A long over-due birth story

To any random person who finds themselves on my blog and/or to everyone about to read this post: I would definitely say there is some very graphic info in here of the birthing nature, so men most likely won't want to read this and CHILDREN, PLEASE GET YOUR PARENTS OKAY BEFORE READING THIS. Thanks :)

The weeks leading up to labor...

37 week check up and I was dilated to a 2.5 and 50% effaced. Not surprising since Aliyah arrived at 38 weeks. My midwife was fully convinced I would go into labor any second. Week 38 came and went, same dilation and effacement... pretty disappointing but nothing to do but wait! Had lots of 30-60 minute bouts of contractions, preterm labor, but nothing to write home about. I knew all those contractions were doing something but even at my 39 week appointment, I was at the exact same spot. I had asked God for a clear sign that I was, indeed, in labor since with Aliyah I got up to a 4 and never felt one contraction. I was scared about having to drive to Red Bluff in the throes of really intense labor, so God reassured me by telling me the sign to look for was losing my mucous plug (tmi for some of you, but let's face it... it's part of life! lol). I kept praying and every time I got any labor action going on, I'd go get a warm bath and drink a big glass of water and everything calmed down. In many ways, that was awesome because I was able to get lots of rest right up until I actually went into labor. I had been praying and asking God for my labor to be during the day because I had really had a lot of fears over the course of that 9 months during the night. I felt unsure about how I would handle labor during the long night hours but believed that God cared about even those details. For the last couple of months before my due date, I was doing my best to stretch and squat and do frequent pelvic tilts to do what I could to help my body be prepared. In week 39, I felt very peaceful, although slightly impatient, about the whole thing. My back and hips had been so sore that I was willing to do whatever to fix that! On Sunday I woke up and felt that the baby had significantly moved. He had been in the exact same position for as long as I could feel him in there. Head down with his back to my left side. He loved kicking my right side. That Sunday, when I woke up, He was so shifted that I wasn't even sure if he was still head down. I was afraid he had flipped but just kept praying that every thing was right. 

Actual labor story...

(I am pretty detail oriented in the telling of this, so it's long. This is for my own sake more than anything else, to remember for future birthing.)

Home:
Monday morning came with nothing, I went to my usual homeschool  co-op at 12:30 pm. After being there for just a few minutes, I began getting such intense labor pains to the point of breaking out in an immediate sweat. Sitting there in the nursery with a couple other ladies, I got a real glimpse and reminder of what labor was going to be like. Those precious ladies prayed for me, for grace in labor. These went on, every 10 minutes for the entire hour I was at co-op. I thought, "this is definitely labor!!!" but as soon as I decided to head home, in case it was the real deal, they calmed down. I also kept checking to see if I lost my plug yet and that didn't happen. I questioned whether it really was God that spoke that to me, but just kept praying. After an hour there, we headed home and I did my best to stay rested for the rest of that day. I even headed to bed early, I think at around 7:30 or 8 pm and that was such a good thing. That night I talked to my mom, who I desperately wanted to be with me during labor, and she very confidently said she was heading up to Redding in the morning because she thought my little guy would be born then. She was in Sacramento and John and I were still trying to figure out what exactly to do with Aliyah during the labor. We had the option of taking her to our friends house, but we knew she wouldn't be comfortable anywhere unless if was daytime, or taking her with us and having John with her in the waiting area until my folks got there. Neither option sounded awesome, primarily because I was very concerned with her feeling safe and not being uncomfortable wherever she was. John didn't get home from work until 2 am and didn't wind up sleeping until 3. I knew he'd be tired so my plan, in the instance I did go into labor during the night, was to not wake him up until I was pretty ready to head to the hospital. I was awakened at around 4:30 am with my first contractions. They were on the more painful side but not anything like the ones from earlier that day. I'd say a 5 on the scale of 1 - 10 but they were every 10-15 minutes apart. I took all of my usual measures to see if I could "scare" the labor away. I took a warm bath and tried to relax (although at this point, I was just so ready to not be pregnant any more) and then drank a big glass of water. The contractions didn't get any less in pain or more in duration and then the ultimate sign occurred during one of my bathroom trips. I was so excited that I actually knew today was the day, that I finally woke John up. That was about 5:30 to 6 am. My contractions continued and at some point the pain increased to about an 8. I'd say around 7 am. At that time, we were all awake and I was pacing in the living room and praying in tongues (especially loudly when a contraction would come) but I still didn't think it was time to head to the hospital because I was looking for all the "normal" signs. I was waiting for the contractions to be 3-5 minutes apart. During this part of my labor, as I was walking around my living room, I realized I would feel the most comfortable if Aliyah was not at the hospital waiting. I also felt sure that she would be happy and safe at our friends house, so we decided to go that route. This was something that I was concerned about for at least the last 3 months of my pregnancy. It finally felt "right", even though I couldn't have foreseen that I would go into labor during the day, it worked out perfectly.

