We have no idea.

Thanks for sharing Becca.  Yesterday was one of those times when God shakes me awake.  I got an email
from Amber about my brother.  Right now he is at a rest stop sleeping in his car, he has no money.  The story is much bigger and complicated, but God is taking care of him through family, who will help him get back home to Seattle.  My family needs earnest prayer.

Yesterday I went to a theme park with my church.  I was in line at the Water Park waiting to go down a water slide.  Everyone in line was in their swimsuits and the girl in front of me had razor blade marks on her hips.  She was trying to cover them up with her hand.  I just hurt for her.  She also needs earnest prayer.

I have been struck before, (and yesterday was a big reminder) about how we have no idea who out there is hurting.  On the outside we look fine, but underneath, on our skin and in our hearts are signs of pain and suffering.  How the Lord much ache for us!

I am so grateful for the grace and the love God has shown me.  When I sit at home cuddling up with my dog and husband on the couch watching a movie, sometimes I am amazed at how I have it so good.  Then I start to worry that if I have it so good, something is going to happen that will take it away.  Then I realize I need to stop worrying and rest in God.  I don't know how people survive this world on their own...I couldn't.

making all things new

I just finished reading these blog posts (starting three posts down).  When I started reading it I had no idea I wouldn't be able to stop crying.  The things in my life seem so insignificant and easy compared to this.  Warning:  Only read if you have tissues near by.  It has a happy ending - although their situation isn't over - but I cannot even imagine what this mom is going/has gone through.  Its just a very blunt reminder that life is too precious and short to not live it fully and completely authentically and the way God has called us to, with the people He has placed around us.  I mean, in one instance these people's lives could have been changed forever.  It inspires me to do the things I know are hard or I don't feel like doing, to redeem moments and conversations and relationships and all things God has given me a choice in.    I really love it when God takes be my the shoulders and shakes me around enough to get my attention.  It always catches me off guard.


Love you girls - thanks for listening, I hope you are able to take this day and allow Jesus to MAKE ALL THINGS NEW!  I'm going to try, anyway.

Today was supposed to be full of a lot of craigslist shopping and furniture looking, but we really only visited one craigslist seller and we didn't buy their furniture. Why does everyone say their crap is "like new, excellent condition, no scratches" and then it has dings all over the place? Also, everyone seems to think their product is "solid wood." Twice now we have looked at furniture that was claimed to be solid wood, and it wasn't.

After looking at the furniture we went to Home Depot where I almost died of hunger because I had only eaten some Cinnamon Toast Crunch for breakfast, and only half a bowl at that. It's been a while since I've been hungry to the point of being dizzy and nauseous, but I reached it today. Made us sandwiches, then Joe went to work on the bathroom at the train house. I tried to get stuff done, but I just fell asleep, I think because I had gone so long without eating and I have wimpy blood sugar.

I had such great plans for tonight! My parents were going to come over for a late Father's Day dinner, and I was going to make steak and mashed potatoes and gravy, and a rhubarb pie as a surprise for Dad because he helped us move (I mean, really helped us - he was the only male who showed up, and he participated in all the heavy lifting and we hadn't even specifically asked him to come!)

Mom came over early to help me with the garden while I went to Costco, so when I came home Joe and my mom were home. I peeled the potatoes and cut them, but then I sunk the knife into my hand. My hand was cupped, full of my blood and I couldn't believe it was mine. I thought it had come from the potatoes. Then I yelled "JOE JOE JOE JOE JOE JOE" and he was just in the next room. I ran to the sink and turned on the water, but you all know what happens when I see my blood. He came over and put pressure on the wound just in time for me to sink down on my knees because I was about to pass out. So he's holding my hand in the sink, I'm kneeling on the rug, and he tried to call my mom out the kitchen window but she didn't hear. So he guided my other hand to put pressure on the wound (I still couldn't look) and got my mom. Then I laid down and he bandaged me all up and carried me to the couch. I was still woozy and in pain so my mom cooked the whole dinner that was supposed to be a treat for them! I put off the pie till some other time. Joe said he thinks the knife went about an inch into my palm, based on the blood marks on the knife.

