Funny and Not So Funny

Yesterday, we took a trip to the chiropractor. We normally all get adjusted every 2 or 3 weeks, but this time it had almost been a month. Blake has had a cold and constipation issues since last week and Kiera also hadn't had a bowel movement in a few days. I bought apple prune juice for Blake which has definitely helped, but it was still time for an adjustment. Right after Kiera got adjusted, she went to the waiting room to play with toys. I could hear her talking to people and playing and when I got to the waiting room, I saw her handing a tractor to a guy with big tattoos on his arms. I LOVE that about her. She is one of the friendliest people I know and she approaches people I would normally be intimidated by. It turns out this guy seemed really nice and happily accepted the toys she was handing to him. God reminded me through her not to put labels on people. Then, she came across a barbie doll who was a mermaid. She has never seen a mermaid before. She was standing by 2 men and you could almost see the wheels in her head turning as she was looking at this doll. Then she said, "This girl...has a fish on her bum." Me and those men burst out laughing and I couldn't stop! I think that's one of the funniest things she has said to date! After that, it was time to go and she said bye to everyone in the waiting room repeatedly. Hours later, as I was lying in bed trying to fall asleep, I started laughing again. I love how she thinks sometimes!

On a side note, the adjustment worked very well for Kiera. 2 hours later, she ended up pooping in her panties and then pooping in the bathtub. That's the first time she's done that since we started potty training her 2 weeks ago. She knows better, so I'm hoping to not have a repeat of that anytime soon. That part of the day wasn't nearly as funny!

Summertime Fun

I absolutely love summer and I’m always sad to see it end.  So, here are a few more pictures of fun times we had this past summer.

Blake sitting with his buddy who is 12 days younger than him

Kiera and her friends doing Ring Around The Rosy…so sweet

She has completely gotten over her fear of water

When You’re Smiling…

…The whole world smiles with you (well, for sure your Mom does)!

He's So Good!

On Saturday, I took Kiera out for the afternoon and when we got back home, she refused to go on the potty. She missed a much-needed nap and was screaming at the top of her lungs, so she went to bed early. We woke her up for church the next morning (yes, we had to wake her up after 14 hours of sleep) and again, she refused to go on the potty. In addition to that, Blake has been quite fussy lately and crying a lot. It seems like he saved up all the crying he didn't do in the first 8 months of his life and is now letting it all out. I think it might be a combination of teething and being frustrated because he wants to move around but hasn't figured out how to crawl yet. So, I arrived at church quite discouraged about these things. Then, one of the first songs we sung was this one called "The Joy of the Lord (Great Grace)":

I felt like I could have sung it all morning! My favorite part was:
You're so good to me, Lord
You're so good to me, Lord
You're so good to me, You're so good to me
You're so good to me, Lord

As we sung that, I would have jumped higher if I hadn't been holding Blake (yes, we go to a dancing church)! :) I was ashamed at how quickly I had forgotten God's goodness as I was focusing on these problems. God is bigger than my situation and no matter what, He is good to me! He totally encouraged me through that song and knew that was exactly what I needed to get my focus back on track! He filled me up with His joy as I was missing it. We got home from church and Kiera started going on the potty again with no issues! Blake has still been fussy, but I keep telling myself that "this too shall pass" and I need to enjoy the days instead of wishing them all away. Someday he'll be too big for me to hold him, so I need to cherish these times, fussy or not. I also realize that my problems are teeny tiny compared to so many other people's. It's amazing how much better things can be with an attitude change, even if the situation may not change. You're so good to me, Lord!

Organizing + Training

In addition to being a detail person, we have discovered that Kiera likes to organize things.  That’s not surprising, considering who her parents are.  Well, I used to be quite organized, but I’ve sort of given up on it as the kids are constantly making messes and some things are futile to try to organize over and over.  I find it very interesting to watch her organize her toys all throughout the day.  These are some of the things she likes to put all in a row:

Crayons + pencil crayons

Measuring cups

Her kitchen toys

Her Little People (how’s that for a big smile?!)

