Giving Thanks--Day 12

I heart nap time!

It's the best ever!

when k gets a good nap, I can be very productive.

Cleaning, blogging, sewing, cooking, or baking.

you name it. I've done it...

including nap also!

It's the best 3-4 hours of my day (for the most part)

It's mommy-time. Or mommy & daddy-time (when he's home for lunch)

I can recharge from this BIG ol ball o energy I call miss k

Sometimes, she will sit in her room and just read every book she has on her bookshelf and make a big mess before falling asleep.

Sometimes, you can hear her howling a bunch before she sleeps.

Sometimes, I wonder if she even sleeps....is she just being really quiet? who knows.

sometimes, it's just quiet time. and that's ok.

She has that time to herself, to do what she wants and she learns how to do things without mommy or daddy.

A nap is a BIG plus though....if not, we will have one whiny, cranky girl on our hands

NO FUN!

When she is awake we are busy busy busy again with kiddo stuff.

we love it when she wakes in a happy mood too! awesome!

Giving Thanks--Day 11

 Today---I am thankful for the wonderful men and women who serve(d) this country.This includes a long list of just my family members (I will forget someone-so I won't list you all, sorry!)But there are a few special ones that are close to my heart.I am especially grateful for those handicap ones! LOL!! (please, if you don't know me, or them, don't be offended! I LOVE them dearly {more than others, actually}...and we all kid around in this family, so don't take it the wrong way!)They make it so I can park closer in busy areas ;) that's awesome for a big preggo like myself!But really though, thank you for all you have done and all you continue to do.You are our own true superheros and we all look up to and respect you.You don't know the impact you have had on my life and the lives of those who surround you!To those deployed: be safe, we pray for you always!<3

Giving Thanks--Day 10

  Today (yesterday) I am thankful for Hotels!They are such a luxury---ok there are some baddd ones but, I am in some pretty nice ones.As I type this--my bed is being made and the trash taken out! yep!they have free wi-fi and tons of other legit stuffthe breakfast I had this morning-I am still full from it! Let me tell you! yumm-o!I love it!!I am thankful for my parents for providing this place to stay (and the ticket to get down here) so they can see us and we can all spend time together as a family.because that's what life is all about--family! I do miss my hubby terribly though!more than you know...he had to stay back, he has school and other responsibilities (he has to teach our class when I am gone! lol)plus he gets to go fishing and play black ops--you know MAN stuffI won't let him play modern warfare 3 yet....I want to play too! lol. What are you thankful for??<3 

Giving Thanks--Day 9

Today I am thankful for a vehicle and our safety

we just drove about 4 hours today so we could get to the closest major airport....fuuun!

(sense the sarcasm?)

Yeah. It's a long drive.

But we make it safely due to a great vehicle, good driving, and good company always helps :)

k slept for over 2 hours! super awesome! 

 So I might not be quite up to date on the blogging this next week.I will try to, from my {sorta}smart phone but I might be busy!We are leaving the temps that are a high in the 30s to a high in the 70s! HOOray!!LOVE LOVE LOVEplus going to see awesome family!So much to be thankful for! <3

Scarf Storage

Have you seen this on Pintrest???

                                                                        Source: apartmenttherapy.com via Hannah on Pinterest

I was in LOVE!! 

 BUT....where do I put it? My closet doesn't look like that, I don't have a small space like that....anywhere. well, none that I could use for this.

Then, as I was closing my door last night.....I saw it!!

this spot behind our bedroom door! it just has a picture and some other things just thrown there!

i was almost giddy with excitement!

I get to get rid/clean up this pile of scarves that I had so neatly stored when I didn't need them!

{don't judge}

so today, I made the hubby stop by walmart on the way home from class and pick up 4 of these bad boys! He said it was like $19...or about $3 each....uhhhh...are you sure?? yeah, something like that. lol. 

now it looks like this!!
I even put k's scarves on there too!
notice our 3 gryffindor scarves from halloween!
I <3 it!!
it's so fab!!
I can even fit more if I need to! YAY!
Here is another picture....my before and after!! :)

For my hubby

                                                                  Source: leloveimage.blogspot.com via Cici on Pinterest

Giving Thanks--Day 8

Today...it's cold and cloudy and bleh looking.

