Pregnancy Update

A couple of friends have asked for a pregnancy update, so I now feel I can blog about it.

I'm nervous to talk too much about it because I don't want people to roll their eyes and harrummpphh in disgust that I'm posting yet again about this beast growing inside me.

I call her a beast because that's what she's been. No, we don't know that she's a she, maybe he's a he. That's quite possible, there is that 50/50 chance dontchaknow. We won't be finding out the sex of the baby until May. It's killin' me since we could find out next Friday at my ultrasound but we waited with Jaylee and the surprise was really fun.

Anyway, back to the beast. :) I know, I really shouldn't call her that, seeing as how she's only 5 inches long and just a few ounces, how could anyone so small be a beast, but really, this kid has his/her moments. Those first, ohhh, 13 or 14 weeks I really wanted to curl up and die. Poor Jaylee is now addicted to television because it was the only social interaction she had. "Teebee" as she calls it was quite the babysitter as I laid on the bathroom floor, sometimes for most of the day. No tricks worked. Crackers, un uh. Tea, gag me. Prescription for nausea...well, I won't even tell ya what that did to me.

The last couple of weeks have been pretty darn good, thank You, Jesus! I still visit that porcelain throne but only a few times a week. I'm gaining weight, which I'm not thrilled about but need to get over. It's going to happen, I must face it.

So far my blood pressure has been great, about 90/68. Really praying it stays that way. The end of my first pregnancy it was extremely high and I had to be put on magnesium, that wasn't much fun.

No baby movement yet, but I'm looking forward to it. We have no names picked. Seriously. Feel free to throw any out there. I'm sure my husband will nix 'em all like he's been doing to me. But feel free nonetheless!

Thanks for asking about how I'm doing (Kristie, Mindy) it's fun to feel free to talk about it!

17 weeks and 3 days. Just 22 weeks and 4 days to go!

She'll be going to Kindergarten in Diapers

I'm just sure of it. Sure.of.it.

On Sunday morning, I change her diaper and dress her for church. About 30 minutes later we leave for church, which is about 40 minutes from our house.

After church we get lunch and run a billion errands. Josh asks me at the end of our errands,

"Have you changed Jaylee since this morning?"

He knows the answer to the question, he's been with her the entire day, too. But still I tell him,

"Nope."

We get on another conversation, load her in her car seat, forgetting we still have not changed her-and drive home.

40 minutes away.

We get home and I realize I never did change her even though we'd talked about me changing her.

It's been seven hours since she was last changed. I'm feeling that rush of mommy-guilt that happens 298 times everyday. So, I finally go get a diaper. She gets herself all situated, waiting for me; she knows the whole routine because she's 2 1/2and should be out of diapers by now!

She's dry.

Seven hours and I pull off a dry diaper!

I rush her to the potty. She laughs. Thinks running is a game. She sits there. Does nothing.

I let her go free. Leaving her in her birth day glory. Everyone knows a kid loves to run around like that, she's no different.

She goes in my room, grabs a pair of my dress shoes and walks around the house in them.

A few minutes later she comes up to me in a state of panic.

"Mommy, toilet." She points to my shoes.

Uh huh. My shoes were her toilet.

I'm really excited we're having another one of these. It was a really good idea on our part.

The Assassin Strikes Again

You're going to be disappointed in me. Tacky Christmas Sweater pictures...not so exciting. But I have good reason! You have to read a really long post to understand.

In May of 1997 I went camping with Josh's family and friends. I went camping with him then because you know when you're dating, you love to do exactly what your significant other loves to do. So, this meant I loved to go camping. *Serious eye roll going on over here*

While camping, the boys decide we should go in a boat. Obviously pre-July 1999 because we all know how much I love boating now, huh?

I can't remember everyone who went boating. I do remember being there. Along with Josh and his friend Ken. We're in the boat. It's moving pretty fast. I'm not thrilled. All of a sudden, not sure how he does it, Ken flips us.

Uh huh. He did. I'm out of the boat!!! Current is moving. I'm in a state of panic. I grab a rock wall. I live.

Fast forward a couple of months.

My husband used to own a Datsun 240 Z. Actually, he used to own two Datsun 240 Zs. This is what they are supposed to look like. These cars are two-seaters. No back seat. No wonder we don't have either of them anymore with one child and another on the way. Anyway...

Okay, now I can start my story.

Round about July 5th, 1997, we were up at Mt. Rainier. We, as in Josh, me, his family and some friends. (Not we, as in Amber and me as she likes to think "we" means.) Really digressing, aren't I? It's my story, I can take as long as I like.

So, we are up at Rainier and we, as in Josh, me, his 9 yr old cousin, Paul, and Josh's friend..........you guessed it: Ken, decide to go for a drive.

The four of us.

In the Z.

The two-seater Z.

The one with two seat belts.

Ken wants to drive. Josh and Paul lay down in the back. I take shotgun. We go for a drive and on our way back down, signs are reading 15 mph because of the curves. I think Ken may be dyslexic. He may have thought the sign read 51 mph, because we came out of one of the curves looking like this:

Uh huh. We did. We hit a rock wall. Rock walls and I that summer of '97, we saw a lot of one another.

So, after these two events my mother started to call Ken, The Assassin.

I tell you all that to tell you why my Tacky Christmas Sweater Picture isn't the greatest.

Amber and I go shopping the day after Thanksgiving. All dolled up. We have a hoot until I realize I've missed two calls from my husband. I call him back.

"I'm in the ER with Jaylee." Are the first words he says to me.

My heart stops, my tears start. Those aren't words you want to hear.

Jaylee was bit by a dog on her face. Whose dog I ask? I really should have guessed. Uh huh. The Assassin's. Okay, not his, but his parent's and isn't that close enough?

She's fine. Totally and completely. Honestly it would have been nice if it'd taken her down a notch, but it really hasn't. She's completely unaware of what did it to her; no fear of dogs in the least. But here are pictures of us in the hospital, me with TCS, Jaylee with a dog bite, and Josh with blood on his shirt.



The puncture in her ear went all the way through. Should have put an earring in before they super-glued it shut! And the puncture on her face wasn't so deep as it was wide. The doctor, whom I'll call Mark Sloane, decided he didn't need to stitch her. Said it'd scab over just fine. And it has.

I called my mom, let her know The Assassins latest attempt.

"Is it not enough he tries to kill you and Josh, now he's going for the children?!"

We got a good laugh.

So, that was our exciting Day after Thanksgiving.

Ken, we love ya. You know we do. But we have to harass you at least a lil bit. :)

They're here, they're here!

Our fanny packs have arrived!!! They are so not tacky enough.

I can't wait to remedy that lil problem.

Not Intended to Offend Those Who Like Tacky Christmas Sweaters

Because I like them, too. Mostly I like to laugh, point and snicker at those who wear them. Soon though, I will be the target of mockery. Because soon, soon as in Day After Thanksgiving, I will be sporting one such tacky Christmas sweater.

Last year Amber and I shopped the day after Thanksgiving (TDAT) and it was decided pretty spur of the moment. We've been talking about this years TDAT since probably Christmas last year. We've decided to make the occasion...uh...special.

Why and how we've come up with what we've come up with...not sure. But I get tears in my eyes just thinking about it.

Up at 4 a.m. Dressed in the finest apparel:

1. Tacky Christmas sweaters (which we found for 2 bucks at a thrift store yesterday)

2. Green and Red hats. (also found at a thrift store for .59) One says, "Merry Christmas" the other, "Let it Snow"

3. Fanny Packs. Yes, fanny packs! We looked for them at all the thrift stores but there were none! So, I got online and found us some. Pretty excited for them. We're going to decorate them with puffy paints and other random Christmasy stuff.

4. Leg Warmers. Uh huh. Leg Warmers. A red and green pair so we can swap and have one of each.

5. Earrings and Necklaces to match of course.

I'm really excited. I can't wait. I already can't sleep very well at night because I'm too excited.

