretty sure I drank my weight in orange juice and tea. 😉 We pretty much had a repeat of that yesterday and we are both a little better by today so just praying that we’re back to normal by tomorrow or so.

We at least felt good enough to take Kody to the vet this morning. He’s had a weird thing on his leg for a few weeks that hasn’t gotten any better so it was time to check it out. The boys in my family appreciated the camo bandage he got to sport. 😉

How was your weekend??

I think I am constantly waiting for things to settle down a bit but they never do. I’ve just decided this is a byproduct of two children. 😉

These two are just funny together. The older Parker gets, the more he annoys Nathan wants to constantly do whatever Nathan is doing which rarely ends well, but any time I suggest that they play separately, this is what happens. Neither can stand to be away from the other one so they will just have to figure out how to deal with Parker consistently knocking over all of Nathan’s projects. 😉 99% of the time, Nathan is pretty understanding but that 1% can be a doozy for everyone.

This kid loves the laundry room, though. LOVES it. And he also recently discovered toilet paper, which, I mean, is there anything better than potentially edible paper from an ever-flowing tube?? I submit that there is NOT.

Needless to say, we have officially entered the Every Door Must Remain Closed Always stage of babyhood.

He sleeps like this every night and it just makes my shoulder hurt even to look at him. But so cute. 🙂 Love that little goose.

Super Bowl Sunday I was making snacks in the kitchen and looked over during the National Anthem to see this. Ha!! He’s so cute! My little patriotic boy. 😉

First time eating a vanilla wafer. He liked it but I think he was a little concerned that something was wrong with me when I handed him the whole cookie. 😉 He did really well though biting off little bits at a time!! He’s getting too old too quick.

These are not the most natural smiles in the world. 😉 We got to have a slower morning in our jammies before doing a couple of errands after Parker’s morning nap. Right after I snapped this picture, Parker went all boneless and tried to slide off the couch while Nathan kept trying to hold on to him while cheesing that ridiculous smile.

These two keep me on my toes. 🙂

I woke up a few mornings ago with a stiff neck so I’ve been moving pretty slowly the past few days. The boys, however, have not been moving slowly. 😉 Days like this week always remind me how much I take for granted that I never even think about – like a properly functioning neck. I’m praying that tomorrow is much better!!

We have been having fun!! My father-in-law came in town for the weekend, so the boys have been treating him to the wonderful world of craziness. 😉 They’ve been playing cars and wrestling and Greg took Nathan to lunch and a movie this afternoon.

Parker and I just kind of looked at each other for a few minutes after they left like, “welp. What now?” Ha! We are both a little attached to him. 😉

Me and my buddy for the day. 🙂

Papa O and his buddy for the day! Can you tell he had just a smidge of fun?? 😉 And yes – those are 3D glasses from the movie they caught. He had the best day!

In other news, I did 4.5 days on the Whole30 and then noticed yesterday and today that Parker was begging to nurse when he wouldn’t normally and he was having some really weird diapers. So, off the Whole30 I came. I HATE feeling like a quitter, but, like several friends and my mom reminded me, I’m not just quitting for the sake of quitting. That being said, it was really nice to have bread again today. 🙂 I’ll have to try to to do it again when I’m not nursing. So I’m praying that Parker gets back to normal here very quickly!!

And finally, the Maya series has gotten a little makeover and the first two books – Cool Beans and Latte Daze – are FINALLY available on Kindle and Nook!! 🙂 Find Cool Beans on Kindle here and Nook here and Latte Daze on Kindle here and Nook here. 🙂 Double Shot will be available soon!!

Have a wonderful night!!

And the winner of the $25 Starbucks card and a copy of your favorite Paige novel goes to….

Christine Whitman-Benzenberg!

Yay!! Please email me at erynnmangum@gmail.com and I will get those to you!!

Here’s what we’ve been up to lately:

1. Playing. Playing. Destroying my house and playing.

2. It is finally getting nicer outside, so this is about to change but when it’s super cold, Parker wears his pajamas 97% of the time. The other 3% may or may not be when he’s in the tub. I am not telling. Thus the fact that almost every picture is of him in his jammies. 😉

 3. Jon and I started the #Whole30 diet this morning. This was my snack when the boys were down for rest/nap time today. I usually have chocolate chips and/or Craisins or something else sweet. Morale is low. 😉 Technically, you aren’t supposed to have snacks but I get a small pass for nursing. Morale improved a little on finding that out but plummeted yet again when I realized what that meant. 😉

4. I am about to start another deadline and I keep finding other things to do so I don’t have to start. “Oh but I MUST clean out my kitchen cabinets RIGHT NOW before I start the deadline!!” “Have you SEEN my laundry room?” “Yikes, the backyard…”

5. The Maya Davis series is getting a makeover! I’m soooo excited about the new look and I can’t wait to show the covers to you!!

I have SO much catching up to do on here and it’s just overwhelming. But in the meantime, here’s what this little one has been doing on an hourly basis and I just think it’s about the cutest thing:

Hello? from Erynn Mangum on Vimeo.

Ha!! Love both my chatterboxes. 😉

Happy Saturday!! I decided it is
time to do a little contest!! Y’all have been SO wonderful in your sweet
comments about Match Made  – a HUGE thank you to everyone who has read it!!

So
here’s how the contest is going to work: First, be sure you like my fan
page on Facebook (www.facebook.com/erynnmangum). On January 24th, I’ll
post a picture of Match Made’s cover onto the fan page. For
every share, you’ll be automatically entered to win a $25 Starbucks gift
card (that’s a lot of macchiatos!) and a free autographed copy of your
choice of one of the Paige Alder books!! Want to up your chances of
winning and already read Match Made?? Share the photo and then leave a review – good or bad – of Match Made on Amazon or Nook and then come back here and leave a comment letting me know you did that and you’ll get your name in the hat twice. 🙂 I’ll draw the winner on Monday, January 26th!

Yay!! Good luck everyone!! And thank you for playing! 🙂