Highlights of Snow and Christmas

It's Snowing!



"And the Angel said to them..."



Saying verse on Christmas morning





Enjoying a Christmas Cookie

Reaching Out

I went over to our neighbor girl's house on Monday and met their dad. I invited the girls over and their parents too, especially since they don't know us. I was glad to meet their dad, but i don't know if they will come, but I am going to plan as if they will. I was a little nervous but I know the Lord was leading me to invite them over. The girls seemed excited about it, so we will see:)

Miscellaneous

I am feeling a bit better today. I had a cold last week that just had me run down. I am on the tail end of it now. I have spent the morning cleaning, and there is always still more to do! But I'm taking a little break to rest a bit.

My boys are at such a wonderful age. They are great playmates and friends. I am really enjoying how they can play together, especially with their imaginations coming alive! Their latest interest is firefighters and engines. Of course I've checked out books on the subject from the library and we've watched some educational videos on it as well. So that has been their latest game. They carry our belts around as "fire hoses" and Elijah is always trying to climb things, "ladders" he says. They love imitating dad too and really like hammering things with their wooden toy hammers. Ryan built them just a small little work table that they can hammer on. We still have a pumpkin leftover from October that the boys like sit on by the work table. It's cute:)

I'm excited for Christmas, and I have been since the beginning of October. However, now that we are in the month of December, I'm feeling less motivated to get done all the things I'd like to. So instead of making a to do list, I have made a list entitled, "things I hope to do." One idea that I really hope happens is reaching out to some neighbor girls that live around the corner. We used to see them alot when the weather was warmer and we went for walks more often. They are 7,9, and 11, and so sweet. I'm hoping to invite them over to decorate cookies and do a craft and read the Christmas story. Anyways, I am going to go over to their house this afternoon hopefully and talk to their parents. We will see. We've really been challenged lately to reach out to our neighbors. Why is that so difficult? Anyways, I need to get going now. I hear a boy crying...
Merry Christmas!

Here are just a few photos of fun with boxes:) oh and my little drummer boy. Elijah has drumming in his blood. He drums on everything.
Special Delivery!

He usually just uses his hands, but occasionally he gets the tinker sticks out and drums with them too.
Playtime with Dad!!!

Get 75 Prints Free

I don't know how long this special is going on, but if you like ordering prints online check out this link. For new customers at Kodak, you will receive 75 prints for free. You just have to pay shipping, which is like $4 something. We just ordered our Christmas pictures there, plus a bunch extra of family photos, what a deal!

There are Days...

There are days when I feel so overwhelmed as a mom. I always feel like there is more I should be doing, and that I need to be doing more for my boys. And then I just shake my head in wonder at times when I think of having a 3rd! How can I do this? Well, of course I can't, I need the Lord! I am so thankful that I am God's child, I don't know how I would live this life on my own. Some people say that Christianity is a crutch and they don't need God. Well I for one am not ashamed to say that I need God, I need his grace and his forgiveness everyday. I am thankful for Jesus and that he paid the price for my sin. My never ending prayer is that my boys would see the Lord for who he really is despite how often I sin. If there is anything that I do well as a mom, I hope that that I would always be quick to repent to my children when I sin against them. And my hope is in God all the more that it is he that saves and brings salvation. We can do our best as parents but it is God ultimately that does the work in our children's hearts. I believe that we have responsibilities to raise our children up in the fear and admonition of the Lord(Eph. 6:4), but when I see how much of a sinner I am, I am just thankful to God that it is he that saves. So, I will just persevere in prayer and wait expectantly for the day of their salvation.

It's funny...I just realized that I started off this post feeling overwhelmed at the weight of raising my boys and feeling inadaquate, and now I feel like my eyes are back on the Lord. He gives strength to the weary and give us no more than what we can handle. And when it seems overwhelming he makes me see how much I need him still and that it is he that does the work. So, I might cry out for help multiple times throughout the day, but it's okay because I am looking to the Lord for help and guidance. He is always faithful and will give me strength and see me through. And this time when my boys are 2 and 3 will pass so quickly and before I know it they will be older, and I'll be old...............
well, I need to go and enjoy them right now!