Going to the hospital:
Well, around 7:30 am, I decided that if we didn't leave then I wouldn't be able to handle the 30 minute drive to Red Bluff and the additional 15-20 minutes to take Aliyah to our good friends house. We made the calls, including to my mom and stepdad who were already on the way, and headed out. My contractions were definitely painful at this point but still only 5-10 minutes apart. We got in the car and got stuck in our driveway for an additional 15 minutes and 1 very yucky contraction, due to the fact that we lived right up the street from a high school and all the traffic going there would not let us pull out of the driveway. Finally we were able to get on the road and head to our friends. I only had 1 more contraction just as we pulled up to her place. John walked Aliyah in and we headed out, as fast as the speed limit would allow us ;) I had 2 contractions on the way and I am so grateful that they weren't any more frequent because there was no possible position in that small front seat that could get me comfortable. At this point, I'm just praying and telling God that I will definitely be getting an epidural if I'm not at least a 5. The pain was intense and I knew I needed some encouragement that it was doing it's job. 

At the hospital:
We had preregistered and so headed right to the L&D floor. We walked in and I saw the Doctor standing at the front desk that was the main doctor for my midwives group. I very badly didn't want him to attend my delivery and so asked the nurse to please call Pam, our midwife who had agreed to come in even on her day off, to deliver. I didn't know if they would be able to reach her, but it worked out and she attended me. We checked in at 8:25 am. They put us in the labor triage room to see how far I was. It was very intense at this time. I lost track of how often but they were definitely a 9 or 10 easily on my pain scale. The nurse was GREAT. She spoke softly and kindly, she didn't force me to do anything. When she needed to check me or do anything else, she waited until I didn't have a contraction and was exceptionally patient. What a God send. John and I had practiced for months to do the Bradley method, or husband coached childbirth. I am so glad my husband was willing to do all that practicing but when I got in labor, I just wanted as much quiet as possible and I didn't want anyone to touch me. I remember him rolling our suitcase into the triage room, so I could get changed and it felt like that noise magnified my pain exponentially!!!! I kept telling him to shhhshshshshhhshhhsh! I was sitting on the edge of the bed and using my entire upper body to brace myself during contractions. The nurse checked me and THANK GOD I was at a 7 and she knew I was going to have the baby soon. She started filling up the water birth tub right away. If felt like so much time in between each time she came in but I'm guessing it was only a few minutes. She checked the baby and everything looked perfect, another THANK GOD! She had to give me an enema, for me to have a water birth. As soon as that happened, my labor just got that much more intense. I all of a sudden felt like puking with every contraction and they were much more close together. She quickly moved us to the l & d room and helped me get in the shower to do the required "antibacterial" shower before getting in the tub. While in the shower, I actually felt somewhat better from the hot hot water. I couldn't even wash myself because of the contractions, so that kind nurse got me all taken care of. We went straight to the bath and she helped me step in. This was all happening so fast, I had only been there for a little over an hour, and it took that much time for them to get someone to draw blood on me (which, what the heck? did that really do anything? I mean, that lady wasn't even back to the lab by the time I was pushing... but oh well! lol). I am a huge baby about getting my blood drawn. This is when I finally let my husband touch me, I had him come and hold my hand. Just as she was finishing the blood draw, I was in the tub, I had a whooping contraction and my body started pushing on its own. I remember Pam being in the hallway and she heard my voice change to the "pushing" voice and she yelled "don't push!! I have to check you first!". Well, I couldn't help it but thankfully my labor slowed down just in that second and I didn't get another contraction for 5 minutes solid. By that time, the nurse had checked me and confirmed that I was a clear 10 and was allowed to push. But then I could not get comfortable in the tub. Pam wouldn't let me be on my hands and knees because of some good reason but it forced me to positions that just didn't help me push. I felt so bad, because I had only been in the tub for less then 10 minutes when I told them I needed to move to the bed. After the next contraction they helped me get there. I started on my hands and knees, my water bag still hadn't broken so during that first contraction on the bed, Pam bursted it. Immediately she got concerned due to Meconium in the water. I could sense her urgency at that point. She said I couldn't push him out until a pediatrician arrived but once he got there, she wanted baby out straight away. My labor had calmed after that first push contraction, so at this point I could manage through them okay and they were every 3-6 minutes apart. The baby was in some distress and she couldn't track his heart rate very well while I was on my hands and knees, so she had me flip to my back. I hated being on my back because I had nothing to push against to help me push, but I had no choice at that time. She had me push with every contraction while about 4 other people stood around waiting for me. This made me feel quite pressured and apologetic, every time a contraction didn't get the baby out. This went on for about 15-20 minutes (about 4-5 pushes). At that point, the baby was stressing again and Pam had me move to my side. This was a better position for me and Pam and John helped me get in the right position. My mom arrived at this point but I couldn't even think about anything other then getting this baby out, so her and Tony prayed in the waiting room. I know that helped. Finally during an incredible push, he crowned. They told me I COULD NOT PUSH again until they had suctioned him out due to the meconium situation. Slightly graphic to think, but his head was fully out and I had to wait to push his body out until the next contraction. The nurse excitedly said "the baby's here, you can feel if you want" but I was so freaked out by it all that I was all "no, no, I just want to push him out all the way".  

