Friend of Wall-E

Alternately titled: My First Experience with a Cockroach

Now, anyone who lives in Texas knows that there are cockroaches, everyone has them and there is little you can do about them, except kill them upon site, which is what any good American would do.

Drew has dealt with all the cockroaches in our house. He gets up before me and takes care of any that have appeared overnight. They are usually on their back, kicking their legs trying to get flipped back over. I have killed my fair share of big, black ants and various other bugs but not a cockroach. The closest I had seen one thus far was out on our back deck while I was safely in my house. I can so handle that.

Until yesterday.

Yesterday, mid morning, I saw a large cockroach scamper across my kitchen and into the dining area. I screeched as he tried to hide under the bag of cardboard and newspaper recycling stuff that I had sitting out to drop off.

Sage appropriately backed away. Kolby got down on all fours and said "Hi, hi" while waving.



I shooed Kolby back, I didn't need him scaring him and the cockroach scampering off and then grabbed my camera.

Drew has told me "the drill" for taking care of the cockroaches. Put a paper towel on top of it and then drop a heavy Architecture book on top.



I was so disgusted at the sight of the paper towel, I could do nothing but take a picture before throwing it away and washing my hands.

I'm sure I will repeat this scenario but the first time required documentation. And if anyone is wondering, no we never did find that little lizard that scampered back into our house and I don't really want to think about it. Or open any of the boxes that are stacked in the front closet.

Baby Update

I had a routine doctor appointment for the baby yesterday. I am measuring small, so he ordered an ultrasound for the next time I come in, which will be August 25. I did some research on the internet, actually, it landed in my inbox and according to babycenter.com "Measuring small for dates means your fundal height is more than 2 centimeters shorter than what's normal for your stage of pregnancy. Your practitioner will probably order an ultrasound to confirm your due date, in case you're not as far along as you thought, and to rule out problems such as intrauterine growth restriction and too little amniotic fluid.

Being small of stature or having well-conditioned abdominal muscles can give you a smaller initial fundal measurement. Or you may have a small, perfectly healthy baby. Some babies are small because their parents are small. But if your baby isn't growing as he should be, you'll have another ultrasound in a few weeks to check on his growth, and frequent monitoring to assess his well-being."

It's funny that I measured small because I have started to feel quite large, at least in the bottom department! And my due date did get moved up a week, so maybe I'm not as small as he thinks. The baby is moving a lot lately. It has become my favorite activity to just lay or sit and feel him move. At church on Sunday, my belly was hopping all over the place with kicks. He also wakes me in the middle of the night with movements. I don't remember that with Sage or Kolby, should I be nervous?!

I'm 25 weeks now, officially in the sixth month, time to pre-register at the hospital and take a tour. All of a sudden, I am worried that I won't like the hospital and how they do things. Room in vs. not room in. Baby going to the nursery right away or staying with me right away.

Having a baby, there are so many unknowns and things to worry or be concerned about. All I can do is keep praying and trust that God has me where he wants me, like all of life!

I'm not gonna lie

I might be a little nervous regarding Edouard.

It's just that I don't know what to expect. Most likely, we will just get rain and some thunderstorms. And I'm not even scared about the what ifs. We have some bottled water and some canned food, we're as prepared as we're gonna get.

But when I get an email saying our church is shutting down for the day and Drew gets an email that says not to come in if it is dangerous... I guess I start to get nervous.

I know whose hands we are in, I know who is in control and I'm not scared just nervous. I also know who to give those nerves to!

So, no worries after all!

Sunday

Today has been a wonderful day.
Sunday school.
Church.
Lunch at new friends house.
A little bit of rest.
Grocery shopping with no kids.
Friend from Yale and her new husband coming for dessert.
Drew helping to clean the house.
Computer time.
Lots of baby kicks and movements all day long!

Did you notice a new button on my sidebar? Praying for MckMama and Baby Stellan? I am. A lot. Every time my baby moves inside me, he reminds me to pray for Stellan. She reminds me to cherish everything about being pregnant, not just the great feelings of movements but my sore feet at the end of the day, my pulsing, aching vericose veins, already feeling like I am waddling, carrying this baby is a miracle and I am not promised another day.

From now on, I consider it pure joy to carry this baby. Every minute of every day. It's a great day to carry my sweet little boy.

Decorating Revisited

I know! You're sick of it, so am I! But, I have a question. Before I ask, I need to clarify since you can't see me face to face and some of you have never met me face to face. This question is in no way meant to tear my husband down, hurt his feelings or anything. I am just curious.

How much input does your husband have in the decorating of your house?

In our house, Drew has a lot of say. The final word kind of say. And there is good reason for that. He is trained as an architect. He has ideas and opinions and would like them expressed in his house. And normally, we share tastes. I like what he likes and don't have too many opinions of my own.

And usually, if I do have an opinion, he likes it and wants to make it happen. For example, I was flipping through the new Pottery Barn catalog (the designers bible for me, not so much for him) and said "Ooh, lets paint the kitchen this orange color!" And he said, "Sure, babe, and then I can do the cabinets at the same time."

The most frustrating part for me has been our walls in our living room. We have one large blank wall that needs something. We have blown up pictures of the kids above the fireplace so we need something different. I'm really wanting a painting type something because we have a lot of photographs, which I love, I just want something different on this wall.

And, I am coming up empty with throw pillows. I am not seeing anything I like!

That is all, enough complaining about decorating.

At first, I said we need to finish painting the rest of the house, but now, I'm thinking we should just paint the kitchen this weekend!

The Story of the Queen and the Gas Station

There once was a queen, we'll call her Kristy, who desperately needed to fill her van with gas. She was so busy driving Sage to and from Vacation Bible School that she kept forgetting. It was many, many miles after the little ding had donged to remind her to get gas.

Conveniently, there is a gas station right across the street from Kristy's house. Gas is always higher there but it seemed to make sense to get it on the way instead of driving out of the way to get it.

She quickly pulled in to the empty pump and reached for her wallet to pay at the pump. Magic fairies (gas station attendants) came out and were all ready to fill the gas tank for her. She had pulled in to the full service side (who knew those still existed?). Well, since Kristy is pregnant, she decided she would treat herself to full service gas and not stand out in the hot, Houston heat to pump her gas. The magic fairies swiped her card and she sat quite comfortably inside the van while they checked the air in the tires and Kristy thought "Oh and I'm saving my husband some time, he mentioned that needed to be done!" and then while they washed her windows and checked the fluid levels in the van.

When the gas was finished, Kristy dutifully filled out the notebook that is kept in the van to keep track of mileage. She wrote 17 gallons of gas at $4.02. She looked at her receipt and thought "Wow! $85 for gas! That is the most I have paid yet!"

Kristy drove happily home.

