Hello, NaBloPoMo. Nice to meet you.

I am about to embark on a journey called NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month). When you join you are saying that you will post everyday for a whole month. That's it.

I've wanted to join the last couple years, but haven't been able to commit. I knew I'd be busy with my family. Well, guess what. I'm still busy with my family. But, I'm excited to post everyday during the month of November. I'm excited about posting and I'm excited about November. Perfect combo!

During November history will be marked. We will have a new President. Issues in California will be voted on and decided. I'm so excited about the elections! I'll turn 26. We'll celebrate Thanksgiving with Silas for the first time. So much more will happen this month and you'll get to read about it. Every. Single. Day. ha!

Just Purchased!

I'm so excited about my new coat! I've been searching and searching and searching and this one was 25% off (on top of the additional discount) today only and I had a $20 card. Yay! I can't wait to get it in the mail!

Weekend Recap

This weekend was a very busy weekend, with lots going on and lots to blog about. But, instead of plowing through it, I did nothing. I do that sometimes. But, sometimes will not be next month when I do nablopomo. Care to join me?

Here are the highlights (and lowlights) of what's been going on.


Judah's pirate party was a huge success! (Other than my mom hurting herself, see below) Judah had so much fun and said he wants to have a pirate party every year.


My sweet, happy four year old!


With Elliana


Captain Samuel


Pirate Baby


Friends


My mom broke her ankle (leg)!! She was chasing Samuel around the tree and Judah's birthday and tripped and smashed her ankle. She is having surgery on it on Thursday. My poor mom! Pray for a quick and easy recovery and healing!


Silas turned 6 months old on the 25th!! Yesterday I took all 3 boys in to get a flu shot. Silas, also, had his 6 month well baby checkup and shots. Unfortunately, he has a bit of a rough time after he gets them. He didn't sleep well last night and had a fever. He seems to be back to his happy, healthy self, though!

Living for Change

Naturally I do not like change. When a new idea is presented to me I like to think about it and think about it and think about it. Then, when I hear God speak to me in a voice like thunder from heaven I'll actually make the change. Ok, just kidding about the voice from heaven. But, I do think and think and think and expect "confirmation."

I married someone who deals with change quickly and easily. Eric isn't impulsive, but he does make a decision and a change in a short time. Way too short for me. I was listening to Joyce Meyer the other night and she said her and her husband are the same way. Except, she's quick and he's slow. While this is a strength in their marriage now (like it is in mine) it wasn't so at first. He'd tell her, "You're always 5 steps in front of God." And, she'd reply with, "And you're a mile behind him." So funny!

When you think of world changers, people who do great things, who get noticed, they're not people who always stay the same. They're people who are willing to change. They're people willing to CREATE change. For me, not wanting to change was a fear of the unknown. What if this doesn't work out, what if we can't afford it, what if people don't like it.... If nothing is ever changing in your life, you'll never go anywhere. If you're afraid of what might happen you stay stagnant.

It's true that God never changes. He always stays the same. But, He is continually revealing more and more of Himself to us. He does new things. God is innovative. He's not boring. He's exciting. Living in relationship with Him is fun. "His mercies are new every morning." I'm making the decision to always change and grow. To break out of my comfort zone. To be radical. To not be ok with just staying the same.

In fact, Brooke and I are going to tomorrow!

Dear Judah,

Four years ago, at this moment, I was holding your little body. Nursing you, cuddling with you, all 7lbs, 11oz of you. I remember the day so clearly. Not knowing if it was the day, but hoping that it would be. I had no idea who you were, even if you were a boy or a girl, but I couldn't not wait to meet you. I had imagined myself crying when you were born, like I did during each episode of A Baby Story, but when it actually happened I was too in shock. I was overwhelmed with excitement and love for you, my little man, my Judah Paul.



Judah, I love you so much. Words can't express how much I love you and how much you mean to me. Some days I feel bad for not spending enough one-on-one time with you or feeling frustrated because I expect too much from you. You're my firstborn, the oldest brother, but you're still a little boy. I want you to know that my heart is to never create an emotional wound in you. I look at the life that we (with God) have created for you and I'm so thankful. I'm so thankful for your Papa who loves God and is an example of a man of God for you. Who works hard to provide for all of our needs and to allow me to stay home for you. I love this life that you're living. To be a little boy, to be innocent, to be protected, to be creative, and imaginative, and to have everything you want and more. But, more so, that God chose you to give to us. That you will always know the love of your Father God.



