Daily Hankes Mischief

Welcome back, readers! Today is day four of Blogmas, and I'm truly excited for this one. Enjoy!



Although my mom has been one of the biggest inspirations in my life, and I thank God everyday that he chose her to be my mother, the first person I can truly say has inspired and made me into who I am today, is my Mema. Man, oh man, where do I start! From the moment I was brought into this world, along side my twin sister Samantha, my Mema has been there right next to us. Both her and my pop-pop played, and still play, a huge role in my sisters and I's lives. When I was younger, I spent most of my days at my grandparents house due to my mom working really hard and going to school to make a better life for my sisters and I. My mema would pick us up from school almost everyday and take us back to her house for treats, homework, and swimming.

My pop-pop was an extraordinary pastor and the most loving man I know! Unfortunately he passed away many years ago, but I will never forget the influence he impacted my life with. I looked up to the way he loved my mema and I knew one day I wanted a love just like that! A man who would die to himself everyday for me, and love me like Christ loved the church. I wanted to be the kind of woman like my mema. The kind that loved everyone and put everyone else before herself. My mema has the biggest heart out of anyone I know, and she is on fire for God! Her heart is bursting at the seams with love and compassion. She is always looking for ways to help others and reach out a helping hand. She also has a better social life than me and my sisters put together.

My mema has been in my life through every heartache and tragedy, but also every bit of joy and happiness that has been brought into my life. She taught me how to forgive, trust, be honest, show kindness and love, show mercy, turn the other cheek, be a good friend, be patient, and she also taught me how to be a good mother. When I was 17 and found out I was pregnant, I was scared to tell my mom, but I was even more scared to tell my mema. Although disappointed, she opened up her arms and let me in.

Mema, if you are reading this, I want you to know how much I love you and how much you inspire me to be the best I can be. You see nothing but the good in people, you always reach out and lend a hand or an ear or your heart. You constantly tell me how proud you are of me, but the truth is I am the one who is proud. Proud to be your granddaughter! I watched the strength you had after loosing pop-pop when you could have fallen apart. You relied on God and you held your strength. I know he looks down everyday and sees the wonderful woman you continue to become! I love that you still remember my love for horses. I love that you remember all the things I loved as a child. Things like your pantry and your pool. And when you moved to South Carolina, I loved being able to spend every spring, summer, and Christmas break with you and pop-pop. I remember watching you and pop-pop together and telling myself, "that's the kind of love I want", and I went out and got it. Because of you, I decided not to settle for anything less than what I could have. Because of you, I know how to have a kind heart, be patient, and love bigger than ever. Because of you, I learned how to forgive even when I didn't want to. You are beautiful inside and out and I want to be just like you with every passing year. Thank you for teaching me, mentoring me, loving me, and always making me laugh. You are my biggest inspiration because you are the perfect example of a woman of God. How lucky I am to be your grandchild?

Good afternoon and welcome to day three of Blogmas. Are you guys ready for Christmas yet? I know I am.

Isaiah 9:6-7

Welcome back! Are you ready for day two of Blogmas? Today I am going to talk about what a normal (productive) day is like in my house. Normally it isn't that exciting, but with the holiday's literally right around the corner, we are pretty busy!


Yes, this is what my living room looks like 90% of each and everyday. Why? Because I have two boys who double as tornados. If you were a fly on the wall, you would see me pick this same exact mess up at least 4 times a day.

Everyday our alarm is set for 6:45am and snoozed until 7am. Ryen has to be up, dressed, fed, teeth brushed, lunch box and backpack set to be in his classroom by 7:45am. Most days my husband is the one who gets up to do this while I complain in bed about not wanting to get up. If you read my previous post, you would know I. Hate. Mornings. We aren't friends. I desperately want to be a morning person because I know I would get more things done in a day if I was, and Matt would be much happier if I got up with him with a smile on my face. Instead I'm a grouch. I'll keep trying though. Most days Silas sleeps until 8:30am, so when Matt gets home from dropping Ryen off at about 8, he spends the next 30 minutes prying my head off the pillow. If he's lucky, we eat breakfast together until he has to leave for work at 8:45. Then I have Silas time. Lately we have a strict snuggle routine; I put dry cereal and raisins in a bowl, get him a cup of cold milk, then he leads me to the couch, points to which blanket he wants put over him, makes sure his "tee-tee" (security blanket) is by his side at all times, and points to the TV and says, "choo-choo!" We sit on the couch for about thirty minutes watching Thomas The Train, eating breakfast, and snuggling the morning away. Once his food is gone, he's fueled up and ready to destroy. Every toy, as demonstrated in the photo above, is then taken out of all his bins and thrown across the floor. We play cars, he pretends to feed me food, and we stack legos. In between this time I'm eventually catching him in my bathroom pulling everything out of my cabinet, telling him not to touch something 17982037 times, or getting him down from the tippy top of the couch. He thinks he's invincible.

About 10:30/11am, nap time is calling Silas' name. During this time I will blog, or shower, or shave my legs for the first time in weeks, I'm starting to get back into yoga, do laundry, dishes, and pick up the toys that were scattered all over the floor. I also get myself ready for the day and if I'm lucky, watch a bit of Netflix. The past couple days I've also used this time to make Christmas Gift lists and put up a few decorations. Silas wakes around 1pm, we have lunch, and get ready to leave the house before 2:15pm to get big brother from school! Normally we come home and play outside for a bit and I finish up chores before Matt gets home from work at 5pm. But, days like today, I am going to meet my sister after getting Ryen from school, to do a little bit of Christmas shopping before meeting Matt to do our monthly grocery shopping. Dinner is around 6pm, on good days Silas is ready for bed by 7/7:30pm, we do any homework with Ryen and (if he got green 3 days in a row) have ice cream. By 8pm, we are getting Ryen in bed, and then it's adult time! And by that I mean, we sink into the couch with Once Upon A Time on Netflix and eat whatever goodies we can find in the kitchen.

Obviously everyday is not like this. Sometimes I don't feel like getting out of my pajamas or doing any laundry. Sometimes we aren't home all day. Sometimes (and by sometimes I mean most times) my husband comes home to an impatient, pulling-her-hair-out, wife complaining about one thing or another. But, all in all, I love this life we live. I have a messy house, but that just means I'm lucky enough to have children living in it. Sometimes nap time doesn't happen, but that just means little one is too busy playing and wants to hang with mom. I'm okay with that!

I hope you enjoyed todays blog! I really am looking forward to all the posts I have planned for this series. Some will be short and sweet, but others are going to be big and my heart will be poured into them! I'm glad you came to read and I hope you stick around.