That night, she mentioned to her husband how expensive gas was today. "17 gallons for $85, it was $4 a gallon!" Her sweet husband looked at her questioningly and asked her to repeat what she said. She responded "I know, I could hardly believe it either." She had told him about the full service she treated herself to by mistake and then told him how now he wouldn't have to check the air in the tires because that nice man stood out in the 100 degree weather and did it. He said "Babe, you paid $5 a gallon for gas!"

Kristy rushed to get her pocketbook and check the receipt. Sure enough, $5.02 had been charged. Her husband, anxious to right this wrong charge called the station immediately, "Yes, how much do you add on for full service? A dollar, okay thank you."

Kristy profusely started apologizing. That sweet husband, just chuckled and said don't do it again and then of course asked if she would write it up for the blog.

Leisure Time

I am curious, how much time do you stay at home moms or work at home moms get away from the kids? Let's put it in hours per week, kay?

On average, I probably get an hour or two away from the kids per week. And those times would include grocery shopping without kids, not just time for me to go do something.

This past weekend, it had been too long. I needed time away, bad! Even Drew told me I needed to get away. He might have had selfish reasons because I wasn't very fun to be around, for him. I might have been a tad bit grouchy. And when I say tad bit, I really mean, pretty grouchy, daggers thrown his direction every time he spoke.

Sunday afternoon, I said I am leaving, don't call me unless one of the boys is bleeding or puking. As I walked out the door, he asked Sage if he had any scabs he could pick, ha ha.

Since I don't really know anyone yet and this was a bit last minute, I went to the mall by myself. As I circled the parking lot looking for a spot, I realized this might not have been the best choice. The mall is very annoyingly crowded on the weekends and I generally try to avoid it. But then I decided that I don't have kids with me, so I will take it as a people watching time and take my time. I only had a couple of goals. 1) New foundation since mine was a bit too light. 2) A new undergarment. 3) Get my eyebrows threaded. I had 4 hours until the mall closed, certainly, I will be home in about two.

First stop, Sephora. A lady? girl? woman? what do you call a woman in her mid-twenties? Anyway, I told her I wanted a light coverage foundation. She put something on me, I told her it felt wet and like I needed to wipe it off. She put the finishing powder on me. I told her I looked like my face was blank and I didn't like it. I like my face to look natural, I actually like my face. I had originally told her I didn't want Bare Minerals but I was wrong. I bought the shade darker than what I had at home, so now I own light and fairly light. Yes, I am pale, thank you. I also ended up buying blush (I had been using some free stuff that I didn't really like), some eyeshadow, lip gloss and lip liner. I tell you all this because it is a big deal to me. I do not normally go out and buy make up for myself with colors and techniques learned how to apply from a professional. I buy one piece at a time, usually the cheapest and then I just copy what I like on others. It isn't the best way to buy make up because I end up with stuff that doesn't look good on me, but on my friend.

Second stop, Starbucks for a java chip frapaccino. The line was long, I was scouring for a comfy seat. As I walked away form placing my order, I saw a comfy chair open. I raced over and sank down. Apparently, I took an old woman's seat. I am not sure how it went down, but she was standing several feet away adding something to her iced coffee and she scowled at me. When she was done, she came over and said to the lady in the comfy chair next to me, "Sorry, I made you move, I guess someone took it anyway." Glared at me again and went and sat in a wooden chair. I wasn't sure what to do so I just kept sitting. And then consoled myself that hey, I'm pregnant, I deserve a comfy chair! And left my purse sitting on the seat while I picked up my drink so no one stole the comfy chair from me!

Third stop, to get my eyebrows threaded. Now, I have never done this before. I have had my eyebrows waxed in a salon a couple times, but honestly, I have been doing it at home and I don't do it often enough. I had seen this booth in the mall and it tweaked my interest. It said it doesn't hurt as badly as waxing and the hair grows back finer. And, eyebrows, $10. I had to wait while she did another customer, whom I noticed wiping tears from her eyes. I told myself to be brave. I found the picture from the chart that I would show her what I wanted mine to look like. She sat me down and just started threading. And she literally used thread. White thread that she paid maybe .88 cents for from Wal-Mart. She tied a knot in it and I don't know, wrapped the thread around the hair or something and started pulling. I felt my eyebrows dropping on to my face. She didn't ask about a shape but I wasn't worried. Then she told me to hold above my eyebrow and pull it up while pulling below my eyebrow down. (It's interactive) She asked if it was my first time and I chuckled and said how could you tell. I thought it was rhetorical since she just had to tell me twice how to hold my face for her, but apparently, it wasn't since she answered because you don't know how to hold your face. It did hurt a little and I was wiping tears from my eyes too since they watered. And, it really was only $10 for both eyebrows, I had myself convinced it was going to be $10 per eyebrow.

It turned out great! I am so glad that I got it done and feel like a whole new woman. Between getting my eyebrows threaded and new make up, I felt really good. I still have eyebrows, but they are brows with a shape. I look like a girl. Even Drew is shocked by how much it changed the way I look. And he really likes it. I believe his comment later that night was something about how bushy my eyebrows were in our wedding picture. He kids. But seriously, a vast improvement.

Now, if I could just get someone to buy me a new wardrobe...

This is too long, the last stop was Dillards so I could get some new undergarments (a strapless bra, if you must know) and that is all you get to know about that.

The day was quite a success, I was at the mall from 2 - 6:30. Yes, the mall closes at 6 but the Target that anchors it stays open until 9 on Sundays.

I need to do this more often as I am a better mommy this week for it and a better wife. Next time, it would be fun to do something with a friend!

MckMama

I found a blog. Named My Charming Kids. I was intrigued by her cute kids, the fact that there were a lot of similarities in us, as I read her About Me and the fact that we are both due around the same time. She has a pretty strong gut feeling that she is having her third boy. Another similarity. Although, she has two boys and a girl already.

Her baby has almost complete heart block. The atria is not getting the message to the ventricles to pump the blood to his body.

Read her blog here

She is a Christian and trusts God completely but she is asking for prayer. Prayer that she and her husband would cling to Jesus. Prayers for the doctors for wisdom, prayers that the baby's ventricles will start beating on their own.

Lord, I lift up the MckFamily. I pray that mama and dada will cling to you, will look to you for comfort and guidance. Thank you that they trust you, Lord. Thank you that you are forming MckMuffin, Lord, I pray for his little heart, I pray that the ventricles will pump blood to his little body. I pray for the doctors. I pray that you will guide them, give them wisdom. I pray that all glory, honor and praise will go to you. Lord, my heart hurts for them, my head doesn't understand but I know you hold us all in your hands. Thank you that we can trust you to take care of us.

Home is Where the Heart is

(Our family in front of our old house in our old city, right before we moved)


That saying makes sense to me until I move. Then it is so confusing to me. I want to go home but can't figure out where home would be. And if I don't know where home is, where is my heart? And when I think about someplace being my home, what makes it my home?

Familiar people, landmarks, restaurants, church.

We've lived here 6 weeks now so I see familiar landmarks. The hospital that is a mile from our house with the "ugly hat" on it, the mall (grin), grocery stores, buildings are always in the same spot so they quickly become familiar.

