Lollipop, Lollipop, Oh Lolli, Lollipop!!!!

Ok, so I know Kenzie's birthday isn't until August, but I saw a few ideas on some of my favorite blogs and it got my creative juices flowing. I absolutley can NOT wait to put this party together. I've gathered some of my favorite pics and placed in an inspiration board to keep me on track.

Fun stuff!!!

Dreaming of Spring.....

I can smell it… Spring is coming!!!!

6 more weeks of winter… Pffftttt!!!

I’m ready to shed these tights and go get a pedicure. I’m ready for linen, soft colors, eucalyptus & mint, sunny days and the list goes on………




I guess you can say that I officially have SPRING FEVER!!!!
It’s time to sort through the old clutter and get it out of the house. I can’t stand clutter!!!! It causes anxiety and I hate it.
So, here’s to bringing in Spring early at the Bledsoe nest.

I’m A BIG GIRL Now!!!!

Well, K Grace’s new BIG GIRL furniture was delivered yesterday. We are so excited. I’m day dreaming of her bedding, window treatments, wall art and so forth. She was so excited, but didn’t understand there being no mattress. Pics were taken with phone… so not that great.

She was so excited, but a little distracted by the Now or Later her brother gave her in the middle of it all.

Stay tuned…

My Lil' Flowerbomb....

Kenzie Grace is such a dainty little girl. She loves all the things that little girls would and should love. Lotion, lip gloss and “Smell Good” as she calls it tops the list. Recently, my Valentine got me a very different kind of perfume than I’m used to wearing. My signature scent is a fragrance by Dolce & Gabbana… which I LOVE!!! …and will wear for as long as they make it. I tested the scent below by Viktor & Rolf called Flowerbomb and Allen and I both loved it and it was very different. Anyway, I’m getting distracted…

The set came with a travel size for your purse. Well, Kenzie has adopted it as her own. She said “one for you and one for me”… that’s okay with me. So, after getting dressed she runs to the “smell good” table to apply her lil’ Flowerbomb. How cute is that?!!!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE her to pieces.

SHE’S MY LIL’ FLOWERBOMB!!!!!

The Dress

It’s time…I’ve been meaning to do it for a while now. I’m going to force myself to get Kenzie’s dedication dress framed as part of the wall art that will be hung in her “Big Girl” room. At the least, I want it hung in her room even if there is no frame, but would like to preserve it in a frame… I think. It’s so precious.

Kenzie’s Dedication Day

Pastor and Sis. Becton of First Church Nashville…. such a sweet day!

Going… Going… GONE!!!

The past couple of weeks have been filled with mixed emotions. I placed both MaKenzie’s and Ethan’s furniture on Craigslist. Out with the old and in with the new. It sold within days and I made enough money to purchase new furniture and we were blessed to receive a fellow Bledsoe’s teen loft bed for Ethan… which he LOVES. Thanks Uncle Tim and Aunt Mindy… AND RYAN!!! We LOVE you!!

So, it’s bitter sweet! Below is a collection of pics from Kenzie’s nursery. She’s a BIG GIRL now and we are moving on. It’s tough, but we are going to have fun decorating her new room. I placed a special pic of the most loved lil’ animal out there… “Pink Baby”. That’s what Kenzie calls the lil’ guy in the pic below. Creative, huh? Don’t worry… Pink Baby will FOREVER live… she’s not going anywhere.

GOODBYE OLE’ FRIENDS

Well, this one is tough. We purchased these bunk beds for Ethan when we moved into our new house in 2004… he was only 4. He’s almost 10 now. The bunk beds were Ethan’s BIG BOY furniture. Well, now he's an even BIGGER BOY... so he wanted to change his room as well based on the teen loft furniture he was inheriting from family.

A New Sensation…

Below is a start of an inspiration board for Kenzie’s new room with a pic of her new furniture. I can’t decide… I’m struggling with the color selection. Her walls are pink and that’s that. Do I stick with pink, white and chocolate or do I go SASSY with pink, white and black or a little more traditional with pink, white and green. Ahhh!!! I want this room to be timeless and to last a while. Stay tuned…..

I’ve attached a pic that is very similar to Ethan’s furniture. The bed that we received from family is very similar to the bed below. We order a very similar dresser as well. The desk is on the WISH LIST.

Wish me luck!!!!!

I Wish I Could Save These Moments.....

Every now and then you take a picture and then look at it and realize…. My little babies aren't so little anymore. Makes me wish I could freeze time and enjoy a bit longer. My babies have grown too fast!!!!!

Looking out my window

See you playing in the leaves

It's amazing how a little one

Means all the world to me

When I tell you that I love you

I love you more than words can say

Smile, say cheese pretty-please

I wanna take your picture

How'd you ever get so big

I gotta take your picture

Hold on to the memory before the whole thing slips away

I wish I could save these moments

Put 'em in a jar

I wish I could stop the world from turning

Keep things just the way they are

I wish I could shelter you from everything

Not pure, sweet and good

I know I can't, But I wish I could

When you kiss me for no reason

It goes straight to my heart

When I feel your arms around me

I almost fall apart

It's time for bed you whisper

Oh, we need to pray

And close our eyes to slumber

And rest for the coming day

Ethan at 1 year old (Then 2001)

Ethan at 9 years old (Now 2010)

MaKenzie at 6 weeks old (Then 2007)

MaKenzie at 2 ½ years old (Now 2010)

Really?!!!... where has the time went? Reflecting on times gone by makes me realize that today too shall pass and I'm only left with a memory. So, I pause and take a deep breath and force myself to slow down and enjoy NOW… not to worry about tomorrow…

JUST NOW…………

SMILE!!... SAY CHEESE!!!