Maybe there is still Hope

I had my first visit at the midwifery clinic at the hospital we're going to attend. I was encouraged because she told me that it's not their hospital policy to do a c-section after 2, and they have had other successful vbacs after two. So, it's not a closed case, this was just this dr.'s recommendation for me. So, the midwife i met with today said she will arrange to have the Dr. meet with me at my next appointment next month and we can talk about it again. I don't know that he will agree to letting me try for a vbac, but the midwife was at least more positive than negative about it. We will see. I am a bit frustrated for not meeting face to face with this doctor a month ago when I first had the opportunity. They told me not to come in though because I was undecided about where I was going to recieve care, ugh. I should have insisted on coming in anyways...oh well. we can't change the past...

So, on my home today I stopped at Taco Bell. I never get the boys and I fast food on my own. It's usually a family thing we do on weekends or trips, and then we try to stay away from there and eat Baja Fresh. But anyways, after much debate I just decided to go and get a couple of tacos for Moses and me. I promised him a treat because he was so good at the dr. office and when I asked him what he would like for a treat, he said, "tacos!" So there we were in the parking lot eating when my dear friend who I have not seen in like 3 years pulled up. It was so cool! God definitaly arranged that. It was great to see her, and hopefully we'll be able to get together one day, either this year or next!

Our Decision

A c-section is not any safer than a VBAC, nor is it less risky. The risk of rupturing is less than 1%, but, in our situation it has come that walking down the road towards a c-section is what we have the most peace about. And that's what is the most important. Not what is the safest or less risky but what is God giving us peace about. I can't even believe I'm writing this, but this is what I've realized this week.

I really was wanting a home birth, but the biggest matter was that my husband and I would be united about whatever decision we would make. And that we would have peace as well as unity. For the past two weeks I have ceased searching everyday like I had been for a Dr. and have just been fervently praying for God to speak to both Ryan and I and especially Ryan, that God would give him peace about what we should do. I really needed God to make it clear to Ryan, because I couldn't say that I could hear clearly from God, because my desire was/is so great to have a natural birth, even if it meant at home, that if it were up to me alone I would chose home birth. But, I knew that if it was the Lord's will he would give Ryan peace about it. I was hoping so badly that the answer would be home birth. But, we have finally decided to pursue the c-section, because of the lack of peace about having a home birth (and i hadn't found a dr. who would let me do a trial of labor). Since I have been praying so hard, and I knew that others have been praying as well, I really feel like God not giving him peace is the answer. The greatest piece of advice that I have recieved during this whole process has been to listen to my husband. I honestly can't say I could hear God telling me exactly what we should do, my desire for a natural birth is so strong there is no way I'd choose a c-section on my own. But because of all the prayer, and my husband still not feeling peace about home birth, I am willing to lay that down and follow my husband and agree that we should do a c-section. This is very hard for me, and I've cried so much over this...but I am learning to trust the Lord more and trust my husband. I believe something could still happen, but we will see. It's hard to think that I might never have a natural birth. It makes me feel defeated...it's hard to describe. I know that I need to be grateful for what I do have...that I can even have children at all...anyways, the Lord is good and soveriegn and things are as he sees them fit to be...I'm continuing to learn to trust and have faith ( I hope this post makes sense for the most part, it's late and I need to get to sleep!) Thank you so much to those who have been praying and encouraging me and who've offered bits of help. Thanks.

Response to "My Brain"

Well, at least when you're pregnant you have an excuse for weird things that you do, or don't do. When you're not pregnant...I don't know. I do stuff like that too when I'm not pregnant, I've just never forgotten a stamp or put a tomato in the cupboard, so I lean on the fact that I'm pregnant. :)

My Brain

I have a couple of funny stories to tell and I think the credit is due to the fact that I'm pregnant. Okay, I was making a salad one night last week. A simple salad of lettuce, tomato and a carrot. I got through the whole salad and was about to add the tomato when I realized I couldn't find it. I knew I took it out of the fridge and washed it. Where did it go? I was slightly in a hurry, I was trying to finish this task before Ryan got home from work. I had two hungry youngsters in the background, as well as dinner on the stove that I was attending. Where was that tomato! I looked all over the kitchen twice, even back in the fridge, moving things, looking under things...I just couldn't find it, and I was feeling frazzled. I know I had it just a minute ago! Okay, so finally I prayed, we're to pray about everything yes, so I asked the Lord to help me find my tomato. Well I decided do something else instead and hope the tomato would show itself, and I opened the cupboard that I keep our plates and bowls in and there sat my tomato in line with the bowls! I burst out laughing, for certain I had placed it there but had no memory of doing so. I must be pregnant, yes, why else would I place a tomato in the cupboard!
Story #2 happened today. Ryan asked me to mail a bill for him today. Well, not wanting to forget I did it right away and made the trip out the mail box with the boys. Later tonight when we were all sitting on the couch together I asked Ryan if he got the mail when he came home. He had a funny look on his face and then like all of a sudden remembered something he said, oh yeah, something for you, it's in my lunch box. So I went to find his lunch box curious what I had received in the mail, and behold, it was the bill I'd sent, or thought I'd sent earlier! What is this? oh, I burst out laughing again. I had forgotten to put a stamp on the envelope! Never in all my mail sending years have I ever done that! I got a good laugh and so did my husband!

