Sarah's Baby Dedication

Along with our church family, we pledged to bring up Sarah "in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Ephesians 6:4

SARAH
Meaning: Princess
Spiritual Connotation: Beloved
Scripture: "Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God and knoweth God." 1 John 4:7

KATE
Meaning: Innocent
Spiritual Connotation: Godly Example
Scripture: "So that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe." Philippians 2:15

Keeping it real for you...

Finally, the money shot!

Jadie, Caleb, Lauren, Sarah, and Brother Preacher-Man Pastor Cary

Quote of the Day. Yesterday.

Caleb: "My teacher with the curly hair said my raisins came from South America. I told her, no, they came from Santa."

Learning To Love

How do you teach your children to love one another?

An obvious answer is to demonstrate love through your own words and actions.

My more specific question is this: How do you successfully correct unloving behavior?

The reason I ask is that we are having some challenges with Caleb hurting Sarah.

Tonight's episode seemed pretty severe to us. He threw a small toy at her head, repeatedly. When she finally started screaming at the top of her lungs, he went to hide. He did admit to hitting her repeatedly with a toy.

We punished him by quarantining him to his room for the night, with the exception of eating dinner, which he would do alone at the kitchen table. While in his room, he was not allowed to play with any toys, only read his books. I made sure to reiterate the reason for his punishment at least 5 times throughout the evening. I reminded him that we are not to use our hands for hurting others, but for loving them.

Does anyone have any other suggestions or some encouragement?

Time Off Can Be A Hassle

Jadie was off work from the 7th to the 15th because of his knee issues from earlier this month. We had the doctor fill out FMLA paperwork and he was approved. End of story. Right?

Not so much. Apparently, the FMLA is only for the first 7 calendar days. He was off work for 7 work days (9 calendar days). So, in order to receive benefits for the last 2 days he missed work, we had to get paperwork filled out for the disability group. Ok, that's annoying, but doable.

Not quite the end of the story. To further complicate the story and light a fire under us to make sure all of the details are taken care of, Jadie got a call today from the payroll department. Through this phone call, Jadie was informed that he is still shown to be off of work (even though today is his 6th day back to work). So, until the disability paperwork is completed and approved, he is not getting paid for actually being at work and working.

I'm praying that the details are worked out and that we get paid...we are a one income household, after all!

Sarah Splashing in the Bath

Because you liked the first bath video so much...and because I love to hear her talk!

Matt Baker...GUILTY

This week is HUGE for many people here in the Central Texas area. The murder trial of Matt Baker came to a close this week. On Wednesday, he was sentenced to 65 years for murdering his wife, Kari Baker.

As if we're surprised.

If you're interested in reading the details, here are some links for you to peruse.

Matt Baker's 911 Call

Matt Baker's Arrest Affidavit

48 Hours Online Story

Matt Baker's Sentencing (Be prepared, I cannot watch the statements of friends and family following the sentencing without crying)

Family Hit By Tornado

My family was affected by a tornado this evening. Please be praying for them as they assess the damage and try to put their lives back together.

They are safe tonight. Thank you, Jesus. When the storm came, Uncle Doug and Aunt Debra were home and took cover in the bathroom, then in the closet. Kayla was at work in Canton, which was also affected by the storm system, but the building she was in was not directly hit.

They lost several barns and anmials have gotten loose because of fences being down. From the pictures I was able to find on the news channel website, it looks as though thier house has been badly damaged.

Video of Aunt Debra on the news

Scroll down past the photo box and the first video to the second video.

Quote of the Day

Sarah: "Ma-ma."

Some things to take into consideration:

• Rest assured, Jadie will deny hearing anything even close to this.
• I hear this from her even when I'm not in the room.
• It started with "Ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma..."
• It's a definite two-syllable "Ma-ma" now.

Quote of the Day

Jadie: "Every time you call me dude, I'm going to call you fool."

He says this with a Mr. T sort of voice. And this is in an effort to curb my use of the word "dude" in reference to him.

