The Moody Lifestyle

Three Weeks

2012-01-27T16:05:00.002-06:00

Three weeks already! Here's pics from our little photo shoot today. I would LOVE to take photography lessons to learn how to take good pictures (and get a nice camera and nice photo editing software)...but until then, I'll have to deal with what little skill I have:-)

I've always wanted pictures of my babies all cuddled up cute in a little basket. This is the best I could get:)

Funny face showing his sweet little dimples.

I tried to get a sweet picture of him in a little ball, but he just won't cooperate! He does not like to be on his tummy very much.

Bo's Birth Story

2012-01-18T13:42:00.006-06:00

I have a lot of other things that need to get done right now, but I wanted to get Bo's birth story recorded before I forgot the little bit that I still remember.

It was Thursday, Jan. 5th, that it all started...a day packed full of activities. The girls and I got up and out the door early to go on our monthly grocery shopping trip to the commissary. I got a lot of food that I was planning on preparing the next day (like three bags of potatoes to chop and freeze). I even had a turkey thawing out so that I could cook it on my big cooking day I was planning for Friday. After the grocery trip, we got home and I put away all the food that needed frozen or refrigerated and left the rest (many bags) on the table. Then we headed off to our friend's house for a play date and lunch. Naps at home were short so that I could get to my doctor's appointment that afternoon to check out what turned out to be thrush. Nice, huh? While we were at the doctor, I noticed that I was starting to have an increasing number of contractions.

After the doctor's appointment, we decided to stop by a park because it was super nice out for January. My contractions were becoming regular at about 12 to 15 minutes apart by the time we left. When we got home, I quickly fed the girls dinner so that we could go to a meeting for the Southeast Good Neighbor Center at 6:00. Justin had a late night at work, so he stopped by the church to pick up the girls on his way home. My contractions were still regular, getting closer to 1o minutes apart. They weren't very painful at this point.

I got home around 7:45 and we prepared to possibly go into the hospital that night. We got the girls ready for bed, I took a shower, and we called my brother to warn him that we might be bringing the girls over to their house (and would he rather have them now, or in the middle of the night?) We decided to go ahead and put them to bed and wait it out. For the 8:00 hour, my contractions stayed at about 8 to 10 minutes apart. I can't remember exactly what time it was, but the contractions started getting painful and lasting longer, so we decided to go to the hospital (I think it was around 11:00?) It was actually the same scenario as with Rylie, so I was expecting him to be born in the early morning hours like she was.

So, we drop the girls off at Rick and Kendra's on the way to the hospital. We get there, get checked in and I'm only dilated to 3.5. While I'm laying there, my contractions become more irregular...some are very painful, while others are not at all (great, I'm thinking, we shouldn't have come this early). I'm sure since I was 2 weeks early, the resident doctor thought it wasn't the real thing yet and decided to send me home since I only dilated to a 4 while I was there. So, we went home around 2:00 or 3:00(?...can't quite remember).

Well, as soon as I got up and moving, the contractions started coming every 3-5 minutes and were very painful. We were at home for about an hour when Justin must not have wanted to deliver his baby at home, because he said, that's it-we're going back! I replied that I wasn't going back! I'm not getting sent home again! But, I listened to my husband and we headed back to the hospital just a short hour after leaving.

We got checked in--again--and this time I was crying (quite loudly!) with every contraction. (Later, the same resident doctor said I was more believable this time. I didn't know I was trying to convince them that I was in labor!) So, I'm in a new room with no one coming to check me or get me "admitted". It was a long time before the same nurse and resident doctor (ugh!) came in...and I was only dilated to a 5! Like I said, same scenario as with Rylie, but she was out and in my arms by this time! It was going so slow this time around!

Finally, I was admitted and things got moving a little bit. I was able to get an epidural, during which I cried and screamed the whole time...my second least favorite part of the whole thing. It didn't cover the left side of my belly, but it still was so much better than feeling the full effect of all those contractions. I seemed to stay dilated at a six forever, though.

Eventually, all the changes started happening and the new nurse and new doctor (yay!) started to prepare for delivery. They called my doctor to get him in. He got me all set up and I only had to push once. They put our new baby on my chest at 11:30 am and Justin and I were both glowing with joy...

...then I started screaming!!!! What in the heck were they doing!!! I don't remember it hurting this bad! I was screaming and crying so hard, the nurses took the baby (who was supposed to have some skin-to-skin contact with me at first) and did their thing with him, like measurements and such. Justin went with the baby, while I was being tortured, or so it felt like. It turns out that my placenta was stuck and the cord was not attached to it anymore. The resident doctor had to stick her hand up into my uterus to pull on the placenta. On top of that, they were pushing so hard on the top of my belly (my absolute least favorite part of the whole thing!). The doctor asked the nurses, "Isn't she blocked?!" Well, not on the left side, the side my placenta was on! So, they quickly put more "stuff" in the epidural, and some kind of drugs into my IV. Anything after that is a bit fuzzy in my memory...I was pretty drugged up and out of it.

For a long time afterwards, I couldn't open my eyes, but I could hear some of the stuff going on around me. I heard Bo crying a lot. They had to stick a tube down his throat to get fluid out of his lungs. From looking back at pictures Justin took, he even got a bath during this time. My first time moving from getting the drugs, I threw up. I threw up a couple more times that day. Eventually, I was awake enough to hold Bo as they took me to another room. I had some visitors, but I was still really tired and out of it. It was hard for me to concentrate and stay awake.

But the next day at 5:30 am, I was wide awake and refreshed! I took a shower and was ready to go. Bo stayed in the nursery the whole night, and I got a lot of much needed rest! I recovered pretty quickly and finally got to love on my new baby and actually remember it!

Getting measured.

8 lbs, 1 oz

Fluid-filled lungs

First bath

Holding Bo while I get wheeled to another room. This is the ONLY descent picture taken of me while I was so drugged up. I don't even have one of my first moment holding him like I have with the girls because I was crying so hard and they took him from me so quickly. Oh, well, I can at least remember it...for now!

Boaz One Week Old

2012-01-13T13:49:00.003-06:00

I just LOVE this little guy! He is still the perfect baby. At one week...

...already into an eat-wake-sleep schedule. Great during the day; not so much at night:) He likes to be awake for a couple hours after his middle of the night feeding. At least he doesn't cry, and I get to update the blog:)

...great sleeper. Usually have to wake him up to eat since the Dr. said he needs to eat every two to three hours, not every four like he would otherwise do.

...usually use at least three diapers during a diaper change. Need to start timing that better:)

...his sisters adore him! And so do his mommy and daddy!

Sweetness

2012-01-13T01:59:00.000-06:00

Newborn Pics

2012-01-12T02:11:00.004-06:00

He Has A Name

2012-01-07T17:03:00.004-06:00

Boaz "Bo" Michael Moody

Why Boaz "B0"?

In Ruth Chapter 4 verses 9 through 13, God uses "Boaz" to redeem a Moabite woman (named Ruth) through purchasing his own inheritance and marrying Ruth. This action signifies how God wants all nations to be saved and worship the one and only true God through the redemption Jesus Christ paid for our sin. Boaz also protected and provided for Ruth and Naomi also signifying the role of man to protect and provide for the dignity of womanhood.

We pray our son, will be used by God in such a way so to be a part of his "redemptive" plan to draw all people everywhere to Himself and accomplishing this task through living out and speaking about the love of Jesus Christ (Luke 24:47). In regards to protecting and providing for the dignity of womanhood, it seemed fitting to cast a vision to our son to protect his older sisters and to always honor his mother.

Why Michael?

"Michael" is the name of my (Justin) late father. The name also means, "one who resembles God."

We love you our friends and family,

The Moody's

Our Baby Boy is here!

2012-01-07T07:06:00.002-06:00

Our little guy decided to come two weeks early! Let me tell you, he is just the perfect baby! I think he looks a lot like Justin, but maybe I just want him to be like his daddy! Baby Boy Moody (no name yet) was born at 11:30 am, Friday, January 6th, 2012. He weighs 8 pounds, 1 ounce. 20 inches long. I'll update you on his birth story in another post. For now, I'll leave you with a picture of the proud daddy and his first son...

Merry Christmas! 2011

2011-12-25T15:37:00.002-06:00

We celebrated Christmas with my side of the family the weekend before Christmas. We had our 2nd annual soup and sandwich dinner, with a story read by Aunt Lorie, and gift exchange.

This is our nephew Duncan's first Christmas with us. He got to be the first to open a gift.
My mom and princess Rylie. She thinks a "pretty princess" dress is a must when there's music to dance to.
My mom got Jordan a Jessie doll!
The next pictures are from Christmas with Justin's side of the family. Every year, we go to his sister Stacie's house and spend the night Christmas Eve. We are spoiled with ribs and shrimp for dinner, and then open presents from each other in the evening. Then Santa (over)fills the stockings after the kids go to bed.

Jordan and Rylie got a lot of doll house accessories this year.
Rylie is "helping" her older cousin Jake open his present. Rylie was a bit attached to both Jake and Luke...they are great older cousins that loved on her well! One time she was looking for Jake, but was saying Luke. We said, "There's Luke, right beside you." She looked up and said, "Where's the other Luke?" The boys look more alike than their sisters that are twins do:)

Justin, his sister, and niece Hope all cuddled up with the girls Christmas morning. Hope and Madison are also GREAT older cousins that take care of Jordan and Rylie very well.