But I am thankful!

thankful we have another day!

I am also thankful for miss k being fully potty trained....and it taking like only a day or so to complete.

HOOORAY!!!!

How did we do it??

We had originally tried to go straight to panties with k many times. not too much fun. she didn't make it. she had a couple pee accidents and there was a poop incident on the floor (tmi? oh well!)

so we waited. tried to buy more panties, k took them out of the cart, many times and threw them on the floor. lol. she literally thought they were the root of ALL evil! 

silly girl!

So we kept getting potty books from the library and reading to her about it, talking about it, encouraging it. we knew when she was ready it would take no time at all.

tried the pull-ups, nope, they're just prettier diapers!

My good friend Krystal suggested the singing potty...k was scared of it at first, lol! but she did get used to it, eventually...

We saw on another blog (i forget which one....sorry!)  they switched out their little boys' size 5 diapers for size 1 (maybe even a newborn size!)

That didn't fit him! So he had gown to be such a big boy that he could only wear undies....

hmmmmmm..... i thought we could do this!

seemed like such an awesome idea!

But we didn't get a chance to do that either!

We ran out of diapers on a sunday night, after she was already put into her pjs. 

So the next morning....there wasn't any diapers for miss k!

too bad!

She had no choice! Panties it was!!

and she was completely ok with it!! yess!!

We have to cart the potty around with us where ever we go....it's literally in every room. 

I think of it as a step by step process. First she learns to just go on the potty, and it's close by so she can make it...reducing accidents.

Once she gets used to that and trains herself to hold it longer...then we keep the potty in the bathroom and she can go always in there....then we will move/upgrade to the big potty. 

it makes sense in my mind. 

i think it does for k too.

we used to have so many issues with her refusing to poop and then getting yeast infections and then pain and more refusing to poop, making it all worse.

YUCK, i know!

But now! No more problems! yayy! she goes on the potty. 

it's quite funny to see her do her little potty dance. 

YAY! so like 4-5 more months of no diapers..then the next one comes! 

have a good day everyone!

<3

Giving Thanks--Day 7

Today, I am thankful for modern medicine!
seriously....without it, I would be dead.
I'm pretty sure of it.

I have asthma, had it since I was like 2 years old and I've been taken in more than once, more than 10 times to get nebulizer treatments, and i've been hospitalized with pneumonia once.
not fun.
it has gotten better over the years, sometimes it's worse where I live (allergies/mold in houses)
sometimes it's worse due to lots of exercise or...also my awesomeness of being allergic to cats--and rabbits. (seriously)
but my inhaler can make it all better!! sometimes a benadryl (sp?) also.

being preggo makes it worse, I use my inhaler about 1 maybe 2 x's a day and research has suggested that the albeuterol use in pregnancy can kind of stop labor, or make it so you don't contract.
interesting!!!
considering k was about 12 days late and I was dilated to 3 cm the last 3 weeks! geez!
makes so much more sense now!
But, the benefits outweigh the risks. I will continue to use my meds, or you know, there might be a lack of oxygen to the baby and that's not good!

What are you thankful for today??
<3

Giving Thanks--Day 6

 Today we had a great lesson on Gratitute today in relief societyfollowed by time to express one thing that you are thankful for, we went around the room, one at a time and couldn't use the same answer again! Awesome!I love getting to know people better through a simple question. Today, since I was 3rd to last to go, it required more thought and a little bit more innnovation.all the "good ones" were taken--including pintrest! lol!So my choice..... 

cute little necklace you can buy here

 yep, I am thankful for adoption...this is a two parter...hopefully I can explain it better here than I did earlier (the tears didn't help either) 1. I am thankful for those who have the courage to give their children such a gift that is adoption. It takes soo much and to be willing to give this blessing can be the best thing ever for the deserving children.  2. I am thankful for the families, couples, or individuals who participate in the adoption of a child. My husband is adopted and I am SO grateful for his family and their love that they have shown by adopting him as a baby while in the Philipines. Without that act, one can only wonder what could have happened in his life...(would he have been a member of the church, gone on a mission or met and married me?) Such a simple act caused such an impact on one person--and it extends to his brothers and sisters, mother and father. Our lives are forever changed by every child, no matter how they come into our lives. We hope to complete more than one adoption in our family, the first will be harder and will take more time than I would like, but we pray everyday that it can happen. <3

Giving Thanks--Day 5

sorry this one is later than usual, we have been quite busy today!