Judah means "praise" and it truly is prophetic. Your heart beats with worship to God. You love instruments and singing and dancing. Every Sunday you've been having so much fun helping the guys put away all of the sound equipment. You help them roll up the cords and carry the equipment to the back. They said that you really are helping them! Your life will always be worship to Him. Paul is after Papa and after the apostle Paul. The greatest man in the Bible, after Jesus. Paul was used by God in amazing, miraculous, world changing ways, just like you, my Judah Paul.



You make me laugh over and over again everyday. Right now you do this hilarious, deep voice. On the phone with Nana, you said, "Today is my birthday, I'm four." But, sounding like a man with a deep, deep voice. One day I was being silly and singing a song starting all the words with "B": "Bo, Bu, Bana, Bo, Bon't, Bou, Bry Bo Be" (Oh, Susanna...). Now you do it all the time. Singings songs starting with one letter. It's so funny! Although, I did have to remind you that it's not appropriate for Sunday School. I'm not sure if the Sunday School teachers would find it as hilarious as me.



I could go on and on and on about how amazing you are and how much I love you. I love that you remind me of me. I love that you help me with your brothers- taking their shoes off or throwing things away, I love that you're confident, I love that you're silly, I love your sensitive heart, I love that you're so darn cute, I love how incredibly intelligent you are, I love everything about you, Judah. From the top of your head to the bottom of your toes. You are perfect for our family. You are fearfully and wonderfully made by God.



I love you so much, sweet boy. May this year be even more amazing!
Love, Mama

On getting old

The other day I went out to lunch with two of my friends, Brooke and Melissa. (Kona's for all you Chico people). As we were eating our lunch a plethora of people wearing blue came in. Blue faces, blue t-shirts, etc.. I knew exactly what this was about, being a local girl. After several minutes two girls, wearing red shirts, walked into the restaurant full of blue-shirted kids (and us, of course). As soon as the girls walked in the blue people started booing and then chanting "vikings! vikings! vikings!" It took me right back to high school! Friday night was the "Almond Bowl," which is the football game between the two rival high schools of our city.

As they were yelling Melissa said, "You should get on the table and yell, 'Chico!" It made me think of just how old we probably seemed to all of these 15 and 16 year olds. I'm only 25, I feel young, but to a high school kid I'm probably old! I'm a mom with three kids. As Brooke mentioned, our 10 year high school reunions are coming up! It's so funny to think of how age is so relative. In high school I felt so mature and grown up. Now I look at them and they are YOUNG! When I first got married and joined the young married group at church I thought the ladies with kids, who scrapbooked and stuff, were so boring.

Oh, how times change! My friends and I are all doing very grown-up things. It's grown up to get date seriously, get married, have babies. Some of my friends from high school are even done having kids. But, I still feel the same! Will I ever feel "grown-up"?

Fun Pictures, Serious Question

Here are a few picture from the pumpkin patch. We're going again on Tuesday, so I'll try to take some better pictures.


This is my best attempt at a picture of al three boys. We have hardly any. I have a goal to get a good one!


A family picture on the hayride

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I'm watching the third presidential debate on youtube right now. Interesting! Whenever I think of the upcoming elections my heart beats a little faster. I'm anxious to find out the results of the election and how they will effect the country and the world.

I have a questions for all of you: How is the economy affecting you?

Prayer works!

Last night was a great night! Silas slept so well. He did wake up to eat, but it only took him a few minutes and he was right back to sleep. No screaming or long amounts of time awake. Yay!

Judah and Samuel are doing great at sharing a room! Judah is usually asleep before Samuel. You can hear Samuel singing and talking through the door, but it doesn't bother Judah. In the morning Judah is the first to wake up. He quietly comes into my room and lets Samuel keep sleeping. Their such great brothers. Best brothers! I love my boys and I'm so proud of each one of them.

Ramblings of a tired mama

Well, I've already started a blog post about our trip to the pumpkin patch, but I don't feel like uploading the pictures right now. So, that will have to wait. (By the way, Jenna, if you still want to go the boys totally want to go again! Is it rude to write personal notes to people on my blog? If it is, pardon me, I'm really tired.)

