when it rains....

it POURS!  To say that the past day and a half have been crazy would be a gross understatement.  Besides our normal day to day activities, there has been a plethora of other things.

#1- last week, we found out that that my dad has been offered a job at my alma mater!!!  We are super excited and beyond thrilled. It is an answer to prayer and the Lord has so clearly paved the way.  It has been neat to see the Lord provide and so specifically answer prayer.  My entire family is just praising God for this opened door.   It is going to be so strange to have my folks living in town.  After living almost 9 years away from family it is really going to be nice to spend some time with them on a regular basis.

#2- on Thursday night about 1am, my phone rang.  And, when your phone rings at that hour of the night it is never a good thing.  But last night it was both sad and good.  My mom called to say that my Grandma had passed away.  We shared some tears together and then whispered goodnight. I didn't sleep more than 4 hours last night.  My mind was full.  Full of memories of my Grandma.  Full of wondering what she was up to now that she has crossed into eternity. Full of sadness and gladness at the same time.  My Grandma has been sickly for years, but the last two or three have just been so terrible for her.  She was admitted to the hospital about two weeks ago and my Grandpa knew that he wasn't going to be able to care for her when/if she got out of the hospital.  She was in dreadful pain and was so miserable. The funeral was today and I so wished that I could have been there.  To say a goodbye, and to be supportive for my mom. 

#3- my dog is under "house arrest", well, I guess the pound calls it "home quarintine", but still...until next monday every time he goes outside he has to have a muzzle on and we have to be with him.  It is a long story that involved roller-blades, a screaming kid, a scared dog (our dog), an ambulance, the animal control, a crying baby, the ER, a frustrated husband, a frustrated me...and a BIG headache.  It wasn't Pooka's fault, it wasn't the kid's fault, it was just an accident. A frustrating accident.

#4- all the books say that it is usually quite a few weeks/months between sets of incoming teeth. However, I do believe that my Obi is getting some new little toofers. :-)  Today at noon his nose started running like a tap, he is crabby, he has a slightly elevated temp, his is pulling at his mouth and his appetite is SUPER low.  The exact same symptoms from when his bottom teeth came.  Even though he is in pain and just isn't quite right, he does his best to be cheerful.  He's a sweet one that kid of mine!

Anyways, there is a picture of the stuffs going on in our lives at the moment.  Good and bad, and as the scripture says, should we not praise God for both?! 

mid feb

yeah, so here I sit and it is the middle of February.  Or, since February is so short...it is basically the END of February.  My little boy turns 7 months next week and I am just flabbergasted with how quickly time is zooming past.  In no time he will be heading off to kindergarten, high school, college and let's face it...he is almost "done growed up" (as they say in my neck of the woods).  Jason jokes all the time about the fact that soon my Obi will be in high school and too cool to hang out with his momma and he will be interested in other girls. I tell him to "hush up and let my baby be my baby".  One day I will have to let him grow up, but today is not that day.  Today he can be my snuggly, giggly, wiggly baby!

We've been busy lately.  Way too busy.  Busy enough that I haven't had much time to write on my blog, or even really think about anything fun, deep, or interesting to blog about. That is about to change though.  Starting this coming week I don't have much of anything on my calendar (save a fun trip to OK on Monday to spend the day with a best friend and do a little celebrating over some precious news in her life).  I am looking forward to actually reading my baby-food-making book, be a good mommy, and just be focused on taking care of my kiddo.

Anyways, I can barely keep my eyes open so I am heading to bed tonight.  I'll be back dear blogging world.  But not tomorrow, or Monday, but I'll be back. And, when I get back hopefully I'll have something fun to write about.

to my valentine

Sweetheart,

Six years ago tomorrow you and I started this relationship that has turned into one of best-friendship, love, and marriage. I can't believe it has been that long, but at the same time when I think of all that has happened it feels like forever.  A good kind of forever. Your kisses are still as sweet as the first one. Your hugs are still comforting and tender. Your friendship is still as fun and crazy as it was when things were new and exciting. But, you want know what has changed? The depth of our love for each other. Though your kisses are still as sweet as before, they are now much more cherished.  Your hugs provide that tender comfort, but they are also a source of strength. As a friend you still make me laugh and you will always be predictably unpredictable, but your friendship has been tried and tested and found to be solid and steady.

Babe, we've gone through ups and downs in life together. Sometimes it feels like a roller coaster, other times it feels like a thrilling sail boat. Throughout it all you are a rock of courage for me to lean against. Your patience is unending and your gentleness never ceases to amaze me.  Your faith is both spoken and quietly lived out, this is something I love so dearly about you.  God knew that I needed you in my life. I am thankful to be on the receiving end of the blessing that is YOU!  So, here is to you babe. To another 6 plus 60 years to us! May we constantly run together in this race called life. Running towards our Lord and Savior.  And, as I have joked before, when we get to the end of the race, I hope that Jesus has our mansions next door to each other.

I hope you know that I treasure who you are. I wouldn't change anything about you (except maybe the fact that you turn ALL your socks inside out when you take them off).  Thanks for picking me to be your wife. I am pretty sure that I got the better end of the deal.  As someone famous once said, "You are the butter to my bread, and the breath to my life".

I love you.

