Walnut Tree Sprouts & Breakfast

I have this little planter box that had one lone daffodil in it last year. I leave it on the table between my rocking chairs just to remind me that I could plant some gorgeous flowers in it someday if I really wanted to.

It has been played in and dug in and mostly it just sports some grass and weeds.

Yesterday I pulled this rather tall tree sprout out just because and with it came the entire walnut that it was growing from! Annie immediately exclaimed with wonder over an 8 inch tree growing from a giant 2 inch nut! I was so excited I was able to show her the walnut and the tree and how it grew and everything! I laid it aside with intentions to grab my camera and take some really cool science lesson pictures.

However the idea was quickly forgotten and this morning during breakfast I was watching this little guy run around on the back deck only to hear Annie yell "Mom, that squirrel is eating your tree!"

Oops, oh well, now all that is left is the root ball and tree twig :o( Happy breakfast little grey squirrel, we had Trader Joe's multi grain waffles with bananas (and sprinkles of course :o) It was a first time purchase/using of the Multi grain mix and I am a HUGE fan, I highly recommend it!

Baby/Life Update

As I was grunting and groaning trying to get out of Annie's bed tonight after good night kisses she said "your baby is heavy!" I appreciated her awareness of my current cross to bear :o)

Just for the personal history segment of my blog I am 31 weeks today. I am feeling much better pelvis wise its now down to a much more realistic manageable level of careful position change and such. The belly is so very, very, uncomfortable. I can't remember feeling so sore in certain spots from a baby's position but man its there this time. I am carrying SO high! I wont say this too loud but she is definitely leaving my lower half alone, no soreness there, she is just floating and jammed up in my rib cage!
She still has no name although I have narrowed it down to a few favorites and will leave it at that until she is born. I am overly worried about delivering earlier than 36 weeks this time for no good reason at all except for something to worry about. The Dr's have all said they will have me start coming in earlier for my weekly visits and keep an eye on me. The sad part is that there are things around 35-36 weeks that are on my calendar that I would like to be able to commit to doing and I just simply do not have the confidence in myself to not go into labor! So sadly I will probably not be going to Indiana for my cousins graduation celebration and Joe's cousins wedding in Lexington is still up in the air even though its closer I really don't want to go into labor there either!

I love Mia's attempts at funny faces

Matching Big sister, Little Sister shirts I picked up on sale at Carter's. I couldn't resist!

Mom, this is where you stop reading, you wont appreciate the topic of the next paragraph.

Small unwelcome house guests... they have decided my house is a good place to come and stay. Well they are being evicted and if they don't heed the warnings posted in 8 various places throughout my kitchen and basement they will regret it! I didn't go for Mrs nice homeowner, I went for the kill! I want them GONE! TONIGHT!

I associate mice with uncleanliness which I know is simply not true, its just how I feel. However I found droppings in the bin of laundry soaps and stain removers in the laundry room... you cant get much cleaner than a recently organized (yes Kara, even the laundry soap gets organized!) & cleaned out Rubbermaid tote of SOAP & BLEACH! 

Or So You Say

Annie has been saying
 "I beat you up" instead of I beat you when she finishes first at something. Its really super funny sounding at times because she will be exclaiming wholeheartedly "I'm going to beat Mia up, if I finish my oatmeal first!" or "I am the fastest girl in the whole wide world and I am going to beat you two up on the stairs!"
"Charm Charming" instead of Prince Charming
She is into all things sparkly and asked me if the house Aunt Kelly is hoping to buy is sparkly :o)

Mia has been saying
"Ahmeen" after we pray which makes her sound very Jewish. She will even bow her head, fold her hands and mumble non words and then say "Ahmeen" all by herself.
"Pahtza" instead of Pizza
"El-e-leese" is Elephant which she loves and will spot a picture of one a mile away
She will repeat just about anything you ask her to, except when I asked her to say Lasagna she twisted up her mouth looked at me for a minute and then said "biteies" and nodded her head. "Biteies" is her word for food.


And many more things that I wish I could remember!

