Macedonian Hillbilly

Here I am!

2012-02-15T10:18:00.000-08:00

Been busy with life...and well, valentines stuff :) It's been a whirlwind of a couple weeks. Every time I sit and want to blog, something comes up and I have to keep swimming (moving). I really shouldn't be blogging right now but I have a few minutes of uninterrupted time and I thought I'd go for it! Want to see what I've been up to? Take a look:

Doing all the Valentine "cooking" wasn't the best on my Weight Watcher diet but it was great fun and the girls had a blast. I got confirmation yesterday when Aiva said that my treat was the best in the class. If my kid likes it, you know it's gotta be good! Things are hopefully going to settle down in the next couple weeks. Swimming and basketball will be over and then we can finally breath a sign of relief before spring and summer roll around.

We've been looking at some houses and needless to say, I thought that the second house we looked at was going to be the one. It wasn't! It was terrible on the inside and very small. Not big enough to raise 2 high school daughters in! Thinking ahead here folks! We'll keep looking...we've seen three so far. I think we may even try to go the route of building too so we're going to explore that maybe this week or next.

Still trying to get into my "skinnies". I wear them every week but it's slow going. Weekends are hard...I think just about everyone can relate. You work so hard on the weekdays to have it all go down hill on the weekend. Making good choices on the weekends is difficult but doable. I just have to keep making better choices and heading in the right direction. My Fab Ab February is going well but just a tad behind.

OK...have to wrap it up but here's to spring! With this weather, it's hard to believe that it's winter!

Checkn' In!

2012-02-10T13:08:00.000-08:00

Well, this has been pretty much a crappy week but it's finally over and it ended on a sweet note. Number one, it's Friday and number two, I'm going to see The Vow tonight. I'm a pound away from goal but tonight was the best night to do it...that was until Nate got sick. He was supposed to go to Date with Dad at church but instead he's staying home with the girls and doing the date from home :) I on the other hand am going to the movies by myself...one of my favorite things to do!

Last weekend was Princess Camp which was amazing but not so great on the eating end. I figured in my points just fine but it was after I got home that it hit. I started feeling crummy so I guess I gave myself free reign to eat what I wanted. Mistake #1. The whole week Satan was really trying to get me down, which he succeeded and come Wednesday, I was beat down and then some. I was supposed to go to zumba but because of being sick and having a bad week, I forfeited the night. Mistake #2. It felt good to get rest though and go to bed early.

When I got up on Thursday, I wasn't expecting the scale to be good to me but it was :) God is good! I was down to my pre Princess camp weigh in! Feeling pretty good about that but still down about some other things. Satan continued to have his way til I got home. That's when I got some good news. I'll have to go into that later but it turned everything around. This morning when I weighed, I was a pound less than the day before so I gave myself permission to head to the movies tonight. I'm sitting here looking at the clock and counting down the minutes til I can roll outa here!

I'm heading to the movies tonight, looking at two houses tomorrow, Nate has a game tomorrow afternoon and then we spend the rest of the weekend at church. It's gonna be a good one! Hope you have a great weekend!

Operation Skinny Jeans Day 3

2012-02-02T07:34:00.000-08:00

OK ladies...I'm in my skinny jeans again but I'm feeling a little better today than what I was in day 1 and day 2! Yesterday I was in my skinny 16 and today I'm in my bigger 14's. I'm slowly moving in the right direction. I had zumba last night and I finally felt like how I did at my other zumba class. I'm leaning the songs and the moves and it's starting to feel more fun and like I'm burning more calories because I'm not concentrating so much on the moves. I had a good sweat so I'm ready to keep going! I weighed in this morning at 211 so I'm almost there...gotta get to the good ole' 1's! I'm not going to be in the 2's again! I thought that I needed some goals to get me going so here they are:208lbs (2 more lbs) - Go to see the movie The Vow

199 (12 more lbs) - Go get my hair cut and highlighted

I'm sticking with 2 goals for right now. Don't want to get too far ahead of myself plus I want to get excited about these two before I think of anything new. I'm REALLY looking forward to getting highlighted so that really can't come soon enough! I'm already feeling a little giddy thinking about it! Here's to my next two pounds! Let's get er' done!

Menu Plan Monday

2012-01-30T15:18:00.000-08:00

Monday - Baked Ziti
Tuesday - Mashed Potatoes
Wednesday - Subs
Thursday - Meatloaf
Friday - PIZZA NIGHT for Nate & Ana (Aiva & I are going to camp)
Saturday - Blueberry Pancakes
Sunday - Chicken in the crock pot

Miserable

2012-01-30T11:55:00.000-08:00

OK...miserable doesn't begin to express how I feel right now. The above picture is what I feel like. Mind you, it's not what I look like, but I certainly what I feel like it. A gal in my Thursday group mentioned an idea to help us get into your skinny jeans. She said that if we can get into our skinny jeans without busting the zipper or busting the seam, then what's holding us back? By being in jeans that are uncomfortable, it will help keep us accountable everything that we put in our mouth. It will help us see that with just a little more hard work and dedication, these jeans will fit and feel great. My thoughts on the issue:

I should have never put these jeans on this morning

I think the feelings that I have right now might be enough to keep my mouth shut so I don't put anything inside. Heck, I've passed up lunch altogether because I can't get up! LOL Granted, I am in the next size down and it feels pretty good when I get up and move but when I sit down...no words can describe. My thought was to blog about my menu plan after this post but to think of food at the current moment with the feelings I'm having just wouldn't be a great idea :) On that note, I think I will unbutton my pants and take a full breath :) LOL One more hour til I get to go home and get into my comfy PJ's!

Improvements (part 2)

2012-01-29T05:50:00.001-08:00

Last night I had an "AAHA" moment...somewhat of an epiphany. The whole day I had been struggling a little with being hungry but I wanted to wait and hold my self over til Nate and I were on our date night. My goal was to skip lunch and just do fruits. We were going to leave our house at 4PMish to have the kids over to my parents by 5ish. Around 2, I couldn't take it any longer and Nate was hungry. I settled for a sub, halfway defeated and halfway very thankful. We decided to go out after the movie since we had a late lunch so I had plenty of time to think about what I could have. I knew that we were going to Red Robin since Nate had a gift card. I had studied all the menu items earlier that day and narrowed my selections down to just a hand full. Walking in, I felt confident while at the same time a little excited. How could you blame me? It's like a walking in a candy store with a child. All of these types of food that I could have but am choosing NOT to have. I felt the internal debate brewing. The angel on one shoulder, the little devil on the other. Back and forth...I felt it...I heard it.

I saw the drinks that they have and singled in on the one that I had preplanned to order: Minute Maid Light Lemonade (0 points). While lingering in the drinks section I saw my dear old friend Dr. Pepper and said a little good bye as my eyes drifted to the salad section. I had preplanned to order the tortilla soup and a side salad. It was quick and easy. As the internal debate lingered on, my thoughts drifted to maybe selecting the crispy chicken salad. Back and forth I felt it...it was so strong and I wanted to close the menu and just be done with it. That's when I saw it all happen right in front of my eyes.

A husband and a wife came in and were seated right behind Nate. The girl was a big girl and she looked at her husband (who was tall and stick skinny) and told him that she couldn't fit in the booth. They motioned over to the waitress and asked if they could sit at the table next to us. You could almost see the pain in her eyes. You could feel that she didn't want to look the way she did...didn't want to feel the way she did. I knew she was embarrassed. I know I would be. Being the supportive husband that he was, he moved like noting really was happening and they got settled into their spot. Then it dawned on me...that could be me if I don't make improvements. That could be me if I don't make lifestyle changes. That could be me who is embarrassed while another girl is watching in who could quite possibly blog about my situation. YIKES!

I heard them order and I just wanted to go over to that poor girl and help her make another selection. She's feeding her paid...trying to cover it up...trying to hide it. The same thing that I have done. Our waitress came over to get our order and instead of the crispy chicken salad I got the grilled chicken salad. I made a better selections...a better step in the right direction. Half of me was really looking forward to eating that foccia bread that came with my salad though. Truth be known, when it came, I took a small nibble and realized that it wasn't worth eating.

Through our meal, I kept glancing over to the girl and willed myself to take in the moment. I needed to realize that this was a person who I didn't want to become. I almost wish that I had a computer on hand because I really wanted to get all this on the blog. I wanted to get out my feelings! Even though the weight that I have to lose is nothing compared to what she's up against, it's still weight and it's still hard. My take home for the night was that if I'm not careful, that could be me. If I don't make improvements, that could be me. If I don't do something now, that could be me. I don't want to be that girl and I pray she doesn't either. I pray for the both of us that we take steps in the right direction and start making improveents instead of downstream damage control. It's not to late to start...do it TODAY!

Improvements

2012-01-28T04:55:00.000-08:00

As we went out to eat for our weekly pizza night, the thought of my last post came to mind as I was ordering. The word that kept ringing in my ears was "improvements". How can I make improvements to what I order and how I eat? I had a split second to order my drink...which I should have told the waitress to give us just a minute or two. I ended up ordering a Diet Pepsi because I knew it was zero points. Nate looked at me weird and said "Diet Pepsi...are you sure?". In front of the waitress. of course, we're having this debate. She probably thought I'd lost my mind, considering she practically knows us by name and KNOWS I ALWAYS order a Wild Cherry Pepsi. "Yes, honey...Diet Pepsi." After thinking, and explaining to Nate my reasoning in getting a Diet Pepsi, he and I both came to the conclusion that I should have just gotten water. I can easily throw down a Dr. Pepper 10 now but Diet Pepsi is still new territory and since I'm making wise decisions about eating, I might as well make wise decisions to finances and not spend the $2.50 for a drink that I don't like.

After just now calculating what I ate, I see that I could have made some definite improvements. Per piece it's 8 points. I should have had one piece (which I normally eat) and more salad. I ended up eating 2 pieces, one breadstick with a little marinara, and a salad with ranch. I could have still had a little more salad (minus the cheese) and saved my self that last piece and been 8 points less. I ended up eating my full days worth of points just for dinner.

What am I going to do next time?
Eat more fruits and veggies during the day instead of my normal lunch.
Drink more water to make me feel filled.
Eat one piece of pizza.
Skip the breadstick.
Order water and bring along a Crystal Light lemonade packet.

It's all about making improvements! Getting used to "points" is going to take some time but day by day I can see me making improvements. Here's to another day!

Just Do It!

2012-01-26T06:42:00.000-08:00

I read a devotional this morning and it set me straight. Here's the link to it if you want to check it out. Here are two of the points that I took out of the article:

The hardest part of almost any task or challenge we face is getting started.

JUST DO IT. You can always improve on it once you have started.

How true are these? Everyone has experienced the want to...the need to but very few really follow thru. This the the very thing that I want to stay away from this time around. I'm feeling great. I made great decisions yesterday in my eating and I had a fabulous zumba workout. This morning I'm feeling really great.

I read something on a friends blog that I'm going to adopt. It's kind of like a moto...focus...way of thinking. Call it what you will but it's something good to have on the forefront of your mind. Here it is...

Eat clean (reduce sugar & pop, eat more fruits and veggies, drink 80-100 oz water daily)
Move more (go to zumba once a week, park farther away, play Wii twice weekly)
Refresh daily (devotions, purposeful prayer daily, Bible study)

Each week, I'll give you an update as to how I'm doing and things I've discovered, need to work on, or something that I'm learning about myself. Stay tuned and hope you can join me to eat clean, move more, and refresh daily!

Weekly Thoughts

2012-01-24T06:23:00.000-08:00

I get the Weight Watcher Weekly books from my super great friend, Aubre, and last night I sat down and ready thru all of them. I read them as she gives them to me but I needed a big dose of encouragement last night so I read them all. If you get these books, I strongly recommend that you hang on to these and save them for nights like these when you're down, frustrated, or just need a different take on things. One thing that I pulled out is this:

Next time you're debating whether or not to lace up your sneakers, remember that you CAN make the right choice!

I didn't really want to step last night during The Bachelor but I did and after I was done, I was so thankful that I did it. I made the right choice! It helps me next time in knowing that I made the right choice then...I can make the right choice NOW!

Thoughts

2012-01-24T05:56:00.000-08:00

Don't you hate it when you try to get to sleep at night and you have all these thoughts circling around in your head. That was me last night. I just had these thoughts floating aimlessly for like an hour and I wanted to get up and blog about them but I couldn't. Not sure why I felt like I couldn't at the time. Maybe it had something to do with thinking that the more I laid there, the better chance I would fall off to sleep. I did eventually but I did one important thing to get me there. I prayed. Not sure if my prayer was so boring that I put myself to sleep of if God filled me with the peace that I needed. Whichever one came first, it totally knocked me out. I'm pretty sure it was the Holy Spirit reassuring me that He had it covered and there was no need to worry. Don't you love that!?!

We're hopefully going to be moving in May and I just kept thinking about all the many things that we have to do to actually complete the move. We have no house yet (still working with the realtor), not all of our down payment is ready (almost), no boxes are packed but one thing I do know...when the time is right, things will fall into place. There's no need to worry because the only thing that it does is keep me up at night and creates a long to-do list that I really don't have time to worry about right now.

God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good!

Menu Plan

2012-01-23T14:11:00.000-08:00

Monday -Chicken & Noodles
Tuesday - Spaghetti
Wednesday - Sausage, Veggies & Rice
Thursday - Enchilladas
Friday - PIZZA
Saturday - Sloppy Joe
Sunday - Eat Out

Fab Ab's Anyone?

2012-01-23T13:23:00.000-08:00

As I was skimming thru Pinterest I came across a Pin that I have been thinking about and I've committed to take the plunge. When I was doing crunches/sit ups back in October and November, I saw a huge difference in my abs so it's time to start back up. Who's with me? Here's the pin...let me know what you think! I'd love to know if you are doing it with me. I'm not much of a plank person but I'm 100% committed!

34

2012-01-22T07:14:00.000-08:00

On Friday it was my birthday! I turned 34 and I decided to take my birthday off work. My vacation days are specifically planned thru the year so for me to just take the day off was huge! Nate's birthday is the day after mine and we were going to be busy on his birthday so I bit the bullet and took the day off so we could have a fun weekend. I wanted the both of us to enjoy the time and just each other. Before kids we always took our birthdays off work every year but it's been 10 years so I was definitely due! We started the day with Muffins with Mom at Aiva's school. It was so fun to go to her class and talk to her teacher. Takes me back to my elementary school days! After that we went to McDonald's for breakfast. Not my number one choice but we needed something quick before we headed to the movies. I got something light and we were off to Easton. We saw the movie "We Bought a Zoo" with Matt Damon and it was great. I cried and cried some more and it was cleansing in a good kind of way!

Every year, I always go to Spaghetti Warehouse for my birthday and this year was no different. We pulled Aiva out of school early so we could head down town. We sat in the trolley car and dinner was great. To save myself from eating too much, Nate and I split dinner. It was good for both of us! Every year, since I was six, I've always gotten a Shirley Temple and I kept the tradition alive! That night, we went to the Big Walnut homecoming basketball game. I thought this would be fun for Nate so that's what we did. The girls weren't very impressed but Nate and I had a blast. We got to walk down the hall of fame and see all of his family members. His brothers, cousins, and uncles are all on the wall. It was fun to point out to the girls who all the family members were and what they did.

Nate's birthday was pretty much the same. Running around and having a lot of fun. He coached a game and his team won by like 30. He and I were both shocked but so happy! He knew his team was good but THAT good! We ate out for two meals and I tried to make good decisions but I did have a few things that I shouldn't. Cake and ice cream topped the list. It's a birthday...what can I say! Today is a new day and I have to get back up on the horse and make good decisions. I did discover a new pop that I'm going to keep on hand. Dr. Pepper 10...my new best friend. On special occasions, we get cream soda on pizza night. I calculated the points and a glass of cream soda is 5 points! A glass of Dr. Pepper 10 is ZERO! A definite keeper! I'm a Dr. Pepper addict so for me to have the similar taste... better for me than regular pop... is a huge! No...it's not just for MEN despite what the commercials say! I'm proving them wrong!

