10 great things in 2010

To remember in the future....

1- MJD started preschool this year!
2- God consistently and faithfully showed His great provisions for us in finances, relationships and strength. Financially this year was rough for business, but for our faith and our finances, God used it all to grow us, show us His faithfulness and teach us what was important.
3- We made another sweet little boy and are watching God protect and provide for him.
4- I've taught school for 5 years and had to finally renew my license.
5- My parents have decided to make some big changes.
6- We hosted our first home Bible study group and God grew us.
7- Tim and I celebrated 5 amazing years of marriage :)
8- We surprised my daddy for his 70th birthday and had a fantastic celebration.
9- Tim made his first attempt at his PE exam, and while he didn't pass this go around it taught us a lot and we know the future will bring his success.
10- As this year closes, I think back and remember many beautiful memories, no matter how bad or how hard a situation was, I find myself contemplating the good and not that bad.

Good bye 2010......Welcome 2011!

While I craft..

So does MJD and it makes my heart happy.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

People?

People fascinate me.....not passing judgment, for I too have been there.

How do excuses become solid justification to pass blame onto others for you not doing God's will?

How can it always be about you and yet you never hold responsibility?

How can truth be known and ignored?

How can you use God for convenience but not seek to follow His desires?

How can people not walk in freedom?

Merry Christmas Eve

I LOVE Christmas!!!!! Like LOVE with a passion.... Maybe it was the way I was raised, maybe it was because of how special my parents made the season for me as a child, who knows, but I love it.

And now that I have my own children and get to be Santa, I want to make the Christmas season special for my sons. Not just the presents and gift giving, but the caroling, the worship services, the family, the meals shared, and the memories made that they will treasure for a lifetime.

So yes, in our home we believe in Santa....I want my kids to be little as long as they can, to enjoy the season of belief and the joys of imagination.

I want the gift giving to be fun and festive, so they learn the joys of giving and the reason behind God's heart of love and His most precious gift.

So in our home we wrap every little present....yes, we shop on a budget, but we sure do have fun.
We make cookies by scratch, leave a note for Santa, make reindeer food, and watch Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer before bed.

Santa's special plate with a note from Mason....with some help from Mommy.

All the presents wrapped and ready for a very excited little boy to wake up....

The way MJD will find Santa's cookie plate in the morning...crumbs, melted ice and a bag with the ambulance he requested...

Merry Christmas Eve to you and your family. Hope your Santa is good to you. Hope joy fills your home, peace invades your life and you enjoy every precious moment with your loved ones. Our LORD is so good and we give Him praise for all his blessings.

How was your day?

Being Santa can be fun, but all the elf work is a lot harder than it looks!

Cookies made, and several eaten :) Thanks hubby!

Doctor visited.

Calls made, bills paid.

Muffins baked and packaged....and approved by my 3 year old :)

Soaps finished and wrapped in towels....

Presents bought and wrapped.....and hidden!

Dinner made, friends entertained.

Crafts created, finished, packed and blogged about.

Stories read, songs sung, cries stopped, tantrums averted, games played, clothes dirtied, nap taken, and toddler sleeping.

Reindeer food finished and waiting.

Kitchen cleaned, and cleaned, and cleaned again.

Dishwasher unloaded, loaded, run and unloaded again!

Business discussed, plans pending, conversations had.

Cuddles given :)

Time for bed.....how was your day friends?

3 Days to go

Til Christmas....

I love it! Can't wait for the family, fun, food, presents, time together and memories made.

Love the fun with my little man.....

Been busy making presents, shopping, planning, and prepping.

Really need to go to sleep.....it's way too late, but Bean baby is awake and kicking so now mommy is awake as well.

Check out my crafty things over here.

Whirlwind week

Whew..it's Friday already. This week has been so busy that tonight is the first night we've had dinner at home and had to clean up a little. While it has been busy, it was also an incredible week full of many blessings.....
Monday night out with the ladies to celebrate my birthday with pedicures and dessert. Such great ladies and so much fun to be around.
Tuesday was a short work day, ultrasound at the doctor to check on our little boy, setting up a little registry for bean, shopping with the hubby and dinner date :)
Wednesday was another birthday celebration with the Smelker family and their beautiful girls. MJD loves them to pieces, even if he did have one of his meltdowns after dinner.
Thursday was family dinner with the in-laws and my last birthday celebration for the week. Love pizza and funfetti cake :)
Tonight I stopped by Bartlett's house on the way home to drop something off and chat and was able to sneak Landon home with MJD and I....love having another little boy in the house. It entertained Mason and Tim and I were able to make dinner together, chat and clean up the house as a team while they giggled and laughed all around us. Felt nice to play a fast forward to what our home may be like in a few years as our boys will be about the same age difference as those two are.

Busy week....setting the stage for a busy weekend to come...but so blessed by the many people God has given me this week. What a great birthday week :)

Little bean

I am waiting in my OB's waiting room with a stack full of photos....

Photos of my new little bean.



I felt like bloging because I have to do something...just too much emotion.
He's too beautiful for words, measuring on target and with a bit of a chunky belly! Imagine that, me having another chunky baby boy!

The technician told me his kidneys are too full, he either hasn't peed yet or he might have a blockage...either way they will run another ultrasound to check him in a few weeks. I have already learned to just trust God with him, so I am not too concerned.

Oh what will you he little bean? What colors will you like, what foods will you enjoy? Will you be shy or loud, overly rambunctious or laid back?
Will you have the same big belly laugh of your brother or the sly grin of your father?
What dreams will you dream, what plans does God have for you, and what lives will you touch?
I can't wait to hold you and meet you and walk you through this life, but until God is ready for us to meet I will keep you warm and safe, feed you, talk to you, protect you, pray for you and make certain you are aware every moment that you are loved, cherished and so greatly desired.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Daddies and Dinners

I was 16 years old, or right around that age and had been to dinner with my parents and Tim. A family of 4 came into the restaurant we were eating at and perused the menu for a while then decided to eat dinner there. My Dad watched them for a while and we continued with our conversation and meal until our night concluded. I remember my Dad signaling to the waitress who was serving us and talking to her for a moment. I heard him ask her for our check and for the check of the table with the family of 4 who had come in near us. He handed her his credit card and asked the waitress to let the family enjoy their meals and serve them a dessert then let them know their meal had been covered.

