Blizzards, Pennies, the Stomach Bug and My Hero

Life has been eventful if nothing else here lately. We've been taking our turn with the stomach bug that is going around. First T2 had it, then Hubby and most recently T1. This mixed in over two blizzards in one week and I haven't been out much lately! Hubby has sent me out a couple times for my own sanity. The boys have watched way too many videos with all the sickness and bad weather and I'm longing for green grass and warmer temps (it is currently minus 17 today).

Thing 1's encounter with the "flu" had an interesting twist...don't worry no gory details will be shared. On Wed. last week he was down in the basement "napping", Hubby was recovering from the flu and T2 and I were taking a quick nap. When I went downstairs to tell T1 he could "get up" he informed me that he had swallowed a penny. Great! I called to doctor to see if I needed to be concerned or if he was just worth more now. They told me in so many words he is just going to cost more and I needed to bring him in right away. So after he "negotiated" with the doctor about "no shots and no xrays" we convinced him the xray wouldn't hurt. I think it was the most painful for me to listen to his pitiful cries for me from the xray room where he emerged in the tech's arms a few minutes later.

The doctor showed us the x-ray and I resisted the urge to whip out my cell phone to take a photo of it for hubby and you all, it was pretty cool though. The best news of the day was when he told me it should pass just fine and that I didn't have to watch for it! Phew! (I remembered my sister-in-law telling me that when my nephew swallowed a nail she had to watch for it (eww!).) So getting back to the flu, the doctor said if it did get stuck that T1 would start throwing up and having diarrhea. Great. So what does he start doing the next night at bedtime...you guessed it! I called the ER nurse and she talked me through an exam and what to look for and said I could keep him home for now. In the end it was just the flu...I never thought I'd pray my son had the flu.

The hero through all this was Hubby. He was up countless times with the Things while they threw up through the nights. He even slept on the couch and sent me to bed so I could be rested for the next day.

I'm praying that none of our staff who were over in between cases for a staff meeting last week (and myself) don't come down with it next. Hopefully all sickness and money swallowing is behind us and we can enjoy a nice Christmas, if not warmer weather, in WI with our family.

With that...Merry Christmas!

Faith, Hope and Love and the long awaited belly shots! Sigh.

For my birthday two years ago I picked out three word plaques: Faith, Hope and Love. After moving them around several times I finally found the perfect spot...well it is almost perfect! It is just a bit too low on the wall and just the right height for a misdirected pillow or ball that was thrown from one male or another in the house. But since I love the arrangement so much and they are just the thing for that space, I keep re-gluing them and putting them back up with hope and faith that my loving family won't break them...again! And when it does happen again, which it always does, we can't refrain from making wise cracks like "all hope is lost" or "where's the love?" And we inevitably go a few days or weeks with one or more of the words missing.

Over Thanksgiving the boys decided the free space and available nails was the perfect place to launch their "Cauliflower" ships...otherwise known as the "Mayflower". I thought it was an appropriate replacement thinking of all the faith and hope those voyagers must have had to make such an arduous journey into the unknown. And I find myself unable to take down the ships even though Thanksgiving is long gone and Christmas is on our heels. I think for the same reason I keep putting the words back up, I'm holding onto these construction paper creations. I love the ideals they represent and even more I love the little hands that made them. Even though those little hands are the source of our broken "hope", our disassembled nativity, and the decapition of my Willow Tree collection, I can't imagine life any other way. All too soon faith, hope and love will stay in place long enough to collect dust and Mary will sit perfectly still adoring baby Jesus all season through.

I know someone smarter or less stubborn would simply move the breakables to a safer location...and trust me I've tried to find one in this house...or just put them away for this season of life. Instead once I'm done yelling "Not again!" I have to laugh just a little at myself get out the superglue...again. I can't help but see the humor in the mother/ son figurine misnamed "tenderness" as the decapitated mother has clearly "blown her top" or "lost her head"...a more likely occurrence with little boys. And the obvious lesson of the headless "angel of prayer" is that all too often I pray without thinking, rotely saying my list of wants and needs. (Which by the way, the boys continue to pray without complaint and with creative flair for "folding our hands"...the other day we were praying with our fingers in our ears and it goes without saying there was a strong reminder/conviction in my heart over that one).