Changin' It Up

2012-01-22T06:38:00.000-08:00

After reading one of my new favorite blogs I got the idea to make a list of the reasons why I want to change my life...myself. If you're a girl, you have a list of things that you want to change about your self. To make your self better...a better mom, a better wife, a better you. Since you know I'm all about numbers, I decided to go with 34 since I just had a birthday. I'm tired of feeling the way that I do. I'm sick of beating myself up after I stumble. I've been doing well but I feel like I need to get these thoughts out and on "paper" so I can remind myself of why I'm doing this. I need to turn to these things on my off days and remind myself why I'm doing the things that I'm doing. Why I'm sacrificing...what my focus is. Here is it:

1. I want to be healthy
2. I want to get rid of the back pain when I sleep
3. I want to lose the spare tire
4. I want to be able to get my wedding rings on and off with ease
5. I want to be able to wear the new ring Nate just got me for Christmas
6. I want my girls to know how to be healthy by what I do and eat
7. I want to lose the dip in my bed from me being over weight
8. I want my top "half" to be smaller from my bottom "half"
9. I want to climb a flight of stairs without being out of breath
10. I want to be able to wear boots that are cute
11. I want to be able to go into a dressing room and have my oldest say that I look good
12. I want to decrease the risk of me getting cancer
13. I want to wear shorts and tank tops in the summer
14. I want to wear a bathing suit without people looking at my skin rather than the suit
15. I want to wear a size that doesn't have an X in it
16. I want my husband to not have to feel "fat" when he puts his arm around my waist
17. I want to put on my seat belt without pulling the whole belt out
18. I want to be able to do jumping jacks without me peeing my pants!!
19. I want to be able to work out without my top "half" going in different directions
20. I want my husband to pick me up and carry me across the thresh hold
21. I want to cross my legs instead of my ankles
22. I want to get out of these size 16 jeans
23. I want to wear that little black dress in my closet that's a large
24. I want to treat myself with other things besides food
25. I want to not be the big person in pictures
26. I want to take a family picture where I feel good about how I look
27. I want to be in pictures with my kids instead of taking the pictures
28. I want my underwear to lay on my stomach instead of under my spare tire when I bend down
29. I want to wear fitted shirts and not be conscientious if flabs are sticking out
30. I want my family to feel proud of me
31. I want to take warm vacations instead of cold vacations
32. I want to be able to dance with Ana
33. I want to wear a coat instead of carry a coat
34. I want to LIVE instead of sit on the sidelines and watch

Biggest Loser

2012-01-18T08:30:00.000-08:00

I've got to admit...I love the Biggest Loser. I'm addicted...can't go a show without watching it LIVE when it comes on. Bob Harper (yes I know his full name) truly excites me and even though he said that working out with him is no fun (my words, not his) I would love to have a trainer like him. Plus... he's quite handsome (I'll refrain from saying HOT!). Then you've got Dolvette Quince (again, I know his full name). He's a screamer/yeller but I'd still love to work with him. Both he and Bob give out great encouragement on Faceboook. If you love Biggest Loser you have to look them up on Facebook. I just can't get enough of them. Every time I watch Biggest Loser, I always think that I need to make a CD/MP3 or something of Bob's "encouragement". I might work on that soon. I need Bob yelling and screaming sweet nothing's in my ear to get off my butt and do it again, go harder and "I don't think so!".

Enough about that, tomorrow is weigh in day and I'm looking forward to it. I'm on my monthly you know what so I'm not sure if I'll lose anything but at least I can be around some great encouragement and and be around ladies who are in my shoes. Quick update...I got into my skinny jeans so something is working, even on my monthly you know what! Not too far from my 14's! Watch out jeans...here I come. I've been stepping during the week for an hour and do zumba on Wednesdays. Anything is better than sitting on the couch doing nothing! I'm feeling good that I'm back at it. I'm not going totally crazy but making little changes at a time. One day at a time right??!! Here's to tomorrow! I'll let you know what happens!

Bible School

2012-01-17T08:57:00.000-08:00

At the beginning of January, I started doing something with my girls that they just love. I found tons of activity and color pages, thanks to Google, that I can use for teaching them stories from the Bible. I've organized them so that I can teach the same lesson to both of them and Ana has a color page and Aiva has an activity page that's harder for her level. When I get home, I put my stuff down and head to the kitchen where I start to get things ready for dinner. I call both girls in and tell them to get their art kits and I give them each a page. While I cook, I tell them the story. I'll have Aiva look up the verses in the Bible and have her read the kids version just to catch anything that I miss. I've even given her just the "address" for the verse and I'll have her write down the verse. It helps her get into the word and get excited about it because there are actual stories in there! I have to share what happened last night though. The lesson last night was on creation and what God created and when. Aiva just jumps at the opportunity to do anything that resembles homework so this was right up her alley. I printed out a sheet for her that had "Day 1-7" and the verses that corresponded to what God created for those days. She dove right into the Bible and wrote out what God created anon those days. She later asked if she could draw pictures of the things that He created and I of course told her to go for it. She loved it! It's really been a lot of fun to get this started and going. It's great for me because I don't have to hear them fighting when I get home. It's good for them becasue they're hearing the Word and getting into it. Plus, it's good for Nate because he gets a much needed 30-45 minute break before dinner. Here are a couple picks of what we've been doing:

Menu Plan Monday

2012-01-15T18:27:00.000-08:00

Monday - Potato Soup
Tuesday - Taco's
Wednesday - Homemade Mac N Cheese
Thursday - Baked Ziti
Friday - PIZZA
Saturday - TBD (Nate's birthday)
Sunday lunch- Tortilla Soup
Sunday dinner - Meatloaf

Something BIG is about to happen!

2012-01-12T12:24:00.000-08:00

Today was the first day of my bible study, Made to Crave. This is the second time I'm doing it so hopefully something will click...something will change...something big will happen (maybe I should say something small will happen). I'm done with being big but I'm not done with God doing big things! Praying he does amazing things through this study. I pray that I would crave Him instead of other things. I pray that I would turn to Him instead of food. I pray that I would trust in him instead of trust in the feeling of how I hope food will make me feel.

I went to zumba last night and it felt great but I sure didn't like the person who I saw in the mirror. The last time I was at zumba I looked great. I was 20 lbs lighter and my stomach was flatter. Long story short, I'm done with being big and I'm leaving the rest up to God!

Today I weighed in and it was the first time that I stepped on the scale since November. It was a scary thing but I did it. It was one of those quick step on, exhale/say a quick prayer, look, and then step off (like the action didn't happen). The number I saw was one I wasn't proud of but happy that it wasn't bigger. The number was 215.4. I'm in a size 16...it's time for a change! This is the last time I'm going to be this weight. The last time I will feel this way. It's time for me to do something big...with God's help, I know I can do it!

Start Afresh

2012-01-11T07:03:00.000-08:00

Today is one of those days that I have to start afresh. On Monday in my small group, good ole' Beth Moore said that God can change my mood. I'm praying that he can do just that right now. With the power of the Holy Spirit, I really can Live Beyond Myself. Here are some things that I have to remember:

My purpose is beyond me...my seasonal circumstances are beyond me...my unrelenting daily demands are beyond me.

Through the power of the Holy Spirit I can...

do things I couldn't...feel things I didn't...know things I wouldn't.

We had a rough night with Ana. She had a bad asthma attack last night and we were in urgent care getting breathing treatments and steroids. We have to do this every so often and it really takes a hit on me. This is on top of an already stressful and mentally challenging day. I had to deal with someone that was just plain mean and not very grateful. God had all this up his sleeve when I heard that whole thing on Monday about God changing my attitude. He was preparing my heart for what was about to lie ahead.

To be honest, I really don't want to be at work right now. I don't want to be nice right now. I don't want to do anything now except be at home with my little girl. Instead I'm clinging to Isaiah 43:18-19:

18 "Forget about what's happened; don't keep going over old history.19 Be alert, be present. I'm about to do something brand-new. It's bursting out! Don't you see it? There it is! I'm making a road through the desert, rivers in the badlands.

I'm praying that something good comes out of today...that it's brand new and it's bursting out. God...I need you to show up today and be big...really big!

MPM

2012-01-10T07:32:00.001-08:00

I know it's Tuesday but it's never too late to start menu planning! I actually started this weekend but didn't get to post until just now. Here it is for the week:

Monday - Garlic Parmesan Spaghetti
Tuesday - Beef Enchiladas
Wednesday - Tortilla Soup in the Crock Pot
Thursday - Meatloaf
Friday - Pizza
Saturday - Breakfast Burritos
Sunday - BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

Hopefully by going this route, I will only have soda on Friday. Last weekend, we did really well! We only went out to eat on Friday, for pizza, and then out to dinner with my parents after church. Here's to a healthier me :)

2012

2012-01-09T15:34:00.000-08:00

So every year I always do my goals for the year in January (colossal ideas, I know). I normally do the same amount of goals for how old I am, therefore, this year, I'm doing 34! Once I list my goals for this year, I'll update you on what all happened from last year. Here goes nothing:

#1 - MOVE...so excited to get into a house! It's been 5 long years!
#2 - Build our savings
#3 - Do more craft stuff
#4 - Make more jewelry
#5 - Make more jewelry for others
#6 - Make another quilt
#7 - Do a garden
#8 - Send more cards
#9 - Bless others more
#10 - Spend less time on the computer when at home
#11 - East out less on weekends
#12 - Be consistent with menu planning thru the week
#13 - Work with my kids more on reading the bible
#14 - Do a date night with each of my girls by themselves
#15 - Pamper myself more
#16 - Call my dad more
#17 - Organize my paperwork
#18 - Get rid of old jammies
#19 - Go to bed earlier
#20 - Take a lunch more often
#21 - Get my pictures organized
#22 - Go on a family vacation to Chicago
#23 - Having to buy all new clothes because they're too big (ok, maybe more of a dream :) )
#24 - Have no warning lights shining on our car
#25 - Have a table at a craft show
#27 - Be on time to work
#28 - Have a set quiet time
#29 - Read thru the Bible
#30 - Working with the girls on allowance
#31 - Teach the girls how to save and tithe
#32 - Be patient with my kids
#33 - Drink less caffeine
#34 - Be patient with Nate

From 2011...what is green is something I've accomplished or I'm working on and what's in red are items that I didn't do:

#1 Since I'm turning 33, the same age that Jesus was when he was crucified, I want to live more like Christ.
#2 To be 33 pounds lighter (I'm giving it another go)
#3 To pay off our car
#4 To make three new friends
#5 To learn to make my own laundry detergent - thanks Nicole for getting me excited
#6 To pray more for my brother
#7 To drink more water than Dr. Pepper :)
#8 To eat more at home instead of eating out
#9 To build our savings account
#10 To make something special for my girls this Christmas
#11 To go on a once in a lifetime trip on 11/11/11 in Montana
#12 To start making jewelry with Ana & Aiva
#13 To learn how to better communicate with Aiva
#14 To show Nate more affection
#15 To encourage my dad
#16 To visit my Nana & Grandpa more
#17 To give blood once this year (I'm scared to death)
#18 To eat a star fruit
#19 To make something for someone
#20 To get to bed at a decent time
#21 To work out
#22 To play with the girls instead of having something else entertain them
#23 To make more time for Nate
#24 To make more time for myself
#25 To read more to the girls
#26 To take time out for Ana and spending time with just her
#27 Try to eat more vegetables (yuck)
#28 To appreciate the things we have instead of what we don't
#29 To think outside the box more
#30 To enjoy the girls laughter instead of telling them to be quiet
#31 To be a friend to someone who needs one
#32 To be quiet and listen to God
#33 Take more pictures to capture life

Financial Updates

Baby Step #1 - Save $1000 in an emergency savings plan

USED IT ALL TO PAY FOR AIVA'S TONSILS

Baby Step #2 - Get out of debt with the debt snowball

AGAIN...AIVA'S TONSILS

Baby Step #3 - Start saving 3-6 months of expenses in savings

STARTING Hopefully in the summer

Baby Step #4 - Invest 15% in a Roth IRA

CURRENTLY DOING 8% IN MY ROTH

Baby Step #5 - Future funding for kids

SAVING $100 PER CHILD PER MONTH

Baby Step #6 - Pay off home early

Baby Step #7 - Build wealth & give

Christmas Projects & Rings

2012-01-07T06:26:00.000-08:00

As I blogged before, there were a lot of projects that I was working on and needless to say, I didn't take pictures of a lot of them. That's one thing I want to change in 2012. Projects that I make need to be photographed. I think it helps a person see that they've accomplished something! Plus, it's fun to see people's comments and helps give my readers some inspiration to try something new :) OK, so I think I've shown you a few of the things that I made so here are a couple of the others:

This one was definitely one of my most favorites. This was the project that I had worked so hard on for many months. I made it for my mom. She bought me a sewing machine and it sat in my bedroom for two years before I had the courage to use it. Not saying it to brag...well, yea I am...I hand stiched just about the whole things. Guess I really didn't need the machine after all! I used the machine sewing the squares together and doing the binding but n the actual quilting my sewing machine kept bird's nesting and it was easier to actually hand stitched than get frustrated and quite. I wanted tears out of my mom but got nothin! At least my dad cried when I gave him a sneak peak the week before Christmas. At least one of my parents is sensitive like how I am! All in all, this was a hard project and one that I will keep reminding my mom of! I told my co-workers that she better have this thing attached to her hip at all time because of the time that was spent on it! Of course I'm joking...kind of! LOL

This was another fun gift that I made! This is my sister in law, Amy, and she's fun and crafty like I am. When I saw this idea on Pinterest, I immediately thought of her. I have fallen in love with buttons recently and knew I wanted to do this project for her. It was actually a piece of cake. I printed out the letter S at work on card stock in black ink. Used glue dots to attach the buttons (color: black, gray and white) and got a frame at Michael's to finish it off. She loved it along with a necklace I made for her. I didn't get a pic of her necklace, earrings, and bracelet but it was one of my favorites that I've made. I love the pendant and again, wanted to keep it for myself but gladly handed off to her.
This is a shirt that I designed for my dad. My dad is a hard one to buy for so when I thought of things that described my dad, this is one of the things that came to mind. My dad owns his own company and he has a few phrases that he ALWAYS says...from the time my brother and I were little to present day, he has always used this phrases. Price, Quality, Time...You can pick two but you can't have all three. When he saw it he let out a big laugh and yes...I think I did see a tear in his eye (MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!). He says it's one of my favorites! It leaves me so proud thinking that all the hard work I put into a meaningful gift was not wasted!

This is my mother in law who got the family gift that I already shared with you. I loved this gift. It was personal and quite easy to make. I think I already shared with you how I made it. Thanks to my friend Aubre for stopping at AAA to pick up the maps for me. You are a gem for helping me when I was in a bind! My MIL loved it! No tears were shed but "family" was passed around and everyone wanted a piece of the goodness!

Recently, I've been making my own jewelry because it's so much cheaper than buying it somewhere. Ever since I was in Nashville at Christmas and saw my sister in laws ring, I've wanted to start making rings of my own. Hers didn't look hard to make so I embarked on the ring making journey. Needless to say, I'm addicted and I'm not sure why I didn't do rings before this. Here are a few of my new creations :

I think that's it for now. Stay tuned for what's coming up in 2012! Can't wait for a brand new year!

Getting Close

2011-12-22T11:37:00.000-08:00

It's getting close to Christmas...so close that it almost feels like times starting to stand still. Things were moving so fast that I almost wanted to stop time. Now it can't move fast enough! every time I look at the clock I'm shocked that only 5 minutes have gone past! I'm finally done wrapping presents and shopping! I'm certain that I'm going to do things different next year. Anythings got to be better than what I did this year. I think I went on a spending spree for everyone and then threw in some homemade gifts to make myself think that I worked harder ;) This is what I'm dong next year:

It has to be so much easier than just having a free for all. I guess it hasn't really been exactly like that. The presents that I get are meaningful it's just that I can't stop! Yikes!

