it's thanksgiving, find something aweful to be thankful for!

So it's thanksgiving, which comes at a very appropriate time in my life since that is exactly what Spirit has been teaching me about. I am trying to give up whining and complaining, my Bryan will tell testify that it is still very much a work in progress. But it is my heart's desire to learn thanksgiving and acceptance right now while I have so many, many blessings! Here are a few of them:
My Bryan, whose been in my life for 10 years and many more to come!
My three babies Lucy, Jack and Calvin
My mom and dad, the best parents on the planet.
My sister, who takes her job as my sister very seriously and I love her for it.
My nephew Hollis and his sibling who will arrive in April 2011
The rest of my sweet family.
My house and Father's financial provision in our lives, He always takes care of us!
My friend Amanda and her family, I am glad to know you all.
Food in my cabinets and clothes on our backs

But most of all I am so, so thankful for Christ's work in my life. He is transforming me and has been long before I realized it. I am thankful for His endless mercy and grace, His love and total acceptance of me. I can not say enough about how accepting He has been to me and how much it means to me. When all else fails, He remains. Thank you Father!!

So those are the obvious blessings in my life, but He has been teaching me how important it is to be thankful in ALL things. Reading a book the other day I was reminded of a story that I first read as a kid. It is about Corrie Ten Boom when she was imprisoned at a Nazi camp. Her sister encouraged her to thank God for the fleas that infested there room. Reluctantly Corrie thanked God for the fleas. And months later discovered that because of the fleas the officers never bothered Corrie and her fellow inmates so long as they were in there room. How amazing to be thankful for something like fleas! So even though my life is quite blessed right now I want to be thankful for even those few yucky things in my life, here goes

For my kids constant whining and demanding spirit, which has shed light on my own whiny heart.
For the pain of childbirth as a testimony of the Holy Spirit's spiritual birth of me.
The crap going on at my church right now, because He has used it to show me how much I want to be liked and how much I make a god of being popular.
I am thankful for the mouse that has been running all over my house for the past month, I am thankful it's only a mouse and only one mouse.
For marital struggles which have been used more than anything else to teach me about life.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

something I really struggle with

Acceptance is a tricky thing, at least it is for me. Although with most of the little stuff in life I am pretty laid back, with the big things I am quite controling. It's kind of a heriditary trait for Sikes woman. Us Sikes woman we're high maintenance. Anyway I realized a while back that right now in my life acceptance is what Christ is patiently dealing with in me. Blessing me with three needy children so close in age was a great place to start. I'm finding it hard to hang on to everything going my way when so much of my time and energy and physicality is sacraficed for them. Since becoming a mom I really have learned just how exhausting and difficult it is to try and control someone even when that person is an infant. But I find that in my relationship with Bryan I am still struggleing. Because I am a woman and often get emotional, it's hard for me to see what I am doing in the moment. But I am beginning to see a long running pattern in my life. This is what happens a lot in my life (not just with Bryan) I have very specific, high expections that when not met throw me into the depths of despair. So then I begin to fight for what I thought should happen or who I think someone should be. I am very good at fighting. My arguements are air tight and I can outlast almost anyone. But you know what, depsite my efforts when it's all over with I am still left with the knowledge of my inabilty to change anything. "Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30. That's me : heavy laden. I feel the weight of my marriage on my back, I feel the weight of my children on my back, I feel the weight of suffering people across the world on my back, I feel the weight of my own twisted heart and mind begging to be redeemed and changed. Christ doesn't ask me to carry any of that. He says "I've already taken care of all that. Just trust Me." What he asks of me is to plow a straight line of obediance to Him. To be like the cow in the yoke illustration I will have to stop worrying about the outcome and just concern myself with doing what he asks. You think a cow is worried over the upcoming harvest? NO! He just does his job and if he's blessed with a good farmer he'll get his fair share of the harvest. Folks we are blessed with the best Farmer and he takes care of all his workers. Jesus keep teaching me, keep changing me, keep caring for me. You are amazing at what You do. Lord You can handle it all. I trust You with my relationships and my character. You WILL create something beautiful from my life!!! Let it all be for Your glory.

