I've probably built this song up way too much, but you can listen for yourself. Just thought I'd share a little piece of sunshine in my life :)
Thursday, February 16, 2012
What Can I Do.....
I've probably built this song up way too much, but you can listen for yourself. Just thought I'd share a little piece of sunshine in my life :)
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Randomness
- Most nights these days my head is swimming with thoughts of "to-dos". I've got a lot on my plate right now, but it is all really REALLY good stuff. Like what?
- Did you know that I watch a little girl (1 year old) three days a week? I LOVE it, she is precious, and my babies love her to pieces. She has been a part of our family since October and we are definitely in our grove now. The only thing this adds to my to-dos would be house work. (I still have not figured out how to manage house chores with all three babies. Kudos to you mommies with more than 2!).
- Did you know that I also work from home (just 10 hours a week) for the Shelbyville Board of Realtors? I am the new Association Executive (Fancy, right?!?). I coordinate monthly board meetings, monthly member luncheons, write a newsletter, and process member info. It is a pretty sweet deal, 85% of the work I do from home and twice a month I get to dress up and go to a meeting where no one screams "Mine" or spills juice or throws temper tantrums.
- Did you know that I am heading up the silent auction for a fundraising dinner for a ministry that is UH-mazing! Stormhaven Youth Ranch is having a dinner (PS, it is already sold out!) next Friday the 24th and I have a feeling it is going to blow all of our socks off!
- Did you know my son is potty training himself?!? Yup, he now tells me he has to go potty, walks in the bathroom, removes his pants and diaper, climbs on the toilet and then hollers "Mommy, I did it". Yup. I guess this means I have to start potty training too. I dont know why I am so reluctant to start this. I should be excited that he is not even 2 1/2, yet so eager to start potty training. I just feel like it is going to be super inconvenient, but that is soooo selfish (I know, just keepin it real).
- Did you know that my sister is getting married in 4 weeks and that we only had the past 2 weeks to plan the wedding? Her honey is completing Special Forces training and the dates were up in the air until 2 weeks ago. Talk about moving fast. I have to give Lauren and my mom credit though, everything is done!
- Did you know I am switching banks and it is a HUGE pain in the rear? Yeah, when you have all of your bills automatically coming out of your account, it is a huge pain to contact all of those places and switch accounts. Ugh.
- Did you know that I am going to redecorate my bedroom???? So many options. Not even sure where I want to start. My head is going to explode with excitement.
On other unrelated notes....
- I am totally digging Smash
- What is up with The Bachelor? Has this dude lost his mind? I swear, if he picks Courtney I am going to be seriously disappointed with Ben.
- Matt and I have started talking about our vacation to celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary. I know, I know....it is three years off, but we are dreaming big :)
- I currently have 23 blog post ideas on my blog to do list
- I currently have a whole paper (front AND back) of to do projects for around the house. Some big, some little, some boring, some REALLY fun :)
- I am really lucky that my husband puts up with me. I am borderline crazy some days, yesterday was one of those days.
- I have WAY too much fun at Trader Joes
- I sing a lot at home. I usually have Pandora on in the kitchen, I sing doing chores, I sing while I clean, I sing while I cook, I sing to my kids, I will even make up songs to what we are doing. They love it, but I do too :)
- I am really excited about Spring. Starting to get a little cabin fever.
- There is a new Watch ESPN commercial that shows UK getting beat by IU and I think my husband bites a piece of his lip off every time it comes on TV.
- I hate laundry
Friday, February 3, 2012
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
I'm Stuck!
I hear that 5o million times a day.
"I stuck mommy. I stuck."
He's not really stuck. This is all part of him discovering his imagination and he likes to pretend he is stuck to everything. He gets stuck giving hugs. He gets stuck in puddles. He gets stuck to the floor, the wall, the chair, to Harper's head. He thinks it is hilarious, and it really is adorable. I just wouldn't mind hearing it 48 million times less a day ;)
Last night he got "stuck" behind a ladder.....
7 Months of Harper Love
Since Harper is now 8 months old, it is only appropriate that I post about month 7 before it is really too late.....
