Baby Belly to 30 weeks!

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23 weeks 

 24 weeks

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 28 weeks

 29 weeks

30 weeks!

The Beauty

I have to say that I am rather enjoying winter this year!  In know, I know, all you Minnesota family and friends probably want to throw your frozen tomatos at me or something for saying that since your actual temps today were negative 20-30 degrees!  But I work at home (a blessing) and have been excused from shoveling duty (thanks Cupcake!) and it has been beautiful.  Now while we have had over 40 inches of snow, it usually melts in between our 6-12 inch falls!  We are looking to get another system this weekend that should bring us something (they say 3-6, but I am guessing it will be more because it usually is!) good and this is fine by me.  I have only had one snow day with work and that has been okay too! 

This picture is from last February, we did have snow on the ground but the thick frost on EVERYTHING made it all beautiful!  I am a crazy and would really have a difficult time moving somewhere where we would not get the chance to experience all four seasons.  Fall is my favorite, but they all have their own beauty.  God knew what He was doing when creating the seasons, He gave them to us to celebrate the beauty in each one!

I enjoy winter, I enjoy snow, and I enjoy the excitment of my own two children plus the Pumpkins with each time beautiful snow starts falling from the sky.  What do you enjoy about winter?

Disclaimer~ However, if Cupcake decides to come in the middle of one of our no travel PERIOD 3 foot Spring snows I might have a different outlook....but that would only last a little while!  8-) 

Thankful Thursday

I have been having a difficult time this week trying to decide just what I was going to write about today.  We all have SOOOO many things to be thankful for and it is difficult to pick just ONE!  But I think that I am going to be thankful for Facebook this week!

I know this is crazy, I do not always love FB and there are times I do not even like it.  But there are a handful of ladies I do not live close to that FB helps me stay in touch with!  What a blessing to be in immediate contact with a friend from Washington State that I (up until last month) hadn't seen since college to hear her good news, and trust me she has had some GREAT news over the past few months!  Or another friend from the other side of the state who is a Mama to one little girl and expecting her second that is very godly and always an encourager!  I also know she will be finding out big news on the 10th of February and sweet little FB will help to get that news out!  It also is how 2 of the 3 wonderful ladies that did fundraisers for our adoption found out that we were adopting again and in need of financial help!  Or just simply some of my good friends from college/the past that are spread through the country!  New York, Indiana, Missouri...etc. etc.!

There are also family members that do not live anywhere close to me, yet I am able to 'shoot them a note' as quickly as I want to just because!  Or when you have cousins serving overseas (or friends) and you can stay in touch with them and keep up with them to know they are safe and sound!

FB was also a great encouragement while I was on my diet, I was open about my weight and it was a great place to be accountable. 

Now, I know that there have not always been the best of outcomes through FB....but I have learned you do not have to have the most friends on FB but have the friends that matter!  It was a big lesson to learn!  But when people are only being cruel and critical they are really not 'friends'! 

So today I am thankful for the technology that FB is!  I am thankful for a place to go and see friends with encouraging scriptures or quotes on their status, or being able to just stay in touch!  I enjoy being able to stay in touch via FB!

Milk

Milk ~ liquid gold (though gas is becoming more of liquid gold) ~ but I have always thought of milk as such.  I love milk, I grew up on a farm and we were never without milk!  Going away to college I didn't have as much milk as I did growing up at home and that was a problem for me, but it helped set the pace for married life without a ton of money.  When we first got married we literally lived paycheck to paycheck and didn't usually have alot left over.  So we would buy milk because it is important to the body, but we only were allowed some on our cereal (if we had cereal) and a glass at the evening meal.  None of this ~ drink all you want ~ stuff! 

Then kids entered the picture, and while I do not let my children drink all the milk they want, it is important to their growing bodies too...so we started having a little more around.  Now I have a daycare and so we have a little more than that around.  Until Sunday. 

Being in my 3rd trimester I have not exactly had the most ambission in the world and when my day at the Patch is finished I am pretty well tired so getting to the store isn't something that happens like it should sometimes, but if we are getting low on milk that is usually insentive enough ~ LIQUID GOLD!~  However, in the midst of another busy weekend some how we managed to drink the last of the milk on Sunday night and I was not able to get out and get some before work on Monday.  Then Monday we had plans so we went two entire days without the beloved liquid gold.  This is terrible, I know, and being pregnant my body needs that milk.  Having a daycare we NEED that around!  So when we finally made it to the store we bought 4 gallons!!!  I feel like I am trying to make up for lost time and am enjoying greatly going to the fridge several times a day for a glass!

