Changes

In an attempt to unify all of my social media under one name, and to minimize the amount of social media accounts I have, I have decided to change the name of this blog.

Although I will still be posting our Life at 314 posts, I will be using this blog for my business. I am excited for this new venture, and all of the opportunities it has already brought to me and my family.

I have also updated all of my pages above, and they will lead you to everything I use, all with my new username: @bearandsper

Thank you for your support, everyone. It means more than you know.

Valentine

I don't know about you, but I've never really been a huge fan of Valentine's day. I always complained, sighed, groaned, and rolled my eyes when February rolled around.

Of course, that was before I met Tay. Our first "vday" together was nothing memorable. (I was 2 months pregnant and he was in school and working...I literally don't remember it.) Our second vday was spent apart, since he was in tech school in California while Bear and I were in South Carolina. From 3,000 miles away, Tay sent me the BIGGEST teddy bear I've ever seen, and I got super dressed up for myself. Bear and I went out shopping and got me some Starbucks, beginning a cute little tradition.

The next year was spent apart again, this time with Tay deployed. Bear and I (4 months pregnant this time) spent the day shopping and drinking Starbucks (he got hot cocoa) and had pizza for dinner. I got flowers from Tay that made me a hormonal mess.

Last year was nothing special. I took the boys for Starbucks/hot cocoa and shopping, and we ordered a pizza. (Or went out, I can't remember. Pizza was definitely involved.) Tay worked, but was home that night. It was a normal night. (I will admit I was upset that I didn't get a gift. For as much as I complain, it had become expected and anticipated.)

Vday this year has been awesome. As per tradition, I took the boys out for coffee and cocoa (not Starbucks this year because there is not a drive through in Oceanside) and shopping. I got a gorgeous necklace this year from Tay, as well as an amazing surprise when I got home. I got to Skype with him for a bit, too. 

I still dislike how commercial everything about vday is, and how much it's pushed. But I love having three amazing guys in my life to celebrate it with in our own unique ways.

(And, yes, I do get Tay something every year. He always gets a card and candy and something obnoxiously covered in glitter, as well as cheesy and slightly inappropriate vday cards on his facebook page. This year I got us matching tags for his keychain/my necklace.)

(Both my necklace and the tags are from Spiffing Jewelry.)

Art and Love

If you follow me on Instagram or Twitter or Facebook, then you might have seen that I've opened a shop to sell my paintings.

Thanks to Annie of Spiffing Jewelry, I have a decent (i.e GORGEOUS) banner, support, and advice. Annie has run her own successful business for over 5 years, and is such an amazing friend. 

I've dabbled in trying to run my own business before, and didn't really get anywhere. I now realize that, like anything in life, you have to give it your all, every single day, to make it work. That's what I'm doing with this.

I love art. Painting, photography, sculpting...these were my favorite classes in school. My art teacher inspired me to go to school for art, and that's what I'm doing now. I'm working on becoming an art teacher, and I hope I can inspire another student the way I was.

But I have a long way to go before I get there. Even so, I still want a way to share my passion with the world. That's where my shop comes in.

I love beautiful, unique works of art, and that's exactly what I offer. I paint each and every single piece of art by hand. I paint what I love, which includes geekery. I'm inspired by shows, movies, comics, books, and places I love or want to visit. The shop itself is named after my babies, two of the most important things in the world to me.

I hope everyone takes a moment to visit my shop, just to browse or buy or share. It would mean the world to me.

I've already gotten some attention on Twitter when an actor from one of my favorite shows (Battlestar Galactica) retweeted and commented on one of my paintings.

Needless to say, I freaked out a little bit.

Thank you all for everything.

Bear and Sper

#studentlife

As most of you know, I've started school! I'm taking online courses and working towards my Associates in Art & Humanities. After that, I hope to get my Bachelors in Education, and become an art teacher.

I've just got to say: textbooks are ridiculously expensive. Just to RENT 2 books cost me over $100 (special thanks to my mother-in-law for renting the third one). And that was the cheapest I found them. I had several people suggest different places, and I looked and compared prices. I just don't understand it.

But so far, I'm loving my classes. Right now I'm taking Art History, Art Appreciation, and Humanities Through the Arts. They are mostly self-paced classes with suggested dates to do things like quizzes and lesson reviews. Which is good, because I couldn't get my books for almost two weeks after classes started.

I wish I could have taken an actual art class (painting, drawing, sculpting, et cetera), but those had to be done in person, and I just don't have the time or gas money (or a babysitter) to fit all that in. 

I'm already trying to figure out what classes I'm going to take next semester. I'm leaning towards another Art History class, as well as an English and a Psychology class. We'll have to see, though.

Playing Catch-Up (AKA Photo Overload)

I suck so badly at this whole blogging thing. I just have a hard time sitting down and writing here when I have so much other stuff I like doing. I like doing this, too, though. Sigh.

Anywho.