Why am I tired, you ask? Well, let me tell you. Silas has not been sleeping good. He's only occasionally slept through the night, but I didn't really mind when he woke up. He'd eat really quick and go back to sleep. Not the last several nights. He's woken up several times (at least 3) and been up for a lllloooonnng time (over an hour) and screams and will not go back to sleep. Finally I give up and give him to Eric and he puts him back to sleep. This has left me wondering why. Does he have an ear infection? Was it something I ate? Homemade chili? Pumpkin pie? (I ate that meal for dinner twice in a row). Is he lonely is his new room? Tonight he stayed up later because of cell group and seems to be sleeping well so far. I prayed for him and am believing in faith tonight will be a great night of sleep. Can I get an amen?

You can probably tell from my silly/ridiculous writing that I'm tired. Sorry for the lame jokes. Want to know something funny? Eric usually goes to bed before me, so I can stay up and blog/read blogs/pray/read my Bible/read books/generally just have some quiet, alone time. When I get into bed he's super affectionate. He says "I love you soooo much!" and calls me "honey buns" and "sweetie" and hugs me and kisses me. And then, when I ask him about it in the morning, he has no idea what I'm talking about. All of it is in his sleep. Sometimes I can't stop laughing because I know he won't remember any of it in the morning.

Well, since Silas is going to have an amazing night of sleep tonight I guess I should get to bed and take advantage of it. Oh yeah, one more thing. I ordered Judah's (and Samuel's, because if one has something, the other has to have it, too) birthday present tonight. I can't believe my precious baby boy will be 4 a week from today. (You'll be hearing a lot more about that, though). Goodnight!

Glue - The Third Time!

On Thursday Samuel got a cut near his eye. Thankfully, we've been through this twice before with Judah, so we knew to ask them to glue it instead of stich it.



Samuel did so good! The worst part was the two hour wait at prompt care (for a two minute procedure).

Here we are in the "laceration room." I told Eric a lot worse stuff had probably happened in that room. Samuel didn't want to take the picture and Eric was playing brickbreaker on his cell phone.



Black eye on Saturday

Recent Purchases

Long "boyfriend" sweaters are my favorite thing this season! They are so comfortable and stylish. This one is from, my favorite place, Target.


This skirt is super cute! It's a stretchy material with satin in the middle. It's from the Jonathan Saunders for GO International line at Target. (Target hires high end designers to design clothes at Target prices for them. The only way people like me buy designer clothes. haha)

Judah and Samuel are sharing a room now! And, Silas has his own room. I'm trying my best to decorate and organize our house. I won this on ebay. It won't let me copy the picture.


This is my favorite purchase! I've been wanting a necklace with my boys' names for several years. I LOVE this one from The Vintage Pearl. And, mine is even cuter with my boys' names!

C is for Cookie

This is a fun little meme where you have to write 10 things about yourself using a certain letter. Shannon gave me the letter C. (Although, she considered giving me x or y...haha. She's hilarious!) If you want to play, leave me a comment and I'll assign you a letter.

1. "C is for Cookie, that's good enough for me" - (That's a quote from cookie monster. The kids love singing along when they play the Sesame Street games on the computer). But, also, I LOVE cookies! Chocolate chip are my favorites and my favorite place to buy them is Upper Crust. I don't limit my sweet intake to just cookies, though. I also love ice cream, chocolate, frozen yogurt. I love mint chip ice cream/chocolate cake from Baskin Robbins! My kids ask for "treats" after every meal. Don't worry...I don't give them to them!

2. Christian- If you've read my blog for any amount of time, this one is pretty obvious. I love Jesus! I prayed the prayer when I was 4 (as in, "asking Jesus into my heart"), but I think I was really born again, understanding what it meant, the summer before 9th grade. Everything I do and say comes out of loving Jesus. I'm not one of those people that just goes to church on Sunday, but I live my life according the Bible. The greatest commandment that God gave was to love God and to love people. That's what I do every day!

3. Cardio- I, actually, really enjoy working out. My workouts consist mostly of cardio: walks in the park, jogging/walking on the treadmill, the elliptical, and various classes. Although, I do add in weights to increase my metabolism. I love going to the gym with other people (Brooke!) and walking in the park with all of my favorite girls.

4. California- I was born, raised, and still live in the best city in the world in Northern California. That's a post all of it's own!