Not the most important post in the world....but liquid gold is an amazing thing and I can promise that unless it happens while I am giving birth to Cupcake, we will not be running out of milk any time in the near future! 

A quote and my thoughts...

"One woman will brag about her children, while another complains about hers; they could probably swap children without swapping tunes"

I found this quote (without author noted) and it really hit home to me.  I have always tried very hard not to sound like a mother complaining about my children.  Have I failed, YES, but I try each day to be ONLY thankful for my children and where we are.  Do I complain about other things, more than I should...but why would I complain about one of the top three most amazing gifts God has blessed me with?

I know many women who have very little good to say about being a mother, or sharing the experience with their spouse.  Is being a mother hard, YES!  It is probably one of the most difficult hats I have to wear.  But it is amazing, and I find it amazing how God has pieced our family together in His most perfect way!  Now I know I have complained of situations before, but what do you hear fairly new mothers complain about out of the gates? 

"I am so tired, this child wakes up for nightly feedings and I cannot sleep."  I always found the night time feedings a blessing.  The house is quiet, the lights are dim, and there are no distractions and absolutely nothing else for me to be doing but feeding that precious baby.  I find this true of all my babies, even our foster babies, I have never minded getting up for that precious bonding time no matter what the hour.

"Changing diapers is for the birds, those blow outs are the worst."  Here, I do tend to say that it isn't the most pleasant thing in the world to do...but having two children that struggled to go 'stinky' more than once a week as little ones I was always relieved when they would go...no matter how the outcome showed itself.  Pleasant, no, but you had to know this was bound to happen when you started thinking about having children.

These are just a couple of things that I hear often even at baby showers when the blissful expectant mother is 'getting advise' from the already 'experienced' parents.  It makes me sad that such things have to be brought into that precious happiness that expecting your first baby brings!

Now I am getting to experience a new level of parenthood.  Both of my children to this point are adopted, because I was 'pre-menopausal' (however  you spell it) and would not have any children after our 4th miscarriage.  God prooved Himself to be still in the miracle business when in August of 2010 we discovered we were expecting!  As I sit here now we are at 29 weeks and still doing well!  You hear many women with a vast number of complaints about pregnancy.  Here is another place I try very hard not to complain...this is a blessing, I know MANY people that would do almost anything to be in the state I am in right now.  They wouldn't be caring about how much the scale has changed in 7 months or that they waddle everywhere they walk or they are not sleeping all the way through the night or that they cannot fit into 'normal' clothing or how uncomfortable they are or all the other things you often hear from pregnant women.  Here again, I have tried very hard to not complain...have I failed, most likely, but my desire is to be thankful for this pregnancy that God has blessed me with.  It has been exciting to get to experience the amazingness of a baby growing inside of my womb and feeling the kicks, and while my pregnancy hasn't been a bed of roses, even that has been somewhat exciting.  We have had something like 7 ultrasounds since 6 weeks, 5 days and our last being just two weeks ago.  I get to have at least one more before she is born too! 

So going back to that quote, what kind of a mother do you want to be.  If I were to constantly complain about my children, now that they are 4 years old, they would be hearing that and what would that do to them?  Not only that, but what does it do to the people you are complaining to?  Do they have children of their own?  Do they not?  Are they having trouble having children and are sitting there thinking 'lady if only you knew how much I would love to take your children off your hands and love on them' because of what they have been through?  Our words strike farther than we think sometimes, and when dealing with such a precious gift as children we need to watch what we say....not only for ourselves, but for our children and people around us!

2010 in Pictures ~ Our Sunshine!

 West River Birthday Party!

 Painting his ice cream bowl for Valentines Day!

 Playing in the snow

 Friends birthday party in March

 Spring pictures

 New bikes in April!

 Annual Mother's Day pictures in May!

 Swimming at the Patch in May

 I love his many faces!

 Riding the 1880 Train with Mama!

 Dancing with Mama

 4th of July parade (Cool Dude!)

 Wild bowler at Sissy's birthday!

 Visiting the fire station

 Family pictures in October

Getting spoiled at Grandpa and Grandmas for Chritmas!

2010 in Pictures ~ Princess Style!

 Some months I couldn't pick just one!

 Playing in the snow in February!

 Nice Spring pictures in March!

 The kids got their bikes in April!

