Odds and Ends

I am definitely getting back into the blogging world. I find myself looking for new blogs to read quite often lately. I love all of the new ideas that everyone has these days and there is always someone with great Godly inspiration.

There are just a couple of things that I do want to mention. The first is just a prayer request. One of my blogger friends, Caroline, is going through a storm right now. Her daddy had a heart attack and she is very burdened by this. Pray for wisdom for the doctors as well as a miracle healing of her dad. You can see her posting here so that you are better able to understand her requests.

The second is this really cool blog that I found through my searches. You can find it here. There are so many things that I love about this one, so check it out and let me know what you think!

A New Year's Resolution (a little late)...

Do you ever feel yourself making food an idol? Maybe around the holidays? Or a birthday?

Is "idol" too strong of a word when it comes to food? I sit here telling myself that maybe it is too stong, but I really feel in my heart that food has become an idol in my life. I have no self-control over what I eat. Is it my emotions? Probably. Am I bored? Maybe. Do I eat food just because it is there? Most definitely.

Over the course of the winter, I have gained nearly 25 pounds. That is hard to swallow (no pun intended). I often chalk it up to turning 30 and getting older - but there are so many other excuses as well... I know I am not excersing as I should - it is too cold. My doctor has been working on my thyroid medicine as that seemed to go haywire late last fall. I got past the holidays and Jackson's birthday and then we were hit with an emotional bomb of losing a pregnancy. It has been a roller coaster, but all of these things are just plain excuses. I have no more room for growth in my clothes. That kills me.

However, what should kill me even more is that I am hurting God's temple and I am sinning whenever I sit down (or stand up for that matter) and put any kind of food in my mouth. Whether it be a snack or a meal only because almost a 100% of the time I eat way too much. I don't eat to just satisfy my hunger, I eat to satisfy my fleshly desires and/or emotions of either sadness, boredom, etc. Wayne and I have a running joke about being able to always eat. He would ask if I am hungry and I would always say, "I can always eat", even if I am hungry or have already had breakfast, lunch, and a snack. That's aweful.

I was doing a little research on gluttony this morning and found this from Got Questions.org:

Physical appetites are an analogy of our ability to control ourselves. If we are unable to control our eating habits, we are probably also unable to control other habits, such as those of the mind (lust, covetousness, anger) and unable to keep our mouths from gossip or strife. We are not to let our appetites control us, but we are to have control over our appetites. (See Deuteronomy 21:20, Proverbs 23:2, 2 Peter 1:5-7, 2 Timothy 3:1-9, and 2 Corinthians 10:5.) The ability to say “no” to anything in excess—self-control—is one of the fruits of the Spirit common to all believers (Galatians 5:22).

God has blessed us by filling the earth with foods that are delicious, nutritious, and pleasurable. We should honor God's creation by enjoying these foods and by eating them in appropriate quantities. God calls us to control our appetites, rather than allowing them to control us.

I also found from that same website that gluttony is a sin that Christians like to ignore. What a true statement. We shouldn't ignore it though. It is just as bad as smoking, drinking, and even murder. Proverbs 23:1-2 reads, "When you sit down to eat with a ruler, observe carefully what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to appetite." Literally speaking, you are better off dead than to gorge yourself with food and be gluttonous.

I spent some time in prayer over this sin this weekend and I will continue to pray over it. It obviously has taken over my life and I want to take the control back. Putting it out there allows me to be accountable. I actually was going to try and be bold enough to post my weight and measurements, but that boldness hasn't hit yet. Please help me pray for this. Only God can help me get over this sin and help me correct my errors.

The Blood

I received this in an email this morning and thought I would share. I am not sure how much truth is to the characters of the story, but it definitely serves as a reminder to be careful how we speak of others.

One night in a church service a young woman felt the tug of God at her heart. She responded to God's call and accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior.

The young woman had a very rough past, involving alcohol, drugs, and prostitution. But, the change in her was evident. As time went on she became a faithful member of the church. She eventually became involved in the ministry, teaching young children.