What's been happening here at 314:

We celebrated the Winter Solstice (also known as Yule) on December 22. I made the boys gifts, made a delicious meal, and we got dressed up and spent the shortest day of the year outside.

For Christmas, the boys got some pretty rad stuff from their grandparents, aunties, and uncle.

My littlest sister came and stayed with us for a week (including New Year's Eve). We had fun hanging out and going to the beach and the mall.

We got our family photos done. They were taken on cell phones, but hey, they're cute.

Bear started preschool!

Husband left for deployment in January. He will be gone for 12+ months.*

Less than a week after Husband deployed, my sisters and I (and the boys) drove to Utah for almost a week to be with our dad, who was in the ICU.*

That's what has been happening with us so far. Hopefully I will be able to sit down and start writing here at least once a week (that's the goal).

*Future posts coming soon.

A Thankful Heart

November was a good month, all things considered. 

I remember last year that I did the 30 Days of Thankful challenge on Facebook. I remember feeling truly thankful for every single thing I posted, but I wondered why being thankful had to be limited to one month. 

This year, I decided to write this post. There is a never ending list of things I am thankful for every day, and a watered down FB status just didn't feel right.

I am thankful for my husband, without whom I would not be the person I am today. He is my biggest supporter in everything I do, he is my best friend, and he is the one person I know I can count on regardless of the situation.

We have been through so much in just 5 years; we have had our problems, and we have always overcome them. There is nobody I would rather have by my side in life. I honestly don't know what I would do without him. He is an amazing man, Marine, husband, and father.

I am also thankful for my baby boys. They are my little rays of sunshine. I know that no matter what, I just have to look at their little faces and my day will be instantly better.

Bear is my little geek-in-the-making. His enthusiasm for the things he loves is infectious. He has a hard time with a lot of things, but he is doing better everyday. His progress is so inspiring, and it is that progress that helps him be a carefree little preschooler at times. He starts preschool soon, and I can't wait to see how much further he comes. 

 

Sper is just a squishy little ball of love. He learns so much every day, and his excitement upon seeing me makes my heart swell. He is getting too big and it makes me sad that he is no longer my Tiny Boy, but I would rather he grow and learn and be healthy than keep him a tiny little newborn. 

I am thankful for my parents and my in-laws. They have done so much for me, have helped us out so much, and there are literally no words I can use to express how grateful I am for them. I am truly blessed to have them in our lives, and I am lucky to have such a good relationship with all of them.

I am thankful for Bear's therapists. Between his speech and occupational therapies, Bear has grown and learned so much this last year. Holli, Jen, Marilyn, Susan, Jenny, and Marissa have done so much for him. I know that things would be completely different for us if these six women had not been in his life.

I'm thankful for all of my siblings (in-laws included!). There are so many of them, and each one has had such an impact on my life. They have always been there, and I know that if I ever needed help, they'd be there for us, just as I hope they know that we'd be there for them.

Lastly, I am thankful for my friends. Whether I know you in real life or not, I love each and every single one of you. I know I'm not the best when it comes to communicating and staying in touch, but that never means that I'm not here if you need me. Every single one has a special place in my heart.

There are more things that I am thankful for, of course, but I feel like people are more important than things. I would still be me without my phone and computer, but I know that I would be at a loss without any single one of these people.

Thank you for everything.

Progress

In the six months that we have lived here in Oceanside, a lot of progress has been made, both with individually and in the family as a whole.

It's been rough, but we are pushing through everyday. I will never claim that our lives are difficult, but we do have our challenges. Little things add up and take their toll. But we stay positive, we choose happy, we rise above.

Bear starts preschool in less than a month. We are going to start working with him on separation and transitioning during work time (therapy). He talks more and uses his hands more efficiantly, we are working on soothing techniques and self-stimulation. He loves and looks forward to seeing his therapists, learns new words every single day, and is learning how to be more expressive. 

Sper walks now! He toddles everywhere, a bottle usually hanging out of his mouth. He loves eating, and can finger feed himself. He uses simple words like "baba," "ni-ni," "mama," "dada," "nana," can shake his head no when he doesn't want something, gives kisses, bonks heads, and loves playing with his toys. 

Husband and I are doing better, too, and are learning to handle our emotions better. We have our bad days like everyone else, and we are far from perfect, but we love each other, and that's what matters in the end. We had a date night this past weekend (we went and saw Thor: The Dark World) and it was an amazing two hours to ourselves. It was also the first movie we got to see in a theater in two years. (I am forever grateful for my parents and sister for keeping an eye on two very fussy babies.)

As for my personal progress, I feel like I am doing so much better everyday. I'm a very emotionally-driven person, and I know that shows a lot, but I'm trying to be less angry about things that upset me. I've learned to get mad, get over it, and move on. I'm bettering myself and rising above all of the negativity I see and experience, and it is such an amazing feeling.

Progress is an ongoing thing. There are always things to improve upon, and I will never stop.