I'm talking about sleep... I haven't had a decent night's sleep in over a week! This story dates back to the summer I was first pregnant with David. We saved some money and bought a new, pillow top mattress - it was awesome.... in the store anyway. A year later, we had to contact the manufacturer due to warranty issues. Mainly the body impressions and the pillow top was "gathering" in random areas. For a mattress that was 1 year old, it was completely unacceptable. The company replaced it under warranty and let us pay just a little more to upgrade to a king size which was amazing!
A year and a few months later (now), the king sized mattress we had gotten to replace our other worn out mattress had the same problem! Since we now live over 300 miles from the store we bought it from, replacing it under warranty would have been a big hassle so we sold it instead. The day before we sold it, we bought a new Tempur-pedic! We are so excited for our new bed... but it's taking FOREVER to get here! We ordered it last Monday and it won't be delivered to our house until Thursday or Friday of this week. In the mean time, we are sleeping on our queen sized air mattress... what. a. joke. I haven't slept well in days! I have constant headaches from not sleeping. I can't even take a nap because all I have to nap on is the air mattress! I can't even sleep on the couch because when I lay on it, I can't breathe. Yep, I'm exhausted! Please forgive the many grammatical errors that are sure to be found throughout this post as I can barely see my computer, lol
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Christmas blessings
This year, it has seemed nearly impossible for me to get into the Christmas spirit. I always look forward to it and love having our own little family Christmas but it seems like Christmas came so quickly this year and I didn't have time to "get used" to the idea, I guess. Anyway, today I decided to reflect back on our year (actually, our entire marriage, lol) and to pick out the unbelievable ways we've been blessed. We have been blessed with an eternal temple marriage. We are so lucky to get to not only spend our lives together, but ETERNITY together. We have an AMAZING son... no really. I look at him in amazement everyday. He is everything we could have asked for. We will be welcoming a daughter in the Spring. Though we haven't met Ainzley yet, I feel like I've known her for so long! We were blessed to get pregnant with her right away (through extreme inspiration). She is active and loves to appease her daddy with kicks when he puts his hand on my tummy. She is loved by her brother who loves to snuggle my tummy and give "her" kisses. We are so fortunate to be able to pay our bills. Our testimonies of tithing have gotten us through the tough times and keeps us mindful during the times when we can be a little less frugal. Jason has a terrific job. Though it drives him crazy sometimes, he's happy to be working in the medical field and to be progressing toward his goal of becoming a nurse. Though there are many more, we are most thankful for the gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives. To have such a loving Heavenly Father and elder brother (Jesus Christ) to provide a plan for us and to be our savior. We are very happy in our church and out callings and hope to be able to continue to serve in the future.
Today I had to run out to WalMart to get one last gift for Jason. I absolutely loathe WalMart. Everyone always seems to be in a crabby mood and it's always busy. Today was no exception. I had to wait FOREVER for an employee to help me with Jason's gift and noticed so many upset people. I couldn't help but smile. Looking back on everything we have to be thankful for really made it hard for me to be "down". After getting Jason's gift, I had a few last minute things to pick up for Christmas dinner and after waiting in a LONG line, I realized I forgot to get something for dinner! I had to get out of line to run back and get a frozen pizza. Normally, this would have just made me livid, but today, I could have cared less. Today, I am grateful for my many blessings which will always trump my many earthly trials.
This Christmas, though our trials may be great, let's remember all the wonderful things we have to be grateful for and help others to realize their blessings as well. Merry Christmas!
Today I had to run out to WalMart to get one last gift for Jason. I absolutely loathe WalMart. Everyone always seems to be in a crabby mood and it's always busy. Today was no exception. I had to wait FOREVER for an employee to help me with Jason's gift and noticed so many upset people. I couldn't help but smile. Looking back on everything we have to be thankful for really made it hard for me to be "down". After getting Jason's gift, I had a few last minute things to pick up for Christmas dinner and after waiting in a LONG line, I realized I forgot to get something for dinner! I had to get out of line to run back and get a frozen pizza. Normally, this would have just made me livid, but today, I could have cared less. Today, I am grateful for my many blessings which will always trump my many earthly trials.
This Christmas, though our trials may be great, let's remember all the wonderful things we have to be grateful for and help others to realize their blessings as well. Merry Christmas!
Friday, December 17, 2010
It's kind of amazing
So, I recently reported about having to put a certain family member in time out. So far, no changes on their end but it's amazing the difference I feel. I really do feel liberated! I don't dislike this person and still think about them every day, but I no longer feel like I'm on edge constantly worrying about what's coming next or what they think. I always used to worry about what they would think about how I do things and now I just don't care. For the first time in a long time, I feel like I'm putting my self and my family first rather than this person's judgments. I don't care what they think of how I'm doing in school. I don't care what they think of me having Ainzley at home with a midwife. For a long time I've been able to have this attitude with other people but I've never had the back bone to do so towards this person. I've had so many people compliment me on my decision to be a grown up about the situation (minus calling it a "time out", lol) and sticking up for myself.... It feels good.
I hope hope hope that this time out doesn't have to last long. I miss the time I used to spend with this person before things got bad. I want them to be a part of our lives, but they need to know they way they are acting is not ok. After verbalizing this to them many times, I found I needed a way for them to easily understand just how serious about this I am... Fingers crossed that it sticks!
I hope hope hope that this time out doesn't have to last long. I miss the time I used to spend with this person before things got bad. I want them to be a part of our lives, but they need to know they way they are acting is not ok. After verbalizing this to them many times, I found I needed a way for them to easily understand just how serious about this I am... Fingers crossed that it sticks!
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Preview **Updated**
We got our Christmas pictures yesterday! It was kind of rough since David didn't have patience, but we still got some cute shots. Here are our favs:
Friday, December 10, 2010
Our week
It has been a long week... and it's not over yet!
Firstly, Jason had to work 6 days this week which makes for a family longing for time with Daddy. David really and truly will hug and not let go when he sees his daddy. It's adorable and makes me sad for him - he so obviously misses his dad! At least next week is finals week at school so we'll have every morning together. Secondly, we're all FINALLY getting over being sick! We still have runny noses, but no more cough or fevers.
Our Christmas party is on Sunday and we are so excited! There's a lot of work leading up to it, though. I got a good deal of house cleaning done today (in addition to a HUGE final project for Psychology and a test for Anthropology) and I'm just about half way through my Christmas baking. I love feeling accomplished!
Lately, I've been thinking about the holidays and all that goes along with it... mainly family. After Thanksgiving, I'm glad we're having our own Christmas again this year. I have always loved being around family for the holidays but it's just gotten too difficult emotionally for me. It's no secret that I haven't had the best relationship with my family over the past few years and I've finally had enough. I'm just tired of being walked all over and being neglected at the same time. Someone's getting a time out!!! I've been trying and trying (for three years) and haven't felt the same effort from others... hopefully having us absent for awhile will help get my point across. I feel like I've tried everything else and am sad that it's come to this :(
On a happier note, Ainzley seems to be doing well. She is growing and is soooo active! She's way more active than David was. Next week, we're getting our family/Christmas pictures done and I'm getting some maternity shots - I am so excited! I never even thought about maternity pics when I was pregnant with David and I wish I had. It's such a special time and it should be documented.
Anyway, I guess that's all I've got for now. Hope everyone had a good week! And yes, I did give up on the 30 day blog challenge, lol
Firstly, Jason had to work 6 days this week which makes for a family longing for time with Daddy. David really and truly will hug and not let go when he sees his daddy. It's adorable and makes me sad for him - he so obviously misses his dad! At least next week is finals week at school so we'll have every morning together. Secondly, we're all FINALLY getting over being sick! We still have runny noses, but no more cough or fevers.
Our Christmas party is on Sunday and we are so excited! There's a lot of work leading up to it, though. I got a good deal of house cleaning done today (in addition to a HUGE final project for Psychology and a test for Anthropology) and I'm just about half way through my Christmas baking. I love feeling accomplished!