My little Love has more personality than I can even describe. She has the sweetest temperament and is always one big chunky smile. I can not even tell you how much that drooly grin melts my heart. During month 7 she definitely became a momma's girl. Every week for the past month, I have been called out of church for my sweet bambino. As soon as she sees me walk in the room, she stops crying, smiles, pants like a dog, and jumps up and down with excitement. She is not hungry, tired, or dirty....she simply wants me. And I would be lying if I said it didn't make me the slightest bit happy when I see how excited she gets to see me :)
The first several months of her life she was a total rock star when it came to sleep....the last couple months have been a real challenge. Month 7 was the hardest by far sleep wise. To be honest, she slept more as a new born than she did this month. I kept blaming it on teething but one month later and no pearly whites. (Knock on wood) She has slept through the night for the last two nights and I am hoping that is a chapter we will not revisit. Momma likes her sleep!
We have begun the weaning process, which has not phased Harper. She takes a bottle like a pro and does not seem to mind formula either. And that leads me to Harper's other love...food! She is the best little eater going (if you couldn't already tell from the pictures!). She is not a fan of baby food, but if hungry enough she will eat it mixed with some rice or oatmeal. What this child likes is finger foods. Holy Moly she loves it. I started giving her some little bites on Christmas Day and she has been enjoying them ever since. Her favorites include bananas, blueberries, peas, squash and sweet potatoes. Harper started crawling at six months but truly mastered the skill in month 7. She also mastered pulling herself up and has begun the cruising stage. I just can not believe how fast she is growing up!
Here are 7 awesome things about 7 months:
My little Love has more personality than I can even describe. She has the sweetest temperament and is always one big chunky smile. I can not even tell you how much that drooly grin melts my heart. During month 7 she definitely became a momma's girl. Every week for the past month, I have been called out of church for my sweet bambino. As soon as she sees me walk in the room, she stops crying, smiles, pants like a dog, and jumps up and down with excitement. She is not hungry, tired, or dirty....she simply wants me. And I would be lying if I said it didn't make me the slightest bit happy when I see how excited she gets to see me :)
The first several months of her life she was a total rock star when it came to sleep....the last couple months have been a real challenge. Month 7 was the hardest by far sleep wise. To be honest, she slept more as a new born than she did this month. I kept blaming it on teething but one month later and no pearly whites. (Knock on wood) She has slept through the night for the last two nights and I am hoping that is a chapter we will not revisit. Momma likes her sleep!
We have begun the weaning process, which has not phased Harper. She takes a bottle like a pro and does not seem to mind formula either. And that leads me to Harper's other love...food! She is the best little eater going (if you couldn't already tell from the pictures!). She is not a fan of baby food, but if hungry enough she will eat it mixed with some rice or oatmeal. What this child likes is finger foods. Holy Moly she loves it. I started giving her some little bites on Christmas Day and she has been enjoying them ever since. Her favorites include bananas, blueberries, peas, squash and sweet potatoes. Harper started crawling at six months but truly mastered the skill in month 7. She also mastered pulling herself up and has begun the cruising stage. I just can not believe how fast she is growing up!
Here are 7 awesome things about 7 months:
- Baby girls is FINALLY starting to grow some hair!
- Bath time is a blast since she loves splashing around with Harrison
She started saying "Hi" "Momma" and "Dadda"!- She claps
- She bounces up and down in an effort to dance
- When she gets excited she pants like a dog (tongue out and all!)
- She sleeps with a blanket her great grandmother made (Thank you Grammy Smith!!). It is a fleece blanket with "fringe" edges. She loves to hold on to the edges and suck her thumb as she goes to sleep.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Joy Through Trials
In the book of Joshua in the Old Testament (Joshua chapter 4), you can read a story about God being faithful in delivering His people, the Isrealites. The Isrealites wanted generations to know how great their God was and about the awesome way that He delivered them into their promised land. To do that, the Isrealites built a stone memorial so that everytime someone looked upon that memorial, they would be reminded of the way their grandfathers crossed the Jordan River.
Some could argue that blogs could be used the same way that that stone memorial was used. By posting a blog you are allowing everyone to know the mighty way God has worked in your life. And that is exactly what this blog post is all about!
If you have been reading my blog for any length of time, then you have heard me refer to my best friend of 20 years many times. Some of you might remember her from here, or here, or here :) The rest of this blog is Taylor's story. She has a story. A hard to read story. A tear jerking story. But a story worth reading....
Take it away Taylor.......
I recently heard a message in church that focused on taking joy in your trials that prompted me to want to tell my story. I hesitate because I hate attention, but I think that we often need to be reminded that good things come out of bad situations and that God is faithful. Often, we ask and receive. It may not be exactly what we asked for, but it's most likely better than what we could have imagined.