OK...so this next present I made is for my co-worker Lorien. She loves red so I thought I'd make her a necklace. Funds were getting low at the end of my shopping so I thought what better gift to make then with resources I already had! Here she is:

I made another one that's layered like this and it turned out really good. I almost with I could keep it because it turned out so well. Unfortunately, I didn't take a picture of the other necklaces I made. I was in such a hurry to get things wrapped that I didn't photograph them. I'll have to when the people take it on of the box though! OK...I just got the OK to leave work early so I'm busting a move. I'm ready to start my vacation early :)

Christmas Projects

2011-12-19T10:01:00.000-08:00

OK...so do you want to know what's taking all my time from being able to post these last few weeks? I'm about to show you (over the course of a few days) what I've been working on. I thought that the log would be the best place to show it before Christmas that way it won't give away any secrets. I don't think anyone in my family knows about the blog so all is well! The first project is one that I've been working on the least amount of time but it's one of my favorites. I'm giving this to my mother in law. I've had the letters for about two years now and could never settle on what I wanted to do with them. After some ideas from Pinterest I finally solved my problem. Take a look!

Weigh In

2011-12-09T04:20:00.001-08:00

OK...it's time for the truth to come out. I've been busy and haven't had a chance to weigh in so I knew that I had to do it this week. I've also been busy and haven't been totally watching close the things I'm eating. The problem child is lunch, when I take one. If I stay at work and just do fruit and veggies I'm good but if I go out for any reason I've fallen to "temptation"! With me going shopping and trying to get Christmas shopping done, I've been out more. Once my shopping is completed I'll feel so much better! So here are my numbers

12/9/11 211.8 (gain of 1.6lbs since 11/18/11)

I think I want to be more frustrated with myself but really the number could be much worse. I've been incredibly busy with work and making all these Christmas presents that I could have blown it with eating. So what's my plan? To constantly have a plan at lunch. Dinner has been going well. I've had my meal plan and that's been working well. Last night I improvised when I found my potatoes were bad and we had a dinner that I planned for this weekend. For the next two weeks, I'm planning that if I have to go out shopping that I will eat my lunch before I go out so I'm not as hungry. Keeping plenty of fruits & veggies by my side is also key as well as having water readily available. Good news! A friend and I are taking a class at the rec center...zumba. Looking forward to getting back at it! OK...gotta run to work so I've gotta end this! Have a happy day!

That Time of Year

2011-11-29T20:00:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year where there's too much to do and not time to do it. I've got all these great ideas floating in my head but no time to have my ideas come full circle. My big project that I'm working on for my mom is about to come to a close. Saying that I'm thrilled is not saying it enough how happy I am that it's almost done. Although I know it's a lot of hard work and she's going to love it, I would have to say that I never want to do this project again! EVER! LOL Love ya mom but this is the last one you're ever gonna get!

Thanksgiving was great. I didn't really over eat, although I did have a nice slice of chocolate cream pie. I thought that since I did great on proportions and I didn't do seconds that having a little more was my treat to myself. I know that one of these days, a regular size piece should be more than enough but for me, this was a huge feat. Every ounce of me wanted to go back in for second of mashed potatoes but I held back and was good. I just kept drinking and that helped. I'll do a weigh in on Monday and get back on track.

I really am feeling great though. I think knowing that it's Christmas puts a little spring in my step. We are super busy during this time so I'll blog about that this week. Just wanted to check in and let you know that I'm still here. I'll chat more later about our Christmas festivities and what's to come :) So excited!

Christmas Poem 2011

2011-11-24T06:42:00.000-08:00

Just take a minute,
and sit back in your chair.
Relax and do nothing.
just don't be a bear.

Please read this note
to find out what has happened,
to us this past year
in the form of my rappin'.

We’ve had lots of fun in 2011,
I'm happy to say that it's been really heaven.
Montana is where we went to celebrate,
Coming back home was filled with love and hate.
Married for 11 years, we can hardly believe it,
I wish time would just stop, I have to admit it.

Aiva and Ana are now eight and five,
They are extremely active and love to dance the jive.
Aiva's in second grade - top of her class,
She loves to do her best and hates to finish last.
Ana's in preschool and way taller than her friends,
She likes to color with markers and sometimes even pens.

Aiva loves to sing, do art and work on math,
Now if only I could get her in to take a bath.
She's kind to her sister, and is so sweet and loving,
only sometimes I catch her pushing and shoving.
School is her favorite, she really hates to miss,
Staying at home sometimes makes her hiss.

Ana, that kid is one in a million.
I wouldn't trade her, not even for a bazillion.
She loves to dance, sing, and play with her dollies,
But when she misses her nap, she really is quite naughty.
She never stops talking, that little jabberjay,
She laughs and smiles most of the day.

As for ma and pa,
we just keep on groovin'.
Raisin' these young'uns
we're always a movin'.

Nate's pushing deer from the woods,
He would be so excited to bring home the goods.
A buck is what he wants, but a doe will do,
Most days he only gets a Mt. Dew or two.
He is such a great dad and so much fun,
I'm glad to call him mine, he's my honey bun!

As for me this year, I’ve been busy a sewin',
Working on projects are what keep me goin'!
Pinterest has become my new addiction,
I haven't even cracked a book that's fiction.
The housewife and mother - that’s me!
So there’s no place that I’d rather be.

So put on your seat belts, it's time to go,
The new year will be here, it's coming with the snow.
What are your plans for the coming year?
Please pass em' along , we'd love to hear!
May you be richly blessed at work and at play,
We hope that you all have a great Christmas Day.

Family Advent 2011

2011-11-19T13:32:00.000-08:00

Every year we do our family advent tradition. Although sometimes it can be a bit tiring depending on the day, it's a blast to do and remember from year to year. This year, I wanted to throw in a few different things and thanks to Pinterest, my new addiction, I was able to find a few new keepers. Here's the list for 2011:

24 - Thanksgiving (Elf on the Shelf Starts)
25 - Creekside Parade 6PM
26 - Put up the Christmas Tree and Decorate their pink tree
27 - Write your letter to Santa
28 - Unwrap a book to read
29 - Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer
30 - Make an ornament
1 - Family Game Night
2 - Hot Chocolate Barand Movie Night
3 - Breakfast with Santa or Granville Walking Tour
4 - Make bookmarks for the cousins
5 - Holiday fingernail painting party with new polish
6 - Unwrap a book to read
7 - Family Puzzle Night
8 - Go out for Peppermint Milkshakes
9 - Night In Bethlehem
10 - Make Christmas cookies & Buckeyes
11 - Bubble bath Bash
12 - Make holiday jewelry
13 - Visit Santa
14 - Go to the zoo
15 - Movie Night
16 - Gingerbread houses
17 - Go out and look at holiday lights
18 - Make snowman pancakes
19 - Make presents for siblings
20 - Chocolate pretzels
22 - Make Holiday Pretzel Treats
23 - Make Christmas Pizzas
24 - Read the story of the birth of Jesus
25 - Happy birthday Party

To see what we did in 2010, click here. To see what we did in 2009, click here.

WOW, as I looked back over the years at what we did, we really have tons of fun each year in December. So excited for Christmas!!

Weigh In

2011-11-18T04:10:00.000-08:00

Today is finally Friday...I thought it would never come! Even though I've had a short week I'm so glad that the weekend is finally here. We have a big weekend planned so I'm excited to get a jumpstart! Here are the details for the weigh in:

11/18/11 210.2 (loss of 1.8lbs since 11/15/11)

Hoping that a tad more comes off of that number with watching my diet and having the "curse" behind me (no pun intended) next week.

This week I'm going to be working on all Christmas fun stuff so I have loads to do. I've got to also work on all the Christmas presents so the pressures on to get busy! Be looking out for our December fun stuff...I post it every year so when I post it, I'll also link it to previous years. So much great stuff taking place in the next few weeks. Have a great day!

Vacation Happened

2011-11-15T13:04:00.000-08:00

So were you wondering if I fell off the wagon? Well kinda but not really! I've been on vacation and I can actually say that I'm glad it's over so I can get back to it. I had a great time away but it was a bit crazy as I prepared to be away. There's a lot that goes into being gone and handing the kids off to family.

OK...so the details of how I am. Well, lets say that I did gain but it could've been far worse. I am getting ready to "start" soon so I'm hoping that's a little of why I gained some. While on vacation we didn't eat out all meals but on average one, maybe two. We bought food at the store to have at home and my mom got us a fruit basket to have so we would have good food at the house and to take on the road. For the most part, I'm feeling good but I know a lot of work needs to go into the next several weeks. I need to have a lot of will power to say no to sweets and treats that find their way into the church (work). I've got to have a plan and I need to start now before it really kicks into gear. Here's what I plan to do:

1) Keep up with my Lean Cuisine or Smart Ones
2) Bring fruit and veggies to work
3) Find some kind of sweet thing that will satisfy me when everyone is diving into the cookies
4) Find a carbonated drink that I can have with little to no calories and it's good for me.

A friend found a good drink and I think I'm going to try it. It's the Ocean Spray Diet Sparkling Cranbery Juice. I'm going to give it a try and I'll let you know!

Here goes nothing...I am hanging it all out there (no pun intended) :

11/15/11 212 (gain of 3.2lbs. since Friday 11/4)

Weigh In

2011-11-04T04:35:00.000-07:00

OK, so after the week I had, I wasn't so excited about stepping on the scale. After stepping on, I was pleasantly surprised that I didn't gain more than I did. Call me crazy for being "pleasantly surprised" but this will give me more incentive to make better decisions today and thru the weekend - my hardest times. I am so thankful that I didn't gain more! Yeah! Here are my stats:

11/4/11 208.8 (gain of .2 lbs from last Friday)

Have a great weekend! Time to get to work (both physically and mentally).

Tough Week

2011-11-03T11:46:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's definitely been a tough week. I haven't been doing the best with watching what I've been eating plus I haven't been working out. I can certainly tell that my muffin top has come back just a wee bit...at least more than what it was last week. It's so hard to try to do it all. I've been busting my but trying to get this Christmas project done because I have a long list of stuff that I need to make for Christmas. I should get up in the AM and do the sit ups but I haven't. Just one of those weeks! I told Nate to get rid of the sweets that accumulated in the house this week, thanks to Halloween. That's certainly been a stumbling block. I normally don't buy sweets so to have them around is so tempting. As long as they're not around I don't get tempted. Wish it wasn't so hard! I've finally come to the realization that I'm a binger. The times that I do my worst eating are when I come home and I run to the kitchen because I know the girls are watching TV and Nate's on the computer. No one can see what I'm eating so it's safe. Another time is when Nate's up to tell the girls a story and I run to grab something he would scold me for so I can be done before he gets down stairs. So when he finally comes down, I'm siting like a perfect angel when in fact I just had one or two pieces of cake. Hello...it's all coming out! Welcome to my week. Again, this is why I don't have crap in the house! I just have to keep in mind that tomorrow is a new day...a fresh start and ask myself, how am I going to make it different. I just remembered the song I posted on Monday...seems fitting that this has been my motto for the week but I'm starting to think I'm not living it. Even though tomorrow is a new day, I need to stop making the mistakes that I keep making. It's time for a change...a lifestyle change, like how I've been talking about. Here are some great quotes from Bob Harper...

Change takes time, but you can see progress EVERY DAY!!!

Sometimes it's important to be selfish. What have you done for YOU lately?

Every success begins with a starting point! Start living a better life RIGHT NOW!! Remember that I am here for you and I believe in you!

Don't wait until after the holidays to change your lifestyle! Focus on making smarter choices today!!

Don't keep pushing off a better life to "next week," start making positive changes TODAY!

New Day

2011-10-31T07:05:00.000-07:00

Hey there...it's Monday and I am so thankful! Weekends are hard, with eating, but we sure did have a great one! I didn't go totally overboard but enough that I know I needed to make some better decisions. Every day I'm making better decisions than the last day so I'm moving forward! Today's is Halloween so I'm telling myself that a few pieces of candy isn't bad but I certainly have to watch myself! Especially those times in front of the TV when you're not concentrating on what's gong into your mouth. It happened last night. We got home from Trunk or Treat and the girls had gone to bed. I had finished a long couple of hours on my Christmas project I've got started and all I wanted to do was watch Twilight. The candy was sitting on the living room table and I reached for a piece, then another, and then another and that's when I heard it. "You better watch it."It wasn't my conscious, it was actually my husband who said it. I owe him a lot for saying what he said. At the time, it kind of got under my skin but I know he said it in love and that's why it didn't hurt my feelings like it would have a few weeks ago. Here's to a NEW DAY...make it a great one!

Weigh In

2011-10-28T04:27:00.000-07:00

Feeling a little giddy this morning as my weigh in approached. I wasn't sure what the scale might say. I felt that no matter what the read out said that I would be fine. It was a different week so I was OK with whatever happened. To my surprise, my number decreaed from my last official weigh in! Yeah! Here are my numbers:

10/28/11 208.4 (loss of 1.6lbs. since Monday)

Gettin' Me Some Hope

2011-10-27T13:21:00.000-07:00

Today I had a great conversation with a friend of mine and she just made my day. We were small group buddies and I truly miss meeting with her on a weekly basis. She is hysterical and she makes the weight loss journey fun! We were doing the book Made to Crave and I think we both learned so much. Although the journey continues, there's so much that we still need to learn. Bless her heart, she's going to Weight Watchers and she told me that she'd grab the books for me so I wouldn't have to pay to go. I'm at the point to where I don't want to give up any more money for someone to tell me how to lose weight because it's truly not rocket science. I do believe that Weight Watchers is a good thing and helps hold you accountable but to pay $12 a week is a little crazy...for me anyway. For someone reading this, you may think it's great, but these are my thoughts and this is my blog so I'm not paying the $12. Thank you Thank you Thank you dear friend for "sponsoring' me thru this process.

To get to the heart of the matter, today was a tough one and I messed up a few times. I was mad, angry, and frustrated and by golly, I wanted to eat thru it. I know I didn't make the best decisions but it just firmed up with my friend and I talked about earlier and that was the cold hard truth that I need to have a plan. I need to know what I have to eat and I need to know when to eat it. Sounds simple but when you're a huge multitasker it's hard to find time to eat! Crazy I know but it's the truth. From here on out, I gotta have a plan and I have to stick with the plan.

Gotta get home but I'll let you know tomorrow some of my thoughts on the Weight Watcher book. Can't wait to get into it!

Sit Ups

2011-10-25T19:57:00.000-07:00

I have to be honest...I hate sit ups! Hate them and could really do without having to do them...if only I could do without them. Not sure what else there is to do other than sit ups to get rid of this muffin top. I guess I hate the muffin top more so I'm willing to do them. I have found that it's a little easier to do them on a yoga ball or with a heavy weight. Not sure what it is about the weight other than the fact that you want it to be done..as fast as possible! Like I mentioned before, I do the workout app in the morning and I've started doing sit ups at night. The past couple days I've stopped running and stepping and I need to get back at it. I've been working on my Christmas project and I've let that take over my free time. Oops! I did have a non-scale victory today though! Per my daughters request she wanted to go to McDonald's and she wanted me to go with her. I nixed my lunch plans with my Smart One and had lunch with my hubby and baby girl. Instead of getting my beloved Dr. Pepper, I had a 5 calorie lemonade. If I dwelled on it too long I would get sad so I tried not thinking about it. Easier said than done but I did it! Yeah! I checked my weight this am and I'm down another pound :) I'm hoping I can keep it up till the weigh in on Friday!

Rainy Days & Mondays

2011-10-24T06:46:00.000-07:00

You know the words to that song, Rainy Days & Mondays always get me down? Just think about if it's a rainy day AND a Monday! That fully describes what it's like today. A double dose of blah! I had an amazing weekend full of fun but not much working out/eating right. Because of that, and many other reason, I've decided to switch my weigh in day to Fridays. I still did my weigh in today but I'll also do it on Friday so I can start off on the right foot this week. The next few weeks leading up to Christmas are going to be busy but very fun and fulfilling. I'm working on many Christmas presents and I'm so excited for Christmas to get here so I can give away my pieces of "magic". Once Christmas has come and gone, I'll post each piece so you can see. I'm giddy just thinking about it! For now, I'll leave you with the weigh in results...drum roll please!)