Lately, I've been thinking about the holidays and all that goes along with it... mainly family. After Thanksgiving, I'm glad we're having our own Christmas again this year. I have always loved being around family for the holidays but it's just gotten too difficult emotionally for me. It's no secret that I haven't had the best relationship with my family over the past few years and I've finally had enough. I'm just tired of being walked all over and being neglected at the same time. Someone's getting a time out!!! I've been trying and trying (for three years) and haven't felt the same effort from others... hopefully having us absent for awhile will help get my point across. I feel like I've tried everything else and am sad that it's come to this :(
On a happier note, Ainzley seems to be doing well. She is growing and is soooo active! She's way more active than David was. Next week, we're getting our family/Christmas pictures done and I'm getting some maternity shots - I am so excited! I never even thought about maternity pics when I was pregnant with David and I wish I had. It's such a special time and it should be documented.
Anyway, I guess that's all I've got for now. Hope everyone had a good week! And yes, I did give up on the 30 day blog challenge, lol
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Thanksgiving trip
Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!!! Ours was pretty good and very eventful. We left Springfield Wednesday morning headed for St. Louis and it was a pretty easy trip. We gave some friends of ours a ride to Troy so they could spend Thanksgiving with their family in Hannibal, MO. It definitely helped the drive go faster and David was pretty content because he LOVES these particular friends - he's always sad when they leave! Once we got to Troy, we had to pick up my little brother from his friend's house then went and hung out at my parents' house. Since Wednesday was our anniversary, Jason and I went out to dinner and saw the new Harry Potter movie (thanks to my dad for watching David for us!!). We got home in the midst of tornado warnings which thankfully missed us!
Thursday was great. Well, the worst part was David waking up at 4:30ish and jumping in his pack n play... he wasn't making noise or anything... just jumping, lol. So he did that until about 6:45 (taking a few breaks of course) which is when I decided we needed to just get up. So we got up, lounged around for a little while and decided to get some breakfast and head to WalMart for some last minute things - including a news paper so we could get the Black Friday ads! We came home, got ready and headed to Jason's family get together around 11. It was a pretty good gathering though his grandma seemed pretty worried/confused with so many people over all at once. There were some rough times, but overall she seemed to enjoy seeing everyone. We headed over to my brother's house to see my family and it was great. My brother was dealing with an unfortunate personal issue and wasn't able to participate much, but it was nice of him to still let everyone come over. Mom did most of the cooking and everything was delicious. It was awesome to see all my family! Thanksgiving is really the only time I get to see ALL of my family so Jason and I try to spend as much time as we can with them. We really enjoyed our time there.
Friday was filled with Black Friday shopping and Jason got to participate in cleaning the sheep barn... yuck. David loved chasing the sheep, though! As a matter of fact, he loved all the animals! LOL My parents have two Golden Retrievers - one named Ginger and One named Buck. David likes Buck the best. Buck lives in the basement outside the room we always stay in when we visit. The first thing out of David's mouth when he wakes up is "BUH!!!" (his rendition of "Buck"). He just can't wait to see that dog! He'll peek his head out the door, say BUH! then giggle as he runs back into the bedroom. He'll then go put his face against Buck's cage to get kisses... the boy just loves that dog!!! Now when he hears our neighbor's dog barking, he'll get all excited and scream "BBUUUUUHHHH!!!"
We came home Saturday morning. I was so thankful that I cleaned the house before we left because when we got home, I was so sick! My allergies had been driving me crazy while we were at my parents' house since they have inside dogs and once we got home, my allergies turned into head cold/ stomach flu. Thankfully my stomach is now fine and I'm just dealing with the cold part... which is still difficult. At least my house is clean and I managed to get the laundry done yesterday :)
Overall it was a fun trip. We'll be going up to visit the week before Christmas since Jason has to work on Christmas again. At least he only has to work for his home care assistance guy - so far, he's not scheduled to work Christmas for his full time job. This year, they decided to let employees volunteer for the holidays which is great! He obviously got off Thanksgiving, will hopefully get off Christmas and volunteered to work New Years day. Anyway, I think our Christmas trip will be our last trip up to St. Louis before Ainzley is born but things are always subject to change.
Thursday was great. Well, the worst part was David waking up at 4:30ish and jumping in his pack n play... he wasn't making noise or anything... just jumping, lol. So he did that until about 6:45 (taking a few breaks of course) which is when I decided we needed to just get up. So we got up, lounged around for a little while and decided to get some breakfast and head to WalMart for some last minute things - including a news paper so we could get the Black Friday ads! We came home, got ready and headed to Jason's family get together around 11. It was a pretty good gathering though his grandma seemed pretty worried/confused with so many people over all at once. There were some rough times, but overall she seemed to enjoy seeing everyone. We headed over to my brother's house to see my family and it was great. My brother was dealing with an unfortunate personal issue and wasn't able to participate much, but it was nice of him to still let everyone come over. Mom did most of the cooking and everything was delicious. It was awesome to see all my family! Thanksgiving is really the only time I get to see ALL of my family so Jason and I try to spend as much time as we can with them. We really enjoyed our time there.
Friday was filled with Black Friday shopping and Jason got to participate in cleaning the sheep barn... yuck. David loved chasing the sheep, though! As a matter of fact, he loved all the animals! LOL My parents have two Golden Retrievers - one named Ginger and One named Buck. David likes Buck the best. Buck lives in the basement outside the room we always stay in when we visit. The first thing out of David's mouth when he wakes up is "BUH!!!" (his rendition of "Buck"). He just can't wait to see that dog! He'll peek his head out the door, say BUH! then giggle as he runs back into the bedroom. He'll then go put his face against Buck's cage to get kisses... the boy just loves that dog!!! Now when he hears our neighbor's dog barking, he'll get all excited and scream "BBUUUUUHHHH!!!"
We came home Saturday morning. I was so thankful that I cleaned the house before we left because when we got home, I was so sick! My allergies had been driving me crazy while we were at my parents' house since they have inside dogs and once we got home, my allergies turned into head cold/ stomach flu. Thankfully my stomach is now fine and I'm just dealing with the cold part... which is still difficult. At least my house is clean and I managed to get the laundry done yesterday :)
Overall it was a fun trip. We'll be going up to visit the week before Christmas since Jason has to work on Christmas again. At least he only has to work for his home care assistance guy - so far, he's not scheduled to work Christmas for his full time job. This year, they decided to let employees volunteer for the holidays which is great! He obviously got off Thanksgiving, will hopefully get off Christmas and volunteered to work New Years day. Anyway, I think our Christmas trip will be our last trip up to St. Louis before Ainzley is born but things are always subject to change.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Day 6 – A photo of an animal you’d love to keep as a pet.
Day 6 – A photo of an animal you’d love to keep as a pet.
I am going to opt out of the actual photo part as my computer doesn't like me trying to save pictures from the internet... crap happens.
Right now, I am enjoying not having any pets, lol. I grew up around A LOT of animals - dogs and cats of course, horses, chickens, ducks, turkeys, peacocks, sheep, I always had at least 1 goldfish, exotic birds and our family monkey (a ring tailed-lemur). It was always a lot of responsibility and work which I enjoyed at the time. Currently, however, I'm more focused on raising David, helping Jason through school, growing Ainzley, keeping the house nice (something that would surely suffer with a pet), and focusing on my own school work.
If our apartment didn't have a $500 non-refundable pet deposit, I wouldn't mind having a puppy for David to play with (he LOVES puppies!), but besides the deposit, I've also developed an allergy to dogs... booooooo. It used to just be cats, but now it's both. Even hypoallergenic dogs get my nose going! I wouldn't want a dog to have to live in an apartment anyway. Sure, we have a larger apartment square footage wise, but we don't have a big backyard that I think a dog deserves. When Jason's graduates nursing school (hopefully in a year), we're planning on buying a house, with a fenced-in yard and a puppy. It makes me happy to think about
I am going to opt out of the actual photo part as my computer doesn't like me trying to save pictures from the internet... crap happens.
