Lazy Summer

This is by far the Laziest Summer we've ever had.... and not a bit of me is sad about it. Long days filled with silly, off-the-cuff shenanigans keep us more than content.


Here was our nutty day this July 30th, 2010


ToyTub+Water+3yrold+GoodBookForMe= 2 Solid Hours of Fun. White trash style!

"No, Ava. I'm too big for that tub... sorry sister."

This girl is my muse. Completely lovely.

Grateful.

It's hard to believe that it's been one year since I was anxiously, nauseously, counting down 9 long months to pass by so we could welcome our second beloved baby into our family. It's incredible to think that a year ago we had a very different plan for life than what actually happened.

And, honestly, I'm grateful for this past year.... for all of the adventures it's brought to the Wilson home and for the things I've learned about myself.

I'm Still learning and growing... but here's what I know from a direct result of the last 365 days:

• Plans Change... it's easier to change your heart than to change the circumstance.
  
• My family, Taylor and Ava, is an incredible source of strength to me. And I love them completely.
  
• I have found the meaning of true friendships. Those who let you cry when you need to cry, and who make you laugh when you need one of those too. Those who send chocolates and care packages and letters of love. Those who come over and take your kid ALL DAY LONG while I was too tired to move, much less feed her.
  
• I'm blessed with a massive support system... I love my families.
• A healthy body truly does help cure a broken heart.
• Prayer is my anchor.
• Not everything HAPPENS for a reason... sometimes things just don't work out as planned... not because I'm being punished or I'm not worthy and not sometimes not even because "the time just isn't right". I believe that for us, the time WAS right to have another baby... we both felt it in our hearts and it was good. However, the science of it all-- well, sometimes it just doesn't always pan out. As disappointing as it is...
• I'm stronger than I thought I was.
  
• I am truly filled with a deep gratitude for my life... it's a humble life but we are a happy family. And that's really what matters.
  

Happy Birthday, America

My favorite holiday of the year has come and gone yet again. This year was no disappointment either!

Had a great day (on the 3rd) starting with my very first race-- the Rexburg Liberty 5K Run. Taylor and I ran together and had a ball (well, as much as one could have while running... I still have yet to "LIKE" running). It was such a great feeling crossing the finish line that I was tempted to run back and do it again... but then I'd look like an idiot so I didn't.


The day was standard... went a little something like this:

• Race (ok. not very 'standard' for me... maybe in the future this could become a tradition???)
• Parade with friends. Thanks for playing with us ALL WEEKEND LONG, Hurst's and Killian's... we had a blast!
• Some light shopping and goofing around at the store
• FOOD with the gang
• Park
• Topped off with Rexburg's city fireworks-- ooooh ahhhh...

Great day- full of laughs!

Jess, Me and Destry FREEZING our tookus's (tooki?) off before the race.

Taylor and I need A LOT of equipment when we run... we've got knees/ankles/shins/hips of a 90 year old couple.


The rest of the gang.... minus Dustin- he had to work that day.

Gotta be "just like Dad"

Content Spectator.
As long as she's got her chocolate milk and flag.

Happy Independence Day

Happy Father's Day

First, I shall grace you with a beautiful quote:

"To be a successful father . . . there's one absolute rule: when you have a kid, don't look at it for the first two years." -- Ernest Hemingway

wait. nope. that's not right.

"If the new American father feels bewildered and even defeated, let him take comfort from the fact that whatever he does in any fathering situation has a fifty percent chance of being right." -- Bill Cosby

well, that's *BETTER*...
let's move on.

There have been a lot of amazing fathers in history... everyone knows that. Here are a few that stick out in my head.

1) Jack Butler from the movie, Mr. Mom.
This scene was sooo cute... only a Dad could get away with making an analogy of his kid's beloved "woobie" and hard core street drugs.

EMBED-MR. MOM - Woobie Clip - Watch more free videos

2) Seriously... who COULDN'T love Danny Tanner and his goofy parenting? Anyone who can be a single parent to all those kids, PLUS their friends (ahem, Kimmie... you one craaaazy girl) and at the end of every single episode, he somehow got the feuding siblings to hug-it-out is alright by me.

3) Bill Cosby. The epitome of Father back in the early 90's. He's so rad.