Learning to Trust and Not Worry

We still don't know what the Lord has for us as far as this next birth goes, but today I really felt overwhelmed with his peace. I know the Lord has his reasons for taking us through this process of decision making, and one thing I'm learning is to trust the Lord and trust my husband. I know that the Lord will answer our prayers, in one way or another, and he will bring his will about. I feel so exhausted with searching for a Dr. though, that I'm taking a break. God will show us what to do, and it's going to happen even if I'm not searching everyday. We had an encouraging time at church yesterday, just with conversations with different people about this and being prayed for. It was a blessing.

As far as birthing centers here: by law they are not allowed to do a vbac after 2 or more c-sections. They do vbacs but it has to be at your house. I feel like we're at a fork in the road and our options are c-section or home birth. We're still considering a home birth, perhaps not at our home, but maybe at another home closer to the hospital. The biggest thing is that God would bring us peace no matter what we decide. We know of a couple of really godly midwives, so that is a blessing. I feel so hopeful that our next birth could go well, but there is always the unknown that makes one a little nervous. We are praying for the Lord's peace ultimately for what we should do, uless we do find a dr. that will support a vbac2 at a hospital. It will have been 2 1/2 years since my last c-section and the rate for rupturing is less than 1 %. I'm hopeful...we will see...thanks for your prayers.

Another Dead End

I had another consultation with a dr. today. I was misinformed over the phone when the lady I talked to told me that they would do a vbac2. But when I went there she told me hospital policy, 2 c-sections and no previous vaginal birth, automatic c-section. The search for a vbac after 2 cesareans at a hospital has been very difficult. I have had no success yet. Ultimately we're praying for the Lord to speak to us about his will for us. Please pray that God would show us his will and give us peace. It has been quite emotional and discouraging.

Surprise!

It's a Boy | It's a Girl | I'm Expecting Graphics

We just found out today that we are having another boy! I just wanted to share the news:) We are very excited, though so surprised! I had the strongest feeling I've ever had about my baby's gender and I was convinced it was a girl. This pregnancy has even been a little differnt too. Well, the Lord knows best! We are thinking boy names now. I can't believe I'm going to have 3 boys! I always wanted boys since I grew up with so many sisters; I thought having boys would be fun and it is fun and loaded with energy! I hope that I get a girl someday. Funny story: So, since we thought we were having a girl, we talked about it being a baby sister a bit with the boys. Well, when we saw we were having a boy, we told the boys and Moses said, "No, I want a girl! I want a baby sister." Ah so sweet. He will love his little brother just as much I'm sure, it will just take awhile for the mental adjustment to set in. I am meeting with a dr. on Thursday that I am hoping will be the answer to our hunt for a vbac2. We will see how that goes. It's been such a discouraging search, but this prospect on Thursday looks hopeful. Oh yeah, the ultrasound showed the baby to be farther along then I thought. So the expected due date is March 18th. And I'm 20 weeks.

Fall Fun

It was a cold but beautiful day. We took our boys to a grand pumpkin patch and spent the day as a family.

Elijah trying to pull the pumpkin wagon.

My boys

Me and my little boys

Playing on the hay

Moses running

Atop the hay pyramid

So cute

Another cute one

Homemade Butter

I just made butter this morning. It takes about 15 minutes or so on a high speed in your mixer. I can't imagine how long it must have taken in the old days in a butter churn. I can see why butter must have been such a delicacy, it took so long to make. I had been wanting to make butter, just for fun to see how it would turn out, and was finally inspired to do so when I found this recipe.