Right now, I am enjoying not having any pets, lol. I grew up around A LOT of animals - dogs and cats of course, horses, chickens, ducks, turkeys, peacocks, sheep, I always had at least 1 goldfish, exotic birds and our family monkey (a ring tailed-lemur). It was always a lot of responsibility and work which I enjoyed at the time. Currently, however, I'm more focused on raising David, helping Jason through school, growing Ainzley, keeping the house nice (something that would surely suffer with a pet), and focusing on my own school work.
If our apartment didn't have a $500 non-refundable pet deposit, I wouldn't mind having a puppy for David to play with (he LOVES puppies!), but besides the deposit, I've also developed an allergy to dogs... booooooo. It used to just be cats, but now it's both. Even hypoallergenic dogs get my nose going! I wouldn't want a dog to have to live in an apartment anyway. Sure, we have a larger apartment square footage wise, but we don't have a big backyard that I think a dog deserves. When Jason's graduates nursing school (hopefully in a year), we're planning on buying a house, with a fenced-in yard and a puppy. It makes me happy to think about
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Day 5 – A photo of yourself two years ago
Day 5 – A photo of yourself two years ago
This pic was taken 2 years ago on our 1st wedding anniversary. We spent the day around Forrest Park. At this point, we were making David a bear a Build-A-Bear at the Science Center obviously before he was born. We made one for Ainzley not along ago complete with a Pink Cardinal's shirt and pink bow around her ear. Hopefully we'll remember to do this for all our children :)
This pic was taken 2 years ago on our 1st wedding anniversary. We spent the day around Forrest Park. At this point, we were making David a bear a Build-A-Bear at the Science Center obviously before he was born. We made one for Ainzley not along ago complete with a Pink Cardinal's shirt and pink bow around her ear. Hopefully we'll remember to do this for all our children :)
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Day 4 – Your favorite photograph of your best friend
Day 4 – Your favorite photograph of your best friend
This one is a toss up... mainly because I have 2 best friends. I know it's "cliche" or whatever, but of course there's Jason and my friend Kjirstin.
For Jason, it's actually a sequence of pictures from David's birth:
Obviously the first time he held David... it is so sweet! It's easy to kind of "forget" what he's like as a dad to a newborn since David hasn't been in that stage for quite awhile. I'm so excited for Ainzley to get here and to get to experience this all over again!!!
And for my dear friend, Kjirstin:
A beautiful picture from our wedding. She was my maid of honor that day and it was terrific to have her be there for our special day! Living in Springfield reminds me so much of the time we spent together and good times we had... I wish she would leave boring old KC and come back to Springfield! LOL I miss her
This one is a toss up... mainly because I have 2 best friends. I know it's "cliche" or whatever, but of course there's Jason and my friend Kjirstin.
For Jason, it's actually a sequence of pictures from David's birth:
Obviously the first time he held David... it is so sweet! It's easy to kind of "forget" what he's like as a dad to a newborn since David hasn't been in that stage for quite awhile. I'm so excited for Ainzley to get here and to get to experience this all over again!!!
And for my dear friend, Kjirstin:
A beautiful picture from our wedding. She was my maid of honor that day and it was terrific to have her be there for our special day! Living in Springfield reminds me so much of the time we spent together and good times we had... I wish she would leave boring old KC and come back to Springfield! LOL I miss her
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Day 3 – Your idea of the perfect first date.
Day 3 – Your idea of the perfect first date.
I LOVED mine and Jason's first date so that's what I'll talk about. First of all, I had no idea it was a date... I thought it was just going to be a group of people hanging out, lol. Anyway, we ate dinner at Jason's parents' house which was a first for a date - jumping right into the meeting the parents situation. It was us, Jason's parents and the missionaries. What's funny is one of the missionaries that ate with us that night happened to be in our ward after we got married... it's a funny coincidence. After dinner, we went to a roller skating rink which Jason had opened just for us (definitely a plus to know the owners!). We skated for a long time just talking and getting to know each other - it was perfect. Our night ended with a good night hug and a second date.
I loved the fact that the ice had been broken on our date by a group dinner but we had an individual activity. I've never been big into the whole group date thing. I feel like there's too many distractions and you don't really get to know the person you're supposed to be on a date with, lol. Jason's favorite part of our first date? It was completely free! A definite added bonus!
I LOVED mine and Jason's first date so that's what I'll talk about. First of all, I had no idea it was a date... I thought it was just going to be a group of people hanging out, lol. Anyway, we ate dinner at Jason's parents' house which was a first for a date - jumping right into the meeting the parents situation. It was us, Jason's parents and the missionaries. What's funny is one of the missionaries that ate with us that night happened to be in our ward after we got married... it's a funny coincidence. After dinner, we went to a roller skating rink which Jason had opened just for us (definitely a plus to know the owners!). We skated for a long time just talking and getting to know each other - it was perfect. Our night ended with a good night hug and a second date.
I loved the fact that the ice had been broken on our date by a group dinner but we had an individual activity. I've never been big into the whole group date thing. I feel like there's too many distractions and you don't really get to know the person you're supposed to be on a date with, lol. Jason's favorite part of our first date? It was completely free! A definite added bonus!
Monday, November 8, 2010
Day 2 – A photo of something you ate today
Day 2 – A photo of something you ate today
This is the last thing I ate... about 5 minutes ago, lol. For weeks, I have been craving chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing - not something I get often since Jason severely dislikes chocolate. Yesterday, while I was sewing his Thanksgiving scrubs, Jason and David surprised me by making me chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing! They were delicious!!
This is the last thing I ate... about 5 minutes ago, lol. For weeks, I have been craving chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing - not something I get often since Jason severely dislikes chocolate. Yesterday, while I was sewing his Thanksgiving scrubs, Jason and David surprised me by making me chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing! They were delicious!!
Saturday, November 6, 2010
FINALLY - Day one!
Day 1 – A photo of yourself and a description of how your day was.
This pic was actually taken yesterday... but it's the first pic of me taken in a long time, lol. Yesterday was pretty good. We got up and ran our errands, came home and cleaned the house during nap time. It was so nice to have help cleaning! I normally wouldn't ask since Jason works so hard at both his jobs and school and I try to make the house my "chore", but I've been so exhausted lately and was trying to keep my back from hurting. Jason was a rock star helper!
After finishing cleaning, Jason played Mario Kart while I jumped in the shower to get ready for our date night! We had dinner at home with our friends who watched David for us. After dinner, we cleaned up, made puppy chow and left for the Trans-Siberian Orchestra Concert. It was a late night but we enjoyed ourselves... especially since it was only our second date without David since he was born!
Today was pretty great as well. We had a lazy Saturday morning at home. We eventually decided to break out the Christmas decorations... yep, we're junkies! LOL Jason had to work so David and I hung out. We took Jason dinner and got home just in time to get ready for bed. After tucking him in, I straightened up the house and got our stuff ready for church in the morning.
I'm pretty excited about Daylight Savings Time tonight... an extra hour of sleep? Heck yes! Child permitting, of course ;)
This pic was actually taken yesterday... but it's the first pic of me taken in a long time, lol. Yesterday was pretty good. We got up and ran our errands, came home and cleaned the house during nap time. It was so nice to have help cleaning! I normally wouldn't ask since Jason works so hard at both his jobs and school and I try to make the house my "chore", but I've been so exhausted lately and was trying to keep my back from hurting. Jason was a rock star helper!
After finishing cleaning, Jason played Mario Kart while I jumped in the shower to get ready for our date night! We had dinner at home with our friends who watched David for us. After dinner, we cleaned up, made puppy chow and left for the Trans-Siberian Orchestra Concert. It was a late night but we enjoyed ourselves... especially since it was only our second date without David since he was born!