My Day

Was quite nice yesterday. It has taken me till this morning to realize it, but all day long, nothing and everything happened and it was all completely blessed.
You see Joe was home. all. day. long!!! No school, no work, just us (and little errands and chores of course)
I woke up at 6:30, which compared to 8:30 when the rest of the house woke up it kind of stinks. But I got in breakfast, uninterrupted (sweet golden crisp!).
I got in Romans and some prayer time, uninterrupted (sweet Jesus!).
I got in a shower, uninterrupted (sweet scalding hot water all to myself!).

The girls woke up and they bathed (first in 5 days...oops) and we made oatmeal and they Scarfed It!

Then Joe got up and it was 10:00 and I found an excuse to eat second breakfast (sweet pregnancy second breakfast!) So I made us egg sandwiches (which are not so sweet now that I have been eating eggs all week I'm kinda over it)

Then we watched some Wizard Of Oz and sang along (sweet husband knowing the lyrics) while I folded laundry which just makes laundry more fun.

Then Joe mowed the lawn while the girls and I got ready for the day.

And then, it happened. I took the girls outside with their father, I hugged them goodbye, he waved from the lawnmower and said "their fine, go on" Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!
I have waited for this day for what feels like forever!! Don't get me wrong, Joe has always been wonderful at keeping the girls, simply, dress them in too small clothes, feed them hot dogs and chips for lunch, naps encouraged by benedryl even when they are not sick (kidding) It has been ME. My problem, I always feel like I am hindering him by leaving him alone with his children. I know. I have serious issues that I am working through. But I have in the past had a hard time leaving them in any ones capable hands. I feel like they are my responsibility and everyone else nuisance. And it did take Joe a while to learn to handle, cope and finally enjoy and thrive keeping the girls by himself. But lately I feel like he has really mastered it and realized that it is easily done. In my absence he has taken them to visit elderly friends of ours, to the store, to the ZOO! Yesterday he mowed the back yard fed them lunch and washed his truck while I was gone!

I went to the OB, which the Lord answered my morning prayers by giving the Dr time to sit down with me and listen to my woe's (I have never had pregnancy woes before). She was very sympathetic and calmed my fears and encouraged me that yes, this pregnancy is going to require a lot more sitting, (straight, with my knees together) and doing nothing, to keep the pain manageable.
Then I went to the grocery store all by myself, which I don't even need to explain the wonderfulness of. Although I did tell Joe, not a single lady, young or old, stopped me to tell me that anything attached to my person or in my possession was adorable. No one stopped their cart next to mine so their offspring could google and point and smile at mine, and I got through there in record time!

I came home and after putting the grocery's away I ate lunch all by myself because Joe was gone with the girls!
Then we all took a nap (sweet slumber)
And when we woke up the girls got to go play at Grams while Joe and I went to dinner, un.inter.rupted!!! We never heard "will you feed me like a baby" or "NO! I do it!" or "all die" after 2 bites. No force feeding or tears. No one dipped anything in "pip, pip" there were not potty breaks or sticky hands to wipe. We simply enjoyed Mexican food for an hour all by ourselves and talked.
And I learned more about my hubby than I knew before, including the best piece of information = he has applied for graduation!!! Sweet semi normal life is on the horizon! You know, after graduation, a new baby and a new job... whatever, what is normal anyway? Its all good, and its all blessed.

By these two precious nut cases

Cyber Friends and Coconut Oil

I have a virtual friend. She is an older sister of a high school acquaintance that I didn't realize existed until I saw her at a wedding many years ago. Which is OK because I was the "ghost sister" at one time in my life as well. My sisters friends literally didn't know I existed! They would always hear "wait, you have another sister, where did she come from?" Kara and Kris were close in age and Donnie was the boy and Kelly was the baby so you see that left no one else... right? Anyway back to the reason we are here...

About 2 years ago I started reading her blog, she was funny and interesting and she had chickens with a coop that would make anyone jealous! I even showed pictures of it with its applique chandelier to my grandpa, the farmer, and he just laughed at me and said something about having chickens once and being a lot of work! My grandpa is more of the crops type than the animal type.
I had heard her loved ones tell wonderful stories about her living abroad and owning a dog worth millions (I believe Dave may have exaggerated, it wasn't really millions, but more than any mutt I had ever heard of!)

