Abundant Grace

Charlotte 21 months & Jocelyn 4 months

2010-10-29T14:16:00.005-05:00

I'll interrupt my Seattle posts to do an update on the girls' growth and development. I promise I will get our last few days of Seattle posted with picture eventually.

Fall is officially underway and the weather is getting cooler. The girls continue to amaze me with their milestones, and developing personalities.

Jocelyn is getting stronger and stronger. She is rolling over from back to stomach, starting to grasp toys, and enjoys sitting up (with support) and watching the world go by, or watch her sister play. She is no longer content to sit in the swing for any length of time unless she is sleeping. The Jumperoo is one of her favorite things. She doesn't "play" with the items on it yet, but loves to jump and move around in it. She is much more vocal than I remember Charlotte being at this age; blows raspberries, squeals, coos, and giggles. Charlotte loves to imitate, which isn't nearly as cute because she does it three times as loud as Jocelyn--it has made dinner time quite noisy these days.

Jocelyn had her four month well check on Monday and checked in with these stats:

Weight: 14lbs and 2oz (75th percentile)

Height: 25 inches (75th percentile)

Head Circumference: 16 1/2 (75th percentile)

Charlotte has continued to be a great big sister. I have officially lost track of all her expressive vocabulary. She talks non stop. I can't understand all of it yet, but quite often we get it figured out. She labels things everywhere we go: lights, cookies, cracker, car, tree, etc. She is putting multiple words together up to two or three words. Walking through Target today we passed the Johnson and Johnson Baby Wash and she said, "Soap hair". She is so observant!

She loves pretending. Her babies are her favorite things. She carries them around with "urp rags" and puts them in all of Jocelyn's gear (bouncy seat, bumbo, jumperoo, swing, etc). The other day she got into the pantry and got out cereal after putting her baby in her booster seat at the table. It keeps her entertained longer than any other single task.

Another love of hers is music. She is always requesting "isik, isik" (while signing the sign). She loves it and love putting actions with it. Her independence and personality is shining through with each passing day. She loves helping herself to snacks and requesting drinks by going to the kitchen saying, "Gulk juice" (milk juice) rather than saying "drink please"...we're still working on that...or at least only requesting one drink rather than two. :)

We have been blessed in the fact that Charlotte has still been taking two naps a day, which most children her age do not. This week we are transitioning to only one longer nap in the afternoon. Partly for my sake, but also for Charlotte. We have done one nap here and there over the last few months, and most days it has worked well, but she tended to be happier with two, and admittedly, I enjoyed the quiet time. So far the transition is going smoothly.

Seattle: Day 4

2010-10-04T09:58:00.006-05:00

On Thursday morning of our trip we decided to spend some time at the hotel and have a slower paced day. We started the morning swimming. Every time we walked by the pool Charlotte would get excited and say "bath bath!". She has been swimming many times before, but she had no fear. She tried to get in without George or I in the pool - she is so independent! This was Jocelyn's first time swimming...she seemed to like it, but despite the warmth of the pool, she got cold fast.

Pardon the messy hair and the bad picture...Charlotte was not interested in the camera...she just wanted to get in.

Splashing Daddy

After swimming we headed to Snoqualmie Falls. But first stopped for some lunch. Although we aren't Twin Peaks fans, there was a restaurant near where were going that was featured in the show, Mar-T Cafe, now known as Twede's Cafe. We decided to check it out. The food was nothing to speak of, but we took a picture for a few friends that are fans (you know who you are!)

Next we headed to Snoqualmie Falls, just a few miles down the road...

Charlotte was such a trooper the whole trip.

The Falls were beautiful...the construction however, was definitely not. We were going to attempt the steep mile hike to the bottom. Since it was steep we knew we would have to take it slow, putting Jocelyn in the sling and holding Charlotte's hand. We decided to check out the trail once we arrived to see if it was going to be doable...unfortunately the trail was closed due to the construction. It won't reopen until mid 2011. We were disappointed, but enjoyed what we did get to see.

After the Falls we decided we were worn out. We had had several busy days and rough nights, so we headed back to the hotel for some nap time. I hate to say we wasted time in Seattle with naps, but we were all in need of them and it made the rest of the trip more enjoyable.

That evening we splurged and went to a nice seafood dinner. After getting suggestions from the hotel we headed to one particular restaraunt suggested to us. We walked in and immediately saw a sign that said "Must be 21 to enter" The particular location we went to was in a hotel and very much had a "bar feel" to it. I am sure the food would have been spectacular, but we looked at our girls...clearly under 21, and walked out. We ended up at the Crab Pot. We decided it was a more family friendly and comfortable restaurant anyway. We feasted on seafood and we headed back to the hotel and called it a night.

Seattle: Day 3

2010-09-21T22:10:00.005-05:00

Wednesday in Seattle we headed back downtown to see more things that we didn't get to see the day before. We started out in the market again and strolled around a few different areas of the market. We had found out about the "gum wall" from our tour guide the day before. We just happened to stumble upon it...ICK!

That is right...behind us...a wall COVERED in layers and layers of chewed gum. You're only seeing about half the wall!

Some had taken the time to form letters and words with their gum before sticking it to the wall. Others had made it looks stringy as if it was dripping off.

Some had made alternative additions to the wall...such as pennies, trash, or as you see in this picture...a bullet!

I thought this was a clever sign in the market.
Random muscian. They are everywhere in Seattle! I just thought this guy was kinda cute.

After strolling around a bit, we stopped into Piroshky Piroshky, a Russian bakery. It was good, but different. We again headed down to the waterfront to hop on the ferry to take the 35 minute ride over to Bainbridge Island. We kept telling Charlotte about the boat, but I don't think she every understood that she was on a boat, because she just kept pointing to all the other boats.

A beautiful view of Mt. Ranier. Typically this time of year you can't see if from Seattle. But we were able to see several glimpses on our trip.

View of Seattle from the ferry.

The only family picture from the whole trip.

Once we got to Bainbridge Island it was lunch time. We headed down to a waterfront restaraunt. I ordered oysters and ended up not being a big fan of them. I've had them before, but these just weren't quite the same. After lunch we stepped next door to Pegasus Coffee. George said we drank so much coffee on our trip we may not need an airplane to fly home. We strolled around downtown Bainbridge stopping before we left at Mora for some wonderful ice cream. Seriously, probably some of the best ice cream I've ever had. It was so rich and creamy. George and I both had to throw some away because we just couldn't eat any more. We then waddled around downtown for a bit more and headed back to catch the ferry.

Once we were back downtown we walked up to Pioneer Square and tried to go to the Klondike Gold Rush Museum. They were about ready to close, so we had to walk through quickly, and didn't get to enjoy it as much as we would have liked. We got back to the car and headed back to the hotel. We were pretty exhausted so we decided to order in dinner from a local italian place and call it a night.

Seattle: Day 1 and Day 2

2010-09-18T23:15:00.014-05:00

There are some benefits of having a husband that has to travel occassionally for business. FREE REWARDS! With a fairly active hurricane and storm season the last few years, George has had to travel a fair amount. He had earned several rewards through his recent travels including hotel points, TWO free flights, and two days of a rental car. Next month one of his free flights was scheduled to expire, which we weren't about to let happen. So it was time for a vacation!!

My sophomore year in college I was given an opportunity to travel with an aunt to Seattle for a long weekend. I have always wanted to go back. Two summers ago, George and I talked about making the trip, but ended up buying a house instead. So we decided to use our free flights to head to the northwest while both girls were "lap" children.

This was Charlotte's second time to fly (the first being to Austin when she was 9 months old) and Jocelyn's first flight. Our flight left shortly after 5pm on Monday evening. Although Charlotte has been timid regarding loud and unfamiliar things lately, she LOVED flying. She was entertained by opening and closing the window shade, kicking the seats in front of us (sorry poor woman who had the misfortune of choosing that seat), eating crackers, playing with the seatbelt, and playing with mommy's iPod Touch. The flight went very well, partly thanks to an open seat next to us. Toward the end of the flight, Charlotte took a short nap, but we woke her as we started the decent to avoid ear pain. At one point you could tell her ears were really bothering her...but fruit snacks seems to keep her swallowing often enough to relieve the pressure. Jocelyn also managed the flight like a trooper! OH the blessings of breastfeeding!! We didn't have to worry about bottles, clean water, formula, etc. Jocelyn was content to sleep, nurse, and coo throughout the flight.

After a 3 1/2 hour flight, we landed successfully in Seattle. It was chilly compared to KC, but wonderful! Again, an advantage of George's work is his Hertz Gold card membership. After picking up our luggage from the baggage claim we were able to go out to the parking garage where our name was posted on the board with a parking space number. We walked to that space where a car was waiting for us with the keys and carseat in it and trunk popped awaiting our stuff! I was super impressed! We headed to the hotel and got settled in for the night.

The next morning, Charlotte woke up at 4:30, which would have been her normal wake up time at home. She crawled in our bed and dozed in and out until about 6:30. We decided to get up and make our way to the city. We found a place to park and abondoned the car for the day.

We started with the famous Pike's Place Market. Hundreds of bouquets of flowers for just $5-$10 a piece. Gorgeous rows and rows of flowers. I was so tempted to buy one just to enjoy at our hotel for the week...but I resisted. There were also many talented artists, jewelry makers, fancy textiles, fruits and veggies galore, and of course...SEAFOOD! I am not a big seafood eater, but LOVE seafood in the northwest---It is so fresh!! We then headed for the the french bakery, Le Panier, which is located right outside the market, just a few steps from the original Starbucks.

Throughout our trip we would often use bakeries, cafes, and coffee shops as breaks to stop and nurse Jocelyn. It gave us a lot of opportunity to sample various places. We enjoyed our quick bite and coffee and headed out to the pier to finish feeding Jocelyn. I sat on the bench while Charlotte ran around looking at the water and "attempted" to feed the pigeons. At first when I gave her a bit of bread to feed to the pigeons she ran towards them full speed ahead, attempting to "hand feed" it to them. They of course all flew off to the other side of the pier and she repeated her actions. Eventually, after a demonstration by George, she figured out how to feed the birds, and loved it! She giggled and laughed while they would all fight over her offerings.

Next we were off to stroll through downtown. There were a few shops that I read about in Eat Shop Seattle that I wanted to check out. All of them were too expensive for our budget, but I love admiring others' talent and creativity. One of my favorites was Schmancy they had cute, funky plush toys and cute prints of birds, owl, and other eclectic drawings. We continued down town as Charlotte drifted off for a nap in the stroller. We walked along the waterfront and made a tentative plan for the day. As Charlotte woke we stopped into Anthony's for some classic fish and chips. We were able to sit on the patio and watch the activity in Puget Sound.

Next we walked back to the Seattle Aquarium. We thought this would be enjoyable to Charlotte, but unfortunately it ended up probably being the most disappointing of the trip. It was overpriced, and Charlotte was too tired to enjoy it. She was afraid to get too close to some of the exhibits and needed constant reassurance. George and I were occupied with the girls and didn't get to read/learn as much as we would have liked. Maybe once they get older it would be worth the high ticket cost.

From there we hoped on the Gray Line Tour Bus. I had scored inexpensive tickets for Gray Line from Groupon. We were able to hop on the double decker tour bus at numerous points throughout downtown to get from Point A to Point B, or to ride awhile and learn more about the city. We rode in the back of the upper deck for just over an hour getting a full scoop on the city. Our guide was a riot and we learned a lot. By the way...Did you know Seattle's Best Coffee is owned by Starbucks?

Reflection of the Space Needle

Smith Tower is straight ahead

We then got off the tour bus in Pioneer Square, grabbed some more coffee, and headed up to Smith's Tower (another Groupon deal). There we headed up to the 35th floor and were able to get a 365 degree view of the city. It was beautiful! Mt. Ranier was even making an appearance, even though it is typically hiding behind the clouds. (We are bad tourists and didn't go to the Space Needle, but did the Smith Tower instead...less money and less touristy!)

The faint cloud in the middle of the picture is actually not a cloud, it is Mt. Ranier.

On most days, it isn't visable from Seattle.

The ceiling inside the Smith Tower was carved ... and was BEAUTIFUL!!

We then headed back to the Gray Line bus stop and got a lift back to the car...we were definitely worn out and had very wearly legs. We were disappointed we had left our pedometers at home. You should see some of the hills we went up!! We stopped at Crossroads Grill for dinner (yep! another Groupon deal) and headed back to the hotel for the night...we were all exhausted, but had a great day!

Charlotte 19 months & Jocelyn 2 months

2010-08-21T13:49:00.006-05:00

The summer is coming to a close with kids back to school and me officially not working. My last paycheck comes next week, then without a doubt it will fully sink in that I am at home full time.

Jocelyn went to the doctor on Thursday for her two month well-visit. The doctor said everything looked good. Jocelyn has much more sensitive skin than Charlotte did. She has a lot of baby acne and "cradle cap" on her ears and starting on her scalp. I hope it all clears up soon, but I am glad those little things don't seem to bother her. She continues to be a happy baby and sleeps well. She has had several 10 hours stretches at night, but typically stays closer to 8 hour stretches, which is of course nothing to complain about.

