Our little blessings

She is listening

2012-02-17T15:27:00.007-06:00

We have reached what most people would consider, the terrible 3's, a little early. A lot of friends have told me 2's are hard, but 3's can be harder. Mia's attitude has completely changed this past month or so and it's thrown us for a whirlwind. Albeit, some of it is hilarious and we are hiding our laughs and smiles behind our bedroom door for her not to see, but man, it's hard. A few of the common things we see from Mia these days(and are trying to correct, mind you):

"Mom, you're not serious!!"

"Quit being so mean mommy" (usually said after i tell her she's being mean to me or her sister)

"I don't want to do that" -crosses her arms across her chest

She eye rolls

When she knows she's about to get in trouble, she comes in for a big Ahhh with a hug, trying to worm her way out of it

She makes mean/scrunched up faces

She says "I don't like that" in the snottiest voice possible

She says, "I share?" when she wants one of us to share with her

However, not all of the things coming out of her mouth is sassy, or bad. She also says

I love you

Hazel, it's ok(when comforting her)

Hazel, where's my smiles??

Boys, I miss you sooo much! (when seeing the dogs in the morning)

That's my favorite!

Sings Jesus Loves me and Mary had a Little Lamb all the time

Requests dance parties often (we love to dance, esp after long, hard days)

Daddy, you're the best boy ever!

She prays for every single friend of hers, every single night.

She's a great big sister, and loves helping out with Hazel. She loves 'holding' her, tickling her, and can get Hazel to belly laugh like nobody else can. She loves helping me clean, and does a great job at it! She usually listens and does what we ask her too, she still gets incredibly excited to see her friends, and enjoys calling daddy, aunt amanda, and her grandparents to say hi and i love you.

Our Bible verse we've been learning is Ephesians 4:32: Be kind to one another. I figured it was simple, and definately an area that we are constantly reminding her of and teaching her about. She's going through a phase in life where we constantly tell her to share, be nice, etc...but then sometimes the kids she's playing with don't share, aren't nice, etc. (such is life of a toddler!)

Today, in the car, it was a conversation I never want to forget.

Me: Mia, do you remember our Bible verse.
Mia recites it
Me: great job!! do you know what it means? what are some ways to be kind/nice?

Mia: share toys, hug them, play with them, get them toys when they cry

Me: right, sweetie!! Is laughing w/ friends nice? Is hitting nice? Is yelling nice?

Mia answers the above questions.
Me: and why should we be kind to others/friends/mommy/daddy/sister/people we dont know.

Mia: Because it makes God happy!!

I know to most, it may seem like a simple conversation. But in this season of difficult parenting, disciplining, teaching, correcting, loving, and some days just praying to survive them with out raising my voice, I thanked God again, for giving me such a precoius, intelligent, healthy, friend loving, big hearted child.

If I learned anything today from that one, simple conversation, is even in the thick of the hardest of hard days(which yes, i know when they get older it gets tougher in different ways, i get it), to keep teaching her about God, and His love for us.

Even when it feels hopeless and our children aren't listening or learning, they are, they always are.

jess

Dear Hazel,

2012-01-05T20:29:00.003-06:00

Dear Hazel,

You are 4 months already!(dec. 26th) How did this happen? It feels like just yesterday, I was snuggling you in the hospital through wee hours of the night.

I realized tonight, as you did something funny, that I really need to keep this blog/journal for me. For you. I don't want to forget these precious days of you being so sweet, and so little.

The boring stats from your drs yesterday are: 14 lbs 8 oz. Your height was in the 63%tile, weight 54%tile and head 46%tile. You definately do not have Mia's big noggin' :D.

You are wearing a size 2 diaper, and 6-9 month clothes!! How can this be?! Sadly, most of your 3 month winter clothes did not get worn.

You are a hot/warm baby. I do not put you in fleece things and rarely put a coat on you, b/c of your warm and toasty cover on your car seat.

You've lost most of your hair, even your mohawk. You do have some long strands, and your hair is on the darker side, so this helps in keeping you like you have some hair.

You still loved to be swaddled(on your bottom half) and will pry continue to do so until you are rolling around.

You love your play mat. You talk and laugh at your little animal friends on it all morning long.
You have become quite interested in the dogs lately. I think you like Shorty more then Otis.

You are an incredibly happy, easy going baby. Today you cried(you aren't feeling well), and I had no idea what was wrong b/c you NEVER cry!! You do more of a whine thing when we lay you down to sleep(awake). I'll take whining over crying any day! Also, the dr and i were talking about eating cereal-you start in 2 weeks!-and not to wait til you get mad for your bottle...Hazel, you never even fuss for a bottle! The only time i've heard you fuss is in the middle of the night or in the car.

You still hate your carseat. You like it a little more now that you can reach n play with your toys, and we bought a bigger vehicle so we can sit between you girls in the back. You like to know that we are there about an hour or so after the drive.

You aren't a big fan of the pacifier. You'll take it in the car and at night, sometimes.

You slobber/drool everywhere. You have been for awhile now. It's resulted in some red/chapped cheeks. Mia's still dealing with chapped cheeks, so hold on sister!

You have this mischevious smile with your eyes(see above pic), and I think you will be a handful, little girl. You've got your eyes on your Big Sissy, Mia, and you are just soaking it all in.

You LOVE attention!! If we are not looking or talking to you, you cough to get our attention! Instead of crying when you wake up for a nap, you will do this cough/clear your throat type thing to get me to come get you.

You are a total Mommy's girl. If i'm gone for the day or for a long period of time, you will fuss a lot at night b/c you didnt get your mommy time in. I love passing you off to my friends to socialize you; you go to them, but you definately keep your eye on me the entire time.

I love how you go to anyone. Your grandparents love that too.

The quirky things only your mama would love about you: you are obsessed with your feet. I just went into check on you and you were half awake trying to find your feet in your swaddle. Once I showed them to you(that they're still there), you passed back out. I have to feed you in your room now, as you get wayyyyy too distracted anywhere else. If Mia is sleeping, and I go to burp you, you constantly stare at the door, waiting for Mia to come in and see you. You love to play with your taggie blankets, sit in your bouncy chair(and kick it w/ your awesome feet), and watch your new toys light up.

You love tv. With Mia, she didnt get sweets/tv/anything of the sort until she was wayyy past 1. You, my dear, are the lucky one. You sometimes watch our morning cartoons with us and YOU LOVE IT. Sigh.

You take about 5-6 bottles a day. You sleep great in the morning, and eh in the afternoons when Mia's napping. I think it's too quiet for you; that or you know you'll get great one on one time w/ Mommy. Your schedule is awful this week due to traveling the past 2 weeks, but you have been going to bed around 7 and getting up about once in the middle of the night. Like i said, your schedule is so off.

You do all of your sleeping in your crib. Sometimes I'll put you in your swing in the afternoons in hopes of a nap so i can do a few things, but you're almost too big for your swing now.

You love ceiling fans.

You "eat" dinner with us in your bumbo seat most nights. You are at the stage where you know if you are missing out-and you don't like it!

You'll be taking your first plane ride next week! We're going on a family vacation, therefore I am not attempting to get you on a schedule, due to more travels. That's really hard for your pyshco/controlling/schedule freak of a mom. That, and I keep thinking how Mia slept amazing and never woke up at night and was on a schedule at this point. *muststopcomparingbabies*

Hazel, you are such a loving, happy, easy going baby. I'm so happy you are mine, and you fit perfectly into our family. I love these days as you are learning new things and doing new things, and I start to see you laugh and giggle at Mia; I can't wait for the days you two can play together.

After watching Mia grow so fast, then losing our next baby, I try not to take any time or day for granted with you, baby girl. You are a gift from God, and not a day goes by where I don't thank Him for all He has given me, especially my two healthy, beautiful girls.

Love,

Mommy

Hazel's got smiles

2011-10-16T20:51:00.004-05:00

This girl has the best smiles ever.

(this is actually her very FIRST smile, caught on my phone!)

And this mama is smiling too, Miss Hazel is finally sleeping 6-8 hour stretch at night!

Have a great week!

Jess

Loved by All

2011-10-04T11:09:00.004-05:00

Little Miss Hazel is growing too fast.

It's sad, really.

That's the hardest part about kids after #1..is you know how fast they grow, and you can't stop them.

Just like her big sister, she's a true daddy's girl. I think it's because she spends all day(and most nights) with Mama, she loves her some daddy time when he's home.

She's doing great. She turned 1 MONTH OLD last week! Eek! She's eating every 3-4 hours with a couple feedings 2 hrs apart during the day.

At night she goes down between 830-930 and sleeps til 1-130; eats then goes back to sleep for about 3.5 hrs, eats then goes back to sleep for most of the morning. Now if only my big one would sleep in...

I'm finally feeling as though I can get through the day with out a nap, I think my body is adjusting to functioning on 4-6 (or less) hours of sleep a night.

She rarely cries, unless she is hungry(if I miss her cues) or if she needs to burp some more. Or if she's in her car seat for longer than 45 min.

She loves to look at the tv, the fans, and Mia. Mia loves checking on her, covering her with blankies, giving her her paci, and telling her she's pretty.

Hazel loves: her daddy, her mommy, to be held and her butt patted, to be sang too, ceiling fans, (tolerates) the dogs, eating, when you play with her arms, to be swaddled, to stretch out, her swing, her paci(sometimes), baths, to sleep, music, her thumb, fighting naps, and did I mention her daddy?

Hazel dislikes: waiting to be fed, tummy time, being in her car seat for longer than 45 minutes, her nose/snot being sucked, light in her eyes, being tickled and waiting to be held. She also stinks at burping.

The dogs are adjusting well. They love to come sniff her and check her out. Unfortunately, Hazel doesn't get a lot of time on the floor since I can't leave the room with a 2 year old (who's obsessed with jumping) and 2 dogs that like to go at it randomly. I'm finally feeling well enough to sit on the floor for long periods of time, so hopefully she'll get some more floor time in.

She's still in her bassinet in our room at night. Mia was moved into her own room/crib at 4 weeks, Miss Hazel gets to enjoy another week or so. She's been really congested from our weather change(30* at night, 78* during the day..my heat and a/c are so confused!), so I've been keeping her in our room w/ the humidifier or in her swing-since she sits more upright. She'll be moving into her room next week..bitter sweet. I will pry get more sleep since someone won't be grunting 12 inches away from me 1/2 the night:D.

She's starting to show her personality, with quirky faces, and even a couple of smiles! (for her daddy of course) I love this little girl of mine. I can't imagine how our life was with out her before. These past 5 1/2 weeks have flown by, and I find myself just soaking up all of her babyness, because these days are going too fast.

Jess

Hazel's Birth Story

2011-09-18T20:50:00.010-05:00

So Hazel's birth story isn't really all that exciting, but I want to have a record of it for later on down the road. (and I figure it's only fair since Mia and Samuel have one!) *sorry photos are out of order, I'm tired and don't want to fix it all*

I scheduled my c-section back around 32-33 week appointment. I didn't really publicize my decision for a repeat c-section, because then I felt I would need to explain myself, which I don't think is fair. Or anyone's business, really. We felt it was the best decision that would keep me and Hazel the healthiest and safest.

We scheduled it for Friday, August 26th at 730am. The first surgery of the day, and was initially supposed to be with my OB doctor, Dr. B. About 2 weeks after my 32 week appointment, the office called me to inform me my doctor would actually be out all weekend and not in until the 30th. To say I was annoyed and upset would be the understatement of the year. However, the doctor that was on call that day, was the doctor (Dr O.) that delivered Samuel last summer. I loved her, she was comforting, nice, and all around a great doctor. I got over my anger pretty quickly!

Our family came up thursday night, and they were to stay with Mia for the weekend while we were in the hospital.

We got to the hospital friday morning at 6:10am(10 minutes late!), and they hooked me up to ivs/fluids and started prepping me for surgery. At 710 we were taken to the 'recovery room' to wait for the dr to arrive. At about 7:40 I was taken to the OR, and scott was left behind. (they leave the hubby's behind during the spinal and prep and then bring them in right before surgery)

The only thing I was mainly worried about was the spinal. My other 2 deliveries, I got so sick after my epidural, I was afraid of what would happen after the spinal. And the fact scott couldn't be in there with me for this one. (that will totally change if i have to pay someone next baby!!)No need to go into too much detail, but it took the anesthesiologist 5-7 times to find the right spot for my spinal. I was poked 5 times for numbing the area on my spine, and poked at least 7 times with the spinal needle. It took 45 MINUTES to get my spinal meds in and working. This entire time, my husband is left in the recovery room, with no update. We're not too thrilled about this part. Hubby comes in, talks to me about Hurricane Irene, they start the surgery, baby comes out, I get super sick(did with Mia too, so not surprised), they have Scott and Hazel go to recovery room because I'm too sick to see them/talk to them, they get me fixed up and sent to recovery room where we spend about an hour hanging out, checking me, checking baby. My beautiful baby girl is perfect! Dr O. kept telling me my last few weeks that she was going to be a big baby, 9-10 lbs...I was thrilled when she came in at itty bitty 7lbs 12 oz; ha!

(this is what a REAL 1st family photo should look like, ha! Sometimes I get annoyed at how perfect the women always look after giving birth...NOT THIS MAMA..I just got done throwing up for 20 minutes straight, then border line passing out as my blood pressure tried to stabalize..and no makeup/jewelry allowed in OR rooms-this is as good as it gets and I love it:D)

We got back to our room and Scott greeted our family/Mia in the hallway while they checked me in our room. Mia was thrilled! Her first comment was, wow she's cute!! I was a little nervous at what she would think of me being in a bed hooked up to stuff, but she didn't seem to mind once everyone was there and she was being given presents:D.

I felt amazing and 1000 times better after this surgery compared to Mia's. (I had an infection and my incision was open/treated for 4.5 months after her birth!) Up until 10 days after Hazel's birth, I was doing great pain/healing wise. Over 3 weeks later, I'm suffering from my 2nd infection, increasing pain, and healing that isn't going as it is supposed to. It's definately better then Mia's recovery, but it's frustrating to be taking 10 steps backwards...but that's a post for another day!My girls are healthy, happy, and beautiful. And my heart is full!

Jess

Introducing...

2011-09-16T15:27:00.007-05:00

Miss Hazel Jolene:

She was born 3 weeks ago, Aug 26th at 8:14 am weighing 7lbs 120z! We've been adjusting to our family of 4 and Mia is a great big sister! I should be able to blog more now, the hubby surprised me with a new laptop for our 4 year anniversary yesterday!! Yay!!

We are in love with Miss Hazel(no, not a family name), and I can't wait to start recording her everyday things. She's already 3 weeks old and starting to lose the newborn look:(. They grow too fast!

Have a great weekend!

Jess

Just a minute..

2011-07-27T06:30:00.000-05:00

I always try to be honest with friends/people when I talk about my life as a mom. I want people to know I'm not perfect, and I want to be as vulnerable as I can be. I'm not perfect, and I never ever want anyone to think that we have it all together(even though it does sound nice:)) and our lives are picture perfect.

They're not.

But, I also don't want to air our dirty laundry. As a mom of a toddler, I think it's easy for many other mom's to relate. Most toddlers go through similar things-tantrums, whining, not sharing, saying NO, not listening, etc. So when it comes to talking about struggles I have with being a Mommy to Mia, I know most of them are fairly common amongst other Moms.

One area I've been trying to improve and be more aware of is how many times I say, "Just a minute," to Mia when she wants or needs something. Think about it. How often do you say it? Oh I'm in the middle of doing dishes-"just a minute"; I'm folding laundry-"just a minute"; I'm texting or emailing someone-"just a minute"; and the list goes on and on. It's tough. Whether she needs a snack, wants to play, needs help, or just wants my attention, how many times a day is she hearing that from me?

Now, there is a balance-she's very impatient(I can def relate:D), so sometimes I do say it just to help teach her patience; but a lot of the times, it's because I don't want to stop what I'm doing. Does the laundry really need to be done right then? My kitchen isn't going to stink if my dishes sit for another hour? Can this text/email be finished later?

I'm working on it. It's one of my biggest weaknesses as a Mommy, and with the preparation of another baby coming along and my to-do lists out of control, I wonder how I'm ever going to get everything organized, cleaned, washed, sorted, fixed, and taken care of before this baby arrives. It's the planner/control freak in me. I'm learning to let a lot of it go. Mia wants to read, I stop what I'm doing and go read with her. She wants me to 'come find her!' I stop what I'm doing and give in to hide n seek-even if she is hiding in the exact same spot for the 1,000th time(in plain sight, mind you). I'm learning to take advantage of my time available and spent with this only child of mine, and to cherish these moments of easy entertainment, giggles, lessons learned, cuddles, and funny one-liners(ex: Mommy, I have pretty b**bies!!) because we all know, they grow too fast.

Jess

It's that time of year again!

2011-07-25T22:30:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again, Scott's busy work time. He does fundraising for high schools, and with Football being his biggest sport, he's out working hard to get it all done before the 1st game of the season. What's this mean? This means, starting today, he's gone 6 (sometimes 7) nights, and most days, a week for the next 5 weeks.

What does that mean for me? That means this 34 1/2 week prego Mama is flying solo all day and night with this cute patootie 2 year old.

Oh and these monsters, some people call dogs. *sigh* Most days it's like 3 toddlers. The only thing that keeps me sane during these miserably HOT AND HUMID days when we can't go out for long, is that the 3 of them play and entertain each other well.

I'm trying my hardest to not complain. To be thankful(which I am!), grateful for the Lord has blessed us with my Hubby's job, and my ability to spend my (crazy) days with these 3 littles. This year, I'm just a little more nervous than normal. I can't do as much physically, emotionally, and Mia is at the age this year to actually miss her daddy and be sad about it. I think that's the hardest part.

As my wonderful hubby pointed out last night(while having an emotional/hormonal break down), this month is just a blink in our life. It's not that big of deal. The Lord will provide and take care of us, and I need to put my trust and faith in Him. (oh and also start taking up all my wonderful friends who've offered to help-finally help!) I've been digging in to the Word a lot lately and partaking in a Bible study, and I know that'll help me get through some days that seem long and exhausting. I also realized I'm being super selfish and just need to get over myself. Ha!

I'm getting excited for Baby Girl's arrival. I know Mia is going to be a great Big sister. She talks about baby sister all day long and loves helping with anything and everything. I think our biggest problem will be how disappointed she'll be when she realizes baby sister can't 'play' with her right away.

Other than exhaustion and some emotions on the loose, things are going great around here. Mia is speaking full sentences and in the past couple weeks, a lot clearer so it's easier for others to understand her. She loves Strawberry Shortcake, Little Einsteins, playing hide and seek singing her ABC's, playing her computer and magnadoodle(or working and checking her email as she calls it), playing with friends(she asks everyday if we can go see friends or go to church), and she pottys on the potty almost every time we put her on! She has yet to be able to tell us she has to potty, so it'll be a couple of months yet I think. She's my little lover, with a big heart. She wants to hug, pet, high five, and touch all little "friends" of hers. She took 2 weeks of swim lessons and is now obsessed with the pool. She's definitely not my fearless child and always proceeds with caution(thank you Lord!) before doing new things, but once she's comfortable-she has a blast! She's bringing to light all of our weaknesses such as telling the dogs to 'shut up' and calling them stupid dogs. Yea, we're working on that! She's definately keeping me busy and on my toes these days and there's never a dull moment!

Have a great week!

Random post

2011-06-24T06:00:00.000-05:00

We've been really busy these past few weeks. Like really busy. Mia had a birthday party, then we had Mia's actual birthday, we went to the zoo, getting new carpet upstairs, we went back to my hometown for 5 days to see family and because I was in a friends wedding, and now we're home. Home for good. Well I am. Besides one night away, just the two of us(our Babymoon), I have no trips planned til late this fall. It's awesome. I love it. Being 30 weeks, toting a 2 year old and 2 dogs does not sound like a fun, ideal trip to go anywhere, so we won't. Well, I mean a long distance-of course we'll still be out and about here.

This little girl, my baby, she turned two. She's all two year old now too. She runs, she speaks sentences, she plays games-her faves being hide n go seek and her new fishing game. She doesn't eat well at meals-but loves snacks. At her dr's appt she weighed 29.9 lbs(83%tile) and is 36 1/4 inches long(96%tile)! She's always been in the 30-50%tile for height and 50-70%tile for weight, but my baby hit a growth spurt! Makes sense as to why none of the clothes I 'guessed' at fitting her this summer are. (she's wearing 3t in almost everything but pants)

She enjoys playing her matching games on our ipad still. She also likes the interactive books of Dr Seuss. She also loves music. She is constantly dancing and singing-she knows most of the words to Bruno Mars-Just the way you are, Chris Tomlin-I will Follow you, David Crowder Band-Only You, Sanctus Real-Lead Me, and a few other random songs. We enjoy our jam out sessions.

She had her 1st sucker finally! Then she hugged Otis and got dog hair all over it and we were done.

She is obsessed with washing her hands. And annoying the dogs. She loves all things pretty-jewelry, hair stuff, twirling in dresses, you name it. But the girl can get down and dirty too!

She's daddy's little helper, and he lets her. She helped him put Baby M's crib together last week and now she runs in there everyday saying, "I help Daddy! Mia's baby sister sleep there!"

She's also my little hoarder. I've mentioned before how she sleeps with about 4-7 blankets at once. Well she's now become a baby lover, and baby sits at the table with us, goes in the car, to the stores, and in bed with her now. So does her Ducky pillow pet, as her pillow. And her bear, that's been with her since she was a newborn, she's become attached to him at night as well. I'm pretty sure she'd sleep with her bucket, dora, cups, and ballerina if I'd let her.

I mentioned I was in a wedding last week-this can count as my 29 week photo. It was fun, but my ankles have not recovered from those lovely high heels we had to wear. It also rained 5 inches in less than 4 hours that day and our town was flooded, but Nikki was good. Most laid-back bride EVER.

So that's been our life. We're going to keep working on the baby's room, and getting stuff done around the house while Scott's home and not busy with work!

JEss

Mia's 2nd Birthday!

2011-06-23T06:00:00.001-05:00

My baby is TWO. How did this happen!? Wasn't I just cuddling her little newborn face? Ahh..

We kicked her birthday off a week before her b-day, throwing a party for all of our friends and family to attend. We had it at our church-less stressful for me, more room for kids to run around. We also did something different this year. Instead of asking people to bring gifts for Mia, we asked that they'd donate a gift/book/toy or cash to our local's hospital Pediatrics floor/kids room. We did it for a few reasons. Mainly, to give back. We stayed up on that floor the week after Mia was born and there are many kids, families, who would definately benefit from something of the sort. Another reason-Mia does NOT need anymore toys(gramas/grpas and we got her a couple small things), and the final reason-I'm a firm believer on Christmas/B-days, one should not have to share their new toys. Well...15 two-four year olds with all of Mia's new toys=disaster in my mind. Anyways, her party was a success! She got so excited with every person who came through the door! She'd scream and giggle "FRIENDS!! HI FRIENDS!!" We did a Dr Seuss theme and I ordered her dress and bow from etsy, then put decor up and colors and quotes from Dr Seuss.

On her actual birthday-we went to a zoo! It was her first time, and the zoo was perfect for toddlers. She loved it!

Then that night we had dinner with some friends, and she requested Chocolate milk-so that's what she got and she was thrilled!

She had an amazing birthday, it was so much fun to see her actually enjoy and start to 'get it' this year!

Jess

Happy Summer!

2011-06-21T15:47:00.007-05:00

This week starts the 1st week of summer! Woo hoo! Unfortunately, we have rain in the forecast almost everyday. I won't be complaining about the rain and temps in the 60s-70s, this pregnant Mama is stoked! These pics were all taken a couple weeks ago when we had a few days in the upper 90's. I'll be posting Miss Mia's 2nd bday pics in a couple of days!

Her first smores!

Aunt Amanda got her a sprinkler-she loves it!

Grampa(or Graco, as she calls him) got her this fun water gun for her birthday!

My girl definately loves the water! I'm hoping many days will be spent at the splash park and in our sprinkler/pool!

Jess

27 weeks!

2011-06-03T06:30:00.000-05:00

(i remember another reason i don't blog often-b/c BLOGGER sucks! sorry i don't say that word often, but seriously. I can't highlight anything to bold it,change fonts, i can barely move my pics around..GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR if this is a tech user error-please someone HELP!)

I am 27 weeks today! This pic was taken at about 25 weeks, I think though. (don't mind the dirtiness of the mirror-it's since been cleaned! ha!)

I'm feeling great and cannot complain! I have a couple friends who've been sick and just cannot catch a break, so I feel very blessed.

Miss Baby Girl M is a mover. She moves all the time. I actually notice when she's not moving moreso than when she is. SHe's still super low, although her kicks are starting to reach my upper abdomen and ribs now. I'm a little concerned for her being so low, because sometimes she bumps up against my c-section incision and it's not a good feeling.

I've had some serious lower back pain. I can barely move out of bed to pee once I'm in at night. I've been sleeping with a pillow between my legs since about week 12. My back just hurts. I ice/heat it off and on, and sometimes cave into tyelnol because it's awful. I finally gave in and went to the chiro(our insurance is great-so why not!?), and it felt somewhat better afterwards.

I've gained about 17-20 lbs thus far. I'm not thrilled with it, but I'm walking regularly and eating many small/healthy meals for the most part so not a whole lot I can do about it. (I do still have a major sweet tooth!) My dr reassures me everything is fine, and it's bound to happen with 3 pregnancies in less than 2 years. Plus-since I haven't been sick, I have no problem keeping food down!

Mia loves my baby belly, but she has yet to learn to be careful around it. (and my sore, evergrowing bust for some reason) She's a typical toddler so I'm just working with her on it. Especially for when we get home and my incision area/abdomen are very sore.

Mia can finally say our baby's name. We don't use her name too often though, because we don't want her or us to slip!

I've gone up a size in maternity shirts because of my belly being so low. If I don't buy the bigger size, my belly hangs out underneath (even the maternity tanks don't cover it!) and I don't think many peeps wanna see that:D

I'm starting to waddle for sure. I think it's because of how sore my hips/back are.

My next appointment(soon!) is my glucose test-I hate that nasty orange stuff. Barf.

I've 'officially' hit the point when I wear maternity shirts out, people ask me when I'm due and respond with "oh you still have a long ways." Yes, people, I know. Thanks for reminding me that the next 3 months will be hot, humid, and that I'll be miserable.

Because of pervious statement-Mia and I will be living at the splash pad this summer. That way, this Mama can get wet without having to wear a swimsuit!

We'll be painting her nursery this weekend. I'm excited. It's not a bedding theme, or anything, I'm just going off some totes/baskets I bought at target a year or so ago. I'm excited! Her walls will be a neutral beige color with splashes of turquoise blue, dark pink, orange, purple, lime green, and navy blue with all white furniture! I'm pretty excited!

I think that's all I have to update so far..Have a great weekend!

Jess

Bubbles and Baby

2011-06-02T10:21:00.010-05:00

Little Miss Mia is having a few new loves of her life lately.

She LOVES bubbles. It used to be chalk. Now it's bubbles. Every morning I hear the same thing, "Mia go outside and play bubbles?" Thankfully, bubbles are cheap, the hubs and I don't mind them, and the DOGS love them too! I would call that a triple win!

She's also tending to her baby much more these days. Baby Pete is her name. (Pete from Mickey, I'm assuming is where she got her name from?) Anyways, Baby Pete naps with her, sleeps with her, goes in the car and on errands with us, sits at the table with us when we eat, and when Mia's hungry, the baby's hungry! And the entire time Mia is eating, she is concerned about the baby's bottle and her being hungry. Sigh. I've learned to choose my battles. Baby is not allowed to go everywhere with us, mainly for the fear of losing her! I was hoping we'd make it past the 'phase' of having something she can't live with out, but sadly, I think we are there. She's also become obsessed with this little jewelry box I found in a box of my old stuff. It has a little ballerina that dances and plays music. She loves it. She'd sleep with it and bathe with it if we'd let her!

Her new thing to say is-'you're cute mommy' 'mia's cute' 'that's soo cute!' We must say cute a lot.

Everything she drinks-pretend or real- is chocolate milk. EVERYTHING. The girl's had chocolate milk twice, I think? Yup. I guess that's her beverage of choice!
(sadly the house has been 'recycled')
She's become Daddy's big helper for sure these days. We give her 'chores' to do and she takes a lot of pride in doing them. The girl's love language is positive affirmations, I'm pretty sure. She loves to hear 'good job' 'thank you' 'you did so good!' 'thank you for being nice' etc. That's ok with me, I'm totally fine with giving her those!

We've been busy planning for her birthday party this weekend. We're doing a Dr Seuss theme, and although it's nothing too extreme(for my lack of motivation and creativity), it'll be bright and cheery and kid friendly-and at our church! I'm so glad I don't have to worry about cramming people into our cozy little home!

Hope you are all enjoying the beginning of your summers!

jess

Catch up!

2011-05-20T17:03:00.008-05:00

I'm a horrible blogger.

I have no excuse really, except that it's not been a priority.

We've been busy with life. Enjoying what our (almost) 2 year old is saying and doing these days, the beautiful 60-70* weather, and trying to slow our pace down during the weeks, because the weekends are busy.

Scott and I were able to get out to San Diego a few weeks back to visit a great friend of ours. It was a wonderful mini-vaca to get away and regroup and come back feeling ready to tackle motherhood again.The pregnancy is going well! I'm growing fast, and have just entered the 3rd trimester! I've been very healthy(Praise God!), and besides exhaustion and severe back pain, I'm doing fantastic. A pregnancy update is definately due soon.

We finally picked out Baby 'M's name! We use M because it's our last name, not necessarily the initial of her 1st name. We were teetering back forth between 2 names, and finally I just decided one night when ordering something for her off of Etsy. Her nursery will be painted, we'll be getting new carpet upstairs, and then the room will start coming together in the next couple of weeks! It all has to be done by July, because the Hubs gets busy and won't be around for much helping of household duties.

Mia's been great! She's full of energy. Her newest things are saying bye bye, I love you too to everyone and everything. Strangers, houses, gas stations, animals, you name it. She LOVES bubbles and sidewalk chalk. She enjoys 'walking' the boys, and holding onto Otis' leash when we go on walks. She dislikes sharing and everything turns into 'MIA'S!' When she doesn't know someone's name she says 'hi/bye friend!' She eats carrots and broccoli now! She finally got down and dirty in a sand box for the 1st time yesterday. She knows all of her shapes, almost all of her colors, and most of her ABC's and animals. We're still working on counting to 10. She loves it when mommy draws/colors with her. She now starts our prayers at night by saying, "Dear God, thank you for Mommy, Daddy, and the boys!" She enjoys picking out her clothes-mainly skirts or dresses. She sniffs her shoes when we take them off(I have no idea why). She's extremely clumsy and wipes out or runs into walls on a regular basis. For this reason, I follow her around closely at the playground, and my goal is to get through the summer with out a trip to the ER or a broken bone.

We're going to attempt 'Operation Potty Train' over Memorial day Weekend, we'll see how it goes. After the 3 days if she just isn't having it, we'll back off some. The girl loves chocolate, so I'm hoping M&Ms are a great motivator!

*Mia's hat in this picture is made by my sweet, bloggy friend Mary! Check out her etsy shop!

I'm finishing up buying things/making things for this girls #2 BIRTHDAY party in a couple weekends! I can't believe it's almost here! *tear*

Happy Friday!

Jess

(another reason I don't blog often-I almost always have issues w/ blogger uploading pics, changing fonts, copy/pasting-it's too annoying.)

Happy Friday!

2011-05-06T06:35:00.000-05:00

I've been M.I.A. for awhile! We made a trip to Kansas/Oklahoma for Easter and then were home just long enough to unpack/pack for the hubs' and my trip to San Diego last weekend! Both trips went well and I can't complain! I'll hopefully be posting more about both trips soon.

I've been feeling great pregnancy wise!! I think I went from looking 6 months to 9 months prego after all of the AMAZING food we ate last weekend! ha! The baby is soooo low this time around, so all of her jumps/jabs/kicks/movements are way below my belly near my pants line. It feels sooo odd sometimes! But I am so thankful I can feel her all day and all night, no matter where she's at:D

Also on baby news-we have her name narrowed now down to TWO names! Waiting on the Hubs to tell me which one he favors. ;) And we'll be keeping it a secret until her Birthday!

I figured I'd try to get back in the swing of things with 5QF over at Mama M's.

1. Have you ever had roommates?
Yes, in college!

2. How many names do you/your children have? (i.e. Prince Charming William Phillip Arthur Louis John Jacob Jingleheimer-Schmidt) Just her first name and middle name-Mia Rose

3. Did you watch the Royal Wedding?
No I did not! I saw clips/photos/bits and pieces the days after, but did not dvr it or watch it live. We were in Cali then so it was not a priority! If we were home, I'm sure I would have dvr'd it!

4. What is the messiest room in your house?
Umm..my bedroom or the spare-soon-to-be-baby's-room; I always shove things in there and close the doors...I'm trying to clean them out here in the next week or two! Yay for spring cleaning!

5. What is your ideal mothers day?
SLeeping in, breakfast in bed, church with the family, out to lunch, napping, being lazy with my family, grilling out, time at the park, hugs and kisses from the Hubs and Mia, and Scott doing bath/bed time/snacks/diapers all day long. :) Ahh...bliss.

Have a great weekend and Happy Mother's Day!
Jess

Big Day-Ultrasound Day!

2011-04-13T12:06:00.003-05:00

We had out ultrasound this morning. The baby looks fantastic. The baby is healthy. The baby loves to snuggle up to me. The baby is a mover at all hours of the day, except when we are watching! The baby sleeps with one arm up. The baby is measuring right on(even though I could pry pass for an 8 month prego lady!). This baby is so precious. This baby is a gift from God. This baby is a GIRL!!! WE ARE SO EXCITED TO BE HAVING A HEALTHY, BABY GIRL! Happy Wed! Jess

Easter egg hunt

2011-04-13T07:04:00.000-05:00

Last week Mia and I went up to visit my mom and family that were visiting from out of state. Since we'll be traveling for Easter this year, I told my mom we could celebrate Easter a little early with Mia's 1st Easter Egg Hunt. The first 2 days we were in town it was bitter cold and windy. By the 3rd day, before we were leaving, it was GORGEOUS! This girl LOVED IT!

Eating the goods grandma put in her eggs.

We got home later that night and she was so excited to show Daddy and the Boys her money that Grandma put in her eggs. The entire road trip home I heard, "Mia Money, Mia's piggy."

So needless to say, this was a must to do with Daddy before bed time.

(my 1st picture ever with all 3 of them looking at me! )

Jess

A new house

2011-04-10T06:30:00.001-05:00

Scott finally ordered a new desk for his office. You know what that means? BIG boxes turned playhouse. And man, this house has entertained her for hours. She loves to decorate and draw on it.

She gets upset when the dogs won't go in there with her.

She gets upset when the dogs do go in there with her.

It's her little hang out. I'm convinced if I put her blankie and a pillow in there, she'd pass out. I love this age. Imaginations are growing wildly, and entertaining can be simple and easy.

Jess

I love my job.

2011-04-06T18:38:00.006-05:00

I truly love being a stay at home mom. Some women need to work(for financial/a passion for their job/or other reasons), some women would go crazy being at home all day, but not me. I love it. Yes the freedom of running errands whenever, not stressing when the laundry will get done, not working for a boss who drives me bonkers are all perks. But mainly, it's because I'm in love with her: Her big brown eyes, not quite dark like mine, but a pretty, light brown, show so much emotion.

Her crazy hair that is out of control these days. Down in her yes, straight on the sides, and a little curly in the back-the curlier it gets, the dirtier her hair is.

Her non stop talking. ALL.DAY.LONG. I have no idea where she got this from ;)

Not everyday is roses and candy, but the good days far outweigh the rough ones.

Her love for drawing. "Mama, Mia draw? Mia draw? Mama, draw."

Her love for using her name to say everything. "Mia milk. Mia play. Mia go boom. Mia fall! Mama, I fall. Mia water. Mia seat. Mia chalk. Mia draw." But as my mother in law pointed out, so much better then her saying MINE all the time.

Her goofy cheeses that I can rarely catch on camera because she does it so fast then looks away.

Her rosy cheeks from playing to hard, or chapped from the cold, bitter wind.

Her obsession with bows(her name for bows, clips, pony tails) in her hair and then insisting we look in the "Moyer" to check out. (aka mirror)

Her love for reading books. Specifically Dr Seuss books, Brown Bear, and her word/color/shapes books. She loves to read them in her chair to herself, to me, and me read to her.

She is my girly girl-loving all things pretty. Bracelets, necklaces, shoes, pink, but when given the chance to play with a car or action figure-she jumps on it!

I love how excited she gets to see her bff, "Katy." (kaitlyn) Fortunately their our good friends/ neighbors, attend our church and I do a bible study with her weekly that we see plenty of Katy. Mia starts asking to go to church 25 min before we have to leave to see this girl. Too cute.

I love how she covers her eyes and screams BOOKAH! For peek a boo. It's hilarious. Sometimes she just puts her hand over her eyes for minutes, and I'm convinced she's forgotten what she was doing.

She loves her Grandma Kelly's kitty. That's the understatement of the year, folks.

She loves to play with the 'boys.'(otis and shorty) She'll get upset if they're outside, "boys pway? boys pway? Shorty pway?" and when I let them in and they ignore her, she follows them around until their forced to acknowledge her presence.

This little girl keeps me busy, that's for sure. But I love it. When it's hard, when it's easier, when it's learning her colors(she knows all of them but green and white!), and her shapes(she just knows circle), when teaching her new words, and hearing her say "please" and "thank you" with out being prompted to, warms my heart. I can't even imagine not spending every day with out her.

Jess

17 weeks!

2011-03-25T19:26:00.005-05:00

I'm 17 weeks this week, and feeling great! We had another OB appointment last week, and our next one scheduled (in a couple weeks) will be our ultrasound! We'll be finding out (again) what we are having and I couldn't be more excited! I thought I should get on the roll with some updates, since this is my journal and I don't want to look back and noticed I logged nothing on baby # 3!

The wonderful baby bump:

With every pregnancy, I feel like the 'is she fat/is she pregnant' stage lasts much longer. When I was pregnant with Samuel, Mia was only 9 months so most people would never think I'd be pregnant. This time around, I disguise it mostly by wearing t-shirts/sweatshirts, (not trying to hide it, but if I bust out anything maternity-ish-I'd look 6 months pregnant) although it is starting to pop out more and more!

How Far Along: 17 weeks!

Size of baby: Baby is the size of a turnip ( At my ultrasound a few weeks ago, the babe was measure 5 days ahead is all!)

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +5 -I blame the sweet tooth:D oh, and that it's my 3rd babe.

Maternity Clothes: some maternity jeans, but most is regular. My c-section incision from Mia hurts every now and then (from my growing uterus) so regular jeans don't work long for me with pregnancies-too much pressure on it.

Gender: We find out in a couple weeks!! I'd love to have another girl, I love the bows, the princessy stuff, the dressing up and the excitement of picking out her name! I'd love to have a boy because it'd be different, new 1sts, new colors(!), and his name is already picked out and adorable. (and no we will not share our names ;P)

Movement: Some flutters here and there. Honestly, I try to not think about it. With my last pregnancy, it hadn't occurred to me until a couple days leading up to our 20 week ultrasound/appointment, that I hadn't felt Samuel move much. I didn't think much of it, just assuming that since I was chubbier, maybe that was a factor. I do feel little flutters here and there, but I'm trying not to put all my focus on that for personal/emotional reasons.

Sleep: Um..not so great. A few good hours, then toss and turn and awful back pain. I'm really thinking about buying me a maternity pillow to sleep with. (yes, you can laugh at me! I'm getting desperate:D)

What I miss: Sleeping well!? And eating batter/raw cookie dough...I don't normally even eat it, but once I can't...yup! That's what I want!

Cravings: Sweets. Sweets. Sweets.

Symptoms: Lower back pain, ligament stretching pain

Best Moment This Week: Mia kissing and huggy my 'baby/tummy'!! Well and my boobs. I think she gets confused sometimes since they're growing too. (ha! remember this post?!)

Milestones: 1 more week closer to our ultrasound!

What I'm Looking Forward To: Our next OB appointment-our ultrasound!

I am thankful to be feeling fairly well so far! I'm still wicked tired, but I've never been one to get a 'sudden' burst of energy/get my energy back during 2nd trimester. Now that volleyball is over(yay!) and I'm not helping Scott with work at night anymore(worked all week every nite for him out of town this week-exhausting!), I should be able to get back to normalcy.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Jess

Stand still and consider the wondrous works of God.
Job 37:14

The flu, pregnancy update, Mia update

2011-03-18T14:58:00.002-05:00

It's been forever since I've posted. We've been busy, and then this past week we all got the flu.

We spent a lot of time in bed, resting, watching Mickey and Dora, a couple of movies, and napping.
Which then resulted in a lot of washing sheets, blankets, clothes, pjs, disinfecting our house, and what not. We're still not all 100%, but we're doing much better.

Pregnancy wise, doing awesome! This babe is giving me quite the sweet tooth though.

I'm prego with 2 good friends of mine(who were trying for awhile)! It's fun to experience it with good friends again.

That being said, a dear friend of mine(also friends with the other 2), lost her baby at 6 weeks a couple weeks ago. My heart breaks for her, and we've been praying for her daily.

I'll post a pregnancy post next week. I'm 16 wks and haven't posted any stats yet!

We didn't do much for St Pat's, except for an attempt at attending our city's parade. It was chaos. We did make it, but it was fairly pointless, as everyone was rude and we didn't get to see much. Made me miss my small hometown celebration.

Mia rocked her little skirt though. She loved twirling in it.

She definately knows what she wants. When we're getting ready to leave it goes like this:

Mia: "Mia, coat." she goes and gets her coat. "Mia shoes." SHE has to pick out her shoes. Then right as we're leaving, "Mia, bracelets!!" And she runs off to get her accessories before we leave. If this is a glimpse into my future with a girly girl, what I a ride I'm in for!

She's definately not a patient person. She loves puzzles, but gets frustrated and wants to give up 1/2 way through and says, "help help" over and over.

Her new obsession: Butts. "daddy, butt. Mommy, butt. Mia, butt. Otis butt. Shorty butt." etc etc. When we put her in her bed at night, she rolls over onto her tummy and says "butt butt" so we cover her butt with her blankie.

Tonight is my LAST volleyball practice and tomorrow is my LAST volleyball tournament! PRAISE THE LORD!! It's been so exhausting, physically, mentally and even emotionally at times. The last tournament we played at, we were there for 13 hours. And 95% of the time I was coaching or reffing. Boy did my hips, feet, back, and butt hurt!(bleacher butt stinks!)

I haven't felt the baby move yet, and I'm getting so anxious!!

We have something going on 13 out of the next 15 weekends. Exciting, huh? Thankfully, I mean just something, not neccessarily that we're gone.

I've already started planning Mia's 2nd birthday party. (mainly because of point above) I am so excited for it!!

I'm off to go sit Miss Mia on her potty because she is insisting!

Jess

I've decided that I'm only going to post pregnancy updates, mia updates, and a few random things that I want to document(trips, family stuff). I find the blog world to be somewhat frustrating, at times pointless, and at times high schoolish. I've met great friends through blog land, and I love keeping up with friends I don't see nearly enough. Although I do not comment on everyone's blogs, I still follow them on a regular basis.

I have a confession.

2011-03-06T12:00:00.000-06:00

I have a confession.

I am no photographer.

Not even close.

Oh, you aren't surprised? :)

I was trying to take pictures of Mia with the dogs the other day. She had a cute dress on, and the dogs were all about her one morning. (Usually she's chasing them around the house tormenting them. )

This is how our photoshoot went:

"Mia, Shorty, sit for Mommy please. No, Shorty, move back a bit."
"No look over here!"

"Mia, call the doggies back"

"Otis, go sit by Mia. Mia look at Mommy. Shorty get away from my butt!"

" Mia, I know the dogs are funny, but say cheese and look at Mommy."

"Ok, I meant say cheese while sitting there, not say Cheese and charge me!"

Oh these three definately keep me busy. Some days I wonder how I'll survive with another one in the mix! It's like having 3 toddlers!

Happy Sunday!

Jess

"I'm Miiiiaaaaaaaaa!!!" (21 months)

2011-03-02T15:15:00.008-06:00

Mia is soon to be 21 months old! I missed out on posting her 20 months post, and I realized she's been doing so much I just had to get on and write a post on what all she's been doing.

In the past couple of weeks, this girls personality, vocabulary, VOLUME of speaking(she's so loud), and energy has increased ten-fold. It's insane. (well for her anyways, when around other toddlers, she's much calmer then the norm!)

Her vocabulary:
She can pretty much repeat any word you say. But her most common/day to day words are:
cracker
Thank You
Baby
Bible (sounds like she has a southern voice when she says it!)
Fork (which she has to use for every meal and I'm so thankful for-hardly any messes!)
Choo-Choo
Beep Beep
House (everytime we're with in a few blocks of our house)
Bracelets (sounds like braces)
Ring
Bow
Shoes
Socks
Chocolate
Cookie
Purple! (she loves the color purple)
Shorty
Otis
"Boys" for when we are calling the doggies
Please
Sorry
Poop
Dora Dora
Einsteins
Butt
Glasses
No (in a whiny voice)

Her phrases include
Mommy, I poop (she tells me when she's going poop, or right after. She's told me once, right before she went! And she tells me when she's peed. We're starting potty training in 2 weeks when vb is over!)
I'm Miiiiiiaaaaaaa!! (this is my all time favorite! she loves to shout it and is so proud to be Mia. She got down in my mom's cat's face and introduced herself, "I'm Mia!")
She loves to go around the house and identify everything. "A door, a ball, a color, a book, a toy, a shoe, "etc. and yes, she puts "a" in front of it all.
I stuck. (usually when she's in her car seat)
I got it!
I love you
I want milk
She's down to mainly 1 nap a day. Some days she does still take two, depending on how tired she is, and what we have going on that night.

She doesn't like to share. She was doing sooo good, and now she hates to share. *sigh*

She loves balls and glasses. She'd hoard them if I let her.

She's loves her two (main) baby sitters Joelle and Jenna. (they're sisters) I think she loves them like they're family!

She loves to say cheese and run at the camera still!

She's not as stubborn these days, so disciplining has decreased a little. I'm enjoying it while I can.
She can get up and sit at the kitchen table all by herself. Getting down is a whole 'nother story.

She loves having tea parties and reading books to her baby.

She's such a big helper. She loves to close doors, throw things away, help me clean, and anything else I ask her to do.

She also loves running around, pushing her stroller and chasing the dogs with it. She love Dr Seuss books. (Happy Birthday, Dr Seuss!) and puzzles!

She's been interested in movies in our long car drives. Grandma and Grandpa got her a dvd player, and so far, it's a hit!

She's are somewhat clumsy. You'll be running throughout the house and randomly wipe out. I'm hoping this passes before we hit up splash pads and cement sidewalks this summer.

Oh running. Yes she runs everywhere! Only at our house though. She's still timid out in public, and I'm ok w/ that!

She can play by herself most of the day. I enjoy it in the morning, I get most of my cleaning, phone calls, reading, etc done. I usually have to join in playing with her and have her 'read' books to me. She loves her Dora and Mickey find it books. She's at a stage where she gets so proud of herself!

This girl can bust a move. In the car, in her crib, in her booster seat, in the tub, anywhere. You say "dance, Mia," and start singing, she goes to town.

She loves being goofy and dancing with Mommy in the house. She looooves being held by Daddy and twirling and dancing.

She likes to brush her teeth and have her hair brushed.

She loves saying prayers with us at night before bed. She usually says a name or two of friends when we ask her who we should pray for.

She's obsessed with coloring and does pretty well. I've caught her coloring on the table a couple of times, but other than that she would rather color on blank paper then coloring books.

She loves belly buttons. She'll show you hers and insist on pulling your shirt up to see yours(esp in public!)!

The girl loves chocolate. *sigh* We're not huge sweets eaters, but she hears a wrapper, or sees a cookie and she will insist on eating some of it.

She has become such a LOUD little girl these days!! All day, everyday. Yelling. Loudly. It's exhausting just listening to her.

She's still going to bed 7-730 most nights and sleeping til 7.

We're going to start potty training in a couple weeks when I'm done with volleyball and can be home at night. Right now we are gone 4-5 nights a week between church and volleyball practice.

She points to my tummy and yells baby!

She's turned into quite a Mama's girl this past month or so. She still adores her Daddy too.

She has turned into a busy busy girl these past couple of weeks, and as exhausting as it is, most days, it's such a blast!

Happy Wednesday!

Jess

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T17:27:00.002-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day!!

We've spent the day hanging out ( Miss Mia and myself), and Scott's spent the day working, and baking!
We have small group tonight and all the men are cooking, and it's a surprise to us women! I'm so excited. They did this 2 years ago for us, and it was a blast! I didn't get him anything this year but a funny card, chocolate, I made oreo balls, got his favorite fast food for lunch, and I'll be making his favorite dinner, enchiladas, tomorrow night. Hey, the way to a Man's heart is through his stomach, right!? Well, it's true in my Hub's case, especially because I haven't been cooking much lately!

I hope you guys have a wonderful time with your friends, family, significant other's, and that you feel loved today!

Love Jess

Thankful Thursday

2011-02-10T18:30:00.000-06:00

This week has been going fairly smoothly. Since going to the hospital tuesday, I have been ordered (by dr) to not do much. To rest. To take it easy.

Yah. It's hard.

But thankfully, this Mama loves to nap.

Our days have been looking a lot like this:

wake up, cuddle/watch some Einsteins, eat breakfast, play, color, nap(both of us), lunch, play, color, read 1000 books over and over, nap(yes my girl still takes 2 naps! most days), daddy comes home, we play , eat supper, play, bedtime for mia, chat with the hubs for a bit, bedtime for this Mama.

They have been pretty relaxing and restful. I do some light cleaning-dishes, laundry, pick up toys, ya know, the usual, easy stuff.

I am just so thankful that I am feeling well. I remember being on bed rest when I was 32 weeks pregnant with Mia, (pre-eclampsia) and struggling with resting because of how great I actually felt. But I am determined to continue to rest up for the next 10 days(unless I hear otherwise next week at my drs appt), to keep this baby safe!

I am also thankful for Miss Mia being such an easy kid (for the most part) these past few days! Give her crayons and books and her baby dolls, and she's set!!!

It's been extremely cold here again this week, with the highs in the single digits. Actually, below zero with windchill!(Today, and this weekend it's warming up though!) Mia and the dogs have had major cabin fever. Mostly the dogs.

We've been hanging low, inside, due to the cold. Mia's been cold-free for a couple weeks now, and there's really no point in taking her out to below zero temps, if I don't have to. We've killed some time by having our neighbors over for a few play dates. I have to be careful to mention Kaitlyn's name, because if they are running a few minutes later than planned, Mia starts freaking out when Kaitlyn hasn't showed yet.

Looking out the window, waiting for her friend to come visit.

Shorty wants in on the action.
Telling secrets. These two, you gotta watch them.

All 3 of my babes, actually behaving. (I'm speaking of the dogs of course. Peeing in my house, a hole in my couch...if it was -25* out I'd have ads in the paper for them. They're on probation to get their act together in the warming/coming months)

Mia coloring her valentines.
"Cheeeese"
Weirdo.
So focused. She loves to color. And thankfully, she keeps it on the paper! (and out of her mouth)

We are doing really well this week. We're looking forward to the weather being nice, adn almost in the 40's this weekend! I think I need to go get Mia some rain boots, it's going to be a nasty/wet/slushy mess outside! We're hoping to get a bunch of stuff done in the garage-cleaned, organized, packed up, etc. And by 'we', I of course mean my wonderful husband, as I watch from the steps!
Happy Thursday!
Jess

"give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:18

God's Testing Me

2011-02-08T16:40:00.004-06:00

This morning was a hectic day full of emotions.

It actually started last night.

I was getting ready for bed and noticed some 'spotting.' I've never experienced this before in my first two pregnancies. I informed Scott and a couple good friends, so they could pray for me. I did some research in the book that the hospital sends home with you. I tried not to panic or worry.

It's so strange. Looking back, when I was pregnant with Mia, I just knew I'd be pregnant for 9 months, have a baby, and come home. I didn't know many people who had experiences other wise.

After losing Samuel at 20 weeks, obviously things have changed. I've never once thought we wouldn't carry this baby for 9 months. Never once.

Until today.

Last night I went to bed, praying over and over, "Lord, I know you are just testing me and my faith. I trust You, and I know I will be fine regardless of what we find out tomorrow." I slept well last night, surprisingly.

I called this morning, the Dr wanted me to come in and get lab work done, get an ultra sound, and meet with her. (My dr was off today)

I found a friend to watch Mia and Scott and I were off to the hospital. I wasn't really nervous. I was looking forward to meeting with a dr, and just receiving some professional reassurance.

We got our lab work done, and then headed to the ultra sound room.

Holy flood of emotions. The last time we were in that room, we were told we had lost our son. Neither one of us were prepared, today, for the emotions that room would bring us. Thankfully, the ultrasound tech knew our past, and within a few minutes was excitedly showing us body parts of our moving baby! The little peanut was soo tiny!

We had a great meeting with the dr following the ultrasound, and she explained there was some bleeding found around/or outside the sac in my uterus. (sorry, I don't remember everything she said, because I was still rejoicing in my head!) She said it wasn't alarming, or uncommon, and should fix itself in the next couple of weeks. She then proceded to put me on 'moderate' bedrest. Meaning-no exercising, no lifting heavy things, no strenuous activities for at least 2 weeks. Ahhh... I am allowed to still be a mommy, play with my child, clean(lightly!-yay an excuse:) ), and leave my house for light outings.

I am so incredibly thankful for God's grace. Yes, I trust in Him, but there are still times I am scared. I know He'll keep testing me and my faith throughout my life, and I know it won't always be easy, but I do know that I can't control any of it. I will enjoy each and every single day I am given with my growing baby/belly, my child, my husband, my family and friends.

I will be taking it easy these next 2 weeks. Soaking up good, quality time with Mia. Reading lots of books, watching lots of educational shows, singing songs, cuddling, playing with her babies, looking at funny youtube videos, playing with the dogs, and just enjoy being home, together.

Psalm 46:1
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble

Have a great week.
Jess

Thank you friends, for praying for me last night and today, we appreciate it.

snowed in

2011-02-07T19:54:00.004-06:00

So last week, we ended up getting 10-12 inches of snow. The snow, itself, is not really a bad thing. We live in Iowa, we adapt easily to huge amounts of snow. But if you combine 10-12 inches of snow with 35-50 mph winds, then we've got problems. Drifts ranging from 5-15 feet covered our town last week. It was insane!

So we stayed inside for 4 days last week, not leaving the house more then to visit the neighbors. Besides that much snow, it was a high of 2* most days as well. Miss Mia is finally healthy, all of us are actually, and I'm trying my hardest to keep it that way!

A few things we did while be 'snowed' in for 4 days.

The snow on our deck after Scott shoveled a path for mail man.
The snow outside our garage.
The boys did a lot of this.

Mia did a lot of this.

And this. This girls a ball hoarder!

Daddy teaching her how to jump.

She's been a good mommy.

And she caught up on her reading, all over the house.

Monkey see, monkey do.And she randomly laid on the kitchen floor. Why not?

This week we are back to 3 days with the high not reaching more than 5* each day.(not including windchill!) Bummer. I doubt we'll be getting out much, that's just too cold to take the babe out, and myself, for that matter! I'm hoping I'll find the energy to get some things done around this house! And maybe blog more, and catch up on everyone else's blog!

Happy Monday!

Jess

Less is More..

2011-02-01T06:00:00.000-06:00

So, I'm a dummie.

My last post, I was explained how much Mia loooooved the snow. And I may have possibly mentioned I would mind some snow again. But all I meant was a LITTLE SNOW! They are calling for 10-20 INCHES OF SNOW by thursday!! AHHH!! I sure hope they are wrong. I'm of course, writing this post ahead of time and posting it later, so hopefully I'll be able to *update* it before it posts or I will have to post later this week to fill you in on how much we really got.

Most of the time the weather peeps are way off. They say 2-4 inches and we get 9 inches. They call for this HUGE winter storm, and it misses us. But sometimes they are right(the past 2 Christmas Eves/Christmas Days-10-16 inches of snow-they totally called it). So we will see. The good news is, I stay home. I don't have to worry about driving in it, taking Mia out in it, etc. The bad news is, unless schools close, the Hubs is out driving in it. I enjoy when he gets snow days, but the likelihood of all of the schools he's supposed to see this week being out on the same day-blech. He's smart though, and he'll never risk his life if it is travel not advised, and we do have a great all-wheel drive/suv he takes on those days.

So Mia may get her snow time this week again!

I've been meaning to post about why I haven't posted about my coaching club volleyball experience thus far. (was that a long/confusing/run on sentence, or what!?) However, things are not going as I expected or planned, and I feel a blog post will have to wait. This is a public blog, that can be found by just 'googling' my name. I have no clue who reads my blog, who they know, etc. I will say this, coaching 10, 14 year old, freshman girls, is definately more challenging than I anticipated. I've had a few problems/bumps along the way, shed many tears, prayed many prayers, and even contemplated quitting a couple weeks back. However, some things changed, and things are getting somewhat better. We have 4 tournaments left(we finish middle of March), and the girls are improving. I also didn't realize how much of a time commitment it would be. Between 3 practices/a week(including saturdays) and at least 2 nights spent at church, it doesn't leave us home much. Which can be overwhelming. I can go go go during the day, but in the evening, I am a homebody. I like to be home with my family more than 1 night/week, if that some weeks. So that has been a struggle as well.

So anyways, not to bore you! I will post all about this volleyball season when it's over!

So this little girl, is hilarious these days. She makes me laugh everyday. I got her a couple new bows, not that she really needed any, and she saw them on her dresser and excitedly yelled "Bow!!"
Of couse she wanted both in her hair, before bedtime, to show Daddy and her babysitter that was on her way over. She walked around the house, practically on tip toes, making sure they stayed in her hair until Daddy and Jenna got there.
She then insisted she wore them to church! Plus she wanted a ponytail! I talked her into just wearing one bow, and she was thrilled. It stayed in all through service. I'm pretty stoked she's back to letting me put things in her hair.

We are now just working on the idea that less is more..

And she has also turned into quite the Mommy this past week. She was carrying her baby around all day, and she ran into her room and got her vicks baby rub, her booger-sucker(that green thing from the hospital you stick up their nose and pull snot out with), and a kleenex. She then proceeded to lay her baby down and 'suck boogies' out, wipe her nose with a kleenex, and take her shirt off to rub vicks on her chest. She's such a good little mommy! Can you tell what we've been doing around here lately?

Thankfully, we are all on the mend and practically 100% healthy. I'm hoping it stays this way because this Mama needs some sleep at night!!

Hope you are all having a good week!

Jess

'Nowman!

2011-01-30T12:00:00.001-06:00

I just cannot get over how much Miss Mia is loving the snow this winter. She absolutely loves it. That's actually an understatement. She'd spend hours out there if we let her. Unfortunately, it's been either below zero, or below 20* the past 2 weeks now, so no snow playing for us. These pics were taken a couple weeks ago after we got a good 6 inches. I have yet to make it out to play in the snow with her, since I seem to be battling a cold every time they go play.
Oh yah, the dogs love it too!

Snow man building time. Look how much fun she is having! Next year it'll be better, she may actually be able to move in her snow pants.:)

Daddy teaching her how to make and throw snow balls.

Most mornings, she runs out into the kitchen to our sliding back door and starts pointing and yelling "Now, Nowman!" over and over. (snow/snowman-she can't say her 's' sound well yet!)

Hopefully we'll get another good snow and the temps will be closer to 30* so we can venture out to play again!

Then again, be care what you wish for, I think. ;)

Jess

Daddy's got Mad skillz.

2011-01-26T21:24:00.003-06:00

About 2 weeks ago, this mama came down with a nasttttyyy head cold. You know the kind? The stuffy ears, pounding head, coughing all night, sore throat, clogged nose, all that good stuff. It didn't help that the 2nd day I had it, I was up at 430 am getting ready for a 12 hour day at our volleyball tournament, being held 1 1/2 hrs away. Yup. No good.

Normally, when I'm sick, you tough it out and go about your business. I'm a mom, and that's what I do. However, being pregnant AND sick, with limited medicines to take, wiped.me.out. Completely. Scott's been amazing, taking over Mia/dog duties, letting me rest as much as I can.

And as most illnesses go, they spread. This little girl caught it this past weekend.

She spent almost 2 full days laying on me, or next to me. And screamed if it wasn't one or the other. So unlike her.

We also spent much of last week and early this week doing this.

Laying in bed watching Little Einsteins, Dora Dora, or Mickey Mouse.

I don't feel great, as a mom, letting my child watch a few hours/a day of tv. But, it could be worse. We still managed to play some, read some, and hang out and cuddle. I'm so glad I waited to 'introduce' the tv to Mia (as of a few months ago), because days like these past few, I've really needed the tv to be a 'treat' for her, and not just a common, everyday thing. We normally watch 30-60 min in the morning and that's it. We are slowly getting back to that routine now that we are both feeling much better.

Her 'cheese' face.

Look at this little cute pony tail. Daddy did it all himself! Daddy's got mad skillz.

Oh did I mention we stayed in our pjs most days?

This guy, Otis, is such a lover when people are sick. He usually stays to himself and avoids Mia's paths at all costs. (to avoid being sit on, loved on, poked on, etc) But man, when she wasn't feeling well, he was all up in her business.

She is never too sick to not play with the boys! I know this pic is cut off, they got too close to me too fast, but the 3 of them play tug of war and it's hilarious. Mia doesn't like to lose.

Wearin' Daddy's mocassin's.

Scott had a meeting out of town today, and it just so happened to be where his parents live. So he loaded up Mia and the boys last night and they spent last night and the entire day/evening there today. I had volleyball practice last night, then came home to an empty house(not so great), watched MY tv shows, and relaxed. I slept in, and layed in bed until 11:00 AM!! Insane!! I then spent 4.5 hours cleaning/de-germing our entire house. I got almost everything done on the list but our bedroom, but that's usually how it works and usually why our room is hardly clean.(laundry wise-i dust/de-germed/washed bedding in there) I feel so much better with our house being clean and Mia and I are on the ups of feeling much better! Now if only the weather would get above 30* so we could get some of our out and about time/life back!

Happy Wednesday!

Jess

*disclaimer-I did NOT sleep the entire night through to 11:00AM. I was awake every 2 hrs either having to pee, because hubs wasn't here, or because of some messed up pregnancy dream/nightmare I was having. A very restless night of sleep, which is why I felt the need to lay in bed until 11:00AM. That and because I could:).

Miss Mia's 18 Month Pics

2011-01-19T06:00:00.000-06:00

We got Miss Mia's 18 month pics done before Christmas. She was incredibly ornery this day, and only managed to hand out a handful of smiles. However, somehow our photographer figured out how to make the rest of them cute! (The main reason I pay a little more for a professional photographer then going to a studio in the mall or super stores-this little girl is not easy to work with!)

They turned out super cute, even her little pouty one in the last pic!

But then again, I'm biased. :)

Happy Wednesday!

Jess

*not my pics-pics taken by Kristi.

Details Details Details!

2011-01-17T20:57:00.007-06:00

I've been meaning to post about our latest, exciting news in our house. It's not that I meant to leave you all hanging, it's more so I had to squeeze some posts in about Miss Mia(before I forgot!) and I've been consumed in either ministry at our church, volleyball tournaments and practices, and being sick.

Yup. I have one of the worst head colds I've ever experienced. The kind where your head is pounding, your ears hurt, your eyes water, coughing all night, and breathing is limited. And reffing and coaching for 10 hours straight (after getting up at 430am) this past weekend did not help me get better.

Thankfully, I have an amazing husband who's taken over and helped out a ton with Mia and stuff around the house. Not trying to complain, but man, even a cold beats you down when you are pregnant, tired, and you can't take much to help it go away!

So back to the babes that is residing in my tummy. We found out on our last day in Maui, that we were expecting again! It puts me due towards the end of summer, which isn't the best timing for us. If you know us personally, or have been reading for awhile, Scott runs his own business, and he makes the bulk of our income in July-Aug. He works 16 hour days/6-7 days a week. Yup. Like, I said, not the best timing, but God's timing is His timing, and He knows whats best. So I'm relying on Him to get me through those last 2 (hot) months, practically a single Mama. The good news is, we have wonderful family and friends that I know I can call on! And we've also learned our lesson in the past, that God has a plan for us, and we just need to put our trust in Him. It doesn't matter what we try to plan, how we try to plan it, He'll throw us a curveball!

On to details!

I'm 8 weeks. I see the OB history nurse in a few days and I don't see my OB dr until 12 weeks (the last 2 were at 10 weeks! ugh!). I am not considered high risk, and he has no reason to believe this pregnancy will be like the last one, and we're going full fledge forward and this baby is coming in August.

So why tell people so early? Especially since we've lost one before?
I'll tell you why. (first time pregnant mama's-may not want to read further! I don't want to scare you!)
A) I think the "12/13 week safe mark" is crap. I really do.(I mean, I know medically speaking, statistics show you are 'higher risk') Speaking from our pesonal experience, we lost our son at 20 weeks(well, we found out at 20 weeks-they measured him at 16 weeks though); it was an abnormality-which means, basically we miscarried just 4-8 weeks later than most people do. Also, I have numerous friends who have gone through something similar at 22 weeks, around 30 weeks, at 40 weeks and so many other different times in the 9 months.(some were caused by medical reasons as well) And I do know many who've lost their babies around 6-9 weeks. It's all terrible news. But my, personal thoughts, the baby isn't safe until they're born, in your arms and going home with you. (well, we get home and then as parents, fight like mad to keep them safe-but I'm just talking about the pregnancy/birth part)
B) We want everyone we know to celebrate this wonderful blessing with us!!
C) We want everyone we know, praying for us and this baby!
D) If something, God forbid, did happen, I'd rather have people know and helping us/praying for us, then never telling anyone, and us grieving alone.
E) And probably one of the most obvious, is once our parents know, we must tell good friends fast, because our Mom's tell the whole world!
(If you are one, who chooses to wait the 12-13 weeks, or however long you feel is safe-I'm not disrespecting your decision! I'm just explaining why we share, almost right away, especially with having a loss)

I understand, I may have a different view point then most. It may sound confusing because I just rambled, and didn't proofread(I'm tired and sick and need sleep asap), but it's something I feel very strongly about. A lot of people were surprised we announced it so soon/right away. But this is why. We are blessed. We are excited. And we can't keep secrets. :D

We'll find out the gender this spring!

Because we have 2 (or 3?) weddings this summer in June-I am in one of them, and the other is going to be family vacation to Colorado-then Mia's birthday, then July, Scott is basically on call 24/7 with his coaches and his busy time starts-this baby's nursery will be done by May. Not the night before we go to the hospital, like Mia's was!

Names? We have our boys name picked out. Girls name, not so much. Scott kind of likes the "M" theme, but I don't have many girl names I like that start with M. Good thing we have a few months to think about it! ;)

The 2 hardest things I've experienced, thus far, being pregnant. The first, is when telling people we are expecting again, it's weird if I say, "Yup, we're expecting baby #2." Or something of the sort. I stutter through it, and those who don't know me well probably wonder what my problem is. It doesn't feel right to say that, since being pregnant 3 times and having already had 2 babies. However, I think saying "we're expecting baby #3" may be more awkward and hard to swallow/explain. So we just leave it at, "we're pregnant! Mia's going to be a great big sister!" Seems to work the best, and isn't as painful to say.

The second thing, is all the women who desperately want a baby, and long to be called Mama. I my heart breaks for them. It's a fine line to walk to rejoice in our blessing, yet be sensitive and aware of others' feelings. Some I know, personally, some I don't. All I know is that their time will come, God will take care of them. I pray daily for these women, and I don't take a day of being called Mama, or being pregnant, for granted.

Psalm 37:4
Take delight in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

If I left any questions/answers out, please let me know!
Jess

Mia-19 months

2011-01-16T17:00:00.002-06:00

Mia,

You turned 19 months last week, and I cannot believe how much you have learned in the past month or two!!

You will now repeat every word we ask you to say, and most of the time, it's pretty darn close!

You absolutely love saying your name! "Mia, Mia, Miiiiiiiaaa!"

You can count 1, 2, 3, and you love singing A, B, C and you continue on, but it's in your own langauge-but w/ the right tune!

The words you can say well, doctor, shoes, feet, cheese(either food or when the camera is out), eat, cracker, and many more.

You are becoming very active! You love to play tag/chase throughout the house!

I've mentioned before, but you loooove your little friends. Kaitlyn is by far, your favorite! You squeal with delight and freak out when you see her!

You loooove Little Einsteins and Mickey Mouse still, and request "Eisteis" after your nap some days. You usually find the remote and bring it to us, or go curl up in our bed and yell til we come in. I believe you learned this at Grandma and Grandpas a couple weeks ago!

Now, while watching Little Einsteins, you pat your lap and raise your hands for 'Blast off!' (However, mommy cannnot for the life of me figure out why it only airs at 2-3am and I have to continue to record them!)

Thankfully, you are not at the age yet where you hate the same episode over and over:)

You have been an amazing eater lately! I think you are hitting a growth spurt!

Grandma said you sat through your first movie, Toy Story!

Your hair is long enough to put a fountain top ponytail on your head, and one in the back, but your front/sides are too short that it looks funny in the back.

You love your Minnie Mouse cups. I only give you water in them because they leak a little, but you will hoard them all.

You weight 26.2lbs and wear a size 5 diaper. Almost a size 6 shoe, and are wearing some 18-24 month and a lot more 24 month stuff. You are still in the between stage, 24 month is a little big on my petite thing.

You have to eat all of your meals with a fork.

You would eat crackers all day if I let you!

You are still the dogs' boss. You love to tell on them by yelling at them when they sneak into the kitchen while we are eating, or if they are chewing on one of your toys. You tell them to go outside and in their kennel, and get very frustrated with me if I don't let them inside right away.

You give the best hugs.

You enjoy brushing your teeth! I usually let you do it first, then I help out after.

You looooove washing your hands!! When I mention we have to wash our hands you want to drop what you're doing and do it that minute!

You love your new Dora potty seat(which is great, since you've only seen that show a few times!)! You no what it's for, and you get angry with me when I'm on the potty and not using the seat!

You've had 2 ear infections in the last 3 months. Boo.. I think it's a combination of your age, the toddler room at church, your teething, and our gym's daycare that's causing it. I've spent a lot of time feeling guilty that I'm doing something wrong, but they're only ear infections and I'm grateful it's not worse.

It is so cute to see you in the toddler room at church. Watching you play with others (well, usually), listen to your Bible story and sit there quietly eating your snack. (I'm told, you are the 1st one to ask for it-surprise surprise) Makes me think that I am definately NOT ready for you to go to preschool, anytime soon!

You still love your blankets and you sleep with 3-5 of them at a time. They're all the knitted/crocheted kind with holes, and you usually use one or two as a pillow, one tucked under your arm to snuggle and one on top of you.

You say bye-bye to everyone.

You love to color with crayons or pens! You are usually only allowed 1 color at a time due to dogs who like to chew things, and you still put them in your mouth from time to time.

You are a great cuddler and love handing out kisses.

You remain to be fairly equal when it comes to a Mama's girl or Daddy's girl. It just depends on the day and situation.

You insist on drinking out of my water bottle when I have one. It usually becomes yours shortly after.

You have your Mama's love for chocolate milk. If you catch me with a glass of it, I usually give the last drop to you! (I know, I'm nice like that)

Mia, you are such a big helper, you love to clean, sweep, pretend vacuum, and so much more. You will make a fantastic big sister this summer!

Happy 19 months, baby doll!
Mama

25 Randoms.

2011-01-14T06:00:00.000-06:00

So, I've seen this floating around a few blogs for about a week now, and I decided I needed to take a break from regular blogging-since I'm way behind-and do something fun and mindless.

So here goes!

1. I wear contacts usually, when my eyes hurt I'll wear my glasses.

2. I have about 20 books on my 'to read' list. *sigh*

3. I enjoy tv shows like CSI, NCIS, Law & Order SVU and CI.

4. The Kennedy family intrigues me and there is a special coming up at the end of the month!

5. I think I have a sweet spot for Otis more than Shorty. As Scotty would put it, "We are definately not ready to adopt!"

6. If I could, and my hubby wanted to, I would have 6 kids.

7. My favorite chore is doing laundry. But not putting it away.

8. If Mia eats all her 3 meals a day, takes at least 1 nap-I call that a Win for the day.

9. I used to be a morning person, until I had a child.

10. I have a lot of 'ideas' to make our home more 'homey,' but our bedroom, spare rooms, and living room have yet to be decorated.

11. I love to text.

12. I am a homebody, yet Mia and I must get out of the house, at least to run an errand, one time a day.

13. I have to wash my hair everyday.

14. I enjoy playing card games, board games, or any kind of game. I look forward to our family game nights when our kid(s) are older.

15. I hate wearing sweaters. They make me itch, and sweat.

16. I boom with Mommy pride when I watch and see how excited Mia is when she sees and plays with her little friends. I didn't expect her to be this interested at this age, but man, she loves her friends.

17. I realized on vacation, that I love having 'breaks' from responsibility of cooking, cleaning, taking care of the kids(Otis and Shorty are my kids too-it's seriously like having 3 toddlers), paying bills etc. However, when you are a mom, you are never really on a true break. Therefore, I had my phone with me most of the time on vacation for that 'just in case' moment. I didn't always look at it, but having it on me sometimes felt like I wasn't really letting go and enjoying vacation to it's fullest the entire time. Ah well, it comes with being a mommy(or parent), and I'm ok with that! We still had a blast!

18. I believe I require 8-9 hours of sleep to fully function. If I get less, I either nap or go to bed extremely early to make up for it. I take no shame in napping(some days!), even if my 'baby' is 19 months old.

19. I respect all different parenting types(as long as the child's not in danger, of course), but the one thing I will always advocate for and stand firm on is that everyone should date their husband/put him first! It goes God first, Spouse 2nd, then kids. Too many people put their kids before everything and invest all they have into them, I believe this is one of the main reasons the divorce rate is so high. (No, I am not perfect and always have them in this order, but I am thankful for a loving husband who reminds me now and then)

20. I love that my husband and I come from very small immediate families, it makes holidays a lot less stressful. (Especially w/ having the only grandbabe!)

21. A few things I am most proud of as a Mommy, thus far, is Mia likes to brush her teeth(win!), she knows how to pray, she says Please and Thank You, and she shares well (most of the time).
I'm aware these are all subject to change.

22. I don't like to compromise. It's the only child syndrome thingy.

23. I need to start back on following a grocery budget. Ugh, I get stressed out when I think about how much we spend on food. But, I guess it's always better than eating out and most of it is on produce.

24. I'M PREGNANT!!

25. WE ARE COMPLETELY ESTATIC THAT WE ARE PREGNANT!

Happy Friday!
Jess

Vacation=BABYMOON!?!

2011-01-12T15:54:00.004-06:00

I think it's safe to say....2011 just got a little more busy/exciting!
Jess

Happy to be Home

2011-01-11T06:00:00.000-06:00

This girl, is happy we are home.

So is this boy.(Otis)

This Mama, is somewhat happy to be home. Because, you see, this is what happens when you have company for 2 weeks prior to hosting Christmas, then leave for 9 days the day after Christmas. (this pile has since quaddrupled and I am not attempting to tackle it.)

And my table. Yah, we won't be eating dinner off it anytime soon.

But this girl, she LOVES her new Christmas toy. Mama loves it too. Not only do I love the sound of her singing her Abc's (in her version after the a b and c), it can entertain her for awhile. Which helps me, especially when she wants to 'help' me in the kitchen.

And I think this girl missed her babies too.

Even though the messes are big(hey, we got our Christmas decor down!), the laundry is never ending, toys are throwing up all over my house, and my Christmas presents pile won't be touched, let alone looked at in the next couple weeks(volleyball is consuming 3-4 nights a week and church activities the other nights), we are happy to be home.

Jess

To see our vacation to Maui pictures-click here!

I went to Hawaii, and I got Lei'd..

2011-01-09T17:43:00.004-06:00

HAH! You like my sense of humor don't you. You get it? Lei'd..laid..bahhaa..ok. Maybe not.

So anyways. We had a fabulous time on our trip! It was perfect weather, 80*, almost all sunshine, a lot of quality time spent together, and a nice tan to bring home.

Our days were mostly spent, getting up early (we were 4 hours behind and our bodies never adjusted), doing a touristy thing until noonish, laying on the beach for a few hours, resting or napping in the room for an hour, dinner somewhere, then most nights, we were in bed early, gearing up for the early morning that lied ahead. A lot of the guids/locals told us most things close down by 8 because that's what most tourists do, get up early, spend all day in the sun, eat, then pass out. We didn't feel so bad then. :)

We went on a helicopter tour over a couple different islands, one being where they filmed a lot of Jurrassic Park!

This was the view from our room/balcony!

Loved this little bay we found. It was perfect for swimming/boogie boarding with the waves! It definately brought out our inner child.

We went whale watching!

We saw a few sunrises!

And a few sunsets!

We went deep sea fishing (for 6 hours, starting at 430am on New Years Day) and Scotty was the only one who caught anything! He was soo proud!

A dinner cruise, wasn't the greatest, but still a good experience.

We just had to play shuffleboard. Our resort had one and this guy was begging me all week to do it. I finally agreed on one of our last days, and I lasted, oh about 15 minutes..ha!

We went to this look out point so we could watch where all the surfers in Maui go to catch some big waves. This is just a small portion of the area, there were hundreds of surfers! They must have some 'unwritten' rules that they all know of so they don't run each other over! If you look close, 3 surfers are taking this wave.

And on our last day there, it was a little sunny, a little rainy, and we saw plenty of these beautiful things.

We went to a Luau and it was neato. The food was amazing. It was open bar.(Scott's favorite part) And we sat by a very cool family from Philly.

We had a wonderful time. Unfortunately, we did not sleep an hour on the red eye flight (8 hrs) home, stayed up late our 1st night back to hang out with my sister in law, and have been trying to catch up on sleep ever since. Mia's been happy to see us, happy to be home with her new Christmas toys again, but extremely naughty and ornery and waking up around 530am every morning. I think 8 days at Grandma's was a little much for her(us) to handle. She may also be fighting off an ear infection, so I think we'll be making a dr's appt this week.

We had such a great time together, and experienced many new things together. We are very happy to be home though!

Happy Sunday!

Jess

Vacation was..

2011-01-04T20:00:00.001-06:00

Breathtakingly beautiful
Windy
Comfy couches
Missing Mia
Skyping Mia
Palm trees
Peaceful
Cloudy
Sunny
Tourists
Good Food
Rocky beaches
Blue Ocean water
Sandy beaches
Boats
Whale watching
Sea sickness
Luau's
Polynesians
Volcanoes
Islands
Tans
Burns
Sand in spots it shouldn't be
Sunglasses
Lazy time
Early mornings
Late nights
Early nights
Wine
Fun drinks
Convertibles
Jeep
2 year olds swimming(actually real swimming!)
Speedos
Cute babies
Tattoos
Quality Time
Arguments
Good food
Desserts
Good Conversation
Surf Boards
Surfers
Australians
Friend making
Boogie boarding
Sunsets
Sunrises
Rain
Rainbows
Cliffs
Helicopters
Snorkeling
Fish
Fishing
New food tasting
Hot chocolate (!)
Waterfalls
Areas in movies(Jurrassic Park filmed here!)
Windy Roads
Lei's
Souvenirs
Awesome Pizza place
Expensive
Friendly locals
Skate boards
Bikini bottoms that are too small
Jamming out to hip-hop music (b/c little ears were absent!)
No responsibility
Slow moving
Long days
Short days
Tears (of joy)
Texting
Picture sending
Ocean breeze
Red eye flights
People watching
News reading
No tv watching
Scrabble playing
Card games
Book reading
Craters
Sea turtles
Interesting (professional) Massages
Long flights
Families
Amazing views
Small roads

And so much more! We just got in today, so I'll be posting some of my favorite things we did and pictures, of course, very soon! We had a wonderful time, but are very glad to be home to my babes in waiting! (Mia Otis, and Shorty!)
Jess

To see my Christmas post, while I was gone, click here.
To see hilarious photos of Mia in 10 inches of snow, click here.

Christmas 2010

2011-01-02T14:14:00.000-06:00

Mia is such a blessed little girl! We hosted Christmas this year and my mom and sister in law, Amanda ended up coming a few days early because of our bad weather pending. We set out a piece of Jesus' b-day cake for Santa, and hit the hay early. My in-laws made it Christmas morning. Mia (and us of course!) had a wonderful Christmas, proving once again, she is loved and spoiled. Here are just some of my favorite pics from Christmas Day!

She used her tongue to open every.single.gift!
Takin' a milk break and showing of her 'pretties' on her wrist.

This was her 3rd gift(book) she opened. After she saw it was Mickey Mouse, she might as well have been done opening presents for the day. Yup, in true toddler fashion, she'd open a gift and love it so much she just wanted to play with it. I think it took us 5 time frames to get through her gifts!

She looooooves her new(used-thanks, Lindsey!) baby doll stroller!

She picked this necklace out for mommy, but refused to let mommy wear it. So sweet.

She loves her new kitchen set!

Tryin on her new headband that actually fits her heaD!

Being silly!

Lovin' the drum!Usin' that tongue again!

Family pic time!

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

Jess

SNOW!!!

2010-12-30T19:00:00.002-06:00

I decided the day after Christmas, that I would put together some of my favorite photos of the days of our Christmas, and have them scheduled to be posted while I am away, on vacation. This way, I will not feel a million posts behind with hundreds of pics to sort from Christmas and Vacation that I just don't ever post about any of it, and I hate posting things weeks after the fact! I am sure all of you have done your Christmas posts by now-and I will def be reading them/catching up on them on our way back to Iowa and so forth!

Anyways, onto snow snow snow! We got 9-10 inches of snow Christmas Eve! They called for us to get 1-3in. Um, yah, they were a little off. But it was that pretty, soft, falling snow that made everything so peaceful, and made me thankful for snow and white Christmases. Some people never ever get to experience this beauty!

Here are some of my favorite photos of Mia, Daddy, our two dogs and my sister in laws dog, playing in the snow!

Contrary to Miss Mia's looks, she LOVED IT! Every time Scott brought her around to the door and asked her if she wanted to go in, she'd shake her head no! The dogs loved it as well, especially the path they made for them around the yard.

Aren't kids so cute when all bundled up? She couldn't sit. It was either stand(with her arms out) or lay down. No in between.

Well, I'm off to schedule a post for Christmas now!

Jess

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T06:00:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from our family to YOURS!!!

Love,

Scott, Jess, Mia, Otis, Shorty

Be back next year with a nice tan!! :P

A post in which I make you feel better about yourself.

2010-12-21T17:05:00.004-06:00

I went to the grocery store on Sunday to get some necessities to bake on Monday/Tuesday. I wanted to spread it out a bit, so I didn't feel overwhelmed and had room to practice my trial and error methods.

I'm not a baker.

But I cherish our friends and neighbors that are like family to us, so I really wanted to put together a little treat package for them. So I put all my doubts aside and hit up the store.

But when I got home, I realized I forgot a few ingredients. And by a few, I mean an important ingredient for every.single.item I was going to bake/make. So instead of heading out again on Sunday night, I decided to spend the evening with my Hubby, and would hit up the store 1st thing Monday.

Ha. We woke up to a ice blizzard on Monday morning. And the Hubs takes my suv/all wheel drive with him on bad days. Which left me with 2 options: a) risk Mia and myself and drive Scott's little (stick shift) car around town to get the items I needed or b) stay inside most of the day and start the baking on Tuesday. We chose B.

So we've had a very productive day today. I had my Bible study with my neighbor this morning, vaccuumed and cleaned all the rooms and my couches, and started my baking. (Did I mention that we have a friend coming to visit tomorrow? He's our bff and is in the navy, so we only see him twice a year! Oh, and my sis-in-law is coming and so is my mom (a day early) b/c we're expecting a blizzard/a lot of snow on Thursday/Friday. Kind of like last Christmas.)

Well last year, we got 15 inches of snow right before Christmas.(my Mom got 24+inches!) Nice, huh? Yah, not so much. This year, thankfully, they're only calling for 4-6 and 6-8 up by my mama.

Man, she was tiny.

Anyways, I got sidetracked. Sorry.

So I started making and baking. I'm awful.

I did some easy/basics first, mainly to build my self esteem.

Chocolate covered pretzels:

Oreo Balls pre almond bark dunked:

More pretzels:

Choc chip cookies and un frosted (confetti) sugar cookies:

Yumm...yes I loaded sprinkles and frosting on them. I didn't think they tasted that great, but I'm not a fan of sugar cookies so I have no idea if that's how they're supposed to taste? (Don't mind the jar of frosting...or the fact these were made from a box)

Hey, I told you I couldn't bake.

Oh, did I mention that I forgot about my almond bark(for the oreo balls) on the stove, then I smelled something awful-yup, it was burning. Now my pan is showing no signs of coming clean, and if you look close enough, theirs some of it stuck to my sink as well. *sigh*

I did have fun, jammin' to Christmas songs-especially my fave-and hanging with this Scrumptious little one. Man, does this girl have a sweet tooth.

It has been a long day all in all, and I'm not done. I'm going to maek another attempt at sugar cookies, and some brownies. I know brownies are really 'Christmasy' snacks, but again, I need some building of the self-esteem...and it comes out of a box! ha!

Happy Tuesday everyone!

jess

Tis the Season

2010-12-19T15:46:00.004-06:00

We had a wonderful weekend! We spent friday night(after vb practice-post coming on how that's going soon!) relaxing and catching up on some tv. The Hubs has been wicked busy with work so he can have off most of Christmas week. Saturday we did a lot of fix ups around the house, cleaned(with my new steam mop!!!), and did some last minute shopping-bad idea! It took us FOUR HOURS to go to 2 stores! The traffic was insane. I reminded Hubby this is why I do MY shopping 2 months earlier. I don't think he'll be making fun of me for that anytime soon. =)

It's so strange Christmas is on a Saturday. I think it's strange. It's so close, yet we have an entire week to get through still!

Did I mention we are hosting Christmas this year?!?! Yes, and I am so excited! We did this last year, and it turned out great, and easy peasy!

We both come from small families, just my mom, his sister and and his parents. It's so much easier for them to drive to us, vs. us driving to one end of the state for Christmas Eve then the other side of the state for some of Christmas Day. It's not fair to the grandparents, us, or Mia and it's what works for everyone right now.

Yes, we leave for vacation 1 day after Christmas, but it'll be so much easier to just pack up and leave from our house. However, with one more friend visiting this week, my sister in law coming for a few days, and our families joining us for Christmas Eve/Christmas Day, packing and vaca are not on the top of my mind!

I love having company. I love playing hostess, cooking for our guests, playing games that involve more than 2 people(or are more fun with a 3rd and 4th person), watching movies, pigging out, catching up, taking care of others, AND, most importantly, it gives me a reason to thoroughly clean my house and switch out my pictures!!! HAHA.

You thought I was going to say something meaningful, didn't you? :D

No, for real though, I have this issue. I feel like I need to have something different done in my house since the last time they visited. Whether it's curtains, wall hangings, switching out pics, or decor, something needs to be changed/done. Makes me feel like I'm making 'progress' on my our home. For example, my 2 huge picture frames are the same pics I frantically put in last year before Christmas. Changing those out this week. And obviously, Christmas decor helps out a bunch. And we added new (lime green) curtains to Mia's room!

This little princess has been a Mommy's girl. I think it's a mix between the Hubs being gone, working, and she's not feeling 100%. That's ok! I'll take it when I can get it!

Oh, did I also mention last week, we found out the dogs had fleas, and Otis' allergies are at it again. Yup. FLEAS IN DECEMBER!!! I think they came back with us from Kansas/Thanksgiving. So a routine/allergy check up, fleas, 5 pills/a day for a week and $200+ later.. Ugh. 'Tis the season.. good thing I love these boys.

I hope you guys had a wonderful weekend!
Jess

Tongues, Rats Nests, and Dogs, OH MY!

2010-12-17T07:01:00.001-06:00

We've been busy these past few weeks. When we are home, Mia and the boys keep me busy! She just turned 18 months this past week, and she is full fledge learning mode! She now says cheese, choo-choo, bye bye, baby, and a few more. She's been busy reading books, and her favorites are the 2 Christmas Books I randomly picked up on Black Friday. (T'Was the Night before Christmas and The Christmas Story about Jesus' Birth) She's into stacking legos and blocks, gets easily frustrated when she can't fit the puzzle piece in its spot, waving at all of her little friends at church, and snooping through my spare room that has all of her presents in sacks waiting to be wrapped.

Most days, when she's quiet, I'll find her reading in unusual spots/areas of the house. On the kitchen floor laying down, on her tummy by the front door, or just standing at the end table.

Oh, she's also into experimenting with Ranch and ketchup for dipping.

She LOOOOVES SNOW!!! We got an awful ice/snow storm this past weekend, and she squealed and squealed until Daddy took her out to at least see it. They couldn't stay out long though, as the temps were falling into the -20 to -30 below windchill!!!

She still loves her tent and the new piano Auntie Carla got her for Christmas. It meows. And plays lots of music. Continuously. Oh did I mention it also has a microphone for her to scream into? Yah. It's wonderful. insert sarcasm

OOO..I had to sneak a few pics in of my boys!! Poor Otis, he's suffering some wicked allergies again.

Hey Boys!

Someone else enjoys the tent as well...

Enter Rats nest and Tongue. This girl's hair/mullet is out of control!! Morning, day and night. Pre/post brushed, pre/post bath, does.not.matter. It's ratty and tangled. This girl is also using her tongue for everything and anything that involves concentration! Look at her go!

Rats Nest. check

Tongue. check

"Cheese!!"

This weekend we'll be cleaning, finishing our Christmas shopping and getting ready for family and friends visiting next week!
Have a great weekend!
jess

BFF Rose

2010-12-15T17:49:00.004-06:00

We just got home from the airport. My best friend from high school flew out from New York to stay with us for a week..and what a week it was! We did nothing but eat, eat, play games, eat, play with Mia, eat, eat, play with the boys, eat, eat, take a spontaneous 8 +hr trip to see our moms, eat, eat, watch some tv, eat, eat and play some more games!! It was a great week, went by way too fast, and I think it's safe to say, everyone enjoyed Auntie Carla's visit! Here are some pics from our past week:

Shorty was in looove with Carla! We kept making a joke, his 'BFF Rose,' from the old commerical about texting.

Mia also took a liking to Auntie Carla. She'd stand outside the bathroom door everytime she went into use the restroom or shower. Carla didn't get the memo that you have no privacy when in our house!

BFF's.. we even tried to talk her into taking him back to New York with her...she wasn't having it.

We were sad to see her leave today, but hopefully she'll be back soon, and for longer!

Hope you are all having a good week!

Jess

Snow Angel

2010-12-09T07:00:00.001-06:00

So, I mentioned before, we got our first couple inches of snow last weekend! Scott didn't waste a minute Saturday morning, bundling Mia up to get her out in the snow!! He even remembered the camera for pictures!! (definately worth TWO exclamation points!)

Yup.

Just call him Super Dad.

No, but seriously. These pics are freekin' cute!

Hahah..this cracks me up..she fell over and couldn't get up because she's all bundled up!

They weren't out for long, but they made snow angels, played with the dogs, and even ate some (white) snow!

Now I'm off to buy stock in aquaphor, because my poor little babe's got chapped cheeks!

Jess

Christmas Card Outtakes

2010-12-07T19:36:00.006-06:00

So today we decided to give a try at Christmas Card photos. We've taken a lot of family pics the past few months with weddings/b-day parties and being all dressed up. However, we don't like any.of.them.

So without further adue...the outtakes of today's photo shoot:

We did get a couple of cute shots(including the dogs!), but I'm not showing those until Christmastime!

Here's to hoping that Mia's 18 month photos go much better next week!

Jess

A Good Little Mommy

2010-12-07T07:00:00.000-06:00

So the other day, I was getting dinner ready in the kitchen. Mia was being abnormally quiet, and I looked over to see her doing this.

After I watched her contemplate and toss her baby around, attempting to figure out how to put the diaper on her baby, I helped her out.

She didn't so much like it thought, once it was on.

She had left the kitchen for awhile, then she came back and I looked down to see that she'd taken the table cloth off the table to cover her baby up.

She's such a Good Little Mommy.

Jess

Shutterfly

2010-12-06T19:10:00.001-06:00

I absolutely love shutterfly!

I've been using their products/site for a couple years now, and I love everything they have to offer. You can do calendars, birth announcements, Christmas cards, birth announcements, home decor and so much more.

I think their prices are reasonable, and the best thing? You can have it sent and printed to your local photo store!! How great is that?!!?!

I am excited about using them for a few Christmas presents this year. I've gotten some good ideas from friends who've used Shutterfly in the past, and the process seems so simple!

This will be my first year doing Christmas cards through shutterfly, and I'm so excited! I've had a lot of friends that have done them in the past with shutterfly, and they've turned out great!

These are a couple of my favorite:

Scarlet Snowflakes
Ornaments All Aglow

Merry Montagesource
I love how you can put multiple pictures in it! I had a hard time deciding if I wanted a pic of the fam, the dogs with Mia, just Mia, and this way-I can all of the above if I wanted to!!

I am also excited about using them for a few Christmas presents this year. I've gotten some good ideas from friends who've used Shutterfly in the past, and the process seems so simple!

I'm sure you've read this on other blogs already, but in case not: Shutterfly is giving bloggers 50 FREE Christmas Cards from Shutterfly-learn more here...click link.
Have a great day!!
Jess

BRRRRRRR...

2010-12-05T18:38:00.007-06:00

Happy Sunday!

This weekend was a blast! We kicked off Friday night with an Ugly Sweater/White Elephant Christmas party with our small group. It was hilarious to see the gifts(some regifted from last years party!), and of course the sweaters! Saturday, we spent the day cleaning, putting up more Christmas decor, I had volleyball practice, and then another Christmas party with a few friends. We played the game, Things, and had a blast!! Today was church, pot grace after, and just relaxing, playing and watching football.

The weather is definately winter weather these days. We finally got our first bout of snow! Only a couple inches, but I'm a fan of mother nature easing us into the pain of a lot of snow. The highs for today/tomorrow are in the teens, with a low of single digit and windchill of below zero.
Yippy. *insert sarcasm* (I actually do enjoy the snow, it's the below zero temps I don't dig)

On that (cold) note, we are getting our new windows on Thursday!! I'm so stinkin' excited. Our bedroom window, right over our bed, does not have a screen and the draft that comes in...BRR...needless to say we've had our thermostat set at 72-73* for the past 2 months almost. Mia's room is the 2nd coldest room in the house. I CANNOT WAIT, for these new windows. (Thank you hail damage insurance money!)

My bff from high school is coming to visit for a week this week! She moved out to New York, where her family is from, a couple years ago and rarely makes it back. She's going to be flying in on thursday and staying til next week. I am so excited!

Carla with Mia back in June

I started coaching my club volleyball team this past week. I have the 15 yr olds. We've had a few practices so far and it's going well for the most part. I've had a couple problems with a few of them, but everything seems to be going better. I'm enjoying myself and I usually get to play when we scrimmage because I either have 9 or 11 girls.

THREE WEEKS AND 1 DAY until I'm Hawaii bound with my love!! I haven't really thought about it much because
a) we've been busy/gone
b) there's this thing called Christmas that's coming first
c) I don't want panic to set in.

We basically booked our tickets/room a few months back, and that's it. We have a few things in mind that we want to do while we are there(from recommendations and from reading online), but for the most part, we just want to be able to relax and enjoy each other's company. We love traveling together, and we're the type of people that we do like to do things that we would never normally do! We've sky dived, para sailed, white water rafted in a tropical rain forest, and so much more. When in Rome..

Mia is doing fabulous. She looooves the toddler room (she just got moved) at Church and is BFF's with everyone. I'm not joking. She sees her friend Maddie at church, she freaks out and waves, she sees her friend Kaitlyn(our neighbors)-or Kaitlyn's brother-she runs after them to say hi. She just loves people. No stranger danger here. I'm pretty sure she was held by all of the guys in our small group at church today, and she enjoys giving hugs and pats on the back. Her newest gig is while laying in bed with me and watching Mickey Mouse, she'll ever so often lean over and pat me and give me a kiss. Almost as if she's saying, "Even though I'm completely engrossed in my show, Mommy, I still love you." It's darling. Except for when she's off on the hug/pat and head butts my eye, or my lip, or my head; like 4 times within in 10 minutes. She's really into coloring. We have to limit her to 2 crayons at a time, so we can keep track of them, but she's been doing really well with staying on the paper and not putting them in her mouth. She's rocking a mullet. BIG TIME. It's cute. But man, I hope her top starts growing soon. Of course we have our 18 month photos/Christmas photos tomorrow and she goes and falls head first into our solid wood coffee table. Nice BIG goose egg on her head. Yay. Scott wants me to reschedule, but I think I'll just ask her to edit the color of the bruise if it's bad.

I'm off to do some laundry and hopefully get a Christmas present or two finished!

Jess

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

2010-12-03T13:00:00.003-06:00

So we got home from Kansas, and it was time to put up the tree! I looove having our Christmas tree up! I'm not much of a go-all-out-decorator-for-holidays kind of person, but for Christmas, I try to add a little here and there. Having out tree up just gives me warm fuzzies. I love it. I could sit in our living room and stare at it all day. Thankfully, Mia has no desire or interest to touch it. Neither does Shorty. Which is a double WIN in my book.

I love all of these pictures. They just make me smile and melt my heart.

So I've always wanted a Nativiy Scene. However, we just don't have the space for a nice one, and I don't want to worry about Mia getting a hold of one and ruining it, losing pieces, etc. So when I found this Little People one, I had to get it!! I love it!

The finished product!

I'm off to sip hot chocolate in the dark living room, staring at my Christmas Tree.

Jess

Tents, jewelry, and tea parties!

2010-12-01T21:45:00.010-06:00

The last 10 days or so have just been hectic and busy for us! We left last Tuesday for Kansas, and we were gone for 6 days. We had a blast spending time with Scott's family, his grandparents, his aunts, uncles and cousins. He has a small family-all the people mentioned above total 12. I think the dogs outnumber the people...

Anyways, we got in around midnight on wednesday, Thanksgiving day we ate too much and took great naps, and Friday we went black friday shopping from Midnight-730am. And by 'we' I mean all 7 of us girls. It was fun! I wasn't out shopping for anything in particular, and was rather dissappointed with the 'deals' going on. I've been every year the last 4 years(Scott's mom and sister-it's a MUST!), and this was pry the worst year as far as prices. Ah well. It's fun just to go and 'bond' with the girls. Friday we just hung out and played games, and ate too much, Saturday we spent most the day driving and we arrived home sunday morning and spent the day resting. It's so great to spend time with family on the holidays, the weather cooperated, and Mia was great the entire trip! Praise the Lord! She was diagnosed with an ear infection the day we were leaving town(poor thing), and between long car rides, staying up late, sleeping in, no naps, too much food/attention, she was amazing. I don't think she cried more than a few times! I call that a WIN in my books!

Here a few pics:

She's obsessed with her 'babies', that they now have tea parties with her and she insists they sleep in her crib with her..I haven't given in yet! She still loves Mickey. Needless to say, she's getting a lot of Mickey for Christmas.

She's a big girl-she feeds herself all the time now!

She got to open a few Christmas presents while down in Kansas. Her and Grandma got matching aprons! Grandma and Grandpa H(Scott's grandparents) spoiled her and got her Little People Zoo and a princess tent!! (I just looove how everyone is soo happy in this photo!)

Putting on her new Mickey slippers

We went to visit Scott's Aunt Nanc, who also lives in Kansas. Mia spent most of the time either a) chasing her 60lb english bulldog, Holly, around or b) checking herself out in the mirror. They were inseperable. They ran and played for hours.(notice we brought the tent with us)

She also got lots of princess jewelry, outfits, crowns, wands and so much more. We don't watch any shows/movies with the princesses, but she loves her bracelets and her little 'Belle' that Grandma got her.

She plays with this tent everyday! The boys(dogs) love it too. It's there little hide out!

Oh yah! I forgot to tell you-I chopped my hair! A few weeks ago. I'm loving it. I can still pull it back(with help from a few bobby pins) if need be-but I usually style it everyday now!

I'm off to finish cleaning and decorating(post coming soon). The bad thing about traveling and being away for so long! This is what awaits me: Happy Hump Day!

Jess

Thankful

2010-11-24T13:48:00.007-06:00

I love this time of year. I am usually a very thankful person. But this time of year, it's great because everyone around me is speaking thankfulness. I love it. It gives me the fuzzies!

This year I am thankful for:

My Father in Heaven, for He is forgiving and showers me with His grace every day.
My family's health.
My hubby, Scott, he is truly AMAZING and I am so thankful the Lord put him on this earth for me to have. He is my best friend, my supporter, my therapist, my encourager, my everything.
My beautiful girl. She makes me smile and laugh every single day. I love how she lights up my days and every one elses around her. I used to dread when older people would stop to talk to her in the stores, but now I love it because it makes their day and Mia's(more attention!).
My home. I love having my own home to paint, destroy and rebuild, and make my own.
Being able to spend holidays with my family and extended family. Not everyone gets to do so.
My wonderful church family. They amaze, support and inspire me on a daily basis.
My friends. They are there for me anytime.
My chubby pugs. Even though they drive me crazy most days, Mia adores them and they are incredibly patient with her. They are the best family dogs.
This past year. It was the hardest year of my life, but I learned a lot of about myself, my marriage grew stronger, and most importantly, my Faith was tested and strengthened at lengths.
Our drs. Our pediatrician/OB to be exact. Our ped. is so great with Mia and makes me feel incredibly comfortable and self-assured. (and she's expecting her 3rd child-1st girl!-this spring!!)Our OB is amazing. (no, I'm not currently seeing our OB)
Quality/alone time with my hubby. I love having his undivided attention and I know he enjoys mine just as much. Wheter we're watching a movie, playing games, talking, eating, driving, or just hanging out-it's all amazing.
For my blog! I have met some amazing people/friends through blogging, and some of you are my closest friends!
Mia's sleeping habits. This girl is a sleeper!! (minus nights of teething/colds) She sleeps a good 11-12 hours/night and at least one killer nap most days.
Being a stay at home mom. I love it! I couldn't imagine not being home with Mia everyday.
Our pastor. He's helped us through a lot this past summer and continues to encourage and support us more than he knows.
Vacations! Even though I stay home-this mama needs one every now and again! It's looking like year 2011 will be a big year for many mini-vacas!
Scott's job/company. He's self employed, and although it comes with some challenges and a lot of organization, we love the flexibility it provides for us.
Financial stability. We haven't always had this, and I am grateful for our situation. (Philippians 4:11-13 For I have learned to be content, whatever the circumstances may be. I know now how to live when things are difficult and I know how to live when things are prosperous. In general and in particular I have learned the secret of eating well or going hungry of facing either plenty of poverty. I am ready for anything through the strength of the One who lives within me.)

I hope you all have an amazing Thanksgiving and have much to be thankful for!

Jess

AH-MAZING.

2010-11-21T20:54:00.005-06:00

This past weekend was nothing short of AH-MAZING. I spent Friday evening into most of saturday with the most incredible women I've ever met. Our church hosted a womens retreat out at a Christian Church Camp out of town.

But let's rewind a bit first.

Earlier this year, in the spring time, I was finding myself very upset, frustrated, sad, and confused about where some of my relationships were heading. We had been going to the same church for over 2 years(and attending the same small group), and although I loved our Pastors and their sermons, I was feeling a little empty on the relationship/friend building aspect within our Church Family. Every sunday or small group meeting we'd attend, I'd leave feeling like our relationships(not all, but most) were 'surfaced.' Not many people knew the real me. People would ask us if we were new to church, after we had been attending for over 2 years! (and those with kids know, that you show up late, gone during break to nursery/sunday school drop off, then leave right after church b/c it's lunch/nap time! not much time for socializing) And even though I was frustrated and feeling all of the feelings I mentioned above, I discovered I was doing it to myself intentionally. I didn't want people to know the real me.

I didn't want them to know that I sometimes fight with my husband, and sometimes say mean things.

That sometimes I'm short tempered with my child.

That sometimes I'm not Godly and say mean things and judge people.

That sometimes I don't read the Bible everday/every other day.

That sometimes I don't respect my elders.

That I'm not the perfect Christian, like them.

I prayed and cried and prayed and cried and cried and prayed some more throughout this time and into the summer. I quit praying for what I thought was what I needed, and prayed for the Lord to show me what He wanted. I prayed for months. You may remember this post? It's from 2 months ago. Things were starting to change.

And man, we've been in full swing ever since. I got out of my comfort zone. I started inviting friends over for dinner that I didn't know as well. I joined 2 different women's studies, our small group has come leaps and bounds in sharing and openness with one another and I consider them my best friends, and feelings are mutual. Scott and I help out with Awana's, and so much more.

The past month or so, our Pastor has been giving AH-MAZING sermons on giving. Giving your time, giving your treasures, and so much more. It's really spoke to my heart. It's really opened my eyes.

Then a couple weeks ago, I saw a note in our bulletin for a 'women's retreat.' I mentioned it to Scott, with out even hesitating. Was I really going to go to a retreat with a bunch of women I barely know? Stay in rooms, with bunk beds, with women I barely know? I was! And I was excited to do it!! A couple days later, Scott told me he had to be gone that night to work. The old me, I would have just crumbled and said, ok, I'll have to stay home with Mia. But that's not what I did. I called up my sister in law, and she said she'd come for the weekend! Later I found out that a few of my good friends at church were going to go as well. (I still would have gone if they weren't, it was just an added bonus! Our lives get busy and we haven't all gotten to hang out/visit much lately)

This past weekend was AH-MAZING. We hung out and mingled, played games, ate too much junk food, stayed up past 3am(!!), laughed, and got to know each other well. There was over 30 women there from age 19-50 something! We did some teachings and worship, and ended with craft time on Saturday. It was rejuvinating, inspiring, and so encouraging. I had a few women sit down(I knew everyone there, but mostly just face/name) and tell me they thought I WAS SHY!! I could not believe it! And I definately showed them they were wrong!

Between our membership class 2 weeks ago, our Pastors sermon last week, and our teaching yesterday at the retreat, I really felt God was speaking to me. It was like all of these people were telling my story. The story of feeling alone, not involved, no one to call, and almost sorry for myself. And then doing something about it. Getting involved, and start serving outside of of your comfort zone. But you know what else I realized? I definately am not the only person with this kind of story to tell. There are many people out there, maybe you?, that feel this same way!

I got baptized today. I was saved a few years back, but never got baptized.(we don't believe in baptizing as an infant) I did today. I did today for many reasons. But the main reason? Because the Lord has been doing AH-MAZING things for me the past couple of months. He's blessed me in abundance. I have many new, great friends, I can sincerely call my church my family(which means a lot to us since we don't have any family near us), I have grown in so many ways in my faith, my heart aches on a whole new level for those who are lost, or isolate themselves, I have a love for people I never knew existed, I'm reading the Bible more, I'll jump through more hoops to serve others than I did before, and most importantly, my relationship with our Father is just simply AH-MAZING.

And I can't go a blog post about my faith without thanking you guys, my readers, my IRL friends, my bloggy friends, you know who you are. Thank you for encouraging and inspiring me to be a Godly woman.

Hope you all had a Blessed weekend,
Jess

For a great post on getting out of your comfort zone as a Christian-read Kylee's post here. This post truly inspired me and played a huge role in my 'view' as my life in serving Christ.

Thursday ramblings!

2010-11-18T20:18:00.008-06:00

It's Thursday. I swear it should still be Tuesday. Holy batman!! Where are these weeks going?!

I had a wonderful day! I chose to take a tip from this post, and chose 1 day a week where I have no commitments and we can be lazy all day! It was so refreshing. I did clean a little, but we had nowhere to be at any specific time. I even worked out tonight.

I realized I haven't posted about WW lately. I'm still doing it! It's going great! I've been losing small amounts the past few weeks, but I'm still working out 4-6 times a week! (I won't hit my goal weight by vacation (I think we're 6 wks!!!), but that's ok. I'm still going to continue to work my booty off. )

I figured I need a change though to tip the scale a little more. I used to do a variety of work outs, and the past few weeks I've been just doing water aerobics because I enjoy it so much! So now, I'm going back to a variety, running/lifting, water aerobics, Jillian, and kick boxing. I'm hoping that helps. If not, I'm totally doing a week of P90x with the hubs!

Oh did I mention the Hubs started P90x a couple months ago? Yup, he's amazing. He does it 6 days a week, 60-90 minutes work outs! He looks buff and amazing.

We just wrapped up our small group study of the 5 Languages of Love. It was a great study, our relationships grew with our friends, and of course with my Hubby!

Last night we were talking about what our spouse does to make us feel significant/important. Man, the more I thought about it, the longer the list got! I am currently working on a post about it. It'll be a good one!

This weekend is going to be so much fun! Tomorrow evening I'm going to a 'Women's Retreat' our church is hosting. I know a lot of the women going fairly well, then a lot I barely know! Should be fun. Scotty's out of town for work and so my sissy in law is coming to watch Mia for the night, and then she's staying the whole weekend to help me paint our spare bedroom in the basement. (it's currently lavendar) We'll be painting machines on Saturday night! I'm having her go pick out the paint to surprsie me! I'm daring like that.

I've been a little bummed/stressed about our Thanksgiving plans to Kansas. I've had it planned for over 2 months and I found out this week that it's not going to happen the way we had it planned. I've been praying a lot about it and trying to remain patient, calm and understanding. In the end, we will still get to be with family in Kansas.

I just realized today that between Thanksgiving and Christmas, we are home every weekend! We've had plans/been gone for the past 8-10 weekends and so having 4 weekends at home is AMAZING! We have 2 Christmas parties, but they're in town, and the Hubs will be gone for part of 1 weekend for work, but nothing crazy. Lots of time to clean clean clean and veg.

I'm so ready for winter. We've had great weather, in the 40's most days, but I'm tired of cold one day, warmer the next. I just want cold. This way, I know what to have Mia wear everyday and how to bundle her up! Ha!

My mom got 14in + snow last week! Crazy!

Ok, I'm off to spend time with the Hubby, it's his busy time and it's rare he's home this early!

Have a great weekend!
Jess

UnShelled.

2010-11-16T18:39:00.011-06:00

Mia, you are 17 months old now!

I know I say it every time, but maaaaan you just keep growing so fast!

In the past month or so, you have really come out of your shell. You are still a little timid at times, but most of the time you are jumping right in at what's going on. You are LOUD, energetic, and a very happy girl. A few months ago, people wouldn't believe me when I'd tell them you can be chatty cathy and crazy.

We are truly blessed, you are rarely naughty(except when it comes to the dogs), and we can go several days without disciplining/scolding. (and that's not because we are relaxed parents, you really are just a good kid!)

You still love your Grandparents, and cry when we leave them, but you are more interested in playing with all of the toys there then all of the hugs and cuddles you get. You especially love their dollhouse. You LOVE slides. I believe this is the sole reason I can leave you in the church nursery and at the gym day care. You just wave good bye to me and you're on your way.

Some of your loves:

Mickey Mouse. We watch him almost every morning from 7-8. You love to dance to the 'hot dog dance' and giggle when they ask questions.

You love No more monkeys jumpin' on the bed. You will hum the tune all day long and ask to watch it on the computer.

You love cats!! We will never own one(your daddy is allergic), but you can always see them at both Grandma's houses! Ever since Halloween, you have a new found love for chocolate. And anyone who will give it to you, you instantly become their best friend.

You love your babies still. You are learning new concepts and pretend play with them all of the time. You love to give them bottles, hold them, bring them to me, and play with them.

You have lots of 'little friends!' It's great to see you actually playing with them and interacting. You do well with sharing(most of the time), and you love learning new things from your older friends.

You looooove counting money with your Daddy! He'll find spare change and call you into get your piggy bank and put the money in. You live for this moment, I'm pretty sure!

You just started really 'getting into' things around the house. You now love Mama's pots and pans.

You are saying a ton of words now/or attempt to. You weren't for the longest time, and a couple weeks ago, you started picking it all up!

You say: all done, dog dog, Ma-ma(again! after about a 7 month boycott of the word), Ga-Ga(grandma/grmpa), Jesus, uh huh, uh oh, night night, milk, bottle, 'Mo(elmo), quack quack, moo, vroom, bzzz, cracker and so much more.

You know where all of your body parts are.

When I say I have to potty, you run into the bathroom and lift the lid for me. We have started reading a potty book while we are in the bathroom. I'm hoping we can maybe start with you early.

You are Ma-ma's little helper. You love to throw everything away, put your toys away, and especially love 'herding' the dogs. You let them out of the kennel in the morning, and yell at them when they are being naughty. You know they aren't supposed tob e in the kitchen when we are eating so you'll run over and grab their harness and try to move them yourself. You become very bossy with them and they definately know you are in charge!

You are a tattle tale! If you are in the room with the dogs or a friend, you will run in pointing and whining and all upset. We are working on this, yet I feel I'm limited since you aren't really saying anything.

You love cuddling with the dogs, getting kisses from them, yet you can still be mean to them. You like to pull their tails, ears, and poke them in the face.

You sleep like a dream! You go to bed 7-730ish and will jabber for awhile before you fall asleep. You then wake around 6, and I usually come in to get your around 630-645. You usually have at least 2 blankets in your room, and you end up sleeping on top of them. You still take 2 naps most days. You take about 90min nap in the morning and an hour in the afternoon. If we have plans in the morning or afternoon, I can usually get away with out you napping.

You aren't fond of baths. I've tried to find new toys, household items, etc, you still dont care much for them.

You've become a little poser. Especially while eating.

When it's night time, you get upset when we are done praying. You love your teeth brushed. And you have to make sure the parent who is not putting you to bed, waves at you a hundred times while you exit the room.

You love to put your hands down in your diaper mess when I change a dirty diaper. Mommy doesn't like that. Not so much. You can also quit tickling my feet while I change you. Thankyouverymuch.

You wear 18 month clothes. A size 4(going to size 5 soon) diaper, size 5 night time diaper, and a size 5 shoe.

Your hair is growing...but not really in the back. Your definately sporting a baby mullet.

When we go shopping, you yell when you see other kids your age, and call every older guy Da-da and wave at them like we've known them for years.

You will make an amazing Big Sister some day in the future.

You have become quite the eater again. This picture was taken tonight, you kept waving at me while we were eating. You ate peaches, and 2 slices of homemade pizza. You looove pizza.

You know your sight word books very well. We have about 6 different ones that you can identify most of the words in them!

You don't care much for coloring/painting. We'll keep trying.

You love your cars, little people, and play food.

You love books. If you are ever upset or about to throw a tantrum, I can distract you by asking you to find a book so we can read it.

You used to be a Daddy's girl. These days I'd say it's pretty even. But shhh, don't tell your Daddy that;).

Mia, you are a Gift from God and I am so thankful for you. You are the light of our lives and keep me laughing on a regular basis. I'm excited to see you grow and change at rapid speed these next few months!

Happy Tuesday all!

Jess

Thank you and two great blog posts

2010-11-12T10:01:00.005-06:00

I just wanted to thank you for your sweet comments on my last post. They mean a lot to me, they really do.

It's been a busy week. We haven't been home at all. This resulted in me feeling panicky about my messy house, holiday to do list, and family coming to visit this weekend. I was short tempered with my husband, but a fairly patient/good mommy. I turbo cleaned a little bit yesterday, yet fell asleep early last night and didn't get to spend anytime with my hubby. I worked my butt off in kickboxing/muscle workout last night that I almost passed out/vomited twice. I'm busy running around today, while the hubby has a day off. Needless to say, I'm in desperate need of some time with my husband, and that's exactly what this weekend is for. Mia will be spending at least tonight(tomorrow night is still up in the air) with her grandparents. Scott and I have a date night at a comedy club tonight and possibly a really late movie(b/c we can never do that with a sitter!), and then tomorrow we will be spending all day in a class at our church. Tomorrow evening my uncles will be staying here, because they're on their way to an NFL game on sunday and we're the 1/2 way point. Sunday will be church, lunch and relaxing because I got most of my cleaning done last night. Maybe some Christmas shopping, because that is also starting to stress me out.

I have two great posts I want to share with you.

My friend, Libby, posted this on facebook yesterday. This girl lost her best friend, husband of 7 years, unexpectedly this week. He leaves behind two adorable children and a baby on the way he'll never get to hold. Sad story, and I know this Mommy needs some prayers. Please click here to check her blog out.

If you are feeilng overwhelmed and stressed out with Holidays approaching-please READ THIS BLOG POST-10 tips to surviving the holidays. It's just what I needed coming off a few stressful weeks.

Thanks again, friends. Have a wonderful weekend. I'm off to finish up errands, meet my in-laws to drop off Mia and the dogs, and spend some much needed time with my wonderful husband.
Jess

Hurting.

2010-11-08T21:09:00.004-06:00

Sorry I've been missing in blog land. Sorry I haven't commented much on your posts in the past couple of weeks. I've been reading from my phone, but not able to comment, or not really feeling up to bloggy world.

These past couple of weeks have been emotionally tough on me.

I keep thinking about how I should be 9 months pregnant. (If you just started reading my blog-click here for our story of Baby Samuel)All the gals that were due around my due date are having their babies..I should be having mine, right?

It's been a rough couple of weeks, to be honest. I was doing very well, emotionally, for a couple of months. I felt at peace with what God had chosen for us. I've seen my life change in the most amazing ways, and my faith grow an unbelievable amount. But then all of a sudden, It hit. And it hit hard.

Milestones. Weddings and birthdays I was going to be hugely pregnant at, but I wasn't. Preparing Mia for being a big sister, but she won't be. Sorting baby clothes(decluttering) that should be getting washed and folded. My mom's birthday, the day we would have had my c-section scheduled, but here we are, no baby.

And the fact that I feel like every time I get on facebook, or click over to read a blog I follow, someone is announcing they're pregnant. You think I'm kidding? I follow quite a few blogs, try here, here, here, here, here , here (we had close due dates and she actually just had her baby), here, here, and so many more that I can't think of, or they're on facebook and don't have blogs.

It sucks.

And I know many more who are trying for a baby. (yes, some of YOU ;))

Anyways, I am incredibly happy for every single person who tells me they are expecting. I truley am. They are gifts from God. I don't ever want a friend of mine to feel like they can't tell me. I'm not normally this emotional. I'm normally at peace with everything. And I am also aware of people who struggle with infertility and other painful situations. Please, do not understand this as a pity party, or poor me, or anything of the sort. I've just been extremely emotional over the fact that my 'due date' is approaching fast. I never anticipated or thought about what this day would feel like.

I don't have much to post. Well, I do, but I just don't feel like it. I don't have the energy to upload pictures from a fabulous weekend spent with family and friends. I don't have the time because in the midst of my crazy emotions, I've been planning a 50th surprise party, a date night with my hubby, clearing out junk in our house, plotting what colors/extreme ways to change my bathrooms and spare room, planning our Holidays travels and plans, and I'm spending my days playing and snuggling with Mia(who's new found love is Mickey Mouse), with my Hubs, working out, and serving others.

I don't even have many words for this post. I just don't feel like myself some days. I know it's part of the grieving process. I know it's probably normal. I know God is in control. I know He gives and takes away. And I know He has great reason for it. I don't question Him and His decisions. I'm just soaking in my time with my family, and opening my heart to many new things in our life.

So I'm sorry, if I haven't been leaving you comments, if I've been posting too many random posts/pics of Mia with not much content, if I haven't called/text/emailed you lately. It's not intentional. I just have a lot going on right now and I know you understand.

This is my all time favorite verse and it has gotten me through my hardest times, these past 5 months:
2 Corinthians: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.

I am blessed. I know I am. But I am also hurting. And for the first time, in a long time, I am speechless.

Jess

Matthew 5:4
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Philippians 4:6
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God

Isaiah 41
For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand & says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.

BFF's in the making

2010-11-02T13:38:00.001-05:00

We spent this past weekend out of town, for Scott's job. Thankfully, his meeting was held in the same city as my in-laws and great friends that live near by!

We got to spend friday evening catching up with a great high school friend that I don't see near enough.(sorry-no pics!) Most of saturday was spent at Bethany's, hanging with the kiddos and eating an AMAZING lunch. They eat more for lunch then I do all day I think! Ha! *thanks for being supportive of my WW lifestyle, Bethany* I kid, I kid.

But seriously, I probably gained 3 lbs that day.

Playing playdough-Mia wanted to eat it..which reconfirmed why we do not play with playdough in our house yet. Sweet little Livi
Mia's first experience with stickers as well. She loved putting them on her face and in her hair..which is what Ethan and Olivia love to do as well. Glad they can teach her great things! :D BFF's in the making. Giving each other hugs/tackles! Back at Grandma's and Grandpas eating a cupcake. (note the stickers)
Having her first 'sucker' that was really a marshmallow..I think she got more on her leg then in her mouth????(side note: my in-laws are flipping houses and they did this kitchen-doesn't it look amazing!)
Scotty-the dog whisperer-3 pugs and a mutt! Mia with her Ga-Ga's. We had a great time with Bethany and kids. It amazes me how well they get along, considering their ages. They share well, play well, with a few exceptions of a couple hits/shoves, it's usually a pretty smooth time! Thanks again, Bethany, for having us over! Hope to see you in a couple weeks!

Jess

The Winner Is...

2010-11-02T10:13:00.002-05:00

The winner of the Max Lucado, Out Live Your Life

is Kristi over at Keeping Up with Kristi! I know you'll love this book, Kristi, and thank you for your weekly posts on the Power of the Praying Wife! I'm just starting it and enjoying it thus far! Please email me at jessmcmaster@yahoo.com with your info! You have 48 hrs to respond!

Thanks for everyone who entered, Happy Tuesday!

Jess

*source for pic*

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T20:19:00.006-05:00

Happy Halloween! This was Miss Mia's first time carving pumpkins, trick or treating, riding in a wagon, talking to so many strangers, and eating candy! She rocked trick or treating, (no stranger danger here!), loved her frilly dress, ENHALED way too much candy, relaxed in her wagon, and didn't so much enjoy the pumpkin carving, but are you surprised?

Here are some photos of our day!

Carving pumpkins with Daddy..staying a safe distance away from the 'acky' stuff.
Hmm..she might like it.
PSYCH! That's my girl. (although, Scott claims she helped after I had left, and she even tasted some!)I love this picture!!So, she was initially going to be a pumpkin. But then I remember my sister in law bought this dress for Mia from Spain last year. I thought it wouldn't fit her for another year or so, but it almost didn't fit and it was nice out so we chose to wear this!

She did so great at every door! She said her version of Trick or Treat, and then either signed Thank You or blew a kiss! A future Miss America?Raiding her pumpkin in between houses. Our neighbors brought over warm apple pie after we got home!

Sorting candy.
Mad that we said it's time to go to bed and no more candy.
Somehow we were getting ready for bed and we ended up back in the living room where the candy is...
Hope you all had a safe and fun halloween! Don't forget, you have til 9pm tomorrow night(Mon) to enter my Max Lucado book giveaway!

Jess

Max Lucado Book Giveaway

2010-10-28T20:38:00.002-05:00

I just posted my review here (post below)on Max Lucado's book Out Live Your Life.
I LOVED THIS BOOK!!! It's an amazing book that every single person can relate to. There's so many amazing things about it, it's hard to put into words:). You'll just have to trust me and my review. Our lives have changed immensely since reading this book, and they will continue to change. It opened my eyes to judgement, helping others-especially those no one else wants to help, serving others quietly, using my talents Jesus has given me to their fullest, serving others on a whole new level and so many more. I promise, you will not be let down by this book. And if you aren't even much of a reader, this book is an easy read and would be a great Bible study for individuals, or small groups.

Rules to Enter:

1. Post a comment and let me know you follow my blog

Extra Entries(seperate comments each)

2. tell me something you are doing for Halloween(and if you don't celebrate Halloween-let me know something you are doing this weekend!)

3. Share with me a good Kids book you read to your kids/siblings/or were read to as a child!(I need some book ideas for Mia's Christmas list;)

That's 3 total entries!! Deadline is Monday, Nov. 1st, 9pm.

Have a great weekend!
Jess
*source of pic*

Out Live Your Life Review

2010-10-28T18:57:00.004-05:00

I just finished reading Max Lucado's Book Out Live Your Life.

This book is exactly how it sounds. He talks about Living your way the fullest, the way Jesus lived His and wants you to live yours. It did an amazing job of sharing Biblical stories, scripture, his personal stories, and every chapter ended with a prayer.

This book makes you think. Makes you think about what more can you do? You're only one person, but you can make a difference. You don't need money, resources, things/items; you just need Jesus in your heart and a willingness to love others.

My favorite chapter is the Chapter 2: Let God Unshell You. It speaks of discovering your talents and using them to your fullest.

I absolutely love this book. I found it a tad bit overwhelming, wanting to change everything about my life instantly for the better, but after a lot of prayer and reading and re reading, I know that change can take time. It's been an amazing journey in our life since reading this book!

Please also check out my friends' Jamie and Bethany for their reviews as well!

I received this book free of charge from booksneeze.com in return for my honest opinion/review of the book.

Stay tuned for a giveaway later tonight of this book...I loved it that much! I bought another copy because Scotty's now reading mine.

Jess

*source of picture*

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

2010-10-27T12:43:00.002-05:00

Sorry for all the boring posts/photos of Little Miss Mia.(well I don't think they're boring, but that's cuz I'm her Mama;) ) Between her being sick last week, Scott being sick, me being sick, and a lot of other emotions going on, I just haven't been up to blogging much.

These pictures are a mini photo shoot of my lovelie. She was having a blast showing her goof ball side. Happy Wednesday,

Jess

Pumpkin Patch-Epic Success!

2010-10-24T21:17:00.006-05:00

The Hubs and I ran our first 5k this past weekend. It was harder than I expected, but I'm proud of us nonetheless! The Hubs got 3rd place in his division! He ran with a stomach bug accompanying him. Crazy. He's much better today though. Mia's also on the mend and doing better.

I won't post much today because I have a lot of pics of our day at the pumpkin patch. She LOVED it!! (See post below of which she DID NOT love painting them) She was running up and down the hill, rolling down the hill, we went on a tractor/hay ride, she played with all the pumpkins, it was a great afternoon.

Pumpkin Patch 2010: Epic Success:
Hahah..she feel trying to go under this monster face thingy.

One of my favorite photos of the day! Tractor ride!(someone didn't get the memo to smile at the camera..ahem)

Helping Daddy find the perfect pumpkin!

She was getting fussy, so we changed it up a bit!

Family photo

She spent about 45 minutes at this table and only threw ONE gourd!

We went with our friends/neighbors..this is their little girl.

So happy we found our pumpkins!

Happy sunday!

Jess

Epic Fail.

2010-10-22T10:49:00.006-05:00

The other day, Mia was refusing to nap, so after 45 min or so of fussing, I went in to get her and decided we'd finger paint pumpkins. (disclaimer*this was our first experience with paint/finger paint)

By the title of my blog, I'm sure you can figure out how it went.

Exhibit A: To say she did not like the paint touching her body, would be the understatement of the year. However, being the prepared Mommy that I can be, she didn't mind using the brushes.
That is, until the brush hit her leg.She then spent the majority of the time, wiping her leg off with a wash cloth.

Of course out of 20 some pictures, none of them captured a smile, which she did give me one or two. Eh, I'll take this:

We got done painting, and I set it out overnight to dry. The next day, I brought it in, thinking "oh I'll get a picture with Mia and her painted pumpkin!"

Epic fail. Again. She refused to sit near it, let alone hold it.So we compromised, she could sit safely in her Big Girl Chair, and the pumpkin would sit right near her.24 hours and 50 some pictures later-A SMILE!

We plan on hitting up the pumpkin patch this weekend(weather permitting), I'm praying for more cooperation from her and hoping I didn't scar her for life.

The weather is looking like 50's and storms tomorrow-which is race day! Please pray for weather cooperation and health for Scotty n me!

Happy Friday!

Jess