Don't worry. There will be pictures. You'll get to laugh, point and snicker.

My Personal Cheerleader

Uh huh. I'm so cool I have my very own. She may only be two, but she's amazing!

I went in on Friday for my follow-up appointment so Deb could see that I'd gained back about 4 of the 15 pounds I'd lost. She was proud.

She puts the lil thing on my belly to hear the baby's heartbeat and when she pushes down on my belly I grimaced. It hurt. She was concerned.

When you first go into the office, they hand you the cup. The one you're supposed to go potty in. Like I said before, this makes me nervous. I get stage fright. But I went.

Barely.

Anyway, after she realizes I'm having some pain in my abdomen she asks if I can pee again.

"Are you kidding me?" I asked.

"Just a little, that's all we need." She replies.

I tell her I'll try but I'm not making any promises. Jaylee follows me into the restroom.

The loud noise from last time is still there. I don't really have to go. And Jaylee is wandering around the room which is irritating me. I'm trying to concentrate. I'm just about ready....

"Go, Mama! You can do it, big girl! Yeah!" Uh huh, she started cheering me on.

I died. It was the funniest thing ever. Can you tell I'm trying to potty train her?

Last night and this morning

Here is my sweet little ladybug. Or, as she referred to herself, "badabug". She wasn't too sure about putting the outfit on at first. I informed her it wasn't going to kill her or bite her (her daddy thinks ladybugs bite) and then I told her after she put it on, we could look in the mirror. This brightened her spirits. She was a fan. We went to our church's Harvest Party. The children play games and earn stickers on their game sheet. When the game sheet is full, they turn it in to receive their bag of candy. Jaylee is still a little young for the games, so basically we stole the stickers and ran! :)

Today has already proved to be more interesting than yesterday...see these beasts?
These are my neighbors pets. Over the course of the eight years we've lived here, we've woken up to them peering in our bedroom windows, or seen them in our pasture, or standing next to our car in the middle of the road. It's always been okay. Because I've been able to call and say, "Hi, Kathi, it's Sarah. Thumper is under the carport." And she's come over and taken care of the issue.

It didn't work like that today. I look out and see Nick. Nick is the overgrown goat. And Nick is standing in their backyard eating their rosebushes. I see the gate wiiiide open. I'm thinking, "it's okay, only Nick got out, I can handle this."
Why do I have to handle it you ask? Because the neighbors moved. They moved. But not their animals.

So, I do what must be done first.

I put on a bra.

I open the gate that separates my backyard from their pasture. I look around and see that only Thumper remains. Thumper is the cow. Which means Keiki, the horse, is somewhere. After a few minutes of coaxing the goat who is almost as big as the horse, I get him in the gate. Wasn't easy, as I had a cow bumping my back the whole time. I find the oats. Scoop 'em up and here comes the horse. They look so much smaller when I'm IN my house.

He comes up.

I pray he doesn't try to kill me.

And after some time, all is well with my world.

Animals are safely in their pen.

There is a reason I own a Beagle and not a horse.

I got a laugh

the other day.

I've said before how I have a MySpace account and I can't tell you how much I love it. If not for MySpace, well I wouldn't have had dear ol' Amber to keep me company this last year.

Anyway, MySpace has allowed to get in touch with friends from High School that I haven't talked to, well, since High School. Most recently I found a friend from youth group.

My display picture was of my dad and me on my 17th birthday. He sends me a message, asking about life in general and then says, "That's a good picture of your dad on your profile. How is he?"

I laughed so hard. I mean, it wasn't really funny, but it really was. How do you break it to someone that your dad drown eight years ago without making them feel like a donkey? So, I just replied that he was fine, I suppose. And that he had drown.

Really how do you break that news? I didn't know how to say it. He replied with an apology, saying he felt like a jerk and wondered how he could have not known. It's been a week and I'm still getting a good laugh out of it.

'Cause I'm sick like that.

Geeeesh!

I had a doctor's appt. today. I dropped my child off with my mother and went alone. The last trip with her-horrible! I vowed to never do it again if I don't have to.

They call my name. And then the favorite part...weigh in. She weighs me, charts it, then says, "I think I should check it again." I told her it was right, I had just weighed myself before coming in. She looks disturbed.

She hands me a lil plastic cup and sends me into the restroom. I freeze up. Sorry, can't do this. There was this really loud banging noise going on upstairs of the office and it totally threw me off.

Anyway...

We go into the room, she takes me blood pressure and then we get to listen to the heartbeat! Yeah, this thing that's trying to kill me really is in there!

She tells me Debbie will be in shortly and leaves.

I hear my midwifes voice in the other room and I can tell she's on the phone. I lay on the paper covered bed, staring out the window into the beautiful day and pray that she's on the phone forever. Why? Because it's peaceful in that room! No clingy, whiny toddler. No dog. No smells that get to me. Just me. All by my lonesome.

Of course it came to an end.

She comes in.

She's mad.

"Is this right? You've lost 15 pounds!?"

I nod.

She's still mad.

Tells me that I must gain weight from here on out or she's sending me back to my GI doctor because she thinks something could be wrong with me. UGH! I have to go back in 2 weeks instead of 4.

I asked her for a C-section, she just looks at me.

Part of me was serious.

Obviously I didn't get my wish. I'm still 11 weeks 5 days pregnant. Sick as a dog and now worried too since she thinks something is wrong with me.

On the way out she made me get on the scale again. She thought the nurse messed up.

The nurse didn't mess up. She hummphs and tells me, "Gain some weight, I'll see you in 2 weeks."

So, Jaylee and I went out to lunch and so far I've kept 'er down!

Dancing on Streets that are Golden

My grandma passed away last Saturday.

It's sad that she's not here anymore, sad that Jaylee will never know her. But really, how exciting is it that she's in Heaven?! She's no longer in any pain. Her body works perfectly. She's with Jesus!

It helps me to not be as sad when I think about how much better her life is now.

Her graveside service is today. I think the hardest part of all of this is watching my two aunts and three uncles grieve the loss of their mommy. The family has been through a lot of grief and I understand that it's part of life but sometimes you wonder just how much a family can take.

Thank you to everyone who's been praying for my family and me.

When there is something serious that needs to be talked about, I am not the person for the job. I make light of everything, trying to find humor in the worst of situations. Like when I had cancer or any time I talk about my dad drowning.

I get uncomfortable and find it easier to be funny than put on my Big Girl Panties and deal with the situation at hand.

This last week I haven't been able to be funny. I've had to deal with a serious situation like a big girl. For once.

My grandma is dying.

I don't like death.

I don't like assisted living places.

I don't like these Big Girl Panties I'm having to wear.

But I'm dealing. Jaylee and I have been going almost every day to spend time with her. She's not had any nourishment in nine days. Her body is shutting down. She's so skinny.

I've never been this close to death before and it's not that it freaks me out, at least not with my grandma, it's just weird to watch it happen. I'm thankful that she's a believer, I have peace knowing that soon she'll be with Jesus.

My thoughts about all of it are so jumbled. It's just been a very sad and tiring week.

Another Hiatus

Since I can't think of a gosh-darned thing to blog about these days that anyone would be interested in reading, I think it's time to hang up my blogging hat for awhile.

This time it's not because I need a break from the computer. I barely make it up here these days. It's the fact that I have nothing to say that wouldn't revolve around morning sickness which in my case is all day sickness. I'm tired of it. And if I blogged about it on a daily basis, you'd be tired of it, too.

So, we're going to take a little break from each other and hopefully this junk will be gone soon.

I figured out why my husband is so great

He learned it from his dad.

I've always thought I have the best father-in-law, ever. But today he made it even more clear to me.

He calls around 8:45 this morning and asks if I'd like him to pick up Jaylee for awhile. He has errands to run, he says, and would like some company.

Heck yes, I'd like him to pick her up!

