My day with Nathan

Last Sunday, Jeremy, Maddie and Emma weren't feeling the greatest.

I have been looking for an opportunity to spend some one on one quality time with Nathan.

We went to church.

Went out to lunch.

We had already planned to get our Christmas Tree last weekend, so Nathan and I decided we would go ahead and get it.

So out we went.

In the snow.

We searched all the trees until we found the perfect one.

Nathan did most of the cutting.

I only helped a little. ;)

Then we came home and decorated it.

I dare say it is the most perfect tree we have ever had.

It is the perfect size for our living room.

I actually really enjoyed it being just Nathan and I. We don't really get a lot of time with just the 2 of us. We don't get a whole lot of time together. I think I need to do that more often.

 

Isn't it funny how much better you feel once your tree is up?

 

Now if I could just start my Christmas shopping.

RaNdoMNess

It's Tuesday.

It's cold. I mean COLD!!

I am supposed to be at Bible Study but Emma has a cold. So we are home in the warm house with no where to be today.

Well....I could run to walmart for diapers and chicken broth...but like I said.

It's cold and Emma has a cold.

Emma is talking on her pretend phone to her Papa. She is telling him all about her pretty tree and the pretty lights and her babies. She can't forget about her babies.

I will be babysitting my friends little boy this afternoon.

I am sure that Emma will be excited to have a real baby in the house.

She should call Papa afterwards and tell him all about it.

I should be cleaning.

But I'm not.

Currently I am standing in the kitchen and the heat just kicked on. My toes appreciate that.

Cuz did I tell you it's cold.....

I didn't like crawling out of bed this morning to go to the gym.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Have you seen THIS video?!?!    Go ahead watch it.

Ok, now buy the album.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you walked into my house today you would find:

floors that were attempted to be cleaned. What in the world do you use to clean hard wood floors with out them looking like they are all smeared? I have been using a mixture of vinegar and water and they look terrible today!

You would see a trail of toys. I have picked them up 12 times today. There is no hope. I give up.

You would smell a pork roast. I am making BBQ pork for dinner.

You would hear either Christmas music by the previously mentioned Piano Guys or ITunes Radio playing the Gaithers.

If you waited long enough, you would probably catch Emma playing with the Christmas ornaments. She particularly likes Nathans ornament he made with his picture on it. She walks around kissing it.

You would see the dishes done. Until lunch time.

You would see hand print smears on the front window and on the tv and the mirrors and well.... you get the picture.

You would hear the washer and dryer humming away. ( I am still so thankful for our washer and dryer)

You would see 2 black dogs curled up actually resting on their beds.

You MIGHT see me doing some baking later. Maybe.

What would I find if I walked into your house??

Look who's 2!!

This post is only a couple weeks overdue.

It isn't like I haven't had the time.

I just.... I don't know....maybe don't want to think that 2 years have gone by.

 

Little Tiny 6 # Emma.

 

 Has brought so much unbelievable joy into our lives. I truly cannot imagine a life without her here.

Sure it would be quieter. I wouldn't be as tired. I could count on sleeping through the night. Or eating a meal uninterrupted. Or a hot meal for that matter. My house would be a whole lot cleaner as well.

But goodness. I have so enjoyed watching her grow. Watching her learn. Watching her love. Watching her giggle.

She is always watching. Always learning. Always mimicking.

 

She loves her De-De. She loves to get into her stuff. To try and put on her de-dup.

 

She loves her bath.

LOVES her bath.

She loves her Daddy. She doesn't like to think that she is being left out of anything!

She loves her Bewwa.

 

She loves to help with whatever we are doing.

 

The thing she might love most is her babies. She has more babies then I can count. And she loves each and every one of them.

1 night we were with our small group and we wearing cleaning up getting ready to leave. Emma had been playing most of the night in the toy room with the babies and the little kitchen set that was there. She had been rocking this little bitty baby. She had the baby wrapped in a blanket and all. As we were getting to walk out the door, we went to put the doll down. Emma about died. She couldn't fathom that she had to leave that little doll. My friend couldn't bare to see Emma crying like that and told Emma she could take the baby home. Emma has been playing with the baby ever since.

Her cousin E-I (Eli)  is one of her favorite people. When they see each other they are inseparable. Recently Mike and Joanna came over for dinner. Eli and Emma were playing in Emma's room. Next thing we heard was a little boy screaming. Eli had gotten himself stuck in the laundry shoot. (thankfully he wasn't hurt and we were able to get him out! ) But a week or 2 after that, Emma pointed to the laundry shoot and started talking about her E-I.

