eight months and a baby daddy

Happy Father's Day!

Can't believe we're in the middle of freakin June. Days rolls by here in a hot and hazy blur. Jake's been gone a lot, and he deploys in less than a month. Big sigh...

Nevertheless we're embracing summer and all of it's beauty. Like eating ice cream at least three times a day and taking walks to the park in the early morning before it gets hot.

Graham has turned into a chubby bundle of curiosity and teeth. He wants to eat and grab everything and his smile is the most hysterical thing I have seen. I catch myself constantly gawking at him in disbelief that he is, indeed, my child. He is the most brilliant mixture of Jake and I. Recently he has learned to clap and his grunting/spitting is back leading me to call him "Chunky Monkey". He continues to scoot and stand on his own, which means we have only a few moments left of limited mobility.

Naturally Jake is gone for his first Father's Day (as was I on Mother's Day) so we'll celebrate with him later, but I wanted to tell him how much I love him. He is such a cute papa. I know there is nowhere else he'd rather be than with us but he continues to serve his country with a big smile and a unfailing sense of humor. Thanks for working hard and allowing me to stay at home with our perfect creation. We have so many great years and fun parent moments ahead of us!

To read Jake's post about being a daddy click HERE

Graham's Nursery

Graham's nursery is my favorite room in the house.
Probably because it's the only one finished.
Also because it's amazing.

We bought all of the furniture from IKEA, my favorite store, along with the picture ledges that took us way too long to hang. So worth it though! My dear cousin made us the oversized Scrabble letters. To learn how I made the lamp click HERE. If you want to turn that chair you love into a swivel rocker click HERE. I learned how to make the map HERE.The roll up chalkboard was made from two yard sticks, twine, and blackboard fabric (bought at JoAnn's) for a total cost of five dollars. holler. I made the mobile, which was a delicate and frustrating process that I did not document. (I used a embroidery hoop, string, felt, cotton balls, card-stock and black/silver paint.)

A big thank you to my mom who took these pictures of us on Graham's one week birthday! She did an awesome job. I just love my little family.

Class 13-03

Congrats class 13-03! 

It's been a long road, but we made it. 

So proud of my husband for all 

of his hard work. 

Can't believe it's finally over...

How To Be Fabulous.

A letter to myself...

How to be Fabulous: 

Get up early. Go on a walk in the morning light. Bra-less and without makeup... nothing is quite as peaceful.

Try new things! Eat fresh foods and smoothies. Take time and pleasure in your meals and be creative. Oh, and remember to drink lots and LOTS of water.

Keep a journal, read, and be inspired. You'll be shocked by the things you teach yourself just by writing down your thoughts. Or sketching out your dreams. I sometimes flip back the pages to a year or two before to see how much I've grown. The younger and more dramatic Courtney is rather entertaining.

Exercise and clean to upbeat music. The time will fly by and before you know it, you've lost a few hundred calories and finished all the dishes while dancing. This is my new favorite workout song....
and this...

Take the time to make yourself pretty. Not for anyone else but you. Putting in that extra five minutes to curl my hair and apply eyeshadow boosts your self confidence tenfold. Besides, your husband deserves to see the premarriage face every once in a while! My favorite beauty website is....

Indulge in at least one melodramatic, ridiculous television show a week. Not only is it entertaining but it makes you feel better about your quiet and mellow lifestyle. Some of my favorites are Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girl, Downton Abbey, and Bachelor Pad. To name a few. Don't judge me.

Plan things to do with new friends. I don't care if your single, married and childless (hollah at me one time) or married with five children. You need time with your friends! Set up a play date or book club. Plan a dinner group or game night! It gives you things to look forward to.

Meditate before bed. This is something I always seem to forget. Stretching before I sleep instantly relaxes and takes away all worries. It also keeps one from feeling stiff and sore the next day. I also play "brown noise" on loop while I sleep, it keeps me from thinking about all of the things I didn't do that day and blocks out those loud airplanes and early to work husbands.

Read this whenever you're feeling down and unmotivated!
(photo via )

Wonderful Wednesday

Oh, hey...

It's been a while.

Things have been rather wonderful.
We've had consistent warm weather and I've made some great new friends.

Here are some things that make me happy:

Spring. I love waking up to sunshine and smelling the humid warmth in the air.

I long to spend evenings on the patio roasting marshmallows and sipping lemonade.
This weekend will most definitely be spent with a picnic and a bit of gardening.

Saturdays in The City with Jacob.
We read Hunger Games to each other as we drove
and ate bowls of comfort food at Panera. I walked slowly thru
Target trying to take in every shelf and every aisle.  A perfect day.