vacation 2010

So just got back from Orlando, Fl. Three days in the car with three kids!!! Seriously I never want to see my van again and neither does Calvin, but all in all it went better than I expected. I wanted to recap the vacation while it's still on my mind. Highlights:
Watching Lucy watching Blue Horizons at sea world. It's a dolphin show and it has acrobats and birds. It is really awesome, way better than the whale shows that sea world is famous for. Anyway Lucy loved it and watched it twice. She now pretends to be a dolphin trainer. There was one trainer dressed in pick that she said was a princess and she insisted on meeting afterward, of course she got shy when we went up there but it was so precious!
Rideing kid rides at Sea World with Jack. After riding the carousel he threw a fit to ride it again. Of course you don't want your kids to throw fits, but sometimes you just have to laugh and I did. On one ride he screamed like he was on a roller coaster, it was hilarious!
Floating on the lazy river with Calvin. I kinda felt like Calvin was in the background this week but the last day I got to spend some extra time with him floating on the lazy river. He sat on my belly so peaceful and just chatted with me. Mainly we just said "Dadadada". It was quite the conversation.
The overall highlight was stopping to see the beach on our way home. We only stayed for about an hour and a half, but it was such a sweet, fun time with just my little family that I will always remember! All three kids loved the sand and were covered in it when we left. But Calvin really liked the water and I would hold him with his back to on oncoming wave and when it would hit him he would laugh and laugh. If you know me very well then you know I LOVE swimming, so standing there holding Calvin and him not being scared one bit I just thought "boy he is my child"!
Also Busch Gardens has a great children's area with lots of rides and Sesame Street characters and shows. I really wish we had more time to spend there.
On the last night me, Bryan, Dane and Heather (and baby yerton, yes she's preggers) went to Downtown Disney which was awesome! If you go to Orlando I would say go to Downtown Disney. It's not actually in Disney World, it's free to go there. It has shops and resturants and lots of other attractions that's great for families.
So Orlando gets a 5 star rating from me, but if you plan to go there pick what you really want to do and leave yourself at the minimum 10 days there, because there is TONS to do and a week is just not long enough!

So it's been a while. I tend to loose intrest in things quickly and I am trying not to do that with blogging because it's a nice outlet for me. but after the kids go to bed I just like to spend time with bryan, so that is why I haven't made any time. Anyway changes that have occured since my last blog, Calvin is crawling quite proficiently, Jack is really starting to talk a lot more, and Lucy continues to get more and more like me everyday. I have always said how much she is like her dad, which she is, but this year I am seeing so much of me in her. She is really starting to play games like a big kid. She will watch a show and then pretend to be characters from the show. The other day she even played the Duggars. Hilarious! But the quality that I see in her that saddens me is my anxiety. As a child (and still) I had a lot of fears and worries. I see Lucy going down that path of fear over lies that satan feeds her. Sometimes she is totally controled by irrational fears that I can't talk her down from. The other day we went to the park and a little boy was blowing spit bubbles. Lucy became convinced that this boy was mean and was trying to get her with his spit bubbles, she spent 20 min. not playing and wanting to sit in my lap. I finally had to take her over to the little boy and let her see that he was fine, she still didn't really play until he left. I know this may seem kinda silly but I take her fears very seriously. Fear is a powerful tool of control and I do not want her surrending to fear. I still feel that there is a stronghold in my own heart regarding fear. I need my Jesus to fill me with courage in the knowledge of His inevitable victory over anything bad and scary. That is what I want for my little girl too. For her to hear Christ's precious voice of reason, calling her to safety and peace. He is such a protective savior, He will not fail in keeping me safe from harm. So my pray for Lucy is that for every time satan fills her with fear, Christ and His sweet spirit would fill me with words from Him to her until the day that His spirit comes to dwell in her.

"Lucy wants to see you"

So I am going to be really honest. I am having a loser day!! You know one of those days when you feel like a loser but don't know why. I think it has something to do with getting online and being able to see what everyone you've ever known is currently doing which causes you to start comparing your "boring life" with people whose lives are very different. Let me just say that mostly I feel very positive about my life and accomplishments but we all have days like this right? I had to work today and I am a big baby about working my 12 hours a week, so I seem to always feel like this on work days. I don't envy Bryan! When I got home from work tonight Bryan said "Lucy wants to see you, I don't know if she is still awake". So I went in their bedroom and Jack was out, nothing wakes him up, but there was Lucy at 9:45pm almost 2 hours past bedtime waiting for me. As soon as she saw that it was me her face lit up and she hugged me so sweetly and said "I love you mama". We sat and talked for a few minutes then I told her a bedtime story and she fell asleep right away. She was just waiting for me! When you are dealing with snotty noses and poopy pants it's really easy to feel unaccomplished. I am really thankful for moments like this one with my Lucy that remind me of what a job I have been given in raising my kids. It is really nice to be Lucy, Jack and Calvin's mama!

lucy, jack and calvin: the three best kids!