I used 1 pint heavy whipping cream ultra pasteurized and I think it made about 1 cup butter and 1 cup buttermilk. It was fun:)

Teach them to Pray

We finally got a couch!  It's been such a blessing.  We have had one small recliner and a wooden rocking chair in our living room, and that's been great, but there is just something about a couch. With my growing tummy, the boys and I were beginning to get squished on our recliner during story time.  So, when we would sit for our morning bible reading, I would be reminded of how much I wanted a couch.  Well, i would talk to the boys about it and tell them how we needed to pray and ask God for a couch.  I don't know how long we've been praying, inconsistently since we moved back, but more regularly for the last month or so.  As far as prayer is concerned we've been trying our best to model how important it is to seek the Lord in everything and for all our needs.  It's been a blessing to see the fruit of that.  Well, Elijah is my 2 year old and the Lord did provide a couch for us.  A decently priced nice used couch which the owner graciously delivered to our house late one evening after the boys had already gone to sleep.   In the morning Elijah woke up and after greeting us in our room, he went to the living room and was so surprised to see the couch, he yelled(and this we heard lying in our bed still), "A couch!!  Elijah prayed!"  It was so sweet to hear him recognize that God answered his prayer.  He can running back into our room so excited,"Elijah prayed!  A couch!"  It's been such a blessing watching the Lord work in our boys hearts concerning prayer. 

Midwife visit

I still have not been to the doctor yet. I am supposed to have a consultation next week at a hospital here to discuss having a VBAC. We will go from there when we find out what they say. Well, I've been feeling so tired still, and in a different way from my other pregnancies. Like usually when I need to eat I get this intense feeling and I just have to eat and then I'm fine. But lately I've been feeling unwell when I need to eat, and at different times. Like light headed or something, and feeling like I need to lay down and that's all I can do. Anyways, I've been in touch with a midwife that my friend goes to and so today I went with her to her appointment. (There are two of them she sees and they are so nice. One or both might attend me as a doula if that works out for them in their schedule come due date time. They are strong believers and so sweet and sensitive to the Lord, it's been a blessing talking with them and then meeting them today). So, I saw them today and they were going to check my iron but their little machine thing broke right before we got there. But there are other signs that indicate low iron and they were confidant enough that I needed to take a suppletment. So I'm taking liquid iron and chrolophly. I hope it helps.

I also got to hear our baby's heartbeat today for the first time. There is something about hearing that sound when you can't see or feel the baby yet. I am just starting to feel a tiny bit of movement, but it's ever so subtle. So, it was neat to hear the heartbeat today.

Update on Scarlet

Here is an update on Scarlet:

The surgery went well and she is recovering in the Hospital. Her hCG levels are coming down fast and that she is now at levels of approx. 100,000 versus the 1.15 million just before the surgery. The hCG levels need to be at 0, but this reduction to 100,000 is a huge praise. Scarlett just had her Chemo treatment and they are watching to see how she responds to it. Please continue to pray that God's mercy would continue to be poured out on Scarlett in that He would remove every single Cancer cell in her body. Please pray for Scarlett's health during the Chemo treatments that she does not get other illnesses, such as colds, infections, etc... as her immune system will be weak from the chemo-therapy and can cause other issues.

Thanks for praying!

Please Pray

I am passing on a prayer request from a family that goes to our church. Please pray for scarlet who has cancer. Here is an excerpt from an email we received last night:

"Her HCG levels were at 190,000, the hope was that after the surgery it should have dropped down drastically moving towards zero, well instead of going down, the HCG levels have almost quadrupled to 795,000 and there is a big mass again growing in her uterus."

Today they are going to have hysterectomy surgery and start a single dose chemo, which is supposed to have a high success rate. This sweet family has 7 or 8 children under the age of 12, I do believe. Please pray for strength and healing and ultimately for the Lord's will to be done. Pray for peace for the whole family. Though such a trying time for this family I am encouraged by their faith. Here is the ending to the email written by the husband:

"We are trusting in God, we know that He is a good God, He is Sovereign and controls every single cancer cell in Scarlett's body. He has known about Scarlett getting Cancer before the creation of the world, that being said, our hope is in Him, we love Him and know He has a purpose in this. May we glorify God in the good time and the extremely difficult times. We've had a lot of mixed emotions in the last week and a half...with the loss of the Baby we thought we were going to have, then emergency surgery, now cancer, then the fact that Scarlett will not be able to bare any more children next week from the hysterectomy surgery. After much prayer, we have decided to have Scarlett have the hysterectomy and to start the single dose chemo tomorrow. This is an extremely hard and painful decision for us both. Through all of this though God has kept our minds and hearts focused on Him,... praise be to Him! We appreciate your prayers."

