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Tantrums here and tantrums there, terrible tantrums everywhere! So goes the life of a mommy with a toddler, who is not even 2 yet! Boy does this little boy know exactly how to push my buttons. And I love it when I give him a very firm, "NO!" and he looks right at me and does it again, and again, and again. I find myself praying many times a day for patience, wisdom, and an extra portion of grace.

But as challenging as those times are, they are made up for when I receive hugs and kisses and "lub blue" (love you) moments. Or when Asher sees me crying, he rushes to me, clings on, and begins to cry too. Or when we are on a little walk and he reaches up and grabs my hand. Oh, I get tears in my eyes just thinking about it. Yes, the toddler stage is difficult, but also so rewarding. I love my sweet boy. 

Mastered Skills: walks upstairs by himself, able to set certain goals (e.g. deciding to put a toy in a certain place). CHECK to all!

Emerging Skills: throws a ball overhand, kicks ball forward, stacks six blocks. CHECK to all!

*He learned to do all of these a while ago. 

Advanced Skills: names simple picture in a book, can walk downstairs. CHECK to all! 

Happy (Grand) Father's Day!

This is why I love SHUTTERFLY! You embed a project and get a gift coupon. Yes, please, and thank you! 

This is a card I made for Asher's grandpa's for Father's Day. 

I Love Grandpa Father's Day 5x7 folded card

Create personalized greeting cards and invitations at Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

I CAN'T WAIT

As many of you know, we have plans to return to the good ol U..S..of...A this summer. We leave July 12 for Michigan for my BFF's wedding and will be there until July 18. From there we head straight to Washington for another 4 weeks. Chad is always a huge help to his dad during the fair and he gets a good paycheck, so we decided to stay through the fair and return back to our Honduras home around August 22 or so.
We also plan to do some more fundraising while we are home, with another Taco Feed similiar to the one we had before we came here. Other than that, our schedule seems to be filling up fast, with people to see and things to do! I am hoping and praying that our time at home goes by VERY slowly, especially since we are never sure when we will be coming back to the states. I am already sad to leave my Lynden home.

With that said, there are several things that I CAN'T WAIT for when going home. Here is a list of some:

1. FAMILY, FAMILY, FAMILY (can't wait to see them all)
2. Visiting my 2 BFF's (one I haven't seen in 3 yrs, and the other in 1 1/2 yrs)
3. A long date night with my husband
4. Sushi PLEASE!!!
5. A much needed pedicure 
6. Walks with Asher 
7. Going to the park with Asher
8. Jake's Western Grill
9. Northwest Washington Fair
10. The Woods Coffee
11. A week long camping trip in Sun Lakes
12. And so much more!