This honestly had happened several times in my lifetime and it wasn't something unusual for me to sometimes witness, but I remember this time in particular because as he paid the bill he saw me looking at him and my dad told me, "One day I may not be here to take you somewhere and God will make sure to bring people around to take care of you."

Tonight I was blessed by some beautiful ladies with what seems like an ordinary night out for the girls. Pedicures and dessert. Maybe it's the hormones, or maybe it's just my heart, but being blessed by those beautiful women tonight was more than I had imagined. As we sat around dessert chit chatting and such our waitress came over and told us our check had been covered by a gentleman at another table. :) Yes, this time our table knew who it was, another Daddy....one of my girlfriends' father who was also there for dinner. The gesture, the thought made me think about my sweet daddy and his words...and how true they were. His faithfulness to something he believed in over a decade ago touched my life tonight. Not the check being paid, not the dessert or the pretty toes, but the people God brought into my life to show me love when the ones I miss the most aren't here for me.

Makes me want to work so much harder to show God my faithfulness so He too will watch over and provide for my boys on the days when I can't.

Ahead of the game

Every year I make a video of MJD's adventures over the last year.....I typically wait till the second week in December, scramble to make the movie, burn dvds, address envelopes, etc and get them shipped before Christmas.

Ah ha! This year they are all done and waiting for Christmas cards to be inserted and shipped off. Now I just have to get the Christmas cards done!

20 weeks already!

Some days it feels like the last 20 weeks have gone by in a flash and other days it feels like an eternity. After the busyness of the last week I wanted to just slow down and jot some thoughts down.

~ MJD has been so incredibly sweet about all things baby related. He's interested in talking about the baby, loves to touch my belly and will randomly come up to me and kiss his brother.

~ Tim got to feel the little bean move and kick around for the first time this morning. :)

~ We decided on a name a few weeks ago, but I wanted to try it out just us at home to see if it was right. The more I pray about him and get to know him, the more I think it will be right for him. But after a chat with my daddy the other night he told me to keep the name a surprise until little bean shows up :) Onery I know. I'm not sure I can keep the secret, but I like the idea of it. Either way, it feels nice to have his name in my heart.

~ I have really been enjoying the holidays this year, especially since it's our last one with just MJD. I want everything to be super special for him and really let him know how much we have treasured the time with just him. So loved watching him perform at school last week.

~ Slowly but surely our house is being transformed for Christmas. I have to confess I don't love the decorating process, but I do love the season so it is worth it.

~ Family photos were finished for this year, and I LOVE them!

~ I have finally begun to recover from my cancer surgery. The scar on my face is healing and hopefully in time it will be hard to see, but until then, I'm going to care a little less about my looks and just go with it.

~ Tim and I both turn 27 in this next week. I can't wait. I know it is weird, but something about the odd numbered years in my life have always been fantastic. So I am really looking forward to this next year. (Don't get me wrong, 26 has been great too.)

~ Ultrasound is next week....more baby pictures to come :)

Grrr....

Boo to doctor's offices giving you the run around....
Boo to quick receptionists who don't listen to your problems before transferring the call....
Boo to having health insurance and having to pay an arm and a leg for services...
Boo to having a doctor you really like and wanting to switch offices because of ridiculous hassles....
Boo to having to take time off of work to do an ultrasound because there are too many patients and only one technician.
Boo to being stressed while pregnant :(

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Shopping till we dropped

Not only is Thanksgiving great for a lot of turkey, football and time with family, but it's also great because of all the Black Friday shopping deals.

For as long as I can remember I've always gone out with my mom on Friday morning, shopped at the wee hours of the morning then went out for breakfast and home to sleep. With mom being so far away it's not so much fun, but I do miss it. So the past couple years my sweet husband has made a great point for us to get out and do our Christmas shopping during this weekend. He's so great about setting things up, taking me around town or wherever I want to go and picking up all the presents we need.


Not so much a fantastic photo, but we did have fun last night and this morning. :) First major store was Toys R Us. :)

Thanksgiving 2010

So much to be thankful for. God has so richly blessed our lives. I so love these guys!

Family Photos 2010

Two of my favorite men in the world!

First family photo

My favorite of the bunch!

Discussing birds on the beach....

My handsome love!

Weekend work

We re-did some front yard landscaping. Well more like eliminated the weeds and remnants of our previous disaster and made it more appealing.

Since we're not good with gardening, don't have unlimited funds to hire someone and I just plain old don't like too much dirt, we end up killing all plants and such in our little front garden area. So yesterday we decided to use some of our extra money from the month and fix the area.

Concrete bench and lanterns with a rock floor are a much needed improvement from the weed infestation that had gone on before.....sad about the below picture, but I wasn't able to get Tim to fix it with all his studying the last few months and I wasn't feeling well enough to sit out there and weed for hours.

Treasured note

Note from MJD's teacher this week, "Mason is going really well recognizing his name and playing with friends. :) Last month we learned a Bible verse about not being afraid because God is always with us. I told the children that they don't have to be afraid because God is always with them. Mason said that he is not afraid because Jesus lives in his heart. I thought that was so precious! Just wanted to share! :)"

So warms my heart and confirms in my spirit the decisions we are making in our lives as parents and how we want to raise our boys.

Growing

My belly is growing at an astronomical pace. Feels like every moment I'm awake my belly just keeps growing and growing and growing.......and I'm not even very hungry! It's not like I'm eating more than normal or all that. Don't get me wrong, I love being a mommy and feeling him, but oh boy, I'm in for a long few months ahead!!!!!!

Love these.....

Love these fabric baskets.....

Fun "I Spy" stick....

Monogram onesie.... (I think I am going to just bite the bullet and pay the money for an embroidery card for my machine so I can make things for my little bean. Once I buy the card I won't be tempted to pay $20 for a white onesie with a circle of fabric on it!)

Elephant blanket......(Just need to find the maker of this fabric, seriously not spending the money for the blanket!)

Rockets blanket.....

Baby boy hat.....

Baby planning stuff

Baby planning....so much fun, especially when you have time to think about things and figure out what you want. With MJD I felt so different, he was so much more rambunctious, busy and bold in utero while I was pregnant and it was a totally different way of thinking with him.

This baby already feels so different and it's so interesting to pray for him, learn about him and think about all the ways he's going to be similar and different from his big brother.

Names.....we're working on it. We've narrowed our top three names down, Mason has his favorite already from the list but we're waiting to make sure we've really got the right name. Middle names have been narrowed down to the final two.