Thank you for praying

Chicken Curry

I tried a new recipe tonight of chicken curry with apples. I found the recipes at Linday's blog
It was really good and not too hard to make as it was my first time making curry. We ate ours over brown rice, served with salad and bread.

Chicken Curry

Makes 6-8 servings

This recipe extends for several meals at our home! It is very freezable as well! Serve a smaller portion, balanced with vegis and rice and/or naan and it will stretch quite a bit!

2-4 Chicken thighs, cut into chunks (depending on how much meat you would like!)
2 Tbsp whole wheat flour
1 Tbsp curry powder
4 Tbsp ginger, fresh and finely chopped
4-6 garlic cloves, fresh and finely chopped (start with four and add more as needed)
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 green apple, chopped
3 Tbsp curry powder
6 or more Tbsp whole wheat flour
1 Tbsp sea salt (lower this amount to 1-2 tsp if you are using canned chicken broth)
1 Tbsp rapadura or other natural sweetener
2 1/2 cups (or approx. 1 1/2 -15 oz cans) chicken broth
2 1/2 cans (14 oz) coconut milk

Combine chicken, 2 Tbsp of flour & 1 Tbsp of curry powder in a Ziploc or bowl to coat. Fry lightly in oil (preferably coconut oil) in a frying pan for just a few minutes until cooked. Set aside.

Combine fresh garlic, ginger, onion, apple, curry powder, flour, sweetener and salt in frying pan. Allow to fry under medium heat to mold the ingredients together (around 10 minutes), until onions are transparent, heated completely through. Add liquids - chicken broth & coconut milk, and stir frequently until heated through and thickened. Add more flour to thicken as needed. Add breaded chicken.

*note: I cut the recipe in half. I still used the same amount of chicken, but I did half of everything else and it still made alot. I just didn't have enough curry powder or coconut milk. I added ginger, salt and honey to taste. I also added sliced zucchini 5 minutes before serving. Very good! Thanks Lindsay!

My Sister's Wedding

Here is a pic of me dressed up as a bridesmaid.

Aren't we a cute family? I am so blessed!

Sharla and me before the wedding. She was quite the beaming bride.

Nate and Sharla, the happy couple

We spent Saturday in Olympia this past weekend for my sister's wedding. I have had a awful head cold this past week and have been so run down that we weren't able to make it the rehearsal the night before. We just drove up the day of and it was a very pretty wedding.
My sister and I have similar tastes without even knowing it, at least I didn't. She wore the exact same wedding dress that I did. Not intentionally though. She simply tried it on and loved it and soon realized(not sure when she realized it), that it was the same dress that I wore! How funny, except she added a lovely plum accent ribbon around the waist. And the bridesmaid's dresses were black just like at my wedding(but with a ribbon added as well.) So, yeah, it was a nice wedding and they were blessed with good weather for an outdoor reception. It has been so wonderful to see God work in my sister's life and finally bring a loving husband into her life. They seem very happy together.

It's Been Awhile

Where have I been this past month, almost month and a half? I don't know. Maintaining life as best I can. I get so exhausted when I'm pregnant. I have been blessed, I know, in that I don't get sick. But being pregnant takes so much energy that I feel like I just barely get done the basics everyday. I know that if I wasn't pregnant my house would be cleaner, more organized, and I would be exercising regularly. But I'm pregnant and lack the desire and energy to get extras done. It is for a time I know. I look forward to when my energy returns.

We've also been a little busy just with summer and all. We had another trip to the beach and celebrated Elijah's 2nd birthday.

Elijah turned 2 on August 19th! So for 6 weeks I have two two year olds! Moses will be 3 on the 28th!

Hmm, what else? My older sister is getting married! So I drove to Oly last weekend a week ago by myself with the boys for her bridal shower. Here is a picture of me and her. I look tired of course, but she was glowing and looked like a bride-to-be!

I spent the day up there and then drove back that night! Wow, I was tired, but managed. ANd the wedding is this weekend and we're all going up this Friday and staying to Saturday night or Sunday morning. I am a bridesmaid and the colors are black and plum. I wonder if she liked the idea of black from my wedding. I should ask her. Anyways, so I really didn't want to buy a dress that I woudn't wear again for a while anyway, so I am actually borrowing a dress from a friend. The funny thing is it's a dress from the choir of the college I went to! But it looks really nice. I will post pictures after the wedding.


oh yeah, how could I forget? Ryan and I celebrated our 4th anniversary on September 4th.