With only about 6 hours of sleep the night before, the girls were all tuckered out by the time they got home. It's almost 4:00 right now, and they're STILL asleep. Notice their beloved toy story dolls. Justin's mom got Rylie the Woody doll, so now they each have one.

Hair Stylist

2011-12-25T15:17:00.001-06:00

Jordan did my hair "so pretty" the other day! (I can't believe I'm posting these pictures!)

Rylie is Silly

2011-12-25T14:50:00.003-06:00

Rylie is pretending to have a baby in her tummy in the first video. So FUNNY! For just a little while, if you asked her where her baby brother was, she would lift up her shirt and say "in here" and point to her belly button.

The second video is of Rylie playing with a roly poly she found. She carried it everywhere, put it in her purse, carried it in her lunch box. What a fun little girl:)

8 Months

2011-12-25T14:17:00.002-06:00

I totally skipped my 7 month belly picture and update, so here's my 8 month shot. Today, I am 36 weeks, 3 days. Just a few short weeks, and we'll be meeting our first son. We are still not totally committed to a name (well, I am, but Justin is not yet!)

At 8 months...

...there is no problem gaining weight! I think I've gained at least 30 lbs, and it's everywhere! I can even feel it in my face, and can feel it especially when I talk--it's weird.

...our little guy moves quite a bit. Sometimes it's painful, but most of the time it's just cool.

...I think this is the biggest my belly has gotten in all my pregnancies.

...I have a lot of braxton hicks contractions. I start to feel them coming on by the change in my breathing and my face getting flushed before I actually feel it in my belly.

...I'm getting used to being up all night! I've been sleeping on the couch since month 7, propped up with tons of pillows, but never comfortable. On top of just plain not sleeping well, I have to go to the bathroom all the time too:) So, I take a nap pretty much everyday!

...the reality that we are having a baby soon is starting to sink in. I think I've been in somewhat of denial about it:)

...we've been beyond blessed by several friends and Justin's coworkers who have provided all things "boy" that we might need, especially clothes! Now, he won't have to come home from the hospital in a pink outfit:)

...Jordan still tells everyone she sees, even family who she's told multiple times, that she's going to have a baby brother and he's in mommy's tummy. She is still VERY excited about it!

Gymnastics

2011-12-22T13:03:00.003-06:00

Here are a few pictures of Jordan doing gymnastics. She does gymnastics once a weak for an hour at the Y. These were taken the day before Thanksgiving, when daddy got to come and watch. The only thing she could talk about in the days leading up to this class was that daddy was going to be there and she couldn't wait:)

The girls are learning to get onto the balance beam by pushing themselves up and swinging one leg over.
More balance beam work.
Flipping over the bars. I think Jordan is best at the bars. Yesterday, she was *this* close to flipping herself over without any help.

DIY Christmas Gifts

2011-12-06T13:45:00.002-06:00

So, I've been busy working on some Christmas projects. Here are two of them. There are others, but I can't post them because the people they are for actually might read this blog:) The first picture shows the project that is on it's way to becoming a magnetic bulletin board for a pre-teen girl. I made a couple of others (that I can't show) using paint, scrapbook paper, and mod podge on top of a sheet of flashing cut to fit the picture frame. I learned that fabric, like the one in the picture, is SO much easier, and will not be as problematic as the other two have proved to be.

This next picture is a gift for Justin's mom. I found the frame at a garage sale, bought some chicken coup wire, painted the wire, and stapled it to the back of the frame.
Then I made some cute little clothespins to hold pictures, cards, notes, etc. to the wire. I hope she likes it:)

The rest of our morning

2011-12-06T13:36:00.002-06:00

Hot chocolate to warm us up...

Working on Christmas tree decorations. I don't know about other moms, but I get a little stressed when we do crafts at our house. It's really that I just don't like the mess. And glue + glitter = big mess! However, I know that crafts are so much fun for the girls, so I deal with it:)
Our strips of paper drying so that after naps we can make a paper chain and hang it on the tree. The girls LOVED doing this. Thanks, Mom, for the hole punches...they were a big hit!

Our first snow fall of the season

2011-12-06T09:39:00.002-06:00

The girls were SUPER excited about the first snow fall of the season! Jordan was getting Rylie dressed and telling her all about making snow ice cream, snowmen, and snow forts. Too bad there was not enough snow for all those things...especially the snow ice cream...that sounded pretty good! But, the girls made do with just eating the little bit of snow they could. It took us quite awhile to get out the door. I was a bit pessimistic about the whole thing...thinking, "It's taking us an hour to get ready to go outside, but how much you want to bet you girls won't last five minutes?" Well, they proved me wrong. We were out there nearly an hour. It was ME that couldn't last and finally had to coax the girls inside with the promise of hot chocolate:) I made some "from scratch" and it was pretty delicious!

Cute Girls

2011-12-03T08:52:00.002-06:00

These pictures were taken this summer and I ran across them when I was looking for the picture of Justin and the girls while updating the blog design to match the season. They were so cute, I just had to post them! Rylie, Fallyn, and Jordan. Can you tell they're related? :-)

My 30th Birthday

2011-11-19T07:44:00.002-06:00

I turned 30 two days ago on Thursday, Nov. 17th. I had a great two days of celebrating. I think after 10 years together, Justin has finally come to terms with the things that I would enjoy in celebrating such a "special" day. You see, Justin LOVES to celebrate and he will celebrate by making a big deal and a big production. I LOVE this about him. If you've ever been to one of our kids' birthday parties or witnessed our engagement, or ever just been to a party where Justin is involved, then you've experienced some of his great energy and excitement. It's great!

Me, on the other hand, enjoy a much more laid back type of celebration. And guess what? Justin followed through without making my birthday a big production...and I LOVED IT! On Thursday, we got to eat dinner with our best friend, David, eat cake and watch a movie at home. It was nice and relaxing. Then, last night, we got to go out on a nice date with two of my brothers and their wives-without kids!-and we had a blast! PF Chang's and a movie! We haven't gotten to all go out together without kids for a LONG TIME. I LOVED IT.

Guess what movie we saw? We finally got to see "Courageous." And, oh my goodness, you just don't stop crying! They packed a lot of emotion into that movie. If you haven't seen it, you need to go see it! It is one of the best you'll see. And, the best part of my birthday is really the best part of my life...I have a husband and my children have a father that is "courageous." I kept thinking that during the whole movie--Justin lives up to being the leader of our family that the movie is challenging men to be. He loves God more than anything and that flows into loving and cherishing his family. I will follow him anywhere, because I know he is following God anywhere. I know that I can trust Justin because he trusts in his Savior, Jesus Christ. That is the BEST birthday present ever. I thank God everyday for giving me this man of courage. Thanks for a great birthday, Justin!

Veteran's Day

2011-11-15T15:12:00.003-06:00

Justin and I have been wanting to get to know our neighbors, because sadly, we only know the retired Chinese couple that live right next door to us. We think they are GREAT neighbors and have even gone out to eat with them before and will often go over to their yard/house and chat. But knowing only one neighbor is kind of sad! So, we devised a plan to at least be able to knock on their doors and introduce ourselves without seeming too weird. We decided to "celebrate" Veteran's day by baking and handing out some pumpkin bread and cake pops. The result: we still really only know the Chinese couple!

We did get to meet a family (the dad anyway) that has lived in their house down the street for about a year, though, so maybe we can call that a success? Another house was quite interesting...we met his hand as he held it out to take the goodies. I guess he was not wearing clothes, so he hid behind the door:) And finally, we got the same response as we always do with the house right next door on the other side. We briefly talked to the mom and then left. We've tried to get to know them a few other times, but I don't think they really want to get to know us. Too bad, because they have two little kids that Jordan loves to talk to over the fence and always asks to play with. I guess we can just keep trying and not give up.

Here's a picture of us getting the goodies ready. Don't expect to be receiving any cake pops from me in the future...I will NOT be making these again!

New Nieces Coming Soon!

2011-11-15T14:52:00.003-06:00

My brother and sister-in-law are in the process of adopting two little girls from Uganda and are selling t-shirts, along with other items like children's bows, to help raise money for their expenses. They already brought home our newest nephew in May. So, if you haven't heard (though most of you that read this blog also read theirs!), go ahead and check out their site http://www.hopeshirts.blogspot.com/ and get your cool stuff today! You have to order shirts by Wednesday, I think, so you only have one week left.

Jordan Reading

2011-11-11T21:14:00.003-06:00

Jordan is reading her -an family book to daddy. She learned the -at family last week, and yesterday was introduced to the -an family. She has also learned a few sight words that are in each little book. I'm not sure how much of her reading is actually reading and how much she is just memorizing!

Month 6

2011-11-07T21:50:00.003-06:00

Okay, I'm posting this month's picture/update a bit late! I reached six months on Oct. 20th. I kept wanting to get a "good" picture taken, but it never happened. So, here's one that Jordan took! She loves to take pictures, and she did a pretty decent job.