He's here!! He's here!!
Finally I gave the last push and out he came. They took him right to the pediatrician and he got checked, right there in the room, and he was back with me in less then 5 minutes. Straight to the breast and boy, was I shocked to see my little creamy white babe. I had so expected him to be much darker and he was just the palest little guy I have ever seen. Perfectly healthy, all 10 fingers and all So precious! The next hour was a blur of precious babyness. Daddy was pretty amped up on adrenaline that he seemed almost spacey. My parents came right into the room as soon as baby was checked out. After a short time of meeting the new baby, my stepdad left to go back into Redding and pick up Aliyah so she could meet her baby brother. The amazing nurse was still there, so she helped me get myself showered and back into bed before Aliyah got there. It was quite an amazing thing. God was so present and his kindness was all over the whole situation. After a pregnancy filled with many battles against fear and insecurities, God's faithfulness was so obvious. I was so grateful that he had answered all of my prayers, even the silly ones like laboring during the day and having a sign to know when labor truly started, not to mention having everything work perfectly for Aliyah to be in a safe place where she felt comfortable. God even made it clear how in charge of everything he was, down to the minute. My little guy just so happened to be born at exactly 10:25 am on 10/25/11... exactly 2 hours to the minute that I checked into the hospital. God is so so trustworthy! It was even amazing how my little guy literally stayed head down and in the correct position for labor since he was only a few months in utero... one less thing to worry about. I know God was present and active in my entire pregnancy, as He is in every one. He truly cares about our hearts and longs to reveal Himself as a tender Father. 

 Malachi Phinehas 6 lb 15 oz 19 inches long

 with dada

 Malachi, my precious son.

Malachi with Aliyah, she finally had her brother!