I still don't see much of a routine with her, but that is probably because we always have something going and don't spend too many days at home in row. Jocelyn loves to coo, smile, and talk to you when she is awake. Some how I was blessed with very easy babies.

Here are her stats from her 2 month visit on August 19th.

Weight: 10lbs 15oz (50th percentile)

Height: 23 inches (75th percentile)

Head: 15 3/4 inches (80th percentile)

Charlotte just keep growing up and getting more and more independent. She likes to do all adult things. She helps me empty the dishwasher on a daily basis, will pick up her toys with help, retrieve things when asked, follow basic directions, draws, and helps set the table for dinner. One of her new favorite things is to dress up. She tries to put on any clothes she can get her hands on, even if they are Jocelyn's. She also loves putting on our shoes and walking around.

As far as language skills, those keep building as well: New animal sounds include: monkey, snake, gorilla, penguin, and owl. For some reason we cannot get her to master cat. Verbally she says book, milk, juice, drink, outside, all gone/done, please, and I am sure some others that I am not remembering right now. She has added a few signs as well, cheese, cracker, and cookie.

Here are some pictures from the last few weeks...sorry, most of them are of Charlotte...Jocelyn is already suffering from second child syndrome with fewer pictures...as she interacts more, we'll get more pictures.

Coloring on a dry erase board (pardon the nudity...they markers weren't washable)

The Zimmerman family came for a visit. Noah is just a few weeks younger than Charlotte. Here they were playing at Kaleidoscope.

Proudly changing her baby's diaper.

Play time on the bed.

Getting into Mama's closet

Stylin'! Only a toddler could look that cute in that ensemble.

That is what her hair looks like most of the time...it is a struggle to keep a bow or rubberband in...she constantly pulls them out. After we're done with the paper, it is Charlotte's turn to "read" it.

Jocelyn's Birth Announcement

2010-08-10T14:40:00.001-05:00

Charlotte (18 1/2 months) and Jocelyn (6 weeks)

2010-08-05T10:27:00.008-05:00

The summer is flying by!! We are pretty well settled into being a family of four. Life is some what normal now and I go out several times a week with the girls.

Charlotte's vocabulary is growing quickly. She has added a few more signs this month (music and cracker). She has started talking more as well: "heryago" (here you go, as she hands you something), 1-2-3, mama, thank you, shoe, trash, good girl, burr (when something is cold), uh-oh, ouch, and help.

Over the last month Charlotte has become afraid of many things that haven't been a problem before. She is afraid of cars and walking in parking lots. I think this is due to a car starting near her that she wasn't expecting and startled her. She use to love baths and would not mind her hair being washed. Now, while she will take a bath without a problem, hair washing is a fight. I end up soaked by the end of the ordeal and she ends in tears. It isn't fun. We have also started seeing some fits when she doesn't get her way, so we have started some short time outs. She is showing more food preferences as well. She LOVES fruit and corn on the cob, but does not like cottage cheese. She doesn't eat much meat but is getting better. This week she ate a sloppy joe and some chicken, and as always, is still a big fan of turkey dogs.

Jocelyn is growing like a weed. We don't remember Charlotte growing so fast and changing so quickly. She weighs 9lbs 15oz according to her weigh in at the last breastfeeding group (8/2/2010), which was an 11 oz weight gain in a week! I couldn't believe it! She continues to be a very content baby, but spits up more than Charlotte did, but still not so much that I'm concerned. When she is awake she loves being in her swing and will coo and smile at the mobile and mirror above her. She usually goes down for the night around 10 and wakes up between 4 and 5:30 to eat, then sleeps again until 7:30. We are definitely getting more sleep than we did when Charlotte was this age.

We are anxious for the heat to subside a bit so we can spend more time outside. Charlotte loves our daily walks to the mailbox, but hates when we have to come back in. 105+ index just isn't good playing weather.

Jocelyn smiling at Charlotte. Charlotte usually gets her to smile better than we can. It is so sweet to see the sister bond already.

I found this large metal tub at Target on clearance and picked it up for a toy bin. Charlotte loves playing in it. The other day we joked as she crawled in it and asked, "are you going to take a a nap." Hours later when I told her it was nap time, she immediately went to the tub with a blanket and crawled in. Nice try!

Charlotte loves "shushing" Jocelyn, unfortunately, she usually sticks her finger in her mouth in the process.

Smiles. :)

The Lord provides...

2010-07-19T22:13:00.003-05:00

We have been trying to follow Dave Ramsey's plan since we got married. Gradually, we have paid off debt, and are down to just one debt, not including the house. For just over a year we have had zero car payments and LOVED not having to pay on a car month after month. We had two PAID for cars!! One car, we affectionately call "our beater", 1996 Nissan Altima with nearly 200K miles on it. It is loud, stinky, and certainly not pretty, but it gets us from point A to point B. Since the car isn't worth the gas that is in it, we have maintained the "drive it until it dies" principal. We thought that would be years ago, but it is still going. George uses the beater to get back and forth to work and leaves me the "good car", 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid to get around with the girls.

As many of you know, last Monday George was involved in a multi-car accident. Typically, he would have had "the beater" with liability only insurance, but since I had no intention of going out that day, I encourage him to take the "good car". When he called me and said he had been in an accident, I was scared...it was our "good car". What would happen? A million questions ran through my head, now a week later, we can see how the Lord was with us through it all, and as strange as it may sound, the accident was a "blessing". Let me explain...

Months ago in trying to prepare for becoming a family of four, we knew our Civic Hybrid wasn't going to be the best car for us anymore: trunk space was limited, the car seats were crowded, and we could barely fit a single stroller in the trunk, how would we fit a double? We began to shop for vans, looking for what we felt we could afford, features, etc. Before we could move forward we had to look into what we could get for trading in/selling our Civic. We took it to a well known auto buyer and they made us an offer. We crunched the numbers, researched, prayed, and crunched more numbers. If we were to go ahead and buy a larger vehicle we would either need to get small car loan, which we didn't want to do, or get an older model with higher miles that wouldn't be as reliable as our Civic. After much discussion, we decided we would make do with the Civic. Granted, my knees touched the dash because the car seats took up so much room, we couldn't buy too much at Costco because we didn't have much room to take it home, etc...but it was a decent car, and it wasn't worth going in debt to get something different.

Fast forward two to three months and the accident happened. There was significant damage to the car, but it was fixable. The insurance company examined the car and debated a day or two to total it or fix it. We didn't want them to fix it due to the diminished value the car would have with a history of being in an accident. Thankfully, the insurance totaled the car, and said they would call the next day with the settlement amount. The next day they called and they offered us DOUBLE for our wrecked car as the well known auto buyer offered us for our well cared for car two months earlier. We agreed, the accident was a blessing from the Lord. In combination with the settlement check and a very small amount from savings, we were able to go shopping for a vehicle better suited for our family.

We were blessed to find a 2007 Chrysler Town and Country Touring with only one previous owner. The dealer worked with us to get the price into a comfortable place that we were willing to buy. We were blessed to essentially "trade in" our Civic for a van that was one year newer, 50,000+ less miles on it, more cargo space, more seating, and more amenities for our family. God is so good!! We have so much to be thankful for; the safety of those in the accident, the blessing of a new vehicle, and so much more.

Charlotte (17 1/2 months) & Jocelyn (16 days)

2010-07-07T14:13:00.002-05:00

I am going to do my best and be more faithful with updating the blog. My goal is to do it monthly at least and update as to what the girls are up to. Then I will have a record of what is happening when. Today both girls had "well" visits at the doctor so I have lots of stats to include.

Charlotte

Today was Charlotte's 18 month visit. She wasn't a big fan of being naked and examined by the doctor. The doctor said it is typical for there to be a lot of protesting at this visit, and protest she did! While the doctor was examining her she kept signing, "all done, all done". Charlotte was done, but unfortunately the doctor was not.

Charlotte's stats:

Weight: 25lbs 1 oz (65th percentile)

Height: 31 1/4 inches (40th percentile)

Head: 19 (90th percentile)

Charlotte currently signs the following words: more, please, candy, all done, milk, drink, bath and eat.

She is able to identify the following body parts: nose, mouth, ears, hair, feet, toes, and eyes.

She says the following animal sounds consistently: dog, cow, and bird and depending on the day, will also make chicken, bear, cat, and sheep sounds.

Her expressive vocabulary is growing rapidly, she says; ball, hi, bye, up, down, daddy, baby, bounce, and bath. She also says, "wherdigo" which is actually, "where did it go?" all smashed into one word. It is too funny!

Charlotte's favorite things to do right now are listen to music (especially Wheels on the Bus), spin in circles, kiss on Jocelyn, and look at books.

She is changing so much everyday, it is so much fun to watch her become more independent. With that independence is also coming a little a bit of stubbornness and disobedience, but overall, she is doing very well as she adjusts to being a big sister.

Jocelyn
Jocelyn did well at the doctor's office. She fussed a little while the doctor poked at her, but not too bad at all.

Jocelyn's stats:

Weight: 8lbs 2 ounces (50th percentile)

Height: 21 1/2 inches (90th percentile)

Head: 14 3/4 inches (80th percentile)

The doctor was very impressed with her weight gain. I'm not surprised since she has been nursing like a champ from day one. She had gained 10 ounces in just under two weeks. Jocelyn's eye has been quite goopy the last few days so the doctor prescribed some eye drops that we'll start tonight. Charlotte had similar problems as a newborn.

We do have a prayer request. Both the pediatrician in the hospital and our own pediatrician noted a "click" in one of Jocelyn's hips. They are uncertain if this is related to "relaxin", a hormone babies get from their mother while in the womb, or if she may have a condition called hip dysplasia. The doctor noted today that it seemed somewhat better, but wanted to go ahead with an ultrasound on her hip that she had already scheduled for July 19th. We are not too concerned at this point because the doctor seems to just want to "rule it out" as opposed to "confirm" a diagnosis. According to the pediatrician, the condition is very difficult to treat and very complicated if not treated early in life (prior to 6 months of age) so an early diagnosis is important. We are hopeful the ultrasound will show positive growth and development of her hips.

All in all we are settling in to being a family of four and feel extremely blessed with our sweet family.

Happy Easter!!

2010-04-04T18:21:00.002-05:00

Someone doesn't like touching the grass.

Charlotte - One Year

2010-02-22T10:33:00.005-06:00

Special Thanks to Julie for taking Charlotte's pictures... www.julieanderson-photography.com

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-18T18:16:00.006-05:00

My apologies to those who check the blog more regularly than I update...but as promised here are some new pictures of our trip to the pumpkin patch with Ben's family as well as Uncle Dickie who was in town and joined us for the adventure.

DIY/frugal light fixture

2009-08-12T19:30:00.004-05:00

Since the moment we looked at our house...I did NOT like this light fixture. I am just not much of a shiny brass fan. But, due to other pressing expenses and priorities...it has existed the first year in our home, despite our dislike of it.

Here is a closer look...FABULOUS, isn't it?

Well, it has now been replaced with this find...50 cents at a garage sale last weekend! Yipee! Maybe not exactly what I would have picked out...but at least close enough to fork over the 50 cents. Much better!!

DIY Baby Nursery

2009-08-05T20:37:00.007-05:00

My daughter is now 6 months old...you would think I would have had her nursery completed months before her arrival, but no. I just now am getting it where I am starting to love it! It isn't perfect, but I am loving it! It is full of DIY projects and cheap finds...some done by me, some by my mother, and some by my darling hubby.

PROJECT #1: The bedding. My mother and I spent several hours in a fabric store picking a choosing just the right combination of fabrics. We ended up with a total of six different fabrics. I love how it turned out!! Thanks again mom for your many hours spend sewing.

PROJECT #2: Isn't it a requirement that babies have their name on their wall somewhere? I picked up wood letters and boards from Hobby Lobby and started painting...the close up shows the design behind the letters.

PROJECT #3: Above the crib needed a little something...How about some canvases with the edges spray painted and some fun scrapbook paper? Easy and cheap!

PROJECT #4: I don't have a great picture of this...but I picked up four of these butterflies at a garage sale for a quarter!! They were an awful blue color...a little spray paint, and now Charlotte has butterflies flying up from her bookcase over her closet.

PROJECT #5: Not really a project, but rather a cheap find from a garage sale. "Love" sign for 75 cents! Yeah! I could have spray painted it so it would match perfectly...but it looked great how it was...so why mess with it? It hangs over her closet.

PROJECT #6: Cheap bookcase found at Goodwill...painted it...I will eventually repaint it to match the room better. It is lacking in any excitement, but functional none the less...and very much needed!
PROJECT #7: My last and FAVORITE project. I found this...wall border for 25 cents at Salvation Army, which caught my eye because it matched perfectly. I knew I would find a purpose for it.
My hubby made a wood valance for me. I painted the edges with left over wall paint, then used spray adhesive to attach the border. I LUUUUUUVVVV IT!! I am still debating if I want to add any type of sheers or anything to the edges of it. I'd be happy to hear if anyone has an opinion on the idea.