It was not very long until this faithful young woman had caught the eye and heart of the pastor's son. The relationship grew and they began to make wedding plans. This is when the problems began. You see, about one half of the church did not think that a woman with a past such as hers was suitable for a pastor's son. The church began to argue and fight about the matter. So they decided to have a meeting.
As the people made their arguments and tensions increased, the meeting was getting completely out of hand. The young woman became very upset about all the things being brought up about her past. As she began to cry the pastor's son stood to speak. He could not bear the pain it was causing his wife to be.
He began to speak and his statement was this: "My fiancee's past is not what is on trial here. What you are questioning is the ability of the blood of Jesus to wash away sin. Today you have put the blood of Jesus on trial. So, does it wash away sin or not?" The whole church began to weep as they realized that they had been slandering the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Too often, even as Christians, we bring up the past and use it as a weapon against our brothers and sisters. Forgiveness is a very foundational part of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. If the blood of Jesus does not cleanse the other person completely then it cannot cleanse us completely. We have to remember that it does cleanse us. All of us, who accept. Completely.

Mommy Really Does Know Best

Don't you just hate it when you find out you were wrong? Especially when you pour your whole heart and soul into something and then just to be torn down like a useless piece of paper? Okay, so maybe that is just a bit extreme. However, it is still hard to take in the fact that you are just wrong, sometimes.

Yesterday, we pulled in to the driveway after church and were all in a line going into the house. Jackson was first of course and we were all rambling on about something. It was warmer outside and Wayne had mentioned that he wanted to wash his car and Jackson decided he wanted to ride his tractor. I told him that he couldn't ride until he had a nap. He told me he didn't need a nap and I proceeded to tell him that yes, he did and he was going to take a nap. And then, the argument (yes, I know, arguing with a 4 year old is just plain wrong) begun. As Wayne was getting the door unlocked, Jackson and I were going back and forth about if he was going to have a nap or not. Wayne finally stopped us and told Jackson that he did have to have a nap.

A few minutes went by, we let Bo out and changed clothes. Jackson was doing something in his room. Wayne and I both hit the bathrooms as we normally do after church. By the way, why is that? I can go a whole 8 hours at work without having to go to the bathroom, but for some reason I can't do it on Sundays. I have to go right as we get into the house. Weird. Even weirder conversation for a blog, right? Sorry.

Anyway, I came out of the bathroom to a really quiet house. I am not even sure where Bo was. I thought it was a bit odd as I didn't even hear Jackson playing. I went into his room and found this...

The little guy was just wrong and I for, once was right! He DID need a nap! And his Rescue Bots did too.

His Mysterious Ways

"The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble;

and He knoweth them that trust in Him." Nahum 1:7

Last month, I was preparing for a Sunday school lesson on Nahum and as I was reading through the scriptures, this verse popped off the pages of my bible. I wrote it down and wanted to commit it to memory. It seemed to be one that would be easy to remember and would help me in those harder days of life.

Not more than a week later, my pastor did a Wednesday night bible study on this very verse. This seems to happen often. God really wants me to hear something out of the scripture, I think. At the end of last year, the same thing happened with the story of Abraham and Sarah. Which in this very moment, is a very interesting thought, knowing what this posting is really all about.

Can I just tell you that I serve, love, adore, and honor a wonderful God and Savior? He is awesome and loves me with every single inch of his great big heart.

Moving back to the point at hand, during our pastor's Wednesday night message, he noted that the scripture does say "a stronghold in the day of trouble". He put some emphasis on the "day" of trouble. Not days, but day. Meaning, we will have troubles but they will be short lived and even though they are shortlived, God is with us every step of the way. Wayne and I have had to live in a stuggle this past week.

Last Monday, I had some serious lower abdomen pain and excess spotting that didn't seem to be normal. I called my doctor and he wanted to see me as soon as possible. We would later find that there were some problems with our baby. The major problem? The baby was not in my uterus. Over the next day or so after blood work and an additional ultrasound, it was confirmed that I was pregnant, but the baby was in my fallopian tube. The doctor went over the scenarios and the next steps. I went into surgery on Wednesday to have the baby removed and later to find that he did have to remove my tube as well. We knew that may have to happen and honestly I wanted him to remove it. The chances of having another tubal pregancy were greater, once I had one. I knew that I didn't want to go through this again, if I didn't have to.