She also loves her Jonas. We facetime Melanie and Jonas. I love that the kids can see each other and then they talk about each other for days after. :)

I love to watch Na-Na and Emma play together. Nathan loves his baby sister and already enjoys to torment her. It reminds me very much of an older generation....of my brother Jonathan and baby sister Joy!

 

She was the flower girl at her uncle's wedding. I snapped this picture. I am so glad I got it!!

 

 

 This might be one of my favorite pictures of Emma. I had been taking pictures of Maddie and Nathan on there 1st day of school and she had to get her picture taken as well.

 

 

1 thing I have seen in Emma is that she has a very compassionate. If someone is crying or sad she will go up to them and say....its ohtay....its ohtay...and give them a kiss. I love that about her.

Her new thing is she kinda tilts her head and says....mom....mom....mom....mom...and when you look at her....she just says...hi. And then gives you a great big smile.

Her favorite past times are: looking out the window at the big trucks, watching Elmo or Mickey Mouse, and playing babies.

Her favorite place to go: Papa's. She lights up at the mere mention of his name. She also loves to go to church and play with her friends.

 

Some of her favorite food would be: tacos, pizza, spaghetti, eggs, apples, oranges, pineapple and cinnamon rolls.

 

She loves sweet tea and ice cream.

 

Happy 2nd Birthday my little sunshine. You are a true answer to prayer.

 

My prayer for you today is that you seek after God your whole life, that you let Him use you however He wishes.

The Lord will fulfill his purpose

Ever have one of those morning where you come before the throne of Grace....empty, drained, sad, needing to be filled with life that only God can give?

That was me today. Life can sometimes just...drain me. Making it impossible to face yet another day without coming into the Presence of God  and his life giving words.

Psalm 138:7-8 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life;

you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and your right hand delivers me.

The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.

Do not forsake the work of your hands.

 

God knows all about what I am walking through. About the tight ropes of having to deal with people. Of not knowing who or what to believe. Of having that energy being drained from you with having to watch your every word and action.

 

People can be ugly. 2 faced. They can be out to really hurt you, to lie to you.

 

I have a purpose in every place that I am in. God has a purpose for me. How can I not take joy in that?? He not only has a purpose but he will fulfill it. Not me. But God will fulfill it.

 

I don't have to worry about the outcome of anything. I just have to rest. To rest that God really does have this. That none of it took him by surprise and he will protect and DELIVER me!!

 

And in the meantime.....

 

His steadfast love.....it gives me strength.

 

He has poured out his grace to me when I least deserve it.

 

How can I not in turn pour it on others who least deserve it?

 

I can rest in the fact that He will not forsake me. He is faithful.

 

I am sanctified and redeemed.

 

These verses mean oh so much to me. What a promise that I never want to forget.

I hate titles.....

Happy Thursday.

Yesterday....

My to do list was much longer then my energy level. But I tried to muddle through and try and get some things accomplished.
 

( I don't think a whole day getting caught up on my new favorite show meet the midwives would be very wise....fun....but not wise )

So I made plans to carve pumpkins.

Which lead to roasting pumpkin seeds.

I made pizza dough for calzones. 

 

Let me rephrase that.... Attempted to make pizza dough for calzones. I accidentally left out a whole cup of water to the bread machine.... Needless to say... I still had a whole lot of flour mixed with a little bit of gobbly goo at the bottom.

Not very appetizing.
 

Thankfully Walmart carries Pillsbury pizza dough already made. ;) 

In all this chaos, I was still able to make an apple pie ( I attempted the lattice crust, it didn't work so well. ( Rabbit trail.... My crust hasn't been turning out so well lately. It's either to sticky or to dry... I try to fix it but it just gets worse)) and a pumpkin pie.
 

On a completely different subject..... Have you ever been just kinda blown away when you find out someone's true nature or when you find out how very fake and selfish they really are down to the very core? Right now I have a choice.... To by Christ like and try and respond in love and respect or......to..... To stuff the hurt down deep and pretend like I don't know or don't care.

I'm a stuffer by nature yah know. 

I pray I make the right choice. 

Bc really.... This life I live isn't about me. That's what I am learning.... It's about Christ in me. 

My advice

My best advice:

To the new mother;

You are going to have days when you feel on top of the world and you feel like you have this mothering thing down.

You are going to have days when you are on the bottom of the barrel and you will feel like you just can't do this, and why anyone would entrust children to you is beyond comprehensible.

People are going to make comments. good or bad. But they will. Sometimes they won't even be a bad comment, but it will be an off the cuff remark, that you will take so personally and you will feel like a failure.