I know it is a bit late to be mentioning things I was/am thankful for on Thanksgiving, but one of them HAS to be acknowledged. Not only am I thankful for a husband who knows how to fix things, I'm so glad I married someone who knows how to build things! Since moving into our home 2 1/2 years ago Jeff has built a huge garage and completely finished our basement. Just yesterday the Things sat glued to their seats watching the carpet men ("carpenters" seems like it would be the right word, doesn't it?) lay down the carpet in our FINALLY done basement. The boys love running laps down there and hanging out in their hiding place beneath the stairs. We all love having more space! A big hug and thank you to hubby for the countless hours he has put in...and a huge thank you (but no hug - sorry) to our friends who have come over and helped hubby through this process.

So without further rambling, here are some photos of the basement and other happenings on the prairie.

Not shown, the finished:office, bathroom and guestroom. Shown:boys jumping off the steps!
Okay, for all those who have scolded me for not posting one sooner - here are some bellies!
Our Nav Christmas party last weekend. It has gotten too big to have in our home - a good problem to have.
We had not 1, not 2, but 3 Santas show up. The scary thing is those are their real beards!
I was thrilled to see that I could still dress in style when I arrived and saw these two lovely ladies who have much more of a clue of fashion than this stay-at-home mommy. So I made them take this photo with me to document my glee. I show up at large events mainly to figure out what is "in" and what "isn't". Just last night I learned how to wear my scarf just by going to Nav Nite.

Welcome Home Soldier

So much good news to share these days requires more posts! This one is dedicated to one very brave soldier, his (dare I say braver?) wife and 3 boys who endured a second tour in Iraq. Welcome home, soldier! Thank you for doing what needed to be done so that we can carry on safely with our lives at home! We are so glad you are home safely and we will continue to pray for the safety of all our other soldiers who are protecting our freedoms around the world.

Children Are A Blessing From the Lord

I love adoption...on so many levels! Not only is it beyond my comprehension that God would adopt us, it is such a miracle to me to watch it unfold in living color right here on earth. If you want to help make my friends' Christmas extra special, you can participate in the fundraiser for their next adoption journey. They are fellow laborers with us in Navs and already make wonderful parents for their two...soon to be three...little ones!



The DEAL:

The link below is to a photographer who will donate 100% of the proceeds for your gorgeous Christmas card purchase to their adoption journey. These cards are very beautiful so check out the link: http://www.lauraluphotography.com/ and be a part of giving a little one a great family!

FYI:

If you think you want to take part in this fundraiser. After Laura sends you back a digital template with you photo(s) in the template you can order prints from a place like Walmart.

Their printing costs for 100 4X6 prints of the template that Laura sends you: Walmart will charge you $15.00

If you do 100 5X7 prints: 58.00.

If you were to go to Walmart with your pictures and use one of their holiday templates: 100 5X7's $60.00
100 4X8's $33.00

If you donate 25.00 and get one or two of your pictures in Laura's template. You will still need to find a place to do your photo prints for you.

The Ways We Pray

Lately we've been trying a little experiment at mealtime to encourage our kids to pray before they eat. Frankly it all came out of a moment of exasperation for me; it just didn't seem to set the right tone for praying when I had to yell and threaten my kids to say "Grace." So one morning a week or so ago I informed the Things on the spot that from then on I would be praying at breakfast, Thing 2 at lunch and Thing 1 at dinner...no matter what! I also told them that they could decide how we would "fold our hands" when it was there turn to pray. This has turned my frowns and frustrations into smothered smiles and heartfelt prayers. The boys love coming up with creative ways to "fold their hands" and belt out heartfelt prayers without resistance.

Last week we sat in Guadalajara's (the only local AUTHENTIC Mexican restaurant...a requirement for me before agreeing we were "called" to minister here, that along with a Starbucks) and Thing 2 informed us we needed to put our hands behind our heads in order to pray. We obliged and I'm sure incurred a bit of interest from onlookers. We have also had some charismatic prayers with our hands lifted high. Tonight we all put our index fingers on our nose to say grace.