5. Cooking- I don't love cooking, but I do like it. It's fun for me to find a recipe and make it for my family. I'm very particular about my meals and must have a main course, veggie side, starch/carb side, and usually a salad. I don't know where I got this. My hubby is happy just eating a big bowl of pasta and he compliments me on whatever I make. Even if it's just something heated up. He's not picky at all. Although, I'd rather go out to eat every time!

6. Clothes- You've probably noticed from some of my previous posts that I love clothes and I love shopping. Shopping for clothes (not including baby clothes!) when you're pregnant is just not as much fun. So, the more weight I lose, the more new clothes I need.

7. College- I only went to college for two years. I always had these big dreams to go to grad school and maybe even get my phd. I think I just thought that that's what "society" expected of me. I never really liked school and I'm so much happier being a stay at home mom. I know, one day, my kids won't be so little anymore, so I'll cherish these precious moments I have at home with them. (And, I'll look back at this paragraph when I'm exhausted and frustrated with them! :)

8. Counselor- I wanted to get my phd to be a psychologist. I've always connected really easily with people and wanted to be a counselor. Then, I went to counseling and saw that it wasn't very effective. Now, as a leader at my church, I get to counsel people everyday. I don't only counsel them, but pray with them, and minister to them, and see their hearts healed and lives changed. The Holy Spirit is THE counselor, but I love working with Him!
I was, also, a counselor/secretary at a crisis pregnancy center before Judah was born. I loved that job and it prepared me even more for ministering now.

9. Coffee- ok, not so much coffee, but mochas! I love mochas and other sweet, speciality drinks from coffee shops. I love hanging out at coffee shops, too. It's so fun to chat with Eric or friends, read my Bible or a book or magazine and sip my mocha. We, also, buy mocha mix from Costco, so we can make them at home. It either saves us a lot of money or we drink a lot more mochas. I think drinking those everyday is really slowing down the weight loss...

10. Compassionate- I praise God for everything that I've gone through, because I know He's used it to give me a heart and a love for people. It's so easy for me to put myself in other people's shoes and have compassion for them. Until recently, I've always thought that this was just something everyone did. But, I've discovered that this is a gift that God has given me.

A Few of My Favorite Blogs

Pioneer Woman Photography: Everyone loves Ree (aka the Pioneer Woman) and her blog about life on a cattle ranch. But, after deciding how to use Photoshop I've rediscovered her photography blog. Her simple instructions have helped me so much!

Matt, Liz, and Madeline: This blog is about the daily life of Matt, a widower and dad to Madeline. Matt's wife, Liz, passed away the day after Madeline was born. She is only a month older than Silas. Matt seriously is superdad!

McCain Blogette: This blog belongs to Meghan McCain, John McCain's daughter. It's so fun to see behind the scenes of the presidential campaigning. (Plus, she's super cute and stylish!)

My Super Sweet Fashion Diary: Speaking of stylish.... Some fashion blogs tend to be a little out there. I love this one because she shops at Target and Forever 21 and posts pictures of her outfits each day.

What is your favorite blog right now?

Love/Hate

Hate: Eric is at the Home and Garden Show all day today and all day tomorrow.
Love: We're believing for lots of new pool accounts!
Love: It didn't rain today, except for a few sprinkles in the morning before the show. Thank you, Lord!
Hate: I'm taking the kids to church by myself again tomorrow.
Love: Went well last time. I'm sure it will this time, too.
Love: My mom helped me with the kids this afternoon.
Love: We went to lunch at La Hacienda not knowing that it was their 60th anniversary. We had $3 tostadas and 30 cent sodas.
Love: She got Judah to fall asleep, which meant all 3 boys were napping at the same time. yay!
Hate: Eric isn't in a very good mood...or maybe it's me?
Love: Had a birthday dinner for our brother in law, Dave, at my in laws. Had my very favorite cake: mint chip ice cream/chocolate cake. Yum!
Hate: I'm tired and I won't have time to rest any time soon. 12 straight days without relief from Eric. Good think I LOVE my boys!
Love: I don't think these 3 boys could be any easier to take care of. Judah & Samuel are so sweet together and play so well!
Hate: I have to have my house completely cleaned up by Monday morning. It's a disaster!
Love: I have to have it cleaned because our housecleaner is coming! :)