The Life of a Mama Public Defender

Balance.

This picture reminds me of life. Often times I find myself completely unbalanced, with my daily struggle being a balance of my beautiful family with my ugly beautiful job. Sometimes my family is winning, sometimes my job is winning. But my goal is always to even that out a little bit more.

I know I'm not the only one who struggles with balance. Most of my Mama friends have admitted the struggle as well. The problem I find is this: I love love love my job. It makes me whole, completes me, excites me. So to push that aside completely and focus whole-heartedly on my family is difficult. DON'T TAKE THIS WRONG. My family ranks far  above my job. My amazing hubs and beautiful nuggets outweigh EVERYTHING else. But I find myself in a costant struggle trying to be the best that I can be at work and be the best that I can be at home.

I want the nuggets to see that work can be fun. I want them to know that it is a blessing to end up in a career that you enjoy going to daily, and to not feel guilty about doing that. But I want my work to know that my family comes first. And when push comes to shove, and the nuggets need me more, they will win.

So how does one do this?

That I do not know.

What I do know is this: being aware of a daily balance helps even thinks out just a tad.

Dear Jax, You are ONE.

Dear Jax,

You are ONE. We can't believe how fast this year flew by (of course), but oh my we are excited you are ONE.

You are such a different little man now that you are one. Your favorite things to do are:

1. Yell - you communicate by yelling and pointing. It gets the job done.
2. Walk/Run - you look like a drunk baby walking and running, but it's so darn cute.
3. SMILE - you smile a lot. Your little grin keeps this Mama tickin'.
4. Cars, trucks, and anything with wheels - you are all boy.
5. Play in the sand - your papa built you a sandbox!  You think you're in Hawaii again when you play in there.
6. Go to school!  You started school full time this month, and you go with miss T. You love it there!
7. Swinging, teeter-tottering, sliding - you think the playset and parks are the best!
8. Four Wheeler Rides!
9. Lawn tractor rides!
10. Attempt harm on yourself- you are a KAMIKAZE. These things you do are intentional, and they are crazy. I'm frightened.


You are starting to sleep better these days!  We love it, and you getting us up at 5 every morning helps us enjoy the ENTIRE day. Thank you for that.

You love Miss T more than anything, you just admire her all day long - in school, in the car, anywhere - and she shows you the ways of the world.

You are still quite the Mama's boy, but you love your Daddy too. He takes you to the shop for boy things.

We are so blessed to have you in our lives, little man. We can't wait to see what you bring.

We love you,

Mama

Swing Batta Batta Batta

Tatum started T-Ball this year, and let me tell you this has been a fabulous experience. Watching her little four-year-old body try to catch, hit, and run bases has been a delight. She looks adorable all decked out in her gear, and we are loving every game. It's so fun to watch our nuggets grow into little humans and see the amazing things they are capable of.

Kindergarten

Today was a fabulous day. Mama, Daddy & T Bug got to head to T's new school and do Kindergarten Orientation. What a fabulous time!  We did a school tour, a bus ride, kiddo activities, ate lunch, and played outside. We are so blessed to be able to enjoy this time in our little nugget's life. WE can't wait to see what next year brings for T.

Dear Jax, 10 months

**Mama's Note: here I thought I missed the 10 month post, and it was in my drafts all along. :) **

Dear Jax,

You are already 10 (TEN!) months old! We can't believe you are inching so close to the big O-N-E! We have been loving your personality as it begins to show it's true colors these days. We are sure we are going to be a very busy mommy and daddy with you!

Some of the things you do these days that amaze us:
1. You love to pull out all of the spices and shake them like a baby rattle. You do not like to pick them up and put them away.
2. You love to climb in the dishwasher and pull out all of the dishes, dirty OR clean. You just love to bang around in there.
3. You are growing about 6 teeth on top, not including the 2 you already have on the bottom. Your mouth is getting full!
4. You say a few words: "Mama" (like once), "Da-Da" or "Da-Dy", "Ta-Ta", and I've heard "Papa" once also. You also say "Uh-Oh" when you "accidentally" drop something on the floor over and over. :)
5. You are a crawling fool and you love to cruise the furniture. Anything you can grab onto and you are up on your feet.
6. TODAY you took about 2 steps between Daddy & Mama.
7. You love to go in the dresser drawers and throw the clothes out, tossing them over your shoulder.
8. You love your sister more than ANYTHING (even Mama) and you especially love to pull her hair.
9. You love all things boy - cars, trucks, tractors - complete with making the noise with your mouth.
10. You are (almost) always HAPPY.

Our love has grown for you exponentially even in just the last month. Your giggle, your smile, your growl - we love it all!

You have proven to be quite the Mama's boy, which has been slightly interesting...:)

We are so blessed to have you in our lives. We can't wait to see what the next month brings...

Love,
Mama

Dear Jax

Dear Jax,

You are 11 months now. Your Mama missed the boat big time and failed to write you a letter for your 10 month birthday. Woopsy-daisy.

Anywho...

You continue to blow us away with all the crazy things you do. I use the word "crazy" loosely. I mean, you are such a different little nugget than your sister was.

Some of the things you enjoy doing daily are:
1. pulling all of the toilet paper off the roll
2. lifting up the toilet and slamming it on your fingers
3. playing in the toilet if someone accidentally left the lid open
4. standing in front of the book shelf and pulling off every book and then throwing them over your shoulder
5. eat a lot of food, your favorites are: yogurt, cheese, bread, fruit of any kind, carrots, cottage cheese
6. chase your sister around the house
7. yell really loud
8. talk! you say Daddy, Mama, Ta-Ta, Hi, and I've heard Papa and Nana on occasion
9. Mimic - you love to copy anything we do - blowing kisses, waving, etc.
10. play in the eat dirt

You have taken 5-6 steps a bunch of times, and we know you are really close to walking!

We love you so much, you keep us on our toes at all times!  Thanks for being such a little nugget and making us so happy.

Love,
Mama

Aloha!

Oh Hawaii, how we love thee!  Our family has a special place in our hearts for Hawaii. We fell in love with the islands when Tatum was 2, and have tried to go back as much as possible since then. There's just something about the islands that brings us to a peaceful place. Happiness, no stress, no rules, just US...our little family of 4.

This year was no exception to those feelings. We all relaxed a little more, bent the rules a little bit, and enjoyed each and every sunrise and sunset. We came home with full hearts.