At 6 months, my belly seems to have popped out over night. I finally got out my maternity clothes and I've been gaining lots of weight! I want to eat all the time, but my stomach has much less room...it's quite the predicament!

We haven't committed to a name yet, but we only have one that we're thinking of. It's the same one we thought of when we were pregnant with Jordan if she would have been a boy. We can't wait to tell you what it is once we finally decide! However, if you ask Jordan, she will be more than happy to tell you!

I've started dr. appointments every 2 weeks now. And, it's now standard routine to get a 2nd sonogram at around 30 weeks, so I'm going next week on my birthday to see our little boy again. Pray that it goes well, because they spent quite a bit of time looking at the heart at the first sonogram and they didn't get the view they wanted so they'll be checking it again this time.

So far, this pregnancy has been the easiest for me. No swelling, acne, or constant heart burn like I did with Jordan; no headaches like I had with Rylie. The hardest part has been the first trimester when my hormones were a wreck (my poor husband!). At least that part has been over for several months!

Looking forward to meeting our newest addition, but also cherishing the time before that happens!

Preschool at Home

2011-11-03T14:08:00.003-05:00

I found this great site The Moffatt Girls where I found a ton of great curriculum for Jordan. I was getting stuck on what to teach her because a lot of stuff that I was finding was more for maybe 3 year olds, stuff that she already knows. So, schooling kind of took a back seat for the past month or so. But when I found this site, I was excited to get started again. This week, we started our first lessons with sight words (I, and, the, a, see) and word families (-at family). The information for this unit is supposed to be for one week (or maybe two) but it will take us much longer. This is because we're only doing "school" 2, maybe 3, times a week. I've learned that I have to be flexible, especially when I have Dr. appointments (which, by the way, have started occurring now every 2 weeks...yikes, we're getting close to having #3!) and other things that come up each week that will throw our schedule off. Speaking of schedule, I've been thinking and planning hard to find one that works for us, and I think I've finally got one! Just in time for it to be completely changed when baby brother arrives!

Anyway, here it is in case you care!

6:00-7:00-- Get up and make Justin's lunch and have a quiet time before girls wake up (not always great at getting up early, but trying to be).

7:00-7:30--Girls wake up and we get some snuggle time.

7:30-8:00--Get dressed and ready for the day.

8:00-9:00--Make and eat breakfast. During breakfast, read from the Bible, practice memory verses, and pray for kids without mommies and daddies. Clean up kitchen.

9:00--Start "school" for Jordan, unless we have a Dr. appointment, gymnastics, other obligation, or "field trip" to the zoo, library, exploration place, etc. We've been saying the Pledge of Allegiance to start us off.

10:00-10:30--Some sort of P.E. type stuff, like practicing gymnastics or going outside to run and play.

After 10:30--school is "over" and we can run errands as needed, like go to the grocery store.

12:00--lunch

1:00--naps for all!

Afternoon--my time to clean house. My goal is to get at least one chore done per day (sweeping and mopping the floor, vacuuming, cleaning the bathroom). Still haven't figured out the laundry yet, though.

After naps--free time to play, do a craft, or do some baking. Girls will often get to watch a video from netflix while I prepare dinner.

6:00--dinner

Here is a picture of our school/craft area. That little table has been, by far, the best kid item we own. Justin's mom gave it to us. By the way, that table is never this clean! I made a little bulletin board this week using a frame and ribbon so we could have a "word wall." Isn't it cute? Now I just have to hang it on the wall.

Halloween

2011-11-03T13:54:00.002-05:00

Halloween was a bit different for us this year. The past few years, we've had people over to carve pumpkins, eat pizza, and pass out candy to all the trick-or-treaters. This year, though, the husbands of the women in my Bible study group got to take the kids out trick-or-treating while us women did our service at the Southeast Good Neighbor Center. It was Jordan's (and Rylie's) first time actually trick-or-treating around to houses and it sounded like the dads and the kids had a blast! Sorry, I don't have any pictures of actual Halloween, but I have a few pictures of the kids decorating their pumpkins from earlier in the month.

Trick-or-treating with the cousins

2011-10-22T16:13:00.003-05:00

Last night, we walked from my brother's house to the church where Fallyn goes to preschool to do a trunk-or-treat night. The kids had fun dressing up, and the weather was just about perfect. Justin called Jordan a ghetto angel. Rylie was dressed up as some sort of fairy.

Pumpkin Patch 2011

2011-10-22T15:50:00.006-05:00

We got to go to the pumpkin patch today as a FAMILY! Jordan is big on saying we are doing things as a family when we ALL participate in something. It was nice that Justin has a week off of school (seminary, not work), so he didn't have to work on homework today. And the day was beautiful! We almost went to a different pumpkin patch, but Jordan remembered coming to this one last year and was very set on going to it again this year. Thank goodness for military discounts, or it would have been a pretty expensive day!

Love this next picture:)

A blog: 9to20 a survivor's journey out of trafficking

2011-10-21T13:34:00.004-05:00

Here's an excerpt from a blog my sister-in-law just referred me to, written by a trafficking survivor. It happens here, under our noses, and it makes me wonder about all those kids that couldn't make it to first hour, or were absent all the time, or always had an excuse for things. Read the blog for her story of healing. http://9to20.wordpress.com/

WARNING: it's real. it's horrific. it's unthinkable. it's full of hope.

I grew up in the suburbs of a town just a little smaller than 100,000 people. I was a straight A student who worshipped the ground her big brother walked on, as he was often my defender from a physically and sexually abusive father and my relief from an emotionally unstable mother.

When I was eight my brother left for college and the dynamic of our household changed dramatically. My father had lost yet another job and he and my mother turned to me as a steadier source of income. I will never forget that day. The way it turned my stomach so sick, the way the men’s semen smelt on my body… so foreign and sour. It lingered for hours. This first time I was sold for sex it was to multiple men at once. I was nine years old.

For the next 11 years of my life I was forced to have sex with hundreds of men. I was hit, mocked, urinated upon and exploited in the backs of trucks, corner markets, cheap hotels, my own bedroom and on the internet. Every touch and ugly word only added to the lie that sex was all I had to offer. It was my “duty” because I was nothing more than a whore. There was no one I could trust and certainly no one who could help or believe me. After-all, I deserved this– or so I thought. In order to cope, I had convinced myself that it was all a choice and ignored the fact that I was enslaved. I ran away several times but always went back– there was simply no where else for me to go. My parents had me told me repeatedly that either they would kill me or if I did make it to someone who could help, that those people wouldn’t believe a word I would say. Nothing in my life so far had shown me that they were lying.

The fact that her own parents exploited her makes me physically sick. It makes me even more sick that there is even a market out there! It wasn't just the physical abuse...her pictures were on the internet for all to see. If you think pornography is okay and not a big deal, think again! It is NOT OK! Those that partake in pornography are a huge part of exploiting these victims, and, it is often the first step in actually becoming an abuser. Pornography is not OK.

Human Trafficking

2011-10-19T14:40:00.005-05:00

Have you ever seen the movie "Taken?" It's about a father who does everything he can to rescue his 17-year-old daughter who was kidnapped by men in the sex slave industry while she and her friend were visiting Paris. He basically has 3 days to find her before she's completely "lost" in the dark underground world. Did I mention he was a retired CIA black ops agent? Yeah, those slave traders don't know what's coming.

Did you know it doesn't just happen "over there?" Did you know that the United States is the #1 country of destination for trafficking victims? Did you know that kids that have run away from home and are living on the streets will be lured into prostitution within 48 hours of leaving home? Human trafficking doesn't have to look like it does in the movie: victims are often "hidden in plain sight." (The following is taken from the Make Way Partners website) "Some of these victims come to the USA with dreams of a new life but instead enter into a living nightmare. They are hidden right in front of us as we live our daily lives. They may be working in fields you pass. They may be hidden in vans driving down the highway. They may be the women dancing in strip clubs you think are there by choice. They may be children locked away in quiet neighborhoods near where you live waiting in dark basements for the next customer to knock at the door. In the USA trafficking rings have been discovered in trailer parks, massage parlors, suburban homes, farms, working in major employment companies, in mansions..."

Unlike in the movie, I'm pretty sure most victims of human trafficking don't have a father that can kick butt. That means they are most likely going to stay victims unless we do something about it. The last statement about children being locked away in a dark basement in a neighborhood near where we live really hits home with me. There was a story done in the Wichita Eagle this spring (they were also on Oprah) on twin sisters who lived in the southeast side of Wichita who were exploited by their older brothers and father since before they were in kindergarten. They were rescued by neighbors when they were 13. Guess what? The older brother attended Southeast High School...MY school...MY neighborhood...MY backyard. It's not just "over there." It's right here where we live. I want to do something about it. And, I found a way...

...get involved in your community! It's pretty simple, really. You don't have to go knocking down doors to nasty hotel rooms (you'd put yourself and the victim in danger this way anyway). Volunteer your time, money, or talent. Start with this website for ideas: http://ictsos.org. I attended a conference this weekend on human trafficking and there was a great point that was brought up. Much of the "catching" and "saving" are in the hands of law enforcement. A nobody housewife like me is not in that position. So, how can I help these victims? Well, many of these human trafficking victims are "at-risk" youth. Wait a minute...at risk youth? I am in a place to get involved with at-risk youth. I can be a part of preventing children from ever getting lured into this underground world in the first place! How? What about becoming a mentor? Youth Horizons is a great organization in need of Christian mentors for children on their waiting list. I can do that! I've always wanted to, but never thought I had time. But now, I have plenty of time! This is something I can do! I may not be calling the cops on neighbors next door (pray that I don't ever have to!), but I can be investing in the life of a youth at risk and hopefully be a part of preventing human trafficking in our own backyard.

