blah g

What Mom Says

2012-01-06T22:37:00.000-08:00

"Save the white hairs" (while playing Guess Who with Caley)

"Come get your balls" (giving Caley her fish oil supplement)

"Caley, let Amelia honk" (at the grocery store in the car cart with the steering wheel)

"Stop showing your pee-hole!"

"We don't touch butts."

Weight is just a number

2012-01-05T09:46:00.000-08:00

I recently weighed myself and I am exactly the weight I was 13 years ago when I first went to Weight Watchers. I remember that day well. I was 17 and finally facing my unhealthy eating and living habits. Over the course of about 6 months, I lost more than 50 pounds (and ended up at an unhealthily low weight). However, in that time my eating and living habits didn't really end, they just changed. My pant size was smaller, but I still had the same issues. My problem was idolatry, not my weight. Now, 13 years and 4 babies later, I am the "same" size but I feel, and am, completely different. It has taken gaining and losing 40+ pounds going on four times to start actually feeling comfortable in my body, whatever the size.

I have warred with my body my whole life. No matter the size, I have picked it apart and critiqued it ruthlessly. Even when I was at my lowest weight, I was obsessively worried about "chin fat." I have hurt my body because it wasn't doing the "right" thing. I was trying to attain my worth through my appearance, not through my actual worth through Jesus. I both hated and loved food, and ate because of my feelings (good or bad) or because of some "points" on my chart for the day. It's taken me a long time to learn to eat because I'm hungry.

It's so easy to get caught up in the numbers and feel down on myself because of what the scale says. But it's about much more than a number. That number doesn't have to mean what it meant in high school. Instead it means that I've borne a beautiful baby and now I get to learn how to love food and treat my body well. Maybe (hopefully) that number will go down, but for now I don't have to obsess about it like I once did. I am worth more than a number. I am worthy because of Jesus.

New Year

2011-12-31T16:01:00.000-08:00

I love this day, and the fresh new beginning that will be tomorrow morning. I am ready to start 2012 great. 2011 was, honestly, a difficult year with unexpected hardships, but beautiful-beyond-words blessings. But God, in His infinite wisdom, knows better than we humans and used the hard times for His glory. I sit here a much richer woman than I was one year ago. And that statement has nothing to do with money. I am rich in blessings beyond my dreams, not at all by my own effort. By Jesus' good grace our family has grown in size and wisdom. Hopefully Bill and I are better parents and spouses than we were a year ago. And our children hopefully understand Jesus better today than a year ago.

Looking forward to 2012, I hope I can grow just as much as I did in 2011. Growth in faith and wisdom, patience and love toward my family and friends. I hope God will grow me to be a better wife, mother and friend. And that He would help me grow to know and love Him better.

I pray that God would make me bold in declaring His truth! I pray that God would make me tender in how I respond to my children when I am frustrated. I pray that God would make me intentional in how I spend my time.

Before I sign off in 2011, I will leave you with a recent sermon from our church. When God asks, "Where are you," how will you respond?

Happy New Year!

Retirement!

2011-12-23T10:29:00.000-08:00

We interrupt this non-regularly-scheduled programming to say Happy Retirement to my dad!

In 1986 my parents moved our family to Astoria Oregon and they bought a dental practice and we settled in as Oregonians. I lived in Astoria for about 15 years before Bill and I got married and I became a Washingtonian.

Yesterday was my dad's last day at his practice! He will continue dentistry with the Air National Guard but as far as private practice, he's retired. So, Congratulations! Thank you Dad for working so hard these last 25 years to serve the people in Astoria and provide for the family.

And I would be remiss if I did not also congratulate my mom on her retirement from the school district back in June. Obviously she's been retired for a while now, but still, Congratulations! Thank you for working hard for me and David and our family.

Now we're excited to move into a new season with Mom and Dad as retired parents/grandparents!

Finally

2011-12-02T19:57:00.001-08:00

Finally I am sitting down to reflect and write about Della's birth experience. I literally have not had time to do this in the past five weeks. Four kids under 7 is not easy to manage, even with Bill having some time off work. I simply have too many things on the to-do list and blogging easily gets bumped to the bottom of the list. I am trying to be conscious of putting myself on the list, in the form of taking rests as needed and exercising moderately. If I were not to do this, then this blog would have been written sooner. Of course, it's a busy season anyway with Christmas coming up, so there are extra things on the to-do list, which wouldn't be there if baby had arrived in January or something. :)

This whole pregnancy, I really wanted to work on being patient. I didn't want to have to beg my doctor to break my water in order for the baby to come, and I really wanted to make sure I was in labor before going to the hospital. I had thought I would just wait for my water to break at home and then I'd be sure they wouldn't send me home. However, I also didn't hold back on trying to get labor started on my own. So Friday, October 28th I didn't stop moving all day. I had wanted to work in the garden raking leaves, but it was raining so we couldn't do that. Instead, during the kids' quiet time, I briskly washed our hardwoods on my hands and knees and drank about three cups of Mother's Milk tea which is an herbal supplement with anise, fennel and caraway. I had heard that pregnant women shouldn't drink it because it may induce premature labor, so I figured it'd be okay for me at 39 weeks since labor. You might be thinking, "I thought Addie was trying to be patient, yet she's trying to induce labor, wtf?" You are right, it seems contradictory. For me the difference was in my attitude. I did those things to get labor going, thinking it wouldn't really happen and being at peace with that. In the final days of my pregnancy with Wesley, my attitude was entirely wrong and impatient, even though I also tried to induce labor by being active and such. My heart was at peace this time and I trusted that God would bring the baby when it was His timing.

Anyway. My efforts on Friday brought on mild but not regular contractions and I went to bed around 11pm. My parents had arrived that day and were staying for the weekend. I woke up at 2am with discomfort and back pain, and semi-regular contractions. I started pacing around our 2nd floor hallways and began timing the contractions with the help of Contraction Master on my phone. Very helpful! The contractions were between 1 and 4 minutes apart. However, they weren't that painful so I didn't really believe it was the real thing. After an hour, I woke up Bill saying, "I don't know if this is real, but I'm having regular contractions and I think we should go to the hospital." He got things together, had a small breakfast, and we got going. Things were calm and I honestly believed we'd get sent home. The drive though was really uncomfortable during the contractions because I couldn't shift position in the Prelude's seat. I remember saying to Bill, "I have this picture in my mind of the first time Caley, Amelia and Wes will visit us at the hospital when the baby comes, even if it's not tonight, and it makes me really happy that this is how we've made our life."

We got to the hospital and walking from the car was very uncomfortable. I was unable to talk or walk during the worst of each contraction. I think that's when Bill knew I wasn't kidding and that this might actually be the real thing. We checked in and they magically already had a file ready for us! The receptionist was really confused about that. So it sped up our check-in process. It was about 3:45am. They put us in triage to test my urine and assess the situation. I told Bill, "Please don't tell anyone we're here or put it on Facebook, because I know they're just going to send us home." The nurse checked me and I was 8 centimeters with a full bag of waters!! It was the best news I could have ever received and we both cried with happiness! Our baby girl will be here soon!

The nurse kicked it into high gear and we started walking to our room, and they called my OB, who wasn't on-call but wanted to attend the birth regardless since she'd delivered the other kiddos. The nurse said, "Don't have your baby in the hallway!" As soon as we got in the room the other nurses started to bring in the newborn warming unit and they started my IV. I was, again, Group B Strep Positive so I had to have antibiotics to protect the baby. It's supposed to be a 4-hour dose. After about 10 minutes they realized my OB wouldn't arrive in time as my labor got more intense and I was feeling the urge to push, so they called the Evergreen Hospitalist, Dr. Pfeifer. Around 4:15am my water broke and, I don't think they checked me, but I was probably at 10cm. It was soon time to start pushing and after 2 pushes, she was out at 4:31am. Dr. Pfeifer delivered her and Dr. Tsuang (my OB) walked in about 30 seconds later.

It all happened so fast, it was kind of a blur! I still can't really make sense of it. I am amazed that my body just knew what to do, and did it without my knowledge. And I can't believe I was at 8cm and was able to carry a conversation and be normal! I think because the water was still intact it cushioned a lot of Della's descension and such.

Each birth experience has been unique, which is surprising to me. Through each pregnancy and birth, God has spoken to me in different ways. I have felt the most loved during my pregnancies and births, because I feel I can see God so much more clearly. The beauty of God giving us another amazing gift without us even knowing that we wanted it beforehand, really makes me feel loved. God really does care and knows every detail about me. Our family is so much richer now that Della is in it. Not that every single moment has been all chocolate and roses and butterflies, but it's better than what it was. Della just fits with us perfectly.

Giving Thanks

2011-11-24T11:25:00.001-08:00

So much to be thankful for this year, as every year.

Baby time!

2011-11-04T20:24:00.000-07:00

Today's my due date, but Della Suzanne arrived October 29 at 4:31am! Talk about a crazy fast birth! I woke up 2am Saturday with mild contractions, we got to the hospital at 3:45 and she was out 45 minutes later. I will write a more detailed post soon, but for now enjoy these pictures of our sweet Della Sue.

38 weeks

2011-10-21T22:39:00.000-07:00

I'm officially "full term"! My due date is still 2 weeks away but baby can come anytime now and all would be okay health-wise. Each of our kids have been somewhat early. The earliest was Amelia born right at 38 weeks. Wesley was born at 38 weeks, 4 days; and Caley at 39 weeks, 2 days. Last weekend and this week I was having some major contractions and backache and we almost went into the hospital, but I tried to rest some and ended up falling asleep and the contractions faded so it must not have been the real thing. I'm very nervous to go in because of consistent contractions, even if they're painful, since I did that with Wesley and they sent me home twice because I wasn't progressing "enough." It's like torture. But at the end I get a baby, so it's okay. The baby WILL come. No woman has stayed pregnant forever, but there are times I'm SURE I'll be the first case of a woman who does. Haha.

Wesley at 20 months

2011-09-26T16:19:00.000-07:00

In another month Wesley will be a big brother! For now, he's still the baby brother. I think he knows something's afoot. A few weeks ago I put the pack 'n' play decked out in pink in his bedroom. It also has a baby girl outfit laying in it. He points at it and says "baby." The blue blankets and burp rags in the basket on the floor have been replaced with pink blankets and burp rags. Wesley now only has one drawer of clothes, the other is filled with tiny pink clothes. The same goes for his closet. His boy clothes now only fill half. The other half is hanging floofy dresses and pink ruffles. All the same, I think he's going to get a rude awakening when he becomes a big brother.

Wesley is all over the place, all the time, unless he's sleeping. Oh how I live for Wesley's afternoon nap. It makes life so much easier, just for those few hours. When Wes is awake, he's into almost everything. I'm not trying to complain, just being honest. At the same time, he provides endless entertainment and enjoyment. He loves his sisters and Daddy, playing chase or dancing to music. He knows where his nose, eyes, and mouth are. He can say "Elmo" and today spent the morning with the Elmo backpack strapped to him. He can feed himself adequately with a spoon and fork and we have gotten rid of the high chair, he now uses a booster seat like a big boy. He's also getting proficient at coloring and stacking 3+ blocks. He makes dinosaur and car noises while he's playing. It's so cute!

What would life be without our dear Wesley?! If we're only going to have one boy in this family, I think we got the best one. :)

Wesley Eating Blackberries

2011-09-26T16:03:00.000-07:00

We discovered a treasure trove of blackberry bushes behind our house by the garden and now there are tons are ripe, soft berries to pick. Wesley was uninhibited by the thorns and went for it. He didn't put any in the bowl for later, but it made for a nice post-dinner snack for his tummy.

Caley's first blog post

2011-09-16T08:09:00.000-07:00

This is Caley's message to some regular readers of our blog- enjoy!
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Papa and Grama,
I had fun at your house. And swimming at the pool. Someday you can come to our house and swim in our hot tub. And we can go to the beach.

Love, Caley

Amelia is 4!

2011-09-11T20:29:00.000-07:00

Amelia turned 4 on August 6th. It is now September and I just realized I never posted a birthday blog! Silly mommy...I hope Amelia can forgive me. On her birthday we were in Lynden for the weekend and had a fun cupcake party with her Gerlach cousins (all 9 of them).

Amelia, you are 4! We love you so much and you are such a light to our lives. You are so sweet and cute and we just want to hug you all the time. You really love your mommy and daddy, and especially Caley and Wesley. We know you will be a great big sister to the new baby girl. You are so girly and love wearing dresses and having accessories such as headbands, hairclips and necklaces. You love your purple blankie and stuffed bunny. We are so thankful Jesus put you in our lives and hope that you will come to faith in Him in your own time.

We love you Amelia Diann!

Amelia the Cutie Pie!