(now, I GET IT... they're all t.v. fake dads--- but I didn't want to really "flex the brain" by thinking of truly amazing fabulous REAL dads-- besides, who wants to see a bunch of pics of normal dudes? Not Me.)


4) That being said. Jack Dunfee. Modern Family. Pure Comedic Genius.

"What's up, Sweathog?!"

5) Liam Neeson in the movie Taken. He's like Jason Bourne's awesome, butt-kicking dad. And WHY is he more awesome, you ask? Because he's all about saving his daughter. Hard. Core. Badness.

6) Guido from Life Is Beautiful. Tear-jerking love of a Father.

7) John W. Aaron, III. What can I say... he did a great job with what he had! You'll never meet a more down to earth, humble and truly good man. He's a wonderful husband to my dear mother and I'm grateful that he has shown me how a man should treat his Sweetheart. My dad is a constant good example to me. And he makes one really cute Grandpa! I love you, Dad. Happy Father's Day.

8) Richard L. Wilson Jr. My awesome Father-in-Law. He's got it all; humor, spirituality, and genuine care for everyone around him (sometimes TOO MUCH care, right, Mom Wilson?? ha!) I can't ever thank him enough for are his invaluable lessons he taught his sons. The Wilson Boys are truly amazing men. And I may be biased, but I do believe I married the best of them. I love when T says, "I'm going to do it like my Dad did it...". Love ya, Dad Wilson.

9) Jean Claude Ronin. Oui, oui! JC is totally one of my beloved Dads. He's completely fabulous. I love him because my sweet birth mother loves him and he loves her. He takes such great care of Hi Suk, and no one could ask more from a sort-of-step-birth-father! Oh and he makes one AMAZING step-birth-grandfather. Ava's a very VERY spoiled Petite Mademoiselle (which is the CUTEST nickname JC calls her). Love ya, JC- Happy Father's Day-- give Alexis our love too!

10) Matthew Taylor Wilson. There just are not enough words to explain what sort of father Taylor is. There are not enough photographs that show his immense love for his baby girl. Their relationship is full and inspiring. Taylor is good at the grand gestures, but he excels at the small ones. Thank you for kissing ouchies, putting her to bed Every Single Night, cuddling with her when you come home from work, doing her crazy hair, rubbing her back, teaching her love and patience and how to do puzzles. Thank you for making us Both feel completely adored. We love you, T-Daddy.

A couple pictures from Ava's third birthday

And if I recall..... You posted a crazy pic of me on Mother's Day, right?

surprise!



Happy Father's Day, Wilson. Love you to bits.

Running Man

Taylor is an OFFICIAL Marathoner!

Today T did something that I normally consider "crazy, asinine, insane, loco, impossible, idiotic and incredible".

And the pride I feel for him is enormous.

When I saw Taylor running down the home stretch, my throat got thick and my eyes started to sting with tears... it was difficult for me not to start crying right then and there.

So, instead, I screamed my head off. And got winded just running the last few feet with him, snapping pictures the entire time (Ava ran too-- she was so psyched that she just started booking down toward the Finish Line just like everyone else was... character.) It was amazing. Amazing watching my love do something that is so physically and mentally demanding- he started it and finished it. How proud of him, I can't even truly express it. I love you, Taylor. You did it!!

Ava and I tried to go wait for the guys (Arthur, Ryan and Taylor) at around Mile 23-
It was windy, so this is how we showed support.

Support Team. Thanks for coming out, pals, it means a lot to us.
ps. Destry finished her 10K today too... she did wonderfully (jet-lagged from just barely touching down from Europe even!) Amazing!!

Number One Fan.
(or Number Two Fan... she and I are pretty neck n' neck there)


Here He COMES!!!!!!!


Way to go, Pops.
Now that we're home, Ava keeps saying, "Dad wun soooo fass" and then in her own special way, she starts to run in place with her elbows flailing everywhere and her knees and legs spastically rubber-banding all over. Athletic. So athletic.




Awesome job, T and Des... we're so proud of you guys!!!


This race would have never happened if it wasn't for our good buddies, Arthur and Ryan. They're such great motivators and have the best outlook on everything. Thanks so much, guys- You're fantastic!!!

