Hurst Happenings

Dear Zachary....

2011-01-30T16:24:00.000-08:00

My sweet boy,

One of the greatest things that happens when you become a parent is getting to participate in watching someone you love more than anything grow. You are 7 years old and you become more precious to me everyday! Here are some of the things you have said to me recently:
-Mommy, you will always be my girl...even when I grow up.
-you are my best friend
-my favorite part of my day was when you picked me up from daycare. I missed you all day
-i love my family
-will you hold my hand

Last week, I took the day off to go to your school and watch you and your classmates put on short story plays. Oh how much fun was that?! I loved watching you. I could tell how excited you were to see me there. It was adorable how you kept looking back to make sure I was still there after your group was done. I will forever freeze your adorable face in my mom memory! My favorite part was when we were walking to school. I am rarely home in the mornings to get that opportunity anymore and it was so nice to walk with you. It was even nicer that you grabbed my hand and wanted to hold it the entire way to school. I love how affectionate you are! I keep praying that the day never comes when you don't want to hold my hand. It is probably inevitable, but for now I am so enjoying it!

I also enjoy listening to you talk about your day and telling me your favorite part of your day as well as your not so favorite part. I do this with you so we can learn how to deal with situations better on a daily basis, but also because I love hearing from your perspective about life's challenges and how you deal with them.

You still have quite the bubble around your eyes, heart and mind, which is wonderful. I want you to stay small and innocent for as long as possible. I know I can't stop the clock (though me and so many people in this world wish for that!!), but I will enjoy the ride for as long as God allows it!! I am enjoying watching you learn about Jesus and all he has done for us. Your latest question was about baptism and sacrifice. You struggled a little on the sacrifice part :) You are in awanas currently at church and you are learning about memorization of scripture. You blow me away with how quickly you pick it up!

I love you my buddy!

Letters to my family...

2011-01-30T16:17:00.000-08:00

I have been reading these amazing books by Karen Kingsbury....she is an amazing author. She has her own website: www.karenkingsbury.com . If you are looking for a good series that has A LOT of books, I would definitely recommend these books. One of the things one of her characters did was write letters to her family. Those very same letters meant so much to the family after she died. I know that its fiction, but I LOVED the idea and thought I would write some. A few I will blog. Just to have them here.

A bit of a scare....

2011-01-16T15:03:00.000-08:00

Through all the trials and tribulations in life, I think that the one that will always take the cake for me will always be anything that involves the emergency room. Let me share my most recent experience but also share how God truly had his hand on me through the entire experience....

Ever since I had Nathan I have struggled with high blood pressure. I wanted to go for a physical and the last time I was at the doctors office she wanted to have a blood check...the whole panel thing. Typical for a physical. Well this was about 6 weeks ago. I have a crazy work schedule and I never got there until Thursday. I had been having problems with my car recently. Actually a lot of problems....more on that later. But I had to take off a few hours early to go get my beat up automobile back from the shop. So since i was off early, I decided to go get my blood drawn since my actual physical appointment was to be on Monday. I went there and took my test and as I was there it looks like I made it there in time to actually have my blood evaluated before the end of the day. I was stressed out because i had to get my car only to get a call from the repair guy that stated he would not be done with the car until the next day. Turns out more was wrong with it then we anticipated. He needed more time to access the problem. So I looked at the bright side and thought...well I got my fasting blood sample done, if anything else.

Eric works later on Thursdays and I had woken up from a nap and was spending some one on one time with Natey when I decided we needed to walk to the school to go get Zachy. After I picked up Zachy we were walking home and my phone rang with a number that I didn't recognize. I normally don't pick up those calls, but for whatever reason I picked it up right away. I remember word for word of this conversation because it seriously was when time stood still for me and I began to panic....it was not a phone call anyone would want to get. Here is the convo:

Nurse: Hi this is (whatever her name was, I didn't catch it) from your doctors office
Me: Oh hi, what can i do for you?
Nurse: How are you feeling?
Me: Good, tired, but good...its been a long day!
Nurse: Where exactly are you right now?
Me: I am walking my children home from school. Why?
Nurse: Is any other adult with you?
Me: No, why?
Nurse: Well i need you to get someone to drive you to the nearest emergency room as quickly as possible.
Me: WHAT? Is this a joke?
Nurse: No, this is not a joke. We received your blood results back. Actually I got a phone call from the lab who was working on your blood work because your potassium levels are dangerously low. In fact, the fact that we are talking on the phone is surprising me. You feeling good is a good sign, but you can not drive yourself to the hospital. Your levels are so low you could pass out.
Me: WHAT? You are serious? OMG, what does potassium do for you, why is it being low so bad and what could be doing this? Stress? (In my mind I thought of all the stress that the last few weeks have brought. I had been having a lot of headaches, nausea, and I have been extremely tired--I thought...man should i have told her that is how I was really feeling? All this time I had thought it was just stress....wow!)
Nurse: Jeana, I need you to get the the nearest ER as quickly as possible. Do you have someone to take you?
Me: Um no. Not at the moment. I am walking home with my kids and my car is in the shop.
Nurse: You can not drive yourself. Do you have someone to call to take you right now?
Me: I need to make a few phone calls, but I will get there.
Nurse: I am going to call you back in 10 minutes and if you don't have a ride I am going to have to call for an ambulance. I will call you back. Please answer when I do, OK?
Me: OK

So I proceeded to call Eric and as soon as I heard his voice I started crying because I was so scared. I have never had anything like this happen. Who goes in for a routine blood test only to get a phone call a few hours later that they have to go to the nearest ER. I mean I am sure it does happen, but I had never heard of it and I was terrified. Eric was over an hour away (it was just about rush hour traffic time) and the nurse said she was going to call for an ambulance if I didn't get someone to take me in 10 minutes. So I called my mother in law as we were rounding the corner to my house. I then saw that my neighbor happened to be home. She is one of my dear friends and I knew she would help. She said she would take me to the hospital and I also had gotten a hold of my mother in law who was coming for the kids.

The 10 minutes I was waiting for Darlene to get to me seemed like an eternity. When you hear that potassium is essential to helping your heart contract and that a nurse was surprised I was able to talk and walk, you kind of go into a sort of shock. I called my mom and told her what was going on. She was able to get in touch with my sister who met us at the hospital. When I got to the ER I was ushered right in. I didn't have to wait or really pause. The first thing they did was re-draw my blood. Apparently when you have any type of potassium problem, it could be a glitch in the testing, so they have to test you a second time to confirm their findings. 30 minutes later it was confirmed of my dangerously low levels, in fact they had dropped slightly from the earlier read. I was immediately given some tablet form pills of potassium. Apparently you can't just take potassium pills to get your levels up. You have to do it slowly so your body does not go into shock. It was going to be a looong night in the ER.

I was hooked up to several machines as they wanted to test my heart functions to make sure nothing was wrong with my heart. Can I just say that this is the absolute scariest part? I was praying the whole time that nothing would show. How awful. I had some sort of monitor that was monitoring my heart, was given an EKG, an xray and one other test that I knew nothing about...after that they started my IV and wow...when potassium goes in your blood it freaking HURTS! HOLY MOLY! It was not a good feeling! They had to slow down the drip and give me ice packs so I could stand the burning feeling for almost 3 hours of what I know was what i needed but it hurt the entire time. I was also given 2 does of magnesium through an IV.

I had two doctors as the night progressed. I was told by both of them how lucky I was that they caught it and again how they were surprised they were that I was smiling, talking, etc with my levels being so low. 10 hours later, one final blood test confirmed that my levels were still below normal, but since i had no other problems (meaning my heart was fine) they were going to give me an awful drink to drink and a daily supplement to take until I see my doctor for a full evaluation. What they concluded was that my blood pressure medication was the culprit of the problem. It was draining me of my potassium and it will be an easy fix...just change medication. They told me to get plenty of rest over the weekend and no strenuous activity for a week to fully recover from this. WOW!

So in looking back....I am so very thankful for car problems!! LOL I know it sounds bad, but had I not had any car problems I would have never known what was wrong with me. Like I said earlier I had very simple symptoms which I never attributed to low potassium. I can say this...I have had these symptoms for several weeks and they were getting progressively worse. I at one point thought I could be pregnant because the tiredness was so severe. But being that I work so much and I just assumed that with being a mom, wife, and worker bee, that it was just catching up with me.

Praise God that I was able to get to the hospital, I didn't have any episodes of passing out, or anything more serious and a simple change can be made to help me to not feel this way ever again. I am so beyond thankful and blessed to have insurance. So even though my car was a source of great frustrations, I am glad the way it played out this way because I would have never gone to get my blood work done that day and who knows what would have happened! Rejoice in trials and tribulations....the bible says that and I now understand why! God does not take us through hard times just for a reason. There is always some purpose that we can't see. I know I have learned this lesson before, but I have not learned it in this way!

No Santa Mommy!

2010-12-16T18:44:00.000-08:00

So, its starting to really feel like Christmas now with the weather here in So Cal. I know us Californians have it so nice with no snow (THAT IS WHY WE LIVE HERE!) but I can't help but get in the mood for Christmas when its cold. I love it!

So I had this funny and sweet conversation with my little one and I wanted to share because its one i want to remember....

Nathan: Mommy, I don't like Santa
Me: You don't? Why?
Nathan: I don't want him to come here and bring me any presents
Me: Really, what about if mommy and daddy brought you presents?
Nathan: Nooooo mommy I don't want presents. Its not my birthday, its baby Jesus' birthday
Me: Awe aren't you sweet. Do you want to make a birthday cake for baby jesus?
Nathan: Yes and we can sing to him and get him presents!

So lately I have been doing a lot of reflecting. I am just feeling incredibly blessed and I have been realizing a lot of things in the past months. First, I feel like God has given my family so much this last year. I know there are seasons in life and we all go through them, but I can honestly say that the last 3 years have been the hardest of my life. I feel like it changed me as a person, it opened my eyes to things I *thought* I knew and it took the rose color glasses off. Those are not bad things and in a way I am glad I went through it. But it was hard and there were some really ugly things about it. I am not going to even go there. I instead want to focus on the amazing things that are going on in my life.

So last night we went to this church event called Joy. It was about an elf who basically lost his joy and his journey back from losing it. During the service they showed a video of all the things our church did during this time to bless the community for the people who were in need. I am blessed to be a part of this church that has a vision for that, I am blessed that my children and I are in a ministry that teaches my children to be givers and I am blessed because this truly is the place where me and my family need to be! They showed this video last night and I fought back tears....me and my kids went and served thanksgiving dinner to families in need and have done some other pretty amazing stuff and I have often found that I am more blessed in the giving and doing then in the receiving. It truly inspires me. The whole "it is better to give than receive" came full circle for me.

Last year we were struggling awfully bad. The only reason we had presents under our tree was because of other people. I will never forget opening the mail box and someone had put a $200 target gift card in there citing the verse from James...."every good and perfect gift is from above". That note still sits on our fridge to this day! I will also never forget the huge bag of gifts for my kids that "santa" left on our porch. I cried (and am now as I write this) at the self-less act that it was for someone to go out of their way to give to us in such a way. These gifts were wrapped and labeled for my boys. The even more perfect moment came when santa came cruising down the street in a fire truck (the fire-fighters of our city do this every year). My kids were so thrilled and excited. It was a very special christmas INDEED!

Christmas isn't about the presents under the tree or the *things* you have....its about the people you are with. I didn't think last year could be topped, but honestly, it already has....This year I enjoyed and felt blessed to be able to give to other people, I got to be with some dear friends and will be with my amazing families....I am just blessed and thankful.

Holiday craziness....Traditions....hot cocoa...

2010-12-05T15:35:00.000-08:00

Its that time of year again...rushing around, planning parties, going to parties, wrapping gifts, shopping, basically....its crazy! I so enjoy this time of year...its fun, but I feel like I am pulled in 10,000 more directions that I usually am. I feel fortunate that I have my whole family still close and not far away and even Eric's family is all here.

So in the spirit of the holidays, I thought this year would be a great year to really emphasize the value of traditions and why they are so important to us. One of the things that I am thankful for is that my parents are so good about the holidays. It makes it nice that they don't demand to see me and the kids on the exact holiday. I could not imagine having to run house to house. I think it would really not make it as much fun. So for Thanksgiving and Christmas, we do the holidays either the weekend before or the weekend after. Thanksgiving day we spent at my in-laws house and I was so excited that my mother in law said she would keep the kiddos over night so Eric and I could black friday it. i will say for those who are skeptical about black friday....yes you do get good deals and yes it is worth it! I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Eric (even though he was probably not the happiest camper there). He was awesome and we made an excellent team!! Then we went to get the boys and in true tradition form we came home, got the tree out and started putting it all together. The boys were so much fun with it. They LOVED it. Nathan was great at putting all the ornaments in one spot that was at his eye level. Then Zachary would move them and place them in the right spot.

The whole time we were decorating the tree I was talking to the boys about family traditions and why its important we do this together and help each other. In true form Zachy just got it. He listened and asked all sorts of questions...why do we do this mommy? why is it important to be together to do this? do we always do this after thanksgiving, etc. After it was all over he came up to me and told me that his favorite times are when he is with his family do things. He loves to just be with us. Its so cute. I know later this might be an issue but for now, I am soaking it up! My favorite part is that Zachy added his own prerequisite for tree decorating...we must always have hot cocoa, marshmellows and whip cream...awesomeness!

In other news....did my weekly costco trip (i am addicted to that store) and Zachy was my helper today. While we were there he begged and begged me for the books..Diary of a whimpy kid. I kinda of felt in the past that these books were a little over his head...well good lord he was sitting there in the store (actually asked me if he could sit in the cart and read the book while we were walking around...lol) and he was cracking up at it. So funny. So I bought him one of the books to try....humm, this may be the answer I have been looking for to get him to read more!

Recent Pictures....

2010-11-27T19:53:00.000-08:00

Here are some recent pictures of the happenings in my life. I am sad to say that I did not get any pictures of our wonderful thanksgiving with both of my families (hubby's side and my side). I just sat back and enjoyed the holiday. But I will blog about that later....here are some pics:

We heard from a friend of this apple orchard/pumpkin patch that was a lot of fun to take the kiddos too. Well, we will frequent this place every year. We had a blast!! Here is a great shot of my three loves...
This is the pumpkin that Zachy picked all by himself!! Our rule was that they could get a pumpkin that they could feel comfortable carrying. SO they both picked average sized pumpkins :).
Eric taught Zachy how to cut his own pumpkin from the vine...he was so proud of himself (as you can see in the picture above!!).

My little stinker sittin with the pumpkins....
Here is one of my favorites of Zachy from the patch...he was climbing and rolling around in the hay with all the kids....gosh that kid has me!
This is in the middle of the orchard....my boys love each other so much...They really do enjoy each other and are best friends....its so much fun!
Zachy and his best friend at the trunk or treat at our church....
Halloween Trunk or treat photos...I am bummed because I had a little camera that I rarely use and this camera's battery died before I could really get some good pics...OH well...such is life...

Gearing up for the holidays....

2010-11-20T22:09:00.001-08:00

Not a whole lot new to report...things are good for us right now. We are getting ready for the holidays and so looking forward to it. Lets see what there is to report...

Zachy...he had a "Turkey Trot" at school last week. He came home with a certificate and said he finished fourth. Not sure what that meant and probing him didn't really get anywhere. But he tried hard and got all the peeps in his life to contribute to his trot and raise money for the school. We took him to see Harry Potter today and he loved it. Its his favorite movies right now. I can't wait till he can read the books. I think I am going to wait until he can read them before I dive into them. I think it is going to be so much fun to read them with him :).

Natey..gosh that kiddo. He is still quite the adorable spitfire. He is going through this weird phase right now. We affectionately refer to him as Dr. Jekel and Mr. Hyde. He seriously is always flipping sides with his attitude. I will give you an example. This morning I sneak away for some cuddle time with my hubby and I am hiding under the covers and Natey comes in and finds me. He insists on climbing in between Eric and I. It was actually adorable. He laid there and was being super cute. At one point he told his dad that they were on a roller coaster and he had to put his hands up cause they were going down the hill (this was seriously the funniest thing because the kid was excited and really into it...LOL). Then all of a sudden he decides he is done being cute and wants off our bed and wants nothing to do with us. Weird. I am going to mention this to his doctor the next time we go in because I am wondering if he has low blood sugar or something because it just seems to weird to me. I notice it a lot when he is tired or hungry and it doesn't seem right to me.

Me...Eric and I recently joined a gym and I couldn't be more thrilled. My company offers these health incentives...join a gym, run a race, play a sport..they will reimburse up to a certain amount. I got my use it or lose it email last week and I figured...I needed to do something about it. So we were excited to see what the gym would cost and we were even more excited that we could literally join both of us and there would be nothing out of pocket for us! PRAISE GOD! I am trying really hard to get healthy and start taking better care of myself. I am not getting any younger and I want to feel better....a lot of it starts with eating and exercising. I want to set a good example for the munchkins....plus I am trying to train for a marathon (half marathon) and I figure this will help. :)

Eric...he is awesome as usual. I honestly think I have the best husband around. That man is awesome. He really tries to put my needs and desires first and I feel blessed about that. In a world where so many marriages are failing, I feel immensely blessed that ours is thriving.

Holidays....I am so excited to share a new tradition with my kids this year. We will be taking part in feeding the homeless next week! Through the Ripple ministry at our church start we will be participating in this mission. Plus they have a servants heart and I want to try to continue that passion as they get older. We are never too old to remember that we can serve other people....just like Jesus did :).

I will never forget what someone (or family) did for us last year. We were struggling beyond belief last year and God blessed us with someone having a servants heart to give to my children. It happened more than once last year and I swear, it was something that touched me. Someone left a big bag of presents on our porch with gifts from Santa for my kids. I cried tears of joy that someone would be so generous and thoughtful. It was amazing. There were two other times that people did stuff for us last year and this year we will pay it forward. I seriously can't tell you how amazing it felt and Eric and I were beyond touched and grateful. My kids really didn't know the depth of those gifts, but we did.

Thats about it for now....I will try to post pictures this next week from Halloween, pumpkin patch/apple orchard visit and Thanksgiving.

Public meltdowns....

2010-11-14T14:49:00.000-08:00

Oh man...we were THAT family this weekend while doing some shopping at our local Costco. Good golly....you know that family that while you are shopping has one of their kids having a very public meltdown and you can't help but either feel sorry for them or wish they would shut their kid up. LOL I know..I have been there. In my pre-kid days I would have often thought gosh, why don't those parents do something about it and make their child behave? I used to get so annoyed while eating out and see or be near a public meltdown. Well, post children, I have become oh so passionate and less willing to be annoyed...LOL. Isn't it funny how life does these little lessons where you are taught to NEVER say or judge ANYONE unless you have walked a mile in their shoes. Ahh I digress....back on subject....

So, after having a fantastic family day of lunch and seeing a cute kid movie (Megamind--totally worth taking your kids to by the way), we had some time to kill before we were to head off to church. So I thought, well we need milk, lets take a trip to Costco. I buy all my milk and bread stuff from Costco cause its good quality and its pretty cheap. So OF COURSE in typical Costco fashion (ha ha maybe its Costco's fault!!) they had so many new toys and fun things for the children to drool over that I cringed when I saw the toy aisles. Yes I said aisles. There was three aisles of TORTURE for my children and me. My kids are pretty accustomed to not getting toys and stuff at the store when we go shopping. I hardly ever indulge them for numerous reasons. Zachy, has got this down, but still asks on occasion. But Nathan....ahh the learning is so difficult for this kid... He saw this train set that he was going to DIE without and he flipped a lid because mommy said no to him and said that maybe if he was good (yeah this does NOT work) maybe Santa would bring it to him for Christmas.

So, the meltdown started. I know why the meltdown happened...it wasn't because he HAD to have the darn train, though if you would have asked him it was life or death, it was because hubby and I made the decision (which i so regret now) to allow him to skip his nap so we could enjoy a fun fun day. We had made these plans and I didn't want to break them and I realize that it would have been better to make these plans allowing for my child to either sleep while we traveled or left later after naptime. Nevertheless, he was tired and also hungry. Which the fellow shoppers at Costco had the joy of seeing into our world. My kids are not the throw yourself on the floor type of meltdown kids, but they are the kids who will let the world know by their mouth that they are not happy. We had a few stares from people...which my husband pointed out because he is so concerned about appearances. I could care less most of the time what people think because I realize that most people have also been in my shoes (well people with children) and really the only thing that was going to make it better was to leave, which we were doing.

As soon as we got to the car of course the kid was fine...YES! I know..so annoying. Once he was strapped into his carseat, he was asleep. MENTAL NOTE, NATHAN IS NOT READY TO DROP HIS NAPS....even at 4, he just isn't ready. So needless to say we decided going to church wasn't in the cards, so we will go today and instead we had some peeps over for a wonderful dinner, wine and some good times. Natey was in bed VERY early yet woke up this morning very chipper because he got adequate sleep last night....whew.

Loooong weekend...YAY!

2010-11-12T19:41:00.000-08:00

One of the great things I have come to not take for granted is vacation days. I remember when I wasn't working how I longed for a day when I didn't plan anything....just a day to nothing or to plan things but because I had the extra time to do so. I know that there is this misconception out there of people who are unemployed that they don't do anything and everyday is like a vacation. Well, I will tell you from personal experience that is NOT the case. Most unemployed people would kill for a phone call about an interview or something to give them hope. Most unemployed people are stressed out, depressed and worried. I don't know how that is a vacation. I will tell you, its so not a vacation. This weekend I have a long weekend and all of those above feelings are not ones that I am feeling. Which I am so thankful and blessed to not be on the other side. God is faithful!

So this weekend, we have quite the weekend planned. Looks like we are taking the kiddos to the El Capitan theatre to watch Mega mind with some peeps. Should be lots of fun and I haven't shared with my kiddos yet because I have learned that things change a lot. Also, it seems my sickness has not quite left me so I wanted to be sure we would be going before I told them. We are going to also do our weekly breakfast which should be fun. The kids love our new favorite place and so do we. I think we will take grandma with us this week. Should be an adventure :).

Nathan has started this new thing....he sings all of his responses to anyone. So if he is answering your question he will sing his response. Eric and I get a kick out of this and tonight at dinner he was singing to us about what his favorite part of his day was. Oh gosh, it was hilarious.

Zachy has begged me to let him grow his hair out....um is this what is to come? Independence? I didn't think it started this young and that I would take it this hard! LOL, I am pathetic, I know. But I look at him and want to take him to get a hair cut oh so bad. Its at that awful, in between stage where it just looks bad all the time. So I am trying really hard to give him his choice right now....hopefully it will either turn out cute or he will come to his senses. Pray for me people...LOL

Traditions are so important....

2010-11-07T18:20:00.000-08:00

I am very big about traditions with my kids. I think it is so important. I remember there were things we did as a family when I was growing up and since time flies so quickly...I swear I blinked and my boys are BOYS and not babies..which I will say is hard in a lot of ways but so amazing in others. I am sure all you mommies will know exactly what I am talking about. Anyhow, over the past year and a half one of my favorite weekend traditions is breakfast as a family. I seriously LOVE it! We try to go out once a month to a restaurant and we have our many favorites. But I think we found our most favorite!!! Its called Corky's in Rancho Cucamonga. It is the best little restaurant. I can't believe how insane this place gets! Its really that good :). This morning Zachy looked at me while we were eating at Corkys and he says "Mommy, I love our family and thanks for breakfast". You know you are doing things right when your baby says that to you! Well, at least that is how I felt when he said that. What a special moment. I was so happy to hear him say that and I had the proud mommy walk afterwards!

Tonight is a normal night that the hubby and I would be going out on a mini date night, but since I am still under the weather, we stayed in. Gosh it is quiet without the kiddos. They are at a thing at our church called Awanas. I love that they go and they LOVE to go every week. It kind of reminds me of vacation bible school but its once a week. Its nice to have an evening alone with my hubby...even if its only 2 hours, we still do so enjoy the time.

Off to get ready for my short week! Sooo looking forward to a few days off ;)

Sickness

2010-11-06T08:07:00.000-07:00

I am sad to report that this sickness that was all around me did not stay away. Here I sit in my bed wishing the medicine would kick in. I am quite miserable and worn out. I have bronchitis, a double ear infection and all sorts of wrong with my asthma. I woke up this morning and could literally not talk. My throat was so ragged from all the coughing I did last night. :( Eric is being amazing...helpful and letting me rest. Actually forcing me too. Gosh I love that man! Sometimes i get frustrated because he is too over protective, but when I am really honest....I would not have it any other way!!!