Apples and Pumpkins

2011-10-11T21:49:00.004-05:00

Jordan worked on an apple "sewing" project as we learned about apples.

We cut open an apple and found only three seeds. As you can see, Jordan did not think three was enough:)
Then we played with apples in the water table. Will it sink or float? The girls couldn't help but eat them as they played.

On Sunday, we decided to make and decorate cupcakes. The girls really enjoyed this activity, and they did a pretty good job, too.
We learned about what was inside a pumpkin this week, and after cutting it open, I cooked it and roasted the seeds.
I found the directions for pumpkin in a crockpot on the Happy Housewife website.
The girls worked on a little project on what's inside a pumpkin. They also found some letter P's from a magazine and glued them to the pumpkin.
They used some of the seeds and orange yarn for the inside.
Rylie really enjoyed the gluing!

Getting ready for the day

2011-10-07T20:57:00.002-05:00

Here's a picture of the clothes Jordan picked out for Rylie and herself the other day. She likes to get everything laid out first. She's a lot like Justin in this...he always has his clothes picked out and ready to go the night before!

Motherly Love

2011-10-01T14:49:00.000-05:00

I tried to get in on a couple pictures, too.

Sisterly Love

2011-10-01T14:43:00.002-05:00

Jordan was quick to hold Rylie, but Rylie wasn't so sure.

(not sure I should post this next one. Jordan looks a bit too old.)

More Old Town Pics

2011-10-01T14:35:00.004-05:00

(notice the nasty apple? it fell on the ground and rolled a few times!)

Dancing in the Street

2011-10-01T14:28:00.003-05:00

We went to old town today to just walk around. The Farmer's market was going on and someone was singing. The girls were each given an apple and they started dancing to the music.

Yum!

2011-09-29T11:50:00.002-05:00

I dreamed about making more lollipops last night...weird, I know...maybe I can blame it on being pregnant! I thought of all kinds of concoctions...one was mint oreo cookies and creme! Oh. My. Goodness. These are so good! I melted almond bark candy, mixed in a little peppermint extract and crushed oreos. I will definitely make more of these!

Candy Lollipops

2011-09-28T18:57:00.003-05:00

I've been thinking of making some candy/cake/cookie pops to give away as little treats during the holidays. The "pop" just seems so fun! I've found some ideas that I'd really like to try, but here's one that I did today. My first time making candy lollipops. I used a pumpkin mold. They are super easy, but I only have one mold that can make seven. That's all we made today:) I'll have to purchase some real ribbon to tie the bags instead of the kids' craft yarn:) These are mint chocolate flavored...

A New Recipe

2011-09-27T10:08:00.002-05:00

I forgot which website I found this idea from first, but I've seen it on a few. Let me tell you, the girls LOVED it! All you do is line a muffin tray with foil muffin cups, insert a deli slice of ham into each cup, and then pour a mixture of egg, sausage, and cheese into each cup. Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or so and you've got a delicious breakfast! I think it would be great for a brunch or something like that.

For twelve muffin cups:

*Brown (do you use the word brown for sausage?) 1 lb sausage, but use only 1/2 lb. I saved the other 1/2 for calzone stuffing I'll make later this week.

*Beat six eggs and mix with a handful or so of chedder cheese

*Mix the eggs and cheese with the sausage

*It takes a little less than a fourth of a cup to fill each muffin cup

*You can be as creative as you like by adding other ingredients, but we are simple/picky eaters, so a protein filled cup is what we like!

Jordan kept saying, "This is SO good!" and ate 3 of them!

Some lessons this week

2011-09-27T09:48:00.003-05:00

There is no theme here, just a couple lessons. I want to focus on numbers with Jordan this week, and colors with Rylie. The first picture shows a graph of the leaves we collected yesterday. We sorted them and glued them on the poster. Then Jordan counted them. I learned that she could tell me which column had the "most" leaves, but she did not know what the word "least" meant. Then there were two columns that were the "same."

A little side note: I'm learning that Jordan and Rylie learn different ways. Rylie loves manipulatives and *doing* things with her hands (a lot like Justin). Jordan is much more the typical "sit and get" kind of student and really likes listening and doing worksheet type stuff (a lot like me, though I really like hands on stuff too!).

Here is Rylie sorting colored blocks. I learned that she just wasn't getting me *telling* her what color things were. So, I decided to have her do a simple colored block sorting. I wasn't sure of her skill level, so I started with just one color. I asked her to find all the red blocks and put them on the red paper. She did that pretty easily, so then I put out the rest of the colored paper and she sorted them very well. Every time she put a block on a color, I said the color to get it into her brain. Eventually, I want to get to where she can pull out a a blue (or red, or green, or whatever color) just by me saying the name of the color.

Five Months

2011-09-23T15:09:00.003-05:00

Not the best picture, but it works! Yesterday I reached 23 weeks. I sometimes have to look at my friend Marie's blog to remember what week I'm on. She's four days ahead of me. If you think of it, be sure to pray for her as she nears 24 weeks, the week she was on with her first pregnancy when her water broke. Read her story if you don't know her...it's a good one!

*I'm finally feeling the baby kick a lot and getting to see my belly move a bit. Justin and Jordan have even gotten to feel it!

*I have started gaining weight now, and several strangers have not been afraid to ask if I know what I'm having, so I must look pregnant!

*Nothing else is much different than at 4 months. The second trimester is really the best!

Meal Menu and Preparation

2011-09-16T09:35:00.006-05:00

List of easy meals I make (or have made) *regularly*:

1. Spaghetti, homemade bread, salad

2. Lasagna, homemade bread, salad

3. Enchiladas (beef), chips/salsa, rice

4. Beef stroganoff, mashed potatoes, noodles (homemade or store-bought egg), green beans

5. Taco/chili soup, fritos or chips

6. Calzones, corn or salad

7. Pizza, corn or salad

8. Enchiladas (chicken), chips/salsa, rice

9. Chicken legs-baked, baked potato, green beans

10. Chicken breasts-mayonnaise and spices, baked potato, frozen mixed veggies

11. Chicken breasts-chex or fried onion dipped, baked potato, frozen mixed veggies

*Can pretty much have ingredients for all of these on stock and ready to go without having to run to the store (if I plan and make preparations regularly).

Justin lunch list:

1. Left overs

2. Peanut butter and jelly

3. Lunch meat (peppered turkey and Monterey Jack cheese)—special lunch because I’m learning that deli meat and cheese is a bit expensive!

4. Egg Salad sandwich

Meal preparation:

1. Cook bulk beef and freeze ½ lb baggies (need for 1^st 7 recipes)

2. Combine a few bags of beef with cut up pepperoni, salami, mushrooms, and cheese for calzone stuffing.

3. Cook whole chicken in crockpot and freeze in 1 cup baggies (need for chicken enchiladas). I’m thinking about doing this around thanksgiving with turkey that’s on sale and cooking in our roaster.

4. Boil eggs for eggs salad

5. If get homey enough, pre-make beans for taco soup in bulk and freeze in 1 cup baggies.

6. Cook several cups of rice and freeze in 1 cup baggies.

Girls’ lunch list:

1. Left overs for sure!

2. Peanut butter and jelly

3. Grilled cheese and tomato soup

4. Chicken nuggets

Gymnastics

2011-09-14T16:34:00.002-05:00

Last week, the girls started their gymnastics classes. Rylie in the month-long two year old class, and Jordan in the 4 year old academy class. Jordan has already been learning skills on the balance beam, rings, and bars. She does a great job, though it would help if she was a bit more flexible. Bad genetics from both her parents on that trait.

Retreat

2011-09-14T16:14:00.003-05:00

I only took a few pictures at the retreat this last weekend. I'm sad that I didn't think of getting a picture of our first camp site. I was awake most of the night camping, but it was cool because I got to see a raccoon right outside our tent eating some chips that Jordan left out. I told Jordan about it the next day and...proud teacher moment...the first thing she did was look on the ground for its tracks!

Rylie has found a new friend. She HAD to swing next to him, have him hold her during worship, and play tag/hide and seek with her whenever she got the chance. SO CUTE!

What do you do all day?

2011-09-12T12:38:00.002-05:00

While I'm busy trying to clean and organize this room...

...the girls are busy destroying this one! Jordan set up a little Bible study with her chairs and pillows. They did have to clean it up before nap time, though!

Our third baby is a...

2011-09-06T13:12:00.004-05:00

BOY!

Camping Theme

2011-09-06T12:48:00.003-05:00

This weekend is our church-wide retreat. We are really looking forward to it! We decided that we would go the camping route. I'm pretty excited about camping, since we've never done it before. Justin does not quite share my enthusiasm:) The weather looks like it's going to be just about perfect, so what better time to try it out.