2011-09-09T22:33:00.000-07:00

Amelia is a Mukilteo Cutie Pie finalist this year! You may remember 3 years ago Caley being a finalist. Tomorrow we are walking in the Mukilteo Lighthouse Parade. It should be fun! The kids are so excited. Wesley's mostly excited to ride in the wagon.
Visit http://vickiderksphotography.com and email Vicki to vote! Amelia is #2. Or, come to the festival and vote in the ballot boxes!

This is the photo we entered!

32 weeks

2011-09-09T22:27:00.000-07:00

32 weeks today. 8 to go. Hopefully fewer than that, but I'm trying to keep my mind and heart open if this labor and delivery doesn't go according to the previous ones. That is, I could be a week late, have a C-section, and this baby could pop out and surprise us with boy parts instead of girl. I don't really think those things will happen, but I'm trying to be prepared for anything.

She moves a lot and sometimes gets the hiccups. She is especially active at night. I have loved being pregnant for the most part. It's an exhausting time, but each time God has worked with me on something. This time has been no different. I feel like He is working in my character and especially in my patience. Pregnancy is a time to draw back and not feel like I have to do everything, like I'm allowed a bit of a break, and I don't have to be running every day or working out all the time. But God continues to work and I have more time to myself to really figure things out. During pregnancy I've felt God's love very closely, how He has everything planned out down to the smallest detail. And I can look back and instead of asking, "WTF" be able to go, "Oh, I get it now."

Here's what Little Miss may look like now. We still don't have a name, but we're working on it.

The Garden!

2011-08-21T19:10:00.000-07:00

We have the coolest garden this summer thanks to Bill's hard work and the help of our neighbor Norman John. Norman is English, loves gardening, and has a lot of time on his hands. He also plays soccer twice a week. He's amazing! I hope to be so spry when I'm pushing 80.

The area behind our fence used to be overflowing with blackberry bushes and garbage (literally, the former owner dumped siding back there). It's an easement that is also a driveway. We asked the owner if we could put in a garden, and he said as long as we didn't build a permanent structure, it'd be fine. Bill told Norman about the idea and he got right on digging and sifting the soil, separating the rocks and "rubbish" from the good dirt. This was back in February when it was freezing!

They also did a second garden, which originally we didn't intend on planting in this summer, but Norman is like a sifting maniac so we had time to do a second crop! Here it is pre-dug/sifted.

They put a border around the good dirt and then Norman brought in some manure and roto-tilled it. Bill made a Jack and the Beanstalk bean trellis, we bought some seeds and started planting. Look at some of the progress!

We made signs!

The second garden! Bill planted kale and spinach, Norman did some radishes, turnips, carrots and about 6 rows of potatoes.

Our first crop! (above) They got a lot bigger after a few weeks! (below)

We also put in some berry bushes!

Bill is also getting some "Victory Garden" posters to laminate and put on the fence! Check out some of the images here.

It's kind of like a bit middle finger to the economy having this garden to rely on! Thanks Bill (and Norman) for all your hard work.

10ish weeks to go!

2011-08-21T17:32:00.000-07:00

I am now 29 weeks pregnant with this Little Miss which means there are roughly 10 weeks until I deliver! I expect to be a little early, since each of my babies was born before their due dates. Amelia was the earliest at 38 weeks, Caley and Wesley were both about 4-5 days early. Of course I practically begged my OB to break my water with Wesley so active labor would actually begin, I was so uncomfortable, so I often wonder if he'd held on a few more days if not "forced" out.

We don't have a name yet, but that doesn't really bother me since we were last-minute namers with each of the kids.

I'm feeling pretty good, aside from the aches and pains that are typical of pregnancy. And thank the Lord it hasn't been hot this summer. Today it's about 78-80, which is about all I can stand!

Here is what she may look like right now in utero:

It's funny what people have to comment when I'm out with the kids. If I had a nickel for every "You've got your hands full" or "Are they all yours" or "I could never do that" and the like, we could pay for their college tuition! Just smile and nod, and walk away. I had one old man tell me "You better watch out for those accidents in the bed!" Nice, classy, old man. Even better, another guy tried to convince me to stock food for the impending polar shift. Um, yeah, I'll get right on that. But there are also a lot of nice comments. Today a lady at church said she's glad I'm having kids. That made me feel good.

It's always an exercise in knowing I'm not here to please man, but to please God. And it doesn't matter how many kids we have, we aim to have kids who love Jesus and to reflect Jesus in my mothering.

Blog changes

2011-08-10T16:53:00.000-07:00

Hello faithful few blog readers!

This blog is, once again, public.

My original reason for making this blog private was because I was adding Cost Cutter entries and it was attracting more traffic than I liked. Specifically, blog traffic from countries I had no idea who would be reading and what they would read about my family. That thought made me uncomfortable.

But shortly after the Cost Cutter blog started, the store had to close (sad day for Addie). It made me reconsider the privacy of our family blog and ease up a bit.

So here is the new, slightly improved Gerlach family blog! I hope to post more often, but I'm not promising anything.

Hello again!

18 months

2011-07-22T16:05:00.000-07:00

Wesley is nearly 18 months (on July 28th) and is turning into such a little boy! He has developed quite the assertive attitude and if you do something he doesn't like, he will let you know! His language is moving along and he definitely understands more than he lets on. He follows simple directions well, like "Go get a book" or "Get your shoes" and likes to help clean up. He LOVES being outside. He LOVES his yellow, green and brown blankie. He loves his sisters and giving kisses and hugs. He also frequently bodyslams Amelia. Well, maybe baby bodyslams, out of love, of course. He also climbs anything and everything he can find. The girls never did that, that I can remember.

Earlier this week I gave him a haircut and it seemed to instantly make him seem older.

Happy 18 months buddy! We love you!

Chelan!

2011-07-22T15:54:00.000-07:00

We took a family vacation to Lake Chelan a few weeks ago! It was very relaxing and fun! We stayed with Adam in his little rental house. We stayed upstairs in the loft, yes all 5 of us in the same "room." The kids did great! I have been very nervous about moving the girls into one room (again) when the baby arrives, and this trip made be feel much better about that. I know that they CAN be in the same room and not mess around. Although it helped that they were exhausted each day from all the fun! We mainly went swimming, lounged, picked blueberries and spent good quality family time together. Here are some pictures from the trip, enjoy!

The girls did great in the lake and pools because of their floaties!

At a little market we fed the goats!

Wes had a popsicle and looked like he'd eaten a piece of raw meat and his hands were stained red!

We also picked blueberries at Blueberry Hills Restaurant, home of the "Dunlap" the best breakfast ever!

And it's another...

2011-06-17T21:25:00.000-07:00

GIRL!

We found out Wednesday this week that Gerlach baby #4 is another girl. We are so excited! Actually it's kind of relieving to have a gender to identify with this baby. With the surprise circumstances in which she was conceived, it's been a little harder for me to feel connected to her. But now that we know she is in fact, a she, I'm having a hard time imagining what another girl will be like! I can only imagine Caley and Amelia! I know this little one will have a whole different look, personality, and we have the privilege of getting to know her over the years.

Halfway through this pregnancy, I'm feeling really good. At exactly 12 weeks, my energy regained and the subtle sickness subsided. And now that the weather is nicer, it's easier to stay active with all the inside and outside work to do around here. We have a fabulous garden that's been about 8+ months in the making, hopefully I can post about that soon. Tending to the garden and mowing the lawn and weeding in various places, along with the usual inside cleaning, laundry and dishes, on top of three kids makes for a busy week. But a GOOD busy. We wouldn't have it any other way.

It's so funny because my good friend Ande is pregnant too, due basically the same day as me, and having a girl too! We both had sons on the same day about 18 months ago. Our bodies and lives seem to be on the same schedule lately. Weird...or just God's beautiful providential hand working in our lives! :)

It's always somethin' 'round here

2011-05-21T16:10:00.000-07:00

Today we are pumping out water from under the house. Why? Well because a little visitor, a rat decided to set up shop in the crawl space and chew through the dishwasher return hose. We didn't notice it for several weeks and the little b*****d chewed through the tube enough to cause a bunch of water to squirt in the subfloor and the crawl space. It's caused some buckling of the hardwood floor. Thankfully we figured it out now instead of in a few more weeks. What a pain. Thankfully my sweet husband is a very good "do-it-yourself-er" and it's almost back go normal. And we caught the rat in a trap so hopefully it won't happen again.
Not to mention the list of things to do is already a mile long...oh the fun of homeownership!

Checking in

2011-04-28T21:16:00.000-07:00

Today I got to hear the baby's heartbeat, I'm almost 13 weeks. It was strong and steady at about 160bpm. It finally sunk in more that this is really happening. Even with seeing the baby on ultrasound at 7 weeks, I still kind of thought this was all a joke my body was playing on me. (Yes, even with the expanding waistline and flutters of movement in my belly.) Getting nearly out of the first trimester and into the "safe" zone allows me to relax a little bit more.

I wonder who this little person is?

Questions

2011-04-19T16:54:00.000-07:00

Today Caley asked me, "Mommy, what's that orange and white circle that people put to their mouth and then smoke comes out?" Smoking. I was kind of taken aback because I never expected her to ask that kind of question and because I had no idea where to start explaining the answer.
I tried to explain that it's a plant called tobacco that grows and makes leaves, then the leaves are baked and crushed then put in the paper, then people light it on fire and smoke it. I told her it's not very healthy but some people don't care if it's not healthy, they do it anyway. I told her it's unhealthy because it's hurts people's insides. I also told her a lot of people start and want to stop, but can't because it's really hard to.

I'm very glad Caley can feel comfortable asking me questions that are difficult. This one is probably the hardest question so far, but I know there will be many more in the coming years. I'm just hoping it doesn't happen sooner than it should, like when we're in the grocery store and she reads "sex" on a magazine and asks, "Mom, what's sex"? Lord, help me. Would it be okay to make her walk around the store with a blindfold on her face?

Thank you, dear Wesley!

2011-04-16T22:18:00.000-07:00

Wesley has reached a milestone that I thought may never happen...sleeping through the night! He has been consistently sleeping 12+ hours at night for the last several weeks. It "coincidentally" happened when I weaned him and he started only drinking whole milk from a bottle. I was really hoping to be able to nurse longer, but it was really taking a toll on me being newly pregnant. He's also begun to sleep longer now that he's walking everywhere and using up so much more energy.

One morning this week he woke up after sleeping 12 hours and when I got him out of the crib I told him, "Thank you for sleeping so well, Mommy's life was sad when you weren't sleeping."

True.

This blog is now private

2011-03-30T17:31:00.000-07:00

Hi friends!

I started to feel very convicted and well, worried about who is reading this blog. Mostly because now I can track the stats and there are people in a bunch of countries reading this blog and I have no idea of knowing who they are!

This blog will be for family stuff and other random thoughts. If you're looking for Cost Cutter bidness, check out my new blog: www.iheartcostcutter.blogspot.com

With my children growing up and the need for privacy and safety, I decided to make the switch. I hope you understand.

Look who's walking!

2011-03-22T13:07:00.002-07:00

A sneak peek

2011-03-21T16:22:00.000-07:00

Today I got an ultrasound for the new baby. Everything looks great! S/he is measuring right on at 7 weeks. I would post a picture but it'd just look like a blurry blob so I'll just have to leave you with my thoughts.

The baby wasn't moving so much, because it's such an itty bitty and the arms and legs are currently more like flippers. But it's little heartbeat was flickering away and very strong. It's so strange to see a first glimpse of a new little person. More so now that I've been through it a few times and I know that that little blurry blob will grow to be. It's crazy to think that the three children in our house were once a blurry blob. That's what we see on a computer monitor but really the process isn't blurry or blobby at all. I am reminded of Psalm 139: 13-16
"For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
   your works are wonderful,
   I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
   when I was made in the secret place,
   when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
   all the days ordained for me were written in your book
   before one of them came to be. "

Who is this little person and what will he or she be?

God's Grace in a Race

2011-03-21T11:28:00.000-07:00

About 12 weeks ago I decided to run the Mercer Island Half Marathon again. I literally said to Bill, "If I'm going to run another race before we possibly have another baby, now would be the time." Wow, does God have a sense of humor! I started training and running 8+ miles on the weekends and exercising every day, sometimes twice a day. Then about six weeks later we found out I was pregnant. I would be 7 weeks on race day. I read that if a person's body is used to running long distances before pregnancy, it should be okay to continue. The training continued and I was feeling pretty good (although tired).