The sum of it all:
Now that little creamy white boy is 1 year old and it's hard to believe it's gone by so fast. That first year is sorta intense, but worth EVERY SECOND. Not kidding. EVERY SECOND of not knowing why they are crying, of sleepless nights, of rearranging their sleep clock, of poopy diapers and spit-up, of new parent/baby anxiety. I look at my boy EVERY DAY and ALL DAY with this kind of awe and amazement that he grew in my belly, that he has my husband's and my dna, that he has this personality that only God could've given him. Those babies in all of those mommy's bellies... they are ALL miracles. Don't ever believe that lie that not all babies are miracles. They ALL are. Every single one of them. 

mastitis and a quote

I've been meaning to blog for the last two weeks but honestly haven't had a minute. Today, I am sick in bed with mastitis and wanted to at least share a quote that I read last week and loved. For anyone curious as to how I deal with mastitis, since I don't like taking antibiotics unless truly necessary, what I do is: 1- rest rest rest (that means hubs stays home from work or, as is the case today, family members are in town and they help so I can stay in bed all day), 2 - I drink water water water (and sometimes water with a couple teaspoons of ACV, when I can stomach that which isn't today), 3 - hot compresses (each time before going to nurse on that side, I take a baby wash cloth and wet it, wringing out only mildly, and toss it in a ziplock. with the zip open I microwave it for 15 seconds then apply the very minute it doesn't feel like it's burning off my skin). I also take very hot showers and try to get the water to run in the area where the duct is infected, 4 - nurse as much as my little guy will nurse and mostly on that side. I usually wind up pumping the other side so I can focus on the painful side but today I couldn't find my pump so we're just winging it. 5 - last resort but it works very well, if I'm super sick and don't have the luxury of an extended rest, Cabbage. What I do here is cut a piece that is exactly the size of the pink spot or clogged duct and then I gently scrape it up with a fork. I then put the scraped up side facing down on my skin  with a little pressure (i.e. and nursing tank or night time nursing bra) and keep it there until it wilts (an hour or so before I replace it). The thing with that is, if you have a low milk volume it's not the most intelligent way to clear up mastitis because it actually can dry up your milk a bit if not applied ONLY in the spot of clogging. I don't have that problem and never have, if anything I produce slightly too much milk (but that's not really possible, since it's a supply and demand thing). This was told me by the local lactation consultant when I was just having so much milk and it seemed like 1 case of mastitis after another... but again, it does work. If I am able to stay in bed for a solid day, I get better within 24-48 hours fully. Better enough to deal with taking care of the kiddos in 24. Hope this helps someone. I've gotten mastitis multiple times during the last year of nursing so I had to get it down to a science or I would mostly have run to the doctors and dosed up on pills. Yes, I hate pain... Please remember I am not a doctor, nor am I claiming to be. These are just tried and true for me. Okay. on to the good quote.

I love this book by Elisabeth Elliot titled "Keep A Quiet Heart". It's almost like a devotional, it has tons of wisdom sprinkled through out on lots of different practical themes. Themes that are deep and also themes of giving God glory in the mundane. She's an amazing woman with a history of honoring God, Biblically, with the laying down of her life. If you don't know anything about her, I suggest you read up. Quite a woman to look up to. This quote is from the "Teaching Children" chapter of the book.

If a young person has been taught from childhood that he ought to "be something" without at the same time being shown that nothing is better then being God's servant, he may be preoccupied with ambitions and ideals he has gotten solely from the world. If his conception of "where it's at" has nothing to do with the Kingdom of God he is in for trouble when it comes time to discern the Will of God. he will be setting his limits to his obedience, defining the terms of his service. "For my sake" is a concept children can grasp much earlier than we generally suppose. Pray that God will show you how to teach your children that life is meant to be lived for God.

This quote may be controversial to some but to me it just makes sense. I consistently see the "church" setting their children up for spiritual failure. It's not uncommon to hear "life coaching" in place of calling people to the cross of Jesus. I am not unaware that God gave each of our children a precious gift and made them unique... but unto what, I ask? Unto glorifying Him! Unto giving them a crown that, in different seasons during their life before resurrection, will be laid down at His feet and ultimately making each of them into a sign and a wonder... that a selfish human would actually live by the standard of Jesus... even though they fail, time in and time out, they set their hearts to love Jesus in action and deed, not with words. I am not very good with consistently portraying this to my children and I fall into the trap of western thought all too often, but I have a parenting goal and that is to instill in my children to live a life of "loving Jesus" the way that He defines it. Again, I encourage any of you to get some of Elisabeth Elliot's books. She is not shy about the standard of her life, which is the Word of God.