Bathtub Video

I usually give the kids a bath together, unless I'm in a hurry. It may seem strange since most people combine bath times to save time, but if I'm in a hurry, I usually give Sarah a bath and wait until later to give Caleb his. Again, that may seem strange since Caleb is probably dirtier, but Sarah's bath is much faster. I really need to get on the ball with giving Caleb his baths more frequently...oh, and brushing his teeth more consistently. I digress...

Here's tonight's bath time video...of the kids together. Sarah can hold her own in the splash battle. That's probably because Caleb doesn't have enough room to lay down or stretch his legs out with her taking up so much room. Also, I apologize for the silliness of the washcloths covering private areas, but we can't be too careful these days. I hope you enjoy seeing Sarah smile and splash her big brother. And I hope you enjoy watching Caleb try not to let his washcloth fall off as he barely splashes for his lack of space. Don't let me fool you concerning the length of this video. It's only 10 seconds...

P.S. Blogger, how could you? Why in the world would you debut a "new" posting option that does not include a video uploader? I have spent the last 2 hours trying to figure out how to get this video on here. The oh-so-simple solution? Go back to the old version of Blogger posting.

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Today's Events

Today was a good one.  Here's what went down...

We had a friend's dad come by this morning to check out our bathroom situation.  He recommended the following:

• Keep our current cabinets, just repair the door hinges, repair the top drawer, and possibly refinish/restain the doors and drawers.
• Replace the counter tops.
• Update the faucets.
• Tear down the awful florescent lighting with wood framing and update the lighting.
• Rip up the cracked/peeling linoleum and replace with tile.
• Refinish the bathtub.

This afternoon, Jadie's mom babysat while we:

• Ate lunch kid-free.
• Got Jadie's hair cut.
• Went shopping for a new dress for Bo & Courtney's wedding tonight.
• Ran into my cousin Bridget at Marshall's (Hi Bridget!)

We returned home and Jadie's mom offered to watch the kids while we went to the wedding! Suh-weet!
Here we are after getting home from Bo & Courtney's wedding.  Beautiful wedding and beautiful people!

Renovations?

We've been thinking about renovating our bathroom.  This week we've become a little consumed by searching out our options.
We originally wanted to change everything from the vanity to the bathtub and tile.  After spending some time evaluating our finances and what really needs to be replaced, we've decided on changing only  four things.

• Vanity
• Lighting
• Flooring
• Walls

We are really stuck when it comes to the vanity.  It seems to be a problem because we haven't been able to find a good quality vanity that's low in cost and stylish with plenty of storage.  We've looked at Home Depot, Lowe's, and Overstock.com.  Any other suggestions?

Snack Bag/Cosmetic Bag Giveaway

I found this giveaway posted on my friend Lisa's blog.
Her friend Shannon is having a giveaway for a snack bag or a cosmetic bag.  You can enter by leaving a comment on her blog, Life Is Beautiful.  She will choose a random winner this weekend, so get over there and comment away!

Life Is Beautiful

A-Ha!

An excerpt from my BSF lesson that really spoke to me today:

"When one literally lives by drawing upon His exhaustless source of joy, peace, love, patience, self-control, power, strength to endure, and ability to meet every situation, life becomes abundant, zestful, adventuresome, without fear, and the personality is fully integrated."

I try time and again to control myself (my behavior and emotions).  I am mostly referring to my many battles of wills with Caleb.  This was a profound reminder to draw on Christ for all things.  Namely love, patience, self-control, and strength to endure.

Rundown for the Day

Today was a MOPS morning!  We have only one meeting a month, so I always enjoy my mom time!  

This morning we heard from a local GYN who presented information about women's health and typical women's concerns.  Of course, the topic everyone was most interested in was birth control, followed closely by decreased libido.  It's always nice to know that I'm not alone!  The GYN said that 90% of the time, decreased libido is due to stress; only about 10% of the time it's due to hormone issues.  I'm not counting on the stress level decreasing anytime soon.  I mean, there's someone calling my name or requesting my help from 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. every day...and I don't see that changing anytime soon.  After our speaker, we discussed some further details about birth control methods, getting first hand information from the other moms in our group about what they've tried and how exactly each option works.  This time was very educational (I've only ever used the pill and that was almost 5 years ago).  After our enlightening conversation, we stamped some cards to be used for notes or thank yous.  What mom can't use more of those?

