This "Mom" thing is hard

Last night, after I got my delightful little monsters to bed, I was standing in my kitchen loading the dishwasher when I realized it. You know what? This "Mom" thing is f'n difficult. I've got 4 kids, oldest being 11, and I still don't feel like I have my ducks in a row. I had no idea how difficult motherhood would be!

Lunch Box Notes Sept. 2016

I may have a good stock pile of lunch notes left from last year but with all 4 kiddos in school, I plan to go through them fast! And most of the ones left are rather generic so I want to get some more "fun" ones.

Here's a cute back to school one:

From HappinessisHomemade.net

Here's an example of some really cute ones babysavers.com compiled.I can't wait to use this one tomorrow!!!!

I had to dig around on Google to find some adorable Shopkins ones. Here's an example of one you can find when you Google "Shopkins Lunch Notes"

My girls are going to flip! I printed three copies... just in case ;)

And for the boys!!!

One of Mason's favorite kinds are ones he can show his friends and work on/ figure out. Last year I found some really cool optical illusion ones but I can't find any new ones so I went with some critical thinking ones. Here's some neat word puzzles I found:

Found from a Google Search. Couldn't pull up the website sadly

School Days= School Daze

I can't believe another school year has started!!! As of yesterday, I officially have all 4 kiddos in school. I've got a 5th grade (gasp!), 4th grader, 2nd grader, and Pre-k kiddo!

Every year I create these cool info list on each of the kiddos and yesterday I was comparing them to the very first time I did them, 3 years ago. What a change for each of the big kids!!!!

Mason 2016

vs

Mason 2013

Saydi 2016

vs

Saydi 2013

Karli 2016

vs

Karli 2013

Ahhh... my babies!!! Feels like just yesterday... not 3 years ago!!! 

And here is my sweet Darik!!! Just because :)

Darik 2016

vs

Darik 2013- when he was just 1!

Googling

Have you ever "Googled" your name your first name? I had a couple minutes of free time and though, "what the heck" and did!

I mean, afterall, my blog IS titled "Embracing Marli!" So... I'm going to embrace the actual name today :)

I didn't think I'd find much as my name is rather unique but I was DEAD WRONG!

Look at the hilarious that ensued!

Happy

I'm generally a "glass half full" kind of gal on the outside. Within society, I find more peace in showing happiness, so most people just assume that I'm happy.

Though the truth is, I struggle with genuinely being happy.

Ten Years

August 4th, 2006

That was the day I married my best friend

I'm not going to be some sap and say it was the best day of my life. I mean, yes, it was a great day but well, you just have to know our crazy little love story :). 

I lied

You see, I'm not one to lie. I'm awful at it- I don't have the memory to remember what and how I lied which always screws me in the end. I've learned the hard way.

How sad is this: I remember the exact last time I flat out lied. It was June 2012. Wes was deployed and was nagging me about making a ring payment. Long story short, that morning I lied saying I had paid it. I had every intention on paying it that afternoon but I was hospitalized with preterm labor. So ba-bammm! I was caught.

I have yet to live it down- rightfully so, I guesssss.

So when I lied Monday and yesterday, I almost felt a little guilty. ALLLLMOST.

8 years

It's been 8 years since I found out I lost my baby. I was 20 weeks at the time, sitting in a room with my 3 year old and 1.5 year old, husband, and an ultrasonographer. Within minutes of walking into that room my world came crashing down around me.

I woke up that morning hoping to find out the gender of the baby only to end up deciding what funeral home I wanted to go through. It was the hardest blow still to this date that I've had to take.

I used MySpace and Facebook to vent a lot during that time. I found comfort in writing and it was a nice peaceful outlet. During that time in my life I wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out and the last thing on my to-do list was talk to people. Social media gave me a way to receive the support but in ways and at the times I was mentally ready to. When you are suffering from overwhelming grief, many things can set you back. It's hard to fight towards the light and during those moments you are trying, the last thing you want is someone to remind you of why your heart constantly aches. The support I received was amazing but definitely overwhelming at times. Thank you to those who stuck around and hugged me even when I didn't look huggable.

Here's what I wrote 5 years ago:

Time

I don't think you fully understand the speed of time until you have a child.

Favorite Friday Finds

This week I'm loving on theBalm's Mary-Lou Manizer highlighter!!!!

Panic!!!!

The other night I had a dream that the move date was moved to June, rather than at the end of year. My heart was racing and panic set in. June is just right around the corner!

It was just a dream.
           Thankfully it was just a dream.....

Let's talk about Legs Baby!

Seasonal Prepping

Clearance has always been my friend. Since the moment I found out I was pregnant, I've hit up those cheap clearance racks. 

Super cute long sleeve shirt for $1 that two sizes too big? 

                                                       Well.. a kid is going to grow, right?! Stock up!!! 