Our wedding day


Our anniversary

4 years go by too fast

We had a friend babysit for us and we went out to the most amazing Thai restaurant called Typhoon! I love thai and have eaten at my fair share of restaurants and I have to say that I think this is the best. They are top rated if you look it up online. ANd they use really high quality ingredients and no msg. ANyways, oh yeah our anniversary--haha! Yeah, it was really special. Ryan bought me 2 dozen roses(he said it was a better deal that way), and it was really funny when he handed them to me because Moses was so enthralled by the large bouquet that he said, "thank you daddy for getting them for mommy!" It was cute. We had an enjoyable evening together by ourselves and it was just nice to get away from the everyday stuff and just enjoy being together.


I haven't been to the doctor yet. I'm starting my 14th week today. I will go to the doctor on the 16th for a consultation to discuss the possibility of my having a VBAC with them. They didn't say no outright to me know that I have had 2 previous c-sections which is encouraging. I am just hoping that they let me try! I have been really emotional about the birth of this next one actually. I have been doing a lot of reading to educate myself about vbacs and the whole birthing process. I never read any books before and I wisht that I had. I feel so different now that I have read so much. We even considered the idea of a homebirth for awhile but have decided to be at the hospital just in case. The percentage of rupturing is actually so small, but there is still that chance. ANyways, it's so hard, i just want to have a natural birth and not have another c-section.

Well, hopefully I'll stay a little more up to date from now on, we'll see!

About the Dishwashing Post

Just a minor detail: I realized the other day when I paid the bill that it was actually the power bill and not the water bill that we saved money on. Just FYI. I don't know if it affected the water bill or not. We pay water every other month and we've not got that bill yet.

I'm Impressed

So this is interesting. I was reading on Lindsay's blog last month about hand washing versus using the dishwasher. And you would think that because you're doing something by hand that you have to be saving money somehow right? Well, I decided to stop hand washing our dishes and strictly use the dishwasher, except for big items or things that really needed to be hand washed.(why would I hand wash when I have a dishwasher in the first place? Because I thought I was conserving energy. It turns out that I wasn't), except for big items or things that really needed to be hand washed. So, we just got our water bill today and in the past month our water bill went down by $22! Like I said, I'm impressed. We don't have the greatest dishwasher in the world, I still have to maybe rinse a glass or two that didn't get fully clean, but it's not too bad.

Week 7

Why does being pregnant have to be so much of not fun stuff? I have no energy, this month I have had no motivation to go walking like I was doing. I'm happy if I just get the boys outside for a half hour to play. My desire for salads and eating healthy is about zip compared to what it used to be. I have not thrown up, but just an occasional queezy moments. Certain foods sound awful to me, and things I used to eat and love, I really can't stand right now, like avocados--weird. I made a big green salad tonight and added alot of veggies, even thought I didn't want to eat it I thought if I just made it and put it on the table and try and force myself to eat it, I'll eat it. But I just could not eat it. I managed to just eat some plain romain lettuce leaves after my dinner which was a bit encouraging. It's all I can do to try and make food for the rest of the family and force myself to eat it too. And my brain is half gone. I'm so forgetful and just can't seem to keep up with what I used to do. I feel like I'm trudging through my day. I can't wait until I get more energy sometime in the coming months. With Moses I didn't feel good until I was about 20 weeks along!! Elijah, I don't quite remember. Oh yes, my baby is about the size of a small blueberry according to babycenter.com.

Camping Trip July 2008

We had a great camping trip this past weekend. Like most vacations however, it was a bit tiring, and it's taking a few days to recover! It's a lot of work going camping with two little guys, but definitely worth it! The strangest thing for me was actually being the parents, and being the one to take my children camping. Does that make sense? When you're a kid you don't have all the responsibility, and there is always mom or dad to look to for help. But this trip was a whole new experience since it's the first time I've camped since being married. It's a strange reality to have arrived at this place in life: I just had to sit and marvel at the fact that I have children now and my husband and I are the ones taking them camping and creating new memories for our family. So here are some of those memories!

Moses was excited, along with Elijah, to go camping!

We were packed and ready for our trip on Sunday morning. It's a tight squeeze taking a family of four camping in a small 4 dour car. Our plan was to go to church with our car packed and leave right after.