So he does. After they'd been gone for an hour, he calls to see if I need anything from the grocery store. I do, because I can't go there. The thought of a grocery store right now sends my stomach over the edge...of the toilet. So, he picks a couple of things up for me. He's gone for two and a half hours! I had the house to myself all that time! I got to lay down without being pestered, I got to puke in private, I was even able to consider doing the dishes by myself. (Don't worry, I didn't do them.)

When he brought her home she was so worn out, she slept for two and half more hours! It was amazing!

I feel so blessed.

Bound with Fear

On Saturday we had a young girl stop by our house. She's only a few years younger than I am but I still see her as a kid since she was in a youth group Josh and I were "adult sponsors" for. Our involvement was brief but in the short time this girl took a liking to us.

We'll call her Mary.

Mary stops by our house every few months out of nowhere. She talks about her boyfriend, her job, life, etc. while she's here.

I've never met said boyfriend but he sounds like a winner. *Rolling my eyes*

She informs us they are living out of her car and have been for the last two months. While sleeping in their car, a semi-truck backed over the hood. I'm dying while she's telling us this. I'm sitting in shock. She's laughing about it, too, but I can tell she's embarrassed. We feed her lunch and sit in comfortable silence for a bit.

Mary says she's just had a run of bad luck. I nod. But inside I just want to tell her that it's not bad luck she's living, it's a sinful life with consequences. I want to tell her to turn her heart back to Jesus and get right with Him. I don't want her to suffer anymore than she already has.

But...I sit quiet. I say nothing. I'm bound by fear.

After a couple of hours, she's heading out. I tell her to bring her boyfriend next time otherwise I'm going to start thinking he's imaginary.

She laughs. She leaves.

It's been four days and still I'm kicking myself for not being more bold.

A Case of Too Much Information from a Pregnant Girl

Two things I learned today...

1. Oatmeal looks the same going in as it does thrown up.

2. Quesadillas...do not.

Bike Adventure #1

I think "adventure" is the wrong word here, but that's okay.

On Saturday, we load child in the bike trailer and we get on our bikes. I'm none too thrilled we're going for a ride because I haven't been feeling so great all day. But I'm sure my sweet husband is sick of hearing about it, so I agree to the bike ride.

We ride about, ohhh a half mile or so when I hear, "pshhhhhh" look down and sure enough...I have a flat tire. Uh huh. I did. After a half mile of riding. Blasted goat head anyway. And I'm not sure why we call them "goat heads" because I don't think they look anything like a goat. They're just poky and mean. Is a goat poky and mean?

Anyway, I tried to pretend I was sorely disappointed that our ride was over so soon, when really I was thanking the Lord for His little blessings. :) Luckily Josh's grandparents lived a little ways from where I broke down, so we walked over there and Josh went back for Holly, our Suburban, while I waited with them.

I can tell this bike riding stuff is going to be great!

Nothin' to Say

I'm here. I'm alive. Sorry I haven't posted for a coupla days. Hate when I go to certain blogs that haven't been updated, so here I am. Updating. Ahem...Amber...

Nothing new to share really. Haven't posted 'cause I haven't been feeling so hot. Even though I'm not thoroughly enjoying being pregnant at the moment, I'm thankful.

Looking forward to the weekend. Nothing is planned and I'm excited for it. Basically I'd just like to sleep the entire time. That'd be fine-ola by me!

I got a bicycle today. That's big news! I'll have Josh take my picture and I'll show ya later. Hopefully I still remember how to ride. :)

Have a great weekend, hopefully I'll have something exciting to blog about come Monday.

Take Care!

Out of the Mouths of Brats...er...Babes

This morning, my sweet daughter and I were laying on my bed. She has a book with a bunch of different animals on it. I start asking her what sounds they make.

What does a cow say? Moooo

What does a kitty say? meeoooww

What does a dog say? wuff wuff!

What does Mommy say? oink oink



She's lucky I let her live.

Our Poor Neighbors

I've come to the conclusion that my husband and I are just weird people. And that's okay. Because you are, too. Don't try to deny it, in some way, you're weird.

Just face the facts.

I had to last night...

Last night when my husband was dancing around on our bed in his underbritches, swinging a towel around trying to kill mosquitoes.

Here's the deal. We've become infested with skeeters and I don't know why or how but they have taken over our bedroom and it's making me insane. I cannot stand to shut the light off and hear them buzzing around. So, as soon as I hear them, I turn on the light and my poor husband has to try to find them and kill 'em.

Last night I was sooo exhausted that I put the lamp in bed with me so I wouldn't have to reach for it to turn it on, I could just have it right there.

I shut it off. And the buzzing started.

I flip it on and Josh jumps up, towel in hand...he's armed and dangerous. We did this several times until finally, finally there was no buzzing. It took approximately 43 minutes to kill them all.

Did I mention we don't have curtains or blinds on our bedroom windows?

He Really is Amazing

Yesterday Josh calls when he gets off work to inform me he's going to deposit his check and run some errands and asked if Amber was still at the house. I told him she was. Normally I get sad when he doesn't come home right away but I had Amber there to keep me company (and clean my house).

When he finally shows up, he gives us these. A bouquet for each of us. No reason. Just because. He really amazes me sometimes. I mean, I know he's a great guy and all...but this was really amazing. Don't ask why I have a hat on my head, I really don't know. Maybe I was cold. Maybe I'm just a weirdo. Most likely the latter. Here's a picture of the sweet man himself. He's so adorable. Yesterday I realized just how much I take him for granted. He goes to work without complaint. He takes out the trash without being asked. He brushes my hair. He changes diapers without being asked. He can fix stuff. By stuff, I mean anything that is broken. I don't know how he does it but he can fix just 'bout anything. He's really good with directions. He has the most amazing smile. I just love him.

I really do.

Shaving is Overrated

Today is a day of miracles. Of sort. How? Why? You ask.

I shaved my legs.

This may not seem like a miracle but I'm thinking the last time I shaved them was back in July, so for the razor to whack down the forest of hairs growing on my legs is indeed a miracle. Of course I equipped the good ol' girl with a new blade but still.

I tried to take a picture of my legs beforehand but seeing as how they haven't had much sun this summer, the glare was too intense for the camera and it turned out to be just a picture of a very bright light.

So, why today did I shave my legs? You might be thinking, "Oh, it's Friday, maybe she has a date with her hot husband tonight?" If you're thinking that, you're incorrect.

No, I shaved the bad boys because I had "the" appointment today. You know the one. The one us humans with female genitalia just luhuhuhuv. The entire time I was shaving I was worried Jaylee had gone outside, run passed the pasture and into the road. I keep yelling, "Jayleeeee!?" and she keeps yelling, "whaaat?!" She'd come in and say hi then return to whatever it was she was doing. Most likely something she's not supposed to do. Also while shaving, I'm reminded why I don't do this on a daily or weekly basis. It takes forever. I could have been doing dishes, reading a book, blogging, folding laundry, knitting...okay, I don't knit...but still. You get the picture.

Shaving my legs is torturous to me. I get bored. I drift off into LaLa Land. And this time I almost fell asleep during the second leg. The results could have been quite dangerous. I just realized yet another reason it's beneficial for me not to shave my legs. You know how "they" say that wearing black is slimming? Well...my legs did look much skinnier before I stripped 'em.

Poor lil buggers, now everyone will know I have cankles.

Feeling Loved

I love, love days like today.

This morning I take Jaylee to the park. At the beginning of the summer, we'd go for coffee (no, I don't give her coffee) and then to the park. The first few times she'd cry as we left and I'd explain to her little self that she needs to thank mama and be glad for the time she got to spend with the toys. Pretty sure she heard blah blah blah toys, blah blah.

The park is small and full of orange clad inmates. Seriously. They clean the park in the morning. And honestly, I go in the morning because I feel safer than later in the day when more people are out. We say hi to our inmate friends and Jaylee plays on the toys.

This morning was no different. Coffee. Inmates. Toys. We haven't been to the park in a couple of weeks and I was just sure we'd have drama as we left.