Here's an update:

Lucy: She is still my most challenging child, maybe it's just a first kid thing. She is soo much like her daddy. She is funny and outgoing. And still demands constant entertainment. I am trying very hard not to let her walk all over me, but it is a challenge. With her you must be ready at all times for new things, again I think that goes back to her being my first. She is a sweet girl but she is also needy.
She likes to swim, watch movies, hang out with bunny in her room, have friends over, go places, play outside, she LOVES to read! She is very good with structered lessons and art projects, I think she do really well in school.
Right now her favorite toy is Jessie from Toy Story 2, which she likes to recite when she plays with her.
Her rules that she knows by heart are 1. be nice to your family 2.don't whine 3.Listen 4. don't lie, that last one is new and she is still learning exactly what that means!
One of the cutest things she does is that when anyone leaves they must get a hug and kiss and it is very upseting if that doesn't happen! This applies to EVERYONE.What a sweetie!


Jack: My challenges with Jackie are his fit throwing and determination. When he puts his mind to something you can't stop him. But most of the time he is VERY happy. He is finally making progress potty training but we are taking it slow!
Jackie likes to play with his cars, play outside, go outside and scream (can't take it inside), swim, tear things up, jump off things, wrestle... you know boy stuff! He can tolerate reading but can't sit still long which may be challenging later on. but for now it works to my advantage because he is so good at entertaining himself.
He is still working on learning to talk it is slow but steady. He's added a new "Jack" word to the mix bideet. All in all he is a weird kid, really I say that to him several times a day!

Calvin: He is my bouncy, baby boy. he is fat and happy and super friendly. He is still the best baby in the world, although he hates naps, he sleeps fine at night. He is totally fascinated by jack and lucy. He spends alot of time watching them play. He hasn't started big food yet and still nurses every three hours, Which is why he is so fat.
At naptime he gets all sweaty and stinky, its my fav!

love those kids!!!!!

Jesus + America

I hate to break my blogging silence with something like this but I am going to anway. warning this will be offensive to some, so if you don't feel like being offended please don't read this! Today I heard a man at church (not mine) talking about the "the good old days" back in the 40s when people didn't go to the movies on Sunday, and he was hoping/praying that we could get "back to God". It reminded me of something Mark Driscoll said "Jesus plus anything ruins everything". I felt like for this guy it was Jesus+ America. And that seems to be a lot of Christians additude. They think that somehow this was or is God's nation. Particularly many seem to think that because of things like homosexuality and abortion our nation is "worse" than it once was. But have they forgotten about slavery or how in the gloriuos 40s black people were expected to literally take a back seat to white people and that bi racial children were considered vial!! How is it that those atrocities are more godly than our national sins of today! Let me say I am very thankful for my national freedom but my emphasis and hope is in my spiritual freedom and that has never and will never come from any country. There is no such thing as a christian nation just christian individuals. If you need something to fight for fight for the gospel of Christ.

Life update and Mom tribute

Well we have been so busy lately. I don't really know how it happened maybe it's just due to how long everything takes when you have 3 kids under the age of 3. I was reading in Ecclesiaties the other day, that famous passage that says "A time to..." well when I read "a time to be born" it really made me think about God's timing in my life and how He has chosen to bless me with three beautiful kids. I am trully thankful! Having said that I know that my patience is on high demand and low supply. Lately my sweet Jack has been asserting his own free will a lot. Especially in the area of food. I think he's just using that though as an outlet for stubborness, because he's even refusing to eat things like PB&J that I'm sure he likes. Plus the lack of mommy time , since calvin was born, is catching up with him. Lately he's been throwing a fit when I have to nurse calvin and has even asked to nurse a few times even though it's been about 7 months since he last did.

I feel like I have a lot on my plate, but that's way it goes one week you feel so totally fulfilled by all these things going on in your life and the next thing you know those very same things have you feeling overwhelmed. Lately I've been dwelling on peoples sin instead of on Christ's love. Don't get me wrong sin living in people's lives has to be dealt with but if that's all you think about you will feel defeated, and I have. I need to just give praise to my sweet Jesus who loves me and all others with unfailing love that I don't yet comprehend!