I am petrified to think what I would have done if I were by myself. I would have bled all over the carpet to get to the phone to call 911 (assuming I didn't faint first), and I don't know if I could even unlock the front door for paramedics. I am certain I would have fainted, given my previous experience. But I'm all bandaged with no paramedic fees, no broken-down front door from medics kicking it in, no blood on the carpet, and no significant loss of blood. And I didn't faint. Plus my mom pointed out, I have a scar like Jesus.

I'm happy too, because I made enough mashed potatoes for the cottage group potluck this Friday. It's a themed potluck for "comfort foods" so I'm bringing mashed potatoes and gravy. I think I'll also make a loaf of bread and bring butter too. And I'm toying with the idea of bringing ingredients for Cosmopolitans. I know it's a Bible study group, but all the girls are cool with it, and there was wine at the last one. I just think it would be fun to have girly drinks at a "comfort foods" potluck.

That's all for now! I can type just fine, by the way; I just have to always take ibuprofen and Tylenol for the pain. But I can still move all my fingers.

Love!

stressed.

what I need to be reminded of right now...


I am sooo feeling stressed right now.  I mean, I've had an awesome week home with my baby boy doing things I enjoy like being a stay-at-home mom, sewing, visiting with friends, and the like, and it hasn't been that stressful other than the bit with my brother in the hospital, but that's kind of on the mend now.  But yesterday was a tough day parenting-wise - just because it was a long day for all of us, Shea missed his nap due to some people looking at the house at an inconvenient time, and he was so "off" the rest of the day (and honestly, I think Jeremy and I were too).   


Then, today church was hard to go to and I left frustrated.  But when we got home, Shea went down for a nap, and I played some baseball game on the PS2 with Jeremy (it is Father's day, after all).  And I beat him.  I'm not sure how that happened, but we were giggling and it was a lot of fun.  


Oh and this is a little unrelated, but I was changing Shea's diaper today and there was a pool of blood on his inner thigh!  Usually the most 'diaper rash' he's ever had is a little bit of a red spot, which goes away after putting some cream on it.  I think this area was hidden in a fold of skin, because I wouldn't have noticed it had I not seen the blood and pulled his leg back.  Poor kid!  I felt so, so bad.  Like one of those, "How could I be such a negligent parent??".  So I gave him a bath, let him air dry, put lots of cream on him and stuck him in a cloth diaper for an hour.  No wonder he hates getting his diaper changed, it probably hurts like nothing else!


Anyway, I'm finding myself kind of stressing and worrying about my job.  I know, know, KNOW that God will work things out in a way we can trust, but I'm just so anxious, and I really don't want to have to move in with my in-laws right now.  Hopefully I'll hear back soon so I can just let it all go to rest, but there is just so much uncertainty.


It's almost Shea's bedtime, and then my husband and I are going to enjoy some wine, cheese and crackers, and a movie.  Maybe that will help get me a little relaxed.  Think I'm going to go read my boy some books and get some cuddle time in before bed.  We played an epic game of hide and seek earlier.  It is fun to have an excuse to act like a 5 year old again.  :)

aaah to still be in my pajamas...

HELLO!  I am so happy today!  OK, I was a little grumpy this morning, because I was out late at the hospital last night with my brother (more on that later), and I did not want to get up this morning when Shea came to wrestle with me in bed.  Anyway, I still haven't heard back about how my position will work out at my old job, but I might not hear back until the end of the week, so I'm trying to be patient!  I started packing again, and I am totally shocked that I am sharing a picture of what our main living area looks like right now.  It is a mess!