Decorations......Gabi should be coming down next weekend and we're swapping some furniture, then I hope to get into the room and start cleaning things out of the closet, figuring out paint colors and bedding and then get his furniture into the room.

Rather than take away from MJD and change up his world, we decided to keep his life as much the same as possible for the next year and through the first year of the baby being here, so we're going to leave him in his room and redo the guest room for little bean. We picked up an amazing deal on nursery furniture via Craigslist early on in the pregnancy and have a very nice white furniture set. (Like I said, it seems like everything has been different with this little boy, all the way down to how I want his room to feel.)

I've been looking at a lot of bedding sets, but this one seems to be the one I keep coming back to. Something calming and sweet about the elephants, and I really love the brown and green combination. Love this blanket too and might use this as the bedding focus rather than the quilt.

I'm also thinking about paint colors and have to narrow things down to some shades of green and khaki. Thinking about painting the room two colors and using a white chair rail along the middle of the wall to break it up and add more white accents.

Oh, so much fun.....so much to think about.

Once his name is settled down I've got a beautiful idea of his wall decoration that is growing in my mind. Hoping I can execute it to match the picture in my mind. Thinking along the lines of a dictionary entry with all the qualities that I want to define his life.

Today's the day.......

Today my man is taking his huge engineering test! After 4 years of school, 4 years of working and several months and a few terribly long weeks of studying it's here. TODAY!

And there's nothing I can do or say to relax him. He knows what he knows, he'll do what he can do. I want so badly for him to pass this, because he's worked so hard for this and he's such a faithful and loyal man in all he does.

He has such a long day ahead of him, so many questions, so much to think about, and all I can think is I am so stinking proud of him already. Pass or fail, I couldn't smile bigger when I think of how hard he works.

I've been up every few hours last night, either from being alone or because I kept thinking and praying for him. So today the only thing I can do for him is pray him through. Praying for wisdom, strength, endurance, patience, discernment and protection from the tricks of the enemy.

So thankful that in our moments like this in life resting in the trust of the Lord and in His plans is a sweet sweet spot.

Bedtime sweetness for mama

So while Tim has been up late at work studying, I've caved in and let little man sleep in bed with me till Tim gets home, which really isn't much past bedtime anyway.

As he crawled into bed he said, "That my spot." like he owned that part of the bed. I asked him where baby brother would sleep and he pointed to the spot next to him and then told me mommy sleeps on this side and daddy on that side.

Tonight, rather than shut off the lights, I had to pay some bills :( and do computer work so I left one light on and did my thing. I kept telling little man to close your eyes and go to sleep.

His response: "I trying."

For whatever reason that just tickled my heart. His sweet little effort to try to sleep for me just made my busy night so happy. Love that little dude!

By the way, he did succeed....

The part I love!

This is the part of pregnancy I love!!!! Now that the scares are over, praise God! I am hoping to enjoy the next bit of pregnancy....

the part where your baby bump is growing, and people know you're pregnant, not just fat :)
the part where you can sleep if you want, but you're not exhausted completely ALL the time
the part where people open doors, ask you if you need help and pay a little more attention
the part where you know if it's a boy or girl and can dream about little clothes and bedding
the part where I can feel little kicks or punches randomly throughout the day :) LOVE it!

Moments

There are moments in life that define who you are. Moments in life that shape the way you live, the way you think or the way you behave. There are moments that bring sheer joy and moments that strike true terror in your heart. Moments tend to be the striking memories in our lives, the moments that shape our very being.

Today my moments went from peace to panic to praise. I spent my morning like most mornings, teaching, talking and taking care of a million things. At lunch time I ran to the bathroom to quickly pee, wash my hands and then hurry back to the workroom. While in the restroom I discovered that I had begun bleeding. In that moment my heart went from peace to panic. I quickly made my way to my friend's classroom for help since I was thoroughly unprepared for such an event, returned to my room and called my OB immediately. After talking to the nurse, trying to sit through a normal teacher lunchtime filled with talkative adults, and getting a call back from my nurse who had to speak to my doctor, we decided to wait things out a bit and see what happened throughout the afternoon.

Trying to remain calm, I knew I had no choice but to put on a happy face. You can't exactly have a panic attack or break into tears while teaching middle school students. I reminded myself that if the doctor was concerned he would have had me come in immediately. So I waited an hour and when I went back to the bathroom I knew something was wrong since everything had started becoming worse. Now with no break I had to return to class and carry on business as usual. I quickly sent a text to my friend, who happens to be a vice principal in my school to rush to my room and cover my class. I called the nurse again who was on the other line and after waiting for a few minutes I thought I would return to class and wait for the call. Upon returning and missing the call I called back AGAIN and finally they decided to just schedule me in immediately.

Now the fear turns to panic.....I called my VP back and one of the administrators came down immediately and I left school, called Tim who was waiting for me in the truck to go and we rushed to the doctor's office.

On the trek up to the office we sat in the car in deafening silence, each left to his or her thoughts. I remember thinking:
No matter what, if God gives or takes away I will choose to bless His name because the same God I served 3 hours ago is the same God in control right now.
You truly have no idea how much you love a child until you are honestly faced with the thought that you might no longer have that child in your life.
I love this little boy with everything that is within me and I just have to let God do His thing.
No matter what happened in the doctor's office, I would not allow Satan to use anything to try and destroy our family.

After an hour and half of waiting in the office we finally saw a doctor who said she could tell there was bleeding and wanted to have an ultrasound done to check the placenta and baby, but that things should be okay because they were easily able to establish the baby's heartbeat. So we waited some more and then went back for an ultrasound. The ultrasound showed no problems, baby and placenta were okay. So the verdict was to send me home, take it easy and see how things play out over the next few days.

So we're home. I took it easy, sat down for all of Bible study tonight and let Tim do all the Mason duty. I'm resting and we'll see how the next few days go.

Today my moments defined a lot of me. The moment of fear when I realized things weren't as they should be. The moments of peace as God assured me of His presence. The moments of strength when I wanted to cry or crumble in panic, and as I write this the moment of praise that I get one more night with my sweet little bean. Because in the moment it took for me to understand I might lose my little boy, God reminded me that our entire lives are simply that, a moment in time.

I would post our latest picture of little bean, but Blogger isn't uploading photos, so it will have to wait.