Grandma bought Nathan a new train set on friday, so he is loving it and quite preoccupied. Have I mentioned his fascination with trains? I should not say fascination, I should say OBSESSION. The kid can hardly contain his excitement for trains when we go over a railroad track and he sees one! LOL. Next year we are going to plan a trip to the grand canyon and go on a train there. He is going to love it. I think they are old enough now to do something like that and man, family vacations are the BEST!

Yup...trying again....

2010-11-04T19:32:00.000-07:00

I know, its been bad...its been quite a long time since I have been here. I think its because well, I have had a lot of stuff going on. Raising two boys, working full time and then having another job on the side of that has made my plate very full. I really see the value in blogging and writing down the memories because wow, time is flying by.

We just celebrated Nathan's 4th birthday. I had a little mini, party of one, celebration of my own the weekend of his birthday. When I was trying to get pregnant with him, while I was pregnant and just after his birth, I had a very private blog. I shared with a handful of ladies from a group that I came to know because of the miscarriages I had suffered. I decided that I was going to print out my blog and take it with me so I could read it on Nathan's birthday, to remind myself of the time over 6 years ago when he was just a twinkle in my eye. Wow....what a ride it has been. Just thinking about the journey, I get tears in my eyes. I think I am so blessed. I have this kid who amazes me everyday and all the heartache I suffered while on that journey was well worth it!

So where are we today....Nathan...he just turned 4 last month and for his birthday we went to San Diego and enjoyed spending time with just us. We had another family that was planning on going with us, but had to back out at the last minute. Which, my dear friend if you are reading this, you know I love you!! It ended up being exactly what we needed as a family. We had a blast and just enjoyed each other and being together. When Eric and I were first married we made a decision that I have never ever regretted....that was to invest in a timeshare. We are almost done paying it off and have enjoyed some really great times together at these places. I can't wait to pass it down to my kids and their kids....its a really great investment (contrary to what you might hear). We went to an air show, the beach, out to eat and hung out at our condo...it was a blast and to me I think this is how birthdays should be spent....low key and fun! Nathan is still incredibly obsessed with trains, planes and automobiles. His most favorite is trains though. But the air show we went to on his birthday was awesome and he couldn't stop smiling. SO VERY FUN!

What's up with Zachy? Well, he is in the 2nd grade and doing extremely well. I was telling one of my mommy friends the other day how I wondered if I would get to this place with Zachy...the place where I enjoyed him and didn't worry about his behavior or outbursts. Well, the time has arrived. He has changed so much, we have a system that is working and now I am enjoying immensely getting to know him and see what makes him tick. He is doing super well in school and doing homework is actually fun with him. Most of it is very easy...he is excelling in vocabulary this year. When he talks to me I often have to remind myself...he is just 7 years old! He has become the most amazing helper at home. We have a chore chart and allowance system in place that we are working out the kinks in. I love how eager he is to help mommy and daddy. But my most favorite part right now...watching him fall in love with Jesus. We recently started taking him to Awanas at church. He absolutely loves it and is getting so much out of it. He overall is just doing amazing. Smart, funny and so much fun!

Eric.....well he is doing well at his new job. He likes it a lot and we are so thankful. He truly is an amazing father and wonderful husband. We as a couple are doing amazing. We have grown so much and in a few months will be celebrating our 10 year anniversary. SO VERY EXCITING! We haven't decided what we will do yet, but I am just excited to be celebrating 10 years with my man! He is amazing and I fall more in love with him everyday!

Me...my job is AMAZING!! I often find myself pinching myself to remind myself that this isn't a dream....this is real! I recently started going back to school for Project Management. I loved it and it challenged me which was nice on the brain!! :) I am going back after the new year to continue the plan...taking a few months off to wait for my re-embursiments to kick in so I can go for free ;). Something else that is happening which I honestly didn't think I would EVER do again was, I am officially training for a half marathon. 6 of us are doing it together. One of my dearest friends is doing it with me and we run 4 times a week right now. I am loving it but wow, my butt gets kicked every night we run. I haven't added anything else, YET, to the training schedule and I am trying to not be a debbie downer when we talk about how far we really are going to run. a 1/2 marathon is 13.1 miles! HOLY COW. I can barely run 2 miles. Which if you know me, that is HUGE. I am not a runner at all and actually hate it, but need to implement something like this in my life. I am hoping that I can say I am a victor and can overcome this not liking it much part. I just am finding it hard to believe that I will actually be able to get to the 13.1 mile part by Feb. We shall see. We just started and we have a while to go. I am also considering lowering my expectations to a 5K or 10K. But I think the 5 K is going to be too easy because I am almost there right now. So it might be the 10K which I feel is very attainable IF i stick to this plan. We shall see, and people....I have been here before. Please pray that I can stick with this and do this for ME and me only. I need to make this time for myself.

Ok..I will give it my best go to come back more often....I really want to be blogging things...I feel like i have missed so much in the last 4 months!!! I have to go get the kiddos to bed and myself.....4:30 AM comes up wayyyyy too fast tomorrow!!!

Big Day here.....

2010-07-21T03:13:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a big day for two members of the Hurst family. I will start with Nathan. That kiddo again will never cease to amaze me. He decided in his head that he was going to swim. And we are not talking about swimming just a little bit....The kid swam across the length of the pool at grandmas house! He is 3 1/2 and I hoped this would be the summer that he swam, but I wasn't sure if it would be quite this soon. But as things seem to go with Nate, once he decides he wants something, he goes after it....sound familiar to anyone? ;)

The other bid part of the day was that I finally found a great job. I couldn't be more thrilled and I am excited about the new adventure! Tentative start date is August 9th. Out of 7,200 people I was selected for this position! I am still pretty shocked about that. I have been applying for so many jobs and it does not surprise me that there was so many people to apply. Its a great company with amazing benefits. I am still quite in shock actually....

Where have you been????

2010-07-18T08:48:00.001-07:00

Wow, well life has been crazy and I have not been a very good blogger!! Lets see if I can catch you up on the latest happenings in the lives of the Hurst family.....

Nathan....

Well, we are in the middle of our 3rd year of life and wow, its amazing how smart that kid is. He really has a knack for picking things up and he is very intuitive. I love that about him. Hi favorite things right now are: his big brother, swimming (he almost has it down), trains, snakes, lizards (did anyone see that one coming...LOL) and his mom (I still LOVE that he wants to be with me all the time...not sure that will ever go away in my heart!!). He worships the ground his brother walks on and really really enjoys just being with him. Its fun and exciting to watch Nathan grow. He really adds a special kick that I wasn't expecting in life. Oh and currently with the weather being the weather it is...in California, it is so freaking hot right now....Nathan asks constantly for popsicles. When I say constantly...I mean NON stop! He asks as soon as he wakes up in the morning. Its funny and quite annoying all at the same time. Thankfully there are sugar free popsicles and 100% fruit popsicles that make me not feel as guilty by giving them to him! He is getting ready for VBS this year as it will be his first one. Can't wait for him to experience that!

Zachary...

Well, he just had a birthday and wow, my baby just isn't a baby anymore. Even though he will forever be my sweet baby, I marvel at him growing up. It amazes me how compassionate and endearing a little boy can be. He truly has a heart that makes me proud. We just started doing a ministry at our church called RIPPLE. Its an amazing opportunity for children to be the ministers to their communities. It is the children that do the ministry and the parents who facilitate it. Zachary LOVES doing it and I love watching his heart do this ministry. Zachary's favorites right now: his brother who he tells all the time that he is his best friend, church, swimming, video games, his iPod,music, reptiles (yes this is still the vain of my existence) and his mom (yes, he still loves to sit with me and talk about his day and I soak it up as much as possible because I so know there will be a day when this won't be a reality, but I will take it when I can get it!!)

He is still in karate. Currently he is a yellow belt. We decided to keep him at yellow belt for one more round and it has paid off. He is doing amazing and has finally come into his own with karate. He wasn't one of those kids who got it right away. But I was determined to not give up on him or this journey and I am proud to say that he is doing amazing now! Last month he won student of the month (which is not an easy thing to do at all) and the ONLY thing he doesn't like about karate is Thursdays because it is pads day (the kids wear pads and practice their skills on each other) because he gets sweaty!! LOL He tests in a few weeks for his master yellow belt and we are excited for him to move up and have another great accomplishment for himself! I love all the values and behaviors that karate teaches kids...its really quite impressive! So needless to say, I recommend it, highly!

One more thing I will say about this kid is his love for music. Just like his dad, he enjoys so much listening to music. His favorite right now.....worship music and metallica....seriously, yes metallica. Ugh I hate that he likes it, but I love that he loves worship music. So I can say he has a little bit of Eric and me in him. We got him his very first bible that his a normal, non-babyish bible and we try to read it daily together. Wow, its so much fun to watch him learn about Jesus and watch him grow in his passion for Jesus. I feel so blessed that we live in a society that allows me to raise up boys who will know and hopefully love Jesus as much as I do. Its a blessing I so do not take for granite at all!!

Eric and I.....

We are doing awesome. We have lived in our current house for a year. Recently we experience quite the experience with our home.....a pipe had burst underground and our house was flooded. It was AWFUL to go through but as of about a week ago, our house is back to normal and we are finally starting to settle in. We have awesome neighbors who we have really enjoyed a lot of great times with. It just so happens that our neighbor's daughter is Zachy's BFF from school. So we have done many fun things with them and we feel blessed to have them as neighbors! We haven't had as good of neighbors...well as fun....in any place we have lived, so I will say that I feel like God really did place us here specifically.

I recently went to a women's christian conference called "God Chicks". It was amazing...you can check it out here..... GodChicks I so can't wait to go back next year! It was awesome and nothing like i have experienced before!! :)

In other news.....

Recently we had a cancer scare in my family. I curse the day that will come when I won't have my parents anymore. I love them so much and can't imagine a world without them. I am not going to re-live all that happened because that would take forever to write, but I will say this very simply....they thought my dad had cancer and we were all quite scared and worried, but when they went in to do the test that would determine it, EVERYTHING was all clear. PRAISE THE LORD! It was amazing and totally the Lord is all I can say!

I know this doesn't sum up all of the life we have lived since the end of April, but its a start.

My children, bugs and reptiles

2010-04-24T20:20:00.000-07:00

If you know anything about my boys, its that they are boys down to the letter. They love anything boy....getting dirty and stinky, loving anything gross like bugs and have a passion for animals. Now, I know that there are some boys that don't dig this stuff, but my boys are so typical. In many ways its nice and in many other ways, I find myself wishing I had a girl....bows and pastels, barbies and lip gloss...oh how I long for that! Though I would not trade a minute with my boys, it sometimes does have me wondering what my life would be like with a girl. Ahh, I digress...This post is not about me wishing for a girl (though I secretly so do), its about the funny thing my littlest boy did!

Eric and I decided to do a day with each kid alone. I would have a day with Natey and he would have a day with Zachy. For Zachy's day they went on our in-law's boat with papa. I planned to do errands and take Natey to the park. I figured we would do an art project and basically just play. It was a fun day and I think it was a great day for Natey and I to just be together. At one point I stopped so I could start dinner for him and I before we went to church. Then, the quiet came. As a mom, you know when its TOO QUIET you must go and find out why. When kids are too quiet, it usually means trouble. I find this true when my kids are together, but Nathan is such a little trouble maker that it is especially true with him....LOL.

So, I walked into where I knew he was last. He was in our spare room with our lizard. Then I heard him talking. I decided to pause at the door to hear what he was saying. As I peaked around the door opening, I saw him on his knees with the lizard cage open. He has always been quite scared of the lizard so I knew he would not take it out. I also noticed that he had these plastic bugs in his hand. Then all of a sudden he starts talking to the lizard and this is what you hear him say......"Hi Josh, here is a preying mantis, its good, you will like it. Eat it. Here is a spider, you will like it, EAT IT. Oh and here is a lady bug, i don't know if you will like it, but EAT IT!

Oh man, I had to make sure I wrote this down because it was the absolute cutest thing ever! So funny and so cute that my 3 year old knew the names of the bugs (thank you big brother) and was trying to feed the lizard.

Amish Grace...

2010-04-04T12:04:00.000-07:00

I am a sap for Lifetime movies. I seriously could watch them all the time. Some are super duper cheesey and some are really good. Today, I watched one called Amish Grace and I was sobbing half the time and blown away the other half. I was beyond touched by this movie. Its a story about an amish community rattled by one man coming in and killing 5 young girls at their school house and the way they handled it as a community and it even focused on one family specifically who lost their oldest daughter.

I never thought amish people were weird or really had any sort of opinion about them. I didn't know much about them other than the fact they are christians and followed a very strict way of living, even down to the way they lived at home. Watching this movie makes me respect and admire the amish. They are amazing people with hearts of so much love for God and others. In the story the milk man who knew the families, the kids and the community came for no good reason and walked into the school and told the boys to leave and the girls to stay. some of the girls were smart and ran, 10 girls total did not. All the girls who remained were shot. Some died instantly, a few others later at the hospital. Some survived with minor injuries. The gunman later turned the gun on himself and committed suicide. Such a severe tragedy. So devestating. To lose a child, one mother lost both her daughters to this horrific event. I have learned over my life that it is beyond important to never judge anyone unless you have walked a mile in their shoes, but even then, its wrong. Judgment is not our job, its Gods. The responsibility of being the judge is too much for me and I am thankful it is not my job!! I will say this, I don't know how I would respond to something like that happening to me. I don't think I could ever be so forgiving and able to just let it go. They didn't let it go and I don't want to cheapen what they did, my gosh, no. They took the hardest way which was forgiving, loving and surrendering to God's hand.

After the killings happened, they showed such grace, compasion,forgiveness and love that it made me cry because I want to love like that without question the way God would. They loved without question and followed God's teaching to the letter. The man who murdered those girls had a family, 3 children and a wife. Three of the amish men, one in particular who lost his little girl to this man, went the the wife's home (the one who murdered their children) to offer their love, forgiveness and support to her. I watched this and was speechless. They just loved for the sake of love, forgave because God calls us to and even though their hearts were broken and their world was shattered, they did so because it was because God said so.

It challenged me in my heart on a multitude of levels. First, it challenged me to remember my first love, Jesus. It taught me to never surrender to the ways of man, but to surrender to the ways of God. Regardless of how I feel, it is the right thing to do. It taught me that there is never any shame in forgiveness. There was a scene at the end where the entire amish community went to the shooter's funeral. The shooter and his family attended a fairly large church and before the amish got there to stand with the wife, there was about 7 people there. WOW! Then you see the amish walking down the hill towards the funeral and all of them surrounding this woman and her family with compassion, love and FORGIVENESS. There were no stones here, only love and grace. I want to love like that!

I also saw the community not waiver in their commitment to their lives with God. So often when you hear of children dying, you see families break up or faith lost. In their greatest test of all, they passed, and showed the world how to love, forgive and were the example God called them to be. I wondered if the angels were dancing and rejoicing in heaven for this victory. This movie is based on a true story. I guess their is a book out regarding this, which I plan to get and read. If you can somehow watch this movie or even read about this community, I would. You will be blessed and changed. I know I was!!

St Patty's day traditions....

2010-03-17T18:55:00.000-07:00

Eric and I really are wanting to start some annual traditions that we do with the kiddos every year. Its so important to have family traditions, in our opinion. I love that my kids know things are going to happen. We are in the phase now where Nathan is old enough to understand and Zachy remembers. Its so fun! We are doing holiday traditions and weekly family time. Its so fun to see the kids enjoy this time but really, we enjoy it so much more. Really, its these times that I hope and pray my kids will remember when they start their own families. I so adore these special times!! Today we started a few traditions and next year I am going to make it better!!

The kids got up this morning to know that today was St. Patrick's day. We didn't do anything to extravagant this morning. I wanted this to be different, but next year I will be doing it up in the morning. This week just got away from me and I didn't prepare. Eric and I made some plans for a meal we wanted to make and I wanted to do some sort of GREEN desert that we can make. Zachy's best friend came over and we are going to make some green yummies!! I will take some pictures to show them off in a little bit. I will post now the recipe that we will now make on an annual basis in the Hurst Home....seriously, you SHOULD try this recipe....its THAT good! This recipe is from Guy Fieri and he is my favorite chef currently. He has some amazing recipes and this is a top so far from me! If you try this recipe let me know, I would love to hear about it!

St. Patrick's Linguine

Recipe courtesy Guy Fieri

Prep Time: 15 min

Inactive Prep Time: --

Cook Time: 20 min

Level: Easy

Serves: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/4 cup small diced carrots
1 cup diced cabbage
1 tablespoon minced shallots
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups cooked corned beef, sliced and shredded
1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1/4 cup white wine
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 cups half-and-half
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
2 cups grated Irish white Cheddar or extra-sharp white Cheddar
3/4 cup fresh peas, or frozen
1 pound cooked linguini
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

In a large saute pan over medium-high heat, add the butter and 1 tablespoon canola oil. Add the carrots and cabbage and saute until they are just tender and the cabbage is starting to caramelize, about 20 minutes. Stir in the shallots and garlic and saute 3 to 4 minutes longer. Add the corned beef and black pepper and cook until the beef is starting to crisp, about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally during this process. Deglaze the pan with the white wine. Add in the cream, half- and-half, the mustards and the horseradish. Let simmer until the sauce has tightened up a bit, about 5 minutes. Stir in the shredded cheese and adjust seasonings, as needed. Stir in the peas and the pasta, then transfer into a serving dish. Serve immediately garnished with the Parmesan.

Yank my tooth out!

2010-03-14T18:48:00.001-07:00

So, today was a big day in our house....you see, Zachary has never lost a tooth without swallowing it! He has lost three teeth and he has swallowed all of them....that is, until today! Zachy came up to me and told me that he needed me to yank his tooth out. Keep in mind the kid is terrified of anyone touching his mouth. In fact, his adult teeth are already coming in and these baby teeth are loose but he has been afraid to pull them out. So this was a big day...a very big day. He came up to me and asked me to yank his tooth out. I tried and couldn't....it was pretty loose but not loose enough. So he sat for about 20 minutes and wiggled it out and he was beyond excited about it. Me, I was sooo excited but it was one of those mommy moments when I realized that he just was growing up. Pulling his own teeth out! Who said he could grow up? Geez!

Oh no he didn't!

2010-03-05T20:51:00.000-08:00

OH YES HE DID!!!

So I walked in the door just getting home from work and I was greeted by both kiddos in their usual sweet way. Both kids act like they haven't seen me in forever when I just get home from work. They run up to me screaming....MOMMY and their arms are open wide for hugs and kisses. Honestly, I LOVE this and I look forward to their smiling faces when I get home. Nathan did this usual lovefest and then right after he hugged me he started stripping. If you know Natey, you know that the kid would rather be naked than wear any clothes. When I say its a battle to get him to wear underware, believe me, its a battle. Its funny but annoying because the kid has no shame. when we walk Zachy next door so he can go with his friend to school Nathan runs outside in his undies and screams....BYE ZACH HAVE A GOOD DAY AT SCHOOL in his underware. Its super cute but man, the kid doesn't care how cold it is or anything....Ok, back to the "OH NO HE DIDN'T" story....so, he starts stripping and since its a normal task for him I let it go as my arms were full with dry cleaning and other stuff. Eric was outside cooking our dinner on the BBQ and out of the corner of my eye I see the little streaker run FULL FORCE outside. I hurried to throw my stuff down and chase him so he didn't go outside naked, but I was too late. Then, I saw what he was doing and I couldn't help but laugh before I put my mommy hat on...he was standing at the edge of our patio and peeing on the grass....then when he is done he turns around and says, "Ahhh I feel better". Oh good golly, seriously? YES, he really did!! These are the stories that I will embarrass my kids with when they get older....LOVE IT!

Little Nuggets....

2010-02-28T22:40:00.000-08:00

LOL I have to share a few nuggets from today....

Nathan:
*While we were praying for dinner, he insisted to not pray with us when, we as a family prayed and thanked Jesus for our dinner. Then half way through dinner Nathan announces he wants to pray for dinner. Here was his prayer:
Dear Jesus, thank you for Natahn and I pray for him and my best friend my daddy. Amen.

*Mommy, I went on the submarine ride at Disneyland...I am growing up! (this one I LOL at because he was terrified of this ride--who gets scared of this ride? My son!)

Zachary:
I stole an idea from a friend as to what she asks her kids on a daily basis at dinner. Its really important to me that we eat as a family at least 4 nights a week. I enjoy them so much and I know this time goes by so fast. So my friend asks her kids what the highlight of their day was and they all (including mom and dad) say what it was. Here was Zachary's from today:
*I actually have three favorites from today. Number one is when daddy switched the turtle and the lizard cages today. That was fun. Number two was the movie I went to today and number three was my playdate today. I am a lucky kid mom. I love my life.

I love my kids and how awesome they are!!

You ever have one of those days.....

2010-02-18T19:07:00.000-08:00

Really...I feel like a bad mom for venting but I having one of those mommy days where I just need to vent and get it out...

When the only thing your kids seem to do is whine, fight, scream, barf, hit, make a mess and well, just make life so darn difficult that you want to seriously find the first hole and bury yourself in it? Well, LOL that has been my week. I can't say that there is any particular reason why I am feeling this way, they are just being kids and I am just being cranky, but today I am wondering how many other mom's just feel this way? I am sure it is wayyy more often than I think.

Whining....NO WHINING! NO WHINING! I find myself uttering those words ALL the time! Nathan is going through this horrendous phase of whining. It is like nails on the chalk board.

Fighting.....STOP FIGHTING!! I SAID, STOP FIGHTING!!! They fight over almost everything. They have a lot of moments where they don't, its just this week, i dunno what the heck it is, but the fighting is enough to drive me to drink!

Screaming....STOP SCREAMING PLEASE....my dear sweet Zachy has the loud mouth that I blessed my parents with...LOL, yes mom I know I was loud, but really, was I THAT LOUD? GOOD GOLLY! I find myself saying....INSIDE VOICES, STOP SCREAMING, CAN YOU BE QUIET PLEASE????!!

Barfing...um this one is my least favorite and the one I am going to gripe the most about...My dear, sweet, adorable Nathan, is a barfing machine. It is almost daily now and i am ready to scream everytime he does it. I don't react anymore, I don't do anything but watch. I just can't believe this kid is still doing it. Tonight while he was eating chicken nuggets the kid says in the middle of dinner....I NEED TO THROW UP MAMA...WHAT? So I make him run to the bathroom, where he thankfully misses carpet and floor...he makes it in the toilet...but good lord all because you were eating chicken? He was diagnosed with tracheal Malaysia when he was a baby, which at first was hard. But his ear, nose and throat doctor basically assured us that he would grow out of it by 2. Well, he is 3 and no such luck....so looks like i will need to take him to the doctor again to see what is going on...NO MORE PUKING....really.

Alright...I feel better and I will get off my soap box now....if you made it all the way here, sorry for the BAD mommy rant, I guess I just proved I won't be getting the mother of the year award ANY time soon =)

My heart melted and a good laugh....

2010-02-17T21:31:00.001-08:00

So last night I woke up around 3 am I couldn't sleep. I really didn't get why I was awake and even chatted with a friend on Facebook who thought I was crazy for being up so early! She was up nursing her newborn and she told me to go SLEEP! It was kinda funny. When I finished talking with her I hear this little voice say......MOMMY?? MOMMY?? I need you. I thought at first I must be hearing things...then I crept quietly into Natey's room and sure enough, he did need me. He was calling me. The look on his face was priceless....what he said...more priceless....He looked so excited and happy to see me. Then he said, "Mommy! You heard me, ahh I love you so much mama. Thank you for coming. I just need you and a hug and I will feel better." So I hugged him and asked him if he wanted to come into bed with mommy and daddy to which he replied, "No mommy, you can go now. I big boy, I OK."

The other day I was trying to get Zachy out the door. He kept asking me where his shoes were....and any mom out there knows this story...you tell them where the items are that they are looking for and they say that they can't see it. Well, his shoes were literally RIGHT NEXT to his feet. Here is how the conversation went:
Z: Mom, I can't find my shoes...where are they??
Me: Um, Zachy, really? They are RIGHT NEXT TO YOU. If they were a snake it would have bitten you by now!!!
Z: MOM, if it was a snake I would have seen it and I would have told you what kind of snake it was!!