It's Your Birthday, Ava... sorry we didn't tell you!

A day late, a dollar (lot's of them) short- isn't that the old saying?

Well... even though it's a day after-the-fact... I still want to wish Miz Thang a Happy Third Birthday!

THREE YEARS? What happened? Where's the time going? I just had you 13 minutes ago, girl, my hips and thighs show that I'm not lying!!!!

Well, yesterday was just a normal day-- in fact, we did NOTHING birthday-related. It's a cryin' shame to totally ignore your kid on their birthday, but I figure we could really milk this last year of "Ava thinks EVERY day is her birthday if she gets a candy" mentality. (in all honesty, we're celebrating her big day on Saturday when Taylor has the day off of work).

But Seriously, it doesn't take much to please this girl. For instance: yesterday she got a few phone calls from family members who sang her Happy Birthday... hence she got very excited for her big day (at 5pm). So when Taylor came home with a bag of burritos from Taco Bell- she very gleefully exclaimed:

"OH! For MEEEEEE????? Oh, THANK you sooo much!!! Oh boy! It's my FAVORITE!!! AWWW... Happy Birthday, Aya!!!"

Then Ava started nuzzling her burrito with her nose and cheek.... like it was her long lost baby duck who needed extra lovin'. Awesome! Taylor, babe, send back her toys-- we're set as long as we can give her burritos and sing her Happy Birthday while dancing around like fools. How easy was THAT!?

I do love this girl. Ava's totally the kind of daughter I never knew I wanted. She's SPUNKY. Full of vim and vigor. She's lovable. She's vivacious. She's impatient and EXTREMELY vocal about her displeasure. Ava is friendly... always so eager to meet new friends. She is beautiful... completely and totally breathtaking to Taylor and I.

We love you dearly, Child, and can't believe you're all ours. Some days I wanna scream and pull my ever-lovin hair out when you get ornery, mean, or whiny. You really do know how to push my buttons... I think it's because we're just so similar. But truly, I wouldn't change ya (except maybe your deafeningly high-octave scream when you're feeling insulted... that can go. Really, I won't miss that one).

I just want to say... I love you, dear Ava Lou. You are utterly amazing.

For your birthday, I'd make you a cake.... but heaven knows it would turn out something like this:

(via Cake Wrecks)

Fail.
(sort of looks like the picture of Ava I posted above this picture)


But don't say Mama never made you anything special, girl.

Cuz having your very own "ManCakes"* every single morning is a big deal coming from me.
*translation* chocolate Ovaltine mixed in Bisquick batter... not sure why she changed from calling them "Pancakes" to "ManCakes"

So, we'll most likely get you some ultra-frilly and girly ice cream/cake at Dairy Queen... that's how I roll.

World's most Craptastic photo quality... but I'll be danged if I don't love this moment.


Happy Third Birthday, Sweetface.

You're pretty radical.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

Just a heads up to anyone who may read this, it's Taylor writing. It has been an incredibly long time since I have posted anything on Katy's blog. I'm not exactly confident when it comes to writing so I avoid it as much as I can. I do feel like this is one of those days though that I really need to step out of my own comfort zone because I want to be sure she knows how I feel.

Katy, since the last Mother's Day it has been a roller-coaster of a year where we have experienced some of our happiest times and definitely some of our worst. During all of this you still managed to raise Ava (a huge feat alone), help me when ever I needed you and help family or friend that just needed someone to talk to. Your funny, upbeat personality and willingness to help are just a few of the many things that can make anyone feel lucky enough to get to know you. I'm very proud of everything you've accomplished in the last few months and I can tell that things are just going to get better.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for being an amazing mother and wife.

Have a great Mother's Day (That goes for any mom reading this).

Love, Taylor
(That's just for Katy)


I found these in her old files and I liked them so here they are:
(I hope it doesn't get me in too much trouble)



(I can only imagine this goes on a lot after I leave in the mornings)

I'm a winner AND a loser

I know what you're thinking after reading my title of this post: "Say Whaaaa??? Katy has absolutely NO part of her that's a loser... that's just crazy-talk and I won't have it". Well, hold yer horses, folks- just hear me out.... Wink.