Did I really....

just say that?

Opening scene: Mason jumping on my bed with a plastic golf club trying to get it in the rotating fan.

Me: Mason, stop doing that and go fight with Daddy!

Really, did I just tell my 3 year old to go fight with daddy? Yes, I did......Here's the image that followed and what went on till dinner.

Name battle begins

So the baby name battle begins. With MJD we had a name before we even were close to finding out if he was a he or she. This time around, call it being the second child, mommy's exhaustion, or just the lack of inspiration, but we've still got nothing officially debatable yet.

So here are some of my musings.....not sure where I stand on all of them, but we have time.

Liam
Harper
Owen
Lucas
Holden
Gavin
Brody
Brady
Colton
Cole
Cooper
Anderson
Grayson

Not sure if we'll use the "James" for a middle name again. I kind of like the idea of both boys sharing middle and last names, especially since there were no boys to officially carry on the James name, but we'll see, I'm not sold on it for sure.

If you have a cool boy name that can hold up to Mason feel free to pass it along!

Goodbye.....Hello......

Goodbye First Trimester!

While it's been great building this tiny little baby over the last 13 weeks, I am so happy this trimester is over. I'm happy to be passing the season of building blood volume, night time queasiness, complete and utter exhaustion, my face breaking out because of floods of hormones, and overall yucky feeling.

Hello Second Trimester.....

I will embrace the maternity clothes. Sadness set in this week at not fitting into things, so my regular clothes were boxed up and but out of sight. I will see you again when my little bean is in my arms and not my belly.
I will embrace the tiny baby kicks I have finally started to feel.
I will embrace the bizarre need to eat at weird times.

This past Thursday night we had an appointment with our OB for blood work and an ultrasound. I wasn't able to get my blood drawn at my first appointment due to scheduling, so the tech had to drawn a ton of blood this time :( Worst part of pregnancy. On the flip side, we had our ultrasound to determine risk of Down Syndrome, and all the fluids and measurements looked perfectly healthy, praise God.

(The smushed part above the nose is a hand that came up, the nose is formed beautifully, at least from another photo it was.)

I asked the technician if it would be possible to determine the baby's gender this time around. She said not for certain, but pretty close. So when our little bean showed up on the big screen t.v. we were watching, we got a perfect view of our...........drum roll please.............................
BABY BOY!!!!!!!!!!

He's healthy and beautiful. He wanted to be onery and decided to turn and flip a few times, so we didn't get a perfect picture of him or all his parts, but we did get to see him drinking, his little heart beating, his spine all formed and our first view of him showed he was going to be a little brother to our little man Mason.

To be honest, this pregnancy has been so incredibly different from Mason's that I was convinced it was going to be a girl. So I was a tad disappointed at first, only because of selfish reasons of wanting pigtails and pink ribbons. I also liked the idea of getting to shop all over for a baby, but I know we will get some new things for this one too.

But the honor of getting to raise two little boys truly humbles me. I can't even begin to imagine what my home will be like with the two of them running around and playing. Mason is so excited about a little brother that he woke up this morning and climbed into bed with us. He woke me up asking, "Mama, my baby?" I told him the baby was sleeping and in my belly, and he said, "My boy."

Each and every time I think of him, I feel such a surge of love and pride for him. I can't wait to meet this tiny little man who will change the course of our lives and I can't wait to experience this wonderful plan God has ordained for him.

Now the name battle begins.....

Holly & Aaron

I got the privilege to take some photos of Casie's sister, Holly's wedding party last night. It was a beautiful party and a joy to see newlyweds celebrate.

I really should be....

Doing laundry....
Putting away dishes....
Dusting...
Vacuuming...
Sorting through bags and boxes....
Finishing some presents I need to make....
Getting dinner ready.....
Or sleeping myself

But instead I've sat here and just held this sweet little sleeping man for the last hour and half. I couldn't resist.
He'll wake up in a bit, then we'll cuddle and get to work later. :)

Embracing 3

Ahhh. Little man is 3! For whatever reason 3 sounds so much more like a big kid than 2. Something about 2 made him still seem like a little baby/kid rather than just a big kid. But alas, 3 is here and now we embrace the joys and struggles of the year!

Joys....
Cuddling in the morning when he wakes up because he wants mommy or daddy to be with him.
Listening to him make up stories and songs in the back seat of the car.
Watching his little eyes and brain process things when we talk about things.
Hearing him negotiate for things like when I say one M&M and he says 2 :)
Eclectic styling decisions in the morning. (Yes, yesterday to avoid a fight he left the house with Handy Manny pajamas, fireman boots, cowboy hat and his leaf blower lawn tool.)


Struggles......
Negotiating sometimes ends in tears when he doesn't win and has to take a minute to process our reasoning.
Sharing seems to work when he wants someone to share with him but not when he has to share with someone else :(
Trying to understand where he comes up with some of these bizarre little stories and wondering what it is he's telling people outside our home???
Explaining non-tangible things to a 3 year old.

Seasons

Perhaps it is too early to be writing about this beautiful change in season, but I'm holding to the hope that fall is on it's way down south. The change of weather caused me to think about how many other things are changing seasons in my life.


My season is changing....
in my body as it grows
in motherhood
in pregnancy
in work
with my husband
with some friends
with family members
with God in my faith


As all these seasons shift and change I have to remind myself to let go of the past, put away fears and embrace the new season in life that God has in store for my life. It's sometimes hard to move out of our comfort levels, especially if you have lived in one season for a while, but each new season brings new joy and new adventures to be embraced.

Hapy Birthday Mason!

Happy 3rd birthday my little goober!!!! It's early and you're already up and going playing with Tia and the dogs. Today is going to be such a busy day filled with a lot of excitement and fun. But before we being all the partying, I wanted to take a minute in the semi-quiet house to just think about you for a minute.

This is your last birthday in our house where you're the only little one! The thought of that brings tears to my eyes because while I know we will be greatly blessed by your little sister or brother, it also makes me a little sad that our time together as a family of just three won't last forever. We've had an amazing time together in our little family.

So as we go into this next year, I want you to know how incredibly amazing you make my life. Even in the midst of your tantrums and challenges, throwing fits, invoking your will or whatever else we face together, my world has been turned upside down since the day of your arrival and I can't ever imagine my life any other way. You grow me, challenge me, brighten my world and show me God in a new way every single day.