OMG...seriously? What a crack up, yet so typical of being a mother to boys!!

I marvel at the difference...

2010-02-12T15:04:00.000-08:00

You know how they say, "Every child is different"? Well, gosh, that statement is amazingly true of my children. I think it hits me because I have learned over and over and over again that no matter how many times "they" say something, it doesn't usually matter until it happens to you. You may nod and agree from time to time at the different sentiments, or you may even use them when talking, but really, when you experience the sentiment, it really does make the difference.

I was this sentiment in my family too. I am a twin. People always assumed my sister and I were the same...nope! Couldn't be farther from the truth. We were just as different in our personalities as we are in looks! If you haven't seen my sister, we are soo different in looks. Same goes for my kids....Let me make a list....

Coordination-I noticed this yesterday as a matter of fact. Zachy is so NOT coordinated and Nathan is beyond coordinated. Zachy would swing and miss a ball on a T at baseball. Nate will nail it every time. Nathan has been riding skateboards since about 6 months ago and Zachy has still yet to learn how to do it!! Zachy can be a bit of a clutz...Nathan...not so much.

Mechanical things-Zachy is very mechanical...he loves the computer, video games and anything to do with math. Nathan...well figuring things out like building legos or playing games not his forte.

Generosity-Zachy is the type of kid who would give the shirt off his back if someone needed it. Nathan....well lets just say that he would give it, but only if the person asks him first! LOL

Food-Nathan will eat most anything. He is becoming more picky, but he eats meat and LOVES it. Zachy, well he is a vegetarian by choice...he hates meat and has for a few years now. We have had to be creative with his protein!

Health-Zachy is the boy who should live in the plastic bubble (ok not really, but at times it feels this way!!) and Nathan besides his throat thing, he is very healthy and has no other issues.

Type A Personality...I think both boys are outgoing and very sweet. Nathan is my total type A kid. He will be the one who will put gray hair on my head, which when I say this, I totally mean it because he is just that kid! Zachy....after we got his ADHD working, he is quite the mellow kid.

Despite their many differences, my boys idolize each other and love being together. They are precious and special to me. I love getting to see them grow up and enjoy learning about these little people all the time!

9 years ago today.....

2010-02-10T12:45:00.000-08:00

I married my best friend, my soul mate, my prince charming and the love of my life! I still remember the day like it was yesterday and in fact, it sure does feel that way! I can say that I totally get how people say time flies and just keeps flying!! It sure does.

Even in the toughest of times, one thing is for sure...Eric and I have had each other. I adore the man he is, the husband he is to me and the daddy he is to our children. He has such a heart for God and I admire him so much. One thing that I heard a long long time ago in a sermon that our pastor taught about marriage was that your spouse needs to compliment you. What I mean by that is your spouse's weaknesses should be your strengths and vice versa. I have always held that sermon to heart because it made total sense then and our marriage emulates that in many ways. When Eric and I started dating it really was that way.unate to say that I have found my other half.

Before I ever dated Eric one of the things I prayed for was a man who would be an amazing father. Wow...he surpassed my expectations and then some. He is sooo good with our boys and our boys idolize him to pieces. In our tough world where families are spilting up and this being the norm, Eric and I pray all the time that we are an exception and not ever the rule in that regard.

One of my most favorite things about Eric is his heart. He is such a good man. He is hard to get to know at first as he has a tough exterior and doesn't let people in all that much. I have yet to figure out why he is this way, but regardless, once you pass that exterior, you get a man with a heart of gold who would do anything for anyone and who is a man of his word.

The Lord blessed Eric and I with each other and I feel blessed to be married to such a great guy! Here's to another 50 years my love!!!

The rationale of a 3 year old....

2010-01-31T20:49:00.000-08:00

So lately I have pondered the whole idea of what life would be like if we all acted like 3 year olds daily. I have come up these:

-People would be screaming and crying EVERYWHERE and ANYWHERE until they got their way
-Walking around in your underware would be the norm and not what you saved for being at home only!
-Eating what you want and when you want would be the motto about food
-Getting away with things just because you are cute would not be a special thing, it would happen ALL the time
-Having sticky fingers because you ate that piece of candy or something with gobs of sugar would not bother you, ever!
-Wiping your lunch face on your shirt would be the new fad!
-carrying a blanket around to chew, smell or cuddle would be the "cool" thing to do

Humm...those are only a few that I have come up with, but wow, can you imagine it?

God picked me and used me.....

2010-01-30T21:45:00.000-08:00

So my husband sat at karate watching Zachary participate in the events of the evening. Next to him sat a mom of a boy who just so happened to be standing by Zachary. I was not there as I was home with Nathan. A few minutes into the session, the little boy who stood by Zachary was doing all too familiar things that we had watched Zachy do pre-ADHD diagnosis. Eric sat and listened to the mother sigh and become frustrated. Soon the little boy started completely acting out and it was clear that he and Zachy should not stand together. Zachy handled it mostly well, but the other child was frustrated...and so were his parents. Eric quickly learned that the mom who was sitting next to us was the little's boy's mom. They soon struck up a little bit of a conversation discussing the boys and their ages, etc.

Eric came home that night and told me what happened. He said that he thinks that other little boy may be suffering from ADHD and not be diagnosed. It IS one of those things you NEVER bring up to the parents of a kid who just may have it. It hurts and no matter how you say it, it will not come out right. He told me that we should pray for them and that maybe God would open up a door for us to share with them.

The next night at karate, I took Zachy and Eric stayed home. He told me what the mom looked like and that they have a little one that is about Natey's age with blonde hair and blue eyes, only a girl. I sat down when I got to karate and a few minutes after me, in came the other family. The whole family, dad included. They sat right next to me. I wasn't quite sure it was them so I didn't say anything at first. As class started I knew it was them. The little boy's name was *Bobby. Bobby's mom started to sigh and get frustrated almost immediately. I so GOT and KNEW her frustration. Bobby was all over the place and not paying attention. Gosh it was so Zachy! Bobby went and again stood next to Zachy. He started again to do stuff. Only this time Zachy reacted to him (ugh!). The class is inside this room with Windows for the parents to watch through. I quickly was motioning to Zachy to STOP and BEHAVE. I gave him THAT LOOK....you know the look moms, the one we give our kids that if they don't mind, they are in for it when they are done or we leave?! Yup THAT LOOK. Zachy stood up straighter and paid attention to the Sensi and not to Bobby.

Bobby's mom chuckled and said, man if I only could do that. I giggled and said, well, if you only knew! I prayed this was my open door, but I was not about to say anything YET. She looked at me and said, oh, I so KNOW trust me. I looked at her and thought, well, maybe this is the door. I am going to share with her somewhat about Zachy. I began to share with her the rough road its been for us and how Zachy had just been diagnosed with ADHD and just how much of an impact it has made on his life and ours. I almost started crying sharing with her because it was so new and up until this point I was not one for talking about it with anyone (close friends included--which if you know me, I do talk about my feelings). But I knew God had placed us there two nights in a row for a reason and I wanted to share with her. I felt lead too. So, I kept going.

After a few minutes I was doing all the talking because she had asked me several questions. I stopped and asked her about her son and she told me all the same emotions that I had just gone through. We sat there the entire time and chatted back and forth. She asked me several questions that I had just had about my son. Everything she asked rang true about Zachy as well as Bobby. At the end she looked at me and just told me how thankful she was that I talked with her and shared with her about Zachy. She had told me that she was considering testing her son for it but the first time she did it, it was so stressful and it made her shy away from it. But after hearing all we had been through she said she agreed with me 100% when I told her that fighting for our kids was our right as mommies. Its something we have to do to protect their interests while they are small depending on us. Even if they are more difficult, they are still loved by us and God gave them to us for a reason.

The class time went by all too quickly and the kids were out of the class and in front of us asking to go home in no time. We said out goodbyes and as I was walking out, Bobby's dad pulled me aside and this is when I knew that God really does want us to know we are never alone in our struggles and he picked me to help them, just as I have had other mom's help me. Bobby's dad told me how grateful he was that I talked with his wife. He explained that she really needed the encouragement I gave her and he believed it was God who made our families meet. Turns out that this family is a christian family with the same morals and standards we are setting for our family. WOW,praise God we are not alone and God picked me and used me here in a way I never expected. But I have to say, it wasn't just me that God used, he used Eric too. Through this whole experience, I have seen how God has bonded Eric and I together and we are not only a stronger team together, but God used BOTH of us to minister to this family. What a gift and blessing!!!

The joy of exploration....

2010-01-27T20:21:00.000-08:00

I have watched and enjoyed so much seeing my kiddos grow. There is something about it that really just makes me marvel even more in God and his amazingness (lol is that even a word?). Zachary has this insane fascination with reptiles. I am not talking about just a regular interest level. No, I am talking INSANE FASCINATION. The kid eats, breathes and dreams about reptiles. Whats even funnier, is that we will plan things when we go places to stop and take the opportunity to teach him about different reptiles. Why? Because the kid really is enthralled with these animals.

I have recently introduced many aspects of the computer to Zachary. Before now, I just didn't really want him on it. I just felt he was too little and he has so many more years to be on the computer. But lately books, movies, or tv shows aren't really doing it. So now, just about every day, we will explore the reptile world online. I so enjoy looking at the world through his eyes. When he was a baby and just learning to walk and look at the interesting things around him, I used to joke how even looking at ants with him was exciting. I am really feeling the same way about reptiles....How funny is that? If you run into him, ask him what his favorite reptile is. You will be amazed at the answers that come out of his mouth. Not typical, I will say that!

Then there is Nathan. Oh man, that kid has me on my toes so much. He will always have me guessing!! He is in love with scaring himself and those around him. Especially with Scooby Doo. Scooby Doo has a lot of scary ghosts and OF COURSE since Nathan likes to scare everyone, this is his most favorite thing. Even cuter than that, he will run behind the couch or behind a toy to hide from a couple parts in different shows if they are remotely scary. It is a crack up! I was encouraged by a few people to enter his picture (the one on my facebook page with him teasing with his fingers and tounge) into the cutest baby of the year contest. I think he is the cutest, but will this show? Humm....when I looked on the website there were DOZENS (and I mean DOZENS) of cute little boys named Nathan. I am hoping the picture will make him stand out!! There were so many cute kids on that site that I have no idea how these people pick the kiddos who win. Oh well, we entered, lets see what happens :-)

My son and ADHD...

2010-01-15T13:07:00.000-08:00

This is a very personal post and part of the reason I have stopped blogging for a while. I believe that God doesn't make mistakes EVER and we never know why we have to go through certain things. While we may never know why we have to go through tough situations in our lifetime, one thing I have learned over several years is that its important to share with others our experience so on that off chance that someone else is going through the same thing, they will know that they are not alone and though their experience may not be exactly like mine, it might help to know some stuff, help answer any questions and also they are not the only ones to experience something like this. So anyhow, here is a glimpse into my world....

For several years I often wondered if I was just a terrible mother or what the heck Eric and I weren't doing or were doing to our sweet child. I watched other mommies with their kids and they seemed to listen, not be impulsive and just a lot easier. I felt so inadequate with being a mom because I would always get "the look" from people because my son was not listening or just being a B.R.A.T. People made several comments and also gave wayyy too much unsolicited advice on how to parent my sweet boy. All the while I knew that their intentions were always to try to help, however, my self esteem as a mom was diminishing. There were several times Eric and I would look at each other and think, wow, what do we do? What I knew then and what I know now is that no matter the struggles I had with my son, I loved him deeply and I knew there had to be a reason why I was going through this struggle and God would reveal it to me one day.

Kindergarten was a rough year all the way around for Zachy and for us. It was just hard and there were many times I was heart broken and many tears that fell for both him and us. I know there are times for all mommies when we look at our kids and think...who are you and where did you come from. For me, I thought that wayyy to much. I started to get really sad because I felt gosh how am I not reaching my son? How can I as his mother not know how to help him? Next to one other time in my life, it was the most helpless I have ever felt. Being a mom, one of the things I have been able to do pretty well was anticipate things and get things done. In this situation, I was NEVER prepared! Being the planner I am, gosh that was hard.

So without going through the many stories from Kindergarten, I will just say that it was a rough school year AND being that we moved right after the school year to a new school district, I thought, ok well this forced change might just be good for Zachy. The new school year started and once again I found myself in the SAME place again. At my son's annual physical, almost in tears, I begged his pediatrician to help me. I told him without going into detail that in my heart I knew something was wrong and that I was tired, hurting and struggling so much and that we needed help. He looked at me and told me that we didn't need his blessing, that we could just make an appointment with the psychology department. What? Really? OK!

So...that phone call was hard mainly because I was wondering what if this does not help him, then what? But I was at the end of my rope and felt that if I didn't do something or get him some help he would end up being a kid by the time he was in the 3rd grade HATING school and not having any success. Which seemed even harder.

We went to a few appointments regarding our first appointment and what we might discover, what to expect and answer our questions. To me at first it felt like a lot of blah blah blah...I know those appts are for a reason, but for us, I just wanted to get to the point! The waiting was so hard. But the day came that we had his appointment with his doctor and I was nervous and hopeful. The appointment was pretty much what they said it would be and I will say that it felt like somewhat like the movies....we walked into the office and there was a sofa in the office along with a desk and a chair. I thought it was very stereotypical of what a psychologist office would be like. Zachy's doctor was also very much the stereotype as well. He asked a lot of questions and we talked A LOT. If you know me, that part was not hard. The hardest part for me was fighting back the tears. I know it may sound so lame, but being able to express everything without fear of judgment or unsolicited advice actually felt good and very SAFE.

So...after all the questions and the doc talking with Zachy for a while he told me that he had a possible diagnosis...ADHD....I had a suspicion that is what he would say, but when he said it, I dunno, it just felt better to know that we could get him help. He said that we have to go through a few more hurdles and there were a few big decisions to make regarding how to treat him, but for the most part the hard stuff was behind us. Again, after he said that, I fought the urge to run over to him and hug him and tell him THANK YOU for listening and explaining so much about what we were to be expecting in the upcoming months. I did just sit there, but I pictured that whole scene in my head...LOL.

I am going to fast forward a bit...after the initial appointment and diagnosis, we kept a lot of it quiet and only told family and close friends. I was just scared to once again hear comments that would not be helpful and make me question our decisions. I became a sponge regarding treatment options for children with ADHD and what to expect. I talked to many different people who dealt with children with ADHD and what they saw once the different treatment options had begun. For Eric and I we just wanted to make sure we knew exactly what we were going to do and move forward with it....once we did the we felt the hugest weight be lifted off our shoulders.

After a month of the treatment we saw so many changes in him and us. For me personally I was enjoying him again. I could have conversations with him, I could watch him and his brother play without breaking up a fight every 2 seconds and the list goes on. School became so very different for him and us. The biggest and neatest thing that happened about 6 weeks into treatment! We received a letter from his school to come to an awards ceremony for the kids. We thought it was just like in kindergarten....all the parents go and every kid gets an award. We decided to still make this a priority because we wanted him to know how much we loved and supported him. We all went to watch Zachy and in my mind I hoped he was getting a reward :-). I had no clue what we were about to experience...

We got to the school and went into the cafeteria and sat down. All the first grade classes were there already sitting down on the floor. There were only two rows of chairs for parents set up. I was shocked...I know other parents have to work, but there was only one or maybe two other parents there. So I was like ok what was I missing. We sat down and I had my camera ready. The teachers began to talk to the kids and us. As they began to talk we realized that Zachy was winning an award for being student of the month. Zachy's teacher began to talk about Zachy and how well he was doing in school and how in the last month she has seen him make wonderful choices and be quite the example. I sat there looking at my son standing by his teacher and fought back tears once again, but not because I was sad, frustrated or because I felt hopefless, but because I could not have been more proud of him. Zachy stood up there and he was so proud and so excited. It was such a neat moment for him and for us.

In my next post, I will share a neat story of how God uses all situations for good to encourage and uplift other people if we are willing.....

New Year, New Happenings....

2010-01-01T08:50:00.001-08:00

I haven't blogged in a while and really my only excuse is just life. Its been hectic, crazy and interesting. We have been through so much as a family and we are eager to start fresh with a new year. Lets start with some updates:

Eric
He just recently found a job. We are so thankful. He is hoping to get back to school this year to finish the three classes and get his BA. I am hoping he gets it too. I think that has been a huge stumbling block for him in finding the right job!

Nathan
His 3rd Christmas was blessed. We loved watching him open presents and really get into the holiday. He sang and sang all the Christmas carols. It was adorable. He cracks me up with his personality and his quick wit for being 3. He is very feisty (humm wonder where he gets that from?) and opinionated. He is constantly keeping me and others on their toes. One of his most recent stunts was at my parents new house. He has had this cold/flu thing on and off and we Zachy was invited to a friend's bday party. So he stayed with my mom because I wanted him to get a nap. So, my mom laid him down for a nap in her bedroom and what does the stinker do? well, he goes and gets papa's cough drops, unwraps every single one and then tries to eat one. He then runs out to grandma and pleads with her to get him a "wipe" to clean his tongue because of the Menthol. LOL I must say that I am enjoying him and watching him be in awe of his big bro. They really are two peas in a pod.

Zachy
His news is the biggest. I am going to do a post specifically on the biggest part of news regarding him after this post. Currently we have him in karate and his most recent success was making it to yellow belt. He is adorable and its fun to watch him get into karate. I love this karate place because it is really all about the kids and they encourage and nurture the kids in a very neat way. Honestly, watching it gets me so excited. Zachy loves his Sensei's and I am excited to watch Zachy learn even more as he travels the road to his black belt.

Me
I am still looking for the right place to land my feet in terms of work. I am waiting for God's timing and direction. Its really hard to do that though and I often find myself getting frustrated and impatient with the whole process. I used to think I could basically find a job anywhere but now, after countless applications, I am just as frustrated as I saw my husband be for over a year. I don't get it but I am really trying to be patient and focus on God and wait for his timing and where he wants me to be. I am still doing photography and had a blast this year for the holidays.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY SWEET BOY NATHAN!

2009-10-04T06:01:00.000-07:00

I wrote this post yesterday but didn't get to post it until today.....

Three years ago today....Me, family and friends (it takes a village right?!) welcomed sweet baby Nathan to this world. Here are some pics and comments from that day:

First, here is a recent pic of my blonde haired cutie with his big bro.....

I was soooo excited to meet him! Here I am getting ready to walk into the maternity ward at the hospital! Whoo Hoooo!!!
Before I got changed, I posed for a pre-baby out of my tummy pic....
I just love this pic of Eric and I with my belly!
Eric all ready to go meet his son!
It was here :-)
12:36 pm 8 pounds 1 ounce, 21 inches long....we welcomed sweet baby Nate!
Yeah, he was not happy about it!
Welcome to the world sweet baby boy!!!

Proud Daddy holding his son for the first time!
This was an emotional moment for me....I was getting to see him for the first time after coming out of recovery.....I wanted to wait a minute and just look at him before picking him up....just looking at this picture reminds me of all those emotions I felt that moment....

Showing off his precious boy to a some of the family!
My mom and Natey meeting for the first time...
Cute toes!
Uncle Toddy and Natey...
Eric's mom holding Nate for the first time....
This was adorable...Zachy was sooo excited to meet his brother! He brought him a present!

Auntie Julie...I was fortunate to have her by my side for both of my son's births! She took all the wonderful pictures!
My dad and Natey!
I got LOTS of presents in the hospital...it was FUN!
Sarah and Natey!
Ahh my sweet baby boy....

Remembering that day brings tears to my eyes...it was a special day...one I didn't think I would get to experience again. After loosing some babies to miscarriage, Eric and I felt so blessed to be given our second miracle! What a gift.

Daddy celebrated with Natey this morning and took him and Zachy to breakfast. They went to Natey's favorite....IHop. I was working so I couldn't join them. After I got done working, we took the boys for the rest of the day to the Aquarium of the Pacific...Natey loves fish and boats, so the kiddo was in heaven. Tomorrow we will celebrate him with a small party of friends and family.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET BABY BOY! YOU BRING ME MORE JOY EVERYDAY I GET TO BE YOUR MAMA!

Blog slacker...

2009-09-29T18:44:00.000-07:00

Well gosh, its been a while...ok, its been quite the long while!! I have had so much going on that blogging was kind of on the back burner for me. But tonight i am hanging with the kids and the hubby and its quite the quiet night, so I thought I would catch up on my blog...lets do some updates here....

Nathan....
Gosh that little guy is getting insanely big! In fact he turns 3 on Saturday! I can't believe it and seriously its bitter sweet. He is such a fun kiddo and boy have the last few months been crazy! He is pretty much potty trained. Minus the times when he drops his underware and pees where he wants. I have seriously gone through wayyyy too many carpet cleaners (yes I have kept count-5 bottles so far!) in this time. It has been gross...I don't know any other kiddo that drops his drawers and pees where he wants...LOL oh wait...his older brother did that a few times in PUBLIC when he was little! Where do they get this from? I have NO clue, they DO NOT learn it at home. Those of you reading this are probably laughing, but ugh, its gross! Other than the potty training excitement, he is doing so many more fun things now days. He talks wayyy too much and really has an opinion about EVERYTHING. Its so funny. He also throws tantrums from time to time which are awesome. I laugh because I wish we had a video recorder to get these recorded. They are ridiculously funny! He is also auditioning for a Gap commercial and a modeling agency wants to see him on Friday, which is kinda cool.

Zachy....
A lot has been going on with Zachy. My sweet baby started 1st grade. I LOVE LOVE LOVE his new school. I have enjoyed talking to the other moms when I drop off Zachy at school. He isn't so huge this year compared to last year in the height department. He still is the tallest in the class but not by much. I don't know if it is the demographics of where we moved to or what, but he isnt the huge, stand out kid anymore which is nice. Zachy is still in karate and doing well. He has 5 stripes on his belt, which is so cool. We decided to not let him test for the next belt because we don't think he is ready. They test every so often and we are considering putting Natey in karate as well, so holding him back might allow the boys to be together in the class. Zachy also soo wants to start swimming. He asks me like once or twice a month if he could take a swimming or diving class. Ever since he saw the swimming and diving events (I LOVE TO WATCH THOSE and remember they days when I competed) from the Olympics he has wanted to do both.

Eric and I are both still actively seeking employment. I have been very forunate to keep busy with my jewelry and photography which has helped. I had an interview yesterday for a wonderful job with Edison. Which would be so cool if I got it. I have to wait about 2 weeks until I hear, so please pray for me. I have always wanted to be a stay at home mom, but for some reason God keeps opening doors for me to be working. I would sooo love to work for a company like Edison because its stable and I know several people who work there and LOVE It. So we will see what happens.

10K, potty and job updates.....

2009-08-08T19:39:00.000-07:00

Well gosh, remember how much I said I hated running? Well, that hasn't changed, but it is proving to be a great workout. Right now my legs feel like jello....I am doing a lot of wall squats as well, so I am sure that is adding to it. I am still having a tough time running distances...when I say distances, 1/2 a mile is hard for me. I am up to about 1/3 of a mile without stopping. But I am trying hard. I am going to extend this week for another week because I am not confident for next week. Next week you have to be able to run 2 miles without stopping. Kinda tough in my opinion because that just seems like a major jump. I am not doing this to run in any race, so I am ok with taking my time and getting there when I get there.

Week 2- Days 10, 11, 12
Day 10 was a rest day and Day 11 & 12 were run days. Today (D12) I felt more ready to run....not sure if the taking the day off makes a difference, but my legs didn't feel so heavy and I felt more like i could run. I am still not seeing a difference in my body yet. I know its only day 12, but a girl can dream right?? I am excited its almost week 2. I think me blogging about it and talking about it with friends is really making me stick with it!

Oh the potty training. We are doing OK. Natey has had an average of one to two accidents a day but actually telling us when he has to pee. Pooping is another story and that will take a while I think. Today Eric noticed that he had to poop cause he was standing still and straining. He hurried him to the potty and sat there with him for about 25 minutes. He never pooped. Grrr. He has been waking up from naps and in the morning with poopy diapers...so I just feel like it will take a while with the poop. But we have come a long way and I am proud of him! Potty training is such hard work!