10/24/11 - 210 lbs (down 1 from last week)

Non Scale Victory #1

2011-10-20T11:25:00.000-07:00

OK...so today I wanted to report my little victories that happened yesterday. Although they are small victories they are victories non the less!

My arm's are 1" smaller than they were the last time I measured ;) Yeah!

Even though I haven't dropped a pant size, I'm able to get into my skinny jeans. On my way!

This weekend, we're going to Boo at the Zoo. Can't wait to see my little trick or treater's in action! Have a great weekend!

Gettin' It Goin'

2011-10-20T07:59:00.000-07:00

Last night I really wanted to work out on the Wii either by stepping or running but the baseball game was on. There was no way that I was working out to the tune of "Take Me Out To The Ball Game". For me, watching baseball on TV is shear torture. I wanted this to be a quick workout...not one that would feel like three hours. I opted to head upstairs and try out some workouts on my phone. I recently downloaded this app that's specifically for your abs. I've been using it the past few weeks and I've felt great. Since I couldn't get a full work out in last night, I opted to do all the workouts on my phone. It was awesome. I did the ab workout along with one for my arms, legs, butt, and cardio. You can decide whether you want a 5, 7.5, or 10 minute work out. On some, I opted for 5 minutes while on others I did the 7.5 minute workout. If you have an Android phone, go to your Market and type in "Daily Ab workout Free" and you're sure to find it. You can also go to this link to download it. After I did all the workouts, I decided to do one of the zumba songs that we do on Monday. I've downloaded the song to my phone so I grabbed my weights and went to town. Although I wish I were feeling a little stiffer today, I know it was a good mini work out. This morning I did the ab workout again...I hate it but I gotta do it. After it's all over, it's so worth it! Gotta get rid of this muffin top...it's days are numbered! I'll tell you about my little victory tomorrow! It's going to be a good day...I'm going to make sure of it!

The Beginning of the End

2011-10-19T19:07:00.001-07:00

You read right...for me, this is the beginning of the end! What I'm about to write from here on out is about my real struggle. Something I've been battling ever since getting married and to this day. It's the elephant in the room...the obvious...to tell you the truth, I'm ready to move forward. My struggle is my weight (deep breath...). I'm living in my little world trying to make myself think that I'm happy with myself when in fact I'm so frustrated. How did this happen and why is the weight so hard to get off? My friend told me about a blog that I've been on just about every day since finding it. It was of this girls struggle with her weight and her battle to get it under control. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has spent hours looking at it and reading every post. Every woman wants to find that miracle pill or formula to make her thin. The first question off every women's lips is "How did you do it?" If I went looking for encouragement and motivation, then I'm sure there's someone out there who's looking for it too. Every week I'm going to blog about my thoughts...my bad days...my great days. I'm going to have my mini-goals and most importantly, my stats. That's right...I'm laying it all out there. I thought that if I see it for myself, every month, every day, I'm going to have the determination to stay with it. I have to make this a LIFESTYLE CHANGE. I'm not just losing weight to get to that magical number. I'm doing it to be healthy and because that's the lifestyle that I want. So...here we go! Let's get this show on the road :)

10/17/11: 211 lbs, Arms: 30", Hips: 47", Waist: 41", Size: 16

Running

2011-09-05T19:00:00.000-07:00

OK...this topic has been on my mind for some time and I just gotta get it out there. What's up with all the running? I get on Facebook and everyone is doing it! I feel like it's the new trend...the new "gotta have it"...the new "gotta try it"! Everyone I know is doing it! They talk about going 12 miles...7 miles...10 miles. Hello, Facebook friends! I have a hard time going 1 mile let alone 10! So what's up with it? When did this get to be such a hot topic? I think God must have skipped me over when he was handing out the running gene cause I know I definately ain't got it. It's not something that I desire to do, want to try to do, or even sounds appealing to do. There is no peer pressure there and I can certainly tell you that I'm not jumping at the chance to find me some new running kicks! So again I ask...what's up with running?

I was just talking with Nate about it in the car and he laughed at me the whole trip home as I was trying to get him to see my side of why I ain't got it! I told him that even if I did run and got down to my goal weight, there is no chance that I would ever want to do this on my own with nothing to gain from it. Maybe this is more of a weight issue than anything and something that I'm still trying to figure out in the obyss of the many folds in my brain. Seriously though...if you lose weight...maybe like BIggest Loser style and you're down to your goal weight, what in the sam hill is going to keep you going back to running or back to the gym? If I hit my goal weight, the last thing I'd want to do is work out! I'm there...I've finally arrived...I'm done! I don't think the word "maintain" is in my vocabulary cause I don't know how to do it...never had to really do it, in regards to weight. Who knows...I've gone off a tangent again :) Back to running >

So what is it about running? Am I missing something? I keep asking myself why I keep getting bothered by it and I've thought that maybe God's convicting me and that maybe I need to do it. I hope and pray that's not the case :) I remember thinking when I was in middle school and high school when it came time to run "the mile" about how I will be so happy when I graduate because I will never have to run this thing again and dag on if it doesn't haunt me! Secretly in the back of my mind, I'm laughing now because the weather is changing and all the runners will have to come in because it's too cold to run. The devilish side comes out and I can hear the Dracula in my voice saying, "Ha ha ha...take that!" Call me crazy...call me what ever you like but I'm clueless! OK...enough about that. I'll jump off my soap box cause friends...I gotta run! No really, I'm actually maybe more walking away. Sorry...I had to!

MPM

2011-09-05T14:38:00.000-07:00

Thank God it's a short week :)

Tuesday -Baked Potatoes
Wednesday - Meatloaf & Mashed Potatoes
Thursday - Chicken Divan
Friday - Pizza

MPM

2011-08-28T19:16:00.000-07:00

Here we are again :) I'm totally excited to get back on board with a ROUTINE! I thrive on structure and organization so I MUST keep up with things like this to simplify my life and my family! Somtimes this drived my family crazy but hey...it helps us save money and time. Two things which I LOVE and don't have enough of! Here we go:

Monday: Roast & Potatoes
Tuesday: Taco's and Spanish Rice
Wednesday: Speghetti
Thursday: Tortilla Soup
Friday: CiCi's PIZZA :)

Hello

2011-08-25T17:39:00.000-07:00

It's been three long months since I've blogged. It was a well deserved hiatus. Much has changed but much is still the same. The summer was long but good. We spend many days at the pool and the zoo and just thinking about summer makes me wish it were still here. As I sit and type, both girls are in bed and fast asleep, not much to their liking. The house is quiet and there was nothing better to do than to write. I left everything from my to-do list at work so here I sit. For the past few days I've thought about writing my thoughts down but something always came up that required attention. It's nice to have a few quiet moments to myself. Doesn't happen much and it almost seems foreign. One day that will change though and I'm trying to soak up these "interruptions" and think of them as blessings. Aiva is turning into quite the young lady although she tries to act older than her 7 years. It must be that 8 is lurking close and she's about to turn another year ....wiser is what I'd like to say but "challenging" is what comes to mind. She's definitely more of a challenge than Ana but day by day we make it through. She has such a powerful personality that it's been difficult for her and Nate to communicate. They end up arguing and it's not pretty. I've been the peacemaker and try to mediate between them both but more times then none, they both end up crossing their arms and parting ways, frustrated. I pray that she learns how to use her personality for the good and realize the damage that it could do if she uses it the wrong way. She's the sweetest thing if you know how to talk to her and build her up. I've researched this and it's taken me awhile but I think I know some key phrases that don't cause friction and we seem to have done better.

Ana my playful child is always hard at play with her friend Riley. They're always side by side although not for long. Riley is about to start kindergarten while Ana is still in preschool. Fun as it seems, Ana looks like she should be the one in second grade. She's about ready to pass up her sister in height. She definitely takes after her daddy. The trait she's taken on is that of whining. Not the best one, but we're dealing with it. She's been whining since the day she was born and she continues to do so. One of these days she will tell us what she wants or what is wrong without whining. When that happens we all will celebrate! She does still have an infectious smile and I can't help to not smile when she's in the room.

We're looking forward to a new year and new things. So much is in store for us and I can't wait to see how things unfolds. Since I'm "back" get used to seeing me on here. I do miss seeing and hearing my updates. I look back at my blogs from time to time and it helps to see how I've grown or what we've experienced. Not just me, but it's amazing to see how the girls have grown and how they've changed. Kids grow so quick and I'm sure soon I'll look back on this and think "where did the time go". Until then, I'm enjoying each moment...hope you can enjoy it with me!

Menu Plan Monday

2011-05-22T18:31:00.000-07:00

Monday - Spaghetti & Salad
Tuesday - Chicken Cesar Salad

Wednesday - Blueberry Pancakes

Thursday - Tortilla Soup

Friday - PIZZA

Saturday - Ice Cream Festival :)

Sunday - Hot dogs on the fire...camping :)

Five Star Friday

2011-05-13T17:30:00.001-07:00

I totally give this week 5 stars...although it seems like Mother's Day was such a long time ago it was a great week. Here we go...

#1 This week after Ana was done with karate, just me and the girls went to Cream Corner. It was so great to sit in the sun for a bit and take our time eating ice cream. Even though I'm not a fan of bees (who really is) it was a welcomed sight to see some buzzing around.

#2 We got some summer clothes out this week in anticipation that it's REALLY spring and summer. I feel like every year I jump the gun and put the winter clothes away and then before we know it we need them again.

#3 I took the girls to the thrift store to get some dresses. They're not so much for shorts lately so we had to grab some dresses to improvise. They got three each so we should be set other than shoes. Tonight we had a fashion show to celebrate. Once dad gets home we'll do it again so he can see!

#4 For the past three days I've had straight hair. I guess that means that I haven't had to wash my hair for three days! May seem weird but I LOVE not to wash my hair every day. When it's curly I always wash so these three days have given me a break! Yeah for breaks!

#5 My co-worker Lorien made my day today :) I'm so glad I get to share the office with her! I am so lucky that we get to work with a great bunch of people. I LOVE Fridays at WCC! Despite the fact that we were all busy we were able to get in a few laughs! Guys, thanks for making work fun!

Catch-up

2011-05-13T11:36:00.000-07:00

Everything seems like somewhat of a blur since Aiva had her tonsils out. She did absolutely great. The night before her surgery we went to her favorite restaurant, Max & Erma’s, and we let her eat whatever she wanted. Of course she wanted ice cream so that was first on the list. Here’s her creation!
She was mighty proud and I must confess, I loved helping her eat the whipped cream. The next morning we woke up incredible early (see the previous blog post) and since I couldn’t sleep, I made a trip to the Red Box to grab some of the video’s she had picked out that she wanted to see. I got 4 for her and one for me. After all this worry and anxiety, I needed something to take my mind off the “surgery. So, we got there and waited our turn. Aiva was a champ…she wasn’t really nervous and I think it helped having my dad there. My dad joked around with her and made the atmosphere very light and jovial. When they came to take Aiva to surgery, my eyes filled with tears and I couldn’t talk so the only thing that I could do was lean down to her ear and whispered that I loved her and that it’s gonna be OK. Even typing this now I’m sobbing! I’m a mama…what can I say. That was a tough morning! The nurse looked over at me, as I have tears streaming down my face, and she said, “I’ll take good care of her…she’s going to be fine.” As I tearfully walked away with Nate holding me close, there was nothing that I could do but pray…and go to the bathroom to bring my red eyes and checks back to a normal shade with the help of some slashes of water! As I walked out I felt like all eyes were on me and my Rudolph nose. My dad took my mind off of what was happening in the other room by talking about his bible study and work. Before we knew it, they were calling us back to give us an update. The doctor told us that Aiva’s tonsils were very big and that she was going to have a hard time. GREAT…that’s what every parent wants to hear! After awhile, the nurse came to get us and as I rounded the corner I saw her…my baby girls laying in a hospital bed. She was rubbing her nose sucking on a popsicle. This is the moment that I had feared since we heard she was having all this done. I did not want to see her eyes and feel them saying, “Mom, why did you let this happen?” It was OK though. She cried a little but we got her calmed down. My dad rubbed my back to make sure I was OK while I comforted Aiva. This was a shot that I got shortly after we walked in to see Aiva.My heart just breaks as I look at it now. It was the most precious thing…Nate was so awesome thru all this! Can you believe that Aiva actually ate potato chips and drank water in recovery? She actually did so well that they let us leave early! On the way home, Aiva wanted to call Grammy to tell her about her surgery! Who is this kid? I totally couldn’t believe it! Big kudos to my dad for being there with us and for his moral support! Aiva was held up for about a week but after that she’s been great. A little swimmers ear but she had her tube out so that’s normal. I’m hoping this is the start of all of us being a lot healthier!

So, after all that we’ve been trying to be outside as much as possible.We ride bikes a lot and it’s been great. The girls are at a perfect age for this and I am so enjoying this age. Ana is finally at an age where she can keep up and we all enjoy it so much more. We typically go to Aiva’s school to play at the playgroud. Usually there’s someone there who she knows so it works out great for the kids. We sometimes see some friends from church too so it’s great. We love living in Sunbury!

Aiva has been doing great at art. She truly loves it and she’s so good. Here are a few of her creations. The first is her project for Mother’s Day…isn’t it great?! She so surprised me! The second is a picture so designed and brought home this week. Check out the detail!Ana has been doing well with karate but I think she’s caught on to the fact that she’s the only girl. All the other kids in class are boys. The funny part is that she’s the tallest one in the class despite the fact that she’s the youngest! Not only that but she’s kicking all the boys butt when they spar! This is something that they just started and she loves the part when they “fight”! It takes an extra push to get her there but once she’s there she loves it!I went to Ana’s school for a Mother’s Day Tea and we had a great time. She is such a little princess. We had cookies and Kool-Aid and the teacher read the stories that the kids had written about their mom. Ana’s story was about me. She wrote that I was 14 and that she loves when I make pasghetti, especially when it’s cheesy! She also mentioned that when I was young, I played in a box…not sure where that one came from but she got it from somewhere…maybe sandbox??Nate has been doing a lot of fishing and working at his grandpa’s. The other night, when I came home from work, this is what I found in my sink.Not one of my favorite moments, but made me realize that we’ve made it to spring and summer! We don’t see Nate when the weather warms up but he loves being outside and working back at the lakes. He’s in his element back there so I kind of let him be! One of these days the lakes will look amazing and Nate will be so proud…so will I. All that time away from family will be worth it!

That’s about it for the Jacobus clan. Sorry it’s been so long, to all you faithful readers. We’ve had a busy couple of weeks. Hard to believe it’s been almost a month since my last blog. I’m ready to get back into the swing of things and back to blogging. The break was nice but I’m excited for what’s to come. Hope you’ve all been well.

Waiting

2011-04-15T01:26:00.000-07:00

I couldn't take the waiting anymore. The alarm is supposed to go off in 30 minutes and it took everything I had to stay in bed this long. Today is the day that Aiva is supposed to have her tonsils out. This has been a love hate day from the time we sheduled it. I know that I'm more worked up about this than she is. She has no clue what's in store and I know that's a good thing. I just remember back to when I had mine out when I was 18 and it was awful. I think the thing that I'm so afraid of is seeing the pain in her eyes as she looks at me 5 hours from now. I can barely stand to think of it. I'm sitting here balling and I'm hoping that once I get all this out I'll feel more at peace. I've heard stories from other kids who have had theirs out but it doesn't help the ache in my heart. This is my baby...I have to remember that God loves Aiva so much more than I do. Even though I can't wrap my brain around that one, I know it's true. I just pray that the moment we walk into that recovery room...the moment that we round the corner...the moment that we pull the curtain back...Aiva will not have that look in her eyes. That look that says, "Mom, you knew how it was going to be...you knew that it was going to hurt...you knew that there was going to be blood...but you still put me through this." Call me what you will...dramatic, over-reacting, ye of little faith, whatever...you don't know unless you've gone thru it. Guess I have a little glimps of what God felt like as he awaited the time for Jesus to be crucified. He saw that pain in Jesus' eyes and I'm sure it was hard to bear...the pain that said, "Dad, you knew how it was going to be...you knew that it was going to hurt...you knew that there was going to be blood...but you still put me through this." You probably knows what comes next...that's how much he loved him. That's how much He loves Aiva.