We can still try to have another child with just one tube. The fertility rate only decreases by 15% when one tube has to be removed. I do have a follow up appointment at the end of the month and I will make sure all of the questions are answered and what happened during the surgery is discussed.

Through many days of tears, wondering why, and a few bouts of anger, Wayne and I both rest knowing that our situation is in our Heavenly Father's hands. He knows His plan for our lives. Wayne reassured me of this the moment I told him I felt like something was wrong. Although I don't think it is fair, I know our baby is in the awesome hands of our Lord and Mema is probably holding it tight and giving it many kisses.

As I relive this week while I type this posting, this verse in Nahum rings in the forefront of my mind. God was with us all week, and continues to be with us. This trouble will pass, and I believe we will both be stronger for it. We will be able to help another family that may undergo the same situation. God's light will shine through - which is His greatest desire.

You live your life day-to-day thinking that something like this could happen to you but pray that it doesn't. It is something that is hard to take in and put your hands and heart around. We have lost our 2nd child. We never got a chance to hold it, kiss it, know for sure if it was a little boy or girl. But, I tell you this for sure, it was loved. Will always be loved and will never be forgotten. Until we meet again in paradise... 

Pinterest

Are you addicted? I'm addicted. My husband is a closet addict. And there are not many people I know that are not addicted. What could be better than having ALL THOSE IDEAS at your fingertips? Not just ideas but recipes, funnies, outfits, how-to's, and did I say recipes?

We have actually tried a couple of the recipies that we've pinned. Yes, Wayne does "pin" things to my account so he doesn't look like the weird guy with a pinterest account. One of the DIY recipes that he found were these really cool chocolate bowls. For some reason, I can't find the original pin link to post here so... here are the pictures from Wayne's attempt at these. I think they turned out pretty good!

First, blow up some small dollar store balloons. Heat some chocolate (either in the microwave or in a double broiler). Then dip the balloons in the chocolate. Wayne dipped his 3 times. Sit them on wax  paper so that you can pull them off easily when the chocolate hardens.

Then, pop the balloons (after letting the chocolate set and get hard). You can slowly pull the balloons out of the chocolate bowls. They should pull out pretty easily. Wayne put ours in the frige for about an hour before trying to pull the balloons out.



Last, fill with icecream and enjoy!

 

And... turn into The Joker while you are eating! :)



Even In The Valley...

God is Good.

Even in the valley, God is good;
Even in the valley, He is faithful and true;
He carries His children through, like he said He would;
Even in the valley, God is good.

This rang in my mind last night as I drifted off to sleep and I can't get it out of my head today. He will take care of me and will help me through anything life presents me.

Haircuts, The ZZZs, and a Thought...

I don't have one specific thing to write about but a few things have been going on so I thought I would encompass them all.

Yesterday, Jackson and I went to get haircuts. I was going to take a picture this morning to post but 6:15am is just a wee bit early to whip out the camera and flash! So, maybe another day. Anyway, the last several times we have been to get Jackson's hair cut, he has screamed bloody murder. The girl that cuts our hair is 7 months pregnant, so I told Jackson that he didn't need to get upset when we went to see Mrs Dana because she doesn't like it when he cries and it is not good for her baby when she is upset. He said okay, but I am sure he had no clue of what I was talking about.

He started out okay and sat really still for her to use the scissors on top but we like for her to cut the sides really short with the clippers. Once she turned that on, he started screaming. I am not sure what the deal is with that. I think the lady that used to do it hurt him (by accident) one time and he hasn't gotten over it yet. Wayne finally put the death grip on him for a second and he was okay after he released. I think he was more willing to sit still and cry a little bit that scream and wiggle and have to be held by Wayne. We tried to make him understand that it doesn't hurt when he is still. He still said that it did. I just think he doesn't like it. After about 7 minutes of tourture, he was done. I will say, he did better that the last time we went, so maybe we are on an upswing and his appointment in March will be even better? We'll see.