So my story starts in March 2011 or so. I called my best friend Danielle and said, "I think I am pregnant, get over here and bring me some pregnancy tests!" You readers out there know Danielle and know she came running with my preggo tests. My husband was out of town and I couldn't wait, had to know. So I was pregnant and Danielle and I were giddy and making plans. She was planning my baby shower and how Harper and my little one would either be best friends, like us, or they could date :)
I told my family and some close friends and was on cloud nine. I was monitoring my little one's size and sending texts to my family, "little bits is the size of a lima bean, yay!" At the first check up, I was so excited to share this moment of hearing our child's heartbeat with my husband and then I saw the Doctor's face. I knew there was a problem and immediately started begging God, who I hadn't talked to in quite awhile, not to do this to me. But, my little one didn't have a heartbeat and through my tears I was scheduling my D&C for the next week. I was broken in a way I didn't know was possible and my husband of just a few months, Mike, had a look of pain I had never seen on his face in six years of dating. We went home and sat on our couch and sat in silence most of the day. It was too much to put into words. But all I knew to do was to talk to God about it. I cried to God and I knew better than to question things...if I know anything, it's that there is always a reason for every trial.
We waded through the pain and were told this was a fluke and to try again. Pregnant again in June. We kept this one close to us, didn't tell anyone (except for Matt and Danielle) and waited for blood work. I wanted to know right away this time. Again, no heartbeat, blood work showed a failed pregnancy AND I had a large cyst that was growing at a rapid rate and had to be taken out that week. This miscarriage didn't break me like the first one. I think I knew going in and was wary this time from the first one. It was scary, because there was (and still is) an obvious problem. So on June 27th I went in to have a cyst removed and came out of the surgery without a left fallopian tube and being diagnosed with endometriosis. I mourned that tube and was scared of what it meant for our future family, but clung to still having a 50% chance since my right side was "healthy."
In this time, my husband and I decided we needed more. We couldn't do this on our own. We started attending a church that has meant the world to us these last few months. So here's where I talk about the good coming out of the bad. For the first time, Mike felt comfortable exploring Christianity and talking to people without being judged for not being a Christian. He took his time, he took a foundations class and then one day in church he walked over and gave his life to Christ. I stood in the aisle and thought, "ok God, you're awesome. We came here out of pain, searching...and now we've found you and been found." Mike was baptized and two days later he lost his job. The awesome thing is that he had a faith in God's plan for him and he stayed strong during this time. He ended up getting his job back 5 weeks later, right when severance ran out...but I digress.
So I recovered from my June surgery and was feeling really great. I was working on getting my body as healthy as possible and then some crazy things started happening in September. Back to the doctor. Endometriosis and cysts were back. Time to see a specialist, I had some crazy aggressive case that my doctor wasn't prepared for. The specialist (who has turned out to be amazing) tells my the endo is spreading to the right side and I am going to lose my right fallopian tube. of course, I was not okay with this. I know conceiving will be hard with one tube, but I want that opportunity!
And this is when it gets really good. My church rallied around me and I had more people praying for me than ever and as someone said, they were standing in the gap for me. On days when I just wanted to break and I had this giant red countdown clock in my brain that was counting down to my infertility, I had women and men crying out to God for healing, strength and above all else, peace. And that's what I got. I had a great peace the week prior to the surgery. My community group fasted and prayed for that right fallopian tube. I had people coming to my house to pray with me. My prayer was that no matter what happened, I could have peace and understanding. I didn't want to wake up from that surgery an angry, resentful, infertile shell of myself (this was my fear) .
So on Friday, January 13, 2012 I am on the way to the hospital and Mike and I are feeling the nerves. We get a call from a friend who wants to pray with us as we are driving. We get of the phone and Mike says, "this year has been so hard on us and it's been painful, but then something like that happens and I think of the new friends we have made and all I can think about is how blessed we are." We were good to go. I then get a call that my anesthesiologist is a family friend...we called this a wink from heaven. That week I found out that the fact that THE Dr. Nakajima (top specialist in our region) was doing my surgery was a big deal. I didn't realize what a blessing this was. Then I heard other doctors that were prepping me for my surgery calling my doctor "The Man." And I knew I was in good hands. So they rolled me back to surgery and I got to see the robot, Da Vinci, that would be used for the surgery. Intimidating, but very cool. This is where I go under and wake up to my doctor saying, " You did great. Your right fallopian tube is healthy and we saved it. You get to go home." THANK YOU JESUS! What a faithful God we have.