We were quite packed in!

It's amazing how much stuff we took camping with us! Most of which we really needed and did use.

Our campsite: You can see me by the fire on the left and our table is kind of messy. We arrived a bit later then we expected because we stopped to pick blueberries at a u-pick farm along the way! So we were hurriedly trying to set up camp and get dinner going because the boys were hungry. I made chicken in the slow cooker the day before and refrigerated it. We reheated it over the fire with BBQ sauce(wrapped in foil ), and then we had homemade pasta salad and baked beans (heated up on our camping stove).

Some good friends let us borrow their tent which was a great blessing.

Papa and Elijah. I didn't get Elijah to smile in this shot, but he really was having a great time!

Our first morning eating breakfast of scrambled eggs and sausage


We had a beautiful gorgeous day on Monday!


We hung out with some good friends over at the beach and the guys had a great time digging a moat around a big mound of sand. Do you see a resemblance in the background?


Janine and I enjoyed visiting and taking pictures of our boys having fun in the sand!

The Boys had a lot of fun!

Elijah sitting on Moses' lap in a little chair by our campfire

Beach Campfire

Our last morning hair, and there!
Moses sleeping so soundly, but I had to wake him yup so we could pack up our stuff. The boys slept great by the way, considering it was really cold and a whole new sleeping experience.

It was a joy to experience camping with our boys and be together as a family.

Children are a blessing

"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one's youth.
Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate. "
Psalm 127 3-5

I love this passage and I thought it only appropriate to post it today. I am finally announcing to all that Finlay baby #3 is coming soon!!! I am about 5 weeks along and due near the end of March 2009. I am feeling okay overall, I haven't been sick, just exhausted. With two little boys I don't have the luxury of napping whenever I want, but I get rest when I can. I just feel blah on some days and don't want to do anything. We are going camping this weekend, and even though my energy has been low it will be wonderful to go to the coast and camp for the first time as a family!

Below is a link to one of the sweetest videos of Moses that I wanted to share

Singing Moses

Free Giveaway Contests

I was just over at Biblicalwomanhood checking out Frugal Fridays and found a website with some contests. Natalie of CurlyWurlyGurly is doing a “Breakfast in Bed” give-away. You should go over and visit her site and check it out too:)

If you like natural soaps and candles, here is another contest to check out at Mommie Daze

One more over at Shake the Salt. It goes on for another month and there are a lot of entries already, but hey, it's worth a try!

Pets

So, I think we might be naming our fish Blueberry! We will see. The boys seemed to like that one, and especially since we've been eating lots of berries lately!

A kitten followed us home today on our walk. I fed him a bit of lunch meat(not sure if that is good for him or not, but I wasn't sure what else to feed him). The kitten seemed awful hungry and skinny. So, he's been sticking around all day. We will see how long he hangs out. He is cute, although it might be a she. I asked the boys what they wanted to call it and Moses replied, "Blueberry!" How funny! My husband will be so tickled to see the cat when he gets home from work. He is the biggest cat lover of anyone I've ever met. I'll have to post a better picture later.

Include Your Children in Your Work

"Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ."
~ Colossians 3:23-24

It is good that our children see us working in our homes with a glad heart. It is good for them to learn at a young age that work is not a negative thing. In addition to that I am learning what a blessing it is for them to join me in my work. Though they are boys, they will learn much by helping mama in what I do. They also help Papa when he is home, but since they spend a good amount of time with me during the day, I am slowly learning the benefits to having them help me with my chores.

Elijah is almost 2 and Moses is almost 3 and today they both helped me vacuum and empty the dishwasher. Sometimes they also help me "wash" dishes (aka: play in the bubbles!). But I've been impressed with how they learn, I should not be surprised, but I am still, they are so smart. Kids are capable of far more than what is often expected of them, which is usually very little. So I'm trying to teach and train more...I feel that I lack so much, but that is good because it makes me far more dependent on the Lord. Better to feel needy for HIM rather than feel like I can do it all so well on my own. Anyways, Moses has been trained to put the utensils away (ahem, it's like a matching game!) and he and Elijah can hand me items from the dishwasher that go in high cupboards. Usually, I think that I need to occupy them with an activity or wait until naps for me to do chores, but it's been wonderful incorporating them to help me with the chores. Granted, what would take me 5 minutes might turn into 10 minutes with a little one helping. But the extra time is worth it as they learn that work is what we're made to do and that we should do it with a glad heart.

