glass half full?

i've been thinking a lot recently about this whole idea of perfect.....making the house look perfectly neat and clean, planning the perfect day/outing/party, wondering if that neighbor or mom in the grocery store has the perfect outfit or perfectly behaved children.....but why? no mom is perfect. no family is perfect. and nobody's life is perfect. i know that. i dont pretend to be perfect and will gladly call for SOS and ask for advice..... so maybe the word perfect should just be thrown out. whats the fun in perfect anyway. no good stories, no funny memories. no ambition to strive to do it better the next time. hmmm....

well in an effort to remember EVERYTHING about my girls' childhood and all of the sweet memories tyler and i are making as parents...i try and keep up with the blog, include all the details and pictures and print it each year as a journal. but it wouldn't be complete without including all of the MANY "non perfect" moments too, right?

here goes the latest.....this week samantha is determined to "listen another time" but not the time that we are in. ha. she says "i promise i be a good listener another time mommy"..ahhh. and in the mean time we are having some serious issues when it comes to sharing with her little sister. now that sissy is on-the-move and into everything, samantha is struggling. how many times a day i hear..."mommy she's coming for my ___" in a panic tiny voice. next.....sammy's little stumble on our walk the other night which led to a very small scratched knee but a very BIG night of tears. she just couldn't shake it off...refuses all medical treatment and intervention, and finally after forcing a hello kitty band-aid on and extra cuddles before bed she calmed down. our little wimpy samantha. add in kinsley's first time trying homemade butternut squash...she gagged so hard she threw up ALL over her high chair. oh and for myself getting used to doing the bathtime/dinner prep/bedtime countdown by myself as tyler headed back to his afternoon tennis job. whew!

so there are no pictures of the tearful times or the not so perfect meltdowns or piles of laundry and dishes. no reason to dwell on the negative or complain. and mostly it makes any day seem all the more rosy and cheerful if you post/blog/talk/share pictures and write about the best parts of the day...focus on the good. think happy thoughts. the glass is half full. tomorrow will be better.....now that is the power of positive thinking. and that is something i really, really like.

here are some pictures from the past week....lots of happy moments that outshine all the rest!

my little kinsley jane is 9 months old now....crawling fast, standing on everything, clapping, signing "more", sucking her right thumb religiously, eating cheerios and making us smile.

another great week at school....happy to see her cousin some mornings as we walk into school

A is for Abby

big girl quiet reading time before bed

the four of us out for pizza and helping out a good cause at CPK

sponge painting fall leaves for our holiday tree



a quick picture from back when we traveled up to nicole's house in lakeland

and the moment that takes my breath away and puts a serious lump in my throat.....my baby girl is a ballerina. at a real dance school with a beautiful, sweet ballerina dance teacher and little girlfriends in tights and buns. i have always dreamed of this. and she loves it. she is proud and excited.





celebrating with grammy...a special smoothie trip after her first ballet class. sweet!

here's to fall decorations around our house, ideas for the upcoming holidays, good listening sticker charts and feeling very, very thankful for the good and the bad.