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Well, the sleepy-ness of the first trimester has kicked in. It hits me at about 9 in the morning and I can hardly keep my head up. The past couple of mornings, I have had 2 or 3 small peices of chocolate to help wake me up a bit. I'd rather do that than get a whole 20 oz caffinated drink. I am trying so hard to drink all the water I can (that is one thing I didn't do well while I was pregnant with Jackson) and the drink will just counter-act all the water I am drinking. I also get up and go to the bathroom and fill my water bottle again. So the walking gets me stirred. I guess I will just have to take my mom's advise and go take a nap on my lunch break. I might just have to move my lunch break to 9am...

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And... just a thought... after I uploaded my post from yesterday, I realized something. I announced my pregnancy on the blog here for this baby on the same day Jackson was due 4 years ago.

Here we go again...

"For this child I prayed; and the Lord hath given me my petition which I asked of him: Therefore also I have lent him to the Lord; as long as he liveth he shall be lent to the Lord. And he worshipped the Lord there."  1 Samuel 1:27-28

A new chapter in our lives has begun. We found out this past week that we are expecting a new little baby. It was definitely hard to keep this secret in. So, out with the announcement at just under 5 weeks. So many emotions have encircled us - shock, a little bit of fear, joy, excitement, and most of all love. 

At first, we were going to wait to tell Jackson. I wasn't sure that he would understand and I didn't want the never ending question of "Is the baby coming yet?". Wayne wanted to go ahead and tell him though. At first, he told us he didn't want a brother or sister, but after a little more talking about it and letting him know that he was going to be a special big brother that could share his toys with the baby, he got more excited. Now, he tells us we are having a boy AND a girl. They say the sibling's instinct is correct, but I am praying we just have one! :) Only God knows His plan though. He knows what we can handle.

Our due date is October 7th. Before we found out our due date, I knew of two people that had October birthdays... now? They come out of the woodwork. All you have to do is tell some one when a baby is due and all of a sudden, the due date is close to or on their birthday and the baby has to come on that day! Whew. Maybe someone will be special enough to share a birthday with our new little one.

Just continue to keep us in your prayers as the next few weeks are the most important in the life of "Butterbean". Pray that he/she will grow and develop strong and healthy and that all of his/her very important organs (i.e. the brain and the heart) will grow as they should. This week, the chambers of the heart are forming and Butterbean is only the size of a sesame seed. Oh, such a miracle!

Giving Thanks

“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever!” Psalm 107:1


This is the memory verse that Jackson has to learn for the month of November. As I sit here thinking of the words of the verse, several thoughts of thanks and being truly blessed come to mind.

Each day of November, I have started noting on Facebook one thing that I am thankful for. Reading back though them, even though it has only been 11 days, has really shed some light on how great God is and how much he loves me to bless me so much. I have a wonderful family, a lovely home, a good job, and a pantry full of food. I also have a loving Savior, a wonderful church family, and great friends. What more could a girl want?

Oh, there lies the question that could get us all into trouble. I often have to remind myself that in all things, give thanks. I also have to practice contentment sometimes. The Lord will provide everything I need. Sometimes I think some of my wants are needs, but God and I may not see eye to eye on these things that I, uh, “need”. He knows what is good for me at every second of every day of every week of every year of my life. I just have to remember to trust that He knows what is best and praise him either way.

I am not worthy of anything He provides me or blesses me with. The absolute least I could do is thank Him and provide adoration and praise to Him for all those things that he provides.

My Birsday

Jackson has really been excited about Christmas and his "birsday" coming up. We talk about it all the time. I thought I would fill you in on a little converstion that was held tonight. It was between me (M), Wayne (D), Jackson (J), and Uncle Ben (B).

Jackson brings out a pair of his New Balance tennis shoes wanting me to put them on him.
J: Will you put these on, Mommy?
M: No. You are getting ready to go to bed.
Jackson walks off to play with something.
D: Jackson, what are you going to get me for my birthday?
M: I thought you wanted shoes like Jackson.
D: Not for my birthday, maybe Christmas or something.
Jackson is just watching and listening and playing all at the same time.
B: Jackson, tell Daddy you are going to buy him a gun.
J: Gun. (While looking at Wayne.)
J: POW, POW, POW, POW!
D: Jackson, what are you going to get Mommy for her birsday?
Jackson thought really hard for a minute and looked at me with the straightest face and said... "You like Cinderella?"