I am so proud of the little man you are becoming. So proud of your kind heart towards friends, even though sharing can be an issue at times. :) Proud of your understanding. Proud of your open heart toward God and your sweet spirit. Because I know in my heart those are the qualities that will grow you into an amazing man.

Today we're going to have a giant Cars party for you, at your insistent request. And if you get only cars toys this year it is because that is all you've told people for months! The theme is "Racing into 3" which is quite fitting for your little life as you race toward everything in life to enjoy it and grow in it. Today I want to thank God for you being in my life for it has shaped me and shown me purpose and passion. Thank you for being my sweet boy. I so look forward to everyday God grants us together. My prayer is I will have a long and healthy life to see you become His amazing man.

Happy 3rd birthday my little man!

Love,
Mommy

Stomach bugs and babies

So this weekend was not what we expected...rather than a getaway marriage retreat with some great friends, fun times, food and a gorgeous hotel, we were home with our little goober who came down with a stomach flu for the first time! Yuck!!!!

Then when we thought the worst was over, I got the dreaded bug and was so sick all day Sunday!!!!

I hate stomach issues. Give me a cold or sinus issue, but not a stomach bug. Besides the fact that I've spent the last 5-6 weeks nauseated every day and fixing being sick all the time, getting the flu was just so much worse.....yeah, I'm pregnant!!!!

We've been keeping it under wraps for a while, and avoiding questions and suspicious looks until we had our first doctor's visit. What an exciting day!!! We were surprised to learn our doctor was going to do an ultrasound on our first visit...which was super awesome. With little man I had one done at 20 weeks so I never got to see the baby really little. It was super cool to hear the heartbeat of our new little pea and get to see him or her :)

Definitely made this week much more fun than the drama of last week!

Today I worship

It's Sunday....I'm tired from a long week at work and a busy weekend filled with traveling, events, and parties. It's Sunday, the day of rest, right? A day when I could lay in bed, give in to my physical desire for sleep, sit around, enjoy my home, play with my boys for the morning, etc.

But in a few minutes, I'll log off the computer, get the boys ready, make breakfast and drive over 20 minutes to a big high school auditorium to gather with some of the most amazing people I've ever met and come together to worship.

And don't get me wrong, there are times in life when you do just need a day off from everything in life, even a day off from "church."

But why? Why get up and why go? Why not stay and just be home?

Today I worship because God enjoys my faithfulness.
Today I worship because He loved me first.
Today I worship because He brought me through yesterday and gave me today.
Today I worship because He is faithful.
Today I worship because He is worthy of it.
Today I worship because I am grateful.
Today I worship because He forgave me.
Today I worship because He saved me.
Today I worship because of His goodness toward me.
Today I worship because He is mighty in all.
Today I worship because He is holy.
Today I worship because my heart is so full from His humble way of saying "good morning" to me.

Today, my almost 3 year old snuck into bed with us....snuggled up for a while....and when he woke up he informed us he found God....without anything from either parent, he continues to tell us as he walks out of the room...."God in my heart."

Our home isn't perfect and our family far from ideal. We don't do everything as we should. Our church record isn't blemish free and fantastic. As parents, we've had our moments with God, and not always pretty ones.

But seeing God honor our obedience to be faithful, to serve, to give, to be gracious to others, to gather for worship and fellowship, not in our lives, but in the life of our child, that makes every sleepy Sunday worth waking up and going, makes every uncomfortable moment worth the effort, each day we wish we could do something for ourselves instead of God, it makes everything on this earth worth the work to hear your child speak freely of the most mighty God in all the universe.

I know he doesn't quite get it yet, I know his faith is based on what he sees and learns from around him. But I strive to have a simple faith like his again. And I know God is faithful, one day in his own time and in his own understanding, my sweet boy will get it. He'll know first hand the mighty work of God in his life, and the only thing in the world I desire for him is a heart that loves God.

So today I will get up, get ready, and go to worship my God. I will set an example in my home, even when it's not perfect, I will walk the walk and not just talk the talk.

Today I will tell God thank you. Thank you for loving myself, my husband, and my child with your everlasting love. I love you too, Lord.

HITCHED

I love HITCHED.

It's been an amazing blessing in our lives. So much so, that after the groups got too big and we were asked to start one at our house, I felt so incredibly scared. Seriously, how was I supposed to have a meeting in my house and make it something special for others the way it had been special in our lives.

But we stepped out of fear, put aside our past hurts and pain and said if you need us we're here. So now we've got 2 other couples at our house Wednesday night, 5 kids, one yappy dog and an amazing Rosie. It's small. I was a little nervous that people wouldn't be interested in a super small group. But as we sat around the table tonight, shared our lives, shed some tears, held hands and offered up prayers and thanksgiving, all I could think was "I love you too, Lord."

After what had been a difficult day, filled with fear, doubt, exhaustion, sickness, fights, work, bad news, stress, God just did His thing, like He always does.

When all I felt like doing at 5 p.m. was calling it quits, God stepped in, showed up and we had am amazing night.

As hard as it was to grow out of our old group, I LOVE our Hitched group. I really do love the people who we get to share our lives with.

I can't wait to write more Hitched posts, because I find I grow so much through the lives of others. So here's to walking out my faith, one day at a time, with some wonderful people.

Funness

Yeah, I know it's not really a word. But today was fun all day. Cartoons in bed for a lazy start... love that there were no obligations for the day :)

We made a quick trip to Wee-Cycle It for the fall 1/2 off sale :) Picked up four DVD's for Nena at a whopping $9. Dropped Tim off to mow the yard then MJD and I went to the mall for Chick-fil-a and play time with Alyson, Cayman and Charis. We had a quick stop into Old Navy and walked out with 2 tee shirts at a whopping $.51 :)

Loving the sales and the lack of spending on my behalf! Nena sent MJD some play cash in her last letter so he got to ride the carousel with Cayman and couple of times and get on the helicopter.

We dashed over to Macy's to pick up some things Nena had requested we bring her on our next visit, so we picked up her cosmetic items and scored a free gift of makeup goodies. Fun....

