Nesting?!?

Adam says I'm nesting big time. I say that I am just trying to get things done. Either way, we've been busy lately. I say we. I really should say that most of the time it is me making suggestions and Adam doing the work. Not that I have not been busy as well, but there are some projects that at this point I really can't do, or it takes me about 100xs longer than Adam.

Last week we put lattice around some of the bottom of the shorter part of deck and put a ton (literally) of pea gravel under the taller section of the deck. The gravel is a great little spot for the kids to play, and the dogs have realized how much cooler it is to lay there, so they like it too.

We've been working on Logan's room. Right now it's half an office, a big pile, as well as a storage place for his clothes. We are not getting crib (at least for now) because he will be in a pack 'n play in our room for a while, and we are hoping that by the time he is ready to go to his room for the night that Kaylee will be ready for a big girl bed with rails. Adam made the comment that it is kind of hard to do his room...with Kaylee, hers was ready with a new border, crib, dressers, all that...and his is so different. But, HE is different. I have really been focusing lately on putting aside expectations that things go the same as with Kaylee. (not that I have ever expected to have a clone or anything...) His has been a different pregnancy, it will be a different labor, it will be a different birth...most things surrounding will be different. And that's okay. In fact, that's good. God never intended that we all be the same. So different this will be.

I finished school.

We've been doing general house cleaning.

In a few weeks we are going to help my parents move to another house.

This weekend is the Beth Moore simulcast! (sooo excited!)

Many more projects to do and many more that are done and just not listed. Nesting or just getting ready...either way it seems like there is just not quite enough time to get it all done. But each day is a day closer to bringing the little guy home...a day I am getting more and more excited about each day.

THE END!!!

I'm done with school...again! I received my last grades for the medical transcription program the other day. Now I just have to wait for the school to finish all of the processing and send me my certificate or diploma or whatever they do. If anyone hears of anyone looking for a medical transcriptionist to work at home, let me know. Thanks! It's a great feeling to know that I can be a mom and do school and get a 4.0. Since I had a lot of medical knowledge already it really wasn't that hard, but it still took time. I'm so excited to be done!

Life...About a Year Ago...

As I was loading the dishwasher tonight I paused (Kaylee was already in bed, so I could actually pause without worrying that she would either unload, get into, or attempt to reuse anything in the dishwasher). I thought back to around a year ago when we were in the midst of a forced remodel of our kitchen. It all happened when a pipe (or something) burst, causing water to flood our kitchen...all...night...long. Adam woke me up to say that he needed my help cleaning up water. At the time, neither of us had any idea the extent of the damage. Initially I was just a little irritated that I was loosing a few minutes of my precious sleep. Being a new mom and watching other kids, I needed all the sleep I could get. I got up anyway and we started to "mop" up the water. In the cabinets, all over the floor...and then we started to realize how much water there really was. To make a very long story somewhat shorter...we realized that we needed to call the insurance company. The insurance company deemed that we basically needed a new kitchen, from the subfloor all the way to the cabinets and everything in between.





Now-most of the time when you decide to redo something, you pick what you are going to replace, order the replacements, wait for them to come in, THEN you rip out the old and put in the new. This makes a smaller dent in the functionality of whatever you are replacing. However...our redo went more like this:
~have several industrial sized fans in the house (note: loud, hot, and very, very large-thus, freaking out one of the dogs to the point where you had to turn the fan off to get her to go by it)
~wait for several days to get things dried out
~have floor tested for asbestos
~wait for results
~rip out cabinets, wood floor
~find out the linoleum under wood floor did have asbestos
~wait for specialty people to come take out (during removal:pack up kids(the ones that I watch as well as my own), dogs, etc and "move" to inlaws
~Move back to house, continue to have refrigerator in living room, all dishes and kitchen stuff in basement, dishwasher in hall...
~somewhere in this whole time frame we picked out new cabinets (I know, so sad that the purple ones had to go!)
~Have new subfloor, floor, paint, trim, cabinets, countertops, etc installed...

~I am sure that I have missed some of what happened, but I started to think about this time and decided that I wanted to document it for my own remembering.
Remembering:
That I can live in a house without a kitchen for almost 4 months.
That I can do this very shortly after having a baby and starting a new job of watching other kids in my house.
That my husband and I are a great team - we can make it through difficult and hasty decisions.
That even though it was something I wouldn't want to do again, I would have never been able to get a new kitchen without the assistance of insurance. (that said...I cannot understand why anyone would cause something like this to happen JUST to get insurance to pay)
In the end, although there are many things I would still like to change about my house, and some day I would like to move to a bigger one...I love my cabinets!