But this past week on Wednesday I suddenly became very nauseous and sick, I couldn't keep anything down and I was very weak. On Wednesday I mostly slept, which is hard when there are kids to tend to (thank goodness for TV). I couldn't tell if this was morning sickness or a flu bug. Thursday wasn't much better, and I realized that if I didn't get better fast, I wouldn't be running on Sunday. That thought made me cry! I'd been training, I'd paid the registration fee, and it'd be such a disappointment! I posted on a running group forum at church asking if someone would take my place, but no takers. Really, who can run a half on 3 days notice?
Friday I was feeling a little better but it wasn't a vomit-free day. By then I had kind of accepted that I wouldn't run if I was feeling so yucky and was okay with it.

But thankfully Saturday I woke up and felt amazing, compared the previous days. I was even able to run a little, and feeling God's grace and my friend's prayer. It made me so grateful!
Sunday was race day, and I was so excited and ready! Dang that's a tough 13.1 miles. Rolling hills throughout and some major hills as well. My goal has usually been in races to not walk or stop. With God's grace I was able to do that this time. But my time was much slower than the last time I did the half. No mind, I was just grateful to have been able to run!

There was an amazingly inspirational running team that I ran with much of the time. A man, maybe 60, who was blind with a woman, probably also 60-ish, as his lead. They were tethered together and the man was on the left. The woman would tug on his tether around his hand as he began to wander. It was an amazing thing to see, the course is so curvy this lady sure had a tough job keeping the man on track. It made me think, I wonder what each person's story might be. I have a tiny baby in my belly, I wonder why other people are running? It's interesting being at the end of the race because there are these people who just keep running, even though they're at the end of the pack. The race isn't about winning against others, it's about winning against yourself.

Bill and the kids came to the finish line. I knew I would see them, and when I did I just wanted to be done, even though there was maybe 200 yards to go. Caley and Amelia saw me from far away and ran toward me. The excitement and exhaustion at that point caught up with me and I couldn't catch my breath. The look on my face must have been kind of scary because when Caley got up to me she didn't want to give me a hug and looked kind of scared!

I hope to keep running through this pregnancy and be able to do the Iron Girl in September. I'll be about 25 weeks. We'll see! That'd be awesome. But for now I'm still basking in the feeling of God's grace through this race.

**Update**
If you'd like to see some pictures of me running go here. Be warned, I look freakish. When I saw Caley and Amelia I nearly lost it and my face looks scary. Gimme a break, it'd already been 13 miles! :)

Why do I coupon?

2011-03-11T08:30:00.000-08:00

I read (and regularly rely on) a coupon blog called This Beautiful Frugal Life. Recently she wrote a post about why she coupons. She told a cute story about how much her son loves Johnson Bubble Bath and she coupons and gets it for cheap because sometimes he pours it all over their carpet. You can read it here.

My reason for couponing is a little different. I enjoy couponing because it allows a little wiggle room in our budget for things I don't expect to buy. Yes, I love being able to score diapers and wipes for cheap (we use a lot around here) and all kinds of cereal (the less sugar kind) and Albertson's doubler deals. But for me recently this un-planned-for item was pregnancy tests. I needed to buy some because I couldn't figure out my cycle. Usually I hate doing this, because they're so freakin' expensive. BUT I had some +UP rewards at Rite Aid that were burning a hole in my pocket so I loaded up three kids to Rite Aid on my non-grocery day (shocking, I know) and bought two boxes, because they were BOGO 50% off AND I scored the boxes with an extra test in each. Six tests and out-of-pocket I paid about $6.
The lady at the cash register asked me how old my kids were. My face turned red. "Um, they're 6, 3.5, 13 months and yes I just bought two boxes of pregnancy tests thank you very much."

So that's why I coupon, because sometimes things just come up.

Oh and the tests were positive. Surprise!

Microwave-free Living

2011-03-03T08:02:00.000-08:00

About two weeks ago our microwave finally died, and it died tragically. I was warming up something for dinner when suddenly the bottom of the microwave (it is attached to the overhead cabinets) start smoking! It was a horrible smell that set off the smoke alarm and the smoke hung in the air even though we opened all the windows and doors. After determining that it was un-fixable, we tried to take it off the wall but discovered the genius who built this house had attached the cabinets around the microwave, making it unmovable. So now it's a place to put a picture Caley drew, not a usable microwave.
Honestly, I'm kind of glad it finally died. For the last several months I'd been feeling like a microwave wasn't the best thing to cook my family's food in, but since it still worked I would always go back to using it. But for the last few weeks we've been forced to re-heat foods in other ways and it's actually really easy and tastes much better!
This might not be big news for you, maybe you have lived without a microwave for a while, but for me it is mind-blowing. I did a little research and found a few helpful articles about microwave-free living such as this one.
Here are a few things I've discovered that work for me in warming things without the microwave.

Adding a little bit of water to the pan while warming things like casseroles and pasta helps immensely.
Warming soup and other liquid-y foods works best in small batches.
Warming breads and pancakes works best in the toaster oven.
Defrosting frozen meats works well in a plastic bag in a sink of lukewarm water. I've been surprised at how well this works, for all kinds of meats, including deli meat.
I usually keep a tea kettle on the stove full of water to heat as needed and use for warming Wesley's food.

Probably the biggest difference since not using a microwave is the way reheated coffee tastes. It's so much better! Microwaved coffee use to make me sick to my stomach (whereas fresh never did), but stove-heated is nearly as good as fresh.

I'm convinced that not using a microwave is better for my family and I hope it can stay that way!

Some Things I Wouldn't Buy, Even with a Coupon

2011-02-24T08:46:00.000-08:00

Since beginning to coupon, I've been convicted especially about what I'm feeding my family, not just how much we are spending on groceries. At first I would get pretty much anything if it were way cheap, but there are a few things that didn't sit right with my soul while I watched my kids eat their meals. I'm not trying to pass judgement on these products or people who buy them, but as long as our budget allows, I will buy things that are a little more expensive because they are higher quality.

Yoplait yogurt- At least for the regular and light varieties, I do not buy these. The regular variety is just way too sweet to call yogurt. And the light variety is sweet in a fake-tasting way. Besides, it's cheaper to get milk on a good sale and use it to make yogurt.
Anything but Adams peanut butter- Similar to the yogurt reason, I've found that the other peanut butters (Jif, Skippy, store brands) contain unnecessary sugar or oil. Adams peanut butter is wonderfully natural tasting! The only downside is there are rarely coupons or store deals. :(
Lunchmeats- We are blessed to have an amazing butcher/deli close-by, DD Meats, which sells very high quality lunchmeat at less than $4/lb. I have recently seen some awesome deals on store lunchmeat in the deli case that match nicely with manufacturer coupons. I even bring them to the store with me, intending buy it, but when I get there I can't bring myself to buy it!
Various canned goods, like Spaghetti-o's- I bought these one time on a great store matchup, but again couldn't bring myself to feed them to my kids. I remember hating Spaghetti-o's when I was a kid, the noodles were just nastified. I ended up donating them to the food bank, which I kind of felt bad about because it's probably not the most nutritional food.
Microwave meals (a la Weight Watchers meals)- In high school I lived on these WW meals and they were okay. But now, even with a coupon, I can't bring myself to buy them and frequently do the same thing as with the lunchmeats, bringing coupons to the store and then chickening out. The idea of eating something that was frozen 2 minutes ago and was cooked in a plastic dish doesn't sit well with my conscience.

A clip that made me laugh, especially while I was thinking about what I buy for my family, is a recent sermon about the parable of the Great Banquet. Fast forward to about 44 minutes and Driscoll will show what won't be at the big party with Jesus.

Wesley's Birthday Cake Adventure!

2011-02-19T22:11:00.000-08:00

Happy Belated Birthday Wesley and Caley!

2011-02-18T15:22:00.000-08:00

I feel like such a bad blogging mama. It's been almost a month and I've barely mentioned Caley and Wesley's birthdays. I plead being too busy! We had a busy few weekends of birthday parties, family parties, Coffee-Mate and Superbowl parties, on top of our regular schedule. Make no mistake, even though I was silent on this blog about their birthdays, they were very much celebrated here in "real life."
I'm pleasantly surprised at how well Wesley and Caley play together, despite being 5 years apart. They love to crawl around and play peek-a-boo and Caley picks Wesley up and he doesn't seem to mind. At first I didn't like when she picked him up, but it's proven quite useful like when we're in a stinky public restroom and Mommy needs to use the potty!
For Wesley's birthday party we had a joint party with his birthday buddy Magnus. Ande posted some pictures from the party here. We decided to do a Potato Head theme because Max always calls Wesley "Weseley Oval Head" and Magnus "Magnus Meatball Head." We served baked potatoes and toppings, meatballs, potato chips and tater tots. Healthy, I know. I made a cake and Ande made potato ice creams, which is ice cream rolled in cocoa powder and topped with whipped cream. It was a crazy fun morning with lots of friends, presents, and games.

Ande made Wesley a potato shirt!

Magnus is the Potato Head with teeth because he has like 20!

It's funny how when Caley turned 1 I was worried about making a healthy cake with carrot bits and very little sugar. With Wesley he got a box cake, which I accidentally added twice as much oil to.

Magnus really enjoyed the cake and ice cream!

Wesley wasn't too sure about it.

The day after Wesley's birthday we celebrated Caley's birthday at Red Robin. My parents, David, Bill's parents, Erin and family, and Rachel and family. The only ones who couldn't make it were Matt and family and Adam. Considering how big Bill's family is, I was impressed how many people came! What a blessing to have so many people who love us! Caley got an ice cream sundae and the people sang to her. She was a little blindsided by the whole thing!

Wesley eating some of Caley's ice cream from a corndog stick.

For Caley's birthday she asked for an Ariel theme. I made an Ariel cake and we played fishing. She also asked for pizza for dinner. So she invited 10 little girls over and it was a Friday evening party (no I cannot handle a 10-little-girl-sleepover). They played dress up and danced to Disney tunes. It was another crazy fun party!

I felt kind of weird putting a bra on Ariel, realizing she's really not wearing much! What's up with the role modeling Disney?!

Just keep feeding them candy and it'll all be okay!

I cannot believe she is 6! What happened to my little baby girl?

We are so blessed to have friends and family who love us and love our kids! I will post something to each Caley and Wesley too.

2011-01-30T19:40:00.000-08:00

I want to write a few posts about my babies' birthdays recently, but I feel like something needs to be said beforehand.

These children aren't mine. I have been reminded of this recently with a few acquaintances/friends losing their precious bundles before they would expect. It's reminded me of how much I don't deserve this life that I have. Three healthy children whom I carried to term and have lived to be 6 years old without any major issues is simply miraculous. And I didn't even do everything right. I probably drank too much coffee during my pregnancies and gained too much weight. I probably let my babies cry too much and didn't feed them the right foods at the right time. I know I haven't watched them every second to make sure they don't swallow something dangerous (googly eye incident).

It is purely God's grace that we have these three children, these three blessings. God may take them from me at any time, no matter what I do or how I try to protect them. This, of course, doesn't mean I take any chances, but my faith is not in what I do to protect them from harm, but it is in Jesus.

I write this partly to remind myself. It's hard not to put faith in my own efforts.

Day 23: A Youtube Video

2011-01-24T15:32:00.000-08:00

Some girls from church made this rap for a baby shower and it's too hilarious not to share!

Pregnancy Rap

Today I am thankful for...

2011-01-20T14:53:00.000-08:00

washing machines! And dishwashers! And heaters! And crockpots!

These things make my life so much easier. I love hearing the hum humming of things working around my home that I don't have to stand over and make sure it gets done. The freedom that comes with having a dishwasher and clothes washers and dryers allows me to do what I really would rather, like play with my kids or read a book during their quiet time.

Children are a blessing! The washing machine is way more valuable to me than the Pill, another modern "convenience."

Besides, if you have enough kids they can do all the work! Think of all the money we'd save on electricity that way! (I kid, I kid!)

Re-posting an interesting article about washing machines vs. The Pill. Just for kicks. :)

Day 22: A website

2011-01-18T08:40:00.000-08:00

I regularly visit several blogs, and one of my favorites is Mommy Life. The author, Barbara Curtis, covers many topics from Jesus and faith, mothering and homeschooling, to politics and issues. I don't always agree with everything she has to say, but generally I trust her for a solid view. She is somewhat of a hero to me as she has 12 children, four of whom have Down syndrome and three of those whom are adopted.

Day 21: A recipe

2011-01-18T08:32:00.000-08:00

I recently made this for dinner, and Bill loved it: Fisherman's Quick Fish. I picked this recipe because potato chips were on sale at Cost Cutter (where else?) and if I didn't make something with them, I knew I'd eat the whole bag myself. Not cool. As a side dish I made quinoa, which is a new discovery for me, and so delicious!

Bon Appetit!