Tuesday's Tip

2011-04-12T16:43:00.001-07:00

Tuesday's Tip comes all the way from high school...maybe middle school :) We were talking about home economics today and I told some of my friends from work that one thing I learned stuck with me all the way from back then. It has to do with coring and cleaning a head of lettuce.

Once you take the "head" out of the plastic bag, you hold the "head" with the core faced down. Bang the head against the counter once or twice until the core goes a little ways into the head. Turn the head with the core facing up and take the core out with your fingers. Run water over the head filling up the core until water starts flowing from the head. Pull off the "bad" leaves and store the rest in a bowl with a top or cover with plastic.

Menu Plan Monday

2011-04-10T13:55:00.001-07:00

Monday - Meat & Potato Pie

Tuesday - Potato-Topped Mini Meatloaf

Wednesday - PB Pancakes

Thursday - Quiche Lorraine

Friday - PIZZA

Saturday - Broccoli & Chicken Pasta Toss

Sunday - Pepperoni Pizza Wheels

Five Star Fridays

2011-04-08T08:41:00.000-07:00

#1 - Last night Ana and I had some cuddle time. Before bed she was coloring a picture and all of the sudden she said she was feeling a little tired and she climbed up in my lap and fell asleep. She felt so good sleeping in my arms that I didn't want to put her down because I'll never know when she'll do that again on her own. Made me think of my Karen Kingsury book, Let Me Hold You Longer. This link is to Karen giving a promo of her book as she reads it. Makes me cry every time :)

#2 - Lunch out with my friend Mandy :) We've been trying to get together for AGES and we finally made it work. Nothing like a baby on the way to give you a good kick in the butt :) I should mention it's her baby...not mine :)

#3 - It's the little things in life :) Nate, Ana and I walked to UDF this week for some ice cream while Aiva was at art. It was a little chilly but made my heart warm at the thought of summer being around the corner.

#4 - I got picked this week from Columbus Research Connection to do an interview on coffee. I scheduled it for next Friday but had to cancel today. Just to get picked was quite a feat in itself. I haven't done any work for them in months so I was happy that they called and wanted me to come in. Maybe next time!

#5 - Last but not least - scheduling to get Aiva's tonsils out. I'm ready for her to be a healthy little girl and not have to worry about meds anymore. Both girls have been sick a lot in their little life so it's exciting to know that Aiva can hopefully put all this behind her and move on to a normal healthy life.

That's my 5 star Friday...make it a good one :)

Thankful Thursdays

2011-04-07T17:47:00.000-07:00

This evening I'm thankful that Aiva is scheduled to get her tonsils out. Even though I'm not excited for her or what we're about to go thru, I'm happy and thankful that she doesn't have to go thru having to go to doctor's and be on meds all the time once we have this done. She has literally been on meds ever since she was three so it's been a long 4 years. If it's not breathing treatments it's steroids, and if it's not steroids it's been medicine for strep. Hopefully it will all finally come to a close! This is something that I've wanted to have happen for a long time and I just have to get over the fact that she's going to be hurting for awhile but it's all going to be worth it. I'll keep you posted next week as to the details and what we're doing to prepare her but she's scheduled for Friday. I'm hoping she'll be OK for Easter! Keep us in your prayers!

Extreme Couponing

2011-04-07T06:59:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I posted something about Extreme Couponing on my Facebook page and it got me thinking to explain why I extreme coupon. I must say that I don't go all out like the people on the TLC show but I do pretty good for my family and I do have a stockpile. Not a huge stockpile but I do stockpile the things we use all the time. I won't go to the store and buy 65 bottles of mustard but I have gone and "bought" 12 before - most of which I gave to the Westerville Area Resource Ministry. I've also "bought" 15 tubes of toothpaste that also went to WARM. I don't believe in having these large stockpiles in your basement - making your home a store in it's own. Maybe if you have large families like the Duggers but most of us do not. If I do "buy" large quantities of something, I generally give most of it to WARM. Lots of times I give away stuff - I've brought coffee creamer to my Monday AM bible study, brought stuff into other staff members, and took items to other family members. I like to spread the wealth if I can! The reason I got into stockpiling is because I found that I was able to save loads of money. My family was in a situation where we were low on funds and I had to think of ways in order to save money. Once I got into a routine, it was easy and I started to find ways to shorten the process and save more money. After doing it for several months I noticed that I was able to save quite a bit of money so we were able to put money towards different "wants" that my family had. Because I've been extreme couponing and stockpiling we've been able to:

-Enroll Aiva into art classes ($200 for eight classes - 4 sessions so far)
-Enroll Ana into karate classes ($189/month)
-Enroll Aiva & Ana into preschool ($135/month)
-Go on vacation to Myrtle Beach
-Nate is going on vacation to Wilmington, NC to see his brother
-Redecorating our living room
-Membership to the zoo

These a just a few of the things we've been able to splurge on because I coupon. If this is something you would like to get into, you can check out one of the blogs that I frequent. She not only give her opinion and thoughts on Extreme Couponing on TLC but she give you some good resources to go to to get started. Good luck and happy clipping!

Word-filled Wednesday

2011-04-06T15:15:00.000-07:00

The "Word" of the day comes from 1 Corinthians 10:13 which says: 1 Corinthians 10:13 (The Message) - No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he'll never let you be pushed past your limit; he'll always be there to help you come through it.

The gal who is leading my new small group has used this verse in referring to our new study "Craving God", and it has gotten me thinking. I think my favorite part of this verse is at the end - he'll always be there to help you come through it. How comforting is that? How many times have you been "pushed past your limit"? How many times do we forget that God will never let us down? We need to remember that whatever we're going thru - money problems, marriage problems, problems with our kids, problems at work, problems with family - God will never let you down. He'll always be there to help you come through.

I think it also helps me remember that someone has always had it worse then me. Someone has gone thru the test of life and no matter how hard I've had it, they've gone thru worse. Makes me think of the pain and heartache that God had to go thru to see his one and only Son dying on the cross. He could have stopped it at any time but he didn't because he loves us so much. Do you love Him enough to ask Him to help you push past your limit?

That's your "Word" for the day...make it a good one :)

Tip for Tuesday

2011-04-05T08:39:00.001-07:00

Tuesday's Tip is a goodie :) It's one of my favorite's because it always works! Do you like omelets but never make them because they're too hard. Look no further! worry no more! I've got an easy way for you to make an omelet plus they are delicious o! Here's what you do:

You will need:
-2 or 3 eggs
-a plastic bag with a very good seal
-a medium pot
-enough water to fill the pot about halfway
-a whisk
-a large spoon

You should also get other spices, cheeses, and toppings as desired.

#1 - Start heating your water, as it needs to be at a rolling boil to cook your food.

#2 - Crack the eggs directly into the bag and shake or whisk well. Add desired spices and mix again. Make absolutely sure that you have removed all air from the bag!

#3 - Put the bag(s) directly into the boiling water. Let them sit for at least 13 minutes to become fully cooked. Believe me, you don't want food poisoning for 3 days because you were too impatient to wait 13 minutes.

#4 - Carefully take the bag out of the water. You can be thrifty and reuse the bag, or just rip it open and "pour" it onto the plate. Ready for eating!

SO EASY plus the omelet is perfect! Hope you enjoy :) This is your Tip for Tuesday, make it a great one!

Menu Plan Monday

2011-04-03T17:40:00.000-07:00

Monday - Homemade Mac & Cheese with Tossed Salad

Tuesday - Baked Potato with broccoli

Wednesday - Spaghetti

Thursday - Hamburgers and homemade Fries

Friday - Pizza

Saturday - Quesadilla's

Sunday - Beef (I've got to get rid of some potatoes and beef :) )

Five Star Friday

2011-04-01T13:24:00.000-07:00

#1 - I got to see my fair share of movies this week. I am such a movie junkie that it did me well to get caught up. I think when I'm old and gray and have to go back to work (due to the cost of living and inflation) I'll go back as a movie critic. Two good movies that I was surprised in was Country Strong and Life As We Know It. Next time I'll get to splurge will be in November for our anniversary. I can't wait!

#2 - I got to redecorate the living room and add a few things to the girls room. The living room looks great and I can't wait to see what the gang thinks. Looks much more appealing that what we had before. SO excited that I got a a new entertainment center! Looks awesome!

#3 - I got a new t-shirt that I'm dying to show Nate. It's from Francesca Batistelli and it says:

#4 - Had the hardest laugh today and it felt great! Duane Gray in our office was laughing out in the hall and I swear it sounded like a machine gun! I had to yell out to him what he sounded like and I couldn't stop laughing. Gosh...isn't it good to laugh!

#5 - Aiva learned how to text this week from "Grammy's" phone. My baby is growing up! My favorite part? She ended every one of her texts with "I love You Mama!". I knew my parents loved me but I don't remember them telling me often that they love me. I try to tell my girls and Nate at least a zillion times a day that I love them. Seeing Aiva's words on my cell phone just enforced that I'm doing a good job and letting her know that she's loved.

What a full week...5 PLUS Stars in my book! Gotta run...they're home!

Word-filled Wednesday & Thankful Thursday

2011-03-31T07:56:00.001-07:00

I'm combining both of these posts since they both deal with the same thing. Hope that's cool with you :) Yesterday I spent the day racking my brain for how I was feeling inside. There was a verse out there but I just couldn't put my finger on it. All day I kept searching my heart and it just wasn't coming to me. I looked up something and it took me to a quote by someone, not sure who, but it goes like this:

"The soul is nourished by ritual and celebration."

That's exactly what I was feeling but I couldn't find a verse in the Bible that used those particular words. Today as I was having some quiet time I finally found the verse I was looking for! Funny thing is that it's so common that I'm surprised it didn't come to me sooner! Does Psalms 23 sound familiar? Hello! So...the verse I'm using for Word-filled Wednesday is easy...

"He restores my soul"

That's it! This week my soul has been restored. I've had some good quiet time. I've gotten to clean up and re-decorate the house. I've gotten to hang out with some friends and have seen several movies. My soul is very full...I do...I feel restored! It's amazing what a few days and some peace and quiet will do to a person!

Which leads me to Thankful Thursday ;) I'm so thankful that I've had this week to get my "stuff" together. I feel so much more rejuvenated and like I have more of a spring to my step. I know it takes a lot out of Nate to take the girls out of town so kudos goes to my wonderful husband. It's been a rough week in Nashville because they've had some pretty crappy weather. Can't wait for them to get back into town and see what I've done to the house. Thank you honey for letting me have this time. It will help carry me to Montana!

Tip for Tuesday

2011-03-29T12:02:00.000-07:00

Today's tip is one I've used several times. More than I'd like, but the good part is that it WORKS! Mom's, have you ever had spills that involve carpet and Kool-Aid? You're left frustrated and most times taking it out on your kids. Before you explode next time, take a deep breath and know that it's easy to clean up. Here's the instructions!

1. First get a bowl and put a small squirt of dish soap in it. Then fill the bowl with hot water. Go ahead and plug in the Iron while your at it.

2. Go to the stain and put enough soapy water on the stain to make the carpet wet. Don't drown the carpet though :)

3. Take the white towel and place it over the stain.

4. Get the hot iron (careful don't burn yourself!) and place the iron on the towel over where the stain is. You can move the iron back and forth like your ironing or keep it in one place. If you keep it in one place don't do it for long. You don't want a burnt carpet.

5. You will start to see the white towel turn the color of the stain. Keep repeating the process until the stain has lifted. I had to repeat the process for about an hour when my daughter spilled red kool-aid over her off white carpet. It works though!!

That's it...that's your tip for Tuesday. Make it a great one!

Menu Plan Monday

2011-03-28T10:05:00.000-07:00

Since I'm batching it this week I'm not doing a Menu Plan Monday! I'm taking the week off and enjoying it too! Happy Spring Break!

Five Star Fridays

2011-03-25T09:21:00.000-07:00

#1 - Just the fact that it's Friday is a star in my book. It has been a long week and I'm not 100% sure why. I guess it's just that it's been on again and off again with the weather so I have been too. I'm just glad that Friday is here!

#2 - Nate and the girls are going to Nashville! To say that I'm excited is an understatement. Not only for them but for ME. Finally I get some ME time. I feel like I have to rush home to help Nate out with the girls once I get off work that I feel guilty a lot of the time so I don't head out much with my friends and family. I am going to live up this week and enjoy every minute.

#3 - MOVIES :) My dad and I are going to see The Kings Speech and I can't wait. I'm also going out with my movie buddy and we're doing a movie marathon. I can't wait. Last time we did this was last year when Nate went to Nashville. Time for another marathon...plus, I don't even have to break a sweat! Love me some good girly movie time!

#4 - I love making jewelry now. Maybe it's not so much the making part but having a finished product makes me feel like I've accomplished something. I just finished a set this week that I'm rather proud of and I'm going to be working on a few more pieces this week. What better way then to get inspired than to look thru a Premier catalog or Lia Sophia catalog. I'm going to try to work on a few knock off pieces. Let's see if I can fool some people :)

#5 - Ana started karate this week and I love watching her in action. She looks so darn cute in her outfit. I told her that she's going to need to do pig tails so her hair's not in her face and she looks even cuter with the pig tails in. I love it how she stares me down like she's really intense when doing her moves. It appears that she's passionate about it so far so we'll see where it leads. She may just be one of those Black Tigers one day! Makes me want to get a bumper sticker that says "My Karate Kid is better than your Karate Kid!". Looks like I'm an officially a karate mom!

That's my Five Star Friday...Make it a good one :)

Thankful Thursday

2011-03-24T14:48:00.000-07:00

Today on Thankful Thursday, I am thankful for my DAD! Today is his birthday and although I wish I was able to spend more time with him today, it was good to see him and have some lunch with him. We're going on a date tomorrow and I'm so excited! My dad is my hero...I look up to him and am very proud of him. He has taught me so much about life, love and what's right. There are so many great memories I have with my dad. Some of my favorite are:

#1 - When my mom and dad dropped me off to college at KCC, my dad wrote me a beautiful letter about life and love. He talked about me being successful, watching out for myself, knowing that even though I may feel alone that God is always with me. The letter spoke about how my parents are so proud of me and love me so very much. It talked about their hopes and dreams for my life. I still have this letter and treasure it dearly.

#2 - The day I got married, when my dad walked me down the aisle, I was terrified. Before going into the church I was fine. When the doors opened and I saw all the people looking at me, I felt like I wanted to faint. I remember leaning on my dad for support and he supported me as I walked thru the beautiful church to my prince :) Before he gave me over to Nate he looked in my eyes and kissed my cheek.

#3 - Thru our whole ordeal in Montana I had thought repeatedly, "Dad would know what to do...". The moment I heard my dad's voice on the other end of the phone after we had been rescued, I knew everything was going to be OK. When Nate and I got off the airplane when we got back from our honeymoon my dad was waiting for me. My heart felt full when I saw him! I'll never forget that day!

#4 - Thru our "interruption" a few years ago after we returned from Nashville, my dad was extremely supportive. He never once said "I told you so". He welcomed us home, provided food, shelter and love and gave us a hand up. It was one of the lowest points in my life and I couldn't have done it had my dad not have been so encouraging and loving.

So today, I'm thankful for my daddy! Without him I wouldn't be the women that I am today. I hope I've made him proud!