Me: Okay, Jaylee, it's time to go home.

Jaylee: getting off the toy Thank you, Mama for toys. Byyyye tow-weeees!

And off we go. No drama. Just a sweet lil girl who warmed my heart and made me realize maybe, just maybe she'll turn out okay.

Then, I come home. Check my email and the blogs I love. And come upon Melissa's post for the day. Made me one happy Sarah, I tell you what. Melissa designs and creates cards and then sells them. One card is about me. And I feel honored beyond honored that "You...are a kick in the pants" is about me. Go check her blog out and go check her Etsy as well.

Have a great day!

How many pairs of BGP's can one girl own?

I promise you the next nine months (or as Halle Berry believes, 10 months) will not be me complaining about my pregnancy.

I promise.

But today I'm going to ask for your prayers. While I absolutely loved being pregnant with Jaylee, I was sick. Sick beyond any sickness, ever. I worked at Pier 1 for the first few months of my pregnancy and I'd just lay in the boys' bathroom for most of the day. It wasn't fun. And I wondered what the heck I was getting myself into. After three and a half months, the life inside me stopped trying to take mine and I actually began enjoying being pregnant.

I've felt pretty good so far. You know, the whole three weeks I've been pregnant. :) But this morning...not so much. I started to have a panic attack about it because I remember three years ago and how I wanted to just die. So, I ate some toast, and asked the Lord to just help me endure the sickness if I had to be sick but that I'd really enjoy if He'd just make it go away altogether. :)

It's been over an hour and I'm feeling much better. He is so good to me.

Anyway, I'm just asking that you pray that I'm not sick this go-around and that if I am, that I'll put on my BGP's and deal with it.

To Chad and Treena

Congratulations, you guys! Love ya!

Details details

Camping trip: It all boils down to the fact that I survived it. There was nothing forgotten, whew. There were no bugs, praise the Lord. And amazingly, it never rained. We were up at Mt. Rainier, you'd think I would have taken pictures. You'd think. But I just realized that I take for granted the fact that I only live 2 hours away from this magnificent creation that I didn't even consider taking pictures of it.

Let me check photobucket...maybe they have some photos. I could step outside and probably snap a picture, but there may be some trees in the way. Photobucket is so much easier. Oh forget it, I'll find one later....

The couples who came were great. It was alot of fun to meet new people, even though that is my least favorite thing to do. Seriously, I'd rather pretend we know each other than have to shake hands and be introduced. Yeah, I know...I have issues.

We had great food, awesome fellowship and I even endured a hike. Maybe it was only 2.2 miles, but still! I hiked!!

Out of 12 girls that attended, five are pregnant. Three of them named Sarah, one of them being....yours truly. Uh huh, I am. Wow. Kinda crazy to say it, er...write it out loud. But I am and we are thrilled!!! My wonderful husband wanted me to keep it a secret until November!!! Yeahhh, right! Could hardly talk to my SIL for the week after I found out because he didn't want me telling her and I couldn't talk to her and not tell her, so I hardly called or emailed in that time. (Did you notice?!)

So, after the camping trip, Josh decides to head to his sister's house. Seriously, three hours south, so we can tell her in person. He says he just wanted to do something crazy but I think he knew that I'd want to tell her in person and he was right.

We get there, we chat for a bit and she asks, "do you have something to tell me?" Yeah, she already knew. I guess we have been friends for almost 11 years, I'm probably not too hard to read anymore. They're excited for us and it was fun to go down and hang out, even if it was just real quick.

My younger sister is due to have a baby any day and my mom has been bugging me that she doesn't want six grandchildren, she wants seven. So, I was able to tell her that she'll now have seven. Pretty thrilled that lady was. Three daughters and seven grandkids in three years. She loves it.

Anyway, there's my super long post of America. No bears, just lots of pregnant girls. It was a good time and we'll probably go next year...baby and all.

Sigh...

I'm home!!! I'm home!!! We got home from the ever so lovely camping trip and decided at around 9 pm on Sunday night to drive to my SIL's for some random fun. This wouldn't be such a big deal but she lives 3 hours south of us. So, I ran back in the house, repacked our bags and off we went!

We had a blast, even though the trip was extremely short.

I'm getting reading for Amber to come over, so I must go now. I'll fill ya in on all the juicy details of my weekend later, I know you're just dying to know.

Happy Tuesday!!!

Sometimes ya just gotta suck it up

I don't like to camp. Not.at.all. I don't see it as a vacation. I don't like to be dirty and sticky. I don't like bugs. I don't like to go on "fun, little trail hike" things.

I'm just not a fan of the whole camping thing.

But I'm going this weekend. Yee.Haw.

We're going with the Couples Group from church. We went last year and it was toootally outta my comfort zone (Mindy) because we didn't know many of the couples yet. But it was fun and we made friends, which surprised me because I was myself the ENTIRE weekend.

I'm sure it's going to rain the whole weekend and bugs will raid our food and tent. Thinking there will be bears, too. Hoping no one notices the fact that I haven't shaved my legs in about a month, personally, just find it too time consuming. I also think I'll end up forgetting something extemely important and not knowing until it's too late. Hopefully it's not the tent.

Since I'm going to have a fantabulous weekend, I sure hope you do as well!!!

She's Funny.

I've told Amber a few times she should start her own blog. She's hilarious. She has kids, a husband, a dog and other issues. Perfect blogging material.

But she would say, "noooo."

Then, last night, she sends me a message that she's started one but she might delete it.

Me: I'm looking forward to reading your blog.

Her: Well, don't hold your breath.

Me: Holding my breath.

Her: Well, then say hi to your dad for me.

Seriously, laughed so hard. Love this girl.

Today is the day. The day that I put on my BGP's (Big Girl Panties) and realize I haven't been a size 2 for almost 3 years and I'm likely not to be, again. But I held onto that dream these last 3 years and held onto the clothes as well. They're boxed into two tubs, labeled "Skinny Clothes" and today is the first time in a long time I've allowed myself to look at them.

Clothes bring back so many memories. The outfit I wore to the Gary Allan concert, my first size small, GAP, cableknit sweater, in PINK, that I oh so loved. The $118 GAP skirt I bought in Kentucky for $19.99! (Remember Mindy!?) So many clothes, so much money spent on clothes.

While I was going through them, Josh was here for lunch, he could tell I was sad. He asked, "if you were that size again, how many of those shirts would you actually wear?"

And he's right. I've changed alot since I was able to wear them, many of the shirts are pretty snug, or if I leaned over, would show my back...and well, I'm just not into that. One shirt actually says, "Angels on the road to ruin little lost girls." I didn't know it when I bought it, just loved that it was part tank top, part t-shirt, if that makes any sense. The lettering blends in so much I didn't even know what it said. A little embarrassed by it now.

So, I'm in the process of getting everything washed. I signed up to sell on eBay. Once everything is washed and dried, I'll be putting "lots" together of shirts, skirts and pants.

Yes, I'm sad. But I realized I'm hoarding. I can't take those clothes with me when I die. I obviously can't wear them right now. So, someone ought to be able to.

Pretty ridiculous that it's taken me so long to do this, but I'm doing it and that makes me proud of me.

I love Crayons!

You Are a Blue Crayon

Your world is colored in calm, understated, deep colors. You are a loyal person, and the truest friend anyone could hope to find. On the inside, you tend to be emotional and even a bit moody. However, you know that people depend on you. So you put on a strong front. Your color wheel opposite is orange. Orange people may be opinionated, but you feel they lack the depth to truly understand what they're saying.

What Color Crayon Are You?

I really think it fits me, even if I hate to admit being moody! :) If the shoe fits...right?

