Why It Was Worth It To Get Up At 3:30 a.m.

Kiera has been sleeping through the night a bit more often in the past week and a half now, but still not as much as I would like. Recently, she woke up at around 3:30 a.m. and so I went and gave her a bottle of water mixed with apple juice (like usual). When she was done, I picked her up and started gently patting her back. This time, she put her arm around my neck and started patting my back! Made my heart melt into a pile of mush! I momentarily forgot my exhaustion and frustration of having to get out of bed in the middle of the night and I actually didn't want to put her back down. I can only hold 22 pounds of baby for so long though, so back into her crib she went and I went back to sleep with a smile in my heart.

The "Magic" Towel

We did this when we were in Washington and I still don't really know how it works! My mom bought them at Wal-Mart.

A Little Bit About Me

I was tagged by Sheila to do this quite a while ago and I wrote some things down so that I wouldn't forget. Here are some things about me that you maybe knew or didn't know.

I am a wife, mother,
and sister to one

I love cats and monkeys
and not dogs as much because they smell

I used to want to be a monkey when I was a child
and would crouch down with a towel around me after my bath and make "EEE EEE" noises

I love happy movies and happy endings
and I hate scary movies

My house is often a bit messier than I would like it to be
because I can always find better things to do

I love playing games
and I'm extremely competitive

I'm a grandma driver in winter because I'm scared of icy/snowy roads
so I love that Jared drives most of the time

I love reading Christian books
and usually read at least 2 books a week

I spend too much time on facebook and blogs
because I love knowing what's going on in my friends' lives

I play Ticket To Ride online almost every day
which is one of my new favorite games

I love dreaming about the future (children and our next house)
and have to remind myself to enjoy the present


Now I'm tagging Jenene, Ruth, and Allison H to do this!

I think whoever came up with "Silence is golden" had at least one fussy child

Lately, Kiera has been driving me bananas at times. She has been very fussy, not taking long naps, fighting sleep almost every time I try putting her down, and not sleeping through the night all the time. The reason: 3 weeks ago she had 6 teeth and now she is getting her 11th tooth! 5 teeth in 3 weeks including 3 molars! Apparently it's not a comfortable process. I keep telling myself that it will be better when she is older, but I have been telling myself that for almost 13 months as Kiera has not been an easy baby. My pastor said something recently that has stuck with me: "If you aren't content now, you won't be in the future either." Paul says in Phil. 4:12 "...I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation..." and the key to that verse is the next verse: "I can do everything through Him (God) who gives me strength." I can't produce contentment from myself. I have tried and there is none to be had on those days when Kiera fusses and fusses and I'm exhausted. I need to go to God and allow Him to fill me up with His joy and abide in Him. That's so much easier said than done, but God has been teaching me and reminding me of that very often these days. I still wouldn't trade Kiera for anything. I know that "this too shall pass" (praise the Lord) and there will be different challenges in the future, but God is with me every step of the way. Silence may be golden for a little while, but having Kiera is way better!

My Grandma's 80th Birthday

On Sunday, we had a huge birthday party to celebrate my Grandma's 80th birthday! 80 years...what a blessing! I accidentally left my camera in the car and didn't feel like running out in the cold to get it, so I don't have any pictures of it. There were over 100 people there and at least over 200 cupcakes. A lot of us "kids" were asked to bring 2 dozen cupcakes and of course there were MANY leftover because they had other squares and food there as well. Jared and I are having some couples over for dessert this week to help us eat them! One of the highlights for me was when my Grandpa went up on stage and sung a song to my Grandma that included him yodeling! He did such a great job. It's so awesome to see them still so much in love after almost 60 years of marriage. My other grandma is turning 90 next year, so I've been incredibly blessed with healthy grandparents who have lived long lives (my other grandpa died at age 80) and who are prayer warriors. I know I've benefited from that in more ways than I will ever know! I'm so thankful for that heritage and I pray that by God's grace we will pass that on to our children and their children. Happy 80th Grandma; I love you!

The Distraction of Kiera

Last week, when I went to pick up my flat iron, the guy at the border (who was in his 30's) was oohing and aahing over how beautiful Kiera is and her beautiful big blue eyes...etc. Then he tells us to have a good day and my friend started to pull away when I told her, "He never gave us back our passports!" She quickly stopped and rolled down the window and then the guy realized that he had forgotten and then gave them back all because of a sweet baby. Hilarious!

This past summer, we went to the States and we were in a restaurant eating breakfast when an elderly man came up to me and handed me a $1 bill. He said, "Here, this is for your daughter. She is so cute." I was shocked and blessed! Maybe I could turn this into a business...ha ha.

When we were in Washington and we went out to eat, it seemed almost every waiter, waitress, and lots of restaurant customers would stop and tell Kiera how pretty she is and how she has such long eyelashes...etc. I can't take any credit because it is God who made her. I just didn't think she would get quite so much attention from strangers everywhere we go. Then again, they don't see all the times that she yells or fusses. She's definitely not perfect, but I do agree with them as any mom would.

Winter Theme

Yes, I decided to change my blog background again as some of my friends have been changing their's to Christmas themes and I figured that was a good idea. I love the beach, but I thought this was pretty, too. Do you all like it? Kiera is busy throwing her puffed wheat on the floor, so I should probably go clean up (yet again). Oh, and I ate part of the sticker on my apple this morning by accident. Paper is not the worst thing to eat, as Kiera has discovered when I haven't been watching her closely. Yesterday, I let her play with our dental floss and I didn't know that she knew how to open it. Needless to say, we now have a huge ball of floss sitting on our counter that Kiera pulled out. Well, gotta go take care of my daughter now before she finds something else to throw, chew, or pull.

