New Look...Again

Yes, I changed the look of my blog again. I did this for 2 reasons:

1. My sister said the beach template was harder to read

2. It was kind of a see-through look which meant that you could see the beach background through my pictures which I didn't like

I hope you all like the blue water, too. Sometimes I get bored with the same look, so I can't guarantee it will stay like this forever. For now, I like it. I'm also tired of having to re-add all my links every time I change it, so I hope I like it for a long time. I have to go start supper now, so happy commenting! (like that hint?)

Happy 5 Months Kiera

Today, my daughter, Kiera, is 5 months old! Here's her journey so far:

6 days old
























5 weeks old
























3 months old



















5 months old
























"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights..." James 1:17 I praise God for this wonderful gift He has blessed us with!

New Look

I got tired of my old blog, so I downloaded a new template. I love the beach and for me it's a refreshing feeling whenever I see it, so that's why I picked this one. Just wondering what you as readers think of it. Hope you enjoy and if the ocean is not your thing, that's ok, too.

And The Answer Is...

Thank-you for all of your delicious guesses, but the correct answer to yesterday's post is: fudge marble cake batter! Lynette was the only one who guessed it right, so she wins a big piece of imaginary fudge marble cake! While we are on the topic of food, I would like to share my favorite snack with you. As I'm typing this, I'm waving a stuffed star around with my other hand that's playing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" trying to keep Kiera entertained, so this is taking long to type. Since strawberries are not in season in the winter, this winter one of my favorite healthy snacks has been this:
























Every day I cut up an apple and put it in yogurt. Strawberry yogurt is one of my favorites, but I have also used vanilla, raspberry, and wildberry. I feel like I have to balance my ice cream addiction with something healthy, so this is it. Yes Jacki, we should definitely have an ice cream playdate! I know that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but I wonder if the same applies for ice cream. I'm pretty sure it does...

Was Ist Das?

Does anybody know what this is? (Jenene, you can't say)

Monkey See Monkey Do

Jared + Kiera...this makes me laugh!

Easter

We had a wonderfully, crazy busy Easter week-end. Jared is at home sick today, so he gets an extra long week-end, although he's not enjoying the fever. We had 2 family gatherings on Friday, a supper on Saturday, and 2 more family gatherings on Sunday. My sister Jenene's fiance Art flew out here for the week-end from Washington and we hadn't seen him since Christmas, so it was good to see him again. "Uncle Art" couldn't believe how big Kiera has gotten and it was sweet to see that he's gotten over his fear of holding her. We went to the city on Thursday and this is Art holding Kiera in the mall:



















Kiera often falls asleep in her car seat, so here she is on the way back from the city fast asleep in her cute little snowsuit:

























This is right before we left for family gathering #1 (I love her little denim dress)

























This is Kiera's 2nd cousin, Keegan, who is 7 months old, which is only 2 months older than Kiera and looks like he's 23 (ok, maybe not quite that old, but he's huge)



















This is Kiera in her pretty pink Easter dress

























Yesterday in church, I was reminded that it should have been me that died, but Jesus died in my place. I'm so thankful for His grace and His love. I'm glad I was reminded of the real reason for all the family gatherings. :)

Wordless (but not noiseless) Wednesday

Kiera LOVES her swing!

What Not To Wear: Food

Last week Friday, I made myself my favorite sandwich: peanut butter + strawberry jam. Kiera was sitting in her little rocker, happily watching me make my food. I went to sit down on our gliding rocker, which was right next to where Kiera was, when to my dismay, my bun slid off my plate and landed on Kiera, jam-side down (of course). To top it off, Kiera was wearing a completely white sleeper. After adding my lunch to it, she looked like this:




















She didn't even notice, though, which made me laugh even harder! As long as I don't hurt her or startle her, I could pretty much do what I want to her without her batting an eye. Thank goodness I have the best stain remover EVER! It's called Pre-Spot. It's from Melaleuca in case anyone cares. Now I know that it does remove more than just poop!

Another Meme (what kind of a word is meme?)

Yes, that was a peeled kiwi...apparently Jared was the only one who didn't know what that was when I first took that picture.

My sister said I was the most likely to do this survey, so now I feel obligated to do this. Plus I like these things! I left out the questions I thought were boring, so that's why there are numbers missing.

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Yes, I was named after a missionary in Russia named Elya (pronounced the same, just spelled different) who taught children about Jesus and was persecuted for her faith. An 80's band called Silverwind turned this true story into a song which my parents heard and got the name from.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? Probably a few weeks ago when Kiera wouldn't go back to sleep and I was very overtired and frustrated

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Ham, although I do prefer peanut butter + jam sandwiches

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? Yes, one, a beautiful 4 1/2 month old daughter, Kiera Noelle

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Yes, too much sometimes

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Oh ya, all of them...how many are there?

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? I would not bungee jump if someone paid me $683 and forced me to shave my head if I wouldn't

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Rolo, in case you didn't read my Rolo post...next time I'll have to hide it from Kiera

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Their radiant personality...no, actually their face and/or their size

15. RED OR PINK? Have you seen Kiera's closet or most of the clothes that she wears?

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? My impatience which God has been working on especially much since Kiera was born

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Abi, my friend from England...I met her at Capernwray in England for those of you who didn't know that

20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Cheddar Bacon Penne...yes, I can cook, sort of

22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Probably some shade of pink

23. FAVORITE SMELLS? Fresh laundry, buns baking in the oven, real fruit scented soaps

26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Synchronized swimming...yes, I think that's a sport. I also enjoy watching volleyball for those of you who don't consider synchronized swimming a sport

28. EYE COLOR? These are my eyes

29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Yes

30. FAVORITE FOOD? Ice cream or pepperoni pizza

34. SUMMER OR WINTER? Summer...I'm definitely not living in the right place for that

35. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs

36. FAVORITE DESSERT? Ice cream or skor trifle or anything with strawberries

37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Maybe Jamie?

