deeedra

Clarification

2011-03-29T10:21:00.000-07:00

Let me clarify, Dan's prospective 40% decrease in pay is through a private company, but due to Walkers bill. This is due to the decrease in power that unions will have and their affect on private companies. While it is great for business owners, it is awful for Dan, an employee of a small private company. So, our turmoil is because of this bill. We support it, but it is going to dramatically hurt us financially. Who do you know that can afford a 40% pay cut?

Come on! So yeah, I think state employees are whining way too much as their cuts are going to be FAR less than ours! It seems to be affecting non-union workers a whole lot more than union workers. I'm sure a lot of you state employees big to differ. But let me ask you this, could you afford a 40% decrease and NO health insurance? Because that's exactly where we will be around September.

Kissing that house goodbye

2011-03-29T05:06:00.000-07:00

For so long Dan and I have supported Walkers budget bill. We have stood on soapboxes stating our support of the end of unions. All of my morals, values, views, and convictions lead me to agree that unions need to take a backseat.

All along I have stated that Dan would take a hit in pay. What we just learned yesterday, is that all of this state employees are a bunch of whiners. While they will take a whole 5% cut, Dan is going to take more than a 40% cut! Yes... I typed that right MORE THAN 40%! Prevailing wage, as we currently understand it before doing thurough research, will be gone. Dan will be making LESS than 30,000 a year before taxes. That's a whole lot less than his previous job. Sure, better than where we were a few months ago when he was unemployed. But give me a break! All of you whining state employees can just shut your traps. Your hits are minuscule compared to what we are about to face. So, we're kissing that house goodbye for now.

Dan's job will no longer be one that we will rely on. My business is going to need to go full force. Which we are fine with. But this is the last thing we expected!

My selfish instincts want to lash out at Walker. But my morals, values and beliefs tell me to rely on God. Easier said than done when your family is going to suffer. To top it all off, we will be without insurance for our family for a good length of time. Gods provision over our health is going to be more important than ever before.

Those of you in support of this bill, I hope you are willing to put your money where your mouth is when Dan and I struggle to feed our children. My anger says in sarcasm, "YAY, Walker!" My faith in God says, "Thank you for always providing."

Today is a battle!

House and other news

2011-03-21T15:23:00.000-07:00

Per your request, Emily, here is the outside of the house. It's too plain for us. Which is why we plan to add a porch or SOME kind of detail.

Lovely, none the less.

Remember how I mentioned Dan is going to start expanding the business? Well, the news is no longer a secret. We are now going to be offering photo booth rentals! YAY!

They will be the real ones where you get inside and strips of photos are printed after you are done. Not the back drop and light set up with a photographer taking pictures (lame). This is so much cooler! It won't look like this one, but you get the idea. They will now be available for any of our brides starting June 1 of this year! We're excited.

I messed up my back the other day and now I can't work out. Stupid. But, I should be back at it tomorrow night. I have 80 miles to bike, 14 miles to run and 1 stupid lap to swim by the end of the month. Very doable.

House plans

2011-03-14T08:05:00.000-07:00

It's so exciting to see where things are going lately. Dan and another friend of ours who is in the wedding business are looking into branching off our businesses to start another. I'm not giving info on that out until they have it going, but its so awesome to see them branch things off. Multiple streams of income... that's what Dan always says he wants. He doesn't want to rely on one income so that if one ends, we still have more to live off of. Ultimately, we want to use the businesses we have to bless those around us. The goal, for those we know who need jobs, to be able to have GOOD jobs through us!

Aside from the business Dan is going to start with our friends, he also wants to start a few more. I'm not sure how it will all play out yet or when he will start them, but I love that he is. One of his goals is to have a few different businesses besides the photography business so that he doesn't have to work for someone else. I love that about him. I LOVE the risk, the excitement, the achievement of being a business owner and being married to an entrepreneur.

In other news... we found the plans for the house we want to star building by the end of the year. We are blessed to be surrounded by so many people with the talent/experience of building different parts of a house. We have a friend who used to be a roofer and still has all the tools. He has a friend who is a plumber and other friends who can stick build for side jobs. Dan works with a master electrician who can give him the clearance for the electrical once Dan wires it (that's part of what he does for a job). We have a few friends who have connections for materials to be bought at cost! And so many other great things!

So, here's the plans for the house we want to build... nothing too crazy, but with all the things we need/want for our family.

The den will be the business office for general work and for meeting clients. The living room will be just that, but also a place for clients to comfortably wait. I love that there is a bathroom right off the office so that clients do not have to walk through our living space. And the laundry off the garage... perfect for 3 boys who walk in muddy. Of course, you have to love the shower right there they can get their muddy selves cleaned up without messing up the house. Perfection. We would prefer the fireplace to be moved to the left side of the room. That's not a lot of change! :)

This is awesome. We love that there are three bathrooms upstairs. The little boys will have bedroom 2 and share a bathroom while Alanna and Caden will have their own rooms in bedrooms 3&4 and share a bathroom.

It's perfect for our family of 6 and a flourishing business! We're just working out the financial details now in hopes to start building between fall and next spring. We'll see what God has in store! But how blessed we are that we are in this position and not where we were a few months ago! That's how good God is!

Facebook

2011-03-01T18:56:00.000-08:00

I'm going to delete my facebook account. gasp! Yes... really. I'm so tired of wasting away my life on the computer. I spend enough time in front of this screen for my business. It's amazing how much it can consume your life. Whatever happened to the day of picking up a phone? And no, I don't mean for texting. Geez do I hate texting. So freeing.

messy

2011-02-17T19:49:00.000-08:00

Do you ever stop and look around at your life and realize how messy it is?

For 9 months we had a huge storm soaring through our family as Dan was out of work. The storm ended and a rainbow emerged about a month ago when Dan got a new job. But after a storm, there is often a mess to clean up. Our family is definitely in need of a clean up. We're broken. We're hurt. We're overwhelmed. The consequences of being jobless for so long are immeasurable.

You might be wondering what I mean by that. Well, lets get brutally honest. What happens in a marriage when finances are under stress? The marriage is under stress. Couples are at each others throats, they blame each other, they are worn out, burdened, scared, and angry. Things are said that never have been said. Regrets. No matter how hard you try or how hard you try to hang on to God, you have your moments. The kids see it. Even when you don't fight in front of them, they feel it. They know things are not well in their family. They know mom and dad are overwhelmed.

It's reality!

When Dan started back at work, I seemed to have turned around and found myself blindsided. It took me awhile to realize how much damage we had done. How angry Caden has become. How rude Alanna is acting towards her brothers. How clingy and scared Abram is. How distant Eli is. It hurts. It hurts when you realize your life is not as it should be or hoped it would be.

Now, I'm left to pick up the pieces, pull this family back together and move forward in the direction God has called us to go. The question is, can I handle this? Can I take charge and move this family forward? Dan is working. He is stressed. He feels disconnected. He is tired. I don't know if he has the energy and strength to help pick up the pieces. While we are MORE than grateful for a job, it is a difficult transition. One that we craved, but do not feel prepared for.

God help me!

Help me bring love, peace, security, patients, kindness, hope, and YOU back into this family 100%. HELP!

I don't know what to do

2010-07-24T06:48:00.000-07:00

Since Dan lost his job, things have been fine. The business was doing well enough to pay everything except a few bills. Knowing that it could be worse, we were emotionally ok with that. Now things are rough. No more severance., the business is slow, and bills are unpaid.

So why am I publicly saying all of this? Because I have learned a few things in the process. So few people in the world have cared much about our situation. All we hear from people is, "why don't you apply here or there?" or "I hope Deidre is looking for a job too." ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? We have four children... do people really think we are not trying to take care of them and make a better life for them? Do people really think we are that irresponsible? We are doing everything we can and nothing is panning out. Sometimes life just gets the best of you. Neither of us thought it would be this hard or that we would still be looking for jobs 2 months in. It's scary when you can't pay all of the bills and your son can't go back to private school. It's been a huge change for all of us.

I have been learning how selfish this world is. We have so many people in our lives and very little offer for help. Granted, we struggle to ask for help. I guess we are shell shocked because of all the help we had to ask for in the past. We have also had people make it perfectly clear in a round about way, that they can't or won't help us. That hurts. People around us complain about what they can't do or buy because they don't have ENOUGH money. When we tell people where we are, we get the questions. It's a whole new world for us. So, I have been learning how ungiving and selfish people are but even more than that, how selfish I AM!!!!

Now lets talk about how I have learned how selfish I am. Doesn't this whole post until now sound like a woe of is me, selfish post? That's because it is. When times are tough, what do we do? We freak out, wine and act like little children who don't get their way instead of relying on God. Dan and I are learning how to spend time with God on a daily basis... not for ourselves, but for HIM. We are learning that even when people around us are selfish or inconsiderate, we still need to be selfless and considerate. We are learning that even when people fail us, God doesn't. We are learning that we are not alone.

I think we are in this situation to learn a bit about what God has called us to do. We are learning what it means to loose a lot and have little. We now know that when things get better, we are not to sit back, pat people on the back, and say we hope things get better. Instead, we are to take charge and do something for them. Our hearts desire is to help and use that as a ministry for God. As rough as things are right now, we can't just give up or get mad at others.

So, the beginning of this post is an example of the thoughts I am fighting. It's hard not to let your mind go there, but I am fighting it. People are not who I am to rely on. God is who I am to rely on.

Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

Psalm 103:1

OAMC = dead tired

2010-06-24T18:24:00.000-07:00

Today I embarked on my first OAMC cooking day (once a month cooking). I was introduced to OAMC at one of our MOPS meetings this last year and decided... why not try it? So, I did. It took a lot of work... but I'm so excited to see my freezer stocked with so much food!!!

It wasn't just a one day process, really. I planned my meals one day. Grocery shopped on Tuesday. Finished grocery shopping on Wednesday morning. Prepped on Wednesday afternoon and cooked ALL DAY today.

I planned lunches, but didn't do much at all for cooking them. I figure that will be my one time of day to actually put something together.

Here is my menu:

June 27th - July 3rd

Sunday: savory breakfast muffins and smoothies / Sloppy joes
Monday: Frozen fruit cups / Dinner at Eric and Ana's
Tuesday: Cereal and fruit/ Turkey enchiladas
Wednesday Breakfast burrito / Meatball stroganoff
Thursday: French toast sticks / Dinner with Karen
Friday: Cereal / Mexican Pizza
Saturday: Yogurt Parfaits / Grilled Lime - pepper chicken

July 4th - 10th
Sunday: Play group Granola bars & Smoothies / burgers
Monday: cereal / Chicken divan
Tuesday: Fruity breakfast burritos / black bean quesadillas
Wednesday egg mcmuffins / grilled chineese honey ginger chicken
Thursday: Cereal / meatloaf cups (meatloaf made in muffin tins - cooks faster!)
Friday: savory breakfast muffins / Smoothies
Saturday: granola bars / chicken bacon, ranch pizza (subject to change... Caden's b-day)

July 11th - 17th
Sunday: french toast sticks / tacos
Monday: frozen fruit cups / grilled teriyaki chicken
Tuesday: cereal / spaghetti
Wednesday: Breakfast burritos / chicken a la king
Thursday: pancakes / sloppy joes
Friday: cereal / going to my brothers
Saturday : Dereks house

July 18th - 24th
Sunday: Dereks house
Monday: Fruity breakfast burritos / stroganoff
Tuesday: egg mcmuffins / lime pepper chicken salad
Wednesday: cereal / turkey enchiladas
Thursday: muffins and smoothies / burgers
Friday: playgroup granola bars and fruit / calzones
Saturday: cereal / chinese honey-ginger chicken

July 25th - 31st
Sunday: yogurt parfaits / chicken pasta salad
Monday: frozen fruit cups / black bean quesadillas
Tuesday: cereal / meatloaf
Wednesday: breakfast burritos / grilled teriyaki chicken
Thursday: cereal / tacos
Friday: french toast sticks / pizza
Saturday: playgroup granola bars / oj glazed chicken

Notice the repeat in meals towards the end of the month? that's what makes OAMC so genius! You make double or triple recipes and then split them up through out the month. you could even make a bigger rotation by cooking a few more meals through out the month to break it up a bit.

What makes it so easy is that you brown all of your ground meat at the same time. Then split it up. I split mine up for 3 ibs. tacos and 2 ibs. sloppy joes. 1 ibs. taco meat was for the mexican pizza and the other two ibs. were packaged in two freezer bags for two taco meals. the 2 ibs. of sloppy joes were packaged in two freezer bags for two sloppy joe meals.

I marinated 12 chicken breasts in lime - pepper chicken mix that I made, grilled them all a bit later and packed them in two freezer bags... two meals! I did the same with the teriyaki chicken, oj glazed chicken (those were whole chickens that I cut up before marinating - too time consuming.. next time just pieces or breasts), and the honey ginger chicken. Some of those might go on salads or pasta salads.

With the chicken divan and chicken a la king, I cooked all the chicken at once and cut it up and split it up for the recipes. It saves so much time by bulk cooking.... making it more time effective than cooking each night.

I made a huge recipe of the meatloaf, divided it between my bread pan and muffin tins and made some into meatballs for stroganoff and spaghetti. all at once!

Does that make sense? You just combine your recipes to break up the steps and save you time AND money because youre buying in bulk.

I'll post a link for all the recipes another time. Right now, I am sooooo tired. Off to watch a movie and sleep before the wedding I have to shoot tomorrow!

When is our anniversary? OOPS!

2010-03-09T08:52:00.001-08:00

You know you have a busy life when you forget your own anniversary. Yes, Dan and I went through the whole day without even realizing it. For some reason, I thought today was the 8th and yesterday was the 7th. oops. So, we down right missed our 7th anniversary. :) We think it's pretty funny, actually.

Anyway, a bit of reflection... 7 years ! Seriously? Where did the time go? And yet, at the same time, it feels like forever ago. We've been through so much! The loss of a child - 4 healthy, wonderful children - 9 moves - watched Dan's mom go through cancer twice - job losses - legal battles (long stories!) - LOTS of laughs - LOTS of sarcasm - LOTS of tears - and so much love it can be gross sometimes ;). I love that man to death!

Dan is really the craziest man ever! His humor, his sarcasm,etc. He's fun and he keeps me on my toes. I have had to become witty out of necessity, just to keep up with that old man (he is 6 years older... I can say that:).

He's such an amazing father and so in love with his children! I couldn't be more thankful to have such a caring man to father these little people.

They follow his every move and adore him! How could they not? He's truly a blessing in my life.

Most of all, I'm thankful to be loved by a man with such passion and drive. A man who seeks after Gods heart and guides this family where we should go. I'm thankful for all you are and all you do for us! Thank you for loving me another year! I love you, Daniel!

a new blog

2010-01-25T13:12:00.000-08:00

I'm trying something different... a craft blog. You can read about it here: www.wecraftdaily.blogspot.com

God listens

2010-01-03T16:41:00.000-08:00

First a little message to Emily. :) You would enjoy the frequent posts my dear blog stalker ;)

Today Eli and I took Dan's work truck to church to attend Pastor Lisa's last service before she starts her church plant. I was very glad I went! While we were there, a friend of ours told me she had an extra washing machine in her basement that is basically new, and that she wanted to give it to us! amazing! They brought it over while another friend from church was here helping Dan fix the van. Turns out a hose just popped off and it wasn't a big deal. They had it done in no time at all. Such a blessing.

God answers the smallest prayers and provides for ALL of our needs... not just some. It's as though God provided for little problems to remind us that he will also be providing for the bigger problem, Dan's job. I know that is coming soon and for that I am excited and grateful!

On a side note, here is a funny story. YEsterday in the car Alanna kept singing, do do do DORA, do do do Dora. OVER and OVER again! Dan and I just looked at each other and shook our heads. Caden was fed up and finally said, "ALANNA, SHUT UP!!!" Alanna stopped, smiled and said, "Caden. Guess what." To which Caden replied, "What?" Alanna proceeded to say "do do do DORA. do do do DORA!" I love how they make me laugh all the time. So funny.

UPDATE: 2010.... you're NOT my friend!

2010-01-02T18:57:00.000-08:00

To add to the mess, tonight I got in the van to head to the store with Eli. When I backed up, the steering wheel wouldn't turn. So, I called my dad and when he answered, I laughed and said, "When it rains, it fricken pours!" I mean, what else can you do at this point but laugh? Turns out the hose or the pump is bad. Lets just hope it's the hose so we don't have to dish out as much money! So, with my head held high, I'm just going to deal.

2010... you're not my friend!

2010-01-01T11:04:00.000-08:00

We're only one day into the new year and I have been baffled by the amount of bad news already. Late yesterday afternoon Dan got a call from the office manager at work. She was letting him know that he would be turning in his work truck monday night. So, I will need to pick him up from work on Monday and he will be using our van to go to work every day. He will now be paying his own gas to and from Appleton every day. That should run us about 400-600 dollars in gas very month. That puts us in the red for bills every month and me without a car during the week. I'm so sad by that. It's a realization of how elderly people must feel. I have to figure out a way for Caden to get home from school every day or if he will even be staying there. With that huge dent in our bills, we can't afford it. He just might be homeschooled. We'll see. I also won't be able to go to MOPS anymore. THose of you who know what that is, you can imagine my disappointment.

Yesterday, after I came home from a friends house I was planning to wash the cloth diapers. I went down stairs only to find that the washer is broke. Nice. A big cut in the bills and no money to buy or fix it. yay.

Then, just a few minutes ago I got a call from my mom about my grandmother. She is in the hospital now and will be going to a nursing home if they can find an opening because they suspect she is in the beginning stages of dementia. My grandma and I have always been close and since we've moved, I haven't seen her very much. It's a hard thing.

So, it's been a rough start and a hard day, but here's the thing. I got a slap in the face today when I read about a couple who is pregnant with their 4th child. Their baby will not survive for more than a couple of hours after delivery (via c-section) because the child has no kidneys. Seriously, my kids are healthy, and safe. Even with the huge dent in the bills, they still will have food and shelter. God is good right? In these hard times as I start complaining about everything around me, I have to take a step back and look where God has brought us. We have been given so much and we still complain. We will be ok and I'm going to have to continue to remind myself of that. They really are not big issues. They're little in the big scheme of things. So, instead of being all teary eyed and frustrated, I'm going to put on a smile and enjoy the rest of my day praising God for all he is and what he does. God is good.