Nena said we could use her credit card on a couple things, which is always a well loved treat. It's been a while since we've graced the aisles of Macy's powered with her black card and coupons. So some of our great deals:

• Clarks brown sandals.....$39.99-----paid $7.09
• Pajama tank....................$9.99------paid $3.79
• Pajama bottoms..............$17.98-----paid $5.75
• Swim tankini...................$21.98-----paid $7.99
• Swim bottoms.................$19.98-----paid $7.99
• Carter's boy jammies......$20.00----paid $3.99
• Jacket for Tim.................$60.00----paid $16.99
  

Favorite purchase of the day..... Style & Co. handbag originally $68.00....what I paid ---$4.11

Love finding fantastic sales, love Nena for blessing us with a treat, and love having fun with my little guy :)

What a day!!!

Whew! What a day. I am pooped. So many cool things, emotions, events and memories!

MJD started his first day of preschool!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh my goodness! I cannot believe that my baby is already in preschool! I know it's a little early, he's not yet 3, but with speech therapy ending at 3 and him still struggling a bit with language, we thought it would be good for him to be in a school setting part time to communicate with peers and adults.

So many thoughts, so many emotions, so many memories. My God has been so amazing to me today. Definitely embarking on new frontiers with all these events :)

Super random

Do I wait, should I hesitate, should I just go and find out?

God's been doing some amazing things this week. Definitely showing me Himself in ways I need to see it.

Hmm....

New surprise around the corner, super excited about some family plans and what they are going to mean to some people in our lives. Can't wait to see faces and give hugs. Looking forward to all of us being together. Can't wait for the party!!!!

So thankful for a husband who never hesitated to make my heart beam and show his love for me.

INCREDIBLY thankful for a God who loves me first.

This probably makes NO sense to anyone but me, oh well. :)

Loved this!

Last night Tim was putting little man to bed and told him, "I love you with all my heart."

To which little man replied. "No daddy. God in my heart."

So sweet, so innocent. I love it :)

Things I want to remember

• MJD has learned Tim's name isn't just daddy. When I call across the house for him, I often hear a little echo calling, "Tim Daddy!"
• Be it speech therapy, constant conversations, or just growing up, MJD is talking so much more and making a wonderful effort to communicate with words.
• Pooping on the potty is becoming more consistent. We even had a successful delivery of the goods in a public restroom. Yuck, I know, but better than in the pants.
• MJD is becoming so good with directions. I missed our turn to go to therapy and he calls out from the back seat, "there mama!" to tell me to turn back.
  
• MJD LOVES his friends. He is constantly asking "my friend Cayman come my house?"
• MJD learned how to pray himself. Well he repeats the prayer, holds hands and is the one to say "Amen."
• Explaining the reality of God to a 2.75 year old is not an easy feat. So for now he's understood God lives in his heart, is everywhere and is good.
  
• MJD will officially start preschool next month :) Only 2 mornings a week, but we're excited about this new phase in his life. Also hoping that the communication skills, listening skills, and social skills will continue to go up with the structured setting and consistent practice.
  
• MJD loves trucks, cars, etc. His potty prize last time was a garbage truck from TS3. The child is starting to get too attached with garbage trucks :)
  
• Nena has become a guilt card for MJD. He decides he doesn't like something we do and says, "I want Nena, I go Nena house."
  
• Mr. Independent should be his nickname. He wants to try things on his own and he is constantly saying "I try."
  
• Sharing is still and issue, hope it gets better soon.
  
• Tantrums come and go, right now we're on an upswing from the bad. Seems like he is comprehending more and more and better able to reason through things.
  
• MJD had a wonderful play date with Jackson (a.k.a. my Jack friend) the other night. It is so nice to see the two boys playing so well together.
• When we tell MJD to stop crying or stop a fit or another consequence will occur, he wipes his face with his hands a few times and says, "all done crying"
  
• MJD tries so hard to help out at home sometimes. He LOVES to use the spray bottles and do his "Cleaningingng"
  

Baby Andrew

Last week during our Beth Moore video she talked about the difference between trials and tragedy. How so often we face minor inconveniences and annoyances and we call them trials or tragedies and grumble and complain about everything God is doing and how difficult things are, when the truth of the matter is all we are is annoyed at a situation.

She had a great week of lessons and a couple quotes really stuck out to me:
" Sometimes what we need to cure our fat egos is a strong dose of God." "If only we could realize that we make life so much more complicated when our approach to life is 'all about me.'"

Wow! How often do I make things about me and my minor annoyances when the truth is I am healthy, my family is healthy and while things aren't perfect in my life I am seriously blessed beyond measure.

This hits home so much more this week as I am praying for God's healing in the life of a little boy Andrew. Andrew was born a week ago to some friends of friends we know in Orlando. We met Brian and Wendy through another friend a few years ago. Their oldest son Timothy is about Mason's age, and they just welcomed baby Andrew into their family last week. When Wendy took Andrew for his 5 day appt. the doctor heard a heart murmur and sent her to the cardiologist. At the cardiologist office they rushed the baby to the children's hospital.

Now baby Andrew is on a respirator, ventilator, and being pumped with lots of medicines. Apparently his heart is barely functioning and the doctors don't yet know why. Wendy is walking through tragedy. As they wait and see if baby Andrew will be coming home with them or going home to the Lord, her faith is shaken, her body weak, and her family fearful. Yet, God is still in control, and she knows that.

Every time I think selfishly, I remind myself of Andrew and this trial in Wendy's life. I pray for their faith to sustain them, that God would heal Andrew, that Brian and Wendy would draw their strength from Him and they would see the glory of God all around them.

I cannot, as a mother, even begin to fathom the pain of leaving a hospital without your newborn in your arms, of not holding your child, of being in pain when you should be feeling joy. So if you read this post and you know the power of prayer, please join with me in praying Brian, Wendy, and baby Andrew through this trial so that it may result in healing and peace.

My moments this week

So I'm in. I love it. I need it. Beth Moore Bible Study has me hooked. Truthfully, I was very skeptical about the entire thing. I mean why are so many women in love with this lady and her work. Sounded too good to be true, and I didn't really want to jump on some kind of religious bandwagon. Been there, done that, been a fool.

This is different. It's not about the book, videos, etc. This time it's the real deal. It truly is a God thing. Beth Moore just happens to have walked the road and been through the bumps. And while I'll admit, I do love watching her in her outfits and listening to her like I'm her "girlfriend," the fact of the matter is she's just like me, broken and bruised and searching for a Healer. That's what I needed, to know someone else got it.

So after 6 weeks of sticking it out, facing myself in the mirror of my own life and not being happy with what I saw. Learning of my serious bondage to several things like pride, knowledge, achievements, etc. Dealing with sin, betrayals, resentment, trust issues, etc. This week took the cake.