39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? I'm reading Exodus and John in the Bible, plus a book called Julia's Hope by Leisha Kelly

42. FAVORITE SOUND? Oooo...I have many: Jared's voice, Kiera's voice, and a choir who can sing their butts off

44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Athens, Greece when Jared came to travel around Europe with me during my Christmas break from Capernwray

45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? I play piano quite well and that's totally a gift from God

Almost Wordless Wednesday

How many of you can tell me what this is?

Cereal=Manna?

A couple of weeks ago, Jared's favorite cereal went on sale: $2.50 for a box of Honey Bunches of Oats. Being the good Mennonites that we are, we figured we may as well stock up while they were at this ridiculously low price. When I got to the store, to my dismay, there was only one box left, so I bought it. Jared went back the next day and there were NONE left, so he got a rain check for them. They also gave him a coupon that said if you buy 2, you save $2.50, so essentially, it was buy 1 get 1 free! A Menno's dream come true! He went back to the store a couple of days later and came home with these:



















Needless to say, I'm getting a tad bit tired of Honey Bunches of Oats by now. It reminded me of when the Israelites ate manna for 40 years. Sad to say, I would have complained, too. Yet, many people around the world feel blessed if they get to eat one meal a day and it's not a 3-course dinner either. I should be thankful I get to eat as many times in a day as I want to, even if all I was eating was Honey Bunches of Oats!

Fighting For Joy

I was at cell group this past Wednesday and we watched a dvd with a message from John Piper. The topic was "Fighting For Joy." He said some very challenging things and I jotted down some notes which I would like to share.

-I should be able to give up the "American Dream" and still be filled with joy because of Jesus....this is a tough one for me because I love to dream about the big, beautiful house that we might live in someday, traveling around the world with Jared once our kids are grown up, and retiring with lots of money, but truthfully these things won't make me any happier. Only Jesus can.

-Our happiness should not be above (more important than) God's glory; it should be IN God's glory We should be so happy in God that we forget about ourselves...I am not the center of the universe. Why do I forget this so often?

-God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.

-Heaven won't be a hall of mirrors in which we like what we see...love that one

-God does ALL that He does to display His glory for the enjoyment of all those who embrace Jesus as their highest treasure

1 Peter 4:11 "If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ..."

-Everything in my life should shout, "God is GREAT!"...oh, how often I fall short

Isaiah 48:11 "...I will not yield my glory to another."

-What will satisfy peoples' souls is God being exalted, not me exalting myself

This is my most recent challenge. I LOVE hearing thoughts from the readers of this blog...I noticed that on my blog counter 790 people have been to my site, but I don't have that many comments. For those of you who may not know how this works, even if you don't have an account, you can still click on "Comments," leave a comment with your name in it, then click anonymous and it will be posted for me to see. Thanks for comin' out! :)

3 Things...

I love these things, so if you get them, feel free to tag me!

Three Things That Scare Me:
1. Spiders
2. Icy roads
3. Choking

Three People Who Make Me Laugh:
1. Jared
2. Kristie
3. Uncle Doug

Three Things I Love
(aside from god, friends, family):
1. Reading
2. Monkeys
3. Travelling

Three Things I Hate:
1. The smell of poo
2. When the garbage man doesn’t pick up our garbage because apparently our white garbage bags look like a pile of snow!
3. Cold weather

Three Things I Don't Understand:
1. Why some people suffer much and some don’t
2. The lyrics in almost every heavy metal song
3. How some people like bean sprouts…I think if hell had food, those would be the main course

Three Things On My Desk: I don’t have a desk at home, so I’ll say the coffee table
1. Kiera’s burp pad
2. Teething gel
3. Kiera’s “Colors” book

Three Things I'm Doing Right Now:
1. Typing
2. Listening to the dishwasher
3. Looking outside at the beautiful sunshine

Three Things I Want To Do Before I Die:
1. Travel to all sorts of countries
2. See my great-grandchildren
3. Start working out and stay in good shape

Three Things I Can Do:
1. Read quickly
2. Find spelling mistakes
3. Dance (but don’t make me prove that one)

Three Things I Can't Do:
1. Skateboard
2. Knit
3. Heavy lifting

Three Things I Think You Should Listen To:
1. God
2. Your parents (although you may not always agree with them)
3. Eva Cassidy…I think she has an amazing voice

Three Things You Should Never Listen To:
1. The devil
2. Music with bad lyrics
3. Words spoken in bitterness

Three Things I'd Like To Learn:
1. How to size up a room and know exactly how to decorate it
2. To be a better wife (there’s always room for improvement)
3. To voice my feelings more easily instead of hiding when something bothers me

Three Favorite Foods:
1. Pepperoni pizza
2. Ice cream
3. Chocolate

Three Shows I Watched As A Kid:
1. Under the Umbrella Tree
2. Mr. Dress-up
3. Full House

Three Things I Regret:
1. Not seeing more of Vienna when I was there
2. Words spoken in anger
3. My mushroom haircut in grade 3

4 Months Ago...

"I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety." Psalm 4:8