 Dance recital in May

 Annual Mother's Day pictures in May!

 Roughlock Falls in June....family time!

 Helped Mama make carmel rolls in July!

 4th of July parade!

 4th Birthday Pictures!

 Still talking Daddy into doing the 'Daddy Dance' in October!

 Family pictures in October!

 Our dancing Princess!

Getting spoiled at Grandma and Grandpa's for Christmas!

Thankful Thursday

"Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not part of my flock. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one."  John 10:25-30

I am thankful the Jesus died on the cross and did not stay dead!  He is alive!  He was resurrected!  I am thankful that he really made it so easy to trust in Him and to be part of His flock!  I think sometimes Christians take for granted the life Christ has opened for us through salvation in Him.  Do you realize that once you make the decision to put your trust in Him forever that He has adopted you?  By today's standards when you adopt a child the state would have a more difficult time taking that adopted child away from you than if you had birthed them, that puts a larger relationship between you and your Savior than that of you and any other human being on earth!  What will you do with this blessed relationship? 

I will be thankful for it and strive daily to grow that relationship! 

Homemade Orange Julius!

My sister-in-law shared this with me about 8 years ago and it has stayed a favorite treat in our home!

1/2 can orange juice concentrate
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup mik
1 cup water
1 tsp vanilla
10 ice cubes

Blend on ice crush for 10-15 seconds!

Enjoy!

January 3rd!

On this day 9 years ago my Handsome proposed and I said YES!  What a fun 9 years it has been committed to you Handsome!  God has brought us through many tough times, but He has also richly blessed us.  I cannot put into words how thankful I am to have such a rock in my life!  Every day is an adventure but I know every day this man is going to be the leader of our home and a godly example to our family!  What a ride to have such an amazing man to walk through life with! 

Thank you for choosing me Handsome!  Thank you for loving me!  Thank you for becoming the best friend I always wanted....thank you for being YOU!

In 7 months and 7 days we will celebrate our 9th Anniversary...I still think it was so special of you to calculate the time between engagement and wedding day (yes, we had our wedding day picked out before he asked me to marry him...but my dad is a farmer, and we needed to make sure to plan around hay cuttings!) and how perfect, 7 months and 7 days!

While your attention to little details like that is not the same as it was then, we have added a few other details to our lives since then.  I look forward to each and every day that I get to spend with you.  You are an amazing husband and the best Daddy!  While I see you with Princess and Sunshine every day, I look forward to welcoming our cupcake into our family with you in just a few months!

I still say YES! 

Love you HANDSOME!

January 2nd

January 2nd 2011 marks a very special day, our Sunshine has been in our lives for 4 years now!  While he was born in December 2006, we was not released from the hospital into foster care until January 2nd 2007 ~ when he was just six days old!  We were blessed enough to be the ones that got the call to be his foster parents and then even more blessed to become his legal parents! 

I still remember sitting in the basement of the church (where we lived at the time) feeding my 3 month old daughter (Princess) and getting and unknown number call that turned out to be our social worker!  It was 3:41 PM and the worker asked me if we had an extra crib...I told him we had a pack n play but that I didn't allow people I don't know to use our things.  He replyed with a, "we don't want to barrow it, we want to fill it!"  He explained there was a newborn at the hospital here in town that they needed a foster home for and were wondering if we would like to be the foster parents for this child.  Without calling my husband I said, "YES!" and was asked to be at the hospital in 15 mintues!  I went not knowing how old or if I would be picking up a boy or a girl...the ladies on the maternity floor thought I was nuts when I came walking in with my 3 month old daughter in her carseat and said I was there to pick up a newborn foster baby!  We also didn't realize then that this foster baby would become our legal son!  What a blessing!

That day stands out in my mind like it was yesterday!  Sunshine, yet again I can say we are so thankful that God put you in our lives!  While you make each day a little more difficult, you also brighten it too! 

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On another note, Happy 29th Anniversary to my parents!

2010 in pictures

A picture a month for 2010

 January ~ Sunshines' East River birthday party

 February ~ On our Valentines family weekend we painted ice cream bowls at Pottery 2 Paint...they have enjoyed using them!

 March ~ We were able to attend a friend and fellow Pumpkin at her birthday party!

 April ~ We drove to MN to spend Easter with Mama's extended family!

 May ~ The annual Mother's Day photo shoot

 June ~ Grandma and Aunt C came to visit and we road the 1880 train!

 July ~ Our yearly trip to the rodeo...it was chilly this year!