I am super excited about an opportunity that has presented itself for Eric. About a year and a half ago his best friend was talking to him about looking into the construction industry. He thought, it was worth a shot and went down to the union office and it had just so turned out that they were having an open testing in a few days so the lady urged him to fill the paperwork out and get it right back because they were about to close everything. So after looking over all the paperwork he decided to test for the building inspector position. He tested and made one of the top spots! We were thrilled. Well, all the letters they sent us stated that he did a great job testing and when the next class opened up he would be one of the people invited to join. The downside? Yeah there are a few. One being that the training is unpaid, but once you complete everything you will be working. At the time they told us it was 4-6 months of training before you would be working.

A few weeks ago he got a call from the recuriter for the position to see if he was still interested int he position. OF COURSE he was! The recuriter told him that he has to go for a drug test and once that is completed the training will start in August. We kinda held our breath because this came out of NO WHERE....1 1/2 years later? WOW! Could this really be happening? We kinda kept it on the downlow because we weren't sure if we should be excited or not. Well, when Eric went for the drug test there was a mini orientation for him and the other peeps. The recuriter went through the pay and basically explained how everything worked. This guy told him that after this class he would be working in the start of the new year. We were thrilled. BEYOND thrilled. FINALLY! Something was working out in our favor! So he got his schedule and he started the training today.

I could tell he was excited about training because his alarm went off and he was right out of bed. If you know Eric he NEVER does this!!! He went to the training and the instructor kinda dropped a bomb...the bomb was that this training will take a year to complete and there is no pay until this is all done. He has to pass a bunch of certification tests to be able to walk on most job sites. A WHOLE YEAR? He texted me and was very discouraged. I tried to be positive and asked him to talk to the instructor on break to get clarification. So he talked to the instructor and he told Eric that it was in fact a year but if he could suck it up and maybe get something small until all this was over he would have a great future with this job. This job has been very solid and good even in this recession. Not to mention the benefits are awesome. So he will still continue to look but we will just pray that this next year goes by incredibly fast!!! I am excited but afraid to breathe a little too because it seems like such a fit for him.

Whew...that was tough! x2

2009-08-05T16:53:00.000-07:00

Ok...so I have to post a funny from yesterday because I don't want to forget this and I want to share this with Natey when he is raising his own kiddos! Last night I went out with some girlfriends for girls night out and it was a blast. I truly am blessed with the women in my life! Anyhow, I digress...Eric was home with the kids and his brother Taylor was over hanging out. Well, Zachy has karate on Tuesday nights and its hard to take Nathan because he is an animal wanting to go in the studio with the karate kids AND he is potty training right now, so Eric asked Taylor if he would stay with him for 45 minutes or so while he took Z to karate. No problem....WAIT...yes a problem....remember I said Natey is POTTY TRAINING....accidents DO happen when you PT! Apparently he took Natey potty and he had a success....he peed. He did fantastic yesterday. Well the second time Taylor went to take him he pulled his underware down to put him on the potty and he didn't notice until Nathan's underware was off that he pooped! Taylor is 23 and has NO CLUE about changing poop or anything like that. LOL, Well, he tried to clean him with toliet paper (sounds logical since there was a bathtub right next to the toliet, right?). That didn't go over well and kept sticking to Nathan....oh man I am laughing as I am writing this. So, Taylor cleans up Nathan best he can (um he really didn't for fear it would get on his hands) and then just put a diaper on him. LOL So when Eric got home he had to do damage control....which Eric cleaning up poop is just about as funny as Taylor except Eric knows to use wipes or the bathtub!

Day 9- Week 2 Day 2
Whew...the whole time I just didnt want to do it today. I was tired...I hardly slept last night and had a crazy day this morning and well I was just wiped out. After all the encouragement on my FB page and from my friends and especially my husband, I felt I couldn't NOT do it. So I put one foot in front of the other dispite my attitude and started. Today, I stopped 7 times (which is one less than yesterday) and I finished in 28 minutes and 35 seconds....that is because I ran a little further today. Go me. I also did some wall squats, planks and push ups afterwards...not a lot but some and now, my body is shaking and I am D.O.N.E. BUT, I got through it and I am so glad I did it and didn't stop.

I have been pondering this whole plan and talking it over a lot with one of my friends who is also doing this with me and I am not sure if I will finish this plan or do a combination of a different plan. I am leaning towards finishing what I started regardless of how I do. I am not trying to get a fast time at all...I am doing this to finish. I am going to repeat weeks if I have to if I don't feel I can really finish the current week...meaning...if I can't run the entire time I am susposed to, then I think repeating the week will be in the cards. I feel if I can't finish without stopping in the running sessions, then how will I move on? So, I am highly considering this and will see how I progress towards the end of this week before I make my decision. If I stick with this program I don't want to alter it too much because its a proven method. I am not seeing the benefits yet, only feeling the pain. I am sore and I know it takes a few weeks before you see your reward, so I will be patient. Just a little hard to understand why its so hard to take off weight when its so easy to gain! But anything that is worth something in this life is usually not easy. That road is usually tough! Just look at Jesus' life and all he did!

New hope and the start of week 2...

2009-08-04T12:16:00.001-07:00

Day 7....I took off cause I was just tired and didn't feel up to it....The program recommends 4-6 days and I successfully completed 5 so I was happy.

Week 2 plan:

(4-6 times)=2 miles

Jog 1/4 mile (one lap) then

walk 1/8 mile (half lap)

Jog 1/2 mile (2 laps)

Walk 1/4 mile

Jog 1/4 mile

Walk 1/8 mile

Jog 1/2 mile then go home

W2 D1=week 2 day 1
*Wow...it kicked my butt, but I finished it....I did it in 29 minutes and 10 seconds...it would have been a faster time but I had to take it down to a walk the last 1/8 of the last 1/2 mile...i just couldn't do it...maybe tomorrow! I am proud of myself!!!

Hope for Natey....today we have had 5...count it...1...2....3....4....5 successes on the potty! Can you believe it? Seriously, I can not believe I am writing it, but he did pee every time we took him and the look on his face was priceless and will forever be etched in my heart...he is so proud of himself each and every time....Now...if we can only get him to tell us when he has to go pee!!

I have other news to share, but I need to run for now....God is amazing and I honestly can not believe i got through today on the tredmill! Go me!

About ready to throw in the towel and Day 6....

2009-08-02T20:45:00.000-07:00

Day 6....this was the same as all the other days...got my but kicked and I am feeling discouraged about next week. It jumps up to 2 miles....Wowie...I have been considering the fact that instead of ten weeks, it might take me 20. I might do each week twice just to give myself time. I dunno...I am going to give next week a chance, but we shall see. My body is starting to feel better...I am sore but only from the stuff I have been doing afterwards not the running. I guess it makes me sad that I am THAT out of shape. One day at a time I know....at least that is what I am telling myself anyhow.

Potty training....I just don't understand why he won't go on the potty....seriously countless pee accidents and only one success. Somehow I thought the first time he actually went and he got to see how excited we were about the fact he went on the big boy potty he would get excited enough to keep going...Um, not so much. We will keep trying but I counted the undies in the wash and there was 10 pairs from yesterday and today (and we were not home all day today, so he wore pull ups!). I want to see the light at the end of the tunnel....

Day 5 and pooping on thomas.....

2009-08-01T21:14:00.000-07:00

Ok, so today was day 5 of my Couch to 10K. i was reminded today how much I hate running! LOL. I don't know if it was because I did it later in the day or if it was because I skipped a day. Whatever the case, ugh! I am glad i did it, but was hating it while I did it! I did better and only stopped once. Time was still the same but I added more stuff after the run/walk. Feeling good but so wanting to feel better about this!!! I keep repeating the verse...I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH! LOL Yes, I am really that out of shape!

Potty training...yes, we had a success today, but we pooped in our pants twice today :-(. It was not fun...but we did have one success today....weeeeee...hopefully tomorrow will be a better day! It was funny case the pee grosses Nathan out. He does not like the wet underware and always comes to tell me he peed. Well today we were out in the back yard re-filling his water table when I was overwhelmed with the smell of poop....I asked him if he pooped on thomas and percy and he said no but then I just in case looked and was thinking...oh man, how do I clean this? LOL I haven't done this in a few years, so it was like a fish out of water with the poop. Ewwww!!! Changing a poopy diaper is one thing, but poopy underware??!!! YUCK!

I was reminded how awesome my mom is today from the experience I went through. She didn't even know I thought of her and thanked Jesus once again for her, but today made me think about her even more and what she goes through on a daily basis. My younger sister (for those of you who don't know) has cerbreal palsy. My mom has raised her and taken care of her ever since she was orn. She never has put her in a home or had anyone else come and do it. The reason this reminded me of my mom today is that my mom cleans up after my sister in this manner every single day....4-6 times (sometimes even more) daily. She does it without complaining and has the best attitude about it. If only I can be that type of mom to never complain and embrace every accident and never be grossed out! I am BEYOND blessed with my mom and her example every single day. I look up to her in so many ways and mom if you are reading this, know that you are amazing!! What you do for both Kelly and Sarah is a gift!! I love you!

I am so looking forward to church tomorrow....we are learning abou Generation 1 and one of the things is we are having church in homes tomorrow...so our small group is hosting one of the locations and I am so looking forward to it. Our small group was out for July and we are going to get back into the swing of things starting this week. Yay! Small groups are really awesome and I am feeling so blessed to be a part of ours!

Day three, Day Four, 4 stripes and peeing on the potty!

2009-08-01T11:45:00.001-07:00

Ok....so we have been at this whole potty routine for several days and its been this.....

"uh oh, I pee peed on Diego!"
"no pee pee on general grievous"
"ohhhh I pee peed on thomas"
"I pee peed on darth vador"

Yes....not one success...countless trips to the potty and cleaning up wet spots on the carpet. Or I would find little puddles outside (lol this was my fave!). I have been rewarding him for trying with 2 M's. First day we went every 15 minutes....yeah that was fun...setting the timer on the stove and constantly re-enforcing him! Until.....TODAY...he was sitting on the potty and Eric and I hear...I pee peed on the big potty! Eric goes in there and sure enough...he did! Whooo hoooo we had our first success. Somehow in my mind I thought for sure if he got his first success that would be it...LOL boy am I am wishful thinker! 20 minutes later (I was giving him 30 minutes before making him sit on there again) he was outside playing with his bubble maker when I hear faintly "oh no i pee peed on the general". Sure enough I see a small puddle underneath him....DANG IT! We are going to keep trying...we STILL have the first success underneath us!

Day 3 & 4 of Couch to 10K....

Day three....I was feeling good and looking forward to doing it. Melissa....you commented on my first entry on this...so I thought I would tell you....it takes me 16 minutes to complete my mile with the way its set up. Not going to win any world records, but its a start! I usually make myself go the full 20 minutes because I want to make sure I am at least giving myself 20 minutes on the tredmill. After I ran on Day 3 I was TIRED. I only had to stop 2 times, which was a big deal! Again, I HATE to run...HATE IT! I am very nervous about next week because it goes up to 2 miles...which honestly seems like a lot! But I am not ready to give up!

Day 4....I didn't run today...I helped my parents move some stuff and I was wiped out by the end of the day. So....back to hitting the tredmill on Day5.

Ohhhh Zachy and his karate....he did so well at his stripe testing!! He got 4 stripes. I am so proud of him! This is so good for his confidence and he is loving it! He got an award for his first belt. Next time I will have some pictures...YAY ZACHY!

Couch to 10K

2009-07-29T10:42:00.000-07:00

Ok...so, my dear friend Sarah has been doing this thing called "Couch to 10K". I asked her to send me a copy of the plan...I have a treadmill and I figured, what the heck...I need to get rid of this jelly belly! Well I read it and thought...ugh...I HATE running. Seriously...I hate running so much, that is why I have loved to swim and competed in high school and college. I did the opposite to get away from it. Sarah gave this to me well over a week ago and it took me all of that time to get up the courage to actually start something.

Anyways...today is day two of this plan. I am going to give it all I can to stick with it. I am intimidated by week two, but I am not going to let it beat me! I miss going to the gym. Our gym passes expired so running or DVDs have to be my thing. I am choosing running for now.

Week One- 4-6 days do the following:
walk 1/4 mile, run 1/4, walk 1/4, run 1/4

Ok so Day one....yesterday...I did exactly as it said but had to stop 4 times breifly while running. It was my first day and it took me 16 minutes to get through it.

Day two....today...same as yesterday only I stopped twice! So I got better.

I am focusing on the end result of feeling better and not being tired all the time. being overweight and lazy has gotten me where I am today. I want to be better for myself and my family! I don't want my kids to ever feel this way...so I am starting now so I can keep up with them!

My favorite part of the whole thing is this....in our third bedroom we have our computer and our treadmilll....Eric has this iPod full of awesome music and I blasted some worship music and spent the whole time praising Jesus. What a great break for me and wonderful time worshiping Jesus. I am actually looking forward to tomorrow's time!

Now that I have put it out there, I have to stick to this right? LOL...I SO HOPE I WILL!

The funny things kids do...

2009-07-28T07:01:00.000-07:00

I have to blog about these things Nathan has done this week because I don't want to forget how much he made me laugh...he is certainly "dennis the menace" but a darn cute one!!!

*One morning last week he was walking around with his spiderman chair over his head screaming, ok, proclaiming.....I HAVE A WIENER!! He must have said it 20 times and the entire time I was dying...I was trying to ignore it because knowing him if he saw me laughing he would keep doing it and that would be the LAST thing I would want him to do in public. But it was dang funny!

*Yesterday he came up to me and said...Mommy I play hide and seek with you. I thought it was the cutest thing. Of course, he always hid and I always seeked. On one occassion he got the garage door (from house to garage) open and hid behind some boxes in the pitch black garage! I couldn't believe it. I was searching for him everywhere...I didnt hear him open the door...I thought he was hiding in the hall closet! I looked and looked and he hid and hid. I was calling him at one point saying...mommy isn't playing anymore because he would not come out. I went into the garage turned on the light and looked for him...didn't see him. As I was walking out I heard what I thought was a giggle...so I paused and stayed still and out of sight to him. Sure enough the stinker was crouching down behind some boxes and he thought it was hysterical. When is a 2 year old not afraid of the dark???

*He was drinking water and runs up to me and says through jarbled words...Mommy, look, I make bubbles in my throat. after him saying it for a few times I figured out what he was trying to tell me. The kid was garggling! He thought it was the coolest thing to gargle! LOL

*On Sunday while at a bbq we were swimming. I was in the pool with him when he decided to take off his floaties and try to swim. Um, the kid can't swim, but he thinks he can. After about 100 heart attacks I decided for my health that we were getting out. He refused to wear the floaties...he had no fear...ran and jumped into the pool and even if left under water for a little bit he always came out with a smile. The kid is a crack up, but I think will be an even more of a wild card then I ever thought Zachy was! Argh!

Sharing a room....

2009-07-23T19:24:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I am sorry its taken a while to get here to blog about the boys sharing a room. I will say it has had its ups and downs!! let me take you on the journey....

So...the first night we decided to let them be together was the last night in the old house. Eric and I had planned our move out to the point where all the beds were taken apart and we all slept on mattresses the last night so we could save the time the next day. So, we thought it would be like a little campout for the boys in Zachy's room. he has a tent in there (from Nathan's ride a long train (its actually a tunnel, but they call it a tent). We thought we would make a BIG deal about it and it would be so fun for them. Oh man were we GREATLY mistaken. Zachy was awesome...tried to be the big brother and he was so excited to have natey sleep in his room. Nathan....oh man he wanted NOTHING to do with Zachy or the shared room thing. All I kept thinking was, maybe I WAS right in thinking that they needed thier own space. See, Eric and I went back and forth on this issue. I really wanted them to have thier own space by each having their own room and he thought it would be great for them to share a room for mulitple reasons. I dunno maybe I secretly had this territorial thing since i shared a room all my childhood with my twin sister. Or, I just liked that the boys were separate. Whatever the case, I just wasn't too keen on it. What changed my mind was a conversation I had with Zachy. He was so excited about our new house and I asked him the one thing he wanted most in the new house and he told me that it would be to share a room with his brother.

So after Nathan had scramed and cried and pitched a fit the first night, I thought...its settled, they both are getting their own rooms in the new house. Of course that was in my mind. In Eric's mind, this was just a bump in the road. We eventually separated the boys and let them have their last night in the old house in their own bedrooms....what a night that was....

The day of the move, Eric told me that he really wanted the boys to share a room and asked that we give it another try....if it didn't work out he would switch them up himself. Oh ok...that is fine we will try it again. I am the first one to say that usually the first time you try with kids isn't the successful time! You have to try and try...So we moved in and the first night was good and hard. Nathan has proven to be the social butterfly between my kids. He was so excited to have Zachy be in his room and he kept talking to him. Zachy is my sleeper and he wanted to sleep but Nathan would not let him until 10ish! YIKES. That is late...especially for Z. Z likes his sleep....Eric finally went in there and gave them the dad talk and they went to sleep...finally.

Its been good so far minus the early early morning wakings. Nathan was up at 5:20 this morning and I wanted to scream! I am so tired and how can he not be? I had school last night and Eric said that Nathan would not go to bed...he was up! And he woke up early??? Grrr...isn't he susposed to be tired?

Now our plan is to put our social butterfly to bed first and then Zachy will go to bed once he is asleep. Its working out, minus the mornings when I want to sleep in (ok sleeping in is until 6:30, but hey, I like my sleep!).

Updates, updates...time for some updates...

2009-07-11T22:06:00.000-07:00

Ok...so millions of things have been going on with us lately. In fact sooo much...I will try to make a list to talk about them each...I probably wont get to all of them...you know how that goes!!

*As most of you know we were living in a rental property and we were told that they sold the property. We loved living where we were living and were emensely saddened when our landlord told us that the house was sold. I think after the shock wore off, we were left with...OMG we have to find another place to live. We prayed and prayed that God would put us in the right house because we have many obstacles to overcome. Well, just as God always does for Eric and I, he provided a beautiful house in a great neighborhood. It literally came within days of us having to be out. We were really scared we would have no place to go and quite honestly, i thought I was stressed out before....good lord this took the cake! GEEZ. My awesome and amazing husband told me to trust the lord during the whole process, but I tend to freak out and panic about things because I like to have my ducks in a row. LOL, um God showed me who was boss, let me tell you!!!

We looked at this house and the realtor was super nice and fell in love with our kids. She kept telling me how sweet they were. Of course that melted my heart. I told Eric that I really did like this house, but the price was too high. So we turned it down. I gave the realtor all my info in case something had changed. Three days before we were to be out of our old house, I got an email from the realtor asking me if we were still looking and telling me that the landlord decided to lower the rent...to exactly what we felt would be fair for the house. Um, does anyone know how awesome it made me feel that God handled this? WOW! We looked and looked and even applied for a few houses. Only to not be picked for a few that we LOVED! Other candidates we liked more than us (that was a bigger blow then I was prepared for). Our bible study group prayed over us to find the perfect house and jobs. Practically the whole time I sat quietly in tears because my life just has felt so out of control for a long time. Its really amazing how when you finally realize how not in control of your life you are, how unsettling and how much of a nutzo you can be! I praise the lord everyday for my husband because that man has kept me sane!

We really are happy and are excited about hopefully planting our roots for a while at our new nest. I say that because we thought we would be at our old house for a long time and wow...that didn't happen. This house is super homey and just the right size for our family. Thank you JESUS!

*Nathan and Zachary are now sharing a room! Zachy has been talking about it for a while and I finally gave in. I will do a complete blog entry on this alone because this is a fun story to share!

*My parents are moving. I am so heartbroken for me but overjoyed for my parents. They currently live in a mobile home that is about 15 minutes away from me. I will say that beyond measure having them be so close has been the ultimate blessing for me and my kiddos. I adore and love my parents more than anything. My parents really want to go back into owning their own home again and they are moving up to Victorville where the home prices are amazingly low. I know they will be happy there. I have several friends and a sister up there. However, I am sad for me. They won't be 15 minutes away from me. My mom and sister and I go grocery shopping every week together and that will be taken away too. I just crave time with my family and my mom is my best friend. Having her and my dad move, breaks my heart. So I am so torn. I will gladly help them move, but at the same time my heart will be breaking. I hate when there are mixed emotions like that. Makes situations like this so hard to deal with. :-(

Thats all for now. I will come back and blog about the boys sharing a room soon. I am so looking forward to following some sort of routinue now that we are moved into our place and can assemble some sort of normalness to our life. We still have to unpack and not live out of boxes, but I am telling myself, one step at a time...one step at a time. It will get done...even if it takes me a few weeks (it better not!!).

Sad

2009-06-30T08:34:00.000-07:00

Well, last week I said my goodbyes to my dear Aunt Beverly and this week started out with us saying goodbye to Eric's cousin Katie. She left behind a hubby and young son. Its sad to even think about and I will miss her quick witt and the personality that can make almost anyone feel comfortable. I am not sure how we can ever understand why someone is taken from us or even why a young mom would be taken too soon. Its just sad. Things like this really put a lot into perspective, I will say that!

What a crack up!

2009-06-29T07:52:00.000-07:00

Last night we decided to head out to Disneyland so the boys could watch the fire works. I had not really been feeling well all day. I had a sore throat and was tired....I think the stress of my life was getting the best of me, but with hubby's help we were not going to let it get us down!!

So we went to Disneyland to have some fun! My sweet baby Nathan....man we do get the looks sometimes with that kid. We get the *is he ok?* looks ALL the time when he gets really excited. I sometimes wonder what people think when they see him get super excited. He shakes, holds his hands up and looks like he is straining....its an interesting site, believe me. We usually laugh because really, when you see it and you know Natey, its hilarious. But last night, oh man....this was FUNNY!

We decided to head home and to our surprise the tram was not super crowded. Which honestly was a nice treat. We normally walk the trail back to the car for the excerise and so we don't have to wait, but I was DONE....so we waited. We get on the tram and Nathan starts in on his seziure excitement thing as we take off...he LOVES to ride the tram. *Oh I have to tell how we are sitting because that will explain a lot....we are in the very front of the tram facing all the people that are sitting forward....so basically everyone can look at us and we can look at everyone.* So, I giggle at him because its funny to me every time I see him do it. But oh man when I look up....I see people with varying looks on their faces...some are concerned and some are smiling. Eric and I looked at each other and laughed....oh how people must view our kiddo! We were the attraction sitting there on the tram. So you can have a taste of how he looks...here are a few pictures from a few weeks back at the beach with some friends....

Ahh such is life....part two...

2009-06-27T10:52:00.000-07:00

Ok...so I need to finish my list of the things that are happening currently in our lives...

*This happening I am sad to report....its devestating actually.....my aunt Beverly passed away yesterday. She was surrounded by family who adored her as she took her last breaths....She was one of those people who lit up a room when she walked into it. She always had a smile on her face, she loved just for the sake of loving people, she loved Jesus, her family and friends, she did have some health issues, but I never ever heard her complain about any of them. The world did in fact lose an angel yesterday. She is no longer in pain or suffering, which is the only comfort to find when losing someone such as her.

*Zachary recently has started karate, which he is LOVING and I love to watch how it is helping his self esteem. Its super cute.

*Nathan...oh man still is refusing to use the potty. We are attempting to entice him with M's (AKA m&Ms) but it has not worked yet. We will keep trying though.

We are off to a festival today for Zachy's karate...I had a few minutes to post so i thought i would add to the previous post.... Have a wonderful day!

AHh such is life...

2009-06-27T10:04:00.001-07:00

Well, I can honestly say that I have tried to blog about 10 times recently and had to stop because I would get interrupted by a kid or just life in general. So, I hope to change that with this post...

I also can say that blogging has been hard because life has been hard for me and us lately. how do you put into words how you are feeling without sounding like a whiney person or a complainer. Neither of which I am, but everytime I would write, I felt like I would be complaining. So I opted to not say anything. Better to say something nice or don't say anything at all, is that the saying?

Ok, so updates all around....there is quite a bit!

*We will be moving...not by choice...our landlord sold our house in about a week! We are so sad and soooo upset because we seriously love where we live. God has bigger plans in this part of our life I guess. With both of us being out of work, I will say its a challenge at best for us to find something.

*Eric had some really good job opportunities, well we thought they would be, but they fell through. Its been hard and disheartening to say the least. I am still trying to encourage and uplift him so he doesn't lose himself in all the "NOs" or the "we went with another candidate" responses.

OK...life is calling again...I will btry to be back in a bit to finish...we will see how that goes!!

Manic Monday....