Though with the prospect of moving across country, into a whole new climate- those amazing deals don't seem so practical anymore....

How to make Flashcards!

Over the years, I've had to rely on Flashcard MANY times!!!

Half a year already

One of the best opportunities I ever got was to get to go to Hawaii. I never in a million years believed I'd ever get a chance to go- unless maybe I was retired! But here I was, 27 with the chance of a lifetime!!!

Last summer, we got our chance. And I dove at it.

I'd recommend it to any and everyone. Such an amazing experience!!!

The night I arrived. I even got lei'd!!!! 

Sunset from our room on Waikiki beach

Kids TOO Young?!

I found the above quote on Facebook and it made me giggle. I've been saying this since I gave birth to my first :)

Homemade "Lunchables"

I'm really big into teaching my kids the value of what is considered a "balanced meal." So much so that I have my kids pack their own lunches every morning (that and it saves $$!). In a matter of 15 minutes we had 16 "Lunchables" made for pennies on the dollar!

St. Patrick's Day

I love holidays!!! I go all out for them- always have!

The next holiday is St. Patrick's Day- one of my favorites. No, not because I like green beer (yuck!) or corned beef and cabbage, but because I love all the mischievousness that goes along with it. When I was in first grade, my class got a visit from a leprechaun and I thought it was the COOLEST thing EVER!  It wreaked havoc all over our classroom and left green footprints and goodies all over. It was so cool when I was 6!

Since St. Patty's Day is on a school day this year, I'm going to go all out!

Boon Snug Spout

A couple weeks ago I got the chance to try out the new Boon Snug Spout Universal Sippy Lid and I've got to admit, it's AMAZING!!!!

We've pretty much transitioned away from sippies for the most part for Darik but he's a HUGE fan of water bottles. But honestly, I hate having to carry one around and search for the lids and straw (if it has one). Talk about a pain. At one point I had a cupboard full of miscellaneous parts and pieces and ugh... it was just frustrating! I finally got fed up and with Darik's permission (hehehe), we tossed them all!

Then this came along....

Dun dun dun!!!!

Game changer!!!

 These fit everything!!! I've put them on plastic cups, water bottles (Camelbak and off-brand ones, glass cups- you name it! And not once have I seen it move or shift. NOT ONCE! I have not had a single drip come out of it either.

And to top it off- it's super easy to clean in the dishwasher too. I toss it in on the top rack and BAM! Ready to go! I shove it in my purse and no matter where I'm at with Darik, it's ready to go! They fit great on restaurant cups too and not a single worry about him spilling it all over everything.

Darik is 3- the prime of "me do it!". He's getting the hang of most things but well... we've still had juice mishaps. Thankfully he's cool with this Boon Spout because he can use a big boy cup AND mom doesn't have to worry about spilling.

I've already order a set because one of these just isn't enough! :)

If you are interested, Target and Toys R Us have a pack of 3 for $9.99 (free shipping if you are a Red Card holder)

Now GO! Go get them! You won't be disappointed!!! 

Lunch Box Love

One of my favorite things to do is pack a little surprise in my kids' lunch boxes!

I try to find all different types. I've got holiday related ones, movie themed, jokes, riddles, sentiments of love and pride of them,  puzzles, and even optical illusions! They usually have NO idea what they are getting that day and I think that helps with the excitement :)

I don't want this night to end....

I remember hearing this song on the radio and breaking into tears.

The date of that day was February 28th, 2012.

Why do I remember that specific day 4 years ago?!

Formal Introduction

My birth name was Marli Jo. Marli was a name of an evil twin on Young and the Restless- though I'm sure it was spelled differently. I'm not sure exactly why my mom picked just to end it with an I, but I like the uniqueness of it. My middle name Jo was named after my grandma and aunt who have the middle name Josephine.

Here's some random information about yours truly:

Why "Stages"?!

stage

stāj/

noun

plural noun: stages

1. 1.

   a point, period, or step in a process or development.

Now I have insurance... what do I do with it?!

Since the implementation of ObamaCare, talk of insurance has increased dramatically. Many people are "forced" to have insurance who have never had it before. It can be a very confusing time and I totally understand!

Eczema- Don't give up!

Dates

AAANNDDD.... we have DATES.

Understanding Insurance- Basics

I play MANY parts but my actual physical job is a Coder/ Biller. That's what I was hired for at least, but I wear many hats. The insurance information listed is not all-inclusive and I don't know everything.

Complacency- No more!

Just when things started to mellow out in our lives, someone throws a big stick in our spokes!!!

Okay, so maybe it's not THAT dramatic but that's essentially how I'm feeling right now :)

Our life has become very calm and predictable and it's been pretty nice. It's the first time umm... EVER that it's been this way. We've always had a great bit of stress on our shoulders but the last 15 months or so have been really nice and mellow. So, what did we do?! We decided to change it up a BIT.