There are some familiar people that I see around church and in our neighborhood. But I have realized that I am probably not familiar to them. I am hyper aware of people around me because I am constantly looking at people and wondering if they would be my friend or what they are like, stories about these people go through my mind all day.

We have made ourselves familiar with some restaurants. Chick-fil-A and Sams Deli being our family favorites.

Our church is becoming more familiar. Although, we aren't entirely positive it is the church for us. There isn't anything wrong with it, it's just big.

The familiar aspects are here, mostly, but it still doesn't feel like home. What will make it feel like home?

Time.

And that, is the hardest part. It just takes time to make this feel like home and make me want to make my home and heart here.

I can't will time to move faster so I feel at home and know where my heart is. I can't make time slow down so I will enjoy every new day that I live here.

Some days feel good, it starts to feel like home. And some days are hard and leave me wondering where home is and what it would look like in a different city. Admittedly, I have more hard days than good days lately but in time, that will change. I will have more good days when I know this is home and I will embrace life here, the lizards, the cockroaches, the many spiders and bugs that I kill on a daily basis, the incredibly beautiful days, the hot weather, the driving everywhere, not having family close, finding a babysitter for every little thing, and the variety and plethora of shopping.

It isn't easy moving to a new city, away from family and friends but there are rewards too. I'm just not sure I can pinpoint those quite yet.

A Must Read

Blink

I pray my heart can be as sensitive to the Spirit's voice. I pray my faith, my love will deepen. I pray that your heart will be open.

Decorating Derangement

I have always been nervous to decorate my home. Luckily, in the past, we weren't planning on living somewhere very long and we rented so nothing was permanent! And we had no money so decorating was a term very loosely used in our world. It was more like, do we have some frames that we could hang some pictures we took on some of our walls, maybe above the free floral couch and massive black leather chair?

But now, this is our house. We are paying the mortgage every month. It belongs to us. Which makes Drew want to put money towards things that will make our house very efficient like a new water heater and windows. But, I want to decorate.

Except, I don't. I'm scared. I have trouble finishing a room. And that is why we don't have one room finished. Well, there are several reasons. I also don't want to take the two boys to Hobby Lobby to see what they have that I can decorate with, our living room is already spewing of Ikea and Target hasn't caught my eye with anything lately.

Picking paint colors was hard enough now I have to figure out something to hang on the wall?!

And we desperately need throw pillows for our couch. We have light blue walls in the living room and one shade bluer in the dining and kitchen. I would love to pull in different colors like green, but am unsure of how to go about doing that. Do I have to find a pillow that contains blue and green? Or can I go with just green?

And the new baby/guest room is causing some angst in my life. I refuse to paint it blue. They boys have a blue room by default of us purchasing too bright blue for a living room paint. I will not paint another room blue. I would like to paint it green. But, I would like a little bit of floral in there because I am a girl and it seems like the guest room would be a good place for this. But, do I need to remind you that it is also going to be home to a boy? I found this bedspread for the queen bed and yes I would buy that pillowcase and then this crib spread and bumper and skirt in bright green, not pink but my other dilemma is that we are painting our room green so upstairs we will have 2 green bedrooms a blue bedroom and a blue bathroom. Are there rules against using only 2 colors in your house?

And I kind of want to paint our half bath downstairs orange. Can I do that? Did I mention it has a black toilet?

And what color do we paint our entry and hallway?! I was thinking a light gray.

Help! Send blogs or links to things you like and would look good in my home, ideas, give me something internet!

And, I promise pictures if you promise to help.

Wordless Wednessday: My View

Our walk to the swimming pool:

Growing Pains

Have you heard all the hype about BPA leaching from bottles, pacifiers and such into our children?

I decided to try to curb Kolby's love for his MAM passy which apparently is full of BPA by buying Gerber Nuk classics which I was pretty sure weren't BPA infected.

Here is the result:



This was a couple months ago before we moved.

Last weekend we visited some friends in Austin. I took one passy. I knew I only took one and I just decided I would be careful. Well, the second night, I couldn't find it in our room anywhere. I know it is there somewhere because he used it for his nap that afternoon. He hadn't taken a nap or gone to bed without a passy in about 2 years and 3.5 months, yes, basically his whole life. We told him we couldn't find his passy and he would just have to sleep without it. I anticipated a hard time falling asleep and possibly lots of waking up in the night.

Nothing. Not one cry.

When we got home, I not so secretively stashed the passies laying around in a drawer and decided to see what happened.

Again, nothing. He never asked for one or cried for one or woke up wanting one. It made me kind of sad.

One night, I noticed his green blankie laying on the floor and said to Drew "Didn't you give him his blankie?!" (the other comfort item he hasn't slept without) Drew said "Nope." I ran it into his room where he was fast asleep. Without his blankie. I tucked it in right next to him.

Mommy's not ready for him to give up his blankie. I mourn the loss of the passy but the blankie I will push until he goes to over night camp.

And then I'll secretly pack it in his suitcase.

Why you should bolt the dresser to the wall

The other day, Friday to be exact, I was in my bathroom about to get dressed and I had sent Sage to his room to get a pair of socks. We needed to leave for VBS in about thirty minutes.

I hear a loud crash and then a pitiful "Mamma!"

I run to Sage's room and see the dresser laying on the floor and blonde hair peaking out the top.

"Sage!" I yell. "I'm here, I'm here. Oh, Lord help me lift this!"

I lift it up and as I shut the drawers, I ask "Were you climbing on the dresser?" He says no, he was looking in all the drawers to find his socks. Every. single. drawer. was open.

I sit down beside him, and see no visible markings. He is crying, we are both scared. My mind is racing, I need to put on clothes, should we go to the ER, I should call Drew, I'll put Kolby in the stroller to go in the ER so I can buckle him and keep him safe, I can't believe this happened.

He is complaining of his shoulder/arm hurting so I make him move them both in all directions. Then I see his eye. He has a cut diagonally under his eye and on his forheard.



He won't stop crying so I decide to give him Tylenol in case he has a headache. And then I break out the real medicine. Starburst. Finally, starburst calms him down. I get dressed and we rush to VBS. He told me he didn't want to go anymore because he got hurt.

We get there and he turns to me, smiles, waves and says "Bye!"

Later, I noticed his lip too.



Can you see the blue stuff on his bottom lip? It's not food. It appears to be a bruise or a blood blister.

And the shoulder he complained of? Friday night, I gave him a bath and he has a pretty big bruise on his shoulder along with small cuts. I felt so bad for him.

After I lifted the dresser off him, I couldn't move it back towards the wall. Drew tried moving it that night and couldn't do it either. It is amazing the strength God will give mothers when they need it! I got the things to bolt it to the wall, it was supposed to get done this weekend, but hopefully tonight.

The cuts will heal, the bruise will fade, but my memory will last. It was the scariest thing yet. I wonder how long it will be until our first ER trip?