Head over to Kimba's for more DIY projects!

DIY Project --wall decor

2009-07-28T08:43:00.005-05:00

I am a big fan of Hobby Lobby. I could spend hours and hours in Hobby Lobby, not to mention thousands and thousands of dollars. But of course, money doesn't grow on trees, so every time I am in the store, I stroll down the home decor clearance aisle to see what is there. Sometimes things are damaged, and sometimes things are just ugly. Recently, there was an aisle of 90% off home decor items!! Yay! My eye was drawn to these...

Yes, I know, they are not exactly my taste or something I would pick out...but ideas started swarming around in my head: spray paint, decoupage, the possibilities were endless, and they were only $1.80 a piece, much cheaper than buying a canvas the same size and these were solid wood.

I decided to head to the scrapbook paper aisle with our half bathroom in mind...it has been begging for some decor since we moved in a year ago. I found some paper and headed home.

I placed the wall decor on the paper and traced it. Pretty simple! Then I cut it and used spray adhesive to adhere it to them. They looked like this...

Nice...but still lacking something. I looked for some cute shapes online, like silhouettes of a bathtub, or toilet or something...but just couldn't find anything that excited me. Then I remembered...TILES!! I had purchased numerous tiles at a tile store that was closing almost two years ago. I ran upstairs to dig them out.

PERFECT!! Added a little dimension and texture. At first I wasn't sure how i would get heavy tiles to stick...but good 'ole Velcro did the trick!

Here they are proudly on my bathroom wall.

Break down of the cost

$3.60 for the wall decor
$1.18ish for the scrapbook paper
$1.00 for both tiles

TOTAL $5.78 Not too shabby in my book!

Head over to Kimba's and see many other DIY projects!!

Charlotte - 6 months old

2009-07-16T22:04:00.003-05:00

See a few more on Julie's website julieanderson-photography.com

Charlotte's first swim

2009-06-17T14:50:00.001-05:00

Pictures and more pictures! May 2009

2009-05-31T17:51:00.005-05:00

Helping Mama plant herbs in pots.

Being a great helper! Happy...

...and smiling!

One would think that would hurt your neck.

Another baseball game. Too bad the outcome wasn't as good as last time for the Royals.

Watching the crowd.

I think she looks like her daddy.

Our group...well part of our group all in a line...Hannah to George. There were nine others that were not there yet. Most everyone was from church, plus some other friends and family.

Sitting on the couch in a silly little outfit...I just put the hat on her for laughs. It didn't really fit.

A frequent spot...helping mama in the kitchen.

oops...seeing this picture makes me realize I should probably put outlet covers in those...She really isn't reaching yet...she just sits there and talks to me.

Guessing game...

2009-05-14T21:08:00.004-05:00

UPDATE!! Lydia is the winner...it was...

$11.06 With coupons I save $66.24! I was pretty excited...better than I've done with coupons in a long time. The occasion was slightly soured when I got home and I had another $5 coupon I could have used that arrive in the mail that day. :( Oh well...can't complain about saving over $60!

It has been awhile since I've shared some of my deal shopping on the blog. I would like to say it has been because I've been so busy grabbing deals I haven't had time to share, but rather, I've been too busy to cut coupons faithfully and follow the ads. Last night I spent some time getting together a list and coupons for Target. Tonight...I ventured to the store to see what I could get for a steal. Here is what I got...

1 large canister of oatmeal
10 Hersey Bliss candy bars
9 Quaker Bite Snacks
4 Kraft Easy Mac
1 Joint Juice
3 boxes 100 Calorie Snacks
3 BBQ sauce
6 Kraft Salad Dressings
6 Kraft Mayo
2 Cleaning brushes

With that said...just for fun...leave guesses of how much money I spent in the comment box here or on Facebook. I'll reveal the answer tomorrow night! You never know...if you get closest, maybe I'll send you a bottle of mayo...who knows what I'll do with 6 bottles of it! :)

Family Pictures/3 Months old

2009-05-01T20:30:00.004-05:00

WOW! Charlotte is 3 months old already. The last three months have been some of the most wonderful months of our lives...at times challenging...but WONDERFUL! Julie was sweet enough to take some pictures for us. Here are some of the ones captured. Please hop over to Julie's website to see some of her recent work. If you are interested in booking her, hurry fast...her schedule is filling up.

M-I-Z...Z-O-U!!!

2009-03-25T19:46:00.002-05:00

A few pictures...

2009-02-16T17:44:00.005-06:00

First day at church

Sweet kisses from Uncle Daniel.

Resting peacefully.

Uncle Daniel's first visit. He did a wonderful job talking to her.

Pretty dress from Auntie Jo.

Daddy and Charlotte ready for the second trip to church.

Thank you Aunt Julie!

2009-02-04T12:26:00.002-06:00

Aunt Julie took the time last Saturday to come over and take some pictures of Charlotte. They turned out beautifully. Rather than reposting them here, head over to her blog to see the pictures. Thank you Aunt Julie...you are so talented!!

Thank you grandma!!

2009-01-26T18:19:00.003-06:00

Charlotte's room is still a work in progress, but we recently received her bedding that grandma made for her. It is simply beautiful...one of a kind, and we love it. I know Charlotte will too! We know the walls are still quite bare, and have some ideas for them, but will wait a few weeks before we get out and about to start those projects. Here is a sneak peak though.

Flowers, polka dots, stripes...all kinds of fun patterns!!
You can't see the skirt too well, but it is striped with monochromatic flower pattern as a ruffled edge.

We will probably put her name over her crib with some fun lettering.

Close-up. The outside portion of the border is the same fabric as the pillow in the bed.

A dresser scarf to match too! We haven't put her picture in her frames yet...so much to do, so much to do! Thank you grandma and the Mickeletto family for the frames!

Accent pillow

The wall color is a bit off in this picture...the crib pictures are a little more true to the real color. The curtains are still to come.

Thank you grandma!! We LOVE how it turned out! One of a kind!!

Our precious gift has arrived!!

2009-01-26T18:12:00.001-06:00

Charlotte Noelle
January 20th, 2009
7lbs 7oz
19 1/2 inches long

Counting down...3 weeks

2009-01-04T20:26:00.007-06:00

We seem to be on the downward slope for Baby York's arrival. Officially, we have 3 weeks of pregnancy to go. We have no signs or indicators that she will be arriving early, or late for that matter. So for now, we patiently wait. George and I have both enjoyed having the last two weeks off of work, and we both dread returning to work tomorrow. We have been blessed to accomplish quite a bit over the break to prepare for our little girl's arrival, but yet looking back, and looking at the still lengthy to do list, it doesn't seem like we got enough done. Some of the things accomplished include; carseat is in the car, nursery trim is painted, nursery is arranged, clothes washed and put away, some of the last minute items have been purchased, etc. Things remaining to be done will hopefully be accomplished over the next week.

I continue to feel especially blessed. My pregnancy has gone so smoothly with few complications or concerns. I'd be lying if I said I felt wonderful all the time, I certainly have periods where I wear out quickly, or don't sleep well during the night, and the heartburn...OH! The heartburn!! But, all in all, I guess it comes with the last month of pregnancy. I have been exceedingly blessed with a husband who cares for me when I am weak, comforts me when I am scared, and lifts my spirits when I am down. I thank the Lord everyday for having such a wonderfully supportive mate.

We wanted to thank everyone for their kind words, encouragement, and support as we embark on this new adventure. It is humbling to think of all that everyone has done for us thus far, and the journey that is still to come.

Happy Birthday Caitlin!!!

2009-01-04T08:27:00.001-06:00

Happy Birthday to our oldest...now a whopping 8 year old niece!!

Anderson family Christmas.

2008-12-29T08:57:00.006-06:00

Now that many of my siblings are grown and have children of their own, we get together as a family on a day other than Christmas. This year, it happened to be Saturday the 20th. This was our final trip away from the metro area before the baby's arrival. Christmas with the Yorks will be different this year. They live a bit too far to consider traveling this late in the pregnancy. George's sister will be here later this afternoon, and his parents are planning on coming mid January.

We enjoyed the family gathering and were able to spend Friday night through Sunday afternoon at my parents. It is always a blessing when we can all go to church together where my dad pastors and where we all spent many years growing up. Christmas has been so much fun in recent years with more and more children being added to the family.

Hannah was very excited about her Fancy Nancy books from us.
She immediately brought them to us to read to her. It was very special.

Then she wanted Emma to read it to her.

Daniel...smiling as usual. He was very excited about a new movie he received.

Each year...until you have children...my mother gives an ornament for your Christmas tree. She is always so thoughtful, making the ornament relate to the events of the year-This year...we received a house...to recognize the first Christmas in our new home.

We can't remember why Hannah had such a pouty face, I think she was faking. It makes for a cute picture though.

Mom has a tower of stacking/nesting Christmas boxes. I think Abby could have played with them for hours.

All the nieces. Caitlin will be 8 next week. Emma is 5. Hannah is 2 1/2. Abby is 14 months old.

Caitlin. She is growing up so fast.

Daniel and Emma.

All in all a good time was had by all. Lots of family fun and festivities. Such a blessing!

Christmas day was just the two of us at home. Rather than buying each other gifts this year, we purchased a new camera last week that we had been eying for several months. I hope to have better quality blog pictures in the coming posts. We did fill a stocking for each other, and one for Baby York. It was fun to see what each other picked out for her. We then had a nice lunch, followed by an afternoon of puzzles and relaxation. George is home for two weeks, as am I...we are now working on our 3rd puzzle. It has been fun to sit together and work on the puzzles together as we talk to and of course...tease each other a bit too.

My mother says I'm spoiled...

2008-12-16T14:13:00.004-06:00

...I think she is right. Yet another thing my husband does to make things easier for me. It is cold outside...and I mean cold! 14 degrees...with 7 degree windchill. George went out to shovel the drive, but started by shoveling me a path so I would be able to take a picture of the front door. What a good man!!

(pardon the half of a house picture...I was trying to avoid getting the open garage door in the picture.)

Christmas Decor

2008-12-16T12:53:00.004-06:00

Kimba over at A Soft Place to Land is hosting a Christmas Open House. Since many family and friends, including our parents, will not be able to see our house this Christmas season, I decided to take a few pictures of our holiday decor to share and join party!

Since we have only lived in the house a few months now, and before that had such little space to decorate we, I mean I, had to be careful not to go crazy buying decor. We tried to use what we had, and things I had picked up at the end of the year last year on clearance after the holidays. We did purchase a few more garlands, and the Christmas tree. Other than that...I tried to be creative.

I fell in love with this wreath at Target right before Thanksgiving. Then after Thanksgiving, I saw it for 75% off. I couldn't pass it up. It was all green, and I added some red and gold berries to give it a bit of Christmas cheer.

Had I been feeling really adventurous, I might have went outside to take a picture of our front door, but it's just too cold. We have lighted garland wrapped around our columns and draped over our arched doorway. I love how it turned out. Perhaps I will find a little more to add to it for Christmas next year after the holidays are over.

Downstairs in the living room is where most of the decorating took place. Our tree practically hits the ceiling, but we found a great deal, and couldn't pass it up.
I had a few basic green garlands from year's past, and I wrapped them together and draped them over the mantel. Then added a red berry garland, followed by a few pine cones, and gold berries, and VOILA!! My first homemade garland! I was very excited how it turned out.

Garland is wrapped, twisted, and tied around our railings. I love how it turned out...but I don't think this picture quite shows it.

I had started with basic garland and added gold and red berry picks throughout the garland. Then for another touch of color and softness, small bows tied periodically.

Golden, wire Christmas trees I found last year on clearance for a ridiculously low price, as well as a beautiful, red, glass bowl.
I filled the bowl with ornaments, berries, and pine cones.

So there you have it! We have a few more things here and there around the house...but these are the highlights. Perhaps next year I'll have more to share.

Tag You're It!!

2008-11-28T10:38:00.003-06:00

Well...I've been tagged by Other Mother...here we go...