2009-06-01T10:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, not too sure why those pictures came out so small below...but they are from Zachy's birthday at Disneyland. He had a blast as you can tell in the pictures.

I can't believe it is already Monday! Wow! We had a eventful weekend. We had a busy run around day on Saturday and then Sunday we had 6 boys from 10 years old down to 2 years old. I will be honest and say I was quite nervous regarding the fact that there would be so much BOY in my house! But it was such an awesome day. I was exhausted at the end of the day but more from just go go go and not the kids. They were great and had a great day! I will also say...PROPS to my husband. He was so gosh darn good with them! He seriously rocks at being a dad and I loved to watch him playing star wars and games with the kids! They all seemed to have a good time.

Eric has an interview tomorrow, so please pray!! Its a company where he is very familiar with the industry and we are hoping that will help. Though I must say....it doesn't seem to matter these days! I am trusting God that he knows what is best and if it is meant to be then so be it!

Zachy is almost done with his first year of school. He is anxious to be done...he wants to be on vacation. I so remember that feeling. I think he is just over the whole school thing until first grade! HOLY COW....first grade! Who said he could grow up? I never did!

Our landlord of our house told us last week that he is putting the house on the market....I am so not looking forward to random people being in our house. I am so bummed. We love this house and I so wish we could afford it! But like everything else, God has a plan for us!

Pics

2009-06-01T10:05:00.000-07:00

Being silly is awesome!
*Sigh* if only this were a real find!
Zachy got to be a jedi in the jedi training at Disneyland on his birthday and that guy is the tough guy he fought...it was so awesome and his favorite part of the day!
In Jedi training...he rocks!

Birthday Bliss and a Prayer....

2009-05-26T08:25:00.000-07:00

So my sweet baby had a wonderful birthday. On Sunday after his party he came up to me and gave me a hug and said, "Thank you for my favorite birthday party ever!" Awe...he seriously is such a sweet boy! He was very blessed and then yesterday we took him to Disneyland for his birthday. We had such a good time! He LOVED his day. We left early and got home wayyyy too late. Both kids were sooo tired! I will post some pictures once I get them uploaded! The highlight of the day was the star wars jedi training camp show where Zachy was picked to participate in the training and he got a certificate along with it! He and his friend were picked and they were so cute up there. I thought Zachy was going to pee his pants when he saw Darth Vador come out. He LOVES him and Darth Vador kept asking which kids wanted to go to the dark side and the whole time I knew Zachy was wishing he could go! After the show he told me that he would have went if they let him!! LOL

So many of you know that Eric did in fact get a job....but what most of you don't know is that Eric worked that job for 4 days when he was told that they made a mistake in hiring him :-(. Can you talk about devestation? We are once again back at square one and again asking for prayer for some direction and yet another job. Eric's unemployment runs out in a few short weeks, so we are very concerned! Please pray for God to open many doors for Eric to find work. I am also now forced to look which saddens me to no end. But I know God has a reason and a plan. I am confident he will provide what will be his will for us.

Celebrate my big boy!!

2009-05-23T04:57:00.000-07:00

My little fish....I have to drag him out of the water...the apple does not fall far from the tree!

Isn't he just too cute?

So this weekend is all about my big boy Zachy! Monday is his 6th birthday and WOW has the time just flown by! We are having a Zachary weekend! We are having his birthday party on Sunday after church. We are taking him to Disneyland for his birthday and its gonna be all about him! I am super excited to celebrate him all day! I love that his birthday is memorial day cuase its a fun day! Both grandmas are doing their birthday shopping with him much different this year and he couldn't be more thrilled! Each are taking him shopping and letting him pick out his gift. How fun for him and I know this makes him feel super special.

Each and every year I love to think about all the firsts that my kids go through....Zachy had a lot. Its funny because with every passing year I realize that there are so many firsts that he has yet to have that I don't think about until they pass. For example...first day of kindergarten...wow...he is growing up fast! First lost tooth, first baseball season, first trip out of the country, first time reading a book, first time riding a quad and the list goes on. I love all these firsts and the fact that I get to share them with him. He is such a great kid who really has the biggest sensititve heart. I love to watch his compassion and how much he loves to love. He has the sweetest giving spirit. Yes he still does do things that boggle my mind, but the more he matures, the more I have enjoyed watching him learn and become the person who God made him. I am thankful that his he has a heart for God and I pray more and more that through guidance and nuturing him he will continue that path. I love to listen as he talks about Jesus and even sometimes reminds me of where I need to be (he doesn't know it, but he does that!). He still lets me crawl in bed with him and snuggle, he still wants to hug and kiss me before bed and before he gets out of the car for school. I love that he does the same with his brother and his daddy.

I am excited to share another year with my baby and even more I am excited to learn more about this precious person that God has blessed me with. I feel so blessed to be his mama and I cherish all the firsts and even the hard times. Happy Birthday to my sweet boy! 6 years has flown by faster than I could have ever imagined it could.

Below are some pictures of him throughout the year....just some random pics I picked from some fun times with him....wow..

Since he has realized he wants to be a zookeyper, can you tell that he just is glowing holding this gross thing?
His first lost tooth! Wow...this is when it really hit me...he is growing up!
Again, he gets so happy with animals! Its really neat to watch him!
He has such a quirky and fun side to him....he was a pirate in a play and as you can see he played the part well!

Open House for Gurrlie Girl....

2009-05-20T22:44:00.000-07:00

Please view my evite here..... Gurrlie Girl Open House I am having an open house for my new business this weekend at my home. Please feel free to pass this along to anyone you think would like to come and check it out! I am super excited and hope to see as many peeps as I can!

XOXOXO

A new venture for me....

2009-05-17T09:58:00.001-07:00

Well, I have decided that I am going to venture into a new business. I am still doing photography (I love it oh so much) but I wanted to do something a little different and I see so much potential with this new venture and I hope and pray it will keep me home with my babies instead of going back to work full time.

The company is called Gurrlie Girl and here is the website... if you click on the words Gurrlie Girl to the left you will be taken to the website. It is a fashion jewelry line. I absolutely love it! Its affordable and there is something for everyone. The range of products is so vast. In fact the catalog they offer carrys about 100+ items and the factory has 5,000 items! So what I have learned is people seeing it in person is the best way. So anyone reading this and would like to see it, please let me know! I love it so much because I can do a fundraiser for any type of orgainization, I can do special events, open houses, home shows, office shows or personal shopping! Its super fun. I will be doing an open house soon, so those of you who live near me, you will get an invite. For those of you who live farther away, if there is anything you would like, I can ship it to you!

Take a look at the catalog and let me know what you think!!!

Updates all around....

2009-05-13T20:44:00.000-07:00

So, I know I have totally neglected my blog. For that, I am sorry. I have been BEYOND overwhelmed with life these days and for the first time in a few days I have felt like blogging. I know it sounds bad and I have gotten the questions....Are you ok? What happened to you and blogging? Answers...yes, we are totally ok and me and blogging took a break because like i said, I have been a tad overwhelemed with life.

That being said...let me update....its been a while.....

Job situation for both Eric and I.....

I have to first write this because seriously my God is amazing and never ever ceases to amaze me!! So you know how my job did this whole thing to me and I was left with the what do I do, what move is the best...I seriously had MILLIONS of what ifs going through my head regarding my job. It was INSANE and for the first time in my life the stress overwhelmed me to the point of tears almost every night. I prayed for strength and guidance and felt no clear answer of which direction to go. I really had two options...stay or leave. I had so many pros and so many cons about both it was really becoming not an issue of pro versus cons, but more an issue would I truly be happy with either decision that I made. See, I LOVED LOVED LOVED my job. In so many ways. Those who know my heart know that I have dreamed of being a stay at home mommy for years...really since Zachy has been born. I have never been truly given that opportunuity. Which for me made me sad. I was happy for all my friends that got to be a SAHM but I wanted it so bad and prayed my day would come. However, God had truly given me a job where I looked forward to working every single day. There were hard times and sometimes the stress was overwhelming, but 99% of the time I was truly happy with my job and LOVED doing it. In fact I felt like I was lucky to have it. So parting with it was something I didn't ever forsee myself doing. I truly felt I would retire with this company.

So, since Eric was out of town when this whole thing went down, my boss gave me until the end of the week (last week) to decide on what I was going to do. Keep in mind Eric had an interview on Thursday that was a local job and we never in a million years thought we would get a response on so quickly. We hoped, but just didn't see it happening. So my decision was what *could* have been a huge leap of faith. I knew whatever decision I made I would need direction on from God because seriously, either way made me sick. ALL THAT BEING SAID...I had a fundraiser that I was working at Sonrise (more on this in another blog) and I knew the entire time I had to come home and make the call to my boss afterwards and give him a decision. I literally woke up not sure what I would do. I left home almost in tears because I just wanted someone to tell me what to do. Everyone I talked to basically told me they didn't know what to say. I wouldn't know what to tell someone in my position. It was tough. So, I worked the fundraiser and came home. Both kids were home (Zachy was home sick from school) and sleeping. Eric was WAITING for me to get home. He was going to burst when he saw me....

I walked in the door...sweaty, tired and ready to burst into tears because it was THAT time to call my boss. In my heart I DID NOT know what I wanted to do. I had been praying literally non-stop for over a week for direction and I just didn't feel lead in one specific direction which was so hard. I looked at Eric who insisted I sit down right when I walked in. I, being moody and extremely emotional had already put my wall up of frustration and said...wait, I have to pee and I need a drink...keep in mind, I didn't say this nicely...i was so stressed and overwhelmed. I had talked to some close friends about this but I did not really go into detail with anyone other than my mom and sisters about how hard this decision was and how much it was eating me up. When I did talk to Eric about it in depth the night before we decided that I would keep the job until I found something else (but like I said, i didn't feel good about it...it was eating at me). So me and my emotional self went and just sat in the bathroom and didn't cry but so wanted too. I felt I had to be strong and brave because really, life could be much worse then the hand I was being dealt at the moment. I needed to believe that God was in control regardless of how I felt.

So I changed and went out to talk to Eric. Again, he was still beaming and it was annoying me. Seriously? You are happy about this day (what the heck is wrong with you---I thought in my mind). So I sat down. He looked at me and said...I want you to have your dream....I want you to stay home and be a mommy and be with our boys. Our family needs you home more than the world needs you to work. As much as you are gifted in so many ways, I think the best thing for our family is for you to be nuturing it instead of nuturing the world. I want you to quit your job. I started to cry...what? How? How could we possibly do this? I sat and he continued to talk. Honestly I don't remember all that he said after that, but the last thing he said to me was....if you feel that working is better, than take your time to find something that suits you and that you can love just as much as the job I think you should let go of. God gave me a job today! WHAT? WHAT? Ok, where are the hidden cameras and this is mean is all I kept thinking. I looked up and said, ARE YOU SERIOUS? I was also thinking, Jesus, your timing is beyond impecable!

So we talked for another 15 minutes and the entire time the one million pounds that had been sitting on my shoulders for the past couple of years began to be lifted. HOLY MOLEY....can I even express what it felt like? No, but I was so happy and so relieved. Even if I have to go back to work, I can take my time and really go for something I want to do for once. I can try to build up my photography and quite possibly do something else. Whatever the case, God was not late and he did give me an answer....not in my timing, but his. Wow and even though this week has been a lot stressful in letting go of the job I loved so much, I have been given such a gift and I feel emensely blessed. Thank you Jesus!

So tomorrow my hubby starts his job and can I just say how much we both feel like a fish out of water? LOL we totally are flopping roles and we both are not used to it. Its actually kinda funny.

I will be back tomorrow with other news and to talk about a new venture that I am going on....I am very excited about it! More to come, but I have a TV date with my sweetie to watch LOST.

Um, Well....

2009-05-06T06:14:00.000-07:00

So the last five days or so that I have been going through this drama with my job, I just haven't slept. At all. I didn't know if it was because Eric was gone or if it was the stress of the job situation. I tend to think think think about situations and many time over analyze everything. Really not so good. So I thought for sure since Eric was home that I would be sleeping good....dang, nope! I just have so much on my mind that its not letting me sleep!

Eric has an interview tomorrow! YAY! PRAYERS PLEASE!

I am soooo conflicted about my job. I have so many mixed emotions going on. Pray for wisdom for me...

My sweet Zachy is home and he blessed my heart this afternoon. He is super compassionate but today he made my heart smile yet again. He walks up to me and puts his arm around me. He whispers in my ear: Mommy, you know what? I love you and I think you are so pretty. My goodness, is he not the sweetest kid?

The news....

2009-05-05T15:02:00.000-07:00

Well, it wasn't what I hoped for. They basically told me no to my negotiation. Why they made me wait so long just stinks and I am devastated. Eric comes home tonight so I am going to talk to him about this all and we are going to pray for some direction. I need to remember that God is in control and he will take care of us.

Please pray for us. I have a feeling this road is going to be a tough one :-(

Update and a my man's birthday...

2009-05-04T18:14:00.000-07:00

So after the long weekend of wondering how today would go, I am kinda back at square one. I came up with two ideas that I would present my boss with in order to make or break my job. I called him first thing this morning and presented both ideas to him. He said it is negotiable which surprised me and he said he liked both options. It completely threw me off guard because of the conversation I had last week with him and the CFO, I was sure it would fall on deaf ears. I firmly am believing that the prayers of many has helped!! Seriously, those of you that are praying for me, PLEASE CONTINUE TO DO SO!

I have to make a side note because once again I am beyond blessed with people who are praying and being soo uplifting and supportive. I am so worried and so scared of what could happen if I lose my job. Its one of those knot in your stomach, about ready to vomit feelings. Its hard to explain but I literally want to crawl in a hole at times...it just seems when it rains it pours for us. I am not going to be defeated and I know that God does have a plan. Today I got this verse in my email and can I just say that it is now one of my faves...here it is: Jeremiah 17:7-8 "But blessed is the woman who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. She will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." This verse gives me strength because God is ALWAYS faithful and he has always taken care of us. Why would he stop doing it now? With or without this job?

So back to my story....after a 20 minute conversation with my boss, he told me that as soon as we hung up he would make a few calls and let me know either this afternoon or tomorrow what they decide. Well, every single time my blackberry rang today my heart started to beat super fast! He never called. *sigh* So, I guess I will wait until tomorrow. Its ok, but still my heart has a big peace....thank God I have him as my strength! I sometimes do not know how people who don't have faith do it. God does not promise us riches, but he does promise to take care of us.

In other news....I contacted the president of the company I worked at before I worked at my current job. He told me to come back and see him if I ever needed a job cause he would take me back. Well, I contacted him and I will be meeting him next week to discuss an opportunity. Regardless of what happens with my current job, I will go talk to him....I want to keep my options open and I still have several friends who work there. On Friday I had a conversation with one of my friends who happened to be in Fresno visiting one of her friends for her batchorlette party weekend. I felt terrible for intruding as I totally forgot my friend would be there and I am beyond thankful for my friend not letting me just get off the phone. I was crying and upset and she listened and tried to offer her support. Well, turns out her friend works for a company that is hiring and we will find out this week if the opportunity will fare will for Eric. PLEASE PRAY FOR THAT because this opportunity seems sooo wonderful and it would be in a field that Eric could really make a career.

Ok...so enough about the job stress, on to other news....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY MAN! He is awesome and I am head over heels for him. I fall more in love with him all the time. I think he and I are so blessed because each and every year we have together we are finding more and more reasons to love each other. He has really changed in the last couple of years and one of my favorite things to do is watch him be a great daddy to his boys.

Zachy has his last two baseball games in the next week :-( I am so sad. It went by so quick!! Holy moley! I love it and am so sad its almost over!

My tiny tot swallowed some plastic piece of a toy tonight and i am out of my mind worried about him. GRRRR. Kids, I tell you, they keep you on your toes! Off to go watch him like a hawk to make sure he is ok....

The sucky story....

2009-05-02T08:15:00.001-07:00

So yesterday started out as any other day would, well minus my husband and eldest son. They are in KY visiting some dear friends for a few days (its my hubby's bday on Monday). Anyhow I started working and I was on the phone with a customer when my corporate called. I didn't answer it because obviously I was talking to a customer. Well they kept calling and calling, so I clicked over and it was our CFO and my boss. I asked if I could call him back in a few minutes cause I was wrapping up the call I was on. My heart sank because deep down I had this feeling.

I called them back and that is when it went all downhill. My boss started talking and in a nut shell I was told this: the state of the company is not doing well, its not my performance because I am doing well (I just landed a $53,000 order a week ago...how bad could that be?) but because the "business needs" of the company have changed they are calling me. They apparently had long discussions about me and keeping me/not keeping me. So here is what they were offering. I could take a two week severance and be let go OR I could take a "reduction" in my salary. This "reduction was well over half my salary being taken away. I have a company car that would regardless be taken away from me.

Then as conversations go they were telling me how hard this was for them and this decision was not easy. yatta yatta. I was speechless...I asked if there was a way to negotiate this and was basically told no. They were very cold and the CFO said at one point, "I don't want to sound mean, but take it or leave it". Talk about cutting to the heart. WOW.

Basically the salary they are offering me is what I made my first year out of college. Barely (and we are talking like $25-$50) above what I would be getting with unemployment. It is the biggest slap in the face I have ever had. Not to mention my husband has been looking for a long while for a decent job. What the heck do I do? I am sick over this and my heart is so broken. Its not fair (I am sure thousands of other americans have been saying this over the last year--in fact I said it when it happened to Eric last year). To have us both out of work is devestating.

So please pray....a few options have presented itself already for me, so I am hopeful. But not until I am in the job and collecting a paycheck will it be a relief. I feel emensely attacked. Eric and I have been making what we feel all the right choices regarding our faith, family and lives in the last 4 months and then to be hit with this, its just devestating and heartbreaking. I don't get it and I am on my knees asking God to not only give me peace but a hope. My favorite verse comes to mind...jeremiah 29:11....it is what I would consider a verse that always gives me a hope. I will be mediating on that for a while...

Cooking Co-Op

2009-04-27T20:54:00.000-07:00

I am laughing right now at my smarty pants self. I put a message on Facebook that I now know how to cook for 144 people. Um, I think I was so tired that I threw all my math skills completely out the window. Um I cooked for 48 people. Guess I just worked so hard that I wore m brain completely out! LOL

Ok, so now for the juicy details of an awesome co-op I am involved in. Beware, you WILL want to do this with your friends after reading this!

So I am a part of a cooking co-op....it is the coolest idea. You get 6, 12, or 18 women in a group who all want to be involved. You get together and decide on meals that each woman will cook. In our group we are using the 12 person method and you cook each recipe for 12 families of 4. We got the recipes from a book called, "Cooking among friends". You each pick a recipe from the book and you set a date when you will exchange your meals. The plan is that you spend about $80 for your meal. What we have found is that it depends on your meal. If you have a chicken meal it might be cheaper than the beef meal. I had fajitas and the meat for it was kinda pricey (even at Winco!). I spent $125 which is roughly $12 a meal.

So tonight I made my first meal from my new stash of food and both Eric and I were pleased. It was sooo yummy...it was a Euro...never made them before but man oh man it was super fabulous! I was worried that the meals wouldn't be good or they would be hard to follow the directions...but it took me like 5 minutes to put it all together...so it was TOTALLY worth it and man it was good. I was also worried that my picky hubby would not like the meal, but he loved it too. It was kind of a pain to make the meal but it is well worth it :-)

Catalina

2009-04-22T21:46:00.001-07:00

This past weekend I had the absolute pleasure of going on a women’s retreat to Catalina Island. Wow, it was wonderful and what a blessing to say the least.

It was a journey that my hubby insisted I take. I was a bit excited about it but really not so much. Why? Well, I was worried I wouldn’t have a good time because I knew only one person who was going and that was the person who would be throwing the whole retreat and I knew it would be completely selfish of me to ask her to babysit me! I was BEYOND blessed with an abundance of women who accepted me with open arms….even after I shared with them my recent and long journey I called my life. Over the past 4 months I have seen some things about myself that I missed. Things and people have been taken out of my life and its been hard on oh so many levels. I am not going to go into details here on this blog because it really isn’t necessary, but I will say that God knows exactly what we need even before we ask for it. God also sometimes does things and makes you go through things so you will fall on your knees and remember he is God.

This retreat all centered around the book “Life’s Healing Choices-Freedom from your hurts, hang-ups and habits” by John Baker. It is a really good book for EVERYONE. When you read this book you sit there and think…wow, this book was written to me and for me….but I realized that no, this book was written for everyone….we ALL have hurts, hang-ups and habits that we want to get rid of and that we need to work through. What is amazing about this book is that it shows you exactly how to do it.

On the back of the book it states, “LIFE HAPPENS. Happiness and Healing are yours for the choosing.” The choosing? Really? I was struck by that. It does seem simple and many people reading this probably are thinking….Jeana…of course, its THAT easy. But in my complicated brain this is what I thought after reading it….I can choose happiness? Really? Ok, what comes next? I choose happiness and that’s it? Not that happiness is not something I want, I just don’t see things always in black and white and I get myself into trouble for that!

My biggest thing this weekend….LETTING GO. I have been hurt tremendously by people who said over and over again that they loved me. I tend to find my self esteem in people and not in the right place, God. I know it seems logical to people to say well if you know this about yourself, then why don’t you fix it? Well, its not that easy and hasn’t been for me. But I will say this….I have begun the road to LETTING GO and it is amazing and it is one that I didn’t quite expect.

A few months ago life slapped me with a big hurt that lead to more hurt and this past weekend I found that instead of dealing with the hurt in the right way I buried it. I learned I did this over and over in my life for several years. I remained strong because I felt I had to. I didn’t seek counsel or really deal with the hurt and pain I had felt. I did it because I thought, what would people think? I have been able to do this for YEARS, which isn’t good and not a road I suggest anyone travel. Burying pain and hurt isn’t healthy and it causes a whole mess of other problems. I realized that and am thankful for what the realization has meant for me. Freedom and new beginnings. It amazes me how things really can be better by remembering who is God and surrendering to his promises and plans.

I have only begun this road and I know it is a road filled with lots of ups and downs. I had an amazing group of women who listened, encouraged and loved me regardless of the situations in my life. Going through what I have gone through and not knowing who to trust to really tell has been hard. Not only that but to try to be above reproach and not do or say something I will regret is even harder. But in God’s infinite wisdom he gave me my husband who has held my hand through it all and loved me enough to be patient for me. Coming home and sharing my heart and where I was with my husband was so exciting. I guess because I realized wayyy more than I ever thought I was going to realize about myself. I learned to find pieces of me that had been buried because I let pain and hurt reign supreme. See when you don’t deal with your hurt or pain and you bury it, you end up loosing in the end. Well, that is at least what I did. I lost some things about myself that I actually loved about myself.

The ride home from the boat on Sunday was a bit longer than expected. We were going to go to Disneyland but instead decided to take the boys to the beach. They were dying to go and had the best time ever in the sand and water. It was there that I shared my heart and all that I learned with my husband. He was so excited to listen and share in what God showed me. The entire time I was talking to him he was smiling and happy. He said I am so proud and so excited you went and even more excited that we share the same sentiments about where you were and now are. Most importantly he was excited about how we have grown as a couple, as a family. God never ever says life will be easy, but he does promise to be with us.

All in all it was an awesome weekend. I so enjoyed it and feel blessed I have a husband who insisted I go. He is my rock and I love him!

8 things...

2009-04-21T22:17:00.000-07:00

My lovely friend Jessie tagged me for this so I thought I would do this for fun. Its cute and a bit different and you may even learn something about me that you didn't know! Have a read and see if you are one of the 8 bloggers I tagged at the bottom!!

8 Things I am Looking Forward To:

All the baseball games for Zachy that are coming up. I so love to watch him play baseball!!
The many different photo shoots I have coming up in the next month
Hanging out with my new friends again from the retreat I went to this weekend
My baby boy turning 6 and celebrating him!
Going to Disneyland with my boys again
My friends who live in KY coming out for a visit in 6 weeks or so.
Watching my niece be a cheerleader...I am so proud of her!
Going on a mini vacation with my beautiful family!

8 Things I Did Yesterday:

Worked my day job
went to school
laundry
got to everything on my to do list for the day
balanced my checkbook and paid some bills
hated how hot it was outside and blasted my AC
laughed wayy to much with my kiddos
picked up food that should not have been on the floor!!