Sometimes they are silly stances, and sometimes not so far off the mark, like when we fold our arms across our chest. Even though the words are right, "Thank you for God. Thank you for the bananas..." (Okay, mostly right, he's 2!). Anyways, even though the words are right I find that often my heart isn't, and my arms folded across my chest is a more honest reflection of how I'm feeling. Now the Things really aren't trying to teach me a lesson on prayer by their creative approaches, but I have a feeling that God is doing just that. I'm humbled and grateful that He accepts me no matter my stance, inside and out, and patiently works with me until I'm back in the right position inside. I don't really think He gives a hoot about the outside; if He does I guess we have some answering to do about the ways we pray at dinner!

So now it is your turn. What has God taught you through your little theologian(s)? I'd love to hear and know I'm not the only one God humbles through her (his) kids!

Things I've been seeing lately.

Thing 1 informed me that "we don't have enough blocks"....ha!

Our little soccer player and froggy made out like bandits this halloween...everyone was happy with the haul they made and it has been disappearing at an alarming rate. At T1's preschool they had "Cookie Monster Day" instead of Halloween. Everyone wore blue and made cookies and his teacher informed me when I picked him up that T1 had eaten his whole cup of frosting in addition to his cookie. He was a bit hyper and I was a bit annoyed (not really)...but I'm secretly getting my revenge by giving him a piece of Halloween candy every morning before school (really).

Like father .................Like son. And everyone says that T2 looks like me...ha!

T2 "enjoying" the fire trucks at the homecoming parade.

T1 enjoying the kittens on his first fieldtrip to some local gardens. Apparently they grow cats along with grapes and gords.

"Octember", the boys enjoying their first snow.



How precious you are, our newest little nephew ready to get his first big bucket of candy.

Sometimes experience is the best teacher. In this case T2 learned that the soap at Grandma and Grandpa's house doesn't taste good and should be left for bathing. T1 claims he was not involved in T2's decision to bite it...the jury is still out.

Once again, Tiney Hiney didn't give us very many great shots of it's little face. The placenta (looking sort of like brains) was in the way, but it is waving "hi" anyways.

Looking a little "alienish"...but all parts are there that should be, and it is a week ahead in growth for whatever that matters.

Funny things I've heard lately

Thing 1 (4 1/2 yrs old) - While sitting down in Hubby's Lazy Boy with his Storybook Bible (given by one very cool Auntie Daya - he says "I'm going to have a Quiet Time".

Hubby - "Do you know what a QT is?"

T1 - "No"

Hubby - explains QT in 4 yr old terminology

Me - "It will be easier to have a QT when you can read"

Still you have to credit the kid for getting the place and book choice correct. But don't give the parents too much credit b/c this is also the same kid that several hours earlier pitched a fit about going to Sunday school and ended up in the nursery instead.


T1 has also told me lately - "I'm going to do Bible Study"...he must be spending more time with hubby lately than me. :)

T1 - after noticing that I straightened my annoying pregnant hair that will not just be consistantly curly or straight all in one day - "Mommy, what happened to your wiggly hair?"

Our two EDGE guys were over one night and noticed me ironing a pair of maternity pants. They weren't blown away by the fact that I was ironing which anyone who knows me well enough would be...but were quite impressed with the pants commenting - "You mean they make special pants for pregnant women?" I'm still laughing about that one. I don't know why they would know this, both being single, but what exactly do they think women who look like they've swallowed a basketball wear? I guess I don't really expect that they have thought much about it, but I still think they are really funny!

Thing 2 - shortly after T1 emerged from bed one evening stating he had to go to the potty, T2 emerges (T1 had recently showed him how to climb in and out of his crib) at the doorway and states "I have to go potty". Not only does he know how to get out of his crib, he knows what to say to stay out...if only he really knew how to go potty he would not have been sent directly back to bed!

Okay, now it is your turn. What are some funny things people have said to you lately? If I've made you smile you can return the favor by posting your comment below.

Also - to the two jokesters who voted "other" for the sex of the baby - it was just there as a joke! And the ultrasound last Thursday confirmed it is a baby and not an other! Pics to come soon! And, no, we did not find out the sex! :)

Love You A Latte

How much does my husband love me? Sometimes when the stress of two and half kids, lots of travel and a busy ministry I can stop and wonder "how did we get here?" Life was so much simpler in the early years when I had all the time in the world to think of special ways to tell Hubby I loved him and vice-versa.