1. Where is your cell phone? Upstairs by my bed.
2. Your significant other? George, my husband of 1 1/2 years.
3. Your hair? Reddish brown.
4. Your mother? Caring and sweet, always puts others before herself. The mother of many.
5. Your father? Kindhearted...loving, dry sense of humor, but we love him anyway.
6. Your favorite thing? The smell of home baked goods.
7. Your dream last night? I'm pregnant...Too many dreams to even consider relaying...not to mention weird.
8. Your favorite drink? A good glass of sweet tea.
9. Your dream/goal? To love and support my husband and family in a God honoring way.
10. The room you're in? My in-laws living room.
11. Your hobby? Hmmm...I dabble in a little bit of everything, cooking, crafting, computer time, etc.
12. Your fear? Adjusting to motherhood.
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? At home, raising our children, and loving my husband.
14. What you are not? Well-rested.
15. Muffins? Sure...anytime...warm with Brummel and Brown Butter.
16. One of your wish list items? an upholstered, stuffed rocker for the baby's room
17. Where you grew up? Pleasant Hill, MO (childhood) and Columbia, MO (teenage years)
18. The last thing you did? made breakfast
19. What are you wearing? pjs...sweats and a t-shirt
20. Favorite gadget? George wants to know if husband counts as a gadget? If not, I'll go with our GPS.
21. Your pets? None.
22. Your computer? It is at home...I don't know.
23. Your mood? Sleepy at the moment, Just having a lazy morning
24. Missing someone? my family...they are having Thanksgiving today...we'll join them for Christmas next month instead.
25. Your car? 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid...and the not so great car 1996 Nissan Altima. Guess which one I brought to the marriage?
26. Something you are not wearing? Socks
27. Favorite store? Target and any home decor type store.
28. Like someone? Sure!
29. Your favorite color? Red
30. When is the last time you laughed? Last night with my husband.
31. Last time you cried? Last week, and maybe a time or two since then...remember, I'm pregnant...I can do that.

I will tag Julie, Dani, and Sandy, if they want to play; and anyone else who'd like to play along. Leave a comment so we can check out your answers.

Another Babies Shower...

2008-11-19T16:59:00.006-06:00

We have certainly been blessed beyond belief this week. My coworkers hosted shower for me and another coworker, Avanti, on my team, due two weeks before me. We are both expecting girls, so it was full of pink and purple and all the girly stuff. It was great fun!!

Avanti and I

Our fellow special educators took care of the food. It was all delicious. I ate enough to even skip dinner!

A very yummy, not to mention adorable cake.

I was told we "had" to take this picture. It is one of the only profile shots of me we've taken.

Surrounded by generousity.

Just a few of my coworkers. All such wonderful people!

A new staff member in our building, Amanda. She is incredibly kind-hearted and sweet. She brought her children, which were just as sweet as she is.

More fabulous coworkers.

One of the charming outfits we were given. We actually received several "cupcake" outfits from different people. I guess people already know how sweet she will be.

A personalized gift from one grade level. The white onesie says "New York" and the other says, "100% girl", as well as a monogrammed burp cloth.

I was very excited about this sweater and dress set. It will be perfect for spring church clothes. The picture just doesn't do it justice.

Thank you to all for a great, great party!!!

Priorities of a 4th grader...

2008-11-19T16:57:00.001-06:00

Student: "Mrs. York...When is your baby going to be done?"

Me: "Well...(trying to give him a frame of reference) about a month after Christmas"

Student: Sat there quietly, staring at me...pondering...

Me: "The end of January," I clarified.

Student: "Oh...so not Christmas? You wouldn't want to miss Christmas!!"

Babies Shower

2008-11-17T21:13:00.003-06:00

Saturday we were blessed abundantly when our church ladies threw a baby shower for us. Another member, Nikki, and her husband, Matt are expecting a boy just 10 days before us...hence the a "babies" shower. The ladies at church made a great party for us, and it was greatly appreciated. The decorations and food was simply delightful.

Before the shower the family came over to our house for lunch and hanging out. The men stayed behind while the ladies headed off to church. Of course when we returned and questioned what they did while we were away we got the classic response of, "oh nothing". The most we could get from them was "watched tv, talked...nothing really". It was great fun having nearly every member of the family in our new home.

The table spread.

Nikki and her mom, Sybille

My family made the trip over from Columbia. Little girls in the front; nieces; Abby (being held by Julie), Caitlin, Emma, and Hannah. Back row, Julie, Lana (Julie's mom), Mom, Micha, and me.

A few of the church ladies; Pearl, Earlene, and Sharon

Nikki and I

Baby Shower...

2008-11-02T17:03:00.000-06:00

Babies, babies, and more babies...A friend of mine, Theresa, is expecting her first baby in just 4 short weeks. Today I had the priviledge of attending a baby shower in her honor. It was a lot of fun. Theresa and I live only about 15 minutes from each other, but rarely get together. Life just keeps us both pretty busy. We worked together in college, and took some of the same classes as well. She graduated with her master's degree at the same time that I obtained my undergraduate. She looks great...and we wish her all the best!

The soon to be mama!

Shana, her son, Liam, Theresa, and I. Shana also went to school at Truman, and is also an speech-language pathologist.Of the 12 or so women at the shower...five were expecting...here are the five us ranging in due dates from just after Thanksgiving until May.

Happy Birthday Abby!

2008-11-02T16:48:00.000-06:00

Our niece Abby is turning one year old today! Happy birthday sweetheart!

Her party was yesterday, and unfortunately, Uncle George missed it. We had a grand time at the Anderson Old Time County Fair; complete with apple bobbing, caramel apples, quilts, prize winning pies, and even some farm animals (even if they were stuffed). Julie's creativity was great fun for all!!

Date Night...

2008-10-21T21:50:00.000-05:00

George has been traveling so much lately, nearly 40 days since the September 7th to be specific. He was been home briefly for just 5 days before he left again this morning. He decided we needed to have a special date night while he was home. Of course...who was I to argue? We headed downtown to the Skies Restaurant. It is located at the top of the Hyatt Hotel, and slowly revolves giving a beautiful city view.

Looking to the north, a wonderful view of downtown, despite the rain that came in a few minutes later.

Pardon the fuzziness of this picture. You can only ask a stranger to take so many pictures. We were trying to get a good picture of us and the view...but it didn't work out so well.

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-21T21:19:00.000-05:00

Caitlin and Emma, our oldest nieces, were here for a few days last weekend just for fun. They had been in town for a funeral, then stayed for the weekend to keep "Aunt E." company.

Saturday morning we got up headed to a nearby pumpkin patch full of fun things to do! There was a petting zoo, corn maze, hay rides, pay equipment, including HUGE slides, and even a scary looking orange princess.

Weekend Update and first house guests

2008-09-28T18:43:00.000-05:00

This weekend the Fishing River Association was held at our church, hosted by another church in the association. We had a wonderful time seeing friends we hadn't seen in a year or more. It was great to catch up with friends and to share our pregnancy news with many of them. The meeting was held Thursday night through Sunday early afternoon.

On Thursday night we had the pleasure of having our first overnight guests in our home, Thomas and Elaine Bond. It was so great to have them in our home and be able to visit with them for the two nights they stayed. We hated to see them go, but hope to see them again soon!

Saturday was a sad day for George and I. We attended the morning service, ate lunch, but then it was time for George to leave again. We had 4 short days together after his 17 day trip. This time, he is to be gone 21 days in Houston. October 17th he is suppose to be home for 5 days, then away again, for another 21, do the math...we are getting close to Thanksgiving at that point. Today he called with the news, that he may have one more deployment after that, which puts us to the beginning of December. For now, it is quite overwhelming to think of all that time away, so I am just taking one trip at a time. Please continue to pray for him as he will be working very hard and long hours while he is away.

Today was the conclusion of the meeting and I took kid duty while Ben and Julie helped carry things to cars and clean up the fellowship and sanctuary area. Hannah and Abby are both at such fun ages. We played inside for awhile, but the weather was so nice we headed outside to play. Both girls love playing in the rocks and grass. It was a perfect day to get out the camera. Hannah is finally smiling for the camera instead of grabbing for it, but sometimes her smiles are a bit forced. Abby laughs so much these days. It make me giggle just thinking about it. She is so curious and expressive, and very photogenic.

Overall, the weekend was filled with wonderful fellowship, and fun!

The Bonds heading out on Saturday

Who knew a box of Eclipse mints could be so entertaining!

Brittney and Whitney, two of Hannah's favorite people at church.

Abby is figuring out how to uses a straw, unfortunately all the water doesn't usually get swallowed, as seen by the puddle around her.

Curtains for the guest room

2008-09-28T18:36:00.001-05:00

I've become fascinated and very entertained by making curtains, or maybe I should say, window mistreatments. For those of you unfamiliar with window mistreatments, you can read more about them on this blog, look on the side bar for more posts labeled "window mistreatments. Of course she is much more talented than I. None the less, with a new house, we have lots of bare windows, and treating them is quite pricey.

This is my attempt in the guest room of dressing up the windows. It involved nothing more than two fabric patterns, some trim, hot glue, safety pins, and a little fabric glue. They aren't exactly perfect, maybe a little bit too wide...but for now they are up, and will stay up, even with their little imperfections.

Project for the Guest Room

2008-09-28T18:21:00.000-05:00

On our honeymoon I had purchased a poster that I loved. It looked kind of antique/vintage, and I loved the flowers and coloring of the poster. Well, of course our honeymoon was about a year and half ago, and the poster has stayed rolled up in the closet...until now.

I started thinking about different things I could do with it. I knew I didn't want it just in a basic poster frame or stuck randomly I the wall. I was looking for a little more of a statement than that.

Here is a photo journal of what I did...

The poster...but then I cut apart the flowers.

5x7 canvas tiles from a craft store.

Matched each flower to a complementary piece of scrap book paper.
Glued the scrap book paper onto the canvas, then roughly centered the flower picture.
Arranged all 12 tiles in an eye-pleasing design. Then affixed small ribbon loops to the top.
And lastly, nicely asked husband to measure, level, and hang them on the wall. The larger space in the middle was an accident, but as I told George, I think it was a good accident. Eventually, there might be some extra decoration between the columns of pictures, some small saucer-type plates maybe?

I am very excited with how it turned out. Not too bad for a $3 poster. Plus it kept me entertained for a few days until George got home.

IT'S A ........

2008-09-24T07:26:00.000-05:00

Baby York is staring right at the camera.

Five toes on that foot!

Baby York with an arm and hand up by it's head.

...STUBBORN child. Yesterday we had our sonogram. We are now passed 22 weeks in the pregnancy. We had hoped it would be very clear whether our lives would be filled with pink or blue the next few months. Baby York had other ideas; putting it's legs over it's head, and refusing to reveal what we needed to see to make the determination. For over 30 minutes we poked and prodded trying to get the baby to wake up. At one point, briefly, the technician thought she saw "three lines" which indicates a girl. She gave us 75-80% chances of a girl, because with what she saw, and that boys are usually more apparent by this stage in pregnancy. So for now...we are saying we will have a beautiful daughter come January/February, but we are holding off on painting or purchasing anything. We laugh saying, we either have a very modest daughter, or a very sneaky son. Next month, on October 20th, they will do another quick ultrasound to see if she is in a better position we can have a little more confirmation.

The good news is, developmentally speaking, she looks very healthy and strong, weighing in at just over a pound. Her spine, brain, and heart looks great and we are very thankful that everything appears to be on target. We are confident that our parents may find it that justice may be served by us having our own stubborn child. Most know that Baby York will come by it honestly.

Answered Prayers

2008-09-22T07:34:00.000-05:00

Just a quick update...

George is not home yet...but Lord willing, will be leaving Baton Rouge very early (Between 4- 4:30am) to drive to New Orleans, return his rental car, and catch his flight home Tuesday morning. Our appointment is in the afternoon, and his supervisors have been gracious enough to let him come home a few days earlier than they had originally wanted. George will be home for about 5 days, then likely to leave again, this time to Texas. We are exceedingly thankful that he will be home for the appointment and at least a portion of our weekend church meeting this weekend. In the next few days we hope to post the big "boy or girl" announcement.

Thank you so much for all of your prayer, thoughts, and kind words.

York family update...

2008-09-08T17:25:00.000-05:00

Getting used to the unexpected...for those that know me well, know that I like to have things very planned and organized. I am very schedule oriented. After traveling for the last 3 weekends, George and I had been looking forward to a weekend at home to get a little more settled in the house. As we counted down the days until Friday we anxiously awaited the weekend. Friday at lunch I got a call from George, and I knew it could only mean one thing...he would be leaving. Where to this time? New Orleans, to assist in assessing/training at the site of Hurricane Gustav. Thankfully, we had until Sunday afternoon this time to prepare, doing laundry, getting packed, and even having a special date night of dinner and putt putt mini-golf.

So on the official "halfway" point of the pregnancy, 20 weeks, George flew south for work. Unfortunately, he came down with a horrible head cold less than 12 hours prior to leaving. So please pray for him that he will either recover quickly, or be able to locate a doctor for some antibiotics if needed.

At this point, the plane ticket was a one way ticket. When asked if he was willing to go...he replied, "sure...as long as I'm home by the 23rd"(the ultrasound date). His supervisor said, "I think we can do that", but of course, no promises were made. Hurricane Ike is heading toward the Gulf tonight, and that could have a huge impact on what's ahead for George. Please just pray for his safety, and a speedy return.

Dear Baby York...Letter #2

2008-09-01T20:20:00.000-05:00

Dear Baby York,

You've been quite active this last week. Mommy is beginning to feel you fluttering around inside. Sometimes the feeling is so very slight, and sometimes it is stronger. Daddy hasn't been able to feel you yet, but with time, you'll get bigger and stronger, and Daddy will feel your movements too.