Butts

2011-01-18T08:09:00.000-08:00

I went to a family reunion a few years ago and my cousin (actually 2nd cousin, and Facebook friend) Ray was telling me how their family had been on vacation for several weeks and just returned. Upon returning, their family was in dire need of a Costco run. He turned to me and said, "Addie, I spent more money than you can imagine on our butts. Toilet paper, wipes, diapers, etc." It was so hilarious, especially if you can imagine Ray saying it (if you know him). It's made me think how my job as a wife and mother is closely tied to butts.

I spend all day wiping butts, washing butts, feeding mouths which in turn work the butts, washing and folding clothing for the butts, not to mention preparing to find the best deals on what covers and cleans the butts, then in turn procuring said deals. This doesn't even touch on cleaning up the bathroom. It doesn't stop when all my kids are done with diapers. We're in for the long haul.

And while yes it's nasty with the butt chooses to touch me whilst being covered in poo, or when one of the girls (or Bill) toots in my face, it's also hilarious and makes my job so much more interesting and joyful. I'm thankful that God has given me these butts. If these butts didn't work, we'd have a lot of worries. God has given me three healthy butts and it's my service to God and them in caring for them and keeping them healthy.

So maybe it's a pain (in the butt) to continually buy diapers and wipes, toilet paper and new underwear, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

Day 20: A Hobby of Yours

2011-01-12T15:47:00.000-08:00

I like a lot of things, but my favorite (guilty) hobby is watching FRIENDS and folding laundry or working in the kitchen. I don't know if that would count as a hobby for real, but it does for me. I used to spend an insane amount of time doing this, but the demands of three kids, homeschooling, and a house to run, combined with less naptime means it hasn't been happening as much. This is probably a good thing, something God has used to teach me to manage my time better. It's convenient we have kids because otherwise I think my old habits would have gotten pretty bad by now.

Day 19: A Talent of Yours

2011-01-01T22:16:00.000-08:00

Obviously I've fallen off the "30 days" wagon but that's not going to stop me from deliberating on another random topic.

Can one be talented at committing to something but not following through or getting overwhelmed? I do that very well. How about checking Facebook? That would be something I'm really good at too. Compulsively checking my email? Making crafts a 4-year-old could do? Or forgetting to take Amelia to the bathroom? Dang, these aren't very good talents. Rather they are areas I wish weren't talents but weaknesses.

Merry New Year!

2011-01-01T21:25:00.000-08:00

Hello 2011!!

Right now Bill is making a "to-do" list for this coming year titled "2011 Let's get this shit done already!!!"

I love the fresh feeling of a new year (and no it's not just because of my awesome-smelling new deodorant). It's just a new day, a new year, with some much potential. I am looking forward to the new season of homeschooling, finishing this school year well, Wesley's mobility and chasing after a toddler, a new season of outdoor projects, long runs, seeing how much I can save using coupons, a new season of women's group and the replication and sending off of Lauren's group, Caley turning 6 (!), Wesley turning 1, Amelia turning 4.

What else will this year bring? I can't wait to find out!

Crazy Community

2010-12-17T20:50:00.000-08:00

Another post in the "we have a crazy community group" file, Ugly Christmas Sweater and White Elephant Party!

My good friend Ande posted some awesome pictures and you can find them here.

We love these crazy people!

Months 9 & 10

2010-12-01T07:22:00.000-08:00

October and November slipped by so quickly I forgot to post about Wesley's last few months! Please forgive me little baby. I've been to busy running interference since Wesley's moving all over the place. In the last month he's figured out how to crawl (not just creep/army crawl, and he's fast!), pull to standing, cruise along furniture, and climb stairs. Yes, my baby is now a stair-climber. This means our house is again in the putting-gates-up-and-closing-doors-behind-you stage. It's so crazy to think that soon Wesley will be walking. Bill thinks it'll be before Christmas. I'm holding out until Wes is closer to his birthday. We'll see. I'm sure the next month will keep me on my toes with having a mobile baby and a Christmas tree with gifts underneath. Wesley loves to grab things and especially loves to rip and eat paper. So that should be fun. He also puts anything and everything in his mouth. A few weeks ago I found a googly-eye in his poopy diaper. Thankfully there was only one and it was a small one that passed through easily.
Also this kid loves to eat, eat, eat, and he's getting more picky about wanting to feed himself. He likes to feed himself Cheerios, raisins, crackers, beans, and other little things he can pick up. He also will eat whatever we put in front of him. Last week he had some chili, including some meat! He is also a fan of mama's homemade turkey soup. Yummy!

Wesley loves his big sisters and loves watching them jump around, dance, and be silly. He grooves to music (lately we've been listening to Veggie Tales Boyz in the Sink and "Pirate's Music" Emphatical Piratical), claps his hands and bobs his head to the beat. He's also quite a chatterbox and says, "mamama," "dadada," and other various noises. He seems to understand "no" but doesn't always mind mother's direction. When I say "no" (usually responding to his diving for plastic, knives in the dishwasher, or the stairs) he looks at me and shakes his head. And oh, the dishwasher. What is with my kids and the dishwasher?! At least it teaches me to work quickly and not dawdle whilst emptying or filling the dishwasher.

Wesley is sleeping a bit better. About a month ago I stopped swaddling him, which I was really worried would make his sleep suffer. For the first few days he did take a while to fall asleep, but he then figured out how to soothe himself better and do it on his own. I started putting a lovey in his crib, his special monkey, and that seemed to help. He still wakes up to nurse once or twice, but it's manageable. This morning I was feeding him and could feel his little heart beating. It occurred to me (and it may seem silly to you but I hadn't considered it), that this little heart is the same one I saw on ultrasound when I was 10 weeks into my pregnancy with Wesley. He was just a tiny little bean, and now he's this huge kid laying in my arms. I feel so blessed to have these children in my life and I'm grateful to be their mother. (Of course God is continually working with me on that and sometimes in my selfishness I don't feel grateful, but then the crazy fog lifts and I can actually see my little blessings, instead of my selfish ambition.)

Soon we will be celebrating Wesley's birthday! Seriously where does the time go?

The Hotyssey

2010-11-24T21:23:00.000-08:00

After nearly a year of searching, two failed attempts at buying a Toyota Sienna (that is another blog post in itself), we are the proud owners of a 2004 Honda Odyssey, affectionately named "The Hotyssey." This beauty is silver on the outside, grey on the inside, seats seven, and has a DVD player! I feel like a queen driving this thing. The sliding doors open automatically with the push of a button, it honks when it locks so I know all is clear. Loading groceries into the back is divine.
The best part is, we are safer and this car will serve us for a long time.

Update: LOST tooth!

2010-11-24T20:56:00.000-08:00

Caley lost her tooth several weeks ago! (I am very behind on the blog schedule.) It happened on Tuesday afternoon after women's group. Caley was eating bread and it just popped out! She was surprised and didn't even fuss. She put it in a baggie in a white and pink tote bag and then under her pillow. Magically it was replaced with $2 in dimes and quarters and four pieces of candy! The permanent tooth is come in fast and now the one next to it is getting very loose. I can't believe my little girl is growing up so quickly!

Loose Tooth!

2010-10-16T11:10:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I asked my dad (and dentist) to look at Caley's bottom front teeth because I was concerned they were crowding. He said they weren't crowding but looked so because they are loose! I nearly started crying! I can't believe my little girl is old enough to start losing her teeth.

2010-10-16T11:07:00.000-07:00

10 years ago this month I met Bill at swing dancing class. I'm so thankful he said "yes" when I asked him to dance. We "celebrated" by putting the kids to bed early last night, having a yummy dinner, and watching The Karate Kid.

Wesley crashed movie night but seemed pretty entertained by rolling around on the floor. Somehow Kermit got on his back! Not sure how that happened!

I love you Billy!

Did you know...

2010-10-14T18:17:00.000-07:00

that there's a dinosaur that lives on our street? She likes to ride in the car with us (thankfully she fits in the Suburban and we have extra seatbelts) and plays at the Merry Go Round park. Sometimes when her mommy says it's okay, she comes home with us and eats mac 'n' cheese. Caley says, "She likes us and likes going in the car with us." Amelia says, "We hold it (the dinosaur's hands)."

We're so glad to have a friend down the street.

Missing

2010-10-14T18:04:00.000-07:00

Has anyone seen a little girl about yay high, blond hair, brown-green eyes and answers to the name "Caley"? I thought I knew where she went but it seems she's been replaced by this huge girl in my house now. This new girl always finishes what's on her plate, can read fairly confidently, can clothe herself, draw people with bodies (not just head, arms and legs) brush her own teeth and hair, and even has a loose tooth! This new girl also answers to the name "Caley," so I can't figure out what happened to the other little girl. Also there seems to be another new addition to my home, who curiously looks a lot like the little Caley who is missing and even wears some of her clothes. However this other girl has brown hair, a round face, can read a few letters, and keeps her underwear dry all day. She answers to the name Amelia.
On that note, there seems to be some more shenanigans going on, my little baby is no longer a girl but a boy. The last I remembered I had two kids, Caley and Amelia, who were 2.5 and a baby, but it now seems that baby is a boy and doesn't answer to the name Amelia. Who is playing a trick on me?

Can someone please explain this strange phenomenon to me? What happened to my kids?

Coupon Deals!

2010-10-12T08:06:00.000-07:00

I've been couponing for about 6 months and am starting to feel a lot more confident. I primarily shop at Cost Cutter for food and Rite Aid for everything else, like toilet paper, diapers, cosmetic products and medicines. I used to only get diapers at Costco, but by combining sales and coupons at Rite Aid I've been able to build up my stockpile of diapers (we go through them slowly because we also use cloth) for much cheaper or even free. Cost Cutter has a lot of good food deals but I occasionally hit other stores if the deals are irresistible. Still I have some guilt when I do this, but my pocketbook seems to like it so maybe I should just get over it. :)

In this first picture I shopped at Albertsons and bought 10 packages of cheeses, 5 Cool Whips and 10 ears of corn. Guess how much I paid for all of it?

$5! Buy 5 cheeses, with coupon, get $5 back on your next order (ONYO). Bought 5 more cheeses with coupon, get $5 back. Bought 5 Cool Whips with the ONYO catalinas and 10 corns with another catalina from another previous transaction. BOOYAH!

For this next picture I shopped at Rite Aid. 3 Jumbo packs of diapers, 1 360ct wipes, 2 packages of Dial soap, 2 John Frieda hair products, 2 Ibuprofen, 2 toothbrushes, 1 Listerine. How much did I pay for it?

I think about $6! How? I got the diapers for FREE!! (Actually after rebate I made $2). With the credits I got from the diapers, I bought the other things at a huge discount. Yeah boi!

This last picture is also from Rite Aid. How much did I pay for all this candy? (20 full-size bags of Halloween Candy)

Nothing! Actually I MADE $6. Late last week there was a crazy unadvertised deal at Rite Aid which basically gave out free candy. Buy 10 bags, pay $20 cash, get back in Rite Aid catalinas (+UP rewards) $25! So right there I made $5. Go back again and get 10 bags of candy, pay with the +UP rewards (some left over), get another $25 in +UP rewards. Now I have a grand total of $29 in +UP rewards which can be spent on anything non-prescription at Rite Aid. So basically Rite Aid paid me $6 to take some candy home. I'm usually the Halloween Grinch because candy is expensive and 15 year-olds just walk around the neighborhood in a pillowcase asking for free stuff. But I can be less Grinch-like this year because I got the candy for free too (but I wasn't wearing a pillowcase). And now I can get what my family may really need with the extra +UP rewards at Rite Aid.
Edited to add: Today I went back to Rite Aid for this week's deals and spent the $29 +UP rewards, mostly on items which are free after Rite Aid's Single Check Rebate program. So I got more free stuff AND will be refunded the amount I originally paid for purchase the candy. Holy crap HOW DOES RITE AID DO IT?!!

Awesome.

Month 8

2010-10-12T07:42:00.000-07:00

I should probably post something already, since the month is half over. Wesley is 8 months! I can hardly believe it, but I say that every month. Wesley is moving! He is crawling (pretty much) and gets where he wants to go pretty fast. Watch out! Also anything that can be put in his mouth he tries to get in there. Any food, paper, toys, my face...he regularly grabs my hair and pulls my nose or chin into his mouth. It's pretty funny! He loves playing with Caley and Amelia too, and they love playing with him. Usually they play peek-a-boo and it makes him laugh.
My super accurate bathroom scale says Wesley is 18 lbs. I think that's about right. He's huge! (for a Gerlach baby) Both the girls were about 18 lbs at 12 months. He's getting too long for many of his pants and the cloth diaper covers are a bit snug. It makes sense he's a big one because he loves to eat. He eats a lot of things we eat, like crackers, rice and bread, but I still feed him "baby" food like oatmeal, sweet potatoes and plums.
He's not sleeping "through the night" as much as I'd like but he does go to sleep easily and I don't mind getting up one or twice during the night.
Also, he LOVES water! The kids take a bath together and Wesley just splashes the whole time. He also loved going in the pool in Astoria. I love how babies can't contain their excitement and their whole body shakes and kicks. He also loves my phone. It's getting difficult to make a call while holding him because the whole time he just wants to take the phone. So usually I have to put him down to get anything done, which also makes him mad. There's nothing wrong with him, he's just kind of a mama's boy right now. That's okay. One thing's for sure, he's going to be a patient man when he grows up.