Sombreros and Kenny Chesney make for a Great Birthday

Amber's special day is over but the memories...oh they were good. I made a crown for Ms. Amber and she wore it proudly.
We went for Mexican food. Our server wasn't too keen on us and we still don't know why. But she brought the crew out to sing to Amber, sombrero and all!
We didn't understand anything they sang but for the rest of the day, Amber referred to herself as "Panchita." Later in the evening we went to Amber's parents for dinner and cake. Food was great (so was the company) and the gifts were wonderful...can't go wrong with some Kenny Chesney CD's! Think I may have grabbed her rear to get her to smile. Hey, it worked, didn't it?! Hope you had a great day, Amber, it was fun being a part of it.

They say it's Your Birthday!!!

dun uh, dun uh!

Happy Birthday to the greatest girl ever.

My "anonymous" friend, Amber.

Amber, who joined the cancer club with Melissa and me.

Amber, who couldn't throw the cone out of the 'possum fast enough, resulting in us getting caught.

Amber, who drove 400 miles with me to see the 20 year anniversary of Dirty Dancing on The Big Screen.

Amber, who painted my toenails while I lay in a hopsital bed with an IV hooked to me and a 6" gash in my tummy.

Amber, who has made me PJAL, one too many times.

The Amber whose nose is 1/2 a rolo larger than mine, had to point that out. And Amber, who loves Grey's, so much we decide to marry the characters. Seriously, without this girl, not sure what I'd do. She gets me...and still likes me. She's also the girl who stole the last two drops of wine that were in my glass. She's the girl who makes it hard to cook for because she doesn't like onions and mushrooms and I don't know how to cook a meal without those two things. Serving her cereal next time. Today, we're going to lunch. Just us. No children. Which is really exciting because we always, I repeat, always have children. (Not sure whose children they are, but they follow us) I have a present for her. Not quite as cool as the "I carried a watermelon" t-shirt she gave me for mine but it's still a fun gift. So, "Ammer" here's to you and YOUR big day! Happy Birthday, I love ya!

The Heart and Hurt of a Child

Since I haven't blogged enough today for a months worth of posts, here's another!

This weekend I was around a young mother I've known for quite a while. Neither of her children were "planned" so to speak and she had them both at a pretty young age. They are fairly willful children and if they were mine, I'm sure I'd have a bumper sticker that read, "my children drove me to drink." But that doesn't change the fact that they are still children. And children are needy.

I heard the most heartbreaking words come from this young mom's mouth to her older child, but in the same breath she's praising another child that is not her own. Her young child, not quite three, looked defeated. I'm not going to defend what the child was doing. It was wrong. However, I'm learning that when your child does wrong, deal with it in private. Humiliating your child will not make you a better parent in the eyes of your friends or family. And it will not cause your child to behave any better or trust you-at all.

I want my little girl to know that I believe she's number one. I may love my nieces and my nephews and my friends' children, but she will always be number one to me. I want her to be secure in my love for her. I never want my words to crush her and make her cry out to another mom to take her home with her.

This post most likely makes no sense. I can't find the words to say what I'm wanting to express. My heart was just breaking for this small child. And I wanted to share this story in case there is a parent out there who shows favor to another child besides his/her own and may not have realized it. It's so easy to become blind to our own habits that we can often times forget who those habits hurt the most.

Others.

If you've read these already, #52-66 are new

love cats but have a dog.

2. My favorite color (at the moment) is red.

3. I chew my fingernails.

4. I don't like it when people chew with their mouths open.

5. I love to laugh and make others laugh, too.

6. I'm afraid of heights.

7. I'd rather hold a snake than a spider.

8. If my house were on fire and I could only grab 3 personal items (assuming husband and child are safely outta the house) they would be:
a. my scrapbooks
b. my KitchenAid mixer-it's red!! My best anniversary gift yet!
c. Jaylee's baby keepsakes

9. I love to have my hair played with.

10. My first boyfriend's name was Rusty. I was in 6th grade, he was in 5th grade.

11. I have two sisters.

12. Both younger than me.

13. But I'm the shortest.

14. I love chocolate.

15. I love to cook.

16. I've had 1 speeding ticket and 3 seat belt tickets.

17. The last seat belt ticket should have been a speeding ticket, I was racing the cop. He let me off easy.

18. My middle name is Lee. Yes, like the baked goods. Sarah Lee. But I have an 'H' that makes me cooler.

19. I don't like to be a passenger in a car unless it's my husband or father-in-law driving.

20. If it didn't snow or rain ever, I'd just own 37 million pairs of flip flops. Love those.

21. My dad drown in a boating accident when I was 19.

22. I now have an irrational fear of the water.

23. I'm trying to get over it.

24. I love receiving gifts, but prefer to have them in a box and wrapped. No gift bags, makes the opening go too fast.

25. I'm 26.5 years old.

26. I have a My Space account. It's been fun to connect with friends from High School that I haven't talked to in 9 years.

27. I'm still close to 3 of the 4 girls I had as bridesmaids in my wedding.

28. My husband is my best friend.

29. I knew I was going to marry him before I even knew his name. I'm serious. I just knew.

30. I'm 20 lbs overweight.

31. I can't believe I just admitted that.

32. I want to homeschool my daughter.

33. I'd rather clean 100 toilets than do dishes.

34. I watch Grey's Anatomy.

35. I wish I could stop but I'm terribly addicted! :)

36. I no longer have a cell phone.

37. I just started clipping coupons from the Sunday paper, that is so fun!

38. My favorite food is Mexican.

39. I love Sangrias.

40. After 22 years my sister and I are friends.

41. I threatened to run away when I was 4.

42. My mom offered to help me pack.

43. I didn't get far.

44. I love to scrapbook. I use Close to My Heart products.

45. I love to mow the lawn.

46. We used to own our own lawnmowing business.

47. I sell Pampered Chef.

48. I'd rather have McDonald's than Burger King.

49. I don't like to make New Years Resolutions.

50. But I'm going to this year.

51. I'm done tidbittin'....for now!

52. I drove 400 miles round trip to see Dirty Dancing on the big screen. It was the 20 year anniversary. I had the time of my life.

53. 4 of the previous 51 tidbits have changed.

54. I was caught driving by the house of a kid from school, while a certain friend of mine (Amber) threw a road construction cone in his yard...3 weeks ago.

55. I PJAL'd (peed just a lil) when that happened.

56. I love to go bowling.

57. I'm terrible at it.

58. My favorite author is Karen Kingsbury.

59. I don't think I've done any of the things on my list of New Years Resolutions.

60. I can't bake a pie. I don't make really yummy chocolate chip cookies, like Treena, but let me tell ya, I make a mean bowl of cereal.

61. Taco Salad is my favorite thing to have for dinner.

62. I don't eat meat anymore. Well, not very often anyway.

63. I have curly hair.

64. That I got from my dad.

65. My shoe size is 6.5

66. I've posted on my blog 3 times already today. Quite obvious that I have a clean house and sleeping child.

Alright...there's a few more just-so-super-exciting-you-just-had-to-know stuff about me!

For those of you that are Grey's freaks like myself. Here's a sneak peak of what's to come.

One more month. Just one. And life will begin again! Woo Hoo!

Something not to do in the Car

You know how when you're at church, during worship and your heart just fills with praise and you close your eyes to thank the Lord for all that He is?

Well, this morning, I'm driving to get coffee (so much for cutting back) and I'm listening to some song, can't even remember it now and I close my eyes...

...and then I realize, whoa! I'm driving, can't be doin' that while I'm driving! Just have to have a heart of praise with my eyes open this time.

@#$%

See, there was a reason I didn't want to tell you! Right after I get finished publishing my last post I went out to my MIL's school to help with her classroom, she offers to buy lunch....

and that's right. I did it. I fell off 'er.



And by the picture you'd think it was a graceful fall. That I didn't mean to, it just sorta happened while I was looking at the pretty flowers. But no, I didn't fall off my wagon. I jumped ship! She ordered burgers from this wonderful little, greasy stand, that quite honestly I'm not sure how it's still running, legally. And that burger, mmmmm. But after a couple of bites into it, I could feel the cow trying to kill me. So, I ripped off the bun...pulled him out...

and fed him to the kid.

Anyway, just felt completely guilty and had to confess.