We had another doctor's appointment this week to check up on how you're growing. Unfortunately, Daddy couldn't make it with us this week, but he'll be able to come again next time. After a long wait in the waiting room, with mommy fighting off the afternoon nap she wanted so badly, we got to see the nurse. This month we couldn't get in to see the doctor, but Cindy checked you out instead. She was quite nice, and quite impressed with your cooperativeness. She checked mommy's blood pressure, weight, and tummy measurements, and all looked good. Then she began searching for your heartbeat with the special doppler machine. Mommy laid there, a little nervous, waiting to hear the precious sound again. Last month seemed like so long ago. Then, in just a few minutes Cindy found your heart beat on the machine. And even better...you stayed still so we could listen for a long time. Just like last time, it was right at 143...then it jumped up and down a bit from 141-146. Cindy said it's good to have variety like that though. Mommy giggled at the sound of your heart, so anxious for your arrival, and with mommy's giggle, you moved, and we couldn't hear your heart beat anymore.

Our next appointment, on September 23rd, will be a very special one. We will get to see you via an ultrasound again...and this time...if you continue to be cooperative, we will find out if we will be blessed with a son, or blessed with a daughter. For a long time, mommy was sure you were a girl, now mommy isn't sure at all. Daddy still thinks you're a boy...but of course we will both be very excited either way.

We love you very much...and feel so very blessed by your presence in our lives.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

Dear Baby York....

2008-07-21T23:10:00.000-05:00

Dear Baby York,

Today mommy and daddy went for our second doctor's visit. You have been very busy growing the last 13 weeks. Today was the first day we were scheduled to hear your precious little heart beating. The doctor started searching for your heart beat, but she could not find it. Thankfully, she had warned us not to be concerned if this was the case. Because she couldn't find your heart beat, we were able to see you for the first time AND hear your little heart beating at a healthy 143 beats per minute. You wiggled all around so we could see you, the technician said you were quite active; we saw your back, head, and even your spine. You are just 8 cm long right now, but clearly, a beautiful growing baby.

Mommy and daddy were both amazed at the handiwork of God. He has been so good to us, and he is so powerful and gracious. It was a wonderful way to start a busy week ahead. Mommy wishes she could have captured daddy's face as he watch the screen intently watching your every move. You have already have him wrapped around your finger.

Even your cousin, Hannah, was excited to see you today. She was upset when I tried to put your first picture away, saying "Baby! Baby!"

At the end of September we will get to see you again, and we're sure it will be just as amazing. Perhaps then, if you'll cooperate, we can see if we will have a son or a daughter.

We love you very much!!
Love, Mommy and Daddy

Here you are facing down with your head on the right side of the picture, and body to the left. We only received one picture, but I can't stop looking at you.

More news...

2008-06-30T21:35:00.000-05:00

For those that haven't heard...we are going to be parents!! We are expecting a baby in January, officially January 26th. Overall, the pregnancy is going smoothly thus far. With the exception of extreme fatigue and twinges of nausea here and there, I have been feeling pretty well. In addition to the house, George's new job, and the new arrival, we are overwhelmed at times, but feel very blessed and excited for the future. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

It's official...

2008-06-26T12:49:00.001-05:00

We closed on the house this morning and after many signatures and initials (we tried to count...but lost count very quickly) we are officially homeowners. Lord willing we'll be working on the house through the month of July and be moved in toward the end of the month. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers in the matter. We greatly appreciate it.

Home News...

2008-06-12T19:30:00.000-05:00

We are under contract with a house located on the Missouri side, about 20 minutes from where we live now. We feel abundantly blessed to have found this home when we did, and are very excited about the potential it has. At this point, we completed the inspection, and a few repairs will be made prior to closing at the end of the month. At the inspection, I was able to take a lot of pictures, hopefully I can post them, and make sense of the layout of the home for you.

Exterior

Front of the house. One of three houses in a cul-de-sac.

Back view of the house.

One of the trees in the backyard. There are two in the back, and one larger in the front yard.

Entry Level of Home

Front door/entry.

"Formal" living room. I'm sure it will be empty for awhile.

The floor plan is called a side to side split, or atrium split. There are no full staircases, but rather several half-flights of stairs. The stairs leading up go above the garage, where the bedrooms, laundry, and hall bath are located. The stairs leading down, head to the half bath, garage, "informal" living, and deck.

This picture is taken from the kitchen. The carpeted area is the dining room. Looking through the spindles, you can see the fireplace down in the "informal" living space.

kitchen (just in case you couldn't figure it out)

Different angle of the kitchen.
Upper Level, above garage.

Master bathroom

Master bedroom, with long window seat.
Master closet.
View looking down the hallway from the master. Bathroom is on left, one bedroom in front, one to the right.
Hall Bathroom

Garage/Deck Level

Windows and door out to the deck.

"Informal" living room. The door pictured is a large storage closet.

Lowest Level, walkout basement

Clearly unfinished, but has a lot of potential uses in the future. A lot of light comes in and the possible purposes of this room are endless!

Another view...studded to have a nice size storage area as well.

After closing we hope to take our time moving in. We will be in possession of both the apartment and house for a month. This will allow us time to paint, make a few repairs, have carpets cleaned, etc. Lord willing, we will make the official move towards the end of July. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

We're still here.

2008-06-05T16:01:00.000-05:00

WOW! Where did last month go? I didn't even do one post in May. Well, we are still alive and kicking, we've just been busy. Here is a brief synopsis, with a few pictures of our last month's activities.

We attending Total Money Makeover Live for George's birthday the first weekend in May. It was a fun and exciting event. We didn't learn much new, but were just re-energized to make better financial decisions. Plus, as always, Dave was very entertaining.

The second weekend in May we headed back home for Joann's graduation. She received her master's degree in Public Administration. Congrats!! It was a quick trip home, but nice to see the family.

The third weekend in May, Pleasant Grove, our church, had a visiting minister with services on Saturday and Sunday.

Memorial Day weekend we headed down to Flippin, Arkansas. Yes, the town is really called that. My mom's side of the family started a new tradition last year of meeting up at a resort there for fishing, chatting, enjoying the weather, cooking, etc. So this year, we decided to join in the fun.

Hannah and Uncle George

These are my cousin Jon's children, Tannin and Kadi.

Caitlin and Abby

The next weekend, we headed to St. Louis for another church meeting at Little Flock, followed the next weekend by a trip to Cozad, Nebraska for a meeting celebrating the 100th year of Mt. Zion church. It is the same church my mother was baptized into, and I have fond memories of it growing up. We had a wonderful time there.

Among all of this chaos...we have been house shopping...but I'll save those details and excitement for my next post.

Unexpected visitor...

2008-04-27T20:06:00.000-05:00

As I was feasting on Pizza Hut (I really need to go to the grocery store), I heard knock on the door. Admittedly, it is a little nerve racking when you're not expecting visitors and someone knocks at the door. But alas...it was one of my favorite visitors, HANNAH!! Daddy and Hannah were out on a ride a decided to stop by. Below is a picture when they were getting ready to head home. She even waved for the camera!!

Also, just a quick update a G...He is scheduled to be home tomorrow. All of his claims are completed, and after 17 days away, he will be home once again. Please pray for him as he travels back.

Note from George

2008-04-25T05:56:00.001-05:00

Although we speak frequently on the phone, I received a short e-mail from George the other day...with an unexpected attachment. :)

He said to prove he was actually working...he took a picture of himself on a roof top he was inspecting.
Lord willing he will be home earlier than expected...at this point, assuming there is no additional rain in Arkansas, he will return on Monday, rather than Friday.

Surprise Party

2008-04-21T17:29:00.000-05:00

Last Friday Ben celebrated his 30th Birthday. Julie had planned a fantastic Rock Band 80s surprise party for him on Saturday. Her brother, Justin, brought the game over and we all "rocked" out. Many even came dressed in 80s attire; scrunch socks, Converse shoes, tight rolled jeans, and lots of scrunchies! Thankfully, Ben never caught on to the party until we arrived. A great time was had by all.

Ben on bass.

Hannah on the drums.

Caitlin on guitar.

You can't see my "side ponytail" in this picture. I can't believe I really liked wearing my hair like that.

Daniel takes a turn on the drums.

Julie, Justin (her brother), and Julie's cousins, Cara and Lindsay

Even Abby was having a good time.

Hannah even did a few vocals too.

Happy Birthday Love!!

2008-04-15T19:07:00.001-05:00

Look how cute you were (and STILL ARE!)

I wish you were here!!
I miss you very much and am counting
down the days until you're home!!

Happy Birthday Sweetheart!!

Change of Plans...

2008-04-13T18:00:00.000-05:00

The past few weeks have been full of exciting things for us. Exciting, but yet very busy!! A few weeks ago we decided to start seriously looking into purchasing a home. Renting has it's benefits, but we are ready to spread out a little, and be able to put our own personal touch on our space, which renting limits. Due to the huge investment this is, we are in no rush to get into something, and have tentatively set a goal of buying by December. This week we did tour one home, which I may highlight in another post.

In addition to house hunting, I have been busy working long days at school. It is that "fun" time of year when the state test has to be administered!! My responsibility is to assist in providing accommodations to students on IEPs; which include scribing, reading portions aloud, testing students one on one, or in small groups. This makes my days very busy, because we are in a time crunch to get every student tested. The last few weeks, I have stayed after school to get paperwork and other responsibilities completed, although typically I have time during the school day to complete those things.

George has been busy with various things as well. On Wednesday he interviewed for a promotion within his company in the training department. The interview included a 15 minute presentation with PowerPoint followed by a two hour long interview with three superiors. He spent many hours preparing for this interview, and it is our hope and prayer that it would be the Lord's will that he would be accepted for the position. If it's not His will, George said, "At least it was a great way to get more interview practice." Please be in prayer as we wait to hear the outcome.

Needless to say, we have both been stressed and tense this week. Each morning we awoke saying, "How many days until Saturday?" or "What are we doing Saturday?" just to anxiously reply, "NOTHING!!" We were looking forward to a lazy day at home together to get some things done around the house and enjoy that the week was over. Of course...we should know that we may have our plans, but the Lord has His too. Friday afternoon, George got word that he was being called out to assess some of the storm damage in Arkansas. Thankfully, contrary to what they first thought, he was to leave Saturday morning, NOT Friday evening. We celebrated his birthday, did laundry, and got him packed for the weeks to come Friday evening, and he left first thing Saturday morning. So much for our lazy day together at home. At this time, they anticipate he will be gone until May 2nd, three full weeks. Please pray for him as he is gone, I am sure he would appreciate it.

March of Dimes

2008-04-03T20:47:00.001-05:00

Last year George's employer, Farmer's Insurance, raised over 4.5 million dollars for March of Dimes. Incredible, isn't it?

To read more about March of Dimes...check out the causes they support.

On May 4th the local March of Dimes Walk takes place in downtown Kansas City. It was our desire to participate in the walk. Unfortunately, it was on a Sunday morning, so we are unable to, although we still have the desire to contribute to the cause.

If you would like to donate to March of Dimes, please follow this link, and complete the "Sponsor Me" box on the right side of the page.

We thank you in advance!!

From the mouths of babes...

2008-03-23T16:58:00.000-05:00

I couldn't help but laugh at the things the girls said while they were here...

"You know Aunt E. The three chipmunks, Alma, Simon, and Teadork" - Emma

Emma is recently taking Claritin to drain some of the fluid in her middle ear. Friday morning she woke up with a tummy ache requesting medicine. Caitlin calmly explained, "you don't need Claritin, that is to help you SEE better!" (After some thought we realized the Claritin commercials start out in a "fog" because of allergies, and through the commercial, things become in focus again)

Passing the World's of a Fun Water Tower Emma proclaimed, "Look Aunt E!! An Easter Egg Taller Tower!!" I said, "You're right...it does look like an Easter egg water tower!" "No!" she corrected me, "a TALLER tower!".

Topping off the day...

2008-03-23T16:47:00.001-05:00

Because it was such a hit last time Caitlin visited, we decided both girls would like to experience the T-Rex Cafe. This time cousins Hannah and Abby, as well as Uncle Ben and Aunt Julie joined us. Unfortunately, we didn't get any pictures of the younger nieces, but maybe Julie will have some on her blog sometime soon. The girls did a spectacular job following directions and waiting patiently...I think environment was stimulating enough they didn't mind the two hour wait--the adults on the other hand...were feeling a bit overstimulated. :-)

Digging for dinosaur bones.

Being a good archaeologist takes time and patiences, gently brushing away the sand. Needless to say, I don't think that will be Emma's calling.

Emma loved the interactive trivia games.

Caitlin was more in favor of the memory/concentration games. She mastered the games very quickly.

Finally!! Both of them looking at the camera!

The next day we met up with Mike, had lunch, and I headed home, enjoying the once again, quiet car.

Their big surprise!

