Spring has sprung

It's already March and spring is here!  We've had several fun rainy showers this past week, and by this weekend we are supposed to be hitting in the high 80 degrees- perfect weather!!!
As the rest of the world blooms with the arrival of warm spring days, so do my lovely little girls.  They are getting to big so fast!

Brightlie is our little princess.  She is 3 going on 13, and her independence gets stronger everyday.

Sometimes I get frustrated by her attitude and strong-will, but i try to tell myself that this can be a great tool for her in the future if i can help mold / guide her to use this personality trait in the right way :)

 Brightlie just got signed up for early enrollment pre-school.  She will be attending Queen Creek Elementary (their pre-school program, called Kinder 3 Prep).  Paul and I had so much fun taking B to the school to meet the teachers, see the classrooms, and get registered for the fall.  B loved it!  She was so excited, and warmed right up to the teachers.  I was a nervous wreck, because they took 4 kids at a time for a small series of testing, to make sure they qualified for the program.  I know B is smart, but i was slightly worried about how she would do on the language/speaking portion- luckily, she did great!  She has been enjoying Disney movies, and is working on counting her numbers... she can actually count to 10 in Spanish no problem, but is struggling with English---- thanks Dora the Explorer!  Also, she loves songs/singing in primary and at home, and is such a little spit fire- she says the funniest things.  :)  We sure do love her!

   {Daddy-daughter time... playing with B's Little Pet Shop toy}

Paul is doing well at work.  He is happy and continues to receive more work and praise as he takes on more tasks and projects.  Of course, he is the center of attention each day when he comes home to his 2 little ladies who are major 'daddy's girls'.  

And Paul is just simply an awesome hubby.  As I was talking with some of my girl-friends recently, one of them mentioned that Paul is "unlike any normal husband".  Mostly because he's so laid back, which is soooo totally his personality anyways. But, it surprised me to listen to my friends talk about how needy their husbands are.  Or how they kinda have to ask permission to do things.  Or how demanding their men can be over things that i never even thought of, since Paul just isn't like that.  Not to say that their hubby's are bad or anything, it's not like that at all.  It just made me look at how Paul and I work, and how is is as a spouse.  Paul is calm, laid-back, and down to earth.  He is not demanding or picky about house work, dinner, etc.  He helps out with the kids, and is confident in doing so.  He likes that we spend time together, but is always very gracious about me getting time for myself to get away from the kids and just go have a girls' night.  We don't 'ask permission', about anything.  We talk about things and discuss plans, but we try to value each other as adults, and as friends.  

I greatly appreciate him.  He is my best friend, and I am so happy he is so caring and considerate of my role.  He is always so respectful and sensitive to my struggles of being a stay at home mom, and i love that he 'gets it'.  I'm pretty sure i'm the luckiest girl in the world, spoiled by a man who treats me like a queen.  :)  

Okay, on to me.... I am doing well.  Just trying to get over head-cold.  The girls keep me busy, but we are having fun.  I have taken on a new idea/plan. I need to start shopping for "adult clothes".  That may sound silly, but i feel like I have a semi-new style (as a mom, and as a nearly 27 year old).  I want to look trendy, but sophisticated.  And i am going to need to up my shopping game if this is to be achieved.  So, it means more planning, less cheap purchases.  If I want clothes to last, I need to make some investment purchases, more that a $10 shirt from Forever 21 that i wash 3 times and it is finished.  I have always cared about my makeup (MAC mostly) so i feel confident in that area, although i have been enjoying makeup tutorials on Pinterest that help me improve my technique. Oh, and my hair.  Ug.  I am trying to grow it out, and it is a horribly slow process.  BUT, hopefully it is worth it.  I am planning to go get it highlighted though for the summer soon.  :)     

Now, onto Peyton....

my baby is WALKING!!!!!!

10 months old, and she is already standing up on her own and taking 2-4 steps at a time!  It is so exciting.  I can't believe how big she is.  She is enjoying her new found freedom.... i think she gets tired of crawling when she sees Brightlie running around everywhere :)

We sure do love this girl!  She likes to stand on her tiptoes in front of the TV.  She is quick to snatch anything and everything left up on the couches, so we have to put things up higher now... a lesson B has quickly adapted to, since she gets mad when Peyton gets some of her toys.

Well, that is about all.  Our family is doing well.  We just paid of all our credit card debt with  our tax return, hurray!  Not the funnest way to spend all that money, but it's good to be closer to being debt free (minus car payment and student loans).  Life is good, and we are all healthy and happy.  Carry on.