And just like that, it’s back to being cold again. Well, California cold, which is probably unlike the snowstorms some of you are experiencing right now. We did get to spend some time in the yard this week. We pulled weeds, harvested our first radish, and enjoyed salad from our own giant bag of greens. Ben’s also been off since Wednesday, so everyday sort of feels like Saturday, but we’ve been working on a few projects and trying to get rid of a cold that there really hasn’t left us with a lot of relaxing time.

This week’s learned, links, and thankfulness…

True and Brave actually were pretty on point with math lessons this week.

Glow is becoming a little shrieker sometimes.

Soul likes to cry in the middle of the night, which then leads her to sleep in our room.

Love these V-day ideas rounded up on Adored Vintage.

How cute is this cake for love day?

Say hello to this new sponsor and her simply designed blog.

I’d love a tattoo. A big one on my shoulder and down my arm, but Ben isn’t into it. Also, I can’t think of something that I would love enough to have permanently fixed on my body and they can be quite costly. I may have to just try one of these out just for fun when I get that ink itch. This one is sweet and pretty much encapsulates what I’ve been feeling of late.

I’ve been working on something that has kept me on the computer these past few days, so I’ve been watching Nikita on Netflix. At first I thought it was totally cheesy, just based on the commercials, but after giving it a chance, I really like it! There’s a whole lot of action, a little bit of romance, and I love how the cast of characters all relate to one another. I would recommend giving it a shot if you like spy, action stories. I hope it comes back for a fourth season.

Thankful for this reminder of parenting advice shared with us by PJ (our pastor).

Thankful for my husband who I like to kiss all day long. Seriously. I’m addicted and can’t stop!

Now, it’s really Saturday and my to-do list is still so long. Do those ever really go away though? Yeah, I didn’t think so. Even if your to-do list is long, or you are going through some really unimaginably difficult times right now, just leave it all up to God. We can’t really change our situations, but we can change how we react to the circumstances we’re in. Let’s find the beauty in it and celebrate it. Some seasons are harder than others, but there is still joy to be had in every season. Let’s find the joy friends!

The weekend started off great as the BFF and I had a dinner date then partied hard at the Oh, Hello Friend store opening party! Seriously, we consider live music, cupcakes, shopping, and staying out past 9pm partying hard, but boy once that clock hit 9 o’clock our bodies were already begging to be in bed. We’re such nerds I tell you. Anyways, this past week has been great and here we are now in February. This month is going to be amazing and crazy, I can just feel it already.

This week’s learned, links, and thankfulness…

Glow is really trying to interact and play with her older sisters more. It is so amazing to watch! She can get pretty feisty too when she’s fighting after a toy she wants.

True and Brave love free writing. They come up with the cutest little stories!

In love with this pillow that Ingrid made.

Thankful for my girls and their patience when sometimes I turn into a crazy mama.

Love this new sponsor. If you’re in the need for some pretty invitations, check her work out!

Soulie will only wear freshly-picked moccs. We went somewhere and she forgot to put shoes on, then I tried to put on some flip flops that were in the car and she threw a fit! She yelled and screamed her way through the grocery store because she didn’t have her moccs on. Oh that girl!

Emmy shared this “Yes-mom” post with me and I think it’s something I definitely need to work on.

I learned you don’t capitalize the seasons (winter, spring, summer, fall). I totally thought it was a proper noun that needed to be capitalized, but I guess it isn’t. Even I learn a lot in homeschooling too!

I like how this post phrased it, “Mothering under the gaze of God…” Another thing I need to work on.

Thankful for getting a night out with my best friend and then being able to hang out with more friends.

Thankful that I actually got to clean our bathrooms this week. It was getting pretty bad and filthy. No joke. It was pretty embarrassing, especially my bathroom.

I can’t believe it’s February already. I’m nervous about this month as we have a lot to do, but I’m really excited for March. We have lots of family things planned and as much as I love winter, I’m kind of getting excited for spring. What are some of your plans in February?

Instagram is really such a fun app. When I first joined a little over a year or so ago, I would just use it periodically when I was with Ben because he was the one with the iphone. I’m not really too picky about smart phones, so I was content with my old school flip phone. Then, I got an ipad over the summer and I was able to instagram that way, but Ben finally upgraded his iphone 4 to a 5 back in December and I was the lucky recipient of his 4 and boy was I ecstatic. Actually, I think I was most excited about picking out a case (and I chose one with a llama). Since I have a phone, I love being able to instagram from that too!

I’m always totally late in joining social media stuff and I’m not always so good at promoting it either (did you even know there’s a facebook page for Cakies?). When I finally joined instagram and twitter, and saw all my online friends on, I felt like there were all having these conversations without me and then I finally got to join in the fun! It can be overwhelming and I never know who to follow and how to start searching for people to follow. And don’t even get me started on the vine app, which I actually joined early, but that app is a whole other level of fun! 6 second videos are just so cool! True and Brave keep asking me to let them make another.

So tell me, who are your favorite instagrammers? Do they also happen to be your favorite bloggers if they have a blog? I would love to discover some new, inspiring feeds to follow. If you want to follow along on mine, search @rubyellenbratcher on instagram and vine!