Celebrating Birthdays With Straight Hair

Yesterday, my friend had to go to the U.S. post office where our mailbox is to ship some items, so Kiera + I went along and I picked up my wonderful Sedu flat iron!  Kiera fussed almost all the way there and back due to tiredness and not wanting to be in her car seat (it's an hour and 15 min. drive one way) but it was totally worth it!  As soon as I got home, I straightened my hair.  This is halfway through with one side done and one side not

The finished product

Later on, we went out for supper with Jared's family to celebrate my birthday, Jared's, Kiera's, Jared's brother Steve's, and Jared's sister's boyfriend, TJ's.  If Amanda (Jared's sister) was here we would be celebrating her's as well, but she's in Africa right now.  I think it's funny that all of the kids on Jared's side have birthdays in October, November, and December.  Here's the strawberry margarita I had that was very yummy

Here's TJ with one of his gifts

Kiera with her grandparents and daddy

I woke up this morning and my hair is still straight!  I don't think I've ever had that happen before.  Yay!

Counting My Blessings

Right now, I am counting my blessings as I am quite disappointed that I do not have my flat iron yet. It is sitting at our U.S. post office box, but due to some bad communication, it has not been picked up yet. Jared was going to go pick it up today, but today is Veteran's Day in the States, so the post office is closed. That frustrates me greatly, but then I remember that I have so much to be thankful for and why should I care that I have to put my hair in a ponytail for another week and a half.

We just booked our hotel for our upcoming anniversary and we got an AMAZING deal! Jared's co-worker gave him a Canad Inns coupon book, which previously was never an option for us because it's the most expensive hotel in Grand Forks. There's a coupon in there that from Sunday-Thursday you can get a room for $99 (regularly $129) and that includes 4 free passes to their huge waterpark (regularly $7.50 per pass). PLUS, upon availability at check-in, we can upgrade for free to a theme room or penthouse SUITE!! At the time that we booked, they were only 6% full, so our chances of upgrading are excellent because it's on a week night! Some of the theme rooms and suites have their own jacuzzi tub which would be sweet and romantic! I'm not getting my hopes up though, because as I found out today, it can be extremely disappointing. Either way, it's going to be A LOT of fun and wonderful just to spend time together with no baby distractions! The coupon book also included coupons for Gordman's, my most favoritest store. :) :) I praise God for whoever gave those coupons to Jared! I don't have to look far to find a reason to smile and be thankful.

New Header

I can't decide which header I like the best on my blog. Can you help me decide? The new one is at the top of my blog (obviously) and this was the old one.










I would love all of your input as you are the ones who read my blog. Thanks!

Very Random

Jared doing...laundry?


















The eggs, hashbrowns, sausages, bacon, and pancake feast we made for brunch on Jared's birthday


















Beautiful fall leaf....now it's gone (sob)


















Hope you enjoyed those random pictures. I've been at home (literally inside the house) since Tuesday so there is nothing to share. I know that's pathetic. That happens to me sometimes during the week when it's cold outside and we don't need any groceries or for me, library books. Thankfully I am getting out of the house in about an hour for a playdate, so I gotta go get ready!

Politics and Straighteners

Since the beginning of October, I have been saving up my spending money to buy a high quality hair straightener (or flat iron). I've had my $30 straightener for a few years now and it's not working anymore. It doesn't close all the way and when I do manage to get my hair kind of straight, it lasts for about 5 minutes. I did research on the internet to see which is one of the best straighteners on the market right now and I decided to get a Sedu Ionic Ceramic Tourmaline Flat Iron. Apparently it's used by some celebrities like Beyonce, Lisa Kudrow and Bon Jovi, which wasn't actually a big deal to me, but it got over 3000 5-star reviews which won me over. My friend, Jen, gave me a spray for my birthday that protects the hair from being damaged by the heat, plus this straightener is supposed to be better at protecting hair from damage than the others on the market. I ordered it online last Friday, so I'm hoping to have it by next week. I can hardly wait! It's $105 including taxes and free shipping (regularly $115) and it includes a $20 stand for free. :)

Last night, I was following the U.S. election which is weird because I normally dislike politics and I didn't even follow our own election. Maybe it's because I have a sister living there now. I have to admit that I wasn't extremely happy about the result, so all we can do now is pray for the new president, which we should be praying for the leaders of our countries anyway. God is still in control!

Kiera's Birthday Parties

Kiera had 2 birthday parties last week which were a lot of fun! As I mentioned previously, her first party was a surprise one at Art + Jenene's the night before we left to come home. My camera battery died during the beginning of "Happy Birthday," so I caught the tail end of it.

Art bought a chocolate ice cream cake and Kiera seemed the most interested in dipping her finger in the whipped cream, so she was being way neater than she usually is the one time we wanted her to be messy! She did manage to get some cake on her face after a little while.


















This is the present that Art + Jenene bought her (the book "Corduroy" and the teddy bear that goes with it).


















Birthday party #2 was on Friday, Oct. 31 and we had our families and some of my aunts, uncles, and cousins join us to celebrate.

This is the alphabet block cake that my mom made (I don't do this kind of thing!)


















The balloons which Kiera was very interested in


















Going to town on the cake

Mmmm....blue icing


















Kiera and her presents


















October was a crazy busy and very fun month! Thanks so much for all the birthday wishes for the 3 of us and for putting up with my l-o-n-g Washington posts...I just didn't know which pictures to leave out, so I didn't leave out very many! Hopefully it was enjoyable to read and that you weren't sleeping by the end. :) Speaking of sleep, I'm going to go do that now!