We love you Wesley!

Day 17: an art piece (drawing, sculpture, painting, etc)

2010-10-08T14:47:00.000-07:00

I love this painting by Renoir, 1892, mostly because it reminds me of me and my best friend Jennie, a brunette.

Day 16: A song that makes you cry (or nearly)

2010-10-07T19:30:00.000-07:00

I've been contemplating this question for a few days and have decided: classical music. None in particular but sometimes we listen to classical music (especially lately since we've been studying music and hearing) and the melodies and power of the instruments hit me like a train.

Day 15: Your Dream House

2010-09-25T01:07:00.000-07:00

It feels weird to write this, but the house we live in is pretty much my dream house, with a few changes. I remember first looking at this house on johnlscott.com when we were looking for houses to buy with my parents. This one was so unique in design in this area it immediately caught my eye. It's a colonial style. It was built in 1993 by a guy who lived down the street in a house just like it. He then lived in this one for a few years before selling it to the people we bought it from in 2006.

Our current house is my dream house if certain cosmetic features were changed, such as touch-ups on the walls and if it were a little better decorated. There are still several walls we would like to paint, curtains to hang and our master bedroom and the kid's bedrooms need some decorations too. We would also like to someday replace/repair the hardwood floors and front walkway and driveway which is currently an unsightly blue. When we moved in we quickly replaced the blue carpet and tackled the blue rooms, which were several. In the first 6 months living here, we tore out a wall and made another living room. My husband has worked very hard to make this home a more enjoyable place to live. We also had the siding replaced and repainted, and most recently completely changed the backyard.

I love this house. It has already housed so many memories for me. If these walls could talk, they would have a lot to say. This house has seen me in my best days and worst days. This house has been a place for church groups to meet, family dinners to be had, and important family meetings. This house has seen/will see all three of my kids learn to walk. Caley was a late walker, which bummed me out back in 2006. But within a month of us moving to this house, she figured it out and quickly started running around this house. This house has been the place where people can have conversations about Jesus through our hosting various community groups. I love this house, it's my dream house because I know for a fact Jesus has given it to us and we strive to use it to glorify him.

Day 14: A non-fictional book

2010-09-24T14:39:00.000-07:00

It's funny that the next blog day on my list of "30 days" is "a non-fictional book" because I've been reading just such a book and wanted to do a review of it anyway.

The book I chose is "America + the Pill" by Elaine Tyler May. It was very interesting. I liked the picture on the front cover, which is why I picked it up at the library without even really knowing what it would be about. (Really, who has time to browse books in meaningful amounts of time when chasing after 3 kids at the library?) In "honor" of the 50th anniversary of the FDA approval of the oral contraceptive, May set out to write this book about the history, development and evolution of "the pill." She covered how it was developed and pushed through largely by Margaret Sanger, founder of Planned Parenthood. Sanger believed women would only be equal with men if they had full control of their fertility and pushed for a woman-controlled contraceptive such as the pill. She also described the motivation for developing a pill in the 1950s-1960s--population control. Many people believed people on the world were multiplying at a fantastic rate (because of the baby boom) and largely because of the book "The Population Bomb" by Paul Ehrlich. People were worried that space in which to live, food health and safety and other resources would soon run out. In the 1950s, people believed "the Pill" would end world hunger and create world peace by controlling reproduction. (Many people still believe we are overpopulated, but I don't, here's a video which explains why). The Pill was also advertised as making every child a "wanted" child, since the possibility of a surprise pregnancy would be lower.

After the Pill had been developed, tested and was in widespread use, people realized it wasn't going to single-handedly end hunger and create world peace. But it did have many effects. May discusses how it affected men, since they were not part of the contraceptive plan, their wives/partners could take the pill without their knowledge, and some men suffered depression because they were unable to get a woman pregnant. The Pill also had a big role in the Sexual Revolution and contributed to lowering the cultural stigma against unmarried sex. May discusses the trends of who was taking the pill. She also has an entire chapter about a pill for men, and the various difficulties with creating such a medication, and that no man would really take a pill every day so the funding is different than when the woman's contraceptive was developed.

Her final chapter is about the Pill today, and how it is different than the original contraceptive approved in 1960. She quotes many women who responded to a survey for the book ranging from loving the pill to absolutely despising it. May concludes, "Although the pill was not responsible for the emancipation of women, it did provide an important tool for millions of women to effective control their fertility, freeing them from fears of pregnancy and constant childbearing and enabling them to take advantage of expanding opportunities for education, employment, and participation in public life" (p.168).

My take: I am not against contraception, or the pill in general. To each his own and, for Christians, whatever God would have for you, provided it's not taking a life. But I took issue with this book mainly because of the author's tone. It seemed a stretch to refer to women before the pill was developed as afraid of pregnancy and "constant childbearing." I'm sure there were women who felt this way, but the way she said it kind of rubbed me the wrong way. She also flippantly threw in abortion as a means of birth control that was "widely accepted."

I was on the birth control pill for several years but since Amelia was born we have chosen to not go back onto a daily med to prevent pregnancy. There are many other ways, and in my experience the pill did not help me understand my body more, rather it made it more confusing and difficult to understand. May's claims that the Pill gave women their freedom and equality with men, while true in the business and women having the same roles and responsibilities as men sense of the phrase, I don't agree that women and men should have to be "the same" to be equal. Women and men have different, but equal roles. I thought the book was interesting to read and ponder as a reflection of what the pill did to American society. Originally Margaret Sanger pushed for a woman-only contraception, but now women complain about having to control contraception. This isn't May's fault in writing, because it's true, but it's interesting how things change over time. 60 years ago women said, "why can't we control our fertility? Men get to do it all" and now they're saying, "why can't men control their fertility? We have to do it all."

As a side note, unrelated to this book, I have to link to this article by Mommy Life's Barbara Curtis about which was a better technological advance: the birth control pill or the washing machine. She is, in this post, responding to the Vatican's statement that the washing machine has done more for women than the birth control pill. I'm inclined to agree!
Read it here.

So there's my long-winded and somewhat rambling entry for "non-fictional book." Hope you enjoyed it! :)

Day 13: A Fictional Book

2010-09-14T20:37:00.000-07:00

I generally prefer to read non-fiction books rather than fiction stories. So most of the fiction books I read are children's books, and a favorite is "The Little House" by Virginia Lee Burton. It's such a sweet story about a little house personified and aging, but cared for by a loving family. I love the illustrations and how it shoes the passage of time. I especially remember watching the Disney video as a kid, and when I realized it was also a book, loving it even more.

Here's the Wikipedia article, and here is the Disney video:

Example

2010-09-09T16:16:00.001-07:00

Of the aforementioned "crazy stories" involving my husband.

White Trash Community Group:

To see some more hilarity, check out Ande's blog: http://bloggityblahblogblah.blogspot.com/2010/09/community.html

A story

2010-09-09T16:10:00.001-07:00

When Bill and I met I was a new 18-year old, and we were married when I was 20. So my "crazy, single life" was anything but. And I'm totally thankful for that. The only downside is I don't have a lot of crazy stories of random people. Most of my crazy stories involve Bill, and for that I am also thankful. He's pretty crazy. So the only time a guy, other than my husband, really showed interest in me was on a Caribbean cruise. I don't remember the specifics but I was on the cruise with my parents and brother David. We were hanging out in some lounge area and this guy who didn't seem "all there" approached me and we started chatting, I was just trying to be friendly. He starts asking me where I'm going on vacation, so I start naming off the ports the cruise will be visiting over the next week. Surprised he says, "Oh those are the same places I'm going!" OMG look how much we have in common!!

Yeah. BECAUSE WE'RE ON THE SAME BOAT.

Yay for Amelia!!

2010-09-03T20:19:00.000-07:00

I wanted to document that little Amelia is pretty much potty trained! This was a goal I wanted her to achieve in the next few months, and it was accomplished in no small part because of the help of my parents! My mom did a great job of keeping Amelia in underwear during the girls' last trip to Astoria, including reinforcing her with stickers when she had potty success. Thanks Mom! One less thing on my list for the fall!

Day 12: something I am OCD about

2010-09-03T08:02:00.000-07:00

Something I am OCD about...had to think about this for a while. But I decided the thing I am most OCD about is my schedule. Not down to the nitty gritty, but the general schedule of my week.

Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and "home days" and Tuesdays and Thursdays are outing days. Tuesdays are bible study day, which has been the case for almost 6 years, and Thursdays are grocery and errand day. For a long time Wednesdays were grocery day, but in the last 6 months it changed to Thursdays so I can take advantage of the produce sale at Cost Cutter. Finally switching my schedule so I can get better deals at the grocery store was a huge decision for me. When the schedule is thrown off, I just feel off and short-tempered.

In deciding Caley's school schedule, I figured our home days would become our school days. Now it's just a matter of keeping M, W, F sacred, not for the sake of my sanity, but for the sake of my children's education! Say no when something comes up if it's going to make the rest of the week stressful. Sit and plan, and make time to plan. Reminders to myself.

Day 11: A photo of me recently

2010-09-03T07:54:00.000-07:00

This is me being bored while waiting for Bill to come home and the kids were still napping. Doesn't happen very often, but when it does, I don't know what to do with myself except take pictures. Most of the other pictures are of me making a silly face.

Day 10: a photo taken over 10 years ago

2010-09-02T07:48:00.000-07:00

This picture is from my high school grad night, June 2000. The other lovely lady is my best friend Jennie. We still live within 30 minutes of each other and I'm so thankful for her friendship over the past 14 years!

Day 9: a photo I took

2010-09-01T07:26:00.000-07:00

Day 8 - a photo that makes me angry/sad

2010-08-31T07:42:00.000-07:00

This entry was difficult for me.

I feel a little explanation should accompany this photo, because we look happy. I find this photo sad because it was taken during a very difficult time for Bill and me, last May 2009. Not in our marriage, per se, but in our individual lives, having to do with anxiety. This picture was taken after a Sounders game on Mother's Day, and our girls were with Grama and Papa. We weren't yet pregnant with Wesley.

This picture reminds me of a time in my life in which I strongly felt God's carrying me through each day.

Day 7: A photo that makes me happy

2010-08-31T07:37:00.000-07:00

Day 6: 20 favorite things

2010-08-31T07:34:00.000-07:00

In no particular order...

1. My morning cup of coffee

2. Oddly, getting up before the sun and having a few moments of quiet before the day starts (aka kid waking up, "MOMMY I'm all done sleeping!")

3. Rainy late summer days, before it's witch-titty cold outside

4. Going to church.

5. Sunny days so I can work on my tan and not be Pasty White Addie.

6. Pretty fingernails.

7. Snuggles with my girls.

8. Wesley falling asleep in my arms, and knowing my days of my son wanting to snuggle are numbered.

9. This amazing blessing of my house.

10. Starting school with the girls and getting to see them learn.

11. Old friends with whom I can talk to as not a day has passed.

12. New friends who are quickly becoming like old, familiar friends.

13. Mondays that feel fresh and new.

14. Fridays because we can stay up late and watch movies.

15. My uber handsome husband.

16. Cleaning. (yes I know this is crazy)

17. The rare occasions in which I don't care about cleaning and can just relax.

18. Red wine.

19. Listening to Podrunner and running, especially along the coast looking out to Whidbey Island.

20. Jesus, because he died for my sins and through whom I have these blessings I just listed!

Month 7

2010-08-31T07:20:00.000-07:00

Holy almost September! Wesley is 7 months!

We had a very full August with a trip to Astoria for my high school reunion, another week without the girls in which Bill, Wesley and I did all sorts of adventures, and lots of playing outside!

We spent a week in Astoria, just me and the kids, at the beginning of August. Caley and Amelia had a blast going to the pool with Grama and I was able to get a ton of work done for the reunion. Wesley chilled with me, and we spent a lot of time walking and contemplating. We even saw whales at the South Jetty! Well, Wesley was distracted by nursing, but I saw the whales and it was so neat! On that trip, and since, Wesley has shown he doesn't care to drink milk unless it's the real thing. But thankfully he eats many solids now and won't starve if I need to be gone for more than 4-5 hours. While in Astoria we went to the county fair and saw lots of animals and ate some ice cream. Yummy!