I just busted out laughing. I couldn't even answer him I was laughing so hard. This is so hard to portray without you seeing it happen, but I hope you found it as funny as I did!

Wordless Wednesday

In less than a month's time...

Did you expect to see this?

Oh, and this was taken yesterday. So much has changed today. We went after dark so I couldn't take pictures, but our dormers were in place where the open holes in the roof are, all of the OSB board is up around the house, and the outside is completely wrapped to prep for the siding.

We got a call today to set up an appointment to do a walk through with the electrician next week and to go talk to the cabinet man so he can start working on those. Oh, and the windows will be delivered tomorrow!

Boy are we excited. They have taken down all of the "prop" beams in the rooms so we can actually walk through and see the actual sizes of the rooms. They swept up a little inside as well. Starting to feel more like "home".

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In other news, this was on my agenda last Saturday. Boy, was I nervous about it! However, it was great to see and hear reactions. I actually attended the party with Jackson so, I got a taste of this one. I know that I may be a little biased, but I have to say that I thought it tasted great and was probably my favorite! It was chocolate and I don't do those often so it was nice to eat something a little different. "Ethan's" Granny told me that her husband (which I think is Papa to "Ethan") doesn't even like chocolate, but he had two slices! Things like that are always great to hear! 

What a busy day

I always enjoy the weekends that Wayne has off because we definitely are able to get in some wonderful family time! It is even better after he is coming off of his night shift rotation because we hardly ever see him, but in passing, when he works nights. Today just happened to be one of those days. We just spent the day together, enjoying each other's company with Jackson included.

I got up around 7:30 to pick up my mess in the kitchen from baking a cake. I also needed to finish one up before it had to be delivered. Jackson watched some Tom and Jerry cartoons on DVD while I worked. Wayne knew we had to take Jackson to get his hair cut around 10:30 so he got up around 9. I had already finished my cake and the cleaning up. The cake recipeient came to pick it up and all of us got ready to head out.

Our missions today were to: Jackson's hair cut, Lowe's to get some nails to fix our fence that blew over some in the hurricane last weekend, and check on the new house. We did the whole hair cut thing and then headed to Lowe's While we were there, we got Jackson his own tool kit so that he could help Daddy with all the fixin' of the fence. He was so excited. We also wanted him to hold our hand in the store because there were a lot of people there and he is really begining to wander... but, in his resistance to hold hands he said "I want to walk like a big boy!" So, I had to remind him that he could walk like a big boy, but he had to stay with Mommy and Daddy. He had to be reminded a few more times before we left too. He is definitely showing some desire for independence...

After Lowe's, we had lunch and then went to the new house to find this...

Well, I have to say that when we arrived just after lunch, they only had the two front walls up (with the window holes in them). This picture was taken when we went back later in the afternoon (after the workers had left) to see how far they had gotten. They are definitely rollin' now! They had to wait a few days to start again because of all the moisture from the hurricane, but hopefully we will be relatively dry for a little while so they can get a large portion of the framing done.

After the visit to the lot right after lunch, we went back home and started working on fixing the fence. We really had some minor damage, but it did need to be fixed. Jackson was so excited because he could use his new tools with Daddy. The kit came with a hammer, two screw drivers, goggles, and a tape measure. Wayne put the tape measure on Jackson's shorts and Jackson hammered on any and everything he could. :) Wayne also reminded him that this tool kit was for outside and he could play with his Handy Manny tools inside. The new tools could definitely do some damage inside by a two year old!

Wayne started off by trimming down a piece of wood with his hand saw. Jackson didn't like that too much. I guess it made too much noise. He did get better with it after Wayne used it a couple more times. I guess he had to get used to the sounds it made. He is such a skiddish kid! He does take after me on that!

Wayne then started to pull the peice section of fence that blew over back into it's place. Jackson stood with him and watched every move he made. Not only did he watch, he asked questions. And more questions, and even more questions. Wayne asked me several times if I could become the favorite parent again! :) I just laughed at him.

I really enjoyed just watching Jackson today. There were a couple of times that he asked me to hold his hammer and I got a little aggrivated because I was trying to help Wayne and I just didn't have any hands to hold it and he got mad a me because I told him no. Yes, the typical two year old, I guess. 