2008-03-23T16:26:00.000-05:00

As I've mentioned before, a childhood memory of mine living in Kansas City was Kaleidoscope. A part of Hallmark that encourages children to create, experiment, and play with all sorts of fun crafty things. Mom would take us with our friends and it was the time our lives! I wasn't sure due to the popular week for spring break if we would be able to get in, but thankfully we were. I didn't tell the girls much about it...except how much fun it would be. Typically, children, ages 5-12, go into Kaleidoscope independently, while parents watch through a one way mirror. This week was special because it was all family sessions, meaning kids of all ages were welcome and their parents (or Aunt) were allowed to attend with them. Just after entering each child is given a bag to put their name on and carry all their projects in. Below is a brief photo journal of just some of what the girls were able to do...

Outside Kaleidoscope, waiting in line...don't they think they're cute?

Here is Emma at a coloring station with stickers.

Emma at a painting station. Next to the painting area was a machine that would quickly dry the girls artwork so they could add it to their bags.

Caitlin is dabbling in Emma's paint because hers was quite yucky.

Artists are very serious about their work.

Doesn't it look like a fun place?

Here Caitlin draws a on small cardboard, that would be later turned into a personalized puzzle.

This area of Kaleidoscope is dark with black lights.

Caitlin was standing in front of a machine...and honestly, I'm not quite sure what the purpose of it was...but they liked it.
This was my favorite area. Art created with melted crayon wax...but of course in the dark room with black lights it looked much cooler than in the picture.
Emma showing off her mask creation.

Not bad for 40 minutes of free fun! The girls loved every minute of it!!

Caitlin and Emma's Spring Break Visit

2008-03-23T08:59:00.001-05:00

As a very last minute arrangement, Caitlin and Emma came for a visit while Caitlin and Aunt E were both on spring break. They arrived Wednesday, but once we did a quick dinner and church, it was time for bed.

Thursday morning, Uncle George got up early for work, and apparently the girls heard him, and were up with the sun as well. Admittedly, not quite how Aunt E had dreamed of spending her spring break mornings. Apparently Caitlin was a little confused too, "Spring break is much more funner than school," she explained, "During school I have to get up at like 8:00"...I laughed, as I attempted to explain to her that it was only 7:10. The girls curled up on the couch with their blankets as I made breakfast. We had a big day planned ahead of us.

First off, I had to go to work for short time due to a situation that arose earlier in the week. Not a big deal concerning me, but I was asked to come in and give a hand if possible. The girls entertained themselves in my "little classroom" (according to Caitlin and Emma), and eventually they went and played in another room, while they were able to watch a movie and play with toys.

The next stop was a "healthy" meal at Culvers and we headed downtown for their big surprise. We arrived at their surprise location to get tickets, but had about 45 minutes to spare, so we headed next door to the Hallmark Visitor's Center.

Here the girls were able to watch some clips of some Hallmark Hall of Fame movies.

The girls sat on big tubs of "paint" for a picture opportunity. Emma was convinced the large orange container with the syringe was "just like my nose spray".

There were two large displays of keepsake ornaments they were able to see.

This is the machine I remember as a child seeing at the Visitor's Center. The bow making machine. There is a large spool of ribbon in a machine, and you push a button and watch a bow formed right in front of your eyes...best of all...you get to keep the bow!

It was more difficult than I thought to get both girls to look at the camera at the same time.

Here Emma is guilty of straying eyes...a kind group of ladies who had fun with Caitlin and Emma at the bow machine took the picture for us.

Florida--Day 4...time to go home

2008-03-21T13:41:00.001-05:00

Admittedly, when vacations are over, I am typically ready to get home, or even worse, passed ready to get home. This vacation--I wanted to stay...I could have spent another week there. Dan had to work on our last day there, so it was just the girls and George. Kerry has fallen in love with a small town, about an hour from them called New Smyrna Beach. So for our final day in Florida, we headed up to New Smyrna. I think this was my favorite day there. It was such a neat town; lots of amazing homes, both old and new, cute shops, good food, and beautiful shore.

We parked the car and started walking a beautiful wood pathway. Periodically in the path there were lookout towers where you could enjoy the scenery. As we walked we could see lots of plants, trees, and a few animals too. At the end of the path we ended at a fresh water river.

We began to walk up the shore of the river, stopping periodically to dip our feet in, or take a picture. Then we came to the point that the river flowed the ocean. It was neat to see how the color and flow of the water changed as it flowed into the more rough and rocky ocean. There was a large group of men and women (most men of course) fishing on top of a mound rocks into the river/ocean. It was quite picturesque. We took our time, sat on the rocks, enjoyed the sunshine, watch the people, etc.

As our stomachs began to rumble, we decided we should head back. Rather than taking the shortcut back to the car, we walked our same route up the ocean shore, then up the river. After all, we never really got bored with the water. How could you? As we walked and talked, George said, "Wow...watch over there!!" I didn't see anything...then all the sudden three fins, and backs popped up just 20 feet from where we were, then another two, a little further away, moments later. Dolphins! It was a wonderful way to say goodbye to the beach.

First picture of dolphin fin, but you have to look closely. This was one the dolphins that was much further away from us than the larger group.

Edited photo, enlarged to show dolphin. Of course it doesn't do it justice.

For lunch we decided to hit a local fish place, JB's Fish Camp. It was a place on the river, that had outdoor seating and just a very casual, no glam-type of atmosphere...perfect for having just spent the morning on the beach. Although neither George or I eat fish often, I do enjoy fresh fish on the coast, it always tastes better! I encouraged him try something fishy, and with reluctance he did...The food was fabulous, even George thought so. We even indulged in some key lime pie!

Our last stop before the airport was to wander through downtown to look at a few of the local shops. A crowd favorite was Mosquito Mud Pottery. It was the first shop we stopped in, and although it was small, we hurried through it, and decided to duck back in on the way back to the car. Like Kerry said, "you know it is a good shop when you see things you didn't see the first time when you go back through." It was full of handmade tiles, pottery, and although not seen on their website, jewelry. I could have spent a fortune buying the beautiful locally made jewelry. It was all very unique and colorful.

To conclude this journal of our trip, although it still isn't the same as being there, here are two brief video clips of New Smyrna Beach. The first clip is when we were still walking up toward the rock line, and mostly still on the river shore. The second clip is taken from standing on top of the rocks, panning the ocean, over the river and back. As you can tell by the sound...it was a very windy day.

Florida--Day Three

2008-03-20T08:35:00.000-05:00

On day three of our Florida trip, we slept in and again enjoyed coffee on the patio as we debated between visiting another beach or going to a nearby town called Mt. Dora. Dan and Kerry had never visited Mt. Dora, but had heard of its quaintness and friendly atmosphere. Instead of getting more sun exposure, we decided to explore Mt. Dora.

We started at a local winery, Ridgeback Winery, where we were able to sample some of their wines. It was a cute little building with very friendly owners. Their winery business started from a post-retirement hobby. The owners are definite dog lovers, and each wine label has a dog on it, with clever names such as "Smelly Sneakers".

After wine tasting, we strolled through town and ducked in and out of various antiques shops, boutiques, and locally owned businesses. It was time for a light lunch so we stopped at One Flight Up Cafe. As you can guess by the name, it was on the second floor of a downtown building. We sat out on the patio and enjoyed watching the locals and other tourists. It was a beautiful place to sit and rest awhile before we continued shopping.

This is the view from where we were sitting, enjoying our casual lunch.

A view from the street of One Flight Up Cafe.

After grabbing cupcakes from "Cupcake Delights" around the corner, and had a hearty discussion about the entrepreneurial opportunities...After all, who would think that a cupcake shop would be a great business? We headed back towards Orlando.

After sitting back with our feet up for awhile, it was dinner time (don't all vacations revolve around good food?) My request was to try a local place for dinner. Dan and Kerry had wanted to try Lazy Moon Pizza near where they live. Their home is located near the University of Central Florida, so we weren't surprised that it was very much a college hangout. We pretended we were in college and went on in...the advantage of it being a college hit? It was CHEAP! Where can you get a slice of pizza and a drink for $3.60? Trust me "a slice" was more like 4 slices! We concluded day three reflecting back on our college days, the silly, stupid, and funny memories.

Florida--Day Two

2008-03-18T16:50:00.001-05:00

On day two of our trip we decided to take it pretty easy. We slept in and woke up to eat a leisurely breakfast of fresh fruit, croissants, and coffee outside under the warm Florida sun. We eventually decided to head to the beach. Dan and Kerry took us to the beach near Titusville, Florida at Canaveral National Seashore. As we climbed the stairs to get over the dunes, I captured my first look. For those of you who don't know, I've never had a true ocean and beach experience. I had always said, "I'm not a sun, water, beach kind of person", well...I was wrong...it was breath taking. Beautiful, calm, quiet, and quite the demonstration of God's handiwork.

The beach is located near the shuttle departure pad, and they are forced to close the beach several days before and even the day after the launch due to the heat emitted. Thankfully, it was not one of those days. At one point we heard and saw a helicopter coming at a fast rate of speed toward us. It was flying low and was within 100 feet of us. I tried to quickly grab the camera, but I only captured the back end of the NASA chopper.

We were able to spend about five hours enjoying the scenery and even taking a few dips in the water. The temperature outside was about 87 degrees, while the water temperature was in the low 70s. A little cool at first, but with time, it was quite comfortable. Kerry had packed a delicious lunch of oysters, cheese, crackers, grapes, carrots, hummus, and sausage.

As we were out in the water I questioned Dan and Kerry about fish or critters biting your toes or legs. They were in the midst of answering my question when "ouch!" I felt my ankle start to burn. I pulled it out of the water, but there wasn't much to see. It felt like a large bee sting. After got out of the water, I tried to ignore it, but I looked down and my ankle was bright red with a small white line going around, yes...I had been stung by a jelly fish. After about 20 minutes the sting went away, but even today, four days later, there is still a mark. Chances are, a cute little jelly fish was probably just swimming by and a tentacle just brushed against my leg. From that point on, after speaking too soon about not every sitting on a runway waiting for a flight to take off, and about critters, I decided I needed to watch my words.

I can't express how relaxing it was. I could have stayed there the entire time were in Florida. Around dinner time we decided it was time to head home. We stopped at the grocery store to pick up some steak and shrimp for dinner. Once again, the food was wonderful. As the night passed we came to realize the mark the sun had left. Thankfully, we applied, and reapplied sunscreen through out the day, but unfortunately, our feet had already been covered with sand, so they didn't get any sunscreen. George and I each had a few spots that we had missed putting the sunscreen, but for a day in the sun--we both faired very well.

In the next few days I'll try to write more and share a few highlights of our trip. Even now, in typing about it...I'm not doing the trip justice. Maybe I need to go back to get some more pictures?

Orlando, FL - Day One

2008-03-18T10:38:00.000-05:00

About a year ago, a friend of mine, Kerry, and her husband moved from living in the KC metro area to Orlando, Florida due to an employment opportunity. After nearly a year of saying, "yeah, we'll come and visit", we finally booked the flight and headed out.

After working all day, and George working a half day on Friday we took off from Kansas City to Atlanta where we would have a 2 hour layover. On our first flight as we were lining up for departure we were chatting about previous flight experiences and getting stuck just sitting on the runway. I boasted that I had never had much difficulty once boarding a plane, while George had several stories. We then took off for a uneventful flight and looked forward to the trip ahead.

Since we were short on time getting from work to the airport we skipped dinner, and were quite hungry by the time we arrived in Atlanta. We found an airport restaurant for dinner and quietly waited for our flight, sitting back, watching the commotion that airports so often have. There were families on spring break, young college students, business men and women trying to get home, one young daughter was hanging on to the pull bar of a luggage bag, with her legs wrapped securely around the bag, as her mother pulled her to their destination.

We boarded the plane and got settled in for the next leg of the journey. Of course, as I had boasted before, the Lord showed me different. A severe thunder storm barreled over the Atlanta airport as we sat on the runway, grounded until further notice. We sat for an hour as they tried to keep us informed and comfortable, handing out water bottles. The next day we found out how bad the storm truly was, and the extensive damage the Atlanta area experienced. Needless to say, it was worth being late.

We arrive in Orlando at about 12:45am local time. We met up with Dan and Kerry, and headed to their home for a much needed night of sleep.

Florida--March 14-17, 2008

2008-03-18T10:28:00.000-05:00

More details on the trip...coming soon!

Happy Anniversary Sweetheart!!

2008-03-03T20:19:00.000-06:00

A year ago today... I married my best friend. Happy Anniversary dear---I look forward to all the years to come. I know it is said it only gets better, I just don't know how it can. I love you!!

Recipe Five

2008-02-10T15:54:00.000-06:00

Here is my last contribution to the recipe exchange. It is not a Weight Watchers recipe, but it is a great recipe to take to church and typically gets rave reviews. It was something I grew up eating. I have to warn you, I don't have the exact recipe because I've made it so much, but I wanted to try to pass it on. If you have questions, please comment, and I'll try to clarify.