But please.

Let me tell you something.

You are doing a swell job.

You are.

Your house may not be perfectly clean bc you have children running right behind you making an even bigger mess then what you just cleaned up.

And it is in that moment that you will have an unexpected visitor.

Don't let their judgment bother you.

Please.

Your children are fed.....sometimes even with a home cooked meal.

They are clothed....with clean clothes, even if you did pull them out of a laundry basket and you didn't have time to fold them.

They are nourished not only with food but with something more important. Time and love.

You will always see other "perfect" mothers who wear a size 2 and have immaculate homes, perfect hair and always have treats in the pinterest worthy cookie jar.

But they are struggling just like you.

With something.

You will always see that older mother....who just "never did it THAT way" but you know what....time... time sometimes makes you forget exactly how you did it or makes you forget the days where you can barely get the floor swept, laundry started or even use the potty bc of the screaming toddler demanding your ever living moment.

Or maybe older mothers just sort of simply block out those days because they did all they could just get through the day.

I think we only remember the good stuff.

We sort of block out the bad days. Those days we only get through by the grace of God. And we never want to look back.

To the older mother:

Don't judge.

Don't make the snide off the cuff remarks.

They aren't helpful.

Ever.

Your remarks aren't helpful, they are demeaning and hurtful.

Your job is to help build up the younger mother and to teach her in love and grace.

So be that example of love and grace.

If you see a mother struggling...help the blessed soul. Really, take time to see what might help her. Take her family a meal, offer to watch her children so she can get some house work ( or take a nap if the exhausted soul feels like it. )

Please remember that that young mother really is trying her hardest, and all she needs is a word of encouragement. Her job is endless. You were there once too.

To the mother who's children wears socks and keeps them on.....good for you. You have now been nominated for mother of the year.

And if your child was actually ready for picture day with their teeth brushed AND hair combed AND the picture form all filled out......

Then you win.

To me:

I have taken myself out of the competition. I don't want to be the best mother in the world. I dont' want the most pinterest worthy cookie jar with the most artistic cookies.

I just want to be the mother that I am intended to be. That's a big enough goal for me. I have a hard enough time keeping up with myself and 3 kids and 2 stinky, stupid dogs...I don't have time for trying to define what your comments mean.

I am trying.

Some days I succeed.

Some days I fail. Miserably.

But the grace in it all is that His mercies are new every morning.

I must now go....Emma is throwing a fit bc I won't give her chapstick. The laundry will wait, the dishes will wait....but Emma will not.

Happy Weekend

What did your weekend look like??

Emma spent time in prison... I mean coloring while everyone was busy Saturday Morning.

The older kids got caught up on folding laundry, (They LOVE this job!)  while I cleaned the house.

Please tell me I'm not the only one who has 3 baskets at a time to fold?

I made time to do my work out video.

We went on a date....I mean we tried to go on a date, but ended up taking the kids.

It wasn't quite as romantic. But we had a nice family dinner. I was pleased bc Emma is at that tough stage where you really debate going out to dinner. But she was kept entertained and the waitress was quick. So it turned out well. ( I did take a picture of J and I on our date, but he hates the picture, so I was asked to take it down. I am obviously submissive. lol )

 

I made Morning Glory Muffins.  I figured anything with shredded carrots and apples and pineapple would be semi healthy and therefore good for me. ( I chose to ignore the fact that it had like 2 cups of sugar in it. ) I of course omitted the raisins....bc well....raisins are gross.

 

I rearranged the living room. ( I got these little cuties as a wedding favor from J's cousin's Bens wedding. )

Again.

Can you see Nathan and his friends in the very corner of the above picture?? They thought it would be great fun to play in the street and try and play tricks on cars. I quickly put an end to that little game. *pats self on back* ;)

Grandma called Maddie and surprised her today by taking her shopping. She modeled her new outfit for us. (Why she stood on the chair....I will never know....)

Emma took a blessed 3 hr nap. When she woke up she relaxed while watching us rearrange the living room.

Doesn't she look pathetic?

 

 

We didn't have a set dinner time tonight.

Jeremy had made a big pot of chili for lunch (which was delicious) so we all just kinda ate when we felt like it for dinner. Nathan stole a couple min to grab some dinner while playing with the neighbor kids.

Notice the finger nail polish on the table?? My friend Liz inspired me to try blue finger nail polish. I picked blue, Maddie picked grey. Sorry Liz, I think I like the grey better. ;)

Now it is Sunday night, and I am looking at another week ahead of me. Here's hoping you all have a great week!