And after a long afternoon in the heat and playing around at the new house, Jackson was ready for something cold. So, we went and got shaved ice and he had to have a blue one! I told him after he was done that he looked like a smurf. He just said "huh?". He has seen the movie but I guess he doesn't know what they are. Oh, well, I would say this was a good day spent. I sure do love my boys!

We're off to see the wizard...

Not really. However, we are off... to a good start with the house! They did hold off from starting last week because of the potential rain that was coming in this weekend and I am glad they did because whew, what a storm we got Friday night and Sunday night.

I did get a nice surprise when I visited the lot this evening though... see for yourself...

Who would have ever thought we would be so excited over some concrete being poured! :) Wayne had actually stopped by earlier today (around noon) to find a man with a tractor digging the holes. He had no idea that they would be pouring concrete today too! It was a nice surprise for him when I was able to show him these pictures.

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In other news... there isn't much hugely exciting to announce. Jackson is growing and growing. Wayne said he went in to check on him Friday night before he went to bed and noticed that he is getting longer! I think we are going to have to transition Jackson to a bigger bed when we move just for the sake that he will be getting too long for the toddler bed pretty soon. Okay, so it may be like another year before he actually out grows it, but hey, wouldn't you love to get a new bed with a new room!?!? Speaking of his room, I was  thinking about painting his room a neutral color and buying Cars wall decals to put on his walls. However, I cannot seem to find exactly what I want without paying $100 or more for one character. I did ask him the other day if he would like to have Tow Mater on his wall and he was really excited about that. So, I may just do one or two really big ones and then do more of my decorating on his bed sheets/comforter, curtains, and all that jazz. We'll see. I just want something that will be easy to change in a few years because he won't be into Cars forever.

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I am still working on my cakes. I am staying busy with them as well. The orders seemed to slack off a bit in August, but September is already filling up fast! I even received an order today for one in December! I am thankful for the opportunity to do this. It is nice to have the little bit of extra cash every now and then. Especially when we plan to go to the "baseball game" like we are going to do Thursday night. Jackson really enjoys watching the game and it is a cheap date (until you buy the wonderful food!). I did this T-Rex cake for a friend of ours. I have two more 1st birthday cakes next month. Such an exciting milestone! :) Going to be working on a super hero cake for a 4 year old and two other cakes that the requesters don't know what they want on them yet. We shall see!

Another monthly list...

1) It's official! We've signed the construction agreement on our new home and if all goes well with the inspection on our current home next week, they're going to start building Wednesday!! Woohoo! I am not sure if I mentioned this before, but the contractor is buying our home when the new home is finished... that is why we have to get an inspection on our current home.
2) We have a busy weekend planned. Tomorrow we are going to celebrate the first birthday of a little boy and celebrate the upcoming arrival of a new little girl. I also have 3 cakes to make and really clean up the house for the inspector. The realtor says the inspector is not coming to see how clean our home is, but I don't want him to visit without doing a little straightening up. Okay, so a lot of straightening up.
3) I went to see The Help tonight with my mom and two other ladies. I have not read the book, but the movie was awesome. It is definitely Oscar worthy and I will definitely own a copy! The language is kinda tough but I really think it fits the culture/era of the story. If you go to see it, take your kleenexes!!
4) Jackson is growing into his terrible twos stage... finally. Not that I was looking forward to it, but, he has been extremely whiny and cranky this week and definitely pushing his boundaries. Ahh... parenting.
5) I never knew there were 12,000 different colors of brick. Okay, so maybe I am exaggerating a bit, but not a lot... I am finding that this house is a bit more stressful than I thought and they haven't even broken ground yet! I guess since it is a "custom-built" home, we literally get to pick out every detail down to the color of the brick for the foundation. However, I am really not that picky and honestly Wayne is a lot better about the decorating and stuff so I think I am going to leave a lot of the interior stuff to him. He knows what he wants anyway, I am just going to be there to ensure it doesn't turn into a bonified bachelor pad. :)
6) I am having a few dizzy spells lately. I would think of it as vertigo, but I don't think I have ever had that so I am not sure if that is what it is... I just know every once in a while it feels like the world is spinning around me. Not sure if it is bad enough to go to the doc yet, but I am definitely keeping an eye it.