Life without Dan...

2009-12-16T21:23:00.000-08:00

Dan left for Pennsylvania very early on Tuesday morning and will be back late Saturday night. He is doing some work out there for the company he works for.

Dan had to leave for the airport at 4:30. So, you can imagine my horror when I woke up at 2:30 feeling like I was getting the flu. I was in tears because he was going to be leaving while I was feeling so horrible. The day wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, however. I called a friend and she went to the store to get some "sick food" for me. I managed to get Caden ready and on the bus. The other three and I just got through. needless to say, it was a TV day. Another friend (Caden's classmates parents) brought him home for me. Caden helped a LOT the rest of the day. What a trooper! He is such a caring child! I took a nap when Abram did and woke up feeling MUCH better. I'm guessing it was just something I ate because it was so short lived and I didn't have a fever or anything of the sort.

Today I was tired, but I felt better. Tomorrow will be a new day! The kids definitely miss Dan, but they are doing really well. I'm sure by Saturday, we will all have had enough. :)

In other news, Caden did AWESOME in Bible quiz this year! He got over 85% of his questions right in all of the three meets! The kid blew me away. On the way home from his last meet, he listened to the CD to learn all of the questions for next year! HAHA So competitive! The best part about it, are the questions he is learning. I didn't know a fraction of the questions he was learning. Needless to say, I learned a lot as well.

Some of you may remember that Alanna cut her hair this summer. I was praying it would grow fast and be decent by Christmas. my to my horror, it is still really short. :) Silly child. She is fun though. Always cracking jokes and such a free spirit. Just like her daddy.

Abram is talking up a storm. He calls Caden "dinner." And constantly tries to say new words. He's a funny boy. Always smiling and so happy. His favorite game is beating Caden and Daddy with a semi soft bat he has. It's hysterical! But, trying to teach him that he can't do that to Alanna, is not so funny! Double standards are just NOT okay for a 1 year old!

Eli is sooooo big! He is smiling so much and rolling from his back to his side already. He started smiling the day he turned 4 weeks old and rolling a week ago. It goes far to fast!

here's a fun pic of Caden (and the rest of his kindergarten class) at school (I'll post more pics of the other kids soon... maybe:):

Felt Food

2009-12-02T15:34:00.000-08:00

Last Christmas I attempted to make felt food for Alanna, but I just ran out of time. So, I'm attempting it again this year. Right now I'm in the process of finishing up chocolate chip cookies. I thought I would share a bunch of free patterns/tutorials I found for any of you interested.

Banana and Banana Peel
Animal Cookies (love this one)
Apple
Brown Lunch Bag and Lunch
Cupcake
Mushroom
Pizza
A huge assortment of felt food instructions
Ice Cream sandwich
Strawberry Cake Roll
Cake Slice

These are really easy to make. You don't have to be super crafty to make felt food. Your kids will adore it too!

Kool aid dyed wool yarn

2009-11-04T13:36:00.000-08:00

Today the kids and i dyed some yarn for the wool longies I've started selling on etsy. We had so much fun and it was a good learning experience.

The first skein we dyed didn't come out as I had hoped, but it's fine none the less. I learned a lot of little things about what not to do! Like, you really don't need a ton of dye... just smoosh it around with your fingers. On that note, I also learned, use GLOVES. My fingers are so nasty right now! :) haha.

The second skein came out a lot better. I'm excited to knit it up.

We dyed the yarn with kool aid, which happened to be on sale for 15 cents a piece! I bought about 18 packs. :) here is the tutorial I used

Anyway, here are a few pics of our finished yarn:

This was our first attempt (pinks, purples and greens - but kind of muddy looking)

Our second skein (blues, reds, and yellows - not muddy at all... really pretty)

The little ones

2009-11-03T19:26:00.000-08:00

Life is changing so much lately - in a good way. I never thought I would be a mom to four little ones, but I love every moment of it! It's hectic and stressful often, but so wonderful every day. I couldn't imagine our life with one of them not in it. They each bring a different dynamic to our family. I love my family!!!

Caden has been blowing me away lately. He isn't even five and a half yet and he an intelligence that I never would have expected from him. I always knew he was a smart kid, but seriously, he surprises me every day. Whenever we are in the car, he looks for letters and tries to sound out words. It's awesome. Caden is still plugging away at his bible quizzing. He has two more meets. One this weekend and one in December. He memorizes the questions so quickly and remembers them so well. The memory this kid has blows me away and also scares me. If he can remember a question and answer so well, what bad things from his childhood will he always remember? I'm seriously shipping this kid to Diane Frisch right before he turns 18 (she does a Christian counseling/healing ministry). He's helpful and so thoughtful. Caden is also a big rule follower. If he isn't supposed to do something, he remembers it and takes it seriously (he has his moments of course). He's an awesome kid.

Alanna is growing so much. She is so opposite of Caden. She's the first one to break a rule. :) But she's also the most creative. She loves to sit and color for hours and takes it very seriously. Abram is not allowed anywhere near her when she is coloring! She definitely has a mind of her own - a free spirit. She flies by the seat of her pants and is a little singer. The girl loves music. She gets so excited when Caden comes home from school every day. She adores telling him about all the things she did while he was gone for 3 hours. She's a joy... our silly little, smiling girl. Alanna loves jokes and things potty humor is the best thing on the planet! :)

Abram is growing so fast. He is the little prankster and clown in the family. He loves to make people laugh! Even though he is little, he knows how to push Alanna's buttons. He often grabs her around her waist as if to hug her, hangs on tight, and lifts his feet so that Alanna falls down on her face and he is on top of her. She screams while he laughs hysterically. Abram is growing too fast. He was the baby and now he is coming so close to being a two year old. He's adorable and everyone loves him. A little chick magnet.

Eli is really growing right now. He isn't nearly as little (not that he was super little to begin with!). On Friday he was one month old. That was a very special day for us because he also smiled for the first time. The best thing about it, Dan was home and didn't miss it! I'm curious to see what he is going to be like.

In other news, Dan might be losing his job in the next couple of weeks. His boss wants to send him to Pennsylvania for 2 months!!! Yes... 2 MONTHS!!! Over the holidays and all. Dan is going to tell him no... but that means, we will probably be without that job. We're praying and trusting God for something else fast. Neither of us are really stressed about it because we've been in this situation before. The truth is, it would be a relief in so many ways... like no more driving to Appleton every day!! If this job ends, we know God has something better... he always does. Just keep it in your prayers though... that Dan gets a new job very soon!

I am going to go back to school for the spring semester and continue with church ministries. I figure, if I'm going to shell out so much money for my college loans, I might as well have the five cent piece of paper to show for it! :) I've gotten so far and I really want to finish. I should be done in about 2 years. What a day that will be.

I'm also selling wool longies on etsy. You can find them here: www.deeedra.etsy.com It's my new found love... knitting. It's so awesome to take a skein of yarn and turn it into pants! I love it.

My new business blog will also be up and running... hopefully this week. I'm just waiting for the designer to get it all set up. So excited about it... then I'm going to start pushing for some christmas sessions as well.

Anyway.... a long update :) And here are some pics from the pumpkin patch last month:

Caden rockin out on the air guitar

Pretty Alanna!

Such a happy boy!

Adjusting

2009-10-16T20:32:00.000-07:00

During the last few days I've become kind of sad about the fact that I am no longer pregnant. It's weird that just 2 weeks ago I was pregnant and wanting it over, but now I'm sad? I think it saddens me that I wasn't able to truly enjoy the pregnancy as I was so busy with the business. hmmm... I'm not sure, really. I just know I miss it.

Eli is a fantastic baby. Each night, he seems to do better sleeping. Such a relief. Caden, Alanna, and Abram adore him. They are doing such a great job with him. I was so worried it would be such a hard adjustment with Abram (of course we have our moments), but he can't seem to get enough of Eli. He's one very loved little baby.

Caden is loving school. He has his first field trip today... to the pumpkin patch. He even got to bring home a pumpkin and a few gourds. :) So cute.

Alanna is doing well too. She keeps asking when she gets to start school. I think she is still missing Caden in the mornings.

Not a whole lot else is new... we're just adjusting and trying to figure out our routine now that Caden is in school and there are 4 little ones in this family. Dan and I are loving it. I can't imagine not having this many children. There is nothing better!!!

Eli Jonah

2009-10-06T12:47:00.001-07:00

I planned on writing this post a few days ago, but just haven't had a chance. So, here's the birth story:

On Tuesday morning I woke Dan up at 4:00 to tell him labor had started. Contractions were about 5-8 min. apart until 6:30 or so when the completely stopped. I told Dan to go to work because it probably wasn't the real thing anyway. After I dropped Caden off at school and came back home, I had more contractions from 9:00-10:30. They stopped again. I picked Caden up from school at 11:30 and started having more contractions in the car. I called Dan to let him know what was going on. Luckily Dan wasn't working in Appleton, but in Racine and was having an early day anyway. He got home around 1:00 and contractions were still going. At about 3:00, I got news from a client whose wedding I did in August. He was missing a whole bunch of his photos (he's a media guy and just paid me to give him the unedited photos). Dan informed me that he couldn't find them because our computer had crashed a few weeks prior and he didn't think he had a back up. I freaked out and, needless to say, labor stopped AGAIN! I was in tears and stressing out. Dan searched endlessly for the photos on our backup hard drive. After about an hour, he MIRACULOUSLY found them! They shouldn't have been there. The hard drive backed them up with out Dan telling them to. I laid down to take a nap and within an hour, the contractions started again. So weird. I called and had my mom come down even though they weren't really close. By 5:30 they were getting pretty intense, so we called my midwife, Jan. After awhile, they were calming down yet again. So, at 8:30, I laid down again. Then the contractions started coming every 10 min. but they were really hard ones (they felt like the ones you have at the end of labor), but so far apart. At 2:30, Jan checked to see how things were progressing (contractions were still 10 min. apart). I was only 2-3 cen. dialated. FRUSTRATING! I was NOT happy, to say the least. Dan was sleeping pretty soundly, but woke up when contractions would start because I was having bad back labor. So, Dan would put pressure on my back to ease it some. By 3:30 my midwife came back up stairs and all of a sudden, contractions got really close and remained very hard. As soon Jan came up, I felt a sense of peace to just have someone there and completely alert. I wasn't mad at Dan by any means. We had been up since four on Tuesday morning and it was now Wednesday morning. I just needed someone there, though. Contractions continued to get really close. Instead of staying in our bedroom, I decided to head to the living room because I just wasn't comfortable upstairs. As the pushing started, I could tell this was a big baby! He wasn't as easy to push out as the others. I pushed for 8 min. (I know, that isn't long, but I only pushed for 1min. 40 sec. with Alanna and one push with Abram) and then our big 9#, 21 inches long baby came into the world at 5:38 on Sept. 30th.

We didn't have a name for him as I had been convinced through out the whole pregnancy that we were having a girl. Much to my surprise, it was a boy! So, on Thursday we decided on Eli. Though, he didn't have a middle name for another day, when we decided on Jonah. He has a sweet disposition and fits right in.

I anticipated the adjustment to be a challenge as Abram is only 17 months old. Surprisingly, Abram has done VERY well! Caden and Alanna are also adjusting well. Alanna was disappointed at first the baby wasn't a girl. However, she has accepted it and is learning to love Eli anyway :) Caden had me bring the baby to his class yesterday to show him off. He was so proud.

A funny story since we had Eli: A friend of ours brought dinner on Friday and another friend brought dinner on Sunday. When we were eating dinner on Sunday Caden said, "Tonight I'm going to pray that God gives us lots and lots of babies so people keep bringing us dinner." We laughed so hard!

ugh

2009-09-29T23:42:00.000-07:00

Still in labor. They are reaching that VERY intense stage, but still 10 min. apart. VERY strange and highly frustrating! I want to lie down in bed and sleep but then the contractions are even more painful when they come. I've been up since 4 yesterday morning. I'm tired.

attack

2009-09-29T11:59:00.000-07:00

Dan and I just got some frustrating, stressful news from a client and as soon as I was finding things out, labor stopped. It's a long story I don't feel like typing right now, but I do ask for prayer. I know that once I calm myself down, things will pick up again. I'm tired and really stressed. We really need peace in this house!!! Please keep us in your prayers.

is it labor?

2009-09-29T10:29:00.000-07:00

This morning at about 3:45 I started having contractions that were any where between 8-10 minutes apart. They lasted until about 6:30 and then stopped. Needless to say, I was NOT happy! It just felt like such a disappointment as I've been praying for labor to start before wednesday so that I can still manage to go to Caden's first bible quiz meet on Saturday. I know that sounds crazy, but this is Caden's first big "thing". We've worked so hard on it and the last thing I want is to miss it.

Anyway, I started having contractions when I picked Caden up from school this afternoon around 11:15. I didn't pay much attention to them until the last one about 6 minutes ago. Thank GOD Dan is on his way home from work and only about 20 minutes away. So glad he was in Racine today and not in Appleton. What a blessing. I think I really need a nap and time to just rest so I can get through what's coming. (just had another one - 12:35-12:36 - might as well keep track here).

We're still working on a name for the baby. Though, we're still not sold on anything for sure. It's funny to me how people get so annoyed that we don't have a name yet. :) It's important to us and we don't make a snap decision about it. The meaning is incredibly important and most of the names we like, we don't like the meanings.

Anyway, I finished another pair of wool longies and I'm working on a hat to match the colorful one I posted in the last post. I'm hoping to get that done today before the baby comes, assuming the baby comes today. We'll see.

Crafts

2009-09-22T18:07:00.000-07:00

Here are the pics of the crafts I have been working on:

This is the first wool diaper cover I made. I still need to knit an i-cord for the top.

Here's the first wool longies I made. I'm thinking about putting some kind of embroidery on them.

These are more fun. They don't look nearly as good in pictures as they do in person. I still need to weave in the ends and then they are done.

These are wool shorties I'm still working on.

And here is the carseat cover I'm making. I still have to finish the edges were it hooks to the carseat.

Here is the front view with the straps not pulled through.

surviving

2009-09-21T12:42:00.001-07:00

I currently have a week and a half before this baby comes. Up until this point, I have been pretty relaxed and not necessarily ready for the baby to be here. Now, however, I'm pretty anxious. It started on Friday when I had contractions every 10 min (hard ones) for an hour and a half. Dan even came home! They stopped for about an hour but started again for another hour. To have contractions that intense 2 weeks before my due date was really exciting. It, of course, was too good to be true. Why would I be lucky enough to have a baby early when the other three were late or on time? It was a let down. BUT, I am fighting to enjoy the least days as a family of 5. NEVER again will we be this family. It's amazing how each child changes a family so dramatically. Each is child precious and an intricate part.

In other news, Dan is still looking for a new job. The driving to and from Appleton (2 hours each way) daily is taking a toll on all of us, especially Dan. Hopefully something new comes soon.

Caden is loving his kindergarten class. He has a busy three hours there every day but does really well with it. He and Nate (the other little boy in class) ask EVERY DAY if they can play at each others house. It's the cutest thing.

Caden is also doing bible quiz for church. A week and a half ago I sat down with him and went over a few of the questions. He was so frustrated so I put it aside. Dan and I talked about it last wednesday and decided it might be best if we pull him out because of all the changes going on (new baby, school, etc). Before church I figured I would go over the questions with him one more time. Much to my surprise, he remembered the questions we went over a few days prior!!!! 5 minutes of practicing and he remembered them days later! That's when Dan and I decided to keep him in it. Since last Wednesday he has learned 1/3 of the questions. He has to memorize the rest before Oct. 3 (their first meet). I have NO doubt he will do it. It's amazing how much his brain soaks it all up. Such a sponge. It's so great to see him learning something that he will take with him for the rest of his life.

Alanna is managing through the adjustment of Caden going to school. She definitely misses him but also loves being the big sister. I think she wants this baby to come faster than I do. She can not wait to hold the new "girl baby." There is no arguing with her either... it is a "girl baby" not a "boy baby".

I need to take pictures of all the crafts I've made for this baby. I made a new carseat cover, 2 wool longies (knit wool pants) and a wool soaker (knit wool diaper cover). I still have so much to finish around here. Hopefully I can get everything done!

It's about time I post something

2009-09-09T15:18:00.000-07:00

I am shocked to realize that tomorrow is the 3 week mark. In the next few weeks, there will be a baby #4 in this house. So many people shake their head at us for having a 4th. It's sad that so many people are so critical. The truth is having so many children is such a joy. I couldn't imagine life if we had stopped after Alanna. Each child brings forth a new dynamic to our family and fits just right. Don't judge us for having many children. Just consider us building an army for God :)

Caden started kindergarten at OCS this year. I have been completely blown away by the school. There is no better school for Caden. I know that we made the right choice to send him to private school. We would not be nearly as happy with any public school. I mean, his class is 3 kids! You can't get a better teacher to student ratio!! :)

Caden at his coat hook with Alanna

Caden's class - Hannah, Caden and Nate (his new best friend). Their class is like a little family. So cute.

Caden and Nate.

totally burnt out

2009-08-12T06:45:00.000-07:00

I'm completely burnt out. I don't have enough energy to get through the day and I can't even think clearly. I'm sooooo tired. I need a vacation before this baby comes, but I just don't see that happening, unfortunately. I'm not trying to complain here, I just don't know how to handle everything. Three little ones, photo sessions, editing, taking care of the house... I just don't know how to do it all. I'm not even close to ready for this baby and I don't know if I will have time to make that happen. God help me.

2009-07-21T12:41:00.000-07:00

I figure I better make a post before Emily starts complaining again... joking Em... :)

Life has been pretty hectic. As much as I keep wishing and hoping this summer would just slow down, I'm kind of glad it has not done so. There is no time to be antsy about the arrival of number 4. I have so much to accomplish before the little one arrives and the summer just keeps getting busier.

My business has been keeping me on my toes. I have three more weddings, a senior portrait session, trash the dress session, maternity shoot, and I still have three weddings to finish editing and I only have 10 weeks until my due date! CRAZY!