This blog has been kinda random but that just shows I have a lot on my mind. I do want to recognize that it's Mom's day tomorrow and not only am I a mom who's really hoping to take it easy tomorrow, but I have to say I trully have the world's greatest mama and mother-in-law. I couldn't do have of what I do without my mom around! I have never a day in my life paid for a babysitter. I'm so glad that both my mom and Bryan's mom are always positive with me. They never give unasked for advice and respect my decisions with my kids. I love you both!

Things are so different the second and third time around wouldn't you say mamas. I know it would seem that I'd be more stressed out with three kids than I was with one but I'm really not. Don't get me wrong I am super busy and soon something has to give, but at least I have more info this time around and don't feel so clueless. And there's not so much pressure to do things someone else's way.I mean so what if Jackie isn't pottie trained yet or doesn't talk that great, if you spend two minutes with him you know he's smart and clever and sweet. He has made his mind up to do things in his time and since I am more laid back now I am okay with that. As for Lucy, she's still my first baby everything that happens with her is still new to me, so I am still guessing half the time with her. Poor first children with untrained parents.... But I have to give props to my third baby, Calvin. He must be the world's easiest baby. I have to give some of the credit to myself though, I am his mama, go me! Well there's no time left for me to blog afterall I do have three kids!

orphans and widows

I've had a heavy heart lately. The Lord has really been working in my life lately and Satan is doing his best to thwart His work in my life. Seriously we must not forget that Satan desires nothing less than to make us ineffective in Jesus' world. I find he always uses things very close to home. He brings up things in my marriage or distracts me with my kids. And lately I have felt the Lord's pull to reach out to others more but I find that even in that I have had selfish motives.But Christ is stregthening me with His patience in dealing with me and His truth to combat Satan's lies. I've been reading in James lately and the last verse in chp. 1 has been on my mind. It's the verse that says to visit orphans and widows. I've been trying to think of pratical and realistic ideas of how to actually do that verse. "But be doers of the word"... I've been considering visiting at the nursing home once a month. I know there must be plenty of people there who rarely get visitors and I could take my kids occasionally. They love to see little people. When I took Lucy around Christmas time to pass out cards, everyone made a huge fuss over her and I just thought about how heart breaking it would be to never see a precious child. I seriously take for granted the fact that most of my day is filled with little people. Plus I really love to visit with older woman, I used to have two ladies in highschool I would go and visit occasionally and I loved it! I have also been thinking about needy children in our area, but I don't know what my role in that is going to be yet but I definately want to get involved. That may be something for the future, maybe being a foster parent or adopting but I know there must be something I can do right now. Any ideas?

Lucy and Jack Update

Lucy and Jack's birthdays are right around the corner. I can't believe they are going to be two and three years old, that's crazy!! Here's an update on both,

Lucy: She has mad communication skills and uses big words like interesting or ridiculous like she's 30, which I am pretty sure she thinks she is. She's still very independant, which helps me out most of the time. But she has FOB (fear of boredom) syndrom like her father. So most of the day she follows me around asking me to read her books, or let her watch TV, or get her a craft to do. She has trouble playing on her own, but she's been doing better and lately has been pretending to be Penny from the Rescuers. It's such a kid thing to do, so cute! She loves to play outside. It seems to be the only place she's safe from boredom. She is really sweet sometimes and likes to take care of her baby brothers. She's the only 2 1/2 year old I know that can change a diaper all on her own (except for her aunt Hede when she was that age). Whenever anyone in the house is sick she will stop what she's doing every few minutes to check on them. Sometimes she will say the most random things that will make me laugh so hard. She's crazy and loves to be surrounded by people. She's also very clever and persuasive. Now that I read that back to myself I realize that this is a description of her father if he was almost 3 year old, I think the only thing she didn't get from him is that she's a girly girl. I love you little girl!