Just when I think "it can't get any better" or "surely there can't be more tears, it can't get worse than that" God does it again.

So today's assignment was to isolate a moment that was shared with God this week. WOW, just one, impossible this time.

Day 1- Ashes instead of Honor- while there has never been an "emergency trauma" to my womanhood, there have been plenty of jabs and cuts along the way that seriously shaped and altered my heart in ways I never knew until I saw them for what they were. Never realized how painful different things became in my own life. Never realized I could be the same as Tamar, simply because I didn't allow myself to look past Satan's lies and see myself as the "handpicked daughter of the KING."

Day 2- To be a bride- "Our Bridegroom sometimes leads us to difficult places, but we can trust Him always to have purpose in our stay and never to forsake us." While I followed my wonderful earthly groom to this place, I never in a million years would have imagined the devastation that would occur in my life and in my spirit. I thought for a long time that it was a mistake, and perhaps it truly was in some ways, but knowing that even in this difficult place I can trust HIM to redeem it and have purpose in it has been a great comfort. Watching HIM change the understanding of what was my purpose in being here to HIS purpose in being here has refreshed my heart, given me peace and a hope for the future. This day changed so much of my paradigm on God as my groom, provider, and Lord.

Day 3- To be beautiful- Two quotes from the lesson that meant a lot- "I rarely meet a person who has come to trust God fully without painfully confronting the fact that she can't trust herself." I'm learning that now, and yes, it's painful, but knowing the One I can trust is helping. "I'd like to suggest that God sometimes allows us to be let down and disappointed in life so we will learn to set our hopes more fully in Him." OUCH! So true in my life.

Day 4- To be Fruitful- Some things that struck home for me today, all from her lesson:
" An unhappy woman usually needs a change of heart more than of circumstances."
"God-given dreams are the realm from which God can bring an even greater reality!"
" Our disappointment with God is often the result of our small thinking."

Of course God's timing is hilarious that this day and these things would be said to me following quite an interesting conversation with a close friend and coming up on a day when I would serve with little ones in church. I'm sure it made Him smile ;)

Day 5- To live happily ever after- Had to stop after this and ponder- "God surpasses our dreams when we reach past our personal plans and agendas to grab the hand of Christ and walk the path he chose for us." Are my dreams really His dreams? Am I walking the path He chose, or the one I did?


Through it all, God is showing me how he's turning my ashes in His beautiful creation. Truth be told, it's helping me better understand the ashes, and willing to let go of them.

Hmmm.....

Today......

I totally slept through my husband's good morning I'm leaving for work kiss....
Woke up to cereal and a smiley 2 year old in my bed.....
Left syrup on my ottoman because we ran out of the house.....
Had lunch with a very lovely lady and some sweet little kids.......
Got hurt by something petty, which I knew was going to hurt from the beginning.....
Made some yummy dinner......
Played with way too much Play Doh!!!!!!!
Went to a meeting with some amazing people who truly inspire me to be better than I am.....
Committed to a place of leadership which is requiring a lot of faith from me......
I stepped outside of my comfort zone......
Stood up to insecurity and told it to go away.......
Re-prioritized who is truly important in my life.....
Have dealt with a terrible headache and neck pain....
Had a wonderful conversation with my sister......
Laughed with my husband......
Made some serious decisions about my upcoming future.....
Taught my child how to make brownies.... and eat them..........
Took the puppy to the groomer and listened to my little one cry for his puppy.....

Tonight I put my little boy to sleep and listened to him talk about how God makes the thunderstorms stop and how He makes the "baby" rain come in the afternoon. Tonight my world shifted as I watched his "childlike faith" in action. Tonight I am putting away my fears, insecurities, and myself and just going to let God do His thing through us.

This journey isn't easy, but it's worth it. He really is showing His faithfulness to me, one day at a time. Today He did, and I know tomorrow He will too.

Mama vs. Mommy

Things have been busy the last week or two. So much going on and so little time to blog about things. Rather than blog about everything, I think I'll just do one.

Some where along the lines of the last 10 days I went from being "mama" to my little guy to "mommy." I'm not sure there's any real difference to him, but to me hearing "mommy" come out of his little mouth makes him sound like such a big boy.

Silly, I know, but somehow it's changed things. Not sure if it changed me, him, the way I see him, or the way he sees me. All I know is that he's growing up super quick. I'm not the kind of mom who wants him to be a baby forever. I enjoy the transitions and the changes. I love watching him grow out of one stage and step into another, and I look forward to all the stages yet to come.

With that said, some days it feels like time just slips away. Moments of tenderness pass too quickly. I don't want to freeze frame his life, just want to make some special moments last a little longer.

So for now, I'm enjoying the moments when I'm still just "mama" and he sounds like a little boy, and I'm learning what "mommy" sounds like when he's being all independent.

Making a mess... I mean dinner

This has not been my week in the kitchen. Between the pudding and strombolli, I was happy to eat out tonight. We'll give it another go tomorrow night :) At least the company was fun and the memories funnier!

16 things

I love......

Dinner with friends and 1/2 off pizza.
The summer rain that cools things off.
Starbucks with girls at night.
A husband who lets me enjoy fun times with friends.
Having people for dinner and watching my home be "used" by little ones.
MJD telling me "pitty mama"
Matchbox cars and Lightning McQueen.
Random hugs and kisses.
Taking a "nap" in the afternoon with my son.
Making cool new projects that the kiddos use.
The new Spicy Chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-a.
New friends and making strombolli for dinner together.
Blogging and taking fun photos.
Checking things off my to-do list.
Saving $$$$ with coupons.
Beth Moore studies.
God changing my want to's.

I hate.....
The outrageous price of drinks in restaurants.
Afternoon thunderstorms where the thunder wakes my baby from nap time.
2 year old tantrums.
Timeouts and spankings.
Drama.
Poop in underware :(
Mean people.
Selfishness.
100% humidity.
Starbucks drinks at night, bad idea.
Busy days without Bible time.
Satan.
Young mommies dying.

My husband's shoes lying around the room.

That ice cream makes you gain weight.
Being a working mom outside the home.

A new respect for pudding

Pride comes before a fall. Proverbs 16:18

Okay, this is funny. So get ready to smile at me as I take you through this pudding journey.....