Word-Filled Wednesday

2011-03-24T14:32:00.000-07:00

So the Word of the days comes from 1 Corinthians where it talks about the body of Christ. I had one of the elders at church today (Thursday) refer me to it about something I was talking to him about and as I was in the Word I saw something that peaked my curiosity. In verse 11 there was a little morsel that God planted right there for me. Here it is:

1 Corinthians 12:11 - All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

In the verses proceeding this verse God is talking about distributing gifts and how he gives certain gifts to certain people. I love that no matter how hard we TRY to like a certain hobby, or sport, or activity, He determines if it/you is going to work as it should. Reminds me of my sewing machine that's been sitting in my closet for the past year and a half. A part of me wants to break it out and get to work but a BIGGER part of me says, NNNAAAHHH! I have picked up a new hobby and I've really enjoyed it...jewelry making! It's fun and I can do it for myself and others. Doesn't cost too much either! Who knows, maybe enough time spent in JoAnn's and I might venture to the sewing stuff!

Another thought that came to mind when I read this verse is of my daughter. Ana has been talking forever about taking karate. What the heck...of all activities she picks karate! I've put it off as long as I can and this week I bit the bullet and signed her up. She went tonight for the first time and LOVED it. She looks pretty darn cute in her little outfit too. It doesn't matter how much I want her to play soccer, or to take art, God may have DETERMINED for Ana that karate is something that she's going to be good and excel in.

We all have gifts and talents that God wants us to use for Him. What's yours? Just something to think about. That's your Word of the day...Make it a good one!

Tip for Tuesday

2011-03-23T06:29:00.000-07:00

Tuesday's Tip comes from the USA Weekend paper in my Sunday paper. It had a quick little tip for cleaning out your kitchen drain. I've always heard of doing baking soda and vinegar in your kitchen drain to clear it out but this was a new one!

The story said to put 3 Alka-Seltzer tablets down the sink, followed by a cup of white vinegar. Leave it for a few minutes, then run hot water down the drain.

Thought this was cleaver if you were out of baking soda but had a few Alka-Seltzer's on hand. Whatever works, right?! This is your Tip for Tuesday. Make it a great one!

MPM

2011-03-21T10:29:00.000-07:00

Monday - Beef Tips and Mashed Potatoes
Tuesday - Chicken Sandwich & Homemade Potatoes
Wednesday - Turkey Bacon Wraps
Thursday - Mustgoes
Friday - Pizza
Saturday - Chicken Cesar Salad
Sunday - Potroast

Catch-Up

2011-03-20T07:45:00.000-07:00

I'm playing catch-up from last week. I missed my last two posts of the week and I'm feeling a little unfinished so I think I need to wrap up the week by posting so I can clearly move to this week :)

So what I'm thankful for...I know I've already said it last week but I'm thankful for March Madness. It's such a great time of year and I love all the anticipation leading up to it. Kind of like Christmas! I love picking all the teams and cheering on underdogs! Such great stories coming out of March Madness too. You learn about players and coaches who you never would really hear anything about. Very cool! So that's my Thankful Thursday. What are you thankful for?

OK, my Five Star Friday consists of:

#1 - It was a fairly slow week at work. I've been able to get caught up at work and it's been great! For some reason it was quiet last week which is kind of good at times. I'll take it!

#2 - We had dinner at Eagles last week and it was awesome. We hadn't been there since summer and I always love coming back! Kind of like coming home :) Dan the Man was there and he's always fun to be around. The girls love him...good to catch up!

#3 - Aiva had her last etiquette class on Saturday and she was absolutely beautiful! She wore the dress she wore for her Christmas pictures. I LOVE this dress! She looks amazing in it. We had to make a stop after her class and everyone kept loving on her dress. I love when people call her out and tell her she's beautiful. She eats it up!

#4 - Talked to a long time friend on Saturday. It was the first time since college. It was good to take the first step...sometimes God MAKES us do things we wouldn't otherwise do.

#5 - I made a slew of jewelry this past week. I was so proud of myself! I made two necklaces, 4 bracelets and 3 pairs of earrings. I'm starting to get into this hobby now! Yesterday, I went to JoAnn's and loaded up on more supplies so I can make more stuff. So exciting...I think I might make my first gift to give away. Hopefully it will turn out ok!

That's it...hopefully I can be more on the ball this week and keep up with blogging. Sometimes I have the best intentsions but things get busy! Yikes...looking forward to hopefully a beautiful week...Make it a great one!

2011-03-16T17:41:00.000-07:00

The "Word" of the day is from Psalm 30:5 which says (half of it):

"Weeping may last for the night but joy comes in the morning."

This is the verse that keeps coming to mind tonight as Ana has been crying! For the last few nights she has been crying uncontrollably for no real reason. Drives me crazy! I try to calm her down and the more I try to calm her down the more frustrated I get. I keep repeating this verse and taking deep breaths! Not sure if this is going to do anyone any good but tonight it's what is calming me down and helping me to remember that even though Ana is crying now, she's going to wake up with the best and biggest smile in the morning. This is your "Word" for the day...make it a great one :)

Tip for Tuesday

2011-03-15T10:56:00.001-07:00

Tuesday's Tip is one I had to learn the hard way. He it is...during the time you're supposed to "Spring Ahead" it is a wise idea to have two alarms set until your internal alarm clock catches up with your bedside alarm clock. I normally rely on my cell phone alarm clock to wake me up on a daily basis. Most days the girls are sufficient enough but not today. My cell phone decided to die in the middle of the night therefore when I realized that I was well rested I turned over to see that my bedside alarm clock said "9:08AM". Not good, considering I was supposed to be at work at 8:30 and that Aiva was supposed to be on the bus at 9:02. the girls were both sleeping due to lack of sleep this weekend so we were all LATE! If I would have had my other alarm set we wouldn't have had to worry about this little mishap. So, you're tip for Tuesday is to set two alarms JUST IN CASE. If you never have to use it, great. If so, you'll be glad you did and so will your boss! That's your tip for Tuesday...make it a great one :)

Menu Plan Monday

2011-03-15T10:51:00.000-07:00

I am incredibly late getting this out so here it goes.

Monday - Blueberry Pancakes with eggs (they were amazing!)
Tuesday - Broccoli Beef with brown rice
Wednesday - Chicken Divan
Thursday - Baked potatoes and broccoli
Friday - PIZZA NIGHT
Saturday - Chicken and noodles (I still haven't made this from the weeks before!)
Sunday - Chicken Caesar Salad

March Madness

2011-03-12T18:32:00.000-08:00

March Madness is one of my favorite times of the year. I love basketball, I love Nate, and I love watching basketball with Nate :) It can't get any better than this! There's just something about this time...these few weeks. The Selection Show is just the beginning. Nate and I sit on the edge of our seats as the teams are picked. We fill out our brackets together and most times he takes my advice :) Not to brag but I've done pretty good with my brackets in years past. I love the challenge of it all. I love breaking out my two colors of highlighters to mark the W's and L's. Nate laughs at my traditions but I must confess something. After the tournament is over, my brackets look like a work of art! Anyway, another reason why I love this time is because you get to find out about these kids. They're not just talented basketball players. They're actual people with a story. A testimony. I was just watching Dwayne Wade's story today and it showed clips of when he went to Marquette and what his "story" was at that time. I have to admit...it got me. Choked me up a bit. That's what I love! I love the stories behind these people...where they've been, what they've experienced.

Another thing that I'm ecstatic about is the movie coming out tomorrow on ESPN Fab Five! It's about the Fab Five at Michigan - Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King, Juwan Howard, and Ray Jackson. I've watched these guys since before they were freshman at Michigan. Chris Webber has been my all time favorite ball player. Despite the laughs about "Timeout" and the bad comments I've heard, I've remained faithful. I am so happy that both Webber and Jalen Rose are commentators and are doing with with ESPN. I read the book Fab Five by Mitch Albom when I was in 8th grade. Got thru it in 2 days. I soaked it up like a sponge. It's the best era of basketball that I've seen - despite the fact that they didn't get the National Championship. Can't wait for tomorrow!

It's gonna be great!

Five Star Friday

2011-03-12T18:24:00.000-08:00

I'm a little late with my Five Star Friday so here it goes:

#1 - Two words...Wii Zumba. I love this new workout and so does Nate! It gives you a good burn and you sweat a lot - I like to know that when I work out I'm doing something!

#2 - A partial week with no TV. The girls actually played with all their toys. Even though they complained a little it was still nice to not have the TV on for background "noise".

#3 - A couple nights I got some good sleep. I had a cold the beginning of this week so I tried to sleep it off as much as possible. It's nice to sleep and not feel guilty about it!

#4 - Girl time on Friday. Nate had small group so it was me and the girls. Even though both of them are sick it was nice to have some girl time.

#5 - I was able to read a book on my Kindle today. It's been saved on there for three months and I finally got the chance to read it today. It feels so good to get thru a book. I feel like there's no time these days so I had to make time. With two girls sick there was plenty of time today!

That's my Five Star (Delayed) Friday :) Make it a good one!

Thankful Thursday

2011-03-10T10:57:00.000-08:00

Today for Thankful Thursday I am thankful for the quiet of the office today. Usually there's a lot of hustle and bustle in the office but not today. I LOVE it! I've been able to get caught up on a lot of things that have been "hanging" and I've been able to listen to my tunes and just enjoy the quietness of the day. Believe me, this NEVER happens...unless it's summer. So for today, I'm going to soak this up and enjoy it! That's what I'm thankful for today...how about you?

Word-filled Wednesday

2011-03-09T10:27:00.000-08:00

Your "Word" for today is found in Hosea 6:3 which says:

Let us surely acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; He will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.

With today's weather being so yucky, it's nice to remember that God is faithful and that the sun will shine again. No matter how unfaithful we've been to Him, He will always remain faithful. This is your "word" for the day...make it a great one :)

Tip for Tuesday

2011-03-08T12:29:00.000-08:00

Today's Tip for Tuesday comes from my mother in law. She forwarded this to me about a year ago and I have yet to try it but would love to. It has to do with how to peel a potato the easy way. If you ever get the chance to give it a try, let me know what you think. I'd love to hear from you! This is your Tip for Tuesday :) Make it a great day!

Menu Plan Monday

2011-03-06T19:33:00.000-08:00

Monday - Beef Stew (we didn't have it last week)
Tuesday - Baked Potatoes
Wednesday - Italian Chicken
Thursday - Taco Salad
Friday - Pizza
Saturday - Beef & Noodles
Sunday - Subs

Five Star Fridays

2011-03-04T12:07:00.000-08:00

#1 - We made a huge payment on our CRV this week. It's almost paid off! 3 more months and it's OVER!

#2 - Last night when I was telling Aiva & Ana their bible story and singing them their song, Aiva announced that she knew the story I was telling them. It was the story of the rich young ruler. She proceeded to tell me the whole story and then quoted the verse that she learned at Awana. It was John 3:16. Totally knocked my socks off! I was so proud of her.

#3 - Getting the Grammy Gram from Debi :) Even though this letter is meant for the kids, I love reading it too. I'm so happy that the girls have something like this where they can stay in the know on their cousins!

#4 - I was "interrupted" by my friend Mandy on Wednesday. We have been trying to get together forever and sickness or time always seems to be standing in the way. She stopped by the office to drop something off to me and we finally got some time to chat. Even though it was a short time it was so nice to catch up. can't wait for the next time girl :)

#5 - I made 1 necklace, 2 bracelets, and 3 pairs of earrings this week. I'm so proud of myself. I've ventured into a new hobby and it's been a lot of fun. We'll see how long this one lasts but I love making stuff and being able to wear it! All those family members out there, you may end up getting one of these great creations if you're lucky!

That's your Five for Friday :) Make it a good one!

Thankful Thursdays

2011-03-03T11:43:00.001-08:00

Today for Thankful Thursday, I'm thankful for the remote desktop connection on my computer. I know that sounds hookey but it's true. Today, Nate was sick and so I was stuck with Ana. At first I was a bit frustrated because I hate to miss work but then I turned my frown upside down and started to figure out what I was going to do. I took Ana to work to grab some work, headed home and jumped on my computer (RDC) and started working. Without it, I would be stuck and have to take a vacation day. Thanks to Mark Stier and the RDC for letting me be able to work and stay home with my daughter! Got to get back to her :) That's what I'm thankful for today!

Word-filled Wednesday

2011-03-02T17:07:00.000-08:00

Today's Word-filled Wednesday comes from Colossians 1:11 that says "His glorious power will make you patient and strong enough to endure anything, and you will be truly happy."

There was a staff meeting a few years ago when Greg asked someone what he could pray for them and they responded with "patience". His comment was, "Are you sure you want me to pray for patience...you realize that if we pray for patience, God will make you be patient and it may take a LONG time for something to happen." I guess I had never thought of it that way before...he was totally right. Ever since that time I laugh whenever some one prays for patience and ask them specifically, "Are you sure you want me to pray for patience?"

The great thing about having the Holy Spirit living in us is that we are already filled with patience, peace, and all the other fruits of the spirit. We don't need to ask for it...WE ALREADY HAVE IT! We just have to choose it! Now that's good news! That's your "Word" for the day...make it a great one!

Tip for Tuesday

2011-03-01T16:04:00.000-08:00

Today's tip is one that I used just last week. It's better known as the "Penny Trick"! Here's how it goes...hold the penny with your thumb and forefinger. Put Abe's head into one of the lowest points in the tire's tread. If the tread covers Abe's head, you're good. If you start to see the tread above his head, like in the picture above, it's time to look for new tires. This is your Tip for Tuesday! Be sure to make it a good one!

Menu Plan Monday

2011-02-28T19:33:00.000-08:00

I'm a little late with this post but hey...it's still Monday!

Monday - Speghetti (We didn't have it last week)
Tuesday - Pancakes (It's National Pancake Day)
Wednesday - Burgers, real ones this time :)
Thursday - Beef Stew
Friday - Pizza
Saturday - Tortilla Soup
Sunday - Roast

Five Star Fridays

2011-02-25T17:29:00.000-08:00

#1 Jammin In Your Jammies - We had "Jammin" this week and it was a lot of fun. I wish Aiva got into it a little more but I think she's getting to the age where she's a little too old for this kind of event. Everyone got to come in their jammies, have breakfast, and "jam" with Chip from Lakeside.
#2 - My mother in law sent this adorable card this week to the kids. The girls LOVED it. She had a dog names Barkley and of course we have Bozeman. They get along like brothers. Boz is looking forward to seeing Barkley this summer!

#3 We got the CRV back! We just picked it up tonight. I hope this is the last time that we're separated for a LONG time! The best part is that they didn't even charge us for "part 2"!

#4 I got our Montana trip booked! We got everything for less than $2000! That's a miracle! Now all we have to do is wait til November! This is the scene will be enjoying for 5 days!

#5 Our church is using a new program to send emails. It's taken me all week to get it figured out and ready and tonight I sent the first email. I was so excited! Here's to more good stuff coming from the church!

Thankful Thursdays

2011-02-24T06:06:00.000-08:00

My intent was to start out my first Thankful Thursday with some one I'm thankful for. Last night I knew it was going to take a turn into some thing that I'm thankful for. Today I'm so thankful for our trusty Buick Regal. Our CRV has been in and out of the shop and the Buick is always there for us. We just got back our Honda the day before yesterday and we were so excited to have her back! Nate got in it to go to the store last night and she wouldn't start. I was so upset. We (us and the insurance company) just spent all this money and it STILL doesn't work! I am so thankful that we have another car to fall back on! Most people don't have this luxury. Even though she's a little rough looking good ole' Betty keeps us going. That's if for Thankful Thursday! Make it a great one!

Word-filled Wednesday

2011-02-23T05:54:00.000-08:00

The "Word" for the day is found in Proverbs 16:9 which says, "In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps."

Sound familiar? I think this is the story of my life. I'm such a planner so I have everything plotted out - finances, time, coupons, clothes for the girls. I guess this is just a good reminder that no matter how much "planning" you do, God is the one who allows the chips to fall as they may. We need to make sure that we're wise in our planning and not be glued to our plans. It's OK to have plans and an agenda but we need to learn how to react when things don't go as we've planned. Have more faith and trust more. This is your "Word" for the day. Make it a good one!

