Happy Birthday Olivia Grace

Hello Ladies and Happy Monday!

If you need me today, you will most likely find me in the fetal position, sobbing due to the fact that my baby is turning 9 today.....I am not even sure how it is even remotely possible that my little baby girl is not a baby anymore, and is just a little girl.

I just love this little girl so much!

I always wanted a big family, but we thought we were done after 4....well God had a bigger plan for us..Olivia was the BEST surprise! 

The absolute most precious bundle of pink there ever was!

The second they placed my sweet, perfect baby girl in my arms I instantly felt complete...she was the missing piece that I didn't even know was missing from our family.  

Of course having a healthy baby was the most important thing to me, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't ridiculously, over the moon happy that I was having a little girl.  After having 3 boys in a row, having all things pink again in my world was perfect!

Being a mother has brought me the absolute greatest joy in life...people often ask me if I regret having so many kids, and having kids at such a young age, if I felt that maybe I missed out on anything, and my answer is ALWAYS NO....there is no job, or anything else I could have ever done in my life that would have brought me as much joy and happiness as being a mother has.

Those of you that know me well, know that I struggle with my babies growing up.  I have two adult children, and I will say it is truly wonderful being able to be done raising them, and be able to be their friend and have a completely different relationship with them...I love it so much...however, I say it all the time, and it is true..the years have gone much quicker than I would have liked.

I have always tried to treasure every minute, every stage with all my kids, but with Olivia it has been so different.  She is growing up to be the absolute sweetest little girl ever, and it has been so much fun watching her grow up, and change and become her own little person.  But at the same time I am just sad.  I feel as though I have blinked my eyes and she just isn't a baby anymore.  I remember like it was yesterday giving birth to her, and now 9 years has gone by..how is that possible?  

Everything with Olivia has been so bittersweet...all of her milestones...all of her firsts...they are my lasts as a mother, and that has been tough for me.  

Olivia brings so much joy to us all every single day.  She is smart, funny and oh so sweet, and we all have a really hard time telling her no!  She has been such a bright light in our lives, and I am so honored to be this little girl's mom.

Happy 9th Birthday my sweet Olivia Grace...you are everything I hoped you would be and so much more.  You are so loved!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  See you back here soon!

xoxo,

Kimm

Friday Favorites

Hello Ladies

Today I am linking up with Andrea and sharing my Friday Favorites.  Be sure you grab the graphic and link up too!

ONE

I have been on the hunt for an affordable eye cream that actually works, and I think I found it.  If you are looking for a new eye cream that will not break the bank and actually works go check it out!

TWO

Those cherry and watermelon gummy bears.....DELICIOUS!  I am definitely grabbing a bag of the apple to try them also!  Candy....always a favorite!

THREE

Still majorly loving my bath bombs over here!  A relaxing, colorful bath is for sure a favorite!

FOUR

Getting to spend a few hours sitting outside at Starbucks is always a favorite for me.  Enjoying the nice weather before it gets too hot and I am trapped indoors!

FIVE

This birthday shirt is a sure favorite for me and Liv!  My sweet girl will be 9 Monday and she is super excited to wear this!  If you are looking for cute birthday shirts, here is where we got ours!

SIX

I am still loving my Tieks ....they are super comfortable and I have worn these yellow ones pretty much everyday...they are such a fun pop of color each day!

Not sure what we are up to this weekend, I am just excited that Mark doesn't have to work.  Thanks so much for stopping by today....see you back here next week.

xoxo,

Kimm

Girl Chat Linkup

Hello Ladies!

Today I am linking up with Danielle , Emily , Lindsay , Lizzie , and Sierra for "Girl Chat".

Today we are chatting about a time we were really lucky!  There have been so many times in my life when I have felt so truly lucky and blessed.  

It's a given I think that each and every time I was able to give birth to a healthy baby was a time I felt lucky, truly lucky.

But when I look back over my life what stands out the most, other than the birth of my children, is meeting my husband.  I know I have talked about this many times before, and I am sure some of you are sick of hearing me talk about him, so if you are one of those, stop reading now:)

Most of you who read here regularly know that I am divorced and this is a second marriage for both Mark and I.  