Ready?!

Tomorrow morning a couple girlfriends and their kids are supposed to come over to decorate some holiday shirts and make cow shirts for CFA Cow Appreciation Day. Me wanting to be a great hostess, and perhaps part of the pride I'm supposed to be breaking free of (thank you very much Beth Moore, it's not easy!) wanted to have a nice lunch and snack prepared. Add to that all the budget ideas we've been implementing in our home, I decided to make pudding and use these adorable little tupperware containers Nena gave for Mason's snacks. Why pay $3 for pudding cups when I can do it at home for $.49!

So Mason is assisting me pour pudding, and since he'd just gone to timeout for disobedience, he is behaving quite well. All the pudding is made and scooped up into the tiny little containers, with their tops on waiting to go to the fridge for tomorrow. Perfect huh?! (At this point, I am feeling quite accomplished for having made pudding with a 2 year old, hence the reason a camera was close by.)




In a moment of weakness, stupidity, sheer love for my little man, who knows, I decided to give him some pudding in one of the little cups. Before I could get a spoon, he is licking it out. Okay, no big deal, there's only a little bit what could happen!? I turn around to put the milk back in the fridge and I see some pudding ready to drip off of little man's container. Wanting to keep it clean, I go to wipe it off. His hand moves, mine moves and then next thing I know the container drops on the floor.OHHHHHH! Breathe, it's just pudding, it was an accident. Okay, get this cleaned up. I tell LMM to lick the pudding off his knee....Memo to me, this results in pudding on the clean shirt :( I get the shirt off of him and about to soak into some Nature Bright so I tell him to eat the pudding out of the leftover mixer bowl.......


I just about have the floor cleaned up when all of a sudden more little containers fall to the ground and splatter open all over the almost clean floor......somehow when Mason moved the mixer bowl it knocked over the little ones.......

All I can think at this point, is please Lord, let there be enough containers so each kid can still have one tomorrow! Sure enough, there are just enough.

Sometimes life just happens and you have to go with it, sometimes you make your own mess, sometimes you just have to enjoy the pudding and remember that we put a smile on God's face. He'll certainly use anything to teach us something..... Now if you'll excuse me, I have a kitchen floor to mop....

Dear Mason

Dear Mason,

I love you, but I'm not sure how I'm going to survive the toddler/preschool years. Somewhere along the way, I must have lost a battle with you somewhere. The last few days you've been testing the limits and pushing boundaries and it's driving me crazy.

It seems like we do really well for several months, you behave well, listen, obey, are sweet, and then all of a sudden you revolt on me. Today I put my foot down and it was seriously rough. The morning was fine, I suppose, only 2 time outs and 2 spankings. But man oh man, I don't know what happened to you after shower time.

For months you have been doing a great job cleaning up your bath toys and putting them back in your bucket, then this morning you refused. We battled and battled and I insisted you clean up, but you refused, so finally I told you if you didn't clean up I would throw them away. STILL you pushed me, so after refusing and a reasonable amount of time I went in and threw them in the trash can.

Ugh, do you know how much it hurt to do that! I know how much you love your bath train. You started crying and saying you'd clean up. I got soft and gave you a moment to try and redeem yourself. But still you wouldn't pick it out of the trash and put it in the bucket.

Oh, the tears and crying. For the record, I felt like crying right along with you. As you laid down, naked by the way because you were so angry I couldn't put your clothes on, on the floor of your room and I tried to get you to calm down, I want you to know I was praying for you. Praying I did the right thing, praying you'll learn the importance of obedience, praying God would grant you more grace. You're my first little love so please be patient with me. I know I've made mistakes and am still learning the parenting thing, so I know God will fill in blanks where I fail.

You're so strong, so stubborn at times, so wanting to do it your own way. All good things at times, but in my heart I know that I must train you to do those things in God's boundaries. God has something great for your life little man, I know that in the marrow of my bones. Something greater than I could ever dream for you. I don't know what it is, but I know I don't want to get in His way, I just want to do His will for you. I love you so much little man.

One of these days you'll get it. I know God will get us there, hopefully we'll both make it in one piece :)

Love,

Mama

Summer Fun

Whew! This week has flown by and we've been soooo busy. Not a bad busy, more like a "I want to do as much as I can and have as much fun as possible this summer" kind of fun.

Feels like the vacation time is flying by which makes me sad because I know work time will be coming up around the corner :(

But until then, I'm going to use this quiet moment while little man sleeps (yes, he's wore out today) to savor some of the fun things we've been doing

• Lots of coloring and craft time, both alone and together with one another. MJD is now even going to his desk alone and playing all by himself.
  
• Speech lessons twice a week to cram in some more practice and therapy before he turns 3 and we lose services.
  
• Tuesday play dates at the mall
  
• Birthday parties
• Free movies at the mall on Wednesdays
• Shopping trips for groceries and fun crafty things
• Lots of pictures
• Play dates at the gymnastics studio
• Bible study at church, which is super awesome because I don't usually get to participate in these, and I'm LOVING it!
• A little extra t.v. time in the morning while I try to sneak in some more sleep
• Swimming, lots and lots of swimming
• Lunch dates with friends
• Sewing with some girls in the evening
• Blogging about crafts and Mason
  

Oh, summer break is wonderful! If only it wasn't so hot outside, but I'll take what I get, just grateful for it all. So off to rest while the little man sleeps. There is so much I should do, but I think I'll let my head hit the pillow for a bit, this morning wore me out too :)

One great daddy

We had a lot of fun getting ready for Father's Day, especially the cake part! I truly have a wonderful man to raise my little boy.

Vacation

So much fun! So much to write about.... So, to keep it short, just some highlights in pictures!

The little man's suitcase.... adorable, but not as easy to travel with as one would think.

Beautiful weather and scenery, so relaxing.

Potty Trained little 2 year old!

Lots and lots of walking the white dogs with Nena.

The creepy "man" that was dubbed the "pee pee man" and convinced Mason to pee on the potty.

Wonderfully delicious plantains that my mommy cooked for me everyday :)

Swimming in the big pool like a big boy!

Playing with cousin..... a.k.a. "my friend"

The awesome blue choo-choo that Mason loved in the mall.

Eating yummy watermelon when we went to the market for fruits and veggies.

Lots of play time with Nena.

Mason not wanting to leave the marina and the boats. Gotta love a 2 year old's will.


Our little family :)