In other news, we found out yesterday the baby is breech. So, I have to be doing some crazy exercises to try and encourage the baby to flip and start seeing a chiropractor. If that doesn't work, then it's on to some herbal type stuff. If that doesn't work, external reverse. That's where Doctors turn the baby by pushing on your stomach and turning the baby. A friend of mine had it done and her stomach was a complete bruise. ugh. If that doesn't work, then it's on to a breech birth in the hospital or a c-section. I take the breech birth for sure. Despite the increase in pain, I can't afford to be down for a few weeks because of a surgery. The last thing I want is to have this baby in a hospital in the first place. After having three completely natural births and two home births, it would be a HUGE disappointment. PLEASE pray that this baby flips around! I really don't want to deal with the problems that could come along with a breech birth! That's just too much to think about. needless to say, I was very overwhelmed yesterday.

Anyways, I'm working on recovering the infant car seat! Soooo excited about this project I'm also going to recover Alanna's car seat too. I will have pics posted when I finish them.

Private school... here we come!

2009-07-15T05:18:00.001-07:00

Life has been pretty hectic lately. Between being 7 months pregnant and doing weddings, Dan's crappy job situation and getting Caden prepared for school, things are nuts.

Dan and I are both trying not to be consumed or upset about his job situation, but at times, that is a huge challenge. His boss was supposed to get him an office in Milwaukee so he could do sales down here. Yesterday we learned, that may or may not even happen. So, instead, they are yanking the work truck, leaving us to buy a car by Monday morning. I have commitments through out the summer that require me to have a vehicle. Besides, the last thing I want is to be stranded at home with three little ones and no vehicle. That sounds like winter! :) The hard part is, Dan will continue driving to Appleton every day (he has been for some time now) but this time, without work paying for the gas. The round trip each day is 191 miles! That comes out to about $400/mo in gas! That's a huge pay cut! That's 5,000+ a year in gas! Talk about a blow right before the baby. On top of that, a few weeks ago, we just committed Caden to private school for two years, which will cost us an additional couple hundred a month. Scary! In the end, we know something has to come of this. Why would God have told us to put him in private school if our finances were going to get worse and stay that way? Somethings coming, I just know it, and I'm trying to hold on to that. If you don't yet have children, you do not understand finances. Things were easier before Dan and I had Caden. Hard because we were in college, but easier to deal with because we didn't have little ones to care for. Everything changes with little ones.

So, yes, Caden will be going to OCS. Many of you who have been reading my blog for any length of time know that Dan and I have been struggling with homeschooling vs. private school for a long time. Public school in this area just isn't an option for us. Both of us feel that is wrong for Caden. He has such a potential to be crushed or built up in the school system. He is very sensitive and yet has so many leadership qualities. I want him to be in an atmosphere that will work with him and encourage his well being and not just his acedemics. OCS has small classes (last years kindergarten class had 3 kids) that leave more room for the teachers to really invest in the kids. The pros about OCS were amazing to us. They really take the opportunity to come along side you and help your child develop in all areas of life. It's more than just school. Having teachers who commit to praying for you, your marriage, your finances, and your children daily is amazing. They even have an internet link where you can regularly get notes from the teacher about your child and what they are or are not doing. They keep you completely informed. There are so many other reasons we love OCS, but ultimately, we want Caden grounded in Christ before we send him into the world. It isn't about sheltering Caden, it's about instilling morals and values in him that we want him to carry the rest of his life. If I'm going to send him to school for 8 hours a day, allowing someone else to have more time with him than myself, that person better have a close view on life as myself. I don't want some liberal, worldly person who is going to teach my child something other than what I believe or feel to be best for Caden. He's five. He needs guidance from someone who will help train him in the way he should go. Look at our society. Look at the way children treat adults. Look at the lack of responsibility and drive so many children have. I don't want that for Caden. I know that is the parents responsibility and we make sure we do that, but teachers can make or break it as well. Please don't misunderstand me (as I know a lot of my readers are public school teachers), I don't devalue your role. Nor do I think you suck! But none of you would be Caden's teacher either! Dan and I both had horrible experiences in the public school systems. I don't want that for my son. Instead, I will sacrifice being able to buy a home or a new car to make sure my child is receiving the training he needs. My children are more important to me than the stuff Dan and I have. The most important thing God has given us are these WONDERFUL little ones and we will not let anything get in the way of raising them to be God centered adults. That is our most important role in life and we take it VERY seriously. Therefore, public school is not an option... at least, not while they are so young. I started my elementray years in private school and I have to say, OCS is FAR better than any private school I have ever seen. I was completely blown away. This is the first private school I have ever known to get it right. For the first time Dan and I found a school that goes beyond education. Truly amazing and REALLY excited for Caden to start in September. We already bought all his school supplies (I won't have time as we get closer to the start of school) and Caden couldn't be more excited. He had his kindergarten testing on Monday (one on one with the principal who also goes to our church and we've developed a relationship with). He LOVED it! I couldn't believe how excited he was when I picked him up. Tomorrow Dan and I are meeting with the principal to talk about the results. It's an exciting stage in life.

overdue update

2009-07-14T09:11:00.000-07:00

I have had so many requests to update my blog and a whole bunch of questions too. I'll try to do both in this post.

I recently had a couple of fellow cloth diapering moms ask me for my wipes solution recipe. It is one that I have come up with on my own. I didn't like or have all of the ingredients for recipes I found online (baby oil is not ever used in this house and using burts bees baby shampoo seemed like a waste). Here it is:

2 cups water
2 T. olive oil
1 T. Dr. Bronners peppermint soap*
1-2 drops Tea Tree oil

Mix it up and put it in a spray bottle.

*Dr. Bronners is amazing stuff that you can get at Walgreens. You can also use it to make your own cleaning supplies which will save you TONS of money and free your home of chemicals that could seriously harm your little ones.

On that note, I've had a few inquiries about the recipes I use for cleaning products. Here you go:

All purpose cleaner:
1/2 teapsoon washing soda (not baking soda)
2 teaspoons borax
1/2 teaspoon liquid soad
2 cups hot water

combine soaps in spray bottle and add hot water. Shake to disolve. This lasts forever as it won't go bad.

For your toilet bowl:
2 parts borax and 1 part lemon juice works but I usually use 1/4 baking soda (buy a huge box) and 1 cup vinegar. Then, let it sit and scrub it clean.

I also make my own window cleaner (vinegar and water in a spray bottle) and floor cleaner or mop water (o clean a linoleum floor, mix one tablespoon of liquid soap, a quarter cup of baking soda to two gallons of hot water. Add ¼ cup of white vinegar to the mix and you have an excellent linoleum floor cleaner. This solution also works very well on tile floors. )

Anyway, things are insane around here. The kids and I are going nuts! I'm so busy with the weddings this summer and just don't have energy or time. My time with the kids has stunk and I'm just fried. Seriously, I can NOT wait until summer is over. I want to be done being pregnant and get back to a normal schedule. Of course, then I'll be annoyed it's crappy out and snowing. I just can't win this year :( oh, life. It will get better. I know it.

I'll post some pics later but right now, the kids are ready to eat some lunch!

Please God

2009-06-08T20:24:00.000-07:00

So, after all the excitement that Dan still has a job, I've been trying to focus on just that. At least he has a job. The truth is, there are times when I wish he would have lost the job.

Dan has been working in Appleton every day (2 hours away). Having him gone for 12 or more hours a day has been so overwhelming I can't even put it into words. So, here's the story. Dan is supposed to be doing sales now and is supposed to be getting an office in Milwaukee in the VERY near future. However, someone at the office in Appleton quit last week and now Dan is doing all the service (fixing, installing and repairing security systems) calls there. He has barely started doing the sales and still has to finish training himself (yeah... training himself) for that before an office in Milwaukee will be established. He is burning out so quickly. He leaves the house at 6:30 before anyone else is even awake and doesn't get home until sometime after 6:30 at night, just an hour before the kids go to bed. The kids saw him for a half hour tonight and they sure took advantage of every minute they could! It's draining all of us. I don't understand how people do this all the time. It is no way to live.

On top of the crazy hours, Dan got a $5,000/year (might be more) pay cut. He also needs to buy a car as he won't be able to use a work vehicle come the end of the month. Trying to save up for a car and the baby with a pay cut is no easy task.

Dan is obviously looking for a new job... when he isn't sleeping or working that is. Tonight, after the kids fell asleep, he was out on the couch. Not gonna lie, its hard not having a chance to even talk to him. Watching him sleep at night is not my idea of fun, but I can't blame him ONE bit! He has the stress of the world on his shoulders right now and he's exhausted. I'd feel the same way.

The kids and I have been trying to stay out of the house as much as possible. The more we are out and doing things, the faster the time goes and the better we handle the long days without Daddy. Now, if the weather would only cooperate! Fricken rain and cold weather, go away already! It's June and our furnace is running. Pathetic. It's times like this I HATE living in WI! Granted, the only time I like it is when it is warm in the summer and beautiful in the fall. I need it to be nice out the rest of the week so the kids and I can just get through. ugh.

So, there it is... another complaining post. But if you had to stay home with three kids, by yourself, for 12 or more hours a day with no adult interaction, you would complain to0!!!

rough day

2009-06-01T05:21:00.001-07:00

A couple of years ago I posted about a huge trial we were facing. Dan had made a mistake at one of his old jobs that caused us a great deal of pain and suffering. Not only did he lose his job, but he faced felony charges and lots of other huge issues. Needless to say, he was left with a misdemeanor after the judge and everyone else dealing with his case found the whole thing to be a waste of time. They told him the only reason he was left with a misdemeanor in the first place, was because of the push of the DA. It was a long agonizing battle. In the end, Dan's old boss, the one that pushed this issue, called him out of the blue and hired him back on as a manager and with more pay. He obviously took that job because it just affirms on his resume how stupid the entire thing was. It makes it look like not such a big deal. Then Dan got his current job and we moved here a year ago.

So, why do I bring this all up? Because it became an issue in our lives, yet again, last week. Dan works for a company out of Appleton that installs, maintains, and fixes all the security systems for Wisconsin Energies (the power plant in the area). He is the manager for the Milwaukee area and has HUGE responsibilities. On Friday he was called up to the office in Appleton to have a meeting with his boss. Frankly, we thought it was because his co-worker was getting fired (something in the works) and he was going to have to drive him home. Instead, we were all blindsided. His boss informed him that WE (Wisconsin Energies) was no longer allowing Dan onto any sites and could no longer work for them because of his misdemeanor. Even though he has been working there for over a year, his badge (what he had to use to get into all the power plants) was canceled and so was his computer access (he was able to log into their network systems remotely to diagnose and sometimes fix the problems). It was a HUGE blow! Dan has put in countless hours and worked so hard for that company. For it to be taken away like this is unbelievable. His boss is trying to find a way to keep him employed without working at WE. However, that may mean ANOTHER move... this time to Appleton. I can't stomach another move. We have moved 9 times in 5 years. I don't think I can handle another adjustment with yet another new baby.

For those who haven't noticed, BIG changes always happen when we are pregnant. I won't list them all, but it usually happens to be a job change for Dan, usually with financial increase. As we struggle through financially what will most likely be a job loss, I'm praying for a job in the area. For the first time in our marriage, we are at home. We have never felt more comfortable and peaceful with our church and friends. The kids love it here and so do we. Even though I am terribly upset and breaking down (crying), for the first time since we found all of this out, I am trying to focus on the positive. I'm trying to be thankful that unemployment will cover our rent and food. I'm praying that my business will pick up, despite the economy, and cover the rest of our bills. I am praying that God brings joy and happiness back to my husband as he struggles to find a way to provide for us. I'm praying that God carries that burden for him. I'm praying that we can shield the kids from all of the stress that we feel and even more, that God will take away that stress. Most heavy on my heart, I am praying that God not only works out our finances, but that He does not make us move!

What God is speaking to me about today:

"Never will I leave you. Never will I forsake you." Hebrews 13:6

"For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:30

²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^b]">[b]?

²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Dan and I feel it heavy on our hearts to be "advancing the kingdom." Our riches should not be stored up here on Earth, but we should be investing in the expansion of Heaven! Our goal is not only to give more (which seems really hard when you are losing your main source of income), but to pour into the kids at our youth group (we are now volunteers there). We are trusting God for big things. For an increase in our finances, even if that means a down time. We are trusting him for a local job, a bigger home, and a way to pay all of our bills in the mean time.

Today, I am focusing on the blessings in my life and putting this aside!

2009-05-26T09:51:00.000-07:00

I have this funny feeling that no one reads this blog anymore. Oh well. The nice thing about this blog is that I have a place to document things in our lives.

In exciting news, Dan and I are helping out in the youth group now. Maybe now I'll be able to utilize my college education :)

This weekend, after Donny and Chasidy's wedding, we headed up to the cabin where my parents and Derek and Chrissy were spending the holiday weekend. It was fun to surprise them. Heading up there was a very last minute decision, but it was worth it for the kids. Caden loved getting to go fishing and Alanna enjoyed it too. Abram didn't do as bad as I thought he would, which was a relief. Besides, we probably won't be up there again for a couple years since the baby will be too young to be up there next year. :(

I can't even believe how busy this summer is going to be. I only have Thursday night free this week and next week isn't looking much better. I have a feeling this summer is going to FLY by! Too bad winter does seem to go by as fast!

...

2009-05-21T19:01:00.000-07:00

Abram started walking on Sunday! YAY! It was really exciting. It doesn't matter how many children you have, each milestone is still precious. Abram has been trying to walk constantly, every day since. He stands up, yells for my attention and then starts walking when I look at him. He is so proud of himself and wants everyone to enjoy it with him. It is adorable.

Alanna is a little coloring fanatic. She pulls out her markers and princess coloring book and sits at her table for long periods of time. She works so hard to color in the lines. It's precious!

Caden loves to be outside. I can't blame him. It is so much fun to be outside in this weather and he loves it. We take almost daily trips to the awesome park we have in town, go for walks, play outside (while Caden tries to figure out how to use his rollerblades), go to the zoo, etc. Caden would never come in the house if I didn't make him come in. How fun it will be this summer!

The crazy wedding season is upon me. I'm overwhelmed, stressed, excited, frustrated, hopeful, etc. I kind of can't wait for summer to be over, but the last thing I want is winter. ha. I said I wasn't going to book any more weddings next year, but I guess I was wrong. The other day I got a call from a lady who designs and makes wedding dress (cool!). She got my name from the best florist in Milwaukee (urban sense - so untraditional and amazing). Without even looking at my prices, she was already interested in hiring me for her daughters wedding next may. I told her I wasn't planning on taking weddings next year because of the baby, but she was gently persistent and after I listened to more about her daughters wedding plans, I couldn't pass it up. By the sound of the creativity, I can't pass it up. So, I guess I'm doing a wedding next year... haha. But, the baby will be 9 months old. not bad or anything. So, we'll see.

Please pray for Dan and his job. His hours in the last two weeks total less than 4o hours combined. God is providing for us, so we'll be fine financially, but it can't keep going on like this. The crazy thing is, his job situation has NOTHING to do with the economy. Long story, but just pray for him.

Oh, and in BIG news, I found out at my midwife appointment earlier this month, that we might be expecting twins. I'll know more in June, but I don't think it is two. I just have a feeling it is one. But wouldn't that be just like God? When we decide we are done having children, we found out we were already pregnant, and now, it could be twins? Only God has a sense of humor like that! HA!

New cloth diapers!

2009-05-09T22:48:00.000-07:00

I needed to buy 6 more cloth diapers and while I was looking online I found the new "Gro Baby" diaper system. It is purely genius! The "shell" does not need to be washed with each change, and it fits newborns and toddlers! It's the best of both worlds - traditional cloth diapering and one size diapers! In the long run, they're cheaper than bumgenius, imse vimse, fuzzi bunz, thirsties, etc. You need less shells than bumgenius and you don't have to buy different sizes like imse vimse. They also come with a "booster" (kind of like bumgenius) for naps and bedtime. AND, they are all ORGANIC!!! WOOOHOOO!

They're really cute too.

These are supposed to dry faster than my current bumgenius diapers, which is awesome! Hopefully I won't have to take a cold blow dryer to them ;)

You only need 2-4 shells per day! The diapers cost $24 and you get a set of soakers (the inserts) with the shell. A 2 pack of soakers cost $17. So if you were to buy enough of these shells and soakers for one baby, it would cost $215 (equivalent of 18 cloth diapers). 18 bum genius would cost you $306 (and that isn't the organic bumgenius diapers)! 6 Imse Vimse organic covers would cost $110. plus the cost of the diapers. Since Imse Vimse do not grow with your child, you would have to spend $110 a few more times, totaling over 300 dollars. The only cheaper options are the crappy ones from walmart, wool diapers (I just can't suck it up and do it), or making your own covers. I'm all for these new ones! YAY! and they are soooo cute!

YUM!!!

2009-05-06T16:01:00.000-07:00

I have a few awesome recipes for you to try sometime! Tonight I made an egg bake. However, it was different than the normal egg bake. It's called Savory Breakfast Pudding and the recipe is from Emeril. It's kind of time consuming, but not hard and SOOOO good! You're supposed to assemble it at night, put it in the fridge overnight and cook it in the morning. tonight I didn't bother, I just made it without waiting :) Still just as good. Check that one out. Here is a picture of it:

With it I made the best fruit salad! So light, refreshing and so good! I sliced strawberries and bananas and added some blackberries (YUM!). For the dressing I juiced an orange and lemon and added some honey. Pour it over the top and you have perfection. It was awesome.

For MOPS yesterday I made an appetizer and had a lot of requests for the recipe. Here it is for anyone who wants it:

cut some grape tomatoes in half. Cut some FRESH mozzerella into 1/4"-1/2" cubes. On a tooth pick, put half a tomato, a cube of mozz., a fresh basil leaf and another tomato half. Then make the dressing. Mix three tablespoons olive oil, one tablespoon balsamic vinegar, half a tablespoon lemon juice and a smashed garlic clove. pour it over the top of your appetizer and lightly cover them with salt and pepper. Then refridgerate overnight. I actually doubled the sauce because it didn't seem like enough. It depends how much tomato appetizers you make. Use your judgement. They were really good! Here is a pic that is similar to this except for the basil.