Thanks for letting me play Catholic.

I'm Just Gonna Say It

I wasn't going to, in fear that I'd fall off the wagon of sorts and then be embarrassed. But, two weeks have passed, and I've yet to fall off my wagon.

This could be a case of TMI, but that's okay, we're all friends here. And who, among friends, has never talked about their digestive system, huh?

My digestive system: not so great. And now that my large intestine is two feet shorter than normal, I've decided to help it out.

By cutting out meat.

That's right ladies and jellybeans, I've gone vegetarian. This is no easy feat for someone who loves her red meat. I'm not one of those people who loves chicken and fish, they aren't my faves, not at all. Nope, I want a big fatty, still moo-ing chunk-o-steak. So, to give up my red meat is pretty tough.

When I first decided to "try" this out, and I say try like "try" because I never want to commit to anything because I usually fail miserably, Josh's first words...

"What are you going to eat when we go to McDonalds?"

Sad that we eat there so much that he's concerned I'll never eat again.

But I quickly figured out what I could eat. Get a McChicken, take the chicken part of the McChicken off and put in some french fries. So, I still have that crunch, just no meat. And as I'm writing this, I realize how "healthy" I'm trying to be while I eat at McDonalds. Pffft. Anyway...

So, it's been over two weeks and I've not eaten meat. Yeah, me. And I must say, I do feel better.

I'm not imposing this on my husband and child. I still cook it for them. The only time I'm tempted is when I cook bacon. That's the toughy. I've made a couple vegetarian meals and basically they just seem like side dishes. And I've learned I do not like eggplant. Bluuuhhhck! Not a fan. I've learned I like the Morning Star brand of veggie burgers over Boca. And I've learned eating lots of beans and vegetables causes, uh, gas. :)

For the most part it's not been too bad. My goal was to try this out for a month and see how it goes. 2 weeks down, 2 weeks to go!

I'll keep ya updated, 'cause I'm sure you really wanna know.

White Trash Version

Oh, the husband.

Sunday was my MIL's birthday. I made her cake. Since my name is Sarah Lee, it just wouldn't have been right for me not to make her cake.

I drove it over there on my own, seeing as how the husband took the child on a bike ride and was going to meet me over at the in-laws. I ask how I'm s'posed to get the cake over there without it falling all over the place.

He rigs something up. Leaves on his bike.

The first turn I make...

you guessed 'er, cake fell.

Praise the Lord it didn't fall completely off the pedestal plate I had it on. I pull over, grumbling that the husband would go for a bike ride at such an inopportune time. I kinda, sorta, but not very well fixed the cake.

We sing happy birthday. Husband is dishing ice cream and asks, in front of everyone mind you...

"Did you use a Sara Lee brand cake mix?"

"Nope, I used Duncan Hines. Had I used Sara Lee it would have been about 37 bucks for the box instead of 2."

"Oh, Sara Lee's an expensive brand?"

everyone in the room, in unison, "yes!"

"Well, then I'm glad I married the white trash version."

With everything that is on my "to do" list today, I'm sorta wishing I was back in the fifth wheel.

Would make cleaning go so much faster, seeing as how there was waaay less space.

This morning, as I looked at myself in the mirror (scary...scary sight first thing) I saw some greasy hair and realized, in the midst of all my self inflicted chaos the last couple of days, yeah...I've forgotten to shower. Uh huh, it's been three days since I last showered.

How gross am I!?

You don't have to answer, I already know.

A Bad Day gets Worse but Funny

Ready or not, here I rant.

Today is one of those days where I question my decision to be a stay at home mom.

I'm posting this, knowing full well it's possible I'll be looked down upon for what I say but it's also possible someone will hear and understand, have been there and know what to say.

She's just been making me crazy. I don't know what it is. Most likely it's me and my lack of patience. I am beyond selfish when it comes to time for me. I want it. I don't get enough of it. I get more "me time" than many SAHMs, but still I want more. Yet I can't even imagine time without her. I don't like being without her. But there are days, like this one, where I think I'm gonna go nuts!

We met Josh for lunch today and he commented how she was being overly talkative and whiny and didn't know how I do it all day. I was wondering too. Days like today push me to the edge.

The post title would make one think there's a funny part to the story. Oh there is...

So, after we have lunch at "McDunna" I decide to continue being out and about since we're always at home. We go to Penney's and they're having a shoe sale. Totally scored but that's beside the point...I have 4 pair of shoes, I set Jaylee in a chair, tell her to be still and stand in line. There are sunglasses for half off. The ones I own are real cheapies that I don't really care for, so I justify getting new ones. I find a pair I like and add it to my pile.

She rings me up, comments on how good Jaylee is, I say "thanks" but I'm thinking "want her?"

We leave. I pull out my new sunglasses, pull off the tags and stick 'em on.

We start to drive away and this man next to me is staring at me like I'm a weirdo. Which I am, but how does he know?! Yeah, so right now, about 2 minutes before I started typing this post I realize why.

On top of my head are my old sunglasses.

Uh huh, I was wearing both pair.

At the same time.

Like a moron.

It made me feel like an idiot but it was also funny. I had to laugh. Here I'd been taking myself and all my daily "trials" so seriously today and then I look like a goober in public.

"My name is Sarah, and I'm a moron."

When I have nothing to blog about, you get a video

This just about made me PJAL (pee just a lil)

Kinda panicked a lil bit...

Yesterday I came out of Lurkerdom, remember, it's an actual place...and in doing so, the girl whose post I commented on, ended up heading on over to my lil place and reading my blog! She even left a comment.

And then I panicked. Jeana...the girl I think is hil.air.ious, left a comment on my blog. I panicked because she is sooo funny and I realized I sooo am not. And once again I felt inferior and so totally almost deleted this lil haven of mine in fear she may return and wonder why the heck I even have a blog in the first place.

Fear not (cause I know y'all were worried)...I didn't delete me. Obviously. I'm trying to just be happy with how I blog and what I blog about, and be thankful for girls, like Jeana, who have a blog where we can go if we feel the need to pee our pants.

I'm tellin' ya, that youngest son of hers, kills me everytime.

So, Jeana, thank you for visiting me in my lil neck of the woods. You're welcome anytime. Just know that I get a lil tongue tied and sweaty and possibly a little light headed when you're here. But you're always welcome, nonetheless!

I'm feeling a lil...

sheepish...if you will.

So, I posted earlier that it costs me over 10 grand for coffee a year. Seriously, what was I smoking? Yeah, my math, it's not so good. The actual amount, should have read, $1170. Maybe I should have gone to college.

Then I wouldn't be so baaaa-d at math.

This my friends...

...is what it looks like in my laundry basket. Emptiness. It's a beautiful thing. It's all F'APA (folded and put away) too! I am one happy camper. I was inspired here and here to do something. And while I didn't make a jillion meals or make homemade jam, I did:

-Get up at 6 am to make breakfast for Josh and Jaylee
-emptied dishwasher and reloaded with breakfast dishes
-tidied living room
-washed and folded the last 3 loads of laundry
-cleaned Jaylee's room, which consisted of going thru toys and clothes she no longer plays with or wears (if anyone is in need of toys, let me know, I'll send 'em your way)
-made lunch
-tidied bathroom
-let child live another day

Okay, so the last one I have to do, everyday...and today, since she's quite cute, it wasn't hard to do. :)

Good luck with your chores today, whatever they may be...and remember, some is better than none!

I need it to Live...

*edited because I put in the wrong amount for what it costs me per year to be human, the original post said $10,700. Yeah, I'm a dork
...okay, maybe not to live, but I need it to be a nice, functional, happy human being. I will be the first to admit, I'm an addict. I don't try to hide the fact. Sometimes I try to hide how much it costs to be an addict of this kind, but there's no hiding that either. It's a spendy lil addiction.

Coffee. Not coffee outta-the-coffee-pot coffee.

Frilly, foofy, spend-way-too-much coffee. From a stand.

