Our Weekend - the one where we got inked

First off, today I will spend time reflecting and remembering my mom. It was today March 9, 2012 that she lost her battle with Brain Cancer and went to be with the Lord.  I miss her greatly everyday and know that she would love Ellie so much if she was here with us. It was her hearts desire to become a grandma, but she never got that chance. She is up in heaven with all four of my angel babies, taking care of them and spoiling them I'm sure!

We survived the Spring Forward time change. I actually don't think that the spring one is that bad. I can see the Fall Back being more of a challenge. But this is my favorite "time" and I am so glad that we have made it!!  I just love the extra light we get in the evenings. It makes our days seem so much longer and productive. 

Saturday morning I attended a vegetable gardening seminar at our local nursery. Three points of interest that I didn't know: 1. When you garden organically the produce actually has more nutrition than commercial/chemically raised produce. 2. When planting in rows they should run north/south not east/west. 3. The smaller the seed the earlier you can plant it (they can tolerate frost and cold temperatures. The larger the seed the warmer the soil needs to be. The only exception are Peas. 

When I got home we had a picnic in our yard (while Ellie was napping) and then I did some more yard work. For the first time in 7 years I have decided to spread mulch throughout my gardens and let me tell you I am loving it!! It took over 70 bags to complete the project but it looks so good and I really hope that it helps to control the weeds this year. 

Then after Ellie got up from her nap we dropped her off at Nanny's house so we could go get tattoos. She had the best time with Nanny. They went to ToysRUs and came back with several Daniel Tiger and Mickey Mouse toys and books. 

My tattoo:

I just love how it turned out and it has so much meaning.  My tattoo artist drew the whole thing off of what I described last week and it turned out so much better than I ever could have imagined!! So let's talk about it shall we? As many of you may know I have horses. My first horse Jazz was my partner in crime. I got him just before 9th grade and he helped me get through a lot of hard times, he taught me so much about myself and perseverance and that through hard work you can accomplish your dreams. The past couple of years his health was seriously going down hill and last year on March 20 (three days after my birthday) he collapsed and needed to be put down. It was the day in my life I was regretting the most since he had been a part of my life for over half of it. I knew that I wanted to get a tattoo to honor him. So that is the meaning of the horse. The birds are of great significance as well. Thomas and I have fought the infertility battle for many years and through our war we have had four miscarriages. We think of our sweet little angel babies all the time and are so happy that we have a way of honoring them and remembering them. So the birds represent each of our winged little angels. I need to go back in a few weeks to get them finished. They will be colored with the birthstone color of their due dates: July (ruby), December (blue zircon or turquoise), September (sapphire), and May (emerald). I just love that I have them close to my heart and have a physical memorial for my loves. I am also trying to figure out a way to incorporate my mom into this tattoo (or maybe a separate one) She lost her battle with Brain Cancer on this day 3 years ago. 

Thomas tattoo:

His was a little challenging to photograph. He also has 4 birds (actually they're crows) that represent our four angel babes. His also has some Nordic reference to honor his moms side of the family. He has his family crest from his dad's side on his left arm so now he's got both on there. The crow at the bottom is perched on the Nordic "N" for Nordeen.  I love how his turned out and so does he!

On Sunday we volunteered in the nursery at church. It is so fun for Thomas to get to see Ellie interact with other kiddos. After church we got lunch and headed tri Lowes and Home Depot to check out tile options for our bathroom. We might have made a selection but are going to check out a few more stores.  We came home and put Ellie down for her nap and I went out and did some farm work (scoop poop). Then Thomas left to go to the Seattle Sounders season opener and Ellie and I had a snack picnic in our yard, went to the store for some groceries, and hung out together. I just love these weekends with my little family!

♥ Ashley 

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