Liz

more felt

ah...it has been so long since I last posted. What have I been up to you ask? Well...nothing and a lot all at the same time. I don't have anything super interesting or fun to write about tonight, so instead I will share some more pictures of the felt food that I've been making for my niece. The felt is so fun to work with because it doesn't fray.

Breakfast food: Dollar flapjacks with blueberries and bananas.
A complete and nutritious breakfast.
How about some veggies?
Maybe some bow tie pasta...
Sausages! I know these are bad for you, but I love sausage....so I couldn't resist making the play version.
The whole shopping bag full of "food".
Well...that is it for my sewing for a few weeks. I am heading out to CO to visit my family and spend some time with them. If we do anything amazing, I'll let ya know!

felt

This past Sunday I went over to Fayetteville to the fabric store and loaded up on some felt-y goodness! I have been wanting to try a few new craft projects, and I must admit, I am rather pleased with how they have turned out so far.
Growing up we read a lot of the Richard Scarry books.  My brother and his wife got Obi his first Busytown book for Christmas!  I decided to try my hand at making our own Lowly Worm. Here he is!

And the front of his shirt...

Then, I am working on making some "food" for my niece for her third birthday that is coming up next month.  She loves her kitchen set and I thought this would be a perfect gift!  I am a little slow at making these, but learning as I go. 

And because she LOVES tea parties...

That is as far as I have gotten, but am looking forward to trying out quite a few different things.

hmmmm...

Been wondering lately. There are so many things going on with my family. Things that are too big to think that God has overlooked them. So, I know that God knows what is going on and what is the outcome. When I woke up this morning I didn't know about some now-uncertain things. But, God did. He knew this day was coming a LONG time ago. And He knows the future of how things will unfold, how I/we will react, and what our choices will be. But the thing is, we don't know the outcome yet.  This allows for the freedom to choose my reaction and my actions from here on out. Hmmm...what will I choose?

I know that I've mentioned it more than once on this blog before, but the process of becoming a mother was long and drawn out. It involved more that one box of tissues for my tears and a lot of comforting from my husband. The lessons that I learned through that have come back to me over and over. The faithfulness and goodness of the Lord was presented to me new every morning during that trial. I grew closer to my Jesus as I leaned on him for his strength and as I reached out to hold his hand. The beauty of that time in my life, more than any other, was that my hand was held. Tenderly. Firmly. And the Lord never let go. Hmmm...have I let go? Have I loosed my grip lately because I haven't "needed" Him as intensely as I did during that time of my life?

Not that long ago I thought about how as much as I hate trudging through the valley of the trials it is really only during the trials that I become so very unsure of myself and my surroundings and I am brought back to my knees. The very place that I need to be.  For someone wiser or more godly than I, perhaps you can learn the be close to the Lord without the trials. If there is one thing that I have learned about myself it is this: I am not that wise, or that godly. But, the desire of my heart is to come that.

So, I'm putting my rubber boots on to start slogging through the mud of the trials. I know I am not alone. I have a Good Shepard to lead me beside the still waters and restore my soul.  Knowing the weakness of my spirit I am trying to surround myself by the Word and reminders of the Lord's goodness.  One way in which I am doing that is by listening to Bible studies while I am doing things around the house. Beth Moore has been a huge blessing in my life over the past few months.  I came across this site that has her studies along with so many others. 

God is good. All the time. 

dry patchy skin

Before having a wee babe of my own I thought that babies always have soft, smooth skin. This is not true. Poor Obi has a mild case of excema, but he also has super, no better said EXTREMELY, sensitive skin.  Trying to find a shampoo that works for him as well as a lotion has been no end of trouble.  We started off with Burt's Bees...only to find out that the child is allergic to oranges and both the lotion and wash have orange extract/wax in it.  We moved on to Aveeno, Johnson/Johnson, etc, etc.  I couldn't stand it anymore today.  I feel like a horrid mother becuase I haven't been able to solve his dry patches and they are getting worse.  There is one patch around his mouth (from a little soap residue *I think* left on his paci) that is contantly getting wet and wiped and it is now peeling! YIKES!!!  So, after some serious internet time looking for natural/healthy remedies for said red, dry, scaly patches I decided to give California Baby Calendula cream a try.  I tossed my baby in his carseat and off we headed to Fayetteville for a 2oz bottle of supposed magic.  3 hours later we were home and I put some on the inside of his arm to give it a test. After a couple of hours it seemed like it was a bit better...definitely not worse.  I am hoping this will work.  I did also buy a bottle of their super-sensitive wash and gave him a bath with it.  He has been slathered and kissed and sent off to bed.  In the morning I'll know if it worked (even just a little would be nice), or if I am back at square one and $20 poorer.  Not that any of you reading really want to know about my kid's skin issues, but there you have it just the same.

I finished my first sewing project.  It is a little cloth "thing" that straps your kid into a chair or highchair.  I am pretty excited about it because Obi has been wanting to sit in highchairs at restaurants, but because he hasn't mastered the whole balance thing yet he can't quite do it. I used some scrap fabric, but voila...it worked!

It works in the chair at home, so we'll give it a whirl when we are out and about next time. :-)

No profound thoughts for tonight.  But, I'll leave you with a picture of Obi and I from our time in Cali at the Pollo Loco. YUM! Doesn't his face say "So, umm..mom, where is my Pollo bowl?"