Jack: He's a little behind on his verbalization, but here's the words he can say mama, daddy, sis, bubba, mine, ball, bye, stuck, duck, no, I did it, poppi, boompa, dog, Dane, monkmonk (monkey), wee, ouch. He's said a lot of other words but those are the ones he says regularly. He also has a few words that belong just to him that he uses at his own discrection nano, locka, bucka, buck and I am sure there's more I can't remember. Still he's very good at communicating without words. Most of the time he makes sure I know what he's wanting through gestures and nodding his head yes or no. He's my snuggler and most of the time is very sweet and considerate of others. And he can be very sensitive. But he likes to wrestle and play rough, he can't wait for his bubba to get big enough to rough house.He's very determined so he has very good motor skills because he simply won't give up. He's also very stubborn and can throw a fit that you would not believe! I haven't started potty training him yet (I've been a little busy can you believe it) but he has been telling me when he goes to the bathroom so I think he's about ready. Even though he doesn't speak very good he understands everything you say and for the most part takes direction pretty good. He is very good at entertaining himself, which is a huge blessing for me. He can find something to play with anywhere, outside, inside, in the kitchen, in the bathroom it doesn't really matter. He is very creative.Sometimes he gets really goofy and just lets loose of all his inhibitions. I love it when that happens. He's kinda like being a policeman most of the time it's not that much work but every so often a situation arises that your not sure you can handle. I love you Jackie! ( I said before he was born I would never call him that now that's all I call him)

play this game with me.

Two truths and a lie:

I love Taylor Swift
I've only kissed one man.
I used to swim competitively.

Pick out my lie then post your own truths and lie on you blog!

"vanity of vanities all is vanity"

So I've been running the last 2 weeks. And I am pretty proud. I don't usually get back into the swing of things this soon after having a baby. The thing that's bugging me is I haven't lost any of the baby weight other than the 20 lbs that came off initially. I know you must think that after losing 20 lbs I must not have that much left to loose, but I gained 46 lbs so I still have 26 more lbs to loose. I feel like it wasn't this hard the other 2 times, but I do have a very bad memory. I know he's only 2 months but I still weigh exactly what I did two weeks ago before I started running. It would help if I had one pair of normal (not maternity) pants that fit. Despite the fact that I currently have 5 different sizes in my closet I own almost no clothes that fit my current body. Now then, maybe by verbalizing my frustration I can move on so thanks for listening.

new pics

Just a few pics from recent days:

All my babies together:

Me and my babies, I love them!

"For those whom He foreknew he also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn amoung many brethern.." Romans 8:29. Let me first say I am not here to debate what this means. We can all agree that there is a group of people who Christ "predestined to become conformed to the image of His son", and I just want to thank Him for His predestination at work in my life. I'll start with our move back home from memphis to Clinton. When we first found out I was pregnant with our daughter Lucy it became very apparent we wouldn't be financially able to stay where we were, because I felt very strongly I should be at home with my child. Furthermore I just couldn't see raising my baby in the city ranking #2 in the nation for crime. So we decided to move back home. At the time I was just following my gut and I thought this move was about money and crime, but now I see the my gut feeling was really the Holy Spirit leading our family where He wanted us. This was not a time in my life that I was really seeking the Lord, but He lovingly gave me the answer I wasn' t even looking for. Once we were here we tried a few different churches and had pretty well decided we wanted to make the long drive to Conway each week to attend the more hip churches there, but God just wouldn't give us peace about it. And we felt led to return to the church we had both grown up at, even though it wasn't our first choice. Soon we found ourselves surrounded by a new group of friends and felt we were in true fellowship with other brothers and sisters. At one point the Holy Spirit broke my heart over my own hypocrisy and challenged me to be honest with myself. At that point I really began to grow and seek Him. And more recently there has been a bit of an unpleasant situation with our church, but the Lord had gone before it and placed people in our lives to help us continue to grow through it. I guess what I am trying to say is that looking back on the last few years I see just how many situations and people God has placed around me to set me up for success in Him. Now that's predestination in action. All glory goes to Him!!

Things are looking up.

Today I am feeling really positive. I feel a lot more accomplished than I did last week. As you can tell by the last blog I was pretty frazzled last week, but we had a great weekend and I feel like I actually got to rest. My inlaws were here and so that helped. My mother in law just wanted to hold Calvin alot so I got to spend some extra time snuggling with Jack which felt really good, since I feel like he's gotten the least amount of attention lately. He isn't really a needy guy, although he does love to snuggle, and I have missed that. Then on Saturday after they left I just was in one of those cleaning moods and cleaned the whole house which made for a much more pleasant sunday afternoon. I got to focus totally on getting a nap and didn't worry with trying to squeeze in time to clean. Most of the time on Sunday afternoons I feel like a highschooler or college student who has put off writing that big paper until the last minute and won't be turning in their best work on monday morning. So on Monday morning the house was still pretty clean which makes it a billion times easier to keep it clean throughout the week. I was so caught up I even let Bryan's granny take a break from doing the laundry and did it myself. Then on Monday evening me and Bryan met friends at the park and went running. I've been running on my tredmill but it was really nice to run outside. To top it off last night Calvin slept for 8 hours, that's the longest he's ever gone. There's nothing that can put a mom in a better mood faster than a baby sleeping through the night! Although I don't have any dillusions that he's there yet, it was just a ray of hope that shone ever so brightly on my day today! So things are looking up! Thank you Lord You heard my prayer and answered it!