Is this to say we won't have challenges? Not at all. Is conceiving still going to be a challenge? Most likely. But God has showed us so much through all of this. His peace really does pass all understanding and when you ask for it, He gives it. Having a group of people praying and coming together and crying out to God is amazing and is a kind of love I can't express and is so powerful. And my marriage has grown in ways I never thought possible. I never thought I would be in a hospital bed sitting next to my husband saying a prayer of thanks in front of nurses and doctors and anyone else walking by...I used to avoid people who did that! I was down with Christianity, but was not a public display of affection kind of gal. And the love and respect I feel for my husband, who has taken care of me A LOT this year and seen me through five procedures in one year, is something I don't know would have been this strong without these trials. I knew Mike was great when I married him, but man, I didn't know. I don't have the words for how blessed I am to have him.
So our journey to becoming a family of more than two is still a long one. But we are so rejuvenated by God's love and blessings that for the first time in awhile, we're excited to see what's going to happen. We know we will have a family and honestly, we will be better parents having been through this time. We're stronger as a couple and are now ready to raise our children to love others and love the Lord unconditionally. We're excited to have a family and we may not know how it's going to happen yet, but we know it will happen, because God is faithful and we have trust in His plan for us.
Some could argue that blogs could be used the same way that that stone memorial was used. By posting a blog you are allowing everyone to know the mighty way God has worked in your life. And that is exactly what this blog post is all about!
If you have been reading my blog for any length of time, then you have heard me refer to my best friend of 20 years many times. Some of you might remember her from here, or here, or here :) The rest of this blog is Taylor's story. She has a story. A hard to read story. A tear jerking story. But a story worth reading....
Take it away Taylor.......
I recently heard a message in church that focused on taking joy in your trials that prompted me to want to tell my story. I hesitate because I hate attention, but I think that we often need to be reminded that good things come out of bad situations and that God is faithful. Often, we ask and receive. It may not be exactly what we asked for, but it's most likely better than what we could have imagined.
So my story starts in March 2011 or so. I called my best friend Danielle and said, "I think I am pregnant, get over here and bring me some pregnancy tests!" You readers out there know Danielle and know she came running with my preggo tests. My husband was out of town and I couldn't wait, had to know. So I was pregnant and Danielle and I were giddy and making plans. She was planning my baby shower and how Harper and my little one would either be best friends, like us, or they could date :)
I told my family and some close friends and was on cloud nine. I was monitoring my little one's size and sending texts to my family, "little bits is the size of a lima bean, yay!" At the first check up, I was so excited to share this moment of hearing our child's heartbeat with my husband and then I saw the Doctor's face. I knew there was a problem and immediately started begging God, who I hadn't talked to in quite awhile, not to do this to me. But, my little one didn't have a heartbeat and through my tears I was scheduling my D&C for the next week. I was broken in a way I didn't know was possible and my husband of just a few months, Mike, had a look of pain I had never seen on his face in six years of dating. We went home and sat on our couch and sat in silence most of the day. It was too much to put into words. But all I knew to do was to talk to God about it. I cried to God and I knew better than to question things...if I know anything, it's that there is always a reason for every trial.
We waded through the pain and were told this was a fluke and to try again. Pregnant again in June. We kept this one close to us, didn't tell anyone (except for Matt and Danielle) and waited for blood work. I wanted to know right away this time. Again, no heartbeat, blood work showed a failed pregnancy AND I had a large cyst that was growing at a rapid rate and had to be taken out that week. This miscarriage didn't break me like the first one. I think I knew going in and was wary this time from the first one. It was scary, because there was (and still is) an obvious problem. So on June 27th I went in to have a cyst removed and came out of the surgery without a left fallopian tube and being diagnosed with endometriosis. I mourned that tube and was scared of what it meant for our future family, but clung to still having a 50% chance since my right side was "healthy."
In this time, my husband and I decided we needed more. We couldn't do this on our own. We started attending a church that has meant the world to us these last few months. So here's where I talk about the good coming out of the bad. For the first time, Mike felt comfortable exploring Christianity and talking to people without being judged for not being a Christian. He took his time, he took a foundations class and then one day in church he walked over and gave his life to Christ. I stood in the aisle and thought, "ok God, you're awesome. We came here out of pain, searching...and now we've found you and been found." Mike was baptized and two days later he lost his job. The awesome thing is that he had a faith in God's plan for him and he stayed strong during this time. He ended up getting his job back 5 weeks later, right when severance ran out...but I digress.