Today I am thankful for a child who loves the snow!!

which is great, considering we will see LOTS of snow here where we live

she loves to put on her gloves and go out and play!

she wants to make a snowman...but we need a little more for that

and maybe daddy can help her with it

(i, honestly, don't like the cold!)

today, it was 25 degrees, but felt like 9 degrees (per my phone)

all these pics are from the phone, btw...so sorry if they are crappy :P

we had fun at our little park--that slide was FAST! the layer of ice helps!

I went down a few times and it was probably quite funny watching this mama belly get up from a foot in from of the slide!

We also made her first snow angels!

Hooray!

She liked that part!

Her work!

We also have lots of video!! yayyyy!!

we were out there for an hour and she finally left on her own! hooray!

notice that her gloves have mini snowballs gathered on them?

yeah...she ate those on the walk home. great!

at least they weren't yellow or brown! just saying!

<3

baby loveys

So I am finally posting about these baby loveys that I made, quite a while ago

i was lazy busy.... :)

i used the tutorial over at 2 little Hooligans

It has step by step instructions with lots of pictures! very nice!

my only con about it:

there is no end size for the strips after you ruffle them, so you never know if you have ruffled too much or too little....the ruffle does loosen with sewing and then you have to trim.....and there isn't quite a measurement of your ruffled area :/

so i guessed. and mine ended up being pretty big, i think.

#1 i didn't realize how big a lovey should be so when i put them together....i thought it was too small (my mind is thinking baby blanket)

#2 i added more strips to make them bigger

they still look cute though!

I back two of them with light pink minky-the one with the polka-dot pattern (found a bit from a remnant dept in hobby lobby for cheap!!)

I also found the rolled-rose minky stuff too (in pic above) in the same spot (that junk is MESSY!!)

They are nice and soft though!

these are the other two blankets

you can see with the one with the doll, it's kind of big.

a newborn could be wrapped in it....and it could be used as a doll blanket

oh well....now I know :)

<3

Giving Thanks--Day 4

 Today I am thankful for the temple....and the fact that it is SO close!!I LOVE THAT!!(Yes, we are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)We don't go as oftern as we should, but just being able to see it every single day is a blessing. it brings such reminders and good feelings, just to see it.I was able to go last night, after it was basically closed and just sit in the parking lot and enjoy it.it was nice.In Maryland, the temple was about a 2 hour drive from our houseno so fun. but I still went. my goal was at least once a month.that was great.hopefully we can get a sitter and squeeze in some time to go as a coouple soonit helps to get us recharged, and focused on the important things in our lives.It helps us to rid ourselves of the daily weight of the world we may feelthe temple helps lift us and helps to lead us to celestial glory I am so thankful that my husband and I were married in the temple.Through this, we are sealed together--throughout eternity. So, I know that after we die, our family relationships will last forever--not just for this lifetime.  

photo by Doug McKay Photography
edited by me in picnik

For those who don't know about the temple you can visit here or here to find out more. I will quote some FAQ for you

What do people do in the temple?In the temple we are taught, we make covenants, and we are promised blessings. We receive ordinances that enable us to live in the presence of God.
One ordinance we receive in the temple is the endowment. The word endowment means “gift” or“bestowal.” As part of this ordinance, we are taught about the purpose of life, the mission and Atonement of Jesus Christ, and Heavenly Father’s plan for His children. We gain a glimpse of what it will be like to live in His presence as we feel the peaceful atmosphere of the temple.
Another temple ordinance is the sealing ordinance, in which husbands and wives are sealed to each other and children are sealed to their parents in eternal families. This means that if we are faithful to our covenants, our family relationships will continue for eternity.
In addition to receiving these ordinances for ourselves, we can receive them for our deceased ancestors. In this way, people who died without receiving essential ordinances such as baptism and confirmation, the endowment, and sealing have the opportunity to accept these ordinances.