Anyone wanna buy a house? *Update

That, my friends is a lizard. A lizard in my house. My house. Did I mention it was in my house?! I kind of want to move. Anyone know of a house in Texas that doesn't have lizards that come in?

We live in a beautiful neighborhood with loads of trees, green and luscious it even has a pond! But, I have found some drawbacks. Mosquitoes being at the top. And bugs coming in a close second. I think a lizard in my house just might put me over the top. Can you tell how tiny it was? I was standing on a chair.

I think I may have seen it upstairs first. Is that possible? I had taken a shower and come out of the bathroom into our dark bedroom. And saw what I thought was a bug. I yelled for Drew not caring that the boys could hear me (they were in bed). Kolby even started yelling "Dew, Dew!" It moved so fast but I dared to take my eye off it so I could yell down the stairs. By the time Drew came up, it was no where to be found. Out of sight, out of mind. Fast forward a couple of hours. Drew and I are getting ready to go to bed, I don't even remember what I was doing, putting dishes away and Drew was shutting the blinds. All of the sudden, I saw movement. Fast, quick movement. We spotted Lizzie's baby (scroll down to June 30 to meet Lizzie). And I was trying not to think about her having babies!

What do we do?! Call an exterminator?



Here is Drew ushering the little guy safely out of our house. I have to confess for Drew that he might have been a little scared of the little guy too. I'm sure he won't mind me telling you that! However, he got over it much quicker than I did as he escorted him out and I stayed on the chair!

***Update: He came back tonight. He slithered in as I slithered out to get the stroller to go on our bike/walk. Drew saw him come in and he slithered right into our front closet which happens to have quite a few boxes still. No more sightings yet. Julia's comment helps a little but I still don't love the idea of little lizards in my house!

Here's How it Went Down

Sage's birthday was Monday. 4 years old! I can't believe it but I'm not going to get into that here, that is for his birthday book (a journal we write in for each of the boys birthdays or "around" there birthday or sometime in the year that they were that age).

We have known since last year that we wanted to get him a bike. He was ready last year but we were living in MN with Drew's parents and had only our tiny Saturn to get all of us and all our things back and forth from CT for the summer. So, we decided that 4 was the age. The age he would get a bike for his birthday.

You might expect my husband, the planner, to have a spreadsheet of which bike would be the best and most cost effective for Sage's birthday. However, no, he didn't. One night, we looked online, found this beauty and thought we were set. It seemed a good price point, a good brand so we can pass it down and we thought we would just pop right in to Target and pick that bad boy up. We did do a little research and took him to a bike store and made sure we knew which size to buy.

So, on Sunday, the day before his birthday at roughly 7pm, I popped over to Target. Um, that 16 inch Schwinn bike? Yeah, not there. I called Drew who checked on line and saw this sentence "Usually ships within 3 to 5 days
This item is available online, but is not available in stores." I was pretty frustrated with ourselves for being so darylic about the whole birthday bike thing. I didn't want to just give him a picture and say look for it to be delivered sometime in the next year!

And then we found out that shipping was $35 roughly half the cost of the bike. Done deal. Not gonna do it.

So, the next day, (the day of his birthday)Kolby and I drop him off at Vacation Bible School and I have 2.5 hours to find a 16 inch bike. I type in "bicycle" to my GPS, Gregory and he comes up with a list. I call first because Gregory has been known to be wrong. But, some of the stores haven't opened yet and some are fax numbers that Gregory gives me.

Kolby and I go to the first store. They have bikes! Nice ones! Like this! Did you see the price tag of $180? At the store, it was $189. Um no. Kolby enjoyed playing on the 12 inch, $179 bike while I tried not to be shmoozed by the man because the bike is so nice, it is made very well, you will have it for many years, all your kids will ride it, it will only fit him about a year. Aaaand not sold.

Kolby and I go to the second store. Closed until 11 am for the Tour de France.

Kolby and I go to the third store. Doesn't exist, thanks Gregory!

Kolby and I go to the fourth store. Did I mention we ran out of wrapping paper the night before and he had requested a balloon that I hadn't gotten yet? I call. They sell bikes! 16 inch bikes! For more than we wanted but about the same after shipping. Kolby tried it out. We threw in a helmet, safety first.

And here is what happened that night:

Did you notice Kolby? He was carrying the helmet for Sage because Sage didn't want to carry it himself. Kolby starts to put it on and is thinking, yay! my bike that mom and I picked out! I wondered what she did with it. And then Sage gets on and Kolby starts screaming "Mine, mine!" And do you notice our awesome parenting skills? Drew picks him up and says, "Do you wanna wear the helmet?"

We win for parenting award of the year in all categories!

Notice the Boston Celtics, Kevin Garnett jersey? I think we did make parent of the year for that present! He has been requesting one since about January!

And yes, we did spoil him. And yes, we are ashamed at how much he received.

How to not make a new friend

-Go to a playgroup where you know no one and try to speak to the other mommies.

-Sign your child up for swimming lessons and strike up a conversation while watching the kiddos sink or swim.

-Go to the neighborhood pool.

-Go to a playgroup at a bounce house place and watch your children.

-Go to the library story time and try to strike up a conversation with a mom who just moved here.

Drew is going to make me some mommy cards. Will I be brave enough to pass them out after being shunned?!

Two illustrations: I took the boys to the story time at the dive of a neighborhood library and noticed another mom getting a library card. I deducted that she just moved here also and maybe she would be interested in talking to me. You know when you try to strike up a conversation but the other person doesn't add anything? That is how it went. I gave up and we left story time early. End of story.

I went to a playgroup at a church (a very large church which we have attended- know which one it is?) this morning. It is advertised in the bulletin as Let's Play! an indoor playplace (think McDonalds) and a place to meet up with other moms out of the heat. That sounded right up my alley. So I went. I said hello to some other moms who were obviously all there together. They said hello back. And never talked to me again. Oh, except when I asked them if they were going to an outside park after overhearing them talk about it. Maybe I should have invited myself out to lunch too. But ya know, we had swimming lessons to get to!

Sinking In

3 boys.

Three boys.

3 boys.

Wow.

Crazy.

Oh. my. word.

Loud.

I was going through the list of things we need/want for the new baby and it just seemed too short.

Need:
Car seat
onesies? but do I? I mean, we live in TX!? I always used these for warmth.
socks

That is about it for need, I think. We should be fine in the clothes category.

Want:
Peanut Shell pouch

And that rounds up the list for today, folks!

But, I do have a guest room/ nursery to decorate! I'm thinking green.

The Winner Announced

22 comments.

9 people said boy.

The Beholder. James Fullton!

I will be mailing James a dozen monster cookies. James, they'll be in the mail by the end of the week!

And now, the battle of the name game begins!

I Thought I Knew

First, the feet are perfect. I even have a picture!

From the beginning, I kept thinking boy.