A place where these two girls know my name.


I get a really happy feeling when I show up and they say, "Just yours or his too?" They know what I want, what I really really want. Today, I said, "Just mine." And they go to work. Gracie, the girl in yellow, trained me when I worked here 4 years ago. Being a Barista was an awesome job. Hard work. But fun work. In the morning, sometimes you're the first person your customer sees, so it's important to greet them with a smile and "good morning". There were definitely days when I wanted to spit in some drinks but I can honestly say I never did it. I loved my "regulars" and still see some of them around town and we'll chat about their kids, grandkids and pets. Sometimes when we pull up to the stand, there will be a rig in front of us that I recognize, and I'll tell Josh, "hot, skinny, 12 oz. mocha." And he just smiles. Today, while waiting for my coffee I was reminiscing my Daily Buzz days and it was fun. I had such good times there.
Then Patty, the owner, says, "here ya go." She knows I like two skinny straws, not one fat one. And I love that she knows this. Love even more, that she plays along with my silly quirk and gives them to me. I hand her my card, that is completely punched out thus making this drink free. She tells me to "have a good one" and I'm on my way. Now, I'll be nice, functional and happy. It really doesn't take much for that to be. Just $3.25 a day. $97.50 a month. $1,170 a year. Oh my heck! Breaking that down is really ugly. Really. Ugly. So, I'm going to enjoy this coffee, lots because she may be my last.
Okay, admittedly, this probably won't be my last. But I'm vowing to cut back a lil.

"Peace" Offering

Had an "issue" with husband this morning. Instead of by his name I call him husband when he's been naughty. And this morning he was just that.

Let me remind you, I am not, I repeat...am not a morning person. And at 6 am he's asking me where his belt is. Pffft. So, I pull out the trick my mother used on me.

"Well, when I wore it last...."

Yeah, that didn't go over so hot. 45 minutes later as he's about to leave, "find my belt yet?"

BUGGER!

So, I go find his belt. He leaves for work and my day is off to a wonderful start. Sense the sarcasm please.

We rarely fight. Seriously. But when we do, it's always over petty stuff like this. I decide to make nice. I load Jaylee up in the suburban and head for coffee. I call him on my way.

Me: I'd like to make a peace offering.
Him: Oh yeah?
Me: Yeah, you want a coffee?
Him: Why, because you were naughty about finding my belt?
Me: This is about to become a pissed off-ering.
Him: *chuckles*

And that ended our "fight."

Random Post #2 for the Day

I love this girl. Snotty nose and all. Poor kid is cutting more teeth. I'm thankful that she doesn't get crabby or have a diaper rash when she's teething but she does get a nasty runny nose.


Her latest obsession these days is watching me put on deodorant in the morning. Yes, I use deodorant. And she insists on having me put it on her as well. I pretend to do a few swipes and she says, "there." And struts happily outta the bathroom.

Last night, I'm making dinner and she's running around like a wild child in the yard. Then, it gets quiet. And you know when a child is silent, they are doing something. Usually that something is not good. This time, it was funny. Josh comes in.

Him: "Have you seen your daughter?" He always refers to her as "mine" when she's done something retarded.
Me: "Uh, she's outside, playing." Knowing full well, it had been quiet and she probably has done something retarded.
Him: "Look at what she's doing." She comes trailing in, with a proud look on her face and sidewalk chalk in one hand and raising the other, saying, "look. look!" Uh huh, she was putting it on like deodorant.

It was a proud moment for me yesterday. She may not be able to count passed four but she has wonderful hygiene!

Now if only it would rub off on my husband...

Random Post #1 for the Day

So, I may not be a Domestic Goddess or an Olympic Gymnast but let me tell ya, there is something I'm good at.

I'm on the phone with my SIL and she tells me my niece, Breena, had taken a swig of soda, and let out a pretty good belch.

Treena: "good one."
Breena: "Yeah, but not as good as Sarah's."

I'm through striving to be a Domestic Goddess. I've got a belching title to live up to.

My Nose and other insecurities....

It's been brought to my attention that my nose is...uh...how do I put it so I'm not offended by my own words?

I'll just say it. She's big. My.nose.is.big.

And I'm okay with that. I think. When looking in the mirror, which honestly I try not to as much as possible, I don't notice it much. But when I see a picture of myself, my nose is definitely the first thing I see.

I come by it honest though. My mom's nose isn't tiny and my dad (RIP) didn't have a small nose either. (Might be now...but wasn't then.) So, I really didn't have much of a chance to get a cute little button nose.

When I was younger I remember comments about it. My mom will deny it up and down but I do remember things being said. It doesn't bug me though. I just hope Jaylee grows into hers, because if she doesn't...poor girl...she's going to live with being teased for the rest of her life as well.


Right now of course, she's cute. But Josh stills asks me, "when will we not be able to see up her nose anymore?" Cracks me up every time.

I used to have an issue with my toes, too. It wasn't until my Sophomore year of high school that I would wear sandals without socks. Yeah, I was cool like that, sandals and socks. In case you aren't aware...that's not in. Don't wear sandals with your socks!

Now, my feet don't bug me. They may bug other people, but I'm okay with them now. They could definitely be worse.

My weight is always a heavy subject. Hehehehe, I'm funny. I used to be thin. Then I got married. Ugh. Not the marriage, just the weight. Then I got thin again. And then got pregnant. Ugh again. And again, not the kid, just the weight. Gaining 56 lbs while I was pregnant was not pretty. My feet were sausages and a friend of mine told me I was almost unrecognizable. That was comforting. I've lost 36 of that 56. Only 20 to go!!! Seriously, baby weight is now toddler weight. Sigh... You'd think running after her all day would make me skinny but it hasn't worked. Think I'm gonna go have a Snickers bar now....

My insecurities are really something that I think little of. I've gotten a lot better about being comfortable with myself. I may have a big nose, but I'm fun. I may have not-so-cute feet, but I'm a good wife and mommy. I may have some extra pounds attached to my rear,(and thighs, and gut)...but I'm a good friend. I've decided that things I worry the most about end up being the least important.

So...here's to me and my first day not caring about them! Yee haw.

My "issue" is resolved

Really, the issue I had a few days ago wasn't even mine. But was something that affected me.

My amazing friend, Amber, informed me a couple of weeks ago that she had cancer.

Uh huh.

She didn't call to tell me. Nope. She sent me a text message. I wanted to shoot her. You don't text someone with that kind of information!!! Anyway, I forgive her for it. ;)

It really freaked me out. Just a few months ago I was calling her to tell her I had cancer and now here she was, doing the same. I just kept thinking, "this isn't right, she's totally kidding."

But she wasn't. She was completely serious. And of course, we did what we do best, we made light of it. Joked about it. You know how I roll, well she rolls just the same. But deep down I know she was a lil skerd. 'Cause I remember being skerd.

Today she went in for a procedure and came out cancer free!!! Best news I've heard in forever!


Amber...I love you and am so very thankful that we'll have many more opportunities to measure our noses with Rolos and nights to commit misdemeanors together.

The Greatest Weekend, Ever!

We're home. And I'm not even close to being unpacked. However, I thought I'd share some of the pictures I took while we were gone. I only took a few with my digital, the rest are with my still camera and I'll get those back in a couple of weeks. (Thank you, Treena for developing them!)

We had a ton of fun. A little run down of our weekend:

We left Thursday afternoon, got there around 8, I think and played a lil Yahtzee. (I won!) I was so excited to see my niece, Breena. Love this girl. Not that you can tell by the picture, but she's only 11! She's beautiful, inside and out. She can tease and be teased. She has a great sense of humor and is wise beyond her years. She may only be 11 but she's 4 inches taller than I am, yeah, I know...not hard to do.