I remember as I was going through my divorce I would sit there and think I will NEVER find someone who will be interested in a 36 year old, single mom to 5 kids.  I remember sitting there holding Olivia, saying to myself, I am 100% OK to go through life just being their mom, I don't need a man, I can be happy and content living the rest of my life just being the best mom I could be to my children.  Well, lets just say I am so glad I listened to my girlfriends, and decided to go meet a guy for drinks we found on the internet:)

I remember the first time I met Mark like it was yesterday, and I just remember feeling so content sitting there talking to him.  We talked for hours that first night, and when the fact that I had 5 kids didn't even phase him a bit, I knew right then and there he was a keeper and I was lucky!  

Mark and I moved pretty quickly with our relationship....I didn't wait too long to introduce him to my children, which I know probably sounds so crazy to some of you, (and thankfully he was the first and ONLY one after my divorce) but I truly felt like our feelings for each other were developing pretty quickly and in order for him to really know me, he needed to see me as a mom.  And seriously, I think they all fell in love with each other quicker than him and I did.  It took all of 5 minutes to see him with my sweet baby girl for me to know that I had someone really special.  Mark walked right into our lives, never pausing, never thinking about the crazy chaoticness he was walking into, never stopping to think...what the heck am I doing at 40 getting involved with a woman with 5 kids, whose youngest isn't even 2 yet...he just jumped right in, embraced the crazy and just loved us.  He jumped right into full on dad mode...changing diapers, reading bed time stories, coaching tee-ball teams and basketball teams, he did it all....he did it all not because he had to, but because he wanted to, and I was again reminded just how truly lucky I am.  

Mark not only fell in love with me, he fell in love with my children, and trust me when I tell you, you would NEVER know that these are his step-kids, he couldn't love them anymore if they were his own flesh and blood...and the feeling is mutual...my kids think he is the cat's meow...they love him so much.  Mark has never tried to take the place of their dad, he has so much respect for Kenny and who he is in their life, and my kids think it is pretty darn cool that they get to have 2 dads who love them.

So yes I am lucky...VERY LUCKY.  I get to share my life with a man who adores me, who puts me first and makes me feel special and loved every single day.  I get to have the best partner in the world to raise my children with.  I am so lucky to have found love again after heartache and divorce.  Taking a chance, going out on that date, it changed my life and the lives of my children....and I do feel lucky, every single day that he picked me to share his forever with:)

Thanks for stopping by today!  Be sure to check back tomorrow for Friday Favorites.

xoxo,

Kimm

What We Are Watching...

Hello Ladies!

Hope you are all having a great week...yay for making it halfway!  I am getting back into my routine this week after a week full of sickness...so I am pretty happy about that!

Today I am going to share with you guys what we are currently watching over here!  

One of my favorite parts of the day is once all the kids are settled for the night and I can sit on the couch with Mark.  Weeknights are so crazy for us...he gets home late, dinner, dinner clean up, homework, showers, bed time routine with Olivia...it's always hectic.  So once all the hustle and bustle is done, I just really enjoy sitting down with my guy and watching a show or two. We are not huge Netflix watchers over here, but there are definitely a few shows we are hoping to start soon...if there is something we MUST watch let me know in the comments!

Superior Donuts just started a few weeks ago and we LOVE it!  The cast is great,  and it's 30 minutes of fun!  It reminds me of good old comedies from back in the day, but with a little bit of an edge.  If you are looking for just a fun show to watch check it out Monday nights!

Bull...this show is awesome.  This show is about a team who analyzes juries to help the defense.  We were hooked after the first episode.  If you watched NCIS and loved DiNozzo, you will love seeing him in the lead role in this show!

Who isn't watching This is Us????   I have to admit we are WAY behind on this...we have only watched the first 4 episodes....but good lord...this show is everything.  Mark and I were just saying we need to catch up on it...I know you all are watching it so I don't need to tell you how good it is.

We are big NCIS fans and our favorite is NCIS:  New Orleans.  Super similar to NCIS and NCIS:  Los Angeles...but we love the setting and the cast in this one.  

This is probably one of Mark's favorite shows...it is about a group of freakishly smart people, computer whizzes and they go out and solve problems and usually save a life or two.  

So there is a little bit of what we are watching over here.  If there is something that we should be watching let me know!  

Thanks for stopping by today!

xoxo,

Kimm

43 Years....

Hello Ladies!

Oh how very true this little quote is!

Over the weekend I celebrated turning 43...yup 43....I can remember a time when I thought 40 was SO OLD....yeah not so much anymore!  

It is so true what they say, time flies, and I find the older I get, the quicker it seems to go.  I have talked before, numerous times, about how truly grateful that I am each and every day, and it's not something I just say because it sounds good...it really is the truth.  My life is FAR from perfect, and I have definitely had my fair share of struggles and really hard times, but even during the toughest times I have always remained grateful, grateful just to be here, grateful to be surrounded by amazing people.  