Amelia's birthday was Friday of the week in Astoria. By then Bill had joined us (Dad's friend flew him) so we did a family morning in Seaside, and had a birthday party in the evening with Grama and Papa.

The following week we went to Jetty Island, a small man-made island off the coast of Everett. We had to take a little ferry, but it was well worth it to get to play in warm-ish water and nice sand. Our friends Ande, Mina, Max and Magnus, and Lauren, Evie and Beck came too. Magnus has the same birthday as Wes and Beck is about 10 days older.
Later that week we had a kid birthday party for Amelia, who by the way is about 95% potty trained (during the day!!!), complete with playdough, snacks and cupcakes. Wonderful, crazy, kid fun!
Wesley is eating a lot of solids, as I mentioned. He's a big fan of graham crackers, cheerios, peas, and soon we will try peaches, plums, and other fruits.

We are on the home stretch to Wesley's first birthday. I can't even believe it's already been 7 months. I love this little man so much, he's such a sweetie.

We love you Wesley!

Day 5: A Favorite Quote

2010-08-28T21:18:00.000-07:00

"Common sense isn't so common." Mark Driscoll

Day 4: A Favorite Book

2010-08-27T22:50:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what my favorite book is of all time. For being a former English major, I don't read very much, except online things. This makes me sad and I'm hoping to change my amount of reading by making more time for it, to read both fiction and non-fiction.

However, I aspire to being a big reader and helping my kids love reading. I hope they know good books from "twaddle" and look to reading before other hobbies.

One of my favorite books is "Little House in the Big Woods" by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I never read these books as a kid and wish I had. I love how she describes their daily life and the care and attention that goes into everything they do. Within the first few chapters she intricately details how Ma makes head cheese. Awesome.

I've been reading the other books in the Little House series and am currently on "Farmer Boy." I hope to read all these series with the girls and do some coordinating homeschooling curricula. Maybe not to the extent of making head cheese, but at least learning about the process. So far Caley and I have read "Little House in the Big Woods" and she really enjoyed it, especially when we started watching the Little House TV show videos from the library. It's such wholesome entertainment, with good family values, I can't wait to read the books with our kids.

Day 3: A Favorite Television Program

2010-08-27T09:45:00.000-07:00

If you know me at all, you know that I LOVE the TV show FRIENDS. Love love love this show! Maybe too much. No...never!

I first started watching FRIENDS in high school, when it was just the reruns. At first I was really confused because I jumped into the middle of season 5 or so and missed the really early episodes. By college I had it down to a specific science what my Thursday nights looked like. Thankfully God provided a fellow FRIENDS loving roommate who didn't mind my obsession. We also loved watching over and over again the three taped movies we had, one being "So I Married an Axe Murderer." Really what more was there to do in Mercer Hall?!

Anyway...which FRIENDS character am I, you may ask? 10 years ago I would have answered Phoebe, but now I am a definite clean-freak Monica (wish I was as skinny as Monica too). I used to spend obscene amounts of time watching the episodes while folding laundry during Caley's naptime. Now I can't seem to find the time, which is probably a good thing. During my pregnancy with Wesley, I did watch more than usual, but that was because naptime wasn't the time I worked out as it is now.

I will leave you with a few of my favorite FRIENDS clips...

-Chandler quits the gym

-Phoebe cusses

Day 2: A Favorite Movie

2010-08-21T08:50:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite movies is The Notebook, starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams. The Notebook is one of those movies I thought would be stupid, juvenile and predictable. I wasn't very interested in ever watching it until Bill rented it one night. (Usually that's how it works, Bill makes me watch some movie I think will be totally stupid, and I end up loving it. Unfortunately it doesn't work the same way when I choose a movie. In those cases it ends up being a waste of time and Bill complains.) We lived in the Lynnwood townhouse at the time, and I think it was before we had Caley. It turned out to be such a wonderful movie, especially one to watch with my husband (who really liked it too). We watch it maybe once a year, and if it were up to me we'd watch it more.

I think what makes it such a great movie is the chemistry between the two lead actors. I think they actually dated in real life, after filming the movie. It seems like most actors don't know how to act, which can be really frustrating given how much going to a movie costs. I don't claim to be a film critic, but The Notebook is worth your time if you haven't seen it. (I should also add that there are some "mature themes" and my kids will not be watching this movie until they are married.) haha

Day 1: A Favorite Song

2010-08-20T23:32:00.000-07:00

I love music. One of my favorite pasttimes is working in the kitchen and listening to Pandora music. I love many types of music, some more than others, but some music I can't take too much of. When thinking of a favorite song, not my #1 favorite song (which I'd have to think about for a while), the one that came to mind is, get ready for it, Britney Spears' "Toxic." Didn't see that one coming, did you? :) Listen to it here.

There's something addictive about this song that gets my booty shakin' when I'm in the kitchen preparing dinner, or cleaning the bathroom, or driving (usually I avoid this kind of music when the kids are in the car). It just makes me smile and have fun, it makes my poop-smeared elbows not stink so bad, my messy hair not look so bad, and makes vacuuming a lot more fun.

30 days

2010-08-20T19:58:00.000-07:00

I found this list online of blog ideas, and I thought it'd be fun to try. This is mostly for my writing practice. Read it, don't read it, I don't really care. These won't be done every day, but as often as I can find the time. Enjoy!

Day 1 - a favorite song
Day 2 - a favorite movie
Day 3 - a favorite television program
Day 4 - a favorite book
Day 5 - a favorite quote
Day 6 - 20 of your favorite things
Day 7 - a photo that makes you happy
Day 8 - a photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 9 - a photo you took
Day 10 - a photo taken over 10 years ago of you
Day 11 - a photo of you recently
Day 12 - something you are OCD about
Day 13 - a fictional book
Day 14 - a non-fictional book
Day 15 - your dream house
Day 16 - a song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 - an art piece (drawing, sculpture, painting, etc)
Day 18 - my wedding/future wedding/past wedding
Day 19 - a talent of yours
Day 20 - a hobby of yours
Day 21 - a recipe
Day 22 - a website
Day 23 - a youtube video
Day 24 - where you live
Day 25 - your day, in great detail
Day 26 - your week, in great detail
Day 27 - your worst habit
Day 28 - what's in your handbag/purse
Day 29 - hopes, dreams, and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 - a dream for the future

The REUNION

2010-08-13T13:10:00.001-07:00

For the last year I and two other high school classmates have been planning our 10 year reunion. It started actually back in high school when I ran for class president and lost. The guy who won never seemed to be the kind of "planner" person so I told my classmates, "You'll see in 10 years when he doesn't plan a reunion, I'll end up doing it." So last summer when Mr. President hadn't started any planning, I assumed the role.

I started by making a Facebook group for our class. It was very exciting to see people join and get excited about the reunion. Laurel and Scott contacted me and said they wanted to help, which was perfect because Laurel lives in Astoria and Scott is an organizational master and, oh yeah, I was having a baby in January.

After many emails, Skype meetings, Google documents, a trip to Astoria, and another week-long trip to Astoria, we pulled it off this past weekend.

Friday August 6 we had a barbecue at the high school which included a guided tour by the vice principal Mr. Jackson because the school has undergone major renovations and additions since we graduated. Everyone who attended seemed to like it and it was fun to see people's kids. Afterward there was a bonfire at the beach which I skipped out on because I was worried the car would get stuck in the sand and/or I'd feel uncomfortable around buzzed classmates. Instead Bill and I went on a mini-date a a local bar/restaurant. (I got a little buzzed...)

Saturday we had a no-kids, cash-bar, formal dinner at the Astoria Country Club. Being the planner and person most-easily talked into things, I even gave a little speech. Bill coached me a bit and told me to start with a joke, which I did, and it made the rest of the speech a lot less nerve-wracking for me.

"So the Stomper (high school mascot), goes into a bar, and he has a ship's wheel stuffed down his pants. The bartender says, 'Dude, you have a wheel down your pants!' To which the Stomper replies, 'Aye, matey, it's drivin' me nuts!'" Laugh laugh laugh OMG Addie Bales just said NUTS!

Saturday's dinner ran into a few hiccups such as the kitchen only making food for 40 people when we'd confirmed 65 were attending! Thankfully the kitchen staff was easy to work with so there ended up being plenty of food. And although we'd expected 65 people, 76 showed up! This was both good and bad, meaning we got paid more at the door than we expected, but also had to throw together two extra tables. Thankfully most everyone was understanding and patient, perhaps in part that the drinks at the bar were ridiculously inexpensive so people just visited and sipped on their Cosmos longer than originally expected. We also coordinated a class picture which was so fun! We also had trivia questions and raffled off several prizes, mostly donations from local Astoria businesses. We also had a memorial table for the only classmate who has passed away, Courtney, and on Sunday presented the vase o' memories and a few other things to her father, which he appreciated very much. Scott put together a slideshow of people since high school, which was very well-done. And nobody did anything embarrassing or got really drunk, which was my primary worry. A week prior I'd had a nightmare that I was standing on a scary ledge in the high school auditorium and broke the ladder and fell off of it. I'm so thankful that didn't really happen, I stayed on two feet the entire time!

Sunday we had a picnic at Coffenbury Lake and it was a low-key, less-attended event but I think it was a nice way to end the weekend. It seemed like over half (maybe even 75%) of the classmates we invited attend one or all of the events, which was really encouraging. It was also a blessing that the three of us planners were able to be reimbursed our initial expenses and our class was able to donate money to Astoria High School.

This was my big project for the summer (and the year!) and I'm glad it's over, and even more glad people had a good time. GO Fishermen!

Happy 3rd Birthday!

2010-08-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

Today Amelia is 3 years old. We are so thankful for her and that she was placed in our family.

We love you Amelia!

We love your sweet heart, your peaceful spirit, how much you love your sister and brother, and how much you love your friends. You are learning so much every day, it's beautiful to see. You are beginning to understand more about Jesus and that he sacrificed for you. You are beginning to recognize letters and words and you love to look at books. You love to dance to music and sing songs. You love to be silly with Caley and with your friends, especially Mina and Max. You are no longer a baby!

We love you, we love seeing you learn and grow, and can't wait to watch you turn into the woman God will have you become.

Love,

Mommy and Daddy

Pot (or, our backyard project update)

2010-08-02T08:04:00.000-07:00

July 6th we celebrated out 8th wedding anniversary! I am so thankful to have married Bill, he is such a blessing to my life. I didn't know that the guy I asked to dance at swing dancing class would turn out to be such an awesome husband, but he is!

Pottery is the gift for 8th wedding anniversaries and that's what we've been working on lately, specifically the backyard patio and firepit (pictures in another blog post). The entire project has taken over a year, which I guess is appropriate since it took our entire 8th year of marriage to complete. Of course we did other things this year too, like have a baby, but whatever. The attention to detail and planning on Bill's part is truly amazing. For the patio we hired a landscaping company but Bill helped with some labor and we worked out a deal with the company. Bill made the back stone porch all by himself though! That thing is a rock. In 100 years when our house is falling apart or if there's an earthquake, that thing will still be standing strong! He had to dig really deep and pour cement to make a solid foundation. The same can be said for the firepit. When Adam was living here over the winter we didn't ask him to pay rent, but we did ask him to dig a huge hole in our backyard for the firepit foundation. It looked a little odd for quite a while.

I haven't even mentioned that Bill also built the back slider porch last summer. Or that he also repaired the playhouse floor (with the help of my dad), walls, and carpet. And now he's tackling painting the outside of the playhouse. Or that he also is redoing the third garage. And building lawn furniture from the old deck wood. This guy never stops! But through all of it he continued to be a wonderful dad and husband, playing with the kids and spending time with us. All these are good reasons I'm thankful I married him eight years ago.

The original deck!
We took it out all by hand.
A pastor from our church helped us build new posts to support the upstairs deck and re-side the area that was below the original deck.
Hauling in tons (literally) of gravel after digging out more dirt where the deck was.
Screeting sand for the back stone porch.
Look what Bill did! That's a lot of cinder block!
Almost done!
Ta-da!

I'm not sure how many total hours this project took, but it's been a labor of love that we will get to enjoy for many years to come.

Month 6

2010-07-28T19:29:00.000-07:00

We've made it halfway to a year, hooray! Today Wesley is 6 months old. It's an odd feeling because it seems like he's always been in our family. I wouldn't say our family is "complete" however, the question of "will we have more kids" has not yet been answered. But I definitely feel like Wesley rounds out our family quite perfectly for the moment. For once I'm not anxious to move onto the next stage, but fairly content with where we are in this parenting adventure. I really am enjoying each stage the three kids are in right now.