Yes. I am a winner. I'm a winner of TWO things!!!! So in the past, I can truly say that being "randomly picked for a prize" was just not in my cards. Ever. I've entered into a few (okay 8 billion) giveaways-- especially Pioneer Woman's, cuz who WOULDN'T want an 8-piece Le Crueset set or a spa weekend in Arizona??? But sadly, yes, I fail to beat the other 627,954 readers who want the same thing I do.

Well, Times They Are a-Changin'!

I have won, not only ONE but TWO giveaways recently! Woooo, baby.

First, I won a Mini Photography Session AND a Custom Designed blogger header-- which is badly needed for my own "design" is as exciting as cup of water. I won these two things from the fabulous Jill Aponte Photography.

Thanks a million, Jill, I can't wait for you to do your mini shoot with Ava... it's HARD to shoot your own kids!!! (hmmmm.... that last part sounds suspect. Please. No calling CPS on me.)

As for my second win, I just received it in the mail last week. I subscribe to a fabulous blog called: Take It From Me- which one of my girlfriends, Kristen, administers. She's awesome.... she takes on sponsors and their products (everything from baby items to gift certificates from Down East Clothing) and reviews them, posts whatever the sponsor wants to "giveaway", and then we poor bloggers who-need-to-be-thrown-a-free-bone-once-a-blue-moon enter to win said prizes!!! Easy Peasy, I like Cheesy.

So, check it out... folks- winning feels gooooooood.

In this particular giveaway, I won an adorable headband from The Ciao Bella Boutique
Go take a gander, she makes some great things.... and, if you were wondering... No, I'm NOT too old for a headband, alright? I'm only 19 and a few years.

Thank you Ciao Bella, I love it!! (unfortunatly, so does Ava... therefore we fight over who gets to wear it.)

Pensive. Arm Licker.

Oh Wowwie. That purple makes me happy.


right. self-photos are not easy when your camera weighs 39 pounds.


Thanks so much to:
Jill Aponte Photography
Kristen at Take It From Me
The Ciao Bella Boutique

You made my MONTH!!

And now to the LOSER part of the deal.

Since the beginning of this year, I've been working like mad to lose weight... trust me, I have a LOT to lose. And today... TODAY, I'm happy to say that I've hit my first 30 pound weight loss!!!

"Alright, alright, alright!!" (cuing my Matthew Mcconaughy voice).

This is thrilling for me since I've NEVER been one to LOSE weight, only gain... and gain... and. gain.

Woo!! I love being lighter and having more energy... feeling great!

I still have more I'd like to lose- but today is a big day for me.


Nowadays, it's nice that I don't have to share pants with THIS GUY:

and I don't look at THIS OUTFIT

and think, "hmmmm.... not too bad of an idea".

But mostly getting to this point

feel great.

Here's what I've been doing DIFFERENTLY this time around:

• WATER. at Minimum I drink 64 ounces of H2O a day. But average about a gallon now.
• I write nearly every single day in a private blog. It's my journey. It's definitely no Best Seller. But it motivates me, it calms me down on frustrating days, it pumps me up on great days. It saves Taylor from having to listen to every infinitesimal detail on my food/sweat/bellychub.... HA! Kidding, the poor guy STILL has to listen to it all! :) Lucky him.
• I involve prayer... fervent prayer for His help. This is huge. It works... I promise.
• Portion control. Portion control. Portion control.
• Educate. I'm always researching nutrition, workouts, and weight loss articles. I'm also adding more fitness-related blogs on my google reader and starting to slowly ditch the millions of decadent baking blogs on there.
  
• I NEVER count calories-- my addition skills are rusty. And it just stresses me out. So this is my mantra: "Don't say NO... just say STOP".
• Taylor. We're in it together and it's made all the difference this time. We help- not tempt- each other. It's a wonderful feeling to have someone completely on your side... someone who TRULY wants to see you succeed and become the very BEST version of yourself.
• Eat one pickle per day. I know, it's weird. But I do it. And shoot-- I like pickles.
  

But if any of you have any tips/advice/secretbodyfatblasterlasers.... let me know! I'm always willing to try, learn and grow (just not in inches).

Namaste (hahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahah!!) yoga-isms.... it's fun to say it... even though I tend to giggle when I do. Yeah, I never claimed to be maturing while losing this weight!