When the kids and I returned home, we ate a quick bite and then ran errands with Jadie for the rest of the afternoon.  We exchanged some clothes at the mall, had my ring inspected to ensure my lifetime warranty, traded in some movies and video games, exchanged some wall plug face plates and browsed the bathroom vanities at Home Depot, and returned something to Lowe's.  By the time we were at Home Depot, Caleb was displaying his I-haven't-had-a-nap-today behavior.  That was fun...

I made enchiladas for dinner, with one leftover for my lunch at BSF tomorrow.  Jadie's trying out his new video game while I blog and Caleb plays with his GeoTrax.  Poor kiddo.  He's still got an ugly looking rash on his hands and arms.  The nurse from our doctor's office said that if it's only isolated to his hands now, it's probably getting better and we should give it another week.  She did say that it's not contagious.  Let's hope she's right!

Cheater

**Ok, os I'm cheating a little on my "Blog Everyday" goal.  I'm actually writing Monday's post on Tuesday evening.  But it will contain news from Monday.**

I'm starting to get back into the swing of things.  This morning was my Monday morning BSF leader's meeting.  Last week I was running late because of timing issues with Sarah's feeding "schedule."  This week had the makings for a repeat of last week, but Sarah remained patient while I put her off until arriving at the church.  She is a sweet one!  The ladies were excited to have a baby to take care of and I was excited that the timing had worked out better than last week.  I was on time instead of fifteen minutes late!

While the kids and I were at BSF, Jadie was at his follow-up appointment with the orthopedic surgeon.  The doc restated that he had expected to find a torn meniscus when looking at the MRI results, but instead he found no indication of anything abnormal.  So, no surgery.  he still requested for Jadie to take some time off of work, so we drove to Temple to pick up the FMLA papers for the doc to fill out.  Jadie should be back to work next Monday.

Sheesh!

This has been a busy weekend!  And I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Yesterday we hosted Caleb's 4th Birthday Party at the Mayborn Museum.  Low-maintenance, for sure!   We provided the cake, ice cream, and drinks, the museum provided us a room and admission to the museum for 30 family and friends!  The only thing I am unhappy with is the fact that I should've had something for the kids to do before cake, ice cream and presents.  They all knew (obviously) that they were at the museum, so they couldn't wait to go play!  Watching them beg their parents to go play was so sad.  I wish I'd had something out for them to color or create...something to distract them until everyone had gotten there.  But really, if that's my only complaint, I'll take it!

I also enjoyed my time with mom and Kristin this weekend.   We went to dinner last night and coffee this afternoon, just the girls (Mom, Kristin, Me and Sarah).  Thanks, Jadie!

Kristin helped me get the Christmas tree put away too!  Jadie's got a hurt knee, in case you're wondering why he didn't get on the ball with that :-)

Caleb's Dinosaur Cake

**Update**

I finished!  Check out my masterpiece!

**Earlier today**

No, I don't have a picture for you yet.  That's because my first attempt was a miserable failure.

After the cake was baked, it was very uneven and puffed up in the middle.  The solution: use my handy-dandy cake leveler, which is basically a thin wire stretched between two metal legs.  It worked wonders last year with his giraffe cake.  However, this cake was determined to be drestroyed.  When it came out of the oven, it had a hard crusty edge that later refused to be cut by my cake leveler.  Each time I tried, the cake crumbled a little more.  I'll be making a second attempt this afternoon.  Unfortunately, this means I have to make a run to the store.  Grrrr!

Ailments

Today we had two doctor's appointments:

Caleb's 4-year check up

• Height-3'3"
• Weight-32 lbs
• BMI-14.79 (20th percentile)
• Vaccinations-DTap, IPV, MMR, Varicella
• Immediate Annoying Reactions-Screaming, crying, bargaining for extra stickers and lollipops
• Later Adverse Reactions-Rash on hands, torso, legs, elbows
• Imformation From the Nurse-This is a normal reaction to the varicella vaccine.  Give him some Benadryl and alternate Tylenol and Motrin for possible fever.
• Further Diagnosis-I searched for "varicella vaccine," on Swagbucks, of course.  I discovered that Varicella is the vaccine for chicken pox.  Caleb may actually be experiencing a mild form of them.  And could possibly pass them along to household members (Sarah, perhaps).