8 Things I Wish I Could Do:

win the lottery.
go back to school and become a nurse...i have always wanted to become a labor and delivery nurse!
get on a workout schedule that i would stick to
get a pool in my backyard so my kids could enjoy swimming all the time!
Enjoy running. I know it's great for losing weight and keeping it off, but I've hated every minute that I've ever ran in my life (jessie...I kept this one because I am so with you here!)
play water polo again
laugh more at my mistakes...sometimes I can be too hard on myself!
Shop as much as I wanted without having to pay for the resulting bills. (this one too Jess)

8 Shows I Watch:

CSI (all of them...I love that show!)
Grey's Anatomy
Biggest Loser
The Office
90210
The Amazing Race (I dream to be on this show!)
The Hills ( I know...but its addicting!)
Flashpoint

8 People who are tagged:

*I hope you ladies follow the trend...its kinda fun! Enjoy!

Sarah- http://neuenschwanders-mylife.blogspot.com/
Cheri- http://theviewwith2.wordpress.com/
Pam- http://pameeb.blogspot.com/
Kim- http://hamilton-highlights.blogspot.com/
Teleah- http://confessionmama.blogspot.com/
Melissa- http://blogtasia-melhoward.blogspot.com/
Nancy-http://urmyallnall.blogspot.com/
Sarah B- http://robandsarahballew.blogspot.com/

Happenings....

2009-04-21T21:34:00.000-07:00

I was fortunate enough to go on a women's retreat last weekend and let me just say that I LOVED it and I got so much out of it...I will blog about that later...but it was a blast and God really taught me a lot :-).

Updates....

Nathan....he is back to normal right now. He has finally gotten over the cold and all the blah that was going around and he is back to his happy go lucky self. He still has that big bump thingy on his butt that is starting to go away, but everytime I change his diaper I get sad because he tells me to kiss his butt...LOL. He tells me to kiss everything that hurts. He loves the attention and the sympathy that he gets when he gets oweies. So when he asks me to kiss parts of his little body that are not appropriate I just laugh at him. If he only understood what he was asking!!! We have been working heavy on the manners with both kids and Nathan has been showing so much that it is working. He says please, thank you, excuse me, etc and its so cute! The thing that surprises me the most about him is his eating habits...I swear this kid eats sooo much for being so little and he would eat all day long if I let him. I can't figure out if its because he gets food everywhere and that is why he is hungry all the time or if he is just super lucky to have the fastest metabolism on the planet. Whatever the case I am not super in a hurry for him to get older cause i know my grocery bill will probably triple!

Zachary....he is growing up. I can not get over how much he is growing. The kid is sprouting up so much and we have made some major strides with him in the last few months. We tried to teach him how to ride his bike without training wheels but he is having a hard time because he is sooo big he cant really ride his bike. Its quite funny. His birthday is coming up so we are deciding if its a new bike or a bearded dragon! He is DYING for a bearded dragon...which is hilarious because the kid has been asking for it for months now. Eric took him to a pet store to look at them because he has been making us nuts in talking about it. One of the mama breaded dragons is pregnant and having babies after Zachy's bday. So we will most likely let Zachy use his bday money for that. He seems to be excited. Me, I am kinda thinking...man, another animal? They are a lot of work! Ohhh and as a side note on my sweet boy who we say needs to live in a bubble (he is allergic to so much!!)....he went with daddy to a friends house who has a cat. Normally we have to leave within 10-15 minutes if someone has dogs or cats. Well, Zachy was holding the cat and petting it and basically going nuts because he did not break out! YIPPEEE!! That is HUGE for him! He did not want to leave and told Eric 1000 times on the way home...I WANT A CAT, I WANT A DOG....LOL how funny. I will put my foot down on that one...I am not a dog or cat person.

Eric...well one of the jobs he applied for went with another candidate. We pretty much expected this because we didn't hear back right away. Its sooo tough right now. Its really discouraging and I am praying for something to happen soon. He is trying to be positive but its hard. I too am also trying to be positive but its hard. Please keep us in your prayers...we sure could use a miracle now....

Me...I am excited to be getting busy with my photography business. I have a fabulous partner and we are having a blast planning and doing things with her and our website is up and we have the next few weekends booked! I am excited...SUPER excited. God is working in this area so much. Its a hearts desire for me and God seems to be blessing it. I have to really budget my time right now and I am so blessed with my husband who is beyond supportive with this. Life has been super wonderful and we have been blessed with an awesome church, awesome small group and we have made some wonderful friends lately. God has taken areas of our life that we really wanted to be filled and he has overfilled the cup! I truly serve a God who knows what I need before I even ask. How cool is that? I will be posting more about my weekend with the girls soon. It was a weekend of much renewal and restoring. Can't wait to share!

Seriously! Seriously?

2009-04-15T21:33:00.001-07:00

Yeah, I am sure you get the gist of that title....today was well, you know...just one of those days...many things happened, but I am just coming to blog about my latest mommy worry....it has to do with my tiny tot. Nathan....oh man the kid has started in WAY more frequently on his puke fest lately. Last week he choked on a hotdog and puked all over my friends house during our bible study potluck and today I got a frantic phone call from Eric that went like this....

E: Hey hun, I really am going to need your help in about 5 minutes

J: uh ok what's wrong?

E: Nathan out of no where puked all over himself and my truck...all of a sudden he hear him puking...

J: oh man, is he ok or still doing it?

E: no he stopped but I don't know how bad it is cause I can't get over the smell, I am trying to not vomit myself and its too cold to have the windows down.

J: Ok hon, honk when you get here......(I am picturing this and trying to not giggle. Eric has a weak tummy for poop and vomit. I don't really get it, but whatever.)

**SIDE NOTE--this is not the first, second or third time this has happened to Eric with Nate in the car..this happens every now and then. remember, Natey has a narrow wind pipe and well this is him. Poor kid. Makes me think we need to make a trip back to the specialist again....

Oh man when he got here...EWWWWWWW! It was vomit HELL. The poor kid literally had a shower already that morning and he had to be bathed again. How do you vomit when you are a boy and it end up in your hair? GROSS (boys are gross remember? ha ha). It was everywhere. Eric took the carseat with Nathan in it out of the car because it got in all the wrong places. Again, EW! I stripped him down and daddy ran him in the house to be bathed....I got the FUN job!! All I can say is this...wipes RULE! Whoever invented them, I owe them big time! I LOVE LOVE LOVE the costco brand of cleaning wipes...those suckers rock and they smell nice too. I had Eric's truck cleaned in 10 minutes with those suckers! I guess I have had the practice (how sad) with cleaning up puke episodes! THANK GOD for leather! It wipes up easy, I will say that! We bought that truck before Natey was born and it was the SMARTEST thing we did to buy leather....it has been nice when it comes to cleaning up his puke episodes!

The poor kid was traumatized to say the least, but he got over it after about 20 minutes and was his happy go lucky self. This blog posting was interrupted by another incident that is worth mentioning....as I am typing about my sweet tiny tot, I hear a loud thump and then a second later a cry....without breaking my computer I run for his room. Awe...poor kid fell out of his bed. He was standing there holding his blanket sobbing. He literally did not know what hit him! Poor baby! In the nighttime he is not the easiest to coax back to sleep. So I get him back in bed and shhh him to sleep. Part of me wonders if he will even remember that he fell out of bed or anything because he seemed so out of it...poor kid...not the best day for this little man.

Driving me BONKERS...

2009-04-13T19:52:00.000-07:00

Its tough to be 2 1/2 sometimes...WOW, Nathan has developed this stubborness and fiestiness that only a 2 1/2 year old can embody. Oh wow! It sometimes baffles me how these little people can be sooo emotional. Literally so irrational and quite over the top. Going from extremely excited to on the floor screaming and crying...its seriously crazy. It sometimes cracks me up because it is so NOT rational, but today, most likely because I am sick, it just didn't do anything for me.

Here are some tidbits of fun that happened today from my tiny tot....

*opening the oven door and deciding it is funny and exciting to climb in...mommy raced over to get him out so he wouldn't break the door...thank god it didn't happen.

*dumping an entire yogurt cup onto the table and deciding to finger paint with it...yes, that was quite a mess to clean up

*tearing off his diaper and running through the house saying....pee pee pee pee pee pee..weeeeeee! This was actually funny and the gigglefest began after this one!

*My favorite funny for today was my spunky little 2 1/2 year old who decided it would be fun to shred a book to pieces and sprinkle it all over the room. Naptime was FUNtime!

*Last but not least...when it was bedtime, he decided to ASK to go to bed (yes he asked--my kids for the most part LOVE their sleep) and then it was tear fest when he realized it really WAS bedtime and he was going to bed.

Gosh I love the journey with my little man....but sometimes it really wears me out! Where was Eric and Zachy? Oh, they had a baseball game and we thought it would be best for Natey and me to stay home to get some rest. Yeah, some rest eh?

The weekend & HE IS RISEN!

2009-04-12T11:13:00.000-07:00

I had a vacation day on Friday and we had a really good deal on tickets for the LA Zoo so we decided to take the kids. We missed the off ramp to the zoo and we happened upon a place called "Travel Town". I had no idea abut this place but Eric actually knew about it. The coolest part was that this place was FREE! We made a small donation but looking at these trains and exploring there is free!! We had fun and the kids loved the trains and the tracks!

We then went to the zoo. It was so much fun. We had fun walking around and looking at all the animals. i think Zachy had the best time. He was going nuts over all the animals. It was so cute! Towards the end he got lazy and was getting tired but he had a good time. Nathan's favorite time was sitting on his daddy's shoulders hanging out up high! We just had a great time being together and exploring. It was fun. Eric gets the biggest kick out of teaching the boys things and it was cute to watch him read about each animal and tell Zachy where the animals are normally found.

We had our big Easter party with my family on Saturday. It was fun with all the kids had a blast. We give each child a color of easter eggs to find so they all can get the same thing and its fair. It works out good cause the little kids don't run or act as fast. Nathan got into it this year and actually found all his eggs. It was the cutest thing. He was so overprotective of his eggs and he even tried to get other kids eggs too he didn't even think about it once he found all his eggs. My back yard proved to be the most fun being so big. I also got to practice my photography on all the kiddos. It was fun and I got some cute cute ones of the girls in their easter dresses. I didn't even get into it this year with the boys and thier outfits...the last month has been insanely busy so they wore what they wore. LOL. I got some cute pics though and boy did we eat some good food!!

Sunday was kind of a bummer. Nathan is still fighting his cold that he gave to me (remember the snot he would wipe on my arm...i swear its from that!!). Kids, I tell you, they are a walking ball of germs. Natey and I stayed home as I have a busy week and I need to get better! So, we stayed home and just relaxed...well not really, Nathan has been a whiney mess!! He just isn't handling this cold thing to well. I have also noticed that he is very much a man of many whines! He is lucky I know how to interpret what they each mean, but good lord this 2 1/2 age is tough on not only him but mommy and daddy too!

There has been no update on the job front for Eric :-(. We were very hopeful but it doesn't seem like it is going to happen. Part of me is very thankful because the drive would have been super tough but the other part of me is bummed cause I know how much he is trying. Grrrr. Please join us in prayer that God will provide a job for Eric soon.....

More...

2009-04-10T20:51:00.001-07:00

Travel Town & the Zoo

2009-04-10T20:09:00.000-07:00

Boy today was a FULL day but it was FUN FUN FUN....I will blog about it later, but here are some pics from today....

My boys (including Eric) had a blast today!
Isn't he perfect?
Zachy...he LOVED the trains and getting to see all the old fashioned ones!

Boys are gross....

2009-04-07T20:27:00.000-07:00

I know I am not the first mom to ever *think* this, but man...this week has already been full of grossness from my two BOYS! EWWWWW

Let me give you some examples....
Nathan has a running nose...the allergies are in full affect in our house...so how does he wipe his nose? He does this in several ways but these are the two grossest ways....come up to me all sweetly like he is going to give me a hug on my arm or leg and then will wipe his nose....do you know how gross that is? Oh my gosh! The other way is going over to the couch cushion and wiping it there (don't worry I cleaned it!). Oh and Zach...he is gross too but will wipe his nose on his tee shirt....EWWWW!

Boys and farting....so gross....my boys think it is so so so funny to do this and it quite annoys me that they think this is the fun part of the day. Me...its gross and is this what I have to look forward to?? Really? I am sure it only gets more funnier as they get older!

Oh and boys and their private parts...both my kids have this well dare I say fascination with it and its just weird. Well to me. I come from a family of all girls and my dad. My dad never did stuff like that...well at least i don't remember. So all this is just foreign to me. I know...its boys, get over it, but its just one of those things that drive me bonkers.

Those are three of the things that are on the top of my head right now, I know there is more but, I will have to blog those later! All you mommies of girls...STOP LAUGHING ok?

Tonight my mom and my sister and I filled 88 plastic easter eggs with goodies for the kids this weekend...I seriously so love holidays and getting to experience them with my sweeties! Its so much fun. Nathan is really getting old enough to where I feel like I can't keep up with who do I watch for the excitement. Before Nathan didn't really know what was going on so I watched Zachy, but now, man...i am torn....i am a ping pong between kids. Its so fun and i love this time with them! So Saturday we are having our Easter egg hunt and my mom made these awesome baskets for the kids. I can't wait for them to see them! They are so cute! We are making a huge spread of food and just be together. We are having extended family over too, so it will be a fiesta! I so will try to get some pics, but I am torn there too because as much as i love taking pics, I so want to soak in the time!

Smile Thursdays....

2009-04-02T21:13:00.000-07:00

One of my friends, Jessie who I know from another website and we have become good friends, has seen another mama do "smile tuesdays" and she decided to do this...so now, I am going with the trend and copying! It where you pick 10 things that made you smile over the last week and blog about them....

1. The love of a father....I adore to watch my hubby with my boys. He is so darn good with them! There is something to be said about a man who can embrace and do it well the whole Mr. Mom thing. He has it down and has really become good at it! I am jealous, but super proud of him! He has always been a great dad, but I think him being around more and more has helped the boys and him. Its great and a big blessing in the midst of a not so fun situation.

2. Hugs and kisses...my kids are very lovey dovey and this week I would have to say that Nathan has won the award for most affectionate. Almost all the time he will run up to my leg or grab my arm to hug and then kiss me. I LOVE it to pieces and I eat it up everytime!

3. Little butts! So in the midst of this week Nathan has discovered that running around the house without a diaper is way more fun and his favorite is to take it off during nap time. Thankfully its when naptime is over and there is not the sense of urgency to pee, but he has done this and we have searched for wet spots in his bed and carpet for fear he did christen the walls.

4. Dance moves....I love to dance with my kids. Their moves are pretty much either jumping or shaking their booties, but its fun to get them all wound up and laughing hard. The sounds that people must hear from the street....hummm I dunno!

5.Bedtime...My favorite time of the day is when it gets all quiet and the kids are in bed and I am about to go to bed. It is just peaceful. I love to go into their rooms for that last kiss goodnight and my fave is when Zachy will wake up when I go into his room to kiss him. He sometimes is still dreaming and the conversations he tries to have with me are awesome. For example...last night he told me (while he was still sleeping) that his favorite thing in the world is eggs that have dinosaurs in them that the dinosaurs smash open with their teeth. Where in the world he got that, I will never know, but ok.

6. Photography...I have loved over the course of the season to get to know the other moms and bless them with pictures of their sweeties playing baseball. Its been awesome and I have utterly enjoyed using these little people as my subjects! I also am taking a new class at school that I am super excited about!

7. New beginnings....without going into too much detail, there are a lot of new beginnings in our life right now and though some were not by choice, God has a way of breaking through the bad stuff and reminding us that he is totally in control!

8. The weather...its been very mild lately and its very enjoyable This week has been very nice.

9. Friends who go out of their way to say how much they care. Its super precious when you have friends who just for the sake of doing it go out of their way to do something you least expect and just for the sake of doing.

10. Messes that only a mama can love! I sometimes get overwhelmed and frustrated with the MESS my house is always in. But I will say this....my kids are worth every ounce of time (Whether i complain or not) and every wipe I wipe their little faces with. I would never change it in a million years. I had to laugh today when I was cleaning up Nathan...I think the kid tries really hard to miss his mouth with every bite. For example..the kid will be eating yogurt and he will take the biggest amount possible on his spoon only to get most of that bite dripping on his shirt, his legs and his chair. I tell you its comedy. Or when Zachy who is finally almost over eating the crust off of sandwiches will literally look at every piece of his sandwich before he takes a bite and if he doesn't like the way it looks he will pick it off and I will be finding pieces everywhere on and around our kitchen tale. As frustrating as it is to be forever cleaning this mess up, this is a job i would never trade!

A giggle, A wiggle and a signal....

2009-04-01T18:58:00.000-07:00

A giggle

Nathan....tells Daddy today that he wants to wear sunderwear (AKA underware) only to pee in his pants literally seconds after Eric putting his sunderware on....NICE! Not sure if Eric will attempt the PT again but we will see! This has to be a daddy job during the week because he is with him all the time.

A Wiggle

Zachary and his dance moves...oh my goodness...its all stiff until you get to the booty where he shakes what his mama gave him. Its hilarious!

A signal

I was driving my sweet baby the other day on our way to church and the kid decides to tell me...Mama red means stop! Who told him this? I have no clue, but it came out of nowhere and well it cracked me up. Because I giggled at him he thought that he would be funny and tell me green means go and red means stop the whole way to church. TOO cute....

I went and got the boys their easter basket yesterday and I am excited for my family to come over to my house for our easter party. Last year we had an easter celebration and this year will be no different. I am super excited because we each year give the kids their own color of egg to find in the backyard. My back yard is massive so it will be fun fun fun. The little kids get the easy to find eggs, while the bigger kids will have to hunt hunt this year. FUN TIMES.

Updates on Eric's interviews....they both went very well. In fact one company liked him even though he didn't have experience in thier industry. While the president of the company was talking to him she pretty much told him that she would like to create a position for him to do what he has done at his previous jobs. We find out about that one on Friday this week. The other company we find out about next week most likely. They both seem like good possibilities with two good companies. But even good companies are letting people go left and right. I had three friends today post status messages on facebook about themselves or a loved one loosing thier job. Seriously, my prayer is that something good happens to our country and something soon. Too many people have been affected by this and it just seems to be getting worse by the day.

Weekend bliss....

2009-03-29T07:38:00.000-07:00

This weekend has been awesome and seriously, I wish weekends would be one extra day longer every week. I feel like two days just isn't enough. The work week feels soo top heavy at times! Oh well, guess when I am president I can change that (wink wink!).

We had a baseball game yesterday which was so much fun and one of my friends came to watch Zachy play. It was fun. She is not a mommy but she told me about 10 times how much watching me be a mommy shows her how much she wants to be a mommy. Awe, that was neat!

The kids did well and had fun. They let the kids play an extra inning so the fun was longer than normal which of course, me and my camera delighted in! We hung out with several families afterwards and had a good time. We all had parties to get to afterwards which again made me kinda giggle about the common threads in our lives.

My nephew turned 9 and its hard to realize that he is almost in double digits and will never be single digits in age again! Dang. The time, it has passed like a blink of an eye for me. He is so big, getting so mature and really just growing up! Zachy could not go to the party because my sister has a dog and my plastic bubble child would get sick, so daddy took him to the movies and spent the rest of the day doing daddy bonding time and Nate and I went to the party and had mommy and Nate bonding time. It was fun. I love my family and anytime to get to just be with them is a party for me! Plus Nathan has been grammie and papa obsessed this last week and I knew getting to play over at grammie's house would be sheet delight for him! So after the party we went and hung out with my parents and Nathan was in heaven and if I would have let him he would have spent the night! Its so darn cute how he attaches to people...that kid and his personality amaze me everyday!

Another packed day in my world....I should probably get off the computer and get going....sometimes I get kinda lost in the computer...is it just me or do other people find this fascination as well? Its a black tunnel i tell ya! But my kids are hungry and if I don't get going we will be late for church! Yikes!

2009-03-25T22:18:00.001-07:00

OMG I have to blog about Nathan today....the kid...he just cracks me up in more ways than one...but mostly how he just can make a insane day just all better. Tonight my boys decided to "attack" me when my work day is done. Let me start by saying that working from home is amazing. I love it. It has its disadvnatages and one of them is that I don't have a drive home to dis-engage from my day. So sometimes turning off my day is hard. Today...I was so busy and a bit overwhelmed that 5 pm came and went and I was clueless.

Eric decided to have himself and the boys attack me. This was adorable. Of course as soon as I realized it was time to be done for the day and get ready for dinner and small group tonight I turned off my worker bee mode. Well the boys jumped on my bed and we laid in bed watching the BAckyardagins for about 20 minutes. This was fun. This was nice....my boys cuddled up next to Eric and I and Nathan...ALL mommy...he wanted NOTHING to do with daddy at this point. SOOO funny to me. He even got mad at daddy when he tried to just hold my had. LOL. Then he does the funniest thing to me ever...i know me blogging about it will not do it justice. Just remember that Nathan is a 2 year old who talks really well but he is 2!!! He sat up and grabbed my hand and shook it like he was meeting me for the first time....he says as he is shaking my hand..."Nice to meet you mommy". As clear as day and as serious as can be. TOOO CUTE!

Of course as I lay there in my bed with my boys I look at their backs as they are sitting up watching the TV and I just want to bottle up this time....I feel so much like it is passing so quickly and these moments are happening so fast. I just love these kids and they are (along with their daddy) one of the greatest gifts to my life. I never knew how deep love could be for anyone until I met my husband and then having children? Gosh, its a whole new level. My mom tells me all the time that it gets even more with grandchildren....all I can say is WOW. I just feel lucky and blessed everyday with my life. Regardless of the current situations in my life, God has never been absent and continues to bless me in areas that I am in shock and awe of.

Some important news...Eric has two job interviews coming up. I feel so blessed when he gets one, but today he got two! How amazing is that? Thank you Jesus! This economy is so tough and we have found that just getting an interview is amazing. So....we are praying that if one of these locations is where God wants Eric, the doors will be opened easily. Say a prayer if you can, we would appreciate it! My biggest prayer though is wherever he gets a job that it is a good industry and a place for Eric to plant his feet. All the downsizing and economy troubles are hard...really hard to take time after time. But I serve a faithful God and I know he does not make mistakes or do something just to do them!!

A cuddly boy...

2009-03-24T15:38:00.000-07:00

Today, my littlest boy has been over the moon happy and over the moon cuddly. My favorite part? Its me who is his current fasicanation!!! He is normally soooo busy being a kid/boy that he doesn't want to be cuddly even though I kiss him NON stop when I am with him.

Over the past few months I have noticed a change with my boys....its pretty cool...they seem so happy and so content. I love it! They play so good together...yes, they do fight, but for the most part they just love being together and each of their little faces lights up when the other one comes around. Its so cute. Nathan is becoming fiercely independent. Its so crazy to me how quickly they grow and become these little people and not babies. I have been lately letting him walk around in his diaper only so I can pretend he is still a baby...my stupid head wants him to slow down with the growing up already!

He is refusing anything to do with the potty...so we are waiting on that. Fine by me, sometimes diapers just seem easier. I figured he will be ready soon and won't be wearing diapers in kindergarten...at least I hope not!!! I don't want to force him, though it would be nice to not change poopy diapers two times a day anymore!

Zachy....boy oh boy has he just blossomed! My once immature and trouble maker kid has now just become a boy who is ALL boy in so many ways. He is very much growing up! We have some new friends in our life and its amazing how much God has blessed us with these people. They all have kids that are my kid's ages and it is so so so much fun to watch the kids play and look forward to being together. We have now entered the....Mommy, can I go to Dylan's house? or Mommy can we call Jack's mommy and find out what they are doing today?! I just love it and sooo much love these new friends for all of us! He is also the very overprotective big brother who watches over Nathan in a protective/daddy type way. It is so priceless to me.

Gosh...I am beyond blessed in so many ways in my life. I seriously love my life and I am so thankful to God for the emense blessings he gives....he is faithful!

Look what I made!!!

2009-03-23T22:26:00.001-07:00

A new position....

2009-03-22T09:13:00.000-07:00

So yesterday was a great day. We had some fun at the baseball field with Zachy. The kiddos played a great game and a lot of them played new positions. What I love about our coach is that he lets the kids play all the positions to try them. It good for them to try new things. Here are some pics from his new position he tried. He loved it!