So since I just turned 43, I thought I would take some time today and share with you guys some of the things that I have learned over my 43 years here......

It's so easy for us to get down on ourselves, especially with so much social media.  It is very easy to start comparing yourself to others, and you can quickly start feeling really bad about yourself.  I have learned that being true to yourself and who you are is always the best way to go.  I admit, I have definitely been guilty of this, but now I don't compare myself to anyone, I don't want to be like anyone, I am quite happy just being me.  

Perfection doesn't exist!  After years of trying to be the perfect wife, the perfect mother, perfect friend, perfect daughter, I realized perfection simply doesn't exist.  I know I will never be perfect, so I just wake up each day and try and be the best I can, and for me, that's perfect.

It's OK to just say no.  In my early years of being a mother "NO" simply wasn't in my vocabulary.  I over extended myself all the time, and it sucked.  I felt like I was a stay at home mom, so I needed to be doing all the things, and always saying yes.  It took YEARS....but now I am totally fine with just saying no....I am still involved with my children and school, but I know I don't have to chair every single committee and run every single class party.  Years ago my guilt over saying no would have been huge, but not anymore.  

Others opinions just don't matter.  It is hard to not feel down when someone is mean or negative towards you, but I have learned that other's opinions just don't mean a darn thing.  Sure it would be great if everyone liked me, but it's ok, and I don't care if they don't.  I have come to the harsh realization that some people are just mean, they can't help it, and some people can only feel good about themselves if they are tearing someone else down.  I have no room in my life for toxic people.  

Never ever take a single thing for granted.  This should be a no brainer, but I think sometimes we all are a little guilty of it.  I think we all just assume "tomorrow" will be for us, and I have learned that nothing in life is guaranteed.  So I really try to make sure, especially my husband and kids, know every single day how much they mean to me and how very much I love them.  

Always go with your gut...ALWAYS.  Over the last few years I have learned this to be 100% true for me.  I think we all want to see the good in everyone, but 9 times out of 10 if your gut is telling you something is off...it usually is. 

Acknowledge and appreciate how good you have it.  This is another one that can be TOUGH, and has taken me years to "get".  I don't know about you, but I have definitely been guilty of always wanting more, and though there are always going to be things that I want, I am also so appreciative of all that I do have, and I know how lucky and blessed I am.  I certainly don't have everything, but I have so much more than so many others, and I am so thankful for the things that I have and more importantly the amazing people that I get to share my life with.

Live without regret.  I try and go through life with zero regrets.  Sure, I have made mistakes in my life, I have done things I am not proud of, but I have tried to really learn from all the mistakes I have made.  And going through some of those really tough times, has made me into the person I am today. I am definitely stronger because of it, and I try and walk away not with regret, but learning something.  

I think the most important thing I have learned so far in my life is to NEVER EVER SETTLE....NEVER!!  I think a lot of times we get comfortable in life, and even though maybe we aren't 100% happy, we stay in a relationship, job, whatever because change scares us, the unknown is scary, so we settle.  I have learned first hand that the biggest risks bring the greatest rewards.  

I know it sounds so cliche, but every year on my birthday I am truly grateful for another year...I totally agree that growing older is a privilege denied to way too many.  Though the grey hairs, fine lines and wrinkles I could totally do without, I am so thankful for all the wisdom and knowledge I have gained in my older years.  

Thank you so much for stopping by today!

xoxo,

Kimm

Happy Monday

Hello Ladies!

Here is to hoping my week is a whole lot better than last week!

Last week was a doozie for us...Mark and I got back home from our weekend away and we walked right into a house of sickness!  Olivia started last Sunday with the stomach bug, and then by Tuesday AJ had it...we were able to celebrate Jacks birthday Wednesday, but right before midnight, Jack got sick, and Thursday both Harrison and I were down for the count, and then Friday Mark got it....Brooke got lucky.  

I cannot remember a time when I was so sick, it was awful, and just keeping it real over here...AJ struggled with making it into the bathroom or the bucket each and every time he got sick.  Girls it was BAD.....projectile vomit off the top bunk....there came a point in the day where I just sat in my room and cried.  I don't think I have cleaned or done as much laundry ever as I did last week.  

So I am very much looking forward to getting back into my normal routine this week, and praying that ugly stomach virus doesn't show its face over here for a very long time!