Jadie's Orthopedic Surgeon Appointment

• This was needed for his knee because of a pop followed by continuing pain.
• An X-ray revealed no bone fragments floating around and no bones fractured or broken.
• The doc thinks it's probably a torn meniscus due to the situation in which he hurt his knee and the type of pain that he's experiencing.
• An MRI was taken this morning.
• A follow-up appointment is scheduled for Monday morning to determine if surgery will be necessary.

Telling the Children About Jesus

I'm not sure that I've ever blogged about BSF!  What a giant hole in the big picture I've given you of my life!

I started attending BSF back in the spring of 2005 when my friend Melissa invited me to go to the women's night class offered here in Waco.  The study was over Israel and the Minor Prophets.  I just caught the tail end of the study, so I look forward to going through it again in 2012-2013.

I returned that fall as a Discussion Leader in the night class (and I brought Caleb with me as I was pregnant and due in January).  We were doing a study on the book of Genesis.  There are lots of fun Bible history in that study...creation, Cain and Abel, Noah.  I took 6 weeks off after having Caleb.  When I returned I decided it was too much to continue my leadership responsibilities along with returning to work full time.  Sad day.

I waited until Caleb turned two to rejoin BSF.  So, again, I caught the tail end of a year long study, this time Matthew (spring 2007).  At that point, I was able to enroll Caleb in the children's program so that he would be hearing the same Bible stories that I was studying.  Isn't that amazing?

During the summer, I was asked to rejoin the Leadership Team as a Children's Leader for the following year, The Life of Moses study.  What a fun time to begin (with all of the stories of God's faithfulness to the Israelites) my time as a Children's Leader!  My partner Nancie and I really enjoyed each other and the children.

This past fall I did not return to BSF because of having Sarah in August (there is not a children's program for children under 2).  I was disappointed because that also meant that I would not have Caleb enrolled in the children's program.  But...lo and behold, they conducted a pilot class in San Antonio (I think) last fall and opened 2 new classes for children in Waco this spring, one for infants and one for toddlers.  Praise the Lord!

So, I'm back at it, with both kids in tow.  I am leading the infants class with a wonderfully sweet Korean (I think) lady named Hwasun.  We had quite a busy morning this morning, but we managed to tell each child this week's Bible story (John 9:1-41) and sing our hymn (My Best Friend Is Jesus).

Here's an example for you to get an idea of how we tell the Bible stories to the infant class.  This will usually happen in small groups of 2-3 children at a time or one on one.

Scripture:
Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind
1As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind?" 3"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. 4As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me.  Night is coming, when no one can work. 5While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."
6Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. 7"Go," he told him, "wash in hte Pool of Siloam" (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.
8His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?" 9Some claimed that he was. Others said, "No, he only looks like him." But he himself insisted, "I am the man."
10"How then were your eyes opened?" they demanded.
11He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash.  so I went and washed, and then I could see."
12"Where is this man?" they asked him.
"I don't know," he said.

Infant Version:
There was a blind man who could not see.
He was very sad.
Jesus saw the blind man.
Jesus loved the blind man.
Jesus made the blind man see.
Jesus has the power to make blind people see.
The man was very happy.
The man told all of his friends about what Jesus had done.

Okay, Here's the Christmas Post...

Opening gifts from Granny and PawPaw while visiting my mom in Keller.  

I wish we could've seen you, but know that we have been praying for your continued recovery.  We love you!

Visiting ICE! at the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine.

Note to anyone who plans to go in the future: Buy your tickets online because if you expect to go purchase your tickets once you get there, you will probably have to hang around for a few hours until your time  to go through.  For example, we arrived at  about 2:00 pm, but the earliest tickets available were for the 5:30 pm time slot.