As the days drew closer to the ultra sound, I changed my mind and decided girl. I even bought two shirts at the Gap outlet with the thought that if I'm wrong, they'll make a great gift. I started decorating her room/guest room. Floral, light pink, shabby chic. The girliest room in our house.

But, now it is back to the drawing board for me. A third boy!

We're so excited. My "dream" family has always been 3 boys and a girl, so maybe my dream will come true!

The Fourth

Planning just the right outfit to stay cool during the 4 or 5 hour wait until the show of all shows began but cute enough to get noticed by friends and strangers.

The sticky heat, kept at bay with strawberry smoothies and cold pop. Coolers stocked with fruit, water, soda, chips, cookies, anything your heart could desire and more.

A sea of blankets on the banks of the Cedar River, bumps of lawn chairs for the adults. Church friends waiting, reserving space.

Weaving in and out of the crowds only worrying about how to find our way back to the right blankets. Meeting new friends, reconnecting with old ones, the chaos of a city of 120,000 coming together to celebrate the freedom of our country.

The show begins. The music triumphs. Tears well up in pride and gratefulness. Ashes rain down on us from the blown up fireworks.

The journey home, satisfied and tired. Already looking forward to next year.

God Bless America.

************************************

My thoughts and prayers are with the people of Cedar Rapids, IA the city that I celebrated many Fourths. I can only imagine what the river banks look like today, no blankets spread out, no lawn chairs, no coolers, no seas of people, no food stands, no festivities.

Meet My New Friend *UPDATED!(update not exciting)

I call her Lizzie the Lizard. Clever, huh?

I watched Lizzie scamper across our deck while I ate breakfast. And then again while I ate lunch. And again while I sat and did my Bible study. This picture was taken while I was safely inside. That is the way I prefer to view lizards, behind glass.

I wish I had something profound to say about Lizzie and my Bible study, but I don't.

I just can't get over the fact that there was a lizard on my deck. I have also seen Lizzie scamper in front of me on the sidewalk while walking to my car. And I cannot get over the fact that there are lizards where I live. Lizards. Real, live lizards.

It helps that this one is tiny and almost cute. Almost. Not cute, almost cute. I don't think Lizzie will get cute if she happens to get bigger. Or have lizard babies.

I just won't think about that!



Sage spotted Lizzie and he is now window watching for Lizzie, he even got Kolby to look for her too, but I don't think Kolby had any idea what he was looking for! He also said he saw two!

What's in my belly?

July 7, a week from Monday, we will have our ultrasound. I am so excited to find out if we are having another brother like Sage and Daddy are pulling for or if we will experience a little girl.

I have no gut intuition. Nothing swaying me one way or the other. 3 boys would be fun. But a best friend for Baby Lulu would be great too!

But for the fun part, a contest. In the comments, tell me whether you think I'm having a boy or a girl and then on July 7, I will draw a name from the people who guessed correctly.

The prize? Undetermined, but it will be good!

And, the technician will also be looking for all the other important parts that should be pretty far along in development. Among those, the feet! I am a little anxious to find out if we will have another clubber or not. Since it is determined what causes it, genetics or womb positioning, some families have multiple children with club foot and some don't, so for me, it will be feet first, gender second.

The Modern Mom

Finds recipes online and instead of printing and possibly wasting paper, plugs in the laptop to consult recipe as she makes it and doesn't apologize about the messy kitchen:

Lets the kids lick the beaters: (notice the blue dining room behind them, kitchen is the same color)

Takes a picture of each child to post on the internet:


Turns the light on for entertainment for the 2 year old:

Shows you a picture of the final product:


I must confess, I did not find this recipe online by myself, I was directed to it by Holly. She is a mom with 4 girls under the age of 3!

And tastes them before posting this: Verdict Good! Very Good! I made 24 muffins and 24 mini muffins, I'll probably freeze some of these.

The time I lost Kolby

Her name is Lucia Louise and she shall be called, Lulu. Isn't that adorable?!
*******************************

Kolby loves his shoes. Last week, a strap broke and one night he couldn't wear them to bed. Drew explained that he wasn't going to wear them and Kolby cried and said "Peas, shs, ba." That is Kolby speak for "Please, shoes, bar." And that night, he woke up for no reason which is very unusual for him. Today, I was trying to be a lazy mom (so I could go take a nap) and not put his shoes on and he said "Peas shs."
*******************************

Today we went to our first playgroup through the Sunday School class at First Baptist that we went to on Sunday. It was held at a place called the Ruckus Room. Isn't that an appropriate name for boys of any age? It was three rooms with blow up bounce toys. I should have realized that something was amiss when I had to sign a waiver. It was quite fun except for one particular blow up thingie. It was pushed against a wall but when you walked on it, it would slide you off toward the wall, especially if someone larger was walking toward you. Unfortunately, for Kolby most of the kids were larger than him.

At one point, I had totally lost track of Kolby. I was searching and then heard his familiar cry. He was standing between the wall and the blow up thing, completely smashed and stuck. It wasn't too horrifying as he wanted to get back on.

Later, I knew right where he was, crawling through a tunnel on that same dreaded thingie. And then I heard the crying. And saw his little gray footed socks sticking out from the bottom. My heart leaped to my mouth as I ran toward him. Of course, it was no big deal to rescue him but I think that time it scared him more than the first. He didn't stop crying as soon as he was in my arms and didn't want to get back in. As I think back, I regret not talking to the man in charge about what happened, because it could have been a lot worse. But, I had already signed a waiver and I didn't want to be a complainer. And part of the problem is that a lot of moms just weren't watching their kids.

Remind me when my boys are 8 and 10 or 10 and 12 that they still need to be supervised? Thanks.

My Best Friends Baby!

My best friend had her baby yesterday and she waited nine long months to find out what she was carrying.

It's a girl!

The boys and I went shopping for her gift this morning. I would love to link to what I bought but I haven't mailed it yet. But oh my, it was hard to choose. Drew's right, if we have a girl, he is in trouble!

Girls need shoes and bows! And they have plenty of cute stuff out there. I mean pink crocs, pink Chuck Taylors the list goes on.

Go congratulate Karoline! Oh, and she's having trouble deciding on a name. Give her some suggestions! I'm kidding, kind of, she is having a hard time deciding, but I don't think she is open to suggestions!

And then tell me one little girl item that you would buy for sure.

A litt bit more about me

I was tagged for this by my friend Steph. I had a hard time completing this one, it took 2 days!