 August ~ the terrible mother I am have no pictures in August of people, just nature!  But we do have much beauty in that department around here!

 September ~ A second trip to Devils Tower for us this year, this time with our Pastor and family...we have enjoyed getting to know them since then!

 October ~ Family night at the Fire Station open house!  The kids had a BALL!

 November ~ We were blessed enough to have Mama's parents here for Thanksgiving so we set up our Christmas tree earlier than ever before! 

 November II ~ We had our family pictures taken by a dear friend in my home town of LB, MN! 

December ~ Our children had the chance to be a part of their first church Christmas program!  They did pretty well and were excited to have our Pastors children (their new best friends) in the program too!

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There are so many other pictures I could share with you, and throughout this week I will do a post for pictures of Princess 2010 and pictures of Sunshine 2010!  What a blessed year we had, God has given us more than we could ask for in 2010 and we already know 2011 will be a wonderful year as we look forward to the birth of our Cupcake in March or April!

Happy New Year!

Shy Girl!

I was wanting to have this be something more than a 'on this date, this happened' kind of a post....but I have not found a cute way to relay the news.

On Sunday night, December 26th, our Cupcake finally let her Daddy feel a kick.  One kick was all she could manage to give him, but she did allow him that one kick!  He now has proof that Mama is not just gaining weight and 'taking it easy' for nothing!  (Handsome never thought that, he has been very amazing with this pregnancy)

Then in this amazing journey yesterday (the 28th) I was laying in bed before getting up for the day and she started doing an amazing little dance that allowed me to feel her, for sure, for about 15 minutes with my hand on my belly!  It is interesting to feel someone moving inside of you...and an entirely different ball game when you are also feeling that little person move on the outside too! 

Now if only you could be so kind as to let your big sister feel you, she would be so excited!  She is singing faithfully to you every night and patiently (though the patience is not going to last much longer) holding her hand on my belly often to try and catch you kicking....so PLEASE Cupcake, your Princess is so excited for you and would like to feel you move!

Happy 4th Birthday Sunshine!

Four years, wow, how time does fly away!  How is it possible that my 'baby' is turing 4!  You no longer need Mama to help you dress, eat, change your diaper...but one thing has not changed...you still need Mama for occasional snuggles!  Oh how I dread the day you grow out of that soft side of needing a Mama snuggle!  You have always been the one that would crawl up on my lap and snuggle in for lengths of time, I love that!

Sunshine it seems that we are finally in the area of not battling anything with you...before we knew for sure that you would be our Sunshine we battled for your life with so many doctors and tests that I thought it would NEVER end.  When we finally got to the end of that we battled in court for the right to be your parents since we were the only people that you knew!  God has given victory over both of those battles and for that we are thankful! 

I still remember the day in March of 2008 when the doctor told us to 'go home, love on him, spend as much time with him, but get final arrangements in order.'  My mind raced, for 14 marvelous months God had placed you in our home as a foster baby (though we loved you so and considered you ours) and now He was going to take you away from us.  Nothing legally had been decided so would we even get to have a say in your 'final arrangement?'  That is when God helped us find your gluten intolerance.  You all of a sudden (literally over night!) became a different child!  What a miracle!

Here we are almost 3 years out from that and while you are still eating a diet free of gluten, you are walking, talking, growing, laughing & smiling...and it isn't all just a memory!  You are living life!  It is no mistake that we call you Sunshine, your smile and warm eyes bring sunshine even to the most dreary times.  Your sweetness can melt a stone...you are my precious baby boy (sorry, you will always be Mama's baby!) 

Your Mama and Daddy love you more than we could ever express to you...the fact that God has privilaged us to be your parents is something we are thankful for every day.  To see you and your sister interact with eachother as best of friends one day and then have troubles getting along the next day is fun to watch.  I also love how you get distracted by the smallest things (it does get frusterating at times too) but to walk outside and see your eyes light up because a leaf blows by in the wind or to see you riding your bike at the park and be filled with joy because two squirls are chasing each other across the grass!  You never walk in a straight line because you are observing all the little details around you.  I also love to see how sweet you are with your unborn baby sister and enjoy hearing you sing your favorite song, "Today is the Day" to her at night after prayers.  Your smile and eyes are something I look forward to seeing when you wake up with your wild and crazy hair every morning.  What a blessing it is to get to work at home and be with you every day!  Thank you for loving, thank you for being our Sunshine!

Happy Birthday my baby boy...we love you!