But just the other day Hubby reminded me that sometimes taking time to say "I love you" means not spending special time together, but spending some time apart...mainly, me alone in a coffee shop with a really big coffee, my journal and Bible. Despite his busy list of things "to do" Hubby insisted I still get out by myself for awhile b/c with all the crazziness it had been awhile since I'd had a chance to do this. And when I mentioned I was going to make a coffee to go and hit the library so I didn't have to spend $3 on a coffee, he opened up his wallet and gave me his full coffee card, ready to redeem. (now that is LOVE!)

That afternoon makes me think back to our wedding day when our good friend and pastor challenged Hubby that it was his job to make sure he nuture my relationship with God and help it grow. Well, after 8 years of marraige, Hubby is still living up to his end of the deal-e-o and then some. This humongous decaf soy carmel latte is my sweet, warm reminder. I had to take a picture and make it my wallpaper on my cell to remind myself on the more harried days that even when we don't always have time to leave sappy love notes for the other to find and we are way too tired to stay up past 10 anymore, that he still does really love me a latte and frankly, I love him a latte too!

Testing, testing, 123

Okay, for all my friends out there that have had babies "recently" I'm curious if your doctor offered you a test for CF (cystic fybrosis) and if you paid the hundreds of dollars for it? I think this is new since Things1 and 2 and I can't decide if I want it done. They can't do anything and I'm not going to do anything about it if I do test positive...so should I have it done or is it a waste of money? I'm also waffling on the "quad screen" test. I'd love to know what you did and why! I have my ultrasound and any tests on Thursday so any quick replys would be welcome. Right now I'm remaining mostly steady in my resolve to not find out the sex of the baby...but I reserve the right to change my mind at any instance...and then back again!

Also, make sure and cast your vote for my "what's it going to be" poll.

I love it when...

I love it when God meets our needs before we can even ask. Yesterday around 2:45 the repairman came to fix our washing machine. Since I've never had a repairman (that I wasn't already married too) come and fix anything this was a financial unknown situation for me. But about a half hour later he left and an hour or so after that Hubby came home and showed me what was in the mail. A couple who had never donated to our ministry before and doesn't even receive our newsletter (at least directly through us, but maybe through a church that supports us) sent us a check just "out of the blue" (i.e. GOD) with a note attached saying that they thought we could use it! Last month both of our cars were in the shop so having the washing machine break this month just seemed like we were never going to get ahead. I have a feeling that when the bill comes for the thing-a-ma-jig (yes that is technical name for all those unfamiliar with the inner parts of washing machines) that was broken in my wonderful supersized machine (also donated by a donor years back by the way) that it will be covered by that check that came in our box the very hour the repairman left.

Travels - A pound by pound review

Well, in the last few weeks we have been to WI, CO and IA (Iowa, I have no idea if that is the correct abbreviation. Anyone?). All the weight I've gained in a few weeks is proof! Sigh! No more fast food, please!!!! Okay, no more whining about the size of my butt! (for now).

Some highlights of our trips:

WI - getting the entire Graf family together as hubby's sister was home for a visit from Brazil. None of us could remember the last time this happened...5 years ago! The trees were in full color

for our drive there (in WI of course b/c we don't really have trees here). We also ate a ton of good food...that was the first pound!

In CO hubby's highlight was when they had to upgrade us on our car rental to an SUV. I teased him by asking why he didn't get the minivan (we were without kids on this anniversary/ EDGE conference trip...very spoiled. THANK YOU again to all our faithful babysitters, and there were many of you!). Anyways, this allowed some fun in the mountains with gorgeous views that can only be found off steep dirt roads (oh darn). The aspen trees were bright yellow and perfectly accented by deep green pines and blue skies. A picnic for two and some time to just be together without talking about kids and ministry...just what we needed! Oh and the conference was good too! We also had some great time with good friends and way too much good food, starting with a fried onion thing at Outback...that was the second and third pound.

In Iowa we joined nearly 400 students and staff from our region for our annual Fall Conf. It wasn't the same without you there Jess http://jessdager.wordpress.com/ but at least I still know what is going on in your life thanks to your blog! The teaching from Norman Hubbard was excellent and of course I looked forward the whole million hour drive to the baked oatmeal that would be awaiting me...it is truly excellent and I've only had it at Village Creek Camp. That was pounds three and four. I think Arbys and Taco Johns were the last one! Oh and the weather was excellent.