We met at a pool party that summer and I worked up the courage to tell her that I blog stalked her and she was So Proud! It was great fun chatting with her about blogs and chickens and things and since then I believe I have seen her in person about 4 times and those were in passing at church.

But buddy I am a fan. She is so creative! And fun! And because of this technological day we live in I can call her a friend. And I am old enough to think that is kind of weird and funny. Why I remember back in the day when I would restart my computer 3 times just to have a conversation over IM ;o)

And this friend, along with others, have gotten me to try Coconut Oil. I have heard its great moisturizer, I have heard its good for your health, but when she blogs about it for some reason I run out and buy it along with some vit e and whip it up and slather my ever growing body in it along with rubbing it on my children's slightly eczema ridden skin! It has not gotten rid of the eczema as I had hoped, but it does just as good of a job at moisturizing and I know the only 2 ingredients I am rubbing on my children which I like!

I love cooking with it, I like the taste it gives when I fry in it and there is nothing better when you mix it with a little chocolate!!!

Last week when I was searching for a sweet recipe for small group and I needed a chocolate glaze for my peanut butter bars (which are just the lazy mans way of making buckeyes) and so I got a couple spoons of coconut oil and cocoa and started mixing with some powdered sugar and milk and after feeling like a mad scientist with all the stages of runny, clumpy, oily, watery, it came out to a very tasty, very shiny (i love that part) chocolate glaze that firmed up very nicely!!!

My Friend is Erin, and she is giving away a jar of the high quality, hoity toity real deal coconut oil on her blog and I have the wanties!!

http://www.abirdandabean.com/2012/04/more-coconut-oil-benefits-and-giveaway.html

Just Another Girl Morning

My mom blessed Annie's every 3 year old desires with 2 yards of tulle and wire decorator ribbon last night. There is nothing like running home from Grammys with a shopping bag full of veil potential. She was super excited to get up this morning and create wedded bliss.

Matching outfits was Annie's idea as well. I think I say the words "you can't make your sister do what you want her do" a million times a day.

Who cares if you have to marry your baby sister.

Don't know why they are so blurry, but I'll take blurry these days over trying to make them stand still for more than 5 seconds.

Easter for 3 year olds

The Christmas story is easy. How hard is it to get a 3 year old excited that a baby was born who was God's son and he was sent here to teach everyone about Him and now we celebrate his birthday with presents? In December we tend to leave out the fact that he is going to die at a young age a very horrific death. It just doesn't jive with the whole yuletide celebration. However I have heard the argument that we as Christians should celebrate Easter bigger or at least as big as Christmas.

Here's a friendly Easter tip. If you want to teach your 3 year old about the real meaning of the Easter holiday, do not simply rely on her children's bible without first reading the story to yourself and deciding if its appropriate.

Last Sunday at Grace Fellowship we had a sort of preparatory Sunday for the big Easter Celebration. One of our leaders did a great job pointing out how blessed we are because of how sinful we are and just how badly we need a savior. He started by saying that you may leave feeling like things are unresolved by not coming to the conclusion of the risen Savior at the end of the service, but that was OK because it is a good week to be in reflection on needing Jesus and what His death meant for us which is the gift of salvation through faith!!!

However this kind of set up is not good for a 3 year old. Her summary of Sunday school was that bad guys beat Jesus up and put Him on a cross. When I asked her about why He was on the cross she didn't know. I told her it was so that all of the bad stuff she did called sins would be forgiven forever and that he took all of her punishment (she knows what that word is ;o). Then after I read to her from her children's bible page after page of people selling Him out and people beating Him up, and the mean things, she just couldn't get past the fact that it said His heart broke in two. She needed to see what it looked like for someones heart to be broken in two!

So now I wish I could take it all back and start over. I was so discouraged. I wanted her to understand that God loved her and everyone so very much that he had a son who was born just for the reason that He could die for them. The bible says it pleased God to do it and it pleased Jesus to carry it out! He was HAPPY to die for her, me, you etc... I want her to know that, but all she knows is that his skin was torn and he got poky thorns on his head and mean guys killed him.
So I think ill take the next few days and focus on the post tomb part of the story and see if I can get her to remember that part as well.