Okay, I think I am going to hit the sack now. Have a good one!

The bathroom floor is NOT your bathtub...

Did you ever really think that it was? Apparently Jackson did tonight. :( There is the ONLY rule we give him during bathtime... "NO water outside the tub!"

Usually we give him a few minutes to play in the tub before we bathe him. It gives me some time to do a few things around the house. Am I a terrible Mom for allowing him to play in the tub alone and yelling at him ever 3-5 minutes to make sure he is okay? Maybe. But for now, it works. I guess. Well, until tonight. Maybe I did some Mom things for just a little too long. Before I knew it, there was a whole bunch of water splashing and it just didn't sound right. Not right at all. It's that "I-know-I-need-to-check-on-him-but-I-really-don't-want-to-see-what-he-has-done" kind of feeling. Annnndddd, I was right.

Not only did he fill up his cup 1 time to completely pour OUT OF THE BATHTUB, but he filled it up 4 to 5 times. So much for Wayne just finishing our load of towels in the dryer! Lesson learned... no more cups in the tub UNLESS the child will be supervised.

Goodnight.

He's so silly!

On Thursdays during the summer, Jackson's daycare does a special treat and gives the kids a shaved ice snow cone. I think he really loves them because they always end up all over his face. He has done better about not getting it on his clothes (as much) but at least it always washes out pretty good.

Not only is the treat cold and adds color to his face, it tends to give him a sugar high as well. And for some reason, it doesn't kick in until I get him home! :) As he runs back and forth through the house, making lion and t-rex noises, I often just wish that I had only 1/4th of the energy he has. If you notice, his hands are clinched into fists, you just need to imagine FFFFRRRROOOAAARRRRR sound coming from his mouth! :) That is his t-rex noise. And yes, I did add an "F" purposely to that onomatopoeia because Jackson add the "F" when he says it! You gotta love that kid! :)

Our secret...

I am finally ready to announce our secret and the reason for our unspoken prayer request:

Tada!

Yes, we are still in the planning stages right now, but we just received our final draw of our NEW home last night! We are very excited and cannot WAIT to get moved in. We have found the perfect lot out in the country and in a really great school system... which is a huge plus. It is amazing how planning changes when children are involved. :)

I will say that I have a picture of the actual floor plan, but I don't want to post that for the world to see. Just some details though... It will be a 3 bedroom, two bath split floor plan (meaning the master is on one side of the house and the other 2 bedrooms will be on the other). There is a two car garage and a huge living room and kitchen. We will have a fire place and a back deck as well as a HUGE HUMONGOUS walk-in pantry!! There is also an unfinished upstairs that we will plan to finish sometime in the future.

I wanted to send out a special thank you for all of your prayers and I would like to ask for you to continue to pray as this will be a long and sometimes daunting process. Oh, and our plan is to be in the house by January 27th, 2012... Jackson's 3rd birthday! Yay!

An update

Our little neice arrived. :) Annabelle Faith was born on July 18th. She was 5lbs 11ozs and 19.5 inches long. She was 4 weeks early so the doctors were watching her closely to make sure everything was okay. She did have to be air lifted to a larger hospital in the area because they have a NICU unit and they would be able to better handle her under precautionary measures. She only stayed in the hospital 6 days and came home July 23rd. We are so excited to have her here and she is just so tiny. Her older brother is very protective of her and loves her very much.

The evening Annabelle was born, Wayne and I had already planned to take Jackson to a baseball game. We went ahead and went and I am glad we did. We always have a lot of fun and I think Jackson really enjoys himself. On the way out (back to the car) Jackson started singing "1, 2, 3 strikes you're out; at the 'ole ball game"! All by himself. Too cute!

That Tuesday, our meeting went well. Thank you for the prayers. Still keeping information about that kind of quiet but hopefully it won't be much longer because it is exciting news! :) Keep on praying though.

Ten pounds down, by the way. I am excited about that as well. I definitely have my mind set on this and I will do this! :) Thank you for keeping me accountable (eventhough you may not know that you are).

I really think that is all the updating for now. Other than cakes, cakes, and more cakes. I will post more pictures soon.