I am…wife, mother, sister, daughter, and friend.
I want…to know Jesus more deeply.
I wish…my children would sleep past 6:30am.
I hate strongly dislike…(we don’t use the word hate) mushrooms.
I miss…living somewhere I know how to get places, especially a park!
I fear… my husband dyeing.
I feel…overwhelmed in a new city and new house that needs every wall painted.
I hear…Sage playing cars and talking in his own language. Is this normal?
I smell…sweet water by Method.
I crave…time away from the house.
I search…the internet to waste time.
I wonder…if I will make great friends here, how long we will live here.
I regret…the moments I don’t appreciate my life.
I love…my boys, Drew, Sage, Kolby and the new baby, although I don’t know if it is a boy!
I care…for Sage and Kolby.
I ache…for good girlfriends in the same city as me.
I always...sneak food so I don’t have to share with my kids (like m&ms), it’s getting harder!
I am not…creative.
I believe…in Jesus Christ.
I dance…only when I am being silly.
I sing...songs of praise to my Lord.
I cry…easily lately.
I don’t always...like to make dinner or grocery shop.
I fight…not being in control.
I write…on my blog, in my prayer journal (not consistently), and in my head.
I never…say never!
I listen…to Christian music and the sounds of boys playing.
I need…chocolate and caffeine.
I am happy…in life.


I tag Mindy, Karoline and anyone else who wants to do it!

Whoops!

We were going to the pool and I like to apply the spray sunscreen right outside our front door. We all stepped out and I didn't shut the door all the way as it locks. But, Sage thought I meant to, so he did it. I sprayed the boys. And turned around to let them back in while I sprayed myself. Door was locked.

We haven't hidden a key yet. All patio doors were locked.

We were wearing swimsuits, no shoes, cell was in the house with my keys. Luckily, I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt over my swimsuit.

I knelt down and prayed. I said "Lord, we locked ourselves out of the house, please help us to think calmly and figure out a plan." As I was praying Sage was hhmming.

We have met our neighbors, Tricia and Butch but I was pretty sure they both were at work. I rang the door hopefully and heard the dogs barking. I was about to give up and think of a different plan when I hear "Who is it?"

She graciously lets us in, let me call long distance to Drew's cell (we really need to get local numbers) while she shows the boys her goldfish. It was 10:15. Drew said he could drive home on his lunch break while we were at the pool.

It went really smoothly walking to the pool without shoes and just swimming while we waited for dad to be our hero and unlock our house. And we didn't even have a towel!

I was nervous to not have Sage's ring floatie as he likes to "swim" but he did great staying in the shallow end. Kolby is getting so much braver but his balance isn't always the best walking around the shallow end. He only head dove once and didn't cry when I scooped him up.

When we got home, we talked about how God answered our prayer and took care of us. And quickly dried off on our towels which were sitting on the bench, right by the front door.

Pretty soon this problem will be solved because I ordered sunscreen without chemicals, also known as sunscreen that must be rubbed in therefor not making me step out of the house. Or I could spray them on the patio where I stand no chance of locking myself out from the sliding door.

Silence

My mom always told me that if I didn't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. I also apply it to complaining. If you can only complain about something, don't say anything at all.

But, in my head as I think through my list of complaints, they are often silly. Likewise, the things that I am grateful for right now seem silly too, but here they are:

1. Ice maker with in door dispenser, water too!
2. Air conditioning
3. New insulated straw cup from Starbucks (purchased with my birthday gift card, thanks mom!)
4. There are no boxes waiting to be put away in the living room
5. Sky lights
6. New bed with heavenly sheets
7. Kolby napping
8. M&Ms
9. 2 hours and some minutes until Drew is home!
10. Starting a new Bible Study online through Beth Moore's blog!
11. Unpacking 6 more boxes today!
12. Counting down the days until I get our new van and not being stuck at home! 2!
13. And Nana and Matthew visiting!
14. And bringing the boys bunkbeds!

Wow, I started to almost smile there at the end!

It's better for me to think and write down what I am thankful for than what I want to complain about and I hope it makes your day better too!

Amidst the Painting

We went to the zoo! It's right in the middle of the city which was so weird to us. I kind of feel like we are living in a zoo with this new climate. I have seen several lizards scamper in front of me!

Apparently, we didn't take many pictures, but we bought a family membership, so we will be going back!











I was a bad mommy and didn't pack snacks or enough water for myself so we didn't stay long, but it was long enough to wear us out! I'll get better at this zoo thing. And we did get a yummy meal of Chick Fil A! I don't want to admit how many times we have eaten there in the two weeks we have lived here. It is so yummy, the play lands are clean, and Sage and Kolby actually eat the chicken! Sage has totally bought into the advertising and tells us to "Eat more chiken!" He also tells me, "I do not want the fries, I want the fruit!" But he does appreciate trading in the toy for an ice-cream cone!

As for the painting update: the living room, dining and kitchen are done, pictures will be displayed after I clear out the few remaining boxes and clear off the bar shelf. And maybe actually purchase the bar stools we want. The boys room has been painted, it needs one more coat of trim paint around the top and the trim needs painted white. I found comforters for the boys that match the paint that we bought too bright for the living room so we didn't waste 3 gallons of paint, only 1. And, I really like them, I am seeing a fun room for them. Their bunkbeds will arrive next week along with our new minivan! Drew's parents gifted him their minivan as his graduation gift. We are so blessed. Drew pointed out that it was more a gift for me and I reminded him that we would have had to buy one anyway! Now, when I drive the Saturn, I have visions of a minivan in my head and I can't wait! I am excited that the boys will have air conditioning reaching them right away, not waiting for the cold air to blow back from the front. Sage likes to remind us that he is sweaty, a lot!

Tonight, we are going to dinner at our neighbors house. We haven't actually met face to face but were connected through blog land! Crazy internet!

Starting A New Life

Have you ever thought when you move, no one knows me, no one knows what I am like, I can be a totally different person? I've thought about that with the way I dress, I can recreate myself and no one would know, they would think that is how I have always been. I have always wanted to be more of a funky dresser or unique, but am really quite plain. Solid colored shirts with denim or a type of khaki pants or shorts dominate my wardrobe. Not that it is bad, just plain. I see shirts with patterns that I think are cute, but the problem is, they cost money and my plain shirts never seem to go out of style. So, I think I am going to look for some fun earrings on Etsy to go with my plain shirts.

This isn't what I intended to write about.

We visited a church this morning. Houston's First Baptist Church. I was so overwhelmed walking in, finding the welcome center so they could show me where to drop off my children. I can't describe how huge the church is, just huge, two floors, we probably walked a quarter mile to drop our kids off and I don't think I am exaggerating. I kept thinking what if Kolby has an asthma attach and I get paged and I can't find his room again? (He rarely has asthma attacks and they usually come when he has a cold also, which he doesn't, but come one, I needed to worry about something and then I wondered what would happen if there was a fire, how would I find my kids, would the workers really get them out? Irrational, I know, hey, I'm pregnant). We made it into the service (we were late and arrived 25 minutes before it started, how did that happen unless we walked a quarter of a mile to drop our kids off) and I wanted to burst into tears. I don't know why. I was overwhelmed with the number of people that were in one building to learn about God and how it seemed like the same number of people who live in all of Connecticut, not really, but it felt like it. Overwhelmed that in this huge crowd of people, I only know the 3 that I came with. Overwhelmed with the realization that we are starting over. Starting from scratch to meet people. People who already live here. People who already have friends. Do they have room for one more?