Today was pretty great as well. We had a lazy Saturday morning at home. We eventually decided to break out the Christmas decorations... yep, we're junkies! LOL Jason had to work so David and I hung out. We took Jason dinner and got home just in time to get ready for bed. After tucking him in, I straightened up the house and got our stuff ready for church in the morning.
I'm pretty excited about Daylight Savings Time tonight... an extra hour of sleep? Heck yes! Child permitting, of course ;)
Friday, October 15, 2010
Copy Cat
Like so many of my friends, I've decided to go ahead with the 30 Day Blog Challenge!! We'll see how this goes... I probably won't start until tomorrow since David is the only one around to take a pic of me today, lol. Here's the 30 Day List for anyone who may want to participate :)
Day 1 – A photo of yourself and a description of how your day was.
Day 2 – A photo of something you ate today.
Day 3 – Your idea of the perfect first date.
Day 4 – Your favorite photograph of your best friend.
Day 5 – A photo of yourself two years ago.
Day 6 – A photo of an animal you’d love to keep as a pet.
Day 7 – Your dream wedding.
Day 8 – A song to match your mood.
Day 9 – A photo of the item you last purchased.
Day 10 – A photo of your favorite place to eat.
Day 11 – What’s in your makeup bag?
Day 12 – A photograph of the town you live in.
Day 13 – Your favorite musician and why?
Day 14 – A TV show you’re currently addicted to.
Day 15 – Something you don’t leave the house without.
Day 16 – Your celebrity crush.
Day 17 – A photo of you and your family.
Day 18 – Something you crave a lot.
Day 19 – Another picture of yourself.
Day 20 – The meaning behind your blog name.
Day 21 – A photo of something that makes you happy.
Day 22 – A letter to someone who has hurt you recently.
Day 23 – 15 facts about you.
Day 24 – A photo of something that means a lot to you.
Day 25 – What’s in your purse?
Day 26 – A photo of somewhere you’ve been to.
Day 27 – A picture of you last year and now and how have you changed since then?
Day 28 – Your favorite movie.
Day 29 – Something you could never get tired of doing.
Day 30 – A photograph of yourself today + three good things that have happened in the past.
Day 2 – A photo of something you ate today.
Day 3 – Your idea of the perfect first date.
Day 4 – Your favorite photograph of your best friend.
Day 5 – A photo of yourself two years ago.
Day 6 – A photo of an animal you’d love to keep as a pet.
Day 7 – Your dream wedding.
Day 8 – A song to match your mood.
Day 9 – A photo of the item you last purchased.
Day 10 – A photo of your favorite place to eat.
Day 11 – What’s in your makeup bag?
Day 12 – A photograph of the town you live in.
Day 13 – Your favorite musician and why?
Day 14 – A TV show you’re currently addicted to.
Day 15 – Something you don’t leave the house without.
Day 16 – Your celebrity crush.
Day 17 – A photo of you and your family.
Day 18 – Something you crave a lot.
Day 19 – Another picture of yourself.
Day 20 – The meaning behind your blog name.
Day 21 – A photo of something that makes you happy.
Day 22 – A letter to someone who has hurt you recently.
Day 23 – 15 facts about you.
Day 24 – A photo of something that means a lot to you.
Day 25 – What’s in your purse?
Day 26 – A photo of somewhere you’ve been to.
Day 27 – A picture of you last year and now and how have you changed since then?
Day 28 – Your favorite movie.
Day 29 – Something you could never get tired of doing.
Day 30 – A photograph of yourself today + three good things that have happened in the past.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Ainzley Renee
As promised - Ultrasound Pictures!!!
We just can't believe we're having a girl! LOL I am so excited for David to become a big brother!!! He is so interested in other babies and is such a snuggly boy! If we ask him where Baby Ainzley is, he'll lift up my shirt and point to my tummy. He'll give her snuggles and kisses, too. He's such a great boy! We are so blessed to have 2 sweet babies!!
We just can't believe we're having a girl! LOL I am so excited for David to become a big brother!!! He is so interested in other babies and is such a snuggly boy! If we ask him where Baby Ainzley is, he'll lift up my shirt and point to my tummy. He'll give her snuggles and kisses, too. He's such a great boy! We are so blessed to have 2 sweet babies!!
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Quick Update
Hi friends!!! Just wanted to drop in and let everyone know we had an ultrasound this weekend and....
IT'S A GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We are so ecstatic! Her name will be Ainzley Renee (she and I will share our middle name). I'll post the pics when I get a little less busy :)
IT'S A GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We are so ecstatic! Her name will be Ainzley Renee (she and I will share our middle name). I'll post the pics when I get a little less busy :)
Thursday, October 7, 2010
David
It's so hard to believe my little man is 18 months old! We took him to the doctor the other day and he is 35.5" tall and weighs 36 lbs - off the charts in both! Not that it's a big surprise, but it kind of is, too, lol. It's so fun to see how far he's grown!!! He's in the nursery at church now and didn't like it at first, but did really well 2 weeks ago. He is sooooo smart! It amazes me how quickly he picks up on things. Jason recently bought a Wii and we have the wheel controllers for Mario Kart. We even bought David Nerf ones so if he throws it, it won't break - good find, Daddy! David loves to watch Daddy play and will grab his own controller and turn it likes he's driving too - it's so funny! He's got such a fun personality and LOVES to play outside. He's so great and we absolutely love having him in our family!!!!!
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
15 weeks
I am 15 weeks into this pregnancy today! I can't believe how fast everything is going by... not to mention we're only 5 weeks away from finding out what we're having! Initially, I really wanted a girl, but just recently, my opinion has changed. I know David is really too young to have a preference, but I think he would LOVE a brother. I love having a boy so much and two would be a blast! Not that having a girl isn't great and I would definitely love a daughter, but another boy just sounds so appealing to me, lol. It's so funny because picking out a girl name was no problem for us (the one we have picked out isn't even one we were considering the first time around), but we have no idea what we'll name this one if it is a boy.... No idea at all.
In other news, we are finally feeling settled in our new apartment and LOVE it! We feel so much more at home here and we're even close enough that Jason can come home on his lunch break which is so nice on the days when he has work and school. It doesn't have outside storage like our old place did, but there's so much space, we don't even notice the difference. We live in a smaller apartment community and everyone is so nice! We had an end of summer luau last week and we won $300 off our rent as a door prize - YAY! It was so great! We'll probably use it in December so we can have extra spending money for Christmas, lol. They also have a big Halloween party with more opportunities for monies off rent so I'm already thinking of awesome costume ideas!
School is going great! Jason's classes are super easy (Nutrition and Sociology) which is nice. Both of his teachers told him he wouldn't even need the book for the classes and Jason really likes them. So far, my online classes are going great! Anthropology is the only one I'm in currently and Psychology will start in October. Anthropology is so interesting to me and I LOVE online classes. Yes, they're more challenging and you definitely have to be self motivated, but it's great to be able to work at my own pace. Overall, it's going to be a great semester.
In other news, we are finally feeling settled in our new apartment and LOVE it! We feel so much more at home here and we're even close enough that Jason can come home on his lunch break which is so nice on the days when he has work and school. It doesn't have outside storage like our old place did, but there's so much space, we don't even notice the difference. We live in a smaller apartment community and everyone is so nice! We had an end of summer luau last week and we won $300 off our rent as a door prize - YAY! It was so great! We'll probably use it in December so we can have extra spending money for Christmas, lol. They also have a big Halloween party with more opportunities for monies off rent so I'm already thinking of awesome costume ideas!
School is going great! Jason's classes are super easy (Nutrition and Sociology) which is nice. Both of his teachers told him he wouldn't even need the book for the classes and Jason really likes them. So far, my online classes are going great! Anthropology is the only one I'm in currently and Psychology will start in October. Anthropology is so interesting to me and I LOVE online classes. Yes, they're more challenging and you definitely have to be self motivated, but it's great to be able to work at my own pace. Overall, it's going to be a great semester.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
HEEELLOOOO 2nd Trimester!!