Her fish in the bathtub

Her Nana’s money

In other news, we started potty training Kiera last week Tuesday.  I didn’t want to say anything because it seems whenever the kids are doing something well and then I tell people, then it usually gets worse for some reason.  It is going great so far and that is totally God.  We’ve tried several times in the past and she just refused to, so I really hope this time we’ll be done with diapers for her!  I find that putting nothing on her bottom when we’re at home works the best because then she has nothing to pee into, so then she just goes on her little potty.  She has only peed on the floor once in the past week and she has done all of her poop on the potty!  We don’t have a lot of carpet on the main floor, so then I don’t have to worry about accidents.  She loves getting treats (so far we’ve been using M + M’s but we’re switching to Teddy Grahams now since they’re a bit healthier) and whenever she has gone on the potty, she stands up and says, “Good job!  Way to go!  I’m so proud of you!” since that’s what we say to her.  She says it in the exact same tone of voice, too.  Very funny!  She just woke up now, so it’s potty time!

Monkey See Monkey Do

It’s quite obvious Kiera watches everything I do.  Oh she makes me laugh!

Summer Vacation

I’m back after a week-long trip to a cabin resort with Jared, the kids, and my parents.  I’ve gone there almost every summer with my family since I was 9 years old.  We shared a 1000 square foot 3-bedroom cabin (well, there was sort of a 4th bedroom except that it was open to all the other bedrooms) with my parents that was literally about 20 feet from the lake.  We had a wonderful time and didn’t really want to come back home.  I decided to make it an internet-free vacation, except for checking my e-mail once to see if any piano students had responded to my ad.  It was super hot most of the week and there was no air conditioning, so we spent quite a bit of time at the pool and just being outside where there was sometimes a breeze.  In the evening, the breeze would usually come off the lake and cool our cabin down for the night which was great!  Jared is home this week as well as he decided to take 2 weeks of vacation (yay)!  Here are things from our trip that I am thankful for:

366. That Kiera got super brave and “swam” by herself in the pool (although we were always close by her in the pool) and she also jumped into the pool

367. That there were many arms to hold Blake as he was kind of fussy throughout our vacation

368. Sunscreen which prevented us all from getting sunburns

369. When crossing the border, the border guard asked what my parents did for work and my Mom said, “I’m a bank teller,” and Kiera said loudly, “I’m a bank teller, too!”

370. Watching my Dad kayak for the first time

371. Birds flying

372. Kiera’s first boat ride

373. Some of the most incredibly beautiful sunsets I’ve ever seen in my life

374. Finally getting a picture of Blake’s bottom teeth 2 months after he got them

375. Watching Kiera run around and giggle while my Mom blew bubbles on our cabin’s deck

376. The way the bubbles looked against the lake

377. Watching Blake reach for the bubbles

378. Kiera sung “My God Is So Big” in the grocery store and people stopped and smiled at her…she was witnessing and declaring God’s greatness without even knowing it

379. Water like glass

380. When Kiera made me laugh by putting her pony tail holder up her nose

381. Ripples

382. Blake brushing his teeth for the first time

383. Watching Blake swing with my Mom…I don’t know who was laughing the hardest out of the 3 of us

384. Spending time with Kiera in the boat

385. Watching the sunset from the boat…God is the most amazing artist with the colors He uses to paint the sky

386. Birds flying against the sunset

387. The resort

388. Brave ducks that come super close

389. Trying to get a family picture while the kids are in awe of Paul + Babe…these make me laugh

Finally one where we’re all looking at the camera

390. Differences in size

391. Shuffleboard

392. Playing in the sand

393. Quality time with my son

394. How the clouds looked during sunset

395. Looking back and smiling

The Bachelorette Party

Last week Friday, I went to my friend’s bachelorette party.  Well, I went to the first half.  There was a scavenger hunt, supper, a lingerie shower, and then drinks after that.  I went for the scavenger hunt and a late supper and then I had to go home since I’m still breastfeeding and I get sick if I skip more than one feed.  So, I knew there was going to be a scavenger hunt and it said to bring a camera.  I thought, “Ok, so we’ll have a list of things to find and take a picture of.  No problem.”  We split up into 2 groups of 4 and they handed out the list.  I started reading the rules and thought, “What kind of a scavenger hunt is this?”  At the end of the rules it said, “NOTE: Each item must be completed with a different person/man.  No using the same man twice!”  Uh-oh.  Here are some of the things on the list that our group completed:

-Find a guy who will show you his belly button and take a picture of it.