Zachy

2009-03-19T21:34:00.000-07:00

How could you NOT fall in love with that face? Seriously...he is too cute and I love love love watching him play baseball. We have been beyond blessed with awesome coaches and other parents of the other players. Its neat to see how similar 5 year old boys are and how when people are brought together by a common thread how much fun it can be. We are LOVING getting to know the other families and watching our boys be boys and learn the ropes of baseball.

Zachy just got a hair cut....do you like it? He is too cute for words!

Life....its pretty good....

2009-03-17T23:30:00.000-07:00

Life has been FULL of many curve balls over the last 6 months. I can list all the curve balls that have hit our family, but instead, I have decided to list the blessings....life is too short to dwell on the negative....

*My husband....he is amazing. I have watched him come out of his shell so much in the last 2 months. He is an amazing father to our boys and I am falling more and more in love with him as the days pass...

*Zachary...he is a great kid. He is growing up so fast and I am so enjoying him and all the things we do together.

*Nathan...he too is a great kid. I love watching the world through his eyes. I am loving the little moments with him. For example....watching him get so excited over ants crawling on the counter and then watching him squash the ants and marvel over it. Seriously, you should watch this kid get excited...its pretty darn funny!

*A few old friends....God knows what we need before we ask it. I have four friends that have come back into my life in the last few months who have beyond reminded me not only of the good times we have had, but my close friends are amazing. It was like time did not pass and we picked up where we left off. I have some great friends and people in my life and God added to my blessings with these friends. They really have added some sweetness to my life. I feel blessed to have them in my life. My heart yearned for either some new close friends or to re-connect with old friends. There have been many changes in my life over the past few months and my heart just felt ready to explore that. God just knew and just blessed. I have been meeting a lot of new people and loving the blessing of that. But these four friends have just given so much of a blessing for me.

*My family....can I just say that my family is pretty darn amazing. From my parents to my sisters to my nieces and nephews....all are just amazing and just bless me. My mom, my twin sister and I go every week grocery shopping together...do you even know how its just nice to shop with them? Even just for groceries....its nice to just do simple things like this.

*Baseball...I simply just love sports with my baby boy....we were put on this team with people who are just fun and I just love love love to watch Zachy grow with this...even if he never will play again, the kid is having a blast. Its so fun to embrace this with him.

*My job....my job too has been hit by the economic times, but I am BEYOND thankful for my job and ALL the blessings it provides me with.

*Most importantly.....Jesus....he is the reason I breathe everyday and I am so thankful for all the blessings he has given me. Regardless of the "curve balls" he has never left my side and I am just thankful for each and everyday he continues to give me....

Baseball

2009-03-14T13:41:00.000-07:00

Can I just say how much I am loving Zachy playing baseball? OMG he is adorable in his uniform (ok, honestly, all the kids are adorable...but I love looking at my kiddo!!). Here are some pics from practice and his latest game. Gosh life is good!

Family Movie Night....

2009-03-13T21:27:00.000-07:00

Sooo we got that Disney movie Pinonicho (spelling??). While we were driving to baseball practice today....I thought it might be a fun tradition to start family movie night. Especially since the wave of sickness has hit our home this past week. It started with Eric, hit Zachy, then me and now Nathan. Its been the pitts. Being cooped up in the house and almost attached to the nebulizer while everyone tries to get better....its been quite the fun week. So...we went to baseball practice as we all have soo needed to get out of the house. Poor Natey has been climbing the walls...even when sick that kid wants to be outside playing. Well, most of the time.

So I had it all planned out in my head...we would go to practice, have dinner and we would all sit on the couch and enjoy a Disney flick.....seriously in my head it was perfect. The first 10 minutes of the movie was quite perfect. Then Nathan decided that sitting still and watching the movie was just not in the cards. To my disappointment, he just was over it. Interestingly enough as soon as I said, night night to Natey he ran as fast as he could to his room and jumped on his bed...oh its never that easy...so when it came down to it, he was tired....

So even though it probably was a bit premature to think that we could have or implement a family movie night, we still enjoyed the evening being together. Zachy, Eric and I did enjoy the new tradition and I honestly can't wait to bring Natey along for the ride when he is ready!

1 Corinthians 13 for moms...

2009-03-11T15:31:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine posted this to her facebook today and I swear it was as if God was trying to tell me something....I know all moms have been there done that when it comes to "am I failing my kids"? But one thing I know for sure...us mommies need to encourage, support and uplift each other in the journey in being a mommy. It is one of the funnest, hardest, exhausting, exciting, pretty much any emotion you can stick in there. Its a job I know almost every mom would NEVER trade, but there are times when throwing in the towel is easier...but somehow God knew women could handle NOT throwing in the towel but sticking with it and seeing it through. Reading the below was something I needed to hear today and I hope this touches someone else...Our God loves us and never gives up on us...that is a loving parent, regardless of circumstances or choices. Even in my own life, I am emensely thankful for my mom and dad who is never giving up and letting go of me.

Ok, so here is the 1 Corinthians for Moms....

I can read bedtime stories till the cow jumps over the moon and sing "Ten Little Monkeys" until I want to call the doctor--but if I don't have love, I'm as annoying as a ringing phone.

I can chase a naked toddler through the house while cooking dinner and listening to voice mail, I can fix the best cookies and Kool-Aid in the neighborhood, and I can tell a sick child's temperature with one touch of my finger, but if I don't have love, I am nothing.

Love is patient while watching and praying by the front window when it's 30 minutes past curfew.

Love is kind when my teen says, "I hate you!"

It does not envy the neighbors' swimming pool or their brand-new mini van, but trusts the Lord to provide every need.

Love does not brag when other parents share their disappointments and insecurities, and love rejoices when other families succeed.

It doesn't boast, even when I've multi-tasked all day long and my husband can't do more than one thing at a time.

Love is not rude when my spouse innocently asks, "What have you done today?"

It does not immediately seek after glory when we see talent in our children, but encourages them to get training and make wise choices.

It is not easily angered, even when my 15-year-old acts like the world revolves around her.

It does not delight in evil (is not self-righteous) when I remind my 17-year-old that he's going 83 in a 55-mph zone, but rejoices in the truth.

Love does not give up hope.

It always protects our children's self-esteem and spirit, even while doling out discipline.

It always trusts God to protect our children when we cannot. It always perseveres, through blue nail polish, burps and other bodily functions, rolled eyes and crossed arms, messy rooms and sleepovers.

Love never fails.

But where there are memories of thousands of diaper changes and painful labor(s), they will fade away.

Where there is talking back, it will (eventually) cease. (Please, Lord?)

Where there is a teenager who thinks she knows everything, there will one day be an adult who knows you did your best.

For we know we fail our children, and we pray they don't end up in therapy, but when we get to heaven, our imperfect parenting will disappear. (Thank you, God!)

When we were children, we needed a parent to love and protect us. Now that we're parents ourselves, we have a heavenly Father who adores, shelters us and holds us when we need to cry.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Sick? Sinus problems again? Both?

2009-03-09T05:11:00.000-07:00

This weekend was quite the tough one for my Zachy. He started to come down with a horrible cold on friday and it got worse and worse as the weekend progressed. He had a baseball game that we had to miss because he was so sick...this crushed him. Its so sad cause when he gets sick like this it is so heartbreaking to watch. him moving from one side of the room to another wears him out. Asthma sucks. I hate watching (and listening) to him labor to breathe. He is a trooper with all the medicine and breathing treatments...I will say that. He embraces it and really tried to feel better .

I woke up at 330 am this morning with a terrible sore throat, my nose running like a faucet and I literally could not lay down. My head feels like it is gonna explode and i so want to go back to bed. Dear God, please let the medicine I took for my allergies confirm that its just my allergies! i really don't want that cold. I took care of all three boys when they had it and I would love to be spared by dogging this bullet.

Hi, my name is....

2009-03-07T17:08:00.000-08:00

Nathan....I am 2 and 1/2 years old and this blog is about me. Right now my favorite foods are the following:

cheesey eggs that my mommy makes me

frozen pizza

chicken

mac and cheese

grapes

strawberries

yogurt

and my fave drink is milk even though my tummy does not tolerate it well. No I will not drink soy for it is not milk and I would rather drink nothing or scream loudly until you give me milk.!!!

I am the most curious little boy in the world. I love to explore everything...here are some very true statements about me and my crazy life lately:

*I took a whole bottle of baby powder recently and danced in my room with it. Baby powder was everywhere. When my daddy came to check on me from my nap he thought I was dead because the air was so thick in the room and I was on the floor passed out from all the fun I had making my room all white :-)

*my favorite thing in the world right now is dinosaurs and trains. I could play and watch dinosaurs all day long. They make me happy. I love them so much that I sleep with them and take them (well try to take as many as I can with me but my mom usually stops me) into the bath tub.

*I love to eat and my newest adventures in food invovles the fridge. I LOVE to open the fridge now that I realized I can do this on my own and get food out. My favorite thing to do is eat in front of the fridge with it wide open so I can plan my attack of which food will be next!!!

*I love baby wipes...my favorite thing to do is to take them all out of the container and throw them in the air to see them fall on the ground

*I am fascinated with dogs and water...I love water so much that my mom is convinced that I am going to be a fish like she once was. The best time I had was with our water cooler when dad was working and I was being "good" I decided to hold down the button and empty the entire bottle of sparkletts water ALL over our kitchen floor. DO YOU EVEN know how much fun that was to play in? My dad did not think I was so "good" when he saw how I tried to go swimming in our kitchen! Dogs, my neighbor has dogs and I scream in sheer delight just watching them run after balls in the back yard. Its my favorite time of the day.

*Dirt...oh dirt and me.....we are friends. I especially love to poor it over my head and get it in every nook and cranny of my body....its fun to watch my mom try to get it all out!

*My dad....I cry for him in the morning and as soon as he comes I love to tease him and say "NO DADDY!" like i don't want anything to do with him. I will even go as far as to scream for my mommy because I know this bugs him.

*My brother...he is my idol and I follow him everywhere...the only thing is...my brother feels the exact same way about me and we are constantly fighting over the same toys...this drive my parents batty...I think its pretty funny!

*My mom...she is this crazy lady with a bog black thing (a camera) that is always pointed at my face and I think it is funny to pretend I don't hear her when she is calling my name. She gets a real kick out of that!

*I currently am in love with singing...I sing all the time and in fact my mom loves this because she loves to sing right along with me...even to my music. Shhh don't tell anyone though she might not like her friends to know she enjoys my ABC music. ;-)

Thanks for reading my mom's blog. She loves visitors and loves to talk about me and Zachy. If you could, say a prayer for my big brother. My mommy is really worried about him. He has not been breathing good and has been pretty sick. I have tried to not get mad at him today but he is not playing with me and its made me go crazy because life is sooo much more fun when your big brother plays with you. This thing called "asthma" it is the pitts. I think that needs to go on a long vacation and just leave my brother alone!

Small group...

2009-03-03T15:10:00.001-08:00

So...one of my favorite times of the week is our small group bible study. Our church has for years promoted this and Eric and I never have jumped on board....well, not until recently. We decided together that things were going to change and wow, they have. One of the changes was us becoming involved in a small group with our church. Can I just say how blessed we are? My goodness, the people in our group are so awesome and wow, I have learned so much. Before I was married I went to bible study once a week and I had a small group several times that I was a part of. After being married and the craziness of life, it just took a back burner. I am so happy that it is not on that burner anymore and that we are putting our focus in the right things. I look so forward to it and have enjoyed getting to know the people in our group.

Nathan is constantly cracking me up these days...if he is not screaming in sheer delight, or fighting for the toy that he must have that his brother has, he is lovey dovey. Its been so cute lately to watch how much this little person picks up on things...I swear it is more and more every single day. One adorable thing he is doing is prayer. We pray as a family before meals, bedtime and before Zachy goes to school each day. We usually take turns and its been so cute to watch Nathan fold his hands and mubble a prayer. The other cute thing is he walks around and asks different questions....what does a pig say mommy? and then he answers it himself...Oink Oink Mommy. What does a cow say? Mooooo Moooooo. What does the mommy say? I love you baby! That part was too cute when it came out. I always try to tell my boys over and over again how much I love them...and it was confirmed that they do hear me tell them things (even though at times I feel like they don't!).

Zachy has his first official game tomorrow!!! I couldn't be more excited to watch. He is doing good and LOVES baseball. I love that he loves it. Well he better, I feel like all we do is live and breathe it right now (in a good way!!). He is excited and can't wait to play. Its hilarious to watch this age play baseball....when the ball is hit or thrown, they ALL run for the ball. So instead of the one person going for it....the whole team does! LOL. Or better yet, they don't catch the ball in mid-air....they wait till it bounces on the floor. My favorite one is when they hit the ball they wait for their coach to tell them to run to the base :-) I love it!

Just Breathe......

2009-03-01T05:57:00.000-08:00

Yesterday went by so fast I could hardly remember waking up! Wow...I woke up at 7 am and crawled into bed at 10pm and seriously I didn't stop all day. It was a fabulous day but I am wiped out. We had our first day of baseball with Zachy. Well it was opening day and OMG its a serious thing let me tell you! People don't mess around when it comes to baseball and all the stuff that comes with it! I seriously wanted to cry at one moment though. Zachy is really growing up. I could not believe how much of a big boy he looked like in his uniform. At one point my teary eyed self was starting to get a little sad at how fast things are going. Then my Z comes over and taps me on the tummy and says, Mama, I love you and I love baseball. That "mama, I love you" was enough for me to realize he is still and will always be my baby boy. Regardless of how old he gets!

I giggle because he is on the Mets and his colors are Gator colors. If you don't know, my husband has been forever a fan of the Florida Gators. Since I have dated him, Florida Gator sports have been a staple in his life and I am sure he will pass it down to our boys.

Opening day at the park was insane....so many people and wow, so many things to buy! They had this machine thingy that I wanted for Z sooo bad. It was a machine that pitched balls and the kids hit into this large net and they practice hitting. Zachy is soo in love with baseball and this would be a good thing to help him get better. But he is really young...and the machine was pricey...so we wait :-).

I will say this (if I can with knocking on wood) Nathan AMAZED me yesterday. He was soo freaking good and so sweet. We had so much fun! We had to cut it off because I had a photo shoot with some friends, but I just love our team, the other families and how much fun it is! I was talking to the team mom and we were discussing the upcoming schedule and at one point I counted the days invovled and OMG....4 days a week! WOWZA. Another mom looked at me and at one point we giggled and said...ahhh such is life.

Eric was really sick this past week and he was amazing with fighting through it. We had so much going on that it kind of wasn't a choice to not be feeling good. I am sure other women feel this way but I want to say it....everyday that passes I fall more and more in love with my husband. He is awesome and the way he loves me and our boys is something else. He is just as amazing of a daddy as he is as a husband. We have had our struggles in the past, just like everyone, but its amazing how awesome things get when you focus on the right priorities. His heart is like gold and I am so happy he is mine! I feel like after some tough times, God has shown him a direction for himself and he has listened and followed. Its amazing the blessings that come when you do not take your eyes off Jesus. God is good and he is faithful.

The unexpected....

2009-02-25T16:39:00.001-08:00

God is GOOD...

Not just when things are going good, but even in the bad times...He knows our needs BEFORE we even know to ask for things. A friend who I love dearly and have known for over 8 years came to my door and "just because" handed me a gift card to Target. He asked me to use it on my boys. Go buy them something. WHAT?! Seriously? Noooo I can't take this...he would not take no for an answer and refused to take the card back. Wow....speechless is not even a word I can say how I am feeling. Through tears of joy, I once again realize how I am blessed and God is good. I am reminded today of a sweet verse.....

James 1:17
"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, neither shadow that is cast by turning."

Through remembering who is God in my life and getting on my knees daily, God shows me that he is not done with me yet. He still has many more things for me to do...He is not absent in our tough times. This just touched me today...more than ever. To have someone just give for the sake of giving? This has happened a few times recently and to say I am greatful....that is an understatement.

We. are. blessed.

Buzzzz Buzzzz Buzzzzz...

2009-02-24T07:17:00.000-08:00

So last night we had an awards night at Zachy's school. They came in buzzing :-)....They came in looking like bees and it was so cute! They sang 7 songs and it was cute and very animated. They got to do a lot of little things with the songs and Zachy was having a blast. Then came the awards. It was cute to see his little face light up when he got one.

Zachy here with his awesome teacher....she is fabulous!
Zachy on stage with his award...isn't he just the cutest?

Today is another first for Zachy...he has his first baseball scrimmage...we are so excited and he is too. I love how much he loves baseball. I think we have like 24 games or some crazy number like that. So I am sure to get LOTS of action shots and pictures!

Up up up!!

2009-02-21T05:03:00.000-08:00

So its 4 am and its the new 8 am!! No I'm just kidding. I am awake and really wishing I was sleeping. Geez, one would think that since last night I had a terrible night sleeping that tonight would be much different....nope. Well, my hubby has a wonderful talent for snoring when he has a cold and well he has a touch of this cold that is going around so he is keeping me up. Glad he gets to sleep though (bitter!!!).

Have you ever gone through your old purse and found things that excite you? Well, I am not a big purse or shoe girl (denial!!!) but I do have three purses that I shift back and forth through. Yesterday I was looking for my social security card and thought it would be in my old purse. Well, duh its not going to be there because I NEVER carry it with me. But, what the heck, let's just try. So as I am rummaging through some stuff that was sitting in my purse I find some gift cards...yay. One in particular that is for the Rainforest Cafe. Now I literally got this like 3 years ago! We just have not gone there....its a cute place but I have never really been soo excited to go there. But when I found it all I could think about was taking the boys there and how they would LOVE it. Being that they are soo in love with animals and how they can't get enough of them.

So we headed out to baseball practice and I was just excited to have a night out with my boys and just enjoy being together. Baseball was fun and I can't believe how much Zachy is learning. He LOVES it and I am loving watching him get better each week. He threw a ball today and though it didn't go in the right direction all the way, it was a good throw. He hit the ball again today, so there is some improvement. There are some older kiddos on his team that can nail the ball and I think once Zachy gets more practice he is gonna be good. He has got the size!

Then we pile in the car go home and change Zachy and tell the boys we have a surprise. The surprise was blown 10 minutes into the drive there because m sweet Zachary is like his mother...can't handle the suspense. He asked EVERY question under the sun about where we were going. We also hit some traffic and I heard the imfamous "are we there yet". I about died when I heard that....ahh so its begun with my babies. Are we there yet?

We get there and the kids go nuts. LOVING all the surroundings. Zachary is in awe and thinks he died and went to animal planet heaven. Its adorable. My kids are facsinated with animals...they love the big, fast and scary ones too. Especially alligators (remember, we went to an alligator farm? They were not scared...they were in HEAVEN!) We get to our table (we did not wait at all because Eric made reservations which was faulous) and all of a sudden Natey decides that he is over people and he puts his blanket on his head. He was super quiet the entire time and the blanket...it stayed on his head the entire time. I knew he wasn't scared because he would have cried...he was acting goofy but tonight it was a quiet goofy.

There was a table of 4 guys who kept watching my kiddos. Yes, it was kinda interesting that 4 grown men decided to eat at this place. Ok, well I thought so. But they were super nice and thought my kids were awesome (couldn't be that bad right? ha ha ha). They were laughing at Nathan being weird...I would think the same thing if I was outside looking in. Though two of the guys commented on how cute he was. Then there is Zachary. We tell him that these animals are not real and they are just pretend (we had to...he asked 1 million and ten questions about the animals...how they are fed, where they poop, do they eat people, etc.). But here is the funny thing...He asks me if he can go pet the jaquar and I said of course...its a kid friendly place and we were in the very back of the resturant and it would not bother anyone. Here is where the funny starts....he walks over and the tail starts to move as the whole place goes crazy with all the animals making noises. It was like the kid saw a ghost. He bolted back to our table. "Mommy the jaquar almost got me!" LOL The guys from the table just to the left of us were amused and thought Zachary was the coolest kid! Then I explained to him that there was no way the jaquar would hurt him and walked him over to touch the tail. When I got there i realized Zachy was not the only child to tough the tail...it was worn down from all the kids touching...kinda funny. This then became the highlight of the night for Z. He asked several more times if he could pet the jaquar and each time he would approach the thing as if could see him and might turn to attack. Gotta love kids! They keep it entertaining!

I love how fascianted the boys were tonight with the animals and "rainforest" around them. Its fun. I love everyday seeing the world through their eyes. I laugh because it is sometimes so irrational (2 year old tantrums or 5 year old meltdowns), so amazing (the rainforest with all the animals and just plain fun. I think its one of my favorite things (ok the list of faves is long) about being a mommy. Getting to re-explore the world through their eyes.

Many emotions...

2009-02-20T21:21:00.001-08:00

So...its been ONE HECK of a week. I didn't get to blog about the happenings of this week...its been quite the ride.

Humility...

First...I had to go to the grocery store and I met this lady named Martha who was obviously homeless. She walked into the store with her belongings and I was standing looking through my purse for my ear piece because my phone was ringing...I saw her in the corner of my eye and glanced up and as I did she looked at me. I smiled and said hi. She went to the deli counter and ordered her food. I didn't get to my ear piece fast enough in my purse and I missed the call. I didn't recognize the number anyhow so I was ok with that. I stood there for a second and listened to my voice mail and went through my coupons (I am so much a coupon shopper...in fact I have a competition on my mind weekly on how much I can save and see if I can top the previous week's savings. I know I am a dork like that. But hey, times are tough right now and I will take what I can get!!). I was looking down at my coupons and listening to my voice mail as she walked up....Here is what happened...

Martha....hi there honey, my name is Martha. I just wanted to come over to you and thank you for smiling at me and saying hi. Most people either stare or ignore me.

Me...Hi Martha. Nice to meet you.

Martha...I come here a few times a week for dinner because its warm and no one really bothers me. then again, no one really tries to say hi or smile at me.

Me...well thank you for coming up to me and saying hi to me and telling me your name. Its really nice to meet you and I am glad you decided to come in tonight. Did you get enough to eat (she was holding a tiny bag of food). Would you like something to drink?

Martha...Well I don't have enough money for a soda and a drink. I had enough money for a few of their yummy french fries.

Me..Well I was asking you because I wanted to treat you to something to drink...and if you are more hungry, can I please buy you a sandwich? They have really good sandwiches here.

Martha....you would really do that? Thank you, that would be wonderful. You know Jesus?

Me...Yes, i do, do you?

Martha...oh yes...you know, I could tell. But I want you to know he is proud of you and even though you don't know, he really is carrying you right now. He knows your struggles and really wants to carry you. Are you going to let him?

Me...(ok right about now I wanted to start crying....how could she know where my heart was? There are and have been several things that have happened that have broken my heart, but I really hadn't been surrendering it over and letting the Lord carry me). Wow...you know, you couldn't have said a more truer statement to me if you tried right now. I am speechless Martha.

Martha....well, you just need to trust him and let him direct you...You are a sweet girl who has a big heart and I bet you are one loved lady.

Me....I am beyond blessed. I have very special family and friends who regardless of my faults, love me right through them...just like the Lord. (Right then my phone rings...I had been gone for quite a while and I was at the store to pick up a few items and I had been there for a while because I had stopped to talk to Martha).

Martha...well honey, thank you for my meal...you smiling at me and saying hi was enough to warm my heart for many days...but you going the extra mile to buy me dinner is something I won't forget.

We chatted a few more minutes and when I got to my car I sat there and sobbed for a few minutes. God reminded me so much how lucky I am to have family and friends....seriously, I am forunate. I have so many things to be grateful for. There are many times I ho hum about my situation, but there are many Martha's of the world who are ignored and a simple smile and acknowlegment is something they do not take for granted.

Love....

I know I often talk about how much I love my boys, but this week has been just amazing with them. The week did not start well...on Sunday I was beyond stressed, wanted to change my name from Mommy to Nobody and finding a hole to crawl into was sooo attractive. I was tired, I heard mommy 1,000 times that day and feeling stressed. Things have been rough....nothing super big, just work is getting hectic and my heart feeling heavy that my husband can't find a job. It is a huge burden being the breadwinner. I am beyond thankful for it, but I am stressed often by my role. Anyhow, god just knows that at the times I feel my weakest or most vulnerable to give me the sweetness from my sweeties. My boys are beyond cute and affectionate these days. Coming up to me and hugging me and saying I love you (Nathan is doing this now almost 5-6 times a day now), running up to kiss me or asking for me to do the same to them. Or really just getting the privilege to be their mama...its just wonderful. I swear being a mommy has been by far my greatest accomplishment and blessing. Even in the hard and overwhelming times it still is that and i never ever thought I could love like that.