This week we had a couple sunny, warm days in the 80’s and now it’s back to being cold and very rainy. I actually got to clean the big girls’ room and toss stuff. Then, I conquered our beast of a bedroom and really cleaned up (and tossed more stuff!). We tend to let clothes pile up and papers collect, so it was good to tend to these large, crazy piles of ours. It feels good to have a clean bedroom. I feel like I can think now and actually have some peace in my room. It probably won’t last long, but I will enjoy it while I have it. This weekend, I’m going to try and tackle the bathrooms. Wish me luck…

This week’s learned, links, and thankfulness…

Soul and Glow are slowly becoming partners. They’re starting to play more together… it’s quite a cute spectacle!

You know Brave is sick when she is no longer doing cartwheels, but I’m glad she’s back to doing cartwheels today.

Yes, I like wearing overalls. These were mine from highschool and I just altered the leg to a more narrow straight fit rather than baggy and I’m back to wearing them. I always wondered when I would don overalls again.

Avocado pasta is amazing! So quick and easy to make. I can’t wait to try different variations of it.

Excited for Danni’s shop opening. If you’re in the area, definitely go and check it out!

These DIY tights are funny and quirky!

I’m behind in emails (again!), so I will try to get some this weekend, so if you’re waiting for one, please stay tuned!

Thankful quiet mornings reading my Bible and listening to music that stirs my soul.

Enjoy your weekend friends! Ben and I have been knee deep in projects over the weekends and we both can’t wait until we’re done to actually do some adventuring with the girls again. It’s been way too long!

Oh yes. That chair is my newest addition. I have been searching for it at the flea markets and craigslist for awhile now and once I saw it pop up, I asked Ben immediately, and after his approval, snatched it up. Chairs are better than chocolate and I think chairs might even be better than shoes! And I really do love chocolate and shoes so much! Chairs are definitely not better than God though. Nothing could top that. I will admit that I battle making other things my idols above God. Definitely struggle with that a whole lot. Sometimes I think a clean house is better than God, well behaved children are better than God, or even a good blog post is better than God. Honestly though, putting my joy in all those things won’t really satisfy me one bit. My house will get messy, my children will disobey, and honestly, as much as I love blogs, life is a whole lot bigger than a blog. Living life merely for the internet is really pointless.

Maybe this rambling is due to the fact that I’m feeling mess stress and day dreaming about having a clean house right now. As I was cleaning (and not with a happy heart), Brave came down and said, “Mommy, blessed be the name of the Lord.” I’m no perfect mama and sometimes with all the things I have on my plate, some things are just bound to get messy and I have to learn to deal. Brave was right though, I need to sing that even in my time of frustrations.

This week’s learned, links, and thankfulness…

True and Brave do really well with reading and writing. I love the stories they come up with their free writes.

Glow doesn’t talk yet, but she’s starting to mumble a whole lot lately.

Misha Lulu’s new spring line is coming out tomorrow and you can see my girlies in some of the new photos. Her collections are always good!

I haven’t been back to my regular meal planning, but I need to soon because I hate being clueless once 5:30pm rolls around.

A Lovely Lark asked me a few questions and you can check it out here.

I’m so sad that Fringe ended. I loved that show and will definitely miss it. But I am so excited that The Walking Dead is coming back soon! That show rules!

Love my BFF’s quick little encouragement post on marriage. I really want to read the Tim Keller book called The Meaning of Marriage.

I have been blasting Sara Dee lately. Love her music!

Thankful for Ben. He puts up with me when I’m being crazy!

I’m ready to relax for the night, but I am going to attempt to clean up a bit to aid my sanity for tomorrow. The big kids are at school and I have a long to do list, which never seems to end, so I want to try and karate chop that list goodbye tomorrow.

Life has been really messy here lately. Life throws you curve balls and you really can’t be prepared for all of it. Through all of it though, I have seen God’s goodness and nothing but. He gives more grace, love, peace, and forgiveness beyond anything we deserve. I am in awe of it all. Sometimes you don’t know how God will do it, but he does always prove himself trustworthy.

This week’s learned, links, and thankfulness…

Glow is a smart girl. She observes and then does it, and now she’s learning how to stick up for herself being the baby of 4.

We heard Soul randomly say, “A noun is a person, place, thing or idea.” So cute! She must really be listening when I’m doing school with the big girls.

True and Brave’s penmanship has been improving so much.

I love my friends and my church family so much. We rejoice with each others’ joys and we mourn with each others’ sorrows. It is a great to be part of such a loving and grace giving community. I’m so thankful.

Meeting this cute little one for the first time made my heart so happy.

Adding this to my family meal planning.

Love this woman’s braid. I wish I had some fancy braiding skills.

Oh and I have totally been loving the winter we are experiencing here in SoCal. I’ve pretty much been in sweats all day, but that’s perfectly alright with me.

My heart has been all over the place this past week, so I’m looking forward to this new week. God has proven that his mercies are definitely new every morning and that when we need it, he will give us the grace and strength we need to press on. There have been a lot of growing pains going on, but growth is always a good thing. Isn’t it?!