Perfect spot for a pose

Decorating gingerbread men with Granana

Who-ville made from ice blocks

The Nativity made from ice blocks

Junior and Caleb at Great Grandma's house celebrating Christmas with Jadie's mom and sister

A quick holiday trip to the Mayborn Museum

Sarah watching the balls fly from her new Busy Ball Bopper

Caleb with his new parking garage for all of those annoying Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars

Sorry ladies, I didn't take many pictures during this present opening free-for-all created by Caleb's excitement, but I still wanted to document the occasion!

My Free Starbucks Gift Card

I know you may be tired of seeing my Swagbucks link off to the right over there ------------->

But if you haven't already, you should really consider signing up.  After only a few months of searching and racking up Swagbucks in my account, I was able to redeem them for a $10 Starbucks Gift Card.  And yes, it really came in the mail.

If you do decide to get on board, please use my link (the icon to the right).  I will get a Swagbuck for each one that you win by searching, up to 100.  I am saving up for who knows what this time!

Induced Laughter

Jadie found a new way to make Sarah giggle.

This is a rather difficult task as it usually takes running your fingers up her sides and onto her neck at least 4 or 5 times to get a little snicker.  Occasionally the quick neck kisses will work.

This afternoon, Jadie and I were playing some cards (Nertz, of course).  As Jadie was shuffling, he flipped his cards near Sarah's face so that the breeze made her flinch...and then giggle.  He tried it again.  More giggles.  This went on for well over a minute, which is an eternity in terms of baby laughter.  What a beautiful moment!

Goal Tending:

• I read from John chapter 9 today.
• I failed miserably in the physical challenge department.  10 minutes of Wii fit time.
• I got out of bed at 9:00 am.
• I ordered sweet tea at dinner tonight.  In my defense, we were using a gift certificate from Restaurant.com which required us to spend $35 before tip, so drinks were pretty necessary.
• I yelled less, but I gave a pretty harsh spanking for disobedience and eye rolling.  Can you believe he's already rolling his eyes? 

One Day Down and Quote of the Day

Today was a good start to my personal 2010 challenge.

• I got out of bed around 9:00 am, but I was awake (I mean actually awake) before 8:30 am.  
• I mowed the lawn for my physical activity (this had not been done since September, so there were more than a few tiny little trees needed to be mowed over).
• I yelled MUCH less.  For further clarification, this yelling challenge is pertaining to how much I yell at the little man.
• I just finished doing my Bible study for the day.  I would like to incorporate this into my early rise time.  I'll try again tomorrow.
• We ate our meals at home today, so I plead the 5th as to what liquids I consumed.

Quote of the Day:

I haven't "gotten any" AT ALL this year.

-Jadie (Thanks, honey)

Personal Challenge

I have been taking a closer look at myself lately.  What I am discovering about myself is not pretty.  Don't worry, I'm not feeling hopelessly down on myself.  I just see much room for improvement.  So, I am setting forth with a challenge for myself this year.  

My goals will be posted in the right column on this blog, mostly for myself, but for you as well.  They are there for you to encourage me and spur me on toward my goal of becoming a better Christian, a better person, a better wife, mother, daughter, sister, granddaughter and friend.

Here's the beginning of my goal list:

1. Post on the blog everyday.  Post about something that's stood out to me each day, no matter how small.  I hope for this goal to help me see the things in my life I have to be thankful for.
2. Read the Bible everyday.  "All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness..." 2 Timothy 3:16
3. Get out of bed before 8:00 am everyday.  This is by far the most difficult goal on my list.  I have gotten into a horribly selfish rut of staying in bed for an extra hour (or more) after Caleb wakes up.  I basically coach him to watch PBS for as long as he will.  I know, I told you there were some ugly things that would come out.
4. Do something physically challenging everyday.  This may just consist of working out with the Wii.  It may mean walking around the block.  Whatever it is, I hope to develop a more healthy lifestyle.
5. Order the water.   Not only is this helpful in my goal to return to a healthy (and more physically appealing) weight, but it also falls in line with my desire to more wisely spend (and save) our money.