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Busy Bodies

I knew this summer was going to be a challenge. Blake is two and he is on the go all the time, so I knew that I would need to be extra creative in keeping him busy. I explored a few options and found a "Busy Bodies" class at our local gymnastics place. The title alone sounded perfect for Blake! This class was designed for energetic 2-3 year olds. It is also a Mommy & Me class, so I attend with him and help keep up with what he is doing.

This week was our first time, but we will be going ever Wednesday for the rest of the summer. They pulled out all the stops for these little ones! There was a bouncy house, trampoline, and even a HUGE rope swing. Blake tried it all and loved every minute of it. I was surprised he tried the rope swing, because he had to be harnessed in and that is very new to him.  He didn't want to get off of it...I think he almost fell asleep on it too. HAHA!

Shake Your What?!

Blake is at the phase where he is a little verbal copy cat. First of all, we are SO excited that Blake is becoming very verbal. For a little while we were a little scared he was behind in speaking. Silly us! Now I am a little nervous because you never know what he will pick up!

The other day we were watching a little Madagascar short movie and one of the characters said "Shake my booty!!!" Blake thought that it was absolutely hilarious! And next thing I know Blake repeated it... but he got one of the words wrong. His version is "Shake my BOOBIE!!!" HAHAHA!!!! Of course I busted out laughing and encouraged it. Am I a bad parent for that?! LOL! Come on, it was funny. However... now he will say it randomly because he thinks it's funny.

Today at the park, I was pushing him on the swing and another cute little family came up and pushed their little 4 year old on the swings, too. As we were enjoying a little random "mommy talk", Blake busted out and said "Shake my BOOBIE!"  {Cricket... cricket...} Yep, first awkward outburst in public. Check! :) I felt the need to explain, and luckily that fellow mommy had a good sense of humor. She even said I should be grateful because he could say worse. Haha. Let's just hope he forgets about that phrase before it gets out of hand. ;)

We are also laughing because Blake calls his friends "piggy". I guess it's piggy?! I actually can't figure out what he is trying to say. All I know is that he addresses people he doesn't know as something that sounds like piggy. So today after he had his boobie outburst, he then chased the kid around and called him piggy. Sigh.... :) This little boy cracks me up on a daily basis!!

White Lake Trip {the Wiggins Way}

Wow... It has been a while since I've blogged. Oops, I guess that just shows how chaotic things have been around here. That is why our White Lake trip was so necessary!

My dad booked a house at White Lake for some of the Wiggins side of the family. White Lake holds a special place to that side of the family. My dad went there as a little kid when my grandparents would have family vacations. Pretty fun, so Blake and I took full advantage of this weekend!!

Some of my cousin's kids came along too and it was super fun to watch Blake keep up with the "big kids". He really followed in their footsteps and I was proud of my little man!! :) He also got pretty excited about the water which was a HUGE accomplishment for him. Blake usually isn't very fond of large bodies of water, but once he saw the big kids do it, he was all in!

We were very sad to leave this little vacation and we are counting down the days until summer!

Family Pictures 2014

For a person who is obsessed with pictures, I am embarrassed to say that it's been over a year since we actually had our family pictures taken. The last time was for Blake's first birthday. Luckily we were able to fix that this past week! Our photographer (yes, I feel fancy saying that) was able to fit us in for a family photo shoot at Joyner Park.

Let me preface the sneak peak pictures by saying, it is incredibly difficult to do a photo shoot with an energetic two year old! Whew! Blake was all smiles and happy, but he was also non stop. We hardly got him to sit still. Luckily, Patricia's camera can handle that and she was able to grab some awesome shots! Here are a few several of my favorites so far...

Seeing these pictures just makes my heart beam.  She was able to not only get some good family pictures, but she was also able to get our personalities. Yes, we goof off. Yes, we play around. Yes, the boys usually wrestle while I sit there and sigh or laugh. That's just us!! And these pictures reflect our family life perfectly.  We can't wait to get all of the pictures back so that we can share more!!

Oh yeah, crazy story... While Patricia was positioning us for a picture on the bridge, a snake literally jumped out of the rocks and tried to bite her!! Luckily her reflexes are top notch and she leaped out of the way. She also snapped a picture of him (from far away) so that she could see what type of snake it was. Very scary!!! Needless to say we got several other bridge pictures and we quickly moved on to the next picture spot. Haha.

Mothers Day

Oh boy, I LOVE Mother's Day Weekend!!! Motherhood is something that I think is SO sacred. It has honestly become my passion and it is a calling that I put as a priority in my life. Perhaps I do this because of the strong maternal examples in my own life.

Growing up, I was raised partly by a mom and grandmothers who were very much involved in my life. I'm talking hugs, love, comfort, encouragement, talks, and more. They were all there for every accomplishment in my life. They were the ones who took care of me when I was sick. They were the ones to comfort me, but also make me be tough. I can honestly say, I have some STRONG women as an example. To be honest... not a day goes by that I don't talk to or see one of them. I am very close with all of them. I also think I am the mother I am today as a result of them! There is a sense of gratitude that I don't feel I will ever be able to fully express.

When I became a mommy to Blake Ryan Larsen, all of my dreams came true. Me being a mom used to actually be a joke with my family and also Ryan. Before having Blake, I was the one who was very awkward around babies and kids. I just never had that maternal aspect. In fact, when Ryan and I got married (and even when I was pregnant) HE was always better with babies than I was. Awkward...I was just awkward. I often panicked about being a mom myself. I thought I was just going to be awful at it.

When Blake was born, something magical kicked in. I turned into someone I never knew I could be. I had this maternal sense that just kicked in. Somehow baby Blake just knew me and I knew him and we just clicked. Ever since then I have LOVED being a mom more than anything. It is the hardest thing I have ever done, but I am the happiest while doing it. That little boy can make me feel like a million dollars! I love being his mom!

Luckily I am also married to a wonderful guy who appreciates the maternal role. Ryan always tells me how fantastic of a mother I am. Which is nice because lets face it.. we mothers doubt ourselves a lot! He always trusts in my judgements for Blake. He will move aside and let me take charge when it comes to Blake. He also reassures me anytime there is a rough or emotional mommy moment.

Ryan and Blake showed their appreciation to me several times this weekend. The went and got me breakfast on Saturday morning - my favorite bacon, egg, and cheese bagel. Ryan gave me some time this week to do things away from Blake... like shopping. Remember that?!? They gave me a BEAUTIFUL necklace that is dedicated to Blake's birth, and they let me pick our family activities for Sunday. I picked to go to the park and just play with Blake. :)

Motherhood is the best job in the world. And right now I am looking forward to summer time so that I can be a full time mommy for a few months!!

Weekend Excursions

Wow, we have had a blast this weekend with lots of fun things. Let me assure you... our weekends are not normally this packed, but I guess we just have Spring fever!!

On Saturday we went to the annual Meet in the Street in Wake Forest. This has been going on since I was a little girl. Basically they shut down main street in Wake Forest and they have vendors, activities, food, and music for people to mingle around and see. I remember my dance group performing in Meet in the Street when I was little. A lot has changed between then and now but it still has the same fun atmosphere. Blake really enjoyed walking around and this was Ryan's first time going. We walked around and also ate lunch at Shorty's. Fun times!

Sunday we were able to spend most of the afternoon outside. It was just one of those days. Ryan and I ate lunch together on the porch while Blake was napping. It was so nice to just step away from the technology, and just enjoy the fresh air and talking. When Blake woke up we continued playing on the porch and relaxing. We also got my dad's little paddle boat and we took Blake for a little ride on the pond. This was Blake's first time on the boat and we were a little unsure how he would handle it all, but we were plesently surprised. He loved it! He actually was very calm and relaxed as we paddled around. :)

We are so ready for summer! Days like this just don't get old. I only have about 30ish more school days left before Summer vacation. Bring it on!!!