5 on Friday

Hello and happy Friday! Here is my 5 on Friday list, although I don't have photos for all of them so some of it is just my thoughts.

1. That face. I LOVE wearing Jensen in my Moby wrap. It is so sweet to feel him up against me and to look down and see those chubby cheeks. I wore Eva in the wrap some but will probably use it even more for Jensen since he is the second child. It helps me be hands free so I can play with Eva and at the same time feel like I am holding him. The best tip I read for the Moby is to put it on at home before you go somewhere if you are planning to wear your baby, that way you aren't struggling with the million yards of fabric dragging along a dirty floor. This tip has been super helpful for me.

2. I mentioned in her 3 1/2 year post that Eva has become quite the little artist. She loves to paint, draw, write with pens - you name it. This is great and it really does calm her down. The only thing is that we are left with tons of paper all over the place. I would use a notebook but with paint that doesn't work. And she doesn't always want to use dry erase type materials. I get it. It is way more fun to make individual drawings. So usually I just let everything sit out for a day, move it to a pile in case she wants to look at it again, and then discreetly recycle papers throughout the week.

3. I got a new {used} minivan! I am waaaayyyy too excited about this. Last week we sold Ryan's truck, he took over my Camry, and I got a Toyota Sienna. In all seriousness, this was my dream car. When Ryan and I were thinking through car options after selling his truck I told him that my dream would be to purchase a used, dependable minivan. A minivan may not be the coolest car ever, but for a mom with multiple kids it is so spacious and convenient. I love that I can open the doors and trunk with a button. Eva can climb in, push the button to shut her door, and buckle herself in her car seat all by herself now. This is huge! I really like the fold down seats in the back so that when we stock up at Costco I can fit all those rolls of toilet paper inside. No more squishing and hoping everything will fit in the car. When we took Eva on her first ride in the van she climbed in and said, "This is so cool! This van is amazing!" Out of the  mouths of babes....

4. On Wednesday we finally headed outdoors to do some yard work. All that melted snow has made for some lovely over grown weeds now. Let me tell you, yard work may not be my favorite thing to do, but it is much better when it is 60 degrees outside and you are not pregnant than when it is 100 degrees in August and you are pregnant.

5. And finally I will end with one of my new resolutions: put down my iPhone. I could defend myself and say that I am "not as bad" as some people about having my phone out, but this is something I feel is really important. Yes, I like my phone and it is super convenient. Yes, there are some apps that make life easier and social media is fun {hello, I write a blog and I love to post photos of my family and look at other people's photos - obviously I'm not anti technology or anti social media}. I just want to be very intentional about when I get my phone out. When I'm at home taking care of the kids and playing with them, or hanging out with friends, or even just watching TV with the husband, I am really going to try to just set my phone aside. Not never, ever use it, just use it way less. I have noticed a huge change in Eva when her screen time in limited compared to when we let her use our phones or iPad more. I'm pretty convinced that being on devices like these actually change your brain and your tendency to respond positively towards others. This is in no way a knock against fellow iPhone users, it is merely my personal feeling. I want to focus more on being truly connected with the wonderful people in my life that I am with in the moment. All that other stuff can wait.