It was a great service. The music was upbeat, praise songs. The message was great. I learned something and walked away with something. The pastor wants us to memorize a verse, Exodus 14:14 "The Lord will fight for you. You need only to be still." (I totally had to look, guess I will keep working on that!) The message may have been written to me. He talked about the Isrealites and how their faith was weak and forgetful. Like mine. On Sundays, I am bold, ready to tell people about Jesus and his love for them. Mondays, I am terrified to mention his name, afraid of offending people. I need to remember that my God is strong and faithful not weak and forgetful. It is my faith that is weak and forgetful not my God. He also talked about how we live in a negative, complaint filled society. The weather is forecasted from the Severe Weather Center, and they told him the high would be 94, the low 75 and it will be partly cloudy today. Catch the negativism? Severe. Partly cloudy. It could be just the weather center or partly sunny. Kind of like my house right now, do I see it as half painted and partly messy or half done painted and lots of boxes put away? I am being the most honest when I say, I see a mess and a lot more work, but we have gotten a lot done and put away.

I took notes and was able to follow along easily. I loved it, I paid attention the whole time and didn't have time to fill our my visitor card. It would be so easy to go back and settle in, but we know that we need to visit more churches to we can find a church family and not just a church.

It will remain high on the list.

We took today off from doing work around the house, Sage was quite excited that mom and dad weren't painting today. I think we are going through an adjustment period with him. We are busy, boxes are open but untouchable for them, everything is different. He is crying really easily, throwing fits, which is not normal for him. We are going to take today to hang out with the kiddos and we have promised a zoo trip this week.

We're alive!

We made it on Sunday around 3pm and just today got internet access today. It was supposed to be all set up to be installed on Tuesday but, the best laid plans...get changed!

Our trip was uneventful and relatively easy, we even discussed that driving to see family wouldn't be too difficult.

Our truck was a day late, it came Wednesday. It is so nice to have our stuff, sitting in boxes around us! Just kidding. I have got a good bit put away but we are trying to paint at the same time, so it makes for a lot of clutter and mess. And you know what painting leads to? Painting the trim and replacing light switches which require multiple trips to Home Depot or Lowes. And painting leads to buying the wrong color, painting 1/4 of the wall and going back to Sherwin Williams to buy a different color. I can't even admit to you how much money we have wasted on paint. We are going to salvage about one gallon of paint for the boys room and bathroom but that doesn't really help the 5 gallons that we purchased.

Live and learn. That is our motto.

Painting also leads to a desire of replacing the towel bar, toilet paper bar and faucet. And after checking some prices at Lowes, those will have to wait. We will live with our shiny silver and gold faucets. Not our style, but they will work.

We will also live with our bathroom mirrors as ornamented as they are. We are more simple and modern type people, but we will live with it and maybe replace things slowly. We'll see.

Life is slightly crazy but we love, love, love our new home. It feels absolutely huge! We added a bedroom and a bathroom and a half and many closets and cupboards. And, I have been doing laundry whenever I desire and leaving it in the dryer or washer and I am the only one who can move it.

Sage doesn't like to go upstairs by himself. If someone sits at the bottom of the stairs (which aren't seen at the top) he is okay, if Kolby goes with him (finally, his little brother is good for something), he is fine, but don't ask him to go himself. But, if we are all upstairs and go downstairs, he is fine.

Life is good. We're still adjusting, unpacking, organizing and settling, but life is good.

I wonder how long it will take to not say, "we just moved here."

Uneventful

Today we drove through:

North Carolina
South Carolina
Georgia
Alabama

Today we ate:
Gas station snacks $11
Chick-fil-A $16 (It was in a mall, but good ole Gregory (the GPS) found it!)
Olive Garden $50
2 bottles of water $2

The boys watched:
Monsters Inc.
Facing the Giants
Boz
Blues Clues

We left at 7:45 and got to Olive Garden at 5:00. 600 miles.

The boys did awesome. I can't complain one bit. We considered continuing all the way but decided setting up air mattresses at 1 in the morning was not ideal.

We have been in that car driving for 20 hours in the last 3 days, I have driven one.

What an awesome husband I have! He puts up with my sobbing through my book, Ever After by Karen Kingsbury.

The boys are in bed and since we are sharing a hotel room, that means I need to be also!

Hotel Crisis

We promised Sage that if his pull up was dry all day yesterday we could go swimming.

At 4, I decided we should call and make sure our hotel has a pool.

"No, but we have a fitness center."

We texted google and found a new hotel.

For $30 extra dollars.

A promise kept.

Today we made our way to my brothers house. Check out his new blog!

We are going to up our driving schedule so that we can arrive on Sunday night rather than Monday night. Tomorrow we are scheduled to drive 600 miles. We'll see how it goes!

A New Beginning

The truck is packed.

It's "on its way".

We are still in Connecticut.

Our last night, not in our apartment, in a hotel.

Tomorrow, we drive away.

Away from the only place Kolby has known, away from our life for the last three years, away from the familiar.

Our new adventure begins, come along for the ride!

Drew Graduates From Yale

The Dean of Architecture asking the President of Yale to grant the degree of Master of Architecture.


The Dean of SOM asking the President of Yale to grant the degree of Master of Business Administration.


Drew's class from SOM graduating.


Sir Paul McCartney receiving Doctorate of Music.


Cesar Pelli (whom Drew worked in his office) receiving his doctorate of Fine Arts.


Sage drinking water.


Sage and mommy waiting for the diploma ceremony to start.


Sage napping on Nana during the diploma ceremony.


Kolby napping on mommy.


Sage being held by Drew in line for the diploma.


Drew and Sage walking across the stage towards diploma. Kolby was sleeping so he didn't get to walk across with Drew.


Drew receiving his diploma from the SOM Dean.


The Family

The day was long but short. The boys didn't go to the morning ceremony on Old Campus, the 307th graduation of Yale. Our good friends, James and Kim graciously watched them and shuttled me and them around. They went to the diploma ceremony at the School of Management and were invited to walk across the stage with Drew. Sage napped perfectly right before and Kolby conked out right as they started handing out the diplomas, so he stayed with me. I must say, they both behaved wonderfully and made a too long ceremony sitting in the sun enjoyable.

I am so proud of Drew. I don't think I realized how much work and effort it was going to be for him to complete graduate school. In a way, I felt like our whole family should have walked across the stage with him. Drew did a tremendous job of balancing school and family. He went to school in the early morning and was home almost every evening for a family dinner and bedtime. Words can't adequately describe the amount of pride that I have for Drew.

We made it!

I should be packing but this is more fun

This lovely picture is me and Drew in his dorm room at Iowa State. There is something in particular that I want you to notice. Drew's eyebrows.

Here's the story. The summer before this picture was taken, he worked at Mt. Carmel Bible Camp in Alexandria, MN. He used Sun-In. He claims that Sun-In misted down from his hair to his eyebrows. On one occasion, he said that maybe some Sun-In got on a q-tip and onto his eyebrows.