I never thought I'd be so obsessed with the weather, that is what living in the mid-west does to you though! I had no idea how spoiled I was in CA, and how much I was missing out as well. Fall is definately my favorite season, and not just b/c we got married in the Fall. I just love the cooler temps, blue skies and gorgeous leaves. The urge to go apple picking, start a new knitting project and bake up a storm all hit me with the first 60 degree day!

Good thing I don't have the urge to do laundry b/c after years of faithful service our washing machine went kaput yesterday. The boys are currently glued to the repairman (sorry repairman) while he is taking it apart and asking all sorts of questions I don't know the answer too about washing machines. Thing 2 is sporting his construction vest over his Brazilian soccer outfit over longsleeves and sweats. What can I say, he likes to get dressed up when we have important company coming!

This morning I was blessed by E. one of our EDGE women coming over for some informal "discipleship" time. I joked that when she is meeting with her women she can now teach them how to clean windows with the "help" of a 2 and 4 year old...because that is just what we did. I decided that instead of always going out of the home for our one-on-one times I could let them in on more of me by letting them in on my day to day life (they could decide what they wanted to imitate and not imitate on their own)! I'm sure E. picked up by the state of my filthy windows that cleaning windows isn't a daily occurance, but my nesting urge was egged on by the prospect of an extra pair of hands. But we did do some other "normal" things like make granola and play Cootie. She is home now recovering from her loss to T1 at Barnyard Bingo...but at least she has a full belly of gourmet mac n cheese and hot dogs. Here is the recipe for the delicious granola from allrecipes.com: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Megans-Granola/Detail.aspx. I changed it a little (of course) by adding flaxmeal (yeah for Omega 3s) instead of oatbran which meant I could add a lot less oil and using brown rice syrup instead of honey.

Megan's Granola
SUBMITTED BY: annie9

RECIPE RATING:Read Reviews (122)
Review/Rate This Recipe
PREP TIME
20 Min
COOK TIME
20 Min
READY IN
40 Min
SERVINGS (Help)

Servings

US
METRIC
INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)
8 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups wheat germ
1 1/2 cups oat bran
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup finely chopped almonds
1 cup finely chopped pecans
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
3/4 cup honey
1 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups raisins or sweetened dried cranberries

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment or aluminum foil.
Combine the oats, wheat germ, oat bran, sunflower seeds, almonds, pecans, and walnuts in a large bowl. Stir together the salt, brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, oil, cinnamon, and vanilla in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then pour over the dry ingredients, and stir to coat. Spread the mixture out evenly on the baking sheets.
Bake in the preheated oven until crispy and toasted, about 20 minutes. Stir once halfway through. Cool, then stir in the raisins or cranberries before storing in an airtight container.

One last thought, my newest favorite blog is http://truefaced.com/blog/ if you haven't discovered it, check it out for some great thought provoking, Jesus loving encouragement.

Things That Bless Me

L. (and all the EDGERs and students) that love on our kids.

Tailgating with students before a game (fun to see them and I don't have to cook!).

Thing 1's continued love for any sport (it is fun to see his interests develop).


Cute soccer outfits that Auntie C. sends us from Brazil.

Our annual Mug and Muffin with Nav Gals.

My boys just being boys, esp. when they don't know I'm looking.

Thing 2 in the "Gone Fishin" overalls my mom embroidered.

Thing 2 being gross licking the patio door...yes that is snot coming out his nose but I had to take the picture before he stopped. This doesn't really bless me but I had to put it in.

T 2 checking to see if his tummy is getting bigger like mommy's.

Goof! Now we know where Tiney Hiney gets it from.

Reason # 1027 why I love my husband: he patiently weeds the yard b/c I don't want pesticides on the grass while I'm pregnant and we have kids playing on it.

J. loving on our kids.

One last perfect summer day when we can all be together.

Buddies.

Reason #189 why I love my husband: he made this shelf for my birthday.

Reason #2675 why I love my husband: he is so good at loving me. He painted our room red last winter as a surprise for me while I was away (and he was home with two boys). And he lets me buy a new bedspread and curtains to go with the new decor (as long as I am willing to wait awhile till we have the funds).

The Boys bonding with Grandpa during a recent visit.

Tons of new students interested in growing in Christ (one of our first Nav Nites was standing room only).

Eating...err, picking raspberries with my family.