Fear...

My sweet baby boy gets these bumps on his bottom that have in the past caused some major issues. One of the times he was hospitalized from them. From the many doctors we have seen about these bumps, we have been consistently told the same thing. Basically this is his body's way of ridding itself of infection. The hard hard hard part is when he gets these bumps he is more emotional, he can't really sit on his bottom because if he does he is in pain. I can't help buy feel like there is something I am doing wrong or something I am not doing to cause these bumps. I have been told every time by the doctors that its nothing I am doing and I have to let them run their course....but it does not take away the memory of the day when he was so sick from these stupid things that he was hospitalized. This week Nathan started showing signs of these bumps. He got a HUGE one on his left side. I tried all the things the docs had told me to get rid of them and this bump is still very present today and he is uncomfortable. Breaks my heart and I pray so much that he can be relieved of this...I need my happy go lucky sweetie back...

There is a little more, but I must be hitting the sack...this weekend my plate is quite full and I think my dear friend is gonna have her little boy. I couldn't be more excited that I get to do my first birth photography. What a blessing and I am nervous/excited. I kinda am nervous because I feel like birth is such an amazing experience and when I was with my friend Julie when she delivered I was stunned for most of the time...it is the miracle of life and I want to make sure I am snapping the pics and not enjoying the moment too much!! :-)

Growing like weeds....

2009-02-16T16:37:00.000-08:00

Seems like just yesterday I was bringing Zachy home from the hospital and now the kid is growing so fast we can hardly keep up with him. He is such a big kid...I can't get over it and I also can't get over how quickly he is growing out of his clothes. I sometimes feel like we can't keep up. It amazes me that something I bought him at the beginning of the school year is no longer fitting him! What a big kid I have. He is 5 years old wearing size 2 boys shoes and 8 in pants and shirts. Its sad cause there are times when I take him shopping and he is still such a little boy and he wants all the little boy stuff and he is now officially in the bigger boy sizes. I guess when you go from 7/7x to 8 the world changes in clothes terms. We took the boys to Khols becuase apparently there was a HUGE sale on shoes...which there was and OMG we got two pairs of shoes for $11. One for Natey and one for Zachy. He is so hard on his shoes. I didn't think the clothes were that great of a deal but thank God they had his size in shoes because the kid loves clothes and shoes and he was so darn excited about his new shoes!! But man...they sure grow up fast...especially my Zachy...he is like a weed I tell ya!

I HAVE to post this...

2009-02-14T20:31:00.000-08:00

I am trying to not cry as I am laughing so hard....I am sitting on my computer chatting it up with a friend and I hear this conversation take place in the kitchen......

Zachy-Daddy, can I help you cook?

Daddy-Yes, please get me a wooden spoon out of the drawer please. I need to use it to cook the chicken.

Zachy-ok daddy, here you go. Um daddy, what is chicken made out of?

Daddy-what do you think Zachy?

Zachy- uhhh a cow?

*I am giggling at this point

Daddy-No, think harder...what is chicken made out of?

Zachy-OOOHHH I know...A PIG?!

*now I am LOL

Daddy-no Zachy CHICKEN is not made from a cow or a pig....what do you think CHICKEN is made from?

Zachy-I don't know daddy that is why I asked!

*I couldn't help it...I had to laugh so hard because seriously he was serious when he was asking what Chicken was made out of! LOL gosh I love him!

Valentines Day

2009-02-14T16:53:00.000-08:00

So, I am normally not one to make a big deal about Valentines Day...why? Well its because my anniversary is so close to it and we normally just kind of celebrate it together with our anniversary. But this year it feels different. This year it is fun to have my big valentine and then my two littlest Valentines for the whole day!!

This morning my dear sweet husband got up and let me sleep in. That is a first for the books...I didn't have to nudge him or anything. he just got up and did it! I even said I would get up with the kiddos because I knew that I would be leaving him here for a few hours with the kiddos because I had a photo shoot today. But he said, nope, you are sleeping....ENJOY. Wow! Awesome! Happy Valentines Day to you too!!

Then when I did wake up, I walked out to a room full of boys excited to see me! Who can complain about that. It was sweet. Both my kiddos ran to me (like they haven't seen me in months) and hugged and kissed me. I will NEVER ever EVER get sick of that, let me tell you! Nathan and I made breakfast and Zachy played in his room with some leggos my mom had gotten him for Valentines Day. It was a nice and relaxing day considering how the weekends have been in the past few weeks. I loved it.

I have noticed Nathan this past week has been waking from his naps very emotional and upset. i don't know why...seems strange...then again who can understand the mood swings of a toddler...LOL. But today was especially upsetting. He woke up and HUGE frown was on his face and he was in tears. I scooped him up as quick as I could and I imagine the reason why he was so upset was cause he was hot and sweaty. So maybe that is why? Ahh who knows.

A "secret admirer" left two adorable monkey's on our porch today (I have a feeling I know who it is) for my monkey's. They loved them and as soon as they saw them they instantly became monkeys and my house was filled with monkey noises for the next hour. It was funny and sweet. If the secret admirer is reading this blog....thanks for the monkey's....the boys loved them and they are super cute and Zachary has already said its his new sleeping buddy!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!! ENJOY YOUR DAY EVERYONE!!! Tell the people you love how much you love them....its important....they need to hear it!! :-)

Some pics...

2009-02-10T20:28:00.000-08:00

Here are some pics of my babies....ENJOY!

Eskimo Kisses....

2009-02-09T19:47:00.000-08:00

Ok so last night Natey was having a hard time staying in bed...yeah he had quite a time falling asleep....so after Eric tried his hand at getting him to stay put, it was my turn. I tried a different approach...the FUN and happy one. As soon as he saw me he ran into his bed...LOL they think that if they run to their bed they won't get in trouble. Its really funny how kids try to get this down and it never works to their advantage. He gets in bed and I cover him up and I sit there. I start talking to him and kissing his sweet cheeks. He smiles and says as clear as ever, "I love you mama". Awe...just enough to melt you into pieces. Well, it did me and I got up close to his face and giggled and said....eskimo kisses, eskimo kisses and I started to do it he giggled and giggled and began to laugh so hard he had to try to catch his breath. I don't know why this was so funny, but it was a blast to play this game with him.

This morning the first thing he does when he sees me is grab my face and say....eskimo kisses mama. OMG, it was the sweetest thing. So I indulged him and played for a little bit the eskimo kisses game. Then daddy walked in and I tried to get him to incorporate daddy and well, he wanted nothing of the sort. It was only for mama!

Being a mom is the best thing ever....its so much fun to love them!

Becoming a big boy now...

2009-02-08T17:05:00.000-08:00

Well we did stop the potty training for a little bit because Natey got sick and it was too much to do to him and us. We are going to wait again for another few months before we attempt it. BUT, since Natey has become a monkey...yes I said monkey....we had to make a BIG change I was putting off. We officially made his bed a toddler bed, so no more crib. This was HARD for me for many reasons, but mostly I was afraid of a wandering baby. No he is not a "baby" anymore, actually he is quite close to getting the "little boy" title, but he will forever be my baby!

The first night was HELL with a toddler bed and I almost gave up on having it and both Eric and I were trying to be tough for each other. See, the day we decided to make his crib into a toddler bed he actually climbed out (hence where the "monkey" comes from) and he fell and got a huge red mark across his lower back :-(. That really was the motivation to stick with it! The first night he would not sleep...I am not sure if it was adjustment or just him being a stinker. He slept for an hour here, 45 minutes there, but overall neither Eric nor I slept that night. Well, I take that back....Eric slept for about 4 hours. I also had this fear that Nathan would just wander throughout the house somehow escaping his childproof knob thingy that I put on the inside of his door. I guess I have strange fears but I have always always been worried about random things and being that we live on a busy street wandering out of his room and outside FREAKS me out!

Last night was 1,000 times better...thank you Jesus. He is adjusting and things are going much better. He just does not quite get (and probably never will unfortunately) that mommy and daddy are not quite ready to get up the second he opens his eyes....his 6 am wake up calls are much harder to deal with....we will get used to it, but yikes!

One other thing that has been super duper cute lately is Natey has been sooo cuddly lately. He will crawl up into my lap and tell say, " I love you Mammeeee". OMg this is by far the cutest thing. I love it and my favorite is how much he and Zachy are playing together and laughing together. They are so sweet together...it is so sweet that they have each other....I love it!

Loose Tooth Alert!!!

2009-02-06T11:06:00.001-08:00

Houston! We have another loose tooth in the Hurst home! Zachy proudly announced last night that he had another loose tooth. I looked at it and wow it is pretty loose. We talked about it because man I do not want him to swallow it! Here is how the convo went down:

Z: Mommy! I have another loose tooth!

M: WOW, can I see?

*Me looking at his tooth and making a HUGE deal about it!

Z: The tooth fairy is coming when it comes out right?

M: Well, I don't know...you CAN NOT swallow this tooth (see he doesn't know that us mommies like to save their first lost tooth and him swallowing the last one meant the next one would be my chance again to save it!). Last time mommy called the tooth fairy and told her but this time she is going to have to see a tooth!!

Z: Well, can't she just wake me up and look in my mouth (dang, he is smart or what?!)

M: No baby, you aren't supposed to see her. She likes to come and go cause she has a lot of kids she sees each night and if she talks to every single one she may miss someone!

Z: Well, then this tooth is not going to come out cause it hurts to pull out.

M: Well mommy can help you and it won't hurt I promise.

Z: I'm scared but ok mommy i won't swallow it.

Awe...loosing a tooth is such a big deal!

Sports and a few funnies...

2009-02-03T20:58:00.000-08:00

First...I have to blog this because I think about this and just giggle. Nathan....he cracks me up sometimes. Let me fill you in on the funnies he has done recently. Ok, the first one...we went to a friends house after my niece's birthday party this weekend. The kids were having a good time. Both my friend and I were sitting just enjoying each other talking it up and having fun. All of a sudden I notice that Nathan is not in the room with all the other kids. But not only that, I DO NOT hear him. Now, remember when I said quiet = trouble? LOL Well, I get up and find my sweet baby boy sitting on the floor of my friend's kitchen with the fridge door open and he is double fisting strawberries into his mouth. The kid decided he was hungry and was going to do something about it! He did this ALL on his own. LOL He never does this at home so this was just too funny to me!

The next funny was that Natey was being super whiney one night and I was just at the point of being tired, cranky and really I just did everything I could to appease him and he just wanted to be whiney. So I pooped him in bed and decided that Zachy was going to go to bed as well. Both my kids are big drinkers at night so I was filling up both sippies for them. As I am filling up both sippies I hear this from Natey's room....Mama...I want up! I no sleep! I WANT UP! Its getting louder. Zachy decides to come in and start talking to me. I don't even remember at this point what it was about, but I remember we were talking and I wasn't tuning into what Nathan was yelling. All of a sudden it got quiet from Natey's room (AGAIN, quiet=trouble...you would think that by now this would be cemented in my brain...um, not so much). As Z and I continued to talk I handed him his sippy and I hear this loud THUG or bang from Natey's room. It honestly sounded like he decided to throw something out of his crib. We sometimes give him toys to play with and so I thought it was a toy that just was loud. OH NO...NOT A TOY....my child then prances out of his room and says, MAMA, I NO NITE NITE...I HOLD YOU. I HOLD YOU. OMG....so at this point I am searching all over his body for anything that is broken or hurting because the kid freaking climbed out of his crib and that loud thug was HIM probably falling out! He was fine, but man, now I look back and giggle at him. Geez he will forever be keeping me on my toes!

OK, now to sports. I have this sweet young boy....Zachy....he is clumsy and not quite coordinated. See, in soccer his first season it was kinda a nightmare and both Eric and I didn't enjoy the time. We just felt like it was wayyy too forced and not fun for him or us. We kinda felt like this would be our life when it came to sports and Zachy. So we waited over a year before we were brave enough to get him invovled in something else. We were going to do basketball but we changed our mind and decided on baseball. Neither one of us knew how he would do or if he even like it.

So...we signed him up and as it turns out, we got an amazing coach. One who 6 out of the 12 sets of parents on the team asked for him. Not only that but as it turns out Zachy's team is being sponsored by a dear friend's dad. So we quickly learn that the coach and the team mom are related to my dear friend! I know them!!

So the absolutely exciting part of this whole thing is what happened today....I had to work of course, but I showed up as soon as I could to see my sweetie practice. I arrived to see my baby boy LOVING his practice. He was excited and all smiles. Apparently a boy from his class at school was on his team. I also was greeted so warmly by one of the other moms, it felt soo nice. More on that later. I was elated to see him participating and not having to be told every 2 seconds what to do. HE WAS HAVING FUN and LOVING it. YAY! Our biggest worry was that he would never hit the ball. Apparently there were so many kids who signed up, Zachy's team was bumped up to a higher division. Scary when he has never played before!

The coach told us that he would get him hitting by the end of the season....well day one and we know that Z has hand-eye coordination and he can actually hit the ball and do it somewhat well. i am so excited to watch him play and probably will be the loudest mama cheering for her baby. I hope the rest of the season is as much fun as the first practice!! I had this much fun today, man the first game is going to be SUPER FUN!

Mommy, I love my brother and....

2009-02-02T17:49:00.000-08:00

So today I had quite an interesting conversation with Zachary. I find this funny cause this topic has been on my mind quite a bit lately. I never thought I would get to this place in my heart or mind, but I am actually here and its a little scary!

So here is the conversation:

Z: Mommy, I love my brother. I love having a brother, I love him, I just love that I am lucky to have a brother.

M: Awe Zachy that is so sweet. I love that you have a brother too and mommy always knew how important it is that you have a brother or sister.

Z: Mommy, I think I need a sister like Avery or Emma or my other Avery. (I have two friends who have Avery's so he calls the other Avery, "my other Avery).

M: Yeah I think it would be great for you to have a sister...we will have to see what God has planned for us.

Z: But mommy why don't you just pray and ask God for me and Natey to have a baby sister and then he will give it to us.

M: Ok, lets just pray and see what God says....sometimes he is known to say No to our requests.

Z: yeah he said no to my prayer about have a bearded dragon, but that was when I was 4 (LOL NO that was like 1 month ago!)

Ok...so I never thought I would want to go through getting prego again. If you know what I went through before...loosing babies, having blood draws every couple of days, getting shots in my booty to keep Nathan after we found out we were prego...you would remember how scary and HARD it was on me. Of course I would do it again in a second if it was what God wanted. I so think I could do it, but well the other part is...wow, we are almost out of baby hood...no more diapers, bottles, yatta yatta. I have said this a few times to Eric and he seems to be on the fence about the idea. I don't think he cares either way. I think he would go with whatever God had for us. But I dunno. I am scared and hopeful at the same time. Of course we would have to be in a way different place especially financially, but these are just my thoughts and not something we are putting into action. I am not one of those people that would just do it. I can't do that....I am too much into planning.

Just thought I would share where my heart is and that I am praying for God to move my heart in the direction He would most want it to go. I feel incredibly blessed with my two sweeties that I have already been given from God. So, since I never thought I would ever be interested to even speak of another child, my heart is more open to the idea. We shall see where God wants us to go.

2009-01-29T21:28:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I got an award from Pamee!! Kinda cool, thanks Pamee! So since Pamee gave this to me I have to follow up with a few things.....

1. Say one nice thing about the man in your life.....

I am absolutely blessed to be married to a man who loves me without question, supports me in anything I want to pursue and is the most amazing daddy to my children. Regardless of the obstacles that life presents us, I am beyond thankful for the man he is and I am more in love with him today than I have ever been!

2. List at least six ways you measure success in your life (yes Pamee, this is HARD!). Success has different meanings to different people.....

*Letting my yes, be yes and my no be no (being consistent in all i do and say)

*Never not letting the people I love and care about not know how I much I love and appreciate them!

*Living each day to the absolute fullest because each day is a gift

*daily remembering the cross and the sacrifice that was made for me without question or second thought

*Raising children and keeping my sanity (LOL just kidding). Raising children who will not be afraid to love, give and explore their gift of life and salvation.

*I loved Pamee's last measure of success that she posted, so I am going to steal it...because it is amazing just like her!Living FREE - because I KNOW Jesus - I do NOT have to carry around any guilt or secrets! It is an AMAZING life when I can live FREELY! I just have to remind myself of this one =)

3. Assign 5 other Blogs this award....

1. Jessie http://mckinneytwins.blogspot.com/

2. Sarah http://neuenschwanders-mylife.blogspot.com/

3. Melissa http://blogtasia-melhoward.blogspot.com/

4. Nancy http://urmyallnall.blogspot.com/

5. Cheri http://theviewwith2.wordpress.com/

Hoping and headaches....

2009-01-29T18:53:00.000-08:00

So today we did not hear anything for Eric's job. He was and is crushed. It seemed like just the perfect fit for him. It was a job that he was well qualified for and one that he knew he could embrace from day one. Everything about it excited him. Ahhh well, such is life. I am trying to remember God's still small voice reminding me that he is in control. Even with our finances and job situation. God knows and he will provide. He always has...I guess when its times like this, its easy to worry and not cast my cares on him. Eric and I prayed today and he grabbed my hand and told me to trust God and let go.

Headaches...Poor Natey...he has a super nasty cold. I am thinking we are on the tail end of it (ok that is hopeful one talking in me) but the poor kid has bright red cheeks...bright red from all the snot. He came up to me in his little sweet way and said, mama headahce...nay nay headache. Poor baby. I feel forunate that my boys are not the type to work through being sick. Natey has had his clingy whiney moments but for the most part he is a trooper (guess they got that from their mama? he hehehe).

Boogers, poop tossing and an interview....

2009-01-28T22:35:00.000-08:00

OK..you probably are laughing at that title, and me coming up with it, well, I enjoyed it!

Boogers....well we got lots in this house...GROSS. Poor Natey is sick and the boogers are in excess supply and honestly, I am kinda grossed out this time. The kid thinks its ok to lick everything in our house...yes from the floor, the leather on our furniture and me. In the licking act he also finds it absolutely necessary to wipe his snot on whatever is in close range. We are trying...and I MEAN TRYING to teach him to find the kleenex and wipe his nose, but the kid is just ALL BOY.

Potty training and poop tossing....Well yesterday Eric decided that he was done with the potty training for now. Being that Natey is dealing with a flu/cold bug, he is just not in the right frame of mind to be potty trained. Yesterday while at school I get a funny text message from Eric that tells me that Natey decided to streak....the kid took off his poopy diaper (I guess he didn't want to sit in it anymore...who knows) and decided to run all over the house. In the process of this he decides that tossing his diaper as his older brother screams in the background is all too funny to him. THANKFULLY there were no casualties in this episode of a day in the life of the Hurst Family. But the action was plentiful! I secretly was glad to be at school and not having to deal with the streaking 2 year old and poop tosser. Gotta love boys!

Eric had an interview today and it went extremely well. Apparently he went in late in the process of interviewing for this position. They were already done with 1st round interviews and happened upon his resume on Monster. So they decided to bring him in. He felt really really good about this one and they told him that they want a start date of Feb 10th (GREAT DAY...that is our 8th anniversary!!) for the person they hire. They also told him that they are making a decision as to who will go to the next round by tomorrow. SO PLEASE PRAY PRAY PRAY for him that he gets to the next round. He is very hopeful that this job works out because it is right up his alley and its what he knows and totally can do.

If the title grossed you out or the story did that, soo sorry....I have boys and they can sometimes be weird, gross and a little strange. But I love them and they are certainly keeping my life interesting. No, I wouldn't say always interesting...sometimes extremely gross but they are mine and I am beyond thankful for the spice of life they bring....even if it does smell! :-) I guess they way I see it....most everything can be washed! Even me....go figure!

The start of day two...

2009-01-27T08:00:00.000-08:00

So Natey woke up dry this morning. I know that is one of the signs of readiness. Well, he woke up dry but I think it might have been from not really drinking much yesterday. This poor kid is either sick or teething badly. DH is the night owl and last night he said that Natey woke up screaming so he went in there and Natey wanted up. So he got him up and he just snuggled with daddy on the couch. This morning he was in good spirits but had his hand in his mouth and wanting a cold drink on one side.

So we aren't as traumatized as I thought cause he has already sat on the potty three times and yes, he has not peed or pooped, but he has sat there without giving me a fuss....THANK YOU JESUS.

Wish us (well mostly Eric cause I have got to start work) today :-) Both Eric and I feel like we just need to get one success down so we can celebrate with him and make a huge deal so he gets it.

Potty training HELL!

2009-01-26T18:58:00.001-08:00

Ok, today started out good. I was so proud of watching Eric and his extreme patience and sweetness with Natey. I must first describe the picture of how Eric was when we first had Zachy. He was the guy who swore off changing poopy diapers. In the beginning, I thought that was funny. After about 3 months I kinda let the funniness wear off and I realized that he needed to help because this "I refuse to change a poopy diaper" became just not funny nor was he going to not get out of it. Of course it was gross. But it was hilarious to watch him have to change a a poopy diaper. He literally would gag and almost throw up. Now I always wondered if he was just doing that to get out of changing the diaper, but no, because even in the times he thought I wasn't watching or that I was sleeping, etc, he would gag. Yeah, its kinda funny. He would gag over his own kid's poop. This never made sense to me because it was just poop, but oh well.

So fast forward to Natey. After a few years of diapers and practically potty training Zachy (he was forunate to be home during that time too with Zachy) I thought for sure he would be a shoe in for PT Natey. the day started out that he would take him every 20 minutes. Natey seemed proud of his new undies (butt hugers and they are the CUTEST thing on him, I LOVE it!). Well, the 20 minute rule did not work and he had an accident. Then nap time came and I figured since he had a horrible night sleeping that Nap time would be a long and welcomed one to him. Well, not so much. He was lucky to sleep for about an hour. He also peed in his pull up. Nice. He quickly became not fond of the toilet. He would fuss and be annoyed that he had to sit there. Even if we gave him books, read to him, a toy or at one point I even tried food. LOL, nope that didn't work!

For the most part two accidents was not bad. We had no successes, but two accidents was not that bad. So, then came when I got off work. I was to take over and give Eric a break. I noticed that Natey had a runny nose and he just seemed a bit off. My first clue should have been his horrible, every hour wake up call last night, but I chalked it up to teething. i had him sit on the potty chair and I read him several dinosaur books. All of which I was able to read and he stayed put. He then got up and was not wanting to sit there any longer. So we made dinner and then came bath time. I literally told the boys to go wait by the tub and I would be right there. Yep, I missed my window and he had another accident. DARN. Oh well, Iw as trying to not make a big deal about it because I wanted to have this be a positive experience. So I took off his undies and stuck him and Z into the tub. Bath time is a big deal in our house. Not only is it awesome for the boys because the tub is super big and its like a mini pool, but they just love playing together and splashing it up in the tub. Honestly, I LOVE to just listen to them in the tub. Brothers are awesome. So they were playing and enjoying each other and I was sitting at my computer working. I figured I could get more stuff done just sitting on the floor with my laptop while they played.

All seemed to be going well until I hear...Ahhhh mommy there is poop dots in the bathtub...POOP dots? What is that? Then I look over the tub and see Nathan squatting doing the deed. Nice. So I quickly call for Eric to bring the potty seat and I grab Natey out. I think I might have scared him or something because he was over it and he wanted nothing to do with the potty seat. Poor kid. So then came the crying. We tried everything to calm him down and well, that didn't work. He just cried more and more. So much so that he did the famous, Nathan...he puked. So I was trying to clean up the bathtub and the vomit. Oh what a mess. Of course Eric was no help because he was grossed out and almost puking himself (yeah he and vomit don't mix well either...go figure). I didn't mind, but I was more worried about my baby. I knew he vomitted because of his condition, but everytime that kid cries it kills me. It just breaks my heart. When either kid cries its hard. So I tried to fill up the tub again in hopes that would lift his spirit and well, that did nothing. He was STILL crying.

So I quickly got him in his Pjs and I am praying he will sleep good tonight. I am not sure he is ready yet for potty training. Maybe he is still too little??? Whatever the case, I am sure there are horror story after horror story out there. This is kinda a tops for me. Zachy was so easy to PT....I think its going to be quite a mountain for Natey. We shall see. Say a prayer for us, will ya? I guess more for Natey that he isn't coming down with anything. I hope not!