My last days with Ray Ray.
He's been my little buddy here in Oklahoma. 
I will miss him and his smiley blue eyes desperately...

Lacey Sunday

What a gorgeous weekend! 

The Spring weather is flourishing here in Enid. 

I just hope it's here to stay.

I finally got my Nikon working and I couldn't resist

walking to the park to try out the new lens. 

Hope you all had a beautiful weekend :)

OSCARS TONIGHT!

peace, be still

"True silence is the rest of the mind; it is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment."

Another weekend is nearly gone and it was full of surprises.

Jake's brother Ben came on Friday which forced me to clean the house, it was a lovely thing to behold. Mr. Kearns even cleaned the bathroom. We should probably do that more often.

The boys spent their time playing Modern Warfare and watching Big Bang Theory. Jake loved being able to tour the base with his brother who came here for pilot training two years ago. I think brother Ben showed him that there is life after phase two, which has become less visible the last couple of weeks.

The weather is taking a turn for the worse and it's making me feel like I'm in Idaho again. Coldest wind I've ever felt and it will most likely snow tonight. Yuck. Let's bring back that June-uary weather from last month pretty please...

I got to babysit our neighbor Cora yesterday. We watched Peter Pan, made sugar cookies and ate Mac and Cheese. I love when the child inside me gets to come out.  I could watch Disney movies all day and night.

After I put Cora down for a nap, there was this blissful 45 minutes of silence. No television. No computer, just me and the dogs resting on the couch. I thought to myself, Why haven't I done this before? Why can't I just sit and think for an hour instead of constantly having the television on to muddy up my mind? No wonder I can't focus or think straight! Silence is completely underrated. I think I'll make it a goal to include quiet hour into my daily routine.

And now we close this week with a class full of four-year-olds and frosted animal cookies. Where the answer to every question is Jesus. Unless your Trenna, who answered the question 'Who is mother of Jesus?' with "A Horse!" These kids make me very happy. They remind me what life is really about... having twenty-five kids and living in Disney World.

P/S Season Two finale of Downton Abbey is tonight people. That went way too fast. Oh well, at least Walking Dead is back.     What? You don't watch either you say? GET NETFLIX PEOPLE!

insta-life

I'm Instagram obsessed lately. Which is weird. Because I thought I was over that app. Guess not!

We're in the middle of another week in Oklahoma,

a good week so far. 

I've got my sights on a big change.

Something I've been wanting to do for a while but have been

too much of a baby to make it happen.

It makes me excited. and a bit nervous.

Which is good, because I do not attempt scary things enough. 

I sit inside my comfortable little world slowly becoming a hermit. 

But loner no more! I am done with being stagnant.

I also bought a fantastic glass display case at the thrift store yesterday,

I have big plans to transform it into beautiful television stand this month!

Today my favorite artist came out with yet another inspiring album. 

Her voice constantly leaves me feeling vulnerable and teary. 

Which is what good music should do.

Get yourself some Ingy today. 

The End. 

How about you leave me a comment now? 

That would be pretty great.

sunday Sunday SUNDAY

1. A Pancake Snack

2. A breezy walk around base

3. Our adorable neighbor baby

4. My Top 3 Golden Globe Dresses

With the exception of the wicked cold that's destroying my body, it was a perfectly enjoyable Sunday.

We took pleasure in...

Teaching our four year olds about being a child of God.

Devouring a White Pizza from CPK. (Available at your local Grocery Store) Yum!

and Playing Ticket to Ride with our neighbors.

springtime in my soul

Yesterday was a beautiful day. 

It was deliciously warm. 

Warm enough to sit on the back porch in my short sleeves

and feel my pores absorb every ounce of UV possible.

It sparked some life into this frozen over brain of mine 

and the next thing I know, 

I'm taking the bike out and going to the gym.

This is why I need to live somewhere warm people. 

I also scored big online yesterday with some Civil Wars concert tickets. 

What, what!

Ten things that makes me a very happy Courtney...

1. Early morning back adjustments

2. Ham and Turkey Subway sandwich

3. Grey's Anatomy Season One

4. Brand new sheet music courtesy of Adele, Sara, and The Civil Wars

5. Planning vacations in warm places

6. Banana Pudding with Whipped Cream

7. Riding my bike with Fluff Puff in the basket

8. Spicy Garlic Boneless Wings with friends

9.Wrapping up in my heated throw

10. Reading Hunger Games for the second time around.

10.5 Driving with the windows down in my freshly cleaned car

now on to some spring cleaning...