I received so many flowers on my last day of class, too.  I have them everywhere, which makes me happy, except they just add to the chaos a little bit!  At least its a pretty chaos, I suppose.  My last day at 4's was a little emotional for me.  Not so much because I was going to miss the kids - I will, but its not devastating for me.  More so because I'll miss working with Audree, and it feels like the closing of a season of our life.  I'm excited to move forward....it just got to me a little bit.  One of the moms made a book for each of us where they interviewed each kid asking them questions about us.  One girl said that in my spare time, I spend it trying to "keep my baby from crying", and another "playing with my husband".  Another girl said that I live "in a house with her son, and maybe even with her family".    It was so cute and thoughtful!  I felt totally overwhelmed by everything.  And now, its over!  I'm done!  No more work for a little bit - other than packing :)  One girl picked out this pretty scarf for me which I wore yesterday (with my new earrings that I got at forever 21 the other day).

This morning, I went out and hung the clothes on the line (I've been doing this for the past 5 loads of laundry, because our dryer doesn't stop on its own and one day I forgot about it and ran it for 6 hours!  Our electricity bill has been so high, I'm trying to make it up by hanging the clothes.  Plus, I kind of like doing it.).  And Shea played outside...in the dirt, as usual.

OH yes, and here I am in my strange outfit.  Nightie + leggings + random sweatshirt = what happens when you don't want to get dressed but need to be modest enough to be in your backyard.  Comfy at any rate.

And lastly, my 16 year old brother, Matt, has been in the hospital since Saturday night.  He has been in a lot of pain and they couldn't figure out what was wrong with him.  I was there last night for a couple of hours, and the poor kid is just so not himself at all.  He could barely smile and is miserable, but still has stayed so polite to everyone.  Turns out he most likely has a ruptured appendix.  I don't know how they didn't catch it, they "ruled it out" early on, and even now its not conclusive from the cat scan, but he could die if they wait too long and that is the issue.  They're transferring him to Children's hospital in Seattle now, and he will probably be going into emergency surgery, because worst case if it isn't his appendix, they'll just take it out and know for sure that's not it.  If you could keep him in your prayers, and my mom...she is really a wreck after being the hospital for four days being told it isn't his appendix and now hearing all of this.  Especially since she had a relative who died from a ruptured appendix.

Hi ladies!

I am proud of myself. I turned in an assignment a week early today, for 12 extra credit points. After writing three LONG papers last week, I don't have any papers due till Friday! What's more, I finished the assignment this morning between 4 and 7 am! That's right! I drank too much tea last night and woke up at 4. Not only did I do two discussion posts and finish that assignment, but I packed Joe a lunch and made him coffee before I went back to bed at 7! And then I only slept till 9. Good for me!

I cleaned the kitchen. Well I still need to sweep it, and maybe mop if I get the energy, but I want to tidy up the office and do laundry first. Last week I was busy writing three papers and all my house cleaning was "wherever it's most desperate" so nothing ever looked clean. I love the kitchen.

Two days ago I ellipticalled at the gym for the first time since we've moved! I did it for an hour. Usually I focus on distance; this time I just focused on keeping it going. My heart rate is in the 170s no matter how slow I go, so I think it's better not to push it. When I was focusing on distance/speed, my heart rate didn't even register on the machine! I thought it was broken, but nope. Just a high heart rate. Anyway, I want to do it again today. I've also been doing some pushups and planks at home, and stretching before bed or while we're watching movies.

My mom is seriously the best. She is over here today for the second time this week, working on the garden. My allergies have not permitted me to work in the garden (even accidentally touching weeds leaves welts on my arms, even if I scrub the skin right after contact). And with Joe's crazy hours and working on the bathroom at the train house, he barely has time to keep the lawn mowed, much less work on the garden. I am so happy to have things improving and not to have to wait for next summer when it'll be really overgrown. I love my mom.

Auburn house update: We bought a beautiful German buffet at a garage sale, which is now gracing the wall next to our dining room table. I don't remember if I already shared this, but we got a dning table and five chairs from Craigslist. It has a pretty blue tablecloth on it. I need to find a runner for the top of the buffet.

Still no couches, but they're supposed to be in soon. I'm going to call the company next time Joe has a day off so we can pick them up.

We have had a bed for over a week now! Wow, I thought my neck was chronically stiff from the stress of moving, but it just didn't like the air mattress! I have NO pain now. Love love love our mattress. Macy's took back the moldy mattress and replaced it free. It took them long enough, but whatever - at least we don't have to deal with the mold!!