And back on the topic of mastitis, I'd love to hear what any of you have had success with in terms of natural home remedies for it.

Article on motherhood as a calling

I wanted to post a link to a wonderful article on motherhood. ...click here for article... . Here is a great quote from that article: 

Christian mothers carry their children in hostile territory. When you are in public with them, you are standing with, and defending, the objects of cultural dislike. You are publicly testifying that you value what God values, and that you refuse to value what the world values. You stand with the defenseless and in front of the needy. You represent everything that our culture hates, because you represent laying down your life for another—and laying down your life for another represents the gospel.

If this quote intrigues you at all, check out the article. It's interesting to think about if and how our beliefs and values about mothering have been influenced by a worldly value system. I'm sure they have influenced me, to some degree, but I pray for God's wisdom and value system to be the primary influence on what I think about motherhood. I feel that there is definitely grace for us, as mothers, to more fully embrace motherhood when we repent of worldly value systems that we believe. It's true that, as people who DO value motherhood, we definitely carry our children into hostile territory. You don't even have to have many kids to feel the violent opposition to these innocent ones.

a little reminiscing

           Looking back over the years, God's mercy is so clearly seen in my life. These days, whenever an opportunity arises to share my testimony of how Jesus rescued me, it feels as if I'm sharing about someone else's life... someone else's heartaches and pains... someone else's rebellion... but when it comes to the restoration, it's still as real as ever to my heart. Twelve years ago, this Friday, a little bundle of miracle was born. Her name, Aliyah, is what Jewish people do when they return to Israel. Her name signifies a return. It was so prophetic, at the time of her birth, that the only name her father and I could agree on was that one. It wasn't until I came back into relationship with Jesus that I came to understand the full meaning of it. For so many years before her birth, I was in complete and utter rebellion to God and anyone else that got in my way.  I have testimony after testimony of being sovereignly protected by God through that time and yet I still would not surrender my life. I remember the day that all that changed. I had a few pregnancy scares before because of my promiscuity, but this time I knew something was different. At the time, I had a live in boyfriend who had no idea how to be responsible and no desire to be responsible. Although I was willing to break every rule and rebel in almost any area, I never was able to get to the point of ever considering an abortion. I always had such a love for babies and children and felt that the biggest gift to anyone would be a child, even in my darkest days. I credit this to God because I didn't even have a value for my own life... how then could I value the unborn? The first night after I found out I was pregnant, I remember calling my mom... I was terrified at the thought that a little human was growing in my belly. I knew my mom's faith in God and her stance about premarital sex, but I was so scared that I needed her. When I told her that I was pregnant, my usually gentle and calm momma got stirred up to fight for the little one in my womb. She told me in no uncertain terms that if I wasn't willing and ready to live my life according to what was best for this baby, she would do whatever she could to direct me into giving the baby up for adoption. I didn't even know what it looked like to live for anyone other then me, but I knew I wanted to keep my baby. My mom made it clear what that looked like; fighting the status quo and swimming upstream when it came to parenting/nurturing/providing for my baby... compared to the community of people I was surrounded by at that time... Mothers who had upwards of 5 or 6 babies, literally just to get a few more bucks from welfare... or whose kids would run around in clothes several sizes too small so the moms could spend all that welfare on the latest styles and blow it at bars. God used my mom's words to really set a necessary standard for me. If it wasn't for that, I honestly know that I wouldn't be where I am today. It was a long process of constant struggle before I came into being what I consider a "good momma". I define being a "good momma" as being one who lays down her life daily to love, nurture, disciple, train her children. One who obeys scripture and instead of thinking "I have a better way to do it, a less painful way", instills the fear of the Lord in her children the best that she can. I have dearly loved my daughter from the moment I knew she was being formed but going from self seeking, independence from God and rebellion to being a mom that chose what was hard in order to love my daughter to the best of my ability definitely took time. Little steps and lots of grace from God, not to mention His mercy being new every day, is what fueled my journey and strengthened me to persevere instead of giving up on ever being the kind of mom that I really wanted to be (which I was quite often ready to do, especially in the beginning years of saying yes to Jesus).

