This Blog Is

UNDER CONSTRUCTION!

Oh the things I know that I forgot that I knew that now I've remembered that I know

Somehow today I re-discovered that my husband is tickle-ish. I'm as astounded as you are that I forgot this useful tidbit of information because we're not talking "oh, stop tickling me, that makes me uncomfortable" we're talking "screaming like a 4th grade girl with uncontrollable tickle induced seizures." Apparently I discovered this shortly after we were married but somehow through having children and losing a few brain cells that way I had completely forgotten that he was THAT ticklish. I still can't believe my luck. Oh, and I need to stop taking pictures without flash--too blurry. And another thing, I hate my new blog layout and need to fix it pronto.

the end.

Heard and Seen: A.K.A. Things that make you go Hmmmm?!?

Overheard during dance class--Gym owner to (shy) Breastfeeding mother:

Gym Owner: HEY THERE! Do you want some milk, I mean water? I've heard that when you get all latched up you get thirsty? You want some?

B/f Mom--Uh, no thanks, I'm fine.

G.O.: Hey--Someone get this lady a water! She's breastfeeding and she looks thirsty!!

Church sign seen on the way to Chuck E Cheese today:

The best vitamin for a Christian to take is B-1.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

No holiday reminds me so much of my Grandma Rose as St. Patrick's Day. She always celebrated it as her Father was Irish. She had the red hair and fair skin naturally and always wore green to celebrate! So today, Grandma, in your honor the Girls and I will be wearing green too! Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Ah, relief thy name is *D*I*S*H*W*A*S*H*E*R*

Because Every Moment is Kodak Moment

That'll teach me to try to take pictures of M without flash!
Showing off her new BEAUTIFUL dress from the Granny of the East!!!!

The Love that started it all...

My Sweet Baby Big Girl!

A wasn't in the mood to "share" the spotlight.

Wink!

Cutest {SLOW} Jogging Partner Ever

Just When I Forgot What It Felt Like

She sleeps through the night again!

Amen and pass the pillows!

Cute for a Cause

My new walking/slow jogging shoes came today!

They're cute and support Breast Cancer Research (thus, the pink).

They're not as cute as my favorite breast cancer survivor Aunt Peony.

But I'll be thinking of her every time I lace up!

Under Construction...

Excuse my mess while I search for a new look....

Do Not Disturb Mavis Beacon's Fortress of Solitude

My sweet one has not been sleeping well these past two days. At first I chalked it up to 4 month old angst but it's looking more and more like she is sick. The only place my little lamb will sleep is on my bed and I mean, the ONLY place!

Not in her carseat!

Not in the stroller!

Not in her crib!

I HATE co-sleeping. (I don't think it's wrong, I'm just a worry woman by nature.) It makes me NERVOUS that I'm going to squash her in a tired stupor or WORRIED that she's going to roll off the bed. So, when she sleeps, I've got her surrounded.

Praise the Lord for my pillow addiction--it's giving me a little peace of mind and M a little fortress of solitude.

*****Update*****

We've been struck again! The dreaded ear infection is back! Hopefully a few doses of Augmentin will lead to some better sleeping for all of us!

Ode to Wegmans

7 a.m.--no lines, no cars just me and the clack of my cart on the pavers

bright lights, yummy smells, wide aisles, perfectly situated shelves

if there were a heaven on earth, this is it

i leave with heavy heart, fresh coffee in hand

whipped cream on my lips

until next week!

Wouldn't It Be Amazing.....

To be this effortlessly beautiful all the time?

Thursday = Sick Day

Two Words: Never Again!

The End.

It's all coming back to me now....

We went to the zoo, for the first time this year, with some of our friends yesterday and had a nice time (even though the toddlers were ever so slightly grumpy). We got a good workout and entertained the kids for a few hours--woo hoo!