I've been pretty stressed and irritable lately. I feel like I've taken that out on my oldest two kids. On the one hand I feel I need to play with them more, but it already seems like I can't keep up with bills and housework etc. And then there's the things I want to do which I think every mom needs a little of. I am still trying to find a balance in the way I spend my time. It's funny I've become so accustomed to being busy that even though I can't wait to have a minute to myself the moment I do have a free minute I never know what to do with it. I really need more patient and wisdom in the area of parenting. I want my kids to be secure in my love for them but I also want them to know that I'm busy and they aren't the only people on the planet. This is the prayer that's on my heart today. All you mom's join me:

God Jesus (Lucy's name for Him), I know I haven't been very patient with my kids lately and have felt very entitled to get some time to myself. Forgive me Lord, love me so I can love them, show me mercy and I will show them mercy, Be gracious to me and I will be gracious to them. I can not raise these wonderful blessings without You. I need Your wisdom and patience. Show me how to not to just give a peice of myself to them, but to in everything I do, do it wholeheartedly as unto You! Thank You so much for my babies!!

The Paint gods must be angry!

For the past week I've been taking every free minute I have to paint Calvin's room. I did one wall blue and the rest beige.I am really wanting to get him into his own room while he still doesn't know the difference. It took forever since I don't have a lot of free time. But I finally finished it on Thursday of last week. So that felt really good until catastrophe hit. On Friday I was feeding Calvin in our play room, and the kids had done really well that day entertaining themselves and playing together. So I thought they were playing in their room, while I was nursing Calvin. After I finished I went back to check on them. As I walked down the hall I could see that the baby gate blocking them from getting into Calvin's room was shoved halfway up the doorway. OH NO!!!! I pretty well knew what I would find. Lucy had the blue roller painting on the beige walls and Jack had the beige roller painting on the blue wall. I stood there and I was furious, so why was I laughing!! Lucy looked at me and grinned thinking if she looked cute enough I wouldn't spank her, it didn't work. I also spanked Jack and he got it good because I forgot he wasn't wearing his diaper, poor guy. Anyway they also painted on his dresser, closet door, and bedroom door! Luckily the brand new carpet was spared. So this afternoon while they nap (if they nap) I will be painting Calvin's room once again.

A few things to add to the list:

• Hollis' smile and fashion sense ( that is largely accredited to his mom)
• setting goals and acheiving them
• making lists, weird I know I get it from my dad we both like to make lists and it doesn't really matter what the list is of.
• playing outside with the kids
• thursday night lineup on NBC

Thanks again!

simple things

Here my list of simple pleasures:

• Calvin's stinky feet and the way he smiles when he knows its time to nurse
• When Lucy wipes Calvin's nose or takes care of me when I am sick
• Snuggling with Jack while he sucks his thumb and twirls his hair
• Bryan's quest for knowledge and truth
• Playing board games with family
• Sleeping next to Bryan every night, seriously I can't sleep without him there
• My house being clean
• Watching a movie by myself, so I can make as many comments as I want
• A good episode of Scrubs, which is pretty much every episode
• Any holiday
• Any vacation
• A good haircut
• Walks with my family when the weather is good
• Swimming and water slides
• When Lucy and Jack stumble upon a way to entertain themselves
• When Lucy and Jack "help" with housework
• When Bryan paints my toenails, even if it does look less than professional
• Eating out somewhere nice, aka not somewhere in Clinton
• A long exhausting trip to LR that makes me glad to be back home

Thanks for listening!

