My One Day Off 2014 (aka Mother's Day 2014)

I love Mother's Day. It seems like it's the only day I don't feel guilty for taking some time for myself or feeling spoiled. I'm lucky that Jeremy does a great job at that!

It feels weird being celebrated. Don't get me wrong, I went through a lot being pregnant and giving birth and I deal w/ a lot now with a toddler, so a day off is nice. BUT, none of that compares to the gift of being a mother. If anything, I want to celebrate my child and the blessing she is.

The Weekend

Saturday, we spent some time sprucing up our flower beds in the back and I planted flowers. On a side note, I was scared of planting flowers because of the whole poison ivy fiasco, but I made it out clean! :) Anyway, our back patio/beds look pretty good now and hopefully I can keep everything alive for a while. Fingers crossed.

After that, Quinn and Jeremy took a nap and I showered and took off. I was so excited to just go walk around stores and browse in silence. Amazing. My mom met up with me for a while and then my sister joined us just in time to shop a little more and have dinner.

After dinner, the three of us headed to Painting with a Twist to see how frustrated we could become at a paintbrush...I mean, paint together. Painting with a perfectionist personality is not easy, but somehow Emily and I got over it and made some pretty good infinity crosses. My mom was just so excited to have us both there, she didn't care. She drank wine, painted and chatted it up with a friend who was there.

The only thing I didn't like about that place was that you couldn't pick your own colors. I mean it makes sense because they teach you by telling you what to do w/ each color, but I can't figure out where to hang my painting because of the dark colors. My house is bright and happy. Hmmm...this might end up being a gift (which I probably shouldn't mention on a public blog).

Sunday was so great! Q and Jeremy brought me my first ever breakfast in bed. I felt so spoiled and I loved not having to get up and immediately be "on". Q was so funny...she kept telling me that was my special treat and daddy was bringing hers. He did a great job making cinnamon roll waffles and fruit...pretty impressive! Q also brought me flowers and a Kendra Scott bag to open. Gotta love a hubby with good taste.

We went to church and met up with the family and had brunch afterward at Manuel's. After brunch, I got to head out to get a mani/pedi and sit by myself at a salon. I was tempted to play on my phone or read a magazine, but I literally just sat there staring into space/people watching and eavesdropping. (Those are both special talents I have...spiritual gifts if you will.)

That night, I met up with two of my best girlfriends to see "The Other Woman" at my favorite theater with recliners and people who wait on you, literally, at the push of a button. It was a perfect girl's night and perfect end to an awesome Mom's Day weekend!

Strawberries and Quality Time

When I reflect on how hard it is to be a work-at-home mom, God always seems to bring things into perspective with days like this one. This is why I quit my full-time job...so I could have these experiences with Quinn! I know I'm blessed to be able to do that, and I'm so thankful every day!

A couple of months ago, I asked my mom to take a day off work to go pick strawberries with us in Marble Falls. She happily took the time off and we had an awesome time!

We headed out to Marble Falls to Sweet Berry Farm (same place we went for the pumpkin patch in the fall). I had never seen strawberries on a vine so it was such a beautiful site to see rows and rows of bright green and red. It was also a slap-in-the-face reminder of my horrible brown thumb (or whatever the opposite of green thumb is). 

Quinn picked a few strawberries and then quickly preceded to eat them. I let her have a couple and then told her we had to pay for them first. Since she'd lost interest in picking, she just played in the dirt while my mom and I picked the brightest, biggest strawberries we could find.

After we picked, we let Q do the "bouncy thang", as she calls it, and then we said hi to the goats (who desperately wished they could have our strawberries). We tried to get Q to ride the train, but she wasn't having it. She wanted to just watch and wave. 

It was a gorgeous day, but it was getting warm so we headed out to get some lunch in downtown Marble Falls. My friend, Allison, recommended a great place since her hubby works out there and we loved it! If you are ever in the area, check out Noon Spoon. It's a cute little lunch spot w/ awesome fresh food and terrible parking (they admit it on their sign). Q was awesome at lunch, and she was so proud of herself for making a cross with her toothpicks.

We drove home after that and somehow managed to keep Quinn awake so she napped when we got home. Woohoo!

Since we had a plethora (love that word) of strawberries, I took to Pinterest to find recipes. After passing by some healthy smoothies and whatnot, I decided to make strawberry donuts and they are my favorite thing I've ever made. OMG. So much deliciousness in one little ring. Here it is if you want to try it. They are baked so they are totally healthy, right?