Caley is becoming so "grown up," reading independently, making authentic friendships and being a greatly nurturing big sister. Amelia is hot on Caley's heels and sometimes it's hard for me to tell the two apart from a distance. Out of the corner of my eye I'll see Amelia in an outfit Caley used to wear and have to double-take to make sure which girl it is. She has a temperament unique from Caley, which is neither good nor bad. She's so close to being potty trained, yet I will have to break down and buy another box of diapers tomorrow because we only have one more in her size. Poor kid had to wear a size 2 (Wesley's) today in a pinch. She's initiating about 50% of the time, and "holding it" adequately, especially when I'm distracted and forget to remind her to use the potty.

Wesley is blossoming into an inquisitive, grabby, drooly sitter. He started maintaining sitting a few days ago, in a disposable diaper, and has gotten quite proficient at it so I may see how he does while in a cloth diaper soon. (The big butt of cloth diapers has always interfered with my babies sitting skills.)He's using the bath seat too which makes bathtime much more fun. He's also becoming a pesky sleeper, with the hot weather I feel bad bundling him up like an eskimo but it's the only way to get him to sleep. I've been swaddling him really tight with at least two blankets and safety pinning the swaddle shut, yet he still seems to wiggle out. He also frequently rolls over (while swaddled) during nap/bedtime. He also grabs at anything and everything, including phones, keys, his sister's hair, anything. Wesley has also expanded his palate to include yogurt and sweet potatoes since last month. Soon we will try mangoes, peas, nectarines, and oatmeal.

It's hard to believe that 6 months ago today Wesley came into the world. We are so thankful God brought him into our family. Time really does move too fast.

We love you Wesley! In another 6 months you'll be stuffing your face with cake! :)

Torti-la-la-la-las!!

2010-07-24T13:12:00.000-07:00

I'm attempting another step into the land of frugal and healthy living...making bread! My hope is to eventually be able to not buy any bread at the store. So far I've made regular bread in slices, buns, and tortillas. I didn't really think the tortillas would work out, but decided to not buy tortillas at the store this week and force myself to make them for some dinner guests. And they turned out great! I used this allrecipes recipe: Tortillas I but omitted baking powder.

Check it:

Adios!

Marriage and Dancing

2010-07-18T22:49:00.000-07:00

My friend Misha just posted this on her blog and I wanted to share. It's especially meaningful since Bill and I met at a dance class. I love this man!

Check it out here.

2010-07-09T21:54:00.001-07:00

Poor Wesley with two older sisters frequently gets dressed in pink cloth diapers or girly diaper covers. He's ALL BOY however, make no mistake! Only a real man could confidently wear girly colored underwears.

Today it was so hot he just wore his diaper all day and tonight he went with me to take Caley to the slumber party so we ran some errands. Wesley was in a diaper with a girly cover and a pink binky, in his gender neutral car seat. But surprisingly when we saw some people who oohed and aahed at Wesley's cuteness, they could tell he was a boy! They said he had a very boy look to his face. And they loved his leg chunks.

What a handsome man!

Little girl growing up

2010-07-09T21:03:00.000-07:00

Tonight I took Caley to a slumber party. She went to one a few months ago and I was super nervous that she would freak out at bedtime. This time though, she seemed much better. On the drive there she said, "Mommy...I think boys are cute." My heart dropped. What did she just say? I asked, "What do you mean sweetie?" And she replied, "Like Wesley, and Magnus and that other baby, they're cute." My heart went back to where it belonged and I had a sense of relief. Just to make sure I asked, "What do you think of boys your age?" To which she replied, "I don't know" which means she doesn't think what I think she might think about boys.

I don't care if it makes me an overprotective parent, but I really hope Caley doesn't think boys are cute in the way I thought boys were cute for many many many many many more years.

But still, it's only a matter of time. Which scares the bejeezus outta me right now. :)

Holy Rite Aid Steal of a Deal!

2010-07-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

Several weeks ago I scored the BEST Rite Aid deal. Guess how much I paid for this?Nothing! Actually I MADE $4!!

Yes, I made money shopping at Rite Aid. I had no idea this sort of thing was possible before I started couponing. But given the right matchups and stacking of coupons and store deals, it can happen!

The funny thing about this shopping trip is I was planning on going grocery shopping right afterward, but made a trip home to help Bill and in the process LOST my grocery coupons and a rebate form. So I missed out on another moneymaking deal through the rebate and that day's grocery coupons. I was so bummed out I practically cried. Seriously. I was wandering around Cost Cutter without any clue as to how I should go about the trip. I've asked around and haven't found my bag with coupons and it's been over a month. I think someone thought it was a wallet and swiped it from my cart. It was a humbling day, to say the least. Coupons and an excellent shopping trip are not more important than many other things. Losing the coupons and rebate was a reminder to me that I shouldn't raise them higher than other, more important things!

But it's still fun to get a good deal! Everything in moderation...everything in moderation...

Month 5

2010-06-30T20:06:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy month at the Gerlach house and Wesley is becoming so much fun! He's started on solids a little, which is earlier than we started with both the girls. So far he's tried rice cereal, bananas and avocado. I forgot how eating solids changes the diaper arena for babies! Wesley also has started rolling, as noted a few weeks ago, and is getting better at sitting up. We got a Bumbo seat to help him sit up and see the world from a new angle. He's still sleeping okay, but waking up every few hours during the night. I don't really mind it. He's just so darn cute!

Wesley is about 15lbs but he seems so much heavier! I love his little chunky legs. We've also been working on potty training with Amelia and she gets tattoos for going potty. So far it's going okay, but it's also been about the 900th time we've tried to train her.

We also took a trip to the Ballard Locks with old playgroup buddies Acacia, Fiona, Avery, and new little Micah who now live in Chicago. We sure miss them! Caley was really excited to see the salmon and afterward we went to coffee in the UDistrict. On the way home Caley said, "That was so fun Mommy."

The girls were having fun playing with playdough and usually I'm really anal about separating the colors, but they were having so much fun mixing the colors I couldn't interrupt their play. And the "marbles" they made were so beautiful!

The kids are playing together really well and Caley and Amelia love to make Wesley laugh. What a blessing these children are! Five months has gone too quickly!

Moms just wanna have fun

2010-06-30T18:48:00.000-07:00

Recently I took a trip to the 1980s. Wesley came as well, since he can't last more than a few hours away and hasn't been taking a bottle well lately. Four of my best girlfriends came too. On the trip we were accompanied by hits from the '80s such as "Don't Stop Believing," "1999," "Beat It," and "I Wanna Dance with Somebody." My friends visited 1980s high school with their costumes while I, since I had the accompanying baby, got to experience perhaps what my mom felt like when I was a baby. I wore a dress but it couldn't seem to make up it's mind because it had hints of a suit with the button top, belt, fake pockets and monster shoulder pads. What the heck were people thinking?! Wesley was not to be outdone and sported an awesome baby outfit. He fit in with all the other '80s babies on the trip.

Here are some highlights

Thanks friends for a fun time!

P.S. I can't wait to see pictures in 30 years of Caley and my grandson having a 2010s party!

It's not DEAD!!

2010-06-26T22:38:00.000-07:00

A funny story...

I was putting Amelia to bed this week and there was a fly in her room so I stunned it, wrapped it in toilet paper and put in in the toilet. Caley then used the potty and she saw the fly and I said, "It's okay, it's dead and won't hurt you," then went to tuck Amelia in. A few minutes later Caley came running out of the bathroom with her underwear at her ankles yelling, "IT'S NOT DEAD, IT'S NOT DEAD!!" I ran in the bathroom and the fly was swimming under the water trying to escape!

I flushed the toilet and down it went, so I assured Caley all was safe so she continued with her business.

Next time I'll make sure the fly is dead before scaring the bejeezus outta my little girl!

My Favorite Things

2010-06-26T22:21:00.000-07:00

My friend Melody at Sweetly Peas posted her favorite things so I wanted to post mine too.

My favorite things are, in no particular order: my morning cup o' coffee, my late night glass o' wine, my little baby's snuggles and smiles, running outside, hearing my 5 year old read, husband hugs and kisses, and my Amelia's chubby-cheeked smile.

What are your favorite things?

Wesley's Rolling!

2010-06-16T12:07:00.000-07:00

Wesley showed us a new trick this week while his sisters are away! Check it out!

It reminds me of this, oh how they grow so fast...

Frugal Tips: Homemade Yogurt

2010-06-06T18:03:00.000-07:00

Something I've been doing for several years off and on is making yogurt. At first it seemed really, really weird, and it's taken me a while to get a system that works for me and how to use it up before it goes bad, but I think I've got it. Here are the directions, which I re-wrote from Ruth Yaron's "Super Baby Food."

To make yogurt, first put milk in a stainless steel or enameled pot and heat it on the stove. Use a metal spoon and heat it slowly to scalding, between 180-185 degrees F. I use a meat thermometer that clips on the side of the pot. Stir it slowly so it doesn't burn on the bottom.

Once it's at about 180 degrees, turn off the heat and let it cool to incubation temperature--about 112 degrees. If you keep it at room temperature, this will take about an hour, or you can put it in the fridge to speed up the process. Then you can add nonfat dry milk powder to thicken it, if you want. Use about 1/4 cup powder per quart of liquid milk. Then add the starter, which is just regular yogurt from the store. Make sure it has "live and active cultures." I use plain lowfat. You need about 2 tablespoons of yogurt per quart of milk. Fold the starter in gently until it's throughout the whole milk. Then incubate the yogurt and let the cultures grow. Pour the milk into individual smaller containers or a better, non-metal container. I use a glass bowl with a lid. You need to keep the yogurt between 105-112 degrees anyway you can. I put it in the kitchen sink in hot water that I boil on the stove and I check it occasionally and add more hot water if I need to. Yogurt can survive between 90 and 120 degrees so if the temperature dips lower than 100 all is not lost. Incubate it until it's thick enough to your taste and preference. My yogurt usually takes at least 4 hours to thicken, probably more, so I have to stick around the house all day. I also cover it with a lid or towel to keep the heat in.

When it's thick enough, you can add any flavoring, I like vanilla and fruit.

My yogurt usually has a lot of watery whey on top which can be removed easily. I like to use it in recipes, like smoothies, casseroles, or anything else. It's also good plain with a little flavoring! And oh so natural and frugal!

Here are some other links for yogurt making:

Allfreecrafts.com

101cookbooks.com

Hillbillyhousewife.com

Enjoy!

Caley's Owie Legs

2010-06-05T12:53:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to blog about this for a while, but keep forgetting. In the last few months we finally figured out what was causing Caley's "owie legs" for the last year or more. It was the toilet seats in our house! Since Caley's been independent on an adult toilet, she's had an itchy rash on the backs of her legs. We tried almost everything, changing how I clean the toilets (from Clorox to baking soda and vinegar), hydrocortizone, Vicks, nystatin and other topical products. I even tried rubbing a paste of baking soda on her owies. She continued to scratch them and even cause them to bleed. The owies would get worse and then better, but never go away. We made an appointment to see a dermatologist but it was so far scheduled out that by the time it came the owies seemed better so I cancelled the appointment.

Finally, I googled it and found this article-- Wooden Toilet Seats Can Trigger Children's Rash and it clicked. The toilet seats she usually sits on are cheapo painted wood!

So we bought this kind from Home Depot by Bemis/Next Step

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&q=next+step+toilet+seat&cid=7890996918516118364&ei=rKsKTKvpHoKyiwShmqy7CA&sa=title&ved=0CAcQ8wIwADgA#p

They're higher quality and a better size for her tiny tushie. Within a few weeks her owies looked so much better and now they're COMPLETELY GONE!!

I told her pediatrician that I'd figured it out and she's recommended changing the toilet seats to other patients and it's worked for them too.

Thank you GOOGLE.

Month 4

2010-06-02T22:00:00.000-07:00

Mr. Wesley is now 4 months! Holy cow! Where has the time gone? We had his well-child checkup today and he is nearly 14 lbs and and 24" long. That translates to about the 25th percentile for both compared to other boys his age. I actually thought he'd be bigger since he has really plumped up lately. The doctor said he's grown more in length, and is right where he should be. He also seems to have been having a growth sport because he's been waking more frequently at night and not seeming to get full this past week. The doctor thinks it's most likely a spurt and not a reason to start introducing solids, which I'm grateful for because nursing is just easier at this point.

In the past month Wesley has continued being very verbal and social, he loves loves loves laughing at and talking to his sisters and Daddy. He also rarely takes his eyes off me, Mommy. I love that. I love how it feels like he's always been in our family. I love his little rolls and how he kicks his legs. I love his fair, soft skin. I love the little bleached hair areas on the right side of his head. I love how he's generally pretty mellow and likes to watch everything. He loves to chew on anything and drool everywhere. Maybe we're in for a tooth soon! (Probably not since the girls were late teethers, he's just a drool machine.)