Melissa, you asked me about substituting honey for sugar in baking. Here is what I found online a few years ago for substituting honey:
Honey can be substituted for sugar in equal parts up to one cup. So, if a recipe calls for 1/2 cup sugar, you can use a 1/2 cup honey. If the recipe calls for more than one cup of honey, you're suposed to use 2/3 - 3/4 cup of honey per cup of sugar. If the recipe calls for milk or any other kind of liquid, you need to cut the milk back a 1/4 cup. Baking recipes are more forgiving than people realize. Just write it down on your recipe the alterations according to this method before you start baking, and you'll be fine. You're supposed to add 1/2 tsp baking soda for every cup of honey because honey is acidic. I don't usually do that unless the recipe is for more than 1 cup of sugar. Also, try to search for vegan recipes that use agava nectar... you can substitute for honey at equal parts without having to adjust anything else. Hope this helps. It seems like a lot, but it really isn't! Try it with quick breads first as they are easier to adjust. I don't usually substitute it in cakes, but I have done so in cookies and we LOVE the result! It's far more healthy for you as it raises your blood sugar at a much slower rate than sugar. If you need any help with it, let me know!

Enjoy!

Homeschooling

2009-05-04T12:44:00.000-07:00

It's official, we're going to homeschool Caden. We just couldn't justify spending $4,000 for private school and the public schools here didn't impress me. After a visit to the school Caden would go to, I wasn't a huge fan. After doing more research and finding out what exactly I would need to do for Caden for kindergarten, I realized that I really can handle it. My business will be taking a backseat once I'm done with weddings as I want more time to put into his lessons and just take care of my family.

Caden is a quick learner and already knows most of the things he would learn in public school. He knows all of his letters now, upper and lower case. He knows almost all of the sounds each letter makes and has already started sounding out words. He knows how to write his name and doing some basic addition and subtraction. He needs to learn Science and Social studies more than math and reading. We'll have to work on sight words and improve his reading skills. He's really doing great for his age, as he isn't even 5 yet.

I'm going to start him in June or July so that we can take about a month off in October when the baby comes. We'll just go over things here and there when we have time through out October. There is a co-op that we'll be joining as well!

There are two ladies at our church who are great resources. One I teach Caden's Wednesday night class with and the other has homeschooled all of her children and is the regional coordinator for Wisconsin Parents Association (WPA) which is an organization that helps homeschooling parents and also fights to protect Wisconsin current homeschooling laws (a great state to homeschool in!).

I'm nevervous, but I'm excited too. Who know's how Caden and I will do, but I have a feeling it will be good and I'm pretty sure this is what God wants us to do. Our process to this decision was a long journey. We flopped back and forth for a long time, but this is right for all of us, especially Caden.

desperate for creativity!

2009-04-30T11:19:00.001-07:00

I have been wanting to do a big art project with the kids for awhile now... check this one out.

This lady buys this UGLY painting from craiglist. She did a rough coat of white paint over the painting. Her daughter than covered the birds in a yellow paint. She then made a few shades of blue and green paint and let her daughter just paint it.

This is the end product:

I LOVE it! How fun and creative! I found an ugly painting on Craigslist for $12. I think we just might try this in the coming weeks. You know, when it is nicer outside and we can contain the mess easier! :)

fluorescent bulbs - rethink using them?

2009-04-28T08:01:00.000-07:00

The other day while Dan was working at WE (Milwaukee's energy company), he overheard two guys talking about fluorescent bulbs and what to do if you break one. They were saying that you need to call a company to come and clean it up for you because of the mercury inside of it. They said that if you clean it up yourself, some of the mercury is left behind on your floor. hmmm. That made me wonder. So, I did some research online and the EPA has a page of instructions on how to clean it up. Not only is it very time consuming, they recommend removing the carpet (assuming it breaks on carpet) if it is a place frequented by infants, small children and pregnant women. That's kind of scary!

Now, here's how much damage can be done by a fluorescent bulb. One bulb can contaminate 6,000 gallons of water. That's insane! The new low-mercury fluorescent bulbs still contaminate 1,000 gallons of water! That blew me away. - this info was found on MSNBC's website in an article titled, Shining a light on hazards of fluorescent bulbs.

Here's the confusing part I've found about clean up on different sites (none of them were written by the average joe, but by "experts"). The EPA says to air out the room and leave the area for about 15-30 min before cleaning it up. Afterwards, you are to use tape to pick up the pieces. They then say you can vaccum up any pieces but that you have to take special steps with your vaccum when doing so (you can find it on their site). However, another site says you should NEVER vaccum up where the bulb dropped because it will put vapors in the air that you will be breathing in. Hmmm... contradictory. Maybe you're thinking, I'll follow the EPA over the other experts becaue, well, it's the government. Well, I'm not one to just do whatever the government tells me to. Not out of rebellion, but because they are not always right! Heck, they let chemicals be put on the shelves for us to use to clean our homes.

Anyway, there are private companies that will come and clean it up for you. This IS your best option because they will clean up all mercury residue that you would have otherwise missed. Here's the kicker. It's REALLY expensive! Here's an example... one lady was putting a bulb in her daughters room, it fell and broke on a bag of toys and the carpet. The mercury levels were WAY above the safe levels on the toys and carpet. She had to have special cleaning company come and clean it up. She was given a low-ball estimate of $2,000! Now, some "experts" say it wasn't necessary for this women to pay for a professional because even the levels were 1,939 ng/m3 (normall is 300 ng/m3), someone would have to be within three feet of the area for a long period of time to have serious health damage. This expert also said the mercury would disipate over time. Keep in mind the EPA says the carpet should be removed if frequented by infants, small children and pregnant women.
I have to say, I would definitely call in a pro in this situation. Simply because this is a child's room! Why take a chance?

Many people are left to wonder if the seriousness of a broken fluorescent bulb on a persons health is being down played because of the benefits on the environment of using them. hmmmm.

Here's my conclusion as a consumer who does use them. We will no longer be using them in lamps where the kids can easily pull them down and they can break on the carpet. Even though my kids have not pulled lamps down before, I'm not willing to take any chances with their health. They will be used in ceiling lights as the kids can't reach them. And, because I am pregnant, I will no longer handle them. Instead, Dan will. I don't think we should ban using them, but I do think we should take some percausions.

Also, please remember fluorescent bulbs CAN NOT GO IN YOUR GARBAGE! They must be recycled. If they are not broken, you can take them to Ace Hardware or Home Depot where they will dispose of them for free. Other locations will charge you for disposing of them, though it is only about 60 cents per bulb. Just note that you too should take percaussion with these bulbs around your children!

Sigh of relief

2009-04-24T11:28:00.000-07:00

Apparently, Dan's company credit card is just that, a company credit card. Such a relief. After Dan had the statements changed to our address, he got a call from Peter (his boss). His boss said it was not attached to Dan's credit. Then Dan called the bank and basically went off on the vice Presdent of the bank. She kept saying it was not on his credit. Then he called the credit card company again. He got another lady who explained that it isn't his credit and they often put the authorized user's social security number with it when setting up company cards (I don't get it, but whatever). The bank is sending papers to verify it isn't on Dan's credit, but I think we'll be fine. Dan's boss was SOO incredibly nice about it an totally understanding. I think Peter is a bit ticked at the accountant who originally led Dan to believe it was under his credit in the first place. I don't blame Peter at all. She, of all people in the company, should know better. Ridiculous. Either way, a relief.

Truthfully, I was so surprised at the thought that Peter would do such a thing. From what Dan has said about him in the last year, that doesn't seem like something he would do! Thankfully, he, nor anyone else, did do that. So, yes, a relief.

In other news, I have my first wedding of the year tomorrow. I'm most excited that it is only a 5 hour wedding to get back into the swing of things. That's nice!

Yesterday, I broke my middle toe. I had opened the fridge and a glass bottle of maple syrup fell directly on my toe. The edge of the bottle that is. It hurt so bad. It is still really sore so I hope being on my feet tomorrow won't be an issue!

Holy Crap

2009-04-23T14:32:00.000-07:00

Last year Dan's boss got him a "company" credit card so that he could buy parts for work. That way he would have to drive all the way to the office in Appleton. It was a great thing. Dan has to turn in receipts to work for everything he buys with the card. If he doesn't turn them in, his boss has been known to not pay it. That always seemed stupid to me. Why would you risk your company or personal credit like that? Well, Dan had called the credit card company to get a few receipts (or something like that). Today a lady from the credit card company called him about that. While she had him on the phone she asked if he would be ok with Peter (his boss) opening an online account for the card so he could make payments that way (I think that's the jist of it). Dan was just like, I don't care. Then it dawned on him, "why are they asking me if it isn't my card?" Needless to say, he found out Peter opened the card under Dan's name and social security number WITHOUT having Dan sign anything or even making him aware of this! COMPLETE FRAUD! Well, Dan had everything changed to our address. Statements will no longer be going to his boss. Dan also requested a copy of the form that Peter fraudulently signed Dan's name on. There is a $372 balance on it right now. You better believe Peter is paying it! Dan is also not using it for work anymore! This crap is about to hit the ceiling since we know Peter was stupid enough to skip payments on OUR CREDIT!!! So not happy with him right now! We are not sure where we are going to go with this right now, but this should be interesting.

I missed the mark

2009-04-21T10:39:00.000-07:00

Have you ever thought you would be good at something when everyone else thought you would be better at something else? Only to realize, later, that they were right?

Well, last night I had a MOPS meeting to discuss leadership opportunities for next year. Going into it, I really wanted to do the hospitality side of things. Setting things up, making the centerpieces, making the little favor type bags for holidays, door greeting, etc. I had it in my mind the last couple weeks that it was what I wanted to do - that I would be good at it.

Well, at last nights meeting, that just is not the way it worked out. Another lady, who is beyond wonderful and so incredibly sweet will be doing it. She's right for it. However, I was definitely bummed. Everyone seemed to encourage me to do exactly what I'm doing now, a table leader. But I really don't feel as though I was doing a good job at it. It felt like a dead end road. And frankly, I wanted to do more than just a table leader... a steering team position.

Well, I basically said, I don't want to do table leader and was left with nothing else. I left sad as I had my heart set on it.

I say all this because an obvious lesson was learned. Dan and I have a heart for ministry. I learned that I may not always get the jobs I want. They may not even be fun. I may even not like them. That just isn't the point. The point is to do what God has called you and simply be there to serve in the way and the capacity that he wants you to. Now, this is not a new lesson, but another experience gained. I just know that I need to serve where God wants me, even if I don't think it's right.

After I got home last night and told Dan that I wasn't going to be doing hospitality, he asked what the other areas were. I told him and his response was that I should offered to serve as the group discussion leader or keep doing what I'm doing. Because, as I learned last night and wish I had known all along, my efforts did make a difference in people's lives. When you get discouraged, you need encouragement, and I didn't have that. I didn't know that some of the women had been growing in their relationship with God and that I was part of the process. I didn't know that one women had recommitted her life to Christ (not saying I had a part in that, but who knows). Seriously, with out encouragement, you just burn out sometimes. I was there. I was frustrated. I love each and every women at my table. They all have great things to offer and wonderful inputs, but sometimes you just don't feel like you're making a difference in their relationship with Christ. I wish last night wasn't the first time I had heard I was helping. I guess that's another lesson learned. It isn't always about knowing those things, but just trusting that God is growing the seeds we plant. If I had only known before.

stroller

2009-04-20T05:59:00.000-07:00

Last year I made a post about a stroller I had bought for $30. This one:

It was an expensive brand new stroller ($250+) that I bought at a thrift store. It was brand new and they had no idea what they were selling, much to my gain. It was a double stroller perfect for Alanna and Abram. Well, I needed to get a new one because it really isn't very compatible with an infant car seat. A friend of mine had a cool single stroller I fell in love with and I checked out the double version on amazon for $250. The cheapest I found it for was $219. Well, there is just no way I'm spending that much when this is our last baby. So, I found it on craigslist by Dan's parents in IL for $100. So, I figured, if I can sell mine for the same, it would be worth it. So, I sold it to someone in IL for $100 on our way down to pick up the new one for $100. How awesome! I bought the old stroller for $30, sold it for $100 and bought a new one for $100. So, basically, the new one cost me, out of my pocket, $70 (cost of old stroller and gas money). The only problem with the new one is that the fabric on the handle is torn, but Dan said he can fix it! YES! It turns like you would not believe. It doesn't hurt my back when I push Alanna and Abram either! So perfect. Here it is:

The seats are so easy to reverse. The kids can both face you, face out, or face each other. And look how big the sun visors are? So great for a new born.

And there is a bracket for the car seat. The only problem with it, you have to take off one of the seats in order to fold it up. Kind of a pain, but worth it for all the positives with it. It basically takes up the entire trunk of the van, but I still have room to put luggage by the kids feet in the van. So, do able. If you or someone you know is in the market for a double stroller, this one is the best I have ever had or seen! Nearly perfection. They just need to fix the design problems with it and then, it will be complete perfection! If you need a single stroller, check out the single version of this one. It is super awesome. Once Abram is old enough to walk, I will get the single. Great stroller. Oh, it's Kolcraft Contours Stroller.

standing up for my beliefs

2009-04-17T17:10:00.000-07:00

I was just about to start another blog simply talking about politics for those of you who don't want to read my posts on politics. Frankly, too bad. Take it or leave it. If you don't like it, don't read my blog. It's that simple. I'm pretty sure most people have stopped reading my blog anyway. That's ok with me.

I'm not going into lots of detail, but I don't agree with the Housing rescue plan. I don't think people who took out loans they couldn't afford should benefit from this plan. People who are suffering because of the economy (lost their job), that's a different story. It just helps the American public to continue to be poor stewards with their money.

Anyway, I bring this up for one reason. Tonight I was talking to someone about how I do not agree with this plan. The next thing I know, another person listening to the conversation and somewhat taking part in it, started to tell me how I would be better off buying a house right now. All the benefits being given right now could benefit me. My stance is simple. I don't agree with the 8,000 given to people who buy a house. I don't agree with the housing rescue plan. Why should I engage in taking that money? Doesn't that just support what is going on here? I don't agree with it, so I want no part of it. I'm already forced to fund it by being a tax payer. The only thing I can do is not take advantage of it.

Obama supporters, I have a simple, honest question for you. This questions is because I want to understand why people support certain things. Do you think we are headed for a socialist country? If so, are you ok with that?

God is big

2009-04-05T05:20:00.000-07:00

There are so many people that doubt the miracles that God does for His people. The sad thing is, many Christians doubt God too. God has done so many miracles in our life in the past, that I am learning to trust Him more and no longer doubt the strength and longing that He has to provide big for all of us. As a parent, I dream big for my children. I dream of the day they are married with families and blessed with incomes that are beyond their beliefs. Never have I wanted or longed for them to be poor and struggling their way through life. In the same way, I do not believe God wants that for us either. I do believe that our choices put us where we are, but I don't believe that is what God wants for us. Growing up in a Lutheran church, that was a hard thing for me to grasp, and I am still learning it.

Here is the truth, all of the dreams and hopes that I share on my blog are for one reason, I want to prove to everyone that God is bigger than circumstances. I want people to know that my God is real! I want Christians to believe that God DOES still preform great thing for us. That prayer works! So, as I pray for increase and a new home, I want you to see God work in our lives. I want you to see that God can give us big things even when odds are stacked against us (no degree, the economy, etc). God is BIG!

Praying for miracles!

2009-04-03T04:52:00.001-07:00

The thought of having to live in this small, ugly townhouse with four little ones is a scary thought. So, instead of making preparations to stay here, we're praying for big things. We have learned that renting a larger place would cost us as much as buying a home. So, why rent? However, to buy a house with Dan's current income, that would leave us in a place that we can not pay down debt. That is NOT a road I want to go down! We're trying to dig our way out, not dig our way in. So, with Dan needing a new job, we're praying for increase. Many might say we're crazy as the economy is not the best, but I say to you, my God is bigger and has more than this economy can withhold. I believe that in this time of economic scare, God is going to provide for his people. I'm not talking God giving abundance, but providing needs. Our needs right now are to move out of here and into something bigger, while still paying off debt. With that said, we are praying for increase.

The house we had previously found in Port is nice and still available. However, we found one we like even more in Grafton (the town next door). Here it is:

It has three bedrooms and one bathroom. A good size yard and a basement that can be remodled with a office, rec room, etc. It would be great for us.

We drove by last night with our camera. Dan took a picture and brought it to Office Max to get a large print of it. It will be posted on the wall as a reminder to pray for it.

oh my goodness

2009-04-02T06:02:00.000-07:00

I just realized that Abram will be one in less than 2 weeks! How did that happen???? Even with baby number 3, it never seems to amaze me how fast they grow. It is so exciting and sad at the same time. I'm looking forward to the day when baby stage is completely over for this family. Only a year and a half :) Not that I want to rush the baby stage of this unborn child, but that it is truly a monumental stage after you have already changed diapers, dealt with midnight feedings, teething, etc. for three children :) I'm excited for the day when we can go do big kid things as a family. When we can travel to peoples homes without anything but clothes and toiletries. I'm looking forward to the day when we can all go hiking without having to carry a baby. Or the day when every one knows how to swim. Now, I LOVE the baby stage a lot, but there comes a point when you're ready to move on. I can easily handle one more baby. That isn't the issue at all. I'm just excited for what the future holds. I don't know if any of that makes sense. I really am getting excited for enjoying one last baby. Every stage will be so different. I will never be pregnant again. I will never go through the joy of a home-birth after this. I will never nurse a baby again. Each baby stage will be so bittersweet. So, some how, I'm looking forward to having this baby and being excited for the baby stage to end.

In other news, please pray for Dan. He has found out that We Energies (local electric company) will no longer be using the company Dan works for, but going with another company. This means a couple of things. We is probably making a smart move because of the way Dan's boss runs his company. Can't say I blame them. BUT, that means Dan will be out of a job. The reason Dan knows this is happening is because one of the "big guys" at We keeps hinting to Dan to find another job, saying that there are better places to work. This is true and Dan is looking for another job. He has applied all over the place. Illinois and all over WI. I can't say I am worried about Dan finding a job because every time we get pregnant, big things happen. A new job and/or a move is usually what happens. I just have faith that God will provide. But please pray that Dan finds a good job quickly, because we don't know when this is going to happen. Also, he could really use a pay increase now that we have a new baby on the way. Money is terribly tight and we just need to be able to afford a bigger place. Please pray that God provides. Also, pray for Dan's sanity. He is soooooo overworked and underpaid right now he is losing his mind. He is so consumed by it, that he can't think about anything but work. His boss expects too much from him as he does the work of abou 3-4 people (not exaggerating here!!!). That is the reason, I believe, his business is being driven into the ground. It's sad. This job, however, has given Dan great opportunities. So, it has been a blessing. It's just time to move on.

back off

2009-03-30T20:30:00.000-07:00

Before you navigate away, understand that this issue hits home for me... very personally.