So, to gear up for the weekend, I'm doing a camping theme with the girls. Not much, really, but enough to hopefully get them excited. In the perfect weather yesterday, we went outside and collected "nature" items from the yard. The girls thought everything they found was treasure. Too bad their daddy does such a great job on the upkeep of the yard...there wasn't a whole lot of variety in their treasure bags!

Today, we used their treasure to make a camping scene in a shoe box. The girls (especially Rylie) loved putting the dirt on the bottom. Maybe after their naps today, we can make some smores!

Tomorrow's the Big Day!

2011-09-05T17:33:00.003-05:00

We get to find out if we are going to have a boy or a girl tomorrow morning! We're pretty excited to see what's in store for us! I think it's going to be a boy. What do you think?

Fall Changes

2011-09-04T11:28:00.002-05:00

The fall-like weather today is making me want to make my blog over to match. Still learning how to do it, so there will surely be changes!

Graphs and Cookies

2011-09-01T16:15:00.002-05:00

Here's our finished graph of animal tracks. I think the fox? dog? cat? tracks are actually badger tracks. I'm pretty sure we saw some burrows for them along one of the trails. Reality check: I was way more into this activity than the girls:) Neither one cared too much about sorting the cards. But, as soon as I got the glue out, I couldn't keep their little hands away!

Then, we decided to make sugar cookies. I will look back at this post in the future if I ever think it might be *fun* to make sugar cookies again. It was not fun! It was harder than I ever imagined and a ton more time consuming! Way to go, Kendra, for all those cookies you have ever made! I had no idea how much work you did! I'm sure the kids would have had more fun had I not been so grouchy and irritated: "No, Rylie, you cannot eat all the dough you dropped on the ground! (which she ended up doing anyway!)," "No, Rylie, you do not dump the entire container of sprinkles on ONE cookie!", "Jordan, just let mommy do it!" You get the idea. So, this is the real me. Don't let my posts of only the *good* things deceive you!
We made more cookies than these, but I "quit" and these are the only ones that got iced and decorated. It was enough to share at small group last night:)

Animal Theme

2011-08-30T14:52:00.004-05:00

You may not know this, but I really like science. When I told Justin what this week's theme was for the girls, he responded by asking, "Is animals all your going to teach them?" Well, I am an "expert" in this area! Not really, but it is what I know how to teach! Going through workbooks is not "fun" for me, so I choose to get our hands a little dirty instead (that's actually a funny statement because the girls hate to have their hands dirty!) I'll still incorporate letters and words and numbers and math, but it will just have to be from a science point of view. After all, science IS what I know. And, who knows if they'll actually get to learn science when they get into elementary, so I better get it in now!

So, the theme animals is very wide reaching and this is only the second day of the week. Yesterday, I pulled out all of our books on animals and got out our animal flash cards. I sat the girls down and we went through all the animal cards. We thanked God for creating such cool animals. (a little side note: Jordan asked the other day if God colored her or painted her when He made her. Oh, honey, he did a lot more than that! Probably a little young for the ins and outs of DNA, meiosis, and fertilization) I asked them questions about each animal. I asked Jordan about things like where they lived, what they ate, etc, and I asked Rylie what sounds they made. I have to incorporate a little bit of differentiated instruction when I've got a 2 and 4 year old together. Then we went outside and pretended to be different animals (gallop like a horse, waddle like a penguin, etc.) It was fun and silly to do the actions along with the girls. Later in the day, I read Jordan about half the books we own on animals. When Rylie woke up, we made lion puppets.

Today, we learned all about animal tracks. We went to the nature center and I was super excited to get to see SO MANY animal tracks in the mud! The water holes dried up and what is left is mud! Yay! We took the animal track/animal detective book with us that my sister-in-law just gave us. We used it to help identify some of the tracks we saw.
Hhmm, these tracks were pretty easy to identify...the animals even left behind their names:)
These, too...how cool to get to SEE tracks in the making!
By the way, I took a ton more pictures than this, but I won't bore you with them all.
When we got home, I made a copy of the page in the animal detective book to play a matching game; match the tracks on the left with the animal on the right. Yes, I'll incorporate reading in this game, like having Jordan write the names of each of the animals. We haven't gotten to this activity yet.

Then, I'm going have the girls sort the pictures of the tracks we took and make a little graph/table showing how many of each animal track we saw (yeah, math and science together!).
Still to come: getting ready for the zoo...

A few books and thoughts

2011-08-26T12:48:00.004-05:00

Here are a few books that I've read recently. I absolutely LOVE reading true stories of people that live out their lives for Jesus. They challenge me to want to do the same; that's the easy part...the hard part is actually doing it. God has shown His strength and power over and over when we are at our weakest. God never said he wouldn't give us more than we can handle...He never gives us more than HE can handle.

"Shadow of the Almighty" is about the life of Jim Elliot, who only lived to 28 years old. He sought Jesus with his whole heart, and wanted to share the truth of Jesus to those who had never heard. God did amazing things through his (and his family's and friend's) suffering. Through his wife's forgiveness of his killers, salvation was brought to the "savage" tribe in the jungle.

I just finished reading "The Hiding Place." I'm sure many of you have read it already. I LOVED reading about this "ordinary" Dutch family that was brought up to love Jesus. When German occupation shook their world, they refused to do nothing. They showed the world the mark of a Christian: Self-Sacrificing Love. Love for family, love for friends, love for the poor and wounded, and, most Christ-like, love for their enemy. The two sisters experienced horror upon horror in prison and concentration camps, yet they never gave into the lies of the enemy. They believed God put them there in that time and place, horrific as it was, to bring the light of Jesus to the darkest, deepest evil pit one could imagine. Betsie, the older sister, knew how important it was to share the Gospel at the "very gates of Heaven." With all the people dying around her, she knew she was in the place she was supposed to be. She quoted the verse, "Give thanks in ALL circumstances," (one of Jordan's verses she's memorized, and we've focused on this week) and thanked God for even the flea infested bunks. It turns out that the fleas kept the guards out of the sleeping area, which allowed the women to conduct Bible studies at night. Betsie even prayed for the Nazi's, believing that they were the ones that were truly to be pitied. To live without love and be driven by hate must have been the worst place to be.

My reactions to the stories of those suffering for Christ don't seem to go together. My first reaction is, "What great JOY to be able to experience the presence of Jesus Christ!" Then I think, "Joy? Suffering beyond imagination and I'm feeling envious? I must be crazy!" I don't want suffering, but I want Jesus. I'm not sure you can fully and completely have both. Jesus called us to suffer for His sake, to pick up our cross and count the cost of following him.

Life is not about me. I'm excited to read a book that I ordered, "I am not, but a know I AM." I got tired of looking for inspirational books to read the other day, because they all seemed to make me the center: "you have to love yourself before you can love others." Really? I'm pretty sure that's not the way it works. When I love others, I stop making myself the center of my world and my mind begins to have the right perspective. I want Jesus to be the center. We are nothing apart from Christ. We don't matter apart from Christ. We are dust apart from Christ. Life is not about me.

Our small group read "The Hole in Our Gospel" over the summer to gear up for our missions minded groups this fall. It was a good eye-opener to make you think outside of yourself. I have been motivated by this book to actually DO SOMETHING to bring the Whole Gospel to those in desperate need of it. I can't do it all, but I can refuse to do nothing.

A story we talked about, that someone brought up at group, was Jesus feeding the 5,000 from a few loaves of bread and fish. It never occurred to me before, but the boy that offered his food was most likely not the only one with food to share. He just happened to be the only one that offered. The other people there were not obligated to give their food away. Nothing was "wrong" with them not sharing. But guess what? The boy got to be a part of what Jesus was doing, and the other people sat on the sidelines and were left just watching. I don't want to be a spectator in the Kingdom of God. I want to be a player, on the front lines, sharing my fish and bread so that I don't miss out on what Jesus is doing.

Four Months

2011-08-26T09:52:00.002-05:00

We passed our four month milestone in this pregnancy last week and I finally got a picture. (I'm going by a nine-month pregnancy, not 10, four-week months). I reached 19 weeks yesterday. We will get to find out what we're having on Sept. 6th!

This pregnancy has been pretty much the same as my previous two:

*crankiness and irritability have subsided, and I'm a much more pleasant person now:)

*I have a LOT more energy then I did, so I'm very grateful!

*My appetite has increased, so maybe I'll start gaining some weight now. I lost weight at first and I'm still not up to what I weighed before I got pregnant. Believe it or not, my "belly" is still the same measurement around that it was last time I recorded it before getting pregnant. Must be due to losing weight in the beginning. It's not going to stay that way for long, though!

*I've been feeling nervous that not everything was OK. When I was pregnant with Rylie, I felt her moving at 15.5 weeks and was seeing my stomach move with her kicks by 18 weeks. This time, I've only felt true, distinct movements for the past few days. Maybe it means that this little one will not be quite as "on-the-go" as Rylie is:)

*Jordan is still SUPER EXCITED to have a new little sibling. She says that she will hold it and give it a pacifier when it cries. She hopes for a brother because, "I never had a brother before." I'm praying that she will be a godly leader of her siblings and influence them in love for Jesus and others.