Sour Cream Enchiladas

2 cans cream of chicken soup
1-1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 can green chiles, drained
about 1/3 cup chopped green onion
about 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese
chopped cooked chicken
flour tortillas

Mix soup, sour cream, and green chiles in one bowl, set aside. Combine 1/2 the shredded cheese, chicken, and green onion. Spread thin layer of soup mixture on bottom of 9x13 pan. Fill one tortilla with spoonful of soup mixture and a sprinkle of the cheese mixture, roll and place in pan...repeat until pan is full of rolled tortillas. Pour remaining soup mixture over filled tortillas, and sprinkle with the other 1/2 of the cheese. Bake in oven at 350 until bubbly around edges.

Note: You may choose to make this recipe without the chicken. It isn't a meal unless it has meat in it at our house, so we always put chicken in it.

Recipe Four

2008-02-10T15:46:00.000-06:00

I had the best of intentions of getting a recipe up everyday, but I have hardly been out of bed, off the couch, awake, etc...to even think about getting on the computer. Thankfully I was able to go to the doctor again, they ruled out pneumonia after a chest x-ray, but have put me on another round of antibiotics. Lord willing, I will be able to go back to work tomorrow.

Anyway...for another recipe;

Santa Fe Quesadillas

1 1/4 cups salsa, divided
1 cup chopped cooked chicken breast
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 (4.5 ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
6 (7 inch) flour tortillas
1 cup shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
Cooking spray

1. Combine 1/2 cup salsa, chicken, and next 3 ingredients. Spoon mixture evenly onto 1 half of each tortilla, then sprinkle with cheese.
2. Coast a nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place over medium-high heat until hot. Add 1 tortilla; cook 1 minute. Fold in half; cook 30 seconds. Turn, cook 30 more seconds. Serve with remaining salsa.

We had these for dinner last night for the first time. George said it is his new favorite. Of course we adapted it with what we had. We used whole wheat, carb-balance tortillas, that are a bit smaller. We each ate two for dinner, then put the left over mixture in the fridge and had it again for lunch today. They were soooo easy to make and made minimal mess since we had chopped chicken breast in the freezer from a previous recipe.

Recipe Exchange-Day 3

2008-02-06T12:09:00.001-06:00

Gazpacho Salad

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1 cup coarsely chopped cucumber
3/4 cup coarsely chopped yellow bell pepper
1/2 cup coarsely chopped red onion
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/4 cup fat-free zesty Italian dressing
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Combine all ingredients. Serve immediately or cover and chill.

Does this make any one else anxious for fresh garden vegetables?

Recipe Exchange-Day 2

2008-02-06T12:03:00.000-06:00

Still under the weather here, and never managed to get my recipe posted yesterday. Thankfully, we were hit with snow yesterday, so I am home all day to get some rest without having to use a sick day.

I am going to go ahead and stick with a theme this week...all my recipes will be from Weight Watchers sources. This is what we had for dinner last night;

Wagon Wheel Beef Soup

3 cups uncooked wagon wheel pasta
3/4 pound ground round
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (1-pound, 10-ounce) bottle low-fat pasta sauce
1 (16-ounce) can red kidney beans, undrained
2 (14-ounce) cans less-sodium beef broth

1. Cook pasta and drain
2. cook beef and onion, drain
3. Mix pasta and beef mixture together and add remaining ingredients
4. Cook until thoroughly heated

Recipe Exchange-Day 1

2008-02-04T20:27:00.000-06:00

Several are participating in a recipe exchange this week, so I thought I would jump in. Other bloggers participating include, but not limited to; Stremmed Out and Sojourning Stranger.

Italian Chicken and Vegetables

1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon pepper, divided
4 (6 ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (8 ounce) presliced mushrooms
1 small zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chopped plum tomato
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat broiler
2. Combine garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in small bowl; sprinkle chicken with garlic powder mixture. Place chicken on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray, and broil 6 minutes on each side or until done.
3. While chicken cooks, heat olive oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, mushrooms, zucchini, and minced garlic; saute two minutes. Add 1/8 teaspoon pepper, tomato, onion, basil, and vinegar; saute three minutes. Serve vegetable mixture over chicken and sprinkle with cheese.

Now for my confessions regarding this recipe...it is very flexible I discovered last week when I made it. I added green pepper because we had some extra to use, I also forgot the red onion and cheese. Plus I substituted refrigerated minced garlic and dried basil. I thought my version turned out pretty good...and even George said, "It's not bad". Once I discovered the missing cheese still in the fridge, he said, "OH! That would have been great!" None the less, it was pretty tasty, not to mention healthy.

Must give credit....this recipe is from a Weight Watchers Cookbook, although I do not know exactly which one to give credit to.

2008-02-04T20:22:00.001-06:00

A little under the weather tonight, but due to popular request, although this is not the actual vacuum in our closet, it is close enough. The Dyson Yellow DC07. The cannister is very easy to remove, empty, and replace with essentially no mess what so ever. Had a known a new vacuum would make George want to vacuum so much, we would have splurged much earlier. :)

Growing up

2008-02-03T19:36:00.000-06:00

Over the last few years I've had moments where I've just been smacked in the head with the fact I'm not a kid anymore. Sometimes it is hard to accept growing up because it is easier to keep being a kid without having to worry about bills, responsibilities, making decisions, cooking meals, etc. Getting married was obviously one of the "growing up moments" as well as licensing my car, purchasing insurance independently, and so on. With the exception of marrying, I wouldn't say the other responsibilities were extremely fun or eventful. Last weekend, I had another growing up moment.

Silly as it may be...it was a moment none the less.

We bought.....

Get ready for it....

it is exciting....

yes, we did it....

We bought a vacuum!! A brand new, fancy, dancy, bagless, easy to use vacuum. Our previous vacuum, one I had used through college just wasn't cutting it anymore, so we read some online reviews and headed to the store. We pulled three various models off the shelf, comparing and contrasting each feature. Who would have thought it was so difficult to buy a cleaning tool!! We finally settled on the one we wanted but there was a price conflict between what was on the model and what was on the box. We found a nice saleslady who shrugged to see the vacuum we were purchasing. "It is the #1 vacuum we see returned," she explained. She then checked the price for us, confirming the lower price. We continued looking, reflecting on her suggestion. I kept saying, we don't have animals or children, so why spend so much on a cleaning machine? I could see it in his eyes...he was sold on the nicer one, after all he explained, someday there would be children and even a pet or two. So in the end, yes, we fell for it...we put the mediocre vacuum back and purchased the next one up, nearly double the cost. We arrive home later that night and went to bed, but first thing in the morning, as if it were Christmas morning, George opened the box, and handed it to me to "do the honors". It wasn't that we had purchased a vacuum that made me feel grown up, but rather the idea that we had purchased a vacuum and were excited about it!! Who would have thought--a vacuum, I don't think I would have been too thrilled about it prior to growing up.

Fun Weekend

2008-01-17T20:35:00.000-06:00

George and I hadn't had an uninterrupted weekend together with nothing to do since early or mid November. So last weekend, when he didn't have to work (he had worked the previous 4) and we didn't have any trips planned, we decided to go out and do several special things.

Saturday, after sleeping in, of course, we headed down to Crown Center. I remember Crown Center fondly. When we were young we would go to Kaleidoscope (at Crown Center), a fun craft and learning center. George had never been there so we went an visited some of the shops and grabbed a burger before heading to the outdoor ice rink. Of course, ice skating always sounds like fun...but really it hurts your feet, legs, and sometimes your hind end...not to mention it's cold. Thankfully neither of us fell, but our legs wearied very quickly, and our feet ached. We enjoyed it, but were thankful to put our shoes back on and get into the warm car.

Yes, that is the look of terror, also known as, "take the picture fast before I fall smile".

As we were heading back to the car though we heard an announcement, "Ladies and gentleman please clear the fountains. The water show played by the KC Symphony is about to begin". The fountains in the summer frequently have kids playing them and running through to cool down, but needless to say, it is January and 25 degrees, and there was no one in sight. We stopped and enjoyed the water show, before hurrying to the car.

I just thought the reflection of the lights on the the wet ground/fountain area was beautiful.

Sunday evening we headed down to another KC hot spot that we love, the Plaza. We never pulled out the camera, but we treated ourselves to a nice dinner at the Melting Pot and enjoyed just having some quiet time together once again.

This weekend will be another busy one, but one we are looking forward to. We have not been to Illinois in quite sometime, but are looking forward to making a trip there this weekend to celebrate a late Christmas with George's family.

Three stop shopping spree

2007-12-31T17:07:00.001-06:00

Usually when I have a shopping list that includes many coupons or various store deals I can almost guarantee there will be some type of problem; a difficult cashier, out of stock, refusing coupons, etc.

Today I made three stops; CVS, Walgreens, and Target. Each store went smoothly and without any hitches. Here are my brief summaries;

CVS
2 bottles of sparkling apple juice
2 bags of Russell Stovers' chocolates (Christmas clearance)
2 packages of paper plates
2 Glade scented oil refills (Christmas clearance)
2 spools of wired ribbon (Christmas clearance)
1 box of Nerds (Had to grab something quick to cover my negative balance)

I used a B1G1 coupon for the chocolates, a $3 off $15 purchase, a $2 off $10, and a $4 ECB. The plates were B1 G1 50% off. According to my receipt I saved $39.36, and spent $0.43 out of pocket.

Side note...I can't remember exactly when I got involved with CVS, but sometime in the late summer, since then, my year to date savings is over $1500!! If your not convinced to try CVS yet...you're really missing out!

Walgreens
1 bottle window washer fluid (a must have and Target was out)
1 bottle Vive Pro Shampoo
1 bottle Vive Pro Conditioner
2 Glade Scented Oil Candle holders
3 Glade Scented Oil Candle refills

I used 2 $1 off Vive Pro manu. coupons, $3 off to Vive Pro Products store coupon, B1G1 Glade candle holder coupon, and $3 off 3 candle refills. Also the shampoo was clearanced to 2.59, the conditioner 1.29 (so it was a money maker) and the candles were B1G1 from the store, so they were completely free, and I will bet getting a rebate for $2. So my out of pocket expense was $5.31. Total savings of about $34.00!

Target
3 bags Hershey's candy (Christmas clearance)
2 containers of ornaments (Christmas clearance)
2 boxes of raisins
4 cans of soup
2 single ornaments (Christmas clearance)
1 bag marshmallows
1 bag flour
1 bag brown sugar

All Christmas clearance was 75% off, I got approx. 25 ornaments for less than $5. The candy was $.69 per bag, plus three store coupons for $.50 off each bag. My students never get sweets from me...they might be surprised! The soup had several coupons; a $.40 off 4 manufacturer coupon, and two $.50 off 2, store coupons. The other items were just things we needed for a few recipes I'll be making this week. All in all I spent $13.88 but saved nearly $20.00!!

JCPenny's deal

2007-12-31T16:51:00.001-06:00

While George was out working on Friday I piddled around some stores near the hotel. Several clearance Christmas items caught my eye, but I wanted to talk the purchases over with George. He gave me a thumbs up for the next day and the deals ended up being even greater. There was an additional 20% off clearanced merchandise and $10.00 off a $50.00 purchase.

Prior to sale prices I would have spent over $175, but walked alway just spending $45.00.

This platter, which will match perfectly with our china, was originally priced 39.99, and we paid $9.00 for it!

The back side of the platter has a matte-like finish on it.

This is the picture of the entire purchase. 3 Christmas tree centerpieces (orig. $49.99), 3 cute Christmas mugs, perfect for filling with candy and giving as small gifts (orig. $12.00 each), one gold ornament (orig. $7ish?), large red platter, and large red bowl (orig. $39.99 each).

I was thankful to get such wonderful deals, and add to our Christmas decorations for next year.

A quick update

2007-12-31T16:22:00.001-06:00

The last few weeks have been very different for us. George left nearly three weeks ago to do some business in Oklahoma. Our original plans for the holidays had been to spend Saturday and Sunday before Christmas with my family, then Sunday evening through Christmas day with George's family. When he was called to Oklahoma, we knew we would have to revise our plans. We had to take the "one day at a time" method, which was a phrase mom frequently used as we were growing up. Anyone who knows me, knows I like to plan things, and "one day at a time" isn't how I typically do it.

Thankfully George was able to leave Oklahoma Saturday before Christmas and drove straight to my parents' home. Ben, Julie, Hannah, Abby, and I had arrived just before George. We had a nice dinner together and exchanged gifts, including our annual gag gift exchange. Sunday morning we all attended services at New Liberty. Unfortunately, Mike wasn't feeling well, so we missed having him there, but it was nice worshiping all together.

We had decided since George had worked 140+ hours over two weeks, to travel to his parents' house would be too much, so we postponed seeing them until later in January. We headed home and had two quiet days by ourselves. George was able to catch up on a little sleep and we had a nice time together again. Wednesday morning he headed back to Oklahoma, and I spent the day with my close friend Kerry. We had a wonderful brunch at Andres' and then did some antiquing and shopping on the Plaza.