What is it like inside the temple?
The temple is a peaceful, sacred place, set apart from the cares and turmoil of the world. All areas of the temple are beautifully and carefully maintained to preserve a spirit of reverence. Because it is the Lord’s house, and because of the sacred work performed there, in the temple we can feel the Spirit abundantly and feel close to the Lord. There we can receive personal revelation and spiritual strength to help us overcome our trials. This is part of the reason we are encouraged to attend the temple regularly.

 You can also learn about:
Why we build temples
What happens in temples
Blessings of the temple
Inside the temple



   

Giving Thanks--Day 3

So today....I am thankful for....Miss K sleeping through the night!

seriously!

Although, my preggo self is waking at least once to go potty, and I have trouble falling asleep, I can handle that.

K sometimes wakes once because she goes potty in the middle of the night to (and it's never at the same time as me, of course!) But the hubby will take care of her (she needs help wiping, tmi? oh well)

But if he gets her, I can go right back to sleep....and so can he. we all win.

If I go to get her...i have trouble falling back to sleep.

Last night k didn't wake at all! nice!

But once, is nothing. I can handle that.

You may not know this, but not too long ago, k couldn't sleep through the night AT ALL

it all started about july 2009...

she was born April 23, 2009, she was typical newborn and then baby, waking to nurse, having trouble going to sleep (i had no clue) but then she eventually got into a routine and she was waking just once a night! oh happy day!!

Then....I had to go back to work :( 

and it all changed.

She was up about 3 maybe 5 times a night, to nurse, for comfort, just to see me...?? who knows...

And it didn't stop.

it didn't stop when we co-slept

it didn't stop when I stopped working in Oct 2010

she would only take 1 maybe 2 30 min naps throughout the day, she was on edge

i used to have to lay with her until she fell asleep and then sneak out of the room to clean/eat/gain some sanity

but then she would wake and I wouldn't be there, and she would cry.

I tried letting her cry it out (broke my heart, btw)

Finally....it kind of stopped...

We spent a lot of time at The Lawrence's, they had two twin beds, one for me, one for her.

BUT they also had a TV in the room!

She requested it on, like a night light type of thing. I agreed.

And it was quiet

She watched TV until she fell asleep. She would wake in the night, see the TV and take a sip of her water, and fall right back to sleep!!!

OH MY!!

She was almost 2 by this time.

WOW! was that really all it took?

But then, I started reading how bad it was for a child to sleep with the TV on :/

and I got worried.

It was always muted, and most the time the closed captioning was on (she can't read, but I can hope :)

Then the VCR seemed to go ka-put! 

well...guess that means no TV at night anymore!

(que in my terrified, "what will she do" look!)

Luckily, it was nap-time and so she didn't need the light, she continued to read her books (piles and piles are usually found in there after nap/bedtime) 

And she still fell asleep on her own!! YAYYY!

But I was stil scared about night-time.

We had bought this fake fish tank thingy that we were going to give to her for Christmas to replace the TV. But it turned into a Halloween/potty trained gift instead.

We installed in on her wall, near her bed and she sleeps!!

I am so grateful to be able to get some sleep. 

remember how I said this baby is sucking the life out of me? Yep...

I am beyond tired all the time. it's odd. you would think I would have more energy, but nope.

SO I am grateful for K sleeping and letting me sleep in until 830 am!

I am grateful for the books, animals, tv, and aquarium that keep her occupied/company during the night

ahh, the little things!

(sorry this was such a loong story!)

What are you thankful for today??

Giving Thanks--Day 2

on our wedding day <3

One of the MOST important people in my life. 

He's definitely #1, who are we kidding!

I am most thankful for him!

he plays the guitar. it's hot!

He came into my life at such a pivotal moment. 

He saved me from going off the deep "wo is me" end. 

ugh, that would have been sad.

As soon as I met him that August day, my life was changed. I was changed.

I was instantly happier. I instantly had reason to hope. (it's kind of hard when you know you will meet someone and just waiting around until the day that you actually do. I'm just impatient like that)

It's hard being a single mom. very hard.

Somedays all you need is a hug, and when there is no one there to give it to you, that's when you can get sad.