Other Zoo Pics

2011-08-25T09:59:00.004-05:00

Four Year Old Birthday Pics from the Zoo

2011-08-24T12:08:00.005-05:00

Trying to get pictures of kids on the go is challenging! But, I got a few of her being still, even if just for a second.

Princess (and Prince) Photos

2011-08-23T12:30:00.003-05:00

Not everyone at the party came to get their picture taken, but here are the ones that did. Even the boys tried it!

4th Birthday Pics

2011-08-21T19:50:00.002-05:00

We just celebrated Jordan's 4th Birthday yesterday. It was a blast! Crazy and chaotic, but still so much fun! When the kids got to the party, we started right away on our crafts: tiaras and princess wands. Thank goodness for moms that decided to stay and help out...you were an unexpected blessing!

Here are the kids hard at work...I was impressed with much of their creativity! It was great to be able to use all the supplies I had left over from teaching. The only things I had to buy were glitter, jewels, and wooden dowels.

Here is the "photo booth" where the kids got to get their pictures taken with their wands and tiaras.

"Happy Birthday to You!"

Dirt cups for the birthday cake. Yummy!

What we've been up to lately:

2011-08-17T18:47:00.003-05:00

The girls and I are sure enjoying this stay-at-home-mom thing. I count my blessings everyday that Justin works so hard to provide for us so that I can stay at home. Just thinking about what it's like to be stressed about starting work right now and taking care of the kids, husband, and home is overwhelming. Justin is really going to like (hopefully he does already) his wife in this new, stress-free condition!

My parents let me borrow their bread machine. I like homemade bread, but learned that it's too time consuming:) But this machine is a little gem. Just put in the ingredients and leave it alone. Can't get better than that! I'll have to start learning how to make some other recipes than plain white bread, though plain white bread is pretty delicious.

Next, I'm working on preparing crafts for Jordan's birthday. She wants a princess party, so the crafts are going to be princess wands (all different shapes for the kids to choose from--frogs for the boys that may come) and princess crowns (or prince crowns). I'm working on making some party decorations in the form of a castle. We'll see how that goes:) I really wanted to do a dirt cake with gummy worms. So, to tie that into princess theme, I'm going to make dirt cups/pots with a candy flower sticking out. The gummy worms actually go with the theme of the week...

...WORMS! We went to Gander Mountain on Monday and bought a box of night crawlers for our theme this week. We went outside and dug in the dirt and found leaves for our worm habitat, then counted the worms as we transferred them into their new home. We counted 23. After a couple of days, they have already started digging their tunnels. Along with the science part (pretty sure our lessons will be heavy on science), the letter W is being reinforced as we practice writing W and thinking of other words that start with W. We plan to do a craft of worm painting later this week.

9th Anniversary

2011-08-10T21:46:00.003-05:00

Nine years ago today, I married this guy...

...who thought it would be a great idea to propose to me in front of everyone at Christian Challenge (excuse the quality; it's a picture of a picture). Me, an introvert by nature, always nervous in front of a crowd, marrying an extrovert that is often the life of the party. The saying opposites attract can describe our relationship perfectly. We were madly attracted to each other back then (and still are 9 years later;-). We often don't agree on things or understand the other person, but we always have been committed to our marriage and trusting God in the times where commitment was all we had. I am so thankful for the journey that we have been on together. God has done amazing things in our hearts over these years, and I am especially looking forward to what He will do in the years to come. Justin, you are a GOOD husband and I'm so thankful God gave me you. Happy Anniversary!
A recent family picture of us and our little ones on vacation in Chicago.

Banana Bread

2011-07-27T09:54:00.002-05:00

Okay, I made some banana bread today...from scratch! It's my second "from scratch" food that I made recently. My first was chocolate chip cookies and we gave some away to our neighbors. I had a few bananas that would have normally just gotten thrown away because they were over-ripe. But, I checked out some recipes for banana bread and I found one that I actually had ingredients for. Nothing fancy, but it's a start!

Becoming a Homemaker

2011-07-25T08:15:00.003-05:00

Wow. This woman is challenging me beyond belief. I just happened to stumble upon her site, The Prudent Homemaker, and she is inspiring me to change the way I run my home. Because of her careful planning, she was able to feed her family (of 8!) for nearly two years out of her pantry and garden when they lost their income. She did not go grocery shopping for MONTHS, and when she did for the first time, she only had $20 to spend.

I am challenged because I have pretty much been living the complete opposite of her for many years. I don't look for sales, I buy what looks good, I never use coupons, I don't stock up, I don't plan ahead, I don't know how to make anything from scratch...I could go on and on. But, I want to learn. I've been working full time, about 10 hours a day teaching, so I always had the excuse that I don't have time to do all those things. And I really didn't have time. However, now that I'm going to be a stay-at-home mom, my "work" is changing. I want to be good at running our home, just like I wanted to be good at teaching.

Where do I start? Well, I'm not sure right now. I've been in the mind-set of summer break, so I haven't started doing anything yet. I said I'd start a routine and schedule when the school year started. Well, guess what? Justin started the school year today. I think I can start being a good homemaker today, too. I know that I can't "do it all" but I've thought of a few things I wanted to focus on learning and doing now:

1. learning to cook from scratch (bread, spaghetti sauce, etc.)

2. Buying food on sale, using coupons, and planning ahead. (especially important because we are becoming a one income family)

3. learning to can(?) kind of scares me because of the possibility of botulism toxin in home canning, but seems like a good thing to be able to do. Anyone want to teach me how to can? :-) Maybe I could learn to can baby food for this next little one.

4. Starting a garden. Too bad we don't have good Iowa soil here. Mom's garden was always the best. This will have to wait till spring, but I can at least be planning before then.

5. "homeschooling" Jordan for pre-school. My first (and only) year home with her before kindergarten.

6. Serving Justin. This story was also challenging for me, because, like the wife in the story, I felt like I worked to exhaustion everyday, but it never seemed to be enough. I want Justin to LOVE coming home from work and feel at peace in a well-managed home.

New bed

2011-07-24T20:55:00.002-05:00

We got the girls a new bunk bed yesterday. We looked around and weren't crazy about any we saw. We wanted a bunk bed, but they are pretty tall and I don't like the ladders. All the ones with steps that we saw cost way too much. Then, as we were driving down Woodlawn, we passed Crazy Jays Bed store and stopped in. They had just the kind of bed we were looking for: a bunk bed with stairs that was affordable (and matched their room). So we bought it right then and took it home. Today, Jordan and I went shopping for bedding. We picked out Shabby Chic sheets and quilts to match the room decor. Now, if we can only get Rylie to be able to successfully sleep out of her crib.

First Three Months!

2011-07-18T08:40:00.002-05:00

This is something I never did with my first two pregnancies. I always wanted to, but never got around to doing it. This time I tried to do a picture every week, but fell back on doing one at the end of each month. I don't know why I decided my face was not necessary in the pictures. I guess I was just focused on the belly:) So here they are...

Jordan loves to give the baby kisses. She's such a sweet big sister:) Oh, and check out her new haircut.

Grandkids

2011-07-12T19:11:00.002-05:00

The grandkids all laid out in their sleeping bags on the basement floor to watch a movie one night.

The grandparents and grandkids trying to get their annual picture...

Fishing

2011-07-12T19:00:00.004-05:00

The kids were fascinated with the fishing Uncle Jamie was doing. You could see the little fish come right up to the line and take the bait.

Rylie and mommy needed uncle Jamie to help get our fish off the line...

...but Jessica didn't need any help!

More pics

2011-07-12T18:34:00.005-05:00

I'm going to have to put a gate around the new baby when Rylie's around! She can't keep her hands off babies. This is one of the many hugs she gave her cousin Emily. She kept trying to take her from me!

Rylie found Grandpa's hat, too.

Grandma!

2011-07-12T08:46:00.002-05:00

Rylie was super excited when Grandma got to the lake. Rylie was having fun with Grandma's hat; then she made Grandma take off her shoes and put on a life jacket so that she would be ready to go!

Swimming

2011-07-12T08:28:00.005-05:00

Here some pictures of the family swimming. I asked Jordan what her favorite part of the day was, and she exclaimed, "Swimming by myself with the noodle!" I didn't get any pictures of that because I was in the water, too, but she went from being pretty timid and holding on tight to someone (mostly Lorie!) to holding on to the noodle all by herself! I am quite proud of my little girl, who started out last summer scared to death of getting in any kind of water.

Lake Vacation, at the Lake

2011-07-12T08:21:00.003-05:00

We spent most of Saturday at Shari's parent's house on the dock swimming. The girls, especially Jordan, had a really fun time. Here are some pictures of the girls in the kiddie pool and me trying to get in on the fun.

Lake Vacation, Day 1 for real

2011-07-11T17:53:00.002-05:00

I forgot that the cave was not the first day. Oops. The first day, we spent the morning at the outlet mall. We get Jordan a new pair of shoes there every year. During lunch, Jordan told everyone that the baby makes mommy sick and tired...and angry. Oh, I can't wait till these pregnancy symptoms are not so negative!

Below are some pictures of us eating at a restaurant on the Lake.

Someone who is a messier eater than Rylie...

The kids danced around to the live music. I have some video of Jordan and Fallyn dancing together, but I can't get it to upload on the blog.