The same garage sale lady that sold the buffet also sold us a kitchen table and four chairs. I love it so much - it's the perfect place to eat breakfast, assemble sandwiches, read the mail, etc. I really have the ideal kitchen. Who could ask for more? I have all the counter space, cabinet space, new appliances, everything. I am the luckiest wife ever.

I am very excited because a good friend of mine is most likely going to rent out our train house. She, her husband and her son are just moving back to the area after living in Port Orchard for a while, and she's getting her old job back in Renton. Staying in the train house helps them out and it helps us out. We will have to change the locks for them, because a million people have the key right now! =)

There is my update, goodbye!

Lazin' on a Saturday Morning.

Well hi there, Happy Saturday.  (I listen to a radio program and the host says this everyday)

I love lazy Saturday mornings.  Its 11:06 AM and I'm still in my PJs.  I should get going soon though, I have laundry waiting.  Oh well, it'll still be there in a couple of hours, no rush. :)

Yesterday I was my first day at the Bibles for Missions Thrift store.  I volunteered there last summer, and I just love it.  First off, I love thrift stores anyways, and most of the people that volunteer there are retired.  I love old people!  I'll be working there twice a week, two four hour shifts.  Its also a chance for me to look through the store for deals.

I've also been keeping busy by working on some sewing projects.  Here's Summer Project #1, a sleeping bag case.  My sleeping bag hasn't had a case and its always annoying to store because its all over the place.  Now its nicely tucked away.  I measured Justin's sleeping bag case, and used it as a pattern to make this one.

Beatrix always has to check out anything that is new in our house.

This is my next project:  a dress!  I've never made a dress for myself before, hopefully it turns out.  I have most of the pieces cut out, I'll post pictures when I'm done.  

Hope you ladies all have a lovely weekend!

Big News. Short Post.

ok.


I've only told this to a handful of people and I won't go into great detail here (I'm sure at some point you will hear  a little more about it).  But, my husband and I resigned from our current position at our church.  We will be in Port Orchard until the end of June.  I contacted my old employer in Renton, and she is working to figure out if I can have my old position by then.  If not, it will happen at some point, but we'll probably be putting our things into storage and staying with my in-law's for a little while until we can move back out that way.  We are a little crazy.  But, we definitely feel at peace with this decision and I am just amazed at the things we have learned and where God is taking us.  Life is an adventure!  Can't lie - I am super excited to be leaving Port Orchard and to be back over in the Seattle area (although, not excited about packing AGAIN and getting rid of some of the extra furniture we've collected for the house).  I knew we were month-to-month for a reason.  haha.  Anyway, if you girls see any small houses for rent within the 800 - 1000 price range in the renton/kent/tukwila/south seattle area, let me know :)  We'll probably just be getting a small place for now, but obviously would prefer a house over an apartment or condo.


Just had to share!  In other news, my husband and I got to go use my gift certificate to a nice Thai restaurant in Gig Harbor last night, and it was so so delicious and nice to be on a date (first one without the son in almost 6 months).  I'm off to a field trip with my 3's class in a little bit and have my little boy sitting on my lap as I type.  Ah, life.  Three more days of work left!

beachy weekend with a shower and a much-needed bath.

wow.  If I could sum up this weekend in a word, thats it.  It has been busy, fun, frustrating, and refreshing.  there is so much I would like to share with you, but most of it must wait until a later day.  Anyway, here are some pictures!  On Friday, my 4's class had its end of the year field trip at Penrose Point State Park.  Apparently the tide goes out so far and you can walk out and find star fish and other sea creatures, but Shea did not last that long, so we left after about an hour and didn't make it very far out on the beach.  He had a lot of fun exploring and getting dirty though!  