Melissa came over on Friday morning and Treena, Breena, Melissa and I went and ran some errands while Josh took Jaylee and Sareena to the Lego store and on a bike ride. It was a ton of fun having Melissa with us for the day! Later in the day we all went to Target and my crazy husband pulled this stunt on the red ball. Seriously wish I had his stomach muscles! I'll blame the cancer surgery on the reason I don't have them, and not the lack of exercise! :)

Late Friday night, Josh's brother and his wife showed up with their little girl.

Saturday morning the 10 of us were up, ready and outta the house around 8:30 to head to the beach. On the way we had to stop at a coffee shop, I just can't function without it and I'm not the only one...Chad. :) We got to the beach, set up our camp and then took a bunch of family pictures. The kids and husbands just wanted to play but us girls had business in mind and wanted to get that done before everyone dispersed to do their own thing.

I'd found a pair of water shoes for Jaylee at a second-hand baby shop on Friday, so that was awesome. What wasn't awesome was the fact that she did not like to get them wet! It was pretty funny.


We played, we bbq'd, we played some more. After about 5 or 6 hours of beach time we went to dinner at The Pelican. So yummy!

Sunday we played heathens and went for a 15 mile bike ride instead of attending church. Yeah, I know...naughty us! We had such a fun time on the ride. Scenery was great, the company was awesome and the weather was perfect.

Pretty much couldn't have asked for a more fun time.

Looking forward to October when the entire family will be together at the beach in celebration of Joshua's grandpa's 85th birthday.

Hope your weekend was great as well!

Pacific City, here we come!

Last year we went with my SIL and her family to Pacific City and absolutely loved it! So, we're going back.

We'll leave this afternoon after Josh gets off work (he's taking the day off tomorrow!) and head on down to Portland. Saturday will be the big day of going to the beach.

So so so excited! I think it'll be good for us to get away for a few days, because like I said a couple of posts ago, Josh has been busy and I'm thinking he needs a little R&R.

Well, I'm off for the weekend. Hope you all have a good one!

Undeserving

My sweet husband has been extremely busy the last couple of weeks and during that time I've felt neglected. Unloved. Unwanted.

Poor me.

I'm so good at feeling sorry for myself.

Instead of being understanding and supportive about his busyness, I (at first) didn't say anything. We didn't talk much during those two weeks. We co-existed. He had food and clean clothes and I let him share our bed, even though I thought he should sleep on the couch.

And then I just burst!

I couldn't stand it anymore. I was tired of being quiet about it. I tried to play it off as if it were a joke to me that he hadn't spent much time with me but he knew. I could see it in his eyes. And then in the way he walked after that.

I had hurt his feelings. He's been busy trying to make improvements for our family. He wasn't selfishly busy.

Last night after Jaylee went to bed he gets a dishpan, fills it with really warm water and places it at my feet. He goes into the bathroom and comes out with an exfoliating mitt, soap and Neutrogena body oil.

He proceeds to wash my feet, exfoliate them, massage them and then when he was done he put the oil on my feet and massaged them some more.

Seriously.

It should have been me doing this for him. He's the one who has been busy. The one who has been working so hard for our small family. Yet, he humbled himself and washed my feet and in the process, I was humbled.

I was undeserving and yet he still loved me and washed my feet and then apologized for his lack of attention.

This man I have been blessed with is such an example to me of Christs' love for me. I will be forever thankful to Him for Joshua.

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

Today's To-Do List...

is ridiculously long. But, remember...some is better than none! :)

Here's my list:
Dishes-check
Sweep kitchen-check
Vacuum
Dust
Sweep bathroom
Start laundry-check and as I started laundry this morning, I pulled clothes from the washer that I did yesterday, you know how you'll sometimes find a quarter or a pony tail or a wad of paper? Well, this morning, I found a flip flop. Uh huh. I did. She's all nice and clean now! But seriously, how did that get in there?!
FAPA(fold and put away)Laundry
Bring books upstairs and load bookcase
Take Chicken out to thaw at 2 pm
Clean up mess outside Josh has been working outside a lot on our suburbans (yes, plural) taking one engine and replacing it with the other, so there are grease rags and tools and just a lot of junk that needs picked up.
Mow backyard
Clean out fridge I really love to clean out my fridge but after I do so, it usually leaves us with butter and milk and there's not much you can make for dinner with that! I may have to go grocery shopping too.

So, there's my list. I know it's do-able. I just don't really want to do all of it. We'll see what I can get done or what I choose to get done.

Have a good day!

Your Mom goes to College...but I don't.

I went to the mailbox yesterday (clothed) and found a fun box containing a Close to My Heart catalog and a couple of fun magazines! So fun! (Thank you, Treena)

But, also in my mailbox is this catalog that comes every few months and every time I see it...I'm sad.

It's a catalog filled with all the classes available at our community college. I've always wanted to go to college. Always.

I don't really know why since I don't really have a desire to have a career but I just love to learn. I love to have random information in my head.

It might also be that I love school supplies. Like Trapper Keepers and Pee Chees and pencils with really cool erasers on top and the lil grip thingy so you don't get a pencil bump. Sharpies and mechanical pencils. I love it all.

But really, that's not why I want to go to college. I can't say why I want to go, because I really don't know why. It's just always been something in my heart. But, it costs money (which we don't have) and time away from home (which I don't have) so I'm thinking I'm going to have settle living vicariously through Amber, who is going to college.

Even if I could go, I probably wouldn't. How silly does that sound?! I have fears. Fears like you wouldn't believe. A few of them:

Where's the front door?
Do I wear a backpack?
If I do wear a backpack, do I sling it over one shoulder or both?
Do we have assigned seats?
Do I have to ask to use the restroom?
Will I be called on and if I don't know the answer, everyone will chuckle?
What if I can't find my class?

The list could go on and on I tell you. It really could.

So, if I had a windfall of money, most likely I still wouldn't go to college. However, it's still I dream I have and maybe...just maybe, I'll go.

TGIF!

I'm so excited it's Friday. And that's silly. Because in the "Life of Sarah" basically everyday is Friday. It's not like I go to work or anything but I still get excited for Friday.

Usually I'm excited for Friday because I know SMT is the next day and Josh doesn't have to work but tomorrow he does. Which isn't terrible, four hours of overtime makes for a lovely paycheck and he only has to work til noon.

I think my love of Fridays started as a kid. We'd have nachos and share Pepsi and then when TGIF came on, we'd have popcorn and M&M's and watch DJ, Stephanie and Michelle manipulate Uncle Joey and Uncle Jesse.

Then, as I got older, Friday meant football or basketball games. Hanging out with my friends.

After I met Josh, Friday meant going to his parents' house and watching movies or playing cards.

I've just always loved Fridays. This one won't be anything glamorous but it's still Friday and I'm still thankful.

Events for the Day

There isn't much to blog about. I mean, there is, 'cause I have an issue I'm dealing with, just not one I can make public at the moment, but when I can...I assure you I will!

Anyway, since I can't vent about what I want to vent about, I'll give you the rundown of My Day.

For the last few weeks our mornings have started soooo early. Around 5:30 or so we get up and either make coffee or go get coffee. Josh heads off to work at 6:55, so as not to be late for his 7 o'clock start time. Jaylee and I meander down to the park and since we're there so early, the only people at the park are the inmates, dressed in orange, picking up garbage.

I don't know them by name but we're used to each other by now. Makes me laugh when they find a quarter, they start yelling. Thinking I might just start bringing pennies to throw and watch their faces light up.

After the park we drive aimlessly through town because, you know, gas is cheap and driving around is sooo much fun.

She naps and I clean house, email, read a book, or like this morning...I tried to pull the weeds that are lining my driveway. Impossible. They like it there and they don't want to leave.

And since they are so tall, they actually provide some privacy and I'm considering letting them stay.

Since it's Thursday, I'll go mow the lawn of a lady named Linda who lives down the holler and then I'll mow my in-laws lawn as well. I don't know what to make for dinner. I'm sure I'll be able to whip something up. Just not sure it'll be edible.

Eh, beggars can't be choosers.

Yup, that's the extent of excitement for my Thursday. Hope yours is just as grand!