Lake Vacation 2011, Day 1

2011-07-10T21:25:00.007-05:00

We just got back from our annual vacation at the Lake of the Ozarks with my side of the family. My brother, James, and his wife, Shari, graciously host us every year and we're so thankful! This year, Justin couldn't make it, so it was just us girls. Thankfully, they did great in the car both ways! These first pictures are of Jordan, Rylie, and me venturing out to explore what the lake area had to offer. First, we stopped at a huge barn that was a souvenir shop. I told Jordan she could pick out whatever she wanted, as long as I approved of it. She picked out these cute little miner's hats, which I thought was perfect, since we were going to go to a cave.

And, Jordan insisted on wearing her hat in the cave...and she did, the whole way through!

After the cave, we bought a few snacks and a bag full of sand from the gift store. We learned how to wash the sand away to find the hidden gems inside. Rylie picked out her gems and tossed them into the rushing water, never to be seen again.

Happy Father's Day to My Dad

2011-06-19T16:10:00.003-05:00

Happy Father's Day, Dad! I wish I had a picture handy of us together from back in the day that I could post, but I can't find one. I started thinking about some of my favorite memories of getting to be your daughter, and some that aren't so great, but were real life lessons for me:

*Dad, you may come across gruff sometimes, but you've got a really soft heart. I think I got my love for living things from you. You let me bring home any animal I found. You truly care for your own animals, too, probably more than a "true" farmer should! Taking care of bottle calves, show calves, rabbits, dogs, cats, horses, goats, etc. was a huge part of growing up for me.

*You made it to most of my ball games, even though you can't stand sports! You and Mom were my biggest fans.

*I treasure the bedtime stories you read to us kids every night before bed.

*I think mine and your "love language" is quality time. I enjoyed (most of the time) going to check cows with you, even though you didn't really need anyone to come along.

*When I had just turned 19 and a boy from college drove down to take me out over a weekend and you put your foot down. You said I was deliberately disobeying you, but I went anyway. About 30? miles down the road, the boy's truck broke down and I had to humbly call you to come rescue us. You brought your farm truck and towed us all the way home. I forgot to mention that it was well below freezing out!

*Thanks for never expecting less from us than the best.

I love you, Dad!

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-19T10:30:00.009-05:00

The kids wanted to wish their Daddy a very special Father's Day! They have the best daddy ever! A daddy that loves to play and have fun, but is also serious when it comes to matters of the heart.

Rylie's favorite expressions for Daddy:

*"I Love You!"

*"Jesus loves you"

*"Daddy, come and get me!" (as she's running away for Justin to chase her)

The most common things Jordan says to Daddy:

*"I love you!"

*"Ask Daddy to come lay with me and leave the door open" (said at bedtime after I tuck her in, Justin will come and pray with her and tell her a bedtime story)

*"Can I play your iTouch?"

And this little one can't really say much, but I'm pretty sure this little peanut is going to love Daddy just as much as the other two already do! Our third baby is due in January!

Reaching for Chips

2011-06-01T16:37:00.003-05:00

Rylie is a real problem solver! We were downstairs eating some chips and watching a little tv. After awhile, I told the girls they had enough chips and I put them up high. Rylie fussed a little, but then she marched right upstairs. I followed her to see what she was up to and watched her carry one of her chairs to the top of the stairs. When she saw me, she asked me to carry the chair down the stairs for her so she could reach the chips! Well, the chair is still at the top of the stairs!

Today's the Big Day!

2011-05-30T11:32:00.002-05:00

We're ready to meet out newest family member, Duncan Rick Baguma Neill! Flying into Wichita all the way from Uganda today! Jordan cannot wait to meet her new COUSIN!

Rylie at Two

2011-05-29T21:22:00.004-05:00

Happy 2nd Birthday to my baby girl! Rylie, you have been a source of joy and happiness in our family since the day that you were born! We are so blessed to get to be your parents. We pray that you will soon know the true source of joy by one day asking Jesus into your heart. Here are some things that I want to remember about you at age two:

*You are more attached than ever to your blanket. Now you insist on sleeping with your baby, too.

*You still suck on your two middle fingers when you are relaxing or sleeping.

*You LOVE to have fun! We predicted your orneriness a long time ago, and you haven't let us down!

*Did I mention that you love babies? You especially love to push them around in the stroller.

*You are at the stage of wanting to do everything yourself. Right now, with anything that buckles (like your car seat), you say, "I do it! I do it! I do it!"

*You like to sleep in much later than your sister. It takes you a LONG time to fully wake up and be ready for the day. Sometimes, when you think I'm coming into your room too early, you yell, "no, no, no!" because you'd rather just lay in bed for a while! You also love to keep your pajamas on and get upset when I have to take them off to get you dressed in the mornings.

*You are very much into movies. You grab your cup, blanket, and baby and climb on the couch and say, "watch movie, watch movie."

*You are getting good at playing hide and seek with your sister. You find a little hiding spot (often where mommy or Jordan are hiding!) and sit so still and quiet until you are found, and then you shriek with joy!

*You talk ALL THE TIME! You can say pretty much any word, but we're not always good at understanding your dialect:)

*You have not started potty training yet, though a couple of times you've asked to sit on the toilet to go poopy. Instead, you tooted and thought that was hilarious!

*You are a problem-solver and, unlike your sister, will try anything without fear of failing or messing up.

*You LOVE your big sister. You would follow Jordan anywhere or do anything she does. But, you also have a mind of your own and stick up for yourself very well.

*You practice, over and over and over, jumping off things, like the bottom step. It's so cute to watch you do it. You say, "I dumping, I dumping!...I did it! I did it!"

*You are still a mommy's girl! You're at a stage where you are very attached to me, so I'm glad it's summer so I can spend all the time I want with you!

More Birthday Pics

2011-05-26T14:43:00.007-05:00

We had a fun time with cousins and friends!

Calvin and all his bling!
It is hard to get a picture of Rylie smiling. When the camera comes out, she usually refuses to smile. But I got a little candid picture with her lotion!
Kail and Ellie came to celebrate, too.
Sitting at the new kids table.

Running through the obstacle course.

Even Rylie did it!
Justin bought silly string for all the kids...our girls did not like this game!

Rylie's 2nd Birthday Party

2011-05-22T17:41:00.002-05:00

This year, we decided to keep it small for Rylie's birthday. Family and a few friends helped us celebrate and it was a lot of fun. Here are a few pics. I'll get some more posted soon.

Drawing People

2011-05-18T21:27:00.002-05:00

This picture makes me laugh! This is Jordan's version of Rylie. Guess what that pink thing is sticking up out of her head?

...it's her ponytail! Don't ask me what that circle thing is off to the right; I don't have a clue!

Happy Mother's Day to My Mom

2011-05-08T14:18:00.002-05:00

Happy Mother's Day Mom! I know everyone says they have the best mom in the world. But, I think those people have it completely wrong...because there can only be one best mom, and that's mine! Mom, you are the shining example of selfless love and sacrifice. You worked full time to provide for our family, yet you never missed one of my hundreds of ball games or any of my 4-H events. Even when I played softball for another school and only got to play in three of the 15 or 20 games, you did not miss any of them. I may not have ever expressed gratitude back then, but it's the best memory I have of my jr high and high school days. You showed me what hard work truly is. You are not afraid to get your hands dirty and I'm so glad you taught me to do the same. You're the strongest woman I know. I pray that one day I will reflect some of the godly character that is so evident in your life. Thanks for being the best mom:) I love you!

Some Fun in the Sun

2011-05-08T14:02:00.003-05:00

Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-08T13:34:00.004-05:00

Have you ever read the book on love languages? Are you married to someone that "speaks" a completely different love language than you? Just like pretty much everything else, Justin and I are complete opposites when it comes to expressing love. Giving and getting gifts is one of Justin's top love languages, but gifts are not even on my radar. Even so, Justin usually buys me something for Mother's Day. But, I think this year, Justin finally got me the right thing...quality time:) He took us girls to breakfast, then to visit his mother (A wonderful mother-in-law. I can't relate to people who don't have a good relationship with their in-laws), and then a trip to the zoo. I'm so excited that I actually get to be in some of these pictures! Most of the time I'm the one behind the camera.

Justin got a little fancy with his photography! These first three pics were taken in front of our beautiful willow tree in the front yard.

There was a long line to get into the zoo. While we waited, a young girl in front of us offered Jordan and Rylie each a quarter to feed the fish. Such a sweetie!
We moved much faster through the zoo with daddy carrying the girls on his shoulders.

Look, I'm in another picture! This is on the boardwalk above the bison. This is the part of the zoo where I used to be a keeper. Such good memories!

Sitting down to eat some lunch. Rylie put her arm around Jordan and I HAD to get a picture. This is a rare sweet sister moment! I should add that it's rare for Rylie to be the affectionate sister.

Not-so-girly princess

2011-05-05T22:06:00.004-05:00

We were watching American idol tonight. When Lauren sang, she was wearing a pretty "princess" dress. Jordan said, "Hey, I have that dress!" (you do?). She ran upstairs and got into her dress up outfits--which she never wears!--and put her princess dress like Lauren's on, along with her crown. She was so cute I had to take a picture (since dressing up does not often happen at our house)...