Wednesday evening Mom and Fadraon spent the night with me, while Micha and Daniel stayed down the street with Ben and Julie. Micha was scheduled to fly to Dallas the next day, but mom had to head home as Fadraon was fighting off a virus. So after doing some shopping with Micha and taking her to the airport, I headed down to spend some time in Oklahoma with George. Thankfully the amount of claims he was getting had slowed down, so we were able to spend the evenings together and relax.

Thursday he was notified he would not be getting any more claims, so he was free to go home when he was done with his work load. So Sunday morning, at 5am we left Oklahoma to come back to KC, just in time for him to fill an appointment at a local church. He is back at work today, and ready for a day off tomorrow. Thanks to all those who have kept him in your thoughts and prayers while he has been away.

And now for some pictures...

Cailin and Emma showing off their new blankets from Uncle Ben, Aunt Julie, Uncle George, and Aunt E.

Hannah loved carrying around my new purse. Julie said she became quite fond of it prior to her wrapping it. She definitely is coming to appreciate accessories. Thanks again to Ben and Julie for the purse. I love it!

Caitlin and Emma showing off their new hair pieces, which were a part of the gag gift exchange.

An evening with Hannah

2007-12-22T07:10:00.001-06:00

Hannah's reaction to the flash. She would laugh, then rub and rub and rub her eyes.

Because all dogs need socks, right?

I never realized how fun it was to "blow" your nose.
Dogs also need to blow their nose. FYI-they don't like it anymore than kids do.

The task of ironing.

2007-12-22T06:49:00.000-06:00

Several years ago I loved ironing. I would turn on some music and iron for awhile and really enjoy it. I'm not sure what it was, the success of getting the wrinkles out of the shirts, or just calming, or what? Well, now that I am doing a lot more ironing, it just isn't quite as enjoyable. Let me rephrase that, it isn't that I don't enjoy it, it is more that I can never keep up with it. I'll get a few of George's shirts ironed with the thought I'll get around to the rest in the next couple of days, but instead laundry, or other things come up. While I know ironing is technically an aspect of laundry-I consider my laundry done, even when the ironing is not.

Shortly after George left for his work trip, I made it my goal to get the ironing done. This was one of my "projects". After Crystal hosted Making your Home a Haven, I knew this was something I needed to get done. Afterall, it kind of prevented our bedroom from feeling like a haven. As I fold laundry I toss things to be ironed over a chair. Embarrassing, I know.

The before picture of the ironing pile.

I was visiting with my aunt, who's husband travels a lot, and told her of my plan to get caught up on the ironing and she said she takes the opportunity to pray over her husband as she does the ironing and laundry. For example; praying for a strong back to carry the load, his arms for provisions and comfort, and his neck turning in only in the ways the Lord would direct. I just thought this was the perfect way I could do two things for my husband, iron his shirts and pray for him while he was gone. When it was all said and done I think I ironed 18 shirts and 2 skirts.

I miss you sweetheart!!

2007-12-15T12:17:00.001-06:00

As some may have heard, George was called out for the first time on storm duty. He is in Oklahoma. He left Thursday morning and is anticipated to be back a week from Sunday. I'm primarily posting this asking for friends and family to keep him in your prayers. The first day down there he worked 14 hours, the second, 12 hours. He is climbing on roofs, giving estimates for roof repair, tree removal, etc. I found some amazing pictures of the damage in the Tulsa area here. The beauty amid the storm in some of the pictures are just reminders of God's glorious creation. George has repeatedly described it as a "war zone". This is our first time away from each other since we were married.

Maybe in the coming days I will post some pictures of the projects I am doing to keep busy while he is away, but for now...Just please pray for him to have strength during the long hours and safety while he is out and about. Also, I am sure the Oklahoma residents who have been without power and have damage to their home would appreciate the prayers as well.

Updating

2007-12-11T19:43:00.001-06:00

I haven't done a real post of what we've been up to since before Thanksgiving. So, since I have a few minutes I'll try to catch up.

For Thanksgiving George and I headed up to his parents house on Wednesday evening. We were driving through Springfield, IL around midnight so we stopped to hit up the CVS Thanksgiving 3 day sale. We arrived at his parents a little after 1am then got up early Thursday morning to head to Indiana to be with his dad's side of the family. Aunt Marge and Cousin Kathy hosted the annual event as usual. Of course we ate too much, but we had a good time. Aunt Marge has recently retired...oops, I mean "quit", so she has been working on a few projects around the house and sewing projects. She let me pick out two beautiful quilted pot holders to take home.

The group socializing after the Thanksgiving meal. We ate so much we couldn't even get up from the table.

The pot holders Aunt Marge made. Kathy also gave me a wonderful scrubber. if I remember right she said she picks them up occasionally at crafts shows or something like that. It works wonders, not to mention is safe for all dishes. Thanks again to both of you!!

The first weekend of every month we head to Kirksville for George to fill an appointment at Hazelcreek Primitive Baptist Church. On our way up this month we stopped by Mom and Dad's to visit the evening before.

This last weekend we had several things planned, but everything managed to get canceled due to the weather. My work Christmas party was one of them, but I had just finished making a new treat to take, Southern Sour Cream Pralines, from Martha Stewart Living Magazine. They didn't harden quite like they should have, but they were sure delicious. George loved them too!

One of two trays of pralines. Some how we managed to eat both trays in two days...we did share with Ben and Julie though.

A close up...I will definitely have to make this recipe again. I just wish nuts weren't so expensive!

Really, like I said, nothing too exciting. Our Financial Peace University class has ended..so we have reclaimed our Tuesday nights. It is amazing what a difference it makes having one more night at home. Not much coming up too exciting for the holidays, just making the rounds to the families. I'll sure there will be more posts on the holidays to come.

"Oh the weather outside is....?"

2007-12-11T18:19:00.001-06:00

Just a few pictures of our surroundings the past week or so...although not nearly as good as mom's pictures, they had more ice than we did. Thankfully the temp stayed just above freezing so not too many people in our area are without power.

This is the snow from just about a week ago. This view is off our balcony.

This picture was last night. George was experimenting with the "night" feature on the camera.

Again last night as everything began to ice.

Right outside the apartment this morning.

Thankfully the roads weren't bad at all, so I ventured up to Ben and Julie's for a little bit on my snow day today. This was near their home. It was beautiful.

Again, outside the apartment.

Ben and Hannah ran across the street to get the mail all bundled in blankets...I don't think she was a fan of the cold and wetness.

The little things

2007-12-11T15:24:00.000-06:00

The past two weeks Crystal, over at Biblical Womanhood, has been hosting "Making your home a haven". I have enjoyed reading her suggestions and ideas, but have had to adapt it to fit what I am able to do. My husband and I do not have any littles just yet, so I am up and out the door, just like him every day. This weekend we took the time to work together to attack our bedroom and laundry. Although we got it all done, I didn't get any before/after pictures. In the next few days, I will still be working towards completing the pile of ironing.

Today I was fortunate enough to have a "snow/ice day". Rather than sleeping in, which my sweet husband encouraged, I decided if I was going to get anything done, I needed to get up and get going. On my list was grocery shopping, baking, clean laundry closet, and clean the linen closet. Each cleaning project took just a few minutes. I am hoping for another snow day tomorrow, to tackle.

Embarrassing before picture: linen closet-bottom
15 minutes later: linen closet-bottom

Another embarrassing before: linen closet-top
15 minutes later: linen closet-top
A pile of rags from the previous job that were in the wrong closet sitting on the dryer.
After picture
Top shelf of closet, before.
Top shelf after.

My favorite deal of the week!!

2007-12-09T17:37:00.000-06:00

I realize it has been awhile since our last post. I have several drafts pending, but just haven't done the finishing touches on them. More on what's new in our lives (though not much) in another post.

I was blessed with several great deals this week, but this one is my favorite. George and I had went to Super Target last night to pick up some free tomatoes. Unfortunately, the coupons making them free were no longer available. But since we also needed an ice scraper, we started wandering through the store. I stopped to rummage through the clearance racks and came across this beautiful coat. I had been keeping an eye out for a coat that would look better than my solid black one, for the days when I wear brown, but to also lengthen the life of my current coat.

I tried the coat on, saw George's eyes light-up with approval, but then looked at the tag...it was still $42.00. While I realize it is a decent deal, knowing a few purchases we had made earlier in the day, I took off the coat and returned it on the rack.

Later in the evening we had done pizza and a movie with Ben and Julie (brother and sister-in-law) and I hopped on their computer to show Julie the coat. As I pulled it up I was surprised to see it on sale online for $24.99!! I printed the page and took it to the store to see if they would honor the price (so I could avoid shipping costs), but of course, Target never makes things easy and said no.

After a little deliberation I decided to order it online. As I went to the online check out I noticed the promo code field. I checked my usual site for promo codes for online stores and saved 1/2 of the shipping cost! All in all, I purchased the coat for less than $30.00!! By the time tax was paid in store I would have spent over $45.00. In my opinion, it is well worth it to save the $15 and have to wait an extra 5 days for delivery.

Go to Super Savings Saturday to see other's great deals.

Welcome Home

2007-11-26T17:26:00.000-06:00

I could watch this over and over...thought it was worth sharing. Thanksgiving was just a few days ago...there is so much to be thankful for.

Note: I was told the video was playing correctly for some, click here if you'd like to go directly to the news website with the video link on it.

A Thanksgiving Feast

2007-11-21T10:48:00.001-06:00

As many know, I am a speech pathologist at an elementary school. As Special Education Building Manager, I am also very involved in our specialized instruction program, which has about 25 emotionally disturbed and behavior disordered students. As is tradition in our building, we all band together to make sure all of the students in the program get a Thanksgiving feast. While the staff provide the food, the students take an active part in the preparation as well. One class sent out invitations to special education staff and related staff, such as custodians and principal, while other students set the table, made festive placemats, and seated guests as they arrived. It is so much fun to see them smile and work so hard to put on such a grand event.

This is about half of the food, we had several crock pots of potatoes and containers or rolls. I saw one students eat at least 7 rolls! I was shocked!

A few coworkers, Emily and Misti, who have both become good friends.

Of course I can't show student faces due to privacy reasons, but this shot shows one students TWO platefuls of food ... that was just in his first trip through the line. :)

Look closely and you can see the colored placemats with festive pictures on them on the table.

Matt, another coworker, who brought his grandmothers homemade pecan pies. Ugh! My mouth just waters reflecting on how good they were!

Another student enjoying his feast.

Just outside in the hall, the first grade classrooms were having a feast of their own. They had made pilgrim and indian costumes for their feast.

They use bulletin board paper and roll it down the hall as a table cloth.

Oh the fun of a paper bag and construction paper!!

'Tis the season

2007-11-21T07:37:00.001-06:00

Last Saturday George and I had spent most of the day around the house doing a lot of nothing. So late afternoon we decided we HAD to get out of the house. We ventured out to Village West Shopping District for the Christmas Tree Lighting. There was quite a crowd of people; babies, young children, young couples, families, etc. It seemed like it drew out a little of everyone. There were some local school choirs singing and Santa made an appearance as well. It was hard to believe we haven't had Thanksgiving, and we're lighting trees, but I guess Christmas is fast approaching.

Just a few pictures...

2007-11-11T15:53:00.001-06:00

The other night we were over visiting Ben and Julie. Hannah decided she needed to put on Aunt E's jacket. She also was fascinated by our camera, although she had never shown much interest in it before. It prevented me from getting too many pictures of Abby or any good pictures of Hannah because she just kept reaching for it. Here are the couple I did capture.

Also here are a few more fall pictures. These are on my way home from work. My commute has been more colorful these days.

Rolling Extra bucks at CVS

2007-11-11T15:29:00.000-06:00

Yes, its time for another CVS post. Let's start from the beginning. First, I purchased 3 NovaMax Glucose Monitors paying zero (not even a penny). With this purchase I received $60 is Extra Care Bucks (ECBs) to use on future purchase. Read more about how I did this here.

My $60 dollars had to be spent all at once...which was harder than I thought. Granted, we could have walked in picked up $60 worth of merchandise and walked out..but we wanted to purchase more items to give us more ECBs, thus making even more money off the original deal. Our total was nearly $100 dollars prior to coupons and ECBs. By the time it was all said and done we paid just over $3.00 out of pocket and received almost $61.98 in ECBs. To break it down...

4 bottles Fruit 2 0 water: Buy One, Get One AND 2 Coupons ($1 off 2)
2 bags Dark Chocolate M&Ms: Coupon (Buy One, Get One) and $2 ECB earned
2 bottles Saline Solution: We just need these
1 box Kleenex: Needed these too, we are fighting off colds
2 Magazines: Just wanted these for fun. :)
2 Ameal BP: 2 Coupons ($3 off each) and $59.98 ECBs earned
Plus a $10 off coupons any purchase over $50.
And our ECB credit of $60.00 from the glucose monitors.

Over the next few weeks we will try to roll over those ECBs and the others we have saved up into more deals.