I'm back! FINALLY!!! This pregnancy has kicked my butt so far! I felt great up until about week 6 1/2 then nausea set in. Every. single. day. I just stayed on the couch all morning and it was awful!! I'm so glad it was summer and Jason was home to help with David because I just couldn't meet his needs and THAT is the worst feeling in the world. Knowing that I can't pull it together to take care of David was the worst part of the nausea by far. I'm so so so glad it's over! I'm officially in my second trimester and from 13 weeks and 1 day, there was a dramatic difference. I felt a million times better and wasn't so tired all the time.
This pregnancy is completely different from when I was expecting David... holy cow! With David, I wasn't really sick in my first trimester, but got REALLY sick in the second. Besides that and the obvious growing tummy, those were my only symptoms and it was glorious! This time, however, I was really sick in my first trimester, I've got ridiculous acne (something I've never suffered from - ever), really dry facial areas in tandem to the acne and I've had heartburn since day one. 26 1/2 weeks to go! LOL
David has been doing great! He's grown so much lately!! We started a new ward in conjunction with our move last week and David was allowed to go to nursery for the first time! He was initially interested in the toys and Jason and I left with no issues. About 15 minutes into Sunday School, the nursery leader came and got me. Once David saw that we had left, he was not happy. So I went and kept him company for about 15 minutes... I literally just sat on the sidelines - just my presence was comforting to him, but he still wanted to play, lol. I kept scooting closer to the door and once he had stopped glancing over his shoulder to check on me, I snuck out and he didn't seem to miss me. I got back to Sunday School for the last couple minutes and got to sit through the beginning of the 5th sunday activity before the nursery leader came and found me again. David was sad once the toys were cleaned up and was frustrated they hadn't gotten to his favorite song in singing time yet, lol. He was really tired since he woke up early so we took him home for a nap - we didn't even make it out of the parking lot before he was asleep! I think that now that he's used to sleeping in our new apartment, he'll do better next week. On another note, David loves to point out the baby in my tummy! I'll ask him where the baby is to which he'll point to my belly button and if I tell him to give the baby love, he'll either kiss or snuggle my tummy - it's very sweet! Then again, he is a super-snuggler just like his daddy! lol
So, I mentioned our move and there's not much more to say about it, lol. I'm glad its over! We are in a new ward and new stake and we're adjusting. We absolutely loved our old ward so we're just trying to stay open minded and make friends quickly. At least we're still close enough to hang out with our friends from our old ward - we only moved 1 street above ward/stake boundaries. They're talking about redoing the boundaries (like seriously talking compared to the rumors that have been circulating for years) so we'll see what that brings.
Sad news time... we had to cancel our trip to the Philippines :(. One of our connecting flights got canceled and we couldn't change the dates because of school so we were able to get a full refund. Now we're thinking about a smaller vacation... possibly Salt Lake around Christmas time... we're not sure, though. Definitely want to go before baby and I can't fly after February 6th because of the whole 30 day due date cut off and after driving from St. Louis to Miami pregnant, I refuse to do it again! We thought about another cruise, but we're not sold on that idea either. I'd love to go to New York again - it was amazing! We want to go to Disney, but I would want David to be older. I've been before and don't think I would have the patience to do it pregnant. The walking would be fine... but not the lines, lol
So, that's basically all I have for now. Gotta start dinner before David wakes up from his nap! :)
This pregnancy is completely different from when I was expecting David... holy cow! With David, I wasn't really sick in my first trimester, but got REALLY sick in the second. Besides that and the obvious growing tummy, those were my only symptoms and it was glorious! This time, however, I was really sick in my first trimester, I've got ridiculous acne (something I've never suffered from - ever), really dry facial areas in tandem to the acne and I've had heartburn since day one. 26 1/2 weeks to go! LOL
David has been doing great! He's grown so much lately!! We started a new ward in conjunction with our move last week and David was allowed to go to nursery for the first time! He was initially interested in the toys and Jason and I left with no issues. About 15 minutes into Sunday School, the nursery leader came and got me. Once David saw that we had left, he was not happy. So I went and kept him company for about 15 minutes... I literally just sat on the sidelines - just my presence was comforting to him, but he still wanted to play, lol. I kept scooting closer to the door and once he had stopped glancing over his shoulder to check on me, I snuck out and he didn't seem to miss me. I got back to Sunday School for the last couple minutes and got to sit through the beginning of the 5th sunday activity before the nursery leader came and found me again. David was sad once the toys were cleaned up and was frustrated they hadn't gotten to his favorite song in singing time yet, lol. He was really tired since he woke up early so we took him home for a nap - we didn't even make it out of the parking lot before he was asleep! I think that now that he's used to sleeping in our new apartment, he'll do better next week. On another note, David loves to point out the baby in my tummy! I'll ask him where the baby is to which he'll point to my belly button and if I tell him to give the baby love, he'll either kiss or snuggle my tummy - it's very sweet! Then again, he is a super-snuggler just like his daddy! lol
So, I mentioned our move and there's not much more to say about it, lol. I'm glad its over! We are in a new ward and new stake and we're adjusting. We absolutely loved our old ward so we're just trying to stay open minded and make friends quickly. At least we're still close enough to hang out with our friends from our old ward - we only moved 1 street above ward/stake boundaries. They're talking about redoing the boundaries (like seriously talking compared to the rumors that have been circulating for years) so we'll see what that brings.
Sad news time... we had to cancel our trip to the Philippines :(. One of our connecting flights got canceled and we couldn't change the dates because of school so we were able to get a full refund. Now we're thinking about a smaller vacation... possibly Salt Lake around Christmas time... we're not sure, though. Definitely want to go before baby and I can't fly after February 6th because of the whole 30 day due date cut off and after driving from St. Louis to Miami pregnant, I refuse to do it again! We thought about another cruise, but we're not sold on that idea either. I'd love to go to New York again - it was amazing! We want to go to Disney, but I would want David to be older. I've been before and don't think I would have the patience to do it pregnant. The walking would be fine... but not the lines, lol
So, that's basically all I have for now. Gotta start dinner before David wakes up from his nap! :)
Sunday, July 18, 2010
I feel like I haven't missed a beat
So, being almost 7 weeks pregnant... I feel like it hasn't been 16 months since I was last pregnant. Right back into prenatals (which I took the whole time I was nursing so it's really only been like a 4 month break from those), sleepless nights, and stupid ingrown hairs on my legs. I know that sounds ridiculous, but I NEVER get ingrown hairs unless I'm pregnant, lol. Oh, and the exhaustion and raging hormones. I've cried every day of this pregnancy and for absolutely no reason. The part I do like about the hormones is how "lovey" I get... Every time I see Jace, I just want to give him a huge hug and not let go! I feel like, mostly, pregnancy is good for my marriage, lol
We are so excited for this little one! I'm still trying to adjust to David not being the baby, but everyday he is growing and learning... proving to me that it's ok - it's all a part of life and it all will be great. We've got big plans for this birth, too. I found a terrific midwife that delivers in hospital! A home birth is still my first choice, but we're weighing our options. We've decided our official stance is pro-home birth, but not anti-hospital. We LOVE the idea of home births and the freedom it gives women and families, but also understand that it's not for everyone or every situation. Because of David's brain cyst, his birth was not an ideal home birth situation and that's ok. We still had a terrific birth and came home happy and healthy, but that doesn't mean ALL my births have to happen the same way.
Anyway, on another note, we are really enjoying our summer! We love the break from school and all our free time! We're moving at the end of next month and cannot wait! Our apartment we live in is OK and nice by all accounts... but it's more of a "pretend" nice as me and a friend decided. It's obviously cheaply constructed, poorly managed (even though the manager we deal with is awesome, it's overall a lazy job), the maintenance guys are rude and also lazy and we have terrible neighbors! Well, except for the missionaries who live across the breezeway from us, lol. I'm glad our complex has 4 pools because the one closest to our apartment is ALWAYS closed! People know the managers never come over and check for the pool bracelets we're supposed to always have on us so we have random people come over and swim - people who don't even live here! Our pool is currently closed because some idiots took glass bottles into the pool and broke them. Apparently, that means the pool has to be closed for a week... awesome. Our new apartment is so great and we can't wait to live there! It will, without a doubt, be the last apartment we live in before we buy a house... it's going to be a long lease, lol.