He still gets teased. Mainly by me when we find old pictures. I think his eyebrows stayed this white for the next 3 years.

The Beginning of the End

We have had a few lasts here already. Some of them on purpose, some of them unknowingly. Yesterday, we went to NYC via the train for the last time. We played in Central Park, saw Thumbelina, the worlds smallest horse, ate lunch with some friends who moved from Iowa, and picked up my mothers day gif. It was a great exhausting day.

A week or so ago, we went to the library story time for the last time without realizing it. It was sad as I looked back and didn't even get to tell Miss Mary, thank you for making story time so fun for my boys, we won't be coming back. I thought we would go the next week but circumstances kept us from going.

This morning, we went to our church for the last time. We are excited to find a new church in Houston.

I don't know when Sage played with his Little Tykes firetruck for the last time. We had to sell it. Moving into a town home without a garage and without a yard of our own, we have to get rid of quite a few outdoor toys. Drew had to deliver it Friday night as I put the boys to bed. Sage was so sad. I was so sad for him. We were both crying. He kept telling Drew "You don't have to deliver it!" Sage wasn't asleep when Drew got home and he started telling him again not to deliver it. Drew replied with "I think it is time to get you a bike!" We haven't heard another word of being sad about the firetruck. And no, we have no idea where we will keep the bike, but we will figure it out later.

I think some of the things will be easier if we don't realize they are our last time. We have a park a couple blocks away, the park where both boys learned how to slide, to swing and both love that park still. I don't want to know when the last time we go there will be.

On Saturday, Drew's parents arrive for his graduation, after that, nothing will be the same. We are giving them our room and taking an air mattress in the boys room, his brother will sleep on the couch (if we still have it). Friday night will be the last time we sleep as a family in our little apartment, like we are supposed to be.

I am excited for the new adventure that awaits us, but I am a little sad to be moving too. I haven't written too much here about what a surprise moving to Houston is. I knew we were open to moving anywhere but assumed we were moving to Minneapolis. Close to family. But, we are moving the same distance away, but in the opposite direction. And as we have gotten ready to move, I have realized how much I have liked living in New Haven. It took me awhile, but I like it, I do.

We sang "I Surrender All" for our closing hymn this morning. And I was thinking, I haven't surrendered all. I have held on to many things. My kids, my husband. I don't surrender them. I want to hold them tight and keep them with me always. I haven't surrendered this move. I want to do it myself.

All to Jesus, I surrender;
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.

Refrain

I surrender all, I surrender all,
All to Thee, my blessèd Savior,
I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Humbly at His feet I bow,
Worldly pleasures all forsaken;
Take me, Jesus, take me now.

Refrain

All to Jesus, I surrender;
Make me, Savior, wholly Thine;
Let me feel the Holy Spirit,
Truly know that Thou art mine.

Refrain

All to Jesus, I surrender;
Lord, I give myself to Thee;
Fill me with Thy love and power;
Let Thy blessing fall on me.

Refrain

All to Jesus I surrender;
Now I feel the sacred flame.
O the joy of full salvation!
Glory, glory, to His Name!

So, this week, I am going to work on surrendering. All. Because I want to. Because I know life will be easier if I do.

Random and Slightly Boring

I went to the grocery store hungry this morning. I just needed a few things, here was my list:

dishwasher detergent (the main reason for going)
hamburger buns
snacks (for the boys)
sour cream

I know, it is a totally random list. But, it all made sense in my head. I came home with all those items, plus some. Like:

oreo cakesters
chocolate chip cookie dough
ice cream sandwiches
cherry coke

As I write this I am eating an oreo cakester and they were a lot better when I tasted them at Sam's a month or so ago. Bummer.

I did also get some vegetables so I can fix the most perfect bagel sandwich ever. Veggie cream cheese, tomato, cucumber, lettuce and green pepper. I usually get whole wheat but I was in a hurry and grabbed plain, not quite as good, but they will do.

Here is the list of things that I am procrastinating doing while I read blogs and write this:

pack bathroom
pack clothes
make list of things to take in car to stay at house with nothing
pack dining room closet
pack boys closet
pack boys clothes
pack desk

And now, I have made myself feel guilty so I am going to go sort out and pack the bathroom stuff. Right after I...

Add a Week!

This morning I had my last OB visit here. I can't say I am sad. When I was pregnant with Kolby, it was common to wait an hour or two to be seen and I always had Sage with me.

From the ultrasound last week, they moved my due date up a week so now I am 13 weeks! That means, that I am officially, by some books, through my first trimester!

I gained a week of pregnancy and 1.5 lbs. The heartrate was 148, if that means anything to you.

But, now I passed my goal of not wearing maternity clothes until after 12 weeks!

Yesterday

Yesterday was my birthday. 29.

Drew temporarily forgot. Sage reminded him. It sounds worse than it was. I had bought my own present about a month ago so he didn't really have any prep work. And the day before, he was taking his last final from 7 pm - 11 pm and studied all day.

And we were still laying in bed when Sage reminded him. So, to give him the benefit of doubt, I am sure he would have remembered before the day was over, probably pretty quickly after getting out of bed.

The most exciting part of the day was getting an ultrasound. I am 11 weeks along. We even got a 3D ultra sound, a perk of going to a research hospital!




We ended the day with a family dinner to Friendly's and then to the Awana Awards Ceremony where unknowingly to me, I had to hand out the Cubbies awards. I got promoted from helper to teacher in January when the teacher had to take a job and couldn't make it to Cubbies anymore. I was not sad to see Cubbies come to a close. Some nights, I thought, I should have been a preschool teacher but most nights I was thinking how much longer until their parents come?

Looking Forward

Saturday, Drew's first free Saturday, was great.

I slept in! Until 8:30!

I showered, with the door closed!

I went grocery shopping, by myself!

Drew grilled pork chops.

It was a great day.

I look forward to many more Saturdays like that. But, I wonder when they will come. Soon, we need to start packing. And then it will be unpacking and painting. We were talking about what we want to get done realistically in the two weeks that we will have before he starts work in our new house. I said, paint the boys room, our room, living, dining and kitchen. My first priority will be the boys room because I read that will help them adjust better. Then I can slowly unpack, organize and get us settled. While working on organizing the living room/ play room so it doesn't look like a play room. Because right now, our living room is over taken by toys. And it bothers us. There isn't enough toy storage so some of it just sits on the floor and it never really seems "picked up". I know, it is just a time of life.

I am concerned that I don't realize how much work the next month or two is going to be, how stressful it will be on our family to move.

Last time we moved, Sage was just 10 months old and it took me 5 days to unpack the kitchen!

How do we paint major rooms (living, dining and kitchen) in our house with children under foot? These three rooms are all kind of connected. It will be an experience!

We are so excited. Any ideas on paint colors for me? We are going to get a khaki couch. So, no khaki walls, maybe a light chocolate brown?