I love going to the zoo but it always stirs up a bit of my Alektorophobia. That's right. I'm scared of these:

And believe me, there are plenty of them at the zoo--running around all free-like. I get the chills just thinking about it. My fear of chickens started at the tender age of 4 when my parents procured a large Rooster. This stinkin' rooster roamed freely all over the large yard and used to chase my brothers and I while we tried to play on our swingset, or were helping with laundry, or were playing, or breathing--didn't take much to set him off! He was huge and horrible with a bite-y beak and those scratch-y toes--what a nightmare! I can remember my Mother laughing at us as we desperately tried to get away....*chills*

We moved to our farm when I was 5 and for some reason the rooster didn't come with us. My father did, however, start raising hens. It was my unlucky job to go into the hen house and collect the eggs in the morning. Now, collecting eggs doesn't sound that bad but sometimes the chickens don't want to give them up! Sometimes they are still sitting right on them and you have to reach under their huge white bodies, feel between their scratchy toes and avoid their bite-y beaks just to grab the eggs--not to mention all of their shifty eye movements and the clucking--Oh! the clucking! When chickens get angry they cluck different too--more like a growl then a cluck. I'm terrified just thinkin' about it! Well, not terrified, but deeply disturbed!

Almost as disturbed as I was when I found this picture on the internet when looking for a chicken picture:

This stirs up a whole new set of emotions that I just don't have the strength to delve into at this time.

Anyways, I would walk into the chicken coop in the mornings to get the eggs and every time I opened the door the nine million chickens inside would get scared and all fly right toward my face. It was like a tornado of beaks, feet and feathers. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

Every. Single. Morning.

I think I finally convinced my parents to let me do some other chore but I've never quite recovered from the short time I actually did this. I haven't recovered from the time we went to our neighbor's house and his huge 3 foot tall turkey attacked my feet, or the time my goose pooped on me at show and tell, or the time I narrowly missed being attacked by a bird at an aviary, or the time the seagulls swarmed me and ate my fried dough at the shore or the time we slaughtered the chickens and their headless corpses were bouncing all over the farm for HOURS (yes, they can move for HOURS AND HOURS without a head)....

I probably never will recover and now my fear of chickens has translated to a mistrust of birds of all kinds. Aren't you so glad to know?

p.s. I smushed my bumper yesterday or I should say, re-smushed. My husband did the job nicely just a few months ago and now I've gone and re-smushed the smush. Bleh.

Because It's My Birthday and I'm Feeling Indulgent

In my 29 years on earth I've accumulated some strange habits...just thought I'd share a few.

1. I wear skirts every day of my life. I love skirts--I can't stress this enough. LOVE them! I started wearing skirts everyday because I ascribe to the theory that life is short so you ought to do the little things that make you happy EVERYDAY! My poor husband doesn't remember what I look like in pants and my poor students thought my husband MADE me wear skirts everyday because appparently, no one in their right mind would want to wear them everyday! You might even be able to blame it on the fact that I went to school in this town:

2. My other little "problem," (i.e. addiction) is related to my skirt wearing preference. I have a vast sock collection pictured here:

Now, these are not just ANY socks--they are all knee high or thigh high, striped, polka dotted or brightly colored socks. Since I wore skirts at college where it was often 20 degrees and sleeting sideways I had to keep my legs warm and since I despise stockings I took to wearing these extra tall socks. Sometimes I even plan an entire day's wardrobe around a pair of socks, that's just how crazy I am. I'll explain more about this addiction at a later date.

3. If it's above 50 degrees I am wearing these everyday and everywhere:

I just love 'em. It's the closest thing to bare feet a country lovin' city livin' girl can get. Amen.

4. I also collect chotcke's (i.e. knick knacks) from any special/meaningful occasion or event. My house is covered with little things from the houses of my grandparents, my own parents, things from college and dating days....You name it--I've saved it. My favorite things to collect to remind me of others are tiny animals--for some reason all my grandmothers had little figurines around the house--I love this elephant and I also have a little turtle and snail that I adore. Oh, and a lovely collection of blue bottles from my dad and my mother(s) in law.