David is becoming quite the little man. He can now successfully locate his tummy, ears, mouth, nose and eyes. He's known his tummy for a long time and just learned the rest in the past 2 weeks or so. He loves books and his favorite toys are his Mega Bloks and his beach ball. We were very interested in extended rear facing in his car seat. The APA is now suggesting 2 years before forward facing children or when they outgrow the rear facing aspect of the car seat... he outgrew it at 15 months, lol. So now he's forward facing like a big boy! I can't believe how big he really is! There's several children at church who are his age or older and he's much bigger than them! Not that it should surprise me, but I always forget about it, lol.
Well, Jason will be getting home from church soon so I guess I'll start working on lunch and less on blogging :)
We are so excited for this little one! I'm still trying to adjust to David not being the baby, but everyday he is growing and learning... proving to me that it's ok - it's all a part of life and it all will be great. We've got big plans for this birth, too. I found a terrific midwife that delivers in hospital! A home birth is still my first choice, but we're weighing our options. We've decided our official stance is pro-home birth, but not anti-hospital. We LOVE the idea of home births and the freedom it gives women and families, but also understand that it's not for everyone or every situation. Because of David's brain cyst, his birth was not an ideal home birth situation and that's ok. We still had a terrific birth and came home happy and healthy, but that doesn't mean ALL my births have to happen the same way.
Anyway, on another note, we are really enjoying our summer! We love the break from school and all our free time! We're moving at the end of next month and cannot wait! Our apartment we live in is OK and nice by all accounts... but it's more of a "pretend" nice as me and a friend decided. It's obviously cheaply constructed, poorly managed (even though the manager we deal with is awesome, it's overall a lazy job), the maintenance guys are rude and also lazy and we have terrible neighbors! Well, except for the missionaries who live across the breezeway from us, lol. I'm glad our complex has 4 pools because the one closest to our apartment is ALWAYS closed! People know the managers never come over and check for the pool bracelets we're supposed to always have on us so we have random people come over and swim - people who don't even live here! Our pool is currently closed because some idiots took glass bottles into the pool and broke them. Apparently, that means the pool has to be closed for a week... awesome. Our new apartment is so great and we can't wait to live there! It will, without a doubt, be the last apartment we live in before we buy a house... it's going to be a long lease, lol.
David is becoming quite the little man. He can now successfully locate his tummy, ears, mouth, nose and eyes. He's known his tummy for a long time and just learned the rest in the past 2 weeks or so. He loves books and his favorite toys are his Mega Bloks and his beach ball. We were very interested in extended rear facing in his car seat. The APA is now suggesting 2 years before forward facing children or when they outgrow the rear facing aspect of the car seat... he outgrew it at 15 months, lol. So now he's forward facing like a big boy! I can't believe how big he really is! There's several children at church who are his age or older and he's much bigger than them! Not that it should surprise me, but I always forget about it, lol.
Well, Jason will be getting home from church soon so I guess I'll start working on lunch and less on blogging :)
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Our latest news
We're pregnant!!!!!!!!!!!!
Baby Duree #2 will be joining our family sometime next March and we are so excited! It's bittersweet for me knowing that David won't be the baby anymore, but it's all part of life. I know he'll be a great big brother. Jason is hoping for another boy and I'm hoping for a girl - we need a little variety! LOL Boy or girl, we just can't wait to meet our new addition!
Baby Duree #2 will be joining our family sometime next March and we are so excited! It's bittersweet for me knowing that David won't be the baby anymore, but it's all part of life. I know he'll be a great big brother. Jason is hoping for another boy and I'm hoping for a girl - we need a little variety! LOL Boy or girl, we just can't wait to meet our new addition!
Saturday, June 12, 2010
I really don't have much to say... so I guess I'll write until I've said something.
I have decided that my creativity far exceeds my pocketbook. I have so many ideas - great, creative, unique ideas - and no money to bring them to life. Hopefully that will change soon. I've recently tapped into the apparel needs of the local nursing home (aka Jason's work, lol). There is a rather large woman who is a resident there that has specific clothing needs and, thanks to my advertisement-savvy husband, I have been asked to make her custom clothing. I completed my first set yesterday and was quite proud. I had to make up the majority of the "pattern" and they looked great. Anyway, hopefully other families will see my work and ask for more clothes. Then I can take the money from that and invest it into my other ideas... I guess we'll see in the coming weeks.
While shopping at Hobby Lobby this past week for material for the aforementioned clothing, I had lots of time to kill and decided to see what new and exciting things they had to offer... lo and behold... they were stocking their Christmas merchandise! I knew it started early, but I was completely blind sided, lol. I have to admit the thought of celebrating such a cheerful time of year made me excited. Jason LOVES Christmas... even that is an understatement of his affection for this special time of year. Last year was our first Christmas at home by ourselves and I loved it! I definitely missed the hustle and bustle of visiting so many family members in a short time period of time, but it was also nice to relax, cook EXACTLY what I wanted for Christmas dinner, and watch our favorite movies. We got to go see our families the weekend before Christmas which made it less stressful. We really enjoyed setting our own family traditions and I'm secretly hoping to have the same situation this year.
Speaking of family, we got to spend last weekend with Jason's family in Branson and we had a blast! We spent most of our time at the pool and hanging out. I got a surprise phone call from my Dad which was awesome. My family members aren't big phone conversation people so it was nice to hear from him. My mom and little brother were out of town and Dad was all by himself and sounded so lonely! I've always been really close with my dad and miss him a lot... I miss my whole family, actually. I love Springfield and being on our own, but we miss home! Hopefully these next few years will pass quickly.
Well, I guess that's sufficient... I don't really have too much on my mind, buuttt, guess that's a good start :)
I have decided that my creativity far exceeds my pocketbook. I have so many ideas - great, creative, unique ideas - and no money to bring them to life. Hopefully that will change soon. I've recently tapped into the apparel needs of the local nursing home (aka Jason's work, lol). There is a rather large woman who is a resident there that has specific clothing needs and, thanks to my advertisement-savvy husband, I have been asked to make her custom clothing. I completed my first set yesterday and was quite proud. I had to make up the majority of the "pattern" and they looked great. Anyway, hopefully other families will see my work and ask for more clothes. Then I can take the money from that and invest it into my other ideas... I guess we'll see in the coming weeks.
While shopping at Hobby Lobby this past week for material for the aforementioned clothing, I had lots of time to kill and decided to see what new and exciting things they had to offer... lo and behold... they were stocking their Christmas merchandise! I knew it started early, but I was completely blind sided, lol. I have to admit the thought of celebrating such a cheerful time of year made me excited. Jason LOVES Christmas... even that is an understatement of his affection for this special time of year. Last year was our first Christmas at home by ourselves and I loved it! I definitely missed the hustle and bustle of visiting so many family members in a short time period of time, but it was also nice to relax, cook EXACTLY what I wanted for Christmas dinner, and watch our favorite movies. We got to go see our families the weekend before Christmas which made it less stressful. We really enjoyed setting our own family traditions and I'm secretly hoping to have the same situation this year.
Speaking of family, we got to spend last weekend with Jason's family in Branson and we had a blast! We spent most of our time at the pool and hanging out. I got a surprise phone call from my Dad which was awesome. My family members aren't big phone conversation people so it was nice to hear from him. My mom and little brother were out of town and Dad was all by himself and sounded so lonely! I've always been really close with my dad and miss him a lot... I miss my whole family, actually. I love Springfield and being on our own, but we miss home! Hopefully these next few years will pass quickly.