See you guys back here tomorrow!

xoxo,

Kimm

Our Weekend At Daytona

Hello Ladies!

I cannot even believe it's March!  Before I go any further, I need to wish a very Happy 15th Birthday to Jack!  I still cannot believe he is 15 already, the years have flown by and I cannot believe the time has come for him to get his learner's permit (YIKES) and we are talking about colleges.  I have said this many times before, and it continues to be true...Jack is such a good kid, in 15 years he hasn't given me a problem...ever...he is crazy smart, respectful, kind and just a genuine good person.  I am so incredibly proud of the amazing young man he is growing up to be. 

I remember just like it was yesterday bringing my sweet Jack Ryan home from the hospital.

That sweet face....

Tonight we will be eating something Mexican, eating cake and celebrating Jack!

Over the weekend Mark and I headed out of town for a little getaway!  With Mark's position, he gets lots of perks, and we are always so grateful when we are able to hit up the NASCAR races.  This last weekend was the Daytona 500, and this was our 2nd year going and it was a BLAST!!!!!  Mark had both Friday and Monday off, so it was nice to have a long weekend away.  Harrison came with us this time, he had never been before, and he had the BEST time!  He has never followed NASCAR, but he loved everything about it, and said numerous times this definitely won't be his last race!

We got the little kids off to school, packed up the car and headed out!  

Venti Starbucks...road trip essential!

Once we arrived in Daytona, our first stop was to pick up our passes for the weekend.  We are so grateful each time that we are given these.

Normally we stay in a hotel, but this time we stayed with one of Mark's customers in his motorhome right outside the track and it was FABULOUS!

One of Mark's friends who works for one of the race teams, came on the golf cart and got us each day, so it was great to not have to deal with parking, traffic and walking through the tunnels into the infield!

This was the only picture we took together all weekend!

Harrison's first time in the garages and down on pit road.

One of Mark's customers/friends were staying in the infield and we spent lots of time Saturday and Sunday at their motorhome with them.  We love heading down to the garage area and pit road for a bit, but we rarely actually stay in the track and watch the race!  Being able to go up on the roof of the motorhome was so much fun, and you can see the whole track!

Harrison was pretty in love with his Lamborghini....and thrilled to be able to not only sit in it, but also go for a ride in it.  

I am truly so grateful for all the amazing people that we have been able to meet, and I am always blown away with their hospitality...we have truly met some of the BEST people at these races!

Sunday morning started PERFECT......Waffle House!  Its tradition for us, we always make sure to eat breakfast once at Waffle House when we travel to the races...its pure greasy goodness!

The track was packed Sunday....and there were people everywhere!  We were so thankful for cooler than normal temps....it was perfect weather for a race!

I love spending time with Harrison....he has turned out to be such a wonderful young man, and I am so proud of him and just adore him!  I am so very thankful for the amazing relationship that I have with him.  I love that he truly enjoys hanging out with us just as much as we enjoy spending time with him!  

We always are fortunate enough to get wristbands to get us into the driver's/owners lot.  This is where all the drivers stay with their families, and even though I have been in there many times, it truly never gets old seeing them just walking around....I'm always starstruck.  And the people in this sport are some of the nicest people I have ever met.  Mark had some work to do over the weekend also, so it was neat to get to go into some of their motorhomes!

Lady Antebellum had a concert right before the race Sunday, and it was super fun to see them for a bit.  

My favorite part is always getting to see Samantha Busch!  She is the absolute SWEETEST, and we both kind of laughed that we had on the same shirt!  

Mark was pretty happy to get to meet and have a pic with Mario Andretti!

And this is definitely not the best picture, but who cares...it's Owen Wilson...and he was nice as could be!

We were so happy to see #88 back racing and of course super bummed when he couldn't finish the race.

So many people kept telling Harrison he resembled Dale Jr a bit....

I am not so sure...but Harrison thought it was GREAT!

The weather was perfect...not hot, and it actually got chilly about midway through the race!  Mark was nice and bundled up and cozy:)

We had planned on staying Sunday night and coming home Monday morning, but we decided to just come home Sunday night after the race.  We love being away, but there is NOTHING better than sleeping in your own bed.  We got home around 2 am and went right to bed and crashed.

We came home to a house of sickness.  Olivia started with the stomach bug Sunday and was down for the count Monday and stayed home Tuesday as well.  AJ woke up Tuesday morning and he got hit HARD with it.  As I am typing this, I am praying hard no one else gets it!  

Thanks so much for stopping by today! 

xoxo,

Kimm