Nesting, Memory Lane and Misc. Musings

Okay, so if the title includes "Misc. Musings" you should know this is a long one. So go warm up your coffee and come back when you are in a musing mood. :) See you soon (I hope).

Even my computer got "Nested", go Packers...err TN! (T1 and buddy)

So I know from previous experience that a normal stage of pregnancy is "nesting". And I remember "nesting" quite a bit towards the end of my previous pregnancies. But this time it has kicked in high gear early and in the short month that we have been home I've pretty much reorganized our whole house. A couple nights ago while hubby was out and I let the boys stay up too late watching some mindless video, I tackled the coat/game/video/all the other crap (sorry, bad word) we have no other place to put

closet. Boy did that feel good to be able to walk into it again. Yesterday the area under my desk (which is really our old kitchen table) got cleaned out, filed and organized. Then I still wasn't satisfied so I took on the biggest project of all, the big storage closet in our bathroom. It is no ordinary bathroom closet, but the size or a double bedroom closet with just four huge shelves thrown in for everything to get lost and jumbled on.

Moving on to the point of all this...as I sorted, tossed and organized I came across some fun items from the past, each bringing back emotional memories. Under my desk in the file box I found a sign that reads "The ____ vs The Squirrels". This is from our first apartment together. It was a quaint (e.g. old) little brick building on M. street (I think) and we lived on the second floor. Above us was a storage attic (which was well used because the rooms were as small as they were "quaint"). Well, for awhile some local squirrels took up residence in the attic and we would lay in bed at night listening to them thumping around, rolling glass jars and jumping from what must have been great heights, above our heads. Our landlord decided that instead of coming out and fixing whatever hole they had made into a door, he would give us $10 off our rent for each squirrel we removed (with a live trap, don't worry, no squirrels were seriously harmed, sometimes forgotten for awhile in the trunk, but no worse for the wear). We had to catch them, drive them at least 7 miles away and release them. So I started a chart on our fridge to record how many we caught and drew a little squirrel with a red circle and line through it for every one that we captured. I think after we saved $100 off one month our landlord finally decided to fix the hole. :)

Another item I came across a few weeks ago was my beloved sticker album. How many of you ladies had one of these growing up? It had puffy stickers, sparkley stickers, scratch and sniff stickers, all of which were carefully placed in an album and ooohed and awwed over by other girlfriends with sticker albums while I ooohed and awwed over theirs. Some were traded, and the favorites were guarded. So hubby finds this album and looks at me really confused when I refuse to throw it away. You don't see me asking him to throw away his stamp collection, (sell them on ebay so I can get new furniture, yes, but throw them away? no!), but he just doesn't get my attachment. I think you just have to be a girl to get this one.

On the subject of stickers, in the gigantic bathroom closet I found a little orange cardboard box with a roll of shiny silver stickers with my name printed on them. I've had these suckers forever but can't seem to throw them away. Perhaps because of the memory I have associated with them. I remember being pretty young, not too young, but young compared to my ripe old age of 33 and my mom was leaving on a business trip or something (a rare occurence for me). I was pretty sad that she was leaving so as she packed she let me put some of my "Sherry" stickers on her red luggage. Why do I remember this? I have no idea. Why do I still have these stickers? Because I remember this I guess and can't throw them out. I know, I need help.

Another old photo I found of T 1 and Grandpa. He was sooo chubby (T 1, not Grandpa! :) )

Maybe this is bringing back some memories for you too. If not your treasured sticker album, there is some other treasure tucked away from your childhood that you can't part with. I'd love to hear about it. In fact it would help me feel better about my strange attachment to these silly items.

One last item...under my bathroom sink (yes this cabinet didn't escape my nesting need) I found my Caboodle. You know, a caboodle! My dear friends C. and A. gave it to me in H.S. as a not so subtle hint that I needed to get my stuff organized. I still have it! And I think I'm making up for the lack of organization. Yes, I probably still hold onto more stuff than I should, but at least it is neatly stored away now!

Introducing My New Nephew

My brother and sister in law have welcomed a new baby into their world. We couldn't be more excited! Here is the new cutest nephew in the whole wide world! 7lbs, 12 ounces and a whopping 20 1/2 inches long! Of course my brother would have to one up me, T 2 was 8 lbs, but only 20 inches! :)