I have to say, I am furious about Obama's administration being so involved in business, especially the auto industry. Not only do I think that Bush and Obama never should have been giving "bailouts," but I definitely do not agree that the Obama administration is so involved in the functioning of the business.

Now, I get that MANY of you are completely disagreeing with me here. You think that the bailouts SHOULD have happened for the sake of our economy. And you also think that Obama should be "involved" in the functioning of the business because it was tax dollars that kept them going.

Let me tell you why I disagree. First of all, tax money should not be used to "bailout" businesses that are falling on their face. Why? Japan attempted the same thing back in the 90's with not great results. Based on history, it will not create an economy that will be stronger, but can reduce economic efficiency. Just do some studies and you'll find that exactly what Bush started and Obama has continued, hurt economies in the past. I specifically remember that the reason we took history classes was to learn from the past and not repeat the same mistakes. Why are we not learning?

Now, why do I think that Obama should back off of the way that businesses are being run? France, Germany and Japan have all done this and the results are NOT GOOD! I'm not about to go into any specifics, but it does cause a lot of unnecessary problems. You have heard this before from people that democrates view as closeminded, Bush loving, ignorant people, but this is not a socialist country. Frankly, I do NOT want to see this country go from something that, in the past, was so great, become something where government has way too much power. What happened to all the proud Americans who loved our freedom and capitalist country? Is socialism really what you want? Or do you just think that this is not what Obama is leading this country towards? How can you not see it?

Now, why this is so personal to me. I hate that Obama is bad mouthing the US auto industry for a few reasons. First, it is just drving those in the market for a car, to buy import cars. I've got news for you! THAT DOES NOT HELP OUR ECONOMY!!! Sure, some dealers are making some money, and for the few cars assembled here, it is paying crappy wages to factory workers. Where do you think most of the money is really going? Who profits? Us or other countries???? This sucks and is personal because my dad is part owner of a Chevy dealership. Secondly, Obama's bad mouthing makes my dad look like a giant, incompetent ass-hole. I can't stand that! Obama has critized the fact that the CEO of GM pushed the truck and SUV sales over hybrids. People, when you make money on something, you sell it! No business is any different. Don't be blind about it. I commend Ford for being smart enough not to take any bailouts. I truly believe that is to save themselves from Obama's administration getting far too involved. Smart move!

It is extremely annoying to see where this government is going and how involved they are getting. Government was not designed to be involved in EVERY aspect of our lives. They already have a huge say on so many things, what's next? Hopefully...NOTHING!

2009-03-28T19:53:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it is snowing out? Weather in Wisconsin is an interesting thing. Caden asked if we could build a snowman tomorrow. Needless to say, I am hoping it doesn't stick around! :)

I'm starting to feel the pressure of all the weekends I will be doing weddings this summer. The idea of seeing Dan less than I do now, seems impossible. At the same time, I'm excited. The opportunity I have is amazing. Though, I'm even more excited to start doing more children/baby photography instead.

I can not believe how big my little ones are getting! Abram, suddenly, has a mind of his own. When he is in his highchair having a snack, Alanna will come up and try and take a few pieces. Abram screams at her and kicks her with his feet. If someone takes a toy from him, he screams. I don't just mean cry, I mean a brutal, loud scream! He lets them have it! He climbs the stairs, stands in his highchair, and loves to make people laugh.

Alanna has had an increase in vocabulary in the last month. All of a sudden, she started speaking really detailed sentences. Not just basic answers, but with more thought and depth. She is really into princesses and loves to do anything girlie. Like, playing with moms make-up, changing her clothes a million times a day (she puts the clothes in the dirty laundry, of course), and she loves to cook.

Caden, too, has been blowing me away. He can sound out almost all the letters of the alphabet and is getting really good at sounding out words. He's on his way to reading! I love watching his face light up when he figures out what a word is. He is just about counting to 100. He needs a little bit of help, but not much. He even knows how to add and subtract. Now, I don't sit down for hours and hours a day and work on this stuff with him. He just gets it quickly and easily. (Alanna needs more practice) It is just exciting to watch him soar with his learning. He is full of questions and already thinks he knows more than Dan and I. :)

Overall, everyone is doing great and that is just a relief after the crazy few weeks we have had. Everyone is finally healthy and sleeping through the night again... YAY!

I hate mainstream media

2009-03-27T11:16:00.000-07:00

Why is it that mainstream media never covers the real issues in politics? Why is it that you have to find alternative sources in order to know what our government is really doing? It is not as though the news did a good job when Bush was in office, or Clinton. THEY NEVER HAVE! The part that gets me the most about it, is that Americans tend to relie on mainstream media as their number one source for info. UGH!

Here are a couple of points I have learned about in other news sources:

1. There is now a senate sub-committee that is looking at the way COLLEGE BASKETBALL decides on the top two teams to be in the conference. Though many people have complained about the system, why is government involved???? Think whatever you want about the issue, but I say that is too much government control

2. Obama wants to put something called "smart meters" in every Americans home. Basically it monitors your energy usage. Not sure how I feel about this. Why does the government need to be concerned about when my lights are on or off? hmmm. I need more info on this one yet.

3. The California Air Resource Board wants to take all black cars off the raods as of 2012. WHAT? WHY???? Apparently, the paint is a culprit for poor fuel economy. It sucks up solar energy, heats up the interior of a car and increases the use of air conditioning, resulting in bad fuel economy. Give me a break. Why should they have a say on how much fuel I use. The next thing we'll hear is that you can't drive an SUV any more. So what are families of more than 6 kids going to drive???? Back off is all I have to say. If a person doesn't care that the black car causes diminished fuel economy, that's they're problem, isn't it? It's their money being wasted, if this theory is true.

4. Remember when Americans and politicians alike were upset when Bush was spending $400 billion? Our deficit this year will be around 1.8 TRILLION!!! NUTS!

5. Do some research into the stimulus bill and you will find that the government, including Tim Geithner, Obama, and Congress are lying about not knowing that AIG would be giving out bonus'. In fact, the bonus' and limits on them were EXEMPTED! I'm not suggesting that you read someone elses ideas about this, READ THE BILL! Here is proof. This is what Democratic congresman said to Tim Geithner on MARCH 3RD, well before the government claimed to be "blindsideed": Just last month, AIG paid 343 employees of AIG FP, their Financial Products Division -- what created the financial hole that AIG is in, and in turn a multibillion-dollar bill for American taxpayers -- $56 million in bonuses and are slated to pay an additional $162 million in bonuses to 393 participants in the coming weeks, and there's more. Further bonus payments totaling approximately $230 million are due to 407 participants at AIG's Financial Products Division in March 2010. This makes no sense to my constituency.

REDICULOUS!!! That's what that is!

6. The FBI is gearing up for increase in criminal acts, including violence and theft. They say it is due to the stimulus bill. Nice.

7. Obama is cutting funds for our defense but sending troops out to Afghanistan. Does that sound like a good idea?

8. Keep this in mind for small businesses... You could make $160 and not be taxed on one penny of it last year. This year, small businesses will be taxed on the first dollar they make. 7.65% of every dollar. So, a business will make 92 cents for every dollar earned. This means that employee's will see smaller paychecks and business owners will see less profits. The government wants this to happen immediately. Now, the definition of what is a small business has been fought about among citizens for awhile. But a business making a little over $100,000/year (gross income) will be affected. This hurts nearly EVERYONES paychecks! Tax cuts? Yeah right.

9. The House pased a bill called "Mandatory Volunteerism." The only people exempt, INFANTS! I have yet to study more of what this kind of "volunteerism" involves. But as far as I am concerned, once it's forced, it isn't volunteering anymore! DUH!!! Give back, I agree. No arguments there. BUT DON"T MAKE ME "volunteer"! It is on to the senate. If it passes there, it's on the Presidents desk where it will be signed for Vetod. If it gets to his desk, I don't expect it to be vetod as we are talking about a President who wants a civilian military. grrrr. I will be researching this more in the days to come, however.
*EDIT* I just read that it forces adults and children to Community service and will cost each American a $3 cash advance in 2010. It is a spending bill as it promises college education credits to teenagers. Also, note that this is against the constitution in the 13th amendment: Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime where of the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction. Also, note that many Republicans DID vote for this bill too, not just democrats!

So, the idea that money is given for college sounds great, right? But can this country REALLY afford to spend more money? We are only part of the UN right now because of Communist China!!! Our debt is enough for us NOT to be part of the UN! We can't afford to spend more! The fact that they can pass a bill in the House that goes against the constitution is beyond me! COME ON! Is this just another way to indoctrinate our children with government crap? And, as a stay at home mom, what am I supposed to do with my children when I am out doing FORCED "volunteerism"? I'm not about to pay for day care when I am forced to do something I didn't sign up for. The cost of day care is the biggest reason I stay home in the first place!

These are just a few issues, but get the facts people. Stop listening to the nightly news on your tv and find REAL news. Don't just listen that our economy sucks (we already know that), listen to what our government is ACTUALLY doing about it, among MANY other issues. I will say, I anticipate an overturn in 2010 when our House of Reps. will no longer be held by democrates based on the garbage that has been pulled in the last couple of months. I anticipate change! And God I pray for it.

Alanna's jokes

2009-03-20T18:19:00.000-07:00

Alanna has been making up jokes lately and they are so stupid funny, I thought I would blog them.

What does poop say?
boink

Knock knock
who's there?
poop
poop who?
poop flushed away.

For a two year old, pretty clever. The best part though, her laugh after she tells you the punch line!

SORRY EMILY!

2009-03-20T12:53:00.000-07:00

Please note, my last entry was sheer sarcasm. :) The graphics are not ruined for me and really, I thought Emily's description of the graphics being "blue cheese stuffed olives" was really funny! Emily, I'm sorry that I sounded mad!!! I'm not at all! So sorry Em. I am not going to change the graphics either as I think my logo really needed something added to it. The plain writing just wasn't enough.

Though I have had many comments from different people on the first design on the first post, I think I may be going with the one I posted about in my last comment. When the images that you see are blown up to their actual size, the logo is just overbearing. I do have a few more designs that I thought of last night that I'm going to try. So, we'll see.

Again, I love you Emily! :)

getting somewhere

2009-03-19T17:18:00.000-07:00

This one I like better. Though, Emily just ruined the graphics for me :( I'll never look at those the same again and just might have to ditch it.

Need opinions

2009-03-19T13:36:00.000-07:00

I am changing gears from weddings more towards children's photography and I want a website that is different. In the last few months I have searched up and down for ideas and have decided to go with a blogsite instead of a website. It's kind of a new trend and much more practical for my business. Here are a few things I've done, but nothing is set in stone. Let me know which one you like best.

At this point I am leaning towards the first one because of the simplicity of it. I want the pictures that will be on it, not the blog itself, to be the focal point. That is why I like the first one.

Into everything!

2009-03-18T11:22:00.000-07:00

Alanna has been into everything lately! As if the 911 call wasn't enough, today, she pulled another stunt.

I went down stairs to simply switch my laundry around. When I walked into the living room with the clean load of clothes that I needed to fold, I saw Alanna in the corner of the room. She pulled the ottoman in front of her to hide herself. That was the reason I knew she was up to something she knew she wasn't supposed to be doing. I saw Abram's ammoxocilin on the floor next to her. A brand new bottle was half empty. I called poison control. They concluded Alanna drank about 12 tsp. and, since she has had it before, would probably end up with cramps and diarrhea.

Now, before anyone gets all judgmental on me about this situation (Like some did with the 911 call), it isn't as if I purposefully left it where she could get it. It has to be refrigerated. We don't have one of those nice, tall side by sides where I can put it up really high. It's just the crappy, normal fridge that Alanna can reach every nook and cranny. I did, however, have it in the back of the fridge where I didn't think they would notice it. And it does have a "child proof" cap. The kid opened a child proof bottle!!! GEEZ!!! I can't keep up with this kid. She's worse than when she first turned 2.

911

2009-03-17T17:13:00.000-07:00

Tonight, Alanna found Dan's cell phone and called someone. Caden realized she was talking to someone and took the phone. He thought it was grandpa, but when he realized it wasn't, he handed me the phone. It was 911. Of course, they have to send the police to check things out.

I explained to Alanna that the cops had to come now to make sure everyone was ok. She asked, "are they going to take me to jail?" :) I explained everything to her and she seemed ok with it.

When the cops came in the house, she freaked and clung to me. I explained that my husbands cell phone has a key pad lock on it and the only numbers you can push are 9 and 1. She thought she was calling grandpa. They were really nice about it and just took the info they needed and went on their way.

Needless to say, it was a great way to teach Alanna not to play with a phone. It really is kind of humurous, lets face it. Annoying for me and the cops, you bet, but funny none the less.

prayers PLEASE!

2009-03-16T20:08:00.000-07:00

Today was the first day we were all completely over the flu. It was great, but we had an issue. Abram woke up around 3:30 and would not go back to sleep. I had to sleep on the couch with him in my arms because he was so upset, but he still wasn't sleeping well. The entire morning he cried and fussed and wouldn't let me put him down for much of anything. He ate a pancake for breakfast but didn't eat much for lunch. I called Dan at work because I was so overwhelmed. Caden and Alanna were so exhausted from having the flu this weekend that they were beyond crabby. Between two crabby kids and a very upset baby, I didn't know what to do. Dan came home and took care of Abram while Alanna took and nap and Caden and I did the grocery shopping. When I got home, Abram still hadn't napped much. At dinner he still didnt want to eat. Dan took him to the ER and wasn't given very good news. They took x-rays and found pneumonia on both sides. The Dr. told Dan that because of the pneumonia and having the flu, it could be deadly. Dan called me, and needless to say, I was freaked!!! We both were. Our families were. DEADLY? 11 months old and facing something DEADLY??????

The Dr. did some tests on Abram and found that he no longer had flu. So, it wasn't deadly. Way to freak some parents out! Wait to find out first, huh? ugh. The Dr. was shocked because Abram managed to get over the flu while having pneumonia as the odds are he had it while he had the flu. How does the body of an 11 month old fight off the flu while having pneumonia in both lungs? GOD! Nothing short of God. No one can give the credit to medicine since Abram wasn't on anything while he had the flu! So, GOD! Thank God Dan and I were praying over the everyones health while we had the flu! The thing is, he still does have pneumonia in both lungs. That's serious when you're talking about an 11 month old. I have to take him to the pediatrician tomorrow morning. They may admit him then, but we won't know until the appointment.

Please pray Abram is able to find rest in all of this. He is beyond tired. Most of all, please pray that this passes very quickly and that his little body is able to fight it off!

let's face it

2009-03-15T13:28:00.000-07:00

Who am I kidding? I can't stop blogging! Writing is something I absolutely love to do and I don't have the opportunity to write any where else.

Today, Abram is 11 months old. Amazing. He's almost a toddler! Abram is this little sweet spirit that lights up a room with his smile. I just can't believe my baby is almost one. For those of you who do not have children, it really does go fast. It isn't cliche, it's true. For those of you who only have one, or even two children, it does not slow down with each child, it gets faster. Parenting truly is the most enjoyable, scary, wonderful, frustrating, beautiful, overwhelming part of life. Nothing tops it.

When Abram starts feeling better (he is still kind of under the weather), I'll post pics of the little ones.

I hate the flu

2009-03-14T14:45:00.000-07:00

Since I have been down on my face since yesterday, I need something to do, so I'm blogging.

Thursday, Abram was so lethargic. I didn't know if he was getting sick or he had a tooth coming in. Needless to day, Friday morning I woke up to him puking in his crib. Through out the day Alanna and I ended up with it and Caden got it at 3:30 this morning. This isn't the 24 hour flu everyone else is talking about. Dan was sick for 4 days and had no energy for the last two days. 6 DAYS!!! That's how long he has been sick! Abram is on day three. He isn't vomiting or anything else, just tired. Alanna is the only one who is doing well.

What bites about it, we have had the worst spring fever you can even imagine. Everyone has been losing their minds. And of course, today is absolutely gorgeous out!!! The bright sun and beautiful temps and the snow is almost gone! I just want to be healthy and enjoy the weather. Tomorrow is supposed to be in the mid 50's. You bet I'm praying we're all over this garbage. PLEASE GOD!!!!!

oh boy

2009-03-11T07:22:00.000-07:00

I just deleted a bunch of old posts. In fact, I wrote a post and deleted that as well. Life is a bit hard right now, but I don't want to come across as a complainer. I don't want to use my blog as a place to vent any more. What should I blog about? Should I even have this thing? I'm sick of having a blog and I think I'm going to back off. Maybe for good or maybe for just a little while. We'll see.

2009-03-03T11:18:00.000-08:00

After this winter, I think we should ALL be over the global warming debate!!!!

I am so ready for summer. I miss the feel of grass on bare feet. I long for the days at the beach, in the sun, building sand castles with the kids. I miss long walks in the summer mornings. I can't wait for the days when we don't have to bundle everyone up to head outside. Just slipping on simple sandals, sometimes just bare feet, and heading right out the door. I am ready for picnics at the park and a day of playing on the slide. The smell of fresh cut grass and vibrant flowers. The evening smell of dinner prepared on the grill from neighbors, and sometimes even your own. I can't wait to set up the tent and sleep outside. Playing soccer in the backyard, chalk on the sidewalk, and tag in the grass are so needed around here right now. I miss sleeping with the bedroom windows open and waking up to the sounds of life outside. It is time for spring and summer to show it's face and put an end to this global FREEZING!

Melt snow, melt.

2009-02-26T09:44:00.000-08:00

I really do not have much to say lately. Life has not been terribly interesting. We are just so ready for winter to be over. YAY for spring being right around the corner.