Dancing around...
And then...
...she laughed and a big booger shot out of her nose! Well, it could have been a booger. I personally think she stuck something up her nose...it looked more like a little piece of chicken!

Where was I?

2011-04-27T22:33:00.002-05:00

Jordan is a very thoughtful little girl. She is one who will sit and ponder all sorts of thoughts and ideas. One such thought came up yesterday. As Jordan and I were sitting downstairs, Jordan looked over at Justin's and my wedding pictures. She's asked before where she was in those pictures, but we've told her that she wasn't born yet. Well, yesterday, that answer quite disturbed her. She asked again where she (and Rylie) were, and was becoming visibly upset, even near tears, "But...where WAS we?! Were we tiny? Were we big? Where WAS we?!" She could not wrap her sweet little heart and mind around the idea that she was not in existence. How can that even be? Something that was not is now what is? Something from nothing?

Isn't God amazing?! I pray we would all be in awe of our mere existence, that God would choose to make us something when we were once nothing!

Grandma and Grandpa Neill

2011-04-25T17:20:00.001-05:00

These are the only pictures I got with the grandparents from this weekend.

Cousin Carson

2011-04-25T17:15:00.001-05:00

The hunt

2011-04-25T17:10:00.002-05:00

Fallyn was so good at helping Rylie find Easter eggs. She was so selfless and generous!

I wish I would have gotten some pictures of the Orchard cousins...they are so good with the little ones! We love them a lot!

Gobbling up the Easter Candy!

2011-04-25T16:55:00.001-05:00

I can't get over her cheesy smiles!

Sweet Baby Emily

2011-04-24T21:35:00.003-05:00

Jordan and Rylie's new cousin, Emily, and her older brother Carson came to Wichita for Easter. Such a sweet picture of Emily and her mommy!

Easter Morning

2011-04-24T21:27:00.002-05:00

Christ is Risen! Happy Easter!

Without God, nothing else can satisfy

2011-04-10T13:57:00.003-05:00

"Meaningless! Meaningless!...Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless!" Ecclesiastes 1:2

This book of the Bible has been heavily on my mind recently. Today, I spent my day with the Lord reading through each chapter. Over the course of this year, my eyes have been opened to see the meaninglessness of the "things" my students fill their hearts and minds with--partying, drugs, boys, girls, sex, popularity, fame, attractiveness, money, success, grades...the list goes on and on. Ecclesiastes 3: 11 says that "He has also set eternity in the hearts of men." My students try to fill up this eternity in their hearts with pleasures and practices that are completely unfullfilling, even destructive, all the while running from God, the only one who can truly fulfill their hearts' desire. I see the hunger for something more, a thirst for a life with purpose and meaning, but there is a lostness about them, wandering as though they were blind in the worldliness of our culture.

My heart is burdened and grieved for the lost that can't seem to find their Savior. I want their lives to matter; I want them to find true meaning and purpose; I want them to be found and saved by the One that gave His life for them. Without God, nothing else can satisfy. I know the hunger and thirst in their hearts...we all do (God put eternity in the hearts of everyone). This is what Jesus means when He says "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:13-14. Jesus fills our eternity, and we realize that filling up with the pleasures of this world become utterly meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

My One Domestic Tip

2011-03-26T16:34:00.002-05:00

I see a lot of blogs out there that give tips upon tips of being a better housewife, cook, or mother. They've got all kinds of cute little projects or ideas that, quite frankly, serve to expose all the domestic qualities I DON'T HAVE! I can only read so many of them until I feel completely overwhelmed with the fact that I have no idea how these women are able to DO all those things in their home, AND have time to blog about it! I say all that to say, I have ONE thing that I feel is blog worthy to share (so you don't get overwhelmed with all my tips and ideas;-) that has helped me out a ton in my domestic duties...browning a bunch of hamburger and then bagging it up in 0.5 -1.0 pound baggies to freeze until needed. All I have to do when I get home at 5:00 is stick a bag in the microwave for a minute to defrost, and it's ready to go for enchiladas or spaghetti or pizza, or whatever. I don't encourage you to continue looking back here for any more fantastic homely ideas--this is the only one I've got!

Turkeys!

2011-03-25T11:07:00.001-05:00

These turkeys must be roosting nearby. This is the second day we've seen them in our yard, even on Justin's truck!

Blowing Bubbles

2011-03-19T16:24:00.003-05:00

Jordan is so funny trying to blow bubbles! She closes her eyes tight every time!

What a girl wants...

2011-03-19T16:04:00.002-05:00

...candy! This is what I found in the kitchen the other day... This girl pushed the chair to the counter and climbed up to sneak into the candy dish. Rylie is one bold, ornery girl. One of the teachers at the day care said to me one day, "They are complete opposites! Jordan is going to be the law abiding citizen and Rylie is going to be the rebel!" Oh, God help us! Seriously, though, we LOVE Rylie's personality...she is so spunky and fun to be around! We wouldn't want it any other way! We pray that she will be a woman of God that loves Him and loves others more than herself, and that God would use the personality He's given her to bring Glory to His name.

Books I've Recently Read

2011-02-20T21:21:00.004-06:00

I've never really been a reader. Throughout school (college) I had the mindset that since I didn't even have time to read the textbooks that were assigned to me, then I certainly didn't have time to read for pure enjoyment. I couldn't even get through the gripping accounts of cellular processes in molecular cell biology (input sarcastic tone here), how could I possibly try to add on a book that had nothing to do with my grade whatsoever. Well, my life has changed quite a bit since college. I've found that I love to read...even more than watching TV...which is quite the surprise, as my parents like to remind me that the only thing I've wanted since I was 2 years old was a TV in my room. Maybe I'm becoming more and more like my mom. I remember my mom curled up with a good book and chips and salsa, while the rest of the family rotted our minds on TV. Now I'm beginning to see what was always so fascinating in the pages of those books.

Here's a list of the books I've read recently, most of which I got for Christmas (books were the only things on my list). I would totally recommend all of them. The Jesus Freaks books are not a new read, but made the list because I like to go back and re-read some of the stories. They really put your life in perspective.

"Same Kind of Different as Me" Great story of how God uses you if you just do what he asks.

"The Imam's Daughter" Oh my goodness, you have to read this. This book is moving me to action. I can't sit back and live in my own little world anymore.

"Jumping through fires" Great story of how God orchestrates the events in our lives and how He uses people to further His kingdom.

"Tortured for Christ" A MUST read for anyone that claims to be a part of the body of Christ. You can't sit back and do nothing. Pray for the persecuted church. Pray also for their persecutors to come to know Christ by the example of agape love demonstrated by the very people they torture.

"Jesus Freaks I and II" Amazing testimonies of God working in the lives of people that truly gave their lives to Christ. Life is not about me.

Little Bible

2011-02-12T13:45:00.005-06:00

We were getting stuff ready to send to "our boy" in Africa and Jordan decided she wanted to give him all of her books. Here's a picture her getting them ready:) Since we couldn't really send him all those books, Jordan decided to give him her most special book, her little Bible. I pray that little Bible will be instrumental in the life of "our boy" and that he will learn of his Father's love and salvation through Christ Jesus.

My Sweet Girls!

2011-02-09T12:49:00.002-06:00

Rylie's cheesy smile is too much!

Another Snow Day!

2011-02-09T12:25:00.003-06:00

Yes, that is Rylie's mitten on the ground. She is incapable of keeping them on. In every picture, she seems to be wondering why her hands are so cold!

Impromptu Photo Shoot: Rylie

2011-02-05T11:55:00.004-06:00

Rylie was a bit more cooperative...however, there are no pictures of her smiling...I couldn't get her to smile and hold the camera and get a clear picture at the same time. Taking pictures of children is a little challenging!

Impromptu Photo Shoot: Jordan

2011-02-05T11:42:00.007-06:00

Here are some pictures of Jordan as I was trying to learn how to use my camera. She was willing to sit in the chair, but that's about it:)

Doing Something

2011-01-23T14:26:00.004-06:00

I have said in the past that I want to have a heart for others and then do something about it. Well, we finally did something about having a heart for the lost in Africa. Justin and I have started to sponsor a child from DRAWN FROM WATER, an orphanage in Ethiopia who’s mission is to rescue and provide the best possible future for children who have been deemed “mingi” and sentenced to death by their tribes. Some of our friends are also supporting this ministry, including Rick and Kendra, and Pat and Melissa from AlasktoAfrica. Here is a picture of the little boy that we just started to sponsor. Our donation only covers a tenth of what he needs and there are many more children that need sponsored. I was so excited to get started, I even made and ordered a photo prayer book (with my cool iPhoto software) that I can go through with Jordan and Rylie and pray for each child as we look at their picture. We even went out today and got some gifts to send him. We are praying that Musse will give his life to Christ and that God will use him for His glory. We pray that through his suffering, God would show Himself in mighty ways. We ultimately pray that the tribes people will be won for Christ and that no more children will be in need of rescue. Praise God for Musse's life and the lives of all the children in the orphanage. Praise God, also for the people He is using day in and day out as they serve these children. We pray for God's power and strength to continue in the fight.

Snow Ice Cream

2011-01-11T10:48:00.003-06:00