Saturday was my soon to be sister-in-law's bridal shower.  Oh dear, did I feel like a fish out of water!  It was in Bellevue, and maybe I've lived in Port Orchard too long, but I was not ready for such a production.  My first inkling was when we drove up to the house and I noticed that they had two little spots for their two little matching mini-coopers.  I walked in, and not only was the immaculate interior decorated like a wedding reception, they had a full bar and catered food with servers.  The house was stunningly huge and I was definitely under-dressed.  I had no idea!  I thought it was a nice day, it would probably be outside, I was going to wear a dress but decided against it because I didn't know what we were doing the rest of the day....so I wore shorts (nicer shorts, mind you), and a tank-top I made.  Needless to say, I would've felt much more comfortable at the church shower.  Anyway, I made a few handmade gifts and as soon as I walked in I was a little worried they would turn their noses up at them, because I was sure everyone else bought things off of her Macy's registry.   

I made one set of tea towels (which much to my relief, no one noticed were handmade.  Probably because I slipped them in with a set of coughwalmartcough dishtowels).

And  a casserole carrier.  This thing was a pain to make, but I'm glad I did in the end!  It had a pyrex dish hiding inside.  The old ladies loved it. haha, of coooourrse.

Afterward, I gave my brother, Kit, a call, and my sister came with us to go visit him and the kids.  I hadn't seen him in months, so it was fun!  The kids got to play in the sprinkler and then afterward we went out to pizza at Zekes by the waterfront in Kirkland.  I love this picture I got of them.

And here is Shea in his swim diaper sticking out his tummy (actually, its just like that all the time).

And here is my sister and Shea being cool in the back seat with their shades.  Cutie-pies.

Today we went up to Indianola (about 45 minutes north of us where Jeremy's parents live) to play on the beach.  The family dog also died yesterday, so they buried her at their property and we had kind of a little dog memorial.  The kids played in the dirt.  I have never let my child get so dirty as he did today.  He had sand, seaweed, blueberry juice, dirt, and snot all over him.  For some reasons days when he needs a really good bath are days I feel like a good mom.  Even though I forgot to feed him lunch, he didn't get a nap, and had a minor meltdown halfway through the day (which was quickly remedied with food and sleep, followed by more food and playing more in the dirt).  Oops.

I finished my evening with a nice long phone call with someone who is as close as a sister and I feel so refreshed and rejuvenated after it.  Wishing you a happy Monday tomorrow!  Hope your week starts off on a good foot and hope you got to enjoy all this beautiful weather we've had so far!

My life lately

The second I wake up in the morning the kittens go from sleeping in Paul's spot on the bed to inbetween my arms and on my laptop. They are crazy but I love them. And in the last picture...Eric looks like a rabbit.

Today is the most beautiful sunshiney day and I am so so so happy I am off for it! I cut up fresh fruit, clean and spray painted old artichoke jars to be snack jars, vacuumed the house, picked up, and took my car into the shop to get new tires put on and aligned. Oh my gosh. At work last night at abut 5pm an aid came to me and said my car had a flat tire. Lucky for me there were two helpful guys still at work who went out and changed my tire to my spare. So I drove my 25 miles home at 45mph with everyone passing me. Today I went and got my new tires on, such a blessing that they had come in the mail the day before (apparently God knew my tire was going t blow...).

This is the kittens right now as I type this. I called out "kittens" loudly after I finished vacuuming and Eric came bounding downstairs from his hiding spot, cuddled and slept. Eleanor followed shortly after.

When I was outside chillin in the sun, the kittens were at the sliding glass door sniffing the fresh air, they love the warm weather and having the windows open!

New shirt. Old shorts that fit again after losing weight. Nice weather. SUMMERTIME.

Our backyard is coming along slowly but surely. So much better than when we moved in! I wish I had before pictures! Dang.

I hope you girls are having a wonderfully fabulous weekend. Paul and I are getting a five dollar footlong from subway, I am packing chips and fresh fruit and we are going to flaming geyser state park to eat dinner and walk around. Then we are coming home and having root beer floats for dessert! Date night for sure. :)

Glad to be Back.