I have recently been shocked that Alanna is about to be 3, Abram is about to be 1 and Caden is going to start school soon. Life is just flying right by me. Don't you wish you could just stop feeding your children and they would stop growing... without dying :) It goes by so incredibly fast. Though it is exciting to experience each new stage, it leaves a bit of sadness when each stage ends. That brings me to this new baby that will be coming in the fall. I get one more chance to experience each stage. One more baby. One more time nursing. I think with this baby, it will be even more sad when each new stage ends.

On a side note, I think this baby is going to be a girl. I haven't been nearly as sick as I was with Caden and Abram. This pregnancy has been more like it was with Alanna.

...

2009-02-20T17:36:00.001-08:00

I'm so tired. Pregnancy is really draining me, as well as the late nights with Abram.

That's all I've got today.

I take that back. Today, Alanna and Caden were fighting. I have no idea why they were fighting. But the next thing I know, Caden is screaming because he is sticky. Apparently, Alanna dumped her Orange juice on his head because she was so mad at him. I couldn't even believe it. Alanna isn't one to start hitting him back, she'll find ways to really push his buttons. She knew that Caden would freak if he got dirty, so she took advantage of it. Sure enough. He flipped out. Alanna is probably the kid that I worry about the most. She is fearless and she tries to be sneaky. I hope the sneaky stuff doesn't last! Yikes.

Stitches

2009-02-14T09:08:00.000-08:00

Last night, as we were getting the kids ready for bed, Alanna went running into her room and tripped on a toy. She fell and smacked her head on the bed. Dan picked her up and there was TONS of blood! I brought her to the bathroom and wiped it enough to see what the damage was. A HUGE gash on her head. It went all the way through the skin layers! We took her into the ER. They put some gooey medicine on her head that took 45 min to numb it! Then the strapped her down on the papoose board and went about putting in three stitches. She did really well, actually. She didn't like being strapped down, but she didn't freak out or anything. This was definitely the worst wound we have ever had to go the ER for (not counting the crazy amount of miracles our family has been healed instantly from!!! Like Alanna's broken leg when she fell 8 foot.).

It's RED!

2009-02-12T13:28:00.000-08:00

Abram has had a red tint to his hair for some time now. Lately, however, it has been even more red! I wonder if it will stay that way.

It's really not a reflection! It just keeps getting more red.

I have been extremely nauseous lately. I feel awful and haven't done much of anything the last week. I remember why I don't like to be pregnant. At least, not the first trimester. yuck. I can't wait till this part is over!

Dan bought these frozen buffalo wings from Costco this weekend. I had one the other day and almost lost it. They were so fatty and just gross. Every time I open the freezer, I can smell the nasty scent of the fatty buffalo wings. Needless to say, they're going in the garbage tonight. Thank goodness Dan didn't like them either! Smells have been getting to me a lot lately and I have been selective of the things I eat. Maybe I'll lose weight! I still can't believe I didn't even lose all the weight after Abram. So disappointing. I'm hoping I don't look like a whale after this baby!

I have been teaching the little kids Rainbow class at church on Wednesday nights. Caden is in the class and it has been so fun. Last night we had a valentines party with the kids. It was so cute. I love the class because it is so organized and an awesome curriculum. It's interesting to see how different Caden is in class compared to home. I've realized how much of a little perfectionist he is. He likes things a certain way and gets really quiet and upset when things are not done the way he thinks they should be. At home, he'll just tell you, "that's NOT how you do it!" It's interesting and a lot of fun. I've realized just how well he will do in school and how ready he really is! I just don't think keeping him home is best for him. Private school it is!

oh boy

2009-02-10T08:29:00.000-08:00

Abram is getting so big. He started waving last month. He also said the word UP when he wanted me to get him out of his high chair. He is also trying to get his balance without holding on to furniture. He's so cute! Alanna is almost 3!!! That's just down right weird to me. But what really gets me is that Caden starts school this fall. Insane.

Well, off to run errands and enjoy the weather!

SURPRISE!

2009-02-06T07:17:00.000-08:00

So, the little curve ball that God has thrown that is costing me some business is:

Come on, you don't know yet?

Really? You haven't figured it out?

Ok, enough screwing around:

Yeah, baby #4 will be here around Oct. 2.

Still not terribly excited as I have had to cancel some weddings and may have to chancel more. That means I have to give back the deposits, which means I have to shell out 1400 I don't have. NICE. Two weeks ago we talked about not having any more kids and sending Dan in to have the procedure done. God apparently had different plans. His practical jokes are not so funny. :) The kids are excited. Caden even said, "Mom, after this baby, we have room in the van for one more!" HA! He is about as funny as God. hahahaha. I will get my excitement (Maybe) after I deal with the business side of this. And if I here "Again?" from one more person, I'm going to lose my mind! That got old after the 3rd time.

ANYWAY, so, baby #4 is on it's way!

Thankful

2009-02-03T10:19:00.000-08:00

Today I am thankful. I am thankful to still have a husband. I am thankful Dan isn't even hurt. Today a We-energies plant had an explosion, just 10 minutes before Dan was about to walk in. If that isn't something to be thankful for, than I don't know what is! The only reason he wasn't inside is because he was held up by another work situation. Otherwise, he would have been inside. God protects!

Today is a good day.

But for some people it is not a good day. Pray for those families!

prayer

2009-02-01T19:19:00.000-08:00

I just have a prayer request, but I can't go into detail until I know what's going on for sure. It is not really a big deal, but it does effect other people in a way that could be very frustrating for them and overwhelming for me. So, please just pray that God works this all out.

When I know the firm facts and make aware anyone who may need to know, I'll give the details. For now, please just pray for me.

crafty

2009-01-29T12:56:00.001-08:00

The other day I found a really cool alphabet poster on etsy, but frankly, I wasn't about to spend $30 on a print and then frame it too. Especially since I wanted one for each child. A print that I want to put in my child's room is not something I want to spend a fortune on since it probably won't be in their room for long. So, I made my own. It's almost identical, except the font. Dan found out which font they used, but I didn't want to pay $12 for a font I may never use again. Not worth it. So I found a free font that was similar. Here is what I came up with:

I'm all about supporting crafters trying to make ends meet, but I also have a budget to keep. Since I'm not selling them, I figure why not copy their idea. I'm going to have it printed at officemax and then frame them and put them in the kids rooms.

I also have to make Abram a new crib bumper as his was destroyed in the wash. :( So sad, I loved the one I made. I found a crib skirt at target for $5 the other day. I'm going to make everything around that. I have some fabric I can use to make him curtains. I found a seller on etsy who sells 2" wool felt circles for a very cheap price. Since they match the colors of the circles on the crib skirt, I'm going to sew them on the curtains. I think I'm going to keep the bumper pad a simple solid color. Not sure yet. Though, I may just buy the set that matches it since it is on sale right now. Kind of weird starting over on his room this late. Oh well. It's something I enjoy and who knows, we could use it again in the future. The very distant future!!! Here's the bumper pad that matches the crib skirt I bought:

No Part 2

2009-01-21T13:19:00.000-08:00

I have decided not to write a part 2. Instead, I'm changing my topic completely. With the election last November and yesterdays inauguration, I have been, once again, brought back to the church and the harm we are doing. Here are my thoughts and study about it:

It seems to me that politics have polluted the church so much. We have gone from focusing on the basics to worrying about the problems of the world and how they don't match up with scripture. Though, the things of the world are not lining up with the Word, should our focus be on that? It seems to me that because we have stressed these issues over the years, people are so turned off by the local church. That's sad. We are harming ourselves more than helping.

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Matthew 28:19-20 Instead of making disciples, we are tarnishing the name of our Savior!!! I think this goes for all of those Christians who appose and support big issues like abortion and homosexuality. Running out and taking sides on those issues and shoving them down each others throats have put a distaste in the mouths of those who are not Christians.

Also note that disciple means "learner." The only way for us to learn is to continue a relationship with God. We learn through HIM!

The word Saint is used to describe Christians many times in the New Testament. Make note the Bible is not talking about people who are dead and have been declared a saint by a few men. Every Christian is a saint. The word Saint means "holy." Holy means "Set apart."

They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sactify them in the truth; Your word is the truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. John 17:16-18 Christians are called to be set apart from the world. We are called to be in the world but not a part of it. This makes me feel that we need to step away from the politics in life and start doing what we are here to do... making disciples.

My point is simply this: Christians need to stop focusing on battling with each other and with non Christians about issues like abortion and homosexuality and start getting back to the reason we were created.

Letting God use us to bring others to Him is the reason we live. That is more important than anything else in the world. The beauty of that is in having a family and raising our children, we are doing our ministry! We are making little disciples for God! Are we filling their heads with the concerns of the world or are we leading their hearts to Christ? Which is really more important? Teaching our sons that they can be whatever they want to be or our daughters that they are equal to men, or teaching our children that the reason for life is Christ alone?

It's time to get back to the basics and that is exactly what I plan on doing in my own life and in my family. How about you?

Our fulfillment

2009-01-20T11:24:00.000-08:00

Today I have faced some thoughts that have struck me hard. I have been forced, once again to look at the Bible and what it says about women and their roles. My main purpose in this study, is to clarify that God is our only source of total happiness. Without HIM, we can NOT be the best Mother, wife, employee, business owner, friend, daughter, etc. Bare with me as this is my process of learning and my research into the Word of God.

God has brought me to the verse in Deuteronomy 4:24, which says, "For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God." Regarding this verse The Wiersbe Bible Commentary: Old Testament, says, "God is jealous of His people the way a husband is jealous over his wife or a mother over her children. He wants the very best for us, but when we deliberately go our own way, we grieve His heart and miss all he wants to do for us." God wants all of us! He wants to have every part of our being.

Matthew 6:21 says, "Delight yourselves in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." I absolutely LOVE what the Wiersbe Bible Commentary says about this verse!!! "The word translated "delight," comes from a word that means "to be brought up in luxury, to be pampered." It speaks of the abundance of the blessings we have in the Lord Himself, totaly apart from what He gives us. To enjoy the blessing and ingnore the Blesser is to practice idolatry. In Jesus Christ we have all Gods treasures, and we need no other. If we truly delight in the Lord, the the chief desire of our heart will be to know Him better so we can delight in Him even more, and the Lord will satisfy that desire! This is not a promise for people who want "things," but for those who want more of God in their lives." How profound is that?

Matthew takes this a step further. "Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need." -Matthew 6:33 From this verse, God is telling the mother who is lacking in fulfillment to put HIM first, above our children and our husband. By doing so, HE gives us EVERYTHING WE NEED!!!!! The fulfillment in life to be content! Our husband is not our source of fulfillment, nor our children, BUT GOD IS!

Today I heard a postmodern thought on the subject. A subtle statement that one can find desires from whatever source they choose. That broke my heart. It broke my heart because the Bible is not, "to each his own." The Bible is truth. And here, the Bible does NOT say we can find fulfillment in ANYTHING but God Himself!!!

I heard this analogy in a card from Karen Carney, our previous pastors wife, and again today: The closer a husband and wife come to God, the closer they become to each other.

When Karen drew this in the card, she wrote on the bottom line of the triangle "Good". On the first dash line she wrote, "Better" and on the last line she wrote "Best". It gets better when we get closer to HIM! When we can not achieve a close relationship with our spouse unless we first achieve a close relationship with God. It's the same with our children. Our relationship with them will not be as close and as great as it can be until we start getting closer to God.

I have so much more to say about this, but it will come in a part 2 post in the near future.

funny

2009-01-16T14:02:00.001-08:00

I just thought this was kind of funny:

In Florida , an atheist created a case against the upcoming Easter and Passover holy days. He hired an attorney to bring a discrimination case against Christians, Jews and observances of their holy days. The argument was that it was unfair that atheists had no such recognized days.

The case was brought before a judge. After listening to the passionate presentation by the lawyer, the judge banged his gavel declaring, "Case dismissed!"

The lawyer immediately stood objecting to the ruling saying, "Your honor,how can you possibly dismiss this case? The Christians have Christmas, Easter and others. The Jews have Passover, Yom Kippur and Hanukkah, yet my client and all other atheists have no such holidays."

The judge leaned forward in his chair saying, "But you do. Your client, counsel, is woefully ignorant."

The lawyer said, "Your Honor, we are unaware of any special observance or holiday for atheists."

The judge said, "The calendar says April 1st is April Fools Day. Psalm 14:1 states, 'The fool says in his heart, there is no God.' Thus, it is the opinion of this court, that if your client says there is no God, then he is a fool. Therefore, April 1st is his day. Court is adjourned."

Love SALES!

2009-01-15T20:18:00.000-08:00

Target has had these great puppets that I have wanted to get the kids for so long. But at $16.00 a piece, I couldn't do it. Well, tonight, I found them for $4.00 each! We bought one for each child and then I went back and bought 4 more for Caden's b-day (not until July, but who cares when you get deals like that). I got the ones below and some others too. So great! There are so many sales there right now. You may want to check it out!

Change of pace

2009-01-14T19:28:00.000-08:00

I'm going to totally change the mood from my last couple posts....on to life.

Let me set the scene. Abram was sleeping. Caden was upstairs with me while I was cleaning up Alanna's pee. (I don't know what is going on with her but she won't stop wetting her pants...3+ times a day!!! Just trying to be patient) Alanna was downstairs putting her clothes in the laundry.

Here is what happened. I sent Caden downstairs to grab something out of the closet. The same closet with cleaning supplies. He gets back upstairs by me and suddenly I hear a familiar noise. Alanna in the closet. I yell to Alanna to get out of their. Caden and I go running down the stairs, Caden first. He gets to the kitchen, slips and slides into the kitchen table and chairs, HARD! I was right behind him and slipped backwards and hit my head on the microwave cart. It wasn't as bad as it sounds because I grazed it more than anything. There is a bump, b ut it could be worse. We were both on the floor crying and Caden says, "Are you ok?" I know right....so selfless and thoughtful. We were both ok, but we hurt. Alanna just stood their kind of floored, the bottle of goo-gone (the best product for cleaning crayons off of walls and other places it shouldn't be ;) in her hands. It's an oily cleaner. Thats why we biffed it so bad. I did discipline her because she is NOT supposed to be in there. Caden must not have close the closet door hard, because if it's closed, she NEVER goes in there. Anyway, she turns around to head towards the closet and pick up her toy when she falls flat on her butt. Pretty sure Alanna got the picture, even if it did take a bump on my head and a bruise on Caden's cheek. :) We're all ok and good lessons were learned.

Thank God it wasn't worse!

Here it is

2009-01-14T16:38:00.001-08:00

Even though only one person commented, I'll say the rest of my comments now.

Lets face it people, we have all done it at least once or at least thought about doing it. We've left our child(ren) in the car for a short time. I'm not talking rediculous amounts of time or even 10 minutes, but short very brief moments.

I gave the scenario of officemax and running into make 2 quick photocopies. Yes, this was me just the other day. I had to head out and make copies of some contracts that I needed to mail to clients. Abram falls asleep on the way there. I pull into the parking lot and finish about 5 min. of paperwork. Knowing Abrams sleep patterns, I decided to blast the heat for a minute before I went in. I parked by the windows and ran in to make the copies. I payed and walked out. Seriously, 2 minutes. The car was off, the kids were buckled and the doors were locked. Of course our back windows are tinted but the front isn't. So, you could see the kids if you were looking. After I got back to the car I was finishing some paperwork. That took another 5 minutes. As I was finishing up this old man walks up to my window. I roll it down and he says to me, "What are you going to do when it gets really cold out?" "what are you talking about?" (me) "Leave that little girl in the car in this weather!" (Him) "I was in there for just a second. I wasn't dicking around shopping." (me) "BULLSHIT!" (he says as I drive away)

I do have a few things to say about it. Of course, taking all of the kids out or just going home is the best option. But lets face it, if you have kids, you know that isn't always reality. The "best" option isn't always the "best" option. But seriously, if you really have the need to say something to someone about it, try a better tactic than being an a$$.

Do people really think a parent "likes" to leave their child in the car? Yeah, right! But then it makes me wonder, is the parent who leaves their children in the car to go in and pay for gas any better than me running quickly into officemax (it took about the same amount of time)?

We all realize the risks of leaving children in a car. We have news media shoving down our throats all the bad things that happen in the world. How could we not know? And yet, every other person in the world is not waiting to take my children from me. Yes, it is a very real thing. But I'm sick of looking over my shoulder every time I go anywhere because of fear of someone taking or abusing my children. I'm sick of the nightmares I have about that.

Anyway, I walked away feeling two things. I felt like the worst mother in the entire world. I felt that everyone, including those of you reading this, would feel that I am the worst mother in the world. I felt as though this were a situation that I should hide from all those around me. But I feel in the deepest part of me, that I shouldn't hide it. I walked into a store, for 2 minutes, while I could see my children, and walked out. I didn't starve them. I didn't beat them bloody. I didn't tell them they were worthless pieces of crap. I didn't leave them out to die in the cold. I am NOT the worst mother in the world. I'm not even close to it. As much as I have a hard time agreeing with it, I am a great mother. (That's even hard for me to type. Because I really don't believe it) I'm not the Mom who does this every day. In fact, I don't even do it every month, or every other month. I can count the number of times on one hand.

It's sad. When I was little, leaving your child in the car wasn't an issue. Now, a parent is looked down upon and even judged as a horrible person, neglecting their children. Why don't we refocus and deal with the parents who are truly neglecting their children.

The other thing I felt, was true regret. Regret because I know it isn't the best option. Regret because I hate myself for doing it. Regret because sometimes the things that seem easier are so not worth it. Even the slightest chance of my child being harmed in any way is not worth it to me. So, no...I'm not condoning leaving a child in the car. In fact, I'm wishing I could say I have NEVER done it. I'm not even saying it's a good idea. I'm just saying, don't judge me, or anyone else, as a parent. When you see something you disagree with, don't jump down their throats. Step back and stop being judgemental.

*this is meant for the a$$ who yelled at me. Not you!

hmmm

2009-01-14T05:45:00.000-08:00

There are a few possibilities here:

1. no one reads my blog
2. you're ashamed to admit you would or have left your kids in the car
3. you judge me because you think I have
4. you just don't care about it

my wheels are turning. :)

Anyway, Abram has been trying to walk! AHHHH. it's kind of exciting. He keeps standing and then letting go of things, but falls right to his butt. He is also attempting to crawl up the stairs. Craziness.