End result: although it doesn't show some of my fav parts, it's easy to see the biggest change:



We were even able to build the dishwasher in. (for those who may not know, there are some dishwashers that are encased and on wheels-they hook up directly to the sink, and for the time that it is running you can't use your sink. You have to physically push the dishwasher from it's storage area to the sink and back again every load of dishes that you do...we had this because there wasn't enough room to have a built in one, and my parents wanted us to have one, so they bought us one for our wedding.) When talking with people about our new cabinets, they came up with a design that would give us more counter space and allow the dishwasher to be built in. We were more than just a little excited about this new design.

Anyway, for memories sake...

Parents

I recently read on a friends blog about how her parents help her out with her kids - especially during the times where a little quiet is desperately needed. I've often thought about how blessed that Adam and I are to have our parents (both sets) within 10 minutes of our house. Between them and Adam's sister, we have never ever had to have anyone else watch our little munchcan! I love it. And while I do stay home so that I can be with my babies, it is a blessing to have such trusted people nearby. With that said, I'm actually not the biggest fan of sending the cutest little girl off...I rather like spending time with her...but there are times when I need help, or rest, or quiet, or just a small break from chasing. And during these times I know that I could actually have any number of grandparents lining up to take her home. And besides, Kaylee loves her grandparents. So, as hard as it is for me to send her off, I know that the time that she is spending with them is irreplaceable. Growing up close to my grandparents as well, I spent lots of time with them. We actually lived right beside my dad's parents, so I could hop over whenever I wanted. And now that both of my grandmothers have passed away, I am even more thankful for the time that I spent with them. I am so grateful that my kids are close enough to their grandparents to make similar memories...memories that will last forever...and so, I send her off, knowing that she is in the most loving hands that I could ask for.

Marriage

In the book that I am currently reading, "Forever" by Karen Kingsbury, there are letters that a mom leaves behind for her children to read after she has died. In one of the letters, she leaves a list that she and her husband followed for a good marriage. Although this book is purely fiction, the list, I thought, was very good.
1. God has you here to serve on another. Love acted out is serving.
2. Women need respect and nurturing. Love your wife so she knows you'd lay your life down for her. Continue to date her and admire her. Share a hobby- find something you can do to have fun together.
3. Laugh often.
4. Be patient. Love crumbles quickly under the weight of unmet expectations.
5. Spend more time trying to fix yourself than your spouse.
6. Keep short accounts. The Bible says, " Do not let the sun go down while you are angry." Make it a habit to forgive.
7. Determine up front that divorce is not an option.
8. Learn about love languages. You want a back rub and your spouse wants clean kitchen. The love languages are fairly simple: acts of service, time, physical touch, gifts, and words of affirmation. Learn them. Love is better received when it's in the language that a person speaks.
9. Words of affirmation are a love language for all men.
10. Men are born to be leaders. He cannot lead unless she gives him the confidence to do so. If you love your husband, build him up. Confident men do not seek love outside the home.

Random

I love looking through old pictures. In fact, my screen saver is a compilation of all the pictures on my computer in random order...sometimes when I come to use the computer I just watch for a while in stead of getting to whatever I was going to do. So...for memories sake, some older pictures from before I was a "blogger"

This is one of my favorite pictures of Riley and Kaylee. It was right after we brought Kaylee home from the hospital. Riley was so good...only days away from becoming a mamma herself...very timid and quiet around the new baby. She is still such a good dog.



This was on Kaylee's first Easter Sunday - and some of her first real smiles.



Riley had 6 puppies exactly three weeks after Kaylee was born. It was challenging to have a new baby and 6 puppies (something we will never plan again!). But it was still fun and I will definitely breed her (and maybe Zoe) again - just not around the time of having a human child. Zoe is one of the two girls from the litter. Riley loved being a mom and was really good at it.



This is such a random picture. I needed to get something in the laundry room and needed both hands...what to do with the baby? hmmm? Stick her in the basket...she loved it! We were both winners!



We were on our way into the pet store one day...with both the dogs, and the stroller. Right before we got to the door, Zoe decided that she wanted to ride, jumped in, and there she was. She figured a dog riding in the storage area of a stroller is perfectly normal. Isn't it?



She loves her dogs. What more can I say?

Love of My Life

So I've been reading a series of books lately, fiction, nothing earth shattering, but entertaining. They have made me think of how blessed I am to have the husband I do. I know many of my married friends feel the same way about their husbands too...but there are so many people who are not as blessed. So, being as this is a journal/scrapbook of sorts for me, I feel the need to record just a few of these thoughts. Not that our marriage is perfect, we still have to work through things at times, but I could never ask for a better partner and friend to go through these with.
Some Special Memories: (in random, not chronological order)
~ When we were dating he filled my room with balloons and made me a homemade dinner followed by a foot rub for Valentine's Day. (I was working at a flower shop at the time, so this couldn't have been a more perfect ending to a busy and hectic day)
~ Every morning that he works, he comes back into the room before he leaves and kisses me and reminds me that he loves me.
~ When I was working outside of the home, numerous times I would come home to a clean house and dinner waiting on the table...complete with candles.
~ In fact, he does most of the cooking all of the time.
~ When I help him with one of his projects he complements me and reminds me of what a good team we are.
~ God told me early on (our first date) that I would marry him.
~ He often makes the random decision that I need a back rub. (I don't argue)
~ He doesn't take it lightly that he is the head of our household, appointed by God to make sure that our house is run in a godly manner.

