"D" for Done

We have a common phrase in our house that daddy uses most of all. It is "D" for done. We refer to it when we are done playing outside, done with dinner, done playing with objects from the kitchen that are hazardous, etc., you get the picture.
So I am officially calling "D" for done with nap time at our house for Lauren. She won't take them, no way, no how. No amount of bribing, laying down with, yelling, or other coercing will do the trick.
I am sad and tired. :) I think sadness doesn't even describe the feeling. More like terror at times. It was so nice to know that I could count on at least 1.5 hours to get certain things done or watch some ridiculous reality show on the DVR from previous nights. Or even nap myself. But those days are gone. Maybe this is how kids feel when you take away their blankets or pacifiers? It is definitely a sense of loss.
I now know what my mom was talking about all those years when she said you'd be tired for the first 10 years of each child's life. . .whew. .I have many more years of tired.

Encouraged

So I received this wonderful "blogger" award from my good friend Meredith at Therapeutic Ramblings Of A Mom. We have been friends since college and she is an amazing person and mom. Oh and a great blogger. . .I could only wish to be that good!

The rules for the Encouraged Blogger Award are:1. The winner may put the logo on their blog.2. Put a link to the person who sent you the award.3. Nominate 5 blogs.4. Put links to their blogs.5. Leave a message for your nominees.

1. My sister Katy at The Outlet an another site that you can link to through the Outlet. Amazing writer, even better sister.

2. Dana -A wonderful woman from Michigan. Who has a heart of gold and a creative ability I could only covet.

3. Jobey - A amazing woman I know from HS who has a heart for the Lord.

4. Kim- A strong, courageous woman of whom I have known for years and recently reconnected with.

5. T.J.- A man with a wicked sense of humor who married by wonderful best friend from HS.

Just What I Needed

Don't you just love it when things come just when you needed them? Some call this a coincidence, I call it God.
Let me tell you about my night. I went to bed not feeling well, and awoke to a crying, vomiting 3 year old at 2 in the morning. Poor thing, as we all hate throwing up, she does too and cried her way through it with me holding her and rubbing her back. Let me tell you, with a nauseated stomach of my own it was all I could do to not toss my own cookies. But we made it through the night with a few more visits from her insides and then she & I slept in her bed for the rest of the morning.
I did cry this morning, wondering how I was going to take care of my wonderful girl with the stomach flu, upon getting sick myself and entertain my 2 year old boy. I cried to God to help, help me somehow because I know that today would not fall upon my own strength.
Then, I opened up my email box and read my verse of the day. . .It was
"I took my troubles to the Lord; I cried out to Him, and He answered my prayer."
~ Psalm 120:1, NLT
I know the Lord hears me and I have already begun to feel less tired and a bit more myself. And as you can see I have had some free moments to write this blog while the kids watch Super Why on PBS.
I know we will make it through the day, but I definitely know it is not on my own strength alone.

My First "real" Cake!

Okay, so first, I know it has been a long while. My baby has now turned 2! I can't believe it, as he still has that pacifier and I am not quite sure how to cut that cord, but one thing at a time right?!?
For his birthday party we decided to take the trip to Phoenix and celebrate at a park next to his grandma and grandpa's house in Fountain Hills. It was a nice day and the kids had fun. For this birthday I promised myself I'd make a nice cake. No easy store bought cake, I would make it and decorate it. Well, I did half of it. I made it from a Duncan Hines mix, BUT I decorated it all by myself. Here is a picture to prove it. . .

So that was my labor of love for my little boy's 2nd birthday!

Sweetest Sound of All

So, things have been crazy lately for everyone. The financial markets, gas, food, oil, politics, , getting kids up, fed, going to work, soccer, kids then cleaned up, bath, bed, and doing it all over again. This is what I hear when I talk to my friends, life is just busy and crazy right now. And our family feels the same way.
But I have to share with you about last night and the sweetest sounds I have ever heard. Some of you might say your sweet sounds are when your spouse committed to you forever, or your babies first cries entering the world, or the sound of your boss giving you a raise, but I have decided the following is my sweet sound.
Last night Jeff was away at softball so the kids and I were doing the bed time routine. Complete with hair washing which both of them don't like and try to avoid at all costs. So we had bath time, brushed teeth, jammies were on, books were read, and we were all sitting in the rocker together. Then I asked them what song they'd like to hear and Lauren shouts out "AMAZING GRACE!" and Sean follows with "GRACE, GRACE!" (Yes, although I love the "new" worship music, I still love some old hymns and have been singing this one to my kids since birth.) :)
I began to sing and then Lauren began to sing, and then Sean began to sing. I start to sing softer so I can hear the kids. They go on to sing all three verses that I have always sang to them. Lauren knows all the words and sings them loud and clear, Sean seems to know all the last words to the phrases, but hums the rest.
I have decided that with all going on, this was a moment I will never give back. It was to me, the sweetest sound of all.

The 'Left' Has Left the Building

Well, I have avoided for long enough. I know some of you can't stand politics and don't believe people should share political thoughts. Yet, I just cannot sit back anymore, my passion for the current election at both state and federal levels is too much for me to bear, so now I must blog about it.

I have recently been so frustrated, I did something I vowed that I would never do as an Arizona voter. I have become an Independent. Yes, I have left my democrat party not for the other side, but for the middle. For those of you who don't know why one would not want to do this in Arizona, it is because you cannot vote in primary elections being an Independent voter. Yes, I broke my vow.

I don't know what happened to the "left" as we commonly refer to the Democrats. I am not even sure who hijacked them? Who was it that skew the old Roosevelt ways? Who turned the democrats in to whiny babies that only want to talk bout social issues that frankly will NEVER be solved by politics. Who turned the Democrats into the "Hollywood, feel good party". Well, I feel that I am just a tad bit too grown up for that. I consider myself and "old school" democrat now. A ,"To whom much is given much is required", but not give away the farm (as long as it not from my pocket) and screw everyone else, kind of gal. I am afraid I don't fit in anymore. I am not quite sure what happened, but frankly I could not take it anymore.

Maybe it will be back one day, but until then, I am officially an 'I'.

Back in the swing of things!

So, we have had a bit of a roller coaster month in our house. :) I would rather not relive it either, but God was good and gave us everything we needed at the times we needed it.
Jeff was in Israel again this month. The day he left, Lauren came down with a virus that was accompanied by a very high fever, but the blessing is that there was not any vomiting involved, as that is not so good with small kids. Then she got better and Sean came down with it, but the blessing is my mom came down for a couple days to help. Then Sean was good and Lauren broke out with the chicken pox! Yes, both kids have had the vaccine, but we were those people who ended up with the pox anyway, but the blessing is that is was a mild case for both of them. However, I do know what it is like to have cabin fever as we just had to stay at home for a while. But that is okay as they were well enough for a wonderful trip at the end of this month with great friends in the Tahoe/Donner area. And they were able to see their grandma, who had just gotten out of the hospital after major surgery, so those things were both blessings. I guess in it all we were provided many blessings.
I am sure September will be wonderful, and I can't believe it is here. Jeff is home for a while, Lauren is back in preschool, and we are getting our routine back in order.
Happy fall to those of you with fall like weather, it still feels like summer here! :)