What would you do?

2009-01-12T11:24:00.000-08:00

You have three kids in your van on the way to OfficeMax. You just need to make a couple photocopies and you're done. You planned to bring them in the store with you, but the baby is asleep (20 min.)...now what do you do? (the other two are buckled and eating their lunch)

A. Wake the baby up and just deal with him screaming in the store, knowing he may not fall back to sleep well once you get him back in his seat.

(note that you can see the car the entire time you are in the store)
B. Leave all of them in the car. The car is off and locked and you bring your keys with you.

C. Leave all of them in the car. The car is running, doors are locked and you have the key fab.

D. Just go home and try again later.

Have you ever done B or C? Has anyone (family friend or stranger) ever said anything to you about it?

photography products

2009-01-09T19:21:00.000-08:00

I found these frames that are only available to photographers and interior designers. They are so fun looking. I may start offering these in the near future when I start pushing my children's photography. I have really been enjoying the baby photography and want to pursue that more than the weddings. Not to mention the money is better because there is less time involved and I don't have to spend and entire day away on a weekend. We'll see though. But anyway, here are some of the frames:

And stay tuned for the new blogsite coming in the next month or two. My website is getting totally revamped and I'm SOOO excited! It will look a lot like the gift certificate I recently had Melissa design for me, since she is using those graphics and designing the banner for the site.

2009-01-01T18:49:00.000-08:00

As I mentioned in my post about the kid corner, I am working on figuring out a way to have the kids display their artwork under the shelves. I had already thought about the string and clothespin ideas, but want something a bit more decorative. Here's some things I found tonight:

This one is a strip of metal with holes in it (easy to screw to the wall), from Home Depot that was painted and magnets used to hang the art. I love the look but am afraid of the magnets with Abram as everything does go in the mouth if it's on the floor. So, bigger magnets than she used! So this might be it.

These rock! You can easily change the artwork, but they cost more than I want to spend...about 25-35 dollars a piece, depending on the size. Aren't they cool though? I do want them to be able to hang the artwork themselves and I don't want glass that low by the kids corner.

This is just a cool archive piece. They take the artwork you send in and shrink it and print it on the poster. TERRIBLY expensive though. over $100! I could it myself for a whole lot less than that!

I've also been looking for a way to store their crayons, markers and colored pencils where they can reach them on their little table (right now they are in one of the bins on the high shelves) and still looks cute.

Anyway, just some ideas I found. Time to go and watch HOUSE! We so love this series. Only on season one...lots to watch.

2009-01-01T16:21:00.000-08:00

Dan found this info about food on a website called sixwise.com. It is VERY interesting! Note that the foods should be eaten raw in order to receive the benefits discussed.

	1. Sliced Carrots: They look like the human eye (complete with pupil, iris and radiating lines), and research shows carrots enhance blood flow and function of the eyes.
	2. Tomatoes: Like your heart, a tomato has four chambers and is red. Tomatoes contain lycopene, which is excellent for your heart.
	3. Grapes: A cluster of grapes is shaped like your heart, and each grape could be a blood cell. Science shows that grapes are nourishing for your heart and blood.
	4. Walnuts: These wrinkly nuts look like little brains, which makes sense considering walnuts help develop more than three dozen neurotransmitters for brain function, and are a rich source of brain-healthy omega-3 fats.
	5. Kidney Beans: Of course these look like your kidneys, and they contain nutrients that can help maintain and heal kidney function. Kidney beans are also an excellent source of the trace mineral, molybdenum. This mineral helps detoxify sulfites, a type of preservative added to many foods (and to which many people are sensitive), from the body.
	6. Celery, Bok Choy and Rhubarb: These and other rigged, ribbed veggies resemble your bones. They are also 23 percent sodium -- just like your bones -- which is important since your body will pull sodium from your bones if it doesn't get enough from your diet.
	7. Avocadoes, Eggplant and Pears: Ever notice how these raw foods resemble a woman's womb and cervix? Well eating one avocado a week has been found to help balance hormones, prevent cervical cancer and help women shed birth weight. Ironically, it also takes nine months for an avocado to grow from blossom to ripened fruit.
	8. Figs: These fruits are full of seeds and hang in twos while growing. They're also known to increase the number and mobility of sperm and help overcome male infertility.
	9. Sweet Potatoes: These veggies look like your pancreas and help to stabilize your blood sugar levels and lower insulin resistance. They're even known as an "anti-diabetic" food.
	10. Olives: Shaped much like a woman's ovaries, olives actually support the function of the ovaries.
	11. Oranges, Grapefruits and Other Citrus: These resemble mammary glands, and the fruits assist the health of the breasts.
	12. Onions: These look like your body's cells, and science shows that onions help to remove waste materials from your body's cells.

Christmas

2008-12-30T20:32:00.000-08:00

Because of the business of Christmas, we opened our gifts with the kids on Christmas Eve morning...that was kind of strange. But the kids didn't know the difference. So then we were off to Dan's parents after church on Christmas Eve. Here is a pic of Abram on Christmas morning at Grandma and Grandpa Z's. He looks so big.

This next picture is what I did to the corner of the living room after we took the tree down last Sunday. Yes, the tree went down that fast. I was sick of looking at it, wanted to get this set up for the kids, and it died while we were at Dan's parents. So, we set it up on Sunday. The table was a gift for the kids from Dan's parents. The toy storage we had bought a while back at IKEA. Dan hung up the shelves (Cheap ones we got from Home Depot.) I may paint them, but I'm not sure. The storage totes I picked up on sale from Walmart. They hold all of the craft supplies and education materials. I am going to hang something up under the shelves to hold their artwork. Just not sure what yet. I'm also going to make or buy a splat mat to go under the table to protect the carpet from crafts. The kids have adored having a space for themselves. It's such a great addition for them.

who am I?

2008-12-26T21:28:00.000-08:00

Have you ever come to the realization that the way others have viewed you is so opposite of the way you want to be viewed? Have you ever taken a step back and realized that the way you have been living your life is no where near where you want to be? That's where I am.

I grew up in a large family that is nothing short of sarcastic. I then married a husband who is much the same. In some sense, I've used sarcasm as a means to prevent others from hurting me. Much of my childhood, I spent picked on by those around me. Kids are mean sometimes and I got it pretty bad from a lot of kids. I don't want to be the person that others think is heartless and rude. I don't want to be the person who is out throwing around sarcastic remarks. I don't want to have my husband come home and ask me, EVERY DAY, why I am crabby. I don't want to have wonderful little children stuck with a mom who doesn't get down on the floor and play with them more because she is too busy with her business. I don't want my little ones thinking that I was too crabby, sad, or mad to just have fun and love on them. I don't want others to remember me as unhappy, depressed, or rude.

I do want others to remember me as encouraging, happy, full of joy, and loving. I want my husband to come home and ask me, EVERY DAY, why I am so happy. I want my children to remember me playing on the floor with them and utilizing all of my time playing with them. I want to my children to remember me as being available to them. I want my children to remember me as respectful, encouraging, and truly in love with their father. I want my husband to have a wife who will be their for him both sexually and emotionally (women tend to struggle with that don't they?). Most of all, I want people to know that God is the center of my life. I want people to see HIM radiate from me. I want people to look at me and know there is something different. I don't want to be the person who only asks God to do things for me, but instead, lives a life for God, in worship! Simply because, HE deserves it. I want my life to be a testimony of Gods love and grace. I want to be different than I am right now. I'm sick of living like this. I don't want to waste one minute of my life in regret or disappointment. I want people to want to be around me, and I don't think that's the case right now. I wouldn't want to be around me either.

I've spent most of my life trying to be great at so many different things just for the approval of everyone around me. I've had it all wrong. I now realize that God has called me to set all the "stuff" aside and focus on living my life in worship to HIM and being the best mom and wife I can. The photography, the sewing, the crafts, it just has to stop. It isn't worth it. It all means nothing. My God, my family, and my example to those who don't love God are the only things that really matter. My ministry. That matters. My ministry is my family and those that still need a relationship with Christ. Everything else is pointless. Life doesn't make sense with out God and I have wasted too much time trying to make a life without HIM.

Where to begin? I have no idea.

Finger puppets

2008-12-23T00:10:00.000-08:00

Here are the puppets I made for Caden. It's after 2 in the morning and I'm finally done. It took me two very late nights to make these, but they are so worth it. Super cute. Not a great picture, but you get the idea. Cut me some slack...it's late. I'm going to bed. I'll post more homemade Christmas pics later.

Too many teeth!

2008-12-20T06:17:00.001-08:00

Abram started teething about a month ago. Two weeks later (two weeks ago), his first two teeth came in. The top front teeth. He wasn't sleeping well AT ALL! But the crappy sleep didn't stop there. It kept on going. I couldn't figure out what was going on. Then, yesterday, his bottom front teeth came in. Yesterday afternoon, Abram finally gave me a chance to look in his mouth and I noticed another tooth that maybe on it's way. 5 teeth in two weeks???? That's crap! I feel bad for the poor little guy. That's insane. At least we're getting it all over with though.

Last night he had motrin and orajel and he slept until 4:30! YAY! We all feel better.

Anyway, time to get going. We're about to decorate cookies today.

Finally!

2008-12-18T10:54:00.000-08:00

We are finally getting a minivan this evening. It's used, but it works and we all fit. Frankly, that's all I've been wanting anyway. How nice it will be to have room to pack things when we go out of town. Just in time for our trip to Dan's parents for Christmas. God is good and he knows what he's doing.

I will admit, however, that it is a bit hard for me to do this because of how we're getting it. We're selling our car for $700 (yes, it's that crappy). The remaining 1100 is being paid by my parents and my brother and sister-in-law. Derek and Chrissy decided to pitch in 400 for our Christmas gift! WHAT?!?! Who buys their sister a 400 dollar Christmas gift when that sister owes them 460 dollars already? My parents are paying the rest. I wish we could do it completely on our own. But, Dan's pay checks have been awful lately because his hours have been light. Apparently, that's the way it is in the winter. Had his hours been normal, we could have done it ourselves since I have booked so many weddings this month. THe money I made would have paid for it. Instead, that money has been used to make up for the loss on his pay checks. And yet I can't complain. Dan has a job and God provided where his job lacked by blessing my business. I just wish I had the money to do it myself so my parents and brother wouldn't have to. Heck, I wish would win the lottery (then I would have to play the lottery) and take care of all those that I love so much.

So, to my parents and Derek and Chrissy... you're the best! I couldn't ask for better family. You have blessed me time and time again and I can't say enough thank you's. You are amazing, all of you. I love you!

love and respect

2008-12-17T20:06:00.000-08:00

If you haven't read the book or watched the CD's, you REALLY need to! I can't tell you how much it has blessed our marriage (not that it was bad before, either). We fight a lot less because we realize the differences we have. Things I never thought about before. For example, what they call "shoulder time." Simply being with your husband...not talking. That is a task that is not easy for women, but so needed for men. It energizes them. Try it. While he is watching a football game, just sit there next to him and watch it with him. While he is out fishing, just go with him, in silence. Really, I thought the idea was dumb, but I looked at Dan and he was just nodding his head. He has informed me how incredibly important that is to him. I see that with Caden too. He loves for me to just be in the same room with him. I used to think Dan was mad at me if he wasn't talking to me. That's no the case at all. Men can seriously go to a place with NO THOUGHTS at all. Can you imagine? That isn't wrong, it's just different from us. We have a rule of no snacks in the living room, kitchen only. Caden refuses to eat in the kitchen alone. He just wants me to sit next to him and be there. Sometimes no talking. Before, I used to force conversation with him, but now I get it.

Something my mom and grandmother have told me before, but was reiterated in Love and Respect, is the issue of a mans sexuality. Men have a constant struggle with their eyes and a need for a sexual release. We all know that right? But if we with hold sex, we're making the temptation to look elsewhere so much greater. No wonder infidelity is so common. Women are just too tired. It made me ask myself, "Am I too tired to keep my marriage free of infidelity?" Another thing about the sexual aspect of marriage, your husband REALLY loves it when you initiate. When is the last time you did that? It touches his soul when you do. He wants to be needed and when you want sex, he feels SOOO needed by you. Talk about an ego builder :) In tonights session, it was put this way, "Women, can you imagine if your husband didn't fulfill your need for emotional release (letting you talk and share your heart) for three days? Three weeks? Three months? Three years?" I can't imagine no talking for that long. That hit me hard. That would drive any women into the arms of another man, or at least in a loveless marriage. Why should we have the right to do that to our husband? Paul tells us in Corinthians not to with hold sex from one another, but we still do it. hmmm... I must say, I will be doing whatever I can to do my part.

Something I plan to start asking myself is this, "How do I want my future daughter in law to treat my son?" That kind of puts it in perspective. Do I want to see Caden in a marriage where his sexual need is not met? Do I want him to feel unloved or disrespected? I think it hit Dan through out this series when they would say, "How do you want your future son in law to treat your daughter?" What a difference that makes. Would you treat your spouse in a way you hope your child isn't treated?

On a bit of a different note, tonight I realized that some day, Dan might be preforming Alanna's wedding ceremony. Here he is, in school for ministry, and he may just be the one officiating her wedding. The thought of his daughter getting married is something that hits him every time he thinks about it. He has shed many tears at the thought of her getting married. Can you imagine her wedding ceremony if he officiated? I don't know if he could get through it. My prayer is that her future husband has that much, if not more, passion for her. I pray that she is so loved and cared for.

Anyway, another thing that was talked about tonight that I already know, but need to work on, is being Dan's biggest cheerleader. Men love to dream. When Dan and I were dating, I loved listening to his dreams and saying and enthusiastic, "Oh really?" After we were married, when he shared those dreams, my "Oh really?" became more of a "You have got to be kidding me?" type comment. I have worked on that hard over the last couple of years because of a conversation we had. Dan told me how much I had hurt him after one of my unenthusiastic "Oh really?" type comments. He let me know that not all of those dreams are things he would really do, but he just wanted my encouragement and support. He wants to know that I support him in everything. He wants to know that I am always there to hold his hand. Is that really so hard for me to do? No.

Dan has felt as though this series has explained to me all the things he needed but didn't even know he needed, or at least, how to explain to me what he needed. Most marriage seminars talk about what the man needs to do, but this one talks about what we both need to do. I walked away from this wondering why no one told me what respect really was. I learned so much and our marriage is better for it. I know I'm not sharing much about what the guys should do for us women, but I think that is for a man to share, not me.

My prayer for you tonight, is that you not only READ THIS BOOK :), but that you start doing for your husband the things you used to do before you were married. If he plays intramural sports, go sit and watch a game like you did in college. If he shares a dream, show interest and really listen. If he needs sex, give it to him, joyfully. Maybe even initiate. Go and make your marriage better. Don't fret about what you haven't done so far, we're all sinners. Just pick up and start again. Remember this verse: Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23. Be blessed.

sometimes change is good

2008-12-16T07:09:00.000-08:00

I am so excited that so many changes will be coming in the near future. God has been showing so much to us lately, revealing all the things he has promised us. This move to Port has turned out to be the best move we have made. Not that I didn't love the other church's we have attended, as each has filled specific needs and brought us to the place we are now. This church, however, is the first church we have felt valued at. I mean, the 3rd week we attended, the pastor tells us we are going to be used in a big way. More recently, we have been told some things in the church by one of the staff members/pastors, that may just change our future so much. The potential for big things is coming. And though I have a piece of what those things are, I can't yet share. But, over the next couple of years, I expect lots of change. So, stay tuned. oohhh, the suspense:)

My head is spinning!

2008-12-12T15:19:00.000-08:00

I have spent a chunk of my day trying to figure out what to get the kids for Christmas. I ran across a few AWESOME toys! Check these out:

I'm sure you are wondering, "What the hell is that?" Well, I did too. I read a little bit on it and it's whole purpose is to let your kids use their imaginations. It's large enough for them to sit it. So, how about put them in the kitchen and let them spin themselves crazy. Or pull a sibling around in it. Use it to carry toys. A cave for animals. To dig in the sand. A seat. It's strong, so you can flip it over and stand on it. A stool. My favorite, a sled!!!! I might just get one of these. It's about 27 bucks. But think about a box. That provides endless amounts of fun...why not this!

I just bought four of these doll diapers for Alanna from Etsy.com. She's always stealing diapers from me...so, she gets her own. I'm also going to make her a few doll blankets out of some remnants I have. quick and easy.

I found these finger puppets on etsy! I'm debating if I'm going to buy them or just make them. They want 22 dollars for them, but they really don't take a whole lot to make. Maybe a night. We'll see.

Anyway, just a few things I'm thinking about. So much to consider.

Happy Birthday Jesus Party

2008-12-10T12:31:00.000-08:00

Holly asked how I did the party. Let me first say, I didn't! :) Caden and Alanna were invited from a little girl that they go to Sunday school with. I've wanted to do one of these for awhile, but haven't had the opportunity. These are the things we did on Monday at Gracie's house.

Liz made invites on Christmas stationary and sent them to each child (Caden and Alanna both got their own invite. Not a family invite). When we first got there, we did a little craft. We made gingerbread houses...kind of. You take those individual tropicana oj boxes (with oj still in them) and frost them with can frosting. Don't waste your time making it, just buy it! Then they break graham crackers in half and stick them to the sides and the top for the roof. They they use more frosting on the graham crackers and stick candies to them. In our case, it was M&M's, gumdrops, and licorice. So easy and so fun. My kids ended up eating it all on the way home and drank the oj with lunch. :)

After the craft we played a few games. Pin the star on the manger was the first. She simply printed a picture of a manger scene (like from a coloring book) and cut out stars. They had to get their star closest to the star on the picture. Cute and easy.

Then they played a little treasure hunt with candy canes. Liz just hid them all over their toy room and let the kids find them.

Each child then had a cupcake with a candle in it. We sang happy birthday to Jesus and they got to blow out their own candle. While they were eating, Liz read an adorable version of the birth of Jesus.

Afterwards the kids played and were able to go home with a cute little party favor bag. The bag said happy birthday Jesus and she found all the party stuff from oriental trading.