Homemade Deodorant

I haven't experimented too much with natural deodorants that you buy in the store, but the one I have tried didn't work too well for me. I have not completely given up my very bad for me anti-persperant(who wants to stink), that is until yesterday. I hate sweating, but it's very natural and good, but the very natural scent just stinks. So, since I really don't want to keep using aluminum in my deodorant and I don't want to smell when I sweet--if I can help it--I finally tried a homemade recipe I found at Lindsay's blog. I am VERY impressed with this simple homemade all natural deodorant.

I halfed the recipe since I wanted to make a smaller portion:

2 TBS baking soda
2 TBS arrowroot powder or cornstarch (i used cornstarch)
2-3 TBS coconut oil

mix together until you get a firm consistancy. I store mine in a small glass jar with a lid (here is a tip: in the condiment asile where they sell oilves and pickles (at least at my Fred Meyer) they sell pimentos in these tiny jars, I think they are like 1 oz. or 2 maybe, but they are perfect for something like this deodorant!! My jar of pimentos was only 1.09 or something. )

I am 100% positive that you will be impressed! I was amazed to go through my day not not smeel. Yes you still sweat but it does not stink! Apply liberally too.

Commercialization of Childhood

Stacy over at yoursacredcalling has such a good post in response to a video about the commercialization of children. I want to encourage you to just go to the site and check it out.

The Newest Member of our Household

This fish does not have a name yet, does anyone have any suggestions? We got this tank at a garage sale for $5 and we went and got our little boys their very own fish! How fun! They've been enjoying it.

Randomness Part 2

I've gotten SO behind on my laundry, it's bad. It's all clean but it's all in one big heap on the floor. I have gotten about half of it folded and my children are in bed and I wanted to write a bit before I went to bed. I'll finish the laundry tomorrow.

I am really enjoying life right now. I love not sweating everyday, as far as not living in humidity goes. Our church has a family camp this past weekend. We didn't camp, but we went on Saturday and just spent the day out there. It was so nice to be out in the country and enjoy the water and time with friends and family.

I am really just enjoying what God has given me to do; be a wife and homemaker and mama to my boys. I have my days though, last Friday was tough. I was SO tired during the day which made it so hard to do anything. I got angry way too many times and had to repent to my boys multiple times. It's hard when you're tired. No excuse though for a bad attitude. God is gracious and compassionate. He does not treat me that way. It's a good reminder to me of how I need to be toward my children and if not i just try to be quick to repent.

I love my kitchen. I spend a lot of time in it, )when I'm doing all the other things I have to do with two little boys). I enjoy experimenting with new ways to make our food more nutritious. One of the many ways which really doesn't require that much time at all, is by sprouting seeds (sunflower seeds are all I've done so far), lentils, and grains (I've done guinoa so far). Why Sprout? Well, " seeds are packed with nutrients, sprouted seeds are even better. As each grows, proteins, enzymes, vitamins and other nutrients increase whilst becoming more bioavailable. At the same time toxins and enzyme inhibitors are reduced, increasing digestibility." http://www.primalseeds.org/sprouting.htm
And sprouting is wonderful because when you're done you can put your spouts on salads and sandwhiches or anything else that you want. I haven't thought of tossing my lentil spouts into my green smoothies yet, don't know if I will...I just enjoy them on salads fine. Salads are wonderful, I just love them. I'm trying to eat them more often, I'm trying for one a day, but it doesn't always happen. Here are two pictures of my recent salads.

This salad has romaine, lentil sprouts, sliced almonds that have been soaked for 12 hours. "Almonds are usually difficult for most people to digest because of an enzyme-inhibiting substance in their brown coating. Soaking or sprouting removes this inhibitor so that the enzymes secreted during digestion can do their job."(source) I also added apple slices and I think that is it. Salads have endless possibilities.This Salad below has romaine lettuce, shredded beets, red pepper, shredded zucchini, chicken breast meat, with a red wine vinegrette dressing. Dressing: Red wine vinegar, crushed black pepper, crushed garlic, basil and oil. So good! The bread is whole wheat rye with garlic basil butter. Among other things I've added coconut oil to my kitchen essentials. (I don't know why it suddenly changed to blue and underlined, I can't figure it out). I encourage you to do some research if you don't know about it, it's really fascinating.

http://www.coconutresearchcenter.org/index.htm

black is back!

well, i think I'm done for tonight