         It's not always a positive thing to "reminisce" or stay focused on the past, especially if you have a crazy history like me, but sometimes remembering from whence God took you is a powerful way to have your heart humbled and brought closer to Him. I remember a couple years ago, during a sweet devotional time in the prayer room, the Lord showed me a picture. In it, I could see someone who I knew was me but didn't look like me. I looked like I had been beaten and I was laying in the gutter and it was dark and rainy. As I saw the picture, I heard my tender Father God say "I never gave up on you!". Wow, did that mess me up! I sat there crying for a bit, really wanting my heart to be impacted by that profound truth. He never gave up on me! Each year at my daughter's birthday, I try to remember some key parts of my life history in order to have my heart stirred up with gratefulness to the One who took me out of bondage and into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9). My daughter was a deep desire fulfilled and a perfect gift from the Father, she still is! She challenges me daily to "walk the walk" and stay humble, ready to apologize for wrongs done and ready to joyfully embrace the moments of childlikeness she inspires. It goes so fast. I see her already growing into such a beautiful young lady with such grace and beauty, not to mention a good sense of humor. She's my biggest helper and has been since Malachi was born. She's already really comfortable with cooking and knows how to take care of the home in every way I do. The past 3 years of homeschool have also been a gift. To be with my little girl almost every hour of every day is honestly amazing, contrarily to what many moms think. It's not too much and I rarely ever feel like I need a break. I lost so many years of being with her, I just want to soak it all in now. I'm so grateful to God that I get to, that my husband wants me to homeschool instead of being an extra source of income. God has truly been so good in answering my hearts desires. Happy Birthday to my little gift. amen.

Keeping centered on Advent

In the past week, we've missed the last 3 days of the advent reading. It's not for a bad reason (terrible leak in our kitchen and ripping up the entire kitchen floor which is about 50% of our living space). Even so, Jesus and meditating on Him seems to get lost easily in the hustle and bustle of every day living. He is SO SO worth every minute of devotion I can give him and sometimes little things like this link help me refocus. So in keeping with the theme of Advent, John Piper narrates a beautiful poem which he wrote called "The Innkeeper". The link is to a video of him reading it. It's a short 10 minutes and it really wrecked my heart. Hope you enjoy it too.

The Innkeeper Poem by John Piper

Simple Woman's Daybook...

 Linking up with the simple woman's daybook here: http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/ 


Outside my window... is a dark night that will safely and soon bring my hardworking husband home to me (after I'm sleeping, no doubt)

I am thinking... about a thousand things but most notable are the following thoughts: my little baby in bed next to me is such a miracle, the nearly 12 year old who just walked to bed after reading time is also a miracle. I'm also thinking of how wonderful it will be to have full access to my kitchen again, some time in... oh... I'd say, 3 more days. After the kitchen floor gets replaced. Merry Christmas to me? I think so.

I am thankful... for God's faithfulness. One time when I was a rebellious teen, my momma sent me a notecard in the mail to the ghetto that I resided in. In it, she encouraged me that God's love was more faithful then the morning. She said that as she thought of God's faithfulness, she would picture it as His face-full-ness. To her that meant that His face was never turned away in shame or anger from her, it was always turned fully toward her. It encouraged me at the time and still does today. God turns His face toward His creation in delight, longing to reveal to us His glory. That's what we were made for. To know Him and His glory. 

In the kitchen... is a ginormous mess. Literally, the kitchen (refrigerator and dishwasher) are in my living room until all the floor gets fixed. Last thing I cooked was at a dear friends house, yesterday. It's a delicious beef stew. I'll have to post that recipe sometime when I'm not already too cozy in bed to get up. hehe. I can post an inexpensive Christmas treat recipe, though, which I got from one of my favorite blogs, www.raisingolives.com. I made this simple and cheap recipe for a cookie exchange that I was a part of last week. They are yummy.