So I recovered from my June surgery and was feeling really great. I was working on getting my body as healthy as possible and then some crazy things started happening in September. Back to the doctor. Endometriosis and cysts were back. Time to see a specialist, I had some crazy aggressive case that my doctor wasn't prepared for. The specialist (who has turned out to be amazing) tells my the endo is spreading to the right side and I am going to lose my right fallopian tube. of course, I was not okay with this. I know conceiving will be hard with one tube, but I want that opportunity!
And this is when it gets really good. My church rallied around me and I had more people praying for me than ever and as someone said, they were standing in the gap for me. On days when I just wanted to break and I had this giant red countdown clock in my brain that was counting down to my infertility, I had women and men crying out to God for healing, strength and above all else, peace. And that's what I got. I had a great peace the week prior to the surgery. My community group fasted and prayed for that right fallopian tube. I had people coming to my house to pray with me. My prayer was that no matter what happened, I could have peace and understanding. I didn't want to wake up from that surgery an angry, resentful, infertile shell of myself (this was my fear) .
So on Friday, January 13, 2012 I am on the way to the hospital and Mike and I are feeling the nerves. We get a call from a friend who wants to pray with us as we are driving. We get of the phone and Mike says, "this year has been so hard on us and it's been painful, but then something like that happens and I think of the new friends we have made and all I can think about is how blessed we are." We were good to go. I then get a call that my anesthesiologist is a family friend...we called this a wink from heaven. That week I found out that the fact that THE Dr. Nakajima (top specialist in our region) was doing my surgery was a big deal. I didn't realize what a blessing this was. Then I heard other doctors that were prepping me for my surgery calling my doctor "The Man." And I knew I was in good hands. So they rolled me back to surgery and I got to see the robot, Da Vinci, that would be used for the surgery. Intimidating, but very cool. This is where I go under and wake up to my doctor saying, " You did great. Your right fallopian tube is healthy and we saved it. You get to go home." THANK YOU JESUS! What a faithful God we have.
Is this to say we won't have challenges? Not at all. Is conceiving still going to be a challenge? Most likely. But God has showed us so much through all of this. His peace really does pass all understanding and when you ask for it, He gives it. Having a group of people praying and coming together and crying out to God is amazing and is a kind of love I can't express and is so powerful. And my marriage has grown in ways I never thought possible. I never thought I would be in a hospital bed sitting next to my husband saying a prayer of thanks in front of nurses and doctors and anyone else walking by...I used to avoid people who did that! I was down with Christianity, but was not a public display of affection kind of gal. And the love and respect I feel for my husband, who has taken care of me A LOT this year and seen me through five procedures in one year, is something I don't know would have been this strong without these trials. I knew Mike was great when I married him, but man, I didn't know. I don't have the words for how blessed I am to have him.
So our journey to becoming a family of more than two is still a long one. But we are so rejuvenated by God's love and blessings that for the first time in awhile, we're excited to see what's going to happen. We know we will have a family and honestly, we will be better parents having been through this time. We're stronger as a couple and are now ready to raise our children to love others and love the Lord unconditionally. We're excited to have a family and we may not know how it's going to happen yet, but we know it will happen, because God is faithful and we have trust in His plan for us.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Please Help!!
Hey Friends. I have been so busy with life and I have so many wonderful things to fill you in on. But for now, I will share with you something that is heavy on my heart and my mind. I am currently helping to organize a fundraiser for a local ministry, Stormhaven Youth Ranch. Mike and Gaye Cox are members of my church and have been in my Community Group. They are amazing believers and wonderful examples of Christ's love. At Stormhaven Youth Ranch, they are able to
connect hurting children with horses for healing. They currently have 18 horses who have come to the ranch with their own special story ready to begin a relationship with a needy child. Several of the horses are rescued from neglect, uselessness, abuse, or termination. The children and their families come with similar stories and find hope and unconditional love through these "angels in horsehair". During this process, it is the goal of Gaye and Mike to share the love of Christ with these children and their families.
On February 24th, there will be a fundraiser dinner at Claudia Sander's Dinner House. Tickets are $25 dollars apiece. If you or someone you know may be interested in joining us, email me at danielle.lovejoy@gmail.com. I would LOVE to see your smiling face there!
And if that is not asking enough of you....I am also heading up the silent auction for the evening. I am searching for fabulous, unique, and fun items to be donated. If you are able to donate ANYTHING, I'll take it!!
Thank you, my sweet bloggie friends. And I hope to see you on February 24th!
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