Hi Girls!  I have really missed blogging now that I'm writing again.  I was gone from home for three weeks and was occupied with a family issue (I would elaborate more in person).  So here I am.  Its been so good to be home.  We've been back about a week and I finally feel caught up on life.  Justin still hasn't gotten a job yet, so we are just waiting to hear back from applications.  Its been nice to just hang out together without the pressure of school.  Today we took a bike ride and walked our dog.  It was so nice.

Here is a photo from my trip to San Diego (stopped there before I went to Seattle)

I hope it works out for us all to meet up when I'm in Seattle next!

Candice is coming - again!

So we had a family reunion, and Candice was here, but things were so crazy and busy that neither of us posted. However, we have a chance to make that up.

Candice will be here from July 10 through 20 (unfortunately without Justin). Becca, is there a chance you and Shea (and Jeremy if he wants to come) can come over for an evening next month? When would work best? Angela, when do you get your work schedule for July? Is it possible to request a day off in advance, depending on what works for becca?

Looking forward to a real get-together! Some ideas for agenda:

• Tour Angela's house
• Tour Amber's house
• Have a round of girly drinks? (unless driving soon afterward, or unless husbands are there - then they can have manly drinks)
• Play a game? (ideas???)
• Dinner!
• Dessert!
• Watch something we know we all enjoy, like The Office...
• Give me more ideas!

Edit:

I made a modified version of this for dinner. YUM! Here is what I did to make barbecue chicken sandwiches:

-toasted hamburger buns since I had to use them up
-Used 1 chicken breast (made 3 sandwiches)
-half an onion
-2 cloves garlic
-about 3/4 cup barbecue sauce
-1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
-we didn't use cheese, it seemed weird to put cheese on BBQ.

This is going to be one of those "make ahead and freeze" quick dinners for sure!!

Oh, and for dessert I blended 4 oz margarita mix, 1.5 oz tequila, and a LOT of ice cream to make two yummy treats! Tastes like soft-serve margarita-flavored ice cream. Oh so yummy.

rainy day and a recipe

Feeling sick and thought I'd post!  Shea is upstairs watching Buzz Lightyear (his all time favorite right now) and I'm trying to get a few things done around the house.  We went out grocery shopping and stopped at Goodwill earlier.  I bought him this little piggy bank toy with all these coins in it - there was one at the Daycare just like it that he loved, and he played with it for about an hour after we got home.

Shea was so excited about his new buzz lightyear shirt - he couldn't stop looking at it
and if you  asked him who was on it, he would just start laughing and pointing at his shirt.
Its the simple things.

I've had these bananas sitting in the fridge for almost a week now, because for some reason, every time I gave Shea a banana this week he wouldn't eat it.  So, I planned on making banana bread, but first I didnt' have eggs, then I realized I was out of flour...that has been remedied and here is what I just finished baking:

This is one of my go-to recipes for banana bread.  Have I shared it with you before?  Here's the link.  Super yummy.  (I made 1 1/2 times the recipe for the angel food pan this time, but I normally do 1x and make muffins or 1 loaf pan.)


And here are the loves of my life playing on the kitchen floor last night.

 I'm sure Jeremy will be so pleased to hear I posted this picture.  haaaa...

I also found out that Audree, one of the teachers I aide for, now gets a brand new classroom and a full-time aide.  I originally decided to stay with the other teacher I assist, because the hours were better, but I'm excited because now I am switching to work with Audree, and I'll only be working Monday-Thursday while only losing about an hour of total working time each week!  Three day weekend every week? yes please!  More time with my boy and less days needing babysitting.  Well I definitely need to go blow my nose and eat a piece of banana bread.  And figure out what in the world to make for dinner.

Short update

Just typing this while I wait for Angela to come and hang out! So excited to see her.

..several hours later...

Angela has just left and we had a glorious lunch and social time!

So, update: we have a dining room table! And a cute table cloth. I don't know where my camera is.

Today I impressed myself by doing a lot of chores in the morning. It's amazing how much more rewarding it is to clean a nice house. Cleaning the train house, everything still looked kind of dirty because things were stained and broken.

That's all for now, sorry for the shortness!

Amber