“Mommy, my boo boo hurts” were the first words indicating there might be a problem. As a mommy always does… I kissed Kenzie’s hand and moved on …until I heard those same words many times through the night. Upon investigating the injury a little closer it was apparent that she had a little more than a “boo boo”. It was swollen and she screamed when touching it, saying “mommy, you hurt me”. May I add that hearing those words is like a dagger through the heart. So, my MOTHER BEAR instincts kick into gear and I “sniff” her injury the rest of the evening.

Next day …. K is favoring the arm/wrist and is holding it close to her. Off to the doc’s office we go. The doc ended up ordering an x-ray to rule out a fracture.

So, here we are …back across the street from where I work at Corporate HCA at Centennial Imaging. Yes, I made a circle around the city today. It’s a juggling act for sure! I mentioned my life was chaotic, right?!

I was certain Kenzie felt comfortable with the process as I explained that they were going to take a picture of her arm and asked her if she was going to “Smile and say CHEESE”… she agreed that all was well and it was going to be ok. She was happy as you can see …showing off her SMASHING new outpatient bracelet with her name on it and coloring Yo Gabba Gabba.







Then reality set it when we arrived at the imaging table and let me tell you …2 year olds are stronger than you think.


It was like wrestling a bear to get her to lay on that table. Have mercy! She was screaming “mommy, I want to hold you!”… “I want my Charlotte”… “I don’t want a picture anymore”. Very painful for a mommy to hear those words and watch the technicians force her little hand and hold her as she’s wondering why I’m not helping her from the CRAZY people.
So, when finished I grabbed her and held her and reconfirmed my original statement that no one was going to hurt her and everything was ok. She was just happy I was holding her at that point. As we were driving away in the car, she said “mommy, we all done taking pictures?”. I said, “Yes sweetie, we are”… she said “I told you it wouldn’t hurt”… WHAT?!! REALLY?!! ...as I’m sweating for the wrestling match that just occurred.
All that to say, the diagnosis was a deep muscle/bone contusion which will hopefully heal in a few days. Bless her little bones!

New Kid on the Blog

Since I’m new in town (in the blog world), I figured I would outline my life a bit. I’m a 35 year old mother of two of the greatest children on the planet and a wife to a wonderful husband of 14 years. My husband, Allen, is 37 and is a residential home builder (Stonewood Homes) and sells insurance with King & Associates in Brentwood, TN. I have an amazing 9 year old son, Ethan, and a 2 ½ year old daughter, MaKenzie Grace.

Our life is simple, but far from dull. It’s 100% PURE CHAOS all the time and we like it that way. Between working full-time, feeding my family, home management/chores, bills, 3rd Grade homework, multiplication drills, church activities, science projects, school/church plays, Bible memorization, 2-year old little girl drama, etc, etc … Need I say more? I’M EXHAUSTED!!!! …but somehow my clock keeps tickin’! I feel like a dog that chases its tail… just can’t ever catch up. I heard once “A house is not a home until you can write, “I love you” in the dust on the furniture.” That would be my house if I could stand dust and clutter, but I can’t so I spin my wheels most of the time trying to MAKE IT HAPPEN ...so to speak. All that to say, I LOVE my crazy life as a wife and mother. I’ve learned for the most part not to sweat the small stuff and that allows me to keep my sanity.

 

Ethan Holland Bledsoe

God chose to bless me with this amazing little boy 9 years ago. He’s changed my life in so many ways and caused me to realize that things I used to ponder are just not important. He humors me every day with his wit, charms me with this personality and amazes me with his compassion and tender heart. He’s an amazing gift and I thank God for him.

MaKenzie Grace Bledsoe

God once again chose to show me that my will isn’t best and His will is perfect… as I would have stopped with one child due to my difficult pregnancy with Ethan. Kenzie Grace has completed my family (at least I hope so) and she was certainly cut from the same cloth as me. She’s the sweetest little girl with a dab of sassy and a whole lot of spice. A spunky monkey for sure. I love her smile and those captivating eyes. She’s a jewel! But who are we trying to kid here? Some days she gets by on cuteness alone.

 Allen Bledsoe

Allen and I are a legendary love story. Ha! ...we've been together since the beginning of time it seems. He consistently makes it a point to make me feel beautiful, even if I’m in my jammies with my hair in a ponytail. We are comfortably in love which is the way I like it. Till death do us part…

What's Love Got To Do With It?....

Everything!!!
The Bible reads directionally “...and now these three remain: faith, hope and love, but the GREATEST of these is love”. It also reads that “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres”.

In light of Valentine’s Day, I want to reapply the love challenge in 1 Corinthians 13 to my life and all that reveals it to everyone around me. In all I do, let the love of Christ show through me.

My Valentine Sweeties









My Valentine Treat

Starting Now...

After many years of resisting the temptation from fear of adding one more log on the fire would send me over the edge, I've taken the plunge. My name is Anna Bledsoe and I'm officially a blogger. My love for photography, digital story booking, expressive writing and especially sharing news of my two precious gifts from God (Ethan-9 and MaKenzie-2) should all be satisfied by this new blogging adventure. I've story booked for almost 10 years now, but hope to share with family and friends my "Happily Ever After". Stay tuned....