Home Boy

My first two cildren were born at a hospital like most American babies. Both experiances left me less than satisfied.So when I found out about baby #3 the first thing I did was find a good midwife so I could start planning a home birth. People are always interested to find out why I chose a home birth and what it was like. So here goes. At the hospital I always felt bullied "Let us induce you," "Let us drug you," "Don't get out of bed." It just seems to me no matter how hard a woman trys to have the birth experience she wants the hospital always has another plan. Don't get me wrong I think obgyns are great for woman who have legitimate need for intervention, but an average healthy woman can have a baby the all natural way. After having two kids the all american way I already felt this way but when my sister Heather had a totally unneccesary c-section I had seen enough and surrendered fully to the idea of a home birth.Plus home birth only cost us $2600 and I got to recover in the privacy and comfort of my own home. So on thursday Feb. 4th I started having little contractions in the middle of the day. Around 6 or 7 the contractions started getting stronger and by 8 they were very strong and one right after the other. My midwife and her assistant just waited around my house for me to ask for them which was perfect for me. My sweet husband was by my side the whole time encouraging me and remaining calm despite the fact that I was yelling and screaming "I can't do it". It was very much like those scenes in movies where the mother is sweating and hysterical. I know that doesn't sound very promising to mother's planning an all natural birth, but I wouldn't change a thing and I will definately do it again, the Lord willing. After it was all over I was so happy to be at home, with my precious son Calvin. When I finally felt ready to shower my husband, not a nurse, helped me shower and get dressed, and for the next couple of days he did his best to take care of everthing so I didn't have to. I will always look back on those few crazy days after his birth and remember what an amazing, patient, and caring husband I have. These days Calvin is doing wonderful and is healthy as can be. And I am thankful, I finally got a birth experience, that was not what I expected, but definately something I have no regrets about!

I want to dedicate this entry to my sister, Heather, I hope that next time around you get to have a safe all natural delivery, I believe in you. and to Amanda Geidl I hope you soon join me in being one of the only woman in Van Buren County to have a home birth.

My village

This is my first blog so bear with me. What is on my mind right now is how emensly blessed I am to have such an amazing family. I am pretty sure it was Hillary Clinton that said it takes a village to raise a child and while I am not a fan of Hills she was right about that. So I would like to introduce you to my village that supports me in the raising of my three children, Lucy, Jack and Calvin (Lujacal):
First my wonderful husband and father to my children, Bryan. He has been my best friend since highschool and we've been married for almost 5 years. He supports me in whatever desicion I make regarding the kids. He is convicted to work hard and always make sure I can be at home with our babies. I can not imagine being married to a man who didn't feel that way. He is goofy and playful, with them. He is so much better at teaching them new things than I am. He is the only person in the world who cares as much about the kids success as I do. I love him emensly!
Second my parents. I'll start with my mom, she is amazing. She is available whenever I need her. She never gives unasked for advice. And their is noone in the world that is more into my kids. She'll play whatever game they want and make a fool out of herself everytime. I can only hope when my children are grown that my relationship with them is as easy as mine is with my mama. Then there's my dad, the most honest, integritable guy I know. He always challenges me and Bryan to think for ourselves, after all noone else will be held responsible for the decisions we make.
Thirdly my inlaws. In recent years my relationship with them was somewhat strained, but since the birth of my third child, Calvin, I've come to realize how great they are. I see other couples whose families never come to them, but my inlaws, who don't live near, almost always come to us, and that means a lot to me. Furthermore noone is more giving to my kids than them. It's always "What do the kids need?". My kids will never go without so long as they're around.
Fourth my grandparents, the back up babysitters. On the few occasions my mom is not around they are always available to help. When my oldest, Lucy was sick a few weeks ago my grandparents came over to help. My sweet Papa sat next to my little Lucy all day, he didn't bug her or ask a billion questions he just kept her company. Meanwhile my Nanny entertained Jack and took care of all those little things only woman know need done. I even got a nap that day.
Fifth my sister Heather and brother inlaws, Dane and Tylor. My sweet sister so understands my daughter Lucy, they find it easy to get along. And she so much like my mom always finds special little things to do with them. And my kids are also blessed with two of the best uncles ever.
The last person I want to mention is Bryan's grandmother, who to all of us is just known as Granny. Right after Calvin was born she volunteered to come over every monday, free of charge, and do my laundry. And as every mother knows laundry is the worst of all the housework and is never ending, Mondays used to suck. Now Mondays have become my weekend. I can just spend all day playing with my kids while Granny takes care of all my laundry. And the kids love having her there and listening to her tell stories. I am very found of that woman.

So that's my village and I am so very thankful for each and everyone of them, I hope you all are as blessed as me.