The End....(for now)

Six to One, Half A Dozen to the Other

Things That Irritate:

1. That no matter HOW often you cut your baby's finger nails she can still scratch her poor little cornea--my poor sweet girl!

2. Cold Weather

3. Politics in the classroom

4. Luke-warm showers even when you're the first one to take one in the morning. bleh.

5. Being wet. I sure don't like being wet. Yuck.

6. People who make you feel like "less"

Things That Bring Joy:

7. Unexpected wind-falls from caring friends

8. Targets sale on summer clothes for toddlers--it does an eagerly-over-preparing mother's heart good to have summer shopping done by February

9. The delicious comfort of laying in a comfortable, warm bed with your husband and baby

10. A Toddler that sleeps through the night and is POTTY TRAINED!

11. All of our friends

12. The ultimate joy-bringer--Jesus!

I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream!

Hello Lover...

I just can't seem to get enough of you!

Hay Bales to Highways Chapter 4

When we last left our story S and I had gone our separate ways and had only shared a few passing "hellos" and "goodbyes" on campus. My sophomore year I started working on Saturday mornings at the dining hall scanning students in to eat. One of the highlights of my mornings was scanning in S who never missed the ever famous Cedarville biscuits and sausage brunch (like so totally gross! gravy and sausage? for breakfast?!?). He would come on those mornings with his roommate Josh who told S later on that he "knew" something was "there" between us--it must have been in the "special" way I scanned S's i.d. card! Ha!

I had been in "like" all year with a friend-boy and had gone on dates but it never amounted to anything and I distinctly remember lounging in my dorm room with my friend Rachel and comiserating about our single status, "If I don't start dating someone soon I won't get married at the end of my senior year!" (Cause, THAT would have been the end of the world!) "The only person I even know who I could possibly see myself dating or marrying is S but I think he's dating someone else...." (See, S--I TOLD you that I always loved you!).

Spring quarter finally came and my friend Sarah, S and I all started taking a class called God and History. We weren't in the same section but it turned out that our schedules worked out in such as way so that we could eat lunch together and sometimes S would even CHOOSE to sit next to me *gasp*! I was so silly back in those days--goodness knows my cheeks are red just thinking about it!

It came to be time for finals and Sarah asked me to join her and S at a local ice cream place called Young's to study for our exam. Sarah was dating a boy who she spent a lot of time with and at the last second told me I was on my own to study with Steven! I couldn't believe it! I told her there was NO way that he would just want to study with me if Sarah weren't there and then I begged her to change her mind and come! She didn't and I'm so glad for it!

S picked me up in his car *gasp* and took me to Young's where he bought me ice cream *gasp* and we studied. My husband always had the best sense of humor and kept me laughing all night (and he still keeps me laughing all the time!). After we studied he asked me to play mini golf *gasp* with him and we had a fabulous time where I totally beat him, although, I'm sure he will deny this ever happened or say that he LET me win.

We got into his car and headed back to campus talking about anything and everything and all the while I was thinking how much I liked him and that it was a shame he was graduating this year and that I wouldn't see him anymore and that there wasn't much of a future for our friendship. Little did I know he was going to stick around a bit longer....

The Family That Wii's Together....

Wonderful's family tradition dictates that the W boys and their ladies must play video games! We love having them all over on Sunday nights for a little Gamecube/Wii action. A loves playing with Aunt Micayla and Ali and running away from Uncle Jon and Uncle Ryan. It is a blessing to have family nearby--we love spending time with them!

When I took this picture S said it wasn't enough of an action shot!

Uncle Jon is very serious about his game playing (he's also the best of the bunch!)!

Watch out for Aunt Micayla--she is dangerous with a Wii controller! Ha!

A LOVES playing basketball with Ali and Jon (who are very good sports about playing with a bossy toddler!)!

Uncle Ryan and Aunt Micayla!

Don't mind Uncle Jon-- he's not as scary as he looks--he just likes to make funny faces when his favorite (ha!) sister in law takes his picture!