Here's a pic of my kitchen and my handsome husband working hard to fix it:

Peppermint Meringues

Peppermint meringues are light crispy and peppermint-y wonderful for a plate of treats.

2 egg whites
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 cup sugar
2 peppermint candy canes, crushed

Beat egg whites until foamy; add salt and cream of tartar and then beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar while beating until stiff peaks form (about 6-7 minutes).

Drop meringues by teaspoon full onto un-greased foil and sprinkle with crushed candy canes. Bake at 225 for 1 1/2 hours. Then turn off heat and slightly open oven door. Leave meringues in oven until cool (1-2 hours).

Makes 3 dozen.

I am wearing... PJ's. the comfy kind. the only kind I wear. I promise, my husband doesn't mind.

I am creating... nothing right this second but I have been in an awfully creative creating mood lately. I've sewn up some new Christmas stockings for my whole family. I'll post a short tutorial on that sometime this week, hopefully. I've also been making tons of adorable owl hats for babies. These hats are soooo fun to make and even more fun to see on little ones heads. 

Here's the latest one I made for a friend.

Here are the stockings I made for over the fireplace:

I also crocheted those little snowflakes that are in between each stocking! So fun!

I am going... to be soooo happy when my folks come up for a visit (hopefully on Weds). I LOVE having family here, LOVE having noise in the house and always having someone to talk to. My parentals are perfect for those things. Plus, I always get at least 1 date in with the hubby while they are here with the kiddos. YAY!

I am wondering... when the next little Wandler will come into existence. It's just about that time for thinking about things like that. Baby's are little miracles and I can't wait for the next one :)

I am reading... "These Happy Golden Years" by Laura Ingalls Wilder, out loud to Aliyah every night. I am ALWAYS reading, or at least it seems like it, "Shepherding a Child's Heart". Always wanting to improve in the area of parenting. I should be reading the Word, but I'm currently so far behind in my reading that I feel sort of like starting all over. Or maybe I'll just read in John. One of my favorite books of the Bible. Yes, maybe I'll just do that.

I am hoping... that my beautiful sister will be able to come and visit soon. She's sooooo faaaaar awaaaay in Kansas City. Ok, it's not that far... but it IS! Wish she lived closer.

I am looking forward to... CHRISTMAS!!! 

I am learning... all about surrender, but isn't that always the case? I'm also learning about TRUSTing God with everything. Again, nothing new there.

I am pondering... the strange comfort level that I have with the fact that this next week my first born will be all of 12 years old. I think it hasn't hit me. Is it possible that I birthed a child 12 years ago? I was only a child myself, 12 years ago. wow, has time flown. 

One of my favorite things... Christmas cookies... or cookies of any kind. or maybe just sweets and a good excuse to eat them? hmm. 

A few plans for the rest of the week... Tomorrow starts my family's weekend (monday/tuesday), so we'll be putting in a new floor tomorrow and Tuesday. Hopefully in between some of that we'll rest. Oh, did I say WE'LL be putting in a new floor? I meant my HUBBY will be putting in a new floor. Glad to not have much to do with that.

With that said, I think I'll venture off into dream land before the noisy one gets home. If I can get into a deep enough sleep before hand, I don't get disturbed too easily. Good night.

Some of my favorites

Here is a short list of some of my favorite blogs/sites to read. All for different reasons but all excellent. Just wanted to pass them on. (thanks for asking, j-bid)


In no particular order.
http://www.riddlelove.com/
http://raisingolives.com/
http://inashoe.com/
http://www.smockityfrocks.com/
http://willmacivor.blogspot.com/
http://venablefour.wordpress.com/
http://www.dtnetwork.org/
http://www.beholdingjesus.com/
http://www.charisscofield.com/
http://www.desiringgod.org/
http://mikebickle.org/
http://www.ihopkc.org/
http://billscofield.blogspot.com/

Hope you enjoy :)