Well, I guess that's sufficient... I don't really have too much on my mind, buuttt, guess that's a good start :)
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Oh man are we loving SUMMER!!!! David and I love waking up and having Daddy with us now that he's out of school for the summer. We go to the pool almost everyday which is so much fun! When I was younger, I loved going to the pool. Partly because it meant a visit to my grandma and grandpa's, but also because I love the water! Well, pools... I like pools. I get nervous when I can't see the bottom which is why I'm not a huge fan of lakes.
Anyway, David is a huge water baby!! He loves to splash and go between the hot tub and the pool. I found an adorable swim suit for him and he's a stud when he has his shades on! I'm glad that we haven't missed many days due to bad weather and I can't wait to take him swimming at his Auntie Linda's! Their subdivision has an AWESOME theme pool that he's finally old enough to enjoy.
I am soooo looking forward to taking him to the beaches in the Philippines! He probably won't be fond of the sand, but I'm sure we'll have a blast. In a place as gorgeous as that, how can you not enjoy it? We can't wait!!!!!! :D
Anyway, David is a huge water baby!! He loves to splash and go between the hot tub and the pool. I found an adorable swim suit for him and he's a stud when he has his shades on! I'm glad that we haven't missed many days due to bad weather and I can't wait to take him swimming at his Auntie Linda's! Their subdivision has an AWESOME theme pool that he's finally old enough to enjoy.
I am soooo looking forward to taking him to the beaches in the Philippines! He probably won't be fond of the sand, but I'm sure we'll have a blast. In a place as gorgeous as that, how can you not enjoy it? We can't wait!!!!!! :D
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
I just heard that one of my friends is getting a divorce and my heart aches for her!!
Growing up in a house where divorce was brought up quite frequently (or so it seemed), I grew up thinking that a successful marriage was near impossible.
Then I met Jason... he's sweet, charming, caring, loving, giving and the best man I have ever known. I am so grateful to not only be married to him, but to have made a covenant with him and Heavenly Father that allows us to be together FOREVER. Time and all eternity with the love of my life - perfect!
Growing up in a house where divorce was brought up quite frequently (or so it seemed), I grew up thinking that a successful marriage was near impossible.
Then I met Jason... he's sweet, charming, caring, loving, giving and the best man I have ever known. I am so grateful to not only be married to him, but to have made a covenant with him and Heavenly Father that allows us to be together FOREVER. Time and all eternity with the love of my life - perfect!
Monday, May 17, 2010
It's been awhile
Jason is such a giving person... I guess that's the best way to start this story, lol. He has been in contact with his "trainee" mission companion lately which is awesome! His companion is a native Filipino (yes, that is spelled correctly) who currently lives in Hawaii - way cool! However, he has a job making minimum wage which won't get you much in Hawaii! He and his 4 roommates share a 2 bedroom apartment which costs $2250/month!!! So, he makes minimum wage ($7.25) and pays $450 for housing. To give you an idea of the cost of living, in case the housing didn't make it obvious enough, a gallon of milk costs $6 - holy cow!!! Anyway, back to the story...
He isn't going to school currently, can barely afford living and doesn't really care for Hawaii. My husband, being the ever caring person he is, offered to let his mission companion live with us - what?!? I mean, he's a nice guy, shares our values and is a hard worker, but I haven't ever met this guy before!! I trust Jason's character judgment, but I'm still hesitant. I don't mind helping him out, but we are going to be working very hard to find him a job and an apartment, lol. Jason's boss has already said that as long as he has all the proper documentation (visas, etc) that it shouldn't be an issue hiring him so that's good.
Other than that, we're not up to much! Jason's on summer break which is awesome. One of the missionaries who was here when I was baptized is in town and it's been great!!! She has an internship at the zoo and we've been able to hang out a lot. She lives in Spokane, Washington so we obviously don't get to see each other often enough, lol.
He isn't going to school currently, can barely afford living and doesn't really care for Hawaii. My husband, being the ever caring person he is, offered to let his mission companion live with us - what?!? I mean, he's a nice guy, shares our values and is a hard worker, but I haven't ever met this guy before!! I trust Jason's character judgment, but I'm still hesitant. I don't mind helping him out, but we are going to be working very hard to find him a job and an apartment, lol. Jason's boss has already said that as long as he has all the proper documentation (visas, etc) that it shouldn't be an issue hiring him so that's good.
Other than that, we're not up to much! Jason's on summer break which is awesome. One of the missionaries who was here when I was baptized is in town and it's been great!!! She has an internship at the zoo and we've been able to hang out a lot. She lives in Spokane, Washington so we obviously don't get to see each other often enough, lol.
Friday, May 7, 2010
As promised
Today, I woke up to this:
On days like this, I spend my day wearing this:
And in here:
On days like this, I spend my day wearing this:
And in here:
I have a confession... I have never made a Red Velvet Cake. Yes, shocker, I know! I found this recipe for Red Velvet Cookie Sandwiches - YUM! What a fun afternoon...
1 cake mix in large mixing bowl. I expected the cake mix to be a bit more........ vibrant.
Oh, wait... there are a couple pigments
There we go. Definitely on the right page :)
Into the 350 degree oven for 15 minutes
Gotta stop and feed the babe. Oh he is PRECIOUS!!!!! He, too, enjoyed his first bites of Red Velvet goodness
DING! First batch done!
The camera was MIA during the frosting making, but here's the end result:
Nom nom nom......
Today was a fantastically creative day. When I wasn't in the kitchen (and when I wasn't spending time with Jace & David), I was doing lots of brainstorming and came up with some really awesome ideas. I'm very into the "creative baby items" market right now... I guess we'll see how that goes!
Besides that, it was a really fun day. Hope yours was, too!!!
"Ok, Jace, I'm gonna need you to start making more money"
Because apparently, I must have EVERYTHING!! lol
Like these lovely little sweethearts:
Or these!!!
Or these in every color!
And come on... who DOESN'T need a castle cookie cutter?!?!
Or a cake pan that makes cake "sandwiches"??
Cleverly named "The Cakewich"
Be still my heart!!
Or these!!!
Or these in every color!
And come on... who DOESN'T need a castle cookie cutter?!?!
Or a cake pan that makes cake "sandwiches"??
Cleverly named "The Cakewich"
Be still my heart!!
Thursday, May 6, 2010
I have this friend...
We'll call her Caryn - because that's her name! lol
A little background information: I've been having a tough week emotionally. Basically I've been remembering times that I've been hurt or wronged by family members (mine and Jason's) and getting really frustrated because the emotional wound is still there.
Today, Caryn made a blog post and while it didn't really have anything to do with hurt feelings or earthly family relationships, I was so uplifted by reading it! She always seems to have an eternal perspective - ALWAYS and I love it! As a convert, I really appreciate the example that Caryn is to me. It bugs me when people who grow up in the church take advantage of the amazing blessing they have to learn and grow... Caryn has never come across as one of those people.
I am so grateful to know Caryn, her husband, and their beautiful daughter and we miss them immensely! Jason and I speak of them often and hope we can have a reunion soon. We miss you guys!!!!!!!!!
One of my favorite pics of the Allen family, lol :)
A little background information: I've been having a tough week emotionally. Basically I've been remembering times that I've been hurt or wronged by family members (mine and Jason's) and getting really frustrated because the emotional wound is still there.
Today, Caryn made a blog post and while it didn't really have anything to do with hurt feelings or earthly family relationships, I was so uplifted by reading it! She always seems to have an eternal perspective - ALWAYS and I love it! As a convert, I really appreciate the example that Caryn is to me. It bugs me when people who grow up in the church take advantage of the amazing blessing they have to learn and grow... Caryn has never come across as one of those people.
I am so grateful to know Caryn, her husband, and their beautiful daughter and we miss them immensely! Jason and I speak of them often and hope we can have a reunion soon. We miss you guys!!!!!!!!!