So far he's not rolling, but I think it's still pretty close. His baby buddies are both rolling (Magnus and Beck) and while when the girls were babies I was pretty hyper about them being like other babies developmentally, it doesn't bother me so much with Wes. He'll get to it when it's his time. I like my snuggly baby just the way he is for now, but I'm excited for when he can actually play with others, especially the girls. We were at the mall play area today and I could just imagine Wesley toddling around on the toys trying to keep up with Caley and Amelia. That will be a fun time. Crazy, because they'll probably all run in different directions, but still fun.

In other news, we've been pretty girly doing tea parties, brushing hair and primping in the bathroom, painting fingernails and toenails, and staying on top of the most recent fashion trends around the Gerlach house. We hope you had a good month too.

Warning

2010-05-25T19:01:00.000-07:00

Here's another edition to the "Addie's crazy" file...

Yesterday I had one goal: clean the nastiness that is our master bathroom. There are two sinks and both drain slowly, one a little worse than the other. It didn't seem to matter how much Drano I poured down that sucker, it never seemed to drain correctly. I decided to attack it from below, so I started to unscrew the pipes beneath (thankfully there are several plastic pieces, not one steel piece).

Holy nasty! Water came pouring out and so did a nasty, nasty smell. Hairballs and congealed nastiness, everywhere. It took a while, and many trips to the kitchen and back, but after a good washing they were ready to be screwed back together. Then, the moment of truth, as I turned on the water to make sure there were no leaks. Yay! No leaks and no nasty backup! A clean drain!

I tackled the other sink and it wasn't as gross, but still not pleasant. Ahhh...a clean sink, a clean bathroom (almost, we still are having some shower "issues"), as close to bliss a housewife can get!

Today I couldn't wait to tackle the other bathroom sinks, and tomorrow I aim to do the other two. Crazy? I think so.

For your edification and avoidance of nasty sink look here.

Apron Power!

2010-05-11T19:15:00.000-07:00

A blog I love to read is MommyLife by Barbara Curtis. I've mentioned it on here before. Well I just won the Apron Power 2010 contest she hosted for Mother's Day! "Won" isn't the best description actually, because I was the only one who entered! I was totally shocked to hear this, I honestly didn't expect to win at all, let alone be the only entrant. The prize is a set of her books! I have read a few, but look forward to reading all of them soon! Here are all of her books on Amazon, if you want to get them too!

Thank you Barbara!

Month 3

2010-05-11T18:41:00.000-07:00

We're halfway through month 3 with little Wes so I should probably post this already!

Wesley is doing so great, and in the past month has started mouthing his hand, drooling everywhere all the time, smiling at everything and even almost laughing. He is doing well on his tummy and I don't doubt he'll be rolling over very soon! He's also bulking up it seems, he's been eating a lot of protein because I have been eating a lot of protein for P90X! Seriously all this kid gets is chicken, tuna, protein powder, rice cakes, and margaritas. Just kidding! But it's fine with me if I lose weight and give it to him!

He's also losing his baby hair, which makes me a little sad. He's not bald, but the new hair is much lighter and of course shorter. That seems to be the trend for our little Gerlach babies. You might remember Amelia had lost all her hair by 4 months as well.

Today Wesley was laying on the floor outside the bathroom while the girls and I got ready for the day. It occurred to me that having two older sisters with whom he will have to share a bathroom will no doubt be good for his patience and character! God knew what He was doing when he waited for the third kid to give us a boy!

Enjoy a little peek into the last month with Wesley.

He's nearly grown out of the sweater Great Grandma Ev knitted for him!

Putting up with big sister playing dress-up = character building!One of the girls thought it was too sunny so they put this up for him.

The first fort!

Wesley and his buddies

2010-04-17T21:04:00.000-07:00

Several months ago I showed you this picture of my women's bible study:

Now look!

L to R: Beck Roman born January 20, Magnus Blaise and Wesley Robert born January 28, and Chaucer Bennett born February 12!

Chaucer and Wes are buddies. ;)

The two ladies on the right in the top picture both are having girls! Eowyn is set to arrive any day, as in hopefully tonight, and Neve was born April 13th!

God is gracious to us!

Month 2

2010-04-02T23:03:00.001-07:00

Wesley is a full two months now and he's fitting in perfectly with our little family. He is starting to get more predictable patterns and everyone adores him. The last two nights he's gone to bed in his crib around 8pm and we haven't heard a peep until midnight-ish. It makes for a nice, relaxing evening when everyone is safe and sound under this roof and Mommy gets a break. He has shown that he likes being in the Sidecar Sling a lot, and I'm so thankful for it because I can keep him happy and have both arms free. As of Wednesday when we visited the doctor, Wesley weighs nearly 11 pounds and is in the 30% for weight and about 10% for height. Not surprising!

We took a trip to Astoria, which was Wesley's first road trip. He did great in the car, and both ways we only stopped once to stretch our legs and for Wesley to nurse. He also has been quite the chatterbox and loves to smile and "talk," especially to Daddy.

We love you Wesley!

I'm flattered...

2010-04-02T08:56:00.000-07:00

but do you really have to ask?

I was at Grocery Outlet (yes aka Mold Outlet, it's really not that bad) this week because they had a 20% off all wine sale. Their wine prices are already ridiculously low, so I was stocking up. This is my cart: Wesley in the carseat, Caley in the cart where the food goes, Amelia hanging off the cart singing, "I'm swinging like a monkey" and five, yes five bottles of wine. I think I was also drinking some coffee.

We got to the line and the checker asked to see my ID and I just laughed. I'm flattered that she is required to enter my birthdate, but seriously even if I was younger than 21 and had three kids 5 and under, I think I'd have earned the privilege to drink some wine. On the other hand, having three kids 5 and under, the only place we can seem to afford wine is Grocery Outlet. Damn recession.

An Excursus

2010-03-24T00:27:00.000-07:00

excursus : noun : an appendix or digression that contains further exposition of some point or topic

Here is how I see (and as you can tell, take so seriously) where we shop for groceries. As a mother and homemaker, my primary ministry is to my husband and family. Bill works hard to provide for us and, for a large portion anyway, I spend the money. I decide what to feed my family and how to serve them. I decide what's important enough to spend our money on. So the actual cost of food is important. But the other side is missional ministry. Being a stay-at-home-mom, my missional ministry is limited by nap time and the demands of three kids. My outside contacts are generally the people we meet each week as we go about our routine. The lady at the library storytime. The seniors at the retirement center that oooh and aaah at the kids as we visit. And our grocery store friends.

When I see our grocery store friends and they ask how things are going, I try to give a better answer than "fine." I try to give a real answer, whether things are going good or bad. I hope to build a relationship and minister to people in whatever way they need. And in turn it's been a blessing and they have ministered to me. It might seem silly. But if we are all in full-time ministry, regardless of what we get paid to do, this is how I want to approach my weekly routine. This is partly why I don't want to just grocery shop wherever has the best coupon deal that week, but stick with what I know. For the cash and for the relationship that God has put in front of me.

Being "on mission" extends farther than what bible study I'm in, it should be something ongoing all the time. It wouldn't be bad if I shopped at Albertsons, because after a while I'd probably have some grocery store friends there, just like at Cost Cutter.

Just some thoughts. Although take it with a grain of salt as it is nearly 1am. The point though is we're always to be in ministry, wherever God has placed us. For me that ministry includes the people I meet while choosing what cereal to buy for the week. :)

2010-03-23T23:39:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: Here is a glimpse into the mind and heart of a homemaker. I write this partly for fun (see my past entries to Cost Cutter here and here), but also because it's been on my mind seriously as I learn new ways to steward my husband's paycheck into our budget, over which I have a great deal of control and responsibility to spend wisely.

Dear Cost Cutter,
It's been a while since my last letter so I need to write. I have been a Cost Cutter shopper for going on 7 years, with a few breaks in between, but loyally for about 5 years. I can't believe it. It's a real relationship now. Pastor Mark Driscoll cited that in a marriage the hardest years are the first 9-15, and I'm feeling it again in my relationship with you, dear Cost Cutter.

You have a special employee, Jane, my "grocery store friend." She is so sweet and kind to me and my kids. I feel an inexpressible joy when I walk in your store around 1pm on Wednesdays every week. Some weeks I don't see Jane, but I do see my other grocery store friends Barb, Lisa, and Cindy. In my head I hear "Where everybody knows your name..." Jane and I have exchanged gifts for holidays and the birth of my son Wesley. My daughters are so excited to see their grocery store friends each week too.

But, I'm torn. I am being lured by the thought of spending less, by cutting coupons. You are not a major chain, not one of the stores listed on the coupon blogs with amazing deal matchups. You have great prices and I only have to go to one store. But I'm torn. I want to jump into the world of couponing. All my friends are doing it. But if I shop at another store I feel guilty. I feel like someone will see me "cheating" on you. I'm not even kidding. I feel like I've invested 7 years into knowing your store, knowing your employees, feeling comfortable with the whole grocery experience...too much has been invested to throw it away on a trip to Albertsons or Safeway. And by the way, they ARE more expensive than you and you carry the same items. But you don't have all the glitter and shine.

I admit I cheated a few weeks ago. Thursday evening I gathered my coupons and headed to Albertsons to score an awesome deal on some cereal and other sundry items. But it was so frustrating. Wesley was very tired and cranky and hard to manage while shuffling coupons in an unfamiliar store where I didn't know anyone and felt anonymous. Like someone in the movie WALL-E shopping at a "Buy'n'Large." I probably saved some with the coupons I had, but on a good week at your store, with in-ad coupons and some manufacturer coupons, I probably would have saved more. But...everyone else was doing it. All I read on the coupon blogs was how great of a deal it was this week at Albertsons. But it left a sour taste in my mouth.

I really want to figure out how to make it work. I want to learn how to combine my manufacturer coupons with the in-ad coupons at your store. You already have good prices, it's been proven in the 5 years I've shopped with you. We eat well, healthy, and it doesn't blow the budget. The system I've been using has worked well. I want it to work better.

With love,
Addie

First trip

2010-03-20T22:06:00.000-07:00

Wesley, the girls and I made the trek to Astoria today. This is Wesley's first trip anywhere remarkable. He did a great job on the ride and it was surprisingly calm for a 4-hour drive with three kids and just me. I hope to have some fun pictures to post about our time here.

Tomorrow we are hoping to "play clams" at the beach and have a tea party with Grama. On Monday Great Grandma Evelyn will be visiting too.

blah g

What Mom Says

Weight is just a number

New Year

Retirement!

Finally

Giving Thanks

Baby time!

38 weeks

Wesley at 20 months

Wesley Eating Blackberries

Caley's first blog post

Amelia is 4!

Amelia the Cutie Pie!

32 weeks

The Garden!

10ish weeks to go!

Blog changes

18 months

Chelan!

And it's another...

It's always somethin' 'round here

Checking in

Questions

Thank you, dear Wesley!

This blog is now private

Look who's walking!

A sneak peek

God's Grace in a Race

Why do I coupon?

Microwave-free Living

Some Things I Wouldn't Buy, Even with a Coupon

Wesley's Birthday Cake Adventure!

Happy *Belated* Birthday Wesley and Caley!

Day 23: A Youtube Video

Today I am thankful for...

Day 22: A website

Day 21: A recipe

Butts

Day 20: A Hobby of Yours

Day 19: A Talent of Yours

Merry New Year!

Crazy Community

Months 9 & 10

The Hotyssey

Update: LOST tooth!

Loose Tooth!

Did you know...

Missing

Coupon Deals!

Month 8

Day 17: an art piece (drawing, sculpture, painting, etc)

Day 16: A song that makes you cry (or nearly)

Day 15: Your Dream House

Day 14: A non-fictional book

Day 13: A Fictional Book

Example

A story

Yay for Amelia!!

Day 12: something I am OCD about

Day 11: A photo of me recently

Day 10: a photo taken over 10 years ago

Day 9: a photo I took

Day 8 - a photo that makes me angry/sad

Day 7: A photo that makes me happy

Day 6: 20 favorite things

Month 7

Day 5: A Favorite Quote

Day 4: A Favorite Book

Day 3: A Favorite Television Program

Day 2: A Favorite Movie

Day 1: A Favorite Song

30 days

The REUNION

Happy 3rd Birthday!

Pot (or, our backyard project update)

Month 6

Torti-la-la-la-las!!

Marriage and Dancing

Little girl growing up

Happy Belated Birthday Wesley and Caley!