There are many other things that I could say...could go on forever really...but for now...

West Virginia

This past weekend we went to West Virginia to visit some of Adam's family- grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, cousin's kids, basically as many members of the family tree as we could fit into about two days. Needless to say, it's a jam packed time, but we always have fun. Kaylee is, of course, the center of attention. She eats this up for all its worth. This will be the last trip there until sometime after the baby is born, so we wanted to see as many people as possible. When we first got there Mamaw and Kaylee had some fun with the wagon. It's so fun to watch these things. I just stand back and let them have their time..precious memories.





After some play time at their house we went to a park until it got to hot...aka 20 minutes. (Qualify to hot...Kaylee would have gone down the slide for hours...Adam, Mamaw and I were too hot).






From the hot park we went to Aunt Sherri and Uncle Eddie's house to sit in the shade, play, and eat fresh peaches off the tree. Kaylee heard a donkey hee hawing on the other side of a hill and was very interested in the sound...unfortunately we couldn't show her what the noise maker looked like. (mental note: take Kaylee to see a donkey somewhere)




Later that evening Adam's cousin and his family came over for dinner and then we went blueberry picking at a local farm. They were the most plentiful berry bushes I have ever seen. All of us came close to filling our buckets and we did fill our stomachs, and by the end we were happy and blue (the color!).






Kaylee got to have her very own ice cream cone without help. Needless to say it was given to her by a very brave Nanny who didn't mind if Kaylee dripped. You would have thought that she was handed the moon by her excitement. Her clothes were washed immediately after and she got a sink bath - another memory made.

We all enjoyed spending time with family that we don't get to see very often. I wish that we could visit more often, but the fun times that we spend are still very important.

The Cat

My in-laws have this cat...to get a picture of this cat visualize Garfield and then color him grey...that's Baily. Well, Kaylee loves Bailey...Bailey does not always love Kaylee. In fact, it has been his custom to run and hide from her. But today was different. The grandparents took the two dogs and Bailey to the vet, and on the way home picked up Kaylee. I got a phone call 3-5 minutes after they left. When I saw who was calling my first thought was that the cat escaped from the vehicle or used Kaylee's face as a scratching post...nope...quite the opposite. He decided to sit on her lap in her car seat and enjoy a back rub from her. She decided to play gently. Maybe we have friends after all? One can only hope. :)

Sweet Dreams

Just the most peaceful "thing" I've seen all day!


Growing up I used to wonder why my dad would take so many pictures of us when we were sleeping. Answer...well, there could be several, but there's just something special about watching your own kid sleep that does something inside of you (other than the quiet and the moments that you are not running around the house saving them from eminent danger, picking up everything they drop and trying to clear the path all at the same time). Especially on nights when it's just me, it seems like I want to check on Kaylee and look at her every few minutes. She has a habit of sticking her feet out of her crib - or at least propping them on the bumper. I find her in positions that I also like to sleep in, and well, she's just so cute and peaceful when she is asleep that I can hardly stand it. I look at her, and I can't believe that she's mine. I've always wanted kids, and now that I have one and one on the way it's sometimes all I can do to just stand amazed at what God has given me.

Special Cupcake

The other day we were helping my parents move some furniture from their current house to the house they will be moving into in a few weeks. Mom always makes some kind of lunch for us and this time Kaylee got a special treat after - her very own cupcake lady. Mom said that I had one for my first birthday and loved it. My eyes lit up and I was so excited. When I saw the cake for Kaylee I wondered how she would react and wondered if she would know what to do with it since she had never had a cupcake before. Well, I didn't have to worry, her reaction must have been about like mine was. And she did know exactly what to do with it...smash it and eat it and try to cover anyone within reach with the brightly colored frosting. She demolished a good bit of it and then decided that her hands were messy and it was time to clean them off...so she got a sink bath - which she also loved. She's such a funny little thing...she likes to get into things, but she does not like to be dirty. She tries to brush and wipe off anything foreign to her hands (or wherever the foreign stuff has landed).

Funny Girl

Last night we went to visit a good friend who had just had a baby. While we were visiting, Kaylee was checking out Adam's friend's shoes. Of course, Adam was picking on his friend, and told Kaylee that his feet were STINKY!! Immediately Kaylee pinched her nose and made a face, then ran to Adam, pinched his nose and did the same to mine. A few seconds later we are pretty sure that Kaylee said to Adam's friend "stinky." This would be funny no matter what, but it is funnier in that we've never really done the whole nose pinching thing to or around Kaylee...she just did it herself! She is such an entertaining and comical little girl. She makes everyone laugh.