Well...Hello there 30!

Today's my Birthday! My 30th Birthday to be exact. I know it sounds selfish to say that I'm a bit peeved that I had to share MY day this year with Jesus and the Easter Bunny, but I'm not going to lie. Sharing this year was a little more difficult then every other year when my birthday has fallen on Hitler's Birthday, the anniversary of Columbine, and 420! I suppose this is how my kids must feel when friends come over and they have to unwillingly share their favorite toys with our guests. And seeing how they have learned to do it with ease, I guess I should to because the Hubster has reassured me that this won't be the LAST time that my birthday will be celebrated on Easter! 

Regardless of the day, my Birthday this year was Great! I have been celebrated the past few weeks by my friends and family over several different occasions focused around making me feel special and loved as I approached my 30th year. It started with a surprise trip with just the Hubster and I to Solvang, followed by dinner & "The Book of Mormon," a lovely ladies night out at Maggiano's, a special family/friend pizza & ice cream bar put on by my parents, and today which was a hodge podge of Easter/Birthday celebrations! Everyone that knows me, really knows me, totally gets the fact that I LOVE to be celebrated, made the center of attention for a few hours or days, and infused with the feelings of being special and loved by those that mean the most to me. And, this year, all those around me have really done good, well spectacular actually! So, thank you! 

As I sit here and think about being 30, and what that means to me, so much is buzzing around in my brain. I suppose I should start with saying Goodbye to my 20's. For so many the 20's is a time to sew their wild oats, explore the world around them, find their "true" self, and then make a conscious effort to be a "grown-up." I  have never been "typical" when it comes to this growing up stuff. I've always been a little too mature for my peer group, a little too serious about life, a little more interested in finding who I was earlier rather then later and then acting upon it! So, like my usual self, I grabbed life by the horns and kept on riding the path of my 20's at a pace that even I found a little too fast at times! 

My 20's were filled with many milestones reached, many i's dotted and t's crossed, and many bucket list items crossed off! I graduated from college twice, got married to my best friend, had three beautiful children, bought a house (sorta), started a career (teaching) then put it on a hold for another (motherhood), learned how therapeutic and necessary therapy or simply talking to someone can actually be, traveled to several countries and across the US, bought my first & only brand new car that to this day makes me feel more alive then anything else, found my voice in writing and documenting my families lives, became a social media addict, learned how to be a really good friend, found a passion in sewing, crafting, and photography, and smiled, laughed and loved until my heart couldn't see straight! 

As lovely as my 20's were, there was a lot of learning, growing and hard work that took place. A lot of finding who I was and who I wanted to be that took some serious soul searching! I lost...some friends (or who I thought were friends rather), tears, my only living grandparent and then 2 of my husbands, my unborn child, and myself at times. My 20's were marked by challenges that many don't face until they are older or never really, and they shook me to the core and made me question ME! 

But, today I'm 30! It sounds so much older, wiser, and grown-up! Truth be told, I don't feel much different today then I felt yesterday! And, I certainly don't look much different, although today I did apply concealer on my gray bags under my eyes for the first time in my life! 30 is just a number! A number that tries to define who I am, and what I will accomplish this next decade. And, I guess that is one of the reasons why I've been a little nervous about turning 30. It's hard to really put into words why I feel this way, well actually it isn't, but those words are better left for a different post! Needless to say, my 20's provided so much newness, so much accomplishment, and so many life achieving goals that I feel that my 30's will just be a cruise-control, auto-pilot decade that I nestle into. Seeing how I'm not much of a nestler, this notion leaves me feeling antsy and troubled! 

Well..Hello there 30! I'm Katie Morad, nice to meet you! You make me more determined then ever to contradict these feelings about you that I have, and make you a time of adventure, a time of really digging deep within myself and becoming that woman (wife, mother, daughter, sister, & friend) that I am working hard to be, a time that I will look back on and have some of my fondest memories of! I am aware that you might present some hurdles that I won't necessarily enjoy jumping over, some lessons that I might be resistant to learn, and some heartache that will feel brutal. But...

I will leap

I will keep an open mind

I will listen

I will continue to stay determined

I will live in the moment

I will smile, cry, and dance

I will grow

I will love like I have never loved before

I will let it go (thank you Frozen for this little beauty)

And, I will belly laugh, because friends, it is necessary and feels so damn good at times!  

(Me..4/20/2014..30 years old..photo courtesey of Marci Phee)

Holden's Baptism

We are looking forward to welcoming our sweet boy in our Church in a few short weeks!

The Tooth Fairy & Teething Necklaces

First's are a huge milestones and in our house we all take them very seriously. It's as if we roll out the red carpet with all the fanfare and fireworks and strut our stuff down it. At least, that is how I want my children to feel when they accomplish a first. I want them to know the importance of a milestone and to cherish the memory of it, because after all a first can only happen once! 