Tip for Tuesday

2011-02-21T18:43:00.001-08:00

My Tip for Tuesday has to do with permanent markers. If you have kids then you probably have an example of something that they wrote on in permanent marker. My first time came when Aiva was young and she scribbled on our kitchen tile with a black permanent marker. YIKES! I about pulled my hair out! Before I did, I googled it and found that I should use toothpaste to take the marks out. Sure enough it did the trick. I took a dry washcloth put a dab of toothpaste on it and started making small circles on the marks. Within minutes the marks were gone. I rinsed the washcloth and wiped the tile clean. It didn't ruin the finish of the tile either. Worked great! I've used this plenty of times since and it works every time. So, here's your Tip for Tuesday! Make it a great day!

Blogging

2011-02-20T19:28:00.001-08:00

Monday - Menu Plan Monday: I'll be listing what the Jacobus Fam is going to be having for dinner this week. This is more accountability for me, if anything. If you can get some ideas, well great!

Tuesday - Tuesday's Tips: I'll be listing a tip, whether it's something that I've tried or wish to try. I'm always up for doing things easier, quicker, or more efficient!

Wednesday - Word-filled Wednesday: This will be a post about a verse that I've read today or something that I've read recently where I felt God speaking to me.

Thursday - Thankful Thursday: This will be a post about something or someone for who I am thankful. So many times we forget to be thankful or have a thankful heart. We live in a gimee gimee world that when we finally get something we forget to thank the one who gave it to us.

Friday - Five Star Fridays: I'll be blogging about 5 highlights that happened this week. Wheather it has to do with work, family, or friends I'll list it here.

MPM

2011-02-20T19:07:00.001-08:00

Monday - Chicken N Noodles in the Crockpot
Tuesday - Taco Salad
Wednesday - Bocca Burgers
Thursday - Spaghetti
Friday - Pizza
Saturday - Go Out for Dinner
Sunday - Beef Tips N Noodles

Survivor

2011-02-12T18:26:00.000-08:00

Survivor is not just a reality show on Thursday nights. It's not about being dropped off to a deserted island and trying to survive on your award winnings. Survivor is what I am. Survivors are what we are. Nate and I got married on November 11, 2000 and it was a great day. One of the best in my book. The story (short one, compared to the book we're writing) I'm about to tell is one of life or death. It's not a tall tale. It's not non-fiction. It's all real.

Last night we saw a story on 20/20 - The James and Kati Kim Story . It was so real to Nate and I because we lived it. Maybe not to the extent that the family on 20/20 did but we know how they felt. While we were in Bozeman, Montana for our honeymoon we got stranded in the Beartooth Mountains.

It started out as a perfect vacation. We were in a fanatasyland ever since our wedding on that Saturday on 11/11. Bozeman was everything we had hoped for. We had even talked about how great it would be to live there. To our surprise, Montana had gotten more snow than what they typically did for this time of year. Yellowstone had closed their gates so we were constantly staying tuned to their news reports to find out when we could go in to explore good ole' Yellowstone. We got the good news on Wednesday that they were opening the North (Gardiner)and Northeast (Cooke City) Gate of Yellowstone. We planned to enter the north gate and exit the northeast gate and head back to Bozeman. We headed out early that day and had a few snacks in our Jeep Cherokee. The north gate is about an hour and a half from Bozeman so we knew we were going to be in the car for awhile that day. We got to Yellowstone and had a great time exploring Mammoth Hot Springs that day...that is until we discovered that Nate lost his wedding band. You'll have to wait til the book to hear the detailed story of that part. Let's just say it involved a coyote that was pretty gnarly! It was about 3PM and we knew we had to start heading back to Bozeman. It gets dark early out west and we wanted to get on the highway before the sun set. We exited out the northeast gate and it started to snow. The plan was to head on Rt. 212 to 90 and head west to get back to Bozeman. We were going way out of our way but that's what the map said. The thing we failed to find out was that Rt 212 (Beartooth Highway) is actually closed from 10/16-5/30. As we proceeded, the snow really started coming down and it was really hard to see. Actually, it was so hard to see that we passed a sign that was partially covered stating that Rt. 212 was closed ahead. See, what they do in Montana is when the snow gets so high and the roads are too difficult to travel they have these massive gates that go clear across the road to stop traffic. We continued on and the snow was getting deeper and deeper and we could feel the car losing momentum. We decided to turn around to see if we missed an exit. As Nate started to back up, he got stuck. At this point we weren't worried but kept trying. Back and forth, back and forth. No use. Nate and I both got out and tried to dig around the tires and it was no use. GREAT! Now what? We decided to wait until someone came along that could help us out. After all, it was almost 5PM and people were heading home from work, right? No such luck. We waited til about 7PM and we started to wonder what was next. We weren't quite sure what the next step would be. We had about a half a tank of gas and so we kept turning the car off and on to help conserve gas. About 9PM, we started to get a little nervous about where we were headed (no pun intended). We weren't headed anywhere although we sure wish were were. We knew we were in for the long hull and we had to spend the night in the car. We had no clue where we were and the temperatures were dropping at a rapid rate. The temperature gage in the car read 3 degrees at 11PM that night. Later we found out that we were in Red Lodge, WY. At one point Nate talked about getting out and trying to walk to find help. No way, was I going to let him do that. I may not have been smart to find out about the gate being closed but I was smart enough to not let him get out of the car to leave me for help. The only thing left was that we had to survive the night. Again, more details are in the book but it was a rough night, to say the least. Neither Nate or I were dressed for the elements and it was very difficult. In the morning, once we realized that no one was leaving to go to work that morning where we were, we knew had to get out and walk. We left about 9AM and started walking. To where, we didn't know...we just wanted to find something...someone. Keep in mind, the snow was almost to my knees and it was freezing cold...literally. We walked about three miles and I couldn't do it anymore. Nate walked in front of me and I followed in his footsteps. I kept singing the Twila Paris song "God is in control" to myself and kept telling myself that this was not how it was going to end. Long story short, we found a back to a semi (tractor trailer type thing) that was up on a hill. We trudged along, broke in, and found some essential items to get us warm and out of the cold. By this time it was about noon. After catching a breather we knew we had to go back out and look for help. We knew we had to leave on Friday and I was not going to miss our flight back. After a lot of praying and a lot of tears (that froze to my cheeks), we left the comforts of the "Warming Hut". As we proceeded down the hill back to the road, I thought I saw someone off in the distance. Nate thought I was hallucinating. It took him awhile for him to see what I saw and then he finally started running to get their attention. They were about as surprised to see us as we were to see them. They were snowmobilers who had just got stuck and were from a city in Powell, WY. They said they would take us to where they were from and we could rent a car from there and head back to Bozeman in the morning. Again, long story short but the WY Highway Patrol had spotted our car with his helicopter and they were actually searching for us. They stopped our lumberjack of a guy rescuer and asked if he had seen some people who were stranded. He laughed when he said that we were in the truck. He dropped us off at a Super 8 and we called our parents to let them know we were OK. The conversation went something like this, "Dad, we're in Powell, WY and I just want to let you know were OK." There were lots of tears and nothing can really describe how we felt after our experience. Once we called our parents and the Bed & Breakfast where we were staying, Nate laughed and said..."Let's get a pizza!" Funny enough, there was a Pizza Hut next to the hotel and after everything we had been through, he couldn't have been happier! I called my parents in the AM to find out what kind of plan we had and again we saw God's handiwork in our rescue. We were just miles away from Cody, WY - a city we had just been the summer before. Frank, our cab driver, came to pick us up and take us to the airport so we can get a car to drive back to Bozeman. He heard about our predicament in the Beartooth Mountains and we told him that we needed to find a way to get our Jeep off the mountain. The sheriff told us that we needed to get it off by Friday or else it had to stay til spring. Montana was expecting another few feet of snow and the car would be completely covered if we didn't take action. Frank, our angel, took on the mission of rescuing our Jeep. Long story short (again), we got back to Bozeman, told our story once again to the B&B people, and turned in to bed so we could leave first thing in the morning to go back to Columbus. When we got back, our family was there to welcome us home...I couldn't do anything but cry. It was such an emotional time and we came very close to never seeing our family again. We got back home and my dad got a call from Frank. To our surprise, and his as well, he and his team were able to get our car off the mountain! A few days later, after we caught our breath, Nate and I tried to contact Frank and our lumberjack rescuer to thank them. There's no listing for either of them...Frank's number was no longer Frank's and the Lumberjack guy's license plate number doesn't even exist. They were truly our angels...God's fingerprints.

There are so many other details to this story that you wouldn't even believe. The book is a work in progress but it's almost done. It's very emotional to sit and write about our experience. It takes a lot out of us to go back and recall all of the details. As we watched the 20/20 story last night, Nate and I just sobbed and sobbed because we knew our experience could have been so much worse. Thank God He had our back! So, that's the story. A lot of people know the story from church because my mother in law filled them in when we were found. Not many know the complete details. Not many people know that we could have died in the Beartooth Mountains. I'm so thankful our story ended the way that it did. We learned a ton from our experience. Many people ask if we would go back and yes we would, and yes we have. Actually, Nate and I went back the next summer with Nate's cousin Ryan Stumpf and his wife Lisa. We got pictures of the area where we were stuck and of the Warming Hut. It was great being back but very surreal to know that we made it. We have been back two times since then, and God willing, will go back again this November to celebrate 11 years of marriage on 11/11/11. To God be the glory, great things He had done! Stay tuned for the book!

Heart

2011-02-09T07:15:00.000-08:00

Something happened this morning that just about ripped my heart out. Not literally of course. It started last night when I took the girls out to dinner. I had a heck of a day so I took the girls to Burger King for dinner and thought I'd let them play at the play land. That was a great idea until Ana let me know that her throat hurt...when we got there. Great, I thought. Here we go again. I told her that she could play games on my phone while Aiva played. She was so distraught over not being able to play. We don't do this much because I hate germs and hate my kids being sick so them actually being there was a huge feet in itself! Aiva played for a bit and then I told them it was time to head home. Surprisingly they both cooperated and we were home in minutes. I just knew Ana had strep throat. She just finished up meds two days before from strep throat two weeks ago and I knew it was back. My heart was so heavy for her that all I could stand to do was pray. Nate got in bed with me and we prayed over her little body and that we would all be able to sleep and get rest and that we were so thankful that we could go to the doctor in the morning to get meds so she can be better. First thing in the morning she wanted a cool bath. She knows that when they're sick I'll bath them and powder them and treat them like royalty. They both eat this up! I know she's sick when she wants a bath. Nate helped me out with getting the girls going and other than Ana being sick the morning went smooth. I got Aiva on the bus and then it was time to pile in the car so Nate could take me to work and Ana to the doctor. Ana then announced that she wanted me to go with her. I explained to her that I had to go to work since I was already late but that got her upset. It got me upset too. I'm her momma and I so much wanted to be with her. My heart ached to hold her and comfort her at the doctors but I knew that Nate would be with her and that she'd be in good hands. I asked her who else was going to be there with her and daddy and she answered, "Mamaw?"No...someone bigger. "God", she replied. God is always with us. I explained to her that I would be there with her too but that I was in her heart. Every time the girls are scared or lonely I always draw a little heart on their hand. I've done this for Aiva's first day of school for the past three years. When they're sick I do this and it helps calm them down and bring them some sort of comfort. (This of course is not Ana's hand) As I was drawing Ana's heart, my heart just broke that I couldn't be there with her. I had to keep reminding myself that our God is so much bigger and loves Ana so much more than I ever could. I thought to myself that maybe I should start drawing a heart on my hand to remind myself that God loves us and is always with us. God's heart would probably include a cross in it as well to remind us that God loves us so much more than anyone ever could and that he will always be with us in our heart and one day, soon I hope, we will be with Him.

Timeout

2011-02-08T19:25:00.000-08:00

So it's been an exhausting day. I'm surprised I haven't already gone to bed. I needed to get the good ole' work out in and I couldn't get something off my mind so I thought I'd blog a little before I hit the hay. My car has been out of commission (and transmission) for the last three weeks. We've been down to one car and it hasn't been fun. I'll save you the details but we we were waiting for our tax refund check to pay for the work. We finally got the check and as soon as I received it I called the mechanic to give him the green light to fix the car. He called me yesterday and told me that the car would be done today and we could pick it up in the afternoon. The bad news came around 11AM today. I knew the news was going to be bad as soon as I realized he left a message without my phone ringing and then I couldn't get to my voicemail. I should have stopped and prayed then but I proceeded on. I finally got the message and he explained to me (long story short) that we have blew up the engine and instead of the $1000 that we were thinking we would have to pay it was going to be $4000-$5000. My heart sank. That was practically the rest of our refund check that was left over. What were we going to do? I couldn't even wrap my head around the thought of not going on our anniversary vacation in November. What about the money we were going to build back up our savings? Gone...that was the only thing that kept coming to mind...Gone. The only thing that Nate said was that he was glad we had the money to pay for the repair. What? What about the other stuff. I couldn't get past it. I made numerous calls, talked to all kinds of people, I was in a rut all day. It was awful. I talked to my parents and they advised me but the news was bad no matter how you looked at it. It was 4PM when a friend walked in my office and asked why I wasn't running it thru insurance. HELLO...wake up call! Why weren't we again? It originally started out that we didn't want Nate to have this on his record so we were just going to pay the $1000 out of pocket since the accident was his fault. It didn't even cross my mind to put it thru insurance with the price going so high. I called my insurance guy (who is amazing) and he told me we can certainly do this plus he told me that our deductible had decreased. Not only are we not going to have to loose all of our tax refund check but we only have to pay our $500 for the work. What a relief. What did I learn? I still have a problem with worry and trust. I feel like I can do things on my own and when I learn that things aren't going my way I worry about what's going to happen. This little interruption rocked my world today and it shouldn't have. It says in Matthew DO NOT worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of it's own. Today I had trouble alright but I also have a great big God. He knows what my tomorrow is going to bring. He knows my desires, my needs, my shortcomings, everything. Pride is something else that got in the way. I didn't want to tell anyone at work about my bad news and it took my friend overhearing a conversation to figure out I was in trouble. If I would have gone to her sooner I might not have gone thru the valley for that short time. This was certainly a test and I didn't do so well. Hopefully next time I have an interruption I'll take time. That's just it...take time. Be quiet. It's so not in my nature to take time but that's where I get caught up. Lesson learned for today...take a timeout.

Weakness

2011-02-05T12:44:00.000-08:00

I just had a moment of weakness. I almost didn't blog about it but I wanted to let you know that I'm human :) I just plucked all the gray hairs I could find from my head. It started as I was putting makeup on. Isn't that where it always starts?!? I was not even thinking of "gray" and then it caught my eye. I saw the little sparkle and my heart sunk. "Another one", I thought. What in the world...where are these suckers coming from. I thought I just plucked one the other day from the same spot. As I was trying to position my tweezers just right so I wouldn't pluck more than one, I spotted another one. OK, is someone playing a trick on me? I know that hair wasn't gray about two seconds ago. After it was all said and done there was a total of four gray hairs staring at me from my bathroom sink. I could almost hear them taunting me. For today, I was triumphant and defeated the battle of the gray. Tomorrow, I'm not sure I'll be so successful but at least today I was victorious!