The party was a lot of fun and the kids LOVED it! I really suggest doing this with your little ones. It is so much fun and such a great way to make it more real. Dan and I plan on making a cake for Christmas just to drive the point in. It isn't about gifts, it's about Jesus. :)

Christmas cookies

2008-12-09T13:32:00.000-08:00

I have been spending a little time planning what kind of cookies to make for Christmas this year. There is always one kind of cookie that will always be made in this house....cut out cookies. I LOVE spending time with the kids decorating them. It is so incredibly messy and fun! SO, those are a given.

However, I recently found this recipe. Now, I'm a "make it from scratch" kind of girl, but this recipe is, what I like to call, a cheater recipe. It could be made from scratch, though. Which I will do, but you don't have to. :) Here's the picture:

Here's the link.

I've been debating whether or not to make a gingerbread house with the kids. Caden really wants to, but I'm just not sure. I don't want to do one of the kits, though. I thought about making the cookie part at night and decorating it with the kids. I'm not sure. We'll see.

I may also make my brothers favorite... pecan crisps. I will have to post this recipe. It is truly AMAZING.

Another kid friendly recipe is the good old peanut butter blossoms. The kids love to help with those too... putting on the kisses.

When I was a kid we used to make eggnog logs. Those are good too and I just might try those.

Have any good recipes? I'd love to hear them!

Cloth wipes

2008-12-09T07:22:00.000-08:00

I have been toying with the idea of using cloth wipes for awhile now. It hasn't seemed like it would be such a big deal seeing as I already use cloth diapers. Well, today I ran out of wipes and didn't want to bundle everyone up and head out in the crappy weather. Instead, I pulled out the extra flannel fabric in my sewing bin and cut out wipes with my pinking shears. No sewing included. I figured, since it was scrap fabric, it wouldn't be a big deal if I buy some more fabric and make more later. We'll see if it works or if I need to zig-zag stitch the edges. It just seems like it is such a waste to use disposable, especially since I already use cloth diapers.

Yesterday, when we got home from a little Happy Birthday Jesus party, Abram was asleep so I put him on the couch while I ran to the bathroom. He was partly out of his snowsuit. I was going to change him when I was done going to the bathroom. Well, when I came out, Alanna had his diaper off and Caden was yelling for me to hurry up. I came in and he was holding Abram's legs up. When I got there, Caden let his legs go and they fell in the poopy diaper. Caden told me he had just grabbed his legs while he was waiting for me. It was EVERYWHERE! On the snowsuit, the clean diaper lying next to him, his clothes and ALL OVER HIM! I had to put him in the tub to clean him up. NASTY! It was so messy.

Off to play with the kiddos.

...

2008-12-08T17:23:00.000-08:00

Last night we were at church for the children's Christmas program. A lady at our church was holding Abram. He started getting fussy, started reaching for me, and said MAMAMAMAMAMA.
It was soooo cute!

Kind of unhappy that Dan got called out to work tonight. The roads are AWFUL! Not cool. Keep him in prayer as it may be a late night. Dan doesn't handle the nights very well. tired and driving in bad weather do not go together well.

I've been wanting to start working out for so long. I miss working out at Tomahawk High School with Sarah. The YMCA is like 65 bucks a month. I can't afford that right now. Honestly, I don't want to have to pay a fee to work out. I wonder if Port opens up the High School....hmmmm. I doubt it. I might just fork out the money to start working out again. I don't know. We'll see.

Since Thursday, I have booked three weddings and have two more meetings with potential clients this week. May end up booking them too. Wouldn't be surprised if I did, but you never know. Thank God because Dan's pay checks have been AWFUL lately. 60 hour pay checks suck. Especially when that the pay check we were planning to buy Christmas gifts for the kids with. Not so sure what will happen with presents this year. Oh well.

Not much else is going on in our little home.

Hopes and Dreams

2008-12-04T13:24:00.000-08:00

Dr. Dobsen often states that only 2% of marriages reach the place that God has designed marriages to be. (Can't word that well, does that make sense) I can honestly say that Dan and I are just not there. I want to be. I want to be so in love with him. More than that, I want to respect him the way he truly needs.

I've said it before, but I truly believe that women just do not understand what respect is. Respect is not something that is demanded. Respect is not something that should be used as a means to abuse. Respect is an action by another person, given out of a response. Respect is not given freely. It is given because we WANT to respect. Not out of bitterness or anger.

Let me show you some synonyms of respect so that you can better understand what the word means:

Consider, esteem, honor, regard, value, cherish, prize, treasure, account, admiration, appreciation, consideration

Do you see it? Do you see what your husband wants and NEEDS from you? He wants you to boost his ego. Ladies, he beats himself down enough. He doesn't need you to do it too. He wants you to tell him how great of a man he is. He wants to know that no other man could ever be as great for you as he is. He wants you to appreciate the sacrifices he makes for you and your family DAILY. He wants you to look at him with so much admiration every day of your life. He wants you to want to be with him sexually. He wants you to want his hands all over you. He wants you to treasure who he really is. He wants you to be so in love with him, not just love him.

Do you see it? It isn't about being submissive. It isn't about being a slave. It's about being in love with him.

I think that once women realize what respect really is, it is easier to get to that point. The hardest part about respecting our husband is the part where we die to ourselves. Given everything of ourselves completely. It's hard to show him every corner of our being, but that is ultimately what he wants. For us to give him EVERYTHING.

I don't know about you, but I want to be one of those couples that is so in love people stop and notice. I want my children to remember how much we love each other. I want to be the best example of what marriage is to them. I want them to look up to us when they are married because we have shown them the best marriage they have ever seen. I want to be that old couple, after 50 years of marriage, that still loves each other like we just started dating.

Don't you want that? Ladies, we have a calling to step up and start respecting him. We have a calling to fall in love with him all over again. Start noticing the little things he does and let yourself fall head over heals in love with him. It isn't about what he is not doing, but what he is doing. Focus on those things.

My challenge to you wives is to go out and love your husband tonight. Respect him like you have never respected him. Tell him how much you appreciate him. Put your hand in his when you sit down to dinner. In front of your children, this is so much more powerful. Let them see it. The need it. They crave it. They need to know how safe they are and the love you two have between you is the best way to show them.

Go fall in love...that's my plan tonight. To go and fall in love.

BIRTHDAY!

2008-12-03T14:17:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's my birthday today. I spent my day with the kids, making Christmas ornaments. I opted for an, albeit, ugly kid tree instead of my normal, maroon and gold or white and gold, beautiful tree. :) Instead, we bought a real tree and the kids and I made a red and green construction paper, paper chain. HAHA! It, of course, is loaded with white Christmas lights. Probably about 7 strands on a 6 foot tree! We also made a few ornaments and hung up the ugly ones that people give you as gifts and the pretty gold glitter snowflakes I usually put up. We're going to buy some candy canes and make some more ornaments too!

I am soooo excited to get the book that I posted about yesterday! It will be so much fun to explain these traditions in more detail to Caden and Alanna. I have started to explain it to them today, but I need some more ideas on how to explain it to them. By the Way, that book, The ADVENTures in Christmas might be at your local library. One of the libraries in the area has it, but it is currently out.

I just have to say that the best Christmas ornaments this year are the ones we've made so far. The kids are just sooooo proud of the tree and it makes it so beautiful to me. When I was little my mom decorated the tree with dated Hallmark ornaments and the ones we made in school. It was ugly, but to this date, it is still my favorite tree. I guess that's what made me want to start doing this with the kids. It is so special. I'm trying to get into the mindset that not everything has to be nice and neat. Our home is supposed to be just that....OUR home! It isn't a show, it's our home. I'm not saying I don't like nice things and to decorate, but I am trying to lighten up and be realistic about it.

In other news ABRAM IS CRAWLING!!! I'm not totally sure how I feel about that. Especially with the tree up now! He is so proud of himself though. When we get all excited and say, "YAY Abram! Good job!" He just lights up and laughs. So cute.

As for my birthday....yeah, it's just another day. It seems that you get older and it is just the same as every other day. Maybe it's just my birthday since it is so close to Christmas. Not like we can get a sitter and go out. We need to stash whatever we can for the kids gifts, traveling, gifts for family, etc. It isn't that I don't want to get those things for the people I love. Just the opposite, actually. I just wish my birthday was in the summer when money wasn't so tight. Ah well. I'm trying to focus my crappy soup and no cake dinner birthday on the importance of my family. Hence the crafty day the kids and I had. I want to spend my time thinking about what a beautiful family I have...even though they have done nothing but not listen and fight all day :) I'm trying to be thankful for the fact that my husband has a job. So even though it might not be more special than yesterday or tomorrow, I have a lot to be thankful for!

Christmas ideas part II

2008-12-02T13:26:00.000-08:00

Here are some meanings for you:

The Star: A heavenly signs of prophecy fulfilled long, long ago- The shining hope of mankind.
The Color Red: The first color of Christmas, symbolizing that Savior's sacrifice for all.
The Fir Tree: Evergreen- the second color of Christmas shows everlasting light and life. The needles point up to heaven.symbolizes God’s everlasting love. The lights on the tree represent the stars of heaven. The star on top of the tree represents the star of Bethlehem that the wise men followed to see Baby Jesus.
The Bell: Rings out to guide lost sheep back to the fold, signifying that all are precious in His eyes.
The Candle: A mirror of starlight, reflecting our thanks for the star of Bethlehem.
The Gift Bow: Tied as we should all be tied together in bonds of goodwill forever.
The Candy Cane: Represents the shape of the shepherd's crook, used to bring lost lambs back to the fold.
The Wreath: A symbol of the never ending eternal value of love…having no end.

Stockings: Christmas stockings are believed to come from a legend in which a nobleman foolishly spent his fortune, which left his daughters without dowries. St. Nicholas heard of the girl’s position and went to their home. He threw pouches of gold coins down the chimney where they landed in the stockings that were during by the fireplace.

Santa Clause: Santa Clause began in the 4th Century when Saint Nicholas would spread good will amongst men. He was a generous man that was said to be devoted to children in particular. The legend of the man spread throughout Europe and in Holland his name was transformed into Sinterklass. The way that we see Santa Clause was developed from a poem composed by Clement C. Moore in 1822. He stands for good will on earth, kindness and generosity.

Earth: The symbol of Earth is often used to symbolize peace on earth.

Poinsettias: Poinsettias were used in the 17th century Christmas celebrations of Mexican Franciscans. The plant was named after the US Ambassador to Mexico, Joel R. Poinsett, when he brought the plant to the United States in 1828. A legend associated with the poinsettia says that a young Mexican boy realized that he had no gift for the Christ child at the Nativity scene. He gathered the green branches and spread the leaves in a star-shaped flour. The plant is actually not a flower, but the upper leaves are actually bright red leaves.

Angels: The angel is a symbol of good and evil spirits in religion.
Gifts: Gifts are an act of love symbolizing the act of love that God made when sending us Jesus. Gifts are to remind us that Jesus Christ was a gift to us from God.

Holly: The thorn of the holly represents the crown of thorns that Jesus wore. The berries symbolize the drops of blood that were shed from him wearing the crown. Holly was also used in Northern Europe to drive away evil spirits. It would be brought into their homes to brighten the mood and to refresh the air.

Christmas Cards: Christmas cards originated in England and were created by boys practicing their writing skills. They would make cards for their parents with Christmas greetings. The first real Christmas card is credited to Sir Henry Cole in 1843. He was the director of London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. He commissioned an artist named John Calcott to draw an illustration that would be used on the card. The card had three panels. The center panel had a family enjoying Christmas festivities and the message said, “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You.” The cards were sent because he was too busy to send individualized messages to his friends.

Xmas: Many people believe that the term “Xmas” is disrespectful. However, the Greek word fro Christ is Xristos. The letter “X” was used as a religious symbol in Greece. Europeans have used Xmas as an abbreviation for Christmas since the 16th century.

Snow: Many people in ancient times believed that the sky was a dome that was supported by heavenly bodies. They believed that the dome had windows and doors that angels, gods, snow, and rain would descend from when needed. In the book of Job, God has the power to send snow down to protect the water, soil and to hinder soldiers in the battlefields. Because snow is white and fresh, it is often a symbol of purity.

Christmas ideas

2008-12-02T13:05:00.000-08:00

Today at MOPS a lady that I have been getting to know, Liz, happened to be the guest speaker. I have really enjoyed Liz a lot since we moved here (she was one of the first people we met at our first visit at our church), but really loved hearing her speak today. Anyway, she talked about Christmas and really teaching our children the true meaning of Christmas...JESUS! It seems we get so wrapped up in gifts and parties, but forget about Jesus. The thing I loved the most about what Liz had to say was simply explaining our traditions to our children. The truth is, we actually are doing many traditions that do have symbolic meanings, but don't even know it. For instance, the Christmas tree, Christmas lights, candy canes, etc. One of the books Liz uses a lot is called "The ADVENTures of Christmas" by Lisa Whelchel (you can get it on Barnesandnoble.com with free shipping if you spend $25. You will get it in the mail in 3 days or less too!!!) The book seems awesome and I ordered it today! YAY

Anyway, some of the ideas I want to remember are these:

1. make sugar cookies (we already do this) and frost them, but explain to your children the meaning of those symbols. I don't even know the meanings, but what a great thing to do. Start explaining the traditions (and learning them ourselves) to our little ones.

2. flaming cake. Liz made a Christmas tree cake. You can use a pan shaped like a cake or you can just use a 9x13 pan and cut it in the shape of a tree and use the scraps to make a trunk. Or even use cupcakes and put them on a cookie sheet in a tree shape. Whatever you use is fine. Then frost it green and put a few sugar cubes on the "points" of the tree on the outside edge. Take some peppermint extract (don't use vanilla. It doesn't have enough alcohol in it), and put a little on each sugar cube. more than a drop but not a huge amount. Then light the cubes on fire! The tree will flame! Use this as an opportunity to explain to your children why we use Christmas lights. (This could be cool in toddlers Traci...maybe a bit dangerous...but fun!)

3. One lady at MOPS put a baby basket (one of those moses baskets) under here tree and put some hay in it. She explained to her kids that Jesus was born in a barn and slept in a manger full of hay. She left it there on all the days leading up to Christmas. On Christmas morning she put one of their baby dolls in it and when they woke up, they ran down stairs to see the baby! It really explained it well to them.

4. A little snack that Liz shared was a simple sugar cone that you let your little ones frost green and put M&M's on it. Simple, messy, yummy, and fun. This is a good way to explain why we use a tree.

5. Another snack she used was simple chocolate pudding cups (manger) with crushed frosted mini wheats on top (Hay). Then she put a little pretzel nugget (Jesus' body) and a mini marshmallow (Jesus' head). Cute and simple...great for a 2-3 year old. (Traci, that could be awesome for toddlers too!)

6. Another idea was to take Children's Christmas stories (any Christmas themed story) and wrap them each up and put them under the tree. They can be ones you have, borrow from the library for buy for a special gift. Each night before Christmas, let them pick one book and read it as a family. I loved that and might do this.

7. Why not read the Christmas story to your children Christmas Eve? They have some awesome Children's Christmas story books that would be great.

8. Why not do Saint Nick? Could be fun.

9. Have a Happy Birthday Jesus party! We are actually going to one at Liz's house next Monday. Simply invite some friends over, make a cake, sing to Jesus, do some crafts, and celebrate Jesus! There's nothing better than that!

10. Get a nativity set that your children can play with. Set it under your tree or on a low table that they can reach. It's a great way for them to act out the story. Fisher price makes one. It costs a bit at $30. But seriously, what a GREAT way for your children to really learn the story. You can't beat that!

Dan and still do the Santa thing simply because it's fun. Kids love tradition and special things. I don't think there is ANY reason we have to take that away from our children. The point isn't to strip out Santa, but to explain to them what Christmas is about!!!

I am going to do my absolute best to really drive this in for my kids. I encourage you to do so as well. Have fun with them this month!

Baby session

2008-11-22T13:10:00.000-08:00

Check out the pictures I did today of an on location baby session. I'm loving these so much. You can find them on my other blog www.realifephotography.blogspot.com

We all need hearing aids

2008-11-21T22:14:00.000-08:00

So today a couple of funny comments were said by various family members. They are as follows:

Alanna was driving Caden nuts. He then says, "Go by mom. Go be naughty over there." It was sooo funny as he said it very nonchalantly.

Alanna was saying her prayers tonight and said, "thank you for friends Jesus." Dan thought she said, "Jingle all the way Jesus." Not sure how he got that, but funny none the less.

Dan and I were watching TV and he says, "I still want to get a motorcycle." I heard, "I still want to learn morris code."

Random stuff I didn't want to forget.

Hoping for changes

2008-11-20T12:29:00.000-08:00

Dan and I sat down and looked at our budget the other day. We're hoping to buy a house next summer. We'll see what happens. But in the mean time, we took a look to get an idea of what is around here. Here is the one we found in Port that has lots of potential. Houses are SOOO much more expensive here than in T-hawk.

This house is probably 20,000+ more than it would go for around T-hawk! It has three bedrooms, 1.5 bath, a living room and a family room, 1,500 sq feet and a nice backyard, with room to put an addition if need be. It has a NASTY kitchen that could be updated. Between Dan and my dad, that wouldn't be a big deal and would definitely add to the value of the house. Here's the kitchen:

The cupboards and appliances are awful! But it has so much potential. To the right of the kitchen is the living room.

And down from the kitchen is the family room: Kind of a weird layout I think, but that can be worked on too with the remodel of a kitchen.

The full bathroom could use a facelift as well!

All in all, a good first home as I'm not about going and buying a new build. Dan and I love the idea of having something we can fix up and gain a return on. The nice thing is, I have a husband who is MORE than capable of pulling it off. I have worked on projects with my dad enough in the past that I could pull it off too. What a good learning experience. The nice thing is, this house isn't bad. You can live in it as is. It's just cosmetic, which is nice. I'm praying this house sits on the market until next year, the price goes down, and Dan and I can afford to get it. Nice thing is, Dan should be getting another raise in the next couple of months! 2 more dollars! WOOHOO!

This is the funniest crime EVER!

2008-11-10T12:45:00.001-08:00

Seriously read this article. This has to be the best, dumb crime ever! http://news.cnet.com/bank-robber-hires-decoys-on-craigslist-fools-cops/?tag=rtcol;pop