-Get a picture of a team member dancing on a lamp post or road sign pole

-Get a piggy back ride from a stranger + take a photo (I did this one)

-Get a group shot imitating the Beatles crossing the crosswalk

-Get all but one member to form a word with their bodies standing or on the ground.  Bonus mark for getting a stranger to join in the word. (We spelled the word “hi” and got a stranger to join us)

-Get a picture of a teammate asking a random guy to marry her (must be on one knee)

-Get 5 single guys phone numbers

-Take a picture while a team member high fives a stranger

-Buy the largest pair of underwear you can find, get a teammate to put them on and take a picture in the middle of the street (I did this one in a mall parking lot and the underwear came down to my knees and some guy whistled at me)

-Get a picture of a urinal

-Obtain 5 men’s business cards

-Take a picture of a teammate being pushed down frozen food section in shopping cart (I went in the cart)

 

Some things on the list that we did NOT complete:

-Take a picture of a team member kissing a bald man on the head (we tried but the guy wouldn’t do it)

-Take a picture of the group with a fireman.  Bonus mark for one team member wearing a fireman hat.  Bonus mark for getting 4 or more firemen in the same photo

-Get a picture with a male police officer.  Bonus mark if they handcuff you for the picture

-Obtain a lawn ornament (you’re on your own if you get caught). (The other team took a road sign that said “Special Event” on it)

-Get a picture of a guy named Jeremy (we asked many guys if their name was Jeremy and we couldn’t find one)

-Get a guy to moon you.  Take a picture.  (Seriously? Gross!)

 

Ya, so that was interesting.  We went out for Thai food after and that was pretty good.  I’m not the hugest fan of Thai food but I had a big pile of fried rice with some vegetables in it which was good.  I pretty much always have a huge appetite (especially when I’m breastfeeding) but it was so much rice that I could only finish half of it.  It was fun to go out 2 evenings last week with a group of girls and without kids (the other evening was bridesmaid dress shopping)! 

July Blessings

“The more I count these blessings, the more I realize that they really are not the product of my own efforts. They are truly gifts of grace from God above. It’s incredible to open my eyes to them week after week. And humbling. That I should be graced with such wonders? Me… whose heart is weak and black, yet covered with much mercy. How great is Your unfailing love, Lord God of all!” ~Sharaya Crossan

Things I am thankful for from this past month:

331. That blogger restored all of my comments after I had lost them all when I changed my blog address

332. Funny glasses (these belong to Mr. Potato Head)

333. That Blake clapped for the first time on Saturday evening!

334. That after a rough night, the morning always comes

335. Swinging with my baby

336. 4 bbq’d meals this past week-end

337. That Jared had a 4-day week-end

338. Playing in the sink

339. That my Grandma celebrated her 91st birthday

340. German chocolate

341. Holding my sleeping baby at a church picnic

342. That teething doesn’t last forever, even though sometimes it may feel like it (especially when your baby is fussing + crying from 1:30-3:30 a.m.)

343. That Blake’s fever broke last night right when I was praying for him!

344. Kisses from sisters

345. Playing games with friends

346. Free magazine subscriptions

347. Trying on Daddy’s hat

348. When Kiera is gentle with Blake

349. Watching the kids play

350. Pools

351. Realizing that on July 24, 2003, I came home from Europe the first time, in July 2004, I met Jared, and on July 23, 2005, he proposed to me!

352. Forgiveness

353. Grapes

354. Lego

355. Dictionaries

356. Bubble-blowing toys

357. Precious Moments figurines

358. Pretty sundresses

359. That my babies have burped right away after feedings (Blake just burped, so that’s why I thought of that in case you’re wondering)

360. New sunhats

361. Bachelorette parties

362. Making a splash

363. The smile after the splash

364. That Kiera isn’t allergic to wasps (we found that out when she got stung for the first time on that slide in the above picture)

365. Babies hanging out together (and both looking at the camera!)