Singing

2011-02-03T17:09:00.001-08:00

One thing that my girls love is singing. They will spin and sing for hours if we'd let them. Actually the thing that stops them is if one hits the other while spinning or one starts singing the others verse. I totally did the same thing when I was there age so I know where they got it! Like mother, like daughters :) For the past few weeks I've started singing bible songs with them before Nate goes in to tell them their daily bedtime story. Nate and I had talked and we agreed that they're not learning these great songs at church so we needed to start singing them at home and teaching them ourselves. Nate and I learned so many bible songs when we were younger that taught us the important bible stories. It's not like that these days. Times have changed and we decided to do something about it. Aiva is in first grade and before we know it she's going to be in middle school. Once this happens who knows what influences she's going to be around. We need to make sure that she's got the foundation that she needs when this time comes. Enough of my soap box and on to the singing. Every night I've taught them two songs and then they can each pick a song that they want to sing. Early on I taught them the song Jesus Loves Me - the part that they love is that it's not the traditional style. When Nate went to Jamaica in 1996 his team learned this new version of Jesus Loves Me and we have sung it ever since. So, when I started singing songs with the girls I knew one of the first songs that I taught them was Jesus Loves Me (Jamaica style). They loved it! LOVED IT! So, every night the one song that at least one of the girls picks is Jesus Loves Me. Aiva has got to the point to where she knows it all by herself. We decided to take the show on the road and go downstairs to perform for dad. They loved it and so did Nate. I let Aiva lead it and she was in heaven! It's so great to see my daughters learn bible stories and have fun doing it. I hope I'm leaving a legacy and imprinting something great on their hearts and minds. I guess it's not that I hope...it's that I am. Want to know the lyrics to Jesus Loves Me (Jamaica style)? Here ya go:

(Patting your legs/thighs)

Pat - Pat - Clap, Pat - Pat - Clap (thru the whole song)

Jesus Loves Me this I know

For the Bible tells me so

Little one who Him belong

They are weak but He is strong

Singing Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na (Hey!)

Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na (Ho!)

Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na (Hey!)

Yes, Jesus Loves Me

The Bible tells me so

Jesus loves me when I'm good

When I do the things I should

Jesus loves me when I'm bad

Even though it makes him sad

Singing, Na-na (Repeat Na verse and Yes, Jesus Loves Me Verse)

(Repeat two times)

Sing about his love

about his love sing about

Sing about his love

About his love sing

Yes, Jesus Loves Me

The Bible tells me so

Hopefully one of these days I can get it on youtube. It's a goodie!

Watoto

2011-01-26T17:04:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks ago our church had the privilege of having the Watoto Children's choir sing at out church. I had been looking forward to it for weeks but on the night they were supposed to sing we got lazy. Nate was into a football game and I basically didn't want to leave the house. We go go go all week long that when we do get the opportunity to stay home it's a treat. Later that night I was really feeling convicted about not going. I really wanted to kick myself for not making more of an attempt to go. It didn't make it any better to come into work at the church to hear all the positive comments from the choir. They raised a ton of money and the church had a packed crowd. From what everyone said, it was awesome. Again, I felt more conviction. Yikes...I couldn't get away from it! The next day, Tuesday, the Watoto kids were coming back to the church to hang out for a few hours before going to their next stop. Around noonish, John, our worship minister, came and got all the staff and told everyone to go down and pray with them before leaving. Again, I felt the pangs of conviction! I asked myself for a brief moment if I should really go down since I hadn't bothered to see these precious children in action. I asked my co-worker if she was going and she said she wasn't sure and before I knew what happened, I stood up and said, "Let's go!" We went down stairs and with the rest of the staff and meet up with some of the Watoto adults. When they saw us they didn't really look all that interested in praying or being interrupted. John asked if we could all go into the Arena, where the kids were to pray and they all stood up and lead the way. When we got to the Arena there were only a few kids there. The staff kind of stood around dispersed and then before we knew it the kids started filing through the door. They all had matching shoes, belts, jeans, shirts, everything! Without a second though, they walked over to the staff and stood next to us grabbing our hands and circling up. The two on either side of me, looked up and smiled and told me their name. I could hardly believe it! Once the circle was complete John started the prayer and once it was done the two kids on either side of me circled my waste and gave me a tight squeeze. It was the most precious thing. I didn't even know these kids - didn't take the time to come see them in concert and here they were hugging me and showing me love. Not only that but once the two beside me let go, all the kids left in the room started going around hugging us and thanking us. I was greeted by the smiles and love of all these African children who have lost the parents and many loved ones to disease, AIDS, or a half dozen other things yet they still showed me love. ME! Reminds me of Christ. We don't take the time some days, we find ourselves busy, yet God is right there welcoming us with open arms, smile from cheek to cheek. Once the kids were done hugging, I was left with this feeling of awe. There were no words...it was definitely a surreal experience. If Watoto is ever in your area, please take the time to see these kids. I know I will!

Exercise

2011-01-15T07:59:00.000-08:00

OK it's taking every ounce of me to type out this post but I'm doing it. Hopefully it will be a good swift kick in the butt :) Truthfully, exercise is something that I hate...we have a love/hate relationship. I hate doing it, but I love what it produces - hopefully one of these days. For the past month I've been trying to kick it in gear and it's been going well but I have a confession. I hate sweat. I think this is the partial reason why I hate this "activity" so much. Hate smelling it and hate feeling it on me. As Nate would say, hate is a very strong word. He's right in this instance...I HATE exercising & sweat. Now, I don't want to sound completely negative so I'm switching gears here. I am having a lot of fun using the Wii more and it has created an opportunity to hang out with the kids & Nate more and have fun with them as we dance on Just Dance. We've got Just Dance for Kids and Just Dance 2 and we're on them all the time. As I type, Aiva's actually dancing to Who Let the Dogs and it's taking every ounce of me not to join her. Something else I'm excited about is today I will be receiving a morsel in the mail that I'm going to savor. I ordered a DVD on Netflix that I see me keeping for a bit longer than the usual DVD. It's the Biggest Loser Power Workout. I love Bob from Biggest Loser so I know I'm gonna love this DVD. Can't wait to check the mailbox today to grab it and start working out. So as you can see, my attitude is changing and it's (I'm) a work in progress. There's talk of going to the beach this summer with Nate's family so it's my goal to go and feel good about myself. I'm not setting a number goal because I don't want to disappointment myself so I'm sticking with feeling good so there's no disappointments! Who's with me? One, two, three...let's go!

2011

2011-01-13T11:28:00.000-08:00

OK...I fell off the blog bandwagon there at the end of 2010. We ran into a spell of sickness and it took just about everything out of me to keep up with all that's on my plate and the rest of the family. I thought I would start this year off right and get back on the bus! I just had a little trip down memory lane as I went through my blogs of 2010 and it was so much fun. God has really done great things in 2010! I just have to share one thing before I get to the meat of the blog :)

I was going through my goals in January of 2010 and I came across one that made me giggle. On 1/20/10, my birthday, I had blogged about 32 things that I want to do in 2010. #10 was "To learn something different in the 32nd book of the Bible...Jonah". At the time I wrote that, I had no clue that I would ever go thru a study of Jonah! I probably chuckled a little thinking that I knew all about Jonah and there was no way I could learn anything else about the guy! Here I am, studying the book of Jonah with my Monday AM small group. We started in November and God has totally been speaking to me thru this study. This Christmas, I was able to go to some family members and apologize and explain for my "interruption" that I had a couple years ago. It produced conversations that I didn't think would happen and I feel so free. It's thanks to Jonah, for making me realize that I ran, just like Him. God works in mysterious ways!

So on to my/our goals for 2011. I'm going to incorporate this into my age, once again. I love numbers and doing it this way is so dag on fun! Here it goes ;)

#1 Since I'm turning 33, the same age that Jesus was when he was crucified, I want to live more like Christ.
#2 To be 33 pounds lighter (I'm giving it another go)
#3 To pay off our car
#4 To make three new friends
#5 To learn to make my own laundry detergent - thanks Nicole for getting me excited
#6 To pray more for my brother
#7 To drink more water than Dr. Pepper :)
#8 To eat more at home instead of eating out
#9 To build our savings account
#10 To make something special for my girls this Christmas
#11 To go on a once in a lifetime trip on 11/11/11 in Montana
#12 To start making jewelry with Ana & Aiva
#13 To learn how to better communicate with Aiva
#14 To show Nate more affection
#15 To encourage my dad
#16 To visit my Nana & Grandpa more
#17 To give blood once this year (I'm scared to death)
#18 To eat a star fruit
#19 To make something for someone
#20 To get to bed at a decent time
#21 To work out
#22 To play with the girls instead of having something else entertain them
#23 To make more time for Nate
#24 To make more time for myself
#25 To read more to the girls
#26 To take time out for Ana and spending time with just her
#27 Try to eat more vegetables (yuck)
#28 To appreciate the things we have instead of what we don't
#29 To think outside the box more
#30 To enjoy the girls laughter instead of telling them to be quiet
#31 To be a friend to someone who needs one
#32 To be quiet and listen to God
#33 Take more pictures to capture life

Financial Updates

Baby Step #1 - Save $1000 in an emergency savings plan

DONE

Baby Step #2 - Get out of debt with the debt snowball

ALMOST DONE Car needs paid off and we'll be done

Baby Step #3 - Start saving 3-6 months of expenses in savings

STARTING Hopefully in February

Baby Step #4 - Invest 15% in a Roth IRA

CURRENTLY DOING 8% IN MY ROTH

Baby Step #5 - Future funding for kids

SAVING $100 PER CHILD PER MONTH

Baby Step #6 - Pay off home early

Baby Step #7 - Build wealth & give

Like I said, this was a meaty blog. Hopefully I can keep it up and get back on track. I really enjoyed looking back at the past year and recalling all the great memories. Here's to a great 2011!

Shutterfly

2010-12-03T12:57:00.000-08:00

I LOVE Shutterfly! How can you not love a photocard?! You just have to smile every time you get one. Speaking of Shutterfly, they have an amazing offer for bloggers this Christmas. You can get 50 free cards! HELLO! I am so excited about this deal - mainly because I love free stuff and I love Shutterfly!

I'm still trying to figure out what pictures to use but I know I love the ones with the initial on them. I know I have to watch colors as my girls dresses are a darker red so I don't want them to look weird because of the different reds. I'm thinking something like this one:

I love the colors and I can either do black and white pictures or the regular color picture. I do love the green in this card! This is the other one I'm thinking

To look for yourself to see what they have you can go here. They have a ton of cards to choose from. The other good thing about Shutterfly is that they not only have photo cards but a ton of other things too. Check out the personal calendars here.

If you have a birthday coming up they also have regular birthday cards. They are so cute. Click here to get to them. Here is one of my favorites:
I just got the girls pictures taken so I'm all ready to select a card. Which one are you going to do? If you want to take Shutterfly up on their offer you better act fast! Time is wasting! Get going and happy Shutterflying!

Thanks!

2010-11-30T17:09:00.000-08:00

Thanks...been thinking a lot about that word here recently :) With Thanksgiving and all I guess it's bound to happen to a few select people! Thanks to those who look out for my blog updates. Sorry I've been disappointing you all recently. I've been in a slump (cousin of a funk) since we've gotten back from Chicago. I think it's the change in weather or maybe it was because I was sick up until a few days ago. At any rate, there is a ton I've got to catch up on, one being our trip which was amazing and I'm so thankful for.

Back to thanks. My mom asked me a few days before Thanksgiving about what my thoughts were on a gift that she could give to the grandchildren to help them remember during the year to be more thankful. She wanted to do something and I really thought that they would shrug it off and not follow thru so I put on the thinking cap. I told my mom that she needed to get each grandchild their own set of note cards and let them write one thank you card to someone that stuck out that month as doing something for/to/out of the normal, etc. She chewed on it for a few hours and decided to go for it. In the back of my mind I was hoping she got me a set too but no such luck. We got a little sign to hang in the house that talks about being thankful. I'm thankful to my mom for being so willing to have us over for Thanksgiving, cooking and preparing for all of us to be over. She even went out of her way to get us all special things so we can remember to be thankful.

Again, it got me thinking about how we are so busy and we forget to say thank you or express gratitude to others. We have every form of technology to help us to remember things. Help us to make sure that projects are done on time and get to the right people but we often time forget to do something as simple as saying thank you. I was so convicted after thinking about it that I think I'm resolving to send more thank you's and go out of my way to express my gratitude to others.

The first person I need to do this to is Nate. He has been amazing these last few weeks of my slumpness. He's gone to the store for me, cooked dinner (PB & J is fine for me), and never complained. He is an amazing husband that always encourages and supports me and I am so thankful for.

Thanks...what do you think about that word? Is there someone that you need to thank? Don't wait...do it now!

Advent

2010-11-29T09:11:00.001-08:00

Last year I talked about what we did for Advent. To see what I wrote about last year, you can go here. This year were going to do something very similar. It went so well that I thought that we should keep to what we did. The girls had a blast and Nate and I loved doing fun stuff to make the holidays seems enjoyable and not so rushed. Here's the list for this year:

1 - Holiday pictures at Portrait Innovations

2 - Make snowflakes and paper chains and decorate with glitter glue

3 - Make homemade hot chocolate and watch Polar Express

4 – Sunbury United Methodist Breakfast with Santa 9-11AM, Christmas in the Square

5 - Make Christmas cookies

6 - Watch Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer on ABC Family

7 - Red/Greed Day - Eat and wear red and/or green the whole day!

8 - Go See Santa at Easton and visit the Easton Train

9 - Grab a cheese pizza & watch Frosty's Winter Wonderland

10 - Watch the Grinch who Stole Christmas and eat Green Eggs and Ham for Dinner

11 - Christmas at the Hanby House from 1-4PM

12 - WCC Staff Christmas Party

13- Alum Creek Fantasy of Lights

14 - Wii Game Night

15 - Make a gingerbread house

16 - Go to the lights at the zoo

17 - Night in Bethlehem

18 - Roast chestnuts and almonds over the fire and have hot apple cider

19 - Read Christmas books and drink hot cocoa and sleep under the Christmas Tree

20 - Deliver treats to shut-ins at Worthington Christian Village

21 - Make puppy chow and watch Hachi: A dog's tale

22 - Wii Game Night

23 – Make a fun Christmas treat (Rice Crispy Treats)

24 - Read the Christmas Story and watch Nativity

25 - Have a birthday party for Jesus!

So what are you going to do with your family this year? Any new traditions? I'd love to hear. Here's to you and yours this holiday season. May it be merry and bright!

Project

2010-11-03T09:26:00.001-07:00

In my last post I talked about doing my one of a kind curtain :) Last night I finally had the chance to finish it and put it up. I was so proud of myself. After I was done with that I did a few more other projects but I'll get to that at a later date. Here's the finished product:
The other thing that I did was take out some lighthouse pictures that were in a frame in our living room. I was on a lighthouse kick a few years ago and I'm still trying to convert over to something else. I replaced them with some pictures that Nate's sister took this summer. I loved how it turned out!

Curtain

2010-10-28T08:12:00.000-07:00

OK, so I had to fill you in on a little secret. I'm working on some projects for the girls rooms. I've got things somewhat put together it's just a matter of finishing the painting and the...sewing. I should say the lack there of when I said sewing. I've found my new best friend Stitch Witchery.
My mom got me a sewing machine in January and I just can't break down and just learn to do it. Using this stuff was so much more fun plus it was easy :) My kind of easy! Anyway, I put together the curtain for the girls rooms last night and all I need to get now is the ribbon to tie it up to make a ribbon-tie curtain. Here's a glimpse as to what it looks like. I'll show you the finished product once i have it up!

Praying

2010-10-26T10:00:00.000-07:00

When you pray do you get a certain feeling? I don't know...something like being in another dimension? I've had this feeling ever since I can really remember being sincere in my praying. I tried to explain it to a friend of mine and he laughed at me and called me crazy. Thank you Jonathan! Looks like he doesn't get the same "feeling"! Anyway, when I'm earnestly praying and so in tune to listening to the Spirit I feel (here it goes)...like I'm on top of a Q tip! Don't laugh. I know I'm crazy. I can't believe that I'm actually blogging about this but I thought hey, I'll lay it out there and there might be someone else who has Q tip prayers! By having these Qtip prayers I know, without a shadow of a doubt that my prayers are Spirit led and that God is speaking thru me. When I ever I don't have this feeling I can tell that my heart isn't in the right place and the words that come out of my mouth are mine and not God's. Is anyone else with me or is it just me? If it's just me that's alright...I've lived like this for however many years and I think I'll be OK! Just a cool realization ;) Happy praying :)