Five on Friday - Sweet Messages and Timehop Cryfest of the Week

With all that's going on in the world lately, these last couple of weeks have been weird, mentally exhausting, and a little scary, but we're making it through!  The goal today is to talk about some good things that have been bringing joy!

O N E – Two Sweet Messages

I made an “I love you because…” board for our kitchen probably 8 or 9 years ago when Pinterest started and I was doing #allthePinterestprojects.  It was simple to make – I just printed “I love you because…” on a sheet of scrapbook paper, framed it, and the glass window of the frame acts as a dry erase board so Brian and I can leave each other little notes.

The board has been a fixture in our kitchen, and it has served many purposes, most recently as a countdown board to all of our big events.  The board has been in existence since before our kids were born and never have either of them written a message on it other than updating the countdowns.

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed that someone had written “I love you because… you make things better.”  Based on the handwriting and the fact that “better” was misspelled, I knew it was Olivia so I asked her if she’d written it.  She responded with, “Yes, because you do make things better.”  <3 

I may have cried a little.  My sweet, sweet girl.

Also, I'm trying not to cry seeing that old Disney countdown... my, how things have changed since then.  

A couple of weeks ago when I had my crazy cough, I was laying on the couch while the kids were getting ready for bed and I saw the light turn on in my office.  I asked who was in there (because nobody ever goes in there other than me) and Jacob said that it was him.  Later when I went in there, I saw that Jacob had left a sweet little note on my keyboard telling me to feel better and he had drawn a rose on it, too.  <3

How did we get so lucky to have these sweet and thoughtful babies?  I’m so grateful for them every single day.

T W O – Family Roots

My mom received her results from her DNA test last week, and now I’m convinced that we might just have royal blood somewhere.  82% England, Wales, & Northwestern Europe!!  We knew we had strong English roots, but I don’t think anyone knew they were that strong.  And I don’t think anyone knew that we had Swedish roots so that was completely unexpected. 

My dad got his results a couple of months ago and his ethnicity is quite different than my mom’s, so now I’m even more interested to see what mine is… I must be a mix of so many!  I really should buy a DNA test sometime.  It’s just so fascinating. 

T H R E E – Named Storms

Our local news released the names for the 2020 hurricane season a couple of weeks ago and my mom and dad and brothers and I were all discussing how crazy it is because one of them is “Nana.”  You may remember that we lost my Nana (Daddy’s mom) on Christmas Eve this past year, and we thought it was just wild that her name popped up on the hurricane list… especially since Nana isn’t really a name so much as a “grandparent name.”  Or is it??  But anyway, it's like she's making herself known and telling us not to forget her.  <3

F O U R – Timehop Cryfest

A couple of weeks ago I posted about Olivia’s beloved Sheepie, the stuffed animal that she has loved and adored since birth.  It was a gift to her from her big brother, Jacob, and he gave it to her the day she was born.  She – and all of us, really – have treasured it since then and she takes Sheepie everywhere. 

Well, the other day this picture popped up in my Timehop and I didn’t even remember that we had a picture of him giving it to her for the first time!  This was just a couple of hours after she born, and I’m so thankful to whomever snapped this picture.  I’m sure it was probably my momma.  (And I obviously have a picture of it, too, since I’m clearly in the background taking a picture as well.  I guess I need to look for it.  Haha.)

Look at her squishy little face just fresh out of the oven!  TEARS, Y’ALL!!!! 

F I V E – BRCA Negative

I don’t think I ever mentioned this on the blog, but this past fall my doctor wanted to have me tested for the BRCA gene since cancer (including breast cancer) runs in my family on both sides.  I got my results back before Christmas and, thankfully, I found out I’m negative for the gene.  My risk is about 17% which is higher than the average person, but thankfully, it's just below the threshold that would require me to get mammograms every six months.  

That doesn’t mean that I won’t ever get cancer, but at least I know I’m not considered to have an elevated risk for it!  That said, since my risk is higher than that of the average woman my age, my doctor wants me to continue getting mammograms every year even though I’m under the age of 40.

Friday Funnies

DON'T BUY ALL OF THE TOILET PAPER!   DON'T TOUCH YOUR FACE!  AND FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, WASH YOUR HANDS!

This made me laugh so hard when I saw it a couple of weeks ago.  As we all know, things have changed drastically this last week so PLEASE, EVERYONE, STAY HOME.

Flights are legit as cheap as I've ever seen them.

LITERALLY ME.  I didn't even have to go out and buy soap because I ALWAYS stockpile it.  I keep at least 15-20 bottles of soap on hand at all times.  It's paying off to be a germaphob!!

On the Blog This Week

What I Wore – February Recap

Our Week – The One with Jacob’s First Spring Baseball Game and the Temporary Collapse of Life as We Know It

Happy Friday, y’all!

*Linking up with A Little Bit of Everything for Friday Favorites and Della Devoted for High Five for Friday.