I knew my heavenly father was watching over me and would send me someone sooner or later, I just had to be patient and be ready for that time to come. 

I needed to be ready.

oct 2010 general conference

thanksgiving 2010

He is the highlight of my day

even when I was working full-time, his text messages were the best part of my day.

They still are!

He is gone everyday for school and I miss him....

I really do

just having him around makes everything better.

things are funnier, things are stupider (is that a word??) things are more silly, or just more awesome!

He is mine...forever!

I love that!

And I am HIS!

The day we were married, was the BEST day EVER!

no lies.

a skype "date" at his parents' house :)

He is such a great hubby.

He helps out around the house and doesn't complain

He will do dishes for me, without asking!!

Love that! You may not know this, but I HATE DISHES! lol

Love to cook and makes the messes....but cleaning them...uhhhhh....no!

He's awesome like that!

an engagement pic.
photo credit

He even helps out with the laundry!

It may not be folded correctly or hung backwards (what's with that?)

but who cares!! he DID it! 

Thank You!!

Pre-pregnancy, I was all up for doing the housework at all hours.

this place looked pretty legit.

Now.... not so much.

This dang baby is sucking the life out of me. literally!

We're super legit!

But he is awesome and handles it all so well :)

gotta love him!

He massages my feet or my back even until i force him to stop because it's actually causing him more pain than anything. 

He picks up where I am beginning to fall behind. 

He is GREAT!

Such a great daddy!

And....most importantly....he is such a great father!

He is amazing

K loves him to death and we are so excited to add more to our family soon!

He will get to experience a newborn! yikes! lol.

He will be great. That's just how awesome he is!

We have lots of fun! 

Singing at the VW wedding

He's mine ladies! ALLLL mine!

I had to almost beat them off with a stick at VW's wedding in August.

Seriously! He IS married!!

What can I say? That's what happens when you have such a HOT hubby! :)

Giving Thanks--Day 1

Today, I am thankful for this apartment we live in.

It's not a big house on a hill, it doesn't have three plus bedrooms, a big huge yard, a pool, or room for all my "junk" as the man puts it. 

But it is somewhere to live. 

We may be a bit crammed in here (soon to be even more, after the baby comes) but we love it. 

It's cozy, it's warm, it's comfortable.

We are in a fabulous ward with great neighbors.

It may not be as clean as I'd like for it to be all the time...my "junk" usually is everywhere making it look cluttered and messy.

Plus the 2.5 year old likes to empty her room out into the living room on almost a daily basis. lol

it's fun though. 

We hang out, we enjoy each other's company, we eat, we laugh, we have friends over.

And, because my hubby is obsessed with it, my house always smells good! :)

This is a view from our balcony

That chapel there, is ours!

we can, and have walked home from church :) 

over to the right is the temple....but you can't see it since there is another apartment there. But on our walks, it's super easy to see!

This apartment accepts pets (for a fee) we don't/won't have any, but it's nice to walk down to our dog park and watch all the dogs play. It's great for k too! She loves it!

We go in, she throws a ball around for the dogs, sometimes gets jumped on. but it's so much fun for her. 

she gets the exposure to dogs that she won't get in our house. Which is good, #1 she loves dogs & #2 we would like to keep it like that (if she is exposed more often, she is less timid and remembers that she likes them, lol. get it? lol)

We live in an area that is pretty cold. Ok, very cold!

It's already in the 20's at night, most days/nights are pretty windy and it has snowed once. 

BUT....we have yet to turn on the heat! 

can you believe that? it's awesome!

I LOVE THAT!

We even sleep with the window cracked and a fan going.

If there is more people here, it's hot, and we have to open a window or door. 

I know, eventually we will have to turn on the heat, but it is saving our electric bill for now!

All in all, our place isn't perfect.

But we have a place to live and it's not expensive. There is LOVE in our home. 

We are So grateful for all we have.

There are so many people who are less fortunate than we are, who don't have a home to live in, or their homes are run down and almost unlivable. 

There are people who can't afford to pay for their heat for the winter, or pay for the heat/oil and don't have the money to eat or buy the necessities they need!

We are grateful for what we have been blessed with, and pray to help those around us who don't have these things. 

Hope you have a grateful day!

<3