Two weeks ago, we had two firsts in our house! 

At about 5 am one morning Giulietta came running down the hallway to our bedroom with something in her hand. As I barely opened my eyes and saw her grinning with her palm out, I instantly knew what had happened. My first born lost her VERY FIRST TOOTH. I carefully placed her pearly white on my nightstand, ushered her back to bed, and waited till morning to celebrate her little gap! Now that I think about it, Giulietta lost her first tooth almost 5 years to the day that it originally poked out of her little pink gums when she was a tiny little baby, and hiding behind her baby tooth, was her BIG permanent tooth already growing in! She smiled proudly ALL DAY, I made her a tooth fairy pillow, and that night she tucked her baby tooth tightly into it. The next morning she found a crisp $2 bill (Thanks Uncle Kaka), and a special note! My big girl was over the moon, and ready for her next wiggly tooth to emerge! 

Amongst all the excitement of Giulietta losing her first tooth, Holden's first, and second, baby teeth came in. These two little gems have been a long time in the making, and I think everyone is relieved that they have finally made their debut. This boy was a tad bit more dramatic during his teething then the girls were. We tried teethers, orajel, teething tablets, wash cloths, tylenol, and an amber necklace. The first couple of days after my little dude discovered his teeth were fun watching him rub his tongue across his new fighting gear. Now, it is cute to watch him chow down on food with his new chompers. He has tested the little white fangs a few times while nursing and on my shoulder, and of course it was accompanied by a little giggle, but I think a stern "NO!" has squashed his fun, and now for the most part he just shows his handsome toothy grin. 

Being a Momma of three is so fun to sit back and watch the milestones roll along. All three of my littles have developed at their own pace, and each milestone feels just as special as the one before. However, I don't think I will ever forget this First Lost Tooth & First Gained Tooth milestone. There is something special in two of your littles sharing a commonality, but being many years apart in age! 

 

 

Sometimes WE just need to take a "Mental Health Day"

This post is almost a week over due, but right here and right now I am finally sitting down and taking the time to write it. Nothing will stop me, well maybe a hungry and tired baby boy, or one of my sleeping beauties who needs an extra hug will. But, the words of our life will be shared...eventually.



Lately, I have found that I'm too absent in my littles lives! I know this comes as a shock to all that are reading it, because I'm the least absent person you know. I'm the one that everyone can get a hold of with a simple call, text, email, or Facebook message! I'm the one that people come to when they have a quick question or real life changing one! I'm the one that is always out, about, and making memories for my children. I'm the one that so many have told me they aspire to be! But, hold tight, don't give my that award yet. Don't put me up on that high of a pedestal! Sometimes I'm not that Momma! And, sadly it seems that lately the sometimes has turned into too much of the time!



You see, because of all the hats I wear, all the relationships I work hard at maintaining, all the crafting I enjoy doing, and all the social media that I relish in, my children loose something.



They lose...



my undivided attention

my ability to just listen

my desire to play

my reaction in the moment not after

my mind free and clear

ME!



And, that's not really me, or rather the me I want to be!



So, last Wednesday we took a Mental Health Day! I pulled both girls out of school, packed everything I would need for an entire day, and headed to The Happiest Place on Earth! The choice to have the girls skip school, had me up half the night thinking about whether or not I was making the "right" decision for them, and I even made Ryan call Giulietta in "sick" to school because I didn't want to have to say the words out loud.



The day was spent thinking about NOTHING but my three. I didn't answer one call or text. I didn't check Instagram or Facebook or Email.



I gave my three ME!



I listened.

I laughed.

I played.

I hugged.

I felt the magic.

I had FUN.



And, you know what? I never felt stressed, overwhelmed, or short fused. I never raised my voice, or became grouchy; I never needed to. And, when I tucked each one of them into bed that night I silently said "thank you" to them as they closed their eyes and fell asleep the instant their tiny heads hit their comfy pillows. I thanked them for giving me life, for understanding that this Momma isn't always perfect, for allowing me the day to be reminded of what being their Momma is all about, and for unconditionally loving me for being ME.



Now I'm left reflecting and really wishing that everyday could be a Mental Health Day! That everyday I could essentially "unplug" from life as I know it and wrap myself around my three little loves pinkies. Sadly, I can't! I have to parent, I have to wife, I have to craft, I have to work, I have to be on the go making memories, I have to document our life, I have to answer texts, calls, and emails, and I have to be the dependable one for all around me. What I learned I don't have to be, is consumed by it. I don't have to put those things before my children. I don't have to make those things Me. I have to create a boundary, make mental notes about what feels right for me and us, and continue down this one wild and crazy life that I have the pleasure of living!