One of my favorite pics of the Allen family, lol :)
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
My Favorite Hymn
I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me
Confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me
I tremble to know that for me he was crucified
That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he bled and died
Chorus:
Oh, it is wonderful that he should care for me enough to die for me
Oh, it is wonderful
Wonderful to me
I marvel that he would descend from his throne divine
To rescue a soul so rebellious and proud as mine
That he should extend his great love unto such as I
Sufficient to own, to redeem and to justify
(Repeat chorus)
I think of his hands, pierced and bleeding to pay my debt
Such mercy, such love and devotion can I forget?
No, no, I will praise and adore at the mercy seat
Until at the glorified throne I kneel at his feet
I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me
Secure in the promise of life in his victory
Thus ransomed from death I will live to my Savior's praise
And sing of his goodness and mercy through endless days
In our ward, we don't really sing hymns that I'm familiar with... including this one. It makes me sad that I don't get to sing it in church very often, but I am happy to come home after church and listen to it while I make dinner. It's one of the highlights of my sunday... even though I sing it quite frequently throughout the week :)
Confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me
I tremble to know that for me he was crucified
That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he bled and died
Chorus:
Oh, it is wonderful that he should care for me enough to die for me
Oh, it is wonderful
Wonderful to me
I marvel that he would descend from his throne divine
To rescue a soul so rebellious and proud as mine
That he should extend his great love unto such as I
Sufficient to own, to redeem and to justify
(Repeat chorus)
I think of his hands, pierced and bleeding to pay my debt
Such mercy, such love and devotion can I forget?
No, no, I will praise and adore at the mercy seat
Until at the glorified throne I kneel at his feet
I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me
Secure in the promise of life in his victory
Thus ransomed from death I will live to my Savior's praise
And sing of his goodness and mercy through endless days
In our ward, we don't really sing hymns that I'm familiar with... including this one. It makes me sad that I don't get to sing it in church very often, but I am happy to come home after church and listen to it while I make dinner. It's one of the highlights of my sunday... even though I sing it quite frequently throughout the week :)
Monday, April 26, 2010
Weekend Getaway
This past weekend, Jason, David and I went to St. Louis for a visit & we had a blast! We were plagued with a couple tornadoes, but we survived :) It was great to see my family again! It seems like a long time between our visits even though it's only about 4 or 6 weeks. My little brother is turning into quite the stud... he's very busy finishing the school year, running track and playing baseball. They have quite a few tournaments so I'm looking forward to getting to see him in action someday soon. Dad is hard working as always and mom is working diligently to finish her PhD work.
Our main reason for our trip was my cousin's wedding - it was beautiful! She and her new hubby have been dating for a long time and it was wonderful to see them become man and wife. We had a blast at the reception! The food was delicious and the music was great for dancing. This was the first time in a long time that Jason and I got to dance together and we really enjoyed showing off our swing dancing skills :)
Now, we are back to "normal" life and quite happy to be home
Our main reason for our trip was my cousin's wedding - it was beautiful! She and her new hubby have been dating for a long time and it was wonderful to see them become man and wife. We had a blast at the reception! The food was delicious and the music was great for dancing. This was the first time in a long time that Jason and I got to dance together and we really enjoyed showing off our swing dancing skills :)
Now, we are back to "normal" life and quite happy to be home
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Extra time
Today, David went back to his 2 nap schedule - what a difference!!! Not sure why he chose to cut it out, but we much prefer 2 naps. David woke up a little before 8 this morning which is completely normal. We ate breakfast and played for a little while. At 9:45ish, I went to the bathroom to wash my face and when I came back into the living room, David was almost asleep on the living room floor! I picked him up and put him in his crib and he slept for 2 hours! After he woke up (and after Daddy left for work), we went to run some errands. On our way home, David fell asleep in the car. After bringing him into the house and putting him in bed for the second time, he slept for another 2 hours! I had no idea what to do with all that extra time! lol It was fabulous to get the after bedtime chores done before dinner.
Besides our new schedule, we are getting ready to head up to St. Louis this weekend and we can't wait! We got a new case that will allow us to attach our portable DVD player to the headrest of our car seats so David will have a new form of entertainment - thank goodness! We're so excited to go home for a little while... we're needing a break! :)
Besides our new schedule, we are getting ready to head up to St. Louis this weekend and we can't wait! We got a new case that will allow us to attach our portable DVD player to the headrest of our car seats so David will have a new form of entertainment - thank goodness! We're so excited to go home for a little while... we're needing a break! :)
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Well, today we got a letter from Jason's school... he didn't get into nursing school this semester. We were pretty distraught so Jason called the school to find out why. Apparently, one of this 3 references never made it into his file. He asked the people who wrote his references repeatedly if they turned them in and they all said yes - We even gave them stamped, addresses envelopes to make it easier! We know which person's reference never made it so Jason doubled checked with him and he assured us he mailed it. So, who's to blame? The school for possibly losing it or the post office for not delivering it? The school is on the lookout for Jason's lost reference - which apparently happens more often than you would think - but we're not counting on much. We feel hopeful but chance-less currently. So, unless we get our small miracle, it looks like we're going to be postponing nursing school 5 months (fortunately OTC offers nursing school twice a year!). This isn't really how we imagined the situation happening - something so small is what's keeping us from our goal - it's so frustrating!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We're just trying to focus on the positive and see where we end up.
Wish us luck!
Wish us luck!
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Day at the Park
Yesterday was Jason's day off (besides Sunday) so we made the most of it. We ran errands most of the day and took a break at the park - David LOVED it!!!!!!!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
David's first time to the park
Today, David and I got to go to the park and we had a blast! We only had about 15 minutes before we needed to be at Jason's work since we were taking him dinner, but it was plenty of time. In the 10 minutes it took for us to drive to the park, David fell asleep - awesome... I thought for sure our play time was going to be horrendous. As soon as I took him out of the car, he woke right up - almost as if he knew what was coming, lol. We visited the swings first and they were a hit! I got some really cute videos on my phone. Next we tried out the slide and he wasn't sure at first. After a couple times, I couldn't tell if he loved the swings or the slide more! Hopefully we can go back to the park tomorrow with Daddy so we can get some cute pics, too.
We had so much fun!!!!!!!
We had so much fun!!!!!!!
Productivity
Today, I am feeling good! I woke up naturally before my son and was able to have breakfast waiting for him. We ate breakfast together and sang silly songs. Afterward, we cleaned up breakfast and played with Mega Blocks for awhile. Once David was playing happily by himself, well, with his friend Roger the Giraffe, I started cleaning the house. I keep the house pretty clean normally, so it didn't take me too long to dust, sweep, mop and sanitize... I clean the kitchen and vacuum everyday anyway. Once I finished that, I waxed my eyebrows and got ready for the day. Once Jason got home from school, we left to pickup both our cars (oh yeah... we bought a new car on Saturday, lol) and came home for lunch. Now, Jason's at work, David's napping and I actually get to relax! I'm sure I'll be doing some sewing later, but for now, I'm enjoying catching up on my reading.
I'm currently reading "Born in the USA" by Dr. Marsden Wagner and it's a great book! It's about the problems with the maternity care in America. What's even better is that it's written by an obstetrician! I am a supporter of the education of women about their birthing options. Sometimes I feel a little overbearing when one of my friends tells me their expecting, but just because we're all young and not everyone has had the option to learn about birthing with a midwife or doula. It's such a wonderfully different and refreshing experience.
Anyway, just an update on my daily life, lol
I'm currently reading "Born in the USA" by Dr. Marsden Wagner and it's a great book! It's about the problems with the maternity care in America. What's even better is that it's written by an obstetrician! I am a supporter of the education of women about their birthing options. Sometimes I feel a little overbearing when one of my friends tells me their expecting, but just because we're all young and not everyone has had the option to learn about birthing with a midwife or doula. It's such a wonderfully different and refreshing experience.
Anyway, just an update on my daily life, lol
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Is this not the sweetest picture ever?!?!?!?
